Affordable upgrades?

[OnaginOffagin]

You know, a guy can get an inferiority complex awful quick looking at the beautiful rifles on this board....

I'm retired, with an income that's charitably described as "fixed," and the dollars are each and every one painfully spent! But I'm gonna shoot this sport until I die, and I think I have a good base to start with -- Anschutz 54 single shot in a McMillan Master, w Hart ss barrel and Leupold 6X18 .... Anschutz 1710 w/ stock barrel and a Leupold 24X BR. Both guns are pillow-bedded. I've hit 30 with both guns, but not lately!

What do you think would be the most cost-effective upgrades I could do on either one of these guns? I was thinking about a Wooster stock for the 1710....but, man..... you can buy a lot of ammo for the cost of one of those..... Maybe a custom barrel for the 1710?

[silhouette13]

short answer is nothing! if you can hit 30 with the gun, then why monkey around? BTW you just contributed to the complex for me, they are beautiful.
the best investment is to bring a kid along next time. spend the dough on ammo and enrty. your gear is perfect
that wood is very pretty.
dave

[OnaginOffagin]

short answer is nothing! if you can hit 30 with the gun, then why monkey around? BTW you just contributed to the complex for me, they are beautiful.
the best investment is to bring a kid along next time. spend the dough on ammo and enrty. your gear is perfect
that wood is very pretty.
dave

Oh, man! I love these short answers, and my wife wants to send you a pie! Lol..... You're right about the kid, too.....and I might just know one....

[ShootingStar]

OnagainOffagain,
Sounds like you and I both agree with Silhouette13 - just shoot those beautiful rifles you have. Many of us are still trying to attain what you have already!

If most folks would be honest, once you get past a certian point with equipment (and you have already passed it), our game becomes one of shooter not the item being shot! Encourage all the young people you can, shoot as much you can, enjoy every moment and just try to get better within your own abilities instead of looking at your scores in comparison.

Just an A class shooter myself hoping to continue to improve and one day reach the 30 you have shot in the past!!! Enjoying every minute of it regardless of the outcome!

If you are in Western North Carolina, stop in at Asheville Rifle & Pistol Club the 1st Saturday of (almost) every month and shoot Silhouettes with us!

Greg - Shootingstar (funny name huh)

[OnaginOffagin]

OnagainOffagain,


If you are in Western North Carolina, stop in at Asheville Rifle & Pistol Club the 1st Saturday of (almost) every month and shoot Silhouettes with us!

Greg - Shootingstar (funny name huh)

My wife and I have been in North Carolina a couple of times, riding the Blue Ridge Parkway on our touring motorcycle....love the Blue Ridge, love North Carolina.... and I would love to shoot with you, but it's a bit far....3000 miles give or take! Maybe someday... and, no, your name is not funny! Good name for a shooter!

[jneihouse]

Agree with others, those are beautiful rifles....don't fix what ain't broke....Shoot the rifles from the bench...If they prove themselves accuracy wise from the bench then the rifles are mechanically fine. Now the next thing...how comfortable are they? Balance where they should? Feel like an old friend when you shoulder them? If so they have passed that test, no further work necessary. If not, ask youself what do they need to be more comfortable....think of them as your touring motorcycle....Comfort and fit are direct indicators of how you will feel after a long day in the saddle....the guns are the same way....Make them comfortable to shoot....then invest in quality ammo and shoot quality practice, not quanity. Have fun and good luck

Kitty

[OnaginOffagin]

Agree with others, those are beautiful rifles....don't fix what ain't broke....Shoot the rifles from the bench...If they prove themselves accuracy wise from the bench then the rifles are mechanically fine. Now the next thing...how comfortable are they? Balance where they should? Feel like an old friend when you shoulder them? If so they have passed that test, no further work necessary. If not, ask youself what do they need to be more comfortable....think of them as your touring motorcycle....Comfort and fit are direct indicators of how you will feel after a long day in the saddle....the guns are the same way....Make them comfortable to shoot....then invest in quality ammo and shoot quality practice, not quanity. Have fun and good luck

Kitty

Yeah.... I've wondered about balance.... I've got a weird body....short arms, long torso.... I can't reach my hip-bone with my support elbow without contortionist moves, and a lot of my shots drop out the bottom. I stand straight-up and hold the guns in the "V" of my hand just in front of the trigger guards...The 54 in the Master Silhouette is very muzzle-heavy because of the Hart barrel "lump" at the muzzle, but I'm afraid to go and mess with it because it shoots so well...at least so far. Might have it shortened and rechambered some day. I can hold the 1710 much easier, but of course it wanders like a housefly with ADHD! Lol.... Here's my current position as photographed by my wife during the Conard....suggestions anyone?

I have no pride when it comes to advice....if one of you suggested that I might pick up a few rams shooting naked, I'd probably try it!

