Answer Me This

[Jim Beckley]

This past Sunday at the SB match, I was spotting for a new shooter who was using a Ruger 10-22, it seems like every new guy who shoots silhouette for the first time think it's a spraying contest instead of a shooting contest. I told the guy after his first bank that he could put the gun down between each shot, but there was none of that. On his last bank when the match was over, he said "Man two and half minutes is a long time", I told him the way he was popping them off it is.

[yankee]

I could say that a person that buys a 10-22 does it to get a lot of shots off fast, not counting the jams. But that would not be entirely correct. I think mostly it would be that they do not realize how long the 2 1/2 minutes is and all the shooting that can take place in that time. They are just shooting and not realizing all that goes into taking a good shot.
By the way, Happy New Year Jim. Hope to see you this summer Raton?

[#57]

I think you could say the same about new hunters , or new shooters. It takes awhile to learn that hitting is way more fun than just shooting. my dad started us out with a single shot. blasting away isnt near as much fun when you have to reload after each shot. #57

[malinois]

Well you now what they say about silhouette shooters....we can get it off 5 times standing up in 2 and a half minutes...

[Jetmugg]

There have been a few times that I've shot my 10/22 in a match where I felt like I was "in a groove", and could hit targets in pretty rapid succession. When the rifle moves from one animal to the next, it's hard to NOT pull the trigger if the sight picture looks good.

However, I haven't shot my 10/22 in over a year, due to the fact that my 1712 feels so much better and the trigger is so sweet.

But sometimes I yearn for that semi-auto feel of bang-clang, bang-clang, bang-clang, etc......

SteveM

[ShooterP14]

I started in this sport with a 10-22. In about a year I had put about $1000 into it and had a pretty good shooter. I then bought a CZ452 to use in hunter class. My first trip to Jax I had trouble with the scope on the Ruger and ended up shooting the CZ both days. I have been shooting only the CZ since and I'll keep shooting it until Mark gets my new rifle finished (6 mo. and counting). I find myself shooting too fast with the Ruger. I'll probably turn it back into a plinker.

[pistolero45]

I think most new shooters tend to shoot too fast in a match. This tendency is simply more pronounced if they have a semi-automatic.

Like a lot of shooters, I started out with a 10/22 and usually finished with about two minutes to spare. An experienced shooter gently suggested I put the rifle down between shots, and after giving it a try, I discovered my scores improved.

The trick here is to give good advice to newbies w/o becoming too pushy.

[shakes]

I too started with a ten22 and have since upgraded. I think we tend to see a lot of new shooters that first use a ten22 becuase of the availability and the number of aftermarket parts you can buy to customize your gun with. I know that i would rather have a blinged out ten/22 than a stock CZ(nothing agianst CZ) to shoot at the range. I had no idea what silhouette was two years ago untill the guy that ran the silhouette matches saw me at the range and asked if i would like to come and shoot. I also would get up to the line and fire as quick as I could untill the other shooters who have been at this game since I was knee high gave me some advice. Once I stopped using the ten/22 and got a Annie my scores got better(master in both hunter and standard).I think the more experienced guys who have been shooting a while should help in any way possible to make the experience a fun one and keep as many new guys/gals coming back week after week.

[Byron]

Warning:

Truth be told Shakes and his 10/22 were fast and assume! I saw him down all 5 pigs in a row on his way to 15 in a row befor I got to my second pig.

Byron

[Jason]

Heh.. I was shooting beside Shakes within his first few matches and was going to tell him that he might want to slow down a bit.. and then he dropped 4/5 turkeys in the time that I was on my second shot. I only got 3/5 turkeys on that bank and didn't really feel like I was in any position to give advice.

[Jetmugg]

I've only briefly had that same feeling of being in a groove with a 10/22. If you have a good hold and the crosshairs are on the animal, you have to let the shot go. Sometimes after shooting a so-so or even bad match with my 1712, I think to myself "next time I think I'll shoot my 10/22 and just mow them down".

Of course, by the time the next match rolls around, I decide to shoot the 1712 again, and usually shoot much better.

