Awesome 2 Mile Rifle by Speedy Gonzalez

[dakota.potts]

I was scrolling Facebook the other day when I came across this beauty in a gunsmithing group posted by Thomas "Speedy" Gonzalez who is a renowned gunsmith and benchrest shooter. As a gunsmith and precision rifle shooter myself I thought this thing was awesome. I contacted Mr. Gonzalez (great guy to talk to) and he was more than happy to allow me to write an article about the rifle and use all of the pictures he had posted. You can find the article here:

Building a 2 Mile Rifle with Thomas "Speedy" Gonzalez

But I wanted to share this here because I thought it would be appreciated. First, some pictures.













Here are the specs as he shared them:

• BAT Model L Action
• Caliber .375 Cheytac
• 36" Bartlein barrel with a 1:7.5" Twist Rate
• Blueprinted Fire Control Group
• Kelly McMillan "Beast" Stock with Speedy Cooling Ports
• Carbon Fiber Bedding Block
• Terminator 5 Muzzle Brake
• Blueprinted Jewell Trigger
• Vortex Razor 35mm Scope
• 60 MOA BAT scope base
• Long Range Arms SendIt Level with custom mount made by Speedy
• R.A.D. Recoil Reduction System
• Pictured with Atlas Bipod but will have a Phoneix bipod for the match.

This thing is a beast with tons of custom work done. Blueprinting the trigger and the fire control group is a process I haven't heard of from other gunsmiths before. He shared on Facebook that he beds the rifles with custom carbon fiber bedding blocks to resist atmospheric changes, and a number of other custom features were added (such as aesthetic cuts on the action, T-slotting the Picatinny rail in place, and inlaying custom carbon fiber escutcheons)

All I can say is I would love to get behind the trigger of a rifle like this at some suitably long distances, but I think even buying the ammo would be an obstacle!

The rifle was built for the King of 2 Miles competition which is happening July 2nd-5th at the NRA Whittington Center. 50 ELR shooters will compete to engage a series of targets from 1500-3500 yards. The first two days are qualifying for the main event in which 10 shooters (really, 10 teams) will compete. Points are awarded based on the distance of target and the number of shots required to hit the target. For instance, if 3 rounds are allotted, a first round hit is worth triple, a second round hit worth double, and a first round hit worth the standard amount. Teams must hit each target at least once with the allotted round count to move on to the next target and receive more points.

I should note I'm not affiliated with Speedy, his company SG Rifles, The King of 2 Miles Event, or the shooter who will be shooting it at the match. I just thought this was really awesome and reached out for permission to share it.

[dakota.potts]

For those wondering how it shoots:



A Picture out at the Range



A Five shot group at 100 yards



What is purported to be an incredible group at 1 mile!



Showing a sub 4" group at 1 mile (less than a quarter minute of angle)

[Art Eatman]

Thanks.

For those who've never been to the Whittington Center, it's definitely worth the trip. And Raton is a very friendly small city.

[PlatinumCore16]

Originally Posted by Art Eatman

Thanks.

For those who've never been to the Whittington Center, it's definitely worth the trip. And Raton is a very friendly small city.

I had no idea it was that close to Raton. That is less than 2 hrs from my house

Guess I know what I'll be doing on my way back from 4th of July Rodeo... Thanks Art.

Dakota, thank you very much for the pictures and article. That is a beautiful rifle.

[Art Eatman]

http://www.nrawc.org/

http://www.nrawc.org/about-us/local-information/

[old roper]

This is good article on it.

http://bulletin.accurateshooter.com/...ng-of-2-miles/

[T. O'Heir]

The .375 CHEYTAC being the King of 2 Miles is marketing BS. The .50 BMG continues to hit via CF troopies and their McMillan TAC-50 way past 2 miles. Not much past though. 3,871 yards on a man(that being a very wee, small, tiny, target at 2 miles) is 2.2 miles.

[dakota.potts]

The rifle is engraved with king of 2 Miles because it was built for the competition with the same name. 375 is a very viable cartridge for the competition. There are a number of other rounds being used, including .50 BMG and .416 Barrett. I'm sure many others as well.

I don't think anybody implied that it was the best or only caliber for this distance but it's proven out that far and further.

I'm also not sure how extreme long range sporting use is comparable to long range warfighting. Nobody here has tried to make that equivalency

[std7mag]

Sweet rifle! Wish i could afford one, or afford to feed it.

I stopped by Cutting Edge 3 days ago. They are local to me.
Some great people, that know what they are talking about.

As far as super long range cartridges go Cheytec gives good company with their 375 and 408.

BTW. The Canadian snipers were using US ammo, set out in the sun to warm up and give them better velocities. Don't get me wrong, still great shots!!

[Shotgun Slim]

That's awesome when something so functional is so gorgeous ay the same time! Good stuff

[Road_Clam]

.25 moa @ a mile is simply OUTSTANDING when factoring in all the potential wind variables and mirage. Just out of curiosity, what's the weight of that 375 CH rifle ? I shot 1K a few times and it's a real challenge for a typical recreational target shooter. I can't even begin to picture how difficult it must be to proficiently execute a shot at 1+ miles !

[hooligan1]

There's a group of fellas that I know try it every year, I'm not sure of how well they do, but if their even competing, that's pretty cool.
I'm thinking Dave Tubbs and his Son in law will shoot, he came out with a new cartridge which may get a debit, not positive.
What is so cool is just like Dakota and Speedy, these fellas that do this kind of shooting and produce accurate products and rifles are so easy to talk to, don't be afraid to talk with these expert shooters, they are usually happy to help.

[dakota.potts]

.25 MOA is outstanding at any distance! At 1 mile it's just something remarkable. I don't know the weight (I will try to find out) but my intuition tells me it's well north of 30 pounds and possibly pushing closer to 50.

I believe I have seen David Tubb on the roster for this year, if not, then in years past. I will look forward to seeing if there is a new cartridge debut.

What is so cool is just like Dakota and Speedy, these fellas that do this kind of shooting and produce accurate products and rifles are so easy to talk to, don't be afraid to talk with these expert shooters, they are usually happy to help.

Indeed I have found anybody who is into the extreme long range shooting game to generally be very happy to help. I think it's the passion for the experience. It's not something you get into because you "kind of enjoy it". You have to really have an absolute drive and passion for it, and of course that makes people much happier to share with others.

I do cringe at my name in the same sentence as some of the others though. I've got a lot to learn and a lot to do before I have any right to be lumped in with them! Though I do make it my goal to be easy to talk to for anybody who wants to.

[stagpanther]

Following. If you are so inclined--it would be nice to pics/results from comp.

[hooligan1]

Well the results are a local fella won it, he shoots on the Manners team from here in KCMO......SUPER COOL MAN!!!!
He was shooting a 416 Barret, in a Manners 2 Mile stock, won by 20,000 points over second place.