Newbie equipment list-all inclusive

[sjs]

Ok getting into USPSA revolver division and I am starting from scratch. Can anybody give me an all inclusive equipment list to go with my 627 using 38 special with Remington and Federal brass? Thanks in advance!

[PizzaBob]

First, you may want to reconsider the use of full-length .38 Spl cases. Longer cases have the potential for more cartridge "flop" in the moon clip and thus slow loading. .38 Short Colt or .38 Long Colt are what are used primarily in my area. Long Colt gives you a little extra room, which makes it easier to make PF.

Next step is to find the right moons, that hold the brass you have selected to use with a minimal amount of the aforementioned "flop". Then some type of moon clip holder - I favor the North Mountain 4-post holder, but other options are available. A good holster and belt system and you're good to go.

Have fun, be safe.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

Edited November 25, 2015 by PizzaBob

[pskys2]

Decide on Brass, then stick with it, it's very easy to make minor pf with 38 short colt brass. The biggest advantage is in ejection of moon clips, 2nd advantage is ease of reloads. So if you don't have 5m of 38 special brass, break down and get 2m of Starline 38 Short Colt brass. You will only lose any of them due to normal split case mouths.

What ever brass you use, contact dave hearth, hearthco on this forum, and tell him what brass you are going to use and order at least 60 (price break).

Get the BMT Moon Clip Loader/unloader.

I like a 4 or 5 post North Mountain Moon Clip Rack, it's fast, adaptable, secure and versatile.

DOH Blade Tech Holster trimmed down the front and I took out the DOH bracket and was able to get the holes to line up so I have an appendix carry forward rake holster.

Set up your Revo with grips and sights you like, I use the factory .160 rear sight (no outlines) and a .300 F/O FS. If you can find Milletts, or Weigand replacement rear sight blades or the LPA seems popular. I used the factory .160 that came with my 627 PC and like the picture as well as either the Weigands or Millets I have.

For grips I bounce between rubber Hogue Grips with the finger grooves whittled down with a dremel or rubber Big Butt Grips, neither are better except for feel and something different.

Slick the action down to 6 pounds with judicious use of stoning and springs, covered in many other posts.

Stock up on FEDERAL Small Pistol Primers when you can find them.

Then decide on your loads. I like a 160 RN Bayou Bullets, F100 Primers and whatever powder you can find that works good.

Not much else except the usual necessary items, Good belt, muffs, eyes and of course a Dillon *50 reloader.

Welcome and good luck

[Alaskan454]

Well you'll need:

1. Holster - I have used a Simply Rugged pancake in the past and just now upgraded to a DAA Race Master, if you search on this forum there is a lot of good info on holsters. I would recommend reading up on holsters since there are so many different kinds.

2. Belt - I started with a wide leather belt and recently got a DAA competition belt, I would highly recommend you start out with a competition belt from one of the vendors on here. It will make a world of difference.

3. Moonclips - Save yourself the pain of cheap clips and get HearthCo, TK, or one of the better brands. I just got my first order of HearthCo and they are ridiculously nice, I'd rather have only enough quality clips for one stage and load/unload in between than enough cheap clips for a whole match.

4. Moonclip tool - I use a BMT style tool and it's awesome, but about twice the price of the arbor style tools. Compared to the cost of your entire rig a quality tool is worth the small investment so take a look and buy a good one.

5. Moonclip holder - You should checkout 4wheelguns.com, the stuff on there is great and I intend to pickup a 5 post soon. I've been using several of his IDPA style to get me by at the present. You can also check out speed-e-rack and the James Austion moonclip server

6. Brass - You already have that but if you can stick with one head stamp or brands that are VERY similar you will save a lot of headaches. As well, if you don't have much brass order Starline and in short or long colt. The moonclips are brass specific so you really need to pick one and go from there.

7. Primers - Use Federal, no reason not to. If you have a bunch of something else sell those and buy Federal. You can run a 6 lb trigger with Federal primers and a bit of action work, a good bit lower if you go buck wild.

