boo radley

I've always thought it was a strange parable, myself. I believe it's one of Aesop's Fables, but I could be wrong. What bothers me it's that it's not necessarily a scorpion's nature to sting indescriminately, especially if he's gone to the trouble and thought process of achieving a goal and enlisting a frog. Why not sting when just across safely?

I, too, am a huge XM fan -- I'm unhappy they kicked up the subscription fee to $12.95 a few months ago, but pleased I can now get it streamed on the PC -- handy when reloading! The music is great. It's so wonderful NOT to hear commercial AOR crap. Leo Kotke covering Aerosmith's 'Sweet Emotion'. Are you kidding?

I thought -- when I first saw the title -- it was this one: Guy and his buddy, Jim, go on a hunting trip. At the camp, the night before the season opens, they sit around, drinking Jim Beam, eating chili, swapping war stories. It gets later and later. Finally they turn in. Jim is too wound up to sleep, however, and tosses and turns, then says the hell with it: might as well pull an all-nighter, since it's only a couple hours until daylight, anyway.... AM comes. They load up, and hike a couple miles into the woods. Jim takes one tree stand, and his buddy leaves him to go deeper to another. After a couple hours, Jim feels wretched. The lack of sleep is killing him, and he can no longer fight the call of nature. He climbs down from the stand, and finds a fallen tree. He drops his pants, and sits back against some limbs, and waits for his bowels to relax. In a few minutes, he's sound asleep. Meanwhile, his buddy has shot a deer. He field-dresses the small buck, then wanders back to where Jim is, to get his help dragging it out. He looks for him, then sees him still fast asleep, squatting in the fallen tree. He can't resist playing a practical joke. Quietly, he slips back to where he field-dressed the deer, grabs and armful of guts, then sneaks up on Jim, and dumps them under Jim's exposed butt. And hour later, as he's hanging the deer back at camp, he sees Jim staggering out of the woods. He looks ashen. "Help," he croaks, "you gotta get me to a hospital!" "Yeah?" says his friend, affecting alarm? "Jimbo, what happend to you?" "Man! I think I crapped my guts out!! But with the help of a small stick, I was able to shove 'em back in...."

Suppose -- thinking of an recent match -- from the far side of the shooting area, you can see the upper A of a swinger, in its non-activated (not sure of right terminology) state. This clearly wasn't intentional as an option as it was blocked by a no-shoot, but who knows? Maybe the no-shoot fell off, and was stapled back slightly out of place, by a previous squad, or whatever. Fair game?

Zhunter -- I don't want to take up a spot of a more veteran member of this board, but if you have room, I'd love to shoot with y'all, or at least hope to meet some other members of this forum. I sent in my application this AM, w/out noticing your updated instructions so I didn't say anything on it about squadding...Sat/Sun? I'll send you a PM, thx, Steve

The link 'www.triggerkit.com" IS R. Sotelo's 2lb trigger job, discussed extensively in this forum. I have the kit -- actually, two of 'em, for my 35 and 34 -- and like it very much. You put the parts in yourself. I like on my G35: Heine/Dawson FO sight combo (though I'm starting to sink into the abyss, and question FO's). Eric's TruGrip: man, I can't believe what a difference this stuff makes until I changed it, and felt the pistol again w/out it -- like holding an eel. What you're used to, I guess. Tungsten guide rod and 15lb spring from CGR. Something about this combo -- it's unbelieveable how flat this pistol shoots, with 180 Zero's and N320. Wish I could do it justice. Above-referenced trigger job. Thing I tried that I didn't like: THE magwell. This stuff is all so subjective, though....Look how many folks win actual, real-life matches, and major tournaments with stock pistols!

Thx, Steve -- Man, there are a couple pithy quotes in this thread, and I should start writing them down. Both you and Steve Anderson are providing some gems. In truth I probably do know how to get more consistent, and that is to "see", call my shots, whatever one wants to call it, but I've been in a bad streak lately, of trying to force gains, speed and improvement, with predictable results. Maybe I DO need Bassham's book, I'm such a freakin' mental weakling -- back to making the same old mistakes again, albeit a tad faster since I'm learning how to move faster/more efficiently. Enough whining.

If I use up the last of my Delta ff air miles, I can make it down, and back again, too, and have a ticket reserved on a 40-day hold. I have never shot any large match, besides our State's sectional, and given the travel costs and entry fee(!), could probably only make one, next year....Is it a pretty good match? Looking at the past results, there are some pretty big names. What is the round count? About 300? I imagine that's fine to bring on the plane? If one shoots Sat/Sun, what are the approx. start and stop times?

