chbrow10

I would recommend the same goal my 9 year old son has. No DQs, no misses, and no "no shoots". This puts an emphasis on safety and marksmanship, not speed. If you have good marksmanship consistently, speed will come with experience. He's been working toward htis goal since October, and hasn't achieved it yet at a match. He's come close, but hasn't nailed it. When you can do that consistently, then up your goal to something more challenging. While working at his goal, his postion in the standings has improved a bunch.

+1 to XD Niner. that is the exact setup my son and I have and it works great.

If you are new, and shooting a 1911 or other single action trigger with an ambi safety, I recommend leaving the safety engaged until the transfer is complete, and disengaging the safety with the weak hand. much safer, and less likely to get sent home with DQ. Or in the case of the car poolers, picking up your friend's brass for the rest of the day...

i agree that 185s at major are snappier. I think it depends on you. Would you rather a snappy recoil and quick follow up shots because you can aquire the sight faster (some say) or the slow push of the 230? i prefer the 230, mainly cause I'm 250 pounds and am not concerned with the gun pushing me around.

CED 7000 with the rubber condom-like wrapper thingy. It will help you when you drop it. Also the attachment that allows you to put it on your belt, so you can use it while practicing solo.

awesome, now stick with it and get classified. Don't be in a big hurry to leave the D classification either.

Last month there was a stage with 40 rounds, which included 6 steel plates. I only had 5 magazines. I missed a few plates, and ran out of rounds for the last array of paper. I had 50 seconds of penalties (Failure to Engage and mikes) for that stage and it cost me 1st place in Single Stack division. The guy that beat me started that stage with 7 mags. I now own 7 magazines.

On my son's 9th birthday, he started competing with my 1911 in 45, downloaded to the point where it almost didn't run. Now he shoots a G34, and it ALWAYS runs. The grips are too large for him to release the mag with his strong hand, so he does it with his weak and then reaches for the fresh mag. I am pretty sure that all glocks have the same frame dimensions, regardless of caliber, within the same category. Meaning a G19, G17, G22, G34, G35 all have the same frame dimensions. So if she shot a G17 it would fit her hand as well as a G34, etc. You can see both guns in action at http://www.youtube.com/user/chbrow10. The early videos show him with the 45 (he called it the Jammatic), and the later videos show the G34.

I am interested, but need to check with Mom to make sure I can pull Haydn out of class for two days to attend. Put me down for one dad and one free junior.

Single Stack major HF: 1.1602 21.8489%

single stack major HF:1.1602 25.9954%

Single Stack major HF:3.1192 28.3160% I am a D shooter

I'm a D shooter, so I don't know if it makes sense for me to post my scores, but here goes: Limited 10, major Hit Factor 1.4805 28.3160% per USPSA

