Posted: 10/6/2013 1:42:09 AM EDT
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Hello All,
Went to my first 3 gun match a couple weeks ago with my son. We loved it! None of us had every been to any kind of shooting match so it was great. The Match Director saw us standing there watching and was kind enough to come over and talk to us about what was going on, equipment, etc. But when we drove away we thought of more questions. I've read a lot of posts on this forum but may have missed some. So if these are repeats, please forgive me and just let me know. I don't mind going and looking them up. These questions are mostly equipment related because we don't have much equipment. My three sons and I are probably going to have to share guns since we can't afford to buy four sets of everything. The only thing we already have that will probably work is a Glock 17 gen 1. 1. I have an old Browning Hi-Power 9mm. Is there any class in which I can shoot this? Will it be at all competitive? Or is it better to share the old Glock? 2. Speaking of Glock, we got that one years ago because we read that they run great even when not so well maintained. I'm embarrassed to admit that we are not great gun maintainers. In fact, we suck at maintenance. We run a bore-snake through them after a day on the range. Sometimes we run a patch with Hoppe's down the barrel and lube it up with militec. But it's not all that common. So more than anything, we look for guns that will be reliable with minimum maintenance. 3. It appeared to us that everyone was shooting some form of AR rifle. Is that because they're cheapest or because they're the best? If you were buying new, would you buy some form of AR? We've been reading that the Army went to some FN SCAR. Is that the way to go now? Or we've seen a Sig that is "piston driven", whatever that means. Remember, we're looking for reliability with little maintenance over tack driving accuracy. It there a platform that would be best for us? 4. Are Glocks still considered the most reliable given imperfect maintenance? I assume everyone shoots 9mm. The Match Director that spoke with us, showed us his 2011 but said we wouldn't need something like that to get started. He said Glocks, XD's, and M&P's are the most common and work great. Are any more reliable than any others given imperfect maintenance? 5. It appeared that the most time was gain or lost with the shotguns. We have an old Rem 1100 from the mid-70's, a Rem 870 28" barrel bird gun, and a mid-70's S&W 1000 semi-auto 28" bird gun. I'm guessing none of those will really work for 3 gun. Is there a brand/model shotgun that doesn't require a lot of maintenance but just eats every kind of ammo that gets thrown at it? 6. One of the courses had a rifle range with 400 yard shots. Some guys were laying down and hitting that steel way out there with unmagnified optics. I had trouble even seeing the target out there. Do most people use magnified optics? Or do I need to practice until I can hit a target that far out without a magnified optic? Thanks in advance for all your help. Again, my apologies if these are stupid questions. Ty |
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TDBrown:
Please don't take this suggestion the wrong way. You mentioned that you'd never shot a practical shooting match before, so realize that 3 Gun can be fast and that the competitors you watched (even the OFWGs) likely knew what they were doing, re: movement, trigger finger discipline, muzzle discipline, the floating 180, safe weapon manipulation, weapon reloading/dumping, etc. Your first 3 Gun match is probably not the best place to encounter these things for the first time. That's not to dissuade you from 3 Gun - far from it. But you would likely benefit from trying one of the other gun games first and then transitioning to 3 Gun after a few months. IDPA, USPSA and Steel Challenge are all very welcoming to new shooters and are great places to learn the basics of how matches work. Plus, they can be much less expensive in terms of equipment and ammo. In fact, my club requires you to have shot another practical shooting event (IDPA, USPSA, SASS) BEFORE shooting a 3 Gun match. With your three sons playing too, I would really nudge you to Steel Challenge to start. Most events let you shoot rimfire pistols, rimfire rifles and centerfire pistols. With one rimfire pistol and/or rimfire rifle the whole family gets to play and learn the basic match skills while shooting cheap .22LR. It is fast, competitive and extremely fun. Plus with the trend in tactical .22s these days, you can pick up a really nice .22LR AR for $400 and throw a $50 red-dot on top and your done. These make excellent AR analogs for training down the road, too. I have seen several kids start with this platform in Steel and a year or two later they are running-and-gunning on the 3 Gun courses. And are much better (and safer) shooters because of it. |
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Experience in other shooting sports is a benefit, but definitely not a requirement. Its possible that 3 Gun is the only competition available locally. Or possibly the only competition that he has friends that participate. For some, having a familiar face makes all the difference.
