jkrispies

You’re very kind.

Yeah, the SOB beat me in his first SC match. I mean, I really enjoyed shooting with CalTeacher!!!

I'm not much of an open shooter other than on a rimfire pistol for Steel Challenge, but I have experience with the RMR (owned 4 so far), so if I may weigh in... as others have said, the RMR is really nice on a rifle, especially if it may serve a primary or secondary HD purpose with the dot mounted as close to the eye as possible. On my PCC I like my RM07 due to the bigger dot that is not only easier to pick up but also a lot crisper than the RM06 dot, but the RM06 is still a good choice if you like a smaller reticle. You're talking about a pistol dot on a game gun though. In your case, I'd personally recommend looking at an RTS2 with an 8 or 6moa dot over the DPP. For me personally, I've tried quite a few dots and for me it's RTS2's on game guns that basically spend their lives in a cushioned gun case and then a "safe" environment when being shot. If not that, then you're talking about a Home Defense situation, or possibly a game gun where the gun might get thrown in a barrel, whacked extra hard against a barricade, etc., and then I'd go with a "hardened" optic such as the RMR, DPP, or Holosun 510c. You lose some speed due to the thicker frame, but I think it's a wise trade off vs. losing peace of mind worrying about protecting the dot against damage or worse yet actually destroying it in the action of hard use. On my Steel Challenge PCC I've shot it with both the RTS2 and RMR. The RTS2 is faster (this was vs. the RM06 with a smaller dot) but with the USPSA rifle I'm building (which will serve a secondary purpose as my Apocalypse gun) the Type 2 RMR is the easy choice for me for a lot of HD-ish reasons, namely the larger dot on the RM07 model combined with durability, auto adjust, and constant-on battery life. I'm curious to try the USPSA upper in Steel Challenge with the RM07 once it's built as I suspect that the RTS2 will still be faster, but the gap will be significantly reduced. Anyway, if you don't go with the RMR for a hardened optic, after that you're generally stuck with small reticles, but the Holosun 510c has the circle dot option which is probably the next best thing. Frankly, if Holosun offered a 510 with a 6 or 8moa dot, I'd be all over it... but they don't. On a pistol, my vote between the two choices you mentioned would be the DPP, but I'd really really recommend test driving somebody's gun who shoots an RTS2 and/or Holosun 510c before making a decision. One of the nice things about the 510c is you can remove the protective hood and get the best of both worlds with regards to frame thickness. (Admittedly I think you can also remove the hood on a DPP and LOTS of people love the DPP, but in case you can't tell, but sorry I'm just not a fan of the DPP reticle choices.)

Thank you!

I think USPSA PCC only matches would be awesome and frankly preferred by me. With regard to complaining about PCC at Steel Challenge matches, I’ve personally never heard it BUT there’s a sea change going on where the “Main Match” has always been considered to be Open (pistol) and an era is coming where your Main Match Competitors are going start getting thier you-know-what’s handed to them in the overall on a regular basis. Nobody cared when rimfire started doing it (“Those aren’t real guns”) but having it done by non-Open centerfire shooters now... might sting some a bit more...? Folks just need to shoot their own match and only worry about their own division if they want to compare themselves to others. Plus the whole “Main Match” concept is due for retirement. A few years ago the West Coast Steel Championship was won by a kid shooting a production gun, surprise surprise. That should have been a wake up call for SCSA but I still keep seeing Main Match in results reporting. Just my humble opinion.

FWIW, here’s my real inspiration for this thread... That chunk of meat looking thing? That’s me. Off my wrist. Part of the pleasure of living the life of a lefty in a right handed world.

Plus you saved a quarter ounce— high speed low drag!!!

