Daily Deal: Shooting Star Targets AND related safety.

$39 on woot.com
http://sport.woot.com/offers/do-all-outdoors-gmso2-shooting-star-pro-pack-1

VS

$99 at Gander Mountain
http://www.gandermountain.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=703407

This is the third time I’ve seen Woot have these targets. They also have air rifles, tactical flashlights and accessories periodically. So they’re one of those rarities that isn’t raving anti-gun.
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For shooters inexperienced with such targets. Please be mindful of where you are using, and proper backdrops.

These targets lie on the ground. Many shooters fail to realize that their misses can richochet off the ground and go skyward, even potentially hopping a protective berm.

In recent testing of steel targets, a similar affect was noticed if the target was too far in front of the berm. So please be mindful, as shooters we are to be aware of our target and what lies behind them. Remember to consider all angles at play. Targets of this nature need to be used in a proper environment.

See poorly sketched diagram

National Take Your Daughter to the Range Day (was June 15th)

Well, look at that, I didn’t even know there was such a day. Sadly, I missed it. Not sadly, I took my daughter out shooting her pink air rifle the next day, Sunday, Father’s Day.

We had fun. She did quite well.  Though the scope was mis-aligned. (I need to fix that.)

***

Says Uncle linked to Julie Golob taking her daughter out…
http://www.juliegolob.com/make-a-memory-this-weekend

 

The Hotly Debated Magazine Disconnect Safety

What is a magazine disconnect safety?

It is a mechanism which prevents discharge of a firearm when the magazine is removed, disabling the firing mechanism.  And just like every other safety (be it lever, grip, etc), it should be considered and aid and back-up rather than relied upon for one’s well being.

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This mechanism is hotly debated.  Two arguments are usually made against such systems.

1. It prevents hot reloads where you are firing while reloading your magazine.

2. Additional complexity provides more opportunity for things to fail.

Let me address the first item.  In most cases, for most people, this one bears little real world affect. I know very few people who are capable of dropping a magazine, firing ACCURATELY, as they grab and insert a new magazine into their firearm. First off, accuracy is reduced when multi-tasking on so many levels. Your focus is to divided preventing you from  focusing on your target. Furthermore, there is an increased possibility of causing malfunction. By inserting at just the wrong time or limp wristing.

Granted a few people out there might have the skill to do such advanced speed reloads, these people are likely in the employ of the government and in constant training and activity on a level most of us cannot fathom. For the rest of us, it is relegated to the realm of  mall ninja. Most of us won’t even be aware of when we are on our last round.  A better alternative for most of us is to practice reloading smoothly. To ensure that we are trained instinctively to reload as soon as that slide remains open. And to practice inserting our magazine, releasing the slide and re-acquiring target.  As well as considering the tactical reload during a pause in action. If you’ve fired off several rounds, and have sought cover. It might be a good time to pop in a fresh magazine and increase your firepower.

DON’T WAIT UNTIL YOU’RE ON YOUR LAST BULLET!

Now, let’s address the 2nd item. Increased complexity can lead to increased failure. Where as I view the first item of contention to have little merit. I view the second one to actually have merit. The more points of potential failure, the greater the risk of failure in a like system.  Remember, the law of the universe goes like this: God, Murphy, and Physics.

You can play with the latter but don’t mess with the first two.  😉

That said, does increased complexity equate to increased failure. And furthermore, does it equate to increased risk?

Yes and no. In a perfect comparison of two near identical items of similar craftsmanship. The one with more complexity will fail before the one with less complexity.  However, in evaluating a product there are a lot more factors to consider.

First off the quality of manufacture makes a significant difference. Compare a Buick with a Yugo. Which one has a higher lifespan?  Clearly the Buick has better craftsmanship and reliability.

Let’s stick to our vehicle analogy for a second example. Which vehicles last longer?  The much more simple vehicles of the 50’s, 60’s and 70’s or modern cars?  While modern vehicles have become increasingly complex (as Toyota’s recent problems exemplify), there has been a general improvement in reliability and lifespan.

