Shooting military surplus semi-auto rifles.

[Adam Helmer]

On July 4th the clan gathered at the hunting lodge for a fun shoot and the theme this year was "Military Surplus Semi-auto Rifles." Our range has metal gong targets (painted white) from 100 to 600 yards; the targets get progressively larger at the longer ranges. We had a few spotting scopes on the firing line to spot the hits.

We had all the good oldies: Garands, FN ABLs, Hakims, Tokarevs, G-43s, a Johnson, an M1A and an AR. The most consistant "Music" at 500 and 600 yards was made with the Garands, the M1A and the .30-06 FN ABL. The .223 did make an occasional "ping" at 600 yards.

Next year we will have a 1,000 yard target for "Any Military Rifle" to include sniper versions. All shooters had a good time since most only ever shot 100 or 200 yards. Shooting 600 yards was a bit of a stretch that all adjusted to and all benefitted from the experience.

Adam