38superman

I don't know if I would buy an S_I soley with the idea that it will be a vehicle for improvement. That may happen if you shoot it enough to get comfortable with it and discover that the feel / balance etc. suits your style better. However I wouldn't expect it to make such a difference that you can jump up in class overnight. Assuming you can afford it, I can't see why you shouldn't take that step if you want to. Getting from where you are to where you want to be as a shooter is a journey of exploration. You may discover that you and 2011's were made for each other. If not, they are pretty easy to sell. Tls

That Brazos gun is a beauty. The question is can it beat my SVI. Hahahahaaa.... My Crane technique is more powerful than your Monkey Kung Fu. I will defend the honor of my master..... Sorry, I got carried away. See you at the match. Tls

I love Texans. They don't do anything half a@#. I'm in awe. Tls

It is most definately okay for spectators to come to any match. In fact I think it would be encouraged. Some of the larger ranges even have stands for seating spectators. There is no cost of admission whatsoever. You simply must have eye and hearing protection while on the range and stay well behind the participants. Come on out and bring your friends. Tls

Nice new avatar you got there Mark. (Jealousy mode on) Tony

What a coincidence. I think of that little prayer evertime I load and make ready. Tls

I used Federal until I discovered that they are so touchy that sometimes they go bang when you don't want them to. I had about 6 rounds in a tray that fell off my bench and one of the rounds detonated. It send brass schrapnel all over the room like a hand grenade. After that I switched to Winchester and have not had a primer related problem since. If the Winchesters start to exhibit reliability problems, I will probably move back to CCI. I used CCI for rifle and handgun for 30 years and never had a misfire. You're right about one thing, it is a business... big business. The problem with big business is that it is short sighted and would happily sell your children into slavery if it would push their stock up 2 cents per share. Is it good business to gut your market by removing the income of your customers? What good does it do to lower your prices a bit if the people that buy your goods are all unemployed? Who will be left to buy the cheapened products? Won't be the guys that used to build Winchesters. If you think this is just the way things work, hurry down to your local China Factory Outlet.......while you still have money to spend. Tls Sorry for the flame, this just hit a nerve.

Our club in Georgia, (which was rather large) used to get a couple of slots each year. It appeared that whoever wanted to go could request a club slot on a first come first serve basis. I takes time and costs money to go to nationals. We ususally had enough slots to cover whoever wanted to go. If not, the club officers would make every effort to pull in unwanted slots from other clubs in the section. Tls

Ha..... I finally got the last word. Tls

The current wisdom favors heavier bullets with the fastest powders that can safely push them to major. The reason is that there are physics formulas for force and energy that indicate at equal power factors a heavier bullet recoils less than a lighter one. There is some debate about the validity of this (next to shooting, debate seems to be our favorite sport) but it is generally accepted as true. Tls

I have no doubt that your equipment does make a difference. I have an Ultimate Ghost and I can draw on average about .25 sec faster than from a concealment type holster. The difference is not dramatic, but there is a measurable difference. Tls

This is as simple as it gets. If you are right eye dominant you shoot right handed unless some other factor makes it impossible. Tls

Based on what you said I think you may as well flip a coin. It doesn't really matter. If I had to make a recommendation I guess I would say start out in production with the Glock. I say this only because new shooters need to focus on safe gun handling. With the 1911 you have to start cocked and locked, and release the safety on the draw. With the Glock you don't have to deal with that. It is just one less thing for a newbie to have to think about. You don't need to rush through the course, speed comes with experience. Get your hits. The minor scoring in production places a premium on accuracy. It might be the best division for you to ease into. Tls

Hoppy, Since you seem to be something of a guru on revolvers, I will direct these questions to you. I used to shoot revolvers for years (slow fire) before I ever started shooting action pistol. I loved the accuracy and the crisp single action trigger. I was quite the marksman and regularly made some shots that amazed my friends. (Once hit a clay skeet target on the fly with a 357. Missed twice, hit it on the third try). I took my 686 to my first pistol match and it was a disaster. Fumbled my reloads, sent ammo all over the ground, etc. etc. Needless to say, my next action pistol match found me with and auto loader. I havn't shot a revolver in years and I'm wondering what the predominate gear is for the wheelgunners in IPSC. I think most guys are shooting 625's and loading with moon clips but I could never see how the darn thing works. Please enlighten me oh high priest of the round gun. Tony

