Carlos

Welcome back & good shooting at Area 6! Short answer to your question: not yet. All the guns at the shop were new guns and thus I did not have a chance to try them out. The Remington does seem to have a cushier recoil pad than my Winchester and it feels less bulky than my SX2 but the proof will be in shooting the two guns side by side. Unfortunately, the only 3 gun I have been to this season has been the indoor 3 gun down in the basement at NRA HQ - don't ask about my results; I bone-headed 3 out of 6 stages that night though my LTD equipment ran 100% (SX2, G17 and an old military surplus A2 upper on an oly pre-ban lower w/ cheapo 40 rounders & milsurp 5.56). As for work, I still give Phil a hand from time to time at his new shop, Shooters Paradise (www.shooters-paradise.com) but since the season has started, I don't spend as much time working there as I would like. There were still 2 Competition Masters left as of Monday May 5, when I was there last. For any SASS folks out there, Shooters has a number of reproduction single actions in stock from Colt, Ruger and Cimaron. Cal.s include .45LC, .357 and a few of the more obscure Cowboy calibers (.44-40 perhaps?). If you call the store, ask for Jim. DVC D.

Results are up at www.gssfonline.com and B.J. came in 7th in the largest class, Amatuer Civilian as well as winning High Junior, Male, and 7th in "A" class. In the competition class (G34 &35 only) he came in 12th and in Unlimited master, 18th. A bit more about B.J. for those who have not met him, he is 13 years old and I believe currently an A class shooter in Production division. He also recently completed an R.O class and he has been the match director of the Area 8 club North Mountain Practical Shooters for some time now. I wish I had been as organized when I was his age. The shirt he is wearing in the photo is from Shooters Paradise - Phil Strader's new range/shop in Woodbridge, VA (www.shooters-paradise.com). I shot on a team w/ B.J. and his father, Tim, at the GSSF match (though B.J. deserved a more capable team mate than the likes of me!). I also borrowed his G34 for the GSSF competition class and it is essentially a stock gun other than a regular metal blade front site. The trigger was nothing special and in fact, seemed a bit heavier than the 3.5 Glock connector in my 17. Ammo we used was 147s loaded to about 140+ powerfactor to work w/ the stock recoil spring. B.J.'s finish in 7th was purely the result of his skill as a shooter - not the gun or load he used. Keep an eye on B.J. in the future; I believe he could be destined for greatness if he sticks with competition shooting.

I believe the ports were opened up over the std. 1100 and there were still 2 left at Phil Strader's place as of last night when I went by there to practice. They are ready to be mailed out to your FFL anywhere in the US w/ just a phone call, a credit card and a copy of the FFL - Phil's shop is (703) 491-4867; M-Sat 10-9, Sunday 12-7.

Vince - looks great! And, it calrifies the grey area in a fair and reasonable manner. Good work. BDH - Good comments so far & I agree w/you. When I first started shooting, I did accidently leave the safety area and approach a first stage with an unloaded gun w/ hammer cocked. I noticed my screw up, notified the RO and under his direction, we cleared the range, verified unloaded, and all was well. Have not done it since. These things happen. Its seems sort of like phenomenon of an unloaded pistol outside a COF falling from a holster - no, it should never happen & must be handled properly. But since we maintain a cold range, the consequences should never result in a dangerous situation. Besides, w/ the prevelence of race holsters in some divisions, will we ever eliminate dropped guns outside COF? I doubt it. As to empty magazine handling within safe area boundries, this needs to be put to rest guys (and girls - great job RO Shooter Grrl!). YOU CAN HANDLE EMPTY MAGAZINES IN THE SAFE AREA. I have seen many mis-marked safe area signs at local matches in Area 8. Magazines? Yes. Loaded mags? No. Loaded ammo? No. Dummy ammo? No. As for boundries, I ran into this once at a sectional. There was a safe area w/ a card table set up and w/in 8 feet or so was a picnic bench. I geared up in the safe area, then went over to the table and sat down to load up my magazines. Another shooter (not a match RO politely informed me I could not handle ammo in the safe area (which was decent of him to do - he did not make a big deal of it). I thanked him for letting me know and asked him politely, could he show me the boundry of the safe area? I moved anyway to make him happy, but we never did settle on where the boundries were - if they are not marked on the ground then I think its up to the shooter to reasonably stay out of the safe area w/ loaded ammo.