For the new competitor, we recommend you shoot what you got. Pull your favorite rifle, shotgun and pistol out of the safe and use them. Chances are that if they are your favorite, you know how to shoot them and may even shoot them well. You will also need a few more items (holsters, mag pouches, shotshell carriers, etc) to navigate the course of fire. Starting off, borrow what you can, buy what you can't. Sharing is not only permitted, but fairly common. For your gun belt, take a look at the inner/outer competition belts out there. It will make sharing gear a lot easier. 3 Gun shooters are notorious about loaning out gear. We do just about anything to get the newbies hooked. As for pistols, Glocks are next to ideal for this sport. Your Browning is an excellent pistol, just not quite what you need. For rifles, most use AR's because they get the job done. Since you are a newbie, show up and see what others are shooting. Be nice and they may offer to let you try their guns. Get a little experience and see what works for you. Irons or optics? That's your choice. Hitting targets at 400 yards is going to take practice. Correction, lots of practice. Dry fire practice is cheap, easy to do and can be done without leaving the house. Long distance shooting is a very bad weakness for me. I have a target 200 yards from my den's picture window. Everyday I take a little time to dry fire at that target from different shooting positions. Of the shotguns you listed, you will see the Remington 1100 out there the most. Get a magazine extension (go for 9 + 1), give the gun a good cleaning and possibly change out the gas rings (after all, its a 35 year old gun). Reloading the shotgun can really eat up the time. Make or buy some dummy rounds and practice reloading. Once your Remmie is running reliably, you will be able to keep up with 90% of the shooters out there. If you don't keep up, its the shooter, not the gun. One last bit of advice, clean guns run better than dirty ones. Why spend the time and money to go to a match knowing that your gear may not run because you didn't clean it. Bill |
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Thank you KY1911 and Flatland_Shooter. I'm sorry for the long post with lots of questions. My enthusiasm got me a little carried away.
KY1911, I appreciate the advice to try other shooting styles first. My sons are all in their 20's and 30's so we may not stick with rimfire. But after reading your post I went and did more research on the club here in Utah. Turns out a handgun competition is required before we're even allowed to try the 3-gun. That's for the best as we need the practice. And we wouldn't want to hold up anyone or cause anyone problems. Flatland_Shooter, you were right about the friend shooting 3-Gun. He's the one that invited us. It turns out he wasn't there that week as he traveled to some competition out of state. But the people that were there were so friendly it didn't matter that we didn't know anyone. I also appreciate your advice on the gun choices. I tend to just stick with what most people shoot as I prefer tried and true over new and shiny. It's why I still shoot the good ol' .30-'06. It never impresses anyone but it seems to get the job done. Sounds like Glocks, AR's, and Remington's are the 3-Gun equivalents. You're also right about the maintenance. We need to be better at it. I was just asking in an attempt to find opinions about reliability over accuracy. Thanks again to both of you. Genuinely appreciated. |
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1. I have an old Browning Hi-Power 9mm. Is there any class in which I can shoot this? Will it be at all competitive? Or is it better to share the old Glock?
you can run the Hi Power in Tac Optics, Tac Irons and even Open Divisions. The biggest limitation will be the ammo capacity. Most guys will have 22-23+1 capacity with extended base pads on their magazines. If you're not attached to the gun I'd suggest selling it to buy base pads and sights for the Glock 17. Or better yet sell the G17 as well and get a G34 and customize it for 3 gun use. 2. Speaking of Glock, we got that one years ago because we read that they run great even when not so well maintained. I'm embarrassed to admit that we are not great gun maintainers. In fact, we suck at maintenance. We run a bore-snake through them after a day on the range. Sometimes we run a patch with Hoppe's down the barrel and lube it up with militec. But it's not all that common. So more than anything, we look for guns that will be reliable with minimum maintenance. Glocks are great for anything. The G34 is one if the most popular guns in 3 gun and the other pistol only action shooting sports. 3. It appeared to us that everyone was shooting some form of AR rifle. Is that because they're cheapest or because they're the best? If you were buying new, would you buy some form of AR? We've been reading that the Army went to some FN SCAR. Is that the way to go now? Or we've seen a Sig that is "piston driven", whatever that means. Remember, we're looking for reliability with little maintenance over tack driving accuracy. It there a platform that would be best for us? The most common rifle is a direct gas impingement AR15. If you're buying a new rifle the Stag Arms 3G is the least expensive rifle that is purpose built for the sport. 