MemphisMechanic

1050. You'll want one within a year. I’ve had 650 for 10 years now and still want a 1050, but mine is decked out with all the aftermarket upgrades and a bulletfeeder... it’s just good enough to keep me from buying that 1050 / Mark7 combination that I really want. Go with a 650. It’ll keep you from buying a larger more expensive press for the longest amount of time.

Bayou, Black Bullets Int’l, and Blues through poly barrels without issue over here. Coated bullets work great in Glocks and the like.

Run the Xtreme Medium hammer spring. It does hit harder than the 15.5 PD, and it lit that last 5% of the brick-hard CCI primers that my gun wouldn’t other wise eat. Stroking the bolo for a longer DA hammer travel also seems to have been helpful. If you put the factory disconnector back in the gun, it’ll drag the hammer back noticeably further than the BOLO did, and will light primers that an (unmodified) BOLO won’t. If you want a BOLO equipped gun to hit really hard, you have to shave the nose of the bolo down slowly and custom fit it. It’s not Patriot’s fault: there’s a hilarious variance in the shape of the ramp on the frames they had to account for.

This. For the record, however, it’s still a long reach.

Regarding which gun? A quick search would have shown you this post from last week:

This is true, in Europe. Where you cannot polish internals and must use factory parts. For the original poster: the Xtreme models are IPSC guns which cater to IPSC rules: none of the parts (aside from the sear and guide rod) are as good as aftermarket ones. But it’s harder tell if they’ve been polished a wee bit, and you get lighter springs from the factory. Exactly. You can build a standard Stock II or III into a gun with a far superior trigger to the Xtreme model, and for for less cost. You also get a hardchromed gun, instead of less durable cerakote. Buy a stock 1 2 or 3 and: 1 piece sear guide rod from Xtreme or Henning titan hammer bolo disconnector 14 or 15.5lb PD hammer spring dawson .140 or .160 tall front sight 10 lb recoil spring Light sear/firing pin/trigger spring from PD And use those videos of mine that someone posted above, a few casual nights with a dremel, and build yourself a beautiful gun.

The M&P and Glock IMSI 13lb springs that I have on hand feel identical in the PPQ to a Wilson flat-wire 1911 spring of the same weight. It does feel light while in battery. Don’t overthink it and shoot the gun like that: mine runs all day long.

N320 is so popular because the gun shoots softer and flatter than N340. Slower powders = more felt recoil.

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That was my thinking too, curious if hotter ammo was his reason. WSF and others have worked well for me in the past, and if I were living where VV is more equal in cost (Europe) to other powders? I’d probably have used 340.

Yes, the Xtreme gripscrews will fit. They’re designed for those grips, after all.

Note: I cerakoted mine with a gritty black texture after hand-checkering the front and rear edges for additional traction. I still have this pair on my shelf and should really get around to selling them...

What makes you desire a slower powder?

It’s official. I quit. I can’t consistently align the sights to do better than 2-3” at 25yd from a rest, let alone at 50 yards.

I think transition slowness is partially due to the footwork. You could have set up with wider, deeper, Hwansik-style stances and driven the gun more aggressively in nearly every position with your legs. So I’m going to echo the footwork suggestions. Also the foot speed in general when moving. Watching @Maxamundo‘s videos nowadays, I feel like the rest of us run in slow motion. He moves like a weasel on crack.

I also took a tip from watching Ben Stoeger during his class, and I’ve stopped running electronic muffs when I am shooting. Without being able to reliably hear the steel, you’ll focus on clean sight pictures. And chit chat (“oh he plugged a noshoot...”) will hopefully be blocked out. Of course it quiets the gun down too, so it’s just your eyes and the sights for the entire run.

Exactly this. Particularly in handguns. Test it for group size. Worry about how accurate your ammo is - once you’re making PF that’s all that matters. OAL, you will probably find, isn’t actually much of a factor. People on the internet (or OCD ones who own a set of calipers) just like to worry about things. Test it for accuracy. That’s what tells you if changes are needed.

@deerslayer yeah I forgot to warn you about that! My load went from 133pf in 5” Tanfoglio to 137pf in 5” Q5. They have really fast barrels.

Or a crushing grip with the weak hand, and medium-firm handshake with your strong hand. The decibullz brand DIY custom molded earplugs are terrific, although the Radians brand ones are equally cheap and more comfortable. Custom molded plugs underneath muffs are a great combination: I’m A class and have been doing this for years - you will shoot more accurately without the distraction regardless of your skill level. Its also normal to blink: it took all of us a long time to get used to shooting without doing so. I personally didn’t follow a training regimen to stop blinking. Good ear protection along with 20,000 rounds sent downrange caused it to simply happen on it’s own.

Factory 115 FMJ has a ridiculously long pointy profile, whose ogive is extremely compatible with short chambered guns. Ever mic'd Winchester White Box? It's absurdly long, around 1.160" yet it feeds in every factory gun due to the shape of the bullet. You should be able to run any store-bought jacketed 115 you like without worry. It's the reloaders with our fat, short, round-nose 124/135/147gr coated bullets who have to worry about OAL.

Stainless Steel guide rod (custom made) 13lb flat-wire recoil spring Dawson .190” x .100” fiber front sight Talon grip tape Full mirror polishing of the action Done. That’s it. I don’t think the gun needs more tinkering - I need more practice.

The intention was to keep the USPSA speed reload out of IDPA, and make you shoot the gun dry like you will in da streetz. It worked exactly as intended. ...sort of.

Just paste the URL of your YouTube video into the comment box where I’m currently typing text like it is any other ordinary scentence. The forum will embed it automatically for you.

Preventing burnout is the biggest (legitimate) reason for switching guns / divisions. In my highly opinionated opinion. Glad it’s rocking for you!

And the way the gun balances. I loved the weight out front in my 3, but most shooters found it bothersome. Stock 2 popularity: 1. Balance / handling 2. More mechanically accurate (both are scary good shooters) 3. Much tougher finish 4. The Ben Factor.