Tikka T3 -- Awesome

Been some time since I was able to post. I've been very busy and I've got lots of things to post! New rifles, food, camping, games -- so much good stuff going on!

My last post left off as I wondered whether my father-in-law's Springfield had issues or if I needed some remedial marksmanship training. My wonderful wife told me the only way to find out quickly was to go get a new rifle. We went in to Sportsman's Warehouse to check out some of the pre-season bargains they had going. After trying several rifle and scope sets, we decided that the bargains weren't the way to go. They all had one or more of three problems: less than optimal optics (OK, they were pretty bad), rough and non-adjustable triggers, and rough actions (bolts just didn't work smooth). Working with the sales rep, we moved up and started looking at Remington, Savage, and Sako rifles and Nikon and Leupold optics.

In the end, I most liked a Sako Tikka T3 Lite .30-06. Sportsman's Warehouse mounted a Nikon Bushmaster 4-9x scope on it for me. They did a nice job, too. When I got it out to zero at the range a couple of days later, I hit just outside the X ring on my first shot and most of that was because of the 20mph breeze we had going. Just a bit of work and I had consistent groups out to 200M without any problem! Which made me feel good. I do need more practice, but I was happy.

As you can see from the pictures, this is a beautiful weapon. Stainless steel. Very smooth action and trigger. The Bushmaster scope is superb. Together, they weigh on about 8lbs. Which brings up the main challenge. Even shooting 150 grain soft points, this rifle has some serious kick. That's definitely going to take some getting used to -- target reacquistion is tough even keeping both eyes open. Gotta get some more practice in!

Springfield 1903 .30-06

In August, my family took the Colorado hunter education class so we could do some small game hunting this year. We've done that, and had some luck at dove and teal. However, during the class, my wife said she liked the idea of hunting elk. Quite a goal for folks who have never hunted, but it sounded good to me. But, I decided that if we were going to give that a go, we'd best get some other experience first. Did some checking, found that there were still doe pronghorn tags available for some good units in South East Colorado. So, I've picked up two pronghorn tags and hope to go hunting next week.

I was going to try to use my father-in-law's Springfield 1903 .30-06. His rifle is absolutely a beautiful vintage piece. We're not sure what year his rifle is -- he bought it used in 1940 at a pawn shop and the scope mount covers up the serial number so I can't check the age myself (it's a custom mount, so I'm reluctant to mess with it). However, it's probably a 100 year rifle or so. It's got a 1940 vintage scope -- probably 4x by 40mm. We took it up to Parshall on Saturday to zero it. Well, rather, I should say "try" to zero it. I loved shooting it -- recoil was perfect and the action is absolutley smooth. Unfortunately,  I couldn't pull a good enough group even at 25yards to even try adjusting the scope. Which is a serious bummer. First of all, it's a pretty tough hit to my confidence when I'm going on my first big game hunt. Second, I was really liking the idea of using

My wife is always practical and after taking a nap Saturday,she woke up and said -- "Well, you've got to get a new rifle." We've already put a lot of effort into making my trip next week to the areas work and she didn't want me to waste the effort. So, we popped over to Sportsman's Warehouse (love and hate that place -- spend entirely too much money on great stuff every time I go). I figured we'd get a Remington .30-06 combo (rifle + scope) which are running about $400 right now. Unfortunately, I didn't like the scope (eye-relief was very narrow and the optics just didn't have good contrast) and she didn't like the action (decidedly not smooth). I love my wife. She is just.. well, perfect. We went home with a new Tikka T3 Lite with a Nikon Buckmaster 4-9x 40mm. I'm sure this rifle is going to kick quite hard, but it's sub-MOA accurate, the Nikon optics are great, and it's going to be very easy to carry.

So, sometime between now and next week, I've got to get that zero'd. It's going to be a bummer if I find out that it was the shooter afterall (but, then, at least I'd know). More on that later.

Camping in Hugo Colorado

August and September have been intensely busy -- and I lost my battery charger in Las Vegas so I couldn't take any good pictures. Which is why I haven't writen and new posts in several weeks! But, I've got lots of great stories to share and will be posting them and more over the next several weeks.One of the big things going on is we've decided to start hunting.

For the 2011/12 season, one of the things I really want to do is some pronghorn hunting. I've never hunted big game and so this is quite an undertaking, but its been fun. In early September, I decided to go scout the unit I planned on hunting in this year. This is in South Eastern Colorado. For those of you who've never been out there, it's a cross between open grassland and, well, mostly desert. So, you'll understand my surprise when I get half way down there and drive into a murky fog bank that lasted till noon the next day.

Which was fine. Had a nice evening camping in the fog under some trees in the Hugo State Wild Life Area. Got up the next morning and saw all sorts of wild life. Also got a dove (more on that in a later post). But, I think the fog spooked the pronghorn. Only saw a single small group until the afternoon.