[lone ringer]

Do not be afraid of getting rid of the weight in front or even shortening the barrel you could always have it put back with a bloop tube or some other type of weight in front if you figure you need it put back. I have an Anschutz 1813 whose barrel has been shortened twice to get better balance, its now 21" long and did not lose its accuracy.
My only recommendation to you if you want to improve your performance is that you either dry fire a lot at home or get a quality air rifle and use it several times a week. Your off hand technique and hold will get better and your performance at matches will show the improvement.

[hambone49]

Well, the obvious answer would be tighten up that vest and then put some Miami Heat patches on it..

[OnaginOffagin]

Do not be afraid of getting rid of the weight in front or even shortening the barrel you could always have it put back with a bloop tube or some other type of weight in front if you figure you need it put back. I have an Anschutz 1813 whose barrel has been shortened twice to get better balance, its now 21" long and did not lose its accuracy.
My only recommendation to you if you want to improve your performance is that you either dry fire a lot at home or get a quality air rifle and use it several times a week. Your off hand technique and hold will get better and your performance at matches will show the improvement.

Shortening is a definite possibility then..... better talk to Loren P..... I do have a RWS Model 75 springer airgun, which I shoot a lot, and a dri-fire and holding routine with both guns. I also have unlimited access to a smallbore indoor range, and shoot at bingo marker dots (1/2" to 3/4") at 50' ..... Thank you, Lone Ringer....

Hambone: Miami Heat stickers? Uh......ok..... And what about the vest? I've got a Creedmore Utility Vest that I bought before I knew better, and everybody else, at least out here in the west, are in Hardscrabbles! Hurts my feelings..... Do you think a particular model of vest makes a big difference? My wife doesn't.....lol......

[jneihouse]

It's tough to shoot around physical shortcomings, but not impossible. Working with my 12 year old granddaughter is easy because she's thin, athletic, flexible and very easy to mold into the proper shooting stance. Myself, I have to work around being overweight and an extremely structurally unsound lower back. I suffered a compression fracture to my L5 about 3 years ago that caused the L5 to move over S1 and impinge on a nerve. The injury is in an area that was previously injured several years ago. Most of the time it is extremely painful to shoulder the rifle in any sort of a correct stance. And I am not by myself, there are a lot of shooters that are shooting through injury and other physical handicaps.

Your stance looks good, though it would be good to be able to see your feet in relationship to your upper body. You mention that you are "dropping shots out". Typically when a shooter tells me this it means that the bullet is striking lower than you perceive your break point to be. This is most commonly caused by an almost imperceptible "flinch" that moves your body slightly forward and drops the muzzle of the gun ever so slightly as you execute the shot. Thus the shot "drops out". This is most commonly a problem when a person has shot a lot of highpower and has been pounded on to the point that he "anticipate" the shot and tenses up as he breaks the trigger. Remember, nothing moves but the trigger finger when you break the shot. Force yourself to stay on the gun long enough to see the bullet strike the animal and the animal fall. Only then can you move and bring the gun down. This is "follow through" in the shooting sense.

I very much agree with Tony about the air gun practice. Nothing is as unforgiving to mistakes as an air gun. Get a good one and shoot it often.

Kitty

[OnaginOffagin]

Thanks for the tips, Kitty...... That "imperceptible flinch" is probably a real factor; it's been a problem in the past..... Dennis M calls it "helping shoulder," the tensing before the shot breaks in order to "freeze" the sight picture.... And maybe when wife gets home (she's at work earning my medical plan! ) I'll maybe have her photograph me including my feet... perhaps you could take a look at them......lol...... "foot model!" Like I said, no pride.....

[silhouette13]

helo onagain,
let the wife know i am not fussy about what kind of pie! there is one possible thing thet could make a difference.

the heavy rifle should probably be shipped to your good buddy Silhouette13, you will never have aflinch with it precieveable or not.

my friend, i am here to help!

dave

[OnaginOffagin]

helo onagain,
let the wife know i am not fussy about what kind of pie! there is one possible thing thet could make a difference.

the heavy rifle should probably be shipped to your good buddy Silhouette13, you will never have aflinch with it precieveable or not.

my friend, i am here to help!

dave

And boy, do I know you are! Lol...... you, know, it's responses like yours, Silhouette13, that reminds me of what a great forum this is..... Everybody willing to help... and no matter what the question, how naive, there's always a suitable answer..... Sooner or later, someone's gonna give me one! Lol.....

We'll have to work on the pie, first, Silhouette13..... shipping my trusty "Blue Ghost" to you might take a little longer.....like after I go totally senile!

Ahahahahah......

[CZforlife]

Well, the obvious answer would be tighten up that vest and then put some Miami Heat patches on it..

That was what I was gonna say before I saw Hambone stole my response. I will even share one of my best tips with all of you guys. Get your vest tight enough where you can pass the pvc pipe test if someone calls you out, but then right before the match I drink about a gallon of water that way I balloon up and the vest is tighter. By the end of the match and a bathroom break or two, your back down to size.