Schedule 40

Yesterday, I was doing some load developement with 185 grain Hornady XTPs. I was shooting them through my Glock 21SF. Using Win231, I worked up to 5.8 grains starting at 5.2 grains. I simply could not believe how light and soft, not to mention accurate, these 5.2 grain loads were. It really got me thinking about developing a minor power factor load for Production. Does anybody do this, and if so; what are your favorite recipes. I know of many that load .40 minor, but I've never heard of anybody using .45. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

Schedule, I agree that it probably doesn't make much differenece, but just wondering what is it about the 115's you like the most? What didn't you like about the heavier bullets? Hi-Power Jack, I decided to settle on the 115s for multiple reasons. My particular recipe for 115 seems to be about the most accurate load that I've been able to come up with for my G34. I wasn't personally able to come up with anything in the heavier weights that came close, especially when the distances were stretched much beyond 20 yards. I also prefer what I would consider to be a quicker and snappier recoil impulse. I'm not going to try and say that I found myself waiting for the gun to cycle with the 147s, but the slower action of the slide definitely felt odd after having shot so many thousands of rounds of the lighter stuff. Price wasn't so much a factor in my decision though. If something in this game is worth it, then I'm willing to pay for it. Availability, on the other hand, probably plays a factor. I try to buy as much as I can in bulk, but it's nice to know that my main bullet supplier always has my brand/weight/style in stock compared to his hit or miss chances at landing 147 stuff. In the end....... my most important reason was probably the accuracy issue in my particular pistol. If the 147s proved most accurate, they'd be my bullet.

I am one of the few "crazies" that uses and loves the 115s. I too have pondered this question long and hard, but eventually settled on the lighter ones. Don't let anybody fool ya. You can have much success using any of the 3 bullet weights. Shoot the one that gives you the most confidence.

I can't believe that nobody has mentioned Ben Stoeger's website!!! Check it out. Tons of great stuff, especially if you take the time to read all of his short articles from over the years. You can literally read his progression from being an "up and coming shooter" to the current Production National Champion. Very, very cool! I owe much of my progress to him.

I have a G21SF that I am trying to set up for use in Limited-10. It should be noted that my pistol was originally the model which had the ambidextrous magazine release and 1913 picatiny rail. After some negative mechanical problems with the mag release, Glock generously swapped my frame for one with the more common Generation 3 format. That being said, I have attempted a fairly simple trigger job: (These same mods have been made on my G34 with great results) -3.5 lb Scherer connector -Wolff reduced power 4 lb firing pin spring -Wolff reduced power firing pin safety spring -25 cent trigger job (polishing) of all necessary areas. The trigger now has a very noticeable and audible "click" right before it reaches the "wall" of breaking. When I look into the magazine well, I can see where the trigger bar engages the firing pin safet. As the trigger is pulled, you can visually see it working as it should, and then, right before the trigger reaches its most rearward position the trigger bar actually pushes itself off toward the outside of the frame. The safety still stays disengaged, but it definitely is a very noticeable feeling when the trigger bar seems to "fall" out of alignment. A few more notes here. This problem only seems to occur when a 3.5 lb connector is installed. I have tried the Scherer and the Glock factory one that came out of my 34. When I use the stock 5.5 lb connector that came on the 21, this problem does not occur. Also, the new frame that Glock sent me has the trigger bar in it which included the "bump" on the tab which pushes the firing pin safety up. I do not believe that my original frame had this trigger bar. Stranger yet, I would think that this bump would actually keep the trigger bar from being able to push itself in the direction that it ends up going (toward the outside of the slide). Any help with this problem would be much appreciated. As I said before, this is the same trigger job that I put on my G34, and I absolutely love it. My goal is to make both triggers feel the same, and aside from the "click" that occurs, they pretty much do. Making it disappear would be awesome! Thanks.

I truly appreciate all of the replys on this topic. It seems quite obvious that her best bet would simply be to leave it on and learn to deal with it. No expense, no rule violation, and on top of it all, it should only help reinforce a higher grip on her gun. I simply would hate to make any modifications only to have a good performance be wiped away due to a rule violation at a major match. The rules are the rules, and we do not intend to break any of them. That was the whole intent of asking the question in the first place. Thanks, again!

Thanks for the replies. Kend, it sounds like your method is the way to go.