4. Are Glocks still considered the most reliable given imperfect maintenance? I assume everyone shoots 9mm. The Match Director that spoke with us, showed us his 2011 but said we wouldn't need something like that to get started. He said Glocks, XD's, and M&P's are the most common and work great. Are any more reliable than any others given imperfect maintenance? Glocks, XDM's, and M&P's are all good reliable pistols. The Glock is still most popular because if the massive amount of aftermarket accessories and the fact that anyone can work on them. M&P's are gaining on the Glock in popularity as they are on the market longer and longer. 5. It appeared that the most time was gain or lost with the shotguns. We have an old Rem 1100 from the mid-70's, a Rem 870 28" barrel bird gun, and a mid-70's S&W 1000 semi-auto 28" bird gun. I'm guessing none of those will really work for 3 gun. Is there a brand/model shotgun that doesn't require a lot of maintenance but just eats every kind of ammo that gets thrown at it? The Benelli M2 is the most popular shotgun in 3 gun simply because it is the most reliable. If you can't swing the M2 you can look for a used M1. Those can be had for $550-800 if you look. There are some less expensive guns on the market which a lot of guys use but none are as reliable as the Benelli. I'd run your 1100 or 870 for the time being. You can add an EZ loader button to the 1100 to make loading easier. Put a Nordic components mag tube extension on one of them and go have fun. 6. One of the courses had a rifle range with 400 yard shots. Some guys were laying down and hitting that steel way out there with unmagnified optics. I had trouble even seeing the target out there. Do most people use magnified optics? Or do I need to practice until I can hit a target that far out without a scope. The most popular division is Tac Optics. That is because the guns and gear are the most popular and it's easier to hit long targets with a 1-4X variable power scope. I love the Swarovski Z6i if you can afford it. A good entry level scope is the Burris Tac30 in a Burris PEPR mount. It takes a lot of practice to hit targets past 100 yards with a red dot or iron sights. |
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a noob answering a noob's question can sometimes be helpful.
One of the things that helped me was the fact that two guys did a 3 Gun class at the local range (local being 2 hours away). They charged $100 for a full day. It was pretty much bring what you got when it comes to guns, bring some ammo and open ears. It was well worth it. They went over the basic tenants of 3 Gun: shoot the pistol fast, shoot the rifle accurate, load the shotgun fast, memorize things in chunks. They also talked equipment, categories and then we shot a stage or two and they gave out pointers on what to change. I shot a local match the next weekend then shot a regional a few weeks after that. My goal was to not DQ or come in dead last. I came in right around the 50 percentile in the limited category. What I'm saying, is if you can find a local match director to hold a clinic for you or a small group, it was really helpful. I had an FNX9, mossberg 500 and an AR. I have upgraded to an XDm 5.25 and a mossberg 930. I'm still shooting the same midlength AR with an aimpoint and having a blast. Also-youtube is your friend. that's all I got...good luck |
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Quoted:
1. I have an old Browning Hi-Power 9mm. Is there any class in which I can shoot this? Will it be at all competitive? Or is it better to share the old Glock? you can run the Hi Power in Tac Optics, Tac Irons and even Open Divisions. The biggest limitation will be the ammo capacity. Most guys will have 22-23+1 capacity with extended base pads on their magazines. If you're not attached to the gun I'd suggest selling it to buy base pads and sights for the Glock 17. Or better yet sell the G17 as well and get a G34 and customize it for 3 gun use. 2. Speaking of Glock, we got that one years ago because we read that they run great even when not so well maintained. I'm embarrassed to admit that we are not great gun maintainers. In fact, we suck at maintenance. We run a bore-snake through them after a day on the range. Sometimes we run a patch with Hoppe's down the barrel and lube it up with militec. But it's not all that common. So more than anything, we look for guns that will be reliable with minimum maintenance. Glocks are great for anything. The G34 is one if the most popular guns in 3 gun and the other pistol only action shooting sports. 3. It appeared to us that everyone was shooting some form of AR rifle. Is that because they're cheapest or because they're the best? If you were buying new, would you buy some form of AR? We've been reading that the Army went to some FN SCAR. Is that the way to go now? Or we've seen a Sig that is "piston driven", whatever that means. Remember, we're looking for reliability with little maintenance over tack driving accuracy. It there a platform that would be best for us? The most common rifle is a direct gas impingement AR15. If you're buying a new rifle the Stag Arms 3G is the least expensive rifle that is purpose built for the sport. 