38superman

I have used N320 in my Limited gun for years. When I recently ran out, I decided to move to Titegroup. At that time N320 was in stock. I couldn't bring myself to suffer the price of the powder + shipping + hazmat fees when I had 8 lbs of Titegroup on hand. After the long term shortage of N105 for my open gun, I have learned my lesson. A good powder on the shelf is better than a great powder that's on backorder. Tony P.S. If you insist on using Viht and can't find N320, consider N340. I've used 5.4gr. in my .40 behind a 200gr MG with good results.

John, Just as a matter of curiosity, how many shooters are you expecting? Tony

Don't mince words Merlin. What do you really think? Tls

I shoot .45 in L10 in an STI Edge Why?.... A variety of reasons. I like the .45. It hammers steel. It punches big holes. It will easily make major with fast powders without pushing the pressure. Why the edge instead of a SS? Commonality. It has the same grip, same size and same feel as the 2011 I shoot in Open and the 2011 I shoot in Limited. All 3 guns use the same holster / belt / mag pouches. All 3 guns use the same type of magazine and have the same size magwells. This way I don't have to re-tool my draw or reload when changing divisions. Furthermore, a fully loaded 45 Edge makes a fine home defense weapon. 16 rounds of 45 caliber attitude adjustment. And the biggest reason of all. Because I choose to. Tony

Nice blaster. That's a cool looking trigger. Tls

The load data will not vary due to RN vs. HP. However, it can and will change when switching between jacketed / plated / lead.

No.

That's great Rodney. Coping with cancer is a tough but it can be beaten. Stay strong. Tony

+1 Just did the class in Ky. with Chris. I got way more out of it than I expected. The best money I ever spent on shooting. If there is any possible way,.... Go do it. Hmmm. Now that I think about it, those of you that are competing with me really don't need this. Forget about it. Tony

One of my all time favorite movies Tls

Sounds good ..... with a word of caution. All guns are different. Different tolerances in the chamber dimensions, throating, bore. etc. For that reason someone elses favorite load may be really hot in your gun. You should still take that load, back it off and work up to it in your gun. DVC Tony

Hop, I'm really sorry that your friend has fallen victim to this cruel disease. It is sad beyond words. Prayers sent. Tony

Steve, If you are looking for a procedure for evaluating powder and working up a load here is how I do it. I'm not saying it's the best way, it's just my way. I pick a bullet then check the reloading manual(s) for the fastest powders that are capable of safely producing the desired velocity. To get 125 power factor with a 115 bullet you need 1087 fps. I would look for a powder charge that would give me just over 1100 fps. I don't have a manual in front of me. I don't know if its possible to make 1100 fps with Bullseye or American Select without exceeding the max published load. You'll have to look it up. Once you decide which powder you want to try, look in the book for the powder charge that should make the velocity you need. Drop back from that charge by .5 grains and load 50 rounds in groups of 10, increasing the charge by .1 grain in each group of 10. I refer to these 50 rounds as a "pressure series". When you go to the range, shoot (2) five shot groups with each of your 10 round lots, starting with the lightest load and working up. Look for any sign of excessive pressure. If you don't know what to look for, you shouldn't be doing this. Do your homework and read up on it. You will find information on the subject in any decent loading manual. If you find evidence of excessive pressure, stop. Go no further. Pick another powder and start over. As you are shooting record the size of your groups on the target to document the accuracy of the load. If you don't have a chronograph, buy, beg, borrow or steal one. As you work your way up through the pressure series, the chrono will tell you when your loads have achieved the desired velocity. At that point you have your load for that bullet and powder combination. You also have some documented accuracy data. Two groups aren't nearly enough to tell you the ultimate accuracy potential of the load. However, it should be enough to tell you if the load is viable for competition. If my test load can't produce groups under 2" at 25 yds, I forget about it and move on. Find another powder and repeat the process. Once you have two or three valid loads, you can load up a few hundred rounds of each and do some practicing to decide which one works and feels best in your gun. Tony

