Shooting Guns in August

So here's the Gun Report for August.  This was the month of shooting three weekend's in a row leading into the big Steel shoot that I've been waiting for all year.

Started out with the Falling Plates shoot.  This shoot was the first chance I had to shoot the new rifle with the optic and new trigger set.  It was quite good except I'm a noob with the gun so no judging my performance.  I also shot the Victory and that went okay but could have done better.  More on both guns in a bit.

Then it was the Pin Tops and Pin minor.  If I haven't explained this before, a quick explanation.  They take bowling pins that bowling alleys no longer will use and cut the top 3-4" off and then we shoot them off the table.  Bowling pins are basically the same thing except it's the full pin.  Pin Tops are shot with 22lr caliber bullets and bowling pins are shot with larger caliber.  Frankly this did not go well.  A bit frustrating but I still got to shoot and learned some stuff at the same time.

Next up the Pacific Northwest Speed Steel Championships.  This is a big one.  People from all over the Northwest come to shoot this.  This was the second annual happening for the event.  I shot poorly but I had a good time.  I continue to learn though what will help me become a better shooter in the future.  I need to practice more and will work on that going forward.

I plan on putting an optic sight on the Victory and augmenting it in the near future.  Along with the sight I expect to add a better barrel and am hoping to get some trigger work done.  The trigger on the rifle has encouraged me to see about this upgrade for the pistol.

For now until next spring I am planning on shooting the rifle a lot more and alternating with the pistol to get a better feel for both.  Especially with the pistol once I add the optic and barrel.  I can see that the ability to improve is there I just need to focus on the important parts of shooting technique that I'm lacking.  Trigger control, grip control, and sight picture improvements will increase my skill to the level I'd like to see for myself.  It will come with practice and training.  I also think I can improve my physical strength in the associated areas.  For that I will be trying to focus more on working those areas in question.  I think it will include the full body with particular focus on leg strength for stamina, arm strength for holding the weapon steady, and core strength for maintaining proper posture.  Looks like L has her work cut out with me.  Could be time to get serious.

So there we go.  As I head into the "off" season I am hoping to continue to improve and keep working on all aspects of the shooting sport that I enjoy.  Even though today didn't quite go as well as I could have hoped it was still well worth the time and effort put forth.  So onward and upward I say!

It's another Gun Report

So time to catch up on my shooting life.  I shot a Falling Plates competition and did rather poorly as my gun was giving me problems.  Turns out the type of ammo I was using was not the best so will upgrade for the future.  Still all in all I mostly had fun and of course it was character building all the way. 
I've done two Speed Steel shoots since the last time I checked in.  The one was in the pouring rain and not a lot of fun but still not a totally bad experience.  I guess it can't always be sunny and 95.  Again ammo issues along with the rain caused some not so fun issues.  The second Steel shoot was quite a bit better as I was using much better ammo.  I had some good runs and felt that overall I improved.  And I did.  I had my second fastest day since I started shooting this competition.  So glad to see I'm improving.  Just need to stay focused and not get cocky.

The other news I have is also exciting.  I purchased a rifle a few months ago so I would have something different to shoot in the Speed Steel matches.  I just got it back after having some work done to it.  So now I have a rifle with a fancy trigger (easier to pull so you stay on target), a new optic sight (so I can focus better on the target), and a mechanical part that will just make the rifle perform better.  I got to shoot it today for the first time and it seems like it was well worth the monetary outlay.  So I am planning on shooting the rifle in competition starting in the late fall.  It will be quite different from shooting the pistol and that's a good thing.

So there's the latest in Al's shooting life.  I have another Speed Steel competition coming in August.  This is the second annual Pacific Northwest Speed Steel Championships where I had some of my best times and a lot of fun.  This is a competition that draws some professional shooters along with us amateurs.  So good times ahead.  I'll be sure and come back and talk all about it.

A month of shooting guns

So as I head into this new month I'm looking back at the shooting competitions I've just finished up.  First up was the Falling Plates.  This is fun and I get to shoot quite a bit as it's three runs at a time.  I didn't do great but it didn't matter as this is practice at getting better for other competitions that I'm more interested in.  I did impress though as I was competing against guns that were "souped up" and my gun is stock.  Sorta like a bicycle racing a motorcycle, you're probably never going to win but if the motorcycle's engine dies half way thru the race than your bicycle has a chance.  It was still fun though.
Then I shot at bowling pins again.  This time though it was the very tops of bowling pins.  Again shooting against the "souped up" guns.  I did okay at this one also.

