IVC

Not seeing the controversy, it's clear and the OP is correct - cannot start loaded when unloaded is required and vice versa. But it's also true that local clubs at level 1 will not always go by all the rules, including this one. The "reshoot arguments" are often not worth it. This is just the reality on the ground.

Keep on working on it. And don't slow down for the second shot to confirm the sights before firing, that would defeat the purpose of learning to call it. As it says in one of the books (can't remember which one), "you can't learn to run by walking fast." It's a different endeavor. Try without target (you don't need it for this drill initially), firing into the berm, fast. All you want to get to is registering two "flashes" of the dot. Initially doesn't even matter where the second flash is, just that you can register it. Once you can do that, and only once you can do that, you can start fine-tuning the second flash to be consistent and "close" to the first one. As a side issue, the "closeness" of this second flash determines the size of target that *you* can engage with predictive technique.

^^^ This is a great summary - the purpose of the drill is not to save a tenth of a second on the split, or even to get a consistent alpha on the second shot. Neither split nor score matters if you don't "see" the second shot, which is the purpose of these drills.

What you really need to understand is "calling the shot," not the aiming. If your limit on the split is the aiming (hard shot), you have to use different (standard) technique. The second shot at close range is a "predictive shot," where you do not wait for the sight picture, relying on your grip to bring the gun into "good enough" vicinity of the initial shot. However, you MUST "call the second shot" by registering where the sights are as you fire. This is not only how you train your grip to get you back on target, but also how you "know" whether your second shot is good or not. If you don't call both shots, you need to slow down to the speed of your eyes/brain as you fire the second shot.

Belling is an intermediary step, so it really doesn't matter in the end. The only reason not to bell too much is metal fatigue at the case mouth. I bell just enough to get my MBF-dropped bullets remain in place as they are dropped. If they drop correctly but shake loose moving to the next station, I'll increase the neck expansion before adding belling. Remember, neck expansion and belling are different steps. As for crimp, I do measure the overall thickness of the round and calibrate the die. It ensures that mixed brass and various bullets stay within spec and pass the hundo gauge. Too little and the bullets won't stay put, too much and you start losing accuracy. But also keep in mind that brass thickness varies for mixed brass, so forcing the exact crimp will cause variable pressure on the bullet. For low recoiling rounds, including some rifle rounds such as 223, you don't even have to crimp. The brass is elastic and will keep the bullet stay put with the neck tension alone. A bonus is that using only the neck tension takes the wall thickness out of the equation - you get each round held by the natural elasticity of the brass with approximately the same force, while the finished round will vary slightly in measured crimp due to the variation in brass thickness. You trade consistent diameter of the rounds for consistent pressure on the bullet. Just remember that you still have to remove the bell no matter what your preferred crimp is. If you adjust your die to take out the bell, which you confirm by passing the gauge, you're at the good starting point. And to make sure you took the bell out, measure and calibrate the crimping die (which is what I do). From there, add crimp if you need to.

Winchester primers seem to have gone downhill recently, they don't look uniform and are not all flat. As if monkeys have been churning them out lately. They'll get stuck in the primer tubes, so I often drop the primer rod down the tube while the tube is still on top of the primer magazine. That way I know all the primers are out before removing the tube.

A high-end shooter is like any other tool. It gets heavily used, it needs maintenance and parts will eventually have to be replaced. With a 2011, if your frame is solid and your slide fit is good, you have a "good gun." The grip will outlast other parts and you have to replace spring and eventually the barrel (needs fitting). Action usually last a very long time, but it's also something that can be easily replaced if there is a need.

One: It's not "aim, fire," it's "keep the gun on target while operating the trigger." Two: Think of support hand as if you're shooting a rifle - it holds the gun on target, while the dominant hand runs the trigger and provides a disruption.

The gun recoils up, then passes the original POI some time before .19 to end up a few inches low at around .19, settling at the original POI at .22. This means that something is driving the gun down and it can be the spring or you. To determine which one you will have to try a few things, from faster splits to firing just the first shot and watching the sights. And "driving the gun" is somewhat contentious concept. Even the highest level shooters adapt some specific pressure during recoil to match their particular gun, which is "driving the gun" of sorts. If the muzzle doesn't dip, or doesn't dip much, it's considered static recoil control, while in reality there is a lot of gray area. If you look at some older videos of Miculek shooting big bore revolvers fast, the muzzle starts going up and then he "readjusts his grip" and shoots it flat. The readjustment is to match the input through the hands with the massive recoil. If everything was truly "static" about the recoil control, there would never be need for any adjustment.

While it could be the recoil spring, if you're new it's more likely that you're "driving the gun" by proactively pushing into it as you fire to minimize the muzzle raise. Note that this is not a flinch (far from it), but it's still a deficiency in technique because it requires very precise timing while not providing any benefit over "static" recoil control. The correct way is to use your support hand to clamp on the gun and prevent it from "dancing" around, while not adding to it with a push from the strong hand. Try shooting at the berm, only registering where the shot fired (calling the shot). You cannot just take one sight picture and fire two shots without registering where each one of them went; you can start this way, but until you actually see when/where the second shot fired you're not there. As you speed up and focus on the second shot, you'll see at what point (split time) it starts to dip and you can then pay attention to how much you're pushing with your strong hand and ease off.

Thanks! I'll look up some of those grips and see if it makes sense for the small amount of shooting I expect with this gun. Good to hear I'm not the only one with the issue.

A few days back I took out one of my 1911s for some random range blasting and realized that the grip, being slightly narrower, creates strange pressure point in the webbing of my palm to the point that I notice it and register as "unpleasant." Something that I never feel with 2011s, plastic double-wides [sic], or N+ frame size revolvers. This was a Kimber in 10mm, shooting my Limited .40 major loads, nothing even hot. Quick Background: my SVI .40 got repurposed for 9mm L/O so I now have a bunch of long-loaded .40s that won't fit into CZ/Tanfoglio magazines, hence I wanted to test how it worked in a 10mm 1911 I had laying around. Anyone else notices similar issues with the narrower grip? Any suggestions?

This applies to spectators too, not just law enforcement. The DQ under 10.5.13 applies to competitors since non-competitors cannot be DQ-ed from a match they aren't participating in. They could be asked to leave instead, but there are no specific USPSA rules that would require or authorize MD/RM to ask legally armed non-participants to leave, which would be the only remedy. In fact, I am not sure whether it could be a range violation to be legally armed at a cold range while not participating in the shooting activities and whether the host organization could enforce it in any way. Rule 3.3 allows rule deviation only for compliance with the local law (and having a CCW is not violation of the local law), while the only other rule that provides additional authority to the host organization is 10.7.3 about prohibited substances (where the host is implied to be able to have additional rules that are not covered by the USPSA).

1100 is a newer model with a few nice improvements, so it should be your default choice between the two. The only potential negative is that 1100 cannot load some very long rifle cartridges that 1050 can, but in exchange you're not moving the toolhead as much and you get a more efficient stroke (in a way).

Yup, and this is much easier and safer done on a progressive press. With other types, the "repeat" part requires paying attention and not making a human error. With progressive presses, one you get to the "make one good cartridge" the "repeat" process is quite safe and much less prone to human error.