boo radley

As Joe says, it's nothing money can't fix. It's mostly difficult because ESP is only friendly to a narrow subset of USPSA Limited guns. Glocks and 1911's (mostly) transfer easily. An Eagle is advantageous in ESP because it's a double-stack. Downsides are cost, and magazine headaches. It took me a while to get a couple mags that worked reliably (fit the box, magwell, and locked slide-back) with my 9mm Eagle. I have 3 more magazine that aren't 100% reliable but I load to those... A single-stack is something different from what you have, as you say, and would allow you shoot SS USPSA (though why minor??). You'll be competing against some double-stacks; OTOH, day-in, day-out, 9+1 is a minor but real advantage. Yeah, yeah, lots of stages obviate this advantage; some MD's have visions and stage designs that would shame Dali, etc., etc....But I'm just saying. I don't see any point in .38 Super, given brass costs (and minor-scoring if cross over to USPSA SS) but if you have brass to spare....<shrug>

Linda -- terribly sorry for your loss, and deepest sympathy.

Hmm...I'm going to gently disagree. It seems to me IDPA has (unwittingly) arranged things in complete favor of the Glock to be the predominate platform of choice. If members had a say, I'd like to see -- SSP: As is. (Ideally, completely stock, but it's too late to shut the door on the thousands who've already modified their gear). Allow the XD in this Division. CDP: 1911 platform, only. The G21 and other widebody .45's provide a clear advantage, IMO. Maybe increase the weight limit an ounce or two. ESP: Weight and box limits only. No optics or comp's. Bull barrel? Bushing barrel? Lightened slide? Who cares, provided it fits in the box, and makes weight. Oh, and remove the 10-round restriction for this Division. SSR/ESR: Don't care.

Flex -- you will probably close this, but so far it's been an interesting topic, and hasn't (yet) descended into jingoism and real ugliness. No, none of the top United States shooters that aren't going 'owe' those of us on the sidelines an explanation, but it's nice to understand the 'why not.' Except for minor industry support, this organization survives through its membership and match fees, no? OTOH, the reasons for not going don't particularly lend themselves to debate, any more than quoting statistics cures someone of a fear of flying <shrug>.

Why does it have to be a *factory* short dust cover length? I'm not arguing with you -- just want to know where that is in the rules. A while ago someone was selling a 2011 9mm gun with it's DC cut slightly back so as not to be full-length. Per the rules, I'd think it would be legal, but no doubt it would be tedious getting into a constant argument at every match.

Non-US shooters have better built pistols that can run with this unfamiliar ammo, and US shooters don't? This is sad on so many many levels, but I hope the shooters in question would explain themselves, why they ain't going, rather than rumor and hearsay.

IMO, mostly these questions really boil down to personality type; who has disposable income and who doesn't, etc., etc. If you want to shoot Limited, a G35 would be a sensible and direct path. If you want to shoot Limited, and also want to change platforms, it probably makes the most sense to go directly to STI/SV, buying a used example with magazines, from someone trustworthy....

Thx all -- great; given that the pistol didn't even cost $2000, I guess I should expect such hiccups in parts and minor issues like bending the f*cking ejector when reloading. <grumble> Anyway. Broken ejector came out easily enough when I drifted the pin that holds it in place. I see how it goes together and probably will order a spare, as well.

I have an STI Eagle 9mm that I use for steel, IDPA and general shooting. Bought the pistol new a few months ago. However, during a match, about 500 rounds on the gun, I noticed the slide was very "sticky." After examination, I saw the ejector (which seems quite long - because it's 9mm?) was bent to the left, causing the slide to bind. Some very gentle prying with a knife straightened her, and I was good to go. Another 500 rounds later, same thing happened. Slide got stickier and sticker, and again I noticed the ejecto was bent. This time, when I tried to bend it back, it snapped off. Any particular suggestions on which ejector to buy? I see EGW, Brazos, SVI and STI again all make them. (Though I think the STI is MIM). I should tell whomever I order it from it's for a 9mm STI, and I'll get the right one? Order a 3/32 pin as well? Next, why did this ejector get bent? From slide-lock reloads (all the time in IDPA)? Thx

Very nice.

The math is boggling. Taking the 'El Pres' example: Both a Lim. and Lim/Minor shoot it in 8 seconds clean, for a 7.5 hf. The Lim. shooter speeds up by a full second, and hits 6 A's and 6 C's to improve his hf to 7.7. The Lim/Minor shooter does the same, and goes completely in the opposite direction, with a 6.85 hf! That's like shooting a stage in which, if you're limited, you get a target with the A/C zone, but if minor, you have only the A zone....

Where is the IDPA Forum? I only know of one forum for competitive practical pistol shooting. Interesting response. Their stage diagram for #1 is a bit, uh, Escher-esque. How many barrels do you see? 2? 4? 6?? But I'm still amazed they didn't see the shoot-through. T5 was also slid over in our match, as well, to avoid it. It's clearly not easy running the same IDPA match at different locations in an equitable fashion, but I respect the effort. Really I think the more pathological issue has nothing to do with stage design, but rather the way different clubs define "tactical priority," "low-cover," etc, as evidenced by the youtube clips. They're pretty interesting.

