38superman

It takes a lot of slow burning powder to make major in a short barreled 38 Super without generating excessive pressure. Even a gun with a comp and poppleholes is going to generate some mild recoil. It is generally acceptable to me if the dot bounces as long as it stays visible. If you can completely eliminate dot movement and still make major, I want your magic formula. I have a Brazos Pro Sx and get good results with the Zero 125 and 10.5 gr of N105. This load will make major with no signs of high pressure at all. The drawback to N105 is that it's pricy and getting harder to find. If you can get good results with SR4756 it will be cheaper. Tony

Wouldn't an apple be a 'natural snack'? Wow. You gotta admire a man that's willing to do that much typing to make a point T

You're right where you should be. You need to have a little margin for error. Ammo that chronos 167 PF at home has a way of going 163 on the match chrono. Due to: False chrono readings because of varying light conditions and other issues. Lot to lot variations in powder, primers, bullets. Loading dies that slip out of adjustment. Temperature Etc, Etc, Etc. There are very few shooters that can feel a difference between a 166 and a 170 load in the field. Go with it. Tls

"Since this year I'm flying to Tulsa, I'll be searching for good beer." If you're in Tulsa, don't you have to drink Pabst Blue Ribbon? I think it may be a state law. Tls

Nationals is really not that much different than any other major, just bigger and longer. There are a lot more stages, more rounds, more shooters, bigger squads, and it covers several days. This makes it harder to stay sharp throughout the match. Advice: Do anything you can to stay focused. For example, leave your cell phone in the car. When I'm on the range that is my time. Make sure your gun, ammo and gear is in good order, take spare batteries, etc. I hate surprises at the chrono so don't let that trip you up. I go to Nats with my normal loads and a second batch of ammo that's loaded a bit hotter. Go to the chrono before the match starts, have them check the normal load. If the normal load makes major, use it. If not, go to the hotter loads. There is usually a practice range available. Make use of it. Sending some practice rounds down range will warm you up and help get rid of the jitters before you shoot for real. Other than that, shoot fast, shoot straight and enjoy the moment. Tls

Jim, I often get very nervous and anxious before a major match. That's a good thing. It says this means something to you.....it matters. If you don't love the game why play it? Once the first few rounds go down range and you start to get your head into the game, the nerves will fade away. Try not to worry, and remember to have fun, because that's what this is.... big fun. Best wishes, Tony

Many good replies to this thread but I think a few may have missed the point. If you made the statement: "An open gun is faster". That is almost universally accepted as truth. Most people would agree with you. If you stepped up and said: "An open gun is easier", I wonder if there would be as much agreement. Most likely you would get a few arguments. I recently saw some threads where people wrote that they came back to open and struggled. The interesting thing was that it seemed to come so easily. When I bought the gun I let it sit on the back burner longer than I really had to. I got in no hurry to jump into another division because I just wasn't looking forward to the learning curve. Seems the curve may not be as steep as I thought. <---- The point. Tls

So imagine this. You've shot for years with your gun in your division and you're comfortable with it. At the end of a match someone says "Here, try this" and sticks an open blaster in your hand. You've never run open in your life but you decide to give it a try. What is your expectation? 1. I will do better 2. I will do about the same 3. I will be slower due to learning curve I chose number three. Surprise!!! Tls

This was a special classifer match so there were four classifiers (speed shoots) and two field courses. I shot the stages exactly the same way. Interestingly, the stage results were similar with both guns. That is, if I did poorly on a stage, I did so with both guns. If I shot a stage well, I did so with both guns. I had better times on the field courses (fewer mag changes?) and higher point totals. On most of the speed shoots, times were similar but points were higher. Seem to hit the steel a lot easier with the dot. (I shaved almost two seconds off my Steely Speed VII score with the open gun). Several of the guys on my squad remarked that I just looked smoother shooting open. What does it all mean? Does it mean anything? Hard to say at this point. Way too soon to jump to conclusions. All I can say for sure is that I didn't expect it. Tls

That's a good point but I'm not sure that's all there is to it. I have had re-shoots on stages before and actually did worse on the second try. Obviously, more experimentation is in order. Tls

I am basically an iron sight shooter. I have shot Limited and Lim10 throughout my IPSC career. About six months ago, I bought an Open gun because I wanted to give the division a try. It took a little time to get it together to shoot it. I had to aquire the reloading dies, components, magazines, etc. This past weekend was the first time I shot it in a match. I shot Limited first and entered our "second gun" match with the Open blaster. This was my first try at Open vs. a Limited gun I have shot for years, yet my Open score was 7% higher. If I hadn't trashed one stage by forgetting to turn on the dot, the difference may have been even greater. Now I have a dilemma. I had planned to press on in Limited to try to push my class up before the end of the year. I was going to keep Open on the back burner until I accomplished that. Now I find myself wondering what might happen once I get really comfortable with that Open gun. Should I persue the Open division and see where it leads or stick to my original plan? I'm as confused as a baby in a topless bar. Tony

North Tennessee Practical Shooters runs a monthly match on Saturday and Sunday. This way you can shoot either day, it's your choice. We also have a second gun match immediately after the first on both days. If you wanted you could attend both days, shooting 1st and 2nd gun which would allow you to compete in four different divisions in a single weekend. Seems to work out well. Tony

