WillC

I run MG 180 JHP at 1.120 (max length that will feed reliably) out of my CZ 75. Note that the JHPs require a far shorter COL than the FMJ/CMJ due the ogive. 4.6 N320 - 167 PF 4.8 N320 - 172 5.0 N320 - 177 5.1 N320 - 178 5.2 N320 - 182 Not sure why they're running slower in your STI. Hope this helps!

I've been limited more by what will chamber than by mag length. I wouldn't go past SAAMI max length (1.169) in any case. 1.150 (1.165 will engage rifling) for Berry's RN or 1.085 (1.100 will engage rifling) for MG 124 JHP are my go-to lengths. My chamber seems to be extra-tight, but I can't argue with the results!

Welcome from northern IL! Check out http://www.wiilshoot.com if you're ever in this neck of the woods. Lots of great info on area activities!

Hornady 55gr SP (2266), loaded to 2.200 per manual, mixed brass, CCI 400 primers 18" 1:9 barrel, temp 70F, 240m elevation 24.0 gr: 2856 fps (n=5), SD 30.93 (1.08%), ES 76 25.0 gr: 2969 fps (n=5), SD 19.07 (0.64%), ES 45 25.5 gr: 3008 fps (n=5), SD 13.82 (0.46%), ES 32

GAT in Dundee and Bass Pro (at least the one in Bolingbrook) carry jugs.

I shoot a CZ 75B in Production. It works quite nicely. You must start with hammer fully down. This means on 'Make Ready' you chamber a round and then _carefully_ lower the hammer all the way down. An AD when lowering the hammer is a DQ, obviously.

Not to mention Rube Goldberg contraptions involving electric eyes and arrays of solenoids. His expression of glee when talking about stage toys is priceless.

The IL State Championship this past weekend was a great match - a true class act! In Northern IL, we envy your proximity to the WSRC. It's an amazing facility!

I picked up a 625 PC. It wasn't too bad out of the box. However, I wound up needing to take it to my revolver smith. The chamfers on the cylinders were sharp and needed smoothing. The single action was so light that it concerned me. The sear was very rough and actually needed to be replaced. The hammer block was a poor fit to the hammer channel (it was too wide) and was actually dragging. It needed to be narrowed a smidge. The inside of the frame was so rough that I could have used it as a file. The trigger return reflected this. I got rid of the Technicolor stocks about 25 seconds after I got it. Now it runs like a champ... I love it. Ridiculously accurate and soft-shooting. It's a great gun and well worth it. I'm not sure what the Performance Center does exactly. Perhaps yours will be better... :-)

I have a whole ton of S&B brass. Pockets were tight, and I had to swage them (Dillon makes a tabletop swager and RCBS makes both a press-mounted and tabletop tool) to get them to prime reliably. More recently, I haven't had problems priming S&B brass on my LNL. I use Winchester primers. I also have a steel washer under the primer punch, which may help. Good luck - I like using the brass!

My IDPA club has enough revolver shooters that the change from 5 to 4.2 inches means they don't want to or can't participate anymore since they don't own a short barreled revolver and certainly don't want to cut theirs down just to shoot IDPA. As a 625 shooter, I still don't get the logic of allowing 5 inch barrels in semis and prohibiting them in revolvers (as opposed to a 4 inch). I don't think the extra length makes that big of a difference to justify cutting out a group of shooters who have USPSA-legal and previously IDPA-legal revolvers before the rules changed on them.

On further review, the drive hub seems to consistently snap at the level where the threaded steel insert ends within the cast aluminum part. It seems that any lateral force exerted on the hub (e.g. from the dies such as a hard to extract case or tough sizing stage) will wind up stressing this point. It's pretty much the only major potential design flaw I've seen, probably correctable if they just made the insert full-length. Just an observation...

Yep. The drive hub seems to be a weak part of the design. Or there was a bad batch. My brand new LNL had the drive hub snap the very first day I had it, when I was setting up dies. They sent me a new one. It's been great since.

