CocoBolo

The AFTEC is not a drop in part, the firing pin stop has to be fit to it. The AFTEC also needs spare parts, not so much because they ware out, but because you might lose them. Spare springs and a cap. The easy move is another standard extractor, but the process is to put it in and make sure it runs then it can be a spare, not just buy it throw it in the range bag. Since my oldest AFTEC is only about 5 years old and it only does between 6 and 8 matches a month and a few practice sessions I don't know how long it will last but suspect darn near forever. My limited gun has a standard sti extractor never had any trouble with it either but then it don't get shot much.

Get a magnet, some of that brass you have may well be Steel disguised as brass if it stick get rid of it. GECO, I don't use, all of it I came across has crimped primer pockets. EGW-U die, takes twice the effort of a Hornady Die, but it takes half the rejects out of the drop check. If you have lots of fat boy brass deprime and size drop check and toss the rejects in the recycle bucket. RedRyder - I didn't dislike the U-Die till I used it, after that I hated it, when I can crank out nearly twice as many rounds in the same time with a Hornady or Dillion sizing die. I use to roll size all of the brass before loading, then lazy hit not I just roll size the loaded reject, twice it it don't fix it the first time. I shoot 9 major, so I only deal with once fired brass, problem with that is some of them were fired from unsupported barrels the first time. For the noob, be critical of your match ammo when drop checking, if it don't go all the way in and out without help its bad! Put it in the practice bucket. If you thing it is a fat boy it is, to confirm put it in the drop check bassackwards if it goes in 2/3 of the way you got another problem its not a fat boy.

I checked the Burris site for more information and figured the recticle out, looks like for my SMK's going a tick under 2800 at 1/2 high at a 100 yards will get it very close on 2,3,4,500 yd dots. With 83" at 600 I'll just aim at pluto. In pistol when I have to aim at the stem to hit the plate or into space over it or left or right of it, drives me crazy, and slows things way down, the same thing happens with rifle with cross hairs where I have to remember to aim at the dirt in front of the 200 yard flasher, but the sweet spot was 300 actually got to aim right at it and the hits were 1 for one. go figure. I'm hoping this scope works out so I get to aim at the target more often.

Actually mine came out to $402.74. Considering it is $200 less than the PST with the QD mount, I caved in and ordered one, happy fathers day to me. If it don't work out I'll keep the mount and sell the scope.

I call them the special needs squad. SNS not SS.

