Wine mogul Wolf still on target Build your own chassis rifle March 2020 AUSTRALIAN $8.95 incl. GST ShooterTHE MAGAZINE FOR SPORTING SHOOTERS PAWS FOR THOUGHT Secrets of gundog success RUGER’S LATEST right on the money NOSLER puts varmints on notice Pedersoli High Wall - fun and flair combined The official publication of the Sporting Shooters’ Association of Australia Now 196,000+ members strong! Proudly printed in Australia ssaa.org.au ssaagunsales.com Australia’s most comprehensive firearms and accessories trading website Rifles Shotguns Handguns Reloading Scopes Accessories BUY AND SELL NEW AND USED • Firearms, parts and optics • Ammunition and reloading components • Knives and hunting products • Camping gear, vehicles, boats and property Take a look now! ssaagunsales.com NOW OVER THREE YEARS OLD! items listed at 1300 any one time 9500 sold items 19,000 active users TRY IT - IT WORKS ssaagunsales.com This Issue March 2020 FIREARMS AND MORE REGULARS 18 CZ 527 MDT Varmint rifle 35 Commonsense prevails 6 President’s Message in.223 Remington on NT reclass 7 Letters 30 The Project - building a 54 Build your own 7 Insurance Q&A TSP X chassis rifle reloading bench 8 Open Season 36 Pedersoli High Wall fun 71 Carcass cart the wheel deal 10 Reloading and flair combined 78 P30LS 9mm handgun 12 Clay Target Q&A 48 The Baikal IJ-58 shotgun from Heckler & Koch 16 Top Shots 60 SW22 given some timely tweaks 80 French naval cutless 92 Gun & Knife Show List 78 P30LS from Heckler & Kock 82 SSAA club suffers in wake 93 Competition News 88 Ruger’s latest offering of deadly bushfires bang on Target 86 Wine mogul Wolf still on target 94 SSAA Shop 97 Members-only Competitions 98 Jumbunna HUNTING 24 The Offsider - a hunting buddy for life 42 Memories can be more valuable than trophies 72 The buck of a lifetime 76 It's staring you in the face PRODUCTS Our March cover 64 Smart scope a Leupold winner The secrets of gundog success 68 Nosler puts varmints on notice 83 Bushbuck scope covers Senior correspondent Lionel Swift takes a trip back Daniel O’Dea has turned the John Dunn has been in time and documents the spotlight on the Zeiss Victory NEXT out and about with the fascinating history of the V8 4.8-35x60 riflescope, new Browning Maral Big Trans-Tasman shot towers, not an inexpensive option ISSUE Game Rifle and reckons one of which now has pride but one he says will give a it will prove a hit with of place in one of Melbourne lifetime of premium service shooters actively involved CBD’s biggest shopping should your budget extend in feral animal control. centres! to it. 4 Australian Shooter PURPOSE BUILT FOR RIMFIRE DIALS RIMFIRE RIFLES INCLUDED! 3-9X40 BDC 3-12X40 BDC 6-18X40 BDC MULTI-X MULTI-X MULTI-X MULTI-X RETICLE RIMFIRE / AIR RIFLE SCOPE FEATURES SIDE FOCUS ADJUSTMENT FULLY-MULTI COATED OPTICS Side Parallax focus from 10 yards to Multiple layers of anti-reflective infinity (great for air rifles). coating enable superior light transmission and bright images. EXPOSED TURRETS For quick and easy on-the-fly RIMFIRE BDC DIALS adjustments. Ships with one standard ¼ MOA dial along with specific 22LR and 17HMR ballistic dials. WATER/FOG PROOF Nitrogen purged for clarity in any weather. BUSHNELL.COM NIOA.COM.AU NMD282 President’s Message WITH GEOFF JONES AUSTRALIAN Our chance to rally round for bushfire victims o witness the catastrophic toll ing sports and it was at times distressing to taken by the devastating bushfires witness her being hounded out of office. ShooterTHE MAGAZINE FOR SPORTING SHOOTERS that have raged throughout Aus- Perhaps SSAA National CEO Tim Ban- MEMBERSHIP AND MAGAZINE INQUIRIES tralia has been heartbreaking and nister summed things up succinctly in his Phone: 02 8805 3900 T recovering from such awful consequences appraisal of Senator McKenzie’s stand- Fax: 02 9832 9377 PO Box 282, Plumpton, NSW 2761 will take considerable time. And with vari- ing and I’m happy to reiterate some of Email: [email protected] ous SSAA connections directly affected, his thoughts when he wrote: “SSAA is EDITORIAL POLICY this would be a fitting opportunity for our disappointed in the resignation of Senator To create a better environment and community understanding of all forms of hunting and members to become involved and support Bridget McKenzie from Government Cabi- shooting sports. communities, clubs and property owners as net and on behalf of its near 200,000 mem- EDITORIAL INQUIRIES they embark on the long road back to some bers thanks her for her energetic support of Phone: 08 8272 7100 Fax: 08 8272 2945 sense of normality. the shooting sports and our Association. PO Box 2520, Unley, SA 5061 We must all recognise the enormity of “Much of the media and anti-firearms Email: [email protected] Web: www.ssaa.org.au ABN 95 050 209 688 what has happened and help out in what- fraternity has tried to bully and belittle ever way we can and I have no doubt that, her over her involvement in shooting, members strong as of Dec 2019 in the usual spirit of SSAA togetherness, demonstrating