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EQUIPMENT REVIEWS

TAS BALLISTICS CALCULATOR

Long-range rifle shooting doesn't get much more demanding than F Class, with its half MOA V bull - just five inches in diameter at 1000 yards. Taking your rifle out of the slip, setting-up, assessing the wind, making that vital scope adjustment then squeezing off the first round is always a bit of a 'shot in the dark' for me - desperately hoping that my first sighter is at least on target, otherwise your whole shoot could be compromised. My home club gives out a special key-ring for first shot hits in the V bull - we don't give out many!

Some F Class competitors are already using the TAS - GB F Class League shoot Diggle 2008

Of course, F Class is just a bit of fun and shooting does indeed get a lot more demanding - ask any soldier or police firearms officer. Often, one shot is all they will get - no sighters, no wind-flags, no butt-crew spotting your fall of shot.

Even though we have our scope-settings from last time we shot, our ammunition is identical and we know the range, why is that first shot always a gamble? What could possibly go wrong? The answer? Plenty!

How many external forces influence our shot? Gravity and the wind are the obvious ones and the most influential. It doesn't take much to blow a bullet several feet at 1000 yards. What else? Temperature of course. Temperature affects velocity and thus elevation. In the UK we are lucky in that we don't get massive temperature shifts from summer to winter but sufficient to make a difference of maybe 5 or 6 MOA - enough to have your shot go over the top of the target.

There are a few other things as well - humidity and barometric pressure for example. Difficult to measure so difficult to allow for. Elevation (above sea level) is another and of course the angle you shoot at, though this doesn't become significant until we get to serious uphill or downhill shots, which we are unlikely to encounter on formal ranges. We also have a few other influences which will contribute to your frustration in attempting to hit that five-inch V bull at 1000 yards. If you have a right-hand barrel-twist, a wind from the left will tend to lower the impact point and conversely, a wind from the right will lift the shot.

Most of us now have access to ballistic software and these computer programmes can be very useful, especially if you have a new rifle. Providing you know the muzzle velocity, the bullet's BC and the wind strength and direction, any half-decent programme should get you on target - though maybe not at 1000 yards. Trouble is, our computer isn't on the firing-point, it's usually at home. Yes, you may be lucky to own one of those dinky palm-tops and if you load it up with a good programme you can input many of the aforementioned factors and make that first shot a bit less of a gamble.

For the professional shooter, like the military sniper, such devices are available but if electronics are involved, moisture will inevitably be a problem or even sand and of course it's fragile. What would we give for a device which was portable, robust, weatherproof and would give us all this information and not rely on battery power?

Amazingly, I have such a device in my hand at this very moment. I'm about to shoot my 22 Dasher at 900 yards - something I've never done before. I normally use it out to 600 yards but today we are a good bit further back. I've just taken the air-temperature

(51 degrees F) and wind-speed (13 mph) with my Kestrel meter and made a good stab at the wind direction - about 30 degrees over my right shoulder. I'm 1000 feet above sea level and I'm shooting up-hill about three degrees.

I need to wind-on 19.2 MOA according to my TAS calculator and my wind adjustment, for a 13 mph wind at 30 degrees is worth a tad over 4 MOA. No adjustments are needed for inclination but it's ten degrees colder than my 'zero' data, so I need to add 4 MOA elevation. Let's take the shot.

It would be a miracle if I had hit the V bull but it's a good solid hit and I'm quite impressed. No batteries, no wires, no phone, nothing to get wet, frozen, baked or broken in the TAS. Can you believe it?

You want one? Sorry, this one would be no good to you because it's made specifically for an 80 grain bullet with a BC of 0.489 exiting the muzzle at 3200 fps. This data was collected at 60 degrees Fahrenheit by Dougie Lorimer of Tactical Adjustment Systems (TAS) by chronographing the ammunition at 220 feet above sea-level. In other words, it's tailor-made for one rifle/cartridge combination and this is what separates the TAS from other such devices. The TAS is dedicated to your rifle and ammo - full stop.

Yes, you could input all the same information into any ballistics computer programme and print off a few sheets of paper. You could even laminate that paper to weatherproof it and stuff it in your gun-bag. The TAS calculator is nothing more but it is offered as a very neat and very robust package about the size of a CD which will slip into your pocket. It's made from a very tough plastic - polycarbonate - that looks as if it would stop a bullet. OK, maybe not but you get the picture. It would certainly stand up to police or military abuse in any climate.

A stack of other useful info can be engraved on the back of the case

All your ballistic information is engraved on this plastic disc. The engraving is deep so it won't wear or rub off. You can take it apart in seconds without tools if you have to. You can wash it if you need to. You can have a disc dedicated to each of your rifles or, if you are a military or police user, one unit would serve several identical rifles using the same ammunition. You can also have a neat zip-up wallet for your TAS with room for other discs and bits and pieces.