Agreed somewhat. I weigh myself once a week every Tuesday morning. Weighing in is important information to know if you’re doing it correctly or not, bearing in mind that everyone’s metabolism is different. Two of my friends swear by Keto and a third gained weight on it. Don’t weigh yourself often (normal fluctuations will frustrate you) but don’t wait so long between that a bad plan goes unnoticed. Mondays are bad for me to weigh in due to typically more salt than usual on the weekend, but it’s out of my system by Tuesday morning for an authentic weight. When I’m heavy, 3 pounds per week is pushing it but possible. Realistically 1-2 pounds per week is better because it’s sustainable and less likely to return when it comes time to maintain. Remember that it’s a marathon and not a sprint. One pound a week doesn’t sound like much in the moment but in a year that’s 50 pounds, which is a lot.

Jake, I sent Brandon a return email earlier this morning. I'll PM you with the gist of my email.

There’s my goal then!

Sell the other three and you’d have a good start to getting another one. You’ve already got an optic and mags. A backup gun is never a bad thing.

I've been doing this for years, and it works great... till I started short stroking and can't lock the bolt back anymore, LOL. You can also prop it open with a chamber flag, but I've found there's a point where you you can hold the bolt open but the trigger doesn't feel the same as when the is bolt is locked open. That makes me worry about something rubbing wrong and causing wear, so I make sure the is bolt open enough that it does't have this uncommon feel.

Sorry I was thinking specifically of the A5 tube. I haven’t seen them sise by sude, but I think it’s a similar situation to the charging handles where BCM and Vltor are the same thing. Just a guess but I think it’s a safe one.

FYI, as far as I can tell, BCM and Vltor extension tubes are the same thing.

FYI based off the preice they are selling for on Amazon the PD25 is less expensive. For the same price. A PD32 is the exact same price with 900 lunens max. Thus is with my discount code.

Ah. Good info

The extension tube is probably the weakest design point in the AR, bearing in mind that it was originally intended to be protected inside a solid stock, and not to be the stock itself. I suspect that as long as you're just using it as a game gun, you'll be fine. Now, if you're kicking in doors and using it as a war hammer... I'd choose the extension carefully. I've got a VLTOR A5 extension on my rimfire rifle that is excellent quality, and I wouldn't hesitate to put it on a PCC, including one that I trusted to protect my life and my family's lives. What is currently on my PCC? A probably decade-old ACE SOCOM rifle length stock (not ACE-Doublestar, as this was before Doublestar even bought them) and it was literally designed to withstand the impact of a door breach. As in, the stock of the gun is intended to be used as a battering ram. It started off on my .223 that no longer exists but went through three uppers before I retired that receiver, and it is now on my PCC that will have it's 3rd upper soon and maybe a 4th already inbound after that. This stock will outlive me. Yes, it's heavy, and I like that because it balances the gun better. I honestly don't know why these stocks never took off on the market more. I swear by it and wouldn't hesitate to buy another.

One of these may be in my future for my PCC. The price is right, and I can grind on it.

Just tried it a new way that may be a winner. Gamer method start position with magazine facing into magwell, but grab the gun with the firing hand so that my index finger is hooked on the charging handle, insert mag as I'm lifting with my firing hand, immediately move support hand to handguard while shouldering, rack the bolt as soon as the support hand is in place (which may or may not be shouldered at that point), get the shooting hand on the grip as I'm aligning the dot on target, and I'm throwing aimed lead. With some practice this might be the fastest one...

It's an older BCM ambi charger. I like it well enough, but a Raptor may be better suited for a bladed hit. I'm also hooking it with my finger, but it's probably the greatest area where I'm going to be limited-- my arm strength is kinda out the window from too many injuries. It's the reason I'm shooting rifles almost exclusively now rather than rifles and pistols both. I can get away with not having it shouldered to rack it, but the safest move for me is to shoulder and then rack. I don't want to accept a deficiency, but for right now it kind of is what it is. EDIT TO ADD: AAARRRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHH!!!!! I'm so frustrated-- I need a frigging magwell!!!!! Anyway, when I do this method, and I don't completely fumble the insert, I'm .25 faster than I was before. I'm certain that I can take this method down another .25 at least, just by adding a quality magwell.