4. Are Glocks still considered the most reliable given imperfect maintenance? I assume everyone shoots 9mm. The Match Director that spoke with us, showed us his 2011 but said we wouldn't need something like that to get started. He said Glocks, XD's, and M&P's are the most common and work great. Are any more reliable than any others given imperfect maintenance? Glocks, XDM's, and M&P's are all good reliable pistols. The Glock is still most popular because if the massive amount of aftermarket accessories and the fact that anyone can work on them. M&P's are gaining on the Glock in popularity as they are on the market longer and longer. 5. It appeared that the most time was gain or lost with the shotguns. We have an old Rem 1100 from the mid-70's, a Rem 870 28" barrel bird gun, and a mid-70's S&W 1000 semi-auto 28" bird gun. I'm guessing none of those will really work for 3 gun. Is there a brand/model shotgun that doesn't require a lot of maintenance but just eats every kind of ammo that gets thrown at it? The Benelli M2 is the most popular shotgun in 3 gun simply because it is the most reliable. If you can't swing the M2 you can look for a used M1. Those can be had for $550-800 if you look. There are some less expensive guns on the market which a lot of guys use but none are as reliable as the Benelli. I'd run your 1100 or 870 for the time being. You can add an EZ loader button to the 1100 to make loading easier. Put a Nordic components mag tube extension on one of them and go have fun. 6. One of the courses had a rifle range with 400 yard shots. Some guys were laying down and hitting that steel way out there with unmagnified optics. I had trouble even seeing the target out there. Do most people use magnified optics? Or do I need to practice until I can hit a target that far out without a scope. The most popular division is Tac Optics. That is because the guns and gear are the most popular and it's easier to hit long targets with a 1-4X variable power scope. I love the Swarovski Z6i if you can afford it. A good entry level scope is the Burris Tac30 in a Burris PEPR mount. It takes a lot of practice to hit targets past 100 yards with a red dot or iron sights. Jesse, very impressive that a Pro like you answers questions from a new guy. Thanks for that. If I may impose one more time...I just went and looked at the Stag website and believe I will buy a 3G based on your recommendation. But I also noticed the 8 and 8T. I have seen articles saying piston guns are cleaner and more reliable than direct impingement. For three-gun competition is there a downside to the 8? I'm more worried about reliability than a few hundred dollars in price (though there doesn't appear to be a huge price difference). |
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Quoted:
Jesse, very impressive that a Pro like you answers questions from a new guy. Thanks for that. If I may impose one more time...I just went and looked at the Stag website and believe I will buy a 3G based on your recommendation. But I also noticed the 8 and 8T. I have seen articles saying piston guns are cleaner and more reliable than direct impingement. For three-gun competition is there a downside to the 8? I'm more worried about reliability than a few hundred dollars in price (though there doesn't appear to be a huge price difference). Quoted:
Quoted:
1. I have an old Browning Hi-Power 9mm. Is there any class in which I can shoot this? Will it be at all competitive? Or is it better to share the old Glock? you can run the Hi Power in Tac Optics, Tac Irons and even Open Divisions. The biggest limitation will be the ammo capacity. Most guys will have 22-23+1 capacity with extended base pads on their magazines. If you're not attached to the gun I'd suggest selling it to buy base pads and sights for the Glock 17. Or better yet sell the G17 as well and get a G34 and customize it for 3 gun use. 2. Speaking of Glock, we got that one years ago because we read that they run great even when not so well maintained. I'm embarrassed to admit that we are not great gun maintainers. In fact, we suck at maintenance. We run a bore-snake through them after a day on the range. Sometimes we run a patch with Hoppe's down the barrel and lube it up with militec. But it's not all that common. So more than anything, we look for guns that will be reliable with minimum maintenance. Glocks are great for anything. The G34 is one if the most popular guns in 3 gun and the other pistol only action shooting sports. 3. It appeared to us that everyone was shooting some form of AR rifle. Is that because they're cheapest or because they're the best? If you were buying new, would you buy some form of AR? We've been reading that the Army went to some FN SCAR. Is that the way to go now? Or we've seen a Sig that is "piston driven", whatever that means. Remember, we're looking for reliability with little maintenance over tack driving accuracy. It there a platform that would be best for us? The most common rifle is a direct gas impingement AR15. If you're buying a new rifle the Stag Arms 3G is the least expensive rifle that is purpose built for the sport. 4. Are Glocks still considered the most reliable given imperfect maintenance? I assume everyone shoots 9mm. The Match Director that spoke with us, showed us his 2011 but said we wouldn't need something like that to get started. He said Glocks, XD's, and M&P's are the most common and work great. Are any more reliable than any others given imperfect maintenance? Glocks, XDM's, and M&P's are all good reliable pistols. The Glock is still most popular because if the massive amount of aftermarket accessories and the fact that anyone can work on them. M&P's are gaining on the Glock in popularity as they are on the market longer and longer. 