Birthday fun at the range

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Took a few days off to make a long weekend around my birthday, and decided to take advantage with some range time.
As part of my New Years resolutions and my "year of turning 40", I've decided to make a concerted effort to actually participating in some shooting matches this year, both postal and live-match.

To that end, I'd better get busy making sure I have everything sighted in as best that I can...

Friday I started off with the lever-actions. My Henry Frontier and the newly inherited Marlin 39TDS, both .22 cals

For $3/hr you can't beat the local staffed Missouri Dept of Conservation range about 40 minutes drive from my house.. drawback - only targets that fit on the holders and only hung the way they say.. but good enough to get things dialed in.

The setup:
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As you can see, nothing fancy. Basic bench and I just use the provided chewed-up plastic forestock rest. No bags or machine rests or anything for me.

I first worked on the Marlin, which was a total pain in the ass. The NIB guns action is so tight it's like working a Daisy spring-loaded BB gun on steroids. I also had constant ejection problems, even though I was trying to be very good about working the lever smartly. A lot of the times the cases would really get hung up in there, and I'd have to shake and bat the the rifle to dump it clear. Over and Over.
I got at least 100 or so down the tube so far, and still hasn't loosened up a bit.

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This is where it was shooting out of the box. Hoping I can get away with just some elevation adjustments..
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Yep, lookin' good:
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After that I pushed out to 50 yards, about as far as I can see these targets on open buckhorns sights.. Aim for the vague blur...

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Not too shabby for my skills and eyesight!


Next I moved on to the Henry Frontier, which has been a treat from the get-go. Slick and easy right out of the box. Mostly enjoyed by my wife, for whom I fitted the cheapest Tasco scope money can buy.

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Nothin to do here but twist a screwdriver a few clicks, test, repeat:
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At 50 yards the elev. and windage appear to be holding up well:
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I wanted to go out further with the scope, but it was 38 degrees and I'd been out for about 2 hrs already. Even though it was a Friday early afternoon, the range was filling up. Besides, so far all the postal matches I've found that I'd like to try out have been 50yds max anyway..

I'd also like to go back and repeat these tests with some good match ammo. The bulk Federal seems to fly around a bit.
Or maybe I'm just not that good either eh? :?

Went back today (Saturday) with the Winchester and Savage, but no pics yet.
More to come!

Full size pics here:
https://picasaweb.google.com/1083895338 ... directlink
Brian in StL

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Re: Birthday fun at the range

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Very cool, far better than getting disappointed at Cabela's!

I've always been a bit apprehensive to go to Jay Henges, I tend to do a lot of self-defense practice and they frown on human shaped targets and rapid firing.
In a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich the chicken and cow are involved while the pig is committed.

Re: Birthday fun at the range

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Fukshot wrote:Happy birthday indeed!

Is the Marlin new production? You said inherited, so I assumed older gun until you described the issues. Send it back for some work if you can. They've had some lemons lately.
The Marlin was a still New-in-box 1989 produced 39TDS. Not sure I could send it back anywhere at this point :(

I'm not in love with it. It may wind up sold/traded for something else... GSG .22 1911 perhaps? hmmm...
Brian in StL

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Re: Birthday fun at the range

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ErikO wrote:I've always been a bit apprehensive to go to Jay Henges, I tend to do a lot of self-defense practice and they frown on human shaped targets and rapid firing.
Yep, 3 seconds between shots and you can't post any target hardly any bigger than a piece of legal-sized paper.

I can't even use the NRA A23/5 targets I need to use for the Rimfirecentral.com matches! :confused:
Brian in StL

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Birthday fun at the range - Part 2!

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So on Saturday I went back to the MDC range to work on my father-in-laws Winchester bolt action .22, and also see what the Stevens 89A I picked up for $80 earlier in the year can do..

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The Winchester 69A was my father in laws gun which he bought as a young boy. When he passed away, we found it stashed in an attic crawlspace. I was dry but showing it's age, and also had a broken front sight.
For 2 years I've been trying to get this damned thing to shoot straight. I replaced the front sight but I still could not get the windage correct for the life of me. I've been round and round with this damned thing so much that I almost gave up on it.

