Free Floating The Ruger Hawkeye Barrel Part 2

Sorry it has been so long since my last update, but it has taken me sometime time to get the work done....

Last time I posted I talked about free-floating a Ruger barrel with the Venom Wedge.... Here are two targets, and I think they speak better for the process than anything I could type...

Before:  This is during the original scope adjustments.... the five shot group near the bullseye is the group to take notice of in the pic... that is after the adjustments, allowing the barrel to cool, and cleaning....

After: This target shows a five shot group fired from the same distance, same box of ammo, and after the free floating of the barrel with the Wedge.... The shot on the bullseye is a sixth shot with me holding low, and to the right.... without adjusting the scope....

As you can see it has made a big difference in the grouping of the rifle.... we can also do much more with the Ruger rifles... as well as other brands.... give us a call to improve your rifles accuracy. 1-606-438-0140

Free Floating The Ruger Hawkeye Barrel

Just finished work on the Ruger Model 77 Hawkeye in .338 Federal, and it has really made a big difference in the performance of the rifle. The rifle I have has the synthetic stock, and was easier to do than the wood stock versions of the Ruger Hawkeye. The method that I have come up with is simple, inexpensive and very effective in improving the performance of these rifles. It is done by making three modifications to the factory stock.  We will be offering this service through Venom for $35.00 on the synthetic stock, and $55.00 on most of the Wood versions. If you are interested in having your Ruger's barrel free floated please call 1-606-438-0140 ....or you can email me at lfc@venomcartridgecompany.com......... We would be happy to do the job. I hope to have more on this modification (including target pics) on the company web-site soon. I am waiting at this time to finalize steps to protect this method for the company.

.338 Federal Range Report

Well yesterday I took the Ruger Model 77 Hawkeye chambered in . 338 Federal to the range again, and I have to say the more I shoot it the more I like this cartridge.... I like so much that I have scraped my idea for a similar wildcat that I called the .325 V Tac. The .338 Federal is pleasant to shoot, and really packs a nice punch when it hits... the penetration is excellent for such a small cartridge even with the cheaper bullets.

On this trip I took some factory ammunition to try for a comparison to what I have been handloading here at Venom. I had Federal's American Eagle # AE338F factory load.. that is topped with a 185 grain SP bullet that has a Ballistic Coefficient of .378; factory stated 2,750 fps velocity... and 3106 ft. lbs of energy. My Chrony showed similar stats for the cartridge.. so similar I see no reason to list all of the readings here in this blog post. The only aspect that I see where the cartridge is lacking compared to the handloads I have been doing is the bullet... I have been using Hornady, and Barnes premium bullets that perform much better on impact. Weight retention with this load was not the best, but considering this is the bargain load from Federal it is an all around load that is worth what they charge for it....I would prefer a better bullet for hunting purposes. I am thinking that this is going to be the big difference in the Federal ammunition. Simply the more you pay the better bullet construction you are going to get, and such will give you better performance in the field.

Accuracy with this factory load was good.... I hope to have targets to show each load performance when I update the article on www.venomcartridgecompany.com  More as I go with this rifle.

I Am Amazed At My Ruger 10/22

In November of 1987 I purchased one of my first guns.... it was a Ruger 10/22 with the plain Birch stock. I still have the gun, and every time I take it out of the cabinet it always amazes me at just how well the firearm is made. Yesterday was another one of those times.... I had planned on doing a piece on Sonic cleaning is a good part of any scheduled maintenance. At Venom we can do it for around $60 dollars, and if you haven't had it done on a gun that has had a great deal of rounds through it... you should really think about it.

Since I bought the Ruger .22 I had never once had a problem from the gun, and had never done a complete take down of the firearm. Now you are thinking why didn't I do the piece on the Sonic cleaning of the Ruger? Well frankly I am a little ashamed at the condition it was on the inside... being a gunsmith I should never have let it go sooo long. I am really amazed that it still shot so well, and never failed me.

After taking the gun apart I prepared the solution, and tank for the cleaning..... usually the chemicals would have been diluted with more water, but with the parts being so filthy that it was hard to get some of the pins out of the action... I made a much stronger concentration of the cleaning fluid, and tested it on the parts to be sure it would harm the finish. I then turned the machine on, and increased the heat to well over a 120 degrees, and it took several runs through the cleaner to get the job done. After soaking in a water dispersing oil I set out to put the little Ruger back together. It is smooth as it was when I bought it, and no gritty feeling when I draw the slide back!!

