Hunter Education

4-shot Scope Zero

From our friend, Mr. Larry Potterfield at Midway USA

Bore sight the rifle

1. center the bore of the rifle to the target at 25 yards
2. adjust the scope starting with the windage screws on the scope base
3. adjust the adjustment turrets on the scope until the cross hairs are centered on the target
4. fire one shot at 25 yards to confirm that you're on the paper and near the center of the target

Fine tune the zero

1. fire your second shot at the target at 100 yards
2. after the shot, place the cross hairs back on the bulls eye
3. hold the gun securely in a rest without moving it and windage screws to place the vertical wire over the bullet hole
4. use the scope's windage and elevation turrets to place the cross hairs directly over the bullet hole
5. fire the third shot at the bulls eye and your rifle should be perfectly zeroed
6. fire the fourth shot to confirm
   

Shooting USA

I started watching Shooting USA, thanks to my TiVo. They mentioned their Pro Tips a number of times and I found the link. Now, I'll have to find some time to watch them all. I'm particularly interested in the reloading section. It'll go well with Midway's video tips.

Advantage Arms Glock 30 Conversion

I've been having a hard time finding a 19/23 LE kit. I was on TopGlock.com's backorder list for over a month and a half. I found 29/30 kits were more available so I picked one up. I only have one magazine for it, so I can't properly use it to train for my CCW, but that's just a matter of time.

I was very nicely impressed with the quality. Even the translucent case is very nice. It even has two locking holes next to the handle. I had some problems getting the slide to lock on assembly, but there's probably a little trick to doing it smoothly. I should probably read the instructions fully. My bad.

It comes with some pretty clear warnings about ammo to stay away from. So, I started of with a 100 rounds of CCI Mini Mags. I couldn't get through a single mag with out a FTF, FTI, or some other strange malfunction. I'm really hoping that it was due to a lack of cleaning or a faulty mag (which I wouldn't be so psyched about).

I've only been to the range once with it and had quite a lot of problems with it. I didn't clean it before I used the kit, so that probably played a huge factor in it's reliability. I've cleaned it pretty well and intend on oiling it up for my next range session. I was happy with the accuracy. I was getting about 2" at 7 yards. Yeah, I know, I suck. That's what this kit is for, practice baby.

I really believe in this kit, even though I had so many problems with it. I went ahead and bought a 19/23 model through GunBroker and I'm keeping my fingers crossed. It'll be a great way for my wife and sister-in-law to shoot. They won't have to worry about recoil or excessive noise.

Here's some other reviews (in no particular order):
From shooter2-indy
From Owen
YouTube Video on Assembly

(original 12/14/07)

UPDATED: I just got my 19/23 LE kit. I was on TopGlock.com and almost every other Internet retailer's waiting list for one of these and I got sick of waiting. If you're waiting, check out the GunBroker.com - I got mine for $238 plus nominal shipping.

My wife and I went out yesterday and shot about 150 rds of CCI Mini-Mags and Remington Golds both in 40 grains. This time I thoroughly cleaned the kit and lubed it with Wilson's gun grease - great stuff by the way. I didn't have any oil on hand, but hoped the grease would suffice. The only problems we had were a few FTE's that were due to the wax-lube build-up from the Mini-Mags. Otherwise, we were able to burn through the 10-rd mags without much trouble. I'm fairly confident that with enough lubrication, the Advantage Arms kits will run great.

I'll have to adjust the sights a little. The 19/23 kit was shooting a couple inches high and a little to the right at around 15-20 yards. I'm really happy that I'll be able to improve my trigger control and general handling at a fraction of the price of 9mm FMJ.

Great advice for taking out a beginning shooter

This was a response on a forum I frequent and I thought it was excellent advice. I wish I knew better the first time I took some friends out to shoot. I look back on pictures from the day and realize that not everyone was always wearing eye protection!

For beginners, I always try to have a classroom session to introduce new shooters to the 4 basic safety rules, and to show them how to align the sights with the target, stance, grip, and trigger press, and the basics of how the handgun functions mechanically (easier than trying to show someone how to load magazines or operate a safety lever or open the cylinder while other people are shooting and making noise around you). The classroom session can be in your home or at a range's classroom (some ranges will let you use the room for free if you are a regular customer and tell the manager that you are introducing a newbie to shooting) if it is not already reserved for a class. Call before you go.

