i think i'm that other guy??

[fiver]

as I go through the different forums I constantly see 'the' thread pop up.
you know that thread.
I wanna shoot 1,000 yards.
but I only got a 3-400$ budget to work with.. what do y'all recommend?
or the.
I'm starting to get hooked on this game but my budget is only 49.95$ and I need a new [insert] gun to work with.
the sucky thing is I got the 1-K budget shooter, only I went through three of them to finally settle in on the 'good' one.
I also have the $500 to 1-K trap gun/s that have lasted since the 70's and still somehow manage to shoot in the high90's with the 100 straight tossed in once/twice a month just to keep things interesting.

but then it comes to reloading gear and I look at what I got sitting there.
3 ponsess warren shot shell loaders. [flat wore out some nice guns with one of them]
a 366, and a couple of MEC's
4 Dillon 550's
a 650
3 stars [after donating one to a new caster]
2 magma pots, and a 'few' others for oddball jobs.
some swaging tools and dies.
and a bunch of other this's and that's.
[you know tumblers and annealers]

I think I'm 'that other guy'.
the one with the budget guns and the quality ammo.
instead of 'that guy' with the 3-15K gun feeding it the cheapest bulk ammo he can find and complaining about burnt firing pins, jams, hard extraction, etc.

 

[Ian]

If you get it right where it counts it doesn't matter what you use. What matters is a few critical things like straight barrel, proper bedding, concentric ammo, and knowing what you're doing at the reloading and shooting benches. It ain't the arrow, it's the Indian as the saying goes, though it's true in some disciplines that a good Indian will shoot better with a better arrow. Or what my great uncle used to say, as quoted in my signature line.

People who have little money and want to shoot a lot and get good should consider investing in a $189 Gamo air rifle and run the gamut of pellets and rifle tweaks. Once a person peaks out with that they'll be a lot better prepared in their approach to the more expensive stuff, and might accidentally have learned how to shoot while they were at it.

 

[RBHarter]

I'm just happy to shoot .
I have a lot of old school tools . A lot of old school guns .
When it all clicks , it's amazing .
I'm only in competition with me , I and myself .

 

[Brad]

I view it as being a lot like tools and trucks. Buy what is required for your needs.
I don't have a big v8 in my truck because I don't haul heavy stuff or tow anything, why have it if I don't need it?
If you want to play at 1K then try your existing bolt gun and learn a few things. When you decide you really want to get serious then decide if you want to go entry level or really get into it and spend some bucks. Just realize that a $2,000 rifle fed the cheapest big box store ammo isn't gonna shoot well. Plan to spend some bucks on dies, brass, and bullets. A chronograph isn't a bad idea either.

I own a 550, 1 Star, and a few 20 # pots. Still want a 40# Magma pot just so I can cast more before needing to add lead. I have a 450 but almost never use it, not even mounted on the bench. I own relatively few moulds, I find one that works and just keep using it.

My advice is to spend money where it counts. For a guy competing in IPSC shooting 500 rounds a week a 650 makes some sense, for a guy shooting 500 rounds a year a progressive is silly.

What I really liked to see when I was shooting highpower was the newer guys, and many older new shooters, who were always changing their loads. New powder, new bullet, primers, whatever. What they didn't understand is that the ammo was that bad, they just weren't good shots. They didn't put in the time and effort to learn good positions, proper NPA, and all the little things the better shooter understood and did. All the money spent on ammo and gun quality can't make up for a shooter who isn't up to snuff. Great shooter with a cheap gun always outshoots the moron with the top notch equipment.

 

[Brad]

Fiver, what makes you different really isn't equipment or guns. It is an ability to make good observations and draw good conclusions from them. You shoot with a purpose rather than just put rounds down range.
Go to the range with a plan. What is it you are trying to learn or understand? What happened? What was different? Was there a pattern to it?
You need to KNOW why that shot went out. Flyers don't really exist, they are a sign we just don't always understand.

 

[Eutectic]

You need to KNOW why that shot went out. Flyers don't really exist, they are a sign we just don't always understand.

Boy ain't this the truth!!!!

There is no reason every single shot can't go into the very same hole.... even a 1000 yards away! You just need to listen to every little voice; even the whispers; and especially those you think don't matter!!

Pete

 

[Rick]

True enough, little doubt I have learned more from what didn't work than from what did.

 

[Brad]

Problem is that people don't analyze why it went wrong. Why was it wrong and what can be done to fix it?
Others can help you but unless you put in the effort it will never work out well.

 

[fiver]

you know I believe there is a lot to be said for observing the bad groups.
I have looked at some targets at the range before and suggested some tweaks to the load.
the guy I was talking to was just going to trash all the rest of his ammo into the berm and move along to the next effort.
I mentioned the shape of the group was the problem not the load, and suggested an oal or a primer change rather than just throwing another powder at it.


I had a short discussion with a newer trap shooter the other day and he asked how many loads I had.
I asked him 'for which gun?'
then explained I basically have 2 for each trap gun one for the winter and one for the summer.
they both go the same speed and give the same patterns only one is for cold weather and one is for hot weather. [sometimes it's the same load, only with a different sized shot]
he thought that was kind of stupid and just dumped the same load in about 4 different hulls.
I mentioned to him he was shooting 4 different loads all the time doing that and was why he was missing/chipping some of the targets he was missing.
I showed him the flight time of his loads and how far the target would move at that distance.
there was about 4" difference in the targets position between the fastest and slowest loads [at 35 yds] more as you move back for handicap yardages.
but the main thing was how the shells patterned at that distance.
he had previously told me he was having a problem hitting with one hull more than others.
I suggested he had a velocity drop from the larger hull and possibly a hot core with not enough pellets filling out the rest of the pattern. [never mind how poorly the wads base sealed the larger inner diameter hull]
he had no idea and had never tried even shooting at the grease board.

 

[Brad]

Some people over think things, some underthink things. Where most go wrong is that they don't know what does, or doesn't matter, in a given set of circumstances.

 

[freebullet]

Ive surpassed other guy status & went straight to alien.