Carmoney

Looks like USPSA did a very nice job in preparing the press release based on the USPSA member survey that most of us participated in awhile back. I was especially pleased to see one of our own, Dennis "Hollywood" Gilleland featured with his wheelgun on the bottom of page 3! http://www.uspsa.org/nssf/industry_intelligence_reports.pdf Who knew Gil was that photogenic, anyway!?! Must be the visor and the fact that he appears to be wearing Tom Mainus' other glove.... Seriously, it's very nice to see Revolver division included in this important publication. The Revolver Renaissance continues.

Dave, you're right. There should be absolutely no "gaming" on classifiers. The instructions should be crystal clear as they apply to all divisions.

With Flex's idea in my head, I decided to have a little fun and shot Production today with my renegade* Production 8-shooter and WWB cheapie ammo. I used a kydex holster and moved my moonclip holders around to the left side, keeping everything behind my hip bones per the rules. This worked out OK for me, since I now use the Spook/Dan reload style, keeping the gun in my right hand--but would probably not work real well for those using the Jerry/Sam reload, where the fresh moonclips need to be available to the right hand. Everything worked just fine, reloads went in pretty nice, although I had one frustrating click, wheeled it all the way around and it clicked again. Nice deep primer indent, should've gone off--later on, when I tried it again, it finally did fire. If I were playing for money, I'd want Federal ammo/primers, I suppose.... I won one stage and finished at 86%, which isn't too bad considering there was at least one stage where an extra reload was required for an 8-shooter, and an 8-round steel stage where a couple or three extra rounds would've sure been nice to have as a cushion! My assessment--it's fun for a stunt--but next match I'm getting back to business. *(Notice I said "renegade"--it's an illegal Production gun because it has one of my trademark whittled hammers--which is obviously an illegal "externally-visible modification.")

Dave, I read the other thread and didn't get the idea that the revolver guy posting there shot this classifier differently--I think he said he shot it with 3 reloads, not in 3 wheels. But regardless, you are exactly right. A case can be made for allowing the 3-wheel option you describe. It would be clearer if the instructions said: "Upon start signal, from Box A only, engage T1-T7 with only one round per target, THEN perform a mandatory reload and reengage T1-T7 with only one round per target." But the word THEN does not appear in the actual instructions. These instructions are ambiguous as they relate to the revolver division, and that creates a big friggin' problem. Shooters at various matches around the country will send in classifier results using both interpretations, and as a result there will be error in the system. I've decided not to worry about it, since the classification system is so messed up as it relates to revolver division anyway....but it's a real issue when one of these comes up at a bigger match. We discussed the exact same issue with 03-06 ("A Barrel of Fun") last year--people from different clubs were shooting it two different ways, with both sending them on in to Sedro. When 03-06 came up at Area 3 last year, I specifically asked the ROs on that stage how other wheelgunners were shooting it, and requested an advance ruling on how they would respond if a shooter tried to do it in 3 wheels instead of 4. They should not have answered the question (other than to re-read the description and then stand there looking at me)--but I'm glad they did--indicating they would assign procedurals to a revolver shooter attempting to do it in 3 wheels. I tended to agree with them (although the more I think about it, the more I question that interpretation), and since everybody else was doing it the same way, I had no interest in pushing the issue. Y'know, the longer I look at this, the more convinced I am that Dave's 3-wheel option (described in his second post above) would be perfectly legal, under the instructions as they are written--every target would be "re-engaged" after the requisite mandatory reload (or two).....

I use a mechanical RCBS trigger pull spring gauge, the kind that "records" the highest level of tension measured during the DA pull....I push the barrel of the unloaded gun right up against the edge of my workbench so the gun itself doesn't move.....using my other hand I center the gauge bar on the center of the trigger (i.e. so it's centered both up/down and left/right).....make sure the arm is parallel with the barrel axis (again, checking both left/right and up/down).....gently and slowly pull the gauge straight back until the hammer draws back and finally falls. Then I read the guage. (BTW, I can "cheat" it upwards or downwards by messing with the angles or starting with the bar at other places on the trigger, but why would I want to do that? I'm not trying to sell anything.....) Mike

John, that's a good question.....any of the technically-inclined folks here know the answer?? (Again, mine's gonna need to work "good enough" with the cheapie 9mm WWW 115-gr. or I'll just revert to .38 Super and be done with it. One nice thing about this "conversion" is you're not burning bridges, no problem going back to--or even mixing in--the original designated caliber.)

Hey, I understand that.....being a mercenary myself from way back.... I can see switching to a bottomfeeder for that reason. (There's no way anybody's going to finish "in the money" shooting Open at a big match with an 8-shot revolver, though, I don't care who you are.....) Of course, the Revolver prize table will continue to stay small if people don't step up and play the game with the big boys.

