A Publication of
CenterFire Central
The Firearms MagEzine
is no longer published
________________________________________________________________
Vol. 3 Issue
Circulation 1350
________________________________________________________________
IN THIS ISSUE
A Word of Caution
Editors Notes
Product Review
Feature Article
Resources
Other resources for
related information
_______________________________________________________________
A WORD OF CAUTION
CenterFire Central
and contributing writers are not responsible for mishaps of any kind, which may
occur, from use or misuse of data or information published, electronically or
otherwise by CenterFire Central. Activities involving firearms, ammunition,
components and equipment require strict safety precautions and training which
are not detailed herein.
________________________________________________________________
Editors Notes
Field Notes
A
coyote hunting trip to remember
Late
in February is usually a good time for coyotes unless the weather feels more
like late
March. As was the case on a recent trip I made.
Not
feeling very positive about it, I went anyway. The temperature was in the mid
thirties
and
the breeze was mild. The forecast was for temps to reach upper 40’s. The entire
week
had
been mild and the coyotes surely would not be hungry.
In
route to a sheep farm that I frequent, I stopped and made a single stand on a 40
acre
clover field with a brushy draw through the middle of it and some brush at
the north edge.
I
sneaked away from my pickup toward the draw. Hoping to spot a tree that would
conceal me in the shadows, I found a suitable place on the far side of the
draw where I
could watch the rest of the field to the north. I sat quietly for a couple
of minutes and then
dug
out the raccoon urine, sprayed a little on a nearby branch and reached for my
call.
Glancing
one last time around the field in front of me, I spotted 2 nice fat does
running
across the northwest corner of the field. Of course being the avid coyote
hunter that I am,
I
was certain that it was probably a pair of coyotes that spooked the deer.
My
pulse quickened a little and I puffed some low volume squeals through the call.
A
few
more low volume squeals and then I raised the volume a little. Seven or eight
minutes had passed and I had spotted nothing.
Finally
got a few crows to respond to me and they proceeded to light in the trees just over
my
left shoulder. Impossible for me to turn that far without making noise, I just
kept
pretending to be a rabbit with a major problem. Crows are one of the few
creatures that
know how far you can look up and how far you can rotate your shoulders.
I
have had a few coyotes pretend that they know my limits of rotation, but they
thought
wrong. Maybe it is the value I place on the target that limbers me up. Never
can seem to
get
turned for a crow. Anyway, these few crows got away unscathed.
Never got a glimpse of a coyote at that stand so I headed back to the
truck.
The
sheep farm was only another quarter mile east on the gravel road so I backed
out
from behind some big hay bales where I had hidden it and headed east.
The
breeze was picking up as I exited the truck and headed south. My hopes were
fading
quickly, I hate hunting in a strong breeze. I kept a low profile and trod on
to the south.
The
farther I got from the truck, the stronger the wind got. You know those kinda days.
The
piece of ground I was now on was about 160 acres. The sheep were kept at the
north
end
of the property during the winter months, closer to the farmhouse. So I pretty
much
had
the south half to myself. Three or four brushy draws and some more big hay bales.
The
property to the east held a little more timber, and earlier scouting had
indicated some
travel east and west, to and from the timber.
My
intention was to hit the biggest draw and head east along the edge of it. I
planned to
make a stand where I could watch part of the east fence. By now the wind
was hurricane
force as I neared a quarter mile from the truck.
Feeling
beaten before I started, I swung northeast and hit a smaller draw where I could
see
the fence. Found another big old tree to hide by and sat down.
Again,
spraying a little raccoon urine on a branch or two, I pulled the call from my
pocket.
Like
I always do, I squealed a few squeals at low volume, just in case a coyote is
nearby.
Immediately,
I heard movement to my left. I turned slowly to see a big fat raccoon
coming down the side of an old hollow tree about 40 feet away. Coincidence? Maybe;
he
was
not looking my direction.
