safenate

Still no updates from July shoot or August shoot... (passed out from holding breath)

Two weeks ago i did a requal (Glock & M4) for redeployment. Though free ammo & range time is nice, it is painfully slow & dictated practice. Some techniques required for class are NOT IPSC friendly: overhand slide grab... Today was the York IWLA rifle (4 stage) & pistol (5 stage). Rifle: We started rifle: 7 8x10" steel targets at 50, 75, & 85. One position per yardline, but the grass was too high to see the 85 prone. Rifle was ColtMaster pencil with 2 MOA Aimpoint & 55 gr FMJ PMC. I shot the 50 from a tactical stance, 85 kneeling, 75 prone with 4 rounds left in the mag. Missed one/two at each line & had one turn on me at 85 requiring a followup. The second rifle was 16 oval at 15 yds, nothing special, just keep your targets straight and don't DOUBLE UP, if you don't have to. Third was 11 half size targets at 20 yds behind 4 NO shoots at 10 yds. Plan your shoot & shoot your plan. This went well after mentally walking thru it several times. The 4th stage was very quick: 8 full size at 15 yds, 4 from each side of wall. No prob. Pistol: 1st stage was a back & forth fun stage with 2 activated swingers. I tried to limit my movements, but also am trying to shoot on the move more. It went well, clean. The second was all very close work (< 7 yd) but lots of footwork. Perhaps shooting on the move suits me b/c that stage was great. NO Sights, all As. I'm not sure no sights is a good idea, but they weren't necessary and allowed things to go really fast. An activated one-time swinger made things fun at the end with a breaking the last shot (airborn) while stepping over the fault line. The next stage started seated with G34 on table, 2 paper on each side of a [_] and 5 poppers behind the [_]. It was hard to make the poppers as the shooter needed to be very extended on top the fault line. I went into the left side too fast and over stepped the fault line (not shooting) but burning time coming back in. Then shooting the right side, the left side popper didn't fall (reshoot). My second run required two shots on one left popper but the second run was 2.? seconds faster. The 4th stage was 'L' shape with 3 poppers from 15 yds, 2 paper at 3 yds & then 2 more paper & 5 poppers at 10 yds. FAST & FUN! The final stage was 4 - 4 paper arrays with partial hard cover on each array, headshots at each array 4-12 yds. Lots of fun, some aiming required. NO MIKES TODAY! Several Ds at the half-size rifle targets at 15 yds. A heavier barrel with a Comp would be nice. Some shooters today looked like they were shooting 22's. NO RECOIL. And the YHM alum. handguard got hot after the 4 stages. No stage was over 32 rounds and each stage took 30 minutes to complete and was bagged afterwards. The RO said my vert grip was considered a bipod so i couldn't use it in Tactical. Great day shooting though...

I shot a fun stage today at York IWLA and it was fast, for me. Then i noticed, i didn't use my sights for any of it. No headshots or anything, just whole targets. Is this good or bad practice for a 'C' Limited shooter looking to make M/GM? The next few stages were shot similar, but concentrating on the head shoots was required. Thanks for input.

I shot my first classifier in 6 years, about 5-6 weeks ago. It still hasn't posted on the website... I'm blue from holding my breathe.....

Outsider, Thanks for the recipes. I may try 121s after ordering my next case(s) from MT Gold. Not sure which pow-pow i'll use yet. I need to clean, just hard to clean when i have ammo to shoot or brass to reload...

Watch charges & primers, listen to the machine? Some of you guys take the fun out of this bullet-making thing. Just kidding. With Amer Sel, a double is impossible (same with any 9Major load). But i don't always use it. I think some mental stimulation (talk radio or FN in the background) keeps me from making a mistake. I've fallen asleep while running & swimming before, but not while reloading (yet). I am also considering introducing a bit of core training by standing on one of those weeble-wobles or something. Thanks for sharing.

I listen to the radio (talk usually) or TV (Fox news), visualize (not world peace), and dream up wildcats. Sometimes i even play with the dog, leaving the press in the up position so as not to double charge.

