Yesterday I attended the USPSA Classifier Match at Fredericksburg Rod and Gun Club. I decided to take a break from the 625 and give a good solid match test to my 610. I ran the same North Mountain Moonclip rack I always do and the same cut up Safariland self made speed holster. My first impressions were that the gun itself was very accurate, but awfully slow to load. I estimated my reloads to be in the neighborhood of 4 to 6 seconds. This is pretty slow seeing that I can speedload .38's in about 3 seconds and reload the 625 somewhere around 2 seconds. I did wonderfully horrible on the classifier stages striking NO SHOOTS left and right it seemed. So much for zeroing the gun in ahead of time right? It all came down to a no shoot and a miss costing me first place at the match.
Preparation is everything. I ventured to see my parents and just happened to carry my 610 with 4 moonclips of match ammo with me. The plan was to stop off at my shooting place on the way and quick zero the gun on a six inch plate at 15yds. It works really well when the gun is firing....the first cylinder fired 2 out of six...the second 3...the third 2 and the fourth 1. The Apex competition firing pin just doesn't like my superlight hammers. Gun unzeroed with no tools to adjust the strain tension, I visited my folks and returned home. The gun was cleaned and the firing pin changed back to a conventional design that I knew would function.
The match day came and I stepped to the line with a calm and relaxed attitude. I knew the reloads would have to be carefully made. The buzzer went off on the first stage and the fun began. It was an unloaded table start. "Crap...quick weakhand reload and off to the races. 1.2.3.4.5 Reload and double up the last paper. Done. Gee that was slow....I miss my 625....I'd settle for my .38 snubby at this point. Unload, show clear, put it away and go check the damage. Not too bad." This was how my day started. I quickly adapted to the weakness of my reload with the best planning and rehearsal I could devise and that made up a lot of the difference on the particular field I was facing. The one time the slow reload really bit my butt was in the El Presidente stage where the shells bounced off the cylinder and almost landed on the ground. 8 second reload. Measure the powder, pour it in, and then ram the bullet home....ok so it felt that way. Only when I deviated from my plan did I pay dearly with deltas, white targets, and where'd my bullet go's. At the end of the day I performed very strongly on the two field courses of 32 rounds each winning one and losing the other by a miss. Not bad for a skinny kid with slow reloads.....
Monday, May 2, 2011
Friday, April 29, 2011
Latest shooting exploits....
Lately I have been a bit hung up on the newest of the shooting disciplines: Zombie Shooting. I've been to three events so far and it's really starting to get under my skin. I make friends at all the shooting events I go to as I can't help but talk. Shooting sports, guns, and how to make them fit together is a combination that will make me hoarse if I'm not careful.
The first event I attended was a pistol match and it was a wild time. Folks of all skill levels were going after the head shots quite calmly after the first stage and the scoring was easy to understand....a good thing from the RO and shooter's perspective. The odd pace of three shots to the infected target and lone headshots to the zombies was upsetting to the comfort zone of double tap everything. I got over it and really enjoyed the confidence building of the made bonus headshots at twenty yards and the rock 'n' roll triple taps of point blank infecteds.
The second event was a three gun zombie match. Very interesting as the divisions were broken down by total loaded capacity of all three weapons. Pretty cool really, as shooters were adjusting their round counts to make a particular division. The shots were quite demanding for the average shooter from the long bonus plate racks to maximum cylinder bore ranged shotgun plate to 100+ yard offhand flash targets. Zombie shooters were quickly put on notice that while the sport was geared to both the beginner and the seasoned shooter all were expected to bring their best game and learn something while they were at it.
Tonight I directed an IDPA match and competed with a 2" Model 10 running in the SSR division. The difficult shots included 5 head shots and three bowling pins. Before I started playing with Zombie Shooting those shots would have been a challenge and uncertainty, but they all passed rather uneventfully as all the tough shots were made with seeming ease. 
The match was made even more difficult by the downright evil placement of Non-Threats which preyed upon the score sheets of all but a few. I was among the fortunate to get through unscathed, which was a good thing after my " Tonight I've got no sympathy for any of you, I'm shooting a snubnose revolver," speech. I feel it has helped my with my accuracy and comfort with my guns in tough shot situations. It will be interesting to see how this translates to USPSA, but I'll definitely be back for more at the next match.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
The Forgotten Art of the Speedloader....at least by me.