I asked this question a few months ago, and also received this recommendation. I bought this Sears engraver, tried it, then returned it. If you have steady hands, and a very careful, you can probably get good results, but I found it no different than just using a Dremel with a pointed bit of some kind. I had been psyched to see that the Sears engraver came with a template for numbers and letters, but this ended up being just a cheap plastic stencil that was basically useless. Maybe I expected too much, but ended up with wavering, wiggly etched scratches -- not at all like professional chemical etching. What I did buy -- one of those fine-tip Silver Sharpie paint pens. This works great, and so far the marking has stood up amazingly well to matchs and practice.

Hmm....a local club ran this match last night. I thought it went pretty well, mostly, and the SO's were scrupulous about setting up the stage exactly as designed, measuring everything. Stage 1 is problematic, IMO. There's a major shoot-through issue with T3 and T5, as you can see in the stage diagram below. In fact, the stage diagram is a little misleading, since it shows T3 further to the left of the cL than T5. In reality they're almost directly behind one another. Also the admonition not to re-engage T1 and T2 is odd, as they're at less of angle from P3 than T6. I looked at some of the YouTube videos of people shooting this stage, and it's interesting....In at least two videos, some shooters should have gotten procedurals on this stage. Here's an example. Note how he's exposed to T6 from P3. You can also see the shoot-through issue. Stage 2 was ok. Stage 3 I liked. Reasonably tough shot on the hard-cover target while moving. Stage 4 -- a bit odd, tactically. You don't see a lot of stages where you have to move up THEN retreat to another position, but it was fun. Shot the match in 54 sec; esp/ex. Lost a couple seconds on Stage 2, dropping 4 points on the left target, and forgetting initially to put 3 rounds vs. 2 in each target.

jhe888 -- if you've DONE the math, then you should SEE that this is so. 'IPSC Bob' has a competition against his friend 'Tactical Tim'. They both decide to shoot El Pres. Bob shoots a clean run in 8 seconds. His hit-factor is 7.5 -- 60 points divided by 8. Tim shoots a clean run in 8 seconds. His score is "8 seconds." Both decide they could shoot a little faster. Bob turns it up and shoots it one second faster, in 7 seconds, but starts getting some C hits -- in fact he has 6 C's and 6 A's. His hit factor? 54/7 = 7.7. He's just beat his last run! Tim does the same, also shooting the stage in 7 seconds, but getting 6 "-1" hits. He's down 6, or 3 seconds + 7 seconds, so his adjusted time is now 10 seconds -- a full two seconds slower!! For the last run of the day, Bob decides to let it loose, and shoots a very sloppy stage in 6 seconds. He has 2 D's, 6 C's, and only 4 A's. 48 points, but divided by 6...That's an 8 hf -- his best run of the day! Tim shoots it in 6 seconds, with the same kinds of hits, and is down 12 points. 2 "-3's", 6 "-1's", and 6 "0's." He adjusted score is 12 seconds. His raw time is 2 seconds faster, but his adjusted time is FOUR SECONDS worse than his first run, which was clean. Play around with this -- add a no-shoot to the mix, or see what happens if you have two "3's" on a target and get a whopping 5 second FTN penalty. In both games, the best shooters are obviously the ones that shoot cleanly and quickly, period. But in IDPA, points down are so deadly, it obviates a lot of the nuances of the USPSA scoring system. In an upclose "speed shoot" USPSA stage, you're going to get cooked if you really shoot deliberate A's, or have a 2 second draw/reload. OTOH, on a long and difficult field course, you'd better get good hits! In IDPA, whether it's a 4-round stage, or 18-round stage; close or far, hard or easy, all points down are the same value. That's what Flex means (I think), by saying you can get 'away' with so much more in IDPA, provided you don't drop points.

Hmm...disagree completely. Take El Pres, as an example and do the math. At major power factors, you can go "A" / "C" hits all day long in USPSA. In IDPA if you shoot 6 "0's" and 6 "-1's", you're down 3 seconds. If one of those hits wander into the "-3" zone, you're really sunk. And if you ever shoot an IDPA stage, and only hang two "-3's" on the target, or, worse only one or none, it's match over, basically, when you add in the FTN penalty. Two D's on a target in USPSA --painful, but not deadly.