If you have a gun that you really love, and want to take good care of it.... keep it properly maintained... schedule maintenance before it fails at the range..... I was lucky.... dirt, and corrosion are the biggest reason guns don't work.

Quick Peek

Got a exclusive quick peek at something new here at Venom Cartridge Company LLC............ I have been working for some time on the design, and have gone through several different mock-ups of the cartridge... this is the final version.................. this at this time is the only bullet we had in stock to use... we hope to have .300 grain up to .400 grain bullets..............

Down The Copper Jacketed Road

Off to do some reloading ! Such a wonderful job! I don't see no rainbows, but still I like to make up my own little song for the Wonderful Wizard of Oz or Handloading? Am I boasting too much? Probably... as it is a wonder I haven't blown a finger or two off in my life!

Today gonna make up some .338 Federal ammunition to scare off the wicked witch targets! You know Piglosi fits the bill as an evil witch! Not to mention a royal bi*ch!! Wonder if anyone makes paper targets with that face on them?

Anyway I am looking at recipes for my little Ruger rifle that should handle a hot load... I find  a bunch for the .338 Federal, but I come back once again to my favorite propellants IMR-4064... I think you can load any caliber with that stuff....

Think this will be the load for today's work.....

200 Grain Hornady SP
45.0c grains IMR -4064 (I preferred a load of 43.0 grains)
Winchester Large Rifle Magnum Primer
Hornady .308 Winchester brass re-formed/
Federal .338 Cases
2.810" Overall Length

Wish me luck!!

,458 African Short Cartridge

Anyone that has followed the web-site knows about my idea for a dangerous game cartridge that is the same overall length as a .308 Winchester... Well we have several designs that will work, and there has been renewed interest in the cartridge from several companies. I am not being boisterous by saying that this could be a revolutionary cartridge for dangerous game... it would also be an excellent Elk, or Moose cartridge.

In talks with the larger companies we have found that the idea is very well received, but the building of a new receiver has held the cartridge back as most like to have a design that will fit right into one of the standard receivers on the market at this time. I am again writing on this cartridge to try and make several understand that a rifle action is made for the parent case, and it would not be that much trouble to build one in a shorter length... testing could be done in one that is standard length, and re-barreled. The cartridge is worth the effort as it is the next big step in cartridge evolution. I am not talking about just another cartridge, but a cartridge that will completely re-write what it takes to hunt dangerous game.

.485 Venom Simply Cartridge

Lately I am all about large magnum rifles, and the cartridges that make them thump so hard. I recently started thinking of a really big bore cartridge for Grizzly bears that would be so simple to do that it would take very little money to get into production. Easier than any other wildcat cartridge idea I have had in the past, or allowed to hit the public. After a lot of reading, and contemplation I came to the conclusion that a straight walled belted magnum would be the way to go as Hornady makes belted blank cases for Handloading, and wildcatting. I wanted a large frontal diameter that wouldn't need a complicated set of dies to make the case. I started with the .475 diameter, but still that would require a forming die be made..... so I got the idea to measure the mouth of the belted blank. .485!! Interesting very interesting.... I like the thought of simply taking the blank, and seating the bullet, but there is no .485 diameter bullets manufactured??? This stumped me.. I liked the idea of a .485 diameter slug in the .400 to .500 grain range........ I couldn't stop thinking of this cartridge.... I mean it would only require a Magnum length action, and a barrel chambered for the cartridge...no forming die, no sizing die at first.... it would be simply done!! I like the sound of that word.. SIMPLY... the .485 Venom Simply... that's the idea! I only need a bullet.... that is easier said than figured out.... you can't just call up a bullet company, and say I want this bullet manufactured.... we at Venom can't afford the equipment at this time to make our own bullets.............. or can we?? Oh that is it.... a way to make bullets... if we use a hard cast bullet at first we can have a mold made for the bullets that wouldn't be too high of a cost..... Lee makes custom bullet molds. Heck I know many hunters that use only hard cast bullets in their rifles with great results, and save a lot of money doing it to boot!! This could be a future article, and project.

Good Day Shooting and Reloading!!

