E.L.K., INC.
P.O. Box 85 Gardiner, MT 59030
www.elkinc.com 1-800-272-4355
SQUA FREE
CATALOG UPON
REQUEST Predator Decoy
WKING MAGPIE ♫ ♪
Creates a realistic kill site with excellent visual appeal plus actual magpie feeding sounds!
The “MINI” SIREN Coyote Locator
You “Siren”, They Howl!
POWER HOWLER
HOWLS ~
CHALLENGES
BARKS ~
Used in winning the World Championship!
Universal Coyote Call Preferred by government hunters
YOTE BUSTER
Coyote Distress- Sqeaks-Mock Coyote Fight
THE COYOTE HUNTER BOOK
Offers a
complete look at tactics,
equipment and techniques for hunting coyotes.
Page 18 Winter 2012
Rabbit Distress- Howls-
pressures as compared to those from a straight-walled cartridge design. The fi rearms manufacturers found out, un- fortunately in some cases after the fact, that the 17 HMR possesses an entirely different time/pressure curve than that of the 22 rimfi res, even including the 22 WMR. When the HMR fi res, the bolt slams back much faster and more vio- lently than with the 22 counterparts, and for that reason it isn’t compatible with their current designed semiauto actions. Early in 2004 Sturm, Ruger & Co.
apparently tried to get out ahead of the curve with an announcement that they would be chambering their very popular 10/22 semiautomatic rifl e in 17 HMR. That was welcome news for those shooters who have come to love the design simplicity and relatively low cost of the 10/22 rifl es. And, I seem to recall that there were even rumors that the company’s Challenger Model would also be made available in that caliber. The Challenger is simply a cut-down, but attractive, handgun version of the 10/22. Remington followed suit by of- fering their Model 597 chambered in 17 HMR, but soon both companies came to regret those hasty decisions and quickly news releases started to fl ow warning against shooting 17 HMR ammo in semi- auto fi rearms and in particular those very same rifl es. VOLQUARTSEN CUSTOM’S 17 HMR But if you are lover of semi-
automatics there is good news on the horizon. Volquartsen Custom, located in Carroll, Iowa, offers a blowback-de- signed semiautomatic chambered for 17 HMR. The company produces beautiful- to-the-eye and exceptionally functional rifl es and pistols that are chambered for all of the currently manufactured rimfi re cartridges, including both the 17 Mach 2 and 17 HMR. From Volquartsen’s humble be-
ginnings in 1974, operating out of a base- ment of a rented house under the name of Tom’s Gun Bluing Shop, the company has progressed into an impressive op- eration as a true custom rifl e and pistol manufacturer. Currently Volquartsen offers far too many optional fi rearms choices to adequately list here, but on a special order basis customers have the ability to custom-tailor a semiautomatic rifl e, or even a semiautomatic pistol, specifi cally to fi t their needs and per- sonal preferences. This might include a
McMillan thumbhole composite styled stock, a laminated wood stock available in a wide variety of colors and designs, or a radical appearing stock the com- pany calls their “Inferno.” The barrels can be nonfl uted, or fl uted in a variety of designs and patterns. And, metal fi n- ishes vary from blue/black to brushed stainless or even camo. THE TEST RIFLE
I became captivated by the fact
that Volquartsen Custom was doing something that no other company seemed to be doing – that being to build a semiauto capable of safely shooting 17 HMR cartridges. So, while attending the annual SHOT Show in Las Vegas and seeing the quality of the fi rearms that Volquartsen was producing, I asked about the possibility of getting a rifl e for testing. The company agreed and a few months later I found myself holding a beautiful Volquartsen semiauto rifl e chambered in 17 HMR. It came with a brown/gray laminated thumbhole stock, snake fl uted barrel, and a snake compensator. The barrel was a little less than 20-inches overall (including the compensator) and possessed the standard twist rate of 1:9 used for most 17 HMR rifl es. In reality, because the compensator is not rifl ed, that would make the actual rifl ed portion of the barrel somewhere around 17.5-inches in length. Using my Lyman trigger pull gauge I found the trigger pull had a nice 10-pull average of 2.57-pounds with only a 0.6-pound spread between the measurements. The general specifi cations for all
Volquartsen rimfi re rifl es include such features as a stainless steel CNC ma- chined receiver with a threaded 0.925" diameter barrel. The bolt is also CNC machined and features a round titanium firing pin and heavy-duty extractor. The trigger group is a TG2000, which is capable of very light trigger pulls. The magazine is a Ruger JMX-1 rotary type, in this case capable of holding up to nine 17 HMR cartridges. The built-in receiver scope base on the test rifl e appeared similar to a Picatinny rail system, which accepts Weaver-style scope rings. This also would include the quick release style rings produced by companies like Leupold and Warne, both of which are particularly favored by me. To complement the high quality of the Volquartsen, I topped off my rifl e
Improved!
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