Great question No doubt perspectives will vary based on age, experience, ability and goals and ego. There's also component for some adherents to mental management 'systems' that's religous or devotional in that: 1) XYZ system works for me. 2) If XYZ system isn't working for me, it's because I'm not working it hard enough. How much is too much? Only you have the answer, and maybe it's not a simple answer, and maybe the answer will be different in six months or five years. Perhaps you've already had so much mental management you're irreversibly poisoned, and wiill never shoot well again, or maybe just the opposite, and you'll need five years of professional help. <grin> I had two random thoughts when thinking about this. First, we're mentally tough in so many areas in life. We're challenged by our jobs, by sickness and tragedy; making a marriage or family work...perhaps coping with addictions and vices and human weaknesses -- whatever. Why, with a USPSA/IPSC/IDPA match are we suddenly so mentally fragile? Second, I'm reminded of something ZHunter said in a thread a while back. He is one of the very few here that made a living playing professional sports; specifically golf. IIRC, he said something along the lines of, "successful players bring as little mental baggage as possible -- either positive or negative, and focus soley on execution." Perhaps that explains why so many Tour players look like zombies, and play with zero demonstrable emotion. (That said, there are those, like Mr. Woods, who break the rule). Dunno.

EZ, I don't see the two as mutually exclusive. You're saying, if I might paraphrase: "....don't get golf lessons, because you'd be better off spending time on the practice range with a buddy or getting a low-handicap player to critique your swing, for free!" What about getting instruction from a certified PGA teaching pro, THEN practicing what you learned on the range? You can still get input and motivation from friends and better shooters, but you also have fundamentals, and a context for evaluating the 'advice.' I shot for almost a year with a poor grip 'shown' to me by an A-class shooter.

Production. a) It's a lot cheaper and easier to get gear that runs. In *general* less expensive to shoot -- yes, there are some that cast .45 from wheel weights, pick up every case, etc.... c) In most major matches it will be a larger Division - more competition. d) Probably easier to advance vis-a-vis USPSA Classifier system. e) Stage management is critical, but one mistake, or missed piece of steel isn't lethal, IMO.

Many thanks to Tino and the staff that organized and ran this match. If you don't like shooting in the cold weather, this was definately a match for you! Shot it Sunday -- great squad, and fun stages, though I faded badly and shamefully after zeroing a stage due to brain/equipment malf's. It was a tad warm and humid, however. I'm guessing there's not more post-match chatter as shooters are still on IV drips, making it hard to type.

Paul -- pls post your thoughts on the vest, when you get a chance to try it. (In fact, you ought to post a review on the Sierra Trading post site "use: IDPA & Concealed Carry. " I have a cheapo vest from WalMart, and hate it. The biggest problem isn't that it's hot (it's pretty thin), but that the zippered edge is flimsy, and hard to sweep out of the way, cleanly.....If you can get the vest out of the way, easily, sounds like a winner!

Maybe that *is* the demographic, and the picture just...is what it is for a reason. It's like a bunch of bird-watchers getting together and saying, "Hey, our average age is 58! We need to recruit younger members to our hobby." Perhaps. Or, you just keep replenishing from an older population, 'cause others aren't interested or don't have the time for the hobby. I'm all for Juniors (and Seniors and women, and anyone who wants to shoot). But that's a tiny segment you're going after, and it's not tough to see why there aren't more of them: 1) They can't drive. 2) They don't have incomes. 3) Shooting involves hanging out with "Dad & Dad's friends." Not cool after a certain age. 4) Highly questionable "cool factor" among peers. 5) No music, few drugs and fewer chicks (see "#3 "). 6) No scholarships, & no significant $ from shooting as a career, except for an extreme minority. I think if USPSA were your business, instead of a non-profit organization, how much would you spend out of your pocket to advertise to teenagers and pre-teens? I like seeing Junior shooters, because every one I've met has been polite, and enthuthiastic about the sport. But if you want growth and money from discretionary spending, I think it's a different segment of the populace.

It's a strange market. I've long wondered who the hell is buying all those top-dollar bullets from Speer, Remington, Winchester, etc.? Hand-loader handgun fan types? Surely not us. On the other end of the spectrum are the folks poisoning their families with casting operations in the garage, and apparently ready to go bankrupt if enough USPS flat-rate boxes burst, or go missing. Who's left? Montana Gold. Great bullet, kinda pricey. Precision - moly, lead, can't meet demand. Then a couple alternatives that aren't justifiably cheaper vis-a-vis performance compared to MG, like Ranier, and Berry's and Precision Delta?? Forgetting the commodity price of lead -- where are all the players you think will step in and fill this need?

I dislike unnecessarily large pictures, too, but save my real anger for technology that markets with zero regard for usability, and obscures basic concepts, such as dimensions in pixels, and screen resolution vs. print resolution with crappy software interfaces. It doesn't help that browsers resize now -- back when, the lesson was immediate when folks would howl having to scroll for 10 minutes to see the entire image.

Hmm...I didn't see it under "Videos" but I'll check again. Will it cover actually changing the internal dimensions of the tube?? It seems to me that there's 'tuning' as in selecting the right basepad, tweaking the follower, spring, polishing, etc., of which there's a plethora of information. With Dawson SNL+1 pads and *some* of my STI tubes and Grams spring/followers I can get 20 reloadable. But there's the scary knowledge, dark-secret tuning, that seems to involve a die or somehow heating and reshaping tube. I'm not even sure if I knew how it was done, I could or would want to do it, or invest in the necessary setup.