5. It appeared that the most time was gain or lost with the shotguns. We have an old Rem 1100 from the mid-70's, a Rem 870 28" barrel bird gun, and a mid-70's S&W 1000 semi-auto 28" bird gun. I'm guessing none of those will really work for 3 gun. Is there a brand/model shotgun that doesn't require a lot of maintenance but just eats every kind of ammo that gets thrown at it? The Benelli M2 is the most popular shotgun in 3 gun simply because it is the most reliable. If you can't swing the M2 you can look for a used M1. Those can be had for $550-800 if you look. There are some less expensive guns on the market which a lot of guys use but none are as reliable as the Benelli. I'd run your 1100 or 870 for the time being. You can add an EZ loader button to the 1100 to make loading easier. Put a Nordic components mag tube extension on one of them and go have fun. 6. One of the courses had a rifle range with 400 yard shots. Some guys were laying down and hitting that steel way out there with unmagnified optics. I had trouble even seeing the target out there. Do most people use magnified optics? Or do I need to practice until I can hit a target that far out without a scope. The most popular division is Tac Optics. That is because the guns and gear are the most popular and it's easier to hit long targets with a 1-4X variable power scope. I love the Swarovski Z6i if you can afford it. A good entry level scope is the Burris Tac30 in a Burris PEPR mount. It takes a lot of practice to hit targets past 100 yards with a red dot or iron sights. Jesse, very impressive that a Pro like you answers questions from a new guy. Thanks for that. If I may impose one more time...I just went and looked at the Stag website and believe I will buy a 3G based on your recommendation. But I also noticed the 8 and 8T. I have seen articles saying piston guns are cleaner and more reliable than direct impingement. For three-gun competition is there a downside to the 8? I'm more worried about reliability than a few hundred dollars in price (though there doesn't appear to be a huge price difference). I'm not Jesse, but I'll offer the opinion that you should stay away from the piston guns. The extra moving mass of the piston will make quick follow-up shots more difficult. Also, as your skills advance you'll probably want to "tune" your gas system to reduce perceived recoil and muzzle-flip - you obviously can't do that with a piston gun. Not to drop names, but a couple years ago I asked Jerry M. what he thought of using a piston gun in competition and he said he wouldn't do it even if you paid his match fee, hotel and travel expenses, and then gave him the gun to keep. |
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Quoted:
Jesse, very impressive that a Pro like you answers questions from a new guy. Thanks for that. If I may impose one more time...I just went and looked at the Stag website and believe I will buy a 3G based on your recommendation. But I also noticed the 8 and 8T. I have seen articles saying piston guns are cleaner and more reliable than direct impingement. For three-gun competition is there a downside to the 8? I'm more worried about reliability than a few hundred dollars in price (though there doesn't appear to be a huge price difference). Quoted:
Quoted:
1. I have an old Browning Hi-Power 9mm. Is there any class in which I can shoot this? Will it be at all competitive? Or is it better to share the old Glock? you can run the Hi Power in Tac Optics, Tac Irons and even Open Divisions. The biggest limitation will be the ammo capacity. Most guys will have 22-23+1 capacity with extended base pads on their magazines. If you're not attached to the gun I'd suggest selling it to buy base pads and sights for the Glock 17. Or better yet sell the G17 as well and get a G34 and customize it for 3 gun use. 2. Speaking of Glock, we got that one years ago because we read that they run great even when not so well maintained. I'm embarrassed to admit that we are not great gun maintainers. In fact, we suck at maintenance. We run a bore-snake through them after a day on the range. Sometimes we run a patch with Hoppe's down the barrel and lube it up with militec. But it's not all that common. So more than anything, we look for guns that will be reliable with minimum maintenance. Glocks are great for anything. The G34 is one if the most popular guns in 3 gun and the other pistol only action shooting sports. 3. It appeared to us that everyone was shooting some form of AR rifle. Is that because they're cheapest or because they're the best? If you were buying new, would you buy some form of AR? We've been reading that the Army went to some FN SCAR. Is that the way to go now? Or we've seen a Sig that is "piston driven", whatever that means. Remember, we're looking for reliability with little maintenance over tack driving accuracy. It there a platform that would be best for us? The most common rifle is a direct gas impingement AR15. If you're buying a new rifle the Stag Arms 3G is the least expensive rifle that is purpose built for the sport. 