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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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Stability and Accuracy

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AR/AK Pistol Cheekrest Kits Our Pistol Cheek Rest Kits are a Hybrid design combining our Standard or Enhanced Buffer Tube Covers and the Command Arms SST1 or the Mission First Tactical Evolv Stock Saddle. The two are joined together using a specially designed adapter and mounting hardware. The result is a rock solid, ergonomic, cheek weld that provides stability for accurate, repeatable, shooting and a proper sight line for your favorite optics or sights. Our kits come pre-assembled in house with new, easy to follow, instructions on the inside flap of the new header card. Instructional videos are also available on our website.

BD-180 Blast Deflector Kits An inexpensive and easy to install upgrade for short barreled rifle and AR Pistol applications. It redirects high pressure concussion, flame, and hot muzzle gasses forward away from the shooter and bystanders.

The BD-180 is unique because it can be installed between your existing A1, A2, and 3 pronged flash hider and the barrel, eliminating the need to buy an entirely new muzzle device. It can be used in place of or in conjunction with a crush washer for a secure connection and proper timing. At 1.35 inches in diameter and weighing in at a mere 2 ounces, it will fit inside most low profile or lightweight foreends without adding significant weight.

Picatinny Buffer Tube Adapter Our new Picatinny Buffer Tube Adapter is a great addition to your Sig MPX, Sig MCX, Sig P556XI, Rock River PDS, or any other pistol that utilizes a rear vertical picatinny rail. It gives a shooter the ability to add a cheek rest for greater stability or a stock for SBR conversions (federal tax stamp required).

The mounting method follows true STANAG (NATO Standardization Agreement) protocol using the two back angles and the top of the rail as the contact points. The result is perfect alignment with the centerline of the firearm. A feature that is not attainable with typical side clamping adapters. Another 6 American Shooting // fasteners August 2017 bonus is that there are Journal no visible or holes on the top and sides of the adapter giving it a clean sleek look.


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A MERIC A N

SHOOTING JOURNAL Volume 6 // Issue 11 // August 2017 PUBLISHER

James R. Baker ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER

Dick Openshaw

GENERAL MANAGER

John Rusnak

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Andy Walgamott EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Craig Hodgkins

LEAD CONTRIBUTOR

Frank Jardim

CONTRIBUTORS

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ON THE COVER Scott Haugen has been a full-time outdoor writer for more than 20 years. He took this Idaho whitetail this past season with a one-shot kill. He often hunts alongside his wife, Tiffany, who graced our February cover. (SCOTT HAUGEN)

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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CONTENTS

VOLUME 6 • ISSUE 11 • August 2017

FEATURES

36 BACK IN THE TRENCHES 54

AN EDITOR ABROAD

(FRANK JARDIM)

Inland Manufacturing’s affordable reissue of Ithaca’s vintage M37 Trench Gun means – according to writer Frank Jardim, at least – that the Army’s best combat pump shotgun is back in commission for shooters and collectors alike. Jardim puts the new old gun through its paces on our behalf, and tells us everything we need to know.

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Yes, Germany’s known for engineering excellence, brewing the best Bier on Earth and a vast array of heart-unhealthy pork products, but it has a surprisingly strong hunting and shooting culture too. Are there lessons for us? The editor in chief investigates (and samples some swill and sausage).

79 SPECIAL SECTION! 2017 BUYER’S GUIDE Whether you’re in the market for accessories for that brand-new AR, a holster now that you’ve got your concealed carry permit, or just looking for new scopes or mounts, targets, rifle parts or gun cleaning products, check out our 2017 Buyer’s Guide for the latest and greatest gun stuff!

QUIGLEY 2017 The 26th Annual Matthew Quigley Buffalo Rifle Match drew another big crowd of classic black powder shooters to southeast Montana, and Mike Nesbitt, our man with powder stains on his fingers and a flinty look in his eye, was there from the first shot until the last.

ROAD HUNTER: FROM HOME PREP TO HOME COOKING With deer hunting season fast approaching, columnist Scott Haugen shares 10 things you can do at home to make sure you connect on that shot when the time comes. With today’s precision-built guns, scopes and ammunition, missed shots usually come down to operator error, so read on to ensure success!

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BEST DEER ROUND EVER You could say Dave Workman has shot a few rifle rounds in his time, but when it comes to deer cartridges, he argues that there’s only one best. And what is his pick? Do you seriously think we’d give it away here?

120 THERE SHE WAS… When contestants for the Mrs. Washington America Pageant gathered in Olympia this past May, Mrs. Vancouver, Jena Cook, had one of the most compelling stories. Meet the gun-toting hunter who hopes to spread the gospel of conservation amongst fellow beauty queens!

AMERICAN SHOOTING JOURNAL is published monthly by Media Index Publishing Group, 14240 Interurban Ave South Suite 190, Tukwila, WA 98168. Display Advertising. Call Media Index Publishing Group for a current rate card. Discounts for frequency advertising. All submitted materials become the property of Media Index Publishing Group and will not be returned. Copyright © 2017 Media Index Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be copied by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying or recording by any information storage or retrieval system, without the express written permission of the publisher. Printed in U.S.A.

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017



CONTENTS

113 STRONG WOMEN UNITE Also Inside 101 Black Powder: The .44-90 Sharps cartridge

DEPARTMENTS 17 19 21 25

Editor’s Note Competition Calendar Gun Show Calendar Industry News: Daisy’s National BB Gun Champs, optics, powder and more!

(AUGUST PETERS)

Hunting has helped Brittany Boddington buck tired stereotypes about women, and she has a passion to empower others to get involved in a sport dominated by men. Recently, Boddington and fellow hunting savant Shannon Lansdowne brought together outdoor-loving ladies for their first-ever She Hunts Skills Camp, a hit right off the bat.

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


EDITOR’S NOTE

I

hope you had a safe and enjoyable Fourth of July celebration. We certainly did, and I still have all 10 of my fingers to type this note. Now that the atmosphere in our neighborhoods are a bit less percussive, we find ourselves in August, semi-officially known as the “better get in your vacation now because school starts next month” month of the year. Even if you don’t have kids, or no longer have them living at home, the rhythms of the school year continue to echo in our daily lives. Retailers with tenuousat-best connections to education are already halfway into their backto-school sales, and scores of clubs, public television stations, civic organizations and churches are about to launch new programs and hold

membership drives that align with the first couple of weeks in September. Why? Because we are creatures of habit dating back to our own school days, and are conditioned that the coming of fall means it is time to get registered somewhere and sign up for stuff. Well, here’s something for fans of the shooting sports to consider when pulling that cap off of that pen. Depending on where you live, you may want to consider applying for a concealed carry permit. According to a just-released study from the Crime Prevention Research Center, “There are now over 16.3 million permit holders, a record 1.83 million increase in permits since last July. Nationwide, 6.5 percent (of) adults have a concealed handgun permit. Outside of California and New York, 8 percent of adults have a permit.”

According to our own Dave Workman (see his article on page 91 of this issue), writing for the Conservative Firing Line, these permitted adults are less than equally distributed. “About 4 million permit holders are in just 14 states representing all regions of the country, according to the report. In states that keep data on the gender of permit holders and the CPRC report says women ‘women averaged 36% of permit holders.’” But if you are in a state where gaining a permit is possible by law, go “back to school” for the required training and apply. -Craig Hodgkins

Website: AmericanShootingJournal.com Facebook: Facebook.com/AmericanShootingJournal Twitter: @AmericanShootingJournal

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


COMPETITION C A L E N D A R

August 3-6

August 11-13

August 19-20

August 24-27

2017 Hornady Area 3 Championship Grand Island, Neb.

2017 SNS Casting Illinois Sectional Havana, Ill.

2017 Inland Empire Sectional Benton City, Wash.

EGW 2017 USPSA Area 8 Championship New Tripoli, Pa.

August 4-6

August 13

August 20

2017 Michigan Sectional Brooklyn, Mich.

Northern Rockies Section Championship Missoula, Mont.

2017 MN Section Championship Sponsored by Federal Pine Island, Minn.

August 5-6

August 12-13

August 19-20

August 26-27

The CoalďŹ elds Classic VII Beckley, W.Va.

Magic City GLOCK Challenge II Billings, Mont.

Northwestern Regional Classic XXVI Port Townsend, Wash.

Northern California Regional Classic XXIV Richmond, Calif.

August 12-13

August 19-20

August 26-27

Rocky Mountain Regional Classic XXIII Greeley, Colo.

Keystone State Ballistic Challenge XX Topton, Penn.

Midwest Regional Classic XXVI Hallsville, Mo.

August 11

August 12-13

August 12

August 13

Starline Brass Missouri State Fair Classic Sedalia, Mo.

Indiana State Shoot Edinburgh, Ind.

Kansas State Championship Topeka, Kan.

Mid-Central Regional Championships Topeka, Kan.

August 11-13

August 12

August 12-13

August 19

Wyoming State Finals Powell, Wyo.

Massachusetts State Championship Norfolk, Mass.

Mississippi State Championship Meridian, Miss.

Outlaw Action Ohio State Championship Wooster, Ohio

August 4-5

August 18-20

August 25-26

Delaware State Championship - Tier 2 Bridgeville, Del.

2017 Washington State IDPA Championship - Tier 3 Renton, Wash.

The Patriot Match - Tier 2 Lewistown, Pa.

August 11-13

August 19-20

2017 IDPA Michigan State Championship - Tier 3 Brighton, Mich.

Sig Sauer 2017 New England Regional IDPA Championship - Tier 4 Harvard, Mass.

