American Shooting Journal - July 2022

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A M ERIC A N

SHOOTING JOURNAL

Volume 11 // Issue 10 // July 2022

PUBLISHER James R. Baker

INFORMATION SERVICES MANAGER Lois Sanborn

GENERAL MANAGER John Rusnak

ADVERTISING INQUIRIES ads@americanshootingjournal.com

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Andy Walgamott

ON THE COVER

OFFICE MANAGER / COPY EDITOR Katie Aumann LEAD CONTRIBUTOR Frank Jardim

In a new subscription-based Fox Nation streaming series, actor and producer Kelsey Grammer hosts season one of Kelsey Grammer’s Historic Battles for America. (FOX NATION)

CONTRIBUTORS Larry Case, Chris Cocoles, Cassidy Caron, Scott Haugen, Phil Massaro, Mike Nesbitt, Paul Pawela, Nick Perna SALES MANAGER Paul Yarnold ACCOUNT EXECUTIVES Mamie Griffin, Kelley Miller, Riland Risden, Mike Smith

12

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

DESIGNER Lesley-Anne Slisko-Cooper

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

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT Kelly Baker

MEDIA INDEX PUBLISHING GROUP 941 Powell Ave SW, Suite 120, Renton, WA 98057

WEBMASTER / INBOUND MARKETING Jon Hines, Jon Ekse

(206) 382-9220 • (800) 332-1736 • Fax (206) 382-9437 media@media-inc.com • www.media-inc.com

CONTENTS

VOLUME 11 • ISSUE 10

FEATURES

34

(FOX NATION)

COVER STORY

THE BATTLES THAT SHAPED AMERICA

Actor Kelsey Grammer made a career as the wisecracking Dr. Frasier Crane on Cheers and Frasier, but he’s also a military history buff. That passion is the driving force behind his new Fox Nation series, Kelsey Grammer’s Historic Battles for America.

Our TV critic and fellow history student Chris Cocoles reviews season one’s big campaigns.

46

MAKAYLA SCOTT’S FIELD OF DREAMS Makayla Scott of West Virginia got into the shotgun sports through a 4-H shooting program, and never looked back.

She’s not only a Guinness World Record holder but a driving force behind the recent creation of both a clay target facility and a scholastic shooting club that uses the range.

Larry Case shares the story of this veritable dynamo!

54

LEGENDS OF THE SPRING Pursuing big black bears in the mountains as winter recedes is “one of the most underrated big game hunts someone can do.” So states Cassidy Caron, a Canadian outfitter who has hunted bruins since she was a girl and has lived tales of hair-raising springtime adventure on high.

65

BULLET BULLETIN: GOING FROM GOOD TO GREAT Our professor of projectiles, Phil Massaro, likes what he sees in Hornady’s new CX expanding copper bullets, a step up from their GMX line and a solid choice for pursuing big game where lead-free ammo is required.

75

ROADHUNTER: OF PREDATORS AND TRAIL CAMERAS Bucks and bulls aren’t the only critters you can scout with today’s game cameras. Scott Haugen shares how you can use them to draw a better bead on predators like bears and cougars.

85

SELF-DEFENSE TRAINING: DEFINING REALISTIC SELF-DEFENSE PRACTICE There’s only one way to be ready for a violent encounter: to train for it in ways that are as realistic as possible. Paul Pawela details how his self-defense courses go the distance – real guns, fake blood, “drunk goggles” and all.

98

CIVICS AND SHARPSHOOTING April 19 might seem like a random day of the year, but not at Project Appleseed, which teaches both marksmanship and history lessons as it aims to “reignite the spirit of the American Revolution.” We chatted with the program’s national coordinator, Rusty Bonkoski, on the meaning of that fateful day and to learn more about the project’s classes and courses being held around the country.

107 BLACK POWDER: CALL IT QUIGLEY LIGHT Mike Nesbitt makes an annual trek to southeast Montana to participate in the famed Matthew Quigley Buffalo Rifle Match, and this year the long-range rifle competition served as inspiration for he and fellow black powder cartridge shooters to hold their version back home, albeit with smaller targets set at shorter distances. Mike relives some fine doin’s.

AMERICAN SHOOTING JOURNAL is published monthly by Media Index Publishing Group, 941 Powell Ave SW, Suite 120, Renton, WA 98057. 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 © 2022 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 // July 2022

CONTENTS ALSO INSIDE 27

PRS PROFILE: WELCOMED ABOARD A relative latecomer to the precision shooting world, Jose Garza II has been embraced by it, and he hugs right back. Meet this Texan who’s having a blast in local- and national-level competitions.

DEPARTMENTS 21 23 25 95

27

18

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

(JOSE GARZA II)

Gun Show Calendar Competition Calendar Precision Rifle Series Calendar, Recent Match Results Concealed Carry Gallery

americanshootingjournal.com 19

Custom Guns

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PRIMER

GUNSHOW C A L E N D A R

C&E Gun Shows

July 16-17

Salem, Va.

Salem Civic Center

cegunshows.com

July 30-31

Fayetteville, N.C.

Crown Expo Center

August 13-14

Sharonville, Ohio

Sharonville Convention Center

August 13-14

Winston-Salem, N.C.

Winston-Salem Fairgrounds

July 9-10

Phoenix, Ariz.

Arizona State Fairgrounds

July 16-17

Ontario, Calif.

Ontario Convention Center

July 23-24

Reno, Nev.

Reno Convention Center

August 13-14

Bakersfield, Calif.

Kern County Fairgrounds

Florida Gun Shows

July 9-10

Orlando, Fla.

Central Florida Fair Grounds

floridagunshows.com

July 16-17

Miami, Fla.

Miami-Dade Fairgrounds

July 23-24

Palmetto, Fla.

Bradenton Convention Center

August 6-7

Fort Myers, Fla.

Lee Civic Center

August 20-21

Orlando, Fla.

Central Florida Fair Grounds

RK Shows

July 9-10

Joplin, Mo.

ETG Sports & Events Center

rkshows.com

July 9-10

Lawrenceville, Ga.

Gwinnett County Fairgrounds

July 16-17

Leburn, Ky.

Knott County Sportsplex

July 16-17

Topeka, Kan.

Stormont Vail Events Center

July 23-24

Columbus, Ga.

Columbus Convention Center

July 23-24

Corbin, Ky.

Corbin Arena

July 30-31

Lebanon, Tenn.

Wilson County Expo Center

July 30-31

Tulsa, Okla.

Tulsa Fairgrounds Expo Square

Real Texas Gun Shows

July 9-10

Harker Heights, Texas

Harker Heights Event Center

therealtexasgunshow.com

July 16-17

Brenham, Texas

Brenham Fire Dept. Training Center

August 6-7

Harker Heights, Texas

Harker Heights Event Center

August 13-14

Taylor, Texas

Williamson County Expo Center

July 22-24

Colorado Springs, Colo.

Colorado Springs Event Center

August 27-28

Centralia, Wash.

Southwest Washington Fairgrounds

Crossroads Of The West Gun Shows crossroadsgunshows.com

Tanner Gun Shows tannergunshow.com

Wes Knodel Gun Shows wesknodelgunshows.com

Note: Covid-19 restrictions have largely been eased across the country, but always confirm events before attending.

To have your event highlighted here, send an email to kaumann@media-inc.com.

americanshootingjournal.com 21

PRIMER

COMPETITION C A L E N D A R

July 9 USA 3-P and Prone MRC Elk River, Minn. usashooting.org

July 20-August 6 Shotgun National Championships Hillsdale, Mich.

July 8-10 Western PA Sectional Bulger, Pa.

uspsa.org

July 15-16 Free State Championship De Soto, Kan.

July 9-10 Coeur d’Alene Glock Classic III Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

gssfonline.com

July 9-10 Scarborough Fish & Game Annual GSSF Match IV Scarborough, Maine July 16-17 Buckeye State Ballistic Challenge XIX Wingett Run, Ohio July 3-4 2022 Mid Mountain Regional Pueblo, Colo.

July 7 Nebraska State Shoot Litchfield, Neb.

cmsaevents.com

July 9-10 Idaho State Shoot Coeur d’Alene, Idaho

July 9 WPRC IDPA Tier 1 Boylston, Mass. idpa.com

July 10 Richmond IDPA Local Match Richmond, Calif.

July 24-31 Pistol Junior Olympic National Championships Colorado Springs, Colo.

July 25-31 Shotgun Junior Olympic National Championships Hillsdale, Mich.

July 15-17 Vortex 2022 Wisconsin Sectional Championship Rhinelander, Wis.

July 22-24 Washington State USPSA Championship Renton, Wash.

July 22-24 Maine State Championship Hampden, Maine

July 27-31 Area 5 Championship Brooklyn, Mich.

July 16-17 Northwestern Regional Classic XXVII Port Townsend, Wash.

July 30-31 RSC Glock Shootout I Rawlins, Wy.

July 23-24 Great Lakes Regional Classic XVIII Brighton, Mich.

July 30-31 Virginia Ballistic Challenge IV Bluefield, Va.

July 23-24 Pacific Coast Challenge XVI Shedd, Ore. July 9-10 Massachusetts State Championship Norfolk, Mass.

July 9-10 Wisconsin State Championship Mondovi, Wis.

July 23-24 Montana State Championship Big Timber, Mont.

July 27-30 CMSA Lakota Western US Championship Las Vegas, Nev.

July 15-17 Missouri State Championship Festus, Mo. July 16-17 15th Annual Independence IDPA Match Hunlock Creek, Pa.

July 24 Hoosier Daddy Classic Sturgis, Mich.

July 18 Lowcountry Shooters IDPA Match Charleston, S.C.