Stage 1: Yes, on beep STEP as you draw move right about half way between the poppers and paper, you are moving right as you ease into postion the gun is naturally pointed towards the paper. This position also un-hid all popers so no time waiting or makeing extra transitions. The second set of poppers had no such position at best one was still hidden. Stage 2: I almost forgot about the slippery, I had a little traction break on one take off. Shooting on the move takes practice and good judgement. Knowing when not to do it, like when No Shoots are close etc. But to practice get a few poppers rig them where they will not fall. Get two barrels place them far enought out to be safe. The drill is to do figure 8's around the barrels while shooting the poppers. Try it in both directions. This will get you shooting on the move with just a little practice. You kind of took a step shooting on the move but not really. I took a shoot on the move class with BJ Norris, found out I ben doing shooting the targets in the wrong order when moving sideways, so we can always learn a new trick. The barrel drill is Phil Straiters teaching method it works. Far to Near vs Near to Far: A shooter has a tendency to shoot faster as they shoot, so if you start fast close by the time you get to the far targets you are going way too fast. On this stage for the pistol there were only two targets to accelerate on, then the steel which was not a moderately difficult shot, it was a darn hard shot so you had to slow down. The two remaining were on the same plane and open so they were moderate difficulty, at 50 yards they would be hard shots. From the draw you could engage the near target much faster, even shooting a borrowed gun with sights I couldn't see I hit it without out even attempting a sight picture, NPA, natural point of aim. By the second I had found the fuzzy green thing, went for the popper missed continued on the other two came back to the popper missed again and went on. I was borrowing ammo as well so trying not to get too deep in debt. Did I say slowing down is one of the hardest things to learn, for this go to a steel challenge match, you will get humbled, when you don't slow down. I think you missed the point on the rifle, Its called transitions, getting in and getting the gun up I was on target just point shot the first one, then finished gathering up the rifle and finished up. On paper at under 25 yards (in a match of two holes anywhere) you don't take much time to aim. As opposed to picking the rifle up turning aiming for the long shots working the way back, that puts an extra transition into shooting the array, and a transition is probably .42 seconds if you are fast. Its back to that being ready to shoot when you get there, which way were you facing? Well coming across I was facing that first target and my gun lay there on the barrel pointed right at it, the wrist position was good. This bring up another good point, when you pick up a gun your eyes need to be on the gun just until your hands are on it then eyes go to target as gun is raised. When you put a gun down for a pickup start paying attention to your wrist position to pick it up, place it where your wrist will be straight, makes it easier and faster, just a few .01s of a second. example Shooter a does the stage in 15 seconds you take 30, if you look at the timer you will find that the biggest differences are between the shots, not the two on a target but between the last shot on one and the first on the next the transitions, but where this gets huge is from one target array to the next, so the way you catch up is just a 1/2 second here and there. I think you guys are doing well but there are lots of small tiny things that come into this game, that is why there are so few Grand Masters and so many B and C class shooters. (uspsa). I've had a few classes, Phil Straiter (uspsa pres) is a good instructor, I learned a lot from him. I've go a few more months of SR then I'll be a bad a Super Senior, its a bit hard for a guy my age to run with a youngster 55 year old. Good luck, and see you at the next match down the road.

Ooops nice catch, I went back and watched the propaganda video again and you are right second focal plane, not all vipers are created equal. maybe it was the blonde distraction.And from the owners manuel: Second Focal Plane Reticle This PST riflescope model uses a second focal plane (SFP) reticle. The advantage of a SFP reticle is that it always maintains the same appearance. Shooters using reticle hashmarks should be aware that the listed subtensions used for estimating range, holdover, and wind drift correction are only accurate at the 4x magnification Its lead is deminished but still has more subtensions for more accurate placement.

Intent is awfully hard to prove in a court of law, so lets change that wording to Deliberately running into the RO. I've hit a couple RO's but only cause they didn't get out of the way, sure I forgot a target back there big mistake that's why I running up range, Ro should have anticipated it, wasn't he paying attention?

First let me say due to having an equipment issue my match was a train wreck, I can't see Iron Sights but when I had to put the open gun away I didn't quit. Stage one: With a mag capacity of 18-19 it would be shot from two position instead of 3, this cuts a lot of start stop time, the first being just past the expansion joint in the side walk between the poppers and the paper, come in with gun and eyes on target, take left 3 paper go to the steel, explode out of that position reloading come into last position just before the steel (another expansion joint in side walk) take the far paper (your gun was pointed at them on they way in right) then work your way back to the left take the poppers and the right 3 targets in the center array. Stage 2: For a young guy, you don't move that fast, when you fired the last rifle shot your weight should have been on the left foot so the right foot could have moved off quicker, once you had drawn and fired on the first target the rest could have been engaged on the move (practice the groucho marks walk), when the last paper was engaged being on the right orange line all the poppers were visible I took them from there with the open gun no challenge, that was my only stage to shoot the open gun. Stage 4: As a general rule your time will go down when you draw to the easier target, that was the close one, shooting long to short is good for controlling your speed, when you have more targets, as most shooters increase speed as they shoot arrays. On the run to the center position you got there but you weren't ready to shoot, two steps out you should have looked at you landing spot got your head and eyes up and the gun on the first target you were going to engage, this saves time. I positioned my rifle practically pointed at the first target and positioned such that I did not need to turn my body as I picked the rifle up and engaged that first target just before the instant the rifle butt hit my shoulder, no need for sight picture at 4 feet. This game takes a while to grasp, especially when you are shooting well and getting whipped like a rented mule, it takes time to build all the essential skills, Positioning, and it needs to be finite, at one spot you can see 3 targets two inches to the left you see all 4, saving movement. Movement skills, its not how fast you get there it is how fast you get there ready to shoot, if its a box you should be shooting when the trailing foot is still in the air coming into the box, not get there turn, raise gun, take site picture etc. Stage break down, figuring out how to run the stage to get the most out of your positioning, moving, and shooting skills. The idea is to be shooting as much of the time on the stage as possible, listen to a good shooter go thru a stage then listen to a not so good shooter on a stage, those silent pauses are the difference. Ok hope that helps, I'm sure you whooped me in the match almost everone did, I left like a rented mule tail between my legs. Next time I'll bring an extra holster, not just an extra pistol and rifle.