This brings me to two conclusions:

1. Advances in manufacturing quality can allow modern firearms with additional complexities due to safety features to perform as well and even more reliably than older designs manufactured years ago.

2. While that same advance in manufacturing might mean a simply gun would be more reliable. The additional complexities can be added so that their risk of failure within the lifespan of the firearm are very slim.

This leaves us with a final decision to decide – does that minute increase in risk of failure exceed the benefit of safety?

Let me give a few examples of the safety benefit.  It’s been touted that the magazine safety disconnect allows an individual, who is struggling to maintain control of their firearm, to render their firearm inoperative by ejecting the magazine.

It also helps reduce the risk of improper handling.  The February 23, 2010 Tactical Wire reports on a tragic loss of life of a New Jersey police officer who shot himself while trying to install a grip sleeve. He had ejected the magazine but failed to remove the round in the chamber. No one is going to deny the improper handling of the firearm that led to this tragedy. But regardless of the failure of discipline, but for a lack of a magazine safety disconnect, that officer might be alive today.

For those who believe that you are immune to such mistakes, or that you are disciplined enough not to take such a foolish action. Fine. But can you guarantee everyone around you? How about at the range. Have you never had that ‘foolish’ person sweep you with the muzzle of their gun?  Many people own guns but do not fully understand how to use them. They remove the magazine and think they have unloaded the firearm.  Do you want one of these individuals to unwittingly sweep you as they click the trigger on a firearm they think is unloaded? Do you think you can run across the range, tell them to keep the muzzle pointed downrange, before their bullet reaches you?  Or would you rather there was just one more safety to prevent foolish and uneducated individuals from making mistakes that cost lives and give firearms a bad reputation?

Consider it…

I am of the opinion, in light of the benefits both for the preservation of life and the reputation and cause of firearm owners in general – that the benefits of magazine disconnect safeties outweigh the disadvantages.

Revision Eyewear – safety glasses vs shotgun

The Firearm Blog posted some info on Revision safety eyeware. Includes a video showing the lens being shot at with a shotgun @ 16 feet.  Appears to be pretty impressive.  But I don’t know enough about eyeware to make a judgment.

Is this hype, or is this a valid protection tool that exceeds that far exceeds the standard safety glasses?

Would love to know the thoughts of others…

http://www.revisioneyewear.com/

Competitive Shooting: Day 1

Today was to be the monumental day of my very first competitive shooting experience.

On Thursday night I left work early. Drove from Lancaster, PA down to Glen Rock, PA. I arrived at Freedom Armory at 6:30pm. I decided to pay the league fee as well as the entry fee for the given competition. So the total cost was $45 ($25 league/$20 event). The way the league works is thus; there will be six shoots. And your four highest scores will count as your league rank.

After paying it was off to the waiting area. I got a bit of an idea what to expect from chatting with the other participants and those running the event.

First off, the question must be asked… “Why compete?”

Competition is a good way to simulate a higher stress environment for testing and training one’s accuracy, action patterns, and safe handling. As well as evaluating one’s equipment and the arrangement of that equipment.

Going into this, my main purpose has been to learn. In particular, learn those areas which I need to study and train. I have never done anything like this in my life; it is a completely new experience for me. I have a decent firearm and four magazines but I am woefully lacking when it comes to additional equipment. I have a holster, but it’s a cheap $20 “Uncle Mike” clone with a slot for one extra mag.

So it was off to the competition. And truth be told, I had a pretty rocky start. My initial difficulty was in the basic concepts of readiness. I assumed “standby” meant wait at ready. I then found myself having not loaded up. The second mistake I made in the first course was I drew when the target started to move downrange instead of waiting for it to turn. Ooopss!!!!

The first course of fire required 12 rounds. I was shooting a Ruger P-345 which is a single stack .45 ACP (8+1). I was also informed that we would be shooting what people were referring to as “Virginia Rules”. You would be penalized points for any extra shots fired. I had four magazines but I only brought two onto the range with me having decided to load my first magazine to full capacity and my second magazine to 1/2 capacity (4 rounds) for a total of 12 rounds. My thought being that such would prevent me from shooting too many rounds.