I
kept the volume low, and squealed a few more times. The raccoon hit the bottom
of the
tree and headed my way. I was keeping one eye on him and the other on
lookout for Mr.
Coyote.
When
the raccoon didn’t change direction, I had no option but to keep both eyes on
him.
Surely
he would stop soon and look my way. As I expected, he put on the brakes and
looked right at me. Then he looked around for the easiest path to me and took
it.
Ok,
he’ll stop anytime now, right? Nope, not
that yo-yo. I puffed another small squeal
into the call and he was at my feet.
Now
here I am, sitting flat on the ground with my feet out in front of me, my rifle
across
my
lap and a raccoon that thinks I am a snack, standing at my feet.
He
paused here briefly, looked at my face, of course he knew the noise was not
coming
from ground level, he would have to climb. As he raised up to get on my
boot, I gently
kicked him in the chin.
Those
little suckers are fast. He covered the distance back to the tree in under 2 seconds,
but
he did not stop there. I saw him cross the next ridge north at full gallop.
Yes
siree, that coon urine as a cover scent sure does
work. If he had got onto my boot,
he’d have smelled a different urine.
Now
don’t get me wrong, they are an interesting animal. Not bad eating and a
beautiful
pelt on a stretcher. But season was closed, and I did not want a live coon
climbing me
like a tree. I figured I best call it a morning and let the wind have its
way.
Stopped
and visited with the landowner a few minutes told him about his psycho raccoon.
Of
course he got a chuckle out of that. He informed me that the coyotes had taken
a ewe a
couple weeks back. He went on to say, that about day break every day,
“there’s one
comes across that ridge to the north and down along here east of the house.”
“If you want
to
try sitting over cross the road on that piece of ground, and catch him coming
through,
help yourself, next time you’re up.”
I
had been watching that chunk of ground for a couple of years. Aware that he
owned it
but
he had not offered to let me hunt on it. The man has been overly kind to me and
I did
not
want to put him on the spot by asking about it.
Was
the morning a success?
Sure
it was. How many people do you know who get to kick a live raccoon and gain
access to another couple hundred acres of coyote ground all in the same
day? Sometimes
you
can succeed and not have to skin anything.
As
for the raccoon urine as a cover scent, the verdict is still out. I have read
that it works
on
coyotes.
________________________________________________________________
A
Handbook
Sinclair
International’s Precision Reloading & Shooting Handbook – 10th
Edition
By
A
friend of mine sent me this book, said it was from Santa. Thanks George!
What
a wealth of information. Though there are many “Reloading Manuals” and books
out there, none may be more in-depth on accurate reloading.
This
book covers topics like neck turning, inside neck reaming, measuring techniques,
brass sorting and much more.
There
are 2 chapters on shooting that include required equipment, technique and an
introduction to Bench-rest competition.
I
like the way it is written because it goes a little farther than just saying
“do it this way” or “don’t do this.”
They take the time to explain why and why not.
The
book has 167 pages with plenty of pictures and diagrams to further explain the
art of crafting precision ammunition.
For
under $15, it is a lot of book. http://www.sinclairintl.com
BE SURE TO STOP BY
www.usashootingsupplies.com
Guns
& Ammo (213) 854-2222
April
2000 issue has a great article with a 7 step reloading guide, by Wiley Clapp. Should be available at a newsstand near you.
______________________________________________________________________________________
Case Lubrication
A Measure of Consistency
In the premier issue of this Ezine, May 1998, I reviewed the RCBS Rockchucker Kit, which includes a case lube pad. In the July 1999 issue I reviewed the RCBS Precision Mic.
I
enjoy using both of these items, however, recently I
used them in combination and got some surprising results.
In
full length resizing, we all know the role that case lube plays, right? It
keeps your cases from sticking in the die and therefore controls blood
pressure.
On
bottleneck cases, the die, if adjusted according to manufacturer directions,
will “move the shoulder back.” This die setting is intended to put your brass
to within SAAMI specs so that it chambers easily and maintains an acceptable
amount of headspace for the average rifle.