Note: Covid-19 restrictions have largely been eased across the country, but always confirm events before attending. americanshootingjournal.com 23

SCHEDULE Pro Bolt Gun Series July 8

Hornady Precision Rifle Challenge

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July 16

AlderBrook Brawl Pro Series 2 Days

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July 30

Wisconsin Barrel Maker Classic

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July 30

The Lead Farm Barrel Burner

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August 6

RCBS Rumble

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August 13

Okie Summer Showdown

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August 13

Peterson Cartridge Challenge

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August 20

Magnolia Meltdown

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August 27

Impact Foundation PRC

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September 3

Alpha Munitions PRS Pro Series

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September 3

VPRC Rifleman’s Revival

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September 10

Federal Gold Medal Match AG Cup/Pro Series Qualifier

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Rocky Mount, Virginia June 4, 2022

(PRECISION RIFLE SERIES) (PRECISION RIFLE SERIES)

Benge, Washington June 18, 2022

americanshootingjournal.com 25

26

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

It wasn’t until after a tour of duty in the Navy that Jose Garza II became interested in precision rifles, but five years in he’s competing in national-level events.

WELCOMED ABOARD A relative latecomer to the precision shooting world, Jose Garza II’s been embraced by it, and hugs back.

PHOTOS BY JOSE GARZA II

U

nlike many of the shooters profiled in these pages, Jose Garza II didn’t grow up hunting and shooting, nor did he harbor a lifelong interest in firearms. His path to competitive shooting and the Precision Rifle Series is a much different one.

“I was the son of a single mother working two jobs to provide for her family,” he explains. “I didn’t have a father growing up to teach me about firearms or hunting, unlike the other boys. After high school I joined the Navy, working as an aircraft mechanic on the flightdeck of an aircraft carrier, so no firearms training there either.”

It wasn’t until Garza got out of the military and moved home that he started getting interested in firearms

in general.

“In my free time I watched a lot of YouTube,” he recalls. “I discovered John McQuay, also known as ‘8541 Tactical.’

He had a whole playlist on precision rifles. I then purchased a Remington 700 SPS AAC-SD 20-inch .308 Winchester similar to what John McQuay had, in an HS Precision stock and Bushnell scope.

I purchased Federal Gold Medal Match 168-grain Sierra Match factory ammo because that is what I thought you were supposed to do. Once I had it, I had no idea what to do with it.”

After attending a nearby precision rifle class where he didn’t learn as much as he wanted to, Garza researched local clubs and found Texas Precision Matches.

“I reached out to the match director via email, explained that I was totally new, I didn’t know anything, and had limited gear other than a rifle,” he says.

“The director assured me that it was OK to ‘just show up!’ so in October of 2017 I showed up to my first match ever. I didn’t know a single soul. As soon as I arrived, I introduced myself to the first person I saw. I explained, ‘I’ve never been here before and I have no idea what I’m doing.’ A gentleman by the name of Tyson Brown giggled, smiled, and said, ‘Right this way.’ He led me to the office where you signed in and paid.”

“At the time, you had to pay in cash; I didn’t know that. I had no cash on me and the nearest ATM was too far to get to. It was at this very moment I knew that americanshootingjournal.com 27

A Houston resident, Garza entered his first local shoot in October 2017. A cash-only event, another person in line paid for his entry.

“I got my teeth kicked in,” recalls Garza of his early matches, “but I learned every single trip.”

Learning how to handload his own ammunition was an early step in Garza’s path, and his instructor – his stepfather – also became his shooting coach.

this group of people were on the right path; the person behind me heard what was going on and offered to pay my match fee just so I could shoot. I was so grateful and humbled, I really could not believe it! Afterwards I told him, ‘We’re going to be friends’ and that I would pay him back. At the end of the day, I got my butt kicked, finishing nearly last place, but I didn’t care. I had an absolute blast! I met several people and the trip down the rabbit hole began.”

Every month for the next six months, Garza continued to show up to matches, where “I got my teeth kicked in, but I learned every single trip.” Soon he realized that if he was going to continue to shoot, he needed to learn to handload, so he enlisted the help of his stepfather Steve Hickman, a Vietnam vet, retired police officer and firearms instructor. “I was really nervous and quite frankly a little afraid of

blowing myself up,” says Garza. “But it all worked out and, moving forward, he would continue coaching me through my precision rifle journey.”

After six months of competition, Garza was all in. He just needed one more thing.

“I reached out to Mr. Bug Holes himself, Greg Young at Southern Precision Rifles, and ordered a full custom rifle: Defiance Machine receiver, McMillan stock, Bartlein barrel, chambered in 6.5 Creedmoor,” he explains. “After a fourmonth wait, I had it in my hands. My performance skyrocketed, (but) after some time, I plateaued. I learned an important lesson: gear isn’t everything!

I had to practice and get training. I later reached out to Phil Velayo, who was incredibly helpful when I first got my custom rifle, regarding rifle setup and

JOSE GARZA II’S RIFLE & GEAR • Cartridge: 6mmBRA • Barrel: Bartlein Barrels Heavy Varmint (28-inch) • Muzzle brake: American Precision Arms Gen 3 Self Timing Muzzle Brake • Stock: Foundation Stocks • WieBad Mini Stock Pad • Action: Defiance Machine Deviant Tactical • Mount/rings: American Rifle Company M-Brace Mount • Scope: Kahles Scopes DLR or Vortex Razor Gen III • Trigger: Trigger Tech Diamond 28

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

Acquiring a top-tier long-range rifle really sparked the shooter’s performance, but when it plateaued he realized that lots of practice and training were also needed to improve his scores.

americanshootingjournal.com 29

length of pull. I’m forever grateful to him.”

The rest is history. Garza participates monthly in club matches, and more recently has gathered the courage to jump into the “Open Class” two-day national-level matches.

“I’d like to get to three or four national-level matches (a year) in hopes to qualify for the finale,” he says.

Garza recalls a moment from his very first national-level match in Carbon Hill, Alabama. “There was a stage that was a reverse ‘KYL’ (Know Your Limits). Traditionally, there are an array of targets on a rack that progressively get smaller and smaller. On this stage, you had to start with the smallest target and you had to hit the first target in order to move on to the next target. I saw several professional-level shooters get zero points on this stage. In my mind, I thought it was going to be the same for me; however, I think I just got lucky.

On my third shot trying to hit the smallest target, I saw in my scope the target spun violently! As fast as I could, I moved on to the next, and on to the next, and I completed the stage with the maximum points. I was thrilled beyond belief!”

Garza is proof that even if you didn’t grow up around firearms, it’s never too late to start.

“It doesn’t matter what background you have. Where you came from. What your past is. If you’re interested in this sport, just start! Reach out to a local club and show up! You will not regret it!”  Editor’s note: For more information on the Precision Rifle Series, visit precisionrifleseries.com.

30

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

“If you’re interested in this sport, just start!” urges Garza, who has shot 56 Precision Rifle Series matches so far. “Reach out to a local club and show up! You will not regret it!”

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The Battles That Shaped America Actor Kelsey Grammer’s new series depicts turning points in US wars.

STORY BY CHRIS COCOLES • PHOTOS BY FOX NATION

O

ur country takes immense pride in its military history, and even the battles lost take on a sentimental sense of nostalgia and inspiration.

In a new subscriptionbased Fox Nation streaming series hosted by actor and producer Kelsey Grammer, some of America’s most pivotal skirmishes in its most critical wars are analyzed and dissected by the historians and military experts who appear on the show with their interpretations.

The first season of Kelsey Grammer’s Historic Battles for America premiered on May 1 with eight episodes that cover a period from the 13 Colonies’ battle for independence from Great Britain to the Texas revolution to the Civil War and, finally, to General George Armstrong Custer’s doomed campaign at Little Bighorn.

In a press release, Fox Nation president Jason Klarman called Grammer “a legend in the entertainment industry, and we are proud to bring his talents to our platform.”

“His affinity for our nation’s history and charismatic delivery will provide Fox Nation subscribers with an entertaining yet educational viewing experience they can’t get anywhere else.”

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

Actor Kelsey Grammer made a career from his comedic portrayal of wisecracking Dr. Frasier Crane on the iconic sitcoms Cheers and Frasier, but he’s also a history buff who has an appreciation for our troops in past wars. That passion was the driving force behind his new Fox Nation series, Kelsey Grammer’s Historic Battles for America. americanshootingjournal.com 35

The first episode of the series focuses on the Battle of Bunker Hill in and around Boston, the first major skirmish of the War for Independence. It was technically a Continental Army defeat at the hands of the British, but it’s also considered the moment when the colonists were considered formidable enough to be a difficult rebellion to turn back.

“I am excited this show will provide the opportunity to share a historical look into some of the most important battles fought through American history,” Grammer added in the press release, “to remember those who fought them, and how they shaped our country.”

WHAT CAN WE learn about United States history through its wars? That extraordinary achievements can be done by ordinary men – at least ordinary until they become legendary.

In an episode about the Battle of Brooklyn (Long Island), which occurred just over a month after the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776, Continental Army General George Washington’s troops were on the verge of a catastrophic defeat and literally backed into a corner.

“George Washington and 9,000 of his men find themselves surrounded in Brooklyn, New York, by the largest military force yet assembled in North America,” Grammer narrates in the episode. “With his back pinned against the East River, Washington 36

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

must find a way to save his troops and keep the dream of America alive.

The fate of the revolution and the future of a newly independent nation hangs in the balance. One wrong move and the entire army could be captured, Washington himself drawn and quartered, and the whole cause irrevocably doomed.”

Of course, we know that General Washington – future first president and the patriarch of the Founding Fathers – led the ragtag Continental Army past the famed British Redcoats (featured in the very next episode of the series, “Yorktown”).

But the series delves into plenty of “what ifs” as it analyzes these events that could have changed the history books forever, such as how vulnerable Washington and his men were in present-day Brooklyn and adjacent New York City.