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GUNS & ACCESSORIES DEAD FOOT ARMS MCS with folding stock adaptor See us on page 31

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RITON USA Mod 7 4-20x50 riflescope See us on page 28

SWAB-ITS Swab-its 9mm Bore-Stick See us on page 24


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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


NEWS

FROM SHARPSHOOTING TEENS TO SHARP-SEEING OPTICS South Dakota’s Pierre Junior Shooter BB Gun Team takes national championship gold. COMPILED BY THE EDITORS

A

t the end of the 2017 Daisy National BB Gun Championship Match it was the team from Pierre, South Dakota, that took the stage to accept gold medals and the traveling first place trophy in front of the largest crowd in the history of the event. The Pierre Junior Shooters, coached by Jonathan Hays, are the 52nd Gold Medal winners in this, the most prestigious 5-meter BB Gun match in the world. The team, which includes the 2017 Individual Aggregate Gold Medalist Justin Merriman, amassed a score of 2,383-85X. In winning the Individual Aggregate Gold Medal, Merriman scored 489-27X. Team members include: Jenna Kruger, Austin Lesmann, Natalie Mohr and Rylie Stoeser. The Daisy National BB Gun Championship Match is held annually at the John Q. Hammons Convention Center in Rogers, Arkansas, and brings together the best BB gun shooters ages 8-15 from across the nation. Teams must qualify for the event by coming in first, second or third in a state match. This year’s championship, which was conducted June 30-July 3, featured 71 teams and brought nearly 3,000 shooters, former champions, coaches and parents to northwest Arkansas. Teams came from as far away as Georgia, Oregon and Virginia. Any community or educational organization can form a team as long as it follows the curriculum outlined

The Pierre (South Dakota) Junior Shooter BB Gun Team was crowned 2017 Daisy National BB Gun Champions. The winning team includes: Justin Merriman, Jenna Kruger, Austin Lesmann, Natalie Mohr and Rylie Stoeser.

by Daisy, which features hours of classroom gun-safety and education work prior to ever touching a gun. Many teams are created through the 4-H Shooting Sports Program, but religious organizations such as the Royal Rangers also participate. As always, the 52nd annual event featured plenty of fun, action and emotion beyond the shooting competition. There was the Barter Bar, in which competitors bring items representing their states (which can include everything from homemade crafts and wildlife-related items to cans of “Potted Possum” meat and professional sports jerseys) and swap them amongst the crowd. Other events include a Parade of Teams in which each team wears costumes or coordinated clothing, this year including the complete cast of SpongeBob SquarePants and a Black

Ops team. The Match also includes a painted gun contest. Each competitor in the main event and the Champions Match must shoot the Daisy 499B Champion BB Gun, and may decorate it any way they choose. Many of these guns end up looking as sharp as sports cars or follow a particular theme. One of the most touching moments of the event occurred when former Individual Aggregate Champion and Olympic shooter Lydia Paterson presented an honor plaque to her coach and father, Ron Paterson, who is retiring from coaching. Moments later, Lydia was inducted into the Daisy Hall of Fame, an honor that goes to those who have positively influenced the shooting sports and the Daisy Nationals. For more information on the event, or instructions on how to create a team to compete in this exciting match in the future, visit daisy.com. americanshootingjournal.com 25


NEWS Alliant Powder’s new clean-burning Sport Pistol powder is perfect for precision and action shooters.

A

lliant Powder, a leading manufacturer of smokeless powders, now offers precision and action shooters consistent, cleanburning propellant with the release of its new Sport Pistol powder. Shipments of the new powder are being delivered to dealers now. Sport Pistol provides extremely reliable cycling, excellent charging and case fill, and ballistics that lend themselves to a range of popular loads. The powder also delivers precise performance with all bullet types, but the low-muzzleflash formulation was optimized for polymer-coated bullets. Other double-base powders can dissolve the

polymer coatings at the bullet base, exposing the lead to vaporization due to the intense heat during the ballistic cycle. The medium-fast burning Sport Pistol is also very temperature stable, so there is little velocity deviation to worry about at seasonal competitions. Alliant’s Sport Pistol is available in three sizes: 1 pound (MSRP $27.25), 4 pounds (MSRP $99.70) and 8 pounds (MSRP $184.75). For more information, including load data, visit alliantpowder.com.

Alliant Powder’s new Sport Pistol is mediumfast burning and very temperature stable.

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

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NEWS Keep watch for a new logo and packaging from Bullseye Camera Systems.

Y

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

against other shooters. The days of re requiring a spotting scope/spotter are a thing of the past; bring the target to you right on your phone, tablet or computer screen without having to squint to see your shots. For more information on Bullseyee eo Camera Systems and to watch a video tutorial, visit bullseyecamera.com.

<

ou’ll have to keep your eyes peeled if you want to spot your favorite Bullseye Camera Systems products, as this family of quality long-range target cameras is now shipping with new packaging design and logo. Bullseye currently offers two models of target cameras. Their “Sight In” model features 300-yard range, while their “Long Range” model reaches out to a mile with direct line of sight. What is most unique about Bullseye Camera is their proprietary software that allows you to easily reference your last shot as it blinks on your screen, as well as mark and track your shot sequence. Additional features include live recording, measuring your groups, calculating adjustments, grid overlay and head to head gaming mode

Watch for the new logo and packaging from Bullseye Camera Systems.

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Each Bullseye Camera System comes with a sturdy carrying case.


americanshootingjournal.com 29


NEWS Federal Premium adds .3000 Win. Magnum and .300 WSM SM loads to their Power-Shok all-copper lineup.

F

ederal Premium Ammunition is proud to ons add a pair of new options to its popular PowerShok Copper lineup, which provides des hunters the same freezer-filling ok consistency of original Power-Shok loads with a non-lead bullet. New 180-grain .300 Win. Short Magnum and 180-grain .300 Win. Magnum rounds join existing .2433 Win., .270 Win., .308 Win. and .30-06 Springfield Power-Shok Copper offerings. Shipments of the new loads are currently being delivered to dealers.

Federal Premium continues to add to its Power-Shok all-copper ammunition line.

The loads’ accurate, hollowpoint copper projectile creates large wound channels, and the Catalyst lead-free primer provides

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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NEWS Bushnell offers new purpose-built AR optics.

B

ushnell, a popular choice in high-performance optical solutions for more than 65 years, has extended its popular AR Optics line with four additional sights that are each optimized for the modern sporting rifle. Bushnell’s line of AR Optics is already the category leader for MSRs. New this year, the AR Optics line has grown with the release of two new purpose-built, caliberspecific riflescopes, the cutting-edge Accelerate 3x prism sight and the ambidextrous Transition 3x Magnifier. “We looked at the most popular trends in AR rifles today and then set out to craft optical solutions that meet the demands placed on those guns by

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

This optic for shooters favoring MSRs chambered in the popular .300 Blackout is one of four recently introduced by Bushnell.

serious shooters,” said AR Optics line manager Bryan Parrish. “These optics are built to perform at any level, yet won’t break the bank.” The 6.5 Creedmoor has quickly become a favorite of long-distance shooters and hunters alike. Bushnell’s new AR Optics 4.5-18x 40mm scope with Drop Zone 6.5 Creedmoor reticle is designed to maximize the round’s performance by providing holdover points for shots out to 600 yards. Bushnell has also added an optic for shooters favoring MSRs chambered in the popular .300 Blackout. The new Bushnell AR Optics 1-4x24mm illuminated

scope is equipped with a specially designed DropZone .300 Blackout Illuminated reticle. The reticle features holdover points calibrated to both subsonic and supersonic .300 Blackout ballistics. Gas guns like MSRs are well suited for compact optics, yet red dots don’t offer the magnification sometimes needed to reach downrange. The gray area between these two options isn’t so gray with the new Bushnell AR Optics Accelerate 4X Prism Scope. It has the compact stature of a red dot with the 4x magnification of a riflescope. The new, illuminated BTR3 reticle in the Accelerate offers five brightness settings in both red and green. The center circle and red dot work together for quick acquisition, with drop points for long-range shots. The mil-based design works with any caliber firearm. Rounding out the new additions is the AR Optics Transition 3X Magnifier. Simply mount it behind a red dot optic with the ambidextrous flip mount. Engage the 3X magnifier when you need it, and flip it out of the way when you don’t. The Transition 3x Magnifier pairs perfectly with Bushnell’s AR Optics TRS-25, but works with any red dot. It’s built with fully multi-coated optics that provide optimal light transmission and is waterproof, fog proof and shock proof. “With rugged durability, highquality optics and coatings, and a price any AR rifle owner can afford, these new sights embody the AR Optics line,” Parrish said. “And they further expand the AR Optics supremacy within this key category of the firearms market.” For more information, visit bushnell.com/aroptics.


GRIPS


HOLSTERS


americanshootingjournal.com 35


BACK IN THE

STORY AND PHOTOS BY FRANK JARDIM

TRENCHES T

The Army’s best combat pump shotgun is back: Inland’s reissue of Ithaca’s M37 Trench Gun. 36

American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Tw top-shelf Two t Ohio-based firearms manufacturers have partnered to ma manu brin collectors and shooters a bring fine reissue – I hesitate to call it a replica – of the vintage U.S. Army Ithaca M37 Trench Gun. This retro military model is made by the Upper Sandusky-based Ithaca Gun Company for their Dayton neighbor, Inland Manufacturing.


The author believes that you can never get too deep into your research. Here, he dons authentic Vietnam-era clothing (circa 1969) and equipment to test the recent reissue of a vintage U.S. Army Ithaca M37 Trench Gun. The gun is made by Ithaca for Inland Manufacturing.

The latter is best known for their excellent reproductions of World War II M1 carbines. The American martial tradition is no stranger to shotguns. Militiamen employed fowling pieces in battle during the Revolutionary War, and the Confederate Cavalry wielded sawed-off shotguns in the Civil War. It was during World War I that you might say the Army got serious about shotguns. It was, after all, the biggest

war they had fought to date. Close combat in the trenches, and especially night fighting, favored the massive firepower of fast-shooting pump shotguns. Each 00 buckshot round blasted out nine .33 caliber pellets, increasing the chances of a lethal hit on the enemy. WWI trench guns could shoot exceptionally fast because they lacked a trigger disconnector. This allowed them to fire with every pump of the action

as long as the trigger was held back continuously. Today we would regard this as a safety flaw, but to the doughboy standing in an enemy trench in 1918, that extra bit of speed was regarded as an edge. The Germans hated facing shotguns, and even filed a formal complaint that using shotguns was a violation of the rules of civilized warfare – to no avail. The trench gun was born. While it distinguished itself in battle, the trench gun was by no means a common frontline weapon. Records suggest that fewer than 40,000 were procured during the war, compared to more than 2,500,000 service rifles. WHAT DISTINGUISHED THE military trench gun, with its 20-inch barrel and cylinder bore, from the era’s civilian riot gun (what we would today call a tactical shotgun) was the military’s addition of a barrel heat shield, bayonet lug and sling swivels. americanshootingjournal.com 37


The 16-inch M1917 Enfield bayonet could be fitted to the muzzle, and the heat shield on the barrel was added to allow the soldier to safely grip the hot barrel during bayonet fighting. The riot gun was made for civilian troubles and the trench gun for war. In WWI, civilian riot versions of Winchester Models 1897 and 1912 and the Remington Model 10 were modified as trench guns. In WWII, shotguns from quite a few other manufacturers were procured to meet the pressing needs of a much bigger war. The standard models were all pump action: the Winchester M12 and M31, Remington M31, Stevens M520, and rarest of all (with less than 1,500 produced), the Ithaca M37. Still, it wasn’t enough, and the venerable Winchester M97 joined other pump and even semiauto models from Stevens, Savage and Remington to arm American soldiers for rear-area guard duty and combat action on the front lines. Since these weapons were obtained directly from civilian manufacturers, they were usually finished in the same blued steel as civilian models. Combat use of the shotgun in WWII was largely a Pacific Theater affair, where the dense jungles and close-range encounters favored its strengths. Both United States Marine Corps and Army infantry units equipped the point man of patrols with a trench gun, and Marine units A look inside at the loading guide ejector rods reaching out the bottom.

