how did BAMM get started?

[lostvaquero]

Just curious as I do not think thisv was in original WB.

[Grouchy Spike]

Here's what I know, or think that I know: BAM started in Texas at Comanche Valley Vigilantes when Dusty Boddams and Captain Jarrett et al decided to put their old military bolts into action as a side match. It caught on and Goatneck Clem introduced it into either WR or EOT and Evil Roy supported it.  Now the rifles have been included in the CVV  WB match in Doughboy category.  Hondo Tweed and the Oklahoma Territorial Marshals are using the old bolts too.  Hondo might tell us what they are doing.

 

After Dusty Boddams put a BAM rifle in my hands and said 'shoot' during the side match at the 2014 Texas State WB match, I carried the 'infection' down to the Texicans Rangers and the BAM shooters now number about ten with eight more 'lurking' with rifles but not yet shooting.

 

There are about 24 or more shooters spread  from south of Austin through The South Texas Pistolaros in San Antonio to the Texas Riviera Pistoleros at George West, and east through the Green Mountain Regulators at Marble Falls, through the Willow Hole Cowboys at North Zulch, to the Louisiana border.  Plus two west of Austin.  Way west at Anson. 

 

At the BAM side match during the Texas State Cowboy match, the president and vice president from the Butterflied Trail Regulators showed up with their 'new' BAM rifles and threw some lead downrange and I'm looking forward to hearing about their exploits in that club.  Brazos Belle joined the game too with coaching from Crooked Bullet.  Mechanical coaching, she don't need shooting coaching.  Canyon Jim from the South Texas Pistolaros smoked some 30-06 rounds at the targets too.

 

The Willow Hole Cowboys incorporate a full-fledged Wild Bunch category in their Saturday Cowboy matches. Since Shadow Doc and Odessa have BAM rifles, the club has incorporated them into the match WB match in a separate category shooting at the Cody Dixon targets.  I looked at those CD targets last year and they are not large and close.  Shadow Doc and Doc Profit used my 03A3 several months ago to put on a demonstration of hitting those targets, unsupported.  I was impressed!

 

For a while the Texicans allowed BAM rifles in a Sunday match Cowboy 1911 category as a take off on the Cody Dixon category but that's no longer allowed.  It was a hoot!

 

The 1903 and 03A3 lead the numbers in this area, followed by numerous versions of the Mauser.  The K31 is a sneaker.

 

If any other clubs using the old bolts in either BAM or WB, share your stories and ideas!  What models of rifles are y'all shooting?

 

The sure way to expand the game is to carry some extra ammo to a BAM match, invite the uninitiated to shoot five rounds (or more if you have the ammo).  Most of us will be HOOKED immediately and begin looking for a rifle. And more rifles.

 

If there is no established BAM match, survey among your club members for those who have old military bolts, talk about using them in a friendly competition and about BAM side matches.  You will be surprised at the number of cowboys who have an old military bolt in the safe. 

 

Is their military bolt rifle modified?  It might not fit the rules for BAM matches, but to kick start some competition, invite them to participate in an Open category.  Improvise, grow the game!

[Grouchy Spike]

I forgot to mention that the Green Mountain Regulators near Marble Falls incorporate a BAM match into their monthly Long Range match on the 4th Sunday.  Long Range shooters shoot three targets at 100, 150, 200, 250, 300, and 400 yard lines for the precision sighted rifles, and BAM shooters shoot  three targets at each 100, 150, 200 yard line and then backwards 200, 150, 100 yards.Eighteen (18) shots on these targets.  Circuit Judge added three smaller targets for BAM shooters and three for Long Range, bringing the total to 21 shots.  While shooting BAM rifles out to 200 may not seem much challenge, there are bullseyes within each target scored for 2 points whereas hitting steel is one point.  This is the challenge.  I don't think that a BAM shooter has cleaned the match yet, although several have come close.

 

This is not a timed match, scored on points and any tie is broken by shoot-offs which are increasingly difficult until the tie is broken.

[Abe E.S. Corpus]

We are pretty hard pressed to have any WBAS matches in my area (people are working on it), much less a BAMM side match but I would love to try it.

 

At a recent gun show I ran across an FN 1924 manufactured for the Mexican government in 7mm Mauser.  I thought, what could be better?  I let that one go.

 

I happened to stop by my local Cabelas today to pick up some ammo boxes and what did they have in the "Library" but a 1903A3 and a K31.  Just right for BAMM, right?

[Goatneck]

GS covered it pretty well.  We have been shooting BAMM Matches since 2013 at CVV.  It has developed into a really competitive and fun competition.  I presented this new shooting concept to the Wild Bunch Committee at one of our board meetings.  It was approved by the board and Evil Roy and I established

the rules and they are posted here in the Wild Bunch Forum.  They were then put into the WB Rules Book.  We have held BAMM side matches at Winter Range and EOT. We had a large number of shooters at WR this year.  EOT this year we will host a BAMM Sniper Match with targets from about 150 to 200 yards.  In addition we will be hosting a Dough Boy Side Match.  This will be shot with 5 rounds from your BAMM Rifle including your 1911 and shotgun.  These side matches will only be held during the WB Championships.  Come join in the fun and you will be hooked.

[Buffalo Dick WB]

There was a BAMM side match at the Illinois state WB match. Due to rather lousy weather there were some WB cancellations and I think just under 30 shooters shot WB. I believe there were about 14 entrants in the BAMM match-a pretty good percentage. The match consisted of three 16" targets at 85 yards shot from a table with the shooter doing three Nevada sweeps starting with a stripper clip in the receiver but no rounds in the magazine. The target size and range were limited by what was available. The predominent rifle was the Springfield o3-a3 with a couple of 03's. I saw one Swedish Mauser model 96, an Enfield No.1,mkIII and I shot a Remington Model of 1917.

 

Obviously, a majority of the shooters cleaned the run with the winner determined by time. My decision to try it was a last minute thing; I was using borrowed ammo that may not have been a good fit for my rifle and I really didn't get it sighted in. I think I missed six targets but after someone told me I was hitting low, I cleaned the remaining targets. It appears my rifle will be "on" at 100 yards, with BAMM loads, with a 600 yard(!) sight setting. I thought there was something wrong with my rifle or sights until I heard another shooter comment that his sights were set at 600 yards as well.

 

I'm in the process of getting and testing components to load for this rifle.

 

Everyone shooting the BAMM match seemed to have a great time. I'm shooting a local WB match this weekend. While I don't have any cast bullet loads yet, I might take some of my rifles to the match just for show and tell and to talk up BAMM.

[DUSTY BODDAMS]

BD, use of gc bullets with the gc on is probably going to have the 17 shooting for you. I have not had hardly any luck without gc in the mil spec guns. Couple of go to guys for bullets are Norm Purcella with a 170 gc and hitek coated. Hoodoo Brown will make you some bullets that are gc and lubed to get you started. Best start for the mark 4 would be to slug the bore and see what it is. Dusty B

[Garrison Joe]

It appears my rifle will be "on" at 100 yards, with BAMM loads, with a 600 yard(!) sight setting.

 

That is a VERY common result.    Somewhere between the military rear sight markings for 300 and 600 yards is usually where a 1500-1600 FPS cast bullet will be sighted in for a 100 yard BAMM target.    There's a lot of drop difference between 1500 and 2500 FPS!

 

Good luck, GJ