I have loaded range brass in my 650 and I found it to be a pain. The headstamps were all WW but there was no way to tell what they were fired in. What I discovered that some of them had enough of a bulge that they didn't want to fall freely out of the drop tube. I spent a lot of time dislodging stuck cases. The only way around this that I found was to prep them by running them through a sizer die on my single stage press. Not fun. However once you get them through a sizer die (either on the progressive or the single stage) they chamber and load fine in my SV. Tls

Finished 13th Overall in Lim 10 at the Florida Open. Highest placement ever in a major match. Tls

Alan, Thanks for one of the best posts in a long time. I agree with everything you said, but I would like to make one point. When this argument about the tactical value of IPSC or IDPA comes up, the folks that advocate "real world" stages aren't talking about military style warfare. I don't believe any of us have illusions about the need to breech an entry and take out enemy combatants. We are not soldiers. When a civilian talks about tactical situations they are not speaking about the battlefield. They are speaking about the prospect of using a handgun on the street or to defend their home from intruders. If any of us ever have the misfortune of a gunfight, I hope the speed and accuracy learned in this game will give us a fighting chance. If somehow changing the stage designs or philosophy can enhance that prospect, fine. There are two basic things I want from this sport. 1. I want to have fun shooting. 2. I want to be challenged such that I improve my gun handling skills. I do however like the idea of close air support. If I could use a laser to paint the car that just cut me off in traffic and ..... never mind. Tls

Ask yourself where this pressure is coming from. You got bumped up and now you feel you have something to prove everytime you draw your gun. The mental dialogue goes something like this: "I got promoted and now I'm a ______ . I'm supposed to be better." You are not supposed to be better, you are better. If not you wouldn't have gotten bumped. The pressure is internal. Let it go and just focus on the game. Tls

Okay, having never been to a world shoot, perhaps someone will educate me. If they don't have field courses what do the have? I would love to see some of the course descriptions. Tls

The "big hill" in question is actually Sand Mountain. I know this because I live there (Albertville). Robbie if you need detail directions, send me a PM. Tony

Ryan, Welcome to the jungle. It usually takes about three days to wipe the grin off your face after your first match. Tls

+1 on the overall length 1.200 seems awfully short unless you have a flat or hollow point bullet. Some variance in OAL is normal. Slight differences in the ogive (profile) of the bullet will cause the seating stem to engage the bullet a bit higher or lower. I set the nominal length and am happy if I can get +/- .003 OAL. If you have trouble dialing in the nominal seating length, a Redding competition die may cure that. Tls

At a local match today we had a rather large group of first time shooters. I watched them struggle mightily with some rather tough classifier stages as more experience shooters tried to school them along the way. It occured to me to list some of the things I learned the hard way. They may be obvious to more expericed shooters but could benefit others. 1. When the RO says "Do you understand the course of fire"? If you say yes, ... mean it. Know where all the targets are when the buzzer sounds. If you don't study the COF well enough you will overlook targets and the punishment is severe. 2. When the RO says "Load and make ready" .... be ready. If you come to the line with an empty or partially empty magazine on your belt, you will regret it. Also, trying to draw from a locked holster does nothing for your time or your self image. 3. If the start position requires you to move before drawing such as starting from a reclined position, lock your holster. Unless you draw the instant the buzzer goes off you risk the gun not being there when you do reach for it. 4. Plan your reloads. Make every effort to load while moving and don't shoot the gun dry. 5. Don't stand flat-footed when engaging targets, keep moving if at all possible. Sometimes the target is far enough that you have to plant and take aim or you just won't hit it. However, when the target is close enough, shoot it on the move. You don't have to shoot on the run but even a walk is better than stopping. 6. Don't stand and wait on movers and swingers. It often takes a little time for a moving target to appear. Try to plan your shots so that you can activate the swinger, engage a stationary target and then move to the swinger. 7. Don't burn excessive time and ammo on any one target. There are times when it is better to just let a target go rather than double your time and blow your reload points trying to take it down. 8. Try to place your shots on swingers as close to the pivot point as possible. The top of the swinger is moving faster than the bottom. Place your shots accordingly. Feel free to add your own. Tls

33???!!!!! I remember 33. It was 1985 Oh yeah, .. Happy Birthday. Tls

Hop, I read your thread on burn out. It seems to me that after all that work and preparation you were on the cusp of something big. It just went south on you on the last stage. If you had that good run you were looking for, the next day you would have been thinking about unseating the king. Don't let one bad stage discourage you after so much effort. Strap on your six gun and ride Hop... just like your namesake would do. Besides, I have enough competition in Limited. Tls