I realize I don't shoot steel targets from behind custom-made (bespoke) barricades but I thought I would share an update on my equipment.

After coming back from the Nationals last month, I gave my rifle to my gunsmith with two new Krieger barrels for chambering and fitting. I have a barrel vise and action wrench so I will be able to swap the barrels at any time.

I shot a 1000yard match with ammo made for the prior barrel because I had no time to develop a new one and I wanted to finish that box anyway. It shot fine, but I didn't do as well as I had hoped.

I managed to get in a quick ladder test and noticed a nice load at a different powder load. So Saturday morning, I loaded 75 rounds of ammo with virgin Lapua brass and that new powder load. Sunday morning, I went to a 600 yard match. It was windy and cold but the wind was very steady; you just needed to keep an eye on pickups and let-offs.

I won the first match shooting 200-12X. That's a perfect score with 12X, meaning the rifle shot sub-MOA at 600 yards for 20 consecutive rounds. During the second match, I dropped four points for 196-6X; three to wind and one to a frain bart. The last match saw me shoot a 200-11X, again a perfect score with 11X. The two sighters on that last match were 10s, so 22 rounds in a row under 1MOA.

For the entire day, I dropped 4 points and shot two cleans. I think I have a good rifle and a decent load. I had no elevation issues at all and no Whiskey Tango Foxtrot shots.

The new barrels are Krieger 11-twist, 34inch, Heavy Palma contour. The action is a Stolle Panda, and it's no wonder it's one of the favorites of F-class shooters. The rifle is a dream to shoot. Bring on the next 1000 yard match in two weeks.

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:
I won the first match shooting 200-12X. During the second match, I dropped four points for 196-6X. The last match saw me shoot a 200-11X.

Dude, that is just AWESOME shooting. You...Da...Man.

*****
"I realize I don't shoot steel targets from behind custom-made (bespoke) barricades..."

<< Ahem >>
To me, "bespoke" invokes images of British or Italian side-by-side shotguns, with impeccable wood and receivers worthy of display at the Louvre.

Dat ain't happ'nin wit dis boyz barricade. No siree Bob. Weez talkin' about left over deck lumber, not-quite-ripped to proper dimension, cut to length by a hand saw, with end cuts that were <<ruh-roh>> sometimes a bit less than square. Glue, screws, wood joint filler, belt sander, and stain are all helping to make the final product look better. At least the 3/8" plywood for the shell is new. Too bad somebody doesn't own a nice electric jig saw to make the interior window cuts cleaner.

But it should be functional, assuming my wild-hair idea for support legs works. Leg attachment is still a week or two away, given my current work schedule. Hopefully it will hold up to being stored outdoors. Time will tell.

But "bespoke"? Mongo think not.

Yeah, I was quite happy. I've never had a clean at 600 before, and to get two in the same match was just amazing.

By the way, anything custom made or maid to order is bespoke. It's just a fancy adjective.

So even left over deck lumber, assembled lovingly as you described, makes for a bespoke barricade.

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:

By the way, anything custom made or maid to order is bespoke. It's just a fancy adjective.

Yes, bespoke simply implies custom made or individual order in the British vocabulary.

NikonUser,

Sent off two barrels to be chambered in 6x47's. Will be needing a vice, which barrel vice did you go with?

Congrats on your win.

quote:

Originally posted by offgrid:
NikonUser,

Sent off two barrels to be chambered in 6x47's. Will be needing a vice, which barrel vice did you go with?

Congrats on your win.

I've got plenty of vices to share and my wife thinks if I can get rid of a few that would be a good thing. But for your barrels, you probably want a vise.

I got my barrel vise and action wrench directly from Kelbly, where I bought my superb Stolle Panda F-class action. I should think you can buy a vise from Brownell's or other places and just make sure you have the action wrench to match your action.

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:

quote:

Originally posted by offgrid:
NikonUser,

Sent off two barrels to be chambered in 6x47's. Will be needing a vice, which barrel vice did you go with?

Congrats on your win.

I've got plenty of vices to share and my wife thinks if I can get rid of a few that would be a good thing. But for your barrels, you probably want a vise.

I got my barrel vise and action wrench directly from Kelbly, where I bought my superb Stolle Panda F-class action. I should think you can buy a vise from Brownell's or other places and just make sure you have the action wrench to match your action.

Panda? Am I mistaken, or did I read somewhere else that your F class rifle had a Surgeon action?

It's been a Stolle Panda from day one when I spec'ed it out. I wanted the Panda F-class action because it's made of aluminum and this helps we make weight while putting more into the barrel.

Recently Jim Kelbly swung by our club in Houston and I had some time to talk with him about the action. It is a very popular action and the wait for it is over a year now (gasp). At the Nationals I saw a number of top shooters with that very same action.

I will say here and now this is the only custom (high-end) action that I have ever bought. It was $1300 at the time and I think it's a bit more now. The bolt is a steel fluted bolt with no ejector and the firing pin hole is bushed at the factory. It is a push feed as you would expect any super-accurate action to be. None of this CRF crap wanted here.

The trigger is a Jewell and so on.

Now, I understand Santa may be depositing another of Jim Kelbly's products under the tree. We will find out in a few days.

A buddy is considering having Kelbly build a rifle for him.

He has already done business with Kelbly since he has a March.. Lucky bastard.

I can't wait to see what will be under the tree...

Kelbly does great work.

