TreblePlink

Thank you. Fixed. Wish I had more folks send me suggestions. That is quite a comprehensive writeup. And yeah, I'm not surprised that few read it---it is good, but it is long and most people just don't want to put in the effort to understand. [sigh] It certainly would be easier if more new shooters would first put in some time learning, but they just don't. One minor quibble: This page = http://orpci.org/content/ipsc_intro/intro_9.htm calls Jessie Harrison a grandmaster a couple of times. While Jessie is a good shooter, she isn't a GM, she is a M.

I've used exclusively 550b's and really like them. With 25 grains of fine .223 powder the drop seems easy to adjust and stays put BUT with V320 and 4.70 grains it takes a lot of time to set the powder drop correctly, then it seems prone to drift. My procedure is to average 7 drops - getting the weight up into a more accurate range of the electronic scale - drop to drop stability is too little to accurately weigh. I've modified one 550b with the Unique Tech micrometer (using a setscrew and loctite to hold the body in place) and that helps some, but there remains backlash and some drift. Maybe if the cavity were wider the screw backlash would affect it less. I would gladly pay significantly more money for a better drop option.

Right. The info I have is that it is the real deal, developed by pro coders who work for Ken. It is to be free, although development costs are to be deferred by a splash ad when the app opens. Instead of "beaming" to sync units, I believe it's done via peer-to-peer wi-fi. Even after the initial release, I would expect it to be a bit longer before all is smooth and stable, but ... Now the issue would seem to be choice of hardware. There exists an "Ebay special" no name android clone without phone or gps for about $80, which might be a possibility. You might email Ken.

The local custom rules. Culture varies from allowing extra time to allow the shooter to get his brass, to the other end - the feeling that all brass belongs to the unpaid setup and teardown crew. And everything in between. Personally, between resetting, scoring, running shooters, etc., I don't have time to hunt brass. When I'm running a squad, as long as I have at least three folks resetting and pasting, others can pick brass up until we're ready to run the next shooter - we can't wait on brassing. I occasionally pick up some brass, but it's rare.

All I have is his blog website: http://www.kennelson.com I understand it has been beta tested in Utah. Rob Boudrie steered me to it. Chris

I'm looking at alternatives to paper scoring. Cunningham or Stagescore for old (nice and cheap) Palms, or the (free ?) Ken Nelson app for iPhone or Android ... available soon, but requires expensive hardware ... As of yesterday: ---------- "We should release the iPhone/iTouch/I pad version this coming week ... We are testing the android version against past matches to verify it is accurate. It also needs the wireless synching added. So it will be a few more weeks til it is released. Regards, Ken" ---------- ONE QUESTION: These all seem to require a PC with Winscore at the range to enter competitors. Is there any way around it without pre-registering all shooters? Chris

Our Introduction to USPSA http://orpci.org/content/ipsc_intro.htm The previously mentioned curriculum is pretty much what we have online at ORPCI - the link is above. When we get new shooters via our web site, they seem pretty informed. Trouble is, despite good Google placement, few read it. Also, I'm always looking for suggestions.

A local machine shop uses the baked-on type for their commercial 50bmg. On steel, it's the best "paint-on" finish I've seen. On aluminum, durability is more limited by the relative softness of the metal.

Frandoc clued me in to a plan that works surprisingly well: I shoot Limited and spent about $40 for an online pair of Rx glasses (selected largest frame size for protection), and they work very well: The weak side eye is corrected for distance, the strong side (sighting) eye is set for sharp focus of my front sight. I actually took my gun in to the optometrist and had her work out the diopters etc, with me holding the gun normally. My brain really does put them together. Much better than wagging your head up and down with bifocals. My accuracy noticeably improved when I started using them.

If you want the same powder speed as W231, I suggest VV330, but with reasonable care, 320 works well with Precision's coated 200grs. VV is definitely cleaner, but more expensive. I shoot the Precision coated in .40 with 320 and get good results with minimal fouling.

The majority of my reloading has been .40 cal - straight-walled pistol cartridges and carbide dies - and for many years I used lube because it made the 550B stroke smoother. And I used the products and processes (shake inside plastic bag) mentioned here. But I had infrequent reliability issues with failure to feed in my STI. When I examined my entire process - vibrating in corncob with the Dillon additive, then lubing and loading, I found that the corncob, the media additive abrasive, and the lube combined to form a slightly sticky, slightly abrasive surface on the cases of my finished cartridges. When I started wiping them thoroughly with a rag and solvent after loading, I had no more feeding problems, and the inside of the mags collected less dirt. Now I use neither the abrasive media additive or the lube, and don't clean post process - and it works fine. In five or ten more years I may have to buy another $35 carbide resizing die (Lee U-die)? Ok.

I use fiber sights - and for aging eyes, I think the tradeoffs are worth it. For shooters with really good eyesight, they may compromise absolute accuracy a bit. Travis T, and many other top shooters don't use them. When melting the fiber, I find it helful to cut it to approximate length, then rotate it in a cordless drill while heating until cool - this tends to keep the enlarged dot round.