their biases and discrimina- 195,862 our members will respond accordingly. tion towards almost one million Australian This magazine is owned and published by the Sporting Shooters’ Association of Australia Inc. Opinions expressed The new year has rolled in and seemingly licensed firearms owners. Attempts have herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the policy of this Association. thrown up a host of issues from floods, also been made to tie in SSAA and our fires, politics and biased media, giving us Victorian branch with Federal funding EDITORIAL MANAGING EDITOR .......................................Allan Blane plenty to think about. where SSAA National and Victoria have ASSOCIATE EDITOR ...................................Thomas Cook So it’s now up to our members to rise to not applied or received any grants from the ASSISTANT EDITOR ........................................ Dave Rose CHIEF OF STAFF ..................................... Jennifer Martens the challenges and get out and participate in Commonwealth. ART DIRECTOR .................................................Mike Barr every aspect of our wonderful sport. Stand- “We wish Senator McKenzie well in her PRODUCTION COORDINATOR & GRAPHIC DESIGNER ............................Elizabeth Tyson ing together can simply mean taking a mate parliamentary career and have no doubt GRAPHIC DESIGNER ............................ Natalie Kuhlmann to your nearest SSAA branch and with more she will continue to be one of its hardest MEDIA & POLITICAL LIAISON OFFICER ..........Nadia Isa WEBMASTER ...........................................Mark Fieldhouse than 400 scattered across this vast conti- working and most dedicated members. As ADVERTISING & PROMOTIONS ............ Karoline Wasiak nent there are plenty of options. an Association we remind all politicians, the COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER ......................Sam Talbot ADMINISTRATION ...................................... Debbie Wing The Australian environment can be a media and community at large that we will SENIOR CORRESPONDENT ............................John Dunn harsh taskmaster and there constantly continue to support those who support us SENIOR CORRESPONDENT .......................... Rod Pascoe seems to be something happening from and speak out against those who don’t.” CONTRIBUTORS THIS ISSUE a natural world perspective. But amid Barry Wilmot, Russell Mark, Sam Garro, Joe Norris, Daniel O'Dea, Chris Redlich, Mark van den Boogart, Royce Wilson, the trials and tribulations our shooting • Page 82: SSAA club suffers in wake of Con Kapralos, Paul Miller, Graham Park, Tobias Turner, Chas Harding. fraternity should always be able to get deadly bushfires out and about and enjoy themselves and I have every faith we’ll do exactly that. STATE CONTACT INFORMATION For SSAA inquiries please contact your state SSAA office: We will stand together and prosper on our NSW 02 8889 0400 WA 08 9497 7919 strengths. Qld 07 3281 3447 SA 0419 849 452 Vic 03 8892 2777 ACT 0423 043 663 On a less satisfactory note, it was disap- Ta s 0418 734 008 NT 0402 013 918 pointing to see Senator Bridget McKenzie NATIONAL CONTACT INFORMATION bowing to pressure to resign from Cabinet SSAA National Chief Executive Officer and Chief Editor Tim Bannister duties in the aftermath of the media feed- Wildlife Programs Matthew Godson PO Box 2520, Unley, SA 5061 ing frenzy around the so-called ‘sports rort’ Phone: 08 8272 7100 affair. During her time as Sports Minister SSAA National Accounts Office President and latterly Minister of Agriculture, Senator Geoff Jones PO Box 282, Plumpton, NSW 2761 Geoff Jones Phone: 02 8805 3900 Senior Vice President McKenzie was a powerful ally to the shoot- SSAA National President Email: [email protected] Lance Miller SSAA General Insurance Brokers Junior Vice President Unit 1, 212 Glen Osmond Rd, Denis Moroney Fullarton, SA 5063 National Secretary Phone: 08 8332 0281 Kaye McIntyre Freecall: 1800 808 608 Treasurer Fax: 08 8332 0303 Alf Bastian Email: [email protected] Please mail all correspondence for the SSAA National Executive to SSAA, PO Box 282, Plumpton, NSW 2761 SSAA - Protecting shooters since 1948 Email: [email protected] 6 Australian Shooter Letters WRITE TO PO BOX 2520, UNLEY, SA 5061 OR EMAIL [email protected] An inspiration to us all happen when the shooting community .303 ammo puzzler comes together. Thank you. Last March I was admitted to Fiona Stanley In his letter about an inheritance of .303 (WA) Hospital’s neurology department, Brent Biglin, via email ammunition (Australian Shooter, August diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome. I 2019), Steve Larkins asked the question: started to become paralysed from my feet ‘What aircraft was still in service that had Private hunters in dreamland up and was soon paralysed from my neck synchronised guns when the ammunition down and put into an induced coma with In response to Leon Wright’s excellent was manufactured in 1950?’ respiratory failure.