LEARN MORE ABOUT THE SKUHL HERE
I’ve been running Gunwerks since inception in 2005. Over the years, we've grown and responsibilities have changed, but one thing has remained constant, we keep doing what we love best - finding product solutions to change our customer experiences! Really, all I want to do is develop new products!
The inspiration for the SKUHL rifle system really came after I had a half dozen trips to Africa under my belt. I’ve already hunted the extreme weather conditions of Alaska for brown bear, so I had an inkling of the conditions hunters might face.
On these trips, many hunters are happy for a great experience, and for me, that’s definitely one of my objectives. When it comes to hunting, I’m laser-focused on the successful completion (the kill) of the trip. It comes from years of investing my time in traveling and filming my adventures for the TV Show, Long Range Pursuit. Without a good, clean kill, the show is scrap! When you bend the outcomes with the potential scenario of imminent death, a good clean kill becomes even more important!
Everyone knows that an African dangerous game rifle has to have class. The SKUHL features tasteful engraving of cape buffalo and brown bear skulls and bones and a really trick carbon fiber rifle stock with natural fiber accents. Combined with our “patinaed” metal finish, the SKUHL is definitely one of a kind.
Built on our compact ClymR stock, with the right balance, this rifle handles the typical dangerous game shooting scenarios appropriately. The real advantage comes when the hunter is on the lookout for every shooting opportunity. By calibrating the long range ballistics and carefully selecting the cartridge and bullet combinations, we can outfit the SKUHL with a ballistic turret system and open up the effective range to 500 yards and beyond.
I was able to use the SKUHL in Africa in 2019 on a Cape Buffalo hunt. I didn’t quite have some of the stock finishes or the final scope offerings in place, but I was able to spend some significant time behind the gun in preparation. Offhand shooting is not my specialty! I’m telling you I’ve been in hunting situations in the past where I had a shot at 90 yards and had to find a position to allow prone shooting! So, in preparation for this hunt, I practiced. The ClymR stock is perfect. Enough said. I felt that the barrel contour selected really gives the right balance to point, shoot and follow through. I also ran through some tripod supported drills just to make sure POI was good, and I had a good routine if needed (more on that later). Prone from a bipod, I was deadly to a half-mile and beyond, but the math was telling me I needed to limit my shots to 600 and in. Again the ClymR stock shows its versatility, I was very comfortable with the recoil of the 375 Ruger from prone in this light configuration.
When the moment of truth arrived, I ended up with a quick setup on a tripod, standing. The shot was right around 180 yards with a small window through the brush. I dialed the scope, and smashed his shoulder perfectly with one shot. My training paid off with a second shot in the lungs before he hit the ground! What a great combination of design geometry and ballistic science. I was able to see my impact, reload, and without losing my target, shoot again in seconds!
The Gunwerks Skuhl is available in 375 Ruger, 416 Ruger and the 338 RUM cartridges.
- Aaron Davidson