There’s also the Custer episode, where one of our most self-promoting and arrogant commanders was thinking about joining Washington and Ulysses S. Grant (more on him later) as war-heroes-turned-presidents of the United States. Except he was

outfoxed and ultimately slaughtered along with his Seventh Cavalry troops by another group fighting for freedom, the Lakota, Cheyenne and other tribes fronted by leaders Sitting Bull and Crazy Horse, in one of the bigger losses in American military history.

Custer and celebrated but similarly destined martyrs like Alamo defenders Davy Crockett and Jim Bowie – they were the biggest names of the 250 or so Texans who were overwhelmed by the Mexican army – also get plenty of air time in the first season. But the series is locked in on some of the most crucial swing moments of important victories in our nation’s first centuryplus of existence. It’s clearly a passion project for the show’s namesake.

KELSEY GRAMMER’S CHARACTER Dr. Frasier Crane became one of TV’s most iconic roles, its shelf-life lasting two beloved series spanning the mid1980s through the turn of the century.

Dr. Crane, the vain and narcissistic but also brilliant and kind psychiatrist, was one of those everybody-knowsyour-name patrons at the bar on the sitcom Cheers. When the series

General George Washington, who would soon become free America’s first commander in chief, was featured prominently in the first three episodes of the series chronicling key Revolutionary War conflicts. “Washington’s tenacity and commitment to the idea of this being a free nation that respected individual rights,” Grammer recently said in a Fox Nation interview. “His intuitiveness was breathtaking. For him to single-handedly endure through what he did against all sorts of odds.” americanshootingjournal.com 37

The ragtag group of American patriots who fought their way to freedom helped create a new country independent of its former overseas overlords.

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

ended its epic 11-season run in 1993, Grammer’s Crane alter-ego was directly spun off into a show aptly called Frasier, wherein the doctor leaves Boston for his hometown of Seattle and hosts a local radio show. Like Cheers, Frasier was a big hit and also stayed on the air for 11 seasons before its final episode in 2004 (a reboot of the series is reportedly in the works).

Crane was Grammer’s careermaking gig and the now-67-yearold, who was born in the US Virgin Islands and raised in New Jersey and Florida, won two Golden Globes and three Emmy Awards for the role. He’s also had a long career of film and additional TV credits and has been a successful producer along the way.

But he also has a love of history and was inspired to kickstart his current project. In an interview with Fox Nation anchor Dana Perino, Grammer cited a high school history teacher who was partly responsible for his

reverence for the US military legacy that his series chronicles.

“I have a long and sort of abiding appreciation for what people have done for this country,” he told Perino.

“And it does seem to be woefully lacking in our curriculum these days.

A lot of kids I don’t think even know who George Washington is. And that seems impossible to me.”

And Washington’s legacy as the commander who somehow made an impossible, against-all-odds fight a successful one has stuck with Grammer, who during the process of making this series reached a level of appreciation for the “Father of the Country.”

“Washington’s tenacity and commitment to the idea of this being a free nation that respected individual rights… His intuitiveness was breathtaking. For him to singlehandedly endure through what he did against all sorts of odds. We had a third of the country that wasn’t

interested and a third that didn’t care.

And a third that was willing to die for it. Maybe that’s not much different than today. I don’t know.”

The sacrifices of so many – in the fight for independence, in a hopeless cause to defend a tiny mission in modern-day San Antonio, and in the blood-soaked battlefields of Virginia and Maryland – are inspiring.

“It’s always sort of the scope of the size of what they achieved,” Grammer said in the interview.

“The commitment it took, the actual human toll that was part of the sacrifice that these men made. And the men who survived afterward continued to make.”

SOME OF THE most compelling episodes of Kelsey Grammer’s Historic Battles for America highlight the Civil War, which in many ways defines what America was and should even remind us of what

americanshootingjournal.com 39

General George Armstrong Custer was vain and a self-promoter who had aspirations to become President of the United States.

Instead, he would be defeated (and killed) by the Native American tribes he attacked at the Battle of Little Bighorn in Montana.

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America can still be, even as division in this country mushrooms.

The show features three critical battles in the conflict: 1861’s first Battle of Bull Run, Antietam (1862) and the Vicksburg campaign from a year later. All three fights proved to be both sobering and tide-turning in this most vicious of American wars.

“Ever since the framers of the Constitution proclaimed that all men are created equal, but then preserved the institution of slavery,” Grammer narrates in the Bull Run episode, “many felt a Civil War between North and South was all but inevitable. But very few could ever imagine how long that war would last and just how horrific a toll it would take, starting with Bull Run.” Bull Run was fought at a time when

nobody expected any serious fighting, to the point that curious onlookers came over from Washington, DC, to picnic and watch the action. Antietam proved to be the bloodiest single day in American history, but most importantly was the platform for President Lincoln to follow through on his Emancipation Proclamation to finally free enslaved Americans.

And Vicksburg became the lesser celebrated of two major Union victories (along with Gettysburg) that remarkably happened at the same time and turned the tide for good. Grant led a challenging march through the swamps of Mississippi and Louisiana to get in position and finally capture the Confederate stronghold at Vicksburg along the Mississippi River. That triumph cut

the South in two and – along with Gettysburg’s Union troops that stymied General Robert Lee’s gamble and seemingly futile Pickett’s Charge – all but dashed Southern hopes, ironically right around the same time as America celebrated its 87th Independence Day in 1863.

Grant, who like Washington parlayed military glory all the way to the White House, particularly inspired Grammer, he told Perino in their interview. Grant had his own issues away from the battlefield victories that he made his career from. He was a failed businessman in nearly every venture he tried and he drank too much, even sometimes while deployed in combat.

But at the same time, he was an effective fighting general – despite

americanshootingjournal.com 41

the enormous casualties his units suffered in a costly but successful strategy – that the Union sorely lacked in the early years of the war. Such a gameplan filled with casualties on both sides was needed to eventually suffocate the Confederacy and unite a divided nation when the Rebels threw down their weapons at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia, in 1865.

“I really didn’t realize the breadth of his dedication,” Grammer told Fox in his interview about Grant. “Even in the face of the fact that he had some personal, what they like to call

‘demons’ these days. He dedicated himself to making a couple of very unpleasant decisions in order to fulfill the promise of freedom for everybody.”

Grant, whom Grammer called an “extraordinary guy,” is just one of many only-in-America characters depicted in the series who shaped the nation through war.  Editor’s note: For more on Kelsey Grammer’s Historic Battles for America and to subscribe, go to nation.foxnews.com/kelsey-grammershistoric-battles-for-america-nation.

General Ulysses S. Grant was a failed businessman who drank too much, but he was the fierce fighter the Union needed to defeat the Confederacy in the Civil War. His biggest triumph was methodically capturing the heavily fortified Mississippi River port of Vicksburg in 1863. “I really didn’t realize the breadth of his dedication,” Grammer told Fox in his interview about future President Grant. “Even in the face of the fact that he had some personal, what they like to call ‘demons’ these days. He dedicated himself to making a couple of very unpleasant decisions in order to fulfill the promise of freedom for everybody.”

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

americanshootingjournal.com 43

Makayla Scott of southeastern West Virginia got into the shotgun sports through a 4-H shooting program, “and has never looked back,” writes author Larry Case.

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Makayla Scott’s

Field of Dreams A veritable force to be reckoned with on the competitive shotgun trail, young West Virginia native helps build local clay target range, form scholastic shooting club.

T

STORY AND PHOTOS BY LARRY CASE

he indomitable force of nature known as Makayla Scott continues to sweep across the country, plowing all obstacles out of the way.

Now a 19-year-old shotgun-shooting piece of machinery from Alvon, West Virginia (near White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County), Makayla had a less than advantageous start in life. She was being bumped around the foster care system when she was found by Telford Scott and adopted into the Scott family.

Makayla may have had a rough start in life, but some years ago – through the love and encouragement of her new family, and the 4-H shooting program – she picked up a shotgun, started shooting competitively and has never looked back.

BEING SERIOUS ABOUT competing in the shotgun world meant a lot of hard work and sacrifices for Makayla and her family. Lots of travel to shooting events in other states means long road trips, motels and bad diner food. Once at the event, to effectively compete, the shooter must shrug all this off and make it count when standing up there burning powder. This means when the shotgun goes bang, targets have to break. Makayla did it, her family did it, and the list of accomplishments is impressive.

In 2018, Makayla won the Perazzi Grand Prix bronze medal in Junior Class. The following year, she shot on the fourth-place team in the 4-H Nationals in Grand Island, Nebraska. Also in 2019, she won fourth place in Sporting Clays at the SCTP (Scholastic Clay Target Program) Nationals, and she was the Doubles Skeet Champion at that same event. Other 2019 honors include making the North Carolina All-State team and qualifying for the United States Junior Olympic Trap Team, becoming the first lady shooter from West Virginia to earn that position, ever.

americanshootingjournal.com 47

Recently, Makayla shot at the Palmyra Spring Spectacular/ Pennsylvania Junior Olympic qualifier.

In the Spring Spectacular 200 event, she earned Ladies Gold and Junior Champion. She also earned a bronze medal in the JO qualifier, and won the Pennsylvania State Championship for the Junior Women’s Open Division.

Another achievement of note, in October 2019, Makayla earned a spot to shoot on the team of Dave Miller of CZ-USA, where she was one of four young shooters that helped him set a Guinness World Record for the most number of clays broken by a five-person team in 12 hours! Five shooters shot almost continuously for 12 hours, breaking 14,167 targets; I do not expect that number to be topped any time soon.

MAKAYLA SCOTT HAS established herself as a force to be reckoned with on the competitive shotgun trail, but that was not enough – she had another idea brewing in that brain of hers. What if there was a local shotgun range where young people could try the shotgun sports of trap, skeet, and maybe 5-stand? What if this range was right there in her backyard?

