April 2001

Nesika Bay Precision Tactical Rifles

By Jacob Gottfredson
copyright 2004 Precision Shooting Magazine

Synopsis: This is the last installment of a three part series dealing with Nesika Bay Precision's tactical rifles. Nesika Bay Precision is the manufacturer of one of the highest quality, precision made actions in the world, having gotten its start in the most demanding and prestigious of pure accuracy endeavors: Benchrest. Having then branched out into 1000 Yard Benchrest and other forms of competition, as well as varminting, and hunting, Nesika is now taking on the tough task of building actions and rifles for tactical needs. This series of articles is offered in three parts, beginning with the evolution of their tactical actions, the performance level of their production rifles, and concludes herein with my own spec built tactical match rifle. This final article is devoted to a rifle I specified for tactical matches and Nesika built. It shows Nesika's versatility and ability to satisfy the needs of their customers. A Tactical/Sniper Match RifleA friend of mine who trains tactical shooters makes a distinction between a sniper rifle and a tactical rifle. He uses the term tactical to describe a rifle that law enforcement might use. In general, a law enforcement officer can baby his rifle to some extent. By that he means that law enforcement deployment is usually of short duration, and the officer can retire to relative comfort to care for his weapon on a frequent basis. On the other hand, he describes a sniper rifle as one that is deployed for an indeterminate period of time by military snipers faced with harsh conditions often over long periods of time. And the ability to care for their weapon is often restricted. While the terminology may not be strictly correct, the distinction is. In my estimation Nesika is building rifles to suit both purposes.I offer up a third category: A tactical/sniper rifle used for competing in sniper matches. If such a rifle will not double as a sniper's field rifle, it doesn't seem to carry much future. After all, who would use a rifle season after season for matches, and when deployed use some other rifle of a different configuration? This is certainly a point of argument I suppose. Rather than get into that conflict, let me tell you the result of this tactical/sniper match rifle experiment. You can judge for yourself.Having gotten into the fray, I found that I enjoyed the challenge of sniper matches, although I also found them very difficult from several perspectives: Difficult physically, oft times difficult mentally, and difficult to master the level of performance required. But the more I shot, the more I thought about features that I believed might help increase my performance. The old adage, "I'd rather be lucky than good", can be extended to, "If I can't win through talent, I'll buy it."Sniper matches require the shooter to master several different types of shooting. All must be accomplished without sighter shots, some on first shot, cold, clean barrels. Some shots are taken at long range, some at moving targets. Some shots require considerable speed, while others require the shooter to determine the distance prior to shooting, but do so quickly.For example, one well known and often used course is called, "5 Dot Precision". The 5-Dot matches that I have participated in were shot at close range (75 to 100 yards). In this event the shooter tries to hit 5, 1" dots placed on an image of a human face on an 8 ½ x 11 inch piece of paper in 20 seconds, sometimes 10 dots in 50 seconds. Another event requires the shooter to hit moving targets as they pass through mock windows and doors at a fast pace. From this, one might go straight to the 1000 yard range.In my experience 80 to 90 percent of the shooting is done from the prone position. With these rifles, making each shot as identically as possible is an advantage. For example, if one's spot weld and position can remain the same throughout the event, one might increase the level of one's performance, etc.My Nesika Spec RifleThe name, "My Spec Rifle" is a misnomer and comes from a simple shortcut. Having communicated through email many, many times, it became laborious to do so without abbreviations of some sort. The rifle is not "My" rifle. The rifle was built to my specifications. Unfortunately, it still belongs to Nesika (someone ought to quickly make it theirs)."My Spec Rifle" included a wish list of 21 changes. Don't count those explained below because I did not get quite all of them it won't add up.

Although I am a right hander, my first change was to place the bolt and loading port on the left.My logic for this came from watching left handed shooters using right hand rifles that were issued by their department or unit. I noticed that they were able to shoot the fast courses much faster than right handers using right hand rifles. In thinking about this it dawned on me that the left handed shooters using right handed rifles were able to retain both their cheek weld and their grip. A right handed shooter using a right hand bolt and right port has two disadvantages. First he must remove his hand from the grip to work the bolt, and second, he cannot see the loading port. This results in two problems. When the right hand is lifted from the grip to work the bolt, the shooter is drawn out of position and cannot maintain a welded position. If single loading is required (which it often is), the shooter is trying to load the right port blind. Many shooters lift their head and look at the ammo box next to them to grab another cartridge. I have even see shooters putting the ammo box on the left side, grab it with the left hand, pass it to the right hand under the rifle and place it in the loading port. I cannot for the life of me figure out why they do this or what the advantage might be. Maybe someone will write and enlighten me.By ordering a left bolt, left port, I could retain my cheek and grip welds. I needn't take my hand from the bolt during a 5 or 10 shot string. Maintaining my welded position helped me keep my head and eyes on the target. At the same time, my left hand could work the bolt quickly. When I had trouble or had to load singly, the loading port was in view of my left eye, and I could load quickly without destroying my cheek and grip welds. My left eye could see the ammo box and the loading port without changing my head position on the stock.