Recently I recieved two new caliber conversions for my Dillon 550 in .40 S&W and .38 Special. The ability to crank out .38's is much appreciated as it's a fun caliber to shoot, but single staging the rounds took forever. As a result my speedloader-fed guns were left unshot. Armed with my two slicked up/chopped up revolvers I headed off to the local farmer's gravel pit. Shot to shot splits seemed a bit quicker with the 120PF .38 loads and were a welcome relief from the 165PF .45's. Reloads started out being quite laughable on the north side of 5 seconds. After about 150 rounds fired my personal best was a 3.04 out of a 2" model 10. My 581 wasn't quite as fast due to some trigger issues that have since been resolved. It really surprised me how accurate the little snubnose 10 was
So there's work to be done in this area and now that I have the production abilities there's no excuse to leave them out of the practice rotation. I suppose with the right amount of practice they should be just as competitive as the moonclip guns. I just have to figure out what the right speedloader holders are now.
Side note: Farmers tend to be awfully friendly folks in my experience. If you express an interest in helping them out with pests such as groundhogs or a general lend a hand when needed attitude you can luck into a cheap place to shoot. A certain mastery of the art of conversation is needed as these folks tend to be quite conversant and inquisitive, but I like to talk. The particular farmer who is gracious enough to let me use his gravel pit often stops by to watch my practice. This serves two great functions...it keeps me on my toes performance wise and gives a good opportunity to share my sport.
So there's work to be done in this area and now that I have the production abilities there's no excuse to leave them out of the practice rotation. I suppose with the right amount of practice they should be just as competitive as the moonclip guns. I just have to figure out what the right speedloader holders are now.
Side note: Farmers tend to be awfully friendly folks in my experience. If you express an interest in helping them out with pests such as groundhogs or a general lend a hand when needed attitude you can luck into a cheap place to shoot. A certain mastery of the art of conversation is needed as these folks tend to be quite conversant and inquisitive, but I like to talk. The particular farmer who is gracious enough to let me use his gravel pit often stops by to watch my practice. This serves two great functions...it keeps me on my toes performance wise and gives a good opportunity to share my sport.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011
A supposed hiatus from shooting
I recently had to pass on three matches this past weekend to attend the funeral of my beloved Grandfather in Pennsylvania. He lived to be 84 and passed away from pre-existing breathing issues and other complications which were exacerbated by a recent car accident. I miss him dearly, but his passing was not unexpected and our families were prepared. May he rest peacefully.
With the arrangements not yet set in stone I did what any crazy revolver shooter would do...packed a suit and two bags...one full of clothes and the other full of match gear. Some may find it a little sacreligious to do such a thing, but there is only so much family time a person can take and arrangements had not yet been made. I figured a great way to deal with the emotional stress was to go out and meet new shooters and learn how other clubs put on matches. I had only one problem....I had decided I would take one gun and only one gun. After all I was driving my grieving mother and my father up to the funeral and could not afford the extra space. I went with a new to me 646 and both an IDPA and USPSA setup which all fit marvelously in a small tool bag with ammo, carriers and holster.
I went online and looked up USPSA matches in the area and finally set my sights on one that I thought would be easy to make and contacted the match director to make certain they were planning on having a match that weekend. This was a good thing because they ended up cancelling due to range drainage issues and I recieved an email to that effect. USPSA local match....dead in the water....oh no! On to the bailout plan....find an IDPA match and go to it! Luckily for me I had painstakingly decided to leave my 5" 625 at home and bring my super cool 3 and a whole lotta change" 646 .40 instead. Having an IDPA legal gun and setup was a game saver in the end, as this club turned out to be very cool and probably would've let me shoot my USPSA gun/gear there, but some won't.
The match was incredible for a local match. $15 bought six stages 5 of which had props with one standard 12 shot 2 string stage. There was house clearing with drop turners and and a waving mover. A six shot stage with two pieces of steel that when hit activated two dropout paper targets. A car stage where shots occured in and out of the car. A stage where a kicked over popper started a mover across the stage on a wire..with non threats in tow..very cool. Another scenario stage had me tac loading twice to engage the array which included 4 shots from one position a jog behind cover and a tac load to bring on a long steel activator and super close dropout threat which then made for an obstructed finish. Brilliant! Thanks to the match directors for a challenging diversion in difficult times.
With the arrangements not yet set in stone I did what any crazy revolver shooter would do...packed a suit and two bags...one full of clothes and the other full of match gear. Some may find it a little sacreligious to do such a thing, but there is only so much family time a person can take and arrangements had not yet been made. I figured a great way to deal with the emotional stress was to go out and meet new shooters and learn how other clubs put on matches. I had only one problem....I had decided I would take one gun and only one gun. After all I was driving my grieving mother and my father up to the funeral and could not afford the extra space. I went with a new to me 646 and both an IDPA and USPSA setup which all fit marvelously in a small tool bag with ammo, carriers and holster.