8. Bullets - Not sure what your loading experience is but look around on here for load data, there are lots of great bullet sources available to us wheelgunners in 38.

None of these things are cheap but I'd recommend buying quality stuff and looking through the classifieds for good deals or buying them a bit at a time. I shot revolver matches about 2-3 weekends a month from March to October this year and did just fine with my hodgepodge of slapped together gear. I'll have a full blown high end rig for next year and probably won't shoot much better in the end. Anyway, have fun with it and good luck getting started. Revolvers are the most fun you will likely have at a shooting match.

Edit: Looks like pskys2 beat me to it, good advice there as well!

Edited November 25, 2015 by Alaskan454

[sjs]

Ok thanks. I assume the most popular bullets are the heavier round nose.

[sjs]

Do 38 long colt cases require their own dies or can you use 38 special dies in a Dillon reloaded?

[Alaskan454]

You can load long colt with standard 38/357 dies, only short colt requires special seat and crimp (9mm length). As for bullet, I'd recommend a a smooth feeding design like the round nose, some of the flat point styles are pretty good too. Bullet weight is personal preference but most people use heavier bullets with 160gr being very common. I load 125-180gr depending on the use, if your club has longer shots (25+ yds) then the bullet drop is more significant. Our club doesn't shoot past 25yd very often so I could use 180gr and have no problems. Poke around on the load data here and you will find all of the pros and cons of using a different style and weight. The search button will yield more information than you will likely ever be able to read.

[PackerBacker]

Congrats on getting into Revo! I made the jump from Limited to Revo about a year ago and have a blast with it.

I went with the following:

Brass - Starline 38 short colt

Moonclips - Heathco

Holder - Speed-e-rack

Tool - BMT

Bullets - I have had really good luck with the Xtreme 165gr, RN (9mm, .356)

Powder - Titegroup

Primers - Federal

Have fun and be safe!!

[alecmc]

Do 38 long colt cases require their own dies or can you use 38 special dies in a Dillon reloaded?

38/357 dies work with 38 LONG colt , if you decide to do 38 short colt, you'll need to use a mix of 38 & 9mm dies.

[AzShooter]

Get enough moons so you don't have to reload during a match. Get at least 10 and that will get you through most matches, unless like me you shoot Steel Challenge, then you need at least 43 moons. More if you think you will have to reload.

Make sure you get a decent reloader. Dillion makes the best presses. You can get the Square Deal, 550 or 650 and be able to load all you want in an hour or two. Get a 1050 if you really want to put out the reloads.

I'd add a Red Dot scope to the list. Not needed but makes shooting easier and it's faster to pick up then iron sights. I run C-More but I may switch to a Reflex type sight this year.

[sjs]

Thanks for all the good advice!!!!

[pskys2]

I'd recommend contacting Dave Hearth and discuss the brass you will use. He can make whatever you need to fit however you want.

Use 9mm powder drop/seating/crimping(taper only) dies for 38 short colt and 38 special/357 magnum sizing dies for all.

[Ty Hamby]

Everyone has given you great advise. I would like to expand on the brass. Everything you do centers around the brass you select at this moment. You think "I already have access to Federal or Remington brass so Ill invest in clips for them. That is a mistake in my opinion. Good quality clips are so important to a successful match. This typically means EDM wire cut clips by some of the big names in the clip cutting world. Hearthco comes to mind. Of course Hearthco makes good clips for Federal and Remington but what if after 6 months you decided you wanted to try out Long Colts or Short Colts. If you realize that all your buddies match winning loads are in short colt , medium colts or long colts you will find yourself buying expensive clips all over again. If you are serious about USPSA then buy short colts and be done. I am using cut down long colts to medium length. To do it over again I would buy short colts. I will be replacing these mediums with shorts down the road.

I would recommend you buy once, cry once. Buy Starline brass and Good quality EDM cut clips for Starline brass. Rest assured you will only be replacing brass you wear out. With moon clips you get it all back.