I had, however, to get my right thumb out of the way. When the bolt is pulled to the rear by the left hand, the right hand is maintaining its grip. The bolt will slam into the thumb, tearing flesh as it goes if the thumb is not held out of the way. Either a thumbhole or drop grip had to be included. Thumbhole stocks are great except when the shooter raises his right hand to work the bolt. Then two apparent problems have to be faced. The right hand must be drawn to the rear to free the thumb. Then the hand must be brought up and forward to engage the bolt. A right hander with a regular grip need only raise the right hand's index finger to engage the bolt. This is much faster, but it still requires that the shooter remove the hand from the grip and momentarily destroy the weld. However, if the right hander uses a left bolt, the cheek and right hand can remain in position. Well that was my thinking anyway.I chose the drop grip of McMillan's A2 stock. This stock gets my right thumb out of the way. This doesn't make a big difference with this concept. Since the left hand is now doing the work of bolting the rifle, the right has little to do. Remaining in the thumbhole is not detrimental until you consider the problems below.There are still a couple of problems with a left bolt, left port for a right hander. To work extremely fast, the shooter never removes his left hand from the bolt, but keeps it ready on the bolt to respond as soon as the shot is fired. I quickly found that this presented its own problem: What holds the butt of the rifle in position so the crosshair remains on target? When shooting a right bolt, my left hand stayed on the rear bag while the index finger and thumb held the butt in position. How was I going to keep the butt in position if the right hand was on the grip and the left hand on the bolt. I solved that in two ways. First, I had Nesika install a soft rubber butt pad that has cuts across its face that angle downward. This tends to hold the butt from falling out of position. Second, I removed the sling from the rear swivel, configured a loop in the sling, and then put it around my right bicep just above the elbow. When pulled tightly, this keeps the butt to the rear and in position.There remained one serious drawback that I have not fully solved yet. While it is true that most shots are taken from the prone position, many are still taken from the sitting, kneeling, and standing positions. The problem here is that the rifle cannot be held by the right hand while the left is working the bolt. The only solution I have come up with is to roll the rifle slightly and work the bolt with the right hand. If someone has a better solution to this problem, please let me know.Because the expense of a TiAN coating did not seem important to my experiment, I had Nesika include the non-reflective peened finish. It really is non-reflective.Holding the muzzle of the rifle in position is a great difficulty when rapid shooting is required. I approached this in three ways. (1) A heavy contour barrel was fitted and (2) a muzzle break installed. To prevent dust from blinding me after a shot, holes were installed on the top only. This works. A third cheater was asked for but has not arrived as of this writing. (3) I asked for a weight to be designed that could be added to or removed from the forearm rail.

I have noted the additional ease with which a tactical match can be shot with bolt rifles having 10 round magazines. I asked that both 5 and 10 round magazines be included with the Nesika rifle. Neither has arrived as the manufacturer has not provided them. The magazines provided thus far are 4 round. While this makes the rifle appear more streamlined, it is a pain during matches where 5 and 10 shot matches are run sometimes very quickly. The availability of both short and long (10 round) magazines would be convenient.The magazine is detached by pressing a small button located in the front of the trigger guard. While this works well, and the magazine drops from its well quickly and without binding, it is a little more difficult than it should be for a really quick magazine change. The rifle's builder added an extension on the front side of the button that extends below the guard. This is much more positive, easier to find without looking or thinking about its location, 

A view of the magazine release from the side.

and the magazine drops out into the palm of your hand quickly. The fit is perfect. This helps retain the concept of keeping the cheek and right hand at their weld. The left hand again does the work. The palm of the left hand is held under the magazine while the little finger pulls on the extended tab. The magazine drops into the shooter's palm. Alternatively, if the shooter does not care what happens to the magazine on release, it can be released by the index finger, making the operation even faster.

I had Nesika install a rail in the forearm for the attachment of a front swivel and for use with other attachments. A matching swivel was installed in the bottom of the butt just forward of the pad. I had Nesika install two additional swivels. These are placed in the forearm and butt; however, they are on the side opposite the bolt. This greatly facilitates carry in the field with a split sling. The rifle can be carried much like a backpack.

