Help! What is "Factory Class" anyway?

Bill Wynne

Bill Wynne

Active member
Our goal is to attract more shooters at our club to eventually shoot 50/50 with us. People come out and try to shoot their rabbit hunting rifles with us at our 50/50 targets and they quickly find they are out classed and don't come back.

We would like to encourage these shooters to shoot with us and our custom rifles on a lesser level. We are considering the establishment of a "factory class" that would allow them to shoot their rabbit rifles along side of us with a simpler target. These will be scored and kept entirely separate and unofficial.

I would like to see rules for the rifles to be simple and easily understood so there is little room for cheating:
The rifle must have a factory action and a factory barrel and that's about it.
Stock alteration would be permitted or they can even change the stock but the stock shall not be over 3 inches in width.
Any scope would be legal.
Any trigger or trigger work would be acceptable.
There would be no weight limits.

The rest could be one piece or two piece with the same restrictions as our 50/50 Unlimited.

No restrictions on ammo.

The target would need some thought for sure. We might consider our 50/50 target and count the 9 and 10 ring as 10 and the rest as what they are.

I would like the comments, pro and con, of the competitive shooters and the beginning shooters alike who post here. We want to get this thing right.

Concho Bill
 
Factory classes set up that way immediately turn into a shootout between match guns, anchutz, 52's, 37's etc, and the squirel guns are out of the game before the first shot. I don't think there is a good answer unless you make it a claiming rule shoot. Make the claim high enough to let the guys shoot good guns without allowing first line target guns.
 
Bill,
Check out the IBS Rimfire score target. It's got a 1/2" ten ring and might be just what you're looking for. I shot my first RFBR matches at a few clubs that have an informal(non-sanctioned) league every weekend. I was able to shoot a couple of 250's with low X counts with a souped up 10/22. If memory serves, I had to shoot the 10/22 in UL class because I had done so much work to it.

They also had a Plinker class that they shot at 50 yards on an IBS 100 or 200 yard score target(cant remember which). That target had 5 large bulls with a 1" ten ring and they shot 2 shots at each bull for a total top score of 200.

Maybe someone who still shoots the Ulster County, NY matches will chime in with more exact details of their rules and classes.....
Todd
 
i've always believed sporter class should be renamed light custom

and an all factory class added with 6.5x scope limit, front and rear sand bags
only..if they like it they could upgrade later, i'm in a mess with locals now trying to sort out what's rabbit gun and what's target rifle
 
On Jan 30th Riverbend is going to have it's first RF BR match in a decade. In addition to RBA Unlimited I am also going to have an unsanctioned class:

Target Rifle. Basically this will be a smallbore/olympic rifle with an unlimited scope. No BR stocks, 3" glide plates that attach to the forend rail or front swivel hole ARE permitted, bedding of the stock is permitted, no tuners, nothing may be attached to the muzzle [ globe sights must be removed ], bbl dia at muzzle can't be significantly larger than the rest of the bbl, any trigger, must be a mass produced bolt action, any ammo.

The class is still a bit wide open but I am trying to attract some of the serious small bore competitors that shoot at Riverbend and some of them have aftermarket bbls, etc.

Ray
 
I also want to add that I think an ammo rule should be considered for an entry level or second tier catagory. Either a spec ammo or a list of legal ammo's. Something like SK Standard Plus [ less than $5 ] or a bit higher priced ammo like SK Rifle Match or Eley Club [ less than $7 ].

Ray
 
contact joe haller, he's been workin on this problem for years
 
Over 10 years ago while I was running BR-50 matches at our range I started sporter matches. We called them squirrel rifle matches. Since then I decided ARA was enough for me to run and so others have carried the ball. Originally I provided the ammo, checked the triggers to be 3 pounds and weighed the guns. We didn't ban anyone but they got a penalty percentage subtracted from the score for underweight trigger and overweight gun. We used the NRA 50 meter smallbore target at 50 yards with no windflags allowed and 2 piece rest.
Since then others have carried the flag and the rules have evolved. I must say their attendance is greater than my ARA matches. Here is a link to the current rules which work for them.
By the way, my original intent was to get folks interested and then they would move up to ARA. Not one has made the move.

http://68.98.206.114/acgc/Disciplines/benchrest_rimfire_sporter.asp
 
No matter how good your intentions are, there will always be some anus who will try to gain an advantage.

I recall my father talking of a match at the the first SSAA range in Brisbane that they set up maybe 6 decades ago for sporting .22 rimfires shot off the shoulder with the option of a sling support (the thought being the usual hunting hasty sling). All went well for a few months, then one weekend, one shooter turned up with enough harness leather to run a four in hand wrapped around his body so that, once mounted, the rifle stood out of its own volition from the shoulder.