Makayla’s dad Telford Scott and brother Jesse Scott during construction of her “Field of Dreams” clay target facility.

Scott is a Guinness World Record holder as one of five shotgun shooters who together broke 14,167 clay targets in just 12 hours, a feat featured in the December 2019 issue of this magazine.

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She had the room, so all she had to do was put together a few little details like some bulldozer work, pouring concrete and building trap houses for the skeet range, laying out and putting in the various shooting stations, and acquiring the target throwers needed – little things like that.

Makayla wasted no time in reaching out to some of her sponsors, like firearms company CZ-USA, wellknown clay target thrower makers MEC Outdoors, and SSP Eyewear, who all joined in to make this happen.

Makayla also reached out to some local businesses and got help from Lynch Construction, Green Acres Excavating and SJ Neathawk Lumber.

Local shotgun coaches Joe Hayes, Curtis Kincaid, Joe Windon and Makayla’s dad Telford all put in long hours, helping to make this shooting range a reality.

With all that she has been through

Scott and fellow members of the Scholastic Clay Target Program team she formed, the Mountaineer Clay Crushers, at the Field of Dreams with the author (fourth from left).

personally and what this shooting range could mean to new shooters being exposed to the shotgun sports, Makayla knew she could only give the site one name: Field of Dreams.

NOW THAT THE physical site was becoming a reality, Makayla put phase two of her dream for this place into action.

Makayla had competed with the North Carolina SCTP team last year and done well. Even though she was proud of this accomplishment, she knew she had to find a way to take a team from her home state to the SCTP Nationals. So the first chapter of the Scholastic Clay Target Program in West Virginia was born, the Mountaineer Clay Crushers!

Currently the Mountaineer Clay Crushers have about 25 members. If you are a young person who would like to try shotgun shooting, you can reach Makayla through the team’s social media page, facebook.com/ mountaineerclaycrushers.

An incredible force of nature that seems to achieve things with a shotgun through sheer will. A bright ray of sunshine and optimism with a smile as big as the Appalachian Mountains. That is Makayla Scott.

You go, girl. Makayla knew that if she built it, they would come. Pull! 

“An incredible force of nature that seems to achieve things with a shotgun through sheer will. A bright ray of sunshine and optimism with a smile as big as the Appalachian Mountains. That is Makayla Scott,” writes Case.

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Editor’s note: Larry Case has been a devoted outdoorsman since he was a child. He will admit to an addiction to turkey hunting (spring and fall), but refuses any treatment. He enjoys the company of gobblers and cur dogs that are loud and people who speak the truth softly. Case served 36 years as a game warden in West Virginia and retired with the rank of district captain. You can check out his podcast and other stories at gunsandcornbred.com.

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STORY AND PHOTOS BY CASSIDY CARON

t the age of 10, my first big game animal was a small yet beautiful color-phase black bear. Countless evening hours were spent cruising the mountain roads after school with my dad until that perfect moment presented itself for a young and inexperienced hunter to harvest her first animal. It is engraved in my memory. To this day, spring bear is one of my favorite hunts.

Every year, as the snow recedes and the wet earth smells of last fall’s composting leaves, that urge comes back. It is time to start the search for some legendary bruins.

Even with many, many successful bear hunts behind me over the past 25 years, that promise of one bigger, one older, one more beautiful than any in the past keeps the excitement up. You never know what lies around the next

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

Author Cassidy Caron, age 10, with her first big game animal, a color-phase black bear.

corner, or in the next avalanche chute.

You just might cross paths with a legend emerging from his secret den.

Spring hunting for black bears is one of the best hunts you can do.

Besides seeing a lot of bears, it’s a great way to assess how other species wintered in your favorite hunting

These days Caron guides bruin hunters, including 78-year-old Vietnam veteran Richard Horne, who bagged this nice bear with her during the 2022 spring season. americanshootingjournal.com 55

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Danish hunter Michael with his beautiful boar from spring 2022 at Compass Mountain Outfitters’ base camp in Canada.

spots. You see cow moose with calves on wobbly legs; bull elk with alien-like fuzzy stubs sprouting from their heads; confused yearling deer, recently abandoned by mom, clumsily bouncing across roads; shed horns and winter kills. Cascading waterfalls, raging flood waters, rotting avalanches and towering peaks all form the formidable yet stunning backdrop for a spring bear hunt.

AS WELL AS being my first big game animal, guiding black bears right out of high school was also my first professional job in the hunting industry.

I was green as could be and my very first client wounded a bear that ended up in the top of a large fir tree.

The client was able to finish the bear, threading a shot through the massive limbs of the old tree. To my surprise, the bear died suspended in the huge limbs some 60 feet off the ground!

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Being young and ambitious as I was, I climbed the tree to push the bear down. It took quite a while to weave my way up through the twisted branches to reach the height of the bear. He wasn’t a small bear and it took some doing to get him to fall out of the tree rather than myself. Finally, after much cursing and much more exertion than I had calculated, the bear plummeted to the earth. Unfortunately for me, it broke all the limbs off one side of the tree as it went.

To scale the tree, I had wound myself around all sides of it. Getting down was sure a challenge missing half those critical branches! But my very first guiding expedition was a success.

YEARS LATER, ONE of my most memorable black bear hunts took place with a father and daughter from Germany. Julia was on her first international hunting trip and was as

excited as she was nervous.

I tried hard for the first four days of the hunt to exercise the same patience my dad showed me on my first bear hunt, as opportunity after opportunity presented itself but Julia just wasn’t comfortable enough to make them work. As the time ran down, I dreaded sending her home from her first big hunt without a bear.

On the last day of the hunt, we headed out in the early morning.

We hiked 3 miles into a valley full of avalanche chutes – prime habitat for bears as the warmth of June melts the snowpack and greens the grass below.

We spotted a very big boar on the first slide but before we could get a shot, he fed into some dense undergrowth and did not reappear. I decided to wait. We killed a very long day by napping, snacking around a small fire and watching the slide for the bear. It was terribly boring and

I found myself second-guessing my tactic, as it was the last day of the hunt and perhaps covering more ground would have been more fruitful.

Finally, the sun began to dip below the mountaintops and my senses and

A hunter watches an avalanche chute for bears.

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anticipation heightened. Still the old boar did not come. Even on highpressure sheep hunts I’ve guided, I have not experienced tension like I did that evening. I wanted so badly for Julia to have a successful trip.

And then a dark shape lumbered onto the avalanche chute. There was no mistaking it was him. The way old bears carry themselves is distinct.

Bears can be a hard animal to judge, but when a true titan of the mountain appears, you just know. There is the roll of the shoulders; the sway of the belly; the confident position of his blocky, muscled head; the arrogant, confident lumber; and the deliberate flicks of the big front paws.

The boar had come out much higher than where we had spotted him that morning. With only 1.5 hours of good daylight left, we had to move fast. Luckily for us, the evening downdraft had begun and we were able to stalk up the chute underneath the bear. The noise of the raging runoff creek covered our sound, as we fought our way up through the tangled alders and loose rock. At last we were within 90 yards.

I set my pack on the ground and got Julia comfortable in a prone position. At this distance, it was impossible not to see how big the bear was, but I downplayed his size to keep her calm. As the bruin fed into a grassy opening above us, he presented the perfect broadside and Julia made a perfect shot.

The bear was ancient, his scarred face and coat telling a tale of many battles and tough years living on turf infested with grizzlies. Julia had worked hard and had earned every foot of that giant old bear. She was ecstatic and so was I. We skinned and field-dressed him on the chute in the glow of our headlamps as darkness set in. On the hike out in the dark, heavily laden with the fresh hide and quarters, I suddenly saw a large and very ominous shape on the outer reach of my headlamp beam. It was a grizzly. He hadn’t heard us coming over the roar of a nearby river. Covered in blood and sweat and reeking of a fresh kill while marching directly into a grizzly’s path in the middle of the night is not ideal.

“Hey!” I yelled, waving a hiking pole in the air. Luckily, the grizzly was as surprised as I was and went careening off the trail, crashing and smashing his way through the dense brush. We

americanshootingjournal.com 61

walked a little faster the rest of the way back to the truck.

FROM ENTRY-LEVEL HUNTERS to very experienced ones looking for a spring adventure, black bear hunting has something for every hunter, on every level. It’s always a high-action, highsuccess hunt that in my opinion is one of the most underrated big game hunts someone can do. Black bears make beautiful trophies and great sausage. Guided hunts are affordable and a great way to adventure in some new territory.

Every mountain has a mysterious hidden den that holds a legendary bear, and every fresh spring brings a hunter’s chance at a quest to pursue him. As the sun melts away another long winter and the new life of spring comes to the mountains, put your boots on and go bear hunting. 

First-time bear hunter Julia with her amazing last-day boar. Hiking out in the dark, the German huntress and the author ran into a grizzly, which fortunately for them ran the other way.

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Editor’s note: Cassidy Caron is the owner of Compass Mountain Outfitters. For more information, visit compassmountainoutfitters.com.

Hasn't been hunted since 2013 Camp upgrades in progress Offering group discounts!

Chitek Lake, Saskatchewan 306-883-7214 www.spiritwoodoutfitters.com americanshootingjournal.com 63

BROUGHT TO YOU BY

BULLET BULLETIN Hornady’s engineers made revisions to the GMX bullet to arrive at the new CX bullet.

GOING FROM GOOD TO GREAT

Hornady’s new CX expanding copper bullets are a step up from their GMX line and a solid choice for pursuing big game where lead-free ammo is required.

STORY BY PHIL MASSARO • PHOTOS BY MASSARO MEDIA GROUP

here is no doubt about it: the lead-free monometal bullet is here to stay. It is a legal requirement in the state of California, and my home state of New York is pushing to require lead-free ammunition on our plentiful public lands. Whether required or not, the lead-free copper alloy

T

projectiles offer excellent performance, with the rifle bullets giving deep penetration with high weight retention; there is no jacket and core to separate.

