tackdr1ver

Hey guys here's a vid of me shooting a couple of weeks ago. Looking for criticism and tips on how to speed up and do better. I know I had a lot of misses on the steel, fire away.

Thanks yall. Is it generally better to have a rear notch similar in size to the front? Or is a little extra daylight more desirable?

I am wanting to change out my factory sights for something different. Ultimately what I would like it something that will shoot closer to point of aim as right now I have to hold fairly low for headshots. Also I would love to have a thinner diameter front blade and rear notch. Plain rear and fiber up front. Adjustable or fixed rear is ok. Serrated/non serrated is ok. What do you guys suggest?

True, Going out isn't cheap anymore!

Well I am happy to hear good reports from all corners of the country. Here in SC, I cover a very large sales territory and see some communities which have been all but wiped out financially. Being that I am relatively new to shooting competitively, translates to having a short yardstick in which to measure regular or normal attendance. Hopefully the trend will continue. And I hope components and equipment will become more affordable as time goes on.

I wanted to take a moment and get everyone's opinion on how the current state of the economy will impact our respective sports. Have any any of you noticed a marked decline in shooter turnouts for events? Also, do you feel that as a whole people are shooting a lot less than they normally would? It is sad to see so many people out of work and unable to find viable solutions to make a reasonable living. What impact will this have on gun and ammo sales in the long run? (I know we had an enormous push for guns and ammo around this past election time, that seems to have subsided) Would it be reasonable to expect that manufacturers and merchants will eventually have to start lowering the prices of their wares to keep a reasonable sales volume? I guess what I am really wondering is this: If the average guy can't afford to buy guns, ammo and shoot as regularly as they normally would. What is going to happen to our sport? I am concerned that if we can no longer afford to get to the range and shoot a match with our friends, many people will eventually lose interest all together. And as a repercussion, the lack of involvement would enable some of the anti gun politicians to grab a greater foothold in taking our right to enjoy shooting all together. I would hate to see that happen.. What say you?

I for one am all for a GM class. I think that it should be made compulsory that shooters should have to shoot classifiers multiple times per year and also adhere to the existing rules of being promoted for performance at regular matches. Also, the one in three trophy rule is kind of overkill. I would rather see trophies and prizes for the top three in each division. Not that I even really care about prizes or trophies. But the reality is, our sport is an expensive one, it would be nice to win something that might help offset some of its costs. As most of us are working people and shooting is our hobby. Yanno? Sandbagging in my opinion, stinks. I try as hard as I can every match, every shot and every stage. Even if I completely mess up every stage of the day I can still find a small victory somewhere within the confines of a match. Edited because I wanted to point out that i for one have never won a match, but I think it would be a good thing for people who do win to get something cool along with a trophy.

Thank you all for your help in getting me started. I will start budgeting a small amount of each paycheck and look to grabbing a 550 when the time is right. As far as reloading manuals go, where should I start? After googling, I see there are quite a few out there from major manufacturers and others. And I also gleaned that the older manuals might mean higher powder charges? That being said, here are my short term goals: 1. Start reloading 9x19 and .40 and tune the loads to both meet power factor, accuracy and function with as close to 100% reliability as possible. 2. Get a new 1911 and start loading it to get into single stack. 3. Work up rifle loads for .308 for hunting and then some .223 for general plinking and practice. Are there any manuals which would enable me to accomplish all of these goals within the bounds of one text, or should I look at multiple manuals for this? I am also guessing that manuals made by major ammo manufacturers are somewhat biased to their preferred products. Are there any that are somewhat broad spectrum? I know this is a lot to lay on you all, so thanks again for your help and guidance!

That looks incredible! Not to be rude, but what would I have to spend(ballpark-ish) to get one of those built for myself? I'll be that is one sweet shooting blaster, that may be just the ticket for an upcoming project! Or I might say, 'excuse' for an upcoming project..

WOW! That looks sweet!

I am looking to get into the world of reloading. I have zero experience reloading any sort of ammo. Ultimately what I am looking for is something cost effective that I can produce 9mm, 40 and .45 and maybe some .308 and .223 rounds. So versatility would be nice. Also, something that is fairly easy to operate and switch calibers. What would you suggest for a guy like me without breaking the bank. I do not have a set budget but I would like to keep it around $500 initially. Also, what should i look for in a used press? I do not know how to distinguish good from bad etc..

Been there done that Brother, Glad you had a good match despite the ill feelings and dehydration. I have had similar results before. One of the things that I have noticed to help me with nerves is Valerian root. At times it works great, other times seems to have no effect.

