Wildcats & Result

Spent the afternoon of 10-08 hanging around watching my Dad work on loading ammo for his new rifle, a Kimber MDL 84 'Montana' chambered in 280 Ackley Improved. This was a bit more involved than with std cartidges as there wasn't any new nickel stock available. Time was short so he decided to fire form his own using std 280 Remington casings. The Ackley Improved* version [left front] reshaped the case wall & shoulder angle creating more powder capacity.. easily seen in picture. *http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/P.O._Ackley - .280 Remington Ackley Improved, an improved version of the 280 Remington cartridge with 40 degree shoulder, dies readily available. It duplicates the ballistics of the vaunted 7mm Remington Mag, with 30% less propellant used and less barrel erosion.

Good friend of the family Dennis B fire forms the test loads.

The rifle & Leupold 4.5 - 14X weighed in barely above 6 1/2 pounds.. and yet nipping at the heels of Remington's 7mm magnum ballistics & energy. The next morning it was headed west to Colorado. Included in group; Dad, Denny B and life time friend co-conspiritor, Tom G. Bull Elk had for some unknown reason managed to elude him.. despite countless hours spent in CO, WY, MT, & ID. Not one to take the easy routes he'll always go straight up rather than switch back. A peek to his dedication, during a Manitoba Whitetail hunt he logged 31hrs & 40 minutes on an open platform stand in single diget temps with wind before seeing his first deer. A great Buck that came home with him. This Elk hunt took a different turn. The Bull never knew what hit him and piled right in his tracks, never attempting to get back up. Several people have asked him if he found the bullet and what did it look like? He just smiles and tells them "as far as I know, it's still going". Couple more pics I have on hand from the decades of seasons he's been wearing out vibram soles.

Montana 2007