Stafford

I used to run Winchester USA Forged 9mm in my Glocks and M&P's at the range. But, after searching online, I was able to find brass at a similar or better price than the Winchester steel cased at Walmart. And of course, Walmart quit selling handgun ammo anyway. Now, ammo is hard to find and expensive. However, it seems that steel case is plentiful and at ok prices compared to brass. Typically, I'm seeing Wolf, Tula, and USA Forged available at various places. I never had an issue with the Winchester USA Forged, but apparently a lot of pistols don't run this stuff very well. No experience with Tula or Wolf, but I expect my Glocks would do just fine. However, how do CZ's do with steel cased ammo? All I've ever run is brass through my Shadow 2, SP-01, and C-100. Do I need to stick with brass, or will they run the steel cased stuff without issue?

I had someone tell me yesterday that Ashley Rheuark does very well in Limited shooting a 9mm. Is this something she does regularly? I saw on an old thread where she placed 11th in Nationals shooting Limited Minor in 2018. Just wondering if she regularly shoots Minor in Limited.

Bought a couple of these last year for my G22 and thought I would run them in Limited class. First range session and multiple jams, so I put them away and forgot about them. This spring, I found myself shooting more .40 than 9mm so I brought the ETS mags out for range sessions. And they ran without any issues in the G22 and a G23. I chalked it up to the mags needed to break-in a bit or something. However, after 5 or 6 trouble free range sessions, I started having jams again. Anyone have experience with these mags?

I have 2 18 rd mags for my SP-01 that run in my S2. So, I could go with 19 to start, with an 18 round second mag which should get me through most stages.

Right now, I’m content for local matches. Because I don’t really know what else is out there. And I’m not that competitive anyway. The RO told me, “I don’t know who told you to shoot Production, but they’re an idiot”. I didn’t tell him I decided it all on my own!!! He was actually very helpful and gave me some tips during the day. He was also an experienced competitor who could have kept his opinion to himself. My guess is that he knew that I would either A. Get a Limited pistol in .40, or B. Get my S2 milled and go CO. He was probably banking on B, that I’d eventually go to CO since everyone is shooting that now. If I took his advice and added baseplates for Limited, I’d be one step closer to CO without changing calibers.

Purchased a Shadow 2 because I liked the gun. Had tried it at the range and decided I was getting one and moving to Production. In my first matches, I had shot a couple of my polymer striker fired pistols in Limited Minor. I had decided to stick with 9mm, didn’t want to trick out a pistol for Limited, and had no experience with optics. And, of course, I really, really liked the Shadow 2. So, Production was the class for that gun and me. So, 6 months later... there’s no one shooting Production. I’d considered shooting Limited Minor again at my local match for fun. Even though I had committed to the division that goes with the Shadow 2. At a match today, the RO told me I should just get out of Production and shoot Limited Minor with the Shadow 2. I told him that I have a stock Glock 22 and he just shook his head. Said to get some baseplates for the S2 and quit worrying about reloads and go faster. His reasoning - A’s and steel are all scored the same. He said I shot A’s enough not to worry about the C’s and D’s. And that I would score higher overall. So, I looked at the entries of my most recent matches, and there are as many or more people shooting Limited Minor as are shooting Production.

I haven't really shot much with a red dot. And of those times, only once was it a positive experience. The other times it is possible that the dot wasn't zeroed correctly. Or perhaps it was my eyes that were the culprit. I've read that Astigmatism and red dots don't always blend well together. For those that have Astigmatism and use a red dot, what is the best solution? Smaller dot, bigger dot, or just use iron sights?

I guess I could play with my G22 and add a plug and magwell, target sights, base pads, and hang a light on the rail. But, aside from the extra cost, it seems like sort of a hassle. The simplicity of the Shadow 2 really appealed to me. I originally shot Limited so I wouldn’t have to change mags as often and “stage plan”. But in most cases, you just reload whenever you move. Other parts of planning would be required regardless of which division.