I have no idea what the British Army sniper uses to make sight-adjustments for his long shots but it can't be better than this and it certainly can't be more reliable, robust or quick and simple to use. I would hope that our guys have at least something as good. Similarly, every police force should be issuing a TAS to its tactical rifle shooters - lives could depend on it. These guys aren't punching holes in paper!

I came across the TAS by accident. I happened to be in the right place at the right time and I assumed that as this was a police/military spec. unit that it would be totally out of the price-range of a civilian shooter. I couldn't have been more wrong. The unit, with a dedicated disc for your own rifle and ammunition is a paltry £95 plus VAT. If you want other discs dedicated to your other rifles, they are just £35 each. Fortunately the data on the demonstration model which Dougie had with him was close enough to my 22 Dasher to give it a try but not as close as it would be if Dougie had chronographed my actual rifle, taking into account the elevation, air-temperature and barometric pressure.

When you compare this to some of the ballistic software on sale, there is no comparison. Yes, it's nice to play with the software on your computer in the comfort of your home but honestly, how much use is it out in the field? The TAS is with you at all times - there to use, to give you the essential information that you need to make that first shot count. For the stalker/hunter, who often needs to take those up or downhill shots, it will not only help you make your kill but make a clean kill more likely.

Have a look at the TAS website on www.globalsecuritymarketing.com and if shooting is your job or your passion then you owe it to yourself to have a closer look at this innovative device.

Sightron S111 Series 8-32 Scope

The Sightron on my 6PPC BAT

Sightron scopes have been around Stateside for about fifteen years but until recently, they haven�t really excited the accuracy crowd. All that changed a couple of years ago with their �Big Sky� range and Sightrons actually began to appear on benchrest rifles � as an alternative to Leupolds and Weavers. These were the S11 scopes in fixed 36 power utilising Japanese optics and a build-quality backed-up by a no quibble �new for old� replacement guarantee.

I got to have a look at the 36 power benchrest scope at IWA in 2007 but although Edgar Brothers are the official UK importers, the only ones I have seen over here were personal imports direct from America.

At this year�s IWA show back in February, the Sightron stand was one of my priority visits. I�d heard about the new S111 range via the internet - their new 8-32 model with 30mm body-tube was causing something of a stir amongst long-range accuracy shooters in America. I finally have one for test.

Here's what we get in the box - sun-shade, lens covers, manual cleaning cloth and Allen key

At first glance, the Sightron could easily be mistaken for a Leupold. It�s very nicely proportioned and clean looking - devoid of any ugly protrusions for illuminated reticles and the like and is very similar in size and weight to my 8.5-25 Leupold VX111.

No doubt about it, scopes are getting better and we have had satisfactory results in the past from cheap Chinese scopes and it is becoming increasingly difficult to properly evaluate the more sophisticated optics. I decided that I would have to mount the Sightron on my 6PPC benchrest rifle to properly put it through its paces.

Fortunately, I had a spare set of 30mm Kelbly rings which would fit the Davidson base on my LV BAT benchgun. This mounting system is one of the best and certainly a good alternative to a Picatinny rail, especially if you are looking to save a few ounces. If you are serious about your shooting, the Kelbly rings are very strong, light and accurate but not cheap. I normally lightly lap in my scope rings but with the Kelbly�s it just isn�t necessary.

After bore-sighting the Sightron, a couple of shots had me zeroed at 100 yards. My target is a two-foot white square with a small red aiming spot in the centre. Test one checks the �return to zero� ability of the scope. Only last week at the Diggle round of the F Class League, I overheard one shooter claiming that his zero shifted at different magnification settings. I was surprised to hear this as even the cheapo Chinese offerings will pass this test. The Sightron was no exception and if you look at my photograph of the target you will see that I am pointing to two shot-holes less than half an inch apart. One shot was fired on full 32 magnification and the other on eight power.

The real problem with this test is finding an aim-point for the lower-powered magnification shot, as the dot in the centre of the Sightron�s crosshair is a quarter minute of angle (MOA) at full power but a full one MOA at eight power and I needed to stick a larger aiming-mark on the target for the test.

I would personally prefer a finer crosshair and a smaller one-eighth MOA dot, as this is what I am used to with benchrest scopes but some think that this is too fine for general use and I�m sure that for F Class use most shooters will be happy with the reticle.

Our next test is �round the angles�. This is intended to check the tracking ability of the scope and the accuracy of the windage and elevation adjustment but before I carried out this one, I was anxious to know how much elevation we would have. Now that we are zeroed, we can easily check this by winding up the elevation turret whilst looking through the scope and ensuring that the crosshair moves with every click. The crosshair stopped moving after 144 clicks and, as each �click� represents a quarter MOA, we have exactly 36 MOA of adjustment � just enough to get on with a 308 at 1000 yards - though we still need to verify that a click is indeed one quarter MOA.