Since you are in Virginia; you are fortunate enough to have grand masters and master class shooters in the area including Phil Strader and Todd Jarret. Phil owns a range and store that features STI, Kimber and Springfield armory 1911s and has the ability to order you nearly any make you might want. Phil's store, Shooters Paradise (www.shooters-paradise), also carries the Springfield XD, Glock, CZ and HK as well as a few other brands. There are several different .45 1911s for rent as well so you can try out before you buy. Stop by and if Phil is not there (he is still a full time training officer for Capitol Police) ask for Brent or James. There will be another introduction to IPSC/USPSA class starting soon; if you want a comprehensive introduction to IPSC, this is the best class available. If for whatever reason you cannot find what you need through Phil's shop, try Virginia Arms in Manassas. The owner, Bernie Connester runs a very professional shop and his staff are usually familiar w/ IPSC as a couple of them are former NRA Range ROs who helped run the matches. You are welcome to try out one of my guns too. Send me a PM if you are interested. DVC Douglas Johnson TY-44934

QUOTE (Rufus) Titegroup IS NOT clean, I just don't buy into it being the cleanest powder on the market lie. REPLY TO QUOTE (Duane Thomas) "Lie" is a pretty strong word. I'm simply recounting my experiences, and the experiences of Allan Jones, head ballistician at Speer, who reports Titegroup as being literally twice as clean as any other powder Speer has ever tested. That may not match your experience, but I assure you that neither of us is lying. Rufus: I have to agree w/ Duane that "lie" is a bit strong. Duane was kind enough to do the homework and call up Speer, then kind enough to share the results of his excellent investigative work w/ the rest of the reloading community through this site and through Blue Press. Your results may not agree, but lets at least keep things civil - especially here for the sake of our gracious host. Duane: I remember your posts and I read the article in Blue Press. Thanks. One thing seems to be missing though. You did not specify what caliber and specific load was used by speer in their "ejecta test" that indicated Titegroup is the cleanest powder they ever tested. If the caliber Speer used for the ejecta test was 9mm AND it was loaded close to SAAMI max loads (around 35,000 PSI I believe) then my personal testing results agree w/ yours - Titegroup is quite clean and maybe the cleanest ever. I did not do an ejecta test myself (who does?) but Titegroup left the gun quite clean. I would imagine the same results could be obtained from a high pressure loading in .40 caliber. However, your article also advocated the use of Titegroup in .44 and .45 - for its cleanliness. I tried Titegroup in .45 ACP loaded to the 165PF w/ bullets from 200 grains all the way down to the Westcoast 155grn sintered/plated rounded flatpoint. Since the loads were at minimum or below starting book loads in order to approach the PF, the pressures were obviously quite low; I would estimate 15,000 PSI or below. At low pressures, I personally found that Titegroup performed well - as your article indicates - but it was dirty. It not only left the soot mark you described int he article, it also left a noticeable amount of black soot on the feed ramp, breach face, and elsewhere on the gun. It left more soot that comparable loads of straight Clays powder. I simply believe that Clays is a superior .45 ACP powder for light/ 165PF loads and I recommend Clays over Titegroup in .45ACP. Again, I appreciate your work in writing the article and I hope you will continue to contribute such articles because I enjoy reading about innovations in reloading. Regards, Douglas TY-44934 PS DIrtiest: 3 way tie: Unique!, Bluedot, W231/HP38

Bear is right w/ the HP (Eric - you are the MAN!) and many shooters like the way a steel framed gun like the HP handles recoil. You should also check out the berreta Vertec (sp?) which is essentially a 92 w/ revised ergonomics for smaller hands. If you prefer plastic, RWS has now taken over distribution of the fine Steyr M-series handguns in 9mm and .40 cal; I own a 9mm Steyr and the grip is quite small; this gun also has a VERY low bore axis which means there is little muzzle flip compared to other guns w/ a higher bore - anyone who has tried the excellent HK P series pistols will tell you about the advantages of a low bore axis.

I looked & its not on the site. I had to phone in the order but they have them in stock for many cal.

