Our International Advisor Contends It Can Be Cheaper
And More Challenging Than Our Present Style!
Originally published in Gun World magazine, May 1969
I'VE HEARD so much about how expensive it is to shoot International targets that anyone would naturally assume that Getty, Hughes and Hunt were the only people able to compete! This is absolute nonsense and it's about time some of these fallacies were dispelled.
First a brief description of International style for those readers unfamiliar with it. International trap, or Olympic trench, as it is known in the rest of the world, consists of fifteen traps, laid out in five groups of three traps - or one group for each shooting station. Each of the fifteen throws a different target, but all travel around 100 mph, between 77 and 87 yards, within a ninety degree angle span and at heights varying from grass-cutters to rockets. As the shooter moves to the next station after each shot and the whole selection of targets is changed every five shots, it is impossible to know where your target will be going. American trap has one machine throwing targets at a constant elevation, within a forty-four-degree arc between forty-eight and fifty-two yards.
Olympic skeet uses the same layout as American, but throws targets seventy-two yards as opposed to fifty-five - just changed to sixty yards. The butt of the gun must be on the hip and cannot be moved till the target appears, which can be immediately or with up to three seconds delay. In American skeet, the shooter starts with the gun in his shoulder and the target always is released immediately.
As these are the only fields of shotgunning where you can represent your country in the Olympics, World championships, Pan-American Games and all other International championships, I feel they are worth fostering and developing. Little is required to participate in the world's most elite and challenging of shotgun sports.
First off, let's dispense with the idea that it has to be shot with those fancy-grade engraved gold-repositories going under the guise of shotguns! No amount of beautiful engraving ever made any gun shoot any better. It may give the owner a psychological advantage, but only if other shooters let it.
Taking International Trap first, all you need is a perfectly standard trap gun capable of firing two shots, as you are allowed two shots and sometimes you find yourself wishing for a third! Forget pump guns, as there just isn't time to operate the mechanism and catch up with a 100 mph target.
Although I have shot with almost every European, World and Olympic champion in the last ten years and seen the standard grade guns many of them use, we need go no further than the finest International shots in this country to prove the point.
The Air Force team almost all use standard Krieghoffs, which have a particular advantage inasmuch as the point of impact of the lower barrel can be altered due to the lack of a separating rib. The Army team prefers the Browning Broadway – again a standard model. Occasionally a Remington 1100 will be seen on International trap ranges. The Internationally preferred specification of these guns are with thirty-inch barrels and a standard ventilated rib, bored to throw 60 - 65 percent lower and 70 - 75 percent upper.
Although the Army shoot mighty well with the thirty-two inch muzzle-heavy Broadways, which they had made for them, I do not recommend them. Many top International shooters in Europe tried them out, but soon returned to the standard ribbed thirty-inch barrel. Although it is a matter of opinion, this gun seems better suited to American trap shooting, where a slow, deliberate movement is made to a slow target and the shooting method is that of pointing out a sustained lead. On International, there is no time for this and the only possible method is swinging-through - passing the target at overtaking speed and firing at the moment of passing, the overtaking speed providing the lead. For this you need a gun that shoots exactly where you move it to without the excessive lead given by a muzzle-heavy gun.
If your gun is in this category, it is simple to alter. Remove the heel pad, loosely pack the access hole to the stock-retaining bolt with Kleenex or cotton wool, then put some old fishing weights in the very end of the stock until the gun balances on the joint pin (the large pin just forward of the trigger guard).
middle of the three traps
This way, the weight of the gun will be distributed evenly between the hands and you won't have to lug a lot of excess weight around in your left hand. Be careful not to make it stock heavy or you then will have muzzle whip. If you want, you can have a lower comb (more drop) than on an American trap gun, as you get low, as well as high targets instead of constantly rising ones.
However, I don't feel it is necessary to start carving down your trap stock, as most International shooters I know use standard trap stocks and many have been successful with even higher combs (less drop).
An alternative employed by Perazzi, who specializes in guns for International competitions, is to keep the same drop, but have a centralized point of impact. Most other trap guns are built to throw two-thirds to three-quarters of the pattern above the aiming point at forty yards. However, we have a Cockney saying in England, "Yer pays yer money and tikes yer choice" - otherwise expressed as, "One man's :meat is another man's poison."