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Inland Manufacturing’s reissue of the M37 trench gun has all the quality and ambiance of an original gun, without the multi-thousand-dollar price tag.

The corncob-style foregrip.

All the controls you need.


americanshootingjournal.com 39


sometimes issued one per squad. The institutional memory of the trench gun’s role in fighting the Japanese in the jungles in WWII was carried over into our next jungle war against the Communist forces in Vietnam 20 years later. By the mid 1960s, military stocks of trench guns and their M1917 bayonets were running low and new contracts were let for both. The guns came from Stevens (M77E), Ithaca (M37) and Winchester (Models 1200 and 870). The majority of these new shotguns were in the riot configuration. Trench guns from the Vietnam era are quite rare. Those Ithaca M37 trench guns that were delivered were virtually identical to the WWII model, differing in their markings and their parkerized finish. The Stevens M77E was the most commonly issued shotgun in the Vietnam era, followed by the Ithaca M37. THE MODEL 37 WAS BASED on John Moses Browning’s improvements

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

The new Ithaca models have the barrel mounting points machined on rather than soldered.

of an old Remington design when Ithaca introduced it in 1937. It was a fine sporting shotgun, and proved to be an excellent combat shotgun. It was the lightest shotgun in the American arsenal, at least a pound less than its peers, with the exception of the

graceful Winchester M12, which was still half a pound heavier. The M37 was a couple lighter than the old M97. Despite being light, it was very strong and well suited to the battlefield. The top and sides of the Model 37 receiver have no openings,


americanshootingjournal.com 41


so the action is much easier to keep clean because nothing can fall into it from above. Because it loads and ejects from the bottom, it was essentially ambidextrous. It was also exceptionally strong. The inverted “U” design of the receiver protected the shooter from injury in the event of a case rupture and the barrel attached to the milled steel receiver by means of an interrupted thread like a cannon breech. They were built to last generations, and can take a beating better than any other pump shotgun. In fact, the huge Los Angeles and New York City Police Departments eventually adopted this model for use. During the Vietnam War, the Ithaca M37’s performance and reliability earned it the reputation for being the best combat shotgun in the Army’s arsenal. INLAND MANUFACTURING’S reissue of the M37 trench gun has all the quality and ambiance of an original gun without the multithousand dollar price tag. Since it is

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

A simple mechanical safety blocks the trigger.

actually made by Ithaca, the quality of manufacture is superb. Collectors of martial shotguns should not sweat buckshot worrying that these trench guns will be passed off as originals. Though they are marked “RLB” with an Ordnance Corps flaming bomb on the left side of the receiver like WWIIera trench guns, the marks are not stamped in the metal like the originals are. Furthermore, the guns are marked with Inland’s name on the receiver and other historically incongruous laser engravings on the barrel indicating manufacture in Lower Sandusky, Ohio. Other differences include a 3-inch chamber instead of 2¾-inch, and, perhaps the most obvious marking never encountered on a vintage gun – the admonition “READ OWNERS MANUAL.” As if that isn’t enough, you should know by now that WWII-era trench guns were blued, not parkerized. I guess an unscrupulous seller might change the barrel and claim this was a WWII-era M37 refurbished for use in Vietnam, but they can’t get around those


americanshootingjournal.com 43


receiver markings without a lot of metal work. The reissue’s stocks are natural oiled walnut like the original military guns. The heat shield, brass front sight bead and bayonet lug look great too. I tested an original M1917 bayonet and it was a perfect ďŹ t. The slide release is on the right front side of the trigger guard. Unlike a Remington 870 or Mossberg 500, it requires very little motion to actuate. The safety is a sliding push button type at the rear of the trigger guard. The action is smooth and solid with no ricketiness in it. In fact, the whole gun feels immensely solid. It weighs only 6 pounds, 11 ounces, but it feels like you could buttstroke an enemy senseless with it. Unlike the original gun, it will not ďŹ re continuously if pumped while the trigger is held back. Surely you had to see that coming. Shooting the M37, you do sense its light weight in the felt recoil. The buttplate is just thin hard rubber so your shoulder gets it all. The 2ž-inch Winchester Super X and

The bayonet lug and sling attachment.

Mounting an M1917 bayonet from the author’s collection.

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Federal Premium 00 buckshot I tested recorded average velocities of 1,242 feet per second and 1,243 fps, respectively, out of the M37’s 20inch barrel. (Both were advertised at 1,325 fps.) The Federal Premium was much more consistent in shot to shot velocity with a standard deviation of 17 to Winchester’s 89. Velocity was recorded at 15 feet from the muzzle with an excellent and very reasonably priced Competition Electronics PRO CHRONO digital chronograph I got from Brownell’s to replace the one I foolishly loaned to a friend who, unbeknownst to me, turned out to be a cold-blooded killer of chronographs. This one I’m keeping close hold on. I SHOT MY TEST PATTERNS standing, offhand, at 25 yards, a range I thought would reasonably simulate a jungle encounter based on my limited experience hiking Bataan Peninsula jungle trails in the Philippine Islands. I shot five-round test strings. That is actually all the M37 can hold if you fill the magazine and put one in the

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Note the markings, and how much steel is in the receiver.

These unobtrusive markings help differentiate the reissue from an original.


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chamber. The early 1940s was not the era of high-capacity shotgun magazines. When you consider that the military rifles used by most nations at that time typically held only five rounds, a five-shot trench gun doesn’t seem that bad. I chose standard 2¾-inch, nine-pellet loads to simulate the old brass cased military M19 loads used before plastic shells became common in the 1960s. My target was 22 inches wide by 25 inches high with a 3-inch aiming point. The cylinder bore (no choke of any kind) threw lethal patterns every time, but rarely did all nine pellets hit the target every time. The Winchester Super X put 34 out of 45 pellets (75 percent) on the target. The Federal Premium put 37 of 45 pellets (82 percent) on the target. Both loads shot about 9 inches above the point of aim. The Winchester load seemed to pattern a bit more random than the Federal Premium, but, aimed at the enemy’s belt buckle, both would deliver devastating multiple hits to the upper body. As for the pellets

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

that didn’t hit my generously wide 22-inch sheet, they could easily have hit another enemy soldier. Broad patterns can cause collateral damage in a civilian encounter, but in wartime the ability to hit multiple targets with a single round is a good thing. While I see Inland’s M37 Trench Gun as aimed for the collector and historic military reenactor market, you wouldn’t be underarmed using it for personal defense. If they could fight their way through a few major wars, they’ll undoubtedly do fine after the EMP apocalypse. The M37 shoots well, is virtually foolproof, and that 3-inch chamber opens up a lot of modern lethal and nonlethal load options. If short 12-gauge rounds will feed reliably, that might be one way to increase the M37’s magazine capacity. I know these mini-shells are made by Aguila, Herter’s and Nobel Sport, but could not get any in time to test the gun for this article. If the M37 has a flaw, it is that in its trench gun configuration, it can’t be taken down without a screwdriver.

The semi-hard rubber buttplate.


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The heat shield needs to be removed before the barrel can be rotated the necessary ¼ turn to dismount. In addition, you can’t take apart the receiver of any M37 without a long straight screwdriver to remove the bolt that holds the buttstock on. That bolt is inside the buttstock, accessible only after removing the buttplate. On the upside, you don’t really need to take it apart to clean it. The only dirt you’re likely to get in it is some carbon from your smoking shells as they are ejected. By design, it is a clean action. The online advertised retail price for this top quality reissue of the M37 Trench Gun is about $1,200. That might seem like a lot to some. It’s more than your typical used civilian Ithaca Model 37, but thousands less than any M37 Trench Gun. One thing is unmistakable when you handle and shoot it. It is made as well as any gun can be made, and your great grandchildren will still be shooting it. For more info, visit inland-mfg.com or call them at (877) 425-4867.

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The steel butt swivel.

The author’s targets were shot standing, offhand, at 25 yards.


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An Editor Abroad Think hunting and shooting is tough in the U.S.? Wait until you go to Germany.

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


An angler fishes the Neckar as it flows through the southwest German town of Heidelberg, where my family and I stayed for two nights during a midspring vacation – and not far above where I spotted some sort of Teutonic river monster briefly surface.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY ANDY WALGAMOTT

D

Der Angler was right where you’d have expected one to be, casting into the tailrace of a low head dam, where churning waters would deliver fresh meals to the fish he hoped to hook.

We’d just waltzed the Philosophenweg on the hillside across from Heidelberg and were crossing the Neckar back to the Altstadt for lunch and ice cream when I looked over and saw the man fishing off a ramp sloping into

the river. It was late morning and the sun was shining brightly over southwest Germany that mid-May day this spring, but with how stained the water was below the spillway of a set of locks, the fisherman americanshootingjournal.com 55


I’ve been to Germany three times now with my wife Amy (inset), who was born in Cologne and lived there a dozen years, and on each trip I’ve marveled at all of the hunter huts built in the woods and fields. A single Jäger may hunt out of dozens, and it was near this one (main image), on a mountaintop just above Heidelberg and not far from a kids amusement park, that I spotted fresh deer tracks.

must have felt he had a chance of hooking something. I knew there was something very big swimming nearby too. When Amy and I and our sons River and Kiran had started our walk a couple hours before, I’d seen a dark back briefly surface about half a kilometer downstream, leaving a large set of ripples on the otherwise calm river. Holy Fahrvergnügen, what the $%@$ was that?!? was my first thought. If we’d been along the lower Columbia River or the shores of Puget Sound, near our home in western Washington, I would have immediately said sea lion, but neither the Neckar nor the Rhine it feeds are known for their pinnipeds. As my family walked ahead, I stood and watched the river, ruling out a swimmer, scuba diver and the odd waterbird. Had I just seen one of those wels catfish? These sturgeon-sized bottomfeeders are native to the Danube and other 56

American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Central and Eastern European basins, but have done well since being stocked in Western European watersheds. Not unlike anglers in Idaho’s Hells Canyon posing in the water with their ginormous diamondsides, pictures abound of German, Italian and other continental fishermen in up to

their gills in rivers and lakes while holding huge wels they’ve fought. I’m not sure if a whiskerfish was what the Heidelberg angler was after, but I took a couple pics of him and silently wished him good luck. It would not be the last time I crossed paths with fishing or hunting during our two-week vacation.