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:
I can't wait to see what will be under the tree...

Kelbly does great work.

So I've heard.

According to my buddy that's been talking to them, they are 17 months out right now on complete rifles.

quote:

Originally posted by exx1976:

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:
I can't wait to see what will be under the tree...

Kelbly does great work.

So I've heard.

According to my buddy that's been talking to them, they are 17 months out right now on complete rifles.

They are very much in demand and there's a reason for that.

Yes, Virginia, there is a shooting barricade in progress. It won't be flying by Christmas eve, however. Regardless of Webster's definition, I still can't use the "be....." word to describe it. Maybe "one off".

The internal framework is done -- next step is attaching the outer shells of 3/8" plywood to the frame. In this pic the frame is laying on the bottom shell.



Here's the top shell laying on the frame.



The barricade is 48" wide. Shooting heights from the top edges will be 22", 32", 42", and 52". The two outer edges are 14" wide, the two middle edges are 10" wide.

Shooting heights from the windows will be 12", 17", and 27". The lower two windows are 8" wide by 10" high. The upper window is closer to 7" wide and 10" high.

The frame seems plenty stiff enough to lean hard into shots. Once the plywood shells are screwed onto the frame, the unit should stiffen even more. The side legs were originally planned as 2x4s, but the wood I had wasn't good -- too many knots and warping. So at the last minute I changed the side legs to a 2x6 I had. This didn't help with my measurement/cutting issues. Oh well.

Once I assemble the frame and shell, support legs are next.

Looks fine to me. You are, afterall, not building a piece of heirloom furnature!

Looks like a two person job to manuver around!

The lighter colored portions of the wood near joints are where I used the belt sander to make the joint pieces flat and level. Sanders do wonders to smooth the effects of twisted wood, misalignments, and dimensional differences (not all the 2x wood was a true 2x). If I were really anal about it, I'd run the sander across every surface. Instead, I'll slap a bit of stain on the wood that was just sanded, then slap the plywood over the core, then glob some filler in the gaps between the wood core and the plywood. The Rifles Only barricades get beat up quite a bit by rails and bipod legs getting jammed hard against ledge and window surfaces.

I figure total barricade weight with legs will be 55-ish pounds, depending on how I cut the legs. A bit of a pig, yes, but still should be movable short distances with the legs attached by one person.

Rifles Only gen 1 "portable" barricades for the Colorado location are total hogs -- maybe 90-100 pounds, no windows, and truly a two man moving job. The RO gen 2 barricade has one window, lighter legs, and maybe weighs 80 pounds. One person can move them short distances, but two people are better. Both RO generations are rock solid from any shooting position. The RO barricade itself uses 1/2" plywood and 2x4s on edge for the core (4" thick). My barricade will be about 2-3/8" thick when done.

Don't forget to add graffiti to the barricade. Must have graffiti.

I'm sure there are people here who would be happy to contribute a few examples.

Let's start with the standard "Kilroy was here."

quote:

Originally posted by NikonUser:
Don't forget to add graffiti to the barricade. Let's start with the standard "Kilroy was here."

Appropriate in so many ways.
But I'm thinking something a bit more recent. And potentially viewed as less threatening to neighboring ranches...

quote:

Originally posted by fritz:
Yes, Virginia, there is a shooting barricade in progress. It won't be flying by Christmas eve, however. Regardless of Webster's definition, I still can't use the "be....." word to describe it. Maybe "one off".

The internal framework is done -- next step is attaching the outer shells of 3/8" plywood to the frame. In this pic the frame is laying on the bottom shell.



Here's the top shell laying on the frame.



The barricade is 48" wide. Shooting heights from the top edges will be 22", 32", 42", and 52". The two outer edges are 14" wide, the two middle edges are 10" wide.

Shooting heights from the windows will be 12", 17", and 27". The lower two windows are 8" wide by 10" high. The upper window is closer to 7" wide and 10" high.

The frame seems plenty stiff enough to lean hard into shots. Once the plywood shells are screwed onto the frame, the unit should stiffen even more. The side legs were originally planned as 2x4s, but the wood I had wasn't good -- too many knots and warping. So at the last minute I changed the side legs to a 2x6 I had. This didn't help with my measurement/cutting issues. Oh well.

Once I assemble the frame and shell, support legs are next.

How do you fit that in your shooting box?

tac

Thanks for the pictures fritz. My little squirt of a barricade looks sad compared to yours. Will probably end up framing the whole back and capping off eventually but got it functional for this Friday to practice with. The feet are a tight fit and don't wobble but It'll probably work loose and need bolting through the tubing at some point. I can always use tent stakes or large nails to stake the angle down if needed also.

quote:

Originally posted by jelrod1:
My little squirt of a barricade looks sad compared to yours.

The feet are a tight fit and don't wobble but It'll probably work loose and need bolting through the tubing at some point

Looks pretty slick to me. Definitely faster to put together than my epic build process. You get the efficiency award.

I like the feet / support concept.

How thick is your plywood?

Your "open" concept (no back) would have made some sense for me. I will store my barricade outdoors in a forested area. I will completely enclose all the hollow sections to prevent critters from nesting in the barricade. Squirrels, mice, and birds are the primary concern. I'm still uncertain about the miller moths in late spring, which in some years approach a plague of Egypt status. That's why I've been so irritated at myself when the fit of lumber to plywood wasn't tight -- I must fill those voids so the barricade won't become a nest.