Beginner gun purchase help NYC

[Jfkayne]

Hi everyone,

I hope someone can help me because I am completely confused at this point!!! I have been a competitive shotgun shooter for a long time and I wanted to get into action pistol competitions. I have been going nuts trying to figure out what gun I should start with. Here are my questions:

1) if you had to pick one gun for production, limited and open, what would it be and what caliber? I plan to start with production and then add components to the gun as I progress towards limited and open. I am not looking for a gun to be ultra competitive but I thought it would be fun to shoot multiple classes. I thought the glock 35 would be a good starting gun but then I also started to look at the Para 16 40 and the Kimber custom.

2) can I shoot limited or open USPSA in NY? I keep reading all of these articles relating to the magazine capacity restrictions. Am I going to be limited to the purchase of a 1911 with pre-ban magazines? Is there such a thing as a pre-ban magazine for a glock 35? Does the magazine have to include a date stamp on it? How can someone prove that a magazine was made pre-ban?

3) finally.... Can pre-ban magazines be modified to fit modern handguns or does the gun have to also be pre-ban?

Sorry for all of the questions but it is not easy finding the information online.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Edited September 25, 2011 by Jfkayne

[bigphiltheshootist]

I'll try to answer what I can. Not sure on the laws in your state but the short answer is yes. There is USPSA and IDPA in every state and plenty of shooters here from NY that can answer specific questions.

As for guns, most choices are a matter of opinion. I swear by my Glocks. Always have and always will. For production I would go with a Glock 34 or 35 depending on if you wanted to shoot minor or major caliber. I shoot a g22 stock. You can add some things to it and still keep it production but I haven't yet. For my limited gun I am modifying a Glock 17 with extended slide release (OEM), a Ghost extended mag release, Glocktrigger.com Edge trigger group and a stainless guide rod. I will also be adding a KKM or Bar-sto barrel. For my open gun I would either send my gun to SJC customs, or get an open gun built by wither STI, Dawson Precision or one of the other highly recommended custom dealers.

There are no stamps on mags . There is also no way to tell except gen 4 glocks take different mags I think.

Hope this helps.

[GrumpyOne]

I'm not a Glock person, but for what you want to do, the only real choice is the G35. With you being limited to 10 rounds per mag even in open, you lose nothing to the 9mm, and can score major in limited, and 40 major open works well...Load down for Production, just as soft as the 9mm....

[Jfkayne]

So... as long as the glock is not a Gen4, will I be able to use any magazine with it as long as it was manufactured prior to 94? Do you have to modify those mags in any way to fit a gen 3?

Also, if you modify the trigger for limited and open, how easy is it to bring the gun back to production? Is this something the average person can do or should you really have separate guns?

I was also looking at the list of production production guns and noticed that there were no 1911's listed. Are guns like the Para 16 40 even allowed to be used in uspsa production?

Thanks for the help

[GrumpyOne]

Check out the USPSA rule book on what is allowed and not allowed for equipment...

http://www.uspsa.org/rules/2010HandgunRulesProof3web.pdf

and the approved production gun list here....

http://www.uspsa.org/uspsa-NROI-production-gunlist.php

[Maksim]

Start shooting matches and you will learn what your preference is.

Ask around on local NY forums for what the legal capacities are there. I am from NJ, and we don't have a clue.

Find a local match, go watch, ask questions.

A glock 34/35 or whatever the 40 cal version is will be the most versatile i believe, however if you like limited, you might like a 1911/2011, for production a glock. etc...

Open guns are a different animal all together.

[krdshrk]

Maks - I thought NY was 10 rounds, no pre-ban/etc.

[Ben Diss]

Maks - I thought NY was 10 rounds, no pre-ban/etc.

NY allows pre-ban (10 round). NJ does not (15 round).

[Postal Bob]

Hi everyone,

I hope someone can help me because I am completely confused at this point!!! I have been a competitive shotgun shooter for a long time and I wanted to get into action pistol competitions. I have been going nuts trying to figure out what gun I should start with. Here are my questions:

1) if you had to pick one gun for production, limited and open, what would it be and what caliber? I plan to start with production and then add components to the gun as I progress towards limited and open. I am not looking for a gun to be ultra competitive but I thought it would be fun to shoot multiple classes. I thought the glock 35 would be a good starting gun but then I also started to look at the Para 16 40 and the Kimber custom.

2) can I shoot limited or open USPSA in NY? I keep reading all of these articles relating to the magazine capacity restrictions. Am I going to be limited to the purchase of a 1911 with pre-ban magazines? Is there such a thing as a pre-ban magazine for a glock 35? Does the magazine have to include a date stamp on it? How can someone prove that a magazine was made pre-ban?

3) finally.... Can pre-ban magazines be modified to fit modern handguns or does the gun have to also be pre-ban?

Sorry for all of the questions but it is not easy finding the information online.

Thanks in advance for any help!

As a competitive shooter here on Long Island, I'll try to answer everything the best I can.

1. The one gun scenario usually doesn't work. It will put you at a disadvantage in some of the divisions. For example, the Glock 35 is a good gun, but being .40 caliber, it puts you at a disadvantage in the production division. Production division guns are usually in 9mm. I personally use a Glock 17 for production. Plenty of components available to modify the trigger and still stay legal in production. Now a Kimber, is a 1911 pistol, which normally is the single stack division. This would put you at a disadvantage in all the other divisions. I personally use a Kimber in the single stack division.