Here are a few more fun ones: 1) no private transfers. Any handgun TRANSFERS (not just sales) must be conducted through an FFL and handguns/assault guns subject to the 14 day waiting period (that used to take 20+ days - I moved in 1997). Want to lend your buddy a handgun? Better take to the dealer and ask Maryland's permission, then wait 14 days for a form to came back w/ a state police stamp that reads "Not dis-approved" (I am not kidding - that is what it says; would not want to have the state approve of any gun ownership you know). 2) No transportation in automobiles. Exceptions: going to/from match, practice range, gunsmith. If you get pulled over, you had better be able to explain where you were headed. Gun has to be in locked trunk that you cannot get to from inside the cab. If you can get to it, it had better be in a LOCKED case and seperate from the ammo (different locked bag). 3) Loaded mag = loaded gun (and a trip downtown). I bought my 1st 1911 (STI Edge) from a Baltimore city police officer & we talked about this. Don't forget to unload those mags after a match or you will at least loose your gun & possibly more. 4) No manufacturer's internal lock or factory fingerprint shell casing = banned handgun. Exception: used model of the handgun if its made prior to 2003. Just find the model gun you want and buy a used model from out of state and arrange a transfer through an FFL (Gunpowder Range near Bel Aire used to have the best price at $15 vs. $60 at most places in MD). Want to buy the latest model, brand new STI, SV, etc.? Sorry, its not possible in MD. Thank GOD I moved to VA!! The rest of the country:if you have not done so yet, wake up and join NRA, GOA, or pro gun rights group of your choice. Sarah Brady views MD code as a model for new laws in your state.

See one? I just bought one! Actually it is in 20 gauge. Here is the scoop: NOTE LIMIMTED LIMITED LIMITED!! (read on). Its a typical AK design, it is VERY reliable. THere is an adjustable 2 position gas system. If the shooter does not adjust it for light loads, and the gun jams, then that is the shooters fault. Beyond that, these guns WORK. Also, the 20 I have recoils less and shoots flatter than my limited SX2. It fits me fine. As for individual shotgun "fit" perhaps an English BE member can explain the importance of this. Now the downside: 5 round mags. You thought the magazine limit under the clinton ban was 10? So did I. Not for semi-auto shotguns w/ detachable mags (no, not the tube type fixed mags). You saw the 10 round shotgun drum adds in Shotgun News? Those are only for pumps. Adapt one of those to a semi and you may just end up in Club Fed. You cannot buy or build the 8 round mags for a Saiga shotgun; there were supposedly some Russian 8 rounders out there and I looked. Forget about it. You WILL be stuck w/ 5 rounders (6 rounds loaded at the beep). So here is the test for LIMITED only: from an empty gun, can you load and shoot 9 rounds out of an SX2, 1100, benelli LIMITED gun FASTER than you could load and fire 2 mags full out of the Saiga? Maybe w/ lotsa practice you could. I have not managed to do it yet. In theory its possible to load 2 mags into the gun faster than 9 shells. This gun cost me $160 from CDNN vs. $800 for my SX2. Is it the answer for limited? you decide. BTW, this discussion applies only to LIMITED; I don't screw around w/ that open stuff.

GM iprod: I agree w/ you on Titegroup v. Clays. I have done the direct comparison using 200 grn WestCoast Plated RNs and SWCs both loaded to just over US-major (165pf). Shooting impulse out of a .45ACP Edge w/ 14 lb spring was identical as were the splits. Outdoors, the loads were difficult to tell apart. Indoors, Titegroup (which is a ball powder) seemed to give a sharper report, but was not bothersome. The difference was cleanliness. Clays seems to leave a very light grey coating. Titegroup left noticeably more residue and it was black. I found it to be dirty, but otherwise comparable to Clays (at a cheaper price).

I have burned many pounds of this powder in .45 ACP. Try 200 grain bullets - West Coast plated ones, over 4.5 grains of Clays. I load the RNs to 1.260 and SWCs to 1.240 w/ great results. Lead bullets of the same weight may require less powder while jacketed may require slightly more.

Real question is: Why do people like Sean Penn, anti-gun Senators Feinstein & Boxer get to have a covetted California concealed handgun permit while you and I will never be granted a permit? I guese their lives are just more valuable than yours or mine.

I have used Olympic products incl. barrels. If I remember their catalog, the Ultramatch is a cut-rifling barrel and Oly also offers button rifled barrels. I have a button rifled Oly 1" dia varmit barrel and even w/ the worst ammo, its under an inch at 100. HOWEVER, its far too heavy for 3 gun. What you are looking for is: 1) NON chrome lined - none of the top National Match/Camp Perry guns have chrome lined barrels. Glen Zediker's book explains this better. 2) a quality barrel such as a Krieger, Douglas, etc. from a known builder like Benny or White Oak Precision (do a search & you will find it). Ideally, it will be a lapped stainless barrel -either button or cut rifled. I went the way of a drop in heavy barrel for a varmit gun and it shoots; getting similar accuracy out of a 3gun weight barrel may require lapping and bolt fitting for accuracy. Will the lighter Oly barrels cut it? Maybe. I find their stuff somewhat unpredictable as far as quality - often it is excellent for a bargain price.

