Former Senator Scott Brown would be happier in Massachusetts where he can mingle with the Liberals sometimes on this, and the Republicans on that, but he lost his senate race in Taxachusetts. I believe Scott Brown is a Maverick, one who is unpredictable with liberal tendencies on Second Amendment issues.

Yes, so he comes up here to New Hampshire dragging his liberal baggage with him. But up here in “Live Free or Die” Country he is getting a dose of Conservatism from God fearing, church going Constitutional, Second Amendment advocates and those who really embody the Live Free of Die Motto!

We want Freedom, We want Free Enterprise, and we want the Constitution of the United States as our Founding Fathers wrote it. Not how a liberal would re-interpret it. We want smaller Government Scott! Of the People by the People and For the People.

Scott, you just can’t walk the talk up here a drop the word Freedom every now and again.

Gun Quotations of the Founding Fathers

“Give me Liberty or Give me Death!”

Patrick Henry

What does former Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown say?

Ban Assault Weapons and create Electronics to control guns!

Clearly  the Founding Father’s would be livid too with Scott.

Citizens, as Scott Brown fully knows, do not own true military assault weapons as they are not capable of fully automatic fire.

So what if Scott Brown was a kid up here in New Hampshire? Did he learn anything about Live Free or Die?

Sportsmen and Second Amendment advocates are angry and frustrated with his emphasis on Gun Control using electronic’s to control guns. Would they also control the guns of Criminals? Of course not! We would then become the only criminals!

No rest for the weary! Scott, renounce affiliation with those who want to place electronic shackles on Firearms and make Freedom loving individuals into criminals.

Scott, embrace the Founding Fathers belief that; “An armed society is a Free society!”

Or go back to Massachusetts!

For more reading on Scott’s Second Amendment positions read the Granite Grok Interview where he was as clear as mud:

http://granitegrok.com/blog/2014/04/so-is-scott-brown-really-a-surrogate-for-andy-leach

So you’ve been tellin’ yourself; Someday soon I will get into Reloading my own Ammunition! Now is the time my hunting and shooting friends!

The early spring and summer months are great to reload once the grass is cut and chores are minimal. Reloading for me is great down time, a be with myself, event.

It’s quiet in my basement, just me, brass cartridges, primers,powder and bullets along with my Reloading Press and a reloading manual. I just like the quiet time too.

Honestly, I am a read-a-holic when it comes to reloading manuals. I own several and each of them provide different perspectives, unique unto themselves. I own the Nosler Reloading Manual, the Hornady Handbook of cartridge reloading, the Speer book of Cartridge reloading and others.

Common in all reloading manuals is safety and a methodical approach to reloading.

It is very safe once you understand the fundamental that you are working with. If you are going to reload I suggest that you purchase a professional video such as the Precisioneered-Handloading DVD from RCBS; http://www.amazon.com/RCBS-99910-Precisioneered-Handloading-Dvd/dp/B001F0NRP4

Or go to RCBS site for more basics; http://www.rcbs.com/guide/#basics or perhaps to other vendors of your choice. I like and trust RCBS.

The above video is only 11.99 on Amazon.

Also make a purchase of at least one Reloading Manual. I like Nosler http://www.nosler.com/reloading-guide-7/ and Hornady Manuals http://www.hornady.com/store/9th-Edition-Reloading-Manual  so take your pick. Pick them up at your local sporting goods shop that handles reloading products.  Once you have read up a bit now choose your reloading equipment. If you are going to shoot volumes of bullets then a turret press will allow you to crank out accurate volumes of ammo. If extreme accuracy with inspection at each step are your goals then you might consider a simple single stage reloading press. I have used just a single stage RCBS press for more than 30 years.

I like it but I don’t shoot volumes of ammo. May be 50 rounds every other week for pistol and 20 rounds a week for Rifle. If I was going to be in Competitive Events then I would invest in a turret multi-stage press like RCBS : https://shop.rcbs.com/WebConnect/MainServlet?storeId=webconnect&catalogId=webconnect&langId=en_US&action=ProductDisplay&screenlabel=index&productId=6314

So what are you waiting for? Go get ’em!

It was my day off and went on a scouting drive and a trip to the Rifle Range. I brought two of my Rifles along to get some cobwebs out. For those that follow my articles I own the Ruger American .243 Winchester, what a rifle! I tested it then I bought it! I hand load most all of my ammo ‘cept shotgun.

Laying beside that rifle below, was my Ruger African M77 in .375 Ruger. My deer load is a Speer 235 grain just loping along at a modest 2100 fps like a hot muzzle loader. Grouped about the same just a bit over 2 inches at 150 yards. With 270 grain full power loads they tend to shoot into one hole…well, almost, at 100 yards.

