[SA-35 “Hi-Power”]

We still haven’t seen but the one sample at the little shop I work at. However, FNs new versions are likely to start shipping in late Q3. There is certainly a price difference, but, after feeling them side by side, the FN is worth every penny more (not that I won’t try to convince my lovely wife that we need at least one of each).

 

I’m all for both guns though; more options on the market for such an outstanding design can’t hurt. 

[Sig P320 AXG vs WC P320, Which One?]

I’ve got two Wilson frames on guns I’ve assembled. They feel great but the AXG is better in my opinion. I don’t have any weights in those two guns so I would expect the AXG Pro to be friendlier for recoil as well. 
 

Personally, I have trouble seeing the pull for the full Wilson guns. The frame is like $80 bucks and I think they just give a sig slide a facelift. Certainly cool, but not the same value in my mind when compared with the (roughly) equally priced AXG that has a well machined aluminum grip. Just feels like you’re getting more there, to me.

[AXG Grip?]

I don’t know if I’d let it fully replace my TXG for competition, but I will say the AXG (the Pro) is the best feeling version of the P320 so far. Two of mine have Wilson frames but that AXG is a couple steps above for me. 
 

Gets ya just a little closer to thinking you finally saved enough money for a super fancy 2011 type, if you close your eyes and hold your tongue right just don’t expect the trigger to complete the illusion 

[New SIG Pistol - 03/22/22]

On 3/18/2022 at 12:36 PM, abigger04 said:

Could it be a .22 conversion kit for the p320?  Hard to tell from the video but the audible report sounds like its less than 9mm.

With the TX-22 and 502 running around, this would be my guess - particularly with ammo prices being so…..super duper depressing. 

[Wheelgun Woes]

Well, I’m at a loss.

 

I’ve installed a new, full-power hammer spring and an extended Apex firing pin in my R8 and am continuing to get light primer strikes with various factory ammo (I don’t reload for my 9mm revolver as I don’t really have the time or space and I’ve been able to find a couple factory loadings with a strong enough crimp to avoid bullet jump). 
 

It happens randomly, sometimes two in a row, sometimes one at the worst time (which is any time in these things). I’m curious if others have had similar issues or if anyone can think of a logical reason why (like the hammer prematurely slipping off the sear, if that’s possible). 
 

I will be consulting S&W…..again. It’s been a couple years since I last talked to them about it and they couldn’t replicate the problem. My first favorite hobby led to a kid so my second favorite has taken a break which is why I’m just now getting around to seeing the problem again. I’ve got enough video of me saying bad words to hopefully convince them now.

 

Anyways, any help would be appreciated. 

[Moonclip holders/pouches?]

I use James Austin’s moonclip server in USPSA. Only have to reach for one place but I don’t know how ICORE views this piece of equipment. 
 

I love mine! No issues in about three years of use.

[The Best Training Tool?]

On 3/14/2022 at 11:40 AM, NoSteel said:

I’ve shot several Revo matches as well as some steel challenge Revo Optics after I spent a few years watching 2 club members have Revo fun at our matches.  Stage planning,  huge!!  Another issue,  if you go back to semi auto and run a Revo 1 time a season it’s like starting over,  but still allot of fun.  If there was a Revo Optic option other than Open, I’d run it all the time!!

Definitely felt the “starting over” bit a couple days ago. Went to an evening “practice match” and had the reloads go well and the first stage was decent but ran into some light primer strikes that quickly took the joy out of the challenge. (Got probably the highest compliment an auto shooter can give a revolver shooter - “That was actually almost fast” )

[627 V Comp Optic]

I played around with a micro red dot on my TRR8 a while back. Certainly fun, but I eventually returned to irons as I needed the optic for something else. Should be a couple pic rail mounts that replace the rear sight on the 627.

I’ve got more experience now with the Holosun products and have not had any issues; couldn’t speak to the Cmore.

[CMMG 22lr Kit and Short 556 Barrels]

I’ve only used that kit on a 10.5” barrel but I would suspect decent accuracy in that 4.5”as most 22lr pistols can delivery good groups with such barrel lengths. I’ve had a couple Ruger Mk series do just fine at 25yds as the bullet has plenty of barrel to work with (it’s been a few years but 2” groups could be reached on my better days). The greater stability of a braced gun would likely do fine. My 10.5” could drill a nice 3” group at fifty which is not bad given the bullet size difference between the two cartridges.

[Nice guns dont make better shooters]

It’s always fun to catch those guns who spent as much on a gun as I did on my first two vehicles combined  

 

It all comes back to the fundamentals and learning to apply them alongside more nuanced skills like footwork.
 

Glad you had a lot of fun! 

[furthest pistol shot you've attempted and made]

Kinda of the same situation on some ranch land but shooting at a boulder years back. You could tell a knock knock joke by the time the 45 got there (somewhere about 700ish according the one of the landowners). We were shooting from an elevated house sitting atop shipping containers pretty cool spot.

 

Took a mag or so to dial it in but I landed four or so out of the second mag. Certainly a lot of fun!

[Back It Up a Tad]

I really enjoy getting  out past 100 yards or so and shooting steel (C-Zone most of the time because it’s what I’ve got) with whatever pistol I’m focusing on at the time. Same basic test can be made with a dot drill but there’s something about overcoming the mental block most folks have that handguns can’t be used at further distances. 

