revolver for CF of 2700?

[sbtzc]

I was wondering if anyone uses a revolver for the center fire stage of a 2700? If so, what type, caliber, etc. Also, what is the strategy for the rapid fire strings? Double action?

I recently purchased a nice revolver in .357 and was thinking about using it in the center fire stage. Opinions?

[jackh]

If you like it, do it. But, what are your goals in shooting? If contending and winning championships is your goal, better use what most champions use. Lots of us recognize limitations in our shooting, time, budget, drive, and shoot for enjoyment. So enjoy. I have Colt OMM 22 and 38, and S&W 14, 17 and 25 revolvers. I use single action all the way. I don't use them all the time, but I enjoy them the most.

[solomon grundy]

I'll shoot a Model 14 or a Colt OMS for CF when I'm training for Distinguished Revolver matches. But I'll often use a 148gr HBWC rather than the 158gr SWC that I'd use for DR.

And I shoot SA for timed and rapid. SA really isn't so difficult once you've trained with it a bit. I don't find myself rushing to complete the string in rapid-fire.

The challenge w/ revolvers, in my experience, is that they're less forgiving of errors in your grip - when using standard symmetrical revolver grips/stocks.

[Steve Swartz as Guest]

First time I ever saw a revolver used in a 2700 was quite the spectacle. Someone apparently asked the MD to check the trigger weight.
The MD checked the weight (DA) and declared it "Good to Go."

Apparently, the SA weight was somewhat less than legal . . .

Steve

(p.s. the guy didn't break 700)

[solomon grundy]

He was probably shooting over the target in timed and rapid!

I have a neat little "undercover" PPC revolver that can be enabled for SA by relieving the trigger stop. But the SA trigger is very very light - less than a pound. So it's too easy to let one off when you're replacing your trigger finger through recoil. I have to wait until I'm on-target, and then place my finger. So it's actually a slower and more error prone process than working with a heavier trigger for this purpose.

or maybe he just wasn't a very good shot ;)

[fast shooter]

I used to shoot 2700's in Mass and Conn in the 80's and early 90's, there were two shooters who used to shoot revolvers in all three stages. they were both in the master class.

[sbtzc]

Thanks! I'll give it a try. Should be fun.

[melchloboo]

I'm with you on that one...looking for a model 25 or 625 rather than a 1911.

[solomon grundy]

The 25's are great revolvers.

They tend to have oversized throats, which is something to look into if you're not familiar with the issue. For instance, the throats on mine are ~0.456". Its accuracy is typically impressive, but there are certain bullets that it just doesn't like.

[earplug]

We do a simple fifty foot 300 shoot, and I use my red dot five inch 625-8.
Why I struggle with this thing is beyond rational thought.
I am having fun. Keeping a steady grip during Timed and Rapid fire is a chore. That hammer cocking destroys any grip weld for me.
I have made my own grips that really helped is slow fire.
It is nice to make up some powder puff loads and not have to worrry about the gun cycling.

[mister G]

Go to gun-tests.com and search for the article "Winner’s Circle: X-Ring .45 ACP Loads". Read about Massachusetts' own Marty "Babe" Magnan, first shooter to go 2600 at Perry all with revolvers. He's also broken 2650 more than once.

Those of us who know him consider Babe a real gem!

[jackh]

By far the best single target i ever fired was with a Colt OMM38 with iron sights. Even though I know exactly what i did then, I find it difficult to redo the performance because i am TRYing to.

[2650 Plus]

I seem to remember Col William Mc Millan who I believe was the very first 2650 shooter, using a colt python with 148 gr wadcutter at Camp Perry in the late 50's. He was better than good and very hard to beat , Joe Benner also used a colt officers match and won the national championship five times, Harry Reaves was just before Joe and did the same thing altho neither were 2650 level shooters. Remember that the pistols were not as well developed during their time, and it is doubtful that the ammo was up to current standards. Good Shooting Bill Horton

[Guest]

Does the faster twist in the Colt barrels (compared to S&W) help with accuracy when using a 148 gr. WC ? I hear about Colt's the most when shooting at 50 yards and can't help but think about rebarreling my Smith with a faster twist barrel and giving it a try at the long line.

Kirmdog

[Solomon Grundy]

That's their reputation. But you'd want to find one for a Python or OMM that's new. Then you'll have what's known as a Smolt aka Smython ;)

[kle]

I do use a revolver in CF, and actually I use a revolver in .22 and .45, too:

For .22 I use a S&W 617-4, 10-shot, 6" and the Wally World Federal Bulk Pack .22s (Load #750).

For Centerfire I use a S&W 686-5, 7-shot, 6" with my own loaded ammo, a 148gr hollow-base lead wadcutter over 3.1gr of W231 powder in .38 Special cases.

