Firearm Hobbyist Catch-All

Edwin wrote:

Which instructor? They have a Titanium, Easy-Fit titanium, original, easy-fit original, etc.

http://www.thewilderness.com/tactica...

I just have the original. I don't remember there being all those choices when I bought mine

Edwin wrote:

Anyone have a belt they can recommend? I have a Blade-Tech leather belt but was hoping to get a non-leather one.

I like the 5-11 Tactical nylon belts, they have one of the best buckles I've used in a tactical belt, and you can load an entire gun safe onto one without it rolling or sagging. The Operator (1.75 wide) and the Trainer (1.5 wide) use the same buckle.

Thin_J wrote:
Edwin wrote:

Which instructor? They have a Titanium, Easy-Fit titanium, original, easy-fit original, etc.

http://www.thewilderness.com/tactica...

I just have the original. I don't remember there being all those choices when I bought mine :P

Me, too... And me, neither.

Any recommendations on impact resistant eye wear?

I have a pair of ESS ICE that I like fairly well, got them for a deployment a few years ago. It's an eyeshield, came with both a clear and a tinted lens. Think I've seen em for ~$40 or so, although mine were free.

How much of a worry is holster wear on blued guns? I keep reading that kydex pretty much destroys bluing faster but I'm not sure who do get a good IDPA holster for my Hi Power. Anyone have recommendations?

If anyone is looking for a decent range bag, this one looks really good.

http://www.goutdoorsproducts.com/pro...

Edwin wrote:

If anyone is looking for a decent range bag, this one looks really good.

http://www.goutdoorsproducts.com/pro...

I've had great luck with the fairly huge ~$40 one Midway sells. I don't know if it holds up if you go to the range twice a month, but for the occasion I manage to find the money and the time to set aside for a range visit it's been great.

I too have the one from Midway. It hold all of my range crap with ease. Ammo, targets, marker, cleaning kit and chemicals, extra ear plugs, extra safety glasses and tool kit. I am sure I am leaving stuff out, but it is full. The inside can be compartmentalized with dividers to hold spent brass. It has pockets on the outside for more crap and a side pocket that will hold a pistol and magazines. Mine probably weighs 40 lbs for a regular trip.

I wrote this in another thread but I'm going to try and compete in the 2015 IDPA World Championship next March for a variety of reasons. It's my birth month, my place of birth (Puerto Rico) and to top it all off, I will be doing it with my grand father's Browning Hi Power that saved his life more than once in PR. It'll be a home coming for both me and the pistol, which makes it a little emotional. I think it'll give me a chance to visit home, take my wife who hasn't seen my home and give her context on why I am who I am along with giving me closure to that part of my life.

I have a very aggressive training schedule to do this. Dry fire practice daily for at least 30 minutes, which includes drawing from holster, sight picture acquisition, back muscle strengthening for leaning around cover, cardio, etc.

I am lucky that I am surrounded by lots of IDPA, USPSA and Steel Challenge clubs. If I really wanted to, I could be shooting every Saturday, Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday in actual sanctioned matches to prepare for the big match. I think we will be know better come August which is when the Washington State IDPA Championship happens. I just need to find sponsors so I don't ruin and bankrupt ourselves in the process.

Here is what I will be wearing to some of the local matches to represent.

For my motherland:
IMAGE(https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-Q85XI3U3T_8/Uyca999i7VI/AAAAAAAAfeU/dyH50JEHACM/w504-h285-no/2014-03-17)

For my new homeland:
IMAGE(http://static.squarespace.com/static/521b7c54e4b0e63c9a89da62/5220f655e4b06e30fcbe1017/530bcf74e4b036d0c6692892/1393282969306/CAM00345.jpg?format=1500w)

That is awesome. Good luck.

I've been to a couple of the IDPA practices out here but they aren't very well attended. They're lucky to meet once a month. If I wanted to get serious I'd have to make a 2 hour drive to Las Vegas. Good luck Edwin, it's a great goal to "shoot" for.

Spoiler:

Sorry, couldn't help it. :D

Wishing you the best of luck, Edwin!

Maybe we could chip in a bit to get a GWJ patch onto that shirt?

I would love to see some form of GWJ patch. Count me in for chipping for a patch. I am sure we have an artist around here who can come up with a design.

Good luck Edwin.

Last night was...interesting.

By the way, open this page and refer to it if I use a term you are not familiar with.