Round the angles test

Now for �round the angles�. With our aim-point on the red centre-dot I�m winding-off 32 clicks of elevation and 32 clicks of left windage. Still with my crosshair on the centre dot, the first shot is fired and it impacts in the bottom left corner of the target. Now, we wind-on 64 clicks of elevation and fire another shot, again using the same aim-point. Shot two impacts in the top left corner of the target. Now 64 clicks of right-wind and shot three impacts in the top right of the target. We continue with this exercise until we return to our first shot in the bottom left of the target. In a perfect world, shot five will go through the same hole as shot one but this is the real world and our shot impacts just under half an inch away � see pic. This is a good results and well within the limits of rifle, ammunition, conditions and of course �the nut behind the butt�!

By taking a couple of check measurements, we can see how accurate our quarter minute clicks are. The sides of our square if you remember are 64 clicks in length. A click is a quarter MOA so each side is 16 MOA. Taking one MOA as 1.047 inches, the sides of the square should measure 16.75 inches. They actually measure nearer 17 inches, so a very good result. By measuring the diagonals of the square we can also verify that it is a true square � it is, so we can at least trust our windage and elevation adjustments on range.

Before our final check, I should comment that there is a fair amount of chromatic aberration or �fringing� present. This manifests itself as a yellow-green edge to areas of high contrast � in this case, the edge of the target. Fringing is a product of glass lenses and can only be eliminated by using fluorite in place of glass. However, providing it does not degrade the image, it should not be a problem. For me, eye-relief was about three-inches.

Our final test is to check the resolving power of the lenses. Originally, I used a lens test chart for this purpose but even the cheap scopes became good enough to resolve all the images on the chart so now I compare test scopes with the best of my scopes, an 8-32 Nightforce BR scope. The lenses on the older Nightforces were legendary and if I recall, only the Schmidt & Bender 5-25 power scope has proved superior.

To carry out this comparison, we need a bright clear day and both scopes must be solidly mounted and carefully focussed on the �target� � an electricity pylon about four miles away. The Nightforce will resolve all the cabling and intricate lattice-work on the pylon and I was surprised to see that Sightron image was just a good � in fact, if anything, it was slightly better � by exhibiting a little more contrast. I can now see why the Americans are raving about these scopes. Incidentally, the �fringing� that I experienced at 100 yards was totally absent.

The lenses have a blue-green anti-flare coating which, combined with the internal treatment of the body-tube, was effective in controlling flare when looking towards (but NOT into) the sun.

The Sightron is finished with a satin black coating which resisted any ring-marking during my review. The turrets come with dust-covers but they are not rubber-sealed to keep out water. The adjustment graduations are clearly incised in gold and the turrets move with a positive click. Clicks are a quarter MOA and there are fifteen minutes per revolution. Similarly, the zoom-ring and side-focus adjusters have that reassuring precision �feel� and are also tastefully marked in gold. Finally, there is no illuminated reticle and there shouldn�t be on a pure target rifle scope. We only shoot in broad daylight on high contrast targets � why should we have to pay for an illuminated reticle?

Rotating the rubber-cushioned eye-piece will focus the reticle

So, our scope is a very good product and ticks all the boxes and will make an excellent F Class scope. With a finer crosshair it would be great for 600 - 1000 yd benchrest competition. The Americans will pay about $800 for the Sightron 8-32. With VAT, import duty, postage and handling, expect to pay around �600 by the time it arrives on your doorstep. I would like to think that Edgar Brothers will eventually stock them but they are really only saleable whilst the price remains significantly below that of the current market leader in the 8-32 field, the Nightforce, which is currently on sale in the UK for well below �800. Edgar Brothers are trade only but you may contact them via www.edgarbrothers.com

Spec.

Model S111ss832x56LRD

Company Sightron Inc. N. Carolina, USA

Objective 56mm

Ocular 42mm

Reticle Fine crosshair with quarter MOA dot

Click value Quarter MOA

Body tube 30mm

Length 15.35 inches

Weight 24.7 ounces

THE NEW 8-32 BLACK DIAMOND SCOPE FROM BURRIS

Here's the Black Diamond on my Predator

A couple of years ago, at IWA, I was impressed by a new Burris tactical scope which I had never seen before. This year, it was even better, more magnification, side-focus, 30mm tube and even a trendy military green finish. I made a remark in my IWA report that I couldn�t remember when I last saw Burris on sale in the UK � then, all of a sudden, two arrive at once!