The bolt was left in the white, the Borden Bumps retained, and the spring remained 28 pounds. I was surprised that bolt throw could still be made easy and slick.As was the case with the 14 pound, Heavy Tactical Rifle in Part II of this series, the 1.470" diameter receiver on the Spec Rifle is a Model K chambered in .308. The stock has been pillar bedded and glassed. The floor plate is steel, providing the strength necessary to torque to 65 pounds according to many, including Chandler, Remington, and the FBI, the extra torque is conducive to accuracy.FunctionThe rifle is very stable in the bags. With the Nightforce scope aboard, the overall view of the target is idyllic, giving the shooter a feeling of confidence. It took a little time for me (a right hander) to get used to the left bolt. Still, the method works well, speeding my prone shooting up significantly.This stock is ambidextrous, so it is, in reality, a left-handed shooter's rifle.

The forearm rail for attachments. Note the swivel attachment just above the rail in the photo. This, together with a matching side swivel in the rear facilitates carrying the rifle on the shooter's back like a pack.

The matching bottom and side sling swivels. The side swivels are placed on the opposite side from the bolt to make a flatter surface when carrying the rifle like a pack.

The scope is set just right so I can get a good spot weld on the A2. The grip has a palm swell that is deep set to get my right thumb out of the way. The bolt is smooth to operate. The Jewell trigger is crisp and light with no creep or backlash. At about 15 to 16 pounds in weight and with the muzzle brake installed, the rifle rides the bags well, moving straight to the rear with no muzzle jump. It is very pleasant to shoot. The shooter can keep his/her eyes on the target during recoil. Very enjoyable to shoot.I have had no malfunctions after a few hundred rounds. I do load it both single shot and through the magazine. I cannot detect any difference in group size or point of impact shooting it either way.The new Nightforce NXS has a long eye relief that I personally like very much. In fact, I like almost everything about the NXS. Look for an article on this optic soon.AccuracyLike the 14 pound, Nesika Bay Tactical Rifle and the lighter Urban Rifle, I shot several different types of ammo, but did a lot more reloading as well.Federal 168 grain Gold Metal MatchFederal 175 grain Gold Metal MatchLapua 167 grain ScenarLapua 170 grain Lock BaseWinchester Supreme Competition with 168 grain Nosler HPBT MatchSamson with 168 grain HPBT Sierra MatchKingHawk's View Custom Ammo with 168 grain Sierra MatchKingRemington 168 grain MatchSeveral varieties of reloads using 168 and 175 Sierra MatchKing bulletsI reloaded Nosler's new 168 and 155 match bulletsI reloaded Swift's new Scirocco 180 grain bulletsI also reloaded Lapua's 167 ScenarHere again, the Federal Gold Metal Match factory loaded ammo shot very well as did the Hawk's View pre-loaded ammo and Winchester's Supreme Competition factory loaded ammo. While no ammo shot over an inch, several did shoot in the .7 to .8 range. On the other hand, some factory stuff shot in the .3 to .4 range quite consistently. Specifically the three mentioned above.I struggled a little trying to work up a reload I really liked. The rifle did not particularly like most of the mild or very hot loads that I tried. I shot VihtaVuori's N -150 and IMR 4064 primarily when I first started developing a load.I seated the bullets a little less deep than what most pre-loaded ammo manufacturers do, moving the bullet forward until it will just clear the magazine without malfunction. The Federal 168 grain MatchKing is only about .05 off the lands to touching the lands at that point in the Nesika rifle. With the same die setting, the 155 grain Nosler seated short and the 180 grain Scirocco seated long.I tried 3 primers to include Winchester Large Rifle, Remington 9 ½ Large Rifle, and Federal 210 Match. All shot well, but the 210 Match seemed a bit more consistent and did not produce flyers.I weighed 100 Lapua case, turned the necks to .01375" and made the primer pocket and flash hole uniform. I chamfered the necks inside and out. The cases were first full length sized to set the shoulder length and then trimmed and neck turned. After that the cases were only necked sized in Redding competition dies. All reloading functions were accomplished with Redding dies. I found that I did not need to use the body die as the cases showed no pressure signs after many firings in the Lapua cases.While several reloaded configurations produced groups in the .480" range with consistency, I found a couple of reloads that would produce groups a bit less than .3". Some of the factory loaded ammo shot nearly as well as the Hawks View. This does not mean that I could not find other combinations that would work as well, but after finding an acceptable load, I was intent on practicing the routines I knew would be in the next sniper match and analyzing the load off the bench. The loads had been developed using the bench in the early morning hours when the wind was either dead or very mild. Wind flags were used, but there was no need for mirage boards as the mirage does not generally start as early as I hit the range. In almost all instances I was set up before it was light enough to see. Once a couple of loads were developed for 168 and 175 grain Sierra Match Kings, it was time to see if the rifle would perform the same in the prone position. Then, of course, came the hard part: learning to work the off side bolt from the sitting, kneeling, and standing positions.

