[Mauser720]

Bob -

I have not even shot my artillery yet; however, I am also interested in how it will perform at the longer ranges. I have access to a 600 yard range, and when the weather gets a lot warmer and I can enlist some help with the targets, I plan to start at the shorter ranges and see if I can gradually work up to the longer ranges, etc.

I am very interested in what you have accomplished and appreciate that you are letting the rest of us know how you did, etc.

Since I have not even tried this yet, it may seem ridiculous for me to even offer you any suggestions; however, I have some experience with long range shooting. So here are some ideas for your consideration:

1. For purposes of testing the long range accuracy of the artillery, I would not use the "snail drum" magazine. Why? Because when you have that drum installed, you are raising the center of gravity. You want to keep the gun as low down to the support; i.e., in the "bench rest" position as possible. So for starters, just take the drum out and use the regular magazine.

2. On my artillery, the stock is not hard and fast when it is attached. Instead, there is some "play" when it is attached. I know this is probably "normal" but it does detract from the potential accuracy you strive to achieve. So what I plan to do, and am suggesting to you, is that you consider wrapping tape all around the stock and lower grip area to get rid of all this play. The idea is to totally or as nealy as possible get all the loose "play" out of the area where the stock attaches to the back of the grip.

3. I plan to consider using two "rests" instead of one. You need one rest underneath the magazine. You need a second rest underneath the toe of the stock. So the overall plan is to have the weapon supported in two places instead of only one. This will reduce the tendency for there to be any slight rocking movement of the gun.

4. When you are actually in position to fire, you want to have your right shoulder somewhat on top of the heel of the stock and pressing down. This will press the toe of the stock into the rest that is underneath, and will further steady the weapon. (Of course you are going to have to experiment in advance with how much padding you will need in the two "rests" that you will be using. This will depend on your own physical size, the height of the cement bench you are using, etc. Just take lots of padding with you when you are getting started.)

5. I would use the classic "6-O'clock hold" for the sight picture when you are actually firing. There are several reasons for this: (a) In this sight picture, it is a lot easier for you to see the outline of the sights because they will be in the white area beneath the black bullseye; (b) You are not interested in hitting the center of the bulleseye - instead, you are interested in how close your bullets are coming to each other on the paper. So this is why you should use the "6-O'clock hold" when you are evaluating the accuracy potential. You are not sighting this gun in. You just want to see how close you can get the bullets to come to each other on the paper target. In other words, this is just to see how small a group you can achieve.

6. Finally, I would take an ordinary candle, and use it to blacken the front and rear sight of the pistol. When you hold the sights in the candle flame, it will deposit a black film on the sights. This thin layer of black soot will reduce the extraneous glare of reflected light, and make it easier for you to achieve a perfect sight picture. A simple tactic like this can make a huge difference in the accuracy you will achieve.

I think based on what you have reported, that you have actually done very well with your artillery. And I am real interested to hear how it works out at the 200 yard range. (Note: if you will use the suggested "6-O'clock hold" you should not need to worry about being 8.86 inches high at 200 yards as pointed out by Steinar above. I assume you will be using a 200 yard target.)

Good luck with it, and thank you for sharing.

Mauser720 - Ron