March/April 1983 - American Handgunner

Ralph W. Ingle, Master Engraver with 20 years of experienceengraving in the traditional manner of Hammer & Chiseloffers acolor catalog of engraved guns & Presentation Caseswith Ivory or Mother·of·Pearl Accessories for $3.00.~ GUN SPECIALTIES INC..~ College Park, Georgia P.O. Box 3128&(alph 00. dngle, emo,'" (-)""'0""# 4 Missing Link, Dept. AHRossville, GA 30741404-866-5589WE NEED MOREHANDGUNENTHUSIASTSON OURSIDE!YOURCOPY OFHANDGUNNERMAGAZINEWITH A FRIENDMaybe they'll get their owncopy, by using the enclosedsubscription card.IPSC, PPC 6 SERVICE GUNStailored to your needsW. R. MOOREP.O. Box 17252Pittsburgh. PA 15235(send sase for prices)THE LEWIS LEAD REMOVERSATISFACTIONG$~~~;~ED A _~ ~!_ t WRevolver Cleaning Kit. Removes leadil).g from ForcingCone, Cylinder, and Barrel. Available in either 38-41-44-45cal. Brass doth patches (Pk. 10) $2.30. Order direct or fromyour dealer. Check or Money Order.lIiiI...·since 1937. tools &87 Lanark Ave.'.• Reloadlngaccessones \s &• Gunsmith toOgages der loading• Black powtools t PresS• NEW 'tuneLanerk, It. 61C1461'IIIiSILUETASContinuedfrom page 18two critters look over your sights, then reducethat image to about a third its size.The last two targets look a tad bigger. Butdon't feel relieved; these little ones areshot standing, Data from tests run by BeemanInc., the largest U.S. importer of air~guns, indicate that the best match qualityair pistols have the accuracy necessary tocope with the challenge, which I suspectwas why the NRA silhouette committee selectedthe relatively long distances-andsmaller targets.NRA COURSE 'TOO TOUGH'At 20 meters, the half-inch from-bellyto-backchicken spans about three minutesof angle; Beeman's tests indicate the bestmatch pistols will shoot about one MOA.But that's not counting the disadvantageimposed by being outdoors in the windand trying to hit this bumblebee-sized targetwhile wobbling around in the standingposition. The shooter fa.ces the same challengea NRA standing shooter faces whenusing a one MOA unlimited gun-at fullsizedtargets!In short, I think the NRA game is tootough. At these distances, it requires outdoorranges,Admittedly, top shooters with $600match guns could clean the NRA course.What the rest of us need, however, is anindoor game, one that duplicates the sightpicture and structure ofour long- or short-Magnum Grips has newRuger target stocksMagnum Grips of Arizona has somenew target stocks for Ruger autos-andthey're handcrafted from select walnut,with an oil finish.Designed for the Mark I and Mark IIRugers, they come in two styles: Target,with a thumbrest; and Sportsman,without a thumbrest.Price: Target, $19.95; Sportsman,$15.95.For more information, write thecompany at POB 801 (AH), Payson, AZ85541.range courses. It doesn't exist. But let's layout the details and see if it interests you.Let's shoot indoors, because that'swhere airguns are used by the majority: insporting goods stores, clubhouses aftermeetings, evenings in a shopping mall todraw new shooters and show the generalpublic how much fun shooting can beyouname it. Competition programs completewith trophies, or just informal funshoots, should be promoted, We don'tneed outdoor events with indoor guns. Butwe do need to take advantage of the tremendousopportunities available to shoot,reach new shooters and spread the gospelthat indoor events with airguns are worthinvestigating.Scaled-down targets at short ranges willretain the look of the primary events forthose who shoot them, and increase thescores of those who seldom pick up a firearm,Tenth-scale targets at tenth-scaledistances-5, 10, 15 and 20 meters-is whatit's all about. That's 65 feet; add someroom for a firing line and pellet traps, andyou're looking at a total of75 feet: long formost houses, but not beyond the longestaisle in a store, or the length of a communitybuilding, gym or air conditioned shoppingmall. Shortening the distances willenable the average shooter to fire scoresthat are encouraging and allow less elaborate(and less expensive) pistols into thesport.FREESTYLE SHOOTINGFinally, to duplicate the long and shortcourses, competition should be in bothstanding and freestyle positions. Becauseof their basic design, most air pistols arefairly long, and barrel/body clearance infreestyle positions should be sufficient inmost any reasonable freestyle position.Freestyle shooting will allow the competitorto get in his practice, and train newshooters for eventual competition.Sound good? Europeans shoot indoors alot, from serious competition withbleachers of spectators (a la basketballgames) to informal matches in shootinghouses complete with scores of kibitzers(beats the hell out of bowling).There are some problems left to resolve.N RA rules are far too broad, sincepistols in a range of $30 to $600 qualify inits sanctioned matches. They'll have 'to beseparated. So, I propose that IHMSA (InternationalHandgun Metallic SilhouetteAssociation) form a group to study thematter, inventory all available pistols, andseparate them-by name-into classes. Usea gun's base price as a criterion, for accuracyusually goes· up with price. Pick aprice, say $200, and make two classes:sportsman and unlimited. Or maybe threeclasses, split at $100 and $400. Needs somethought.There would be two forms of competition,freestyle and unlimited, with classesin each and based on some expected averages.I've been practicing in the standingposition in my backyard at the tenth distances,and so far my best score is 26X40.AMERICAN HANDGUNNER· MARCH/APRIL 1983