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Missing info. edit
What calibres are considered "high-power"?77Mike77 (talk) 18:32, 5 October 2013 (UTC)
- Have added this information. Depending on the particular style of match, about anything up to .35 caliber is generally considered "high-power". The main difference to be made is that the shooting world in rifle-specific shooting is largely divided into the disciplines of "small bore" and "high power". Small bore is probably best represented by .22 caliber, although other calibers are also sometimes seen. "High power" historically refered to "full-power" .30 caliber class cartridges, although "intermediate power" cartridges such as seen in 7.62x39 and 5.56mm rounds have also been included in high power rifle shooting since the 1960's/1970's. Miguel Escopeta (talk) 19:24, 7 February 2014 (UTC)
History edit
I gather this article is about high power rifle competitions, rather than high power rifles, but if someone wants to change its scope to cover both topics, here's a short 1908 article that discusses the early history of high power rifles by the US military, around 1890.
- "The November Meeting". The Journal of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers. 30 (12). American Society of Mechanical Engineers: 29–32. December 1908.
It does touch a bit on the first use of the rifles in a Palma Trophy competition, which is still competed for, and I'd guess is related in some way to the NRA's Palma Matches, which are covered in their High Power Rifle Rules.
From a google search, in 1890 "high power rifle" seemed to mean ship-mounted guns with a caliber of several inches to a foot. The first mention I found in google of the "small-calibre, high-powered rifle" was an 1898 Harper's Weekly article berating Congress for how ill-equipped the National Guard was to invade cuba (they had .45s that could shoot 800 yards, while army regulars had high power rifles that could shoot 2000 yards).