Apart from the Franchi and the Merkel, the only foreign guns which show up in any numbers at International championships are the Beretta - used by Liano Rossini, who placed eleventh in his fifth Olympic Games, having previously placed respectively from 1952: sixth, first, second and tied for second – an outstanding and unique record of both skill and participation in the Olympics. Then there is the Perazzi, designed by Rossini's teammate, Ennio Mattarelli, the 1964 Olympic Gold Medalist. He shot in Mexico with the special Perazzi MX8, imported by the Ithaca Gun Company.
Using the original gun built for him by master gunsmith Daniele Perazzi, Mattarelli also achieved the unique feat of winning the Italian, European and World championships.
Prices of the standard trap models of guns suitable for International start around $250 for the Beretta; (the Franchi is currently only available here in field models); the Browning at $430; the Krieghoff at $550; Perazzi at $825 (or the price of a Diana grade Browning); the Merkel starting around $900, a price caused by the East German government adding a hefty tax.
Other guns quite capable of doing a good job on International are these standard o/u trap models: Ithaca SKB - $285; Winchester 101 $315; Charles Daly - $340 and the Remington 1100 auto at $220.
Ray Stafford (USA) racked up 293/300 with his standard Browning and Tom Garrigus (USAF) was one bird behind with his standard Krieghoff - excellent scores, which carried these fine young men into the Olympics and twenty-one-year old Garrigus to the silver medal. Shooting in his first major International Championship, after scoring 196, he went 50-straight in a three-way shootoff, beating Czekella of East Germany and the experienced Senichev, who, in 1964, had beaten America's Bill Morris and former gold medalist Rossini in a shootoff to win himself the silver in Tokyo. The 1968 Olympic gold medalist for Great Britain, Bob Braithwaite, a forty-three year old veterinarian, who shot a brilliant 198 to equal the Olympic record set by Mattarelli in Tokyo, when Bob came in seventh with 192.
The 15 traps in the International bunker are divided into five groups of three, one group in front of each shooting position. Left trap throws target to the right, center trap straight ahead and the right trap to the left.
body position shows how far acute right angles go.
This is a tension-free, simple stance for International trap. Left knee just broken, body
inclined forward from the ankles up, head well down on the stock. Moving on to skeet,
the problem is even easier – it just isn't a problem.
Any standard skeet model automatic or superposed will be perfect. Again the pump is out, as it cannot be operated fast enough for the speedy International skeet doubles. Again, get the gun properly balanced as with the trap gun.
Most International skeet shooters use guns with more drop than American skeet models. As the the gun is mounted from the hip, a time saving is effected. The gun is brought up to the face and the lateral swing commenced immediately – the additional movement of lowering the head far enough to "cheek" the stock. This is done by American skeet shooters to calling for the target, when they mount the gun deliberately in the shoulder. Some American International shooters try to copy the same formula, but when mounting from the hip on fast moving targets, there just isn't time. In line with the increased drop and bringing the gun up to the face, most International skeet shooters also adopt a more upright stance than Americans.
The only other change needed will be to cover your rubber heel pad with leather or simply lacquer it to prevent it snagging on clothing as it is mounted from the hip.
Turning to loads – the howl goes up that you have to use 3-1/4 - 3-3/4 drams of powder with 1-1/4 ounces of nickel-plated shot. Although this is the standard load in Europe, it is for a specific reason.
Until the invention of the plastic shot collar, the only way to reduce pellet deformation in the barrel and get really good patterns was to use nickeled shot. This is now obsolete, but as tradition dies hard in Europe and power-piston collars are only beginning to be used, there is still wide-spread use of the more expensive nickel shot. But a layouts like the like the Bois de Boulogne in Paris and Charleroi in Belgium, where the targets are tougher and often thrown a good one hundred yards, I have seen actress/shooter Jill Curzon win in a gold medal using standard 1-1/8 trap loads in both barrels!
I have tried Winchester, Remingon and Federal International loads and all are excellent. The armed services teams have a preference for the Remington and Winchester, while I lean to the Federal, as it is cheaper and a sweet-shooting shell with a devastatingly effective pattern. However it is perfectly feasible to use a standard trap load first barrel and only use the heavier shell as, a backup for the occasional second shot. I also have seen shooters here put up respectable scores in the 90s using trap loads in both barrels. Favored shot sizes. are either #8 first and 7-1/2 second, or 7-1/2 for both.
If you're reloading and want to put in the extra powder and shot, it probably will cost about an extra penny a shell. If you want to get particular, you could use a slightly faster charge and the type of slightly harder chilled shot used in the International factory loads. It is the same as the shot used in the top grade trap loads, goes under the name of Nation al Premium shot and contains a higher degree of antimony.