My wife recently purchased an M&P 9mm with the ambidextrous thumb safety. Her plan is to use it for USPSA Production division. After many practice sessions, she is starting to think that she would like her pistol more if the safety was removed. If I remove the thumb safety, will her firearm still be legal to use in Production. Any advice would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Raylan, I really liked the ISMI 13 lb. spring. When I was trying to balance my shooting between IDPA & USPSA, it was the best setup that I could find for use with the factory plastic guide rod. At the beginig of the year, I decided to put all of my focus on USPSA. Now that I could use a Wolff steel guide rod, I also switched to their springs. After many months of playing with both 12 and 14 lbs., I definitely like the 14 lb much more. The 12 was simply too soft for my tastes. The 14 feels much closer to the ISMI setup that I was using originally. I've heard many shooters say to go with the softest, lightest spring that will allow your gun to function, but honestly, the 12 pounder just felt like it was taking far too long to return the slide into battery. It was really noticeable when the slide would be released from slidelock with the lever. I'm running a 115 grain FMJ at a 132 power factor, and the 14 lb. spring is working flawlessly. Having posted my orginal post back in February, I have since gone on to swapping my springs (all of them) every 5,000 rounds. They don't seem to need it, but at such a small cost, why wait until they start acting up?

This was my first area match, and I had no idea what to expect. Looking back, I could not have been more pleased. The staff, the range, the competition...... everything was great. I was very impressed with the stage designs. I felt like the most important thing was simply being able to remember and carry out any plan that you had (no matter what it was)! Congrats to all of the winners. And a big THANKS to all of the people who worked so hard for so long to make my first area match a great experience.

I am curious to know if using two different bullet weights in one match is legal. Could I simply have the R.O. run both of my different cartridges through the chrono? This may seem crazy to most shooters, but I can see a real application for using two different bullet weights in my particular gun. (Long range accuracy vs. short range recoil control) I can not seem to find the answer in the USPSA rulebook.

Hey, All. I am curious to know if any of the top shooters in USPSA/IDPA use 115 grain 9mm bullets. It seems that most, if not all, of the top dogs prefer one form or another of 147 grain bullets. Occasionally, I'll hear of someone reccomending 124s, but not nearly as often as the 147s. Now, I do understand the thinking behind the use of heavier bullets, and I have even shot many thousands of rounds using all three bullet weights. Although I do notice a difference in felt recoil impulse, I can not say for certain that it makes me shoot any better. As a C-class shooter, I seem to run all of my drills pretty equally with any of the bullet weights. The problem also lies in the fact that my G34 seems to shoot the 115s much tighter than the 147s. Am I fighting an uphill battle if I decide to stick with 115s as opposed to the heavier options. I'm thinking that my limited shooting ability may have something to do with me not being able to notice a difference in my timed drills. What do you guys think. Do any of you "top dogs" out there think that it would be crazy for a shooter to try and reach their full potential using 115s. Thanks.

I've been running the typical Wolff springs in my G34 with very satisfactory results (12# recoil spring, reduced power firing pin spring and reduced power firing pin safety spring). I've chosen to leave the extra power trigger spring out of the gun. This set-up has roughly 9,000 rounds through it, and I have not experienced a single misfire. I try to shoot Federal primers exclusively, but Winchester primers work when I need them to also. My question: -How many rounds should I expect to shoot with my reduced power springs before I should think about replacing them? I don't want to wait until I start to see signs of trouble. I suppose that the same question should be asked about my 12# recoil spring. This spring, though, only has about 1,000 rounds through it. I switched over from an ISMI 13 lb. spring and factory guide rod since I don't plan on shooting much IDPA any more. USPSA Production is "where it's at"!

It's scary to imagine the current Production National Champion finding a way to shoot better. That being said, Ben Stoeger's goals pretty much say it all for me. His dry-fire program has helped me immensely. Thanks, Ben!

As a new member of the forum, I want to thank you all for the many suggestions. It turns out that A.Roberts nailed this one on the head immediately. The trigger pin looked as though it was seated properly, but just a slight drift back toward the left side of the frame seemed to solve the problem. I'm guessing that the spring of the lever must ride inside either of the two recesses on that pin, and it simply wasn't seated exactly where it was supposed to be. I honestly can't believe that I've never had this happen to me before, with all of times that I've had the trigger assemblys out of different Glocks over the years.

My Glock 21sf has just returned from Glock due to another problem altogether with the old style magazine release. After contacting them about the problem, they swiftly replaced my old-style frame with a newer one, which has the normal magazine release. I could not have asked for better customer service, as the entire process took only about 2 weeks. Now, I have discovered a new problem. The slide release, which is installed properly, as far as I can tell, will not always spring itself back down on it's own to allow the gun to go back into batterty. If the gun is cocked and the slide is pulled back with a magazine in it, then the slide release will work as it should; but if you attempt to "slingshot" it back into battery, then the slide release will not spring back downwards. You then have to manually move it, obviously. The strange thing, though, is that it works as it should if the firearm is not cocked when the slide release lever becomes engaged, for instance, when the gun is emptied naturally through firing. If this is done, then the slide release lever will disengage when the slide is pulled fully rearward. Any suggestions on what could be causing my minor, yet irritating problem would be greatly appreciated.