4. Are Glocks still considered the most reliable given imperfect maintenance? I assume everyone shoots 9mm. The Match Director that spoke with us, showed us his 2011 but said we wouldn't need something like that to get started. He said Glocks, XD's, and M&P's are the most common and work great. Are any more reliable than any others given imperfect maintenance? Glocks, XDM's, and M&P's are all good reliable pistols. The Glock is still most popular because if the massive amount of aftermarket accessories and the fact that anyone can work on them. M&P's are gaining on the Glock in popularity as they are on the market longer and longer. 5. It appeared that the most time was gain or lost with the shotguns. We have an old Rem 1100 from the mid-70's, a Rem 870 28" barrel bird gun, and a mid-70's S&W 1000 semi-auto 28" bird gun. I'm guessing none of those will really work for 3 gun. Is there a brand/model shotgun that doesn't require a lot of maintenance but just eats every kind of ammo that gets thrown at it? The Benelli M2 is the most popular shotgun in 3 gun simply because it is the most reliable. If you can't swing the M2 you can look for a used M1. Those can be had for $550-800 if you look. There are some less expensive guns on the market which a lot of guys use but none are as reliable as the Benelli. I'd run your 1100 or 870 for the time being. You can add an EZ loader button to the 1100 to make loading easier. Put a Nordic components mag tube extension on one of them and go have fun. 6. One of the courses had a rifle range with 400 yard shots. Some guys were laying down and hitting that steel way out there with unmagnified optics. I had trouble even seeing the target out there. Do most people use magnified optics? Or do I need to practice until I can hit a target that far out without a scope. The most popular division is Tac Optics. That is because the guns and gear are the most popular and it's easier to hit long targets with a 1-4X variable power scope. I love the Swarovski Z6i if you can afford it. A good entry level scope is the Burris Tac30 in a Burris PEPR mount. It takes a lot of practice to hit targets past 100 yards with a red dot or iron sights. Jesse, very impressive that a Pro like you answers questions from a new guy. Thanks for that. If I may impose one more time...I just went and looked at the Stag website and believe I will buy a 3G based on your recommendation. But I also noticed the 8 and 8T. I have seen articles saying piston guns are cleaner and more reliable than direct impingement. For three-gun competition is there a downside to the 8? I'm more worried about reliability than a few hundred dollars in price (though there doesn't appear to be a huge price difference). The reason I am a Pro is because I help new shooters get going. If they paid me just to shoot I'd be broke! Sorry I didn't respond sooner. I just now say your question. The model 8 & 8T are piston driven guns. They will run longer without maintenance than their direct impingement counterparts because there is less fouling getting back into the upper receiver. This is great if you're stuck on the mountains of Afghanistan and you're shooting a lot with little or no maintenance to your rifle. The down side is that the guns recoil more and the sights recover slower. The reciprocating mass of the piston system is much greater than a DI gun so there is more stuff going back and forth which makes the gun move around more. In 3 gun or just about every average Joe's shooting trips at the range there is always time to clean your gun before it goes down due to over use. So get a DI like the 3G and lube it up good and run it for 300-600 rounds and clean the heck out of it. it will last you a lifetime and you won't need the extra reliability of a piston gun. Now if the zombies finally come and you have to bug out by all means take a Model 8 or 8T with you. |
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You have received some excellent advice, including doing some Steel Challenge and maybe some USPSA. Myself and my two boys (12 and 14) have a few years at this now, and I know about gear and expense. Especially on a tight budget. For the rifle, we now share a Colt Pro Competition Rifle, although my youngest runs his own at times AR-15 carbine due to the weight. For the shotgun we started with Rem 870's, and now all share a Mossberg 930 JM. Pistols are a bit more complicated. In your case, I would share the Glock 17. Heck I would probably run the Browning if I was good with it. Disadvantage for now, upgrade later. My oldest started first, and ran my CZ 75B. We upgraded him to the XDm 5.25 9mm model, and the youngest got the 75B. All this time I ran my 1911 with 10 round magazines (ok for Heavy Metal, severe disadvantage for anything else). Next year the youngest will have his own pistol, probably an M&P 9L. Both of them will have extended magazines by then at a minimum. I get my 75B back, and will enhance with extended mags as well. As for the rest of the gear, that is another road. Again, I have bought this and that over time. I will suggest that you get a cart to haul it all around. Practice shotgun loading as much as possible!! For the long range shots, practice is what you need. This is where I use tiny targets at 25m with a .22lr setup. Much cheaper that way.
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