GMK Ltd. Are the official Burris importer and they sent me a 3-9 example. As a long-range target shooter I have little use for low-power optics but no doubt they are still used by stalkers and the like and this one is specifically aimed at the Sako Quad owner. The Quad rifle � as its name suggests � comes with four barrels in different rimfire chamberings and this scope has four turret settings - one for each calibre! Clever but would you really want to? Needless to say, I don�t have a Sako Quad to hand so the little Burris will go back in the box.

What I really wanted was something big, with all the �whistles and bells� and it was fellow scribe, Laurie Holland who eventually came to the rescue. Laurie had just made a purchase of an 8-32 Burris Black Diamond via York Guns and he hadn�t even taken it out of the box when he handed it over to me for this review.

For those of you who have followed my Predator project-rifle saga, the Burris couldn�t have come at a better time. The Diggle Fly Shoot is just around the corner and a good scope is essential if I am to see my 22 Dasher bullet-holes at 500 yards! Before the day of the comp. however, we need to put the Burris through its paces and see if this scope can indeed hold its own with a Leupold.

Several things should concern us when buying a top-end scope � the build-quality, the accuracy of adjustment, the scope�s ability to return to a repeatable aim-point and of course the resolving power of the lenses. These may not seem unreasonable �must-haves� and indeed they aren�t but it is surprising how many manufacturers find it difficult to get it just right. You can put one of Fox Firearm�s Chinese scopes alongside the Burris and, apart from the price, there doesn�t appear to be a great deal of difference � 'the devil is in the detail' as they say.

Laurie also supplied me with a set of Leupold QD steel Weaver mounts. These are amongst the very best and the Black Diamond is now sitting on top of the Predator�s Weaver rail. It must be six or seven years since I last had hold of a Black Diamond, so what�s changed? Well, at last we have a 30mm body-tube and side-focus has arrived and there is a European-style focusable eyepiece for the reticle. No illuminated reticle though but who needs it? The scope is nicely proportioned for an 8-32 and is about the same size as my 8.5-25 Leupold LRT. It also comes with lens-caps and a screw-on rain-shade for the objective.

The Black Diamond range incorporates the Burris Posi-lock system, which uses a coil-spring rather than a leaf-spring to hold the erector tube in place. Nightforce use the same system and some scope �tuners� use this as an upgrade on Leupolds and the like. The body is finished in a tough-looking matt-black, which resisted ring-marking and the lenses are claimed to have an anti-flare and anti-scratch coating.

Optical glass and their coatings are softer than normal glass and can be damaged simply by cleaning, so anything which will resist general wear and tear is welcome. Internally, the body-tube is well finished to reduce reflection which will also help in controlling flare.

The object lens is 50mm and the ocular, the standard 34mm. The duplex reticle is very fine at the centre and is focussed using a rotating eye-piece similar to European scopes like the Schmidt & Bender. The �zoom� ring is quite stiff but easy to grip and all lettering and numbering is clear and quite tastefully done.

The Burris instruction booklet claims a total of 39 MOA but don�t forget, you could lose a good chunk of this simply mounting and zeroing the scope. After bore-sighting however, I was fortunate to be close to the extreme end of the adjustment range � my rifle is fitted with a 20 MOA tapered rail - so I had more or less the whole claimed 39 MOA of elevation at my disposal. After a couple of zeroing shots, which used up about 3 MOA, it was time to see just how much elevation this scope has left.

The elevation drum is divided into 14 sections and each section is sub-divided into four. Each click of the turret moves one sub-division. One might therefore assume that each click is a quarter MOA and each division a whole MOA. Yet the instructions tell us that each click is only an eighth MOA � so that makes the numbered divisions only a half MOA. Strange but true.

Personally, I don�t mind quarter clicks but, as the accuracy of the modern rifle increases, so serious shooters are demanding finer adjustment. The F Class guys are using a tiny half-MOA V bull and many now insist on an eighth-minute click, so let�s make this the first of our tests. We can check the accuracy of adjustment and, at the same time, we will see just how much elevation we have.

After zeroing at 100 yards, I fired the first shot and then turned the turret until the reticle stopped moving and fired the second shot. The difference between the two shot holes measured 29 inches � or just under 28MOA (A minute of angle being 1.047 inches at 100 yards). Not a lot and, if your rifle is a 308, forget about 1000 yards. A 6.5-284 might just make it. Clearly, without the 20MOA tapered rail, I would have had very little elevation left. The target-turrets incidentally, are protected by dust caps and move with nice positive clicks.

Now let�s check the �return to zero�. A simple test where one shot is fired on full 32 power and, keeping the same aim-point, a second shot is fired with the power wound down to eight. Most scopes � even the cheap Chinese ones � usually pass this test and the Burris was no exception, with my two shots about half an inch apart � an error at least partly due to the inherent accuracy of the test rifle/ammunition and of course the �nut behind the butt�.

