Carlos

Sorry to hear about that one; good on you for standing up to a mistake that many have made (and not trying to blame someone else). I think the lack of serious injury says a lot about the Glock design. Hope things work out w. the replacement.

lim10gm wrote: "How 'bout an under-the-radar, sneak-attack, come from no where kinda guy. I say we pick a less known, but deadly-legit BE.com member." - not a bad idea at all; how about one of the young guns: Jake, BJ, or Horner? I also like the BE idea; how about it, Brian? Had your name been added to the above list, it would have been no contest.

Question for you: did the bullet on the round in question set back any before it seperated? I think it was likely a set back. .40 is known to be very sensitive to changes in OAL and we can think of a set back as "a radical alteration of OAL". I bet it was a set back. Of course, now that it happened, there will never be any way to tell. I am guessing you are not using the Lee brand Undersized or small base resizing dies? If you are not using this die, it was probably a set back. Sorry to read of your misfortune.

I have an old 9mm Largo pistol; a 1921 Astra 400. The case is 23mm long; same as 9x23 and .38 Super/Supercomp. I use worn out 9mm Supercomp brass, way down loaded for the old 9mm Largo; its a pure blow back pistol. The Dillon ammo is for this gun, or another Spanish made Largo. Might work as practice ammo for a Supercomp, though not cheap.

Rikka - I think either the 250 Ninja or the EX 500 (500 Ninja) are the best options out there as far as reliability and decent power/handling. If you have tried the SV 650 and it is too much to handle, then a harley is out of the question. This lightest harley seems to be the "model 883" and it is supposed to be: "Claimed Dry Weight: 488 lbs" - add gas & oil & that thing's over 500 lbs! Not to mention, your first post specified reasonable price and the harleys start at $7000 + and there is a wait list to buy them. Besides, the 883 apparently can't climb hills due to lack of power. You mentioned racing a 125? I found pics of the Honda RS125: and here is a link to a photo of an RS racing against some sort of Single for comparison sake: http://www.bikepics.com/pics/pics/honda-rs...pics-216537.jpg I never raced 125s (being 6'2", it would have been a tight squeeze) but I helped friends load them up after races; the RS has a claimed weight; semi-dry of 157 lbs and when my back was in better shape, I could lift one into the truck by myself (those days are long gone). I did borrow a TZ-250 GP bike & those were some of the most terrifying laps of my life; un-Godly power, massive brakes and tires that seemed to be made of glue. GP bikes rule. Happy hunting & please let us know what bike you decide on.

We are too far to your south to provide physical support or shooters, but if you are interested in stage designs or have any questions about the way we run indoor ICORE, info can be found in the ICORE section of the forum on our sight: www.shootersparadise.com Best of luck and I hope it works out. Regards, D.C. Johnson

John Dunn wrote: "but I think the general consensus is they probably aren't any better than a D-Fender or O-ring to increase extractor tension, and may not be any better in other barrel lengths or semi-autos" I have seen the "D-Fender" or "D" shaped o-rings at the gun shows (only $15) and they are supposed to work; but -what about the "O" ring you mentioned? How much does it cost & where to buy? Thanks.

On a similar note: anyone run into any snags converting a 9mm Para (Like the LDA P18) to take 9x23? Of course the gun & barrel can more than handle the extra power; that is beyond dispute. But what about the P18's magazines?

RRA makes top notch, high-quality stuff and I am sure their riser is no exception. I used a brandless riser from Tapco that cost $20 and a set of high steel rings - Weaver steel rings - in mounting a Weaver Classic 1-3x20. Puts the scope about as high as the carryhandle peep. Here is a download from the last indoor (select "free" - then wait the 20 seconds & hit download) http://rapidshare.de/files/8421083/Doug_J._.wmv.html If money is not a problem, the Larue scope mount is fully adjustable for QD, and it holds its zero after a quick detach. Its $200 to $250 (maybe a little less if you shop around for a used one).

Down in the basement of the NRA's HQ they have a range set up and they shoot IDPA and a form of USPSA there with poppers that are covered in a foam which is about 2" thick. Works extremely well & I cannot recall ever seeing a light break from a fragment. Their match was a model for our indoor at www.shootersparadise.com

"What are the differences between a CZ trigger group and the EAA/Tanfoglio? I've heard there are some but haven't been able to find any concrete info." Trigger pin sizes are different: the Tanfoglio uses a larger diameter ROLL PIN while the CZ uses a solid pin that is recessed and peened in place. Extractor: same story. Mag release & safety: completely different. Rest of trigger group: depends. some sears might interchage. EGW would know. "Will CZ Springs etc work (recoil, main spring)?" See above. Recoil: yes. Hammer: maybe. "Any tricks?" For the SA - the same tricks that work on a 1911 sear/hammer. DA is a little more involved: start with a 15 lb Wolf hammer spring.