The Jägerhütte trailer at a youth hostel in Bonn, the capital of the former West Germany.


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AN EXPERIENCED SPORTSMAN as well as hook-and-bullet magazine editor – I’m Craig’s “boss” – I naturally keep my eyes open for fish and game wherever I go. If there’s a stream, I’m peeking into it, wondering about its angling. If there’s a patch of forest, I’m curious about what its leaves and needles might hide. But I’m also interested in the cultural hoofprint of our favorite outdoor pastimes, their strength as enduring institutions. So as we toured German castles and medieval city walls, traipsed through churches and market squares, tramped across country bridges and up and down forested hillsides, rode Stadtbahns and Seilbahns, funiculars and ferries, and pushed 160 kph (100 mph) on the Autobahn, I kept watch for critters and signs of their pursuit. While many, many things in Germany are strange to us (I’m still puzzling over the “Sauerkraut orgy” listed on one menu), this country of 82 million is not unlike here either. Roughly the size of Montana or New Mexico (separately, but not combined), its woods and fields hold red deer (Hirsch), roe deer (Reh), wild boars (Wildschwein), rabbits (Kaninchen) and pigeon (Tauber). And its waters host ducks (Enten), pike-perch (Zander, which are closer to our walleye than either pike or perch), pike (Hecht), trout – brown and otherwise – (Forellen), introduced grayling, and carp (Karpfen) and its relative the asp, among other species. Of course, fishing and hunting are tightly regulated, far more so than here, where frankly there are minimal barriers. A 2003 article in Montana Outdoors outlines the rigorous steps needed just to get a hunting license – a year of study followed by what’s been described as a master’s-level test that half are said to fail – as well as the social responsibilities that come with hunting. Writes author James Hagengruber: “The 450,000-some hunters in Germany play the 58

American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Hunting in Europe is strongly associated with the nobility, and this hall at Rheinstein castle above the Rhine was well stocked with the racks of red and roe deer, and other animals. But in Germany, Average Johans are able to participate too – with considerable time and monetary investments.

combined role of game warden, wildlife biologist, and agricultural pest controller. They also must ensure that wild game animals have sufficient food and habitat. ‘The hunting right and the conservation duty are inseparable,’ said [Thomas] Baumeister,” a native German who works for Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks. While we all head afield for similar reasons – to enjoy the

With two very active boys, we didn’t visit many museums, but I was glad we stopped at one on the shores of the Bodensee highlighting how lake dwellers lived here several millenia ago. On display were ancient fishhooks.


americanshootingjournal.com 59


In both the U.S. and Germany you can find commercially caught or reared game fish on the menu – this postcard-pretty hotel (right) in Meersburg served Zander, which look like walleye – but hunters there can also sell their venison to restaurants. I enjoyed Hirschragout mit Spaetzle and a local Pils at a country inn.

outdoors, be with fellow sportsmen, the traditions – and use common tactics such as stand hunting and drives, German hunters are far more empowered with herd oversight than we are individually under the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation. “By German standards hunting is not a sport or hobby, it’s a mission of public concern. The mission is to maintain a healthy stock of wildlife,” reports a Realtree.com story. There’s not much hunting on public lands, but private forests and fields are available, and hunters typically lease them for several years. Harvests follow a game management plan submitted to local officials, with 60

American Shooting Journal // August 2017

quotas to be taken annually, and penalties imposed if wild animals under one’s supervision depredate crops. “One hunter I spoke with said he paid €10,000 in reparations to a landowner last year, after wild pigs tore through the farmer’s fields,” reported an Oregon Public Broadcasting journalist for a 2013 story on guns in Germany. Speaking of, the nation’s laws are said to be among the world’s strictest,

with ownership limited to hunters, competitors and collectors, and with registration and mandatory safe storage. “I doubt if American hunters and shooters would be very happy under this system,” a Field & Stream blogger wrote after a 2011 hunt. You also need hunting insurance. It’s easier to get a fishing license, but residents need to pass a 30-hour course and pay a $200 fee. With a Fischerschien one can then buy


americanshootingjournal.com 61


With its well-preserved medieval character Rothenburg ob der Tauber is a famed tourist town, and while tramping around the Stadtmauer, one might spot displays of hunters’ antlers.

permits for specific waters. Just don’t turn back your catch – because of animal welfare laws it is verboten to go fishing with the intention of releasing any.

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A blog post by a Neckar River valley-based catfisherman who has caught a 150-pound wels details some more of what he and other anglers are faced with: “We have


americanshootingjournal.com ame ric i anshoo oo oti tin i gjo j urnal. l com 6 633


bans on using livebaits, night fishing, boat fishing, wild camping, etc., and you have to abide by them. With special rigs and techniques, you can still present bunches of worms and deadbaits attractively. If you want to be successful, you have to use your imagination.” Indeed, imagination and a lot of a desire are required to be a sportsman here. STILL, DURING OUR travels through the country where my wife was born and grew up in [sidenote: while Walgamott and its 20-odd variations are German, my father’s side did not come from there; instead, my scoundrel of a greatgrandpa apparently stole the surname about 117 years ago from a dead guy], we crossed contemporary as well as historical references to fishing and hunting, showing their everlasting importance. Right beside the Neckar River in Heidelberg was the Goldener Hecht – golden pike – restaurant and hotel. A large stone northern was mounted on its outside wall above the Biergarten. On the mountain above this university town and not very far at all from an amusement park for kids were a number of hunting stands, or Kanzeln. Near one I spotted the fresh tracks of a roe deer. And outside Meersburg, on the Bodensee, or Lake Constance, we spotted a herd of the diminutive deer in a field, though by the time I’d wheeled our rental SUV around to get a picture, all but one had retreated into a roadside patch of trees. There, in southern Baden-Wurtemburg state, we drove under numerous wildlife overpasses helping to prevent collisions with Wildtiere. Above the Rhine, Burg Rheinstein offered an impressive antlers-and-armor man cave. One hotel we stayed at sported a large bear hide hung just inside the front door, while on the floor of a well-lit alcove in a never-conquered castle we toured was a wild boar rug. And in another – famed Burg Eltz – were some very big Alaskan moose racks. We didn’t run into many Americans on our trip, but in Bonn, where we stayed at a travel trailer-themed youth hostel, a family of four with accents from Southern whitetail country emerged in the morning from the Jägerhütte, featuring a couple pelts, a deer mount and the somewhat miss-set antlers of a stag above the door. While I was surprised that one of the two dozen or so trailers at the hostel would have hunting as its theme – would that be the case at similar lodging in the U.S.? – author Hagengruber notes: “The burdens of a German hunter might weigh heavily, but the country also affords its hunters rewards and respect rarely seen on this side of the Atlantic … I saw this for myself during the massive Folklore International Parade, which marks the beginning of Oktoberfest. Of the nearly 10,000 people who marched in the parade, some of the loudest applause from the crowds went to a group of costumed hunters. The normally stoic spectators lining the street shouted and pumped their fists in the air as the 64

American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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hunters marched past while gently tipping their hats to the crowd. It was the applause that onlookers at a Montana small-town parade would give to volunteer fire fighters or decorated military veterans.” Unlike here, hunters can sell their game meat at farmers markets and to restaurants. At one countryside Gasthaus near where we saw that herd of deer, I had Hirschragout, venison in sauce – sehr lecker! On a previous trip, I enjoyed wild boar. In the future, I’d like to see Munich’s Museum of Hunting and Fishing, but we did stop at an openair museum on the shores of the Bodensee that told the story of the people who lived in villages built over the water a couple thousand years ago. On display were ancient fishing hooks, though I’m not sure I would have trusted them to hold the carp swimming amongst the pilings! For that, I might have consulted the Jenzi fishing catalog, a sticker for which I spotted plastered to a bench (an oddity in a notoriously fastidious country). Thus properly outfitted, I wouldn’t have minded tempting the schools of silver fish swimming in the tiny Tauber below the famed walled medieval city of Rothenburg, where mounted outside one hunter’s home were a number of deer antlers, not unlike above my front door and those of other hunters I know. I WON’T BE moving to Germany anytime soon for its fishing and hunting. Those in my neck of the woods are more varied and less restrictive, and as I look through this lens, I realize I should cherish them all the more. But I do wonder if there are lessons from Deutschland on how to further strengthen our heritage and make fishing and hunting a more enduring, accepted part of life here. I’m not talking about appropriating hunting horns and Gamsbarts, der letzte Bissen and Waidmannsheils, but how can we elevate them to, as the Bavarians term it, cultural assets?


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American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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QUIGLEY 2017

The 26th Annual Matthew Quigley Buffalo Rifle Match draws another big crowd of classic black powder shooters. STORY AND PHOTOS BY MIKE NESBITT

Th Fo The Forsyth Rifle & Pistol Club out of southeastern ssout Montana hosted the 26th an 26t annual Matthew Quigley Buffalo Rifle on June 16-17. Inspired Rifl Match M by the 1990 Tom Selleck film, Quigley Down Under, this shooting match is held annually on the Lee Ranch just northwest of the town of Forsyth. The landowner, Al Lee, also participated in the shooting using his C. Sharps Arms 1885 Highwall in .40-70 Sharps Straight. A total of 647 shooters registered for this event, and they came from several different states and a few other countries. Once again, I must compliment the entire Quigley staff and scorekeepers for the way they funneled the high number of shooters through the course in a rather short time. Shooters are assigned to one of twelve groups, and those groups are divided into squads. Each squad has six shooters who take their shots sequentially as the scorekeeper calls their names. Each shooter fires 48 shots for their

This is “Quigleyville,” the campsite at the Quigley Match. (PAT DULIN)

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American Shooting Journal // August 2017

score. Shooters must be on time, and if you are not in your relay when they are shooting, you miss those shots. There are two sets of targets so that two squads can fire at the same time, each with their own target, scorekeeper, and safety officer.

