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How to do everything perfectly all the time


thermobollocks

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It feels kind of odd to be laying low this month, but I think it'll be helpful. I'm going to load some ammo with a couple of different powders for the state match and double check chrono -- coated 147s and 3.2 grains of Titegroup should be fine, but I might have to resort to my 140PF beefcake ammo if it's on the line. I don't even know if they're chronoing at that match, but also I don't know if I'm going to need to use a different powder for .40. I also plan on getting some practice in Monday and/or today on top of having to pack up my office. Steel Challenge was kind of a mixed bag this last couple of Wednesdays -- my fiber fell out, so I'm going to have to install a new one so I'm not rocking the old one simply refitted.

That reminds me I'd also like to find a powder that yields less leading. With the coated bullets, Titegroup burns hot enough that it's still pretty bad. I have like 3 pounds of N320, but maybe Silhouette will get it done.

Other than that, the state match falls right on the weekend before I change jobs, so I will be focused more on making sure all the competitors have a good time and everything gets done cleanly. If I'm feeling super tryhard I might even dry-fire and drop in a lighter trigger return spring on my M&P, but who knows if that's going to happen.

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  • 2 weeks later...

You gonna go to Trinidad and finish the operation?

In other news my goal for the state match was pretty much to finish all the stages. I was right between jobs and all I figured was (1) I'm going to work the match, and (2) shooting is better than not shooting. So, screw it.

That said, I have to get some sweet coated 147s for the round gun and find all my moon clips.

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If you are looking for a good .40 Minor powder try out the really fast burning powders like VV N310, Clays, and stuff like that. I have made .40 Minor loads with 200gr bullets using Clays and N310 and they were both Crazy soft shooting.

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I had a fun and productive weekend: Saturday was my home range's monthly match, and today I was able to get some ammo and gun testing done with the new Edge.

I had two stages not go super well at the match, and a few that came together pretty decently. d_striker and docmedic provided plenty of entertainment on my squad, and I definitely felt like I learned things hanging with Production shooters. They're also the closest I'll get to company when I switch back to revo, so I better get used to it.

I still don't feel like my movement in and out of positions is particularly good, so that will be something I lean on in practice. I was able to push my transitions really hard, and live on the ragged edge of what I need to do to punch the A-zone in terms of grip and trigger control. I doubt that's a good thing in Production, however I find that if I don't feel like I'm pushing, I take way too long freaking out and make terrible shots, anyway. I saw the same sort of thing with Bills on static targets (11x17s at 15-20y) today. I'd like to be able to internalize the idea that I need to actually exert myself to move the gun and myself (if applicable) from place to place, and that my trigger control should be so second nature that it is 100% my sights that are telling me what I need to know. I do notice when I pull things, however I pull things when I'm worried. So, I just have to not do that thing, counterintuitive as it is when 2" worth of A-zone on top of a no-shoot is staring at me.

As for the new Edge, I'm reasonably certain I've nailed down parameters on ammo for major and minor (3.3 gr Clays @ 1.13" OAL + 165 grain coated bullet) making 137PF with good cycling on the 12# recoil spring. Accuracy at 20y was acceptable:

dR728dPl.jpg

Stdevs and cycling at 1.18" OAL were terrible, so I went short so I know it will also work in my plastic gun easily.

I'm also on my way to a decent major loading: 4.6 grains of Bullseye with an Xtreme 180 gr FP loaded to 1.16" OAL, which might feed in my M&P, but definitely feeds in the Edge. I suck at shooting Major for groups, so I got this:

35tsQO9l.jpg

Last, I switched from my usual coated 147s to a no-lube-groove coated 147 grain RN for both Production and Revolver. 4.4 grains of Silhouette at 1.13" OAL made 141PF (get some!) and I expect similar but far less recoiling success with Titegroup. This is with the factory barreled M&P 9:

T8r6rzzl.jpg

I picked the shotshell for a size comparison and also because I shot up all my 9 at the time.

I'm pretty sold on all of these combinations so I will likely stick with them for a while until I get bored again. It's nice too knowing that I've nailed down one variable with the Edge and I can practice some things in earnest (once I make a holster). I'm also super jazzed to get back to round gun.

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The excessive standard deviation at 1.180 in minor is probably due to the short 165gr bullets and the very small 3.3gr Clays powder drop. When the powder has a lot of extra room inside the case to move around within it causes a lot of velocity and accuracy inconsistencies.

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The excessive standard deviation at 1.180 in minor is probably due to the short 165gr bullets and the very small 3.3gr Clays powder drop. When the powder has a lot of extra room inside the case to move around within it causes a lot of velocity and accuracy inconsistencies.

That's what I figured. Shortening it cleaned it up considerably. It's not single digit amazing like 9mm, but I think accuracy will prove acceptable once I figure out how to shoot groups with that gun.

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Wednesday was Steel Challenge time, and I learned a couple of things.

(1) In dry fire, my trigger control has still improved with the revolver despite not having shot it for several months.

(2) In life fire, my trigger control with the revolver sucks farts out of a raccoon's butt.

I think that means more time at the Dillon and a little bit of cleaning, polishing, and dry lube on the Racemaster.

This weekend I have a revo club match in Aurora, basic pistol class, and a rifle match in Pueblo (the last one of the year as I recall). I'm going to make sure I've got my crap together to have at least a non-frustrating rifle day.

In STI-related news, I'm still debating putting together some Kydex for the STI vs. sucking it up and getting a Racemaster insert. The benefit of the Racemaster insert would be that it will match the purple Taran basepads I'm getting. I also might get to test some mag guts this weekend, then get a boatload more of the same thing and finally be done with it as long as they function well. I also had a Freedom gift cert lurking around so I got some factory .40 ammo for giggles. I am pretty much giving up on the wadcutters and sticking with the bullets I've already tried, but I may experiment with some coated 180s of the same profile as the Xterme RNFPs I've checked later on. I'm erring toward more cleanliness on the STI just because I plan to use it in Raton and I don't need any more help dirtying the thing up.

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