Thx all -- the hard part is letting go of imagining the best stage as my actual level, if that makes sense. It's easy for me to think, "Hmm, well THAT is how I should be shooting, and the other 5 stages were mistakes," instead of recognizing the really good stage as a happy accident. For sure, I'm still trying to push, and trying to make the speed happen. <sigh>

That makes sense. I just finished loading up 5k rounds, over the last few days, and think 8min/100 is pretty close to There, and not a pace that can be sustained. 9min/100 however, is pretty comfortable, and to do that, I don't need to bother with setting up all the cases right side up on a piece of tile -- I can just fish 'em out of a shallow cardboard box, after spraying them with One-Shot and shaking. I like R/T's tip of hanging the cases next to the loaded bin; economy of motion. Nice. What worked best for me, ultimately, was doing 300 in 30 minutes, taking a break, coming back an hour later, knocking out another 300, etc. Case-gauging and putting 'em is still a hateful, slow job, however. Good music, or a football game on the radio, is a must!

I'll bet they'd send you one, if you emailed. I needed some screws for the Versa-Hanger, they sent them right out, no cost, the next day, from South Africa. Heh - good thing I happened to be home, a couple days later, since I had to sign for the shipment!

I'm curious when y'all started finding yourselves really shooting consistently at matches? Right now, I can tell I've gotten better: I'll typically have one stage in a match that is good by any objective standard: right up there with A's and M's: 8 months ago that would have been a dream. The problem is the *rest* of the stages; one will be rotten, to offset it, and the others so-so. I think that I'm better than my match results and classifiers reflect, but...it's hard to argue with the cold facts. I'd like this extreme spread to tighten up, and I assume eventually it will?

I'd be interested in hearing how you like them. So far, I've not had a single problem feeding Zero JHP's, either, from either stock or KKM barrel. I ordered another 2k recently, and they're loaded up. I hope that lasts me until January, then I'll take a hard look again, at what's out there. Zero's sure work well, though.

I agree with you, Ron. Someone in the video *did* yell "muzzle" at one point, and I don't think that IDPA has a 180 rule? I don't shoot sanctioned IDPA matches, since I'm not a member, but often shoot local IDPA stuff. The problem is you've got people conditioned to hugging cover, with the usual "slice-the-pie", then you also mandate a *reload* behind cover. The shooter in the video is a perfect example of this: he ran so close to the cover he instinctively kept his gun parallel to it, and of course, during the reload, the slightest twist, and bingo. 180. So they should have yelling "muzzle" the moment he started moving, so that his pistol was always pointed *at* cover, instead of 90 degrees to it. As an aside, I've been watching some video from the World Shoot, and my ear was used to hearing a certain pace..... <grin>

I can't speak for Glock17W, but from my perspective, I get uncomfortable when people apply a general observation and truth to the specific. We can all agree it's the rare figure in the Entertainment Industry that would be chosen as a role model - from Ty Cobb, to Axel Rose, to Sinatra, Kobe Bryant, "Leo" DiCaprio, etc., etc., back to the freakin' court jesters who were running about screwing like bunnies. So it becomes, "Pro atheletes are a bunch of....Movie stars are a bunch of....Rock stars are a bunch of....Politicians are a bunch of....," and the observation is really meaningless, unless you choose to explicitly apply it to a single segment/race. I can (mostly) appreciate the deed/art/action, and ignore the person. I will respect a sub-3 El Pres, by Jake, even if leaves a trail of paternity suits, and disorderly conduct arrests in his wake. Thinking about this, Tonya Harding was probably a bit over the edge, however. Is she really "the Pride of the Northwest?"

I've been shooting Zero JHP's, too. I understand there's going to be a 5% price increase, and I might look for something else, but for now, I have the exact load I want, and I reached the conclusion that it's worth a couple extra bucks per 1000 not to have to start from scratch. 180gr JHP once-fired brass Winchester small primers Vihtavuori n320 4.2gr (practice) 4.5gr (match) OAL for my G35 1.142"