I usually like to do the �round the angles� test - to check the scope�s tracking ability - using a large target but range restrictions meant that my target had to fit on a two-feet square backer, so after zeroing and firing shot one in the bottom right-hand corner of the target I wound-on 100 clicks of elevation and fired shot two, which impacted in the top right of the target. I then wound on 100 clicks of left wind and shot three landed in the top left of the target and so on, until we return with the fifth shot, to the original starting point in the bottom right of the target.

The 'closing error' in my 'round the angles' test - less than half an inch.

In a perfect world, if everything is right with our Burris and our rifle/ammo. combination is deadly accurate, shots one and five should be pretty close. Look at the photograph � less than half an inch apart � a good result. By measuring our 100 click �square� formed by the bullet-holes we can check the accuracy of adjustment. Even top-end scopes can be 10% out but the Burris was very good, those 100 clicks - or 12.5 MOA � should measure 13.087 inches. The actual measurement was 12.5 inches � an error of less than 5% - again, very good.

Finally, we�ll have a look at the optics. I found that the best way to evaluate the lenses by comparison with another optical instrument and the obvious one is another scope � in this case my 8-32 Nightforce. I use this scope as a yardstick as I�ve never seen a scope with better optics, though if I remember correctly the 5.5-25 Schmidt & Bender was certainly its equal. I�ve played about with lens test-charts and the like but scopes are so good now that it�s difficult to split them so I rely on my eye and an electricity pylon a couple of miles away. The cables and lattice-work make an excellent test image.

The Burris was good, very good with no chromatic aberration (or fringing) � almost as good as the Nightforce in fact. The Nightforce could just pick out some of the fine cabling a little clearer but having said that, I�m confident that any shooter would be more than happy with the Burris optics.

Well, that only leaves build-quality. What should we do? Immerse it in water and then throw it across the car park or put it in the oven and see if it melts? Only joking Laurie! Fortunately for us, Burris offer their �forever� lifetime guarantee - hopefully the same as Leupold�s - the best in the business. If so, build-quality need not overly concern us as we can be confident that any defects will be rectified free of charge.

In summation, the Black Diamond is an excellent scope in every respect. It offers side-focus and sufficient magnification for any discipline I can think of, with quality optics and accurate adjustment. A little more elevation would be handy � especially if you intend to use the scope out to extreme ranges.

The recommended retail price for the Burris Black Diamond is �735 but see www.yorkguns.com or www.gmk.co.uk

NEW SHOOTING MAT FROM AIMFIELD SPORTS

Trying the prototype mat last winter.

A couple of months ago I mentioned that I had seen a prototype of a new shooting-mat from Aimfield Sports.

�A mat�s just a mat surely?� I hear you say. Well yes, that�s true but like everything, it has to be designed by someone and that design can be good, bad or indifferent.

It was when I was an active Target Rifle shooter that I bought my first mat. The Target Rifle discipline is very demanding - more than most and the serious competitor cannot afford to give anything away. Points are hard-won and dropped points cannot be pulled back. A comfortable shooting position is just one of the essentials and a good mat is essential to achieve this. However my mat left me with wet knees and sore elbows and after suffering for a couple of years, I bought a different one.

You�ve probably seen examples of the type I bought � tough green vinyl on either side, sandwiching a good solid foam inner which will protect the shooters elbows for an hour or so even on a concrete surface, let alone grass. It�s waterproof, with a non-slip panel to rest your elbows on and apart from being bulky and a little heavy to lug around, I couldn�t fault it.

When I switched to F Class, my nice thick comfy mat was suddenly useless. Why? In F Class, we shoot off a front-rest and back-bag. It is essential that the rear-bag is as solid as a grass firing-point will allow but resting it on a thick rubber mat is akin to shooting off a jelly.

The Aimfield mat is extra-wide so you don't hang off it.

What were my fellow F Class competitors using? Some had resorted to cutting a hole in the mat so that the rear-bag was back on the grass. Drastic but effective! Others had simply spread a thin ground-sheet on the grass - good for rear-bag support but offering no comfort for the shooter and, if you�ve got things sticking in you, believe me you will be distracted and not shoot your best.

Don't take my word for it - here's Peter Wilson, 2006 GB F Class Champion, using the sand version of Aimfield's mat at Blair Atholl last month.

So, what do we want from our perfect mat? It must be waterproof, offer at least some comfort but not too much padding if we intend to use a back-bag. It must be easy to handle � both to carry and to set-up and wide enough so that we don�t end up with one leg on the wet grass. It would be nice to have a built-in pocket for score card and pen � not only to stop them blowing away but to keep the rain off. Left-hander? OK then, a transparent waterproof pocket on either side! And, if we are going to really nit-pick � although the underside needs to be waterproof, the top could be a non-slip material and if it�s really windy, could we have loops at each corner to peg it down? Anything else? Choice of colours? Don�t be ridiculous!