Finally, at a gun show a few months back I ran into a collector with a table full of early Winchester .22's such as this one. I told him my story, and his suggestion was basically to remove the front sight, find my barrel centerline, and re-install to that line and leave it there. Then make ALL my adjustments from the rear sight only.

I had quite a scare when I went to get this gun out though... we haven't had it out in probably almost a year. The last one to use it was the wife, and I just never really thought to check on it. Well, when I dug it out of the locker, it appears that she had left it in the padded carry-case and the end of the barrel was COVERED in big fluffy rust, some of which went down the muzzle bore at the end!! WTF!?!? aw crap man. :no:
Well, I went to work at it with some steel wool and Hoppe's and it cleaned up OK, but that blueing is just GONE on the end. I'll have to be extra-careful from now on to oil the hell out of it before any long-term storage... and teach the wife why we don't leave things in the cases!

I did this, and then headed to the range with my brass drifts and hammer..

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Already we're closer than ever.. but as I was fine-tuning I took a too hard blow to the sight and knocked the G-D thing out COMPLETELY!! argghh!!!!! :angry: Had to start from scratch all over again :crazy:

Fortunately it didn't take very much to get it back to where I started, and things were looking good:

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Of course right when I would be getting on a role, you'd here that CEASE FIRE! Shooters on the line, unload all weapons!
dangit!!!

Finally, I triumphed over the evil Winchester:
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(I'll tell more about this target in a bit)


I moved on to the Stevens, which I had only used once and could not sight in because I wasn't even hitting paper at the 50yd range I had access too at the time..

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This is a Stevens 89A, not the earliest but still probably pre-war. It works either as single-shot or as semi-auto with LR rounds. The action is pretty weird.. the bolt stays OPEN until you release the trigger then it springs forward and loads the next round.

As I fumbled around in the cold at the range, I learned the hard way that you MUST remember to release the bolt and have it in the closed position BEFORE you load any rounds into the tube. If you don't not only will the 1st round jam up the lift mechanism, but also a few rounds can actually sneak past it, through the back of the tube and jam up the trigger inside the stock!

I did this several times, and had to unscrew and remove the stock every time to clear the gun. :blink: whoops.

Once the learning curve was over, this baby was a treat! Only had to make some elevation adjustments and we were in like flynn

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This is the previously posted target.. Winchester on the Left and top middle. I accidentally re-shot the top middle with the Stevens but the large Right target is all Stevens

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I was having a *really* hard time seeing the targets by this point so I wrapped it up. Had been out in the 33-degree air for 2 hours by this time.

Only one more rim-fire left to sight in, and that's the Enfield .22 trainer I got! But that needs a COMPLETE tear-down and soaking. Maybe today since I'm off work eh?

I hope to participate in some matches this year, but first I suppose I will have to find a nearby range that I can actually post the targets at. :roll:


EDIT: PS - this thread is also a solicitation for critique of my marksmanship skills. I have no idea if I'm good, bad, average for the hardware & conditions, etc. If you have any remarks, I'm seeking to learn.
I will say that there is *something* about the rear sight of that Winchester which makes it somehow harder than the other guns.. I don't know if it's the distance from my eye to the bridge or what, but on that gun more so than any other I just have a very hard time distinguishing the outline of the "U" .. which seems wider than the rear site of my other Irons... I think it's playing a large part in the difficulty of getting the windage on with that one..
Brian in StL

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Re: Birthday fun at the range

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stl303 wrote:
ErikO wrote:I've always been a bit apprehensive to go to Jay Henges, I tend to do a lot of self-defense practice and they frown on human shaped targets and rapid firing.
Yep, 3 seconds between shots and you can't post any target hardly any bigger than a piece of legal-sized paper.

I can't even use the NRA A23/5 targets I need to use for the Rimfirecentral.com matches! :confused:
Once I get my MN I hope to get yelled at for breaking the 3 second rule. Much like a speed cyclist proudly displays their first speeding ticket from the highway patrol. ;)
In a bacon, egg and cheese sandwich the chicken and cow are involved while the pig is committed.

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