In keeping with the spirit of the forum, I'd like to share the notes I was able to take during the camp. If this is not allowed, or somehow breaks some law or rule, moderators please delete. I wasn't able to catch every little skill that was taught to the kids, and I am sure that I got some things wrong. I have uploaded some sketches of some drills that were taught, both fom my memory and from my son's memory. As 9 year old memories are highly suspect, especially 3 days after the event, please correct if nessesary. I hope everyone can get the .pdf file. If there is a better way of sharing the sketches, let me know. Okay, here goes. This is what I wrote down. My son is a D shooter, so I was following that group that started out in the far bay, the one farthest from the entrance to the range. I's be interested in hearing how the lessons differed with the other groups. When you comment, please be specific about what section you are commenting on. That way folks will be able to keep track of which section is which. I am sorry if the formatting is lost. Cut and past only gets us so far... Chris Brown (Haydn's Dad) Rob Leatham’s Class • Sight alignment is overrated. Focus on what happens between the time your brain says it is time to fire the gun and when the bullet leaves the muzzle. • Aim throughout the entire process, not just before you pull the trigger • Make sure your knees are bent and you are leaning into the gun. • Hold the gun as tight as you can without inducing a tremor. “…all I know is that this hand is holding on really, really tight, and the other hand is holding on really, really tight…” On jerking the trigger: • You must jerk when shooting fast. If you are aiming the entire time, and holding on tight, jerking the trigger won’t have a huge effect. There are 4 movements in the trigger pull; 1. trigger slack take up 2. breaking the shot 3. pulling the trigger to over travel 4. Releasing the trigger forward, either to reset or all the way out. Only #2 has an effect on accuracy, so you should speed up all but #2. On the different types of trigger pulls: There are roughly 3 types of trigger pulls 1. following the steps above from 1 all the way until 4, in one smooth motion (fast #1) or step 1, pause before step 2, then 3 and 4 (slow #1) 2. when performing step 4, only go to trigger reset and stop, aim, and go through steps 2 through 4, again, only to reset. 3. take as much time as needed to slowly go through 1 through 4, accuracy is everything, speed is unimportant. Turns out, most of the time all you need is a good #1 and #2. #3 is rarely used, and Rob said that he almost never uses it. When looking at the targets, the group size between #2 and #3 trigger pulls were not all that different, and the slightly smaller #3 group probably didn’t merit the extra time in action shooting. Now that we’ve all learned that, when do you use this information? Rob said that during his walk through of the stages, he is planning what trigger pull to use on each target. What pull you use depends on how hard the shot is (size/distance of target, presence of cover, etc.). Regarding figuring out why you can’t shoot your gun straight.: 1. Blame the gun. You can use the process of elimination to eliminate potential causes. 2. Have someone else shoot the gun. If the groups still stink, it IS the gun, the ammo, or the sights. If not… 3. Have the gun owner hold and aim the gun while someone else pulls the trigger. The trigger puller may have to brace their hands under the gun, but try not to interfere too much with the owner’s normal grip. The owner holds and aim, and the instructor pulls the trigger. The instructor should feel for the owner’s hand to tense up or other signs of anticipation. The idea is that the owner has not idea when the shot will break. Ideally, the groups will improve, indicating that there is a trigger pull problem. Then... 4. Have the owner place their finger on the trigger, and the instructor pushes the owner’s trigger finger. Again, feeling for signs of anticipation of tensing. The idea is that you are using the process of elimination to figure out where the problem is. Lee Dimac and Daniel Horner’s Class Armor-all glock mags to ensure drop free-ness. I think the drill was a type of Bill Drill. They talked about finger placement on the trigger. Travis Tomasie’s Class (Movement between shooting boxes) Q&A session: • When running, keep the gun close to your body. • When starting in a shooting box and moving to a port, always draw the gun first, your body will automatically start moving to the port. Get the gun out and be ready to shoot when you get to the port. • When going prone, draw the gun. If you don’t it is hard to NOT break the rear 180 rule once you start to lean forward. Keep in it your strong hand, take you weak hand and put in on the ground, put weight on your weak hand and kick both feet out from under you. Place the butt of the gun on the ground (test this, some guns won’t run with upward pressure on the magazine) and push down on it. It will allow you faster follow ups. • When scoring Comstock, the more targets there are in a stage, the more emphasis there should be on speed. Conversely, if there are less targets, spend more tim eon accuracy. Remember that Comstock is “points per second” There are two kinds of exits from a shooting box. Hard and Easy. A Hard exit is when you have to finish shooting before you begin to exit. A hard target is like steel, or another hard shot. An easy target is a big or close target. You can begin your exit and still be shooting. For an easy exit, begin your lean in the direction of movement while aiming/shooting. Aim throughout the entire process. The lean is key. You want to cross your feet while moving them so that your shoulders remain level while you are shooting. Drive out with the foot opposite the direction of movement. This is why we wear cleats, to drive out hard. I missed the Hard Exit part… During your walk through, plan your shots and figure out what kind of exit you’ll use. Moving with the gun and not breaking the 180; If you are right handed, and moving left to right, this is what Travis called “going with the grain”. Rotate the gun 90 degrees across your body, with the gun pointed downrange. If you are right handed, and moveing from right to left , hold the gun pointed down range, rotate it 90 degrees in you hand so that the top if the slide is facing the direction of movement. This will allow you to pump your hands/arms a bit better. Anytime you are not on the sights, you should be moving as fast as you can. Entering a shooting box from left to right: 1. Place left foot just outside the box, pointed at the target. This will point you body in the right direction. I can see where hi-top cleats can help you not twist your ankle here. 2. place your right foot in the box and bring the gun up, gripping with both hands. At this point you could take the shot but your left foot isn’t in the box. 3. left your left foot up slightly and place it on the ground in the box, as soon as it is on the ground, take the shot. KC Eusebio’s Class (Transitions between targets) What I can remember: • when using a surrender start, always have your elbows straight out, so you are not reaching back during the draw. • Draw from the front mag pouch, always • When transitioning between targets, don’t twist at the hips, keep your knees bent and drive with you legs. It is faster. Max Michel’s class Q&A session: • De-emphasize the classifier • shoot your game, not anyone else’s. Don’t let the presence of faster/better shooters in your squad influence how YOU shoot. • During competitions, shoot at 90% of your game, holding back just a little • During matches, push your self past 100%, so you know where the edge is. • 3 or 4 shooters before it is your turn, take time to plan and prepare how you are going to shoot the stage. • Let your sights be your speedometer • If you have a jam/malfunction, don’t skip the target you were shooting on. Clear the jam and go back where you left off. Take extra time to get your shots (A’s preferably), since time is out the window, but you could still win on hit factor if you get your points. • When doing a re-shoot keep the same focus as the first time through. Don’t relax. Keep the focus. Shooting around barricades: • While Standing: o Keep both feet on the ground o Lean around barricade • While kneeling (Restricted?) and shooting under a barricade. o One knee, lean forward, arms extended in usual grip. o I suppose the being down on one knee allows you to pop back up quicker. junior_camp_drill_diagrams.pdf

T minus 2 days till we leave. We're driving, so we get to bring more stuff, which is a bit of a problem. How much is too much to bring? My son's gun, my gun (for Rob Leatham's class), my ammo, the gunbelts, PPE, mags, cleats, some small tools for emergency repairs. If they shoot 500 rounds per day, should we bring the gun cleaning gear and clean the guns at night? What other stuff is everyone bringing?

Like others posting here, I am loading them with 4.5 and 4.6 grains of ordinary Clays to and OAL of 1.22-1.23" I use these for club competition, not USPSA, as I have no hope of making major. The round is accurate out to 25, as others have said, with less recoil than a 9mm (IMHO).

NSK (http://www.nsksales.com/). 1000 for about $100 shipped.

If you go with plated bullets you can get the cost down quite a bit from FMJ. I buy directly from Berry's, that is the least expensive non lead bullet I have found.

I load Berry's bullets for 45 ACP and use a Lee FCD with no cutting of the plating. I crimp to .470" and have recovered several bullets after firing. None have had cut plating.

After hearing that, I guess I don't feel so bad about the 3 squibs I've had in 3000 rounds of reloading. Unfortunately, my 9 year old son shot one of those 3 during a very difficult stage that he was absolutley smoking. He was doing great, right up until the little "pop". When he shot the reshoot he did horrible. I hope he forgives me.