dgrdvm

Yes sir. I have tried that many times, but no response.

Well, that did not work. Any one else have an idea ?

Ahh. I have been actively avoiding that. This actually may be a reason to actually join FaceBook. Dang. Well, thank you for the suggestion

Hey, I watched Max Michel shoot the OK sectional last year, and it seemed he had taught a class the culminated in the squad all shooting the match, with Max coaching them though. I was of course impressed with seeing him shoot live, but also with how he trained and coached the group, and I would like to take a class. The issue is I have not been able to contact anyone at his training company via phone, email or fax attempts. Does anyone here have a suggestion on how to contact him ? Thanks

Just an up date - I loaded some 115gr bullets over 3.3 gr VV N320, and even a 10 lb spring was not running it well. Super soft round, and POI was OK out to 20 yards ( indoor range) but I had to rack every other round out at least. I will crank the load up a bit and see how that works.

I have the regular 21 round X5 mags with Obsidian Arms +1 base pads, and they load 22 easily. I want to see if the Grams will get me to 23 when they come back. 22+1 has not been an issue, and I normally budget a reload at 18-19 rounds regardless, so I am not sure there is a big drive to change. The OA basepads have the base plate with little stud that you depress to slide it off, rather than the set screw, and I find that easier to deal with, esp. when I am cleaning mags on the stage ( Thanks Illinois Sectional!)

Thanks in advance all. So, earlier I had asked about light, "bunny fart" loads for steel challenge, and was told that yes, those are something that people do. I played around and found that a 115 grain rnd nose over 3.3 grains of VV N320 was very soft and flat, and hits pretty well where the dot is already out to 15-18 yards, but will not cycle the pistol well, and it stove pipes, or won't feed. I was thinking a softer recoil spring will solve this ? The pistol I am shooting is a P320 X5 with a solid guide rod, normally running a 14 lb spring. Any ideas on the best spring to order ? I was thinking a 9 or 10 lb spring, but thought I would see about mining the brain trust here before I order.

Are you guys using an ever faster metronome to push the speed of transitions ? I had had that recommended by a guy at our local matches, and I think there is a drill in the Anderson "get to Work" book.

How would those work out if you shoot CO ? Would they be they legal ?

I have 5 of the 21 round P320 mags, and only 1 was tough to get the 21st round in, but has improved with time. I get 22 in all of them with Obsidian Arms base pads, and have never had an issue slamming a fully loaded in the gun. Unless I flub the reload, but that is a whole different string - last match I had a mag in the belt with bullets to the rear - what a doofus !

I took a class at TPC in Utah, and they taught a grip that involved getting the most palm on the support hand that you can on the back of the gun, the cranking the elbows up a bit to achieve a "nut-cracker" effect on the gun. This helped me a ton get fast follow ups that are on target. I know I am not explaining it well - if you can, get some training with good teachers. Mastering the basics is not sexy, but man it helps !

Not sure how if you guys care, but shot an IDPA match this weekend for the first time in a year, simply because I had nothing else to do. I was pretty fast ( for IDPA, seriously) and seemed more accurate than last time I shot this game. Put down an EXP level time in CO on the 5X5 with out even trying hard and only 1 sec down. Barely made SS in other classifiers. So Cool fire make me practice more and that practice is seeming to be valid and paying off I guess the take home is what ever makes you practice more will likely improve your shooting, and the CoolFire is close enough to real recoil that the practice I have done with it has helped my shooting ( or at least not contributed to any apparent bad habits). I will continue to use it and will be happy to answer questions on it. Now, does any one know about some magic shoes that can get me moving faster ?

All good points Racinready300ex. The CO2 reloads off a big paintball can on the fill station in about 2 sec - not a big deal. The recoil seems close enough that I think it helps. The cost - yeah it is not too cheap, but again, I have dumped that on classes that were of dubious help, or a case or 2 of ammo that I turned into smoke and noise with no appreciable improvement to my shooting so it is all personal choice.

Uhh, yes. Yes I do. Yesterdays lesson. On a 32 round, somewhat complicated course of fire, with a swinger and lots of hidden targets, I was the second shooter. Big squad, and I really did not have a good feel or a good plan after the walk through. When it was my turn, the RO asked if I was ready, and I lied. I thought, I could just do it "live" . So off I went, and tried to do some half baked plan It went epically wrong, not surprisingly. 3 mikes and a FTSA, and slow to boot. So the lesson - if I have no good plan, KISS - just move through the stage and shoot what ever is in front of me till I reach the end, and do not try anything tricky.