Here is my list built up over time.

1. Holster - Ghost race holster, It was the cheapest that would never allow the gun to fall out when locked. It has never failed me. My wife has one as well. Never failed.

2. Belt - Wife and I both run CR Speed. Any good quality 2pc. race holster will work.

3. Moonclips - Hearthco. I own hundreds of them. Buy once cry once.

4. Moonclip tool - Mooncliptool.com, makes the original, others make a similar knock off. I keep this tool as well as a demooner tool (screwdriver type) TK custom sells in my range bag. You never know when you need to break down moons quickly on the stage during the match. For home and hotel loading my moons I use BMT moonclip loader. It works great when breaking down or loading up complete clips.

5. Moonclip holder - Wife and I use the North Mountain Moon Clip Holder. I actually have some special ones for 2016 being made as we speak. Bob, is a great guy to work with. He will fill any need you may have.

6. Moon clip checker. All 3-4 supply houses carry moonclip checkers. It is really more of a loaded moon checker as it will still pass bent clips. This item is a must. You need it in your range bag and every moon needs to pass through the checker before being loaded on your belt. This tool can not be skipped. It is a must. Nothing worst that throwing away a match because you failed to check each moon. Bags fall over, moons fall to the ground. They get knocked around pretty good. Checking each on your belt before the standby command is a must.

7. Range Bag - If you arrive with enough moons to get through the day (smart shooter) you will want a great way to haul them. Shooters Connection makes inserts to their range bags. These inserts fit in all sorts of bags not just theirs. I typically do not haul the insert in my range bag but instead haul it together as an accessory. You can then make a rack to hold the moons. No one produces this. You will need to make this yourself. Flat piece of 1/2 ABS plastic with holes drilled to hold Delron rods. My only advice on the making part is to make it out of Delron or ABS. Do not use wood. I have been told splinters under the finger nail hurt. Here is an example of a finished one placed inside the Shooter Connection Range Bag insert.

8. Brass - Sell the brass you have. replace with Starline then you will be able to replace and change calibers all while using the same clip.

9. Primers - Use Federal. (period) I also hand seat my Major match primers. Most do not take this extra step so I wont recommend it. None the less I do it for every major.

10. Bullets - Magma mold 160gn coated and sized to .358 is very popular choice. I have had bad results with plated Xtremes but your welcome to experiment yourself. BBI, Bayou, Black and Blue, and many others can provide a coated projectile from this 160gn mold.

All this said. I showed up to my first match with 10 moon clips and a leather holster. I have rooms full of what not to buy. Assembling your quiver with all the right arrows can take time. If I was to do it all over again knowing what I know today I would feel comfortable buying everything listed above. The only items that have equal alternates is your belt. Most race belts are equal. Get one you like. And holster, DAA makes one for 50 bucks more that does the same thing. To each their own.

Welcome to Revolver.

[pskys2]

I have so many Safariland Belts, I've no choice, but if I was going to buy a new belt I'd get CR Belts due to the velcro surface on their inner belt doesn't catch debris when you're not wearing the outer belt and the outer belts are quite a bit stiffer.

+1 on Ty's post on Brass. The good thing about Starline 38 brass is it seems that all Special, Long Colt and Short Colt are consistent in their dimensions. Just different lengths of course.

You just don't lose your brass, except for wear. So buying brass is a capital investment that is a long term value.

If you're serious about the sport you will want tight moon clip fit. If you're not sure then the looser clips will work and are a bit more versatile, but not much.

As for range bags, some use a Border Shift from Dillon and Plano makes a good one that can carry 24 moon clips. You can find them at Cabellas, Bass Pro, Dicks, Academy or other sports marts that carry fishing gear. Something to carry them in so they don't get smashed or gather lint or trash is good. One time I used empty cardboard bullet boxes with cardboard spacers to hold multiple levels and was very happy with them (and it's pretty cheap!)