People who own "black rifles" love target shooting ...

Modern Sporting Rifle Owners Are Most Active Shooters, Says NSSF/Responsive Management Survey

The first comprehensive survey to look at ownership and use of modern sporting rifles reveals that 8.9 million Americans went target shooting with AR-style rifles in 2009 and that participants using this type of rifle were the most active among all types of sport shooters.

"These findings underscore that modern sporting rifles are becoming commonplace in America and are among the most desired firearms by sport shooters," said Steve Sanetti, president of the National Shooting Sports Foundation, trade association of the firearms industry. "Those who want to ban these civilian sporting rifles simply because they look like military rifles must acknowledge after seeing this study that AR-style rifles are exceedingly popular with millions of Americans. These rifles are our industry's high-tech, cutting-edge product -- rugged, accurate, versatile, fun to shoot and easily accessorized -- and they're here to stay."

The study, "Shooting Sports Participation Survey in the United States in 2009," was conducted for NSSF by Responsive Management through a random digit dialing telephone survey of 8,204 U.S. residents ages 18 and older. (This is a separate survey from the NSSF/Harris Interactive online poll announced in a March 31 press release.) To avoid confusion, the term "modern sporting rifle" was further defined as an AR-style rifle.

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New High for Overall Participation -- 34.4 Million Shooters

The statistics related to modern sporting rifles were part of a wide-ranging survey that revealed a new high-water mark for annual participation in formal and informal sport and target shooting. The study showed that 15 percent of the U.S. population, representing 34.4 million people nationwide, went target shooting in 2009. This number surpasses all other previous survey estimates of annual sport shooting participation.

"Recreational shooting had a banner year in 2009," said Sanetti. "Firearms sales were way up, so it's really no surprise that more people are enjoying the shooting sports than ever before."

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"We hope this survey helps shed light on the often misunderstood modern sporting rifle and demonstrates the tremendous appeal they have with recreational shooters," said Jim Curcuruto, NSSF's director of industry research and analysis. "This survey provides a baseline to measure what will undoubtedly be an increase in participation with these rifles in the future. NSSF will continue to research this exciting segment of the firearms industry in an effort to develop a more in-depth understanding and identify trends for NSSF member companies to utilize."

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Modern sporting rifles, built on the AR-15 platform, are often confused with military rifles such as the M-16 and M-4. While modern sporting rifles and military rifles look similar to each other, the modern sporting rifle functions as a semi-automatic, firing one round with each pull of the trigger. Anti-gun organizations that support banning these civilian sporting rifles deliberately mislabel them as "assault rifles" even though an actual assault rifle is fully automatic -- a light machine gun. Automatic firearms have been severely restricted from civilian ownership since 1934. The AR designation does not stand for "assault rifle" or "automatic rifle," but rather for ArmaLite, the company that developed the rifle in the 1950s. emphasis added
http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/7239

The term "Colonial America" usually refers to the period of American history when the New England colonies were created. Of course, these were known back then as the British colonies. The period is said to have begun with the formation of Jamestown and lasted until the Revolutionary War. The area was marked by small farms, harbors and forests, which made farming, fishing, lumberjacking, hunting and fur trading popular activities that kept families afloat. This was also the period of time in which the New England Confederation was formed in order to defend the citizens of Colonial America against "invaders," such as the Native Americans, Dutch colonists and French.

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Many of the more physical activities that Colonial Americans engaged in were considered a form of training for battle. They allowed citizens to practice their physical prowess, quick reflexes and ability to ward off the competition. Wrestling, target shooting and war games were common.
http://www.ehow.com/about_4572323_sports-played-colonial-america.html

Virtually every type of centerfire sporting rifle in existence started off as a military weapon. The classic lever-action deer gun, long the most popular type of hunting rifle in America, began as the Henry Rifle of the Civil War era, designed to bring rapid fire against the enemy. The lever-action was succeeded in universal popularity by the bolt-action--the standard hunting rifle of today--which we owe to Paul Mauser's classic battle-rifle design.