Finally got to shoot a match yesterday, and I was happy (er ?) with what the gun was doing. I shot a lot more double A, and a lot less A/C or A/D or M, and I was much happier with how I shot the over abundance of head shot only targets. I did not shoot a single NS ( and there were a lot ) and there was a strong hand/weak hand stage that was much easier than before. I feel that the CoolFire is helping me get used to the gun recoiling and controlling it and that means better second shot. I was faster to the draw and to the transitions and seconds as well. Whether this is due to the CoolFire, or simply to the fact I have been dry firing more is debatable. I do like to dry fire more with the device - it seems more fun, and I pay more attention to what I am doing rather than go through the motions. My movement is still hilariously bad, so no help there, and I think the better gun stuff highlighted that the moving in and out of positions, and general aggressiveness of how I motor around a stage is what I need to work on. So now there is that to get after. The device has held up well, and the one issue I did have was corrected with a very quick return call from the company so that is good so far as well. Hope this is helpful

I agree if you have access to the range, time and ammo that live fire is better. I do not have all those available - I work full time so I practice in the evening and the range is not available. The Coolfire is a reasonable tool to help get the idea on tracking the dot on drills, and calling shots and follow up shots honestly. I have found I grip the pistol better now when I dry fire, and the slide movement will really pull you off the second or third shot if you are lazy, or are just trying to beat the beep. The drop in barrel and recoil set up are specific to the gum - I have a P320 X5 ( bull barreled) and it just drops in place of the regular set up.

Burke trigger in my X5 - much crisper, and more distinct break, and vastly shorter and more positive reset. I do not know all the specifics that he does, and frankly do not care. It just feels way better, and the turn around and customer service are great

So I learned a good lesson this weekend. I have always prided myself on being tough, and able " walk things off" and still perform well. Last weekend I was shooting a major match, and thought it would be no big deal to drive 4 hours and then shoot. So I tried to get to sleep early ( but could not, as this was not my normal schedule, and we had a storm) and then got up at 3 AM, cleaned up and hit the road. Made it to the match just in time to strap on a gun and shoot with the squad. First stage went OK, and then I totally flubbed a hastily made stage plan, and came close to the 180. Thought to myself " suck it up and get your head on straight!". One of the squad suggested I withdraw and shoot a later squad, but no, I am tough. Bad call. 4 stages later broke the 180, and earned the DQ. And it was inevitable. Never again will I drive more than 90 min to a match on the day I shoot. Shame to jack up an Area match, but it was a lesson that will sink in. I am not that tough, and it is a bad call to play with guns when you are tired. Seems really obvious now, but I need to learn the hard way I guess. Thankfully there was not any injuries or really a major risk - my squad was all RO's and they watched me closely - but I wanted to share my stupidity, and hope some one learns from my bad example.

That is the problem - it is never "free" This is the reason I just spent 2 grand on a PCC set up I never even knew I wanted or needed. I had been living in blissful ignorance, but then those horrible word - " hey you wanna try this ? " Sigh

Well done, and welcome to the game ! Now that you see how it works, you can set up your dry fire and practice on the area's you see that need to improve. It takes time and work but it is very rewarding to see the improvements over time

Hey guys, I know its coming up fast, but does anyone have the 2019 Area 3 match book ? I see the stages on the website, but I can't get them to print for some reason. Thanks !

So far - I like it. It has held up to daily dry fire, and still getting 12-14 good recoils before getting soft. Trying to make the par goals in Ben Stroeger's book got a whole lot harder, and it taught me to actually find "speed mode" for real, with out burn a ton of ammo at the range. I think I am getting value from it, and I will see how it reflects in my next match. Normally I am slow and accurate so lets see if I am learning anything. After last night, I noticed I am really starting to grip the pistol tighter than non Coolfire dryfire, in a good way. I think I was slacking on the grip, as well as the dot to hit par times. I have noticed my hands are more sore, and forearms are tight after a session, and that did not happen before

Well, I took the plunge ( prior to the majority of the comments here, due a general lack of patience on my part) and I have had 1 training session with the CoolFire. I will say so far I like the feel, though the recoil impulse changes dramatically as the CO2 in the reservoir depletes. I will say I get 12-15 good, accurate recoils, then it starts to get pretty wimpy. But a quick hit of gas and right back at it. I did not get the laser, actually on purpose, so I try and really just watch the dot and not look to a target for the conformation. This may be a mistake, but time will tell. It really made a point of how I was unrealistic in some of the dry fire par time drills I was doing. Time to get to work !

No issues at all with my Romeo1 6MOA, but I had a few with my old 3MOA when the battery lid was loose