Titegroup does a number on the RCBS plastic, and quickly (as in overnight). There's no way to remove the etching. This is the only pistol powder I've found that does this. If you think the clear plastic etching is bad, look inside the body of the dispenser - it can get ugly. When you contact RCBS, they will nag you about the sentence in the manual that tells you to empty your measure when done loading. And then, being the amazing company they are, will probably send you a new clear hopper. I doubt they'll do that more than once... Enjoy!

I use Tapatalk. This forum works very well with it (though I wish it would get rid of the 'successfully logged on' popup box every time I logged in)

I asked about shipping just the slide, and she said 'nope.' They want to fire the pistol to zero the sights. I asked, 'So my only option for getting a custom front sight made is shipping the whole pistol?' She said 'Yes.' Very frustrating, since I live in an area where shipping firearms is a bureaucratic nightmare. I agree with you - I've also heard similar things to what you're reporting about interactions with them, which is why I was rather confused (and a bit stunned) after my conversation.

When I called, I asked about sending in measurements for a custom front sight. The person I talked to told me that giving them specs was not an option at all and wanted me to ship the entire pistol to them - that was the only possibility. That's why I'm trying to find out if others have had more luck or other options. Thanks!

This may sound like a silly question, but for those who run Dawsons on their 75Bs, how did you get them? I can find only front sights for the Shadow. I called them asking about sights for a 75B, and they will custom build a front sight only for a premium if I ship my pistol to them, then there's a 4-6 week wait and return FedEx/UPS shipping fees. I'm currently using LPA sights (the only adjustable ones I can find for the 75B ), and I'm not finding the sight picture crisp enough for me (the front sight is not serrated and has rounded-off edges). Any help in this would be much appreciated!

If you are using the RCBS lockout die (like I'm doing), you will either need to add a Hornady powder-through expander die (PTX) for caliber (or get the Powderfunnels.com universal expander), or seat and crimp in the same die, otherwise you'll run out of stations. A set of Hornady or Forster lock rings (if you don't already have them) will also help save a bit of frustration when adjusting. If you're loading different powders or bullet types, an extra pistol rotor metering insert or two can save time when changing settings (I have one for N320, one for Titegroup, and another set for my 45 ACP loads). Hope this helps - I love my LNL setup!

Electromagnetic interference can mess with any electronic scale. To that end, make sure that you keep emitters (such as mobile phones, microwave sources, etc.) away from the scale. Also, most cheap AC-DC converters (that usually wind up shipped with electronics nowadays) output dirty DC. To help reduce that, I put ferrite cores on my DC leads and have noted more stable measurements. That is also in addition to making sure that the scale is level, etc. etc. etc.

Welcome! There are several USPSA, IDPA, ICORE, and other clubs in the area. Check out http://wiilshoot.com - it's a blog run to help bring together shooters from N. Illinois, NE Indiana, and S. Wisconsin together. There's a helpful calendar Les compiles of regional events. Hope this helps!

Make sure to check out http://wiilshoot.com if you're interested in competition in the area. Les runs the site, and it's a great resource for those of us in northern Illinois/northeastern Indiana/southern Wisconsin. As for loading, I use a Lee Classic Turret. Welcome to the area!

I also looked at both the M2 American vs Field for multipurpose use (hunting, 3-gun, and skeet/trap/sporting clays), and found a similar price difference. The major differences are (American vs Field): 1. 26 inch barrel (American) vs 28 (Field) 2. Inclusion of 3 chokes (M, IM, F) vs 5 chokes (Field) 3. Case (not included with American) 4. Set of shims (included with Field, not with American) 5. No Comfortech stock (American) Yes, a 26 inch barrel represents a compromise, but other constraints applied (including ability to fit in the trunk of my car since I live in a very gun-unfriendly area). I wound up going with the M2 American and adding a Limbsaver. I also got a couple of extended chokes. I couldn't be happier. The $400 price difference buys a lot of ammo, and I couldn't use most of the extra goodies anyway. Hope this helps!