Now another rifle of military origin is moving rapidly into prominence in the hunting and sport shooting world: the AR15 .223 and AR10 .308. And, like its predecessors, the AR platform is meeting resistance, even outright opposition, from many hunters who are personally wedded to earlier gun designs. No surprise there; when the lever action was first used for hunting, traditionalists, whose idea of a "real" hunting gun was a single-shot muzzleloader, distained the need for a repeat-fire tool.

Technically speaking, it makes all the sense in the world that proven military rifle designs should be inherently appropriate for hunting use. All successful military rifles are specifically designed for rugged, reliable function and durability under extreme conditions, which translates automatically into use under even the most extreme field-hunting use. They're also designed for reasonable weight, portability and ease of fast handling by people who may be carrying other heavy gear and wearing bulky clothing. They have an inherent capability for follow-up shots, and they must be deadly accurate against targets of the same basic dimensions and at the same distances typically encountered by hunters.

The AR in particular is a superb hunting design, due primarily to its lightweight synthetic and corrosion-resistant alloy construction. And, it's surprisingly accurate, due primarily to the fact it's an "assembled" gun rather than a "fitted" gun. Its major components essentially snap together. Unlike a traditional bolt-action rifle, which generally requires close-tolerance, hand-work receiver/barrel mating and precise bedding into the stock for maximum accuracy and consistency, a hunting-grade (or even competition-grade) AR can readily be assembled from modular components literally on a kitchen table, by anybody with a modicum of ability to use relatively simple hand tools. Likewise, a service-grade "standard" AR15 can readily be brought up to minute-of-angle performance by selective replacement of key modular elements with match-grade parts. And, once tuned, an AR stays that way, due to the fact that its entirely nonorganic components (nonwood) are not susceptible to environmental distortion (warpage or swelling). All an AR really needs is a quality barrel to shoot as well as the best hunting rifle you can buy.

Hunting versions of the AR design, in a wide variety of chamberings, are currently offered by several manufacturers. One of the early leaders in AR hunting rifle and sport configurations has been ArmaLite, which offers both lightweight and heavy-barrel configurations in .223 (M-12A series) for long-range varmint and predator hunting, .308-chambered versions (AR-10 series) for deer hunting and competition and even a super-accurate .300 Remington Short-Action Ultra Mag (AR-10T Ultra), which is as good an elk, moose or general heavy game chambering as you can get.



http://www.shootingtimes.com/longgun_reviews/ar15zum_030207/

Model R-25™ Rifle

Overview:

Remington brought the hunting-rifle prowess, and a leading manufacturer of modular repeating rifles introduced us to the 308 Win platform. What emerged is a masterwork of game-dropping performance and hunt-specific features that will load any camp’s meat pole with unrivaled efficiency – the new Model R-25. An advanced, highly lethal blend of accuracy, fast followups and light recoil chambered for three of today’s most popular short-action hunting cartridges – 243 Win, 7mm-08 Remington and 308 Win. This rifle is everything varmint and predator hunters love about our R-15 in a beefed-up design that easily handles cartridges suitable for big-game hunting.

For peak accuracy, its precision-crafted 20" ChroMoly barrel is freefloated within the machined aluminum fore-end tube. Six longitudinal flutes forward of the gas block keep weight to a minimum and facilitate rapid heat dissipation. The barrel also features a recessed hunting crown to protect the rifling and aid in more consistent bullet flight. When it’s time to make the shot, the R-25’s ergonomic pistol-grip gives you unmatched control and rock-steady aim. As a whole, this rifle has a balanced, stable design that makes it deadly from the offhand position. True to our hunting market, the traditional two-stage trigger found on AR-platform rifles has been exchanged for a crisp, single-stage version that comes from the factory set at 4 1/2 to 5 lbs.

Its carefully tuned upper and lower are machined from rugged aluminum forgings. The entire gun is dressed in Mossy Oak® Treestand™ camo that makes it virtually invisible in the field. We included a 4-round magazine, and the R-25 is compatible with DPMS 308 Win-type magazines and accessories. front and rear sling swivel studs are installed.


http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/centerfire/model-r-25/model-r-25-rifle.aspx

In the city I always wished I could legally carry a hand gun and pick off some of the pervs who harassed me as I went about my daily routine.