Hell, just take out the mainspring and bend it back a little. Take out a little of the arch, it won't take much. Then reinstall it, crank the strainscrew nice 'n' tight, you should be good to go. (And testfire BEFORE the match.) Mike

Phil, with most of my moonclips, the WWB ammo snaps in easily by hand. I have a remooner down there that came with the gun, but I don't need to use it with 9mm. As with any moonclips (except perhaps Hearthco), if they're so tight the cartridge can't turn while it's snapped in the clip, it will cause binding and reload hang-ups. At least that's been my experience. I had a few Brownells moonclips that were pretty tight with WWB stuff, so I simply relieved them with my trusty (quick drum roll, please) Dremel. A quick buzz with the correct grinding stone, and they all give way to my intentions.

I assume the guys using the 8-shooters in Open or L-10 are shooting minor?

Me too, Bill! It's gonna be a great year at Nationals for roundguns.

I recommend Single Stack division! You have a great old-school .45 in your Springfield, and the perfect division to shoot it in! No equipment race, no BS, you're set to rock!

I happen to think the provisional Single Stack 1911 division is the best move USPSA has made since I renewed my membership a couple years ago. The idea has been very well received at our local club. I can't wait to participate in the 2006 Single Stack 1911 National Championships (aka the Single Stack Classic), which I understand is nearly sold out. I have nothing but compliments to the BOD on this subject!

As I signed on this morning, I saw this thread and thought, "They've got this really solid bunch of wheelgunners down there in Phoenix, why in the world don't more of them shoot Revo in the Desert Classic??" Then I went to check the major USPSA match results for Area 2 this past fall, and was reminded that almost everybody on the list was there from out of town. Of course John R. participated and did pretty well, but most of the other names are people from other areas. Now I'm mostly a USPSA shooter, as you know, but Sam and I drove clear to CO (12 hours one-way) to shoot Bud Bond's ICORE Regionals last year, and absolutely loved it. I happen to live in an area where ICORE has never really taken off (Iowa), but if anybody ever sets up a match within half a day's drive of here, I'd jump at the chance to go shoot it. So I'll put the question to you AZ revolver guys. Why won't you play the game at one of the biggest and best USPSA matches in the country when it's right there in your own backyard?? Mike P.S. If the reasons are political, I don't want to know about it, or air it online. I'm just curious about any shooting-related aspects of this phenomenon.

Jeffy Miculek...... Did he have a name change or is this another wheelgunner extraordinaire. dj dj, tightloop made a little mistake with the name.......obviously, he meant Jeffy LaFave.

Strader. He seemed delighted. And the big event is now only 10 days away. Can't wait to hear more.

Fomeister, the two springs function together to control trigger rebound. Your mainspring tension is probably way higher than necessary--reduce the tension on the mainspring to a reasonable level and your trigger rebound will automatically get livelier and snappier, because it's not having to pull against the mainspring as much. I know it sounds weird, but take off the sideplate and look at it for awhile, and you'll see what I'm talking about. Mike

I think I need to join ICORE just to get the magazine! (A friend emailed me Bubber's latest "Redneck Column"......come to think of it, Dan was mentioned there too. Quite the media maven, isn't he?)

Well I say the more of them 120 p.f. loads they send downrange, the better.

Man, this is going to be a GREAT year for revolver at Nats! Let the revolver renaissance roll!

Anyway, I used to use my Safariland 002 occasionally for my 8-3/8" guns, I just took off the thingy at the bottom of the holster and let the barrel stick out the bottom. Gun sweeps right up through the front of the holster, no problem.

Walt, I don't want to be argumentative, but the above statement is JUST NOT TRUE!! The Revo Nationals is not just for the top shooters. It's also for kids and old farts and everybody in between. Plus, there's a lot of time between now and Nationals to get better. If you want an example, check out the USPSA major match results for the 2005 Florida Open--I felt pretty good about my performance down there--I pretty much shot to my level of capability at the time. But my game definitely improved a lot over the course of the shooting season last year, and yours will do the same in '06!

Careful now.....I'm a little uncomfortable seeing those two names in the same sentence..... There's Jerry. And then there's all the rest of us. (Now if you want to set up some bowling pins, that's another story! In that game I truly can run with the giant pandas. Unfortunately, pin-shooting is a lot like the panda.....nearly extinct.)

My buddy Barney (a bona fide USPSA Revo Master) still has an original Ernie Hill holster for a 8-3/8" N-frame! Cool retro stuff! (Also, maybe I'm missing something here....but why not use a long tube from a M-27?)

Guys, the waiting list thing is actually pretty easy. Sammy and I used it last year to sign up.....like Rob V. said, just make sure you are available and online right after midnight on the night when the wait list is activated, and you're in. It's easy. Everybody will be talking about it here on the forum, just make sure it's on your calendar now and don't forget. Should be the best Nationals for Revo in history! Don't miss out! Mike