In my limited experience in various capacities staffing grass roots local matches, it seems to me that the key to success is having a GROUP of people dedicated to doing the largely unrewarded hard work behind the scenes month in and month out. At Owensboro, Kentucky, ("ORPCI.org") we pride ourselves on the quality of our practical shooting matches,- and let me now reveal The Secret of Our Success: Please welcome our MatchMakers: http://orpci.org/content/gallery/mm_2010/matchmakers.htm

Here you go Brian, Our site has SEVERAL links to BE land - has had for at least three years... http://orpci.org "Home of the world's best local matches" And this is our ten-page Introduction for New Shooters section: http://orpci.org/content/ipsc_intro.htm

Don't worry about flashy. Make it businesslike, well written, easy and consistent to navigate through the pages, and keep in mind, the site is just a vehicle for delivering interesting content - this you must have. You must spend lots of time writing and gathering stuff. Make a "links to other shooting resources" page showing relevant and useful sites - particularly those in or close to Alabama. Send a polite email to webmasters of sites that attract folks with similar interests, explaining exactly what your site is and who it serves. If appropriate and non-commercial, many webmasters will add your link (particularly if you've already linked to their site.) I do web stuff for ORPCI.org "Home of the world's greatest local matches!"

When I was shooting a lot of .45 I was able to switch from 231 to VV 330, and found that load weights were almost the same for a given velocity. VV is cleaner, but more expensive.

I think combined results, even with "weight factors" for divisions will always be misleading. BECAUSE it depends too much upon the nature of the stage. That is why the classifier calculator reveals different Hit Factor division ratios for each and every classifier. For instance, a stage with a lot of long range or really tight shots will favor Open division, where a low-round count hoser stage will result in closer hit factors through the divisions. SO, since you cannot "dial in" accurate division adjustment factors for each of the stages in the match, (because without a large statistical population for comparison - none can be derived) you are introducing entirely invented inaccuracies. At best it is an approximate guess. You are sanctioning an inaccurate presentation.

I don't know what it is, but I'm seeing this pattern in my shooting where when I practice a lot before a match, and am really fired up about it, I make mistakes and generally suck. On the other hand, on several occasions, when I shoot a match with a more casual attitude, not really expecting to do well - I do well. Sometimes this is after weeks of not shooting ... ???

I know you've had a bad experience with a frankengun project - many of us own something similar. Many 1911 feeding issues can be fixed with chamber mouth beveling, setting extractor tension, and using a good magazine. When I shoot Single Stack, I use the Wilson 47D mags: http://brianenos.com/store/wilson.html#mags And have had good luck with them. All of my 1911s will feed virtually any bullet shape - and one started out a frankengun. If you want something that you don't have to mess with, STI has some good 1911 offerings - how about a Ranger II or a Sentinel? It will cost you a bit more, but my experience has been good with their stuff working out of the box. Come shoot with us at Owensboro ORPCI.org

You DO HAVE an alternative. You can leave the grip safety active, but ease its action so any rear pressure allows it to shoot. The little blocking tang rotates above and off the rear of the trigger bar - by removing about .010" from the bottom of the ultimate tang extension at a time, you can minimize the travel required for release. Don't remove any metal from the front of the tang or it won't be a safety any longer. Then, bend back the prong of the spring that tensions the grip safety until just a slight push will do it. Early on, I would sometimes see intermittent functioning in a match until I did this mod. I think it's safer than totally disabling it. It also helps to use the "speedbump" version to get earlier contact with the web of your hand. But then again JMB's Hi-Power didn't have a grip safety, and lots of folks seem to shoot matches safely with them disabled ...

Following up on my original post - the unit appears to be the same as the "Chicago Electric' from Harbor Freight - made in China. That said, it works well, and is triple the size of the largest units marketed to reloaders. The vibration is extra vigorous with 500-1000 .45 brass in it, and will hold up to 18 pounds of brass/media. For anyone that does medium to large batches at a time, so far, I recommend it.

Seyfreid (any relation to the well known shooter?) was quoted as saying the light trigger increased the guns' "deadliness". Another expert indicated it made the gun shoot faster. Geez. It wouldn't be hard to find an expert witness (that knows his stuff) to explain that BS aside, the primary effect of a light trigger is to increase accuracy during stressful use by not upsetting the sight picture during the pull - to minimize the chance of hitting innocent bystanders. But, many cases are lost because of jury ignorance of technical realities, no matter how true they are ...

I shot a Kimber .45 in Limited 10 and Single Stack for a while, and used the 200 gr H&G Lead SWC. Feeding reliability just was not an issue. Conventional wisdom says that using the heaviest bullet and the fastest powder that safety will allow provides the "softest" recoil feel. At the SS nationals, I noticed an awful lot of shooters using 230 grain Jacketed round nose. Amount of smoke can be important, particularly in "stand and shoot" stages, where lead bullets can produce enough smoke to obscure the target after a few shots. When I shoot SS again I will be using the 200 gr H&G coated Precision bullets with about 4.8 grains of VV N320. I have found that these reduce smoke considerably, almost as well as FMJ types.

Please pardon the risk of diverting this thread, but it has been mentioned that carrying a competition tuned gun could get you into legal trouble in an actual SD situation. Presumably you could be portrayed as wielding a super gun, just waiting to ... Is there any credible source of case law that supports this (never mod a SD gun) thinking? If this is against forum policy, please PM me.

Classic photo of Tour de France in 1940: http://orpci.org/1940_tour.jpg