My thought is that you publish the rules, publish a comprehensive statement of what your intentions are for the rules including the type of firearms you want to attract as & warn shooters that they will be immediately disqualified if their rig is in the opinion of the promoters a deliberate attempt to circumvent the rules.

Darn it, isn't time we stopped pussyfooting with that sort of shooter?
 
This is a target we made up for Fatory Guns the x ring is .1875 10 ring about .700 it usually comes down to x countView attachment 8942
 

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I think that it is human nature to try to gain an advantage in whatever sporting contest they are in. It is because it could be a nightmare to follow complicated rules that will be bent anyway, that I suggest we call a factory rifle a rifle that has a matching factory barrel and action and let the rest of the details go.

I would think that it would be possible and even desirable to "move" people over to the regular 50/50 when they reach a certain level even if it is with a rabbit gun. I would think the shooter would welcome the promotion at that time.

I don't think that we will have to worry about the Marlins or the Mossbergs but some of the Anchutzs and the Remington 40Xs could need a transfer before long.

The thing is that we have a lot of silhouette shooters in our club that are very competitive and have some good "rabbit" guns. I believe that some of them would love this kind of competition and be real assets to our group.

Concho Bill
 
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Bill, two of the squirrel or factory shoots I go to set a weight limit of 8.5lbs. and it must be factory stock and trigger. it can be pillered and bedded and the scope is 10x and under. the 8.5lbs eliminates all the 52's, 40x's,54's and virtually all 64 mpr's. that shoot is the most popular with sometimes 2 relays needed as 5 or 6 shooters come just for that. what you end up with is true sporters. and that's what it's for.
 
What I am looking for is combining two classes on one shooting line at the same time. I am into the "ultimate in accuracy" and that is my game. The factory rifle class is a way to get more potential good shooters to shoot with us at our game. I believe it will work but we must keep our eye on the prize and remember what we are trying to do.

Concho Bill
 
I kinda see my Target Rifle class as it's own category [ especially if we put in an ammo rule ] and would like to shoot in that class if I could make it happen. I would like to see how my Suhl or my Annie 54 would do. I have thought about having some matches at Gold City for Target Rifles only. There will be no more than 4 RF BR matches at Riverbend in 2010 so I won't be able to shoot TR unless we have TR only matches at another range.


Ray
 
J Pappas said:
The rules state that no one should be at the benches that are not being used in the official match for any reason. In other words your matches would not count if you do what you are stating.
Click to expand...


Empty Benches
No one will occupy any unused bench at a match for any reason. (exact quote) This is a copy of the written rule. I will admit that some clarification is in order. This might require a new class of 50/50 to be created. It would be simpler if it doesn't.

James, If you don't mind, I will quote another source, "Was the Sabbath made for man or man for the Sabbath?"

This is a noble idea to help with the growth of participants at official matches but it may not be practicable. I think it should be explored because something like this would help the sport. Even you could sell more one piece rests if this works.

Concho Bill
 
At Daniel Boone Conservation League here in Hubertus ,WI have a sporter or factory or squirrel class, and it is just that out the box on to the bench. 6.5 max mag on scope. You can tweak the trigger, no replacement parts unless oem spec., float barrel,bed it but no plates up front, if it came with a beaver tail forend ok, but if the stock is replaced has to be about the same as oem. Target rifles and 3" forends shoot in unlimited. Ibs target at 50 yards. These are fun matches, and we had a pretty good turn out last season. Rests are what ever works for you, one piece, 2 piece, sand bags, ect. We also shoot the air rifle at 25 yards just a couple of us playing with that during the warm months other wise in the winter shoot them inside. The thermals inside really mess with you though almost as bad as the wind out.
 
we better change something, i just looked back at one of our score sheets,
we have 1 person under 50 shooting, 4 people between 50-60, and the rest
are 60-75. we normally have 13-15 shooters. we just shot unlimited this year
at fairchance. unless we somehow attract newer younger shooters this sport
is going to die off. it shouldn't be that hard. use a target with twice the size bull
we're using in ir 5050 now, max 10 power scope. stock rifle, action, barrel, and
stock, allowed to bed and modify triggers, with a weight limit of 7.5 lbs. it
wouldn't be that hard to make up a list of approved rifles, marlin, savage, ruger
guns that cost under say 300 off the shelf, no tuners, ammo list under 7 a box.
charge 1/2 the fees we're charging now for that class. i don't know we have
to do something.
 
I like the idea

I've been kicking the same idea around in my head the last few months for I do think that a class that doesn't break the bank has a chance. As Tom C mentioned there's not a lot of young folks involved in the upper end of 22LR benchrest, and yes I understand the economy impact etc...., but I think that one of the real issues is getting people aware of the sport. How I don't have a answer, but what if you could get shooters out with there stock rifles to get to witness ARA matches, IR50/50. If you could just get one to two new shooters a year at each club it would make a difference.

Les
 
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