[How much do you spend a year on shooting?]

Reading this thread, I'm lead to believe I might be the only single guy on this forum (if not the entire sport.)

My one-time pay-in in the form of an AR, a reserve AR, a cheap shotgun and a glock comes in at about $4,000. Then the ammo I have burned through so far to attain at least a modicum of skill for a beginner...probably another $2,000. And somewhere between $500 and $1,000 in random gear. This was all in the last 6 months or so. It took me a long time to save up the funds for all of it, and I'm already feeling a sharp need to cull my ammo consumption. I fear that unless I either magically reduce my costs or magically increase my income, I might not be in the game all that long...

Just buy a 650 - easy way to reduce your ammo costs [emoji56]

[rcbs collet bullet puller vs hornady cam lock bullet puller]

The RCBS unit is sturdier, I find the Hornady unit faster to use (like pulling down 200 bad reloads to scrounge the brass). I have no doubt Hornady will replace parts that break for free, so that's what I'm sticking with.

[S&W 929 Cylinder Lockup Issues]

I have heard recently that the new S&W 929 PC has been having lockup issues. It appears that during extended use such as a competition the cases are backing out and causing the cylinder to jam. Has anyone out there experienced this problem? I have been shooting a 627 in 38 Special and also in 38 Super and never experienced any issues of any kind. Please advise.

First hand, I haven't had this issue, even with 40-50 rounds of pretty quick shooting. Moreover, every case in a revolver (or auto) is forced back when the gun is fired. It would take a lot to force it back and expand it so much that it won't move in and out (have some play) that it would cause binding. In other words, if a case is forced back hard enough to bind the gun, I'd think ejection would be tough as the case would really have to be stuck in there.

I will say I had to use Purple loctite on the ejector rod to keep it from backing out, and the cylinder gets HOT after long strings. But the issue mentioned is one I wouldn't lose sleep over.

[New STI DVC Open and Limited guns]

So the DVC guarantee's a 2lbs trigger pull; has the manufacturing improved to where the trigger components no longer need additional gunsmith work?

Also if one or more of the trigger components breaks, can I drop in replacement parts and still maintain my 2lbs trigger pull or do I need to send it to STI to ensure I get the 2lbs pull?

I agree with the let poster about fitting being necessary.

Beyond that, they're not getting a 2# trigger through better manufacturing processes. You can lighten a trigger through geometry (sear / hammer) and spring tension. Most good quality EDM cut hammers / Sears will need no adjustment. So getting a good trigger is just a matter of using better components and taking the time to tweak the seat spring instead of just dropping it in and sending the gun out the door?

[Probably exhausted question but.... upgrade from 550 to 650?]

I also don't see the point if you are only loading 2k a year. If 90% of that is 9mm for matches, then adding a 9mm sdb might be a better option, but I still think you would be better off just sticking with what you have.

At 2k/year, it will take you years to really get to know the machine.

This. It sounds like your bigger issue is getting to loading, not the time it takes. I'd figure out what the bottleneck is and address that. If you don't have components to put together what you're going to shoot over the next 3-6 months, invest in stocking up on those. If you have the components, just set aside a day on the weekend and load up what you're going to shoot over the next few months over a few hours.

I shoot about 1,000 9mm / month. I process brass and load twice a month after the kids go to bed, and keep about 1,000 loaded at any given time. I also set aside ammo for my next upcoming match and don't dip into it for practice if time seems like it might be tight.

Now, if you want to upgrade just to upgrade, go for it.

[MBX 2011 Magazines]

Got a couple 140s and a 170 9mm the other day. 9mm did not drop free from my STI - others did. Some filing the mag catch fixed it was rubbing against the front of the mag. Ordered a posi-lock from DP, if it hangs on that I'll be back.

[New STI DVC Open and Limited guns]

Same here - I have 12 STI mags - Changed springs, followers and base pads - No tuning needed - They run great

Same here. I have 8 STI mags. Used a vice to size the tubes, polished inside and out.

That's tuning ! Especially the vise part

I thought that was the joke? Everyone does one more thing to tune the mags saying they're not tuning them?

[New STI DVC Open and Limited guns]

Same here - I have 12 STI mags - Changed springs, followers and base pads - No tuning needed - They run great

Same here. I have 8 STI mags. Used a vice to size the tubes, polished inside and out, new followers, base pad, and springs. No tuning needed and they run fine.

[Power pistol and Xtreme 147 grain hollow point Concave base]

Go with what runs your gun - if the 4.1 didn't choke and you don't have PF to worry about Id go with that...

[Why no love for ACOGs?]

