My first ARA target, feedback appreciated.

George Atkins

George Atkins

Active member
I shot my first ARA card ( in a match that is ) at a local non-sanctioned match Friday night. No big deal, but I was lucky enough to get signed up for the Triple Crown at Kettlefoot next year. ARA will be one leg of this match, so I figure I had better be practicing on a few targets. The target was shot at close to correct distance, (50 yards + 8" to be exact). It was scored with a plug (where needed), by a long time BR shooter/ match director.

Equipment List: Not my first choice but its what I brought this time. Note this is the type we use. OEM actions and barrels, no customs, no tuners or MD's no mechanical front rest.

Remington 40X USMC action
Remington 40X Standard barrel (no MD/Tuner)
Remington 40X Standard trigger 14 oz.
Remington 40X USMC Stock
Weaver T36 FCH w/ Dot
Harris Bi-Pod
Protektor rear bag. actually made for a front bag U shaped.
Ammo= Eley Match 1053
Gunsmith = Remington in 1958

The venue, was a barn thats mostly open down one side the length of the range. One large tall concrete bench, that accommodates four shooters, standing / leaning on the bench. Very solid. Somewhat breezy during the match. See row 4 and 5 :(

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Note the card was scored two ways, one for the Match 240 10X (note the Xs, Os & -1s, makes it quicker to score) then scored (for me) with the ARA method by hand, we do not have the computer or the software to score it any other way. :rolleyes:

We usually shoot IR50 targets and ABRA targets. These ARA targets were donated to the Match director just before the match, we shot these as a bonus card.

So, any feedback, advice, positive or negative comments are welcomed and appreciated.

Thanks
George
 
It wouldn't score that high

at an ara event but with the gun you were using, a very good target
 
Thanks Don, do you think its way off, or just a bull or two? Do they need to touch the center dot to be 100?

Thanks again
George
 
George: It looks correctly scored. As you know there are no X's in ARA and theoretically no you don't have to touch the center dot for a 100. What you have to do is NOT break the outer edge of the ring, if you do its a 50. That is why we call it a worst edge target.

When I use ARA targets for practice I will count the number of bulls where I can see white on the outer edge of the hole. I call that a "clean" just as another reference. I count 6 clean on your card. I like to see somewhere near 10 clean if my bullets are doing well.

You would be right up there with the big boys in most ARA matches. Pat yourself on the back and hang on to some of that ammo for next Memorial day weekend. bob
 
Bob,
Thank you Bob, I know its hard to tell from the picture, the ones marked X actually removed the dot and leave a little white. We will be shooting these over the next few weeks, so I will get some practice in.

Thanks
George
 
George,

I've been reading your posts over the last year or so here as well as elsewhere and I agree with Bob...."pat yourself on the back!" It's a good target and might be better than good, but none of us know the exact conditions it was shot under and that makes it nearly impossible to judge it. Under very difficult conditions, it might be a great target. Under benign conditions, it's at the very least above average.
We also don't know from a single target whether or not it might be your average. A good indicator would be about a 10 target agg shot under conditions or shot indoors before I'd be confident in predicting you or your rifle's potential. I have seen the IR 50 scores you've posted though and there's no doubt you're doing very well with the equipment used. I'm impressed and equally glad you're enjoying yourself!

I think Don's comment was meant to emphasize that a 2125 ARA score wouldn't normally be a great target at a large ARA event, but again, without knowing the conditions we don't really know. I don't think Don thought the scoring was wrong.

Landy
 
Landy,
Thank you, the conditions during that target were a bit breezy. This barn has large openings all down the right side, the wind usually does not effect shooting there that much, as the three flags that are suspended from the rafters, are usually going in three different directions. Maybe they cancel each other out.

We will be shooting these for several weeks, so I can see if I can improve my skill set some more. I did notice, it seems to be easier to hold off for the wind. I do realize that a 2125 don't buy much in a sanctioned match, but I am just getting started on these. This also was not my best rifle or ammo, I usually use a 52D at the IR50 matches, but the 40X will do okay too. I had no idea we would be shooting these ARA targets. I have several target rifles and like to shoot them all. I will usually take two and sometimes three to the local matches. I lose quite often because of it LOL. We shoot for money too, but I find it the highlight of my week, win or lose.

