American Handgunner July/August 1979

CLARK" RUGeR20~AdjUstab,e, Rear Sight\~\"",'$1650RETAIL(White outline blade­$350 extra)Replaces rear sight on Ruger models withadjustable sights. Large, flat rear blade withdeeper sight notch. Improved sight picture.Better click adjustments.Also available to fit base on currentproduction model Mark I.DEALER INQUIRIES INVITED.Jam~st.ClarkPISTOLSMITHRt. 2 -Box 22AKeithville. Louisiana 71047(318) 925-0836u.s. CARTRIDGESANDTHEIR HANDGUNSHere is the new edition of the mostinformative book ever printed on thesubject of what guns use which cartridges.U.S. CARTRIDGES ANDTHEIR HANDGUNS shows, bothphotographically and with good textsupport, the cartridge guns producedand many rare, unusual andnot often seen cartridges that arenow used since a great number ofAmerican and foreign made gunshandle ammunition no longer available.Available in softback andhardback.Soft $9.95 Hardback $14.95r - AMERiCANHANDGUNNER--,591 Camino de la Reina. San Diego. CA 92108 I 55- H7 Please send copy(ies) of IU. S. CARTRIDGES ANDTHEIR HANDGUNS. EnclosedI is $-- plus $L.OO postage andhandling per copy.II NAMEI ADDRESSI CITYIII STATE ZIP IL _ Ca. residents add 6% sales tax __JIBY EVAN P. MARSHALLCotl1batCourseIPSe (INTERNATIONAL PISTOL SHOOTINGCONFEDERATION) NOT PERTINENT•••COOPER DISAGREES AND TELLS WHYIf you're a regular reader of AmericanHandgunner, you know I'm a ratherharsh critic of the PPC course. I sincerelyfeel that its been perverted to the pointwhere it's no longer a valid form of combattraining.On the other hand, I've been an enthusiasticsupporter and competitor in IPSCcompetition. As a police sergeant in one ofthis countries largest urban departments, Igot involved in IPSC for one reason only. . . survival. Recently, however, there hasseemed to develop a faction within IPSCthat would like to turn it into a quasi-PPCwith the .45 Auto.The IPSC club I belong to (MichiganAllied Combat Shooters) is a "purist"group, but this doesn't seem to be the casein most other states. A check with IPSCshooters across the country mdlcates thatmany shoots are setup on well establishedcourses. In fact, several send out detailedinformation regarding the various stagesof the course. This, ofcourse, allows thoseshooters who intend to enter the match topractice extensively the course they'll be'shooting. My club on the other hand, doesnot reveal the course until it is set up at thestart of the match. Everyone is walkedthrough the course once so that everyoneis on equal footing.A growing number of IPSC shootersseem to be more interested in medals ortrophies than improving their chances ofsurviving a lethal confrontation. In fact ata recent big IPSC match, a well knowncompetitor was heard to complain loudlythat the running man target was moving ata slower rate than he had practiced at!Another area that concerns me is thatsome of the course have little relevance toreality. Although I've been involved inmore than my share of real life shootingsituations, I've never fired a shot whileswinging from a rope or jumping from atree! Whether you're a cop or civilianthere are many armed attack situationsthat IPSC course can teach you to survive.The holster and belt rigs carried by thecompetitors are generally unsuitable forday-to-day carry. The importance ofdrawing your weapon from the same placein both competition and real life situationsIwho use Gordon Davis rigs for on-duty,uniform use, and if this is the case thenthere's obviously nothing wrong with this.Many shooters, however, use such specialduty rigs for competition, and then use ainside-the-pants or Yaqui slide rig fordaily carry.Another sore point is the weapons used.The really top competitors are usingweapons that cost upwards of$1 ,000 each!This, of course, eliminates many goodshooters from really being competitive.None of these expensive gun owners thatI've met, however, carry these guns for defensivepurposes. It's as bad as the PPCshooter who carries a 9MM on-duty, butshoots all his matches with a bull barrelK-38.While we can't eliminate these expen­SIve rigs and weapons from competItion, Itseems that we could set up classes forthose people competing on a budget. Furthermore,I'd like to see separate classesset up for revolver users. The majority ofthis country's police officers are restrictedto the revolver, and they should be given achance to be competitive. Because my departmentdoesn't allow us to carry the .45on-duty, I run the course once with my .41Magnum and once with my off-duty .45Auto. While this approach will probablynever qualify for a place on the US IPSCTeam, it will greatly improve my chancesto come out on top of a lethal confrontation.It seems to me that this shouldbe IPSe's goal.There are, of course, several IPSCmembers who will be upset with me for"airing dirty laundry," but problems cannotbe solved if they're ignored. I likeIPSC very much, but like the air around usI'd like to see it kept pure and uncluttered!JEFF COOPER DOESN'TSEE IT THAT WAYMr. Marshall makes some very goodpoints in regard to trends in practicalshooting. The fact is that we have beenwrestling with the concept of practicalityshould be obvious. I know of some cops ever since the program began over 20AMERICAN HANDGUNNER . JULY / AUGUST 1979