People will complain that the use of two shots is going to run up the cost of shooting. The Olympic Games are shot over 200 targets and most other major International championships are over 100 to 200 targets, so you don't have the marathon 500 to a 1000 target races plus shoot-offs. Shoot-offs are rare in International as perfect scores just don't come that easily – only twice has 200 straight ever been done. When you do have one, it generally is over after one round of 25, rarely going to 50 targets. So you just aren't going to shoot as much, which means that you will be able to enjoy the sport at less cost than American trap.
Standard skeet loads in either #8 or 9 are used universally. Again, major championships are of 100 to 200 targets and the same thing applies to shoot-offs – the current world record is 199/200. The only difference in accessories can be that your skeet jacket can have a shoulder patch running clear down to the pocket to facilitate the mounting of the gun from its position on the hip. International skeet is 12 gauge only.
Both skeet and trap require a greater degree of mental preparation and concentration to hit these fast-moving targets. Timing is the all important factor and separates the champions from the others. There is not time for the slow pointing-out method. You just haul off and trust your reflexes and instincts. At American trap, you can make an error in pointing and have time to recover, realign and still score a kill. At International style, you have one chance before the target has disappeared over the horizon!
On International trap, it's good practice to shoot at bits left from the first shot – it trains you to keep your head glued to the stock and keep on the target for when you really need that second shot.
Apart from the military layouts at Fort Benning, Georgia, with two trenches; Lackland AFB. Texas, and the Marine Corps base at Quantico, Virginia, the only civilian facilities are as follows:
1. The Texas International Gun Club in San Antonio [This is now the NSSA/NSCA home ground. The bunkers are still there, but there are no machines within. -WM] has a first class layout with three trenches (a fourth to come) conforming to all International standards, including microphone release of targets and a timing mechanism on the skeet ranges. This is possibly the most comprehensive layout in the world (only Bologna in Italy has four trenches) and certainly the only absolutely correct civilian one in the States. For information, write Colonel Hank Copsey.
2. International Trap and Skeet Range, El Monte, California, has one trench, which does not strictly conform to International standards and is without microphone release. No skeet timers. Information: Floyd Davis or Dr. Akio Mitamura.
3. Martinez Gun Club, Martinez, California, has one trench that almost never is used, due to lack of interest. No skeet layouts. For information, contact Marty Weiss, a keen international shooter who would like nothing more than to be able to open up the trench - if only shooters would come.
4. Renton Gun Club of Renton, Washington. Here there is one trench and no skeet layout. The Renton layout, however, was built for only $3500, the members contributing their time and labor. Details as to how this was accomplished are available from Merlin Martin.
With the exception of Texas, all the civilian layouts seem to have been designed from a similar pattern which does not conform to twenty layouts I have shot over in Belgium, England, France, Italy and Spain. The difference is that here the over-all length of the trench is greater and the distance between the traps too far.
In Europe all three targets from each group converge on exit, as nearly as possible, from under the line painted on the trap roof to denote the position of the central trap.
With the traps spaced too far apart, this is impossible. For those who may disagree, I recently verified this with the secretary of FITASC, the international body and the President of FITA V, the Italian association. Italy is unchallenged as the country with amost a monopoly on International honors over the Olympic trench
In the absence of sufficient layouts around the country, what can be done to provide worthwhile simulated practice? ATA modified trap is most certainly no answer at all as evidenced by five excellent trap shooters who qualified for the Olympic Final tryout with scores averaging in the high 90s over three hundred modified trap targets. They returned averages in the low 70s over the real Olympic trench.
I almost felt they had been conned, as they were simply not adequately prepared for what they found and it cannot have been a pleasant experience for them. The only satisfactory substitute is the ISU (International Shooting Union) Automatic Trap - previously known as the Continental. It is a multi-angling and elevating trap capable of throwing targets full International distances. Winchester-Westerns Continental Trap, costing $652, conforms to these specifications and there is also a conversion kit for the regular White Flyer Trap at $175 - prices many clubs can afford. ISU Automatic Trap was pioneered by that champion of International Shooting, Mike Tipa of the NRA, who has obtained its acceptance for the Pan American and Asian Games. Layout specifications are available from Mike at the NRA or from the United States Interntional Trap & Skeet Association.
It is also a little sad to note that around Milan, Italy, there are more International layouts than in the whole of the United States. Little wonder the Italians have won two golds, two silvers, a bronze and a tie for silver in the last four Olympic Games. This impressive record was contributed to by having Olympic trenches in almost every small town. If they can find the money to do this, surely America can. •
Originally published in Gun World magazine, May 1969