Sixgun Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 I'm going to have Benny Hill build me a Limited gun. I currently shoot what is basically a STI Competitor in .40 with the S1 comp for Open. I'm looking to shoot Limited, and want something that kinda feels like my open gun. I'm thinking that the Fat Free 6" would probably be the ticket. The negative to this is you can't shoot outside the USPSA with it. (If I ever had a desire to travel it would be fun to go to a World Shoot.) I just shot an Edge in .40 with some 200pf pin loads and was really impressed with how it handled. The only negative I saw to the Edge was I was overswinging some targets. Does anyone here have both a 6" and a 5" Limited gun? I'd appreciate any thoughts you have on either. Thanks, Ray P.S. Currently I'm leaning toward the Fat Free 6"! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Merlin Orr Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 Start here FatFree I like my 6" but you can definitly tell the slide is slower. It is slow enough to be a little disconcerting for me. I would say you should shoot one before springing the $$$. My .02. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sixgun Posted March 29, 2004 Author Share Posted March 29, 2004 Thanks Merlin. I did a search and read as much as possible on the 6" guns. Also, noone in my club has a 6", therefore I won't have a chance to shoot one. Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benny hill Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 The 6" shoots just like a 38oz. 5" except softer from less powder & a longer sight radius. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry White Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 I have both a 5 and a 6 fat free. I shoot the 6. My 5 hasn't been fired since I got the 6 two years ago or a little more. A regular 6 feels, and is slow and slugish. When Benniy finished my 6 the slide was 1/2 oz lighter that a 5 in classic slide. Slide speed is as fast as a 5. I can load .3 less than the load for a 5 in and get the same pf, shorter pluse. less felt recoil and a faster return. I can't see going back to the 5 in. Larry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 Sixgun---I got mine from Benny last year and it is an amazing piece. Write the check and prepare that face of yours to be wearin' lots of smiles Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfinney Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 Another vote for the 6"...... its a sweet shooter! Longer sight radius does NOT equal slower... but it is more accurate, for me. and mine doesn't cycle slower than a 5", I'm running 11 pound spring and a buff. Yeehah! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kurtm Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 I've had My 6" F.F. gun a year now! I don't like to shoot it as much as my 5" Edge. The main reason is that I NEVER want to wear out the VERY BEST PISTOL I own!!! My barrel is just as slow as a 5", meaning no powder savings, but it still will turn in a 1 1/2" 3 round group at 50 yards! I use a 14# spring and a 17# main spring with 180s. It feels like it cycles faster than the 5" and give me those 50 yard targets!!! The sight radius gives me the confidence to do HEAD SHOTS at 25yds and I don't think that I've missed more than 4 or 5 pieces of steel since I got it. Get both as you won't want to burn up the 6" in practice....thats for the 5" gun! KURTM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogmaDog Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 I shot my 6" fat free for the first time in a match yesterday. It felt very soft and flat compared to my 5" .45 single stack. It did feel slightly sluggish shooting 200 gr. lead bullets, when I compared it to a 5" gun with an 11lb spring. I think I'll try a lighter recoil spring in it, maybe 12.5 lb. I don't know that it feels anything like an open gun...I shot one of those for the first time yesterday, and it was really disorienting. The blast made me blink, and the gun jarred my hands. So far, I'm really happy with the 6" though. DD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew B Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 Dogma dog - is your 6inch in .40 or .45? I ask since you commented on recoil pulse and compared it to your SS .45. I have both 5 and 6 inch .40's. The six inch slide is lightened and I used a bushing barrel to reduce the forward weight. The six inch advantage is that it shoots softer than the 5 and has a longer sight radius. When I was shooting limited, I found that I preferred shooting the 5 inch. It simply points better and I get better transitions with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DogmaDog Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 Andrew, my 6" is in .40. I compare it to .45 simply because I don't really have any experience with anything else, though the 5" gun with the 11 lb spring I referred to was an SVI in .40 with tungsten guide rod and mag well. Anyway, I'm looking forward to shooting the 6". Had some "growing pains" with it at the first match, but it definitely shoots flatter, and gets back on target sooner than my L10 gun. I think I'll be pretty happy with it. DD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfinney Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 With the slide mass being the same as a 5", the lightened 6" guns shouldn't be any more sluggish than 5" ..... assuming its sprung correctly. Granted, as some of the weight is further forward of the Center of Gravity, it will balance slightly different, but overall slide weight should be @ the same, and still moves the same distance, and with light springs and a buff is pretty quick, in my gun. I shoot 180s..... some people shoot 165s for a snappier feel, maybe that would speed the gun cycling up for you. 200s are just to sluggish in general for my taste. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benny hill Posted March 29, 2004 Share Posted March 29, 2004 I shoot a 165 jhp over 5.3 of acc. #2 @ 1.170 oal. Vol. is 1028fps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasag93 Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 You guys think 200's are sluggish, friend of mine shoots 220's in his 40. You can watch the slide cycle. He likes it. I couldn't stand to "wait" on the slide. TXAG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
reneet Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 I don't know exactly how long I've had my 6" FF or how I ever got along without it. It's considerably lighter than my 5" Edge. I didn't realize exactly how much I liked it until I decided to switch back to my 5" in a club match one day. I think I shot 2 stages then went and got my 6" Fat Free out and put the 5" gun away. Haven't shot the 5" gun since. Another VOTE for Benny's 6" Fat Free! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 You guys think 200's are sluggish, friend of mine shoots 220's in his 40. You can watch the slide cycle. He likes it. I couldn't stand to "wait" on the slide. TXAG Hmmm, most gun's return in .05 if you can shooter faster than that, hats off to you. I think it more feel thing. Look at the top 16 of top at Nationals, or the top 32 for that matter, how many 6" gun were there? Not many. Shoot a few first and then see if it is really what you want. You can spend a lot of $$$ trying "the trick" things. I know GM's who shoot 5's, 6's, 165's - 200's and then gun/loads seems not to matter that much. It all comes down to what YOU like best, and thern using the heck out of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasag93 Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 It wasn't that slow, but as an RO I am not use to being able to see the slide function. The gun was set up for 165s and he was shooting some 220 black bullets for fun. The slide seemed really slow. It was a six inch gun too. TXAG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benny hill Posted March 30, 2004 Share Posted March 30, 2004 There's nothing "trick" about a 6" light gun. Some people simpley shoot them better, as some shoot 5" boat anchore's great & some light 5" great. Different stroke's for different folk's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Loves2Shoot Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Ooops I didn't intend to imply 6 inchers are a trick deal. There are a lot of thing out there that are though. If I liked the feel, I wouldn't hesitate getting one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Ankeny Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 I shot thousands of rounds though a 6 inch gun, then made the dumbest move imaginable. I traded it back to Benny for another project. What was I thinking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfinney Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Look at the top 16 of top at Nationals, or the top 32 for that matter, how many 6" gun were there? Not many.................. It all comes down to what YOU like best, and thern using the heck out of it. Good point on the first part, but as you later pointed out in your post, what works for YOU is the best thing for you, right now. How many people could pick up the gear of the top sixteen and turn in the same kind of performances? Not many. I'd wager some would do worse shooting Super Squad type gear, compared to their own equip, because they just aren't used to the "high performance" setups. Really light, short quick guns shooting light bullets may get a Top Shooter a trophy, but thats them....its the practice behind handling those kind of guns that make the difference. Kind of like sticking a dirt track driver in a Formula 1 car, and expecting him to turn fast lap times, just because the F-1 car is "faster" - without practice, the dirt track driver can't handle an F-1 car at its potential. My 6" gun is easier for me to shoot at a higher level of performance than 5" guns.... but thats me. As Benny said (and he should know, I'd guess, "Your results may vary". Anyway, thats my theory at least Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eric nielsen Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Re: top 16 http://www.robleatham.com/libraryrldc/pict...be03natsweb.gif http://www.robleatham.com/libraryrldc/pict...03natsfront.gif http://www.robleatham.com/libraryrldc/guns...itedchamp03.gif Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MoNsTeR Posted March 31, 2004 Share Posted March 31, 2004 Jebus that thing must weigh >50oz! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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