Yes, but the real question is, can you fit all that in an SUV and still have room for dope? Would the SUV still be able to reach 111 mph while hauling all that steel? Would a U-Haul trailer qualify as a hidden compartment? This whole story reminds me of another incedent in the news. I heard about an athlete that was found to have several guns and more than one thousand rounds of ammunition in his home. My reaction was, is that all? It's not unusual for me to have 1000 rounds in my truck if I'm traveling to a match. At home I have enough ammo to invade Panama. So what? Tls

Whenever I see someone with one of those things, all I can think is: "Resitance is Futile"

No poll is valid if it doesn't randomly sample the participants. The Brady campaign soliciting opinions from their supporters on gun control is ludicrous. It's tantamount to standing in a meat market and polling the customers on whether they eat meat or are they vegetarians. The results are meaningless. Each question is prefaced by a leading (and questionable) assertion. Examples: "Gun crime has gone up since the AWB expired". Do you think bringing it back should be a priority? "There is no reason for a legitimate gun owner to buy 10, 20 guns at a time". Do you think there should be limitations placed on this? What about someone who wants to buy a whole collection from an estate? Is that not a legitimate reason? This isn't a poll. It's propaganda. Okay Flex, once again I have strayed into the realm of a political thread. Forgive me for I have sinned. Feel free to slap my wrists before closing the thread. Tls

Woogie, Just out of curiosity, how many Limited shooters are signed up? I haven't sent my app in yet because I tore up my leg at the Fla Open. I'm not sure if I will be healed well enough in time for Ala. (Torn calf muscle) It's been ten days since it happened and the swelling still hasn't gone down. My foot is bruised all the way to my toes. It looks like I stepped in a bucket of purple paint. Will it be possible to sign up at the match? As they say in football, this may be a game day decision. I need to wait to see if I am up to it. Tony

Just out of curiosity, why are you loading 16 rounds? If you shoot lim 10 it's not an issue. If you shoot limited you're giving away a lot of capacity to the 40 gunners. I own a 45 edge myself. Not a problem to get 16 in a Grams tuned mag. I just don't ever do it. Tony

You make a good point Billie. Welcome to the sport and to the forum. You will find them both highly addictive, but fortunately, still legal. Tls

I have some pretty cool match pictures with better facial expressions than the "Mongoose". One in particular stands out. If I had to title the picture I would call it "Banzai"! However, I will decline publishing them on the forum without the permission of the subject. He may not want a new nickname hung on him. Tls

Somewhere out there is a moderator who's about to have a heart attack. Time to let this thread die

I'm not sure the Open is the best example for growth/no growth of any low cap division. It would be only natural to bring your high cap gun to a match that's traditionally filled with long field courses. I admire you for having the determination to support the PSSD and I hope it succeeds. It takes a lot of discipline and focus to motor through all those hoser stages with 8 round mags. I would like to shoot it myself but I prefer to do it at a match that has a little better mix of stage types. I shot my single stack in L10 my entire first year in IPSC, (before PSSD was born). Last year was L10, this year is Limited. Next year probably open. At some point I will come full circle. SS will get it's turn. Tony

Surprised? Two things here. 1st - 10 stages, over 300 rounds = a match full of long field courses = High cap friendly. Single Stack in Frostproof? Only if you want to start each stage with mags on your belt, hip pocket, one under your cap and one between your teeth. 2nd - There were more than 40 shooters in L10 last year. I shot L10 and had one of my best matches of the year, 13th overall and 1st C. No recognition of class winners, top 5 only. This year I brought my limited gun,..... go figure. Tls

Just looked at the scores and it appears my buddy Peter Oliver took 1st B in Limited. That's a pretty good accomplishment against some top competition. Congratulations Peter. I've never seen a shooter come so far, so fast. Your improvement has been phenomenal and it looks like A class is just around the corner. Whatever you're eating, I want a bowl of it. Tony

Well this was not the way I wanted to start the season. This match turned into a train wreck for me. The first two stages went into the toilet due to FTF's. Turned out to be a magazine gone bad at the worst possible time. Note to self: Changes mag springs periodically whether you think they need it or not. Got to the chrono with great confidence and just about swallowed my tongue when the first three rounds didn't make it. Same N320 load I've used forever with no problem. N320 not supposed to be temp sensitive but just squeaked by on Friday. Note to self: There is no such thing as powder that isn't temp sensitive. If its cold, it won't kill you to load a little hotter. The next stage (Painter) I took the first two targets on a standing shot and started to back peddle. My first step brought a pain that felt like being stabbed with a hot poker. For a second I thought I caught a stray slug. Turned out to be a bad muscle pull. Match over. Note to self: Alway stretch before a match. Especially if it's cold. Oh well, three more expensive lessons learned. On to the next match. Tls North Tennessee Mafia. Those new team shirts are really cool.

Mother nature short changed me in some areas but this was not one of them. Trust me when I tell you I don't need Enzyte. I just get a kick out of the commercials and I can't believe the money that people dole out for herbal "remedies". I imagine that it's like the weight loss magic pills that are marketed everywhere. By the way Z, I notice you upgraded your Avatar. Wow!......Post often. Pleasure meeting you at the Fla Open. Tls