by B.B. Pelletier
Part 1 – How it all began
Part 2 – Targets
Part 3 – Targets – Part 2
Part 4 – Squads
Part 5 – The spring guns
Part 6 – The precharged guns
Before I start with today’s topic, here’s some interesting news about the future of field target. Tim McMurray told me that AAFTA has agreed with the other field target governing bodies around the world that all future world matches will be restricted to 12 foot-pound guns starting in 2008. If I understand what he said correctly, that means that even if the world championships are held in the U.S. in the future, only 12 foot-pound guns will be allowed to compete, presenting a dilemma to American shooters.
Most Americans compete with spring guns and PCPs that operate in the 13.5-19 foot-pound range. Springers typically push 7.9-grain Crosman Premiers at 900 f.p.s. and PCPs launch 10.2-grain JSB Exact pellets to the same speed. By switching to the 12 foot-pound limit, the same springers would shoot a 7.9-grain Premier at 826 f.p.s., which isn’t too bad, but the PCPs would also have to shoot the lighter pellet, because a 10.3-grain JSB would have to be slowed to 728 f.p.s. to stay under 12 foot-pounds.
I competed for two seasons with a 12 foot-pound PCP, and my scores dropped to spring-gun levels, which for me was an average loss of three points per 60-shot match. When I returned to the Daystate Harrier set up for more power, I picked up several points per round. The Brits, who are on average the finest field target shooters in the world, will argue correctly that by forcing a limit of 12 foot-pounds, they have to improve their shooting skills. However, being an American, I rail at the thought of other countries imposing limits on my shooting – not that I ever plan on shooting in the field target world championships.
However, for those who do plan to compete at the worlds, there is a choice to be made. You don’t compete with an 18 foot-pound gun all year and then suddenly drop back to 12 foot-pounds and expect to win anything. So, the top American shooters will probably start shifting to 12 foot-pound field target rifles next year. That’s going to make things interesting for a while, until they develop their skills with the new rifles. It will be interesting to watch.
On to the topic of the day.
FT scopes
When I started in field target in the late 1990s, a lot had already happened. Shooters had already gone through the HW77s and FWB 124s and had embraced the TX200< when it came on the scene. Springers in general were being pushed aside to make way for PCPs, but the scopes everyone used were lagging behind. When I started shooting, Leupold scopes were regarded very highly, and many were sent to Premier Reticle for field target modifications.
If you couldn’t afford a Leupold 6.5-20x, you might have bought a Bushnell 6-18x Trophy or a Simmons 4-12x and did the best you could. But that only lasted for a little while because Hakko, the great Japanese scope manufacturer, started catering to airgunners. At first it was their U.S. repair center in Miami that modified other scopes for FT competitors. Before long, Hakko, themselves, began bringing out models made for the sport. Their most notable creation was the sidewheel parallax adjustment they put on their 8-40x scopes. Pretty soon, everyone had to have a sidwheel.
Magnification
When I started, 20x magnification was considered to be a lot. But before two years passed, the 8-40x scopes were out. The first batches went dark after 30 power. Within a few years, manufacturers were learning how to make even 40x scopes bright enough to use. People always wonder why anyone would want such power on a rifle that’s limited to 55 yards, but they don’t understand how it’s being used. It’s needed for range finding. To determine range, you need to see when very small things come into focus; and, beyond 40 yards, it takes all the power a scope has. I like to focus on the swivel that the reset string is tied to. With 30x, I can do that out to 35-40 yards, depending on the light.
Burris and Bushnell
About 18 months to 2 years later, the Burris 8-32x scope hit the scene and many shooters praised its clear optics. I tried one but found that it demanded the absolute correct placement of the eye to see anything. If your eye wasn’t in the right spot, the picture was black. That’s great if you own the scope and rifle, but when you borrow one to try, you can’t make the necessary adjustments.
The Bushnell 4000 Elite series was another popular scope in the early part of the new millennium. It had crystal-clear optics and a price that was lower than the Leupold.
Scope aids
Scopes weren’t alone in the optical revolution brought about by field target. The aids that accompanied them were quite interesting, as well. Among the most popular were the rubber eyeshades of various shapes that shooters used to position their eyes and block out excess sunlight. When the sun is on your side, it can play real havoc if you are trying to see something through a high-power scope. They also help position your eye so parallax is reduced to the minimum.
Large eyeshade was cut to fit the shooter and left on the ocular (eye) bell full time. It helped locate the shooter’s head and kept stray sunlight out of the image.
Sunshades for the objective bell are another popular accessory, only being so specific to the scope they are not offered as aftermarket options, but as standard accessories included with the scope. My advice if you have a sunshade is to mount it and leave it. A time will come when you will be glad you did, for a patch of sun falling on the objective lens will gray out the image.
Scope levels are another option you should consider. I like the B-Square model that sticks out to the side of the scope (either side) because I can watch it while sighting. A mount that requires you to move your head to check is useless, because you can never be sure of the shot. Anthony Storey modified several dozen scopes by putting a bubble level INSIDE the scope so the shooter could see it while sighting. This was a wonderful option, and I’ve wondered why no scope manufacturer has ever bothered to offer it as a feature.