When Troy Lawton won the Nationals with a much modified 10/22, does anyone know what his shooting pace was?

Maybe we should have some " Semi Auto Only" matches, and reduce the time limit to 1 minute from 2.5 minutes. Sounds fun to me. I've never been to one of the Chevy Sportsman Challenge matches, but they seem like a fun time also.

SteveM.

[lone ringer]

The name of the game in SB rifle silhouette is lock time. I have been at it since it started and we had to put our rifles together because Anschutz did not have yet built silhouette rifles for us.

After a few years in the game I had H&S precision put together for me a custom Win 52C with a SS Atkinson barrel a Spoden style fiberthane stock and a Kenyon trigger. The rifle was very accurate and always shot point of aim unlike other rifles I've had that shot the first shot high or low. I used the Win for quite a few years and won many matches with it but seemed like it was holding me back and could only shoot scores in the low 30's. I then changed to Anschutz and Walther rifles and my scores went up. I kept the Winchester until last year when a friend of mine bought it from me to shoot local Bench Rest matches.

Another rifle I did not keep for very long was a custom AMT rifle which had a cloned Ruger 10-22 SS action a Shilen barrel and a McMillan stock. The trigger was not that good because they did not offer Kid or Jewell triggers at the time but since it was a hunting class rifle it had to have a min 2 lb trigger. The rifle was extremely accurate and shot better than 1/4 inch groups with the best ammo available at 50 yards.

I was never able to shoot decent scores with it for several reasons some of which were the rifle's slower lock time, the bad trigger and my wanting to shoot faster than normal. I have to qualify my statements regarding the rifle by saying that since 1987 I was able to shoot scores in the mid to high 30's with my Savage/Anschutz 54 sporter but I had trouble approaching 30 with the AMT and I believe my very best score with it was a 32.

Troy Lawton was about the only one that was able to shoot good scores with a semi-auto rifle and his was a highly modified rifle that included a prototype of the Kid's trigger. A lot of semi-auto rifles were built by AMT and Briley with cloned Ruger 10-22 actions but we just don't see them at the matches hardly any more.

What we still see now and then are rifles built with Rem 580-581-541 actions which have some of the fastest lock time actions ever made.
Jared Perry from CA had one made by Marvin Pearson and has shot no less than six perfect 40X40 scores with it. Dennis Martinen and other Washington shooters that I know also like to build their SB rifles using the mentioned Rem actions.

I just wanted to give some of you that have not been in the game as long a I have something to think about before building that special dream silhouette rifle.

As a note of interest I also want to tell you that at one of the clubs in the LA area some shooters are using Ruger 10-22 rifles with scopes to shoot the same targets we use in SB Cowboy lever action but they do it with a much reduced time limit and have to shoot targets at more than one distance in the allowed time. I believe they shoot 20 rounds in 2 minutes but if any of you want to find more about their match I will make inquiries for you.

[chuck d]

Lone Ringer,
Thanks for the history and insite on the equipment evolution. Always nice to know where it came from and is going. For me part of the fanication with shooting sports is the toys.

My question-

If I were to build a good SB rifle, is a Rem 541 better than a 1712? Specifically lock time, as you said is very important when shooting on your feet.

thanks
chuck

[lone ringer]

Chuck, if money is not issue with you and want the best that money can buy you can get somebody like Marvin Pearson, Evelio McDonald or Mark Pharr to build you a custom rifle with the best components available. On the other hand you can buy a 1712 or one of the 1700 series and be competitive enough that if you do your part you could win the Nationals with it. Cathy Winstead and others have done just that many times.

The problem with using one of the Remington actions is that you have to find somebody like Marvin Pearson to adapt an Anschutz match trigger to the action and that can be a bit expensive.

I had Mark Pharr convert one of my standard rifles that had a newer 54 repeater action into a hunting rifle with one of his stocks and last year my friend Agustin Sanchez used it to win and set a new National record with it.

I hope this helps you.

[rich56]

Whats the Anschutz trigger have that no Remington or aftermarket trigger have. I shot a couple of matches this year and do recognize the importance of the trigger