While Hornady was not the first to develop a successful monometal copper alloy projectile – that distinction belongs to Barnes – they have, like many other companies, developed a great monometal. Their GMX – standing for Gilding Metal eXpanding – was equipped with the

signature Hornady red polymer tip over a hollow cavity; during flight the polymer tip helps to maintain a consistent ballistic coefficient, and upon impact, it acts as a wedge to initiate expansion. The GMX was a good bullet, and proved to be accurate and consistent in both component form – where I handloaded it in a whole bunch of different cartridges – as well as the Hornady Outfitter and Full Boar lines of factory-loaded ammunition. americanshootingjournal.com 65

BULLET BULLETIN I use the past tense when referring to the excellent GMX because, somewhat sadly, it has been discontinued. When the news was released, a number of my handloading pals who have come to rely on the GMX were panicked, for obvious reasons. But Hornady wasn’t just pulling out of the monometal game; they had put the time into R&D to improve their design, resulting in a whole new bullet: the CX, or Copper eXpanding.

The Hornady CX bullet shown in profile and in section; note the hollow cavity below the polymer tip and the rounded design of the grooves on the bullet’s shank. (HORNADY)

THE NEW CX has a number of improvements over the GMX, and is a testament to Hornady not being willing to rest upon their laurels. Much like the work that went into the development of the ELD Match and ELD-X bullets, Hornady has looked at the entire package that was the GMX, and sought to make the best design possible.

Beginning with the polymer tip, Hornady’s engineers brought over the Heat Shield Tip from the ELD line to give the new CX the most consistent BC throughout the bullet’s flight. You see, the engineers used Doppler radar to demonstrate that the polymer tips were falling victim to heat

deterioration from friction in flight, and that was degrading the ballistic coefficient downrange. The polymer formula was changed, and the Heat Shield Tip was the result, which solved the problem.

Next, engineers looked at grooves in the shank of the GMX bullet in order to improve the BC even further. As it is constructed of a copper alloy and has no lead core, the monometal bullet will be longer than a traditional lead-core/ copper jacket bullet, when comparing bullets of the same caliber and weight.

In order to prevent excessive copper fouling – and also to keep pressures low – grooves were cut in the shank of the bullet to reduce bearing surface.

But the geometry of those grooves can play a role in the BC values and drag coefficients downrange, so that was the next place Hornady turned their attention. Comparing the two bullets, the CX has grooves that appear to have rounded edges, presumably to further reduce drag.

DID THE IMPROVEMENTS to the CX show themselves at the bench? Well,

For those fans of the 6.5mm bore, the 120-grain Hornady CX bullet will give the velocity and penetrative qualities to deliver a quick, humane kill. (HORNADY)

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

BULLET BULLETIN

Author Phil Massaro handloaded the 7mm 150-grain CX in his 7mm08 Remington with good results.

to begin with, I had good results with the GMX, but I feel the CX is a better design, or at the very least the improvements were worthwhile.

I had the opportunity to test both the component CX bullets, as well as a few different cartridges in the Outfitter line. For testing, I had component bullets in 7mm caliber

(at 150 grains) and .30 caliber (at 165 grains), and factory ammunition in 6.5 Creedmoor with the 120-grain CX, the .308 Winchester with the 165-grain CX and the .300 Winchester Magnum with the 180-grain CX. Rifles for testing included a Legendary Arms Works for the Creedmoor, a Ruger M77 MKII in .308 Winchester, a Winchester Model

70 Classic Stainless in .300 Winchester Magnum, and my little Tikka T3X Lite in 7mm-08 Remington; all in all, a wellrounded selection of big game rifles.

For the 7mm-08 Remington, I used a pair of ball powders – Hodgdon H414 and H380 – in order to offset the lack of case capacity and that long 150-grain CX bullet encroaching on what space

Massaro’s Winchester Model 70 Classic Stainless in .300 Winchester Magnum is well-served by the Hornady Outfitter ammo featuring the 180-grain CX bullet, a sound all-around choice.

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

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BULLET BULLETIN Hornady’s Outfitter ammo line features nickel-plated cases to resist corrosion and sealed primer pockets and case mouths. (HORNADY)

there was. The Tikka liked both these powders, showing a slight preference for H380, printing three shots into a ¾-inch group at 100 yards. Though a 150-grain monometal might be considered on the heavy side for the 7mm-08, there aren’t too many hunts that are suitable for a 7mm bullet that wouldn’t be handled by a 150-grain CX, especially considering that weight retention will run above 95 percent in most situations.

I handloaded the .30-caliber 165-grain CXs in my .300 Winchester, over a healthy dose of Reloder 19, and saw sub-MOA groups at 3,110 feet per second. This rifle isn’t particularly finicky, and that same load has worked in a number of rifles, so that result wasn’t especially surprising. Looking back at my notes, the group size did slightly improve in comparison to the GMX, and the extreme spread of velocities was more consistent. That .300 Winnie also liked the 180-grain factory load, printing three-shot groups measuring just under ¾-inch at 2,985 fps.

My old .308 Winchester gave MOA performance with the 165-grain CX bullet in the Outfitter ammo, averaging 2,590 fps on the Oehler 35P. I feel this load would be a perfect match for any fan of the .308 Winchester, as the 165-grain bullet represents just about a perfect balance of case capacity and bullet weight. From the Creedmoor, I saw the 120-grain CX load print groups averaging 0.85 inch at a velocity of 2,912 fps. All in all, the CX performs very well at the range, engendering all sorts of confidence.

THE OUTFITTER LINE of ammunition is loaded in nickel-plated cases, with sealed primers and case mouths, in order to keep things both free from corrosion and nice and dry during your hunting adventures. The Outfitter loaded ammo line is available in the following: .243 Winchester (80-grain CX), .257 Weatherby Magnum (90-grain CX), 6.5 Creedmoor (120-grain CX), 6.5 PRC (130-grain CX), .270 WSM

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

T

he 10MM cartridge is more than 30 years old, but its popularity has not waned. It’s one of the top three self-defense cartridg-es in America, as well as hunting. But most 10MM loads are designed for personal protection using bullets weighing between 100 and 220 grains. They work well, with a very deep wound and penetration channels. Underwood Ammunition is well-known for innovative ammunition offerings. In 2022, Underwood is featuring a lightweight, high-velocity round

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for 10MM, for hunting. This Xtreme Hunter load features a 150-grain solid-copper bullet that will penetrate around 25 inches. The Xtreme Hunt-er is designed with wider flutes than the Xtreme Penetrator to slow down faster and to perform a massive energy dump faster, close to 700 pounds of energy while hunting. The Xtreme Hunter has Underwood Ammo’s trademark nickel plated brass, along with state of the art 100% copper projectile, with Underwood’s famous flutes.

Call us: 618-965-2109 underwoodammo.com

BULLET BULLETIN The Hornady Outfitter load in .308 Winchester is loaded with the 165-grain CX bullet, a perfect choice for this case and fully capable of taking all but the very largest North American game.

(130-grain CX), 7mm Remington Magnum (150-grain CX), 7mm WSM (150-grain CX), .308 Winchester (165-grain CX), .30-06 Springfield (180-grain CX), .300 WSM (180-grain CX), .300 Winchester Magnum (180-grain CX), .300 Weatherby Magnum (180-grain CX), .300 PRC (190-grain CX), .300 Remington Ultra Magnum (180-grain CX), .338 Winchester Magnum (225-grain CX), .375 Ruger (250-grain CX), and .375 H&H Magnum (250-grain CX). All are Hornady builds their Outfitter ammo for the worst conditions, so you can count on it in any weather. (HORNADY)

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American Shooting Journal // July 2022

sold in 20-count boxes.

Hornady now offers the CX in their Custom line, with the 6.8 SPC featuring the 100-grain CX and the .300 Blackout featuring the 110-grain CX. In component form, Hornady offers the CX bullet in the following configurations: 6mm (80- and 90-grain), .257-inch (90-grain), 6.5mm (120- and 130-grain), .277-inch (100- and 130-grain), 7mm (139- and 150-grain), .308-inch (110-, 165-, 180and 190-grain), .338-inch (185- and

225-grain), and .375-inch (250-grain).

The projectiles are sold in 50-count boxes. This lineup gives a wide variety of choices for just about any North American hunting scenario, from small southern whitetails up to and including Alaska’s biggest bears, and covers everything worldwide with the exception of the African heavyweights.

While there will always be those who oppose change of any sort when it comes to the design of their chosen projectiles, I think Hornady made the right move here in improving the GMX. With all the research they’ve invested in their proprietary Heat Shield Tip, and the wonderful accuracy that is in some part attributed to that tip, it made perfect sense to include it in their monometal hunting bullet.

With the lead-free movement gaining momentum, it would behoove any hunter to at least find one monometal load that will work in their rifle should the regulations in your area change, or should the opportunity for a hunt in one of those areas requiring lead-free projectiles present itself. The Hornady CX is a great choice for just that role. 

americanshootingjournal.com 73

ROAD HUNTER

Monitoring elk calf numbers can be an important part of predator hunting, and trail cameras can help.

OF PREDATORS AND TRAIL CAMERAS

Bucks and bulls aren’t the only critters you can scout with these modern devices.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY SCOTT HAUGEN

S

ummer is a time when most hunters are preparing for fall big game adventures.

But summer can be the best time to scout for predators, too!

I’ve been a trail camera nut for over 20 years. Wherever my world travels take me, you’ll usually find a trail camera or two in my luggage.

Last summer I used them extensively throughout Alaska to track wolf, fox, brown bear and black bear movement.

