Triangle Tactical Podcast - Competitive Shooting, Mostly

One of the most common misconceptions that I hear from folks who haven't shot competitively, is that competitive shooters shoot ammo that isn't powerful. That isn't really true. Factory 9mm that you'll get from the store is going to be pretty close to the 9mm minor power factor ammo that gets loaded for competition (and some of the folks making re-man ammo don't make it powerful enough to make power factor).

I will say that a lot of the factory .40 and .45 ammo is actually quite hot, so it's going to be well and above what's needed for major power factor in competition, but the competition loads aren't light by any means.

The push for permitless concealed carry has started right here in North Carolina. It's going to require a constitutional amendment, and it's going to be a fight, but we can do it.

GRNC has the details here.

I recently got my hands on some of the "other guys" bullets in a trade with a friend. The difference in consistency between them and my Blue Bullets was surprisingly large. With the Blue Bullets I don't have issues with the coating chipping off, or getting half-cast bulelts, and things like that, which was surprisingly common with these other coated bullets I received from my friend. 

I've been shooting Blue Bullets since long before they were a sponsor of the show, and they make a product that I really believe it. Check them out at thebluebullets.com and use the code triangle at checkout to save 5%. 

Just a heads up for the local listeners: Andrew Branca is coming back to Raleigh on August 7th for an NC Law of Self Defense seminar. I've taken this class, and read his book, and highly recommend it. Use the code triangle at checkout and you'll save 10% on the price of the class.

A little while back I received an email from a listener who wished to remain nameless. He decided to get started in competitive shooting, and found a local club that hosted matches, checked out their website, and showed up to shoot his first match. When he arrived, he we met by an apologetic match director who informed him that the match was full, and since he hadn't pre-registered for the match, he unfortunately wouldn't be able to shoot.

I don't think this is something that happens all the time (this is the first time I've ever heard of it happening, actually) but it is something that match officials should be aware of. At the very least, update your websites when match registration opens for the next match, or point people to the Facebook page or wherever that you're posting the registration links. (Also, note that Facebook won't show your post to everyone who likes your page unless you pay them, so only posting it to Facebook might not be the best plan.)

I'm curious what everyone else things about this. Was this just a one-off thing and not a big deal, or are there some better protocols we could put in place to keep this from happening?

Gear that Doesn't Suck

I've had an old pair of Mechanix gloves that I use every couple months to get a grip on the oil filter on my car when doing my oil change. They really do a good job of adding some grip to an otherwise slimy/slick filter. However, at a recent match, I used them for re-setting the steel plates that were falling off their stands when shot into the thick muddy clay. They're not waterproof, but they did keep the mud off my hands, and rinsed off nicely in a mud puddle. I'll continue to keep them in my trunk in case I have a muddy match with falling steel again in the future.

The News

The internet was all up in arms about some zoo somewhere shooting a gorilla to save a baby human from it. I don't really care about that, but I'll say that I do trust the people who are gorilla experts and the decision that they made. However, there was some absolute derp on the internet when this story hit where people were talking about how they would have been the hero here, and shot the gorilla with their CCW gun to save the kid. Listen, your pistol isn't a magical death ray, and it's no match for this sort of animal. Wait for the guy with the big rifle to arrive.

That's why you carry a 10mm because you know you might have a to kill a gorilla at the zoo someday or a grizzly bear.

You've also certainly heard about the new "documentary" that Katie Couric just put out. It's called "Under the Gun" and the tag line is "In the gun debate, truth is the ultimate weapon", which is HILARIOUS, because as we're finding out, they were anything but truthful when making this film.

They supposedly interviewed John Lott, and then didn't include any of that interview in the film.
They had a roundtable discussion with some folks from the Virginia Citizens Defense League and edited it to look like they didn't have an answer to a hardball question, when in fact they did. One of the VCDL folks brought along his own voice recorder, just in case this sort of thing were to happen.
Lastly, it's coming out that the producers of the film may have actually broken federal law several times. Yeah. For real.
Plug of the Week:

Tacsoup on Facebook. Check out this page, these folks are hilarious.

Contact

If you've got anything for me, shoot me an email at [email protected]

Just a quick heads up, I tokk the weekend off from podcasting and didn't record a Triangle Tactical Podcast episode this week. The Triangle Tactical Q&A podcasts will release as normal this week.

Just a few things I've noticed that I thought I would point out. The first two things seem to be done mostly by newer shooters, and the second two seem to be mostly more-seasoned shooters.