 

Sight alignment and trigger control must be spot on of course and recoil management definitively has to be on point to make it more than a one shot drill. 
 

As I’ve gotten more comfortable with it, I’ve periodically tried Bill Drills (longer time window of course) or lower par times for my first shot. Fun stuff if you’re getting bored with close paper targets. 
 

 

[Humility]

“Humility is not the absence of truth, but stark truth.” Father Joseph C. Martin

[The Best Training Tool?]

For many that have shown more of an interest in revolvers at my local matches, it seems the “flow” of executing a stage flawlessly with a wheel gun is different somehow; they can’t put their finger on it, but something about it is mesmerizing. When it’s done right, it’s just…. “Woah”.

 

The tougher/more frequent reloads, fighting the balance point of the gun, the more taxing trigger: these things can turn many away from revolvers. But, showing the positive effect proficiency with one can have on your Limited ranking or Carry Optics proficiency seems to incite more interest. How the fundamentals must be so much closer to perfect for it to work well can be attractive to those looking to pursue a higher grade of skill. To me, a revolver has proven to be the single most challenging and rewarding training tool. 

 

I’ve found more shooters interested in wheel gun usage when presenting it this way. Have other revolver shooters found this to be the case? Have you converted a person or two in your local group? How?
 

 

[in your opinion...]

A mentality of urgency, something akin to finding the practical applicability of the sport for myself and the defense of those around me. My goal is not a rank but a reliable defensive skill set. For me, when all the little tips and tricks are held against the standard of survival, that question of “will this work in the real world”, what doesn’t make the cut doesn’t matter.

 

 

[Recommended Books]

While not exactly along the lines of competition, I’ve found Bill Jordan’s “No Second Place Winner” to be enlightening commentary on mentality and real-world situations (ya know, that “practical” word that seems to have subsided in importance in some competition). One of the earliest widespread texts on gun fighting and it’s written by a world class exhibition shooter. It is also educational to see what gear and technique has stood the test of time.

[Trying something new]

Excellent topic!

 

Definitely have experienced this before, particular when shooting revolver. When I first started, I was viewing the match as a whole rather than as classes. This wasn’t so much the issue as was my tendency to approach stages with my 8 shots and slower reload with the same tactics as an open shooter. 
 

Once I found my best way to shoot the stages with the gun I was actually using, I got pretty good at catching some of the auto guys. Focusing on As and reloading only on the move (really dependent on getting all those hits) closed the gap between me and a lot of regulars. But it didn’t happen until I stopped playing somebody else’s way and acknowledged the limitations of my gun and myself.

 

 

 

 

[My Hands Are Stupid]

I’m in the “strangle it to get it to shoot” camp. Obviously, not to the point that it affects accuracy or invites unnecessary fatigue. I describe it at your best job interview/good-ol-boy handshake plus some - evenly sandwiching the gun from both sides. 
 

I’ve heard the argument for a looser shooting hand for faster trigger finger manipulation but can’t get over that our bodies are naturally going to tense at some point in shooting (excitement, recoil anticipation, etc). I take the approach of using what my body will naturally do, which is grip something trying to jump out of my hands with a pretty good amount of force from both sides. This, coupled with weight forward in my feet and “bending the horseshoe” as (I think) Bob Vogel teaches has served me well for years. I can isolate my trigger finger just fine and not give the gun a path of least resistance to one side (which is what the grip you describe felt like to me when I tried it a while back).

(Also, the grip style you’re trying reminds me a little too much of “ya need 60% in this hand and 35% in that other one and clench your strong side butt cheek for that last 5%. There’s a reason overly technical approaches like the Weaver stance have died off.)

[Cold Hands]

I’ve noticed some improvement for me in the cold after trying something a little different: I restricted the movement in my fingers with some tape/bandaids/etc. Dryfire practice with my smaller joints constrained simulated the effect of cold on muscles enough that I was able to dial in on the areas that I could control in such a situation.

Instead of worrying about operating the pistol with normal fine motor skills, I focused on making sure it didn’t move with the less controllable trigger press (in essence, I found a little higher pressure from my support hand reliably counteracted the unavoidably heavier slap of a frozen sausage finger). I basically focused on the recoil management and gun presentation to maximize my accuracy rather than try to get all my normal speed out of the gun. 
 

Just had a pretty good run last night at a steel practice match because of this. My times were not as fast but I confidently laid out plenty of alphas and only had one steel plate require follow up shots.

[Bump + Other Advanced Transition Techniques]

I’ve seen this best shown against dueling trees and plate racks because the transition gap is small enough that skill with such a transition is more evident. It seems to me in the really good runs on the racks that I draw little arches between the plates with the briefest possible pause between them. I use that time to get off the trigger as well, on my better days at least. 

 

For me, having six little dots taped on the wall helps to get the lateral flow down for a plate rack; it makes you actually find that front sight on the subsequent target rather than dry firing at a big open wall or transitioning between the light switch and that spider that lives in the corner. It helped to have that and my recoil management down before trying to work in a bump transition.

[Hello All]

I’m excited to participate with all the info sharing. I’ve mostly focused on handguns, so there’s plenty to learn in other areas (and I might even run into others unstable enough that they enjoy shooting revolvers ).

 

Been shooting USPSA sporadically for several years; mostly used the local matches to keep my concealed carry skills dusted off. Trying to be more consistent going forward, at least during my jobs slower summer months.

 

Thanks to all the knowledgeable shooters on here for helping out other folks!