Attention to detail - double stitching, peg-down loops, waterproof underside and non-slip top in a choice of four colours.

Following discussions with shooters and a few prototypes and trials, the Aimfield guys eventually came up with the mat you see here and yes, you can have it in a choice of colours - camo, sand, green or black. Believe me, this really is the ultimate mat � no matter what discipline you shoot. I honestly cannot fault it and I don�t think you will either. It�s superbly well made with top quality materials, all double stitched and it comes in its own lightweight carry-bag with shoulder-strap, so you just sling it around your neck, leaving hands-free for all your other kit.

My good friend Jack models the mat's shoulder-bag and the Aimfield sports drag-bag - which now comes in an extra-long 60 inches - no one else, to my knowledge, makes a drag-bag this long.

I paid over �50 for my old green mat about ten years ago � and incidentally, it�s still in perfect condition. The new Aimfield mat is �85 and although this might seem a lot, please don�t under-estimate the value of a comfortable shooting-platform. A good mat will do as much for your scores as any other piece of ancillary equipment. It�s designed by shooters for shooters without compromise and it looks as though it should last a lifetime. Order direct from Aimfield on www.aimfieldsports.com or see your local dealer.

NEW DRAG BAG FROM AIMFIELD SPORTS

Are there any shooting disciplines which don�t require copious amounts of gear? I shoot Benchrest, F Class, Black-Powder Cartridge-Rifle, Tactical Rifle etc. and all keep me well exercised lugging around rests, sand-bags, spotting-scopes and boxes containing all manner of �I might need that� stuff!

For the purposes of this article, I weighed my F Class kit and it came to almost a half hundred-weight! Not only that, I could do with at least four arms to carry it all. There has to be a better way! Yes, a range-cart � similar to a golfing-trolley - would be a great idea but try heaving one of those around my local range � not only is the Diggle 1000 yard firing-point 1000 feet above sea-level, on the side of a hill, it�s also a quarter of a mile from the car-park.

I�ve noticed recently that some shooters are now using military-style drag-bags. These bags appear to be a great idea as most of the weight is carried on the back, rucksack-style. This means that the hands are free to carry stuff like a heavy front-rest, as everything else goes in the drag-bag.

When I visited IWA last March, I was on the look out for a good drag-bag. They are not difficult to find but it�s hard to justify paying a couple of hundred pounds for a bit of canvas! Of course, the decent bags are American-made and intended for military/professional use. They must be able to stand the rigours of combat and protect kit without compromise.

I did however find a bag which looked as good as any of the American stuff and was very reasonably priced and best of all, they had a UK importer. I eventually made contact with Aimfield Sports (www.aimfieldsports.com) and they agreed to send me a bag from their next batch. In fact, they agreed to send me two!

The first bag is not of the rucksack-style. It is a conventional 'carry' bag but it unzips to form a really good shooting-mat. A mat like this would easily cost �50 and it saves you carrying one! The bag has stacks of features and pockets and if you like your kit to have that authentic 'military' look, you will love this bag. It comes in a great drab-green colour and has plenty of clasps and straps - including a shoulder-strap and a drag-bag style end-cover. Please don't confuse this bag with other cheapo examples. This is excellent kit and is well worth the �85 asking price.

The first bag doubles as a shooting-mat. A mat this good would cost you �50

Your rifle is securely held inside the bag with Velcro straps.

Use the carry handle or shoulder-strap. Note additional clasps & webbing.

Bag no.2 is a proper sniper-style drag-bag with rucksack-style straps which enable you to carry it on your back. It features some enormous pockets which will swallow an unbelievable amount of gear. I can get all my F Class kit in this bag with the exception of the front rest � and I now have two free hands to carry it.

This is what I take on an F Class shoot. The drag-bag swallowed the lot with room to spare.

The pockets are enormous (see pic) and there is still room for more ammo. and maybe a cleaning kit and rod. The bag is packed with features and hidden pockets and the rucksack straps can be stowed out of sight in a zipped pocket if you just intend to use the normal hand strap. The full-length heavy-duty zip is backed-up with snap-clasps and, as with the other bag, an end-cover is included. The padding is very dense and will afford excellent protection to your cherished rifle and scope.

Your rifle is securely held with quick-release straps.

The price? Just �120 and I defy you to find one in the same class for anything like that. Most of the ones I saw at IWA were more like �200. This bag is also longer than some I looked at and it will just take my F Class rifle, which is 49 inches long. NEW 60 INCH VERSION NOW AVAILABLE I�ve had a good look at the stitching, zippers and clasps and the material from which the bag is made and honestly, I couldn�t see that it was in any way inferior to the more expensive bags.

Easy! Carry it all on your back, leaving hands free for the front-rest.

Sorry Aimfield Sports, you aren�t getting this one back. My cheque is in the post!