I don't shoot action rifle competitively, but playing at the range shooting with both eyes open I don't even notice the magnification while swinging to a close target until the rifle stops moving...

[Powder weight per volume]

Yes, it's normal. Lee publishes a chart of volumetric density for most powders since their drops are volume based. It's helpful for me because I use a micrometer powder drop and can get in the ballpark for a new powder quick by checking it's density against a known powder.

http://www.leeprecision.com/cgi-data/instruct/VMD%27S.pdf

Shows TG is about 50% more dense than N320 (ie a measure setting that gets you 4 GR N320 will get you ~ 6 GR Titegroup).

[CHECK OUT THE NEW STI WEBSITE]

Dustin21> Why is the "Media" page listed in a different language........

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Standard Latin placeholder.

[Power pistol and Xtreme 147 grain hollow point Concave base]

I think you'd find TG is probably a little softer, but may burn a little hotter. If you get some it's worth a shot but PP did the job for me for a year plus.

[Whats the story on Apeirio?]

So this begs the question- Apeiro or DVC? Similar price except for better mags. Is the sight tracker "better" then slide cuts?

I used quotations since its the indian,not the arrow in most cases, but lets play here

I had the same quandary. Couldn't find an Apeiro anywhere, but the DVC price was so close I put a deposit on a DVC. Then, an Apeiro hit gunbroker, and I thought -

Apeiro gets here tomorrow, couple MBX mags show up Thursday. Should hold me over til The DVC comes in. Time to hit the press.

[Go Pro use OK or not?]

I do in fact have an iPad and I'm looking over shot coach. How exactly does it track hits? Am I inputting them or is the software good enough to see or hear the hits on it owns? For the GoPro I was thinking the head mount or shoulder mount. Should be quite stylish if I do it at all.

It sets an audio threshold based on the sound levels and then guesses what are shots. Generally guesses pretty good, and once your used to using it you can probably score a run in a couple mins, but the learning curve is a little steep.

[New STI DVC Open and Limited guns]

I don't think I would like the reduced grip,..

Bet you could find someone to trade you a new OEM grip for it if you didn't.

[Power pistol and Xtreme 147 grain hollow point Concave base]

Never noticed dents in mine before but I wouldn't worry about it unless you see some setback.

As an FYI that load was what I used w Zero and Xtreme 147s. Zero 147s saw 18 FPS SD and average PF of 132. Xtremes had an SD of 9 and average PF of 138 (expected because they're softer - you could probably back of a tenth or two). Lead / Coated I have notes to start at 3.9 but never got around to it.

[Not hip to the terms]

I can't believe people buy shok-buffs just because they are there. I never buy Tampax and they are there every time I go to the grocery store !

Then let me just say, you are missing out!

[650XL powder check drawing powder out of case]

Put some graphite on the powder check rod end.

[What brand of bullets are these?]

My guess is precision delta.

Are we just randomly throwing out guesses? Maybe they're LaserCast!!!

/Obviously a plated bullet.

[Lubing pistol cases?]

I used to be one of those who said that I would never lube pistol cases since I have carbide dies.

But now that I've tried it, I am never going back to not lubing. As others have said it makes a world of difference and the press runs much smoother.

Yes it does. I had a long loading session this weekend and about 500 round into it I mistakenly grabbed a box of clean but not lubed 9mm brass. I thought I broke something after I had to use way more force to get a the first two cases sized in station 1.

I'm in the same boat - never saw the point until I tried it. The other day I started to run a batch of 9 and thought I must have forgot to lube the cases since it was running a bit stiff. Turns cases were lined out I had left my 38 Short Colt sizing die in!

[1st Time Reloading 40 S&W (Good News & Bad News)]

I don't sort by headstamp, but I do toss garbage headstamp a in the scrap bin.

[Power pistol and Xtreme 147 grain hollow point Concave base]

4.2 - 4.3 GR Power Pistol and 1.145 OAL is about the minimum that will cycle the gun with a factory recoil spring. Go with a 13 lb spring and you might be able to go to 4. Used to shoot a lot of PP during the shortage - it gets the job done.

[What brand of bullets are these?]

A jacketed bullets needs to have an opening somewhere in the jacket (think OTM). So some type of plated. Ranier also uses the concave base profile - if not Xtreme that's my guess.

[Whats the story on Apeirio?]

They're still hitting dealers in dribs and drabs, I'm guessing as STI fills the rest of their old orders. Reds Trading Post had a couple on Gunbroker last week in 9, 40, and 45.

Not sure they'll go up in value as a prior STI post in another thread seemed to indicate they'd make more if they could get barrels, but the thought did make plunking down the bucks on one last week a bit easier.