1. Know the rules. At least have a rudimentary understanding of the rules of the game you're shooting. I don't think you need to read the whole rulebook before your first match (actually, I don't think it would be very helpful, because without context much of it wouldn't make sense), but at least make an effort to know the safety rules, and then try to pick up something more each time you shoot. Not only will you help others, but most importantly knowing the rules you'll be able help yourself.
2. Know your equipment. Know how to clear malfunctions and manipulate your gun. Also, know your support gear. If you can't holster and unholster your gun with one hand, you might need some more practice or different gear.
3. Don't self deprecate yourself on the firing line. Telling people that you're planning for makeup shots and things like that will just ensure that you'll have a bunch of makeup shots. Nobody want's that garbage.
4. Don't change your stage plan. Unless it's pointed out to you that you've planned to do something completely stupid, don't make changes after you've started to visualize a stage. It's never a good, and it very rarely works out.

I picked up this Caldwell Chronograph a couple weeks ago, and finally got it out to the range this week. I bought it because it was the cheapest thing going. After I opened the box I realized that it has a smartphone app that connects to the chronograph through a cable and syncs all of the shots. It seemed gimmicky to me, but I decided to try it at the range anyways.

It's so easy to chronograph multiple loads now. Way easier than I thought. It's a definite winner, and it's still one of the least expensive chronographs out there.

I'm a fan.

Tam had an interesting post about Second Amendment Cosplay at the NRA show this week. If you're not subscribed to her blog, you're wrong.

[email protected]

The Triangle Tactical Q&A podcast turned a whole year old the other day, so I thought it might be fun to re-broadcast a few of my favorite Q&A podcast episodes during this week's show. I actually went through all of the back catalog of Q&A shows and picked out all of my favorites, and there was over 3 hours of audio, so I really had to pick and choose which ones to put in this show. I hope you enjoy.

[powerpress]

• Q&A 121 - "Gear that Sucks" from Kenny in Idaho
• Q&A 57 - "What to look for when reviewing my match video" from Sadie in Raleigh
• Q&A 81 - "Should I watch my magazine, or my target during a reload?" from Jon in Florida

If you're not subscribed to the Q&A podcast, you can find it here in iTunes, or here if you're on an Android device.

I mentioned a few weeks back that I'd like to have some more competitive shooting podcasts to listen to, and that I was happy to help you get your show off the ground if you are looking to get a podcast started.

Ryan Goold, a USPSA Master, is one of those folks, and his new podcast is up and running. It's called the Shooters Guide podcast, and it's focused solely on USPSA. At the time if this episode airing, he's got 4 episodes out, and has been doing them weekly.

His website is shootersguideblog.wordpress.com and you can find his podcast in iTunes or Google Play just by searching "Shooters guide podcast".

Check him out, and subscribe to his show. Here's his RSS feed.

If you'd like to send in a question, feedback, or whatever else, hit me up at [email protected].

I kind of ripped this topic off of something I heard my wife talk about in a speech she was preparing a couple weeks ago. She's a teacher and was talking about the difference between learning time and performance time with kids in school, and as soon as I heard it, I started wondering if this was something I should think more about in my practice as well.

I've been trying the whole "get bored and let your body find the fastest way to do things" thing for a while, and I feel like I've kind of hit a block with that, so I'm going to try having deliberate learning time, and performance time in my practice. What do you think?

If you're a competitive shooter, or someone who trains a lot, you probably complain about the price of bullets. I've been loading The Blue Bullets since before they were a sponsor of the show, and they're just fantastic. They're coated lead bullets, and they're as accurate as anything else I've tried, they're some of the lowest priced bullets I've ever seen, and they're made by competitive shooters who are doing a lot to give back to the shooting sports. What's not to love?

Check them out at thebluebullets.com and save 5% with the code "triangle" at checkout. 

Freakonomics Radio is KILLING IT this month with their recent episodes about practice and grit. Seriously, go listen to them at Freakonomics.com.

• [email protected]

Shownotes for this episode are pending. I didn't get the show

Oklahoma CCW instructors have their panties in a wad about

Harris Publications is shutting down. These folks are the

An 11 year old kid in Talladega, Alabama shot a home invader

I had some spring

The latest episode of the Freakonomics Radio podcast was

If you've got something for me, shoot me an email at

Ever see the guys at a match who have the well rehearsed "tactical kata" but can't really shoot that well? What about the guy that tells you X product is better than Y because it has *more* features, even if those features aren't useful. What about the guys who buy a crappy gun, and then spend the next years trying to make it better, instead of just saving up for something that doesn't suck.

All these people are wasting time on stuff that doesn't matter. If you want to get better, stop wasting your time, streamline, and get better.

A Johnston county, NC school opened an indoor shooting range (for JROTC students to shoot pellet guns). Even though it's pellet guns, I think this is awesome.

A DC police officer was instructed to walk into roll call with an unloaded pistol , and dryfire it pointed at another officer as part of a training exercise. This is frighteningly stupid. I can't believe it happened, and I can't believe he wasn't shot by all of the other officers in the room.

Have you heard? Californis is banning all gun dealers! They're shutting them all down!

Yeah, that's not the case. They are trying to pass a bill that's pretty nasty for FFLs, but it's not a complete shutdown of all the FFLs in the state as most of the headlines from the last week would have you believe.