Las Vegas was Great!

Well, for the few avid readers I have... Ah, I've got to be honest -- I have no avid readers. But, for those reading this blog today, my Las Vegas vacation was superb. We wrapped up with a nice mix of things to do around Las Vegas and some wonderful night life. We visited Hoover Dam, Red Rock Canyon, and did a couple shows.

We went out to Hoover Dam relatively early -- we got there about 10:30. This ended up much better than I expected. I thought the dam was still largely shut down for security. However, while we were there, you could drive across it and do an interior tour that is really worth while. Hoover Dam is a tribute to the age when they made it -- Art Deco design in the overall dam all the way to the Terazzo floors inspired by North American Indian designs. I loved seeing the power plants and walking through the tunnels was fun, too. If you go, a few pionters: go early so you can avoid traffic -- it was bad that afternoon; there is parking across the dam, not just at the visitor center; and the longer full tour is worth the wait and extra dollars.

The next day we went out to Red Rock Canyon which is just outside the West side of town. It was absolutely beautiful. I love the colors in Nevada (makes me want to do water color painting again). This 13 mile drive takes about an hour and you'll see a wide range of scenery. There are several great looking hikes, too. However, as it was 105F already when we got there at about 11:00, we pretty much stuck to the car. Not to mention I had broken my left pinky toe the day before on a door jam. It was definitely worth the drive and if we go out again, we'll definitely do some hiking, too.

Auto Collection at the Imperial and Japonais

Yesterday was fantastic! Second day of our vacation as we did odds and ends around the Vegas Strip. Went to the Auto Collection at the Imperial. I've been there before and always have enjoyed it. It's got an interesting mix of very neat cars, including a preponderance of Rolls Royces. Pictured here is a 1951 Talbot-Lago 26 Grans Sport Saouthci Coupe, a 1st in class winner at the Pebble Beach Concours D'Elegance (really worth watching in HD if you ever get the chance). 

We had dinner and the Ron White show a the Mirage. We chose to eat at Japonais and had a fantastic dinner. Sushi, salmon, steak, chocolate, and pumpkin cheese cake. Absolutely superb and relaxing. And Ron White was as funny as always! Made for a great day.

Viva Las Vegas -- Short Vacation Trip!

 

My wife and I are taking a nice trip to Las Vegas. We've been all over the world, but never to this archtypical American vacation spot for fun. I've been here several times on business trips, and we drove through once on our way to Las Angeles, but never together for vacation. 

It's hard to find a single image to capture what Las Vegas means to a person. I put the Crazy Girls up there because it's a funny picture and I'm sure it'll catch the eye of my Twitter readers. However, it's not too far off. Las Vegas represents to me a massive over indulgence in all things adult -- food, sex, everything! Maybe that's not good... But, I like living things up as much as anybody!

Yesterday we just had enough time to get checked in, get odds and ends at the local market, and visit one single major casino and hotel for dinner. We walked through the Wynn and Encore complex and ended up having dinner as Wazuzu. It was nice! Great sushi and sashimi (I absolutely love tuna), nice Thai druken noodles (good for breakfast, too), and great Panang curry.

We slept in today and then went down to the Auto Collection Showroom down at the Imperial and had lunch at a Thai dinner (yes, we love Thak food). Tonight, we're going down to the Mirage to see Ron White - can't wait!

Zeroing a new SIG516

Was on a business trip last week. I got home on Friday, my birthday. I rarely work on my birthday -- in fact, this was only the second time in the last 27 years. Something to do with having to work on my birthday when I was younger. In any case, how happy was I when she said, "Let's go get that rifle you've been wanting!" COOL!

I know there are on-line sources that give a wide selection and you really should get what you want. However, when your woman gives you a chance like this, you jump on it THAT DAY! I've been looking at Colt, LMT, and Sig for a while. Readers know I'm partial to Sig, but in this case I was leaning towards LMT. However, couldn't find a free floating 5.56 for either Colt or LMT. So, I stuck with Sig Sauer. My wonderful wife bought me a SIG516 with Sig's red dot scope. The SIG516 is gas piston operated, with a 3-position regulator. It's chambered, of course, for 5.56 NATO with a free-floating barrel with quad rails (full-length upper). As this one had the red dot, it did no have iron sights -- which is too bad, because I've always like shooting iron sights. That's probably a left over from basic training. Who knows?

In anycase, I got to take it out to the range the following weekend. We went up to the mountains to a small public range. We had to share with a single shooter who was working on his 30-06 for elk season. I got the SIG 516 red dot zeroed in and really enjoyed shooting groups for a couple of hours. Also got in work with my Benelli Nova and P226. It made for a great finish to my birthday weekend.