Looking at the candidate recticles, the Burris is very simple, but totally dependent on the ammo being withing the calibration, if not you are back to guessing but you do have a good reference point. The center dot is 2.4" at 100 yards so yes that will pretty well cover the round protion of a pesky popper at that distance. The Capped Vortex PST is more of a rifelman's scope with Mrad markings which mean you will need to crono your ammo run it thru the ballistics calculator, spend some time memorizing your drop at different yardage, and most matches we know that within a yard or two before we shoot, not like hunting Elk where they look close but are 700 yards over on the next hill top. Since I reload 223 ammo it isn't flying at factory speed most of the time and of late the "bullet of choice" is what I can get, so with that in mind the PST may well be more capable of the hit in a given circumstance with a bit of wind thrown in for extra difficulty. Then there is this first and secon focal plane thing, the PST recticle gets larger as you crank it up. I could be wrong but lets say you are on 2x the PST Mrad markings will be accurate but in the Burris the ranging dots will only be accurate at 4x. In most other aspects these two seem equal, I think the advantage on the short shots would go to the Burris but for those shots out beyond 200 yards your chance of a solid hit would be on the PST with non factory ammo. Unless another candidate emerges the PST has the lead. Just have to find a sale.

Grafs.com

I've been using a Weaver 1x3 for a few 2-3 Gun & Carbine matches, while most will say that there are mostly up close shots, that is true but the long range courses have been my down fall with the rifle. While I've hit some long shots by using my noggin I'm looking for something that will let me be faster on the long shots, eliminate most of the brain work and guessing while still letting me shoot the short range stuff as well as a plain set of cross hairs. I shoot open so I could hang a red dot on top of my PERP mount rings, have several, just not sure it wouldn't be confusing to have two options. Having read most of the threads and thinking that MarkCo is pretty clever in these matters the BURRIS 1-4X24mm MTAC30 BALLISITC CQ 5.56 RET MAT if that is the correct one he recommneds comes to the top of the list. On Sale for $359. I have 20-10 long distance vision, however my fixed implant lens don't work very well up close, illetirate if you will without reading glasses. So a recitcal I can't read isn't going to work very well. Is this the one?

Shooting a steel match is great practice, well its a match but it helps you to find that balance between speed and accuracy. You may find it humbling, but as a shooter you need humbling to improve. Its all A hits, no C or D, not much movement, but excellent for draw to first shot, transition practice, and yes accuracy. You may find that a gong at 35 yards is a bit more difficult to hit at speed than the average A zone. Take the plunge got to a Steel Challenge match, get you mojo on at speed and watch the mikes pile up, then start trying to get one for one, it will make you a better shooter. Your not shoot fast until you break in to the 2's, even at 2.99 you are there, you can't get there without being able to call your shots if you look or listen for the hit you just wasted time.

Squid - I would have if I had found them but I wound up buy all variety of bullets Spitzers, Zombies, SMK's most at about 15 cents, but loaded up compared to the $1.50 they are trying to get, they were real cheap and way better. Now I have run out of powder, my local guy says July he gets his next shipment of TAC.