I will definately be there. Shooting on Friday with the RO's Photographing the competition on Sat/Sun. As for the beer, it sounds like we need a new sponsor. Budweiser. Tony

What caliber(s) are you loading for? What powders do you have on hand that you would like to use? What bullet? Maybe we can steer you in the right direction. Tls

When picking a powder for a self defense load, the criteria is usually to find the powder that produces the highest velocity without excessive pressure. For competition that maxim is reversed. We typically look for the fastest powder that can safely make the minimum power factor. Usually there are several powders with a burn rate that will work for us and those choices are narrowed by experimentation. The following is a list of the powder characteristics I am looking for 1. Produces excellent accuracy in my gun. 2. Doesn't produce a lot of smoke 3. Doesn't heat up the gun too much 4. Is readily available 5. Isn't horribly expensive 6. Not too temperature sensitive 7. Has a density that fills the case to the proper capacity.* 8. Feel ** * I don't want the case too full so that the loader slings powder when indexing. I also don't want a load so dense that a double charge wouldn't be obvious. A double charge should overflow the case. ** Every gun is different with variable tension in the recoil and mainsprings. An ideal load is sufficient to operate the action of the gun at the right speed. Some loads will produce a long lazy slide cycle that seems to take forever to recover the sight picture. Other loads are just too snappy. Experiment. You will know the right load when you find it. Tony

I talk to shooters.

You can spell "Schuemann" and "Vihtavuori" Tls

Sorry, I was shooting on Friday so I didn't get pictures of Max and Travis. However, I did get some good pics of the SVI team including Chris Tilley. Also got some good pics of the Glock team. My usual method is to shoot on Friday with the RO's and take competitor photos during Saturday and Sunday. That way I can bounce around and get most everyone on camera. I like to set up on as many stages as possible. I think getting the shooters in different settings puts more variety in the pictures. Unfortunately, Area 6 is just too big for that. Too many squads and too many shooters for one man to cover. I could have gotten more pics if I'd given up shooting the match. I guess I'm just too selfish to completely sacrifice the gun for the camera. Tls

Tony, This picture has now become the most popular photo on my website. It has been view 106 times. I suggest this. Order a print and take it to your local frame shop to have it framed and matted. Then you hang it on your wall as a center piece and hang your plaques all around it. It will look great. Since it is so popular, I am now giving this pic an official title: "Wheel Gunners Rule" Tls

You remove the cushions from your sofa and instead of loose change, you find loose brass. Forgetting to check pockets before doing laundry turns the clothes dryer into a case tumbler. Tls

This would be a tough choice. Both draw several hundred shooters and this year both had 12 stages. So the size of the match is about the same. Each event is a quality match, but if I could only do one, I think it would be Area 6. Why? Well, the match in Florida is in February, which means the weather may be absolutely gorgeous and it may not. Weather in Atlanta in April/May is usually pretty good if you are lucky enough to avoid the occasional rain shower. Also, the A6 match fee is cheaper. $225 vs $160 US. Thats not a lot of money but if you're traveling from Europe, every little bit helps. You've already been to Fla (twice). Try something new. Either way you can't go wrong. Where are you buying your ammo locally? Tony

I have to say that my expectations for this class were all wrong. I really didn't think I would learn that much. I figured that it would basically be a two day practice session just burning a lot of ammo. Boy was I wrong. Manny re-tooled all my fundamentals. He completely changed my grip, draw, and reload technique. My recoil control is now much better. I learned so much about what I was doing wrong, (and right) that my head is spinning. This was a good group or shooters and a really fun week-end. I'm glad I took the class and many thanks to Chris and Albert for putting it together. Tony

I'm locked and loaded. The gear is all stowed away in the Expedition and as soon as I'm unchained from my desk today, I'm headed north. I'm really looking forward to this. See you all on the range in the morning. Tony

Aw man, the secret's out, and NASA tried so hard to keep it going. On the secret out of the way Bay 51 at South River, you'll find a Mars Rover tooling around! Here's some more of that alien landscape. Gravel flies as the shooter slides into position on stage 1 "Field of Steel". Tls