45 Raven

I shoot a 1911 in IDPA and a G34 on steel. I initially struggled wit the Glock, as I had been a lifetime 1911 shooter. I shot the Glock exclusively (steel and IDPA) for a year, and now I can shoot both platforms without feeling that I need to make any special allowances for one or the other, with the exception of stage planning. Bottom line for me was that it took some familiarization with the platform I hadn't used before.

Do you own any loading manuals? If so, can you find a JHP in your manual(s) that resembles the Rainier bullet you are preparing to load? Find one as close to your current bullet profile as possible and use that as a starting point for your COAL. I have used this approach with new bullets and it has worked satisfactorily for me in the past.

I guess after loading ammo in steel dies for many years and having no choice except to lube cases, I was just so happy to get carbide dies and progressive loaders many years ago that it has never crossed my mind to go back to lube again. I know I am a dinosaur, and have been reloading ammunition for 43 years now. If I don't have to lube, I won't. At my advanced age, it still doesn't require much effort to load up 250-300 rounds of pistol ammo (9mm and .45 ACP) a week on my RL550 loaders. More power to those who prefer lube, though!

Terrific post, atomicbrh!. I would venture a guess that many of us HAVE NOT taken the time to ask ourselves what our motivation for shooting in competition might be. I believe that simply taking that time to give it extensive thought is a meaningful step towards making the sport more enjoyable, and potentially to motivate us to improve our performance.. I plan to embark on a journey similar to the one you described with the hope that I can find my personal answer. I suspect a result similar to yours will be forthcoming, but I don't know that for certain. Thanks very much for taking the time to share these thoughts. I think many forum members will find them as equally interesting as I have.

I would load up a couple dozen of the pulled bullets with the marks and compare them to unmarked bullets for accuracy. You might be surprised with the results, as typically it is damage to the BASE of bullets that create accuracy issues. (As long as the ogive/nose of the bullet isn't SIGNIFICANTLY distorted). Anyway, it would be worth a try. I have observed some fairly well marked-up bullets perform extremely well, including rifle bullets.

I would be more impressed if someone figured out how to use a G26 magazine in a G43!

They work. Fit and workmanship aren't as nice as the Classic model, and the belt attachment is only held on by one screw on the Revolution model vs. three screws on the Classic model. The Revolution model is also of "higher profile" and more bulky. As you mentioned, the Revolution is significantly less expensive, and the bottom line is that they serve the purpose of holding the magazines.

I have had similar problems with any plated bullet in a Glock 9mm and 10mm pistol when the MV gets up to the 1100-1125 FPS range, but typically the keyholing isn't evident until the range is extended out to 15+ yards. The exact same load with a jacketed bullet has made the problem go away in every Glock pistol I have tested. Plated bullets at lower MV of around 775-825 FPS in a Glock .45 ACP does not exhibit the same problem, so I personally think the issue is driven by a combination of the OEM Glock barrel rifling and higher velocity. . YMMV.

I would make no assumptions on direct interchangeability. Both are suitable for the 9mm, and very close in burn rates.

It's amazing to me how I intuitively know something, but don't know I know it until someone else explains it with crystal clarity like the folks who have posted earlier on this thread. Thanks to all of you!!

You might be surprised how different shapes of the same weight RN bullets vary in configuration, and therefore in optimum COAL. And then, as already mentioned, how variance is found in firearm chambers, regardless of caliber. That's why reloading can become "handloading", when the operator can tailor specific handloads to their particular firearm. Time consuming, but worth the effort if one has the time!

While the part failure is unfortunate, I would give a big tip of the hat to STI for how quickly they responded to the issue, how well they communicated regarding questions about the mode of failure, and how short the turnaround time was before the problem was resolved. I only own one STI (a Tactical 5.0 in 9mm) and had a minor problem with feeding when I first purchased it. STI was quick to provide a remedy and the pistol has run flawlessly. I am very happy with it and hope someday to own one of the new DVC Limited pistols.

You can also use a VERY SLIGHT amount of Unique (or similar brand) case lube. Apply a TINY amount to your index finger and swirl it on the outside of the powder drop tube that flares the inside of the case. Do this about every 10-20 rounds and you will be good to go. The same thing happens to brass when it has been cleaned in a sonic cleaner prior to running it through the loader.

