By now, everyone should have received our latest big catalog, Catalog #2010-A. If you haven’t received yours yet or know of a friend who would like one, just e-mail, write, call, or fax us and we’ll get one on the way.

With the weather turning a little nicer in our neck of the woods, the staff is hitting the range a little more each week now. Our harsh winter has kept them a little more cooped up than usual. Rod, one of our technicians wrote an interesting product review on the Hornady Annealing Kit. With today’s economy and brass availability, more reloaders are experimenting with annealing their brass to extend its useful life.

Be sure to take advantage of “Spring Savings” while ordering on our website through the end of this month. You’ll save $10 on all orders over $150. Just enter the Promotion Code PR411 during order check out. For customers that prefer ordering by phone, mention the Promotion Code and we’ll get you taken care of as well.

It is still a couple of months off but make plans to come by the NRA Annual Meetings and Show in Charlotte, North Carolina – May 14 thru May 16, 2010. The Sinclair booth is right up front when you come in – Booth #1006. If you are in the area, please drop by and say hello.

We appreciate your suggestions on new product additions. Our customers are the greatest test team in the world. We look forward to helping with your future reloading and shooting needs.

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.

This is deviating from talking about shooting to talking about football but I am finally paying up on a three week old debt to a friend in the shooting fraternity. It is shooting related because I am promoting one of the finest shooting programs in the media.

A few days before the 2010 Super Bowl featuring the New Orleans Saints and the talented and fantastic Indianapolis Colts, Tom Gresham e-mailed me and talked about the game. Now first I have to set the stage; most of you know Tom Gresham who hosts the extremely popular GunTalk radio show that is broadcast weekly all over the country including Sirius (channel 108) and XM Radio (channel 139). Tom has been a great friend to Sinclair International and Brownells over the years and he knew I was a long-time Indianapolis Colts fan and season ticket holder. It also just happens that Tom resides in Northwestern Louisiana and is naturally a Saints supporter. What follows is a re-cap of Tom’s e-mail:

Bill,
I thought it might be a good idea to have a little wager on the upcoming Saints/Colts game this Sunday, you know, kind of like the governors do!

If the Colts win, we’ll send you a supply of good Cajun food to chomp down on and if the Saints win you can send us ………..well, wait just a minute – there’s no such thing as fine Midwest Cuisine! You’ll figure something out.

Tom

Obviously Tom knows how to bait a guy into a bet. First, he knew I would take a bet against the Colts, second he questioned Indiana’s contribution to the culinary world (in fact I think he challenged the entire Midwest), and third he knew I couldn’t resist the Cajun food offer.

Well, it was a sucker bet right from the start because I was pretty certain my Colts would post a “W”, Tom knew I had lived in Louisiana about a quarter of my life during a portion of the Archie Manning era, and knew I really like Cajun food. I saw this bet as “easy money” and was already envisioning platters of crawfish etouffe, some deep bowls of fine gumbo, and maybe some Gulf shrimp stuffed with crabmeat. My wife and I had been longing for a good Louisiana meal so the timing was perfect.

We all know the outcome of the big game, congratulations to the Saints and their fans but finally its time to pay the piper. I searched high and low for some Indiana delicacies to send to Tom. The staff at Sinclair International suggested rounding up some fried tenderloins, Indiana State Fair corn dogs, or maybe some sweet corn (out of season). All of these items figured out to be too hard to ship and remain fresh (read non-soggy) so I had to start beating the bush for Indiana notables in the food category. I hate to admit it but after a weeks search I was beginning to think Tom was “on target” with his Midwest cuisine comment.

