MemphisMechanic

Tanfoglios require rather substantial gunsmithing to run like a top, that’s not something anyone in this forum will dispute. Like an off-the-rack 1911, if you want a smooth gun that runs on light loads? You’ll be doing some re-springing, parts-changing, and polishing. And a light extractor spring is definitely a mistake: most of us run wolff’s extra-power spring for a reason. If the gun is set up with a glass smooth breechface and properly fit extractor? Well, mine went six months of weekly use without any feed or extraction issues. Just ran like a Glock.

The below refers to small primers, in 9mm: CCI magnum versus both S&B and Winchester standard primers? Same velocity results over a chrono. Same gun. Back to back. (Results were within 5 FPS so I consider that no statistic change, since the SD on that ammo is 6.) I now use either CCI Mags or standard SP primers interchangeably in 125gr Minor ammo without any concern at all. I don’t know if the CCI Magnums are in fact harder than standard CCI primers: by the time I set up my Tanfo to chew on CCIs, it was polished and the bolo stroked deeply enough it ate everything... and I sold the Tanfo, so I’m back to a factory-sprung striker gun which damn near punches holes through CCI Mags.

A Glock doesn’t technically have a firing pin.

Update to my above data. There are two new entries tucked in here for 125gr loads:

They won’t be using something you can buy off the shelf as far as powder. Something purchased in bulk designed for manufacturers, instead.

Note that @wtturn is a solid production GM who just won the state match over here in TN. Might be worth listening to.

Two DIY options I’ve used that work well: The Raidans are great for us minor shooters, or for shooters looking for the most comfortable option for long term wear - they turn out pretty compact. Radians Custom Molded Earplugs, Blue https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003A28OW6/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_SdA0zb2Q4TVQG These work even better. Really good NRR, almost don’t feel the need to double plug near Open Guns unless you’re ROing or shooting. Decibullz - Custom Molded Earplugs, 31dB Highest NRR, Comfortable Hearing Protection for Shooting, Travel, Swimming, Work and Concerts (Red) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WIXL6IM/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apip_JeRwcpOMTrut1

With case lube, I spray the inside of an old tupperware with One Shot then dump 200ish pieces of Brass into it and stir it around by hand. Unlike directly spraying the cases, this keeps it out of the inside of the brass so that you can load right away. In five years of doing this I’ve never had an issue loading cases within 60 seconds of lubing them.

Use ELS first. Buy a second belt setup after a few months when you know exactly the gear you want for USPSA and dedicate ELS to three gun.

Decking a gun out with all of their goodies results in an entirely new gun. The DA pull feels nearly as light as the SA originally was, and every remaining shot is 1911-like. They are currently the thickest option out there.

I’m not sure I’m following here. I’ll simply describe my procedure and see if it helps: 1. Loading my final 100 rounds. I’m cranking away until the buzzer goes off... 2. The primer tube’s buzzer sounds, and I flip the casefeeder off and pull the rod out of the primer tube. I know I have a dozen or so rounds left to load. 3. Paying extra attention to the way it feels to seat primers, I finish up the remaining primers in the disk and tube. 4. When I feel the press ka-chunk down onto nothing when the final primer has been used, I dump out the remaining cases in the casefeeder tube and empty the shellplate in stations 1 and 2. The remaining cases in stations 3, 4, and 5 then get bullets and crimped as per usual - you still have to cycle the handle 3 more times. Helpful?

Glad to hear the videos and our discussions here on BE have helped someone else. That’s what they’re intended for. Enjoy the gun!

Technically you can run your holster at 6 o’clock on your belt in Production, but we also don’t see that terribly often for some reason. I was speaking on what is common practice.

The only reason you CANNOT cock & safe to start in Production is because the rules prohibit single-action firearms. You must fire a DA first shot. Without that prohibition, Limited and Open Guys will always opt to start hammer back. As you noted, they permit ANY start condition, so shooter’s will opt for the one with the best trigger pull. (Assuming they aren’t shooting a 2011, in which case that is their only option to begin with.) They begin on safe in order to comply with the relevant section of the rule book. (Which mandates a safety be used if the gun is in SA)

Just buy a stock 2 and shoot Production, and quit worrying about it. Production is better anyway.

