Indoor Shooting the Next Step?

Today’s shooting did not go well. However I was at a gun range, in the greatest country in the world, in a red state, blasting away with two beautiful pistols. So it was still a good day.

I started out with the .45 at 50 feet. I felt good about my shooting. Last week’s big lesson was to watch the trigger pull. This week I tried to make my sight picture extremely consistent. Things went well, although the wind was rocking my target a bit. I had three duds that would not chamber. I am still the world’s worst reloader. From now on, when I reload for my semi-automatics, I plan to keep the gun barrels by the press and chamber every round before approving it. That should help me avoid chambering problems at the range.

Here are 47 shots at 50 feet.

I got out the .38 Super, and things went a bit better. I continue to suspect that this gun is more accurate than the Smith & Wesson. However, I had to quit after 20 shots because I had another damn undercharge. I have no idea how this happened. When I get one of these, the bullet goes about a quarter of an inch up the barrel and sits there, and the only way to get it out is with a dowel. So the .38 went back in the box. This was probably a round I loaded before I got the press mounted correctly.

There was a guy there with a 9mm, shooting nearly as well as I did. I was glad to see him. When everyone else shoots badly, it makes you feel great about what you’re doing, so you don’t try as hard.

I went back to the .45, and damned if the wind didn’t kick up and turn my target sideways. And the target was rocking back and forth in a four-inch arc, which drove me nearly crazy. After half a box, I had to quit and wait for the line to be called safe so I could fix the target. Between the motion and the effect it had on my concentration, I ended up with pretty big group.

The target holders at seven yards are better than the ones at 50 feet, so I moved the target closer for my remaining 25 rounds. I noticed something odd. Shooting at 50 feet made seven yards easier.

A cop showed up and took the spot next to me. He was shooting a 9mm Glock 17L, which is the 6″ target version of the 17. His shots covered an area about a foot wide at 50 feet, which is not great, but it’s much better than most people at the range can do. And he was doing a weird exercise which must be a cop thing, moving the barrel back and forth over a four-inch distance and then firing.

The target gun was clearly a waste of time. I have the 3″ Glock 26, and it shoots just fine at 50 feet.

Jim from SOTW gave me some advice on revolvers this week, and it got me thinking about a blue 5″ Smith & Wesson 27-2. This is a nice revolver about 30 years old. Supposedly better than the current production. It’s like a Dirty Harry gun, except for the caliber and length. That got me thinking about Dirty Harry, and that got me to thinking about the way Clint Eastwood’s .44 Magnum sounded in those movies. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they really sounded like that?

At least Eastwood’s movies were realistic when it came to accuracy. I’m still irritated with Mel Gibson over “have a nice day,” which is physically impossible with anything other than a rifle.

I’m not sure whether I’m still improving or not. When the wind is blowing so hard your target turns completely sideways, you probably aren’t getting optimal results that reflect your ability. But I enjoyed myself, and even if I’m not getting better, I’m definitely not getting worse.