My package to Tom ended up with the following:

- A bottle of wine from Oliver Winery, a nationally recognized winery in southern Indiana outside of Bloomington (next to Indiana University and very convenient for the students)
- Some sweet bread and butter cucumber slices from Sechler’s Pickles in St. Joe, Indiana (right next to the trap and skeet club I shoot at)
- Cousin Willie’s Kettle Corn located in Ramsey, Indiana (Orville Redenbacher was my first choice but this Indiana brand moved their headquarters to Nebraska)
- A big bottle of Red Gold Ketchup out of Elwood, Indiana. Inside joke: Tom, ask Jason Hornady from Hornady Manufacturing about Red Gold.
- A five-pack of Old Fort Porter from Mad Anthony Brewery located in Fort Wayne, Indiana (I swear Tom, it’s an Indiana bottling tradition to leave an empty chamber in the box – like carrying a six-gun).
- Some of the finest truffles in the world from DeBrand’s Chocolatier in Fort Wayne, Indiana (very close to the home of Sinclair’s). Tom, I would suggest sharing this item with your lovely wife.
- Finally, some special sugar cookies made just for Tom by the Cookie Cottage located in Fort Wayne, IN (a nationally know cookie bakery). See photo.

Midwest Basket of Goodies

Cookies just for Tom from the Cookie Cottage in Fort Wayne, IN

Tom, your package is going out by air today. Thenext time you are in town I’ll buy you the biggest tenderloin I can find you. If the Saints and Colts play again in the big game, don’t e-mail me!

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International

Okay folks, this wasn’t part of the bet but since we are on the subject this is a great time to give you some info about GunTalk Radio., Tom’s radio show GunTalk is a great program and one of the biggest advocates of gun rights in our country plus its packed full of interesting guests from throughout the shooting industry (competitors, hunters, manufacturer spokespersons, etc.). There is a lot of good information shared on Tom’s program by Tom, his guests, and our fellow shooters that call in. A wonderful way to spend a Sunday night is to be sitting in your reloading room doing some case prep work while listening to Tom’s show. You can find out more about GunTalk at www.guntalk.com and find the radio stations that offer the broadcast in your area. The GunTalk website has a state by state listing that makes it easy to find your local station. Don’t worry, if you don’t get coverage in your area you can always download the show each week from the website. In addition, let your local station know you want them to pick up the show.

No sign of a break in the weather yet in Northern Indiana but it should be right around the corner. Many of us are finishing up our case prep work we do each winter to prepare for the upcoming season. I thought you might find it interesting to hear what the Sinclair techs are currently working on.

Ron is continuing to work the bugs out of his 6mm/223 that he wrote about in the December 2009 – Reloading Press. He also has been working on his 30-06 for some 1000 yard shooting using Berger 175 gr. BT’s.

Bob, who answers most of our tech mail, is working on forming some brass for his 6mm/284 long range varmint rifle while he is waiting on a new stock. He is also getting ready to test some new cast bullets in his 300 Whisper and 7mm TCU. Bob is also retiring some barrels on his .243 Ackley and is going to start shooting a new 6mm CM barrel from Satern.

Pete has been busy sorting his Berger 7mm 180 gr VLD’s using our bullet sorting stand, trimming meplats, and doing some bullet pointing using the Whidden Bullet Pointing system. He has his Lapua brass prepped and ready to go.

Phil is preparing for a full season of shooting Long-Range (Palma and other) plus some 3-Gun. Phil didn’t expand in much detail – not sure what he is up to.

For myself, I have been busy installing a new Hornady shot shell reloader setup for 12 gauge on my bench to do some shot shell reloading and a MEC for my 20 gauge. I haven’t spent a lot of time shot shell reloading but lately I wanted to start reloading my own so I could control my own supply. Many of our customers have asked us to start carrying shot shell reloading gear so we are slowly trying to expand our line in this direction. We have had many of our customers comment that they reload both metallic and shot shells and would like to get their tools from us.

All the others are busy just doing their routine brass preparation for spring. Remember, if we can help you with anything as all of us approach the busy shooting season, please let us know.

Our big catalog #2010-A should be arriving in your mail box sometime this week or next week. We have a lot of new reloading tools, components, optics, and cleaning gear – take some time to check it out! Based what we hear from you we are continuing to add to our line of products at such a fast rate that many of the new products didn’t make the catalog but they will be added to the website as fast as we can. I look forward to chatting with you next month. We appreciate your continued business and look forward to serving you again.

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.