I’ve used them in Africa multiple times to monitor leopard, lion and other big game. They’ve gone with me to New Zealand, Australia, Mexico and multiple states throughout the West.

I rely heavily on them for information wherever I go, even in the summer for tracking predators.

As a former high school biology

teacher, and having made my living in the outdoors for the past 22 years, I love learning all I can about animals and animal behavior. This is why I always set all my trail cameras on video mode. A 10-second video clip reveals volumes more information than a photo, or series of photos, can.

The movement, actions, reactions, changing demeanor and even sounds that video clips unveil have taught me so much about animals – especially americanshootingjournal.com 75

ROAD HUNTER

Running trail cameras in the summer will teach hunters a lot about the game we pursue, especially predators.

predators – over the years.

Some of the facial expressions and body language of predators that trail camera video clips have revealed over the years have greatly educated me. If you want to learn about animal behavior, other than personally observing wildlife, I’ve found nothing that comes close to the education that video clips provide.

Today my trail camera of choice is StealthCam’s DS4K Ultimate series.

It captures the highest quality video footage of any camera I’ve used.

This model has withstood a range of weather conditions and the only issue I’ve had with it is the timestamp 76

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

resetting itself on occasion. This has only happened twice, and I run a lot of cameras every day of the year.

StealthCam’s helpline jumped right on it, quickly remedying the situation.

NEAR MY HOME I run many trail cameras year-round. This allows me to not only monitor what’s happening with predator populations every day of the year, but also what’s happening with their food sources. When it comes to tracking predators, reproduction and food are two keys that hunters and trappers want to focus on.

As long as there’s food, predators won’t be far. Where I live in the

western foothills of Oregon’s Cascade Range, I’m continually monitoring deer and elk, the two main food sources of cougars. Bears also hunt these ungulates, and coyotes and bobcats get after the deer fawns during the spring and summer months.

Turkeys are another popular food source of coyotes, bobcats, gray foxes and even cougars. Crows also prey on poults and destroy turkey nests, along with those of quail and waterfowl, something to keep in mind if looking to pursue predators of the sky. Note that some states have strict crow seasons.

Squirrels and rabbits are also popular food sources for predators.

ROAD HUNTER Tracking fluctuating tree and ground squirrel populations, along with rabbits, in your area can lead to successful predator hunts throughout the year.

Trail cameras aren’t just for predator hunters; they can be invaluable tools for trappers, too. What I would have given to have had trail cameras when I started running a trapline in fourth grade back in 1974, or when I ran extensive wolf, wolverine and lynx traplines in Alaska’s Arctic back in the 1990s.

Trail cameras are great tools for capturing the movement of beaver, otter, mink, nutria, muskrat, raccoons, bobcat and other furbearers. Not only do they reveal population densities – a huge advantage for trappers – but they also show exact travel routes.

THE GENERAL RULE for trail camera position is to point them up and down trails, not at 90-degree angles to trails. This rule holds true for predators. However, I’ve learned a great deal about predator, varmint and furbearer behaviors by placing cameras on the ground, at or below eyeball level of the animal.

If a trail is open enough, I’ll often place cameras right on the ground. I’ll do the same along fencelines where

Author Scott Haugen caught this young cougar on trail camera in the middle of the day in midJuly. He soon discovered two more young cats in the area, and the female.

predators travel. I make sure to strap them to a rock, chunk of heavy wood or fencepost, so bear and elk can’t pack them too far. I’ll also hang them no more than a foot off the ground, pointing right down a trail. The field of view this camera position covers often exceeds what hanging them

Haugen always runs his trail cameras on video mode to watch and hear what’s happening. This screenshot shows only one bear, but seconds prior a second black bear was with this one.

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higher in a tree at a more severe angle to the trail can.

For varmint hunters looking to capture footage of ground squirrels, tree squirrels, rabbits or marmots, place cameras off the beaten path. Rarely do tree and ground squirrels travel big game trails in my area, likely because they’re so open to potential predation from the ground and sky. Squirrels often travel along fallen trees and inside brush lines, so set cameras there.

Two years ago I was onto a cougar.

Placing multiple trail cameras in the area, I discovered a gray squirrel mecca. That fall, my dogs and I had several great squirrel hunts, something we’d have missed out on were it not for trail cameras.

Last fall a farmer called me, anxious to get rid of nutria in his creek and ponds. The nutria were burrowing into his ponds, causing great water loss.

The invasive rodents were also heavily grazing in his fields and raiding fruit and vegetable crops. The first thing I did was set trail cameras at the edge of a creek and along multiple trails.

Not only did this reveal what time of day the nutria were moving, but it also

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ROAD HUNTER spelled out the population density and age class of the animals. It didn’t take long to get to work trapping and shooting the large rodents.

I’ve also had solid success running trail cameras along water and on trails for beaver in many places, as well as otter, mink and marten.

The author with a massive chocolate-phase black bear.

Bears aren’t the only predator that hunters can locate and learn about with the use of trail cameras.

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IF YOU’RE A bear hunter, trail cameras could be your new best friend. Bears have a short intestinal tract, thus one of the most inefficient digestive systems of any big mammal in North America.

They are also more resilient to cold weather than many people think. Each of these are key pieces of information

for hunters to know, and trail cameras reveal a lot about both.

I’ve run trail cameras for bears in Florida, where they never den and are active all winter long. I’ve also run them throughout the West and many places throughout Alaska. Two winters ago in southeast Alaska I caught brown

americanshootingjournal.com 81

ROAD HUNTER bears, and a few black bears, still active in 20-degree temperatures with over 3 feet of snow on the ground in early December. A nearby creek that saw over 40,000 salmon spawn in it had yet to freeze and as long as the food was there, so were the bears.

Many places I hunt bears in the West are seeing the animals up and active year-round. They might curl up and sleep a few days, but not all bears enter a heavy state of torpor every winter.

When hunting this North American apex predator, given their poor ability to digest food – which means they have to eat a lot – targeting food sources is important. In the spring, set cameras along creeks, patches of vegetation bears are known to feed on, and hillsides where they may dig for tubers and bulbs or graze on grass.

Situating cameras along trails and secluded roads that connect food sources, as well as bedding areas to food sources, is excellent for capturing

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bears on the move. In late May through June – the height of the black bear rut – keep an eye on sows you’ve captured on camera. Boars will cover 25 miles or more in a day in search of sows in heat, and spending time in the area where you’ve marked sows is a great way to punch a tag on a big boar. Calling in these areas, be it with cub distress, deer fawn or calf elk cries, can be very effective in late spring and early fall.

In late summer and early fall, bears will continue hunting for young deer and elk, so keep track of those animals and utilize those calls. Bears will also travel a long way to reach ripening berry patches in August and September. Setting trail cameras near berry patches will show when bears arrive, on what trails they traveled, and how long they stick around. I’ve captured bears feeding, sleeping and frolicking in blackberry patches all day long. Know that bears can devour large berry patches in short order, so once

they start hitting it, go hunting.

Last August in Alaska, I set up a trail camera on a beaver dam, hoping to catch one in action. I never caught the beaver, but I got a large brown bear on film a few nights a week. The bear was traveling the creek and going into the beaver pond, grabbing spawning sockeye salmon. The following spring, a buddy of mine returned with a brown bear tag and found the big bear in the same spot.

When it comes to learning all you can about predators, don’t neglect trail cameras this summer. Trail cameras are our eyes and ears in the woods when we’re not there, and face it, we can’t be everywhere at once, but trail cameras can.  Editor’s note: Scott Haugen is a fulltime author. Learn more about his line of books and booking service at scotthaugen.com. Follow his adventures on Instagram and Facebook.

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Self-Defense TRAINING

Jennie Jenkins, an Army combat veteran, engages targets while practicing for multiple threats common in violent encounters.

DEFINING REALISTIC SELF-DEFENSE

These training scenarios prepare you for violent encounters far better than marksmanship, martial arts.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY PAUL PAWELA

s this article is being written, today’s headline news is a barrage of horrifying violent crime reports.

• Iowa church shooting leaves 2 victims dead.

• Tulsa, Oklahoma, hospital shooting leaves 4 dead.

• Uvalde, Texas, school shooting leaves 19 students, 2 teachers dead.

These are the current facts: violent crimes, murder, armed robbery, armed

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carjacking and physical assaults are skyrocketing throughout the country.

Many root causes are poverty, inflation, unemployment and dramatic social change in the trust of governmental public institutions like the police. When people can’t trust the police, crime goes through the proverbial roof, which is exactly what we are seeing today!

And of course, the quick-fix answer that our liberal political leaders propose is to impose more restrictions on law-abiding citizens from carrying personal weapons and/or banning the most popular types of rifles. Thank God for the recent Supreme

Court decision that struck down the New York mandate prohibiting its citizens access to concealed weapons permits to defend themselves.

IN LIGHT OF the rapidly apocalyptic events going on in the world currently, especially as it pertains to the citizens of the United States, I have been asked to address my views on realistic selfdefense, as I have led several courses of the same name via my self-defense training company, Assault Counter Tactics. For the past 30-plus years, I have been providing realistic self-defense americanshootingjournal.com 85

SELF-DEFENSE TRAINING

Firearms instructor Sherry Myers of Shooting with Sherry fires at a lifelike target. Myers is going to be the next national female firearms leader in the country, in author Paul Pawela’s estimation.

training to civilians, using real guns, knives and authentic-looking replicas in simulated scenarios of violent encounters that happened to civilians.

Reality-based training has been proven in both military and law enforcement communities as an excellent approach to gaining experience and exposure to various types of missions, and force-on-force scenario training has been proven to be the best way to prepare for worst-case lethal-force encounters. Unfortunately, this type of training has not been widely available to civilians, although it has been my specialty for years.

