NicVerAZ Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 Just wanted to make sure I have what I need for my first IDPA match (SSP): . Gun . holster (I am bringing my USPSA-production legal Blade Tech but also my Uncle Mike's as well, just in case) . 2-magazine carrier . 3 magazines (at least) . simple leather belt (again: first match, I'll invest into something better if I want to compete again) . 200 rounds of ammo . tactical light? . vest? I was wondering if the two last items are necessary at all. Thanks a lot in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMB Posted June 28, 2012 Share Posted June 28, 2012 You will probaly need the vest. Not sure about the light, if your shooting indoors better bring it just in case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seeker Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Looks Good. Big yes on the vest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blu46and2 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Drop offset holsters are not legal in IDPA for men. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsmw5142 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 -GUN (9MM OR LARGER) -AT LEAST 3 MAGS -HOLSTER -MAG POUCH (ONE DOUBLE OR TWO SINGLES) -HAND TOWEL -EAR PROTECTION -EYE PROTECTION -HAT -SUNBLOCK (FOR OUTDOOR RANGES) -150 TO 200 ROUNDS OF AMMO SHOULD BE MORE THAN ENOUGH FOR A LOCAL. -SOME TYPE OF BAG TO CARRY EVERYTHING -MAYBE A FOLDING CHAIR, DEPENDING ON THE RANGE. -COOLER WITH DRINKS/SNACKS (I USUALLY THROW A COUPLE GRANOLA BARS AND A BANANA IN MY RANGE BAG) -SOME TYPE OF COVER GARMENT (VEST/BUTTON UP SHIRT) If your bladetech has the stingray belt attachment it should be fine. The dropped off-set is not legal. Also, the Uncle Mikes are usually considered to be not legal because of the visible daylight between the holster body and belt. You will most likely not need a flashlight, but a small one in your bag never hurts and doesn't take up much space. I always keep one. I might be forgetting something, but I hope this helps. Don't be afraid to jump in and help out. Everyone will appreciate you doing your part. Stay safe and have a good time Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMB Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 What are you shooting, both gun and division. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
45 Raven Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Nick: The comment about the DOH holster is spot-on. If you have just a plain Blade-Tech SRB holster or something like that, you're good to go. If you don't want to deal with a heavier vest in the current boiling AZ sun, just take a sport shirt that fully covers your gun and magazine pouches, and use that as your "vest" over a tee shirt. Everyone that has responded has given you great advice and feedback. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicVerAZ Posted June 29, 2012 Author Share Posted June 29, 2012 What are you shooting, both gun and division. My trusty STI GP6 in SSP. Thanks for all the answers. So basically a simply shirt will work? As well as a regular leather belt? If I click in then I will invest, obviously, but I want to go with what I currently have. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Bear Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 Bring what you got, shoot what you brung (i.e., don't buy special equipment to play a game, at least, not the first time out). Yes, the stuff you've got now will work. Bring a sport shirt or button-front shirt and you're working from open front cover garment. Bring a large-XL shirt, and you've got a closed front cover garment. Lift the shirt over and clear of the pistol, then secure/draw the pistol and continue the course of fire. Bring the thick (1-1/2" or more) leather belt and cinch it on so that your belt/holster/pistol combination isn't flopping around and you'll do fine for the first time out. Shoot safe and have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsmw5142 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 What are you shooting, both gun and division. My trusty STI GP6 in SSP. Thanks for all the answers. So basically a simply shirt will work? As well as a regular leather belt? If I click in then I will invest, obviously, but I want to go with what I currently have. Yep, a regular shirt will work fine. A vest or a shirt of thicker material will sweep out of the way easier when you draw though. You only have to wear it for 1-2 minutes while you're shooting. I live in Florida and have similar hot days so later in the morning or toward afternoon I only put it on when actually shooting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicVerAZ Posted June 29, 2012 Author Share Posted June 29, 2012 Yep, a regular shirt will work fine. A vest or a shirt of thicker material will sweep out of the way easier when you draw though. You only have to wear it for 1-2 minutes while you're shooting. I live in Florida and have similar hot days so later in the morning or toward afternoon I only put it on when actually shooting. I have been doing unholstering drills and it is indeed harder with a soft shirt because it gets tangled. Right now I use the weak hand to pull the shirt behind, unholster, then join my hands when the gun is already away from me, much farther than in steel/USPSA. Since this is a DA/SA, I will start decocked in SSP, so no deciding which hand will lower the safety lever. I do not own a thick vest, living in the "kitty litter" part of Arizona, if I like this enough I will probably purchase something but for the first time, I am not going to try to be competitive, just go through it and learn. Pulling magazines from concealment seems to be even harder than unholstering. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks again! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsmw5142 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 On the start signal, place the four fingers of your strong hand against your abdomen just above the navel. Use those fingers as a rake all the way around your body to the butt of the gun to pull your shirt out of the way so you can get your grip on the pistol. Takes a bit of practice, but if you "rake" past and just above the holstered weapon, it works pretty well. Then just marry your hands together in front of you like you would on a normal draw (ie. not from concealment). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GMB Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 I think that is one of the biggest things that appeals to new shooters, it is inexpensive to to start IDPA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsmw5142 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 USPSA doesn't have to be expensive either. A couple more pouches and magazines and your ready to rock for production division. Both games have plenty of ways or you to spend money... ask me how I know. Better yet, ask my wife Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M1911 Posted June 29, 2012 Share Posted June 29, 2012 I have been doing unholstering drills and it is indeed harder with a soft shirt because it gets tangled. Right now I use the weak hand to pull the shirt behind, unholster, then join my hands when the gun is already away from me, much farther than in steel/USPSA. Since this is a DA/SA, I will start decocked in SSP, so no deciding which hand will lower the safety lever. That is not how I do it. On the buzzer, left hand goes to the stomach. Curl the fingers of your strong hand. Use those fingers to grasp the opening of the shirt on your strong side, and fling it hard to the rear. It will clear the gun. Access the gun, withdraw from the holster, rotate, and bring the left hand in from behind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doc88 Posted July 1, 2012 Share Posted July 1, 2012 I have been doing unholstering drills and it is indeed harder with a soft shirt because it gets tangled. Right now I use the weak hand to pull the shirt behind, unholster, then join my hands when the gun is already away from me, much farther than in steel/USPSA. Since this is a DA/SA, I will start decocked in SSP, so no deciding which hand will lower the safety lever. That is not how I do it. On the buzzer, left hand goes to the stomach. Curl the fingers of your strong hand. Use those fingers to grasp the opening of the shirt on your strong side, and fling it hard to the rear. It will clear the gun. Access the gun, withdraw from the holster, rotate, and bring the left hand in from behind. I've practiced both ways extensively and both can be equally a fast. Using a stiffer "vest" will allow you to use your strong hand to get it out of the way quicker. I personally can then get a better support hand grip this way in finishing the draw. If using a soft shirt as a cover garment then using the support hand to "rake" it out of the way will prevent it from getting tangled. It's just an extra step for the support hand and therefore sometimes don't get the good support hand grip I like. Practice both ways and see which you like and time them with a par timer. Probably best to get a designated cover garment and use it for dry and live practice and in your matches. Having to deal with a cover garment that is all wrapped around your firearm is no fun. Practice, practice, practice and you'll be proficient so that is one less worry. Have fun. IDPA is a great sport. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicVerAZ Posted July 1, 2012 Author Share Posted July 1, 2012 Thanks for the help. It went fine and had a lot of fun with a great bunch of people. I had a lot of procedurals, because it is a different games. Never heard of Tactical Sequence and Tactical Order before. You build up habits shooting a certain type of rules and these are hard to break. I'll do that again, for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldfrank Posted July 3, 2012 Share Posted July 3, 2012 Glad you had a good time and everything went well. You did it right, shoot what you got for a match or two and then adjust your equipment to suit yourself. I have seen a good many guys draw from light Hawaiian style shirts and they can be really fast. Dry fire practice with all your gear (and of course no live rounds in the same room) can really help define your gear and technique. Searching YouTube for IDPA will let you watch a bunch of Pro's and Amateurs and you can learn a lot. Also reading the rule book online can help clear up some of the unfamiliar stuff. I shot an Arizona style match here in Georgia yesterday. Temperature was 105 and it was not a dry heat. Good Luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicVerAZ Posted July 3, 2012 Author Share Posted July 3, 2012 Well, reading the rule and playing them are two things. It makes sense when you play the game. For stage, I was supposed to shoot to turn 180 then strong hand only, tactical sequence. What do I do? On LAMR, I unholster and align the sights. Meeeh! Illegal. That on the buzzer, what do I do? I turn around and start gunning with 2 hands in the wrong order. I could not walk AND shoot either. I need to go do drills, now that I can rent the practical bays. IDPA is a lot of fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tcurrin Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 How long does the shirt need to be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic_jon Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 (edited) How long does the shirt need to be? The best complete answer to this is to read the rule book. Seriously, there is a lot of info in there on this that it is better to read there than to copy n paste here. (edit to add link to rulebook PDF) http://www.idpa.com/Documents/IDPARuleBook2005.pdf The non-rulebook answer is long enough to conceal the firearm and the holster. Edited July 18, 2012 by Classic_jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicVerAZ Posted July 18, 2012 Author Share Posted July 18, 2012 ... with your arms in surrender position. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic_jon Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 ... with your arms in surrender position. This is exactly why I said to read the rulebook to prevent "incorrect information" or "misinterpreted information." Holsters and mag holders are not checked "at surrender position" in IDPA. To quote the PDF I linked to: Page 40 "All equipment should be so placed that, when wearing an open concealment garment with your arms extended at your sides and parallel to the ground, it can NOT been seen from the front, rear or sides." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NicVerAZ Posted July 18, 2012 Author Share Posted July 18, 2012 I have seen the SO perform this method. I guess it is my bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Classic_jon Posted July 18, 2012 Share Posted July 18, 2012 I have seen the SO perform this method. I guess it is my bad. Not a problem at all! :-D The key thing here is to make sure that *you* know the rules. That is important! That way you are #1 SAFE (very important! ), #2 playing by the rules, and #3 will know if someone is calling things correctly at a major match. You don't have to be a rules lawyer, but don't be afraid to break out the book and ask for clarification. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now