We are just returned from another visit to the shooting industry’s big show – The SHOT Show. The show was held in Las Vegas this year and is the industry’s showcase of new products for manufacturers, distributors, and dealers. It was good to see some old friends and make some new ones.

Our new 2010-A Sinclair catalog will be printing soon and you should see it arrive in your mailbox sometime in mid to late February. Showcased in the catalog are a couple of new Hornady products that will be available soon – one is the new Lock-N-Load Auto Charge Powder Dispenser and the other is their Lock-N-Load Sonic Cleaner designed for case cleaning. I was given a prototype Sonic Cleaner a few weeks ago and it promises to be a very handy tool. I was amazed how clean the inside of my dirty cases were. I am still waiting on the arrival of the new Auto Charge Powder Dispenser so I can give it a workout.

Lapua has finally decided to produce some 22-250 Remington brass – this unprimed brass won’t be available until later this spring but we wanted to make sure you were aware that it is coming. We have been after them to make this cartridge for a long time. I am sure it will be of the same great quality as all of the other Lapua products. Another new product offering this year from Lapua will be their 308 Winchester Palma brass with a small primer pocket. There will be a big demand from both 308 shooters and wildcat reloaders. We should see this cartridge arrive in a few months.

I would be remiss in not mentioning two old product names that will be back in the Sinclair catalog. Redfield scopes are being re-introduced into the market by Leupold and Birchwood Casey has brought back the RIG products (RIG grease, RIG-Rags, etc.). Both of these product lines will be welcome additions. I am looking forward to trying out one of the new Redfield 4-12 scopes and also their compact, digital laser rangefinders. We should see these on our shelves shortly.

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.

Dear Friends and Customers,

As the final hours of 2009 tick away, I want to post a message to those that read our blog and wish you all the best in 2010. All of us at Sinclair and Brownells sincerely appreciate the business you have given us this year and in prior years. We hope to be of continued service to you in 2010 and beyond for all of your reloading and shooting needs.

We are fortunate to have a group of customers that provide us with great product ideas and valuable input on ways to improve our service and grow our business. It is really enjoyable to come to work everyday knowing you get to provide products and service to people who really enjoy shooting and reloading.

I am going to do a little shooting at our local club over the New Year’s weekend. I hope you get a chance to do some shooting as well.

Wishing you and your family a safe, healthy, and prosperous New Year!

Good Shooting,
Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.

Just a little more than a week until Christmas – how time flies when everyone is so busy. It isn’t too late to do a little bit of last minute shopping online – sinclairintl.com is a great place to start! If you have a friend or family member who shoots or reloads we have a pretty nice selection of gift ideas in our article on gifts for Christmas.

I would like to take a moment to thank all of you for the continued business you have given us this year. I hope we been able to help you a little with your reloading and shooting. Your support and patronage is appreciated by all of us at Sinclair International and Brownells, Inc. We are privileged to have such a fantastic group of customers and friends.

The Sinclair staff – I can’t say enough about them! What a great group of people to work with! I know our staff enjoys their paycheck like most people do, but I know that each one of them personally gets a tremendous amount of satisfaction in helping customers out with their order or with a reloading or shooting question. Everyday, I see the personal pride that they take in making sure a customer gets the help he or she needs.

Enjoy the Christmas season and enjoy any time you get to spend with your family. Take the time to share your joy of shooting with a family member or friend who has never tried it. Again, always remember our servicemen and women – keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

Good Shooting and Merry Christmas,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.

Folks,

We have some more Remington primers coming in; some rifle (large and small) and some pistol (large and small). Check the Sinclair website at www.sinclairintl.com for availability – we will post inventory status on our website as soon as they arrive on our receiving dock. We also are expecting some Federal pistol primers as well. These should be available in inventory hopefully later this week.

Thanks,

Bill Gravatt

President – Sinclair International, Inc.

One of our readers asked a question about case cleaning small bottleneck cartridges (especially the interior surface). I just wanted to share my response. I couldn’t give him a real good answer except that I’ll look  into it a little further. In the meantime if any of you have discovered anything with respect to his quesion regarding carbon buildup inside the case, please feel free to address it with a post. I’ll post whatever I find out as I continue to experiment with the ultrasonic cleaners. I heard from several readers regarding this subject; some positive about ultrasonic cleaners, some negative.