Be sure that the ear plugs or muffs fit properly and actually block the sound before entering the firing line. Lots of beginners don't know how much sound is supposed to be blocked, so they may initially accept incomplete fitting, then get annoyed or scared by the muzzle blast. I tell beginners that the plug or muff should block 90% of the sound, and then snap my fingers next to their ears, before and after fitting the ear protection, so they can experience the difference before going to the firing line. Glasses can cause poor seal of ear muffs, unless the glasses are worn over the muffs.

Naturally, eye protection is a requirement.

The neckline of the shirt/blouse should be fairly high and closely fitted, to prevent hot brass from getting inside. As you may guess, this can be a bigger problem for women, since they are more likely to wear loose or low-necklines than men.

I find that .22 LR is the way to start most people, although people who are seriously hypersensitive can benefit from starting with an air pistol (I have a Daisy Powerline 717 that is inexpensive, has a decent trigger pull and sights, and is far more accurate than even the average experienced shooter), since it has essentially no recoil or noise. It's drawback is that it is a single shot handgun and must be pumped once for each shot.

As for the type of .22, I differ from most people who prefer to start with a revolver. I find that a nice full-size .22 semi-auto is quite suitable for beginners as long as you show them how it works, start them out with only 1 round in the mag, and watch them carefully while they shoot (which you should do anyway, with any beginner). After they have tried a couple of cycles of "one round in the mag", I let them load 2 or 3. If they do fine with that, 5 or 10 is ok. Watch for slide lock to determine empty gun.

It is not "cheating" for a beginner to use a rest at first.

I emphasize that if anything (ANYTHING) does not go according to instructions, the student should keep holding the handgun with finger off trigger, pointing it downrange, and ask for help. I will be right there watching them, so it isn't hard to get my attention. Naturally, I am also watching constantly, so I may see any problem immediately and they may not even have to ask for help. I am always at their shoulder and prepared to block or grab the handgun if they inadvertently turn around.

Other calibers:

.25--not a good choice for beginners, since it is usually only available in tiny handguns that are too small, too fiddly, and have more recoil than the student is expecting.

.32 ACP--again, often available in small handguns with more recoil than expected (i.e. Seecamp .32 or Beretta Tomcat). If you have a nice medium size handgun in this caliber, it can be quite pleasant (Walther PP or Beretta 70S).

.32 Long or .32 H&R Magnum--pretty easy-going caliber in the usual medium size revolver, or target semi-auto.

.380 ACP--Can generate an unpleasant level of recoil for beginners, especially when fired in blowback semi-autos (which is to say, most guns available in this caliber). Fired in a locked-breech gun, the recoil is very mild (Colt .380 Govt. or Mustang, and very old versions of the Llama .380 Government)

.38 Special--Easy- going caliber with the right loads in full-size revolvers (i.e., S&W Model 10 with 4 or 6 inch barrel). Target wadcutters are loaded lighter than the duty rounds, so start with target wadcutters. Duty or self-defense rounds are loaded hotter, and +P loads are quite hot. Short barrels make everything worse (noise, muzzle backblast, recoil).

9mm Luger/Parabellum- -Standard loads have noticeable noise and recoil. +P loads can be fairly sharp.

.40 S&W, .357 Magnum, .45 ACP--all of these can be intimidating to beginners. .40 S&W normal load is practically a +P, the .357 Magnum is very high intensity, and the .45 has long been over-rated in terms of recoil. Choose wisely. Under no circumstances should a beginner shoot a snub .357!

However, some students are quite recoil and noise tolerant, so they may easily adapt to anything you throw at them. Might as well have one or two larger calibers with you, just in case your student is adventurous and wants to try the "big bores" like .357 Mag or .45. Or the student may want you to shoot it just to demonstrate what larger calibers do. No sense making them bored!

.44 Magnum, .454 Casull, .480 Ruger, .500 Magnum, etc.--Just don't! These are only for shooters with some experience.

If you wish to start with a .22 or .38 revolver, I'd suggest shooting in the single-action mode for beginners. The trigger pull is lighter and smoother, and the student is more likely to be able to hit the target. Double action can be frustrating and discouraging. Self-defense revolver training should almost always be double-action, but that can come later.

I commend you on your efforts to teach new shooters and I hope you and your student have fun!