The enlarged sidewheel is the most popular scope accessory of all. It lets you put white artist’s tape around the rim to mark the actual distances at which the scope focuses. A 6″ sidewheel provides over 18″ of space (pi still being 3.14159) on which to inscribe yardage, and that means you can have a meaningful separation between 18 yards and 20 – where there is a huge parallax and trajectory difference. When you’re trying to shoot through 3/8″ kill zones at 15 yards, it matters big time!
Leapers’ optional 100mm sidewheel fits all Leapers scopes with sidewheel adjustment. Though the ranges are already engraved on the rim of the wheel, field target competitors will measure them again on an actual range and write the markings on a strip of white artist’s tape.
This sidewheel has yardage marked off out to 55. The elevation knob is also enlarged and correlated to the sidewheel, so the shooter knows how to adjust for shots at every distance. This must be worked out by the shooter for every rifle/scope/pellet combination, which is why you use only one type of pellet.
The future?
In the future, look for scopes with greater light transmission. The 30mm scope tube is not the largest that can be constructed, nor should it be. Also, look for more positive erector tube adjustments without floating on the return springs at the end of travel. I don’t think we’ve seen all the reticles yet, nor has the laser been fully incorporated into the scope as far as it could be.
Field target has given us the sidewheel parallax adjustment, internal scope levels (though there is a long way yet to go), and magnification powers beyond anything ever imagined by the staunchest long-range varmint hunter. It has helped mature riflescopes inside two decades. I don’t believe the job is finished.
What I didn’t address in this post is how to select a field target scope, so expect that in part two of the scopes report.
BB
you have said in the past that you are a huge fan of slow moving pellets. As such, why would dropping power to 12ft-lbs make any difference to your accuracy? Im not for a second saying you are wrong, im just interested as to why a 16ft-lbs rifle should be more accurate than a 12ft-lbs rifle? After all, a .444 marlin round at 3000ft-lbs is no more accurate than a .22lr at 105ft-lbs?
i was reading the other day about how the trained marksmen in Iraq can take out a human target from over 2000M using a sniper rifle and .50BMG cartridges. Though i looked, i didnt see any description of the scopes they use for this? what magnification do they have, any ideas?
I didn’t say 16 foot-pounds was more accurate than 12. I said it is easieer to shoot more accuratey. There is a big difference between those two statements.
I also said the Bristish field target competitors are, on average, the best in the world, and they all use 12 foot-pound guns. So 12 froot-pounds is accurate.
What you need to understand is that in field target it isn’t good enough to just hit the target. You have to pass through the kill zone without touching the sides. That’s why a larger trajectory is more difficult to shoot.
B.B.
Most sniper these days use scopes in the 10-14-power range. They do not use field target type scopes.
They are not trying to shoot through a kill zaone. Only to hit it.
The world’s longest recorded sniper shot belongs to a Rob Furlong of the Canadian army, with a kill at 2340 meters, or just over 1.5 miles. He used a .50 cal. MacMillian TAC-50.
B.B.
with only a X10-14 scope its unbelievable that you could even see a human target at over 1.5 miles away, let alone hit him. I am shocked!!!! I feel like i need a X24 to hit what i aim at 27yards away lol
bb,
i have a burris 8-32, not the airgun one. Its 900$ and it is as good as the Swarovski. Its hard to compare because the Swarovski is an 4-16. The burris is ok down to 12 yards or so.
-sumo
Springfield Armory used to sell Hakko-manufactured sniper scopes that had bubble-levels built inside the scopes factory ready. Because they were not up to the ruggedness levels required of proper sniper scopes they disappeared from the scene in a few years.
BB – do you know what power scope Mr. Furlong used in that 2340 meter shot?
Ozark
markus,
Precision, Precision ,Precision, Precision, Precision Precision, Precision, and Precision. There may be other things but thats what i think.
-sumo
bb – how good a scope do you have to have to expect a level of consistency in elevation adjustment that is appropriate for FT? I’ve only used relatively cheap scopes out to 20 yds, and I know I need to do more field work at varying distances, but before I buy a $200 scope I’d like to know whether that still won’t be entirely consistent. Thanks.
What’s the number of 12 foot-pounds when converted to Joule?
hi bb
i was just looking at the new gamo wisper. how is this legal? it lookes like they slapped a big silecer over the muzzle. isnt this a silencer? dont you need atf aproval for this?
Nate in Mass
fero,
16.27 joule. The conversion tables are all over the internet. Go here:
http://www.onlineconversion.com/
B.B.
Nate,
The TX200 has had the same thing for 10 years. No problem.
A spring gun doesn’t need a silencer anyhow.
B.B.
Markus,
Glass reticles are what you are talking about. When illuminated, they don’t flare.
B.B.
Ozark,
Reportedly, 16-power.
B.B.
airdog,
You’re not asking the right question about FT scopes. I will hit it tomorrow.
