Carlos

Yeah, and I want a pistol grip stock which should be available since the sunset. Thanks.

Monster: it reminds me of your excellent Limited blaster with the 6" top end; can you post a pic for comparison? I would imagine that a 6" gun shoots very soft & would take less powder to exceed 165 pf. Chil: very nice gun! THanks for posting. Regards, D.

Home-made vs. home assembled; If you start with raw material and machine a piece of bar stock into an STI/SV frame, it is home made. However, I believe you are considering starting with an STI firearm in the form of a stripped frame from an FFL & assembling that firearm (at home) with your choice of parts; sounds like you are in a good position for such a project: you wrote: "For years I have done essentially all my own gun work, and have built up several 1911s for myself, with very good results. Plus, I really like working on handguns" Stinger & Precision make good points re: about $200 to $300 additional cost; it is amazing how quickly the small parts on a 1911 add up. But even at an equal cost to a good used gun, this is certainly a worthwhile project for a variety of reasons including learning experience, pride in your own work; familiarity with your personal weapon's indiviual quirks; ability to tailor important details to your own needs; a known history, etc. I encourage you to go for it. Sure it might take a little more time & $$ than it should but I think its worth it & I believe you think so as well; you wrote: "Plus I have to admit I get a lot of pleasure from shooting my home-made guns...)" I agree. Precision wrote: "Keep in mind you also have to finish the gun, whether it be chrome or blued. " I have been finishing 1911 projects in Black Phosphate with excellent results on both my own work & a few of a top shooter's guns. It lacks the same look as blueing but it is far less toxic and far more durable than blueing at minimal cost (some guys still like blueing better). Carmony: I will PM you the deatils if you want. BTW, you should look for a bull barrel that is full profile for the entire length instead of only at the front; I have used & had good results with: Schuemann, KKM, and STI, though there could be other quality bull barrels of equal performance out there. Regards, C.

My load was a plated West Coast SWC over 4.5 grns of straight Clays (slightly over book load so use at your own risk) and the best OAL seemed to be 1.245. Regards, D. PS if I did it again & could not locate Clays, I would try N310 or possibly N320.

Congrats Terry & welcome to two fellow citizens! Regards, Douglas

Not wishing to kick over the "Production - cost limit??!?" can of worms again I simply point out that trigger jobs are expensive. The "hot set-up" for Glocks right now in USPSA is the Vanek at over $200 (I will state again: I have examined Charlie's work & I believe he earns every penny as there is quite a bit done; good job Charlie!). The beginner's cost starting w/ a new glock (about $500 on sale) jumps to over $700 plus 3 more mags ($60) holster ($20) and mag holders ($20). Thats an $800 admission ticket. In IPSC, you simply buy it & shoot it (at least that is supposed to be the way it works).

Vlad - AKs are fun to shoot; I won the 1st Heavy Metal match I shot with an AK. They may not be the most competitive rifles (reloads are slow & take practice) but if the ranges invloved are close in, they work. Around here, there are rarely shots over 120 yards. We just do not have the room back east. Do a search or try www.siaga-12.com for a forum that discusses the .308 Saiga; I believe that the 16" has proven to be more accurate than the 20 & with the lower Major limit, it should easily make it in .308. Plus, if you add enough USA made parts, you are allowed to convert it to pistol grip (this did NOT change with the AWB sunset) and soon 20 round magazines should be available from EAA. Regards, D.

I understand your lack of a chrono. These things are a real pain to use; everyone knows that its usually an inconvenience to everybody else at the outdoor range to set one up and thats after you find an outdoor club range that ALLOWS you to use a chrono. Most of us who have access to the club's outdoor range find that this time of year, they are all closed for the winter. Even when open, its a long drive to the range plus there is the $10 per hour range fee you have to pay most places. That leaves only indoor ranges & besides the problem of a lack of any cease fire for set up & hourly cost, there is the lighting problem. My point? Its not as simple as paying $99. Of course I know a lot of be.com forum members just go out in the back yard to shoot. Must be nice. Not everyone lives out in the countryside where that is still possible. More than a few of us live in cities (plenty of people do these days) and we are limited to indoor ranges in areas with 4 actual seasons where shooting is a summertime activity. Chronographing becomes nearly impossible if you live in the wrong place. My solution? I usually get a few friends together & dedicate the time to setting up the overhead lights on the rare occasions when the indoor range is closed & the owner allows it. We all bring the loads & guns to be tested & get the chronographing out of the way at one time. Its still a huge hassle, but less so in a group setting. Very best regards from inside the traffic-choked Washington D.C. beltway. D.