OH BOY! 200+ round 9x19. Got a 1.99 6 shot bill drill from 7 yds, on 7x8" steel, all hits. It was my only sub 2 for the day and about half were 6/6 on steel. Most all hits were 2.2 ish. Had some serious cycling issues today. Perhaps 4.2 gr of Univ. at 1.14" under a 115 is too light. Burn marks on the brass, but had issues with 10% of the ammo. Shot best in my new open upper, so i swapped the guide rod in that for the one in my stock G34 upper. It got better, but still had some issues. Some splits were .15, most 17-19s though. The Ciener kit for my buddy's G17 didn't work well on the G34. The mag bases on the conversion hits the GlockMiester magwell. It shoots a few shots, then didn't feed a round. Tap, rack, ready worked, but got old (quickly). Draws were about 1.1-.2 with 60% hits. Taking an extra .02 sec makes the difference between hit/miss. Also took 200+ rounds of 22LR for the 22/45. That thing is fast. Good practice for moving. The FO front on that really stands out well. Very easy to find. Reconsidering the same for the G34. Still need adjustable rear for the G34 as none of the rears i have match up with any of the fronts i have. Currently rounds are good to about 10 yds, then start going up to 3" high at 25 yd.

Ahhh, STEEL! Got dad's 1/4" steel up on a 2x4 post and it is nice to have immediate response while practicing. The plates are about 7x8" with a hole in the middle. I just use a bolt to attach them to a 2x4 then drop the other 2x4 end into a buried 5" pvc pipe. It rotates a bit, but not too bad. 22LR doesn't seem to chew up the washer or bolt but 9mm plus wears on the washer, eventually making the plate loose on the post. When the steel is tight against the wood, there isn't too much sound signature. Perhaps putting a bolt into the post underneath the plate would make better sound. In time i'd like to get all 3 plates onto 2x4 or 4x4 posts to practice El Prez, etc. The size would also make good practice for 100 yd AR15 and maybe 50 yd slug work. This steel has handled 223 as fast as i could pull the trigger from 7 yards and shoot hold up to much abuse. Took the S&W 617 today to burn up some LRN ammo. At 20 yds i need to hold dead center of the steel to get 10/10. Perhaps other ammo would be better, or maybe cleaning would help. I forgot a mag for the Ruger 22/45. The G34 with Mil surplus ammo shoot low & left at 20 yds on the steel. That ammo knocked the washer out on the shooting face, causing lead to splash into the bolt & allowed damage to the 2x4 post (splitting). Steel is fun, but eats ammo, quickly! Good for 22 practice though. Need to get an AA conversion for practice on steel (for volume).

Larry, I put up a poll to see if i'm too hard on my guns. I have trusted my life to several Glocks, Sigs, HKs, etc with at least that much shooting between cleanings. I don't trust most of the guys i work with, for comparison (esp. when they are shooting). Quality COMBAT guns with quality ammo should provide decades of use, without neglect (saltwater). This is noted by the 10s of thousands of guys shooting a 100 year old military pistol for competition & combat.

What type of gun and how many rounds between cleanings? How many rounds before failure due to dirty conditions/complications? Glocks, 5K+ rounds. Failure at 0 rounds due to dust/dirt/lube combination in ME, none due to shooting residue. HKs, same. One failure after reloading with a mag that dropped in mud, fired 3x before failure. ARs, 5-10K rounds. No failures due to ammo gunk. Sigs, 1K+ rounds. Failure due to spring breaking, none due to ammo gunk. M60s, 10K+ rounds. Berettas, 5K+ rounds. Only failure due to improper reassembly.

Note for the LW upper. I swapped the rear plate today and shot both uppers for 50+ rounds today- no problems at all, in either. The LW upper with Dot is very tight, esp. with working up to major loads. Only took 115s up to 1400 fps today. At 100 yds i swear it would hold a 6-8 inch circle from a sandbag rest. Harmon, still haven't wiped it down. Sorry man. Next stop, striker & striker spring swap.

