Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Long Range Hunting Not your everyday long rang rig - NULA Edition

I recently picked up a used NULA 260 and worked with it for the first time this past weekend in hopes that it would make a fine 600 yard lightweight rig. A SS 3-9x42 got the call, as did the 130 Berger and H4350.

Sorry for the pic quality. All the shooting was at last light and pics with an Iphone are tough in the dark.










It looks promising at 100 yards, with dang good velocity (2910 fps), and no pressure signs to boot.

The longest I can go at home is 400 yards. Failing light ended yesterday on the 100 yard group so I had intentions of stretching it out this afternoon. Of course I got hung up at work but rushed home in time to let five fly at 400 just before dark. I wish the pics were better, but you get the point.

Yes, thats 5 shots at 400. Dang that 3 o'clock flier.






Next up will be 1000 yards and dope confirmation, maybe this weekend.

Looking good again ctsmith........

Ya that'll do!! Those Bergers will bounce off game... grin

That is outstanding!
Definitely a keeper!!!
Good shooting on your part with a light weight rig

Very, very nice!! That's the very rifle that I want and for the same reasons.

Is that a #2 contour barrel?

Thanks guys.

It's a #1 contour. Bare rifle is 5 lbs 2 oz

The photo had me fooled. It looked a little heavier than the #1 I'm used to seeing on NULA rifles.

Good looking rig..did you build that on a long action? If so how does it feed from the box?

Bill

Bill, its a Model 20 short action which has a magazine length of 3.000 which gives plenty of room to spare.

Fine shooting, thanks for the posts.

It's a beautiful thing.

Nice shooting. :-)

Damn you bud...grin...

Very nice gun in a great cartridge. Looking good.......

Sure is a fine rifle ctsmith, a little heavy for my liking but each to their own i guess ....

and groups like that, gameover, thanks for posting

Nice shooting!

Ctsmith,
Nice rig, I like the light weight long range theme you got going on.
I am curious how do you like the SS.3x9 compared to the Nightforce on your Strata 243?

You shoot better at 400 than I do at 200.

CT,

I almost passed over this post as it nought it a continuation of the first....

You are a shootin machine partner, nice job!

And once again, thanks for sharing something other than political BS!

Thanks guys. Regarding the shooting, I was obsessed with archery for a while and my light weight shooting skills were a little rusty. I have a proven light rig that I warmed up with that was constantly throwing fliers when I was certain the crosshair was where it was suppose to be. I got it worked out by the forend grip, trigger hand grip, and shoulder pressure and everything started working again.




Greg,

I've got a 308 I'll sell you. LOL




Scott,

I'd rather be better on the shots that count, and you've got that down pat my friend.



Akbob,

Appreciate the compliment, but not sure about the Political BS assertion. First time I've ever been accused of that.




irfubar,

SS vs NF

I recently picked up the SS 3-9x42 based on Greg's persuasion. He liked it so I gave it a try.

Reliability and tracking - I'm new to the 3-9 so for reliability and tracking, its reputation alone is all I'm standing on.

Glass - Its close enough that I do not notice a difference in general shooting, though I am not one to look at them side by side to compare.

Reticle - I prefer the SS Milquad to the NF Mil-R. If low light is in the equation I prefer the illuminated reticle on the NF, but sometimes I like the simplicity of not having one. The SS FFP is foolproof but the SFP on the NF is better when turned down in lower light or tight quarters, especially when combined with the illuminated reticle.

Parallax adjustment - I waiver back on forth on this one. When shooting targets I like to adjust parallax. In hunting situations with a self imposed 600 yard limit I do not feel it is necessary and do fine without it. Like the illuminated reticle, sometimes simplicity rules the day.

Zero stop - This was the main hang up for me on the SS because I've been burned before without one (off a rotation and I have no idea how it happened), so definite advantage NF.

Turrets and clicks - The NF clicks are much more positive than the SS, though the SS is definitely adequate. The NF is lower profile which I prefer.

Tunneling - The NF has no tunneling while the SS tunnels below 4x, but this is a total non factor for me.

Eyebox / Eyerelief - Both scopes are extremely comfortable to get behind with a nice eyebox. The NF is a fixed 3.5" which is nice. The SS is from 4.1 - 3.0" at 9x. 3.0" seems tight but it has proven to be a non issue and though I've not measured it, I can tell no difference between it and the NF when shooting. I would not be surprised if the 3.0" is a conservative number, it just does not feel that tight.

Overall ergonomics - The NF "compact" is in fact more compact, which I prefer, though the SS 3-9 is much more tidy than their fixed offerings. On the postal scales the difference between the two is less than one ounce; both in the 20oz range. Even though I prefer the NF, I have no problems with the SS.


Conclusion - If you were giving me one, pass the NF. If its my money, give me three SS 3-9s as opposed to one NF.

If SWFA would cap the windage turret and add a zero stop, I'd be hard pressed to ever stray from it on a dialing hunting rig.

I'll add a +2 to the ULA 260 brag board. Only thing wrong with mine is that it's not threaded for a suppressor.


ULA 260 @ 511 Yards

ULA 260

Very nice!V

I'll add +3. Mine's a little beefier, I went with a 23" #2 barrel, but even with the 20 oz. scope (S&B PM II 10X) it still comes in at 6 3/4 lb. unloaded. Mine shoots about the same as CT's, but with 123 Scenars at just under 2,900:





It's a little heavier, but not too heavy to carry up the mountain

Wow, sweet rigs both.