Randall N. Herrst
The Center For The Study Of Crime
"Join now! Learn how to become a more effective activist!"
www.StudyCrime. org
310 213-4709

N Range Indoor Shooting

I found this product from the Glocktalk.com forum. Looks interesting, but the ammunition is expensive and non-reloadable. A person would probably need about $2000 to get started.

Airsoft Season Begins

Finally.

We've been having an unseasonably wet and cold spring here in K. Most of our weekends have been filled with pretty crappy weather. I went to the local hobby shop yesterday morning and found out the meeting place for the local airsoft group. Thankfully it was only a half-hour drive away.

I nearly didn't find the place. I had parked my car at a near-by school and began walking. I stumbled upon the parking lot serendipidously. The guys there were rather suprised that I showed up. The were generally friendly and welcomed me as things were just beginning.

This was their third day this year and we began with about an hour to an hour-and-a-half of maintenence work around the site. We moved the port-a-john, re-built some stairs, and set up some barricades. There were about 12 of us there.

At about 10:30 we began our first game. It was elimination-style and the only rules were that we had to use our guns on semi-auto. When I asked why, they replied that until the grasses and foliage grew in, it wasn't very interesting to just blast away on full-auto. The area was surprisingly small. We primarily stayed within an area that measured 100x50 yards. I thought the games would last longer and that we'd be farther off from our starting point, but I doubt the games lasted longer than 15 minutes with about six people on a team.

My new M-4 worked flawlessly after I discovered that I played the first game without winding my hi-cap magazine. I probably only shot off about 10 rounds. The rest of my trigger-pulls were just shootin' air. Talk about a newbie screw-up. Then during my second game I realized I had to adjust the hop-up. I keep my gun stored at the neutral-postion, because I'm under the impression that it'll last longer if I store it that way. Basically if I fired some test shots before we started, I could have worked out those kinks immediately. The other guys were firing their guns, but I was a little embarassed to join them.

I didn't use my Glock-18C AEP. I wanted to save the batteries for later, but that was stupid. Even though I had two batteries, they should have still lasted me about at least 400 shots which is more than enough for half-the-day the way we were playing. I fired a total of about 200 rounds with my M-4 for the whole morning.

Others were using M-4 variants, GBB pistols, a G-36, a couple shotguns, a couple rifles with scopes. The GBB's were very cool. I might have to get one myself ;-) but I don't want to spend any more money right now.

I brought a pair of cheap shooting glasses, but they quickly had me switch to a face mask. It was a field rule and that was fine by me. I had two hi-caps for my M-4 and only used one. I had three extra batteries, but didn't even use up my first. Granted we were using semi-auto only, but I only see myself no more than tripling my consumption for a morning of full-auto. I doubt that I'll need more than two hi-caps and two batteries for my M-4 all day long. I do need to find a better way to dispense my BB's for reloading between games. I'm pouring BB's out of a zip-lock bag right now, and there's always a few BB's that get wasted in the process. I hate the thought of dropping more BB's than is necessary.

I ended up getting hit about as many times as I made my own kills. I think I should have counted a couple of hits in hind sight. I didn't realize until half-way through the morning that I should count richochettes. To tell the truth, it was a little difficult to tell when you were getting hit, kinda. I don't want to get into the bad habit of not calling hits.

Our strategy was pretty much to rush the line as soon as we began for good position over the field. It wasn't really necessary given that we were playing elimination over capturing a base, but it was still fun. I really tried to practice constant forward/agressive movement, but it's difficult. Sometimes you get pinned down and I probably should have pulled back and flanked for a better shot.

I had a fantastic time and after I figured out the initial glitches I was able to play without futzing around with my gear. I would like to figure out my sling. It would have been nice to switch weak-side a couple of times and I found the three-point sling to be annoying at times. I can also see why Clint Smith doesn't like them. I found my saftey got switched off a few times when carrying the M-4 between games. I was very careful about the trigger, but that was pretty unsettling to think that might happen with my real M-4. I'll also need a new holster. My Glock spun around my body a few times during the game. A drop-leg set-up would eliminate that problem. I wouldn't want to reach for my side-arm and find that it's not there.

So, the guys are letting me come again. The next game, May 6th, will be at night beginning around 20:00. I have no idea what to expect. I'm wondering if I'll need a light or not. I think the team leader said that it wasn't necessary. We'll see.