Just got done with my first range session with the new LW/KMM Glock 17 Open upper and noticed primer smear on all primers. From 115s at 1100 to 115s at 1400 (+P) all show some smear on the Winchester Small Pistol primers in various brass (using 3N37, Bullseye & Powerpistol). This isn't anything to worry about, is it? There were no other signs (flattening).

Shot the KKM/LW upper today but swapped the rear plates, no problems on any loads. The LW/KKM setup seems pretty tight esp. with hot loads. Loaded 115s up to 1375 fps today and shot them to 100 yds, very tight. Need more powder to make major or go heavier 121/124s and start over. Also shot the steel dad got for me today. At 20 yds offhand the 8"x7" steel looks like a good practice size. It took 40 of 50 quick shots with only mild shiny spots on it. With just a bolt thru the middle, it can/did spin. With it only on a 2x4, it also spun in the hole a bit. This is not a big problem, but is annoying. Shots could get deflected pretty bad to the sides. At least one bullet hit the bolt, very minor damage. This setup may not last for 200-300 rounds of sustained practice. One direct hit made hole in wood. One deflected off the bottom of the steel caused splatter damage on the post. There is barely noticable sound of a hit. Perhaps a bolt behind the steel would cause more sound signature.

Those Dundee stages are awesome. Remember the 2002 Crazy Croc there when several stages had the Star. Haven't shot a star in a few years now... haven't missed it.

Matt, I'll try 115s w/ PP & 3N37, until i order 121s or 124s. Thanks for the input. Harmon, I've had this G34 for about 2 months & about 3K rounds. It hasn't been cleaned while i've had it. It isn't too dirty (my AR is MUCH worse). I'll hit it with a rag/brush though. HoMiE, I plan on doing the trouble-shooting matrix as soon as i get some ammo assembled. Take the w's G17, the G34, upper & perhaps the rear plate from the G26. THEN write down results as parts are swapped in an organized fashion. Noting results with what works & what doesn't. This may not happen immediately, as i'm not seeking an a$$whoopin' in Open for a while. Thanks for the tips guys.

HoMie- the only oddity i can put my finger on is during installation. After sliding the upper on to the front rails, i have to tilt the rear of the slide up for the rear plate to clear the ejector. It would hit about 1/32" up the rear plate otherwise. Next step is to swap an original rear plate to check for clearance/reliability.

HoMie- it wouldn't cycle without the comp either. Photos attached

I got the upper, put it on my G34 and took it straight to the range. It is pretty accurate with the dot BUT it is 90% single shot. I emailed the seller, but he says he had no problems with WWB. My handloads are very close to WWB 115@1150. The rear plate looks like someone used a Dremel to get it to fit. He swears it is factory from LW. I'm not happy about it. The slide comes back just enough to catch the brass in a chamber-oriented stovepipe. I am starting workup loads to major & maybe they will function better, but it is the stock spring/guiderod. The trigger is also close to factory VS the G34 stock setup. I'll have to research that & make them near the same. I have a LS Lightweight striker to play with as well. Good thing i have a while before stepping full into the Open realm.

Shot this last weekend: 7.17 HF, about 60% in Limited. Decent run for a 'D' guy.

Congrats Steel! OH boy. Don't know why, but this went smooth last weekend. 5.01 HF in L for about 74% for a 'D' guy. Most of the others for the weekend were 50-60 %.

Shot this first time last weekend. Got 6.07 HF, trying to move up in Limited. Been out of the game a while, LOVE getting back on the smell of burning powder and adrenaline!!! Just used the calculator 50%, AWESOME TOOL!

Tango Yankee

Would like the bullet length to help start with Quickload. I'm looking at starting recipes for 9major in a G17 5" KKM with LW comp. Hoping to use 3n37 or PP @ 1.14". Thanks.

I am using U die, but it doesn't look like brass. It looks like steel or alloy.