DARTMOOR MARKSMEN NEWSLETTER Issue No. 2.
- Oct. ’05
Safety… The
court case concerning the sad “lamping” accident near
Harberton has reached it’s conclusion, though for the family
involved, this tragedy will never be over. Perhaps we ought to
remind ourselves of good practice around the club.
Never point a gun,
loaded, or unloaded, in an unsafe direction
This may be obvious,
but it covers such things as general muzzle awareness on and
off the course, filling, putting your kit away, etc.
Before you fire, check
where your pellet will go, i.e. is there a backstop? Allow for
ricochets.
If you’re at the
picnic area, don’t shoulder your gun so that it points across
the path.
On the course, please
carry your rifle muzzle down.
Treat all guns as if they are loaded, until
you are sure they are not
When carrying a gun,
try and show it is safe, e.g. springers partly broken, PCPs,
breech open, where possible.
On picking up, or being handed a gun, check
that it is not loaded.
Never put down a loaded gun, or leave it
unattended.
Do not load a pellet or insert a magazine
until the rifle is pointing down range.
If you are not sure if you are loaded, or
not, point the muzzle at the ground, over the firing line, and
pull the trigger.
When leaving the zero range to set up
targets, etc. ask permission of others shooting, who should
make their guns safe, and say, “Clear!”
Juniors, 14 and under, must be
supervised
Supervisors must be
over 21. If you are supervising a junior on the course, you
cannot shoot it yourself, unless the young shooter has made
their rifle safe, and placed it on the ground.
Air Bottles
Please don’t bring
bottles into the zero range.
Bottles should be
left lying on their side, not standing up.
Don’t squirt air at
anyone, grit can damage eyes, high pressure air can pass
through the skin and enter the blood stream.
All safety rules are common sense, but we
all make mistakes, so no-one can be complacent. Remember that
all shooters will be judged by our actions, so we must all be
sure our conduct is above reproach.
What’s on?
There will be an Extraordinary General
Meeting at the club on Sunday October 16th
At 11am. Please feel free to shoot before
and after the meeting.
We need to appoint a new Chairman and
Secretary, and discuss the possibility of hosting a national
“Grand Prix” competition in 2006.
We are also hosting the final SWEFTA shoot
of 2005 on Sunday 23rd October.
This is the highlight of the club’s year,
and we need volunteers to help with catering, car parking,
etc. as well as running the shoot. The courses and zero range
will be closed to non-competitors until approx. 3:30pm. Newer
members are welcome to enter, or just watch, and meet some of
the “names” and “characters” on the circuit.
We would like to hold the final “Fun Shoot”
on Sunday November 20th.
Theme… “Beat the Clock.”
Around the Circuit
Jon Quelch, Martyn Vincent, and Keith Ryan
went to the FT World Championships in September. Three 50-shot
courses spread over 3 days. Unfortunately, the new World
Champion is not a member of Dartmoor Marksmen, but a good time
was had by all..!
Dan Howley is making quite an impact on the
FT scene with his new EV2 rig.
Dave Golby and Gus are still in the running
for a place in the top 5 in the HFT competition, and Rob
Taylor won the round at North Petherwin.
Tip of the Month
How clean is your barrel? Does it matter?
Some people clean their barrel every time they shoot, others,
never..! Lead builds up on the inside of your barrel, some
barrels like this, others don’t.. Springers rarely need
cleaning, because microscopic traces of oil are fired down it
with every shot, and this naturally lubricates and protects
the rifling.
PCPs can be more fussy. AirArms recommend
cleaning the EV2 every session, the users of other guns only
clean when the groups open up a bit. If you lube your pellets,
a PCP will need cleaning less often.. An air rifle barrel
shouldn’t rust, but keep an eye on it, especially if you get
it wet. Some guns need 20-30 shots to “lead up” after cleaning
before they shoot accurately.
I personally don’t like cleaning rods. In a
PCP, they can push dirt, etc down towards the transfer port,
and O-ring seal, which can cause damage. Also, the screw
together sections can have sharp edges, which can damage your
crown and rifling.
A pull through made of fishing line, conger
trace, or kite line is best, with a patch.
I have a small piece of lead crimped on the
end, and drop this through from the breech. Some gun cleaner,
or white spirit, on the first patch, but remember to hold the
gun level, but upside-down, (trigger up) so that no fluid
drips down into the transfer port.. A couple of dry patches,
and a last one with some oil on it, and you’re done.
(If I’m going to carry on shooting with
lubed pellets, I don’t bother with an oily one.)
Some people use the felt pellets, or even
“roll-up” filter tips. (They’re cheaper.!)
Kit Reviews
AirArms S400/S410
One of the most
popular PCPs on the market, for good reason, they are very
accurate, very consistent, and excellent value for money. Used
for hunting, HFT, and even FT,
The newer models come with an almost match
quality trigger, with a safety catch, new, more economical
valve, and new stock. The carbine version is more “pointable”,
and is favoured by hunters, as the shorter barrel gets in the
way less than the longer classic, but the classic gives more
shots. The S410 is the magazine version, which is over £100
more expensive. The single shot S400 is preferred for target
shooting. It is difficult to fault this gun, some say the
bluing is not of the best quality, but if you wipe it down
with an oily rag, you shouldn’t have any problems.
Cost… (beech stock) S400 around £315, S410
around £445.
Hawke Varmint 2 scopes
3-12X44 £126. 4-16X44 £135. 6-24X44
£144.
These are 3 cheap/middle range scopes with
front parallax adjustment, and a mildot reticule. They have
good optics for the money, and fit on standard 1inch (25mm)
mounts. A good general purpose scope, and very popular. The
front ring can be hard to turn, but you can fit a “coaster,”
which helps. They are rated “springer proof,” but some lenses
have been known to shake loose.
For sale
HW97k .177 with Hawke Reflex 3-9X40
mildot scope
Mint condition, only 1500 shots fired…. £250
Ross Humphries. 01626 824802
(If you’re looking for a competition springer, this is a good
‘un…. Gus)
Air
Cylinder, gauge and hose
3 litre, 232bar. New. £95 ono
Martyn Vincent. 01752 292137
Hawke
Varmint2 4-16x24 scope. See above
Good condition £50
Tony Perrott. 01752 365409.
Contact Gus
on 01579 363287, or
gwylan@rgus.fsnet.co.uk for articles or
suggestions regarding the newsletter
Webmaster's note - this email address is inactive as an
anti-spam measure |