THE QUIGLEY MATCH IS OPEN

to traditional single-shot or leveraction rifles firing lead bullets of .375-inch diameter or larger. They have classes for several kinds of rifles; trapdoor, lever action, original Ballards and others, but the most popular guns on the firing line are the Sharps, a few rolling blocks, and the Highwalls. After shooters register for the match, the range is open for them to sight in their rifles. That was something I needed to do because mine had a new Soule rear sight, which means I was basically starting from scratch again and needed to establish new sight settings. My rifle of choice for this event was my heavy ’74 Sharps in .44-90

Dave Gullo with his trophy, winning this 26th Quigley match with a score of 43.

from C. Sharps Arms (csharpsarms. com). The loads used in that rifle contained 90 grains (by weight) of Olde Eynsford 1 1/2F powder under a card wad which was just behind 470-grain grease groove bullets cast from Lyman’s old No. 446187, lubed with Big Sky Lube. That loading produces an average of almost 1,400 feet per second out of my rifle’s 32inch barrel. That’s actually rather fast


for these black powder buffalo guns, and it means I didn’t need quite as much windage adjustment as some of the other shooters. In order to present a clear picture of this match, let me offer a quick rundown of the targets. There are six targets that begin with the metal buffalo at 805 yards. Next is the large 48-inch octagon at 600 yards. That is followed by the first “postage stamp,” a vertical rectangle at 530 yards. Then comes the 24-inch “diamond” at 405 yards, which is followed by a second “postage stamp” at 417 yards. Although the sixth target – the bucket at 350 yards – is the closest, every competitor I spoke with considers it the toughest. All targets are fired at from the sitting position while using X-sticks except for the bucket, which is fired at from the offhand position. This year, I got at least one hit on each of those targets. If you are interested in seeing how all of the shooters did, you can visit quigleymatch.com and read all of the details, including the individual scores. My finishing score was 23 hits out of 48 shots, putting me just higher than the average. I’m not ashamed of that, as that score was three hits higher than what I earned last year.

Ranch owner Al Lee gets ready to shoot 600 yards with his .40-70 SS.

Allen Cunniff aims at a long-range target with his .45-70.

DAVE GULLO TOOK THE TITLE for best shooting this year with 43 hits. You might recognize his name because he is the owner of Buffalo Arms Company. He is also a great black powder cartridge rifle shooter who participates in a large number

Dave Gullo aims for the shot, while Wes Daems watches through the scope.

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Pat Dulin works on a front sight at his “workbench” behind the C. Sharps Arms tent.

This is the Cody Ballard rifle in .45-90 that Dave used for his good shooting.

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of events each year. Although he has placed in the top 10 four times since 2008, this was Dave’s first time to be the top shooter at Quigley. For the record, the highest score at Quigley, shot by Al Loquasto, in 2004, is 46 hits out of the possible 48. The longrange course has never been “aced.” Dave used a Cody, Wyoming, Ballard rifle with a Kelley Soule rear sight and a Riflesmith aperture front sight. That rifle was chambered for the .45-90 cartridge (Dave’s personal favorite all around black powder cartridge) loaded with 76 grains of Swiss 1 1/2F black powder. He was using bullets cast from a Buffalo Arms bullet mold, No. Jim459535C1, which weighs 535 grains and has a Creedmoor shape to the nose. Those bullets were cast from a 20-1 lead and tin alloy and lubed with SPG. For fouling control, Dave used a blow tube between shots throughout the match. “I had a great spotter in John Venhous,” Dave told me, “who was instrumental in keeping me on the target despite the high winds. Hitting six of the offhand targets helped a lot. I had nine minutes of windage dialed into my sight despite the target being only 350 yards away. But the number

one thing you can do at the Quigley is to have fun, enjoy the shoot and help your fellow shooters get on and stay on target. This will always make the shoot more enjoyable for yourself and those around you most especially this will help the first time shooters to not get frustrated and give up on the Quigley Match.” Without a good spotter, a shooter might not have any idea about how they are doing. My own spotter was Allen Cunniff, my regular partner for going to Quigley. Allen and I are already making plans for next year, so if you come along, we’ll see you there.

SOME WORDS ABOUT TRADERS’ row are also in order,

because the shooting is only part of Quigley. The entire row of vendors began just across the road from the firing line and stretched out about a quarter of a mile. Several of the better known traders were there such as Buffalo Arms Co. (buffaloarms. com) where I bought a set of their new bore wipes for my .44-90 and Steve Brooks, the bullet-mold maker (brooksmoulds.com) where I got a new 515-grain mold for the same gun. Other goods I bought included


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some vegetable fiber wads for my .44 Sharps rifles and some more Big Sky Lube from John Olsen at Big Sky Components, also known as Big Sky Cast Bullets (406-853-0196). C. Sharps Arms was doing a great business on Traders’ Row, and they also had a table behind their tent where Pat Dulin, a top ’smith at C. Sharps, was busy doing some “on the spot” gunsmithing. Pat was fixing everything from sights to firing pins, and mostly for no charge other than for the parts. Service like that can’t be beat, but that’s typical of the doin’s at Quigley. I do have one real regret about this most recent match at Quigley, and that is that I waited until I was almost 70 before going my first time. Now I’m in the White Buffalo shooting class, which is for shooters 72 and older. Actually, that’s very fine, and I’ll continue to compete at Quigley as long as possible. But simply to have had more fun, I could have and should have started shooting at Quigley at least 20 years earlier.

Author Mike Nesbitt at Quigley. (BJ LANES)

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ROAD HUNTER

FROM HOME PREP TO HOME COOKING Ten things to do at home before heading out to hunt down a big buck.

Preseason preparation allows you to know your gear and how it works, giving you the confidence needed to connect on the shot when it counts. The author was pleased with a clean, one-shot kill on this Idaho whitetail.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY SCOTT HAUGEN

T

he moment of truth has come. That big buck is in your scope, so it’s time to pull the trigger. When you get to this point, things should happen without thinking about each step. The routines you’ve developed through practice make the final

steps automatic and stress-free, allowing for a quick, clean kill. With hunting season fast approaching, here are 10 things you can do at home to make sure you connect when the time comes. SIGHT IT IN The first step to sighting in your hunting rifle is bore sighting. This

is done when mounting the scope onto the rifle. There are many great laser devices that allow this to be completed quickly and efficiently. The goal of bore sighting a rifle is to get you hitting paper at 50 yards. Once this is achieved, it’s time to sight in your rifle at 100 yards. Shooting tight, very accurate groups is the goal. If you can get all your americanshootingjournal.com 79


ROAD HUNTER Recoil-reduction shooting aids like this Lead Sled help eliminate flinching and prove just how accurate a rifle can be. The added confidence is invaluable.

shots touching one another, or fit them inside a quarter at 100 yards, your gun is ready to go. SHOOT FROM A BENCH When sighting in your gun, shoot from a solid bench. Caldwell’s Lead Sled is my personal favorite, as the weight added to it and the design of the device allows shooting without feeling recoil. Shooting a big bore gun can cause flinching, thus inaccuracy, which ultimately costs time and money, raises doubt and can result in crippled game. Start your practice time out right by shooting off a solid rest. Doing so will allow you to shoot a box or more of shells if necessary, and do it with confidence and efficiency. You’ll realize the payoff come crunch time. TARGET OPTIONS Sight your rifle in on paper targets with the circles separated by an inch of space each. This makes it easy for adjusting your scope to get it shooting where you want. Once a tight group is achieved, switch targets. The shootand-see targets, like the Orange Peel, are nice to work with. There are some great anatomically correct targets out there. A favorite line of mine is produced by Safari Press, and is

called The Perfect Shot North American Big Game Targets. What I like about these is there’s an actual photo of the animal on paper. Staple the two top corners of the target to a board. Take your shots, walk up to the target and flip the target over to see the exit wound. On the back of the target is the skeletal system and internal organs, so you can see exactly where your bullet hit. If shooting at these targets on a public range, take a few shots, wait for the range to clear, then walk down and Bore sighting your rifle is the first step in sighting it in. Next comes the shooting stage.

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check out your shot placement on the backside of the target. SHOOTING POSITIONS Shooting off a bench is a great way to get your rifle hitting accurately. But when you’re on a hunt you may find yourself shooting from any of a number of positions. When you see an animal you want to shoot, the first thing to clarify is what you have to do to get into shooting position, then determine which position you’ll be shooting from. This is usually dictated by the terrain and distance of the shot. The more anchor points you have, the more solid your shot will be, thus the more accurate. Lying down and shooting prone is the most accurate way to shoot a rifle, but uneven ground, grass and brush can prevent that position from being attained. Sitting cross-legged, with both elbows on both knees, is also a good position, but you have to be flexible. Kneeling is also very effective, especially if you can rest on a log, rock or dirt rise. If resting on a pack, make sure the contents inside don’t shift, as this leads to an unstable shot. If shooting off a knee, put the elbow of the shooting arm on the knee of that same side. This will keep the shooting


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ROAD HUNTER elbow solid rather than letting it float freely, and many people shoot this way because it feels more natural. This shot, however, takes practice. SHOOTING STICKS If the hunts you’re on dictate that you may shoot from a standing position, invest in shooting sticks. I’ve shot off a lot of different styles of shooting sticks over the years, and my favorite is Bog Pod’s Red Legged Devil. I like a tripod over a bipod, as it has more anchor points. The key to working shooting sticks is practicing with them. Know how to adjust the leg length to fit the terrain and shooting angle. As you move into shooting positions, anticipate where the legs should be set to achieve the desired height. I like screw-in legs over flipper-operated legs, as they are quieter and don’t get hung up on brush. You’ll be amazed at how a solid tripod increases shooting accuracy.

Tripod shooting sticks offer noticed stability over monopods and bipods. The key to mastering them is practicing before the hunt so you know how to efficiently work them.

MANAGE THE RECOIL The caliber of rifle you shoot should be based on how accurately you can shoot it. There’s no reason to shoot a .300 Ultra Mag for deer if the kick makes you flinch. Instead, stick with that .270, especially if you know you can shoot quarters with it all day long at 100 yards.

