Broski Posted January 24, 2017 Share Posted January 24, 2017 Hey guys, I just started shooting period back in November, and shot my first Steel Challenge in Dec. Now I'm hooked. I shot another steel challenge this month, and thinking about shooting my first USPSA match this Saturday. I currently have a Springfield Armory XD Mod2 compact with the 3" barrel. I have a Fobus paddle holster and an XD dual mag pouch. I do have a total of 5 mags for it. My question is what else I need to get to be able to shoot the match and enjoy myself. Luckily my first steel challenge match I got squaded with Mosher (a forum member) who made my newbie nerves go away immediately. I am looking forward to another new experience this weekend. Any help or advice in general would be great. Thanks guys. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ttolliver Posted January 24, 2017 Share Posted January 24, 2017 Welcome to your latest addiction Broski =) Sounds like you already meet the bare minimum on equipment. Put your holster and mag carriers on a sturdy leather belt. Declare Limited Division, fill your mags to capacity and put a couple full ones in your rear pocket and you're good to go. I'm sure you already suspect a carry pistol isn't really competitive, but that isn't important for your first matches. It's not like you're going to be competitive anyway. No one is. But what you have is good enough to let you get out and experience the sport. The single best advice I can give is to get to the range early and introduce yourself to the match club as a total newbie. They will pair you up with an experienced shooter that will help you through the match. Good luck and have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted January 24, 2017 Share Posted January 24, 2017 ^^^^^ Great answer from ttolliver ^^^^^^^ If you live in The Cold, wear lots of warm clothes (hat, gloves, etc), dress for the weather. Bring snacks/beverages (cold or hot?) Bring 250 rounds of ammo - just in case - you'll probably need 120 rounds. Don't make any modifications to your gun before the match - make sure the ammo you have fits in your gun - take the barrel out, and drop each cartridge into the chamber - so that it PLUNKS going in, and spins and drops freely when inverted. Help with the pasting/setting steel between shooters. Relax, and do NOT go for speed - you will see some Very Fast Shooters. Go slow enough to HIT the Targets, safely - watch the 180 rule - don't drop your gun. Oh, and Have FUN Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kneelingatlas Posted January 24, 2017 Share Posted January 24, 2017 Jack touched on it above, be enthusiastic about helping: move downrange quickly, hover around a cluster of targets and tape them up as soon as they're scored. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thaunk Posted January 24, 2017 Share Posted January 24, 2017 Assuming you stay in production, additional mag pouches as necessary. Otherwise everything else has been covered. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bsand Posted January 24, 2017 Share Posted January 24, 2017 I started uspsa with a Glock 26, after two matches I ended up getting a real competition gun Cz 75 sp-01 shadow custom... You still have a great time with a compact/sub compact (I know I did). I'd shoot a couple matches before deciding if this sport is for you with what you have. Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broski Posted January 25, 2017 Author Share Posted January 25, 2017 Thanks guys... I have been trying to decide if I should go ahead and buy a belt and maybe some cr speed mag pouches. Or any other gear before I go this weekend Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikeski Posted January 25, 2017 Share Posted January 25, 2017 10 hours ago, Broski said: Thanks guys... I have been trying to decide if I should go ahead and buy a belt and maybe some cr speed mag pouches. Or any other gear before I go this weekend I would wait till after the weekend. 1. Make sure USPSA is for you. Some people who try that and steel like the steel better. 2. If you are going to stay with USPSA and you are going to get a gun to compete with you will want to find the right rig that works for you and what you will be competing with. For example If you stay with the Springfield some mag pouches work better than other. What works for Springfield may not work for well for Glock, M&P, or what make you choose. I started with my normal Carry belt and a basic uncle mikes holster and 2 double mag pouches that I picked up from our local Gander Mountain. After a while I moved to a Comp belt (double belt setup) and Ghost pouches. Then moved to CR Speed, and then to a Double Alpha setup for Limited/Open. Yeah you could say I caught the bug. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Husker95 Posted January 25, 2017 Share Posted January 25, 2017 Great advice so far. I would shoot maybe 3 or 4 matches before you buy any serious gear. Watch shooters in different divisions, ask a bunch of questions and see if you can check out some other folks guns and gear after the match and teardown. Find out what you like and what fits in your budget. Buying good gear is expensive enough; whats REALLY expensive is to buy the wrong stuff and then have to buy the correct gear a couple months later. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kneelingatlas Posted January 25, 2017 Share Posted January 25, 2017 That's a good point Husker, like me, many shooters have A LOT of gear and would be happy to let a new shooter use a whole rig for a match or two. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broski Posted February 7, 2017 Author Share Posted February 7, 2017 Well guys I went and shot the match last month and for a lack of better terms I had a "BLAST". Met some great guys, they did pick on me all day about my little gun. Kept telling me "You're not doing bad considering you are shooting a Derringer." It's a done deal. I'm in. I'm thinking I'm gonna keep shooting my "little gun" for a little while until I decide exactly where I wanna land as far as division and gun. Gonna order a new holster, belt, and mag pouches just so I have them. I think the only thing that won't be useable later will be the holster, but I can keep it handy just in case. Will be making at least a 90 min drive to shoot another match on the 18th over in Alabama. I'll keep you guys posted. I did finish 41st out of 55. We had 61 registered but 2 didn't show and we had 4 DQs. Our classifier was "Front Sight" and I finished 41st overall and 16th out of 24 in limited with 39.32%. Over all I am pretty happy with how I did. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GrumpyOne Posted February 7, 2017 Share Posted February 7, 2017 What "little gun" are you shooting? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Broski Posted February 7, 2017 Author Share Posted February 7, 2017 Springfield XD Mod 2 9mm w/ a 3" barrel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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