I went online and looked up USPSA matches in the area and finally set my sights on one that I thought would be easy to make and contacted the match director to make certain they were planning on having a match that weekend. This was a good thing because they ended up cancelling due to range drainage issues and I recieved an email to that effect. USPSA local match....dead in the water....oh no! On to the bailout plan....find an IDPA match and go to it! Luckily for me I had painstakingly decided to leave my 5" 625 at home and bring my super cool 3 and a whole lotta change" 646 .40 instead. Having an IDPA legal gun and setup was a game saver in the end, as this club turned out to be very cool and probably would've let me shoot my USPSA gun/gear there, but some won't.
The match was incredible for a local match. $15 bought six stages 5 of which had props with one standard 12 shot 2 string stage. There was house clearing with drop turners and and a waving mover. A six shot stage with two pieces of steel that when hit activated two dropout paper targets. A car stage where shots occured in and out of the car. A stage where a kicked over popper started a mover across the stage on a wire..with non threats in tow..very cool. Another scenario stage had me tac loading twice to engage the array which included 4 shots from one position a jog behind cover and a tac load to bring on a long steel activator and super close dropout threat which then made for an obstructed finish. Brilliant! Thanks to the match directors for a challenging diversion in difficult times.
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Different Disciplines and Revolvers....Part 4
Zombie shooting is a relatively new sport on the scene. Contestants are challenged to engage Zombies with a shot to the head and Infected People with three shots to the body. This is a never stagnant pace changing game that constantly demands excellence of the shooter. Whether it's a time saving bonus head shot at 20 yards or a fast burst into a target before it gets too close (a 3 yard buffer is enforced on all unneutralized targets jeering the shooter with a warning about getting bitten). This sport hones the revolver shooter to the max emphasizing speed and accuracy and when each is needed. Power factor is not a concern here as the shooter is self governed by the use of steel targets and a simple "If it won't knock down steel too bad."
The equipment is up to you as the weapons compete based on regular sights and not regular sights and round capacity. The divisions go 6, 8, 15, 24 with no topping off in the beginning of the stage. This speeds the match up a lot. People actually compete with what they carry in real life and aren't disadvantaged by it in the least. I personally watched a gentleman use an M&P 40 compact with great success until his limited supply of magazines ran out on a long stage and like in real life he had to retire from the fight. The revolver however really shines here with the use of three shot bursts and head shots. The math is right and the accuracy is there too.
I found that my approach to this was to shoot the stages from one side to another taking the change of pace in stride. Trying to build sixes and finish the cylinder is pointless when you can reload anywhere and may miss at anytime. The constantly changing pace left my mind feeling like a stripped gear by the end of the match. I can't wait to try it again!
The equipment is up to you as the weapons compete based on regular sights and not regular sights and round capacity. The divisions go 6, 8, 15, 24 with no topping off in the beginning of the stage. This speeds the match up a lot. People actually compete with what they carry in real life and aren't disadvantaged by it in the least. I personally watched a gentleman use an M&P 40 compact with great success until his limited supply of magazines ran out on a long stage and like in real life he had to retire from the fight. The revolver however really shines here with the use of three shot bursts and head shots. The math is right and the accuracy is there too.
I found that my approach to this was to shoot the stages from one side to another taking the change of pace in stride. Trying to build sixes and finish the cylinder is pointless when you can reload anywhere and may miss at anytime. The constantly changing pace left my mind feeling like a stripped gear by the end of the match. I can't wait to try it again!
Different Disciplines and Revolver.....Part 3
ICORE was created especially for the revolver guys and gals. Target arrays that are six round neutral, no head shots, and a scoring system that rewards accuracy over speed more so than the others. Unfortunately this particular game isn't popular in the area where I live and so I have only shot a handful of matches. The accuracy needed to win this game is painstaking for me and so far I have only pulled out a single match win.
The gear is very necessary for this game as all reloads must come from the belt so invest in a nail pouch or plenty of speedloader pouches. Holsters can be race holsters or IDPA legal your choice. Six shot revolvers are the norm here with eight shots being allowed also.
Divisions are open with optics and compensators, limited with moonclips and eight shot cylinders, and classic with six shot cylinders and speedloaders.
