Today’s Saturday showcase features Palma rifles, and Palma competition. Palma is a prone Iron Sight discipline that dates back to 1876. It is the second oldest rifle match in existence. Palma matches have a history of nearly 150 years, except for a brief hiatus during the late 1900s. The Palma Course of Fire consists of stages at 800 yards, 900 yards, and 1000 yard distances. You get two (2) sighting shot followed by 15 shots to record for a total of 51 shots. According to U.S.A. Palma regulations, the gun must have metallic sights and be chambered in.308 win (7.62×51), or.223 Rem (5.556×45). The majority of rifles featured in the videos are chambered for the.308 Winchester. However, we have a video featuring John Whidden firing his.223 Rem Palma weapon — you’ll notice that the recoil is significantly reduced. Click HERE for more information about Palma Rules. Components of Modern Palma Rifle & Palma Competition Basics
This video is a must-see. This video, hosted by SSG Robert Germanelo from the U.S. Marine Corps Shooting Team explains the basics of Palma competition, and covers the main features of a modern tubegun-style Palma. The featured rifle is equipped with an Eliseo Competition Machine Stock, Krieger 30″ 1:13″-twist barrel and Defiance Machine Rem 700-compatible single-shot action. It also has a Jewell Trigger, Warner Tool Aperture rear sight, and Stallings Machine Right Sight in the front. John Whidden Shoots his Modern.223 Rem Palma rifle
With modern bullets, long barrels and Lapua brass the.223 Rem can compete successfully in Palma competition. Here is a.223 Rem Palma rifle that belongs to John Whidden, a 5-time NRA Long Range champion. Watch the video at 00.25 to see how much less recoil Whidden’s.223 Rem Palma is than a.308 Win Palma. John joked that the.223 Rem rifle only had a “pop and a wiggle” after the shot. Click HERE to read the full report of 1,200 words on this firearm with many more pictures. Modern.308 Win Palma with Custom Anschutz Stock Here is a Palma competitor displaying his modern.308 Win Palma built with a custom-made Anschutz 1913-style stock, with the mainframe crafted by the host. This rig features a 30″ barrel chambered for bullets weighing 155gr. The video explains why the barrel was chosen to be so long and how the stock can be adjusted in many ways to suit the shooter’s prone style. Below is a diagram showing the sight picture. This is covered in the video at 1:56. Palma Rifles Shooting at Bisley, UK
This UK-produced video shows Palma matches at Stickledown Range in Bisley. This video shows the Inter-Counties Match, where competitors shoot iron-sighted Palma guns at targets at 1000 yards. This video is a good introduction to Palma as it is practiced in Great Britain. Canadian Palma Fun – Nova Scotia Shooters At 900 Yards This video was filmed on a beautiful range near Nova Scotia. Two Canadian shooters competed at 900 yards using their iron-sighted.308 win Palma rifles. The video combines 3 different views in one frame so that you can simultaneously see the downrange, the shooters and the shot impact on an electronic target display. The shooters used.308 Win cartridges with Vihtavuori powder and 155gr Sierra # 2156 PALMA bullets. Ballistics Guru Shoots Palma 800 Yards In this video, Bryan Litz, the head honcho at Applied Ballistics LLC demonstrates his shooting abilities. Watch Byran complete his 800-yard phase of Palma course, shot at Camp Atterbury in Indiana during the summer of 2008 Brass Test in.308 win rifle — Lapua vs. Norma Brass The video by Keith Glasscock does not specifically concern Palma rifles. This video provides important information about the.308 Win chambering, which is the most popular for Palma rifles. Keith tests two different brands.308 win brass — Lapua or Norma. The results are very interesting. We have found that Lapua brass is more durable and can take higher loads. NOTE: A.308 Win f-TR rifle chambered to fire heavier bullets was used for this test. It’s a good test for.308 win brass. Palma Chambering and Bullet Weight Limits
There is a lot of confusion about the caliber limits for Palma rifles, and Palma competition. Some people say that you can shoot a 7.62×51 (or.308 Winchester) with bullets up to 156 grain. Others claim that you can shoot any bullet weight with a.308 win (or 7.62×51). Others say you can shoot either a 5.56×45.223 Rem or a 7.62 NATO. Who is right? All these points of view are partly correct. This is because different rules are applied in different venues. In most Palma competitions in the United States, but not all, you can use either a.223 Rem, or a.308 win, with no restrictions on bullet weights. In some US Matches (most notably Spirit of America), certain prizes are restricted to.308s and.223s. What’s the bottom-line? In most USA Palma events, you can choose between a.308 and a 223 without any restrictions on bullet weight. In International Palma Competitions, you can shoot a.308 bullet or a 223 bullet but the maximum weight is limited.