Here is a link to the US patent drawings of the S_I frame and grip. Appears that the frame issued 1st; Feb. 8, 1994; then the grip frame combo on Mar. 8 1994. http://www.roderuscustom.tzo.com/cgi-bin/i...t=ST;f=14;t=187 We know of the SPS; there is also a posibility that Brazil's Imbel company was producing a copy, though I do not have confirmation of it. I think that S_I frames are overpriced considering the complexity of machining the frame compared to the cost of manufacturing traditional 1911 frames. OTOH, I apreciate S_I's inovation and support for our sport.

Great guns and they work well. Just make sure you do not make the same mistake; get a Langdon trigger job but don't get Langdon's "speedbump" trigger beacuse it will put you in open division. http://64.62.172.100/~brianeno/index.php?a...=ST&f=27&t=3707

For match photos, results and other information, here is the link: http://www.copacolumbus.com/ DVC, D.

I agree w/ TBF's comments and there just happens to be a listed book load for .45 ACP that fits the bill and stays within SAAMI specs. Pay $15 or so for Richard LEE's reloading handbook and look up the data for either Hodgdon HP-38 or Winchester 231 (use only the powder listed) and lead bullets of either 255 or 260 grains. I used the Bull-X lead 255 SWC meant for revolver use; it has a pronounced crimp groove. Charge as directed and crimp at the crimp groove; I got exactly what the book predicted on the chrono: 800 FPS out of an STI Edge (204 PF). Ideally. velocity would be a bit higher to prevent those pesky "low-velocity rollbacks." And yes, Virginia, 255s ricocheting off pins DO hurt when they hit you! TBF wrote: "Just my .02, Heavy is better for pins. Also SWC or flatnose design better than roundnose for pins. Seems like 800 fps or above lessens ricochet problems. Most any load 170+ will take off a pin with a good hit, but more is better if the hit is not perfect."

I am also interested in your setup, JL, if you would not mind sharing a few details. So far, it looks like a full size S_I frame w/ a commander length slide/barrel and a threaded comp., but what about hybrid holes - are there any? Also, what would you think of one of Wil Schueman's built-in compensators (hybri-comp) barrels in commander length? It would make for a VERY short open gun with theoretically less mass to swing between targets.

I agree that a rule change to bring out a greater variety of rifles would be an overall improvement to our sport. To that end, how can we encourage folks to shoot major? I would also like to see more emphasis on long range stages (200 to 300 meters) to encourage high velocity rifles ONLY. While I enjoy close range hosing as much as the next guy, and even built a 9mm AR-15 carbine for local USPSA (sorta like the MecTec on the cover of frontsite), I'd like the regular challenge of 300 yard targets. As it is here in Area 8, the longest shot I've taken in competition was 140 yards.

Mark123 - yes, I agree. I think the powerfactor tends to make limited/production/revolver recoil a subjective thing. If you do a search on "sinterfire" (sp?) either here or on Matt Burkett's site you will find GMs using .40 loads at 165 PF using bullets lighter than 155 grains. They are winning with these loads. On the other hand, most GMs load .40s w/ 180 or even 200 grain bullets. Both weights loaded to 165 can be sufficiently controlled to win major matches. I also agree its best to try both extremes and decide for yourself. I tried .45 loads at 165PF w/ bullets from the old 255 lead "IPSC" loads over W231 to 152 grain National SWC or Westcoast sintered 155s over Clays at 165. I like compromise loads in the 200 to 185 grain range.

I am w/ Jeff Maass on this: 255s. I used Bull - X lead bullets (flat nose broad SWC profile) back in the day & loaded them over the Lee relaoding manual data for either HP-38 or Win. 231 though both are dirty powders and Universal Clays is probably a better powder. I believe the book data listed 800FPS and they chronoed at that using published data.

Excellent! Thanks David & Underlug! Will put in an order this week. Had not planned to do any revolver shooting but happened upon a 1989 used 625 for $400 w/ a bunch of moons and 2 demooners. Have had a lot of fun shooting this thing! Lookin' forward to tring it out in competition.

Looking for a Kydex holster for a used S&W 625 5" I just bought used. Uncle Mike's does not appear to list a Kydex holster for the 625, although they have some nylon get ups. Not planning on a lot of USPSA/IPSC revolver shooting (I am mostly a limited or production guy), but I'd like to have a set up for the occasional local match. Thanks in advance, DVC C.

Another reason for doing this is to build a credible USPSA limited top end to interchange w/ an Open-class SV lower. My Open lower lacks the full length dustcover. To get the weight out there by the muzzle again, I will be using an undrilled hybrid. Still a compromize, but I can switch classes just by changing uppers and removing the scopemount. Same trigger, same grip; everything familiar and just how I want it.