I went for a 150 yard shot with the Ruger American .243 on a bench rest with 55 grain Nosler Varmint heads coming out of the barrel at 3500 fps. They grouped in the 2 1/4″ range. Great for coyotes at out to 600 yards. I proved this gun a real shooter with submoa groups with 90 grain heads. Very little recoil! On deer it can kill with sufficient energy out to 300 yards with a 90 to 100 grain head.

Here in the Northeast just don’t hit a branch before your deer as the bullet will likely be deflected.

Which is why I love the .375 Ruger for deer, when hand loaded. What branch? Great mass and momentum to plow through a small sapling and still deliver tremendous energy.

The .375 Ruger with a 270 grain spitzer AccuBond exits the barrel at around 2600 fps and can deliver almost 1500 foot pounds at 600 yards. A great Big Game rifle for any game on the planet except perhaps a bull elephant with a bad attitude at short range. When hand loaded down you can shoot small game with minimal damage to the meat. Yes really! When loaded down it acts a lot like an accurate muzzle loader. No crack sound, just a boom. What a day! Nice weather too.

I spent some time yesterday and reviewed Candidates for US Senator New Hampshire to run against Senator Jeanne Shaheen who does not support the Second Amendment of the Constitution to Keep and Bear Arms.

The only pro Second Amendment Candidate who I believe has a chance is:

Jim Rubens – http://jimrubens.com/  and http://jimrubens.com/gun-rights.html

I like Karen Testerman but voters have her in the weeds and she has no funding.

Scott Brown continues to bash the Second Amendment. On ObamaCare, Scott is choosing that as his Big Stick to whack at Jeanne Shaheen’s pro Obama Agenda.

Just received my new member materials for this club. Thanks Pemi Friends!

I am interested in membership particularly for long range shooting opportunities. Pemi-Valley F&G is located in Plymouth, NH. There is a very wide range of activities there that include Archery 3D that includes IBO sanctioned shoots.They hold 3 to 5 shoots a year. They have biathalons, cowboy action (home of the Pemi-Valley Peacemakers), High Power Rifle Matches, IDPA, Indoor Pistol and Silhouette Matches, small bore rifle matches, Trap Shoots and a Class 3 shoot a few times a year for those who wish to try fully automatic firearms under the guidance of professionals.

As the year progresses I hope to test some new rifles/scopes and gear up there and have some shooting fun while I’m at it. See you there! Want to know more?

GO TO www.pemi.org

I will keep you posted on my Activities up there this year.

Ed Hale – Editor-in Chief /Owner NH Rifleman Magazine.

This week I shot the Mossberg 715T (T for Tactical) 22 Long Rifle at 75 yards with two manufacturers of ammo. Weather was cold at 23 degrees, wind 5 to 10 mph. I first shot the new Blazer ammo which is said to be around 1235 fps at the muzzle. Loading the ammo in the clip gets easier as you learn to load it. Ten rounds loaded in the clip in the first minute and two more minutes to load the next 10 rounds. More than that and I was denting the brass and bending the lead a bit by forcing more in the clip that is supposed to hold 25 rounds. I had two shots where the action did not close so I to removed the clip and reset/closed the action. The bullet fired fine.

Groups at 75 yards were being pushed left by the wind as you can see with the lateral dispersion. Vertical dispersion was very tight with the majority striking in two inch groups. I reset the scope to pull the groups more left.

The Norma T 22 ammo shots below at 1100 fps spread more in a vertical dispersion at 75 yards and the group spread nearly four inches. I did have a single round that did not fire due to the bolt not fully locking down. Cold weather and lack of lubrication likely contributed.

Warmer weather is coming so I will at some point chronograph bullet speeds. So far I have put nearly 100 rounds through this rifle. The more I handle and shoot it the better it shoots, so it is perhaps more me than the rifle. More to come…

The sheer beauty of this rifle, made with forged steel and curly Tiger maple was unsurpassed in the 1700’s and hard to own, often costing a half years salary. During my research I learned much about the Long Rifle and its many names.

Below is the same rifle built by Davide Pedersoli see the website:

http://www.davide-pedersoli.com/scheda-prodotto.asp/l_en/idpr_99/rifles-pennsylvania-pennsylvania-dixie-percussion-model.html

The Long Rifle was first made in Lancaster, Pennsylvania around 1705 to 1710 by a man named Martin Mylin who was of Swiss – German descent. A collegiate report below documents the stone built gunshop and the confusion over Martin’s father of the same name.

http://www.millersville.edu/archaeology/files/mylin-gunshop-site-report.pdf

The Dickert or Deckard Rifle made by Jacob Dickert of Lancaster Pennsylvania some similar rifles appeared in the 1730’s and much later with Dickert who had a contract with the Continental Army for the quality Long Rifles during the Revolution. This rifle had other names too such as the Kentucky Rifle when Pennsylvanians made the rifle for those exploring and settling Kentucky such as Daniel Boone and Davy Crockett.

