Chip_E

Contact Kenny at KapGuns.com His Limcat was a 9mm, got tired of powder spilling, had it rebuilt as a .40, and hasn't looked back. Shoots pretty well with it too.

From the pics, it looks like your 4 moa is obstructed. There shouldn't be that much of a brightness difference between the two...there should be a size difference, but not the huge difference in brightness. Last week I compared my almost new 6 moa with a friend's 12 moa, both were equally bright, but his was a lot bigger....too big.

I think he means just using TWO 357 batteries...the reference to three was a typo...I believe. Spoke to C-More, that was pretty much the first question they asked..."Is this on a sideways mount?" The fact that both my unit and my wife's went out at the same time could NOT be coincidence, but the fact that we shoot all of our matches together and that the sideways mount gets a lot more airborne debris thrown at it makes perfect sense. We also talked about the possibility of placing clear tape in front of the diode...their concern was that the poor optical quality of most tape would distort the dot. Advised using a precision Q-Tip and compressed air to clear the blocked passage. Be careful that you don't push debris from the surface into the hole.

Had the WORST match since my first major shooting production with a Ruger SR9. Due to travel (I was in PA all week, flew back to IL on thursday night and drove to OH on friday morning) there was ZERO opportunity to run the guns outside. Plus an ejector issue tied up the wife's week...compiled by a local gunsmith that took her gun in and then went MIA...thanks to a local club member who says he's an amateur, but is an expert and builds some beautiful firearms, the wife's gun was revived. She took her gun to the club (indoor) test fired, sighted it in, and thought our cleaning had revived it well enough for outdoors. We were wrong. Both the wife's and my C-More were useless. We bought enough NEW batteries for our entire squad. Went through all of them with the battery meter. Rayovacs were the worst. Some Duracells were OK, but the Energizers were closest to full voltage (tried both 357 and 1/3n). For most of the Ohio Championship we were point shooting. I showed the dot to a few people and each one tried to turn the rheostat up. They couldn't believe it was so pale. When I turned on a click module to the first click...THAT is how dim the dot was. YES, on both of our guns. Her gun is my backup and my gun is her backup (now she wants another backup for the backups). So what cleaning did we do? We tried cleaning the diode with windex, with alcohol, and lens cleaner. We used a pointed q-tip. NOTHING helped. We brought new diodes, but didn't want to install them without being able to zero (Another thing I like about IPSC...a bay dedicated to zeroing and test firing). Anyway, today I decided to see if it was the diode or the unit, so I put in a new diode. Holy COW! It's like brand new. Since I now know it was the diode, I figure there's not reason not to experiment with the old diode. I tried boiling it in water...no change. I also tried 3 minutes in the ultrasonic cleaner....no change. I'm really baffled that BOTH diodes would go bad at the same time. I've talked to a lot of people who say they've NEVER had to change the diode. If it wasn't for the fact that I was squadded with good friends and some really great shooters, I'd say the weekend was a waste. Hope this info can help someone else.

What model battery allows 3 batteries in the place of the single 1/3n? I know you can use two .357 batteries. Funny, I'm actually flying out tomorrow to Allentown to shoot (video production) some physicians at Lehigh Valley. Back to Chicago on Thursday, and then driving out to hang with Sarge at the Ohio State Championship. Look like a bunch of GREAT stages, just hope I can get my sight to SEE More.

Will the Arrendondo c-more hood make a difference in BRIGHTNESS outside with a Quinn type mount?

WiFey and I are extremely happy with our matching Limcat RazorCats in 9mm. We have friends that shoot every gun on your list, and they're quite satisfied as well. I don't think any of the builders you mentioned would be a poor choice, but at the end of the day, it really comes down to the indian, and not the bow. That said, I'm just a lowly B (been shooting USPSA/IPSC for just under 2 years, and open for 14 months). So I'm not the greatest indian to give advice, but I wouldn't hesitate to purchase another pair of Limcat pistols....maybe a set for Limited will be in our future soon. The things I'd look for is how flat the gun shoots, and how accessible the builder is. If you're worried about waiting, grab a factory gun or a used gun while you're waiting for your custom build....there's ALWAYS a market for used guns. Since you plan to enjoy this in your retirement (and thank you for your service Sir!) I'd try to get the best I could afford...and have it tailored to my needs. You'll never regret waiting for or paying for the best in the long run. Everybody wants high performance, high reliability, and affordability. Truth is, we can have any 2, but having all 3 is the unicorn of this game. Here's some video of a short fat guy trying to hangon for a ride with the RazorCat.

You can't shoot what you can't see, and you can't move efficiently to where you can't see. Shooting fast and accurately is all about SEEING fast and accurately. Train your eyes to see your sights quicker, train your eyes to see the A zone quicker, train your eyes to see your next shooting position quicker. Most importantly, you need to start with a foundation of accuracy. If you're shooting a lot of Charlies and Deltas, speeding up will get you Mikes and no-shoots. It's kind of like speed typing. First you need to know where all the keys are, and know where your fingers need to move so you can get to the next key. Eventually, it feels natural, and you become fast. When shooting accurately becomes natural, so will speed.