A search on Titewad should produce my question on the same topic about a year back; I believe that the only positive reply came from regular poster who's name is something like "GM in Prod" & he reported using it for 38 Special minor bullseye loads. I was thinking along the same lines as you & wondering about its potential for a major load in either .45 ACP (very plausible) or even .40. D.

I shot an M1A in the last heavy metal match for the year at a local club; couple of points: 1) Reloads are rediculously slow unless you dedicate serious practice time. Even then, they are not as fast as an AR-10 2) Despite what you hear, these things can jam. I had 4 malf.s on one stage using mags from ammoman and Hirtenberger factory ammo. 3) 2 of us used a S.A. that was factory -shortened to 18". It worked very very well and it was quite accurate. It was a fun and nostalgic gun to shoot. Untimately the AR is more competitive for 3 gun (stock 100% in-line with bore, more options available, etc) but do not count out the M1a. Regards, D.

-CZ 75B in 9mm or 40 for under $400 - brand new! I like the more expensive 85Combat 9mm better, but I shot with the 75B to start & its 99% of what the 85 is. Fantastic gun! Can't beat that Galyan's deal on Glocks. Great way to start in Production (just load up, holster & concentrate on the shooting when the buzzer goes). Do not count out the excellent Stery M9 for about $250; Tom Freeman of the Air Force SHooting team shot his way into Master with one. Very capable.

SSR or revolver division only recognizes Minor power floor so go ahead & really really download the .45 ammo for IDPA (for your 625 types). EERW: have any steel loads that meet minor? Either caliber, your POI will cetainly change though so please be aware.

Siggy- Thanks a bunch! That picture is much improved. Thanks Eric! Eventually it will become a complete 1911 and probably a .40 cal w/ a ramped barrel. Its history is a little murky, but I believe it was cast by Olympic/Safari Arms & then rejected part way through the machining. Beacuse the factory machining was stopped before the slide rails were machined, it never became a firearm. I bought it & it arrived right to my doorstep in the mail - again, it was not a firearm. Machining all the remaining operations and the slide rails took a long time, but is is about ready for slide fitting; most of the parts I bought for it went on the other .40 in the picture. I live in VA & machining your own handgun frame from scratch is perfectly lawful here - its just like the legal exceptions that allow you to brew your own beer. You can make it for yourself, but if you make it intending to put it up for sale, then there are legal restrictions. You don't have to get a license to brew limited quantities of beer at home. You don't have to pay taxes to brew beer at home. Same with lawful configurations of firearms for personal use. Some thoughts on additional operations are: -undercut trigger gaurd for higher grip -learn to checker steel by checkering frontstrap & underside of triggergaurd -cut frame for Brown High Rise GS I confess, I have too many projects & too little time (and at 20+ handguns, it appears I have too many of those as well). DVC D.

Hey Shred! Nice pics & I like the fiber optic on the 610; who made it? Regards, D.

"So what we are really talking about is who can handle recoil. Fat/Big/large/strong men may have the advantage then. " I disagree. The problem is that most rifle shooters are not properly trained in recoil management during rapid fire. Technique can overcome recoil. Here is an example: I have a friend who owns a .308 caliber full-auto since he is a class III dealer. The rifle is a dealer sample FAL or more correctly, a select fire L1-A1. Although he about average size (maybe a bit on the tall side) he is easily able to empty the entire 20 round magazine in one long burst (& he could do it w/ a 30 rounder just as easily) while keeping every single round within the A-zone. The select fire L1-A1 as well as the M-14 were abandoned by their respective militaries because the "average trooper" (with incorrect training) could not control them, but with the right training, anyone can learn to shoot such rifles nearly as fast as .223s without regard to body mass. Yes, I also know about "less weight= more ammo" issue; 5.56 wins that in real combat. However, I maintain that quickly firing a .308 is all about technique, not body mass. ALthough a move to the 5.56mm and 5.45mm rounds makes a rifle more tolerant of poor technique/less training, shouldn't USPSA emphasize training & practice? Ask some of the smaller statured USPSA shooters if they are prevented from winning with a .45 ACP by their lack of body mass & see what the response is. "I don't think saying single stack is a good Idea either what about Para 45's" Agreed. The club I shot with followed a different rule. I used a CZ-97B-SA which is a single action .45 ACP made by CZ with factory double stack 10 round magazines. We also allow .44 Magnum and full power 10 MM in He Man. Maybe the rule should be a suitable power factor for .45 ACP and Single action only? My mind is not made up on this one - other than to exclude my usual .40 Limited SV.