B.B.
B.B. (Off Topic): I notice that Pyramyd sells Chrony(s) with different colors, red, blue, green. What are the differences based on color? The prices are about the same. Thanks, Don.
Don,
They do different things. The blue one, for example, has a larger memory than the red one.
Tom Gaylord wrote a nice article about these It’s here:
/article/Who_needs_a_chronograph_August_2006/31
B.B.
BB,
Im new to shooting glasses and i have a couple of questions.
Whats an iris for, what does it do, is it useful?
NObody seems to offer lenses without diopter, the lowest is +.25, will those work for someone that doesnt have sight problems?
Thanks Zach
Zach,
An iris does the same thing for your eye that it does for the lens of a camera. It closes the available light path to reduce the amount of light that reaches your eye. When you do that, you get an enhanced depth of field. So you will be able to see both the rear signt and front sight in sharp focus.
A .25 diopter lens is almost no correction at all. I doubt you will be able to detect it, but if you are, take your shooting glasses to a glasses place and have the lens replaced with clear glass.
B.B.
BB.
one more question
You have said that you shoot 10 m pistol competitively, and i wonder if you have any experience with vogel pellets, particulary being used in a Steyr LP10.
Thanks for your comments
(if you recomend this pellets, could you specify diameter)
Thanks Zach
Zach,
I have used the 4.51mm Vogels in a Chameleon, and I have shot a Steyr, though not with Vogels.
Both are the tops in their field.
I compete with a Chinese wadcutter that outshoots everything else in my gun, but if I had Vogels, I’d shoot them.
B.B.
BB.
What do you consider some fine pellets for a Steyr for around $10 a 500 tin.
ZAch
Zach,
Try Vogels, R10s, and Finale Match in head sizes 4.49-4.52.
Never consider the cost of pellets. You are shooting an Olympic target pistol.
B.B.
BB.
Could you please check this out http://www.pilkguns.com/mako.htm
if that is true, it says that Vogels are the most accutare for a LP10.
What do you think?
Zach
Zach,
The only way to know that is to try every pellet in a particular gun. You question is like asking me if you will like the next meal you eat out.
The best I can do is recommend a good restaurant. You actually have to eat the meal to know for sure.
B.B.
Thanks a lot
zAch
Markus and bb,
soory, i was thinking about lzr etching.
-sumo
BB,
Please excuse me, this is off-topic but still related to FT.
I overheard an FT shooter made an order for a 16 lbs rifle. I would like to know what are the weights of rifle the top shooters win matches with? This guy is a very good shot too.
Thanks.
David
Another eye shade is the i-cuff DV model. This works great with glasses (the rubber ones do not IMHO).
12fpe comment — I switched my Steyr LG100ZM to shoot CPLs at 12fpe with little trouble. The trajectory was essentially identical up to 45 yards (to that of my JSBEHs at 880fps). The CPLs had to be sorted (lots of badly formed pellets — JSBs would probably be better) but the accuracy was surprisingly (to me) good (perhaps because I never bothered sorting my pellets when shooting them in my TX200 MII).
Essentially only Germany (that I know of) has any real restriction on power — in GB, one can get a FAC and shoot at any power but the shooters have self-limited their sport to 12fpe. I suspect that I would be competitive if I switched about a month ahead of a match (and practiced a lot, of course). That said, I plan to shoot this year’s World match at 18fpe (or so).
Limiting the power makes sense from what you’ve said about tripping FT targets. It seems like it would minimize power as a factor.
However, I don’t like the idea because new innovative guns like the Mac-1 USFT might never be invented. I’m hoping its innovations will affect the non-FT market.
.22 multi-shot
Hi my question is about the scope mount on my RWS 52. I purchased the RWS one piece mount and mounted it and tightened everything down. I put the stop pin in front of the mount and it is holding nicely. My problem is the windage adjustments on the mount itself. After 20 or so shots they keep coming loose. I retighten and then have to adjust the right left on the scope, only to go back and do it again. What would you recommend?
Thanks again, Matt
.22 multi-shot,
When Tim McMurray sent Tom his USFT, he sent an optional 12 foot-pound swivel breech and valve, so Tom could photograph it. He sells it for $100. Tom tells me he is thinking of buying that option, because of the rules change. Owners can install this setup in less than 10 minutes, using the optional breech spanner McMurray sells.
So Mac-1 is actually ahead of the curve.
Speaking of other PCP guns in 12 foot-pounds, Pyramyd AIR already has some sporting models in their Air Arms line.
B.B.
Matt,
Each of the windage screws has a locking screw mounted at 90 degrees to the adjustment screw. With that screw tight, there is no way the adjustment screw can loosen.
Please get back to me if this doesn’t work.
B,B,
I’m sorry, I don’t think I explained clearly.
Some of the features of the USFT that I was thinking of are the lower pressure required and the possibility of a pump version. If FT was limited to 12fpe, we wouldn’t have known that the USFT could have the same capabilities at high power.
I think it is great that they have both high power and 12 fpe versions available!
.22 multi-shot