I got a few PM asking about HSP, so rather than answering individually, here you go. My feelings on what they do.
In addition to my responsibilities of working booths at the Shot Show, I was able to get out and squeeze my way through the crowd for awhile. I’ve had a long time bucket list of accomplishing 2 things – 1. Participate in a few F-Class events 2. Complete a 2000yrd shot at a 24″ target. So, I’ve been a study of the craft for the last few years and doing all I can to learn more.
For years, I’ve been plinking targets with my hunting rifles at 400 to 500 yrds. Years of learning the right way to reload and brass prep has extended that distance out to 900+ yrds. All with hand loads, hunting grade bullets, and factory rifles. So, now I’m taking baby steps towards the ledge of jumping into a $4,000 rifle to complete my goals. Some guys have a collection of nice cars…well, I have fishing rods and rifles.
So anyways, back to shot show. I had the pleasure and privileged of talking to a number of snipers, world class shooters, and the worlds finest builders. Y^ou would think that after talking to 6 , 10, 15, or more people that you would begin to just tune things out. However just the opposite. The more people I talked to, a couple of very common details were repeated over and over again. Center axis had by far been referenced more than any other thing for a build out. So as I talked with builders and listened to their methodology, a couple of guys rose to the top. These were the guys that I returned to to have very in depth conversations with. Most importantly, I got to talk with the guys that are hands on in the shop. These are the guys responsible for physically putting it all together and making it happen.
Though it won’t happen soon enough, I am thrilled to spend my money with H-S Precision. Poor Kent – I know I’ll drive this guy nuts, but he had the patience of a saint, the knowledge of Encyclopedia Britannica, and the endorsement of everyone I talked to for references.
Kent walked me through every detail of every component from the butt to the muzzle and all the whys/hows,…. . I got to go through their HTR model which is specifically designed for tactical use and long range. This goes back to that earlier comment of Center of Axis. The action, which is the heart of a rifle needs to be the truest of all components. Their process begins there and focuses on everything being true to that. A perfectly straight action will receive and perfectly center it’s bolt. The Threads need to perfectly in line from the center of axis to be centered to the barrel. Next incorporates the ability to control the throat accuracy and depth, along with, the bore of the barrel and the rifling.
Barrels were the next thing that fascinated me. Talking with companies that crank out 100’s of barrels a day…compared to guys who make 4 or 5 a day. When hearing the details of how they test, polish, cut, …. Vs out of the machine and toss in a box, you know who really cares about what they are doing. These guys are 100% committed to building a barrel that has nearly perfect tolerances.
After talking to a lot of machinists, I was surprised at how much variances come out of as CNC machine. In a world where “automated parts” can crank out by the thousands, you find that .ooo1 can equal .001. Because a machine starts at a
reference point (often outside edge) they don’t start from the center axis. They also can have a variance in each direction of length, width, and depth. This can be ok for some parts, but if you want the precision of center, in my opinion it leaves some slop to be dealt with.
Next was their triggers. Every long distance guy I talk to will describe “the element of surprise” as you touch the trigger. When I inquire about creep, they often look at me with a puzzled face like I never touched a good rifle before. The idea is to have a trigger that is so crisp and clean with a perfect break. The HTR I dry-fired had a 2-1/2# trigger. I could not predict the break point to save my life. It was so different from the feel of any other trigger I squeezed before. You didn’t realize your building any pressure on it. You just simply relax and touch it off. As much as I love my Howa’s adjustable trigger and can drop it down to a feather’s touch…its nowhere as crisp as this.
Stock options are about endless. Rather than molded composite or simple injection molding, they layer Kevlar, fiberglass cloth, and fiber carbon. The actions rest in aluminum bedding blocks that are very different from what we normally see. You pop a rifle off of a hunter grade synthetic stock and you see maybe a molded in steel pin and the rest is molded plastic. HSP uses and entire “system” to bed in the stock to assure nothing will ever move. They are so proud of their stock systems that they put a lifetime warranty to it. From there, all the whistle and bells are available to make it a perfect fit.
The distance shooters I talked to (independently of HSP) all said the same thing. HS will guarantee 1/2MOA and give you the load data for that. But once at home, you can continue to tweak that load and still get it much better. This coming from guys that I personally know that shoot well beyond 1400 and 1600 yrds
Now…I have to choose a caliber.