Ideally,
if intended for a single rifle, the shoulder should only be moved a couple of
thousandths and that’s it. This saves wear and tear on cases and improves
accuracy. This can be accomplished by adjusting the die upwards half a turn or
so and sizing a case. Chamber the resized case and you should notice that it
takes some pressure to close the bolt. Simply adjust the die down in small
increments until this bolt pressure is eliminated. At this point, if you turned
the die in with small increments, you have just “bumped” the shoulder. Remember
we are only looking for a couple of thousandths here.
Using
the Precision Mic in combination with the lube pad
showed me that the amount of lubrication used can easily rob you of the
precious “2 thousandths” tolerances that you are working to achieve.
It
was simple to prove. I took two, once fired cases that measured exactly the
same, base to datum line, according to the Precision Mic.
Rolled
the first case across the lube pad only one direction and only crossed the pad
once.
Then
sized the case and came up with a measurement that read “0” on the mic.
Rolled
the second case across the lube pad one direction and then rolled it back to
where I started from. Then I sized the case and came up with a measurement that
read
“-.002”, which of course is 2 thousandths shorter, base to datum line,
than the first case.
I
repeated this test several times to prove it to myself. I’m hard headed, sorry.
Making
the 2 original cases identical again was simple. Roll the first one across the
lube pad twice and size it again. It worked, the 2 cases matched again.
OK,
so no problem, roll each case exactly the same. Great idea, until the pad runs low on lube or you apply a little
more pressure on a particular handful of cases.
I
sized 100 cases, carefully rolling a few at a time, all the same amount of
roll.
Measuring
every fourth or fifth case, I could tell when the pad started running low. At
around 70 cases, I had to roll the cases harder and more trips across the pad
to maintain a consistent measurement. Some cases even made a second trip
through the die after measuring and then rolling them across the pad again,
just to keep them all at the same measurement.
For
years, I applied case lube with my finger tips. Slow and messy yes, but I had
few stuck cases. Neither did I have a Precision Mic.
Who knows, the extreme spread might have been .004 or more.
A
couple of years ago, I tried a can of Hornady “One
Shot” spray lube and was disappointed in the results. I was not using a
Precision Mic at the time so I am not sure about
consistency but I stuck a few cases and that turned me off. Looking back now
though, I am confident it was operator error. It has to be applied correctly
and in the right dose.
I
purchased a bottle of RCBS “Case Slick” spray while working on this article.
Following the directions closely, I was able to obtain very consistent
measurements. I felt I had better control with the RCBS product because it is a
pump bottle instead of aerosol though it does seem a little stickier to clean
up than One Shot.
I
know that over the years, because of “the little things”, my groups have shrunk
tremendously, even in calibers that are not notorious for accuracy,
If
I had no Precision Mic, or other means of checking
“base to datum line” measurements, I would simply do my best to lube each case
as nearly the same as possible, regardless of the lube that I use. Further, the
case that you initially use to adjust the die should be wiped off and re-lubed
between die adjustments. This will help insure that you use the same pattern of
lubing when you’re set to go with a batch of cases.
To
recap:
1. Adjust die to nearly touch
the shell holder
2. Back die out
3. I square the die in the
press by placing steel stock (even a second shell holder flipped upside down
(Lee Autoprime shell holders work great)) between the
shell holder and die and apply pressure to the press handle while tightening
the lock nut. Yes- each time.
4. Lube case and size
5. Wipe case off and chamber
the empty case
6. If force is required to
close the bolt, turn the die in slightly
7. Repeat steps 3 through 6
8. When force is no longer
required, lubricate a batch of empties using care to insure consistency, and
get started
________________________________________________________________
OTHER RESOURCES
Sites You Can Check Out
Huntseek
The American Outdoors Club
Copyright 2000 by
CenterFire Central
All Rights Reserved