I shot my first match last summer in Limited Major because I had a Glock 22 and .40 ammo on hand. Then I realized quickly that a stock G22 wasn't really competitive in Limited and that you might as well shoot Minor and focus on good hits and saving money on ammo. So, I alternated between an M&P9 and a Glock 17, both stock in LImited Minor. At some point, I decided that I preferred to shoot 9mm and I wasn't going to reload. And I had tried out a Shadow 2 and decided that was the gun I wanted to purchase. With those decisions made, I moved to Production. And then I realized, no one else was shooting Production. Last weekend, there were 84 entries at a match and only 6 were in Production. Everyone is shooting Carry Optics, Limited, and PCC. And then, you'll find Production, Open, SS, etc... I've gone back and looked as the small number of matches I've shot in. Limited Minor is probably as well represented as Production in the number of shooters. I could flip flop between divisions and probably increase my overall match score by shooting Limited Minor since I would go a bit faster.

Ran it today outdoors. It was a few degrees cooler and not as sunny. But I ran the Shadow 2 along with a new C-100 and alternated every three mags. Guns were warm but never too hot. Since the C-100 was new, I ran some JHP’s to test it out. One of the jackets separated, flew off the steel and came back and lodged on my t-shirt. When I tried to remove it, it was very hot. Had to use the shirt material and basically push it off the shirt.

Well, I had my SP--01 in the bag, but wasn't planning to shoot it that day. I should have given it a few mags and let the S2 cool down. From now on, I'll plan on shooting two guns on very hot days. Today, if it doesn't rain, I'll take my S2 and my new C-100 out to shoot some steel. The C-100 just arrived yesterday.

Probably going to see a Texas Star this weekend. I've attempted a star one time previously and didn't do well. I've watched a couple of videos online and it looks as if shooting a top plate and letting the next one come to you works pretty well. Does anyone have an order that works well?

Why would a steel frame be harder on dots?

Why would a steel frame be harder on dots?

Ran it last night at my indoor USPSA match. Kind of noticed the spot on my thumb after the first stage, but forgot about it after that. Then, pinched my palm on a mag reload that drew blood. No big deal until I squirted some hand sanitizer on it - now that burned!

My back-up competition gun is an SP-01. But, I shot it at the indoor range this weekend. And since I’m using the Shadow 2 tomorrow night, I dry fired with the Shadow 2 last night. And only shot it today. I had the SP-01 in my range bag and should have alternated with it. Lesson learned.

I’ve shot outside before in the hot sun before, but not for a sustained period. Usually, it’s been an outdoor match where you shoot 18-20 rounds and then stop until your time to shoot again. Other times have been during cool temperatures. Today, I shot steel at my local outdoor range. Temps were in the high 80’s and there is no shade and there was no cloud cover today. As I was the only person on the range, I was free to move around and shoot without waiting. I brought 200 rounds and went through it fairly quickly. By the last 50 rounds, I was attempting to shoot fast as I have a USPSA match tomorrow night. I rest my thumb on the slide stop and by the last 50 rounds, the slide stop grew uncomfortably hot. By the last 10 rounds, the gun was so hot that I had to adjust my grip and move my thumb off of the slide stop. Once I quit shooting, I realized I had a small blister on my thumb.

So, just drop the rear sight and mount it and go? That’s sounding good to me.

Right now, I’m invested in Production class and want to stay there a while. But, I know I’ll end up moving toward a red dot at some point. I’ve also considered picking up the new SCCY CPX-2 with the red dot. It would give me a cheap pistol at the range and a way to learn on red dots. And I could decide if I want to go that route our not.

Seems like that was the first thing I looked into. But the consensus was that it wasn't stable, sits too high, and loses it's center too easily due to the mount.

Thinking about giving Carry Optics a try, but don’t really want to buy an optics ready pistol or have a slide milled on one of my current guns. I’m thinking an Optics Ready aftermarket slide for my G17 gen 5 might be a good option. Is there a budget friendly slide that I could use with my existing barrel and mount a red dot on at a decent price? The more I look, it seems the Canik TP9SFX that comes with a Vortex is the only budget friendly option out there.

I’ve been running mine like Glocks. Just a bit of oil here and there. But after oiling all the parts showing wear, I have put quite a bit on my SP-01.

After cleaning, I typicallly add oil everywhere I see wear in addition to the recommended lube points. With this pistol, I’m almost running it wet due to the wear points. Should I run it “wet”?

Thanks, I assumed it was normal since it cycled fine and the wear was so symmetrical visually and to touch. What is the OD? Outside Diameter?

Is this type of wear normal? The long triangle wear along the barrel has an ever so slight ridge that I can barely feel. I have a Shadow 2 purchased around the same time 5-6 months ago that shows very little wear. And the Shadow 2 has more rounds. The SP-01 shoots just fine and has had zero issues.