Welcome aboard! SPS, STI & SV are great guns for IPSC. In case it becomes difficult to locate one, have you considered the CZ Standard IPSC? Regards. D.

In the midst of this photo is my USPSA revolver: it is a S&W 625 in .45 ACP. Its the 1989 model. I bought it with Millit sights installed which is OK. I have only used it twice at a match. Its a fine gun & well suited to USPSA revolver division. Regards, D. (Carlos will be re-posting this photo from his resource server. We've moved this one off mine. ---Siggy 12/2 )

Here is most of the current collection (with the exception of a few guns on loan - mostly to forum members & a few "in progress"): Let me know if I miss any: (generally the competition guns are at the bottom of the frame) SV previously owned by Tawn Argeris & converted to Limited .40 from Open Steyr M9 (M40 not pictured) Home-built long dust cover .40 1911 CZ Standard IPSC .40 Single Action, 2000 Vintage Home-built 1911 frame S&W 625 for Revolver division Action Arms AT-84S - a Swiss copy of the early CZ-75 A custom John Nagel G34 Open Glock in 9 major G19 GSSF G17 CZ-97B-SA .45ACP (for HE MAN! division) S&W model 29-3 in .44 mag (everyone NEEDS one) Jericho 941F in .40 CZ-85 Compact (introduced '04) CZ-40B S&W 340PD .357 Scandium Astra 400 in 9Largo/downloaded 9 Supercomp Kel-Tec P32 S&W 686 6" My older brother's AB-10 crappo-matic No wonder I am running out of space in the safe.

Alan wrote: "Now if you really want to know the pressure that your loads have Western Powders offers a test lab service. I have not looked into that as of yet but I am considering it. I don't know if they will even test a major 9 load." As far as I know, having a lab do a pressure test on a batch of ammo is the last word in determining the actual pressure generated by a given load. Accurate, to be sure (labs use the same methods that the component and ammunition manufaturers use) but it is costly and it takes a while. I thought there was a lab conducting pressure tests as close to home as MD? Please do a Google search on something like: ammolab.com I have heard of at least two other methods (besides visual primer evaluation): 1) internal ballistics software and 2) "pressure ring" evaluation of fired brass The former involved plugging known variables into a program for a PREDICTION of the pressure that will be generated; I understand that while the programs are fairly accurate, the only way to be certain is to actually test a load in actual conditions I will leave a description of the later to others. I have not tried it & cannot vouch for its supposed accuracy. D.

Sam wrote: "Discontinue all tactical dogma associated with scoring in matches" Agree 100% -Drop the so-called "tactical reload", in fact: -drop "tactical" - as if it is the last word (see above, re: dogma) -drop the FTDR as it is too subjective -drop subjectivity & adhere to set rules. You follow them, or you do not. Anyone ever here of a pissing contest at an IDPA match over a subjective call by an SO? I have. -let the shooter figure out the COF; in other words, make it more freestyle. -drop the ".45 only" for CDP & simply adopt a .40 cal min./165 power floor I enjoy IDPA & it is OK right now. However, it could be a whole lot better. D.

"I hated dealing with media also until I started tumbling with plain white rice." . . . and when it wears out as a media substitute, you can still make it into a tasty compliment to any meal! Thanks for the tip.

The scope mount is one of John's own design and manufacture. He currently makes these one at a time on a conventional mill. I would imagine he will have a CNC milling center set up within the coming year. It works very very well! There are a number of design inovations that go into one of these mounts that might not be apparent from the outside, but I will let John elaborate on that (its his secret after all). I own other Glock mounts including the Seidler mount and I have examined the Carrver mounts at GSSF matches & on one of Sevigny's guns set up for steel; I can reveal that the identical mount John made for my gun uses a very different approach than either of the two aforementioned mounts. John is quite flexible when it comes to his custom work; drop him a PM for more info & prices.

Brian H does OUTSTANDING work with amazing attention to detail. Surprising thing is how affordable his rates are. Well worth it to give him a call.

" since I met her shooting! " Good point BJ. Lucielle (forgive me if my spelling is way off) is not only an accomplished USPSA shooter in Area 8, she is also a published author of at least one article appearing in past issues of FrontSight. D.

Nice photo of you two! I did a double take when I saw you in something other than jeans & a Shooters Paradise red/white/blue match shirt. You look like a man and not that "kid" I met a few years ago at North Mountain. D.