Lots of problems to practice and work on. I was lucky enough not to have to be first on each stage so I was able to watch others. But as soon as the timer went off, my mind just went blank and was running on instinct. This cause me to screw up the tactical sequence of the very first target array on the very first stage. Thankfully, I wasn't given a procedural. Then since I was running on instinct, I was moving from firing position to firing position with my finger in the trigger guard. I should have been instantly DQ'ed right then and there. This is something I did not repeat on the 2nd or 3rd stage thankfully.

Other problems: Fumbling reloads when grabbing mags by the baseplate instead of using the index finger. I was having issues with what I believe is limp wristing as my slide was not locking back at the end of a magazine, and every time this would cause me to tap-rack-bang drill then reload. I also think the limp wristing attributed to the issue I was having finding the sights to preform follow-up shots. I was spending a lot of time re-aligning my sights.

On the 2nd stage, 1st array where you are supposed to be retreating from the target, I must've hit the mag release as my magazine dropped about half and inch causing me to do a 2nd double-action pull incase it was a hard primer, but once I saw the mag out, I did a tap-rack-bang drill and was again on my way. Of course since the timer was off I wasn't thinking and I stopped moving, earning me a procedural.

3rd stage was a Mozambique drill behind a Bianchi barricade.

I'm still waiting for the scores to be posted but the first stage was my time + 3 from three different targets hitting the 1 zone. My 2nd stage I had two misses (+10) which was terrible. On the 3rd stage I was down zero (woot!). Everyone was nice, answered all my questions, gave me encouragement and tips. I even got compliments on my shooting for the first and third stage runs.

Anyways, here is video from last night's match by someone who is actually good.

Equipment:
Blade-tech's IDPA pack is pretty good. I have some love handles so the edges of my mags were digging into my sides. Got to work on losing that.

I have monstrous big hands where I can palm a basketball. The grip on my gun seems small, which I think is resulting in not getting a good, positive grip on it with my support hand. Not sure if I need to buff up the grip, find something with a bigger grip circumference, or work on technique, but something needs to change here.

I've got to detail strip my CZ P-01 to see what is wrong with the trigger. I have something like a 1/4" to 1/2" of take up on the trigger when the hammer is decocked. If anyone can point me to good resources on this, I would highly appreciate it.

Bring something to eat before the match.

This tip helped me.

Edwin wrote:

Bring something to eat before the match.

Also bring plenty of water, as the year wears on it'll get hot and you'll be sweating a lot, it's very easy to get dehydrated without realizing it.

And welcome to the IDPA.

My dad just found one of these guys for a great price and brought it over to my apartment and gave it to me this evening... Russian army surplus.

IMAGE(http://www.machineguntours.eu/media/Mosin_Nagant_91_30_Sniper_by_shelbs2.jpg)

Pretty excited to see how it shoots.

It will kick you like a mule. Enjoy!

Does anyone reload here? Do you tumbler brass before or after decapping? I would think after to get the primer pocket clean too.

Do you have to trim 9mm?

Yes, I reload. Yes after decapping. This will also give you a chance to clean up the primer pocket before tumbling if it needs it. I do not load 9mm, but it has been my understanding you do not need to trim straight wall pistol cases. That said, I do check my 357 and 44 cases occasionally to make sure they have not lengthened from higher pressure hunting loads.

Get a sonic cleaner for your brass. I have one I use for brass and my suppressors. It is not the greatest if your brass is crazy dirty but it will be a godsend to clean after you last tumbling. Go search youtube for sonic cleaning vs tumbling. Lots of videos.

I reload 9mm. I check my case length to see if I need to trim on the 2nd or 3rd reload. They do grow. I use a Wilson case guage. Get a universal decapper that way you only have to clean your brass once. You really don't want to get all that crud on your resizing die. Sonic cleaners are great but I like using stainless steel media in a rock tumbler the brass comes out looking like new.

Stainless steel media?

Edwin wrote:

Stainless steel media?

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/635...

Yellek uses similar stuff to shine up her jewelry in her tumbler.

Here is a good video.

Also, anyone have a recommendation on a test gauge like this? http://www.cedhk.com/shop/products/D...

This one only handles circumference and not overall length.

Wilson Pistol MAX gauge

Will only do one cartridge at a time but here is what I use.

I found this one that does 50 at a time for both circumference and OAL.

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/785...