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Glad to hear IDPA is considering 1 point down = 1 second. I've been suggesting that for a couple of years now and it's about time. Those who want to hose multiple targets standing in the open will shoot or are shooting UPSA anyway. It's still speed and accuracy. Only slightly more emphasis on accuracy than there was before. Great idea.

Arizona, Pheonix or Mesa area. On some weekends you can shoot 4 matches at different clubs and many shoot matches in the cool, clear, bugless evenings.

My M&P Pro likes 3.3 grs. Unique using 147 gr. lead bullets either SNS or Bayou Bullets. Makes IDPA power and shoots soft and accurate. My stock barrel shoots tighter with 0.357" sized bullets over 0.356". Bill

Since your pistol launches a pencil that far, I agree that high primers are probably to blame. I did have a similar problem with my new Elite Match. When I screwed the trigger over travel screw to the minimum required to drop the hammer, I got a lot of light strikes. Backing it out a turn cured that problem.

147 gr. Bayou Bullets, M&P 9 Pro, 3.3 grs. Unique, no leading, no smoke.

Cabelas has 9mm, 17 round, M&P magazines in stock for $39.99 each. I don't know how long they will last but there are some there for now.

Check out the Ant Hill Range off of Rt. 17 on Rt. 211 heading toward Southport, NC, www.anthillrange.com. Carolina Tactical Shooters holds a IDPA Match there every 4th Sunday starting at 12:00. Check us out on the IDPA Website under NC Clubs. They also shoot a USPSA match there every 3rd Sunday and a Steel Challenge match every 2nd Sunday and a 3-gun match every month there is a fifth weekend. The Ant Hill Range is :35 minutes from the SC/NC State line. There is another IDPA club at the Buccaneer Gun Club, www.buccaneergunclub.org, which is a little further north on Rt. 17 near Town Creek, NC. It is 45 minutes from the state line. Jump on Rt. 31 to Little River and up Rt. 17. Good luck. Bill

A Kimber, Compact CDP II in a Crossbreed Supertuck. Comfortable, light, compact, powerful and hidden. What more could you ask for?

I find that when I start having primer loading problems, changing the plastic tip on the primer feed tube usually does the trick. It can get slightly out of shape and is very hard to detect. It's a good place to start. Bill

Savings do add up if you shoot a lot (12,000 + per year). Lead bullets from S&S Casting, 9mm, 147 gr LFP, 3,000 for $206 delivered. Great for practice but they do smoke some due to the lube. Bayou Bullets, 9mm, 147 gr. LFP, 3,000 for $235 delivered. Slightly more expensive so I use them for matches and virtually no smoke. 14,000 rounds this year at an average cost of $0.071 per bullet. Great to have choices! Bill

Marc, I'm sorry I cannot help you with those powders. I'm a dinosaur and still use Unique for 9mm. With 147 gr. Bayou's 3.3 grs. gives me 130 PF in my Springfield Armory 1911 Target Model and 3.5 grs. gives me 131 PF in my S&W M&P Pro. I use Bullseye in my .45 ACP but have never tried it in a 9mm. Bill

I've shot my M&P Pro in IDPA competition for the last year. I estimate that my slide closes automatically 8 out of every 10 reloads. A great feature for a speedy reload! Unfortunately, every once in a while it does fail to strip a round out of the magazine. After the loud click, another few seconds are lost racking the slide and getting back on target. Over the course of a year though, I'm way ahead on time. Unfortunately that click seems to happen when I really need that stage! Bill

bodine 5 I've been cranking out a steady 6,000 rounds a year for the last three or four years on one of my SDB's and this year looks like around 9,000 rounds of 9mm's. I did break the screw that holds the shell plate down about a year and a half ago. I also broke it in my other SDB around 5 years ago. Luckily the bottom half will back out with a sharp scribe or tiny screwdriver. I started using a lubed case about every 10th case to reduce the strain on it. I broke one of the links from the handle to the press last year. Dillon sent me new parts of course, two new links with the latest copper bearings instead of the older nylon ones. I have a bag of those plastic tips for the primer tube. As you found out, once they become slightly deformed you need to change them. A small chip came out of my shell plate recently and one of the shell positions wouldn't hold an empty tight enough. Dillon sent a new shell plate, no charge. Other than that, I've sucked up the little ball under the shell plate a few times while cleaning them. I sent back the older machine two years ago for a good overhaul. When it came back I had to look twice, I thought they had sent back a brand new machine. Again, no charge. I think there was a misalignment problem with your original machine. Let us know how the replacement does. Bill

Sorry for your frustrations. I have two SDB's and have been loading .45's and 9mm's for over 15 years on both. I have probably encountered just about every problem you can have on these machines. The primer problem you solved by using a new plastic tip. It only takes a slight distortion of the little fingers to start sideways primers. Replacing the tip is the solution. That shell plate alignment though, that I've only encountered that when I had the wrong shell plate installed. Make sure the shell plate and pins are correct for the cartridge you are loading. If the shell plate is correct then I would send the unit back to Dillon. There is no adjustment for that alignment. Also, the end of the wire which ejects the cartridges, can be positioned two ways in the shell plate, close to the operating handle and away from the handle. I find it works best when moved away from the operating handle. Hope you get these problems solved. Bill

I'm using 3.4 grs. Unique, S&S Casting 147 grs. Lead Flat Point, or Precision Moly's or coated Bayou Bullets. OAL 1.12", gives 850 fps, 125 PF. Soft shooting in either my M&P Pro or S.A. 1911 Target. Bill