The target poses its own challenge in that it's desired impact zone is further down than the average USPSA or IDPA shooter is accustomed to. The X ring on the NRA D-1 is about four inches in diameter and serves very little purpose for ICORE other than not hurting your score with time penalty. The next ring out is the A ring and it's the last stop on the target before time penalty land. The B ring and C zone carry heavy penalties of 1 and 2 seconds respectively. Figuring an array with six or more targets and a few B's and C's really make life hard fast. A shooter can shoot themselves into the bottom of the score sheet very easily. A good shooter can really distance himself with quick A's while foolhardy competitors try to follow. Risk and reward are a constant balancing act here.
The gear is very necessary for this game as all reloads must come from the belt so invest in a nail pouch or plenty of speedloader pouches. Holsters can be race holsters or IDPA legal your choice. Six shot revolvers are the norm here with eight shots being allowed also.
Divisions are open with optics and compensators, limited with moonclips and eight shot cylinders, and classic with six shot cylinders and speedloaders.
The target poses its own challenge in that it's desired impact zone is further down than the average USPSA or IDPA shooter is accustomed to. The X ring on the NRA D-1 is about four inches in diameter and serves very little purpose for ICORE other than not hurting your score with time penalty. The next ring out is the A ring and it's the last stop on the target before time penalty land. The B ring and C zone carry heavy penalties of 1 and 2 seconds respectively. Figuring an array with six or more targets and a few B's and C's really make life hard fast. A shooter can shoot themselves into the bottom of the score sheet very easily. A good shooter can really distance himself with quick A's while foolhardy competitors try to follow. Risk and reward are a constant balancing act here.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Different disciplines and revolver...Part 2
USPSA is an interesting game to play with a revolver. Depending on where you start you will either be among a few friends or on your own.
The equipment is wide open for revolver shooters except for compensators and optic sights. Placement is as the shooter sees fits with minimal holster angle and gear distance off the body restrictions. I run my gun muzzle forward in the same safariland 568 custom fit design except it's a five inch model. I have yet to try a race holster and am waiting for my skill set to develop more before pursuing it as a reward to myself. My ammo carrier is a North Mountain four short post model. I position this right in front of the holster and it works out to be a bit right of where my belt buckle should be. It's plenty fast for my taste and I like the ability to grab more than one moonclip from a single spot.
The stages here are longer both in distance and round count which really makes it a mental endurance game. Disciplining myself to take my time and not blow the longer shots was difficult at first and 32 rounds seemed to take forever to finish. Marksmanship is not the only thing to consider in this game as speed is also rewarded. Learn to make quick hits and efficent reloads, for as the stage gets longer these things add up. Points earned divided by time gives you a hit factor and that is the goal here. Decent shooters run 4 to 6 depending on the complexity of the stage which is more or less an A hit every second elapsed. Changing gears from speed to precision is very key as the target arrays can shift from near to far at will and hardcover can really challenge your front sight focus. The ability of the shooter to choose the order of engagement is a nice plus as is reloading anytime anywhere. Reload wisely as you can run out of ammunition depneding on your loadout. Again you will find yourself at a disadvantage in capacity versus target array, but this is an aspect of the mental game to be embraced.
The equipment is wide open for revolver shooters except for compensators and optic sights. Placement is as the shooter sees fits with minimal holster angle and gear distance off the body restrictions. I run my gun muzzle forward in the same safariland 568 custom fit design except it's a five inch model. I have yet to try a race holster and am waiting for my skill set to develop more before pursuing it as a reward to myself. My ammo carrier is a North Mountain four short post model. I position this right in front of the holster and it works out to be a bit right of where my belt buckle should be. It's plenty fast for my taste and I like the ability to grab more than one moonclip from a single spot.
The stages here are longer both in distance and round count which really makes it a mental endurance game. Disciplining myself to take my time and not blow the longer shots was difficult at first and 32 rounds seemed to take forever to finish. Marksmanship is not the only thing to consider in this game as speed is also rewarded. Learn to make quick hits and efficent reloads, for as the stage gets longer these things add up. Points earned divided by time gives you a hit factor and that is the goal here. Decent shooters run 4 to 6 depending on the complexity of the stage which is more or less an A hit every second elapsed. Changing gears from speed to precision is very key as the target arrays can shift from near to far at will and hardcover can really challenge your front sight focus. The ability of the shooter to choose the order of engagement is a nice plus as is reloading anytime anywhere. Reload wisely as you can run out of ammunition depneding on your loadout. Again you will find yourself at a disadvantage in capacity versus target array, but this is an aspect of the mental game to be embraced.
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