Awesome job Sterling. This match was one heck of a good time & anyone in the D.C. area with a pistol, shotgun & assault rifle owes it to themselves to check out the shoots that Sterling & Jason are running in Waldorf (about 45 min or so from the beltway). For full results & more pictures (including a picture of the tall skinny dude w/ the freaky looking snarl in the last photo) follow this link to the post on shootersparadise.com (the rest of the stages are there too): http://shootersparadise.com/forums/showthread.php?t=792 Regards, Douglas

Hi Michael, you wrote: "I notice in some of the posts that most people use a heavier bullet. My thinking was a lighter bullet and charge equals a lighter recoil." You thought right. Hodgdon had a good article in on of their manuals stating that the only 2 ways to reduce recoil are: reduce velocity or reduce projectile weight. In 9mm, some of the lightest loads of all are loads for steel shooting using 105, 90 or even 88 grn bullets. There is no power factor, but the speeds are extreme in steel shooting. However, if one is going for a given power factor w/ 9mm, there is a way to reduce PERCEIVED recoil: that is to use a heavy bullet at a modest speed: this produces "soft recoil" where the sights softly & predictable rise & fall right back into position. That is why we load 147s (or even heavier; a 180 grn 9mm load does exist) - sucha a load (147) only needs 850 FPS to make power factor & is increadibly soft shooting. Anyway, a mild load with 124s or the 115s you have is certainly possible by just reducing velocity - just so long as it functions. Also, I did not mean to pan Universal; on the contrary, I think it can be a fine powder. As for cleanliness, you are using lead that w/ its wax lube, will be dirty on its own. So, the powder's "cleanliness" is no big deal. I also like th fact that you load out to 1.135" - every one of my 9mm guns runs better at that length or longer. Really nothing wrong w/ universal. If you have the chance to try out some 147s at 800 to 850 FPS sometime, give them a try & I think you will like them too. Good shooting & see you at the range.

Michael wrote: "Just for range and target" and . . . I seem to have a larger group" - you do not mention competition - where you would need to meet the 125 Power Factor for USPSA or 125,000 floor for IDPA. Sounds like you are just shooting at the range. If so, here is what I have found to be true w/ Universal: it is sensitive to pressure and OAL. It seems to work best when you find a book load that generates the highest pressure. IF you increase the OAL over the book-listed MINIMUM SAFE OALs (virtually all book-listed OALs are actually MINIMUMs, and NOT SUGGESTED OAL), then Universal leaves behind a lot of unburned powder and soot. The same thing tends to happen with loads that are below the maximum listed load. If you are practicing or planning for competition, I'd suggest NOT using 115s. Rather, switch to 147s or at least 124s. If you opt to use Universal, see if there is a book load close to 127 to 130 PF but that is also close to a listed, book maximum load. Better yet, use jacketed or plated 147s over Titegroup or V V N-320 or N330. D.C. Johnson

Obviously a whole lot of hard work and some inate tallent have paid off for you. Congrats.

OH how I laughed! Maybe because I am 1/8th kraut? No, I just do not get out enough. Nice one! You have outdone yourself this time Nolan.

" thereby allowing gases to blow by the primer, eroding the breechface." -I have seen this EFFECT in STI & SV .40s and the primers used were Magnum primers in an otherwise unremarkable .40 load. In my Open Major 9 Glock, I use Federal small pistol w/o problems; 3N38, N350 and Power Pistol.

What did Tookie have in common with Tim McVay? Mass murder. Only Tookie was responsible for creating the Crips, who's victims number in the thousands (if not tens of thousands) by now. Now, his murderous Crips creation is praised and promoted by Snoop Dog - that is when Snoop is not busy appearing on network TV along side Lee Iacoca, Ellen DeGenerus, David Bowie. Good riddance.

N320 makes a terrific, soft shooting load. If you are not comfortable with a powder that fast, there is published data for the slightly slower N330 and 147s. Titegroup works well, though it will tend to burn hot & thus smoke w/ lead bullets. On page 137 of the Lyman Pistol and Revolver Manual, Second edition, there is a load with straight Clays and a cast lead bullet: 2.8 grns of Clays for a velocity of 873 FPS; I would not load this any shorter than 1.140" though & watch out for possible set-back w/ this powder as its fast burning.

I am one of the ones who stated that longer ammo generally feeds better in a Glock. Besides personal experience, I learned this from Rudy Waldinger, who most of us associate w/ S&W Revolvers. However, in his native Austria, Rudy was on the factory Glock shooting team. Rudy was the one who first informed me that Glocks prefer longer loaded ammuntion for optimal feeding. His advice has always worked for me. I concur RE powder: 1st Titegroup 2nd N320 but load longer than 1.135". I do not think straight Clays has any place in Major .40 for Glocks. Again - not for Major.

I would suggest a very fine grade of glass bead & try to limit the amount of blasting done to bearing surfaces.

Thanks Luis - excellent photo. I noticed that the gun has a bushing and when these go on sale in 2006, I think they will be identical to the picture you posted. Looks like it would be ready to go in USPSA, IPSC and ESP class in IDPA. As for the .40 Rob uses in competition, I thought Rob's IPSC World Shoot and 2005 Nationals gun had a bull barrel?

OK. Well, thanks for the update. C.

Clearly its the October 2003 cover; lovely Latina/Italian brunette lady w/ a blue dress on, heels & a .50 Cal.

Thank you for the update & I am confident that w/ the changes you have made, there will be no further problems like the one pictured above. You wrote: "Right now I'm using 5.05 of vvn320 loaded to 1.175. I don't know what the chrono says, but they were 168.5 power factor with 5.1 of VVN320 & loaded to 1.195. At one point I was having feed problems with the Para so I lowered the length to 1.175 and then dropped to 5.05grn. to try to be safer. " Understood. Sometimes the Para has been known to run better w/ a shorter OAL than would be optimal/functional in an STI. FYI, I have had no trouble running 320 as short as the required OAL for the CZ brand Standard IPSC .40 pistol: oal max is 1.170 and I load N320 very close to that OAL. I can use as little as 4.7 grns and still meet major (barrel is about 5.75" long - nearly a 6").