Sooooo what you’re telling us is that your gun is having issues with ammo that is loaded with high primers. You’ve left the striker fired world behind. I’m sincere when I say that a flush Winchester primer is a high primer. Actually, it’s quite a bit high. Even in CCI you can load them a thousandth or two below flush, even on my “worst case scenario” Dillon 650. This was a hard pill for me to swallow at first, too. But it’s very much the case. If they’re flush, you’ll need a few extra pounds of hammer spring to get your gun to hit them hard enough to run 100% and that works great. But if you want to play with light springs and low pull weights, you have to seat your primers with an obsession toward burying them deep.

I did a four part video tutorial for YouTube detailing how to strip a Tanfoglio and fully polish the internals. (Search for “Tanfoglio Tuning” if you’d like to see.) After selling the Tanfo and switching to a Walther Q5 Match, I detail stripped the new gun and fully polished the trigger mechanism and slide/rails before it ever got fired. You can probably guess which camp I fall into.

I run two of them in my Walther. The trigger is amazing.

I have used all three. The DAA has the thinnest most flexible inner belt. The others make the inner and outer about equally rigid, so it still feels like you’re wearing a gun belt when the outer is off. Shooters connection belt with the hard plastic Arrendondo belt keeper is what I’m currently running, and it works great. The quality and straighter/neater seams on the other belts are pluses to spending more, but the belt doesn’t actually work any better or worse. I’ll run the Arrendondo keeper on whichever belt system I use: It’s worth the $6 to never get lost like the velcro ones, and it’s faster to boot: https://dawsonprecision.com/arredondo-belt-keepers/

Biggest check I suggest regarding the firing pin block? Take it out. I shot mine in a couple of local matches and plenty of range sessions without a firing pin block installed. All the issues I attributed to the FPB turned out to be ammo production and hammer spring weight issue. If you want the gun to eat any ammo you feed it, either a 15.5 PD spring or an EGW Medium (around 16.6ish) is the hot ticket. You’ll have a 6-6.5 pound DA with a magficent polishing job and all the toys installed in the gun, or 7 pounds and change without them. But it’s very shootable and will run any ammo ever made. The lighter you go on hammer spring, the more important primer choice, proper case gauging, and primer seating become.

@Gviz - a flush primer is a high primer. Seat them all the way down in there - measure, and look for .003” below flush (or deeper depending on primer manufacturer.) Make sure all of your rounds pass the plunk test, and then take her back to the range before you start swapping parts and dremeling away. If properly loaded ammo doesn’t fix things, look at the list from Johnbu and SoCal. A striker fired SIG will eat anything and so will the other striker-fired guns. They have all that kinetic energy to rob from the reciprocating slide, cocking then driving the striker much harder. A Tanfogilo or CZ has only the energy expended by your finger cranking the hammer back in DA, which means once you start lightening the springs they truly need match-grade ammo. Guys who came from striker Guns like myself have to learn how to load ammo with buried primers. We have no clue: “if it’s flush, it’s good!” always works with Glock and P320 and M&P. Now that I’ve gone back to the striker guns it’s nice to just pound CCI-primed ammo out like a monkey on the 650 again, but I’m still grateful for the reloading lessons I learned while feeding my Stock III.

Go use a digital caliper and tell us exactly how deeply the primers are seated in your handloads. More than likely you don’t need to make any changes to your gun in order to achieve 100% reliability with Winchester primers.

Being tense is slow. Being calm is when you’re fast. When is the last time you saw a professional athlete in any discipline who looked tense and rushed?

@ChuckS that was my first thought as well: the port in the second wall needs to be framed with noshoots on all 4 sides, V is one of the stages I rate a 5 out of 10: It’s much more interesting than an 8, 8, 8, 8 stage with four poets, but there’s still really only one logical way to shoot it. Put some of that steel downrange and move a couple of paper so that they’re visible from multiple locations, and things get much more interesting. Also, recognize as a stage designer than everyone with leave the shooting area to run straight across from one tip of the V to the other, unless you somehow block that option off.

The biggest thing of course is how long it took you to engage the final plate on the first attempt. In every case, you get your feet into position but your weight is centered over your feet. You then you “slide” your upper body to the right in order to shift your weight over the right leg, which is the source of the pregnant pause. Stop that. Get a bit lower and arrive with your shoulders centered over your legs (or weight over the outside leg if simulating a lean) and fire right away.