Flatland Shooter

I looked up Longville on the map. You are right at 200 miles from my house. Ah but, are you shooting at Double Tap or Space City Challenge? Bill

Is the discount off of "retail" prices only?

My bad. I think you are right jmorris. If the moderators can move this to the proper forum I would appreciate it. I live just north of Houston and when I do sell, I don't think I want to mess with the hassle of tracking down a "friendly" FFL or the nuiasance of dealing with FedEx or UPS or whoever I would need to deal with for shipping. I will prefer a FTF transfer so that the buyer can see what he is getting before he hands over the cash. Old school, yes, but that's my preference. Thanks for everyone's input. (Even the low ball bids, helps me keep my perspective.) Bill

Oh TMC, too bad you are in California. If it was a face to face transfer in the North Houston area I might be tempted ..... no, guess not but thanks anyway. Bill

Finished loading 200 rounds on my 550 earlier this evening. Took less than 30 minutes including a phone call and a bathroom break (old age, tiny bladder). Dang fine machine and does 100% of what I want it to. I don't switch calibers a lot, but I am set up for 9mm, .38/.357 mag and 45 ACP. Doesn't take all that long to switch calibers and if I get to the point I'm loading two or more on a regular basis, I'll buy another 550. Recommended them to friends, all got them, all love them. Nuff said. Bill

Always thought that when I retired I'd pull out all those guns I acquired through the years and go shooting. I'm shooting more but seem to stick to the same few guns. This one has been in the safe for 20+ years. Time for it to go to the range, but I'm just not a revo shooter. So, I'm thinking of selling her to a good home but have no idea what she's worth. She's a S&W 25-2 Blue with 6" bbl plus TS, TT, TH. All original in worn blue box with four moon clips, several different Instruction & Safety Manuals and the brown wax paper wrapper she came in. As for condition, the gun doesn't appear to have been shot much. No holster wear. The only wear in the bluing is a thin line around the cylinder where the cylinder stop rubs. A small 1/4' scratch (not deep) is found on the bottom of the original wood grips. If it helps, SN is N845xxx. On the box under Product Code is 0252026036 and under Spec. Ord. is the number 3196. Any help out there? Bill

Courtesy of Matt Burkett's comments on Comstock Scoring at the USPSA website. Check it out for further information. Comstock factoring is the average points per second. A one-hundred point course shot in ten seconds is a ten factor. So is a fifty-point stage shot in five seconds. Divide the factor by the time, and that's the factor -- the amount of time earning a point on that stage should take. A five-factor stage is worth five points per second, so each point is worth 1/5th -- or 0.20 -- second. If you shoot a miss on a five factor stage and make it up in exactly three seconds you have the same score. If you make it up in less than three seconds, you're earning some points back. If you take longer than three seconds to make up the shot you're losing more points than the miss cost you in the first place. Something to remember is that a miss on a Comstock stage is fifteen points: Ten penalty points, and the five points that you didn't earn for an "A" hit on the target. What it boils down to is this: The lower the stage factor, the more important it is to shoot all "A's" and vise versa; with higher factors, speed becomes more important. On a ten factor stage, you better make up that shot in a hurry or forget about it! You should always average a minimum of 90-95% of points available on a stage. These days, at the upper levels of competition, you need to earn 97% or more of the available points to win the match.

Rule 5.1.7 covers this. If the replacement gun has essentially the same sights, i.e. is set up for the same Division and will make "major" with the same ammunition (assuming your initial gun made major), and the replacement does not result in a "gained" advantage. it should be O.K. The rules require you get the approval of the Range Master prior to using the "new" gun. As for holsters, the rules do not restrict what holster you use as long as it meets the requirements set out in rule 5.2.x. I can not find anything on "replacement holsters". I don't remember ever seeing it in the rulebook, but somewhere on the forum was a discussion about moving your holster or magazine pouches in the middle of the match. Don't know what the ruling would be and I've never heard of it being enforced. Bill

In my case: Step 1 - Check each round with "chamber gage". The round must freely fall into the gage and back out by gravity to pass. Step 2 - Place "checked and passed" round into a plastic box that holds 50 rounds primer side up. Step 3 - Inspect the full 50 round box for high or upside down primers (or anything else that looks different.) Step 4 - Mark the base of the "finished" rounds with a magic marker to indicate these are "match ready" rounds. To ease magazine loading at a match, these rounds are dumped into a larger plastic box. (Usually 200 rds per box.) Every 250 rounds or so I also measure the overall length of the finished cartridge. If out of spec, I will kick out or check the prior rounds for length. Rounds that stick slightly into the chamber gage or the primer doesn't look just right go into the "practice ammo" box. Rejects are set aside for the bullet puller (for those days my wife forces me out of the house and into the garage). Bill

I received two e-mails today similar to yours for my "Chase" account. Got no "Chase" account. Checked the Properties for the e-mail address. It indicates its from a "chase.com" location. These crooks are getting a little more sophisticated. My account is at Wells Fargo and they regularly send out e-mails indicating they DO NOT send e-mails with directions to "click" on the attached link. Always exit the e-mail and then access your account with your internet browser from the "official" website. Bill

