
TrackingPoint shows off the “Mile Maker,” a rifle with 1,800-yard range - lelf
http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2015/01/trackingpoint-shows-off-the-mile-maker-a-smart-rifle-with-1800-yard-range/
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midnightclubbed
Tracking scope which allows you to tag targets, recommends how to take the
shot and streams video live (as well as upload to youtube etc after the shot).

Looks to be one step away from allowing a remote operator to pull the trigger,
which doesn't give me the warm and fuzzies.

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jboggan
The shooter still needs to physically point the weapon and pull the trigger;
it's not on any kind of tracking/stabilization platform that could make it
independent of a human being. It does however do a marvelous job of computing
all of the ballistic factors on the fly and give you a corrected aiming point.
It short circuits the years of training and intuition needed to make those
calculations, but being able to align the rifle and squeeze the trigger
precisely is still a required skillset.

~~~
hga
" _but being able to align the rifle_ , keep it steady!, _and squeeze the
trigger precisely is still a required skillset_ "

And for this sort of precision a fairly difficult one to acquire. My personal
example of the "do it 10,000 times" thing, about the number of rounds I fired
in my high school rifle team and prior to that to get perhaps this good.
Absent special talent, assume a few months full time _with_ a "growing up
shooting" foundation like myself. Without, I have no idea.

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jacquesm
> The weapon at least for now is built around an enormous, enormously heavy,
> custom-milled steel barrel

How do you mill a barrel? I was under the impression that barrels were turned,
bored and then rifled.

[http://www.firearmsid.com/feature%20articles/rifledbarrelman...](http://www.firearmsid.com/feature%20articles/rifledbarrelmanuf/barrelmanufacture.htm)

You might be able to mill some bits out of the exterior but I really wonder
how a mill could be part of the machining of the business bits of a barrel.

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herbig
Probably using the term more along the lines of custom-built.

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darklajid
"Caution: Shooting without the eye guard could cause injury".

Hrm. It seems the intelligence of the user base isn't high if warnings like
these ("Caution, cup of coffee is hot") are printed on the expensive toy?

~~~
hga
CHANGED: it uses a laser to keep the gun sighted in, looking at the barrel
end. So there's a variety of ways that laser light could make it to your eyes,
and you need protection from that.

That said, I can't see any sign they're at the Shot Show right now this year (
_the_ trade show in this field, it's run by the real gun manufacturer's lobby,
the National Shooting Sports Foundation, NSSF, and Tracking Point was there
last year), and they are at CES....

