Category Archives: Shooting Sports

Firearms and shooting sports

Shooting Sports

Coyote Point 100yrd Rimfire Match: Sep 19, 2021

This match was an unsanctioned Open for Coyote Point Rifle and Pistol Club members and their guests. Next month we’re going to re-introduce separate classes for support type and caliber (22LR, 22WMR, 17HMR, etc.) but this one was just for fun.

We wanted to get as many members to come out with their rimfires and shoot; some of whom haven’t been able to shoot at this range in +2 years. This range was closed for two separate year-long closures for extensive renovations and then COVID.

I was shooting my new CZ 457 out of the box. I mounted my 6-24x50mm Argos that I pulled off my AR and zero’d it with CCI Standard Velocity and slapped on a spare pare of UTG bipods 2 days before the match. All performed well except for the ammo which was good but could be better. I scored somewhere in the middle of the pack, I hope to improve my scores once I find ammo that this rifle likes (which is really challenging with current ammo shortages).

Next month’s match will be more structured with 17HMR shooters scored separately from the 22LR shooters; as well as different classes for the the type of rifle support used (eg. bipods/bags, bench rests, slings, etc.). The matches are currently by invite only because the Sheriff’s Training Center isn’t open for public hours currently. Reach out to me here for an invite through my CONTACT link in the Menu.

Check out the Coyote Point Rifle and Pistol Club’s website for information about the club. http://coyotepointrpc.org/

Shooting Sports

Federal Range Blue Box is the Worst

I tested one of Federal’s cheapest 22LR. Range Pack a.k.a “Blue Box”. It’s a 40gr LRN that looks identical to Federal AutoMatch but at a lower price. I wonder if it’s actually AutoMatch that didn’t pass or that Federal doesn’t run as thorough a quality check.

I ran 20 rounds through the Ruger 10/22 with one dud round that failed to fire. I got middling group sizes averaging about 3″ at 50yrds. But when I ran it through the Marlin 60, the shots were all over the place. Average group sizes were over 5 1/2″ and numerous failures to cycle.

I thought something might be wrong with my rifle so shot a few rounds of Aguila Super Extra HV and those shot normally in a 1.8″ group. Then I reloaded it with more Fed Range and again got loose, inconsistent groups. While this ammo works ok in my Ruger for plinking, my Marlin really does not like this ammo.

In 3 testing sessions, I noted that the rounds sounded more muffled when fired in the Marlin than the Ruger. I experienced 3 failures to cycle; where the spent case was ejected but the bolt did not feed the next round. And one squib that I had to push out with a cleaning rod. We’ve all been told that ammo do shoot very differently in different rifles; this is one of most extreme examples.



Shooting Sports

Orion Grandview 12-36×50

If you’re looking for a high-quality spotter for long-range shooting, don’t bother reading further. But if you want something small enough to stuff into a range bag to spot .223 holes at 100yrds, the Orion Grandview 50mm will more than do the job.

Orion doesn’t make rifle scopes or red dots, so many shooters and hunters aren’t familiar with this brand. Orion is one of the top brands in astronomical telescopes. They are so well established that they own the URL: www.telescope.com

Orion was founded in Santa Cruz, CA in 1975 and is still based in Northern California. While I can’t confirm if all or any of their scopes are built in the U.S., their company is employee-owned and also owns the “Meade Telescope” brand. What I can confirm is that the Grandview is the clearest/sharpest 50mm spotter that retails for under $100.

PRO
Best optical clarity in a sub $100 “budget” spotting scope
Good eye relief
Well built and well-armoured body

CON
No built-in sunshade on the tube

USAF51 RESOLUTION
Group: 0 / Element: 1

PRODUCT LINK
https://amzn.to/3ja880G

Gadgets, Shooting Sports

Camolo Trail Cam

Camolo C0097 Wifi Trail Cam is a budget to mid-range wifi-enabled trailcam sent to me to review. It offers excellent High Def video footage and photos that can be triggered by movement as far away as 60ft. 

27MP 140º IR triggered digital trail cam. Water-resistant IP67. 6-month standby time powered by 8 xAA batteries. 