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Excess recoil is responsible for a lot of misses, so don’t think bigger is better. That said, there are ways to help manage recoil. Aftermarket recoil pads that absorb the shock do help. Ported barrels also allow gasses under great pressure to escape, reducing recoil but adding enough noise that ear protection is definitely necessary. Find what works for you, keeping in mind it’s better to shoot accurately and with confidence, than to be apprehensive about shooting a bigger caliber. PLINK FOR PERFECTION It’s costly to shoot a lot of rounds through your high-powered rifle. But, since practice is necessary, break that .22 out of the safe and start putting the rounds through it. No matter what caliber rifle you’re going to be hunting with, practice – any practice – is vital to accurate, confident shooting. With your .22, shoot a couple hundred rounds a week this time of year. Shoot at different targets of varying sizes and colors. Make sure the backdrop you’re shooting against is solid, as .22 bullets can travel up to a mile. DEVELOP A ROUTINE While shooting that .22, work on developing a routine, such as settling your cheek into the comb, acquiring your target, softly releasing the safety, placing the tip of your finger on the trigger, holding the sight steady, letting out half your breath and gently


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ROAD HUNTER applying pressure on the trigger until the gun fires. Once a week or so, apply those same skills to your hunting rifle, with one or two shots each time. What you’ll discover is an increase in accuracy, a greater sense of confidence and the ability to shoot all guns with precision. When it comes time to take a shot on a big game animal, the process will be fast and automatic. All you want to focus on is the animal’s behavior and body position so you can make a clean shot, not worrying about where the safety is, how loose the trigger may be, or what the recoil is going to feel like. KNOW YOUR GUN With shooting practice comes a familiarity with your gun. The more you handle and shoot it, the more quickly and efficiently you will handle your rifle. Know the barrel length when slung on your shoulder, so you

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There are a range of targets on the market, and many offer added benefits over traditional, standard paper targets.


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know how far to bend over to get under limbs. Be aware of how much movement and pressure it takes to work the bolt. Know how hard it is to work the safety, and whether or not it’s noisy, meaning it will take a thumb and forefinger to manage, not just a flick of a finger. You should know how much pressure to apply to the trigger and feel comfortable with it. Also, make sure you know how your scope works. Not all models are the same when it comes to increasing or decreasing the power. Make sure you know how hard or easy it is to turn all the dials and knobs, and what the reticle looks like in all lighting conditions and weather situations. SHOOT WITH CONFIDENCE Never pull the trigger if the thought is running through your mind, “I hope I can hit it!” If you’re not 100 percent sure of a hit on a big game animal, don’t pull the trigger. If you miss, it should boggle you. You should never miss and think to yourself, “I knew that would happen.” With today’s precision-built guns, scopes and ammunition, missed shots usually come down to operator error. Know the distance of your target, your effective range and what the conditions are like between you and the animal. Now is the time to get dialed in to your gear, for hunting season will be here before you know it. The more shooting practice you can do from multiple positions in a range of conditions and situations, the better shot you’ll be, and the more meat you’ll be able to put in your freezer. And in my opinion, there’s nothing better than post-hunt home cooking! Editor’s note: For copies of Scott Haugen’s comprehensive DVD, Field Dressing, Skinning & Caping Big Game, send a check for $20.00 (free S&H) to Haugen Enterprises, P.O. Box 275, Walterville, OR 97489. This, along with his many books, can be ordered online at scotthaugen.com 86

American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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Longtime gun writer and big game hunter Dave Workman feels that .30-06 rounds have accounted for as many or more mule deer, blacktails and whitetails than the .30-30, and certainly all other caliber cartridges. (ODFW)

BEST DEER ROUND EVER It is debatable, of course, and though he knows there are drawbacks, one longtime hunter and writer feels it’s the .30-06 Springfield. BY DAVE WORKMAN

P

People often write about this Peop or tth that cartridge, or a group of cartridges, t as being the “best” for hunting deer or elk, or some

other big game, but the handsdown, all-around choice for North American game has got to be the .30-06 Springfield.

More than a century old, this .30-caliber round has probably accounted for as many, if not more, deer than the venerable americanshootingjournal.com 91


NEW BULLETS FROM HORNADY, SIG SAUER While we’re talking big game cartridges, dges, Hornady has added .300 WSM loadss to its ammunition lineup. In the Superformance family, there re is a new entry with a 165-grain GMX projectile, which is a good bullet. Thee Superformance series uses what Hornady rnady calls “ultra-progressive propellants” that get the most out of the bullet. The GMX MX is made from a copper alloy for controlled olled expansion. It retains 95-plus percentt of its weight, according to Hornady. Another .300 WSM offering features a 200-grain ELD-X bullet in the Precision Hunter series. Thiss projectile delivers match-level accuracy and has the highest ballistic stic coefficient in its class. And for handgunners, Sig Sauer has added two new 9mm offerings in its Elite Performance ammunition line. The new selections feature either a 124- or 147-grain FMJ bullet. These new loads join the 115-grainers that are offered in both the V-Crown JHP personal defense

(SIG SAUER)

and FMJ target loads. On Target recently had a look at these new entries at the National Rifle Association’s annual convention in Atlanta. The FMJ loads are designed

to “approximate” the performance of the JHP duty loads so that practice sessions are as close as possible to delivering accuracy and performance on the street. –DW

.30-30 Winchester. It’s a good elk cartridge, it can put down caribou, black bear, bighorn sheep and mountain goats, and it’s also accounted for more than a few grizzlies. It is tried and true, with a well-earned reputation for putting meat in the cooler and trophies on the wall. Sure, there are the .270 Winchester, .308 Winchester, 7mm Remington Magnum and .300 Winchester Magnum, and the “short, fat magnums,” along with a host of other calibers that include the .243 Winchester, 6mm Remington, .257 Roberts, .25-06 Remington and .280 Remington. They all have their devotees. But the ’06 will just about do it all with the right bullets. I have shot deer at an estimated 400 yards, and at a definite 350 yards with this round topped by a 180-grain Nosler AccuBond bullet propelled by a full dose of Hodgdon’s Hybrid 100V powder 92

American Shooting Journal // August 2017


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AMMO/RELOADING

ignited by a CCI primer. It shoots flat, is accurate and if one is into reloading, it is a remarkably versatile and consistent cartridge. Bullet choices range from 125 to 220 grains, and my personal choices have been the 165- and 180-grainers. More about this in a minute. SO, WHAT’S THE down side? First, some people can’t handle the recoil. I’ll have to admit that my first experience with the ’06 many years ago was not so pleasant. It was a rifle that didn’t fit properly, combined with a hard recoil pad that didn’t absorb a bit of recoil. These days, my rifles have superb modern technology recoil pads and they both fit rather well. Other cartridges shoot farther, such as the 7mm Remington Magnum, the .300 Winchester Magnum and .300 WSM, and the various Weatherby magnums, to name but a few. But as with the ’06, all of those other calibers have pretty stout recoil, at least for some shooters. The .30-06 can also make a mess of a deer if the bullet hits the wrong spot. Having shot deer in the neck, and just behind the shoulders, and once in the spine (ruining the backstrap in the process), I can attest to the devastating effect the .30-caliber bullet has on deer-sized game when launched from an ’06. You simply have to spend time at the range to make sure the rifle shoots to point of aim. Of course, that can be said of any round, even the .30-30, if your bullet placement goes awry. Here I’m compelled to talk about rifles for a moment. Some of them are better than others. If your rifle has a trigger that does not break crisply – that is, you must keep pressing against felt tension until it suddenly discharges – that sucks. You’re making a precision shot on which a lot of time, effort and expense have been invested. You want all of

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AMMO/RELOADING

that riding on a crappy trigger? My rifles all have very crisp triggers that break clean and go “bang!” when I expect it, not by surprise. MY BULLET WEIGHT choices were noted above, and for my money, the boattail is the best projectile for this cartridge. It typically has the highest ballistic coefficient (in layman’s terms, how well it overcomes air resistance) of all bullet types. Speer, Sierra, Hornady, Nosler, Barnes – they all make good projectiles that work well in the .30-06, and it is up to the handloader to find the right bullet and powder combination for his specific rifle. In brush country, some folks prefer the round-nose bullet because it will be less likely to be deflected by a branch, in theory anyway. My two favorite propellants are H100V, mentioned earlier, and IMR 4895. I’ve taken deer in four states, and the .30-06 made quick work with every shot. In areas with little wind, the 165-grain pill delivers, but over on the Snake River in those canyons with their breezes, I’ll use the 180-grainer for the additional weight to fly true. For hunting out on the plains, the magnums excel because they are longer-range cartridges. On the other hand, there is something to be said about the ability and patience to stalk to within reasonable shooting range, say, 300 to 350 yards for most people. I would rather try moving in closer for a sure shot than take my chances at a ridiculously long range where all kinds of factors can play havoc with your bullet. The brutal fact is that there probably is no “best” cartridge for everyone because we all have our preferences. You simply cannot please everyone. Yet when push comes to shove, the .30-06 stacks up. You can find factory ammunition just about anywhere, and it will handle virtually all North American big game, provided you do your part.

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Only black powder loads were tried in this field test of the .44-40 rifles.

WRINGING OUT THE .44-40

Our man in the woods with the black powder horn puts a classic cartridge to the test. STORY AND PHOTOS BY MIKE NESBITT

T

he old .44-40 is one of our most famous, most successful, and yet also one of the most looked down upon cartridges we can talk about. It has been loaded in varieties from the original black powder loading, to loads for the .44 Game Getter (which used a single round ball), to the high-velocity loadings for the Model 1892 Winchester and the 1894 Marlins. Shot loads were also made for the .44-40, both with extended cartridge cases and with wooden “bullets” encasing the birdshot.

To say that the .44-40 has quite a history is putting it mildly. While the round was designed and introduced as a rifle cartridge, officially titled the .44 W.C.F. (Winchester Center Fire), it was also chambered in a wide variety of pistols. Cowboy Action shooters of today can enjoy having their rifles and revolvers using the very same ammo just as the cowboys of the Old West enjoyed it. However, the rifles chambered for the .44-40 outnumber revolvers by far, and the .44-40 was primarily and most popularly a rifle cartridge. It was also primarily a black powder

cartridge. Introduced in 1873, it was loaded with nothing but black powder for several years. Then smokeless powders became available and that started a whole new chapter in the life of the .44-40, with standard- and highvelocity loads. The high-velocity loads were adapted only to the stronger rifles such as the Model 1892 Winchester and the Marlin 1894, along with the Remington Model 14½. We’ll let those high-velocity loads, sometimes headstamped with “.44 WHV, M’92” for 44 Winchester High Velocity, Model ’92, remain part of history for now and concentrate on the mainly americanshootingjournal.com 101


BLACK POWDER

The three rifles had barrels of (from top) 30, 24 and 18 inches.

black powder loads for the Model 1873 Winchester and copies, plus the good old “thumb-buster” six-guns. THERE WAS ALSO A SHORT-LIVED “low velocity” black powder loading for the .44-40, loaded by U.M.C. in the early 1900s. That load used the same 200-grain lead bullet, but just 28

