Just got this month's Outdoor Life.

Jim says case segregation is waste of time then ends his article declaring the cardinal rule of accurate reloading is uniformity....but it's possible that variations in weight are not necessarily reflected in a change in internal volume, as so much of the weight resides in the case head. So I'll grant him that.

But in another article claiming to show the reason for Etronix market failure, he takes the factory barrel off an Etronix action, installs a Shilen of same contour and length, sees a dramatic improvement in accuracy, and pronounces the poor factory barrels as the reason for market failure.

He never said he took that same Shilen barrel off Etronix and installed it on a mechanical action to fairly compare the two actions.

Seems to me to be somewhat misleading to the reader. Anybody get the same take?

I say the reason they didn't sell is the lock time wasn't the scourge to shooters that Remington thought it was and shooters wouldn't pay.

The reason for the failure of the Etronix was due to the fact that it is a piss-poor design!

In high rate of fire military aircraft guns, electronic ignition is a good thing. In a sporting arm, it sucks!

Besides that, how long is battery life when the temperature is 35 below zero?

Would be a bitch to be on the hunt of a lifetime, find the #1 animal in B&C, and have to stop to change battery...

Price is the reason I never bought one. I like the concept but at that price I'd have to try one first. I'm not convinced (by any means) that you can't build a conventional firearm, for less money, that will shoot tighter groups. JMHO

'Twas Net Nuts that Kilt the Etronix!

Hey guys
What about Lord Jim's slamming of all you "net nuts" It was you boy's ignorance, and your infernal forums that killed the Etronix, according to that overblown, ascot wearing, tweed sniffing, Lord of the Manor wannabee.

Don't get me wrong here, as I do respect the man's
knowledge and experience, and enjoy reading his work. And who the hell am I to question a man who's a legend in his own mind.

It sure is nice to know that the Net Nuts are the tail that's wagging the industry dog.

Elmo

Noticed a few listings this week for "Etronix rifles" comparative with regular rifles in the same calibers! 675.00 sticks in my mind as the lowest! This was not a "17HMR" idea! The real world is not ready for .0017596 ignition time!!!! GHD

I can't say I disagree with Carmichael about products getting unfairly trashed due to misunderstanding and rumor but he should show the product to be superior in cost or performance before claiming success was warranted.

I'll take anything Carmicheal says a bit more seriously than a dozen keyboard shooters....

That said, what killed the Etronix was simply lack of primers. Show me someone serious about accuracy, and I'll show you an anal retentive handloader. Why buy something "inherently more accurate" and then give it up by having to use factory ammo? JMO, Dutch.

Gentlemen

I tired an extron and it shoot fairly good, but why get a special rifle that needs to be feed with expencive ammo or hard to find primers.

I'm actually a bit allergic to all these electronic gadjets, the have the nasty habbit of not working properly when they must

I wonder what will be next?, an extron all weather dangerous game rifle, but for case less ammo

Saeed, this should be an perfect match to your dear friend Walthers silly rifle. An extron will suit him just fine. Walther seems to be very fond of electronic gadjets

/ JOHAN

[ 04-25-2003, 00:45: Message edited by: JOHAN ]

I'd have to agree with Dutch, but not only for the accuracy sake of it. To many us, handloading is a hobby that we do for enjoyment, relaxation, to get away from the wife, etc. Why buy it if I can't fully enjoy it?

I think it was marketed all wrong. If it had been licensed to some benchrest action builders or some AR15 makers, you would have seen some major butt-kicking going on especially in lock time sensitive sports like Highpower. That would have sold. You see this sort of problem whenever you have the hardware builder also making the software, like Apple.
Add to this the expense and availability and (percieved) reliability issues. Is it any wonder?

A lot of Carmichel's affinity with Etronix stems back several years. In his Book of the Rifle, he estimates that electronic ignition is the next step in the evolution of rifledom. Technically that may be so, Voere or some such European firm tried it in the '90's and that didn't fly too well either. I don't think Carmichel was praising the Etronix rifle as a great rifle as much as he praises the idea and ingenuity of the ignition system.

What he didn't include in his vision was that the shooting public does not want battery powered rifles. At least not yet. I don't, and I don't know anyone who does. Praise has been bestowed on Remington's 700's and 40 X's for years because of their incredibly fast lock time compared to a Mauser design. The praise that was oft repeated on the Winchester 52's domination in the target rimfire market always included the speed of lock time in the 52. I think that is where Carmichel is coming from.

I don't want a battery powered rifle, I don't even like stainless/synthetic rifles. If this electronic ignition thing ever takes off, it'll happen in the world of benchrest shooters. For that to happen, whomever produces one the public will accept will have to do much better than an Etronix.