You may find this link interesting. This is how it starts out: "It seems to me that many people have the idea that shooting accurately and “calling your shots” are one and the same. These concepts are related, but they are NOT the same thing." ~Ben Stoeger https://www.facebook...581420898536014 Yeah...I agree with that...shot calling is a good habit, but as I said 'accuracy' is the most important thing to focus on. While shot calling and accuracy are not the same thing...when you learn to call your shots regularly, you should notice what you're doing differently when you get an Alpha vs a Charlie. When you refine that, you become more accurate. I've known instructors whose only advice is "be more aggressive". That doesn't help. Seeing where your sights are on ignition and being able to correct it is what "can" make a difference on accuracy. BTW, who is this Ben Stoeger guy...you sure seam to think highly of him. Some might even say you're his biggest fan. :-) I hear he's some A-class shooter or something. Seriously? I thought you had to be at least a Master to have groupies. I mean, who'd sleep with someone that shoots below 85%, or even load their mags and still respect themselves in the morning.

You may find this link interesting. This is how it starts out: "It seems to me that many people have the idea that shooting accurately and “calling your shots” are one and the same. These concepts are related, but they are NOT the same thing." ~Ben Stoeger https://www.facebook...581420898536014 Yeah...I agree with that...shot calling is a good habit, but as I said 'accuracy' is the most important thing to focus on. While shot calling and accuracy are not the same thing...when you learn to call your shots regularly, you should notice what you're doing differently when you get an Alpha vs a Charlie. When you refine that, you become more accurate. I've known instructors whose only advice is "be more aggressive". That doesn't help. Seeing where your sights are on ignition and being able to correct it is what "can" make a difference on accuracy. BTW, who is this Ben Stoeger guy...you sure seam to think highly of him. Some might even say you're his biggest fan. :-)

Long post...see the last line for the synopsis. I'm thinking, if speed was the most important thing we wouldn't use targets at all, and Open class would be select fire (full auto). This sport is about being accurate as fast as you can, NOT about being as fast as you can and hoping for accuracy. I'm only a B shooter, but I know that as your accuracy improves (calling your shots) your speed naturally improves with it. As shot calling improves, it becomes natural and automatic, then speed comes naturally. I've seen a LOT of newbies come out and try to shoot as fast as they can. I know we've all seen guys taking 3 fast shots on a target, hoping one or two of them will land 'somewhere'. They're surprised when a "slow guy" comes to the line and shoots two well aimed shots on paper and one well aimed shot at each steel target, and beats them by a great margin. Forcing yourself to be fast or accurate will not gain you either. Practicing and calling your shots is imperative. To sum it up... When shooting accurately becomes natural, speed will as well.

WifEy and I started shooting Production in May of 2011 with a pair of Ruger SR9s. We liked the trigger on them, and they fit my wife's hands better than most pistols. Plus, BladeTech made a DOH holster for it, so we thought it'd be a good entry point. After shooting them for nearly 6 months, and having tried shooting friends' Open guns...we decided that...once we both made at least C, we could go Open. The reason was...I wanted to make sure we liked the sport enough to purchase a pistol that was more than 10x the price of the Rugers, and wanted to make sure that we had the basics down. Made C before x-mas, called Johnny Lim and ordered a matching pair of Razorcats. Most would say going from an SR9 to a Razorcat is extreme, but we knew we were hooked. We could've bought better production guns, nice Limited or SS pistols, and maybe one day gone to Open. If you know Open is where you want to be...just go there...and when you go...get the best you can afford, and cry once.

WifEy wins.... Came home one day and she'd broken the shell plate holder (I think the powder through walked it's way far enough to start putting uneven pressure on the plate). Lee said they'd repair it....when they got more parts in. With the crazy political environment and everyone buying up everything firearm and reloading related...it's pretty hard to find ANYTHING. A bud told me they might know a dealer with a Dillon 650 in stock...and they did. So I've gone over to the BLUE SIDE. We did find a replacement shell plate holder, and overhauled the old parts on the Lee...and she's working great again. That said, wifEy can easily output twice as much ammo on the 650 as I can on the 1K. Even though I have the bullet feeder and case collator on the Lee, I keep having to clean out powder residue in the priming system to keep it going. The Dillion priming system is a bit more bullet-proof when it comes to powder in the system. Blue and Red are currently living in harmony, but Red isn't getting as much love these days.

Yeah...I know all about residue (was powder in the Lee) fouling the priming system. I still have my Lee Progressive setup (with a case feeder AND a bullet feeder) but when my wife and I start loading at the same time (and I'm a little faster and more aggressive than her) the Dillon is still twice as fast (if not more). While she keeps cranking away, I'm cleaning the primer system every time I get to some military brass that wasn't sorted out.