Realistic self-defense is training that is consistent with the ways in which one may have to defend against a violent encounter. Violent encounters have been described as surprising and chaotic, with the attacker threatening aggression and extreme violence against the victim. It doesn’t have to make sense and often won’t, yet one must learn to be able to deal with it efficiently at that moment.

All violent encounters and attacks against your person come from distraction and surprise in the form of an ambush. So the “defense” part comes 86

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If your gun fails, go to your backup weapon right away, in this case a knife. The “blood” on Myers’ hands is meant to help self-defense students understand knife grips when dealing with the bodily fluid.

when you’re not in control and when you’re not prepared. It is a worst-case scenario. The common three elements in a criminal ambush assault generally are: close range, more than one assailant, and the presence of a weapon.

Whether the assailant attacks with fists, knives, blunt instruments or even guns, these encounters all take place at close distances. According to the FBI, half of all murder victims are killed from a range of 5 feet or less.

On the flip side of that, in the majority of cases when a good guy is shooting at a perpetrator in a deadly-force encounter, the shooting distance is under 6 feet. This proves that point index shooting is more effective in personal self-defense than traditional marksmanship shooting.

GIVEN THE ABOVE information, I have noticed in the number of years I have been training or received training that most self-defense-oriented programs, be they martial arts or from the firearms industry, fail to cover the true nature of violent encounters.

Consider the sport martial arts community; their sparring in the dojo

pales in comparison to an actual street fight. Even the mixed martial arts world forbids headbutts, eye gouges, throat strikes, grabbing the trachea, biting, and groin strikes – techniques that actually work in violent encounters.

The commercial shooting world is pretty much the same, with an unrealistic emphasis on shooting real fast at targets that are standing perfectly still and not shooting or fighting back.

Many top-notch self-defense trainers will say that the primary goal of selfdefense training should be to expose the brain to all of the situations it is likely to encounter. Yet many fail that goal by not addressing real issues of violent encounters at all. Examples of this are in the martial arts world, where the majority of trainers have zero understanding of firearms or how they work. They may practice gun disarms or gun takeaways but have no understanding of the mechanical applications of the gun itself. To make it operable or inoperable is benign to the martial artist, which I find disgraceful.

The gun crowd is just as bad, thinking their gun skills are the only thing they will need in a deadly force

SELF-DEFENSE TRAINING

In a simulated ground-fighting situation, best-selling author Andy Tolbert ends a violent encounter with a headshot.

Again, if the primary weapon fails, go immediately to a backup weapon.

encounter, and having no clue what to do when they are looking down the barrel of a gun. Having no hand-to-hand combatives in their repertoire is just as egregious a sin as the martial artist not being familiar with firearms because trying to go for one’s gun when one is pointed at you already is very detrimental to one’s health.

A handgun is an equalizer for Jenkins as she faces off against a course participant portraying a bigger, stronger violent offender. The green laser dot tells her where she is aiming. Pawela says that at close distances, head shots are highly encouraged to stop the threat.

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ARMED WITH THESE facts, there are four elements to keep in mind when it comes to a life-threatening situation in an ambush encounter: dialogue, deception, distraction and destruction. These need to be discussed, taught and practiced.

For example: • Know simple dialogue to interact with the bad guy to set up a deception move, like faking a heart attack, throwing something in the face of the attacker, or slapping the offending weapon, in order to set up destruction techniques that you will be using against your assaulter.

• Have a basic understanding of hand-

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SELF-DEFENSE TRAINING

Force-on-force and shoot/don’t shoot scenario training is the best thing possible for civilians when combined with manmarking cartridges and a Spartan Tactical training suit.

to-hand counter-assault techniques, such as head slaps, throat punches, elbow strikes to the chest, groin strikes or shin kicks.

• Be comfortable with pointing real guns at real people.

In regards to the last bullet point above, before every realistic self-defense class that I teach, all participants are ordered to bring their guns to slide lock and show an unloaded empty and cleared gun. The

individual checks their gun to show that it cleared by checking both the magwell and then the ramp of the barrel with their pinky finger. Then the student is required to do the same to the student to the left and right of them. Then I have two range safety officers check the students’ weapons and, finally, I perform a personal safety check.

At this time, the command is given to point the gun at the threat (the target). Then I go down the line to

Training with real guns – thoroughly double-checked by range safety officers and the course operator himself – helps “address the hesitation that comes with pointing a gun at a real person” who may be threatening your life, writes the author.

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evaluate grip and stance, while standing in front of the student pointing the gun.

Lastly, I stand in front of the class and say, “Now point the gun at the threat – I am the threat,” all the while giving the command to keep the finger off the trigger until the gun needs to go bang!

The point of this exercise is to address the hesitation that comes with pointing a gun at a real person. After all these safety checks and verifications by several different people, if you are still hesitant to point your gun at another person, what makes you think you will do it in a real-life situation?

After pointing the gun at the threat, the students are ordered to give the suspect loud and firm commands: “Stop. Don’t move. Don’t make me shoot you.” The problem with most commercial shooting is that all they do is teach the student to draw the weapon at the target, shoot the target and reholster, and repeat a million or so times. But what if it is a no-shoot situation?

Recently a popular female LAPD officer, who is also a competitive shooter with a substantial YouTube following, was involved in a shooting of several bad guys. Defense attorneys for the family members of the suspects that the officer shot brought up the fact that many of the officer’s shooting competitions included simulations of

SELF-DEFENSE TRAINING

Pawela’s Assault Counter Tactics training courses make use of not only fake blood but “drunk goggles” to shoot with. Drunk goggles were designed to help illustrate visual impairment.

shooting people. The attorneys asked her one question: “In any of those competitions, did you have a scenario where you did not shoot your gun or give a verbal warning for a simulated suspect to drop his weapon?” Of course, the answer was no. I submit that had this been a civilian in these same circumstances, the outcome would have been much different.

In the gun safety inspection exercise illustrated earlier, students learn how to inspect a safe and unloaded weapon. Students are able to safely point a real gun at a simulated threat and do not have to shoot that threat and document it for possible future court proceedings.

HERE ARE SOME points to further define what realistic self-defense means from my Assault Counter Tactics perspective: • You must understand the need to know how to shoot at point-blank 92

American Shooting Journal // July 2022

range and shoot contact shots, both standing and on the ground, if it goes to a grappling situation.

• If the lethal threat goes to the ground, you should be trained to go automatically to a backup weapon should your primary weapon fail. A backup weapon is defined as either a gun or knife to stop and end the threat.

• In dealing with a lethal threat, it is very easy to get myopic and focus on one threat; realistic training should have you engaging and prepared for multiple threats.

• Violent encounters are bloody; that is a sad reality. Contact gunshots cause blood splatter, gun and knife wounds are bloody, and fake blood should be used in training for realism.

• Criminals use harsh language and harsh language is what they understand; learn to use it. “Don’t f-ing move; don’t f-ing make me shoot you!”

Take command of the situation.

• If the overwhelming data suggests violent encounters happen at close range, then why in the hell are gun instructors still insisting on teaching marksmanship? Force-on-force training, stress inoculation, and shoot/ don’t shoot scenarios with real people simulating violent attackers using blanks, manmarking cartridges and fake blood is the way to go, period.

Our great country has always been involved in violent encounters, from its birth to present date. The only true way to deal with violence is to deal it right back. The reality of dealing with violence to save one’s life quickly is with the use of a gun or edged weapon, and that’s a fact. That’s my two cents!  Editor’s note: For realistic self-defense training, see assaultcountertactics.com.

Author Paul Pawela is a nationally recognized firearms and self-defense expert based in Florida.

americanshootingjournal.com 93

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A young shooter practices proper prone position with a USGI sling during a Project Appleseed event in Ohio.

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CIVICS AND HARPSHOOTING

Project Appleseed teaches both marksmanship and history lessons as it aims to 'reignite the spirit of the American Revolution.'

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STORY BY KATIE AUMANN • PHOTOS BY PROJECT APPLESEED

n the spring of 1775, tensions between the American colonies and the British government hit a boiling point. On April 19, hundreds of British troops marched to Concord to seize Patriot arms. On the way, they encountered a group of armed colonists in Lexington ready to defend themselves. When the brief battle had ended, eight Americans were dead and several more injured, while only one British soldier was wounded. But regardless, the bravery of these men was the spark that set off the American Revolution, which of course would pave the way for full-fledged independence.

Almost 250 years after our forefathers first went into battle for our liberty, many of us take this freedom for granted. We enjoy the fruits of their labor but forget the sacrifices that they made, not to mention the values that America was built upon. americanshootingjournal.com 99

Project Appleseed instructors teach shooters how to interpret patterns on targets (this image) and model the prone position (below).

That is why Project Appleseed was formed.

Project Appleseed is the primary focus of the nonprofit organization Revolutionary War Veterans Association. It is a nationwide program dedicated to teaching people about America’s rich history, along with one of the nation’s most enduring traditions: rifle marksmanship.

“Our program was founded by a man named Jack Dailey, affectionately known as ‘Fred,’” explains Rusty Bonkoski, national coordinator for Project Appleseed. “Fred realized that America needed hope for the future.

That hope comes in the form of doing something positive for our country and impacting lives one American at a time. Our vision is to help people to become better Americans, more engaged in civic life, and more aware of their rights and why we must safeguard them.”

Since its launch, more than 150,000 people of all ages have taken part in Project Appleseed programs all over the country. Last year alone, they hosted 500 events in 44 states.

“Because we are a 100-percent volunteer program, we are able to 100

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“Students attending our classes can expect a safe, fun and family-friendly environment,” says the program’s national coordinator, Rusty Bonkoski. “They can expect events staffed by professional instructors dedicated to helping students improve. We welcome responsible youth and entire families to join us.”

keep costs low,” says Bonkoski, who handles day-to-day operations such as logistics, information technology, customer service, and program quality and consistency. “Many folks consider us the best value in marksmanship instruction today.”