I really enjoy IDPA shooting. But stage designs that result in conversations like this are slowly draining the fun out of the sport. I know, if I don;'t like it, I don;t have to participate, But it's a shame that goofy rules can impact a great sport like this.

When I load on either of my Dillon 550's I typically get my target OAL plus or minus..003", which sounds about what you are seeing.

I don't have any 9mm ammo loaded to longer that 1.140 right now, but the ammo at that OAL is very close to being as long as I would dare to try to use in my Wilson 9mm magazines. I believe your plan to reduce OAL to 1.135 is a prudent and wise one. Thanks for sharing this information.

Don't sell your .45. Keep shooting it and improve your skills while you save a couple hundred more bucks. Then look at the STI Trojan, or see if you can find a good used one in your current price range.

Thanks to everyone for the advice. I will work on the singular focus as suggested.

I already had an RCBS single stage press that I use for rifle cartridges set up on my bench, along with one Dillon 550B set up for large primers and one Dillon 550B set up for small primers that I use for various pistol cartridges. I experienced the same issues as mentioned the original post on this thread, so I began depriming on the single stage press before then running the deprimed cases through a sonic cleaner. The deprimed and cleaned cases then become the feed stock for the Dillon presses. I am very pleased with how smoothly the 550B presses operate and how clean they stay using this metjhodology.

Absolutely a DQ. And being polite while administering a DQ isn't hard. It's unfortunate that the shooter was new, but with a little coaching, he should take this as a valuable lesson and come back to the next match. Bending rules and "cutting breaks" for safety violations is never a good idea.

Very sorry to hear about the passing of Jake. A pleasure to watch him shoot! Our community is diminished.

"C" Limited on steel (G34) and SS in SSP (G17) in IDPA. Good advice. Maybe I'm over-thinking (that's a major problem with me) and making it too complicated? Thanks!

I started with a Leupold DeltaPoint on a G17 and then went to an RMR on a G34. Zero problems with either of them. The slides were milled and the optics were "buried" and BUIS were installed. I prefer the "dot" to the "Delta", but that's just personal preference.

I am not looking for a magic answer or fix, but was wondering if others have experienced what I am currently experiencing, and if so, how you managed it. I took a couple of months off from competition and did a moderate amount of dry firing during that time. I also focused on taking life (and competition) a lot less seriously and leaned to "breathe" a little and focus on basics. When I returned to competition about a month ago, my mantra was to: Stay in the present Take my time Breathe See my sights Control the trigger Call my shots I shot four or five matches and did pretty well following that mantra. I felt very relaxed and at ease., did not "try" too hard, relaxed, and enjoyed the experience of shooting. As a result, I achieved some very good results, with significant achievements in accuracy. My speed was down a bit, but not as much as I felt it would be, because it seemed to me as though I was really shooting extra slow. My times didn't show a great big reduction in speed, though, and the improved results were coming from taking my time, minimizing mistakes, and not dropping a lot of points. This success lasted for several consecutive matches. Then suddenly, two weeks ago, my scores began to suffer, my accuracy fell way off, I made a few mental errors on some stages, and my results were not good. I had made no conscious effort to increase speed, or think about results (instead I stayed focused on the process of shooting), and can't really say what suddenly seemed to change, other than I felt less calm and confident, and could only identify what I had done wrong retrospectively. I had stopped taking my time, I wasn't seeing what I needed to see to make the shot, my trigger management skills had fallen off badly, and I certainly wasn't calling my shots. Even when I recognized what was happening, I seemed to be unable to correct it, and the past three matches have produced continuously worse results. The bottom line for me is that I think I am not staying in the present and observing my shooting as I should, but don't seem to know how to get back into the groove I seemed to be in for several consecutive matches. Any suggestions, exercises, or thoughts regarding what I might do to regain my peace of mind and work back towards success. My first thought is that perhaps I should just completely forget about shooting for a few days and let my mind clear. Sorry for this terribly long post, but thanks in advance for anything you might want to share..

Read the rulebook. Especially if you are going to shoot IDPA. You will be glad you took this advice! Welcome back to shooting. I shot competitively for 13 years, then was away from it for 20 years! Resumed after retirement and enjoy it very much.