Yeah, Melvin makes some nice rifles.

I'd like to have one in 6.5 CM #2 contour barrel. Or, something like that.

The 6.5CM with a no.2 would be "perfect" to me. I like the 260, but 6.5 CM brass is everywhere around here, the 260 not so much. And I'd say, designed from the floor up, the CM is how I'd build a 6.5.

Thanks Brad, those are my thoughts too.

The mag box length on a Model 20 is 3" and Lapua makes 260 brass. Those are the two reasons I went with the 260.

Exactly! Accurate 130's at 2900 is hard to argue with.

I have the exact twin to that rifle except of course, my bolt is on the correct side. I have been using 120 BT and R-15 but going to give the 130 AB a run. I am going to try some R23 with the 130's.
Mine is scoped with a Swarovski 4X12X50 with a ballistic turret. Actually pretty light and trim for a 50 MM scope (14 oz.)
My son is a gunsmith that works for Melvin at NULA so I do have some insight as to how these rifles are built. The stocks start up as a roll of kevlar and carbon fiber...all hand lay up. A lot hands on and Melvin puts each one together and test it before they leave the shop.

Lefty C

That's cool lefty, I'd love to tour that place!

Thanks for the follow up information.

I can see the people at NULA sure know how to put a 260 together.

I'd forgotten about the M20 3" magazine. The 260 certainly makes more sense than the Creedmor in that length magazine, at least to me. I've only owned one 260, and only ran Lapua brass in it, which is outstanding stuff. In a 2.8" magazine I'd prefer the Creedmor... I think

I think it was you who posted "don't forget to try H4831" on the 260 load thread in the reloading forum.

That was good advice at least for mine. 48 grains and a 123 Scenar shoots like a dream in that rifle.

Yes, after fiddling with H4350, I finally went to H4831sc and hey-presto, got bugholes with 120's. Neat round the 260.

H4350 is treating me more than good, but might try H4831 just for the heck of it. I've a decent stash of both.

A smart man.

You guy's have some nice rifles.

CT, when you do I hope you post your findings. I'll be interested to see what your results are. That's a fine rifle you have there.

CT,

It was not an assertion directed AT YOU but rather a comment about the general "atmosphere of late." Not accusing you of anything other than some good shooting and sharing some quality experience and information.

Bob, thanks! Appreciate it. I must have a guilty conscience.

Try some Reloder 17 in that while you are trying new powders, mine sure likes it.

It's not every day you see rifle that can go 6.5 lbs with a 10 x SS mounted!

Forbes is the Grailmaker in lightweight rifles.

I agree with everything you said here. Damn...I may be giving Melvin a call.

I've owned lots of rifles in my time, but the only ULA was one of the first 50 cal muzzleloaders that Mel used himself for a while. I'll have to add one to my trimmed-down arsenal....not into the big calibers and magnums any more.

I tried H4831SC today. It did not perform as good as the H4350 in both accuracy and speed.


H4350 0.95" and 2910 fps
H4831 1.2" and 2855 fps.

I will say that I was not on my A game today. A 10 shot group with the technique required shooting a 5lb rifle can be nerve wracking and I was not satisfied with half the shots when the trigger broke. I think the the group size could easily shrink on a good day.

Talk about a compressed load. 48.5 grains of H4831SC. Absolutely no pressure signs, but I know it has to be close.

I neglected to tell you that I did use a drop tube when loading that charge...

John

I used a drop tube and poured slowly.

It's in what used to be his garage. You can do a complete walk around in about 3 minutes. Then you would go sit on a stool by a bench and BS rifles with Melvin the rest of the time.

However, most of the time you would be interrupted by his old style pocket phone ringing and him answering questions talking with pervious and future customers.

Interesting CT. I stopped at 125 gr's of bullet weight with H4831sc. Seemed best with the 120's - 125's.

I'm using it with 123's and 48 grains and it's a winner there.

Have you noticed any runout issues following from seating bullets with heavy powder compression?

BTW, 1 MOA +/- for ten shots is better than most can manage from a sporter, let alone a five pound one, internet blather notwithstanding.

I measure runout on every round. The 260 Lapua brass is pretty good, but not as good as the 308 that I shoot a lot of. With the 308 nearly every round is less than .001. With the 260 most range from .001 to .002 with some nearly .003, but none in excess of .003. I didn't notice compression effecting it any. What I did find is that with a micrometer seater you've got to dial nearly twice the required value when heavily compressing. With no other changes, the seater had to be turned down .010" with the compressed load in order to get the same seating depth.

That's one of the reasons I try to stay away from much powder compression.

Agree! Not a big fan of compression either. Sticking with the H4350 in this case for sure.

Nice rifle. Had me one just like it that did not shoot nearly as well. .

Since you suckered me out of that cream puff, would you consider an hour or so of shooting and loading advice next time I drive through your town on the way to FL? The insult to injury here is that the proceeds from the sale of this rifle probably found their way into my kitchen remodel. Would have felt better, and more macho, if had used proceeds to immediately buy something like a Colt Python or a used 4wheeler:).

Stop by anytime. Look forward to it!

I swung wide on my way down to Tennessee for the 2012 Pig Hunt and visited Melvin.

We did just as you said; the 3 minute tour of the shop then pulled up a stool. His phone only rang a couple times as it was near quitting time!

The shop isn't as big as I envisioned but IIRC he paints in the basement?

I wish I'd have snapped a picture or two but didn't. He was very cordial and I was honored to meet the Man.

Bump!

Have a good day.