I had decided to claim a DQ on myself due to this first course of fire. I figured I had 5 more shoots and only needed my best four to count. Alas, such would not be the case. The machinery on my firing lane went on the fritz on the next couple courses. The result, I was going to have to reshoot in the next group. Truthfully, this worked out very well for me. When I went in the second time, I now had a much better understanding of how the competitive system worked. Commands. What actions I was supposed to do when. Now, as soon as a course of fire was over, I was reloading and placing my firearm in the holster ready for the next course of action.

Approximately 1/2 hour later, it was all over. And I was getting my target scored. I shot a lot better than I actually expected. Scored a 196 out of 240. I had 41 out of 48 possible shots on target. If I recall correctly, I had 9X’s (or center/bullseye hits). While not likely to be competitive for the top positions, which was not my goal, it does provide me with a decent standard upon which to compete against myself . What was important is what I have learned from the experience:

• First, I gained some knowledge of the competitive sport of shooting. While not directly related to my self-defense. The knowledge of such actions will facilitate my continued participation in competition.
   
• My holster is exactly what it is, a $20 holster. It has a few quirks that are less than optimum for competition. Namely, there is a slight lip in the front that prevents pulling the sidearm straight out. Instead I need to pull it backwards ever so slightly before raising the sidearm free. Normally when I carry, I use the holster as a cross-carry in which this issue does not present itself as a problem. But I understand that cross draw is not popular at ranges due to the fact that a cross draw can easily sweep other people – turning them into targets. Not so good…
   
• The holster I was using features a slot for an extra magazine. A small flap latches shut via velcro. Using this holster in competition showed the advantage of having a stand-a-lone mag pouch on the opposite hip. Reloading my pistol requires me to reach across my waiste, unhitch the flap and remove the fresh magazine. I am pretty sure it’d be easier to just have one on the left side, grab it and pop it in.
   
• A third issue with my holster is the it features a thumb-break strap. The strap cross over the back of the gun securing it to the holster. It has a button snap which must be released before one can draw the sidearm. This is not insurmountable, but…it does require particular attention to training and familiarity. One of my missed shots was due to this strap. I had failed to run my finger across it in a way to release. When I went to pull my sidearm out…it was trapped. Now I consider this very much a training issue. I had far less problems with this once I made a mental note that I had to run my thumb along the strap in a low sweeping motion – freeing the sidearm. But this just shows my point, competition is a superb real-life trainer.
   
• .45 ACP, this is a big round. My Ruger P-345 seems to handle it very nicely. The single stack grip makes the sidearm comfortable in my hands (unlike the double-stack Glocks in .45). That said, while I do have better capacity than most revolvers, I have significantly less “firepower” (ammo capacity) than those shooting .40S&W and 9mm. This is NOT so much a bad thing, as simply something to be aware of. If I am going to carry a single stack in .45. Then I need to put extra training in reloading and be sure to keep an extra magazine handy.
   
• Ready Status: What ready-status should my firearm be? Magazine loaded? Round chambered or not? Safety on or not? These are questions that were clearly posed to me by the competition. Truthfully, I am not sure of “my” answers yet.I made a fair number of mistakes such as failing to chamber a round before pulling the trigger. I do believe that it is acceptable for some to choose NOT to leave one in the chamber. But doing so with a pistol means that your training must focus on immediately racking as you draw. It must also bring with it the knowledge that you have just given your opponent x.xxx seconds of extra time to put one into you before you put one into him.
   
• Safety versus De-cocker: My particular sidearm has a safety/decocker. For those new to guns. A decocker releases, or decocks, the hammer of the gun. Either returning the firearm a to double-action state OR to a non-fire state, and in the case of my pistol which features a safety/decocker. It returns it to a non-fire state with safety on safe.FYI, I really like the de-cocker feature.  I am also comforted by the knowledge of the safety. It’s potentially an extra layer between an accident IMHO. That said, drawing your sidearm, pulling the trigger and “nada” because the safety’s on; can be a matter of life or death. I am of the opinion that this is both a training issue and an equipment issue. Training will reveal to you whether your chosen method is satisfactory with a given piece of equipment or whether the equipment requires modification, or even whether new equipment is necessary. In fact, after the first course of fire I decided to try using the safety as a de-cocker for the remaining courses.
   
