Category Archives: Civilian Marksmanship Program Matches

World War Two Practical Match at LRGC

Posted on by

I went a little out of my comfort zone on this one. A friend of mine talked me in to signing up for a Garand “practical rifle” match at Langhorne Rod and Gun.

It was a sunny, unseasonably warm day in the forties, with a foot of snow still on the ground.

Several different courses of fire at different distances. All based on 8 round clips so lots of pinging.

16 rounds standing 16 round kneeling at 100 yards at steel from the top of their 100 yard berm.
16 rounds standing to kneeling at 50 yards at a reduced IDPA target
16 rounds prone at steel plates at 200 yards

20140225-201601.jpg

I did terrible, but it wasn’t really about “winning” or at least that’s what I told myself.

A couple things I need to think about from what I learned at this match. I think my 6:00 hold held me back a bit, I should keep a dope for both 6:00 and center mass. I wasn’t prepared to use hasty sling and they have a “muzzle down” rule that threw me off a bit. I’m a little ashamed to admit, I have no idea how to rig up with the barrel down without dropping my rifle.

My excuses aside it was fun, well run match. It has gotten me thinking a bit about my shooting style a bit, and perhaps I should spend some time practicing transitioning and hasty sling.

In unrelated news a fella there had a Mini-G, and I want one!

A little video of me shooting.

A Cold Afternoon of Practice

Posted on by

The temperature finally rose above freezing here in PA and after way too long i was able to squeeze in some range time with the Garand. I also brought along my another new toy (Gopro) to take some videos.

5 rounds with slow motion ping.

Looking up from the mat.

Applying NRA/CMP High Power to hunting

Posted on by

Some folks say competitive shooting has no practical application. While no one is going to conceal carry a M1 Garand with a 1907 sling, high power reinforces the basics of marksmanship which can have real benefits, especially for hunting.

A few lessons I’ve learned from high power that have helped me become a better hunter.

1. Trigger control. The difference between Squeezing the trigger and jerking the trigger will be the difference between dropping the deer or watching its tail as it runs into the woods.

2. Breath control. I think this one is especially tricky in the field. A little buck fever makes it hard to remember to take your time and wait for the scope to pause at the bottom of your breath.

3. Sling use. I have a Turner 1907 on my hunting rifle and have practiced, both live and dry, using hasty sling for both sitting and off hand. Taking the time to lock into the sling before a shot in the field can really pay off.

20131221-210438.jpg

4. Hand loading. I’m not sure this counts as marksmanship but I started reloading so I could have a steady supply of ammo for my Garands. Lessons learned while making consistent rounds for match shooting apply to hunting rounds as well.

All of the practice I’ve put in this year and a fair amount of luck helped me take a nice 10 point at about 150 yards between trees this season.

20131221-212852.jpg

November 2013 Armistice Day Match

Posted on by

I took my US Model of 1917 out for the November “Armistice Day match.” While not “official” the November match usually falls around Armistice Day so folks bring WWI rifles to this match.

It was an unseasonably nice for shooting, in the 60s, sunny and calm. Historically I’ve had trouble with this rifle, extraction isssues, trouble working the bolt and finding a good cheek weld. Other then have a little trouble with my position in slow prone, I had none of the problems I’ve had in the past with this rifle and I am happy with my score (80%). No misses in off hand, which made me happy, I’ve been dry fire practicing, working on keeping my support elbow a little tighter, and breaking the shot at the bottom of my breath. Which seems to have paid off.

I have found a good rhythm with my data book, which if nothing else helps me slow down and think about each shot.

Since earlier this season my scores have increased with the AR and garand I was happy that this has translated to the bolt gun, despite my lack of practice with it. Just one more match for the season coming up in December then a couple months of cold PA winter and practice.

20131117-215618.jpg

20131117-215723.jpg

Shot sharpshooter, October garand match and data books.

Posted on by

It was a beautiful fall weekend here in PA for shooting. Bright and sunny, in the mid 50s and the leaves are at their peak of color!

20131027-165558.jpg

Saturday was NRA high power with my A2. I surprised myself by shooting an 88% which was the first time I shot over the Sharpshooter threshold (84%) while I still have to maintain an 84% average over 240 rounds if I can get an 85 in the April match I should make the cut. At least according to my math. I have several months to practice before April roles around, I better get to work.

20131027-172545.jpg

As far as the Garand match I did better (232/300) than my showing at York earlier in the month but I have yet to beat the fi score I had when I first took this rifle out (252/300). Had some cramping in my support hand which resulted in me canting the rifle a bit which hurt my prone scores but I think I did ok. I’ll see if I can find a little better hand position for the next match. I’m also going to replace the turner sling that has been on my rifle for several years now with a John Weller sling I picked up at Camp Perry and see if it helps.

In off hand I broke one before I should, into the left corner of the target which was a bad start to the string. But, I kept them on target for the rest of the the match.

This weekend’s matches were also the first where I attempted to use data books. The results were varied but I think I will keep it up. For Highpower it’s very difficult to see the .223 holes so for walk and paste I will probably snap a picture of the pattern and document it after the match. For the Garand match it is easier to see the holes so I was able to document the shots in slow fire. At least until I dropped my pen in off hand! I think its valuable info to gather especially to track windage and elevation changes across matches. I use a creedmoor book for service rifle and a custom impact book for JCG. Once I have a little more experience with the books I’ll write a full review.

20131027-180407.jpg

Next month is our armistice day match so ill be taking the 1917 out.