2. Yes you can shoot limited or open in NY. I wont go into details on a public forum about this. There is also the limited 10 division, which is very popular here in NY, because of the 10 round restriction. Here .40 caliber guns are the norm. And there are no pre ban mags for a 1911. Normal mag capacity is 7 or 8 rounds. And there is available 10 rounds, which are still legal in NY. And mags for a Glock 22 also fit a Glock 35. Pre ban mags are all different depending on manufacture. Some have dates, some are stamped different, some have different design characteristics

3. Pre ban mags will fit any pre or post ban gun. And the gun does not have to be pre ban, just the magazines.

The best advice I can give is to start with a production type gun in 9mm. Come down to the matches in Freeport, NY. They are somewhat modified in their matches due to the range size, but is the closest to NYC. Then once you become familiar with action shooting, start heading out to the other matches in the Pine Barrens. At the Freeport matches, you can get a lot of your questions answered in person, and see for yourself. I've included a site that lists all the matches on LI. There is an IDPA style(modified) match at Freeport next weekend, and an USPSA match the following weekend. If you come down to either on a Saturday, I will be there and can answer more of your questions.

http://www.nyshooter.com/MatchDates.html

[GrumpyOne]

Hi everyone,

I hope someone can help me because I am completely confused at this point!!! I have been a competitive shotgun shooter for a long time and I wanted to get into action pistol competitions. I have been going nuts trying to figure out what gun I should start with. Here are my questions:

1) if you had to pick one gun for production, limited and open, what would it be and what caliber? I plan to start with production and then add components to the gun as I progress towards limited and open. I am not looking for a gun to be ultra competitive but I thought it would be fun to shoot multiple classes. I thought the glock 35 would be a good starting gun but then I also started to look at the Para 16 40 and the Kimber custom.

2) can I shoot limited or open USPSA in NY? I keep reading all of these articles relating to the magazine capacity restrictions. Am I going to be limited to the purchase of a 1911 with pre-ban magazines? Is there such a thing as a pre-ban magazine for a glock 35? Does the magazine have to include a date stamp on it? How can someone prove that a magazine was made pre-ban?

3) finally.... Can pre-ban magazines be modified to fit modern handguns or does the gun have to also be pre-ban?

Sorry for all of the questions but it is not easy finding the information online.

Thanks in advance for any help!

As a competitive shooter here on Long Island, I'll try to answer everything the best I can.

1. The one gun scenario usually doesn't work. It will put you at a disadvantage in some of the divisions. For example, the Glock 35 is a good gun, but being .40 caliber, it puts you at a disadvantage in the production division.

I don't agree. How does the 40 S&W put you at a disadvantage in production? The only difference between a G34 and a G35 in production is the caliber. If you download the 40 and use heavier bullets, the recoil difference is almost non existent, and the 40 makes bigger holes, potentially giving you an "A" hit instead of a "C" hit. The 40 will weigh a bit more with the heavier bullets, soaking up recoil...The 40 S&W is just as competitive in Production as the 9mm...With the 40, you can shoot Production, switch to major PF ammo, shoot Limited 10, add a comp, maybe a magwell, and a red dot, and shoot Open. All things being equal, with the mag limit in NY, there is no reason not to run a 40...

[Ben Diss]

http://www.nyshooter.com/MatchDates.html

Thanks for the link.

[Jfkayne]

Thanks for the advice everyone. Postal bob.... I will take you up on that offer. You may see me out there this weekend. One other question for everyone because I am interested in the larger group consensus. I completely understand that the one gun scenario is not ideal for competition but to start I am just looking to have fun. Would I have more fun in the G35, production, limited & open scenario or should I start with a gun like a Para 16 40 and shoot limited and open with it (obviously with mods for open)? Just curious about people's opinion. I know I wouldn't be able to compete in production with the Para but would I be more competitive in limited and open with the Para vs the glock 35 and have more fun with the gun? I just see a lot of posts of people quickly jumping from production to limited and I don't want to purchase equipment just for one class if I won't be shooting it that much.

Thanks again for the help. Definitely helpful information provided by everyone.

Jon

[GrumpyOne]

You'd be just as competitive with the G35 in limited and open as any Para....plus you could shoot it in production.

[Maksim]

Personally I started in single stack shooting minor with a smith wesson 1911 in 9mm.

[Postal Bob]

Production division is the most popular, simply because the equipment used is your basic gun, holsters and mag pouches. Very little mods are allowed, so it's simple and inexpensive to compete in. And for a beginner who may not have all the needed mags or mag pouches, there usually is someone there with the same or similar gun who you can borrow mags or a mag pouch from.

[Aglifter]

As a new shooter, a Glock is a great idea - if needed, there will be someone at most matches to help w spares, extra mags, holster, etc.

Otherwise, jump in the deep end of the pool, and go w a 2011.

But, really, get a Glock. You can't really lose money on it, too much, if you don't like it, and it won't hold you back, barring matches w. very long shots, at which point, you may need a better barrel.