I've been experimenting with technique and ergonomics in loading on the SDB, and timing "splits" of how long it takes to load 100 rounds from the 'ready' position: primers in the tube, brass and bullets at hand, and shellplate empty. So far I'm turning 8:00's out pretty consistently, with a couple 7:50's, loading .40S&W. It's like the 3 bears -- this cartridge seems "just right" on the SDB. I could *maybe* speed this up by working the arm more quickly, but I'm trying to speed everything up BUT the motion of the arm; that I want smooth and steady, and I like feeling the primer seat. I've discovered that the biggest time eater, at least for me on the SDB, is putting the empty case into the shellplate at station #1, since your hand has to leave the arm, pick up a case, align it and insert it. While you're working the arm, of course, the left hand has all the time in the world to grab a bullet, orient it, and have it ready to seat the moment the arm stops. Anyway. I've taken to putting a bunch of cases in a plastic bag, spraying with One-Shot, shaking, then lining them up on some large ceramic tiles I have, from a tiling project. I put 100 on each, case opening up, and put this tile on some stacked milk crates, so it's at waist-level. I hate this extra time to prep the cases, but it's much faster, when actually loading, than picking up cases lying loose in a box, and having to orient them. I'd like to time a full hour, but don't have enough primer tubes: I only have 3, so I can load 400 at a shot (fill and dump one tube, first). With my cases ready on the tiles, my first and only attempt at 400 straight was around 38 minutes. That included weighing a charge in the middle, as a QC check, and a couple of minor jams. So I'm thinking this is reasonably quick; about as fast as you can effectively load an SDB, and I'm not sure where I could otherwise pick up time. Anyone else have any times that are significantly faster? I'd love to know if it's possible to turn out > 700 rph. I still crave an XL650 with case-feeder, but....

I've learned never to bring any untested piece of equipment (gun/ammo/holster) to a match. First time using a CR-Speed holster -- DQ. As I come up on my first year, I'm also damn glad I got some decent instruction recently. It's like anything else: sure there's the guy with the funky swing at the club who shoots in the 70's, or this other dude with some killer licks, that hold the guitar kinda horizontal....But. I *thought* my grip was good....Wrong.

Not really. The 1911 CRS doesn't fit the Glock trigger guard well at all. I had both for a little bit, and sold the 1911 CR-Speed on this forum. The problem is, the opening for the trigger guard isn't wide enough, without any shims, for the Glock trigger guard. I'll be you could make the reverse work, however.

You could juggle a few things and save some money -- for example, the Square Deal, instead of the 550+dies -- and buy other things used. My reloading bench, for example, is a heavy office desk I bought at a State surplus warehouse for $5.00, and added plywood for the top. And one thing you forgot, is a brass tumbler -- there's another $50-150.

It sounds stupid, but this is one of the big reasons I moved to Glocks from the 1911 as a budding shooter. I'm not a bit cheap, and I work hard and make a reasonable living, but it would just *kill* me leaving .45acp brass on the range, and I'd stay behind picking it up, if there was a break before the next squad appeared, instead of concentrating on the upcoming stage, etc. Plus, it's just a general PITA shagging brass. 9mm, 40S&W -- it's $20-30 for two *thousand* from eBay, or brassmanbrass, etc. I clean it, shoot it and forget about it. Nice.

Hmm...George, mcoliver ought to be able to open an .AVI with hell, almost anything, including the Windows media player.... mcoliver -- I'm sure you know this, but try just right-clicking on the link from Sharyn, and "save as" to somewhere on your HD. File size is: 4,258,458 bytes, so if that matches what you're seeing, you have other problems. Freeware AVI viewers abound. That said, that's an amazing clip, IMO. The reload looks like...an afterthought.

A lot of shooters, I'm noticing, have a pretty extensive routine they go through at LAMR. I mean, in some it strikes me as ridiculous, IMO: 3 slow-motion 'dry draws,' multiple sight pictures on different targets.....This easily takes longer than the actual *stage*! Does this bug anyone else? Quite a few, if not most, of these shooters are better than me, so it's certainly not for me to say this isn't a good idea, but it reminds me of those players in golf, who can't step up to the tee without "waggling" for 3 minutes, and going through a bunch of other nonsense.

Thx, I might give them a try. Shipped to NC, it looks like they're $66.50/k, rather....I'd save maybe $10-$12 on a 2k order over Zero's, which I know are super-accurate, and I've already worked up a load for, etc.. Maybe I'll order 1k of them, anyway, to see how they shoot, then 1k of 9mm 147gr bullets, which I've been meaning to try, anyway. Man. Seems like every time I turn around, I'm forking out my CC number for bullets, primers, once-fired brass, more primers, more bullets....

The only thing I've used so far in .40S&W are Zero 180gr JHP bullets, bought from Shooter's Connection. The delivered prices on some of the Precision Delta bullets are pretty appealing, though. Anyone have experience comparing the Zero JHP to a Precision Delta 180gr FMJ-FP (the only profile they seem to offer) in a Glock? Are Precision Delta the same bullets, too, that are referred to as "Precision bullets" widely in this form? Or is there a "Precision Bullet Inc, and Precision Delta, Inc?" Thx