PRODUCT LINK

https://amzn.to/3wt3232

Product Reviews, Shooting Sports

Feyachi WL25 Weapon Light

The WL25 is Feyachi’s newest 1200 lumen weapon light. It has a premium pressure plate with momentary and constant-on buttons which comes with adapter plates that fix it to either Picatinny or M-Lok rail. Unfortunately, my model would not switch from Strobe/Alt to Low/Alt modes, despite my following the instructions. Despite this, I still found it to be Feyachi’s best-made tac light

As an aside, I had to upload this to YouTube 3 times. The first two times, YouTube’s staff flagged the video as being Advertiser Unfriendly. The first video: due to my showing how to install it on my rifle (which I showed was safely unloaded). The second video: because I still showed the light mounted to my rifle.
We are living in an insane nanny culture.

Purchase this product on Amazon and support us https://amzn.to/3Qu88pU

FEATURES

6061-T6 Aluminum body
18650 Lithium battery
Max. Output: 1200 Lm
Max. Throw: 200m
Weight: 190g/6.7oz
Size：5.3”(L) x 1.3”(W) x 1.7”(H)
Mount: M-Lok and Picatinny

Product Reviews, Shooting Sports

Gosky 13-40×50 Spotting Scope

If you’re looking for a good cheap long-range spotter, don’t bother watching. This is a “dumpster diving” review of a budget spotter I’m only using for 50yrd pistol matches or 100yrd rifle matches. In this case, size and weight are key deciding factors.

The 13-40×50 GoSky is one of the best rated compact spotting scopes on Amazon (which doesn’t mean much since most of those reviews are fake or underinformed). It retails for about $99 but I purchased it on sale for $70 putting it closer in price to a SvBony SV28. Making this the best spotter I’ve tried that currently retails for under $100.

PRO

  • Well built eye-piece with an independent rotating zoom dial. 
  • Good to Great optical clarity for a sub $100 “budget” spotting scope
  • Nice geared tripod that works better than it looks

CON

  • Warm cast on image
  • Cheap looking tripod
  • Clunky company website with minimum info

USAF51 RESOLUTION
Group: -1 / Element: 5

PRODUCT LINK
Amazon https://amzn.to/2VEKYH3

BUY ON AMAZON
Product Reviews, Shooting Sports

SvBony SV28 15-45×50

SVbony is one of the bigger brands in budget-to-midrange astronomy optics, so I wanted to see if any of that telescope expertise made it down to their least expensive spotting scope, the SV28.

The optic clarity is in the top 5 for 50mm scopes and for a $60 scope, I suppose it’s actually pretty good. But the image is noticeable chromatic aberrations at high magnification. Personally, if your budget is $60, I’d recommend saving a bit more and buying an Orion or GoSky.

PRO

  • Built in Sun Shade
  • Compact and light (as are most 50mm scopes)
  • Budget price

CON

  • Small objective lens
  • Chromatic aberrations

USAF51 RESOLUTION
Group: -1 / Element: 3

PRODUCT LINK
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3fxAyQ3

BUY ON AMAZON
Product Reviews, Shooting Sports

Spotty Scope: Barska Colorado 15-40×50

The Barska Colorado is a spotty scope instead of a spotting scope (feel free to use this Dad Joke). It is a compact spotting scope with a nice list of specs and a rugged exterior, that is in a word: disappointing. Well, there are many other words you can use to describe it, many comprising of four letters.

The old adage, “You get what you pay for” is certainly true here. The scope was less than $35 on Amazon and 3.9 stars out of 5 with almost half of its reviewers giving it 5 stars. These reviewers either have never seen through another spotting scope or are awaiting cataract surgery? There is one positive thing I have to say about this scope: I can still return it.

If your friend asks you about this scope, remember: friends don’t let friends buy Barska.

PRO
• Cheap

CON
• Blurry
• Milky
• Terrible optical performance

USAF51 RESOLUTION
Fail (no groups or elements could be resolved at 100 yrds)

PRODUCT LINKS

Barska Colorado https://amzn.to/3flcTlO

Celestron 20x binoculars: https://amzn.to/3rQWuuy

Vilux 12x binoculars: https://amzn.to/3A68Wcq