Bill Gravatt, President – Sinclair International, Inc.

E-mail to Claudio,
Claudio,
I have had the same carbon issue with some small cases as well as some large cases. I have tried running my cases in the tumbler without any media in the tumbler to knock it loose prior to sizing  and then tumble them as usual. That seemed to work a little bit. The inside cleaning is why I started looking at the Ultrasonic cleaners. I am going to do some more testing with the unit I have plus Hornady is sending me a prototype of one of theirs. The preliminary indications from the unit I have shows a lot more cleaning taking place than with a conventional tumbler. I am going to try to clean some cases out of the same fired batch with both methods and then split some clean cases and dirty cases on the mill and show the inside before and after. I’ll probably post something in a couple of months. I’ll try to remember to e-mail you when I do.

In the scheme of things I have never tested anything to see if the buildup affected accuracy to any great detail. Statistically, you would have to fire enough rounds to have a valid conclusion.

Keep me posted from your end on what you see. Thanks for writing.
Sincerely,
Bill

Here’s wishing you and your family an early Happy Thanksgiving. We hope you have received the 2009 Sinclair Christmas catalog that was recently mailed. If not, you should be receiving it in the next few days.

I spent some time at my own reloading bench this weekend organizing and planning my reloading for this winter. I took advantage of the time and cycled several batches of brass through my tumbler in preparation for reloading. I briefly experimented with an ultrasonic cleaner to clean some pretty dirty 308 Winchester brass because I had read a little bit on the internet about some reloaders using them to clean their brass. I was impressed mainly how well it cleaned the inside of the case but the case necks didn’t clean up to my satisfaction. I will continue to experiment with some different cleaning solutions and possibly a different ultrasonic unit to see if I can get some better results. I thought the process was a little more complicated than compared to what I am used to with the tumbler. Feel free to chime in your thoughts if you have had success with an ultrasonic cleaner.

We are starting to see a few primers arrive on our dock. Wolf primers are slowly making their way to our doors each month. We do expect to see a decent amount of Wolf large rifle primers in the next couple of weeks. Remington and Winchester primers are trickling in but no word yet on delivery of Federal primers. Easiest way to check inventory status on primers is to check out our website (look under Components & Ammunition).

Keep warm, enjoy Thanksgiving next week, and give thanks to our soldiers overseas who are doing without while protecting our freedoms.

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.

This month wraps up the competitive shooting season for most of us at Sinclair’s. We have a Halloween match at the end of the month that ends the 2009 season for the NRA Long-Range and F-Class shooters in our company. Several members of our staff are avid hunters and hunting preparation is quickly becoming a priority among them as the seasons begin to open.

As we approach the colder season (in parts of the world), this is a good time to go through your firearms and make sure that they are clean and well oiled for protection during the winter months. A colder climate doesn’t necessarily mean an end to shooting for a lot of us by any means. We look forward to those clear, sunny winter days to get out of the house and do some practice shooting. We are also fortunate in our area to have some high schools where we can do regular smallbore shooting, a great trap/skeet range that has winter leagues, and a few indoor ranges for the handgun shooters. Winter is also a great time to do some quality practice by dry firing. Check out our selection of snap caps from Harbour Arms or A-Zoom by Lyman.

I am busy myself wrapping up outdoor chores while looking forward to getting into my shop to tackle some winter projects and take inventory of what I need in the way of supplies for next year. I need to get caught up on some of my own reloading. With two kids away at college, the assistance I get with reloading chores consists of my dogs looking up once in awhile from their nap to give me a look of encouragement.

The Sinclair Christmas catalog will be mailing out the first week of November so keep an eye out for it. Remember our easy to use website and helpful, friendly sales staff makes it fun for you (or your family) to Christmas shop with Sinclair International. 

Good Shooting,

Bill Gravatt
President – Sinclair International, Inc.