The 650 deprimes and sizes in station 1, as the shellplate carrier lowers it advances to station 2 and primes at the bottom (plate down/ handle up). Then goes back up for the powder drop in station 2. Station 3 is either empty (like mine), powder check, or bullet feeder. Station 4 is bullet seating, and 5 is crimp.

Nope, I'm sure I'm the one that's confused. Never seen a 550 except on YouTube. I was told (and should've verified) that the only difference was that you had to advance the 550 manually. What are the other differences? ADDING A NOTE TO THE VIDEO...thanks for the catch!

Buzi, I'm wondering if they'd upgrade you. I haven't had a need for support with my Dillon, but I know on my Lee I could send it back anytime for full retail credit toward the same, newer or different product.

Thanks Mitch, I think most would've used a hack saw, pliers and a vice. Pipe cutter made the most sense to me.

Lots of you old timers probably know this trick...but here it is for those that don't.

I went for the sideways mount because it indexed more like the iron sights I was used to in production, because I knew there'd be fewer ejection issues, and almost all the open shooters at my club use it. Might have something to do with Jim Thompson (Quinn II) being an active member of the club and on the BOD. After shooting the sideways mount, I'm hooked. However, when wifEy and I shot the Brazil IPSC Championship, we borrowed guns from some great guys there. Her borrowed Limcat had the standard mount, and she never complained or had a problem with re-learning the indexing. She was nice enough to let me take the loaner with the sideways mount....maybe because she knew I'd complain.

Warning...this may be the longer version of Jake's most excellent (and efficient) piece of paper. Personally, getting a classification or winning some stage, match, or plaque isn't why I shoot. Don't get me wrong, I like when/if it happens, but that's not WHY I do it. I shoot because I love doing it, and more importantly because wifEy loves doing it. It's OUR thing, OUR sport. That said, the classification system does allow me to gauge my improvement in the sport. At first I really hated the system...because I felt like it was based on a curve set by the super-humans that compete in the World Shoot and such. I felt like the bar was set too high. But as I have more data, I see that it's a fair and accurate skills assessment. Locally, I can shoot from about 70% to an occasional 90% (depending on if any of our local GMs show up). When I go to major matches, I'm in the mid to upper 50% range (GMs keep showing up and raising the bar...let's not mention KC at Ohio). When I shot a classifier yesterday, (cold, no advance notice or practice, and my first stage of the day) I pulled a 61%. So yeah, considering what I usually shoot overall, 61% sounds accurate...if not a bit high for my current ability. The classifier gives me the ability to assess my improvement without regarding who I was shooting with at the time (more on that later). As to, "how do you shoot classifiers better?". That's easy....by shooting better. Like Jake, Ben, and others said, it's all about shooting accurately as fast as you can. The big key is the order. It's not "Shoot as fast as you accurately can". First you have to be able to shoot accurately PERIOD. If you can't consistently shoot Alphas at a slow pace, there's no way the Alpha hits will magically appear by going faster. However, you'll find that if you're consistent in your fundamentals (stance, draw, grip, trigger prep, sight acquisition, etc.) you'll be able to hit Alphas consistently...and when you start hitting Alphas consistently, the magic happens. The magic is that you'll automatically gain more confidence, and that confidence will translate into shooting accurately faster. Likewise, over-confidence will translate into sloppy shooting (Mikes and No-Shoots). Focusing on fundamentals will get you a lot further than focusing on classifiers...or even on winning stages or matches. One of my mentors told me, "Anyone can beat anyone at one time on any stage". Another way of saying that is...just because you get a score higher than the local GM doesn't mean you're a better shooter, or that you've improved. More likely it means he had equipment or some other issues with the stage. Your goal should be to beat yourself...that's a constant. If you work on beating yourself instead of others, you'll improve faster, and have more fun doing it. Bottom line, don't practice shooting classifiers, and don't worry about how you compared to other shooters (there's a time for that). Instead, concentrate on shooting better, and beating yourself on each practice session and on each stage.

2 140s, and 2 170s. Max legal round count for a stage is 32....so you typically never need more than a mag to start, and a mag to reload to. HOWEVER, I (and most of the shooters I know) always start with 3 mags (one in the gun, 2 on the belt). The 3rd mag is incase you drop your reload mag, or have an issue with one of the mags. The 4th mag is your go-to backup or if there's a bunch of mandatory reloads. I try to stick to the same basepads, followers, and springs to minimize backup parts. Currently running Dawson basepads with Grams spring and followers.

Thanks Pat, I found it here. http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=109493&hl=transition%20drill&st=0 Local match tomorrow, but I'll be all over this next week.

Thanks. I get the bending the knees part, and walking on the balls of your foot...I just gotta do it more. Here's where I'm confused.....I'd been (or thought I was) snapping my head and bringing the gun to the target after my eyes were there, but I was told that I was spending too much time setting up, and needed to drive the gun from target to target. HELP....I'm not getting it. As for cadence, I was really trying to go faster on the closer targets, but making more controlled pairs on the longer shots, or the ones with no-shoots. Appreciate the feedback.

86 views....a free invitation to tell me where I'm screwing up...and no takers?