+1 on skateboard tape. I have it on my mp 40 and 9 pro. It works really well and it will not come off from heat, sweat etc. One thing I have found to work well when applying it is to get some 90% rubbing alcohol and thoroughly clean the places where you will be applying it. Make sure it's dry before you put the grip tape on and the stuff stays put. I have found the "Mini Logo" brand to work the best. And what is even better, when you remove it, it is easy to clean off the excess residue and start over.

Do aftermarket barrels really make a huge difference in general? In my limited time shooting competitions (6 months) I have rarely encountered shots over 25 yards. Given the fact that pistols are well pistols (short barrel, short sight radius) and by sheer physics, at a disadvantage to longer weapons. What are your thoughts on this? And what sort of gains are realistic by adding a "match grade" high end barrel or something similar? Or is one better off not even bothering to change the barrel unless they want to add a compensator or muzzle break type device of some sort?

Recently I shot my first major match and it was educational to say the least. I had the pleasure of going first or second on several stages and felt as if I did not have any time to prepare any sort of game plan for those courses of fire. Those stages were somewhat of a disaster for me. What tips or advice can you offer in order to help me prepare and dissect stages quickly. I believe that as time goes on and I get more experience in shooting competitively this will get easier. But for now, I would greatly appreciate some help getting on the fast track. Thanks in advance for your advice - Tack

Kend, Do you know if there is any difference in power of the apex sear spring and the factory? I was considering just swapping everything out for the apex competition kit. But it is a moot point if the original problem remains

I called S&W, turns out that the factory guide rod IS stainless. So now I will be ordering a non-captured rod from SSS and a spring pack. Hopefully we can get her tuned up and running solid.

Looking to change guide rod on a m&p pro 9, what do you all suggest? And what recoil spring weight for factory WWB/blazer brass 115gr? I am looking for a lighter recoil spring but do not want to sacrifice on reliability. One stipulation: Changes have to be IDPA SSP LEGAL

beastfrog, Typically I use factory Winchester White Box or Blazer brass both 115gr PF unknown. Sear is stock, however it has been polished lightly by a local gunsmith, no geometric modifications have been done. I typically use Hoppes 9 to clean and, Breakfree CLP and Militec 1 on different places for lube. Everything else is stock with the exception of skateboard tape on the grip which is nowhere near the slide so I can't see where it would be an issue. Conversely, I have a M&P 40 full size for limited major which I installed the apex sear myself. And I can tell you that I have easily put over 2k rounds through the 40 after installing the apex sear. To this date I have not had any issues whatsoever as far as function goes. The only gripe I have is that the trigger breaks a little differently each time I get on the trigger. In retrospect, I should have had a gunsmith tune it but I can live with it for now. Trigger weight was significantly reduced by installing the sear alone, I feel the other parts would also gain marked improvements.

I have tried and tried to get the belt/waistband stow down. Problem is, I have a fine hobby of sampling beers. I have a small gut which makes it difficult to do and i crank my riggers belt very tight, the vest seems to work best for me however I have had an issue with retention in a recent event. I just picked up some 5.11 lightweight pants, the rear pockets seem to have a decent angle for stowing. The jury is still out as I am still trying to find what works for me but the new pants seem like they will work great when the weather cools off here in SC.

Seconded

Hey all, I have been shooting an M&P pro 9 in IDPA SSP. Recently, I have had a couple of incidents where it appeared that the weapon cycled into battery but when the trigger was pulled no bang. There was a round in the chamber. Have any of you encountered this, if so what was your solution? (I typically shoot factory WWB or blazer brass, if this helps) Also, I am starting to look at going beyond the basic trigger polish that was done on it to tweaking a few things. Some of the things I am considering is the addition of the apex comp kit and changing the guide rod & spring weight. What guide rod do you suggest to keep it SSP legal and what recoil spring weight do you suggest? Also, I have been looking hard at the sevigny comp sights. I would like a smaller rear notch and thinner front blade/smaller diamter fiber optic rod than factory. I would greatly appreciate any tips and advice on sizes, heights and configurations. Thanks in advance, Tack

Here's my $.02: I own three Glocks and I own 3 M&P's in different flavors. Since getting the M&P's, I haven't even considered using the Glocks. They are great shooting guns and they have all been 100% reliable for me using various factory ammo. I would not hesitate to recommend them to anyone.

Good point on the extra mag/FTDR. I have another question, this vest has velcro not just outside but inside the main pockets in order to keep them open, would using this velcro to keep them open be legal for mag stowage?

Downloading now, will share my findings! Thank you for your efforts.