[The Airsoft Alternative]

I bought three (the 2011 style, and two 92F's) in the summer of '06, and while the kids don't really play with thier Berretta's anymore, I use my 2011 the better part of the week in the evenings as part of my dryfire routine.

The one I have has an all metal frame, slide, barrel, guide rod, and magazine. While it's not forged steel or anything, it's way better than all the other plastic guns they sell out there. Strips down just like the real deal, and fits perfectly in my CR Speed. I cut the lug off of the slide stop so I could fire it with an empty mag. It shoot's great, and gets around 300 FPS on the rounds, but I don't usually fire rounds out of it.

They are good for what they are, but they're not invincible. While playing shoot'em up with kids awhile back I dropped my mag on the driveway, and even though it didn't crack like thought it would have, I would want to do it again. It still runs fine. Also I think the O-rings in the mag (which is where the Gas is stored) need to be replaced every so often. Just last month mine has started to bleed gas, just a little bit.

I'll try to take a pic of mine, and show it stripped down, and also in the CR Speed etc.

One other thing I use it for is videoing myself in the house doing draw drills against the par time. In the play back you can clearly tell if you beat the clock, especially if your playback program has sound in the slow-mo, or pause/step feature (InterVideo Win DVD).

[Ohio Classifier Calculator, what happened to it?]

Bummer....That was a geat calculator, and it had some useful other calculators at the bottom as well.

Hopefully they get it back up soon.

[Primer Choices]

I've seen 3 differnt choices in federal primers on the shelf...Which type is the preferred choice (i.e.- Gold Match, Champion, or 205/red&blue box).

[Tips for a dry-fire reaction drill .....]

A green gas Airsoft gun will activate your timer (Pocket Pro II) if the Sensitivity is turned all the way up to 25, and the gun is 1 foot or less from it.

That being said, I was doing this very drill in my house a few weeks back as follows:

1. Set sensitivity on Pocket Pro II to 25 (Highest setting)

2. Use Green Gas airsoft gun that has gas in it, but no pellets

3. Place Timer on bookcase at muzzle height

4. Aim muzzle at mic on timer (1 foot away, or less)

5. Hit go, and find out where you stand

Try it, it works good.

[The Airsoft Alternative]

I've got a "WE" Brand Green Gas limited piece that mimics my SV, and after "Modifying" the orange muzzle plug, it fits into (and OUT of) my CR Speed with No Probs.

I shoot rounds through it from time to time, but I use mostly as an enhanced dry fire tool. I disabled the slide stop, and shoot it empty (Bad for the Gun by the way) to practice tracking front sight, Target Tansitions, etc. I shoot it mostly in the living room with three 1/3 sized targets. Running it empty you can pretty much call all of your shots anyway, and you don't have to worry about eating a pellet because you're poor and can't afford Real Estate.

BTW got it at flea market for $90. Good deal for the quality.

[Practice sessions]

Do you shoot a match warm? Not likely. I start practicing cold, right from the start.

I have tried getting a quick 30-50 round session in that morning before heading out to the match, but haven't been able to tell if it helped, hurt, or niether.

I did feel "More Gooder" about everything however, and THAT always helps.

I am going to keep trying to make this happen when practical until I see a result either Pos or Neg.

[Reduced Size Targets]

I had a few days on my hands and using the dimensions listed in the back of the Rulebook made some 1/2 scale targets, and 1/3 scale targets. They go great together (side-by-side) for giving the impression of distance (i.e.- further down range) between them.

Here's a copy of my notes from the conversions:

Actual Target Dimensions

A Zone - 15cm X 28cm (5cm down from B Zone)

B Zone - 15cm X 15cm

Shoulder Width- 15cm per side

Shoulder Height- 60cm

Overall Height- 75cm

Overall Width- 45cm

Angles:

Shoulder- 45 Degrees- 5cm W, 5cm H

Hip- 7.5cm W, 15cm H

MINI CONVERSION

1/3 Size

Overall Height- 25cm/10 in.

Overall Width- 15cm/6 in.

Shoulder Height- 20cm/8 in.

Shoulder Width- 5cm per side/2 in.

A Zone - 5cm/2 in. X 9.33cm/3.73 in.

B Zone - 5cm/2 in. X 5cm/2 in. (1.67cm/ .67 in. down from B Zone)

Shoulder Angle- 45 Degrees- 1.67cm/ .67 in. H, 1.67cm/ .67 in. W

Hip Angle- 2.5cm/ 1 in. W, 5cm/ 2 in. H

½ Size

Overall Height- 37.5cm/ 15 in.

Overall Width- 22.5cm/ 9 in.

Shoulder Width- 7.5cm/ 3 in. per side

Shoulder Height- 30cm/ 12 in.

A Zone - 7.5cm/ 3 in. X 14/ 5.6 in.

B Zone – 7.5cm/ 3 in. X 7.5cm/ 3 in.

Shoulder Angle- 45 Degrees- 2.5cm/ 1 in. H, 2.5cm/ 1 in. W

Hip Angle- 3.75cm/ 1.5 in. W, 7.5cm/ 3in. H

Obviously I only did the A zones, but they work great, and if you make a Master Copy you can pop them out whenever you have extra cardboard. Also, the 1/3 size target will fit on a regular 8 1/2 x 11 sheet of paper.