• The mind: this is where much of the battle is fought. The blood coursing, the heart pounding, the nerves on edge. The brain doing it’s best to evaluate everything and take it all in, and in the end make the right decision that could decide life or death, or even more importantly – whose death. This it the muscle that requires training, so that the singles to all your other muscles become inherently natural. It’s also the tool that must evaluate how you are training to ensure whether you are meeting your goals. And the equally important aspect of knowing one’s capabilities. For all those 30 yrs olds like me who grew up watching G.I. Joe and remember the slogan “Knowing is half the battle!” – this is it!
   

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After the competition, and the scoring of my target I chatted with to Chuck, who was running the event. Chuck also happens to be the instructor that I took the NRA courses with. He commented on a number of areas of struggle he saw. No condemnation, just encouragement, guidance and sharing of his wisdom. In particular the aspect of the safety/decocker. But he also made a comment on comfortability, and recognizing that I’m not fully comfortable with all these aspects as of yet – and that it was okay.

When he said this, I think he truly hit the bullet on the primer. As all of this is VERY new to me. I’ve been a gun owner for about 1 and 1/2 years now. I’ve had a carry permit for 6 months. And there is a certain acceptance that one must make at each level of readiness. Some will say you should this, you should that. I am of the opinion that you SHOULDN’T do anything that you’re not comfortable and prepared to do – that’s how accidents happen.

The first night after I got my carry permit and my carry sidearm. I was not yet comfortable to carry. But I really wanted too ever so much! But I was a lone. I had no formal training, I had no “Gunny” friend to show me the ropes, to ride along with…I had to work out my “defense” with “fear and trembling”. So I rode around all evening with my wife carrying an unloaded pistol. (I did keep loaded magazines in vehicle.) Part of me kept thinking, watch…of all nights you’ll get robbed – it’ll be the one night you’re carrying an empty weapon. Thank the Lord, that was not to be the case. Some would say what I did was stupid. But really, was I in any more jeopardy that I had been the rest of my unarmed life? No… and it wasn’t long until I had a magazine loaded in the grip – the very next day. All that said, I am just coming around to being comfortable with the idea of leaving a round in the chamber. We grow in stages and we grow as our experience grows.

What I am very much aware of, and what this recent competition re-affirmed; is that regardless of what I decide, I must train accordingly. And accept the risks and benefits of any given decision.

– N.U.G.U.N.

PS – I also passed out a number of my new mini-cards for the N.U.G.U.N. blog. If you got one, chime in and let me know you’re reading.

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For those interested to know what our course of fire was for the evening. I have gotten permission to re-post it here. So the following is the course of fire we shot last night.

48 Round “WARM-UP” PPC MATCH

STAGE #1
7 YARDS, 12 ROUNDS, 20 SECONDS
FREESTYLE

STAGE #2
15 YARDS, 12 ROUNDS, 25 SECONDS
FREESTYLE

STAGE #3
5 YARDS, 2 ROUNDS, 4 SECONDS
FREESTYLE
Repeat 6 times for a total of 12 rounds

STAGE #4
3 YARDS, 2 ROUNDS, 4 SECONDS
STRONG HAND ONLY
Repeat 3 times for a total of 6 rounds

STAGE #5
25 YARDS, 6 ROUNDS, 12 SECONDS
FREESTYLE

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Total number of rounds = 48
Maximum points = 240

Start position = League shooters, gun in holster, all safety devices activated, hands naturally at side.

Start signal = Target turns and is visible.

Stop signal = Target turns and is not visible.

Sportsmen division shooters, gun in two handed firing position, some part of gun or hands touching the table.

Penalties = 5 point deduction for each extra hit (48 maximum) on the target.