�The 5-25x56 PM11 Telescopic Sight from Schmidt & Bender

Left, the Schmidt (bottom) with an 8-32 Nightforce. Right, the S&B mounted on my Howa Tactical.

Undoubtedly, Schmidt & Bender are at the very top of the optics �tree� but, until now they have not offered a scope for the serious long-range competition shooter. S & B have always concentrated on the hunter-market and the serious Police/Military user and for some unknown reason, a ten-power scope was regarded as �sufficient�. This was also true of the UK civilian market ten or fifteen years ago but Nightforce changed all that and we suddenly realised that it was much easier to hit your target if you could actually see it! If you are using a rested-rifle, you just can�t have too much scope power.

Twenty-five power is now regarded as the minimum for anyone who shoots serious long-range competition and after offering first a twelve and then a sixteen-power scope, Schmidt & Bender have finally produced a 5-25 power version of their superb PM11.

So what? You might be asking. I can buy a Nightforce or Leupold offering this kind of power and with top-notch optics, so why get excited about the Schmidt? When was the last time you twiddled the scope-turrets the wrong way or lost count of your clicks? I�ve been around long enough to know better but I did it only a month ago, at that F Class League shoot at Bisley of all places. I needed to come-up 75 MOA on my Leupold Mk 4 and through some mental aberration, I turned the turret three times instead of five! Fortunately, someone noticed my fall of shot - ploughing up the grass!

If I had been using a Schmidt, I couldn�t have made that mistake. For me it was an embarrassment � for a police marksman, it could be a disaster. This is the reason the Practical Rifle guys also love Schmidts - they make lots of elevation changes � often on the hoof and if one turn of the elevation turret takes you from zero to 1000 yards, how can you get it wrong?

Why aren�t all scopes made this way, you might ask. Well, in lots of cases, it isn�t necessary. For example, I rarely adjust the 36X Leupold scopes on my benchrest rifles. Plus, weight can be major consideration and the Schmidt weighs a whopping 2lbs 8oz.! Probably the main reason is that often, those who design our scopes are not shooters, so what do they know � or care? As long as we keep buying their products, manufacturers will keep churning them out!

Generally, the more powerful a scope, the less adjustment it will exhibit. The way to pull-back this �loss� is to use a larger diameter body-tube and 30mm is now common � even with the Chinese - yet twenty years ago it was unknown. When S & B upped the power of their 10X scope to 12X and then 16X a few years ago, they had to increase the body-tube diameter to an unprecedented 34mm to maintain full adjustment. With 25 power on tap they�ve been forced to break more new ground.

Immediately you set eyes on this new Schmidt it looks strikingly different, thanks to the super- large windage and elevation turrets. And there are other turrets � for side-focus and the illuminated reticle. Now that I�ve mentioned reticles, lets see what the Schmidt has on offer.

If you use a mildot reticle, as our test scope does, ideally this must be placed in the first focal-plane. The whole point of a mildot reticle is its range-finding ability. Everyone is offering mildots � even the Chinese but they don�t realise the purpose, so usually the mildot reticle is placed in the second focal-plane. In other words, its size doesn�t alter as you zoom in on your target - the mildot is therefore only useable as a rangefinder at one magnification and seldom is this the top magnification. What�s more, you will need the manufacturer�s instructions to determine the setting at which the mildot is �true�. Clearly farcical for the professional user.

Having said all that, the mildot is unnecessary for the competition shooter as we almost always know the distance we are shooting at but the mildot can at least be used to judge �aim-off� accurately and for this reason, it is still a valid competition reticle and certainly preferable to the once-popular �duplex�. The Schmidt mildot is set in the first focal plane, therefore it zooms in and out with the scope and so is effective as a range-finder at all magnifications. As an alternative, the Bryant reticle is available. This was developed by a US Police Officer but it will be of little interest to the civilian shooter.

At this point, I�d like to say that we are off to the range to do some shooting but the Schmidt is wrapped-up in its box as I am awaiting some 34mm mounts for my Weaver rail. I just don�t have any 34mm rings or even know where I could get some, so the only option was to contact Schmidt & Bender in Germany, who readily agreed to supply a set.

The rings arrived within a few days and I was surprised when I opened the box. I expected to find a chunky set of steel rings but instead I found a pair of really nifty aluminium mounts from A.R.M.S Inc., an American company who specialise in all things M16/AR15 related. These rings are really worth a look. Of course, they come in all diameters and fittings and employ a very good quick-release design and you can usefully fit them with spacers if your scope needs a higher mount. They are triple-screw and look very purposeful. I specified a Weaver fit, so the Schmidt is now sitting atop my Howa.