Well finally got to work up my first handload for the Ruger African in .375 Ruger, and it is a hot one!! I am using .225 grain Hornady SP's, Hornandy once fired brass, Winchester Large Rifle Magnum primers, and Ramshot Big Game powder. The more I shoot this rifle the more I love it! I am thinking of adding a few things to it, like maybe a Mercury tube, or muzzle break. I may even change the recoil pad... don't get me wrong it is a great production gun, but being a gunsmith I am always looking to make it my own, and seeing that my arthritis in my shoulder is getting worse a little recoil reduction in all my rifles is a good idea. I compare the recoil of the Ruger African .375 to that of my stock Stevens .300 Winchester Magnum when I first purchased it; before I did the custom job, and made it the Reaper Custom prototype chambered in .300 Venom Magnum Match for Venom Cartridge. More information will be added in an update to the article on our web-site www.venomcartridgecompany.com !! I will announce on Facebook when it is updated.

While on the mountain shooting I took the time to do a (as requested by several ) a public service announcement on keeping the outdoors clean. Now please remember I am a shooter that takes notes not a professional broadcaster, or Hemingway............ Here it is first....... You may have to adjust volume!

What's Happening @ Venom

Today I thought I would give an update on some of the things going on here at Venom seeing that it has been sometime since I announced anything new. The industry as many know is bat crap crazy right now, and everything is in high demand, with very little supply. We have heard from some suppliers that they will be backlogged for sometime to come.... Blackhills ammunition orders are on a year back-order!! Guns are starting to flow into the shops, but not a great deal of them. Since guns, ammo, and powder have been so scarce I have used the time to work in the design room on some new cartridge ideas..... we have been working hard on the African Short Magnum, but until we have a way of building the rifle action it is far from completion........ The new designs are the .458 African Magnum, .475 Simply, and the .425 Vindicator which is my favorite. We are currently working on seeing which will be the first to be scheduled for development. We continue to fight for the Second Amendment on the political front, as well as on a local level to promote the shooting sports. We are still working to bring an indoor shooting range to area, as well as a larger shop. Also we are going ahead with the idea of selecting a Ms. Venom, Little Ms. Venom, as well little Venom Bubba!! We are ironing out the details now, and hope to start the process within a few months. That about covers it all... well all that we can mention that isn't covered by a confidentiality agreement. Add your name to the list of followers to hear more as we work. 

Blog Features and Layout

Today we are going to talk about the blog layout, and all it's features. Of course you can see the main part of the blog; the posts as they are in the center of the page. Well to the right, and at the bottom you will find much more information.

Starting to the right top you will see one of our new logos for Venom Cartridge that is also a glimpse of some new projects. Then a brief statement that answers the question, Just what is Venom Cartridge? To follow the blog you will find just under the statement, a gadget that allows you to type in your email address. We will not have the email address it is done through blogger, so don't worry about any spam or other problems. It is completely secure, and confidential. We have many many fans from various countries around the world, and some don't speak excellent English, so next you will find a gadget that will allow the blog to be translated into other languages. To search the blog for a particular post (of course you will want to wait till we actually get some posts published) you can find a gadget directly under the translation gadget. As many of you know that have read many of the articles on the Venom Cartridge Website occasionally Wikipedia is mentioned, so we have added a Wikipedia search gadget. This will help you look up some of the reference material that is mentioned. As with all the blogs on blogger you will find a archive list for the blog, and Backwoods Venom is no different ours is located on the right below the Wikipedia search feature. The last two features on the right sidebar of the blog are two links to photo galleries, loaded with pictures that we find interesting. The subject matter of the pictures are evident in the title of the albums.

Now to the bottom of the page.... you will find a news feed from Google News... it will show stories relating to certain topics that we follow here in at the company. Then finally you will find two YouTube feeds... the one on the left as the title states is for our Venom Cartridge channel (which we hope to have some new videos posted soon), to the right you will find a random feed of videos on various topics that we like to search for when not trying to blow ourselves up.... We hope you like the new blog, and find it interesting as well as informative. I hope that you will follow us, and like us on Facebook. 

Introduction Public Service Message

Hello everyone welcome to our new blog for Venom Cartridge Company LLC. This is the only official blog for the company. There are others that have tried to use the name; certain properties of the company on their blogs, and web-sites.

We are imitated but never duplicated!! Venom is a one of a kind company.

For the record... We have four main outlets for anything to do with the company. This blog, our web-site www.venomcartridgecompany.com, and the Facebook pages of Venom, and the partners.Any other sources should be considered questionable.

The old blog Kentucky Political Watch was hacked, and destroyed so it is no longer available to the public. We do still have all the information that was published on the political blog.

I hope you like the new blog, and sign up to follow it..........