Handloader August-September 2026

Several years ago while attending a media event in Wyoming, the opportunity arose to shoot alongside Robert Brantley, who had recently won the King of 2 Miles competition. Ever since that trip, shooting steel at long range has been in the back of my mind. The trouble is that Extreme Long Range (ELR) rigs are very expensive, to say the least, and the gunsmiths that build them are equally expensive and at least twice as rare as the rifles themselves. Even harder than finding a rifle is finding a place to shoot such extended ranges. Thankfully home is not far from several places where if desired, targets can be placed beyond the 1,000 yard mark with relative ease and if one does not mind the hike, there are even a few places to shoot safely to a mile or maybe even a bit further. ...Read More >

When Winchester 680 was first introduced, it was a burn rate looking for a cartridge. Too slow to work in the magnum handgun cartridges then available and too fast for use in most rifle cartridges, W-680 struggled to find its niche. When it was reintroduced by Accurate Arms in 1987, the market had changed enough that AA-1680 was able to find a place with devotees of smaller cartridges and wildcats, but the lack of a popular cartridge that fit the burn rate caused limited demand. In 1987, the cartridges that best fit AA-1680’s burn rate were the 22 Hornet, the fantastically accurate 221 Fireball, and especially the 7.62x39mm Russian. It would take another 20 years for the market to catch up to this small-grained, dynamic propellant. ...Read More >

Q: I own a Colt Lightning in 38-40 WCF and would like to shoot it using smokeless powder loads if possible. Most of the data I have found, such as from Hodgdon, is for use in revolvers at around 700 to 800 fps. I also own two other rifles that I would like to shoot with smokeless powders, including a Whitney Kennedy in 40-60 WCF and a Marlin Model 1881 Lightweight chambered in 32-40 WCF. I have a copy ...Read More >

This cartridge will appear as a mystery to most riflefolk unless they are Mannlicher-Schoenauer rifle fans. Yet its muzzle energy is nearly equal to the modern 308 Winchester and only ten percent below the modern 358 Win. There is even disagreement as to the proper name for the round. References show 9.5x56mm Mannlicher-Schöenauer (M-S), 9.5x57 M-S, 9.5x57.5 M-S, 9.5 M, 9.5 Express, 9.5 M-S, 9.5 Mann and probably a few others. An interesting fact is that the chronicles tell us the cartridge is of Austrian origin, and the Austrians had the strange habit of measuring case length beginning at the front of the rim. The rest of the planet considers case length as, well, case length. Thus, the 56mm figure, the actual case length is 57mm for regular folks. ...Read More >

Beginning in 1959, Aldo Uberti began offering replica firearms, mostly reproductions from the U.S. Frontier era, which at that time were uncommon, and he took a huge risk by investing in tooling and manufacturing. His intuition proved correct, as shooters wanted affordable reproductions of historic antique arms, manufactured from modern steel, and that could be fired with modern smokeless powder loads (cap-and-ball revolvers and muzzle loaders being exceptions). The countless models that have been offered over the past 67 years are impressive, and sales continue to grow steadily. ...Read More >

Handloading precision ammunition depends upon consistency, and consistency hinges upon minimizing variables to the greatest degree possible. Regarding resizing cases and seating bullets, removing variables means ensuring our reloading dies do not move when subjected to the considerable force we apply to them. Dies can move if we fail to firmly lock them down on the press with their lock rings, and they can move if the press itself flexes under pressure. ...Read More >

There was a time long ago when the sport of modern benchrest shooting was dominated by the 220 Swift, along with wildcats such as the 220 Wilson Arrow (also on the 220 Swift case), the 22-250 on the 250 Savage case, and the 219 Donaldson Wasp on the 219 Zipper case. Rifles of conventional design and shape (often on the 1898 Mauser action) were eventually separated into two classifications. The weight limit of those approved for Light Varmint class was 10.5 pounds, while Heavy Varmint rifles could not exceed 13.5 pounds. ...Read More >

Fifty years ago, I heard the unmistakable voice of Warren Zevon coming from the radio, with his greatest hit, Werewolves of London. I immediately bought the cassette and was introduced to his second-greatest, Lawyers, Guns and Money. ...Read More >

The 6.5-06 A-Square label is what you’ll most commonly see attached to the wildcat cartridge created by necking the 30-06 Springfield case down to 6.5mm. The A-Square Company LLC claimed the name by submitting the cartridge for SAMMI (Sporting Arms & Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute) approval in 1997, but in reality, the round had appeared in slightly different form as early as 1913. It was initially created by Charles Newton and named the 256 Newton. Undoubtedly, after the introduction of the 30-06 Springfield in 1906, others used the case as the basis of many wildcat cartridges, including those holding 6.5mm bullets, but Newton claimed it first. A man well ahead of his time, Newton also developed the 22 Savage and 250-3000 Savage, and cartridges similar to today’s 25-06 (25 Special) and 280 Remington (7mm Special), also based on the 30-06 case but including slightly different dimensions than modern factory cases. ...Read More >

The 38 Winchester Center Fire, or more commonly known as 38-40 Winchester, was developed by 1879 and first listed in 1880 in conjunction with the Winchester Model 1873 rifle, with records indicating that the first rifle was shipped in 1880. It was based on a necked-down 44-40 Winchester case, with early loads containing 40 grains of black powder that pushed a 180-grain inside, lubricated lead bullet to 1,324 feet per second (fps). While it was a distinctly different cartridge than the 44-40, the ballistic differences were not substantial. Nonetheless, it became popular for many years and was chambered in additional rifles from Winchester, Marlin, Colt, Remington and many others. ...Read More >

Soon after receiving a NULA Model 20 rifle in 308 Winchester from Wilson Combat, I checked out its accuracy with a couple of Vihtavuori powders and bullets ranging in weight from the Lehigh Defense 125-grain Controlled Chaos to the 210-grain Berger VLD Hunting. For those who do not know, I will mention that Vihtavuori has been making propellants since 1922 at a plant located in Vihtavuori, Finland. ...Read More >

In the long and inglorious history of misusing the term “magnum,” few examples can match the 256 Winchester Magnum (Win Mag). ...Read More >

If I read the setter’s body language right, the bird would flush right to left. Walking toward the dog, his tail rigid, body taut, I heard the pheasant before I saw it. Time seemed to crawl. The rooster floated across in front of me right to left, and I swung out in front of it and squeezed and saw the bird crumple over the Damascus barrels. Just like 1905. Just like 1919, after World War I (the War to End All Wars). Just like 1946, after World War II. ...Read More >