Until weekend comes around we�ll have a closer look at the Schmidt. That 34mm body tube is finished in the usual satin-black anodising and there are rubber-rings to aid grip on the zoom-ring and the �one-turn� ocular focus. All figuring is large and clearly incised into the aluminium so that it won�t wear-off with use and click-value is marked in quarter-minute divisions. Overall length is 16 inches � the same as the Nightforce NSX.

The front object-lens is identical in size to the Nightforce range at 56mm but the ocular is a tad larger at 35mm. Both have an anti-flare coating � magenta on the objective and green on the ocular. The body-tube internals have also received the anti-reflective treatment. The accompanying user-manual claims that the scope is waterproof but I shall not be testing this aspect!

A few years ago, scopes had two turrets, then three and now four!. The previous PM 11 model had an �either or� choice - side-focus or illuminated reticle � now, we can have both. Sensibly, only the very centre of the reticle illuminates. Whilst we are on the subject of turrets, it�s time to say something about this scope�s most striking feature, the elevation turret. That �can�t get it wrong� feature of previous Schmidts clearly created something of a problem for the designers of this more powerful model.

The greatest feature of Schmidt & Bender scopes was always the �one turn of the turret� taking the elevation from 100 to 1000 metres � about 36 MOA with a .308. Now, if you keep turning the turret for a second rotation, it will give us 66 minutes in total. Although this seems a lot, it will still only take you out to 12-1300 yards with a .308 but it means that we have adequate adjustment for any calibre out to extreme ranges.

The second rotation of the elevation turret is signified by a yellow scale and, as you come onto the yellow scale, a yellow indicator appears in the lighthouse-style binnacle sitting on top of the turret. The bottom scale gives you 35 minutes and then up pops the indicator and we are on the top scale for another 31 MOA. To the civilian shooter, these yellow scales and pop-up indicators are a bit of a novelty � if we get it wrong, we foul-up a comp. but if the professional fouls-up��.

OK, you might be thinking � 66MOA is no big deal, my Chinese job gives me that. Yes, but maybe you lost half of it just mounting and zeroing the scope. With the Schmidt, you zero, then reset the turret and you still have your full 66MOA � that�s the difference! Of course, if your mounts are well out of alignment, you could still lose some adjustment.

Let�s do some shooting. After focussing the reticle with the eyepiece adjuster, bore-sighting and then a couple of zeroing shots on my 100 yard target, we�re ready to put the Schmidt through its paces. The first test is a �return to zero�. We fire one shot on full-power, then wind-down the zoom-ring to the minimum setting and fire another shot. Few scopes now fail this test and the Schmidt comes through with flying colours with both shots less than half an inch apart � which is as good as it gets, particularly when you remember I�m shooting at a 20mm dot, 100 yards away on five-power!

Test number two is �round the angles� . This test checks the accuracy of the windage and elevation turrets and ensures that the scope returns to zero again. We use the same aimpoint in the corner of a large target and I�m winding on 24 MOA of elevation before I take the second shot. I then wind-on 24 MOA of right wind and take a third shot. Now it�s down 24MOA for the fourth shot. If you are following me, we now have a target with four shots � one in each corner and, if I wind-on another 24MOA of left wind, the fifth shot should go through the same hole as the first � given the limits of rifle and ammo. The first and fifth shots are less than half an inch apart and the �square� is a true square. The sides of the square should measure (24 x 1.047) 24.128 inches � they actually measure 25.375 inches (see photo) This is an excellent result. Even expensive scopes can exhibit a 10% error and as far as I can remember, this is the best result I have ever obtained.

I couldn�t split the Schmidt and my Nightforce with the lens test chart so it�s time to have a look at my favourite skyline electricity pylon about 6kms away. No scope has ever out-resolved the Nightforce in this test so let�s see how the Schmidt fares. The Nightforce NSX is the Schmidt�s nearest contender but I�ve always reckoned that the lenses in my old �benchrest� Nightforce had the edge so that�s what I�m using. With both scopes set on 25 power, I just couldn�t see any discernable difference but the Schmidt was totally devoid of �fringing� or chromatic aberration, whereas there was a small amount present with the Nightforce.

So, the 5-25 Schmidt ticks all the right boxes � superb optics, side-focus, heaps of accurate adjustment and all the controls move with that precision feel which exudes quality. Any criticisms? I would have liked a sun/rain shade and a slightly finer reticle at maximum magnification would be my preference but otherwise - perfect!

You can have your Schimdt in MOA or mill-radian adjustment but it will still cost you a whopping �1559. Yes, that�s a lot of money but this scope is the best in its class. It comes from a European stable which offers an excellent 30 year after-sales back-up that includes a free 10 year service. For the professional user, it has no equal and it would certainly be my choice for serious F Class.

Finally, thank you York Guns (tel: 01904 487180 or www.yorkguns.co.uk) for the loan of this fine piece of equipment. �