JerZSquid - You should look for about 750 fps average. I have two scales and check one against the other. I do the quick checks on the electronic and the final on the beam. You can lose about 60 fps by over crimping, and if you are using a Lee FCD on those bullets you could be under sizing them and losing a bunch of FPS. I use 3.8gr of Clays with a 230 RN Precision or Bayou but the OAL is 1.20 to 1.22. SWC''s on the other hand are 1.260.

There is a easy cure for the problem, change to Precison Moly 185gr or Bayou 180gr bulltet. My Edge hit 170 pf with 4.4 gr of N320 with the Precision. Montan gold bullets are minimal diameter, Zeros are +.005 larger, but the Precison or Bayou is + .010 so it wil seal up your barrel better. I prefer these bullets in a limited gun. On the flat primers, that is a sign it is high pressure, and if you are not where you need to be then if you stick with the same bullets you need to go to a slower powder like WSF, IM7625, etc to reduce pressure. You didn't say which primer, Federal flatten out fairly quickly, no there is flat and then real flat, when the corners start coming off that isn't bad but when they go super flat well I'd worry a bit. I shoot 9 major and almost every load will take the edges down but not to the point where it is totally flat. If CCI's are flat oops. I'm a little more careful with 40 than 9 mm since I have blow the tops off some and split a few 40's. Nothing happened it just ruined the stage.

Get over it, N320 is a really good powder for 9 mm minor. If you are at 135pf just stay where your are, if not your load is to weak anyway. With my Shadow I never get unburned powder with N320, mostly us Win SPP.

Max length is 1.760 trim to 1.750. I find it takes less time to trim than to measure, and same goes for swagging, faster do than check. You also need to chamfer the inside of the neck to keep from cutting the jacket while seating. The outside of the neck should also be deburred, you can do this by throwing just the brass in the tumbler but a small amount so they lay down. The difference between a 4" group and a 1" group could be a .5gr of powder, finding the sweet spot for your rifle means loading steps in the powder range and shooting groups to find the charge that works best or dumb luck.

That seems to make some sense, the 69gr SMK's are 2700 and change 55gr are 2800 and change, but the those 50gr are 3300+ fps, and it is free floated, the 20" rifle has a heavier barrel and less twist so maybe it don't vibrate as much.

Sunday we gonna find out who can luk out and hit at 600 yards, I'm thinking that I'll just aim at pluto. The 9 mph wind won't be a good excuse for missing, with all the rain we have had no dust signature so you can't just walk it up. Glad I found out that the lights bullets turn left.

Went to check Zero today ahead of a match, and took my standard long range loaded 69gr SMK, hit 1.8" high at 50 for 300 yard Zero perfect, nice tite group. I've loaded what I could get 50gr Z-Max and 52 Gr Nozler Spitzers. So I throw the gun up take a 5 shot group with the ZombiesMax, not a bad group but 21/2 left. Next up the 52gr Spitzers again nice gorup but 2/12 left. I repeated a dead on group with the 69gr SMK, then a couple more with the light bullets the results repeatable. Now I get the up and down variance with light bullets even a .5gr is a couple inches but I have never seen the walking left. Rifle is 18" 1/8 twist. I shot these same loads in my 20" 1/9 twist rifle and they all 3 hit about the same spot but with an EO Tech the groups were nothing to brag about. So is it just the twist? Is this normal or?

This is the Dillon thread so assuming it is a Dillon die no wrenches. If you can't unscrew the pin from the bottom push up on it remove the c-clip take it out thru the bottom, replace the tip reverse disassembly. Taking it out only messes up the adjustment. I take the tip to the grinder put a 20 degree angle on it the radius to avoid pulled backed primers.

http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=000042255HP5K 55gr JHP $0.1024 ea. 10 to 12 cents each is a good price these days, blink and they are gone.

Here is the link to go straight there: http://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item.asp?sku=000042255HP5K Varmit Night Mare 55gr JHP.

Happy Birthday Grumpy one.