For .45 I use a S&W 625-6, 6-shot, 5", and I currently use a 185gr lead semi-wadcutter .45 bullet over 3.6gr of W231 powder (though I'll probably bump that up to 4.1gr or 4.3gr of powder soon).

I use single action for all slow, timed, and rapid stages; for timed and rapid, I grip slightly lower so that my thumb can reach up and cock the hammer without having to 'break' my grip too much. I find that I, too, don't feel rushed to shoot even the rapid-fire strings, and I even wait a second or two after the targets face to really cinch-up my hold before starting my rapid-fire sequence. After a lot of practice, cocking the hammer simply becomes part of the shot recovery process--after the gun recoils, as I bring the sights back to the target, my thumb is already up and pulling the hammer back for the next shot.

Now if I could only dial-in my .45 scores, I can break out of the "Expert" class...862-27x for .22, 852-23x for CF, and 780-17x for .45 in today's 2700 match (though I've done as well as 824-21x for .45 a few months ago). Dang.

[EdM]

kle: Do you use optics with your guns or stay with open sights?

I have a Model 17 and a 14 - no .45 yet - and would like to mount Red Dots on them but thinking it may be better to get the more modern version of these (617 and 686) which are already drilled and tapped for scope mounts.

Thank you.

Ned

P.S.:It is encouraging to see some shooters still use revolvers in this sport.

[kle]

I have Weigand scope mounts for all of them, with a 1" UltraDot on the 617 and a 30mm Tasco AccuDot on the 686. I had a 30mm AccuDot on the 625, but it literally almost fell apart last week (two days before a 2700!), so I switched back to iron sights for that one. I ended up with (22) 862-27x, (CF) 852-23x, and (.45) 781-17x (scores here--top of the Expert class, shooter "Le, K."). .45 is always my weakest score anyways, but I dropped 30 or 40 points (usually I'm in the low 810s) in going back to irons...of course, I would've dropped 800 points by not shooting the .45 at all, so I'll take a 780 over a 0 any day.

Soon I will have all three guns topped with 1" UltraDots...

You can get the Aimtech mounts that mount to the sideplate, and extend up and over the top strap to provide a rail, or you can get the B-square mounts. No drilling and tapping required. I've actually got a (beat up) Aimtech K-frame mount that I'm probably never going to use if you want to play with it...

---

Yeah, revolver shooters are something of an oddity in this sport. I'm the only fool on the line crankin' and yankin' in my neck of the woods while everyone else is using autoloaders (and having feeding and magazine problems and...).

I know that I can shoot better with autoloaders, and I even have a S&W 41 and a couple Ruger Mk. IIs that I could use, but I haven't found (or built) a 1911 that I like yet, nor could I afford it ($2500 for a wad gun? My 625 was $625-shipped, and didn't need anything other than a new trigger and a new hand).

I love a good, tuned single-action trigger on a revolver--I've gotten my triggers down to the point where I can trip the hammer while the trigger hardly moves (and doesn't even use up all of its overtravel) and still meets (or exceeds) the minimum pull-weight requirements--while the triggers on autoloaders can never be quite as good. I got to try the trigger on a custom-built 1911 the other day, and what the owner said was a "nice trigger" would've been horrible on a revolver (and I know, it's because there are more parts and linkages and there simply must be more "slop" in the system for it to work).

[earplug]

I have been shooting a match dot sighted M-14 and a 625 at fifty foot.
Started wondering about a old fixed sight four inch S&W M65 that I have and we wondered over to the drill press, now its a scope mounted bullseye gun and I get to put the irons on my M-14 for other games.
This might be a good option for many others as many shooters now use
scopes, and the cost of a nice M-14 is much higher then the service guns.
No reason to buy the adjustable sight guns if your going to shoot a scope.
The four inch barrel is not a handicap with optics. I do seem to get more smoke with my normal load of 3 grains of WW231.

[kle]

The four inch barrel is not a handicap with optics. I do seem to get more smoke with my normal load of 3 grains of WW231.

Sometimes I get a little crazy and start wondering what would happen if I took my Aimtech sideplate-attached scope mount and stuck it on a 2" Model 10. And then put a huge honkin' extended eye relief scope on it. Man, that'd be a hoot, but I'd probably get a lot of bullet drop at 50 yards. Should be precise enough, though, as enough spin is imparted through the first inch or two of barrel to stabilize the bullet (as I recall, anyways...).

It's fun to think about, anyways.

You could get a used Model 14 for about $400 nowadays. It won't come drilled and tapped, but it'd get the job done for centerfire (if you can do iron sights) and for Distinguished Revolver and Harry Reeves matches...