I do not shoot sanctioned matches regularly, I am a business owner and my busy season is early spring till the end of summer. I do take the time to practice and shoot at our local matches. I am also planning to attend a few matches at Kettlefoot this fall to get aquatinted with the range.

I appreciate you and others taking the time to read and respond. I find it very educational to listen to experienced shooters. I know Bob has a lot of experience, I meet him a few times and he has always shot me straight. Figure of speech of course.

Thanks again
George

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That's great card for first time out. August 15th will mark my one year anniversary at having stepped into the money pit of ARA match shooting. That year includes 6 months of long Minnesota winter without firing a shot. The hiatus gave me time to read up on sites like this and plan how to do better come spring. I began with a Savage MKII BTVS and got a decent rifle once the league season was over. That along with a good rest and switching from SK+ to Eley Match has allowed me to move my scores up into the 2k's fairly consistently. While I'm proud of that, I still have a long way to go. On July 3rd, my high card for the match was only a 2150, but alternately scored as a 250-12X. The thin blue line will drive you batty. IMHO, ARA is the toughest scoring contest out there. The fellows I shoot with are very helpful and the camaraderie we've struck up has been the icing on the cake. No one plays head games or holds back on tips and advice to further their own interest. Very "Minnesota Nice" group of folks.

I've been reloading and shooting centerfire for over 35 years and this is a lot more fun than sitting alone on the range with only me as my competition. chasing one hole groups. Try to smell the roses along the way. I sure am. With my rig, I'll never be more than a club league shooter, but if it were not a challenge, what fun would it be. FWIW, My 6-groove shoots better in the wind than on the rare still day. We only get a few of them thankfully. That July 3rd meet was one of those light switchy wind days and I found myself chasing the last shot every time. The 2150 was only after the wind decided to blow with regularity.

Best advice I can offer as a fellow newbie is use up the clock. After I have my flags out, before we begin, I sit and watch them for setups that repeat fairly frequently. When we start, I quickly find hold-offs that work for the most frequent setups and then wait for them. I use most of my allotted 20 minutes per card. I shoot with fellows who finish each card in about 12 minutes including sighters. Must be due to them being old hands at it. The only time I hurry is when reliably repetitive setups are hard to come by, so I get off as many shots as I can while one is occurring. I have managed several 2200s and one 2300 this first full season, so I'm doing something right, but I still find myself with the occasional teen hundred card, despite my effort. Eley Match is not the end all ammunition. I can't recall the last card where I didn't have at least one shot fly totally atypical. I guess that's why they sell Tenex. We only shoot every other week, so I pass the time in between weighing my rounds, regardless of whether that has a sound statistical justification. Fortunately the lot of Eley Match I bought rarely has a weight oddity among the rounds. So I'm doing it more out of the need to build up my warm fuzzy feeling. I don't sort by OAL or rim thickness. Tried that when all I could afford was SK+ and it didn't help one bit. With the SK+, it was more like 5 or 6 atypical fliers per card and I struggled constantly to hit 1700-1800.

Hang on, you're about to embark upon a learning experience. Take notes and once they're scored, keep your cards. Spend some time analyzing them afterward, comparing the results against what you noted and you'll only get better. Do keep us informed as you progress and don't be afraid to change what is not working for you.

Hoot
 
Hoot,
Thank you, I have been shooting rimfire for around 5 years now. I just wanted to see where I stood in the world when I went to my first IR50/50 event this past winter. It happened to be a National Match, so I was in the presence of greatness so to speak. 43 shooters from all over the U.S. Main goal was not to finish last. I only shot one 250-18X over the two day event and that was only good enough for a 3rd on one 50M target. Overall I finished mid pack, but that was way better than I expected. I regularly shoot with guys that are very experienced, anyone of 5-6, can be a winner on any given night. Usually it will boil down to who has the best ammo, they will usually have the hot hand for awhile. I have learned not to waste good ammo, I will wait till we have a good crowd show up to use it. ;)

If you figure out how to sort that Eley out let me know. I did all the tricks your speak of, plus measured overall length, I thought I was on to something for awhile. Finally realized, it either works or it don't.

Good luck with your endeavor, hope you do well.

George
 
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