Then comes the competition that I really like.  It's the Speed Steel competition.  This is the one I really enjoy and am trying to get better at competition wise.  It went well.  It was a longer shoot and I felt like I'm improving.  This particular match is really more about competing with yourself as you aren't shooting against another shooter, you are up there by yourself.  Yes you are graded against others in your group (type of gun, i.e. "souped up" vs stock) but the actual shooting of targets is really just you and your gun.

I took a week off as I'd been shooting for a month and had a big shoot coming up at the beginning of June.  I would travel across the mountains to attend this shoot.  I went with another shooting friend and we stayed with his parents, who are also shooters.

So now we get to the YRPA Yakima ISSA Regional Steel Championship.  As I said this was not local as I had to travel about 4-5 hours to get to this one.  It was a very different environment both weather and shooters.  This is a more professional shoot along with many amateurs, including yours truly.  It was great!  I did very well for my personal goals and improved over my last steel shoot.  It was fun and I've already asked for the time off for next year.  I plan on improving even more by the time this rolls around again.  And I might even be shooting a rifle in addition to the pistol.  I will probably be shooting a "souped up" version of my current pistol though so I can compete at the higher level next time.

Now I have a local steel shoot coming in another week and am ready to keep improving my scores.  I will need to start practicing more though.  Part of the new plan moving forward will be to try and go out to the range during the week.  In the summer the range is open later so I can go after work.  Stay tuned.‏            

Again with the Bowling Pins

So this last weekend was the shooting competition that only happens every three to four months.  It is scheduled whenever a month has 5 Saturdays.  So when that happens it's time for Bowling Pins Concealed.

This is shooting at bowling pins from about 10-15ft away using a gun that you would normally carry on your person.  So I was using my Walther PPQ 9mm.  This is a gun that James Bond uses in the more current movies.

There were 10 of us and so the competition began.  I started out a bit shaky but with some luck and skill I ended up placing 2nd for the day.  Which is very good for me.  I felt confident when I approached the shooting line and it paid off mostly.  Frankly I lost to the shooter with way more experience than me so I call that a win!

On a semi related note I've also purchased a new gun. In my previous post I had said that due to the great costumer service I had gotten from Smith & Wesson that I would look seriously at their products if and when I decided to buy a new gun.  Well, today I purchased a new rifle and it was a S&W product.  I can't wait to shoot it!  I'm also planning on including it in my competition shooting.

This entire month I plan on shooting every weekend so we'll see how that goes.  First up is Falling Plates and Concealed Carry.  Two very different types of competitions.  One, Falling Plates, is with the 22LR which is my new handgun that I just got as a replacement for my broken gun.  It is basically shooting at metal plates the size of saucers from about 15ft.  The other, Concealed Carry, is moving and shooting thru scenarios designed to help you in real world situations.  This will be with a handgun that I might actually carry.

And then something different each weekend after that.  Should be fun.

A Tale of Two Guns

So last year my 22LR target pistol broke.  It cracked and seemed to not really work properly.  Could it be fixed?  When I sent it off to the manufacturer to see if it was fixable they said...no.  Didn't surprise me though as it was definitely looking dangerously broken.  So I spoke with David from Smith & Wesson (the manufacturer) and it was determined that they would send me a gun to replace my broken one.  This company has a lifetime warranty for their guns.  It surprised me but this made me very happy. 

So in Dec of 2015 the process of getting me this replacement started.  In Jan '16 I again spoke with David and he assured me that the gun would be winging my way shortly.  I gave him the name of a local store to send it to and figured that was it until I heard from them.  For those who don't know, S&W couldn't just send the gun straight to me due to the way the law works. I would have to fill out paperwork just as if I'd bought the gun from the gun store.  So I waited for the call from the store in anticipation.  I figured it would be a few weeks so wasn't in a big hurry.  I had a second gun that I could use for my competitions so no big deal.  Fast forward a month, still no gun.  So I called David again.  He informed me that the gun had been sent out at the end of Jan '16 and this was the third week in March.  Unfortunately there was a mix-up in where the gun was being sent and it had gone to the wrong store.  A store a state away.  So we started over. 