And while firearm safety and marksmanship competence is certainly one of their goals – “we strive to turn rifle owners into riflemen,” stresses Bonkoski – Project Appleseed is far more than just shooting.

“Our bigger mission is to teach

the events of April 19, 1775, to every American and reignite the spirit of the American Revolution,” he says. “We want to change our nation’s future by returning to the founding principles of liberty and freedom guaranteed under our Constitution. To achieve this, we offer one-day and two-day classes across the country where we teach both marksmanship and history together … Not the boring history that you might have been forced to listen to at school, but inspiring stories about real people who sacrificed for us.”

Project Appleseed instructors gather for a professional development weekend in Iowa.

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“By far, our most popular event is a traditional 25-meter event during which we give students the skills that, if practiced, enable them to take a rack-grade rifle and ordinary ammunition and hit targets out to 500 yards. Some of these events are ladiesonly. We call these events ‘LadySeeds’ and they are quite popular.”

Other longer-distance events include Rimfire Known Distance (up to 200 yards with .22 rifles) and Known Distance (out to 500 yards with centerfire rifles). Bonkoski adds that they are rolling out a new class, Appleseed Pistol Clinic, which focuses on the fundamentals to shoot with speed and precision – the building blocks for competitive and defensive shooting.

“Students attending our classes can expect a safe, fun and familyfriendly environment,” he explains.

“They can expect events staffed by professional instructors dedicated to helping students improve. We welcome responsible youth and entire families to join us. If students contact us in advance, we can often provide loaner rifles at no charge, where state laws permit. We teach the art of shooting in multiple positions with a sling (no bipods or monopods). The

Rocket City (Huntsville, Alabama) Young Marines shooters show off their targets – known as “Redcoats” – during events held in 2020 (this image) and 2021 (below).

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Patches and .30-caliber brass from a Project Appleseed April 19th celebration. “We want to change our nation’s future by returning to the founding principles of liberty and freedom guaranteed under our Constitution,” states Bonkoski.

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skills students learn support and improve other types of shooting.”

Project Appleseed is open to all Americans who are interested in learning more about the country’s history and the traditions and values it was founded upon. Says Bonkoski, “We don’t care where your ancestors came from. We don’t care how (or if) you voted, who you worship, or what color your skin is. We don’t care who you love. We invite everyone to come on out – learn to shoot and hear the story of the beginning of our nation.”

“I think we offer an excellent marksmanship program, but it’s been my experience that people come for the marksmanship but return because of the shared history and great camaraderie. It’s a fun environment and people get to make new friends.”  Editor’s note: For more information, visit appleseedinfo.org.

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BLACK POWDER

Washington state black powder cartridge shooter Allen Cunniff won his club’s buffalo rifle competition with this C. Sharps Arms in .45-70.

CALL IT QUIGLEY LIGHT

A black powder club's buffalo rifle competition includes targets styled after famed Montana match.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY MIKE NESBITT

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nother “Buffalo Camp” of the Black River Buffalo Runners has come and gone. This is the event where we compete with black powder cartridges in the 1870s-style buffalo rifles, as well as with smaller lever-actions and revolvers.

Our main shooting event is called the Little Quigley Match because it uses targets shaped and patterned after those targets used at the Matthew Quigley Buffalo Rifle Match, which is held annually near Forsyth, Montana.

While our targets are the same shape as those at the Quigley match, they are not nearly the same size. We use scaled-down targets, and fire at them from much shorter distances. But shooting our black powder cartridge rifles at those reduced-sized targets – from the sitting position while using cross-sticks – still takes care and concentration because the challenge isn’t reduced at all.

A quick rundown of the rifles used this year might be of interest. The .45-70 certainly ruled the roost, and those were all Sharps rifles with the

exception of one old Springfield. On the firing line and booming with their own identifying sound were three Sharps .50-70s. Only one .44-77 Sharps was in the competition – which was said to be the loudest rifle in the lineup – and as you might guess, that was mine.

OUR TOP SHOOTER in the Little Quigley

Match this year was Allen Cunniff, who also won the match last year. This time he beat his old score of 17 hits out of 20 by getting 19 hits – a new record for the Little Quigley Match. Allen used his favorite Model 1874 Sharps sporting rifle in .45-70 again, but with different

Mike Moran fires a shot with a 34-inchbarreled Sharps. americanshootingjournal.com 107

BLACK POWDER loads. This year he was using paperpatched bullets and wiping his rifle’s barrel between shots. I’m just guessing that he will use that same load while cleaning between shots at the big Quigley match this year.

Following Allen was a new shooter to this match, Mike Moran, who used another .45-70 in a Model 1874 C. Sharps Arms rifle to hit the silhouettes 15 times with his 20 shots. Mike used grease-groove bullets from Lyman’s No. 457124 mold, weighing about 400 grains, over 65 grains of Olde Eynsford 1½F powder. Placing third in the match was Jerry Mayo, who, like Allen, was using paper-patched bullets in his .45-70. Mike and Jerry were tied with 15 hits each but the tie was broken in Mike’s favor because he had more hits with his offhand shooting at the “bucket” target.

In fourth place we come to yours truly. I got 13 hits with my heavybarreled .44-77 Sharps. No excuses, but I did miss my first two shots at the buffalo. In practice I was hitting rather well and had my sight-setting figured to ½ minute for elevation. However, I had practiced my shooting from a benchrest, while we shot the match from a sitting position. That might

Joel Miles aims his Sharps Gemmer at a 200-yard target.

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Author Mike Nesbitt fires his .44-77, reputedly the “loudest rifle in the lineup.”

make a difference and, like I often say, any difference can make a difference.

Our fifth-place shooter in the Little Quigley Match was Joel Miles, who came from Idaho to use his .45-70 Sharps Gemmer (a Model 1874 Sharps

action that looks like it was stocked and barreled by J. P. Gemmer, giving the rifle a Hawken style) at Buffalo Camp.

Joel was our only shooter to use open sights, the buckhorn that rode atop his rifle’s barrel.

THE NEXT EVENT at Buffalo Camp to get the shooters’ attention is called the Meat Hunt. This is a match that is shot on the trail at animal-shaped silhouettes that are hanging at various distances, so encountering your target is much like it might be while hunting, and all shots are taken from the offhand position. This is another interesting and challenging match.

The rifle I used for the Meat Hunt this time was my Model 1866 Short Rifle by Uberti in .44-40 caliber. When I wrote about this rifle last month, I mentioned how I had already gotten a Lyman tang sight to fit to it but decided to use the open sights because they seemed to be working so well.

Maybe I should have said “working so well in certain light conditions” because my score on this Meat Hunt

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BLACK POWDER

Buffalo gun shooters, back row (from left to right): Phil Wiebe, Ed Lagergren, Jerry Mayo, Joel Miles, Kenny Witt, Allen Witt and “Loco” Jeff Ritter; front row: Mike Moran, Mark Davis, Bob DeLisle, Allen Cunniff, Tom Witt and Mike Nesbitt.

was so poor that this child would have had very little to take back to camp for dinner. I just could not see those open sights. That didn’t seem to bother most of the other shooters and some fine scores were turned in.

The winner of the Meat Hunt, shooting an iron-framed Henry rifle in .44-40 caliber, with 34 grains of powder under the 205-grain bullets, was Allen Cunniff again. He was followed (also again) by Mike Moran, who was using a Uberti copy of the Winchester Model 1873 carbine chambered for the .45 Colt cartridge, loaded with 35 grains of black powder under a 260-grain cast bullet. Those two guys are simply good rifle shots and they tied with 14 hits each! Allen had the better tiebreaker, a shot on an X on the scorecard.

Only one shot down from Allen and Mike were Bob DeLisle (shooting a Winchester Model ’92 Short Rifle in .32-20) and Jerry Mayo (with a Uberti 1866 in .44-40). They both had 13 hits and the tiebreaker had to be used again. Following Bob and Jerry was Kenny Witt, a first-timer at Buffalo Camp, who got a good score of 12 hits.

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That completes the top five shooters on the Meat Hunt and, no, I’m not among them. I’ll take that as a good sport and just try again next year. Let me say that the Lyman tang sight for my Model 1866 (which, sadly, Lyman has discontinued) was added to my rifle the very next day. That will make a big difference.

THERE WAS ONE more record broken at this year’s Buffalo Camp, a new high score shot with a revolver using black powder loads in our pistol match. That was on our Revolver Trail, which also uses hanging gongs for targets, from 10 to 80 yards. Previously the high score for this match, where we fire just 10 shots with those sixguns, was eight good hits. That record was shared by me and Cody Mehr (who competed while using a muzzleloading pistol).

This year Kenny Witt borrowed a Colt .44 replica revolver from his brother and scored nine hits; that new record will be hard to beat. I took second place with my S&W No. 3 New Model copy shooting .44 Russians with eight hits, and Allen Cunniff trailed

just one point behind me for third place with seven hits while using his Colt flat-top by Uberti in .44-40.

To complete the top five shooters, in fourth place with six hits was Mike Moran shooting a .45 Colt, and in fifth place with five hits was Jerry Mayo with another .45 Colt. (I know that Jerry was using Schofield brass with 25 grains of 2Fg GOEX powder under a 235-grain bullet, to come close to the old .45 Schofield loading.) The Revolver Trail is tough and getting half of the hits has to be considered good doin’s.

Those were the top five shooters in each of the shooting events at Buffalo Camp this year. Now we’re all going to practice for next year’s competitions with hopes of improving our scores. In my case, my Meat Hunt score should certainly improve but I obviously have room for improvement in all of the events.

The next Buffalo Camp will be held in May 2023 at the Capitol City Rifle & Pistol Club just south of Olympia, Washington. Maybe you can gather your guns and gear with black powder loads and join us. 