Suches

Sorry, I pushed the button prematurely a moment ago. I appreciate and respect your query. Yes, I have pondered the inconsistency as perceived by others between a peaceful spiritual journey and blasting targets that look like people in adrenaline fueled bursts. I interact with people who have never touched a firearm and value that inexperience as critical to their purity. I have found serenity in balance--which though sounding trite is a legitimate description of appreciating peace through respecting the potential for violence, of valuing tranquility through valuing the compromise of speed, power and accuracy, through reaching that space in which a tool of potential violence sings from the calmness with which I manipulate it, while on the clock of course. I'm going to challenge you on the political element. I'm not a joiner myself, and am certainly no fan of the gun debate that attracts the usual histrionics on both sides. If you value shooting and related activities only for yourself, and you could replace those hobbies if they went away, then there is no need for concern on the political front. If, however, your journey involves an appreciation that the right to bear arms is a part of our societal journey, part of what makes us unique in our ability to maintain both our individual and societal security and liberty, then you need to explore the reasons for your aversion to the debate. If you think the political fray is infantile, counterproductive, and repulsive, you're right. If you just don't want to be identified with the "gun culture" because it's contrary to the image you want to portray, that's something different. Every supporter of the "cause" doesn't have to drive a pickup with a "Gun Control Means Hitting Your Target" bumper sticker. But if your firearm-related beliefs (or dare I say, appreciation for our unique Second Amendment) are part of the societal fabric that you value--for others as well as yourself--you may want to look at a bigger picture. Watching others fight your battles is not a tranquil state. Peace.

You just wanted us to see you nail that Texas star.

I know folks who primarily shoot IDPA, and shoot IPSC occasionally "IDPA-style." This just means they wear concealment, respect cover, reload per-IDPA rules, etc. They have a literal blast because they're running and gunning 30-50 rounds instead of max 18, even though they have no chance of winning. Scoring can be IDPA or IPSC--who cares? A 3-gun run the same way sounds like a blast, too. I think this is all that's meant by "alternative IDPA." It sounds like fun and shouldn't be controversial at all.

I'm an auto shooter. There's a revolver-only match coming up in my area, which I'd like to shoot. I would prefer to keep reloading technique as close to auto technique as possible--that is, hold gun in right hand, reload from pouches on left. I saw Leatham do this on one of the shooting TV shows, I think at an ICORE match. IDPA rules, however, anticipate that reloads will be from pouches on the right in front of the holster. I don't want to completely relearn a technique that I will hardly every use. The question: is it legal to put the pouches (3) on the left, and none on the right? Thanks.

Bottom line: occasionally you will encounter a stage on which your capacity will give you an advantage; more often but still just occasionally you will have the disadvantage of an extra reload; most often you will benefit from shooting a gun with which you are very proficient, including adapting your skill as necessary to capacity. So shoot whatever you like, and overall it won't make any difference unless you progress to the point where you're you're obsessing over 10ths or 100ths of a second, and even then it will be mostly psychological.

Lonerider, there are so few people that shoot IDPA (or any shooting sport for that matter) it is statistically insignificant relative to the general population of the USA. Yes, if you saw someone wearing a 5.11 vest, your first thought would be "he's carrying". However, 99.999% of the rest of the world would think "he's a photographer". I'm currently in Mexico on vacation and I saw a guy wearing a similar vest today. My first thought was, "this guy must be carrying". So I tailed him for about 2 min just to satisfy my curiosity. He was a photographer. My point here is that there are a lot more photographers in the US than there are CCW holders who wear 5.11 vests. I've worn mine many times when I was not armed because it is just a very convenient way to carry a bunch of junk around Disney World or similar place. Be careful because the old "shoot the guy with the vest first" mentality could get someone into a real mess if he turns out to be a good guy. I hear the "that vest is a dead giveaway" comment all the time and I don't think it is reality. I've worn mine in enough public places that if it were going to draw attention, it would have before now. The lesson is: if you see someone at Disney who looks like Hot Brass (tall and trying to figure out how the gizmos work for future match design purposes), he's carrying. Seriously, the vest is only a giveaway for the indoctrinated. I've asked several LEO shooters about this, and they say even most cops are clueless on this.

Monkeygrips from Davidson knives.

I have a Springer, STI Trojan, and custom Caspian. I've also had exposure to Kimbers. For the money, get the STI from Dawson with a reliability and trigger job. Like Mr. Mayo said, it's like cheating.

If you're going to shoot IPSC seriously, you might want to consider separate holsters for IPSC and IDPA. I have a Comp-Tac for IDPA and it's great, but I use a Ky-Tac Sooper Hooper for IPSC (not legal for IDPA) and it's noticeably faster. I use Comp-Tac pouches for both.

Federal small pistol.

I've been having some frustrating problems with the primer feed on my new 1050, with no and/or crushed primers every 30 rounds or so. But that's not my point. Today I got an ignited primer, which made an impressive noise, turned the feed rod into a corkscrew, blew the little primer feed nipple to smithereens, jammed the feed tube with detritus and ignited or unignited primers, spread an impressive sludge all around the primer feed mechanism, and sprayed my face with high velocity particulate. Yes, I was wearing safety glasses. I don't want to over-dramatize--it was really not that big a deal. But it might have been without the glasses. I've loaded tens of thousand of rounds and have never seen anything like this before. I'm pretty religious about wearing safety glasses, but mostly because my glasses are bifocals and I can't load without them. I'm sharing this to give another example that we're handling stuff that can go boom, and you never know when something will happen. WEAR THE GLASSES, EVERY TIME, ALL THE TIME!!

Dang it, Joe. I wish I had read this before the Ga match today.

Anyone with 9mm mag problems should try Wolff extra power mag springs. Brownells has them. I had issues with Mecgars until I transitioned to them. The Springfield/Leatham mag is the 9mm solution. It feeds smother and more reliably than any other. Not all Metalforms are of that design, though--there's an unmistakable notch or groove down the front. Unfortunately, they're ridiculously expensive ($42 with bumper @ Brownells). Although I shoot a 9mm 1911 and think it's great, I think the recent interest in the gun is a search for a magic bullet, so to speak. It's not. If you like your Glock, for example, you can shoot it as well as anything. There's more to be gained from upgrading software than hardware.

I'm loading 9x19. I'm already doing the .45 cartridge trick.