“THE GULLY RUNNER”

Newsletter of

the Pongaroa Gun Club

Email: [email protected]

Sunday 20th September Shoot

Program

25 S/R, Gymcrak, 20 B/T, 25 Sparrows C/C

Results

High over all: Austin 71/84

S/R: Rhys 23/25 after a 5 person shoot off

Gymcrak: Ross 13/14

B/T : Austin with a possible

Club Champs Sparrows: Snr Jordaan

Jnr Angela
Squad 2 making for shelter after an indifferent gymcrak

COMING UP

Top Team 3rd of October

As usual we need helpers and guns to run this successfully, so if you are not in a team or helping out
somewhere else it would be great to see you there.

We have been asked if we would cater the lunch and maintain the field for Eketahuna during their defence
of the Dale shield on the 29th of November. 80 to 100 shooters are expected. It would be nice to help out
our neighbours after all many of us shoot there as well. We could do this as a fund raiser with hamburgers,
steak sammies etc with little effort.

A stag do for Leighton Bambury (similar to Buds but more ginger) is possible later in Oct, and a couple of
organisations in Pahiatua are considering xmas functions as well, so our catering skills should be well
sharp by then.

Although some may consider these events a burden they provide the club with a vital extra source of
income that helps us maintain and upgrade our facilities. Currently we are building a fund for main trap
replacement, and I would ask you all to consider making some time available if possible to man these
events for the good of the club.
Some maintenance is also due, especially replacement of the trap house roof, rebuilding the top tank
stand, replacement of boards in the walkway and working bees to do these will be on the agenda in coming
months.

Accounting Update from the office of the Secretary

To simplify the process of paying for monthly shoots, I am encouraging the use of internet banking. It
makes it easier for me and easier for you as all you have to do is remember how much is owed and pay it
later. I have a cunning plan for this which I promise is much better than writing it on your hand. You can of
course continue to pay by cheque or cash but these incur extra expense both for you and the club.

Should you forget to pay I know where you live!

The clubs account no is 030614-0581436-00, please use your name and month as the reference.

This Is Worth Knowing!

Section 30 of the new act is headed “Ill treating, hunting or killing wild animals or animals in a wild
state” and it is an offence to wilfully or recklessly ill treat an animal in these circumstances.

The definition of ill treating is somewhat vague and could be interpreted as meaning taking shots at animals
where there is no chance or intention of verifying a kill or recovering the meat, or hunting pigs with dogs
and in particular the practice of releasing chewed held sows.

So next time we go out are we under threat of being fingered by the law?

Not necessarily, the act specifically states that if the hunting method can be shown to be a generally
accepted practice for game of that type and in that environment that is grounds for a defence should a
prosecution be undertaken.

It will only take one bad post on faceplant, Twatter, or bootube to put hunting back under the spotlight
especially if it gets onto the news.

Remember that all that is required to initiate an investigation is a complaint from a member of the public
and evidence an offence has occurred, and what better evidence is there than a selfie?

The take away message is that hunters are expected to have a moral obligation to ensure that their quarry
doesn’t suffer unnecessarily and what was previously common sense, at least for most of us now has
legislation in place to define and enforce it.
Barrel Harmonics

Barrel harmonics are a contributing factor to accuracy.

Difficult as it may be to believe when a shot is fired the barrel vibrates like a flicked rope, the easiest way to
grasp this idea is to tap a steel rod on the end with a hammer while the other end is in a bucket of water
and watch the ripples.

The amount of movement is minute only tenths or hundredths of a mm but it has quite an effect on accuracy.

When you fire a shot, the barrel vibrates in two different ways at the same time as shown in the diagrams below.
The fundamental vibration is the angular movement from one end to the other, and the secondary oscillation
describes how the barrel vibrates down it’s length. Note this is not just up and down movement but also rotation
through 360 degrees.

Rifles should be
bedded securely in
their stocks to
ensure that they
vibrate in a
consistent manner
and this is
conducive to
accuracy.

Shoot a string from your rifle at a target, and then fire a couple more resting the barrel on a hard object a branch
or tree trunk for example. The second group of shots will be well away from the first because you have changed
the way the barrel vibrates by introducing a new “bedding point”. As you can see in diagram 2 the muzzle is either
moving up, down, or at rest when the bullet exits, and as long as the movement is the same every time it has no
effect on accuracy.

Heavy barrels vibrate less, and more slowly than thin sporting ones. Target shooters and reloaders aim to find the
nodes or “sweet spots”as when the barrel is at rest that is the most consistent point and gives the best accuracy.
This is achieved in a number of ways, changing the length of the barrel, changing the bedding system, putting
weight at the muzzle such as a recoil brake or suppressor or by changing the bullet, seating depth, or the amount
and type of powder in the cartridge. All these change the speed of vibration and where the sweet spots are and
that is why some loads group better than others.

Bedding is another critical component and we will look at that later.

Mark went to the Eketahuna skeet shoot on the 13th, reason being it was a nice day and I thought some
practice would be good, I’m not good at skeet cause I only used to shoot it once a year, now I’m not good
at it twice a year!