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grains of black powder powered it. Why that was done, or tried, is not known. What it did was to give the .4440 the same performance as the older .44 Henry rimfire cartridge. More than likely, the 28-grain loadings were probably the most popular (if we can even use that term) in revolvers where the reduced blast and recoil would be

the most noticeable. After 144 years of use and existence, is there anything new we can say about the old .44-40? I think there is. For one thing, I’m going to review and consider the .44-40 as it was introduced, a black powder cartridge for repeating rifles. Most others have taken the .44-40 with attempts to update it, using smokeless


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BLACK POWDER powders for higher velocities or heavier bullets for greater range and penetration. Instead of doing that, let’s see what the .44-40 will or can do with black powder loads when fired in newly made Uberti copies of the Winchester Model 1873. While the shooting and testing for this column might not be the most revealing, you can easily believe me when I say preparing the data for this story was the most fun. And while this article must have an ending (I promise), my shooting with black powder loads in the .44-40 will go on. IN ORDER TO ESTABLISH a basis of performance (velocity) for the old .44-40, let’s refer to the Winchester catalog of 1916, where a wide range of .44-40 loads are listed. The old simple black powder loading was shown with a velocity out of a rifle barrel at 1,300 feet per second. That’s a nice round number, and quite specific, but they

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don’t mention what barrel length was used when they achieved that velocity. We may logically assume that their velocity figure was obtained with a 24inch barrel from either a Model ’73 or a Model ’92 rifle, but at the same time the Winchester Single Shot, or what we call the Model 1885 today, was available chambered for .44-40 with a 28-inch barrel. Any of those rifles could have been used, and it is also quite likely that the Winchester folks used a test barrel for checking velocities that was even longer. We’ll talk about barrel lengths some more, but for now, let’s consider the “old load” with a muzzle velocity of 1,300 fps. Next, let’s take a look at Mike Venturino’s excellent book, Shooting Lever Guns of the Old West. This is a highly recommendable book (available from Wolfe Publishing) and I won’t criticize it at all except to say that it should be updated to include loads with Olde Eynsford powders. Olde

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Eynsford was simply not available when Mike put his data together, and the Cartridge powder he used is no longer made. Of course, the .44-40 gets a lot of good space in that book and we’ll be adding to that just a bit as we continue here. For his book, Mike included black powder loads for two rifles in .44/40, an Uberti ’66 with a 24-inch barrel and an Uberti ’73 carbine with a 19-inch barrel. In order to “wring out” the differences in barrel lengths with black powder loads in the .44-40, I used three Uberti ’73s, one with an 18-inch barrel, a sporting rifle with a 24-inch barrel, and what’s called the “long range” rifle with the 30-inch barrel. As you might guess, the best shooting and the highest velocities came from the rifle with the 30-inch barrel. ONLY ONE LOADING WAS used for my testing, with some slight changes in bullet weight or design. All of the rifles

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BLACK POWDER were shot using loads with the Lyman No. 427098 bullet, the old standard .4440 bullet, cast from a 25-1 alloy of lead and tin, sized to .429-inch diameter and lubricated with Big Sky Lube. In addition, the 30-inch barreled rie was also tried with the same bullet hollow pointed, which reduced its weight by about 10 grains, from 215 grains down to 205 grains. And, furthermore, a few shots were taken with the 30-inch barreled rie with loads using Accurate Molds’ No. 43-205C, a bullet designed for the .44-40 with black powder loads and having a single very wide lube groove. CCI Large Pistol Magnum primers were used for all shots. All of those bullets were loaded in new Star Line nickel-plated .44-40 cases over 34 grains of GOEX’s Olde Eynsford powder. That much powder ďŹ lls the case to about a sixteenth of an inch from the mouth. The bullets, with no cards or over-powder wads, were then loaded, compressing the powder as the bullets

This is the group shot with the hollow point bullets at 50 yards.

were seated to regular depth. This is the load that I have adopted for my standard black powder loading in the .44-40.

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It must be mentioned that in the old days, the .44-40s and several other cartridges were loaded in cases that had “balloon headâ€? primer pockets, while today’s brass is made in the “solid headâ€? configuration. The older balloon head cases held more powder, which could contribute to higher velocities, even at the same pressures. The ďŹ rst rie used to send bullets over the chronograph was the short rie with the 18-inch barrel. That gave an average velocity of 1,158 fps. Next the sporting rie with the 24-inch barrel was ďŹ red, giving an average velocity for ďŹ ve shots of 1,230 fps for an additional 70 fps with the added 6 inches of barrel length. And the 30inch barreled rie gave an average velocity of 1,282 fps, another 50 fps with the extra 6 inches of barrel length. The extreme spread in velocities should also be examined, and the 18inch barreled rie had the greatest spread of all, about 70 fps. The 24-inch and the 30-inch barreled ries had similar extreme spreads, about 30 fps. While I am including this information, we must also remember that the samples of velocities were small, only ďŹ ve shots per rie.


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BLACK POWDER

In the author’s tests, the velocity champion was the rifle with the 30-inch barrel.

More shooting was done with the 30-inch barreled rifle using the Accurate Molds’ bullet which crossed the chronograph at 1,274 fps, and the Lyman bullet hollow point, which gave a speed of 1,291 fps. It can also be noted that the hollow point bullet gave

the best group and all shooting was done with targets posted at 50 yards. My greatest conclusion gained from this short test of shooting is that the famous old .44-40 was and still is a great black powder rifle cartridge. I’ll be doing a lot more shooting, using the

rifle with the 30-inch barrel the most, so further reports of loads and possible achievements might follow. While the majority of my black powder rifle shooting will be done with a Sharps or a rolling block, my ’73 in .44-40 will always be close at hand.

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Joel Harris from Zeiss Optics helps a student sight in her rifle during the She Hunts Skills Camp, which author Brittany Boddington co-founded to help women get “a strong foundation to become confident and independent hunters.” (AUGUST PETERS)

THESE GALS GOT SKILLS! First-ever She Hunts Skills Camp in Texas brings together outdoor veterans and newcomers.

I

BY BRITTANY BODDINGTON

I’ve always known that I was lucky I’v to h have had my father as a mentor to gguide me into the hunting world, bu over the years I’ve realized some but women are not as lucky. The She Hunts Skills Camp that we recently held in Texas was born to help give these ladies a strong foundation

to become confident and independent hunters. It was just an idea of mine for a long time until I joined up with Shannon Lansdowne as my partner, and we took off running with it. Lansdowne is an accomplished hunter with a dad who mentored her in the same way mine did for me, but from the opposite perspective. Her dad was an outfitter in British Columbia

for the better part of 40 years. She started guiding at an early age and her dad taught her everything he knew. We decided to make this camp into a fun and educational place for women to come and learn about hunting. THE BASICS We brainstormed for months about what to include and narrowed down americanshootingjournal.com 113


the massive list to a plethora of do’s and don’ts covering gun handling, safety and maintenance, mounting a scope, sighting in a rifle, shooting rest methods, basics of hunting and stalking, wild game cooking, field dressing, shotgun shooting, and wilderness medicine. We threw in some fun additions, like a winepairing seminar and some sunset game tours, to keep everyone relaxed and ensure they had a good time. One key element that we decided early on was to make sure that we equipped all the participants with top-of-the-line gear that they could actually use in the field once they got home. The bag of goodies that we named the “swag bag” ended up with a value around $1,500, which everyone absolutely loved. The first camp was a huge success, and we also learned a ton. We didn’t completely understand our demographic in the beginning, but it became clear that there are a ton of women out there who would love to get more comfortable with firearms and the outdoors. We had some very experienced hunters who were interested in sharpening their skills, and some ladies who had never been hunting but liked the idea. We had ages ranging from 11 to 65 with us, and the most amazing part was that they all got along. Somehow

WHAT THEY’RE SAYING A selection of comments from She Hunts Camp participants: “I loved everything about this camp!” “I can’t wait to do it again!” “An amazing experience at a fantastic location put on by wonderful, caring women!” “It was a great experience and one I look forward to participating again.” “I enjoyed meeting other women and building relationships and skills that we can apply together. I made some friends that I will plan hunt trips with.” “I feel more confident shooting and even more proud to be a hunter as a woman.” 114

American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Camp co-founder Shannon Lansdowne teaches field dressing to the youngest student at the Texas-based camp, 11-year-old Gracie. (AUGUST PETERS)

The campers enjoyed themselves, but what pleased the author so much was how eager everyone was to learn about hunting and how to handle a gun. “We had some ladies who were afraid of guns,” Boddington wrote, “but they ended the camp saying that they were going to go to the range on their own now.” (AUGUST PETERS)

“It was amazing.” “I learned more than I thought I would.” “Learning useful skills that I will be able to apply during my time in the field. Making memories with like-minded people who share the same interests.” “I walked away from each seminar with something new and useful.” “An amazing, confidence-boosting experience. I feel much more independent and knowledgeable about hunting, sighting, skinning, gun rests, etc., than I did before I came to She Hunts. I would absolutely recommend She Hunts to every level of female hunter!” “Thank you for a wonderful experience!”

“If they want to be around industry professionals, learn, have fun, and walk away with a hands-on experience, then they should sign up.” “Being an avid hunter, I still learned many new things.” “I learned a lot; even though I am an avid hunter and have done most of the things, I still found value.” “Meeting other ladies that are interested in similar activities. It provided an immediate comfort level that you don’t always get with other groups.” “I am new to hunting so I wasn’t sure what to expect. After this week I would feel more comfortable hunting.” “It is a fabulous camp and I would highly recommend it.”


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the desire for knowledge and the passion for the outdoors brought them all together.

The hosts and professional hunter Steve Rann greet camp guests, and Rann (below) leads a seminar on gun cleaning. The camp was held at the 777 Ranch in Hondo, Texas, west of San Antonio. (AUGUST PETERS)

A DEVELOPING BOND We watched in astonishment as the ladies developed friendships that may last a lifetime. The more experienced hunters would jump in to help the newer ones, and there were no stupid questions, so everyone felt safe asking things that they said they had always wanted to know but were too afraid to ask in the past. The results continued to astonish Lansdowne and myself as the camp went on. We had some ladies who were afraid of guns, but they ended the camp saying that they were going to go to the range on their own now since they had enjoyed shooting for the first time ever. We also had a non-hunter take not only her first animal but then she took her second! We had ladies who had never hunted leave the camp saying that they had decided that they were now bonafide hunters. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED For my partner and I, it was a dream come true – a vision that really pulled at our heartstrings since we are both so passionate about bringing women into the outdoors. Besides our personal enthusiasm we now realize that this is our mission and that there is a need. We are already busy planning the next few camps for 2018 and we hope for a long future for She Hunts. If you would like more information, or to join us, please visit SheHunts.com for all the current information, as well as tons of photos and videos from the last camp. We can’t wait to see what She Hunts can do! Editor’s note: Brittany Boddington is a Los Angeles-based journalist, hunter and adventurer. For more, check out brittanyboddington.com and facebook.com/brittanyboddington.