According to the NRA-ILA, the bill would do a few things:

AB 2459 would make four serious changes to California’s dealer licensing requirements.

Yeah, it's bad, and it would definitely shut down a lot of businesses, but it's not the blanket ban you've been lead to believe is happening.

You should have a squib stick, but you shouldn't waste a bunch of money buying one that's actually made as a squib stick. For less than $6 (at the time of this episode being published) you can get a 12" bras rod that's perfect to use as a squib stick for 9mm and larger handguns. Find it at triangletactical.net/doesntsuck.

Dryfire Tip of the Week:

Tighten up your dryfire with some partials. I've been slaying my dryfire lately with wide open targets, but at the IDPA match this weekend I totally borked when trying to shoot some targets that only had the heads available. On another stage I wound up getting some rounds in the head box of the target, which is great, except if we're being honest, I wasn't aiming for the head box...

Anyways, I'm breaking out the no-shoot and hardcover in my dryfire again. Give it a try.

If you've got something for me, hit the comments below, or shoot me an email at [email protected]

Tinkering with making your own gear is interesting and it can be fun, but after spending a few years messing around with trying to squeeze every single penny out of my gear by making my own stuff all the time. I'd spend 3 or 4 hours making something to save $25, which comes out to like $8/hr. I don't know about you, but my practice time is worth a lot more to me than $8 an hour. 

I don't think there's anything wrong with tinkering, but I think if you're a normal person with a family, job, part time job on top of your full time job, your practice time is limited. You need to make a decision whether or not to be a tinkerer or someone who wants to get better. If you're trying to get better, you'll be better served by just buying some gear that's good enough, and practicing. 

USPSA has approved Pistol Caliber Carbine as a provisional division for all levels of competition. I'm still really skeptical about having people shooting rifles at a pistol match, but we'll see I guess. Ben and I also talked about our concerns with this back in Episode 169 of the podcast.

A student at the University of Southern Alabama was cited by a university police officer for wearing an empty holster in protest of being disarmed on campus. The police officer was later suspended without pay, and the student had his citation rescinded and he received an apology from the chief of police and all of the officers involved.  

Mississippi becomes the 10th permitless concealed carry state. Good. 

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone who's been using the Amazon links on the Gear That Doesn't Suck page. I was able to jump and upgrade mixing boards when my old one bit the dust last week, because of the money that comes in from there. So, thanks!

I'm plugging my own stuff this week, because I think the Q&A podcasts that are scheduled to come out this week are really good. Make sure you're subscribed to the Q&A show so you won't miss out. 

Triangle Tactical Q&A show: iTunes, Android, RSS Feed

Over the last week I've talked to a couple of guys that are thinking about starting their own competitive shooting type podcasts, I think both of them might need a little motivation to get things started, so if you're interested in having more good competitive shooting content post in the comments below and let them know that you'd be interested in listening to some more awesome competitive shooting podcasts. 

A month or so ago I was at the indoor shooting range, and there was a legit bullseye shooter in the lane next to me. I ran my target out next to his (25y), and tried to best his groups. The best I could muster were groups about double the size of his, and I was shooting with both hands, and he was only using one. 

Ever since then I've been thinking that I could probably learn a thing or two from shooting a few Bullseye matches. The idea of being absolutely, crazily, laser accurate with a pistol is very interesting to me. 

While looking into the more accuracy based competitions, I came across this old episode of the Power Factor Show with Caleb Giddings talking about Bianchi Cup. I've always kind of rolled my eyes at it as an "action" type shooter, but more and more I think it could be good for me to try something that's more accuracy based. 

If you're an action type shooter that's shot a few Bullseye matches, I'd be interested to hear if you had any takeaways from it. 

The North Marianias Islands had their handgun ban repealed just a week or so ago by a Federal judge, and now in response their House and Senate have passed a bill that will add a $1000 tax onto the price of any handgun sold there. What a joke, this is an obvious infringement.

The NC Department of Agriculture has released their report on the feasability of having a place to store guns at the gate of the NC State Fair. As expected, they said it was a bad idea. 

I love my Spyderco Delica 4 with the Wave opener. It's just a fantastic knife that I've been carrying for about 5 years now. There was a time when I got frustrated with getting the VG-10 steel good and sharp, but once I learned a good technique, it's just been fantastic. 

The Wave feature is what really sets the knife apart. It makes it one hand opening without having using any springs or anything like an assisted opening knife which can have dubious legality in some places.

A new shooter on the IDPA Facebook group asked about ow to practice shooting from cover after getting a lot of cover calls at his first IDPA match. 

It's pretty simple really, set up some type of barricade in your dryfire dojo, and then film yourself with your phone engaging the targets from behind the cover of the barricade. You can then review the video you make sure you're keeping the appropriate amount of your body behind cover.

If you've got a question or comment about the show, hit the comments below, or send me an email at [email protected].