This time we both made sure that we had the correct store where it would be sent.  Cue more delay as the gun in question is a new model and it is very popular.  There was no inventory available to send me a gun, so more delay was inevitable.  David informed me that as soon as production caught up the gun would be sent out.  About a week later he called and let me know that it would still be a couple of weeks before the gun could be sent.  Well as you might imagine I was becoming a bit jaded at the fact that the gun was "on the way".  But it was a free gun so I felt that I would just have patience and not get all worked up.  So after another week of patience I stopped by the store.  Lo and behold there it was!

I'm now the proud owner of a brand new gun.  In hind sight the process was a bit disconcerting but in the end the customer service of Smith & Wesson and their representative David proved that this company stands behind it's product.  If in the future I'm in the market for a new gun (who knows?) I will certainly have no problem considering Smith & Wesson's offerings.  It just proves that if you treat your customers with respect and concern they'll give you their loyalty.  I know I have.

Oh, one more addition to this tale.  If my friends Larry and Cort hadn't pushed me to check with Smith & Wesson this story wouldn't have the happy ending it does.  Thanx guys!

I'm an assassin not a sniper

Okay here we go again.  Today I was privileged to get the opportunity to shoot the concealed carry competition.  I have described this in the past as a training exercise (based on time and accuracy) in which you pretend to encounter bad guys trying to shoot you and you shoot them first.  Of course it's not as pretend as you might assume.  We are using real guns and ammo that could hurt you if used in an unsafe manner. 

Each section (called a stage) consists of a scenario built around walls and hidden bad guys.  You move thru this "building" environment encountering bad guys and sometimes hostages.  Guess what?  Don't shoot the hostages or the "cops".

Of all the competitions I have done this is fast becoming my favorite.  Why you might ask?  Because it is training me to be comfortable with my gun in the case of encountering real bad guys in the real world.  It's not a video game where if I die or shoot a non combatant I just reset and try again.  No, there are no real people I'm shooting, but if I'm acting unsafe with my gun there are real consequences.

I had a good time and enjoyed all of the stages.  Even though one of them utilized a long gun (technical term for rifle) and I'm not a rifle person.  I prefer the hand gun as it's up close and personal. Seeing the face of your enemy in a small circular window from a distance takes the immediacy of it away.  If I have to shoot you I want to look you in the eye and make sure you know it's me who's pulling the trigger.  I will take responsibility for that action and not hide from that action. 

Hence the title of this missive.  Of course I don't expect that to ever happen but it's not a bad idea to be prepared, if I ever have to make that decision.

Back to the actual shoot.  I don't know how I did but I know that I did okay, nothing great but it's not a competition, okay maybe between my friends and I, at least in my head.  :)  I had some good runs and a couple of misfires (no pun intended).  At the end of the day I enjoyed myself and didn't embarrass myself.  Mission accomplished!!

New Year of the Gun

  So the new year has started and I've been to two shoots so far. The first is my latest adventure called Concealed Carry. This involves a gun, holster, and magazine holders. The idea is to get familiar with carrying your weapon and comfortable moving and shooting the gun. The scenarios are designed to help you learn to seek cover when you have to change out your magazines and look for the bad guys that are hiding from you.
 
 This is why I started shooting (or buying guns). I wanted to try something out of the ordinary and shooting guns, for most people, isn't rather ordinary. As a kid I was always pretending I was a spy or private detective trying to catch the bad guy and not get shot. As an adult I can indulge this fantasy in a safe and fun way. Plus learn some very important survival skills. Not that I expect to ever need them but in the mean time I'm having fun. Plus I'm meeting new people and expanding my social circle. Another important part of my life.
 
 So the other shooting competition is something I've been doing for the past year. Speed Steel is a competition where you are timed as you shoot metal plates set in different configurations. This is just pure fun. The competition part is really against yourself. Even though the times are set against all the shooters and you can see how you stack up against others, I find that the most enjoyment I get is seeing how I did versus the previous times I shot the steel.
  The real reason for doing these shoots, besides just having fun, is to familiarize myself with the guns I own. If I have to shoot a gun in a real life situation, then I want to know that I will be familiar with how the gun works and what to expect when I pull the trigger.  

It just makes sense.