The forearm rail allowed me to locate the Harris Bipod and sling at the position that benefited me and the rifle the most. One change I would make to the system would be to replace the fixture's hex screw that attached the bipod to the rail with a positive quick release lever. This would allow quicker detachment, attachment, and positioning of gear to the forearm rail.I had two things left to do to conclude this article in time. The first was to chronograph the ammo used to date and the second was to visit Jacob Bynum with the rifle in hand. First the chronograph results.Jacob Bynum's 175 SMK reloads 2720 fpsFederal 168 SMK 2745Federal 175 SMK 2745Lapua 170 Lock Base 2811Winchester 168 Nosler Match 2750Hawk's View 168 SMK Lot A 2790Hawk's View 168 SMK Lot B 2772Hawk's View 168 SMK Lot C 2795My 168 SML reloads 2720I did not chronograph a great many loads of each, so the figures above are "in the ball park" only. I was a bit surprised at the velocity from the 25 inch barrel and the coldness of the morning. Velocity spreads were low as was standard deviation.Jacob Bynum contributed significantly to the ideas behind the rifle. After receiving it, working with it for several months, and nearing the end of this article, I wanted his input about what Nesika had produced before I submitted the material to the editor. Both he and Billy Colsten agreed to meet me at Jacob's range.

Jacob is a very competent tactical shooter and trains students at his own sniper training facility. He is also a fierce competitor and has won the last four matches that I am aware of. He agreed that the action was smooth, the rifle very stable under fire, and liked the concept (some portions of which were his). He had not, however, seen the rifle before I brought it to his range. I had just put the third Nightforce scope on it that morning. He watched me sight the rifle in and then told me to zero the knobs. He took the rifle to the prone position, turned the elevation knob and placed 5 rounds quickly into less than 2 inches at 400 yards.Jacob commonly runs controlled, accurate 5 dot drills in 15 to 16 seconds He was interested to see if our idea for this new rifle worked. Bolting the rifle on the left side for the first time, Jacob (a right hander) ran three series of 5 dot drills at 400 yards in 11.5, 11, and 10.63 seconds, hitting the 400 yard target each time.He stood up, stepped back from the rifle and said, "Why did I buy all those right hand bolts." He then turned to Billy and remarked, "He doesn't know it yet, but that rifle isn't leaving my range."

Billy Colston tries some speed shots with Jacob looking on.

Kidding maybe, but the left-handed complement was aimed at the rifle and its quality performance. Jacob remarked several times that the rifle did not move under fire, a fact which helped his speed and control as well. I sat beside him, taking pictures and watching he and Billy shoot. The muzzle moved to the rear only slightly but did not lift at all. The Harris Bipod stayed in position.

Note that Billy keeps his head and right hand in position while bolting the rifle. Directly below his watch is a spent case still in mid air while Billy is beginning to close the left bolt, left port receiver.

Nesika Bay Tactical Rifles: ConclusionThe rifles (as I used them) were the simple tools they ought to be. There are no cheek pieces that need adjusting and that are subject to failure; no fancy, adjustable butt pieces that gather trash or must be held open in a positive way. On the other hand, some additions on my Spec Rifle are not what I would want on a field rifle. The rifle also weighs a bit more (~16 lbs) than what I would want to carry all day. Even so, I have decided that with minor modifications several concepts employed would be beneficial. The rifle holds its position very well, both on a field pack or a bipod with no muzzle jump. The Jewell trigger helps accuracy considerably in my opinion. On the other hand, the Jewell trigger's advantage lies is in its ability to be set for very low pull and perfect let off. Whether it would stand up to the rigors of battle is another question.I never experienced a malfunction during several hundred rounds of tuning, practicing, and match shooting with the Nesika rifles. While it amazed me that I did find a couple of loads that did not shoot well, almost all ammo shot very acceptably, and some shot what I think is extraordinary in a non-benchrest, non-competition rifle.Form and function of the Nesika rifles are first rate. The accuracy, at least in the samples I spent so much time with, cannot be beaten in a rifle of a tactical configuration without significant changes to the traditional concept of a sniper rifle. Using SPC analysis software, a manufacturing tool that uses statistical process control analysis to analyze whether a process is in control and functioning at the level specified, Nesika's performance is at a very high level. Without boring you with another set of SPC charts, let me just say that: With the better ammo and reloads I used in the rifles, one could expect less than half minute accuracy. That is, the probability is extremely high that one would shoot less than half minute groups every time, all conditions being equal.Nesika's product is not designed and produced in a vacuum. Among the many attributes of the Nesika team that goes into the finally result is their ability to use quality craftsmen like John Geiges and the design input of master gunsmiths and competitors like Jim Borden and Speedy Gonzales. The design and incorporation of newer, better ideas and the continual improvement of their receiver's will keep them producing at the top of the industry.Nesika Bay Precision, Inc.6112 NE Minder RoadPoulsbo, WA 98370Phone: 360-297-5555FAX: 360-297-3973