I've never used an electronic/chemical bore cleaner. Can you elaborate on your homemade unit? Thanks. Bill

Chet, Send me your e-mail address and I can send you the pdf file as an attachment. I just downloaded it from the TSS website. Bill

Mix up a little and drop a lead bullet into it. Leave it in there for a while. Seeing is believing. As for the other crud in your barrel, the 50/50 peroxide and vinegar mix will not touch it. I usually clean the barrel with Outers, then soak in the mix for a while, brush with a stainless steel brush, and repeat soak if necessary and rebrush. Finish with a good scrubbing with a little more Outers and coat with a little oil. Bill

Seems to be working on my computer. http://www.brassmanbrass.com/monthlyspecials.html

Yeah, doen't it piss you off to get beat by a guy with poor fundamentals?

I made 1/2 size and 1/3 size targets from old targets pulled from the trash at a club match. Was able to recover a half dozen no-shoot targets with a few edge hits. Cut them down and they work great. To concentrate on the A zone, I marked the border with a yellow highlighter. Also used some of the scraps to make a couple mini-poppers. For practice on the move, I set up targets in the bedrooms and go back and forth up the hallway. Some are propped on furniture. Others are taped (with the spouse's consent) to the walls. The idea of a mover is interesting. Something to think about. Bill

Weak hand trigger finger on the front of the trigger guard is "old school". Lots of shooters years ago did it (and often won matches) using that extra finger to hold down the gun. But back then I felt it helped me pull shots to the left. But this begs the question, why do so many gunsmiths still checker the front of the trigger guard on their custom guns? Bill

Another aspect of loading Major 9x19 long is to insure its used in the correct gun. By loading Major 9x19 to 38 super lengths keeps these rounds from being used in a "stock" 9mm that may not be able to handle the pressure. I had some loaded 9x21 "walk off" a short time ago and this got me to thinking. They sure can't use the 9x21, but if I had Major 9 in the pickup instead, someone may get hurt. (Note: I assume the sleazebag may have some honest friends that don't deserve the pain.) And in my case, I have a dozen or so "collector" 9x19 handguns in the safe that I would not even remotely consider shooting major in. If something ever happens to me, I want those who benefit from my years of acquiring guns to enjoy them, not blow them to kingdom come. Sorry, a little off topic but one that may be considered important by some. Bill

I'm a lot like zhunter. Reloading is therapeutic. I rarely have more than 500 rounds loaded up in advance, but I keep my 550 on the ready. If I feel like getting out of the house, load up 100. Just happen by the reloading bench, load up 100. I do not differentiate between "match loads" and "practice loads". Each round goes through the same quality control ritual. Rounds that do not pass muster end up in a 5 gallon bucket for the day I just want to go to the range and go "bang". Bill

I go with a low tech approach. I use sticky labels. Since I usually re-use the DVD-RW on a frequent basis, I just keep a pen and sticky label pad on top of the DVD recorder and mark away. Not much help, but it works aroung my house. Bill

If I'm hitting my targets and poppers, a good idea. If I'm having problems, I'll need to slow down and conserve bullets for the required hits. Bill

Its covered by Rule 9.9.2. By my interpretation, if at least a portion of the highest scoring area is not visible, no failure to shoot at or miss penalties will be incurred. Depending on the distances involved, saving one of the disappearing targets for last shells may add to my time. Twenty points for all A's on both targets x 0.154 seconds/point = 3.08 seconds. Not grabbing and stashing a second magazine, moving forward while charging the gun and skipping a reload can easily save me that 3.08 seconds. But like they say, looks good on paper. Now to see how it works on the ground. If nothing else, I enjoyed the strategy discussions. Good night all. Bill

I think you are right. It looks like possibly a 6.5 HF stage (0.154 seconds/point). So if passing on one of the disappearing targets will save me more than 1.54 seconds (10 points x 0.154 seconds/point), my score improves. Again, will look at the course on the ground and see just how macho I feel in the morning. Bill

Starting the course with my big stick (25 rounds reliably.) leaves me one round short unless I do not engage one of the two twisters. Both are disappearing targets, so a miss will score as NPM. I figure I will need to move at least 3 yards before my first shot, so I tried picking up the magazine and running from the kitchen into the living room while inserting magazine no. 2 into its pouch. Doesn't seem to cost me much time. (I run real slow!) Once I see the actual course layout I'll better determine how I want to shoot it. But thanks to everyone's input and a little dry fire practice this evening, I have a reasonable knowledge of my limitations. Thanks. Bill FYI, here is the stages we will be shooting. Stage 5 is the one we are discussing. http://www.texassouthsection.com/IZStages_12-06.pdf

It looks like once you leave the box you won't be coming back unless you really screw up! And you wil be several yards from the box before your first shot. Looks like I need to carry magazine No. 2 with me, so I'm looking for the best way to do it. And if I were to carry my Para magazine in my mouth, lets just say I really don't want anyone, even my dentist, dremeling my pearly whites. The magnet in the shirt pocket may show promise, but for now I'll continue a little dry fire practice with the spare mag in my weak hand. Thanks for the input. Bill