The rifle is more correctly known as the Pennsylvania Rifle. Other craftsmen such as the Swiss, and Germans, some were Mennonites and French Huguenots, who created similar rifles over the mid to late 1700’s. This was the first one that utilized rifling such as “lands and grooves” in the barrel to impart spin to the round ball thus providing bullet stability essential for long distance accuracy. Rifling did not catch on until much later for military use but was used for long range hunting with great success.  The barrel was inordinately long at 40 inches or so and used a round ball from .32 to .45 caliber in most cases for Squirrels to Big Game.

It was later used in the American Revolution by General Washington who instructed Colonel Danial Morgan who’s men already earned the title “Morgan’s Sharpshooters with the Long Rifle, to form a Provisional Rifle Corps with the Long Rifle. Other units contributed sharpshooters.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morgan%27s_Riflemen

Morgans first task from General Washington was to pick off leadership and harass the troops of Colonel William Howe’s retreat through New Jersey. This was a new tactic of sniping the enemy. Morgan assigned 500 of his Provisional Rifle Corps to the task and did it safely from long range.

Here is the surrender (courtesy of Wikipedia) of General Burgoyne. Morgan is in White.

Below is a paragraph from website:

http://riflemansjournal.blogspot.com/2009/09/history-long-range-shooting.html

“The most celebrated of Morgan’s riflemen was Pennsylvania rifleman Tim Murphy. Tradition has it that Murphy was ordered to kill a British officer astride a gray horse. Perched in a tree and steadying his aim on a strong limb he missed with his first shot. With his second he mortally wounded General Burgoyne’s Aide de Camp, Captain Sir Francis Clerke, at a range of some 300 yards. Reloading, he next drew a bead and downed General Simon Fraser. Clerke and Fraser lingered for hours in agony before succumbing and were buried on the battlefield. In the end the British losses were twice that of the Colonial forces with rifle fire contributing greatly to the American dominance of the battlefield.” End Quote

As a hunting rifle in Kentucky it was unsurpassed in bringing home game for whole villages or families that created a homestead.

There is a Long Rifle Museum in PA below that you can visit.

http://jacobsburg.s481.sureserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/PA-LR-Museum-1.pdf

If you are interested in building your own Long Rifle you can go the website below to get started.

http://www.americanlongrifles.com/Books_frame.htm

The most celebrated book is The Gunsmith of Grenville County below that you can purchase on Amazon.com for $44 dollars.

For a Long Rifle weapons rundown by the History Channel go to:

http://www.history.com/shows/top-shot/videos/weapons-rundown-kentucky-long-rifle

Have Fun and Be Safe!

In this test group, I attempted to load 25 rounds of Norma Tac-22 Long Rifle in the Clip. I could only load 24 rounds as the pressure placed on the rounds in the clip were showing signs of denting the brass at 24 rounds.

It took a short 2 minutes to load the first 10 rounds and 10 minutes to load the remaining 14 rounds. Honestly, the remaining 14 rounds were a pain in the you-know-what to load. If you need more than 10 rounds loaded immediately then your target will be waiting.

Next was to shoot the 24 rounds without a jam. This it did very well and grouped very well at 25 yards too. The outside temp was about 20 degrees F, wind 5 10 mph and sunny and the scope was a Nikon ProStaff 3×9 . The time between shots was about 2 seconds or so. The group was near an inch to 1.5 inches given the repeat 2 second fire I liked that group very much.

Group 1 Norma Tac-22 – 24 rounds at 25 yds. 3-5 sec/shot

Group 1A with Norma Tac-22 at 50 yards

Group 2 at 50 yards (scope adjusted)

All in all the Mossberg 715 T shoots as a semi-auto very well for its very low cost of under 300 dollars and shoots as fast as you can pull the trigger. It does take time to fully load the magazine as a drawback.

Slow fire at 50 yards w Norma Tac-22

In upcoming tests we will shoot 75 and 100 yards.

This Tactical looking semi-auto has passed my test for expected accuracy and reliability with the Norma Tac-22 Ammo at 25 and 50 yards. I don’t know what true muzzle velocities are for this so a later test will determine that for brands tested. The fact that this rifle is capable of shooting high velocity rounds make this a great varmint rifle out to 100 yards and a great AR practice rifle with low cost ammo. I was able to purchase the Norma ammo at less than 6 bucks for 50 rounds.© 2014