The way I've been practicing it is to basically have the grip facing the opposite direction as the magazine, grab and rotate the gun to proper orientation while scooping the magazine into the magwell, shoulder, and rack the slide. This is exactly same process I used when I was presented with this start position as a Single Stack shooter, minus the shouldering of course. In fact, if the stage directions didn't disallow it, I'd prop the pistol up with the top tip of the magazine to help get my thumb under the gun. It's a natural movement that feels surprisingly similar to coming out of the holster. Since my rifle is light out front as well, grabbing it this way really doesn't feel any different to me than when I'm grabbing my 1911. I just tried the "gamer" way from the video above with the magazine separated but pointing into the magwell. The biggest difference here is the grip is pointed the opposite direction from what I'm used to doing with the pistol, so it's more of coming underneath it with my hand and rotating vs. a coming over top and rotating. I think this gamer way is faster getting the magazine into the gun... but I keep forgetting to rack the damn bolt!!!!!! In this cheater position, it feels like a normal reload and my mind is conditioned to believe there's already one in the hole and my support hand goes straight to the forearm. I know that's a training issue but the pistol style of start is so ingrained into me, I wonder if it's worth the effort to break the habit?

Ask 10 guys for their opinion of a perfect build, and you'll get 10 different guns. What's important is to develop your own shooting style for the types of matches you shoot and build your tools to suit that style. Having said that, I'd suggest that when it comes to firearms, take popular thinking with an extreme grain of salt. All too often, it's based in Hollywood wives tales and "Well everybody knows" types of fluff. Popular thinking is also going to be trendy, and trends shift with the cool kids. In this forum you'll find guys who swear by weight reduction at all costs, and others like me who are in the middle, and I'm sure some folks on the other extreme, and we're all correct because we're building for ourselves and nobody else. Just consider weight and weight distribution scientifically, and if you're satisfied with the answer and believe it then that's half the win, LOL. For my part, I consider weight to be a means of achieving stasis. That means weight can be used to mitigate recoil impulse... but it's also going to slow down your acceleration into a swing while slowing down your deceleration/stop coming out of the swing. The trick is finding the balance that suits the style you'll grow into. I like a heavier rear to soak some of the recoil impulse but a light front end so I can accelerate quickly and stop quickly-- think of the gun as a lever with the fulcrum on your shoulder so keeping the weight near the fulcrum has the effect of lowering the amount of work needed to move the overall weight on the lever. This is where my roots in Steel Challenge show. Having said that, I'm building my new USPSA upper a little heavier in the front to stabilize the dot bounce, which is a non-concern for me in Steel Challenge. And of course this all ignores loads and buffers and comps that are part of the system as well. Again, the gun is a tool for a particular job that you're going to perform in your own style-- build the right tool for the right job that will be performed in your style, not the next guy's style. And, of course, the above paragraph explains why lots of folks love the JP-- they took care of all that tuning for you with an awesome off-the-shelf gun. That's heavy.

Agreeing with everything (including potentially the mag behind and just running... though maybe not, LOL) but what if the situation is basically an unloaded table start with the first target right in front of you so it's literally buzzer, load, shoot, then run. In that instance, shoulder then seat and rack, or scoop and rack?

Definite no for me-- I go the opposite route. I prefer a heavy stock on the rear so it's neutrally balanced around the trigger area. Having said that, my current setup is specialized for Steel Challenge so I'm in process of building a new upper that's purposely putting a little more weight out front than what I've been running the past few years... but keeping the heavy stock. No magwell, but I'm hoping to make my own. Hence this morning's new post:

Hhmmm... another thing to practice on the clock. I know I can get the magazine set in two or maybe three steps off the belt... not sure how many steps to rack the bolt. I need to practice that. Having said that, I'm coming back to USPSA after a break, but my memory is that stage rules for unloaded table starts in my area tend to state "two X's on table, gun on one and magazine on the other." In that instance, would I be faster mounting the gun, then inserting the magazine, and racking, or scooping the magazine into the gun as I lift it to my shoulder and then racking? I'm going to practice both and see which works best.