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There

She Was... West Coast hunter vied for Mrs. Washington crown.

A

BY CHRIS COCOLES

As the contestants for the Mrs. Washington America Pageant gathered in their state capitol for this spring’s event, every woman qualified for a chance to reach national stage had her own backstory. Here’s a guess: Mrs. Vancouver, Jena Cook, the eventual second-place finisher in the pageant, had one of the most compelling. Cook’s submitted platform – the pageant encourages participants to document what they’re passionate about – doesn’t mention desiring world peace but instead “focuses on the importance of ethical hunting conservation through wildlife and habitat management and restoration.” “It’s definitely been a topic of conversation,” Cook says with a laugh about the shock value of sharing her views on hunting with the beauty pageant community. But this is who Cook is and she won’t apologize for it to the politically correct/anti-hunting establishment. And this also provided her an opportunity to explain what she does and why she does it to an audience that probably doesn’t have much background in this arena. “There have been a couple of people who have been a little sour on the subject, because all they can think of is animal cruelty,” Cook, 27, says on how she’s been received among the pageant community. “The way I try to approach it is, I always

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say I’m a hunter who hunts for meat, and sport comes with that. It’s not about putting a rack on the wall.” MAKE NO MISTAKE, Cook grew up embracing the outdoors, even if she wasn’t yet “in love” with hunting. The Vancouver native was introduced to fishing by her dad, Craig Meriwether, who hunted with her older brother. More comfortable with a rod and reel than a shotgun, Cook stuck to fishing, but as she got older, she began to embrace the idea of knowing where the protein she’d eat came from. Already having learned to shoot at a younger age, the reality that she was dating a hunter made it a no-brainer to give it a try someday. Finally, she and her boyfriend at the time went waterfowl hunting along the Columbia River Gorge. It didn’t go very well. How bad? “It was, and pardon my language, a sh*t show,” Cook says with a laugh. “Of course, since it was duck hunting, the weather was sooo beautiful. I didn’t

have the right gear and I was freezing. I was doing everything in my power not to complain so I wasn’t that girl that was dragged along.” “I remember the dogs bringing back the ducks and I was fine watching the ducks get hit, come down and the dogs bringing them up and setting them down at my feet. And I thought, ‘I don’t know what I’m supposed to do right now. Is it like fishing? Do I bonk their heads?’ So my ex came up and said, ‘You’ve got to put them out of their misery,’ and grabs it and whacks it on a rock right in front of me. And it just sprays blood right at me and across my face. I happened to be standing in the right spot, so it went from my knees, up my torso and across my face – a perfect stream of blood. So that was my initiation into duck hunting.” Cook ultimately kept dating hunting but not her boyfriend at the time. (“He’s an ex for a reason,” she quips.) And that she eventually fell in love with a longtime


Hunter by day, beauty queen by night. Jena Cook was named Mrs. Vancouver and vied for the title of Mrs. Washington America, ultimately coming in first runner-up in her state’s beauty pageant. Of note, her platform included promoting hunting as a way to “take responsibility for where my protein comes from,” as well for its wideranging conservation benefits. (SHAUN COOK/STCIMAGERY.COM; JENA COOK)

friend, Shaun Cook, who is also a passionate sportsman, only ensured that she would become just as obsessed with the sport. They married in June 2015 and have shared, besides wedded bliss, numerous hunting adventures close to their Southwest Washington home and beyond, including memorable deer and elk trips to Wyoming, where Cook really fell head over heels for hunting, with a big assist from her husband. “It was something he was really investing me – being his hunting partner, not so much that I was just along for the ride,” she says. “He expected me to pull my weight but I was there as an equal partner. Investing all that time together and bonding as a married couple, it was something that was so different. I feel bad for people who won’t get to experience that.” Of course, they are husband and wife, so they’ll chirp at each other when they think one is making too much

noise while searching out big game. “He’ll tell me I’m the loud one,” Cook says, “and I’m like, ‘You’re delusional; you’re not the gazelle that you think you are.’” ULTIMATELY, WHILE SHE enjoys the quality time with Shaun and the sport of the chase and the shot, Cook savors the idea of knowing exactly the source of what she and Shaun put on their table. When she took the stage at the Washington Center for the Performing Arts in Olympia this past spring, she was eight months into her term. Not only is there a good chance that she’s the only woman who has vied for Mrs. Washington who hunts, she says she was the first in the pageant’s history to be visibly showing while she competed. “That’s (was) already an added kind of intrigue for me,” she said. The Cooks even went out hunting last fall when Jena was in her first trimester, though the mom-to-beadmitted, “I could really feel the

difference, fatigue wise; I felt bad (for Shaun) because I wasn’t the best hunting partner. I just got burned out.” The endgame, though, is harvesting meat without fearing what chemicals or byproducts store-bought meat can contain. She found it fascinating that Gerber, the venerable baby food company, initially bottled leftover organ meat (such as liver and beef heart), which was considered to be heavy in nutrients and promote growth in infants. “I was looking at in Native (American) cultures, when a couple was expecting or starting to try to conceive, they always would give that couple organ meat from animals to make sure they were getting all the nutrients,” Cook says. “And I took that really seriously because going into this pregnancy I’ve been trying really hard to get enough of these iron-rich and all-natural meats. And I want to make sure that’s what’s going into my baby.” So little Elliot Cook, born early americanshootingjournal.com 121


last month, probably shouldn’t expect all Cheerios or a couple French fries as a snack when hungry. Meat pâté or some other semblance of protein is more likely. “I want to know that, ‘Hey, that came from our elk from last season, and I know for a fact that it hasn’t been processed or filled with any hormones.’ It’s really satisfying, and you can take pride in that as a parent and provider. It’s a unique experience that we are kind of losing, culturally.” SO HOW DOES a woman who clearly likes to get her hands dirty – not only does she fish and hunt but Cook was also a former high school wrestler on the boys’ team – also masquerade as pageant participant just a step away from competing for a Mrs. America crown? First and foremost, when asked if she was OK with carrying around a tomboy moniker, Cook skewed more towards “offbeat” than simply just one of the guys. “Awkward and gangly – yes, but I did love messing with my hair and dying it every color under the sun. I wore everything from 1950s sock-hop attire to punk rock to country girl stuff,” she says. And sure enough, when she was young – fifth and sixth grade – Cook entered a couple smaller pageants around the Vancouver area. (“What little girl didn’t want to be a part of that?” she muses.) Her parents offered this stipulation: If you want to do it, you have to fundraise yourself to help pay the fees. So Jena went door to door around local businesses to secure sponsor dollars so she could enter. 122

American Shooting Journal // August 2017

Jena grew up fishing with her dad, Craig, and did some hunting before meeting Shaun Cook, whom she married two years ago and has gone afield with on numerous trips around their southwest Washington home and as far afield as Wyoming. “I want to show that everyday normal people can take pride in harvesting their own meat and experiencing nature,” she says. “Conservation is a legacy and something I take seriously because I want to pass this onto future generations.” (JENA COOK, BOTH)

“I did my last pageant when I was 16 in a local event. But it wasn’t about the fun of it or the sisterhood of the community,” Cook says. “These girls had an eye on the prize and saw themselves as the future Miss America. It was a totally different ballgame. But even though I was competitive this was just supposed to be a super-fun experience.” When she realized that fellow competitors were channeling their inner Mean Girls by attempting to sabotage each other in various ways, Cook seemed done for good. But now that she’s a married adult, the Mrs. pageants that are held around the state and the country don’t seem to breed such cutthroat competition. They’re more about showcasing what young women have accomplished in their lives already. And if you assume she may have had the most unlikely of passions among her peers vying for the crown of Mrs. Washington, it was a golden opportunity to put hunting in a

positive light. When she interacted with other pageant entrants, Cook asked if they eat meat, then queried them on what they know about where that piece of beef or pork came from. It seems like a fair and viable request, doesn’t it? Cook understands that such a potentially volatile and controversial passion will “either help me or hinder me.” “I tell them, ‘I simply decided to take it upon myself to take responsibility for where my protein comes from. And then I give back with my conservation efforts to make sure that the resource remains available,’” she says. “When they say, ‘I couldn’t go out and kill something,’ nobody is asking them to. So why is it a bad thing that somebody is OK with accepting that responsibility to take it upon themselves with what they are eating?” Editor’s note: For more on the Mrs. United States Pageant, go to mrsunitedstates.com.


americanshootingjournal.com 123


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* independently verified


SUPPRESSOR

GALLERY SRT ARMS Model: Ruger 77/44 Length: 1 inch longer than factory tory rifle Mount: Integrally mounted Weight: 1 pound more than factory rifle Decibel: 120 decibels absolute with 240-grain 0 grain subsonic ammo Materials: 4130 outer tube, 7075 aluminum baffles and caps Notes: Optional fast-twist Douglas barrel available MSRP: $995 on customer-supplied rifle; add $365 for optional barrel upgrade More info: srtarms.com

GEMTECH Model: TREK II Caliber: 5.56x45mm Length: 5.7 inches Diameter: 1.5 inches Mount: ½x28 Weight: 16 ounces Sound reduction: 29 to 30 decibels Materials: Stainless steel Finish: Matte Black Cerakote MSRP: $449.00

ELITE IRON, LLC Model: STFU Caliber: .30, .308 Length: 7.875 inches Mount: 5/8x24 Weight: 22.8 ounces Sound reduction: 28 decibels Materials: Aircraft-quality 300-series stainless tubing and 17-4 PH H900 stainless internals, Cerakote finish Notes: Designed for elite military, law enforcement, and serious civilian shooters MSRP: $760 More info: eliteiron.com

HARDENED ARMS Model: StingRay Caliber: 5.56/.223 Length: 6.4 inches Diameter: 1.490 inches Mount: Direct thread Weight: 18 ounces Sound reduction: 31 decibels Materials: 17-4 stainless steel MSRP: Go to website for current sale pricing

MKS SUPPLY Model: PM-22 Caliber: .22 LR Length: 5.5 inches Diameter: 1 inch Mount: 1/2x28 Weight: 3.3 ounces Sound reduction: 87.6 decibels dry, 66.4 decibels with dBFoam Materials: Aluminum tube, stainless steel base, polymer monolithic baffle Finish: Anodized MSRP: $189.95

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