[Ohioguy]

Hi folks,

I have been shooting IDPA in local club matches on and off for the last two years. I belong to a club that has matches every Tuesday night, shooting indoors.

I would like to compete in something a little different, that offers a little more in the way of larger stages, a higher round count, and different types of targets. I have seen IPSC on TV, have been watching videso on youtube, and have been reading posts here, and I would like to try it. I am having a problem though finding a club, and more importantly, a range to practice on.

I the club I belong to shoots IDPA indoors, on a very small range. Shots are short ( I still have hard time hitting them), and its all cardboard, nothing reactive. More importantly though, the club offers me nowhere to practice. We have a 'shot every 4 seconds rule' on the outdoor range, and can only shoot from the firing line (even when it is empty), with no movement whatsoever. Its kind of hard to practice doubletaps and shooting around barricades when you are not allowed to, even though the club sponsors IDPA regional events.

I am looking for a club located around Medina, Ohio, that hosts regular IPSC matches, allows me to develop my skills, and one that doesn't have a large membership fee. Anyone in Ohio with suggestions?

And since this is my first post, I'll offer a little introduction.

I do property maintenance during the day, I sell guns at night (FFL holder out of my home), and shoot on the weekends. I am married to a lovely, understanding women. My name is Aaron, by the way.

Have a nice Holiday everyone.

[FranDoc]

Welcome and PM sent. I'm in Medina. I know the IDPA match that you're referring to.

Geographically closest USPSA club is an indoor range in Canal Fulton -- see www.midwestgunclub.com.

Closest outdoor club is near Geneva/Ashtabula -- Crooked Creek Conservation Club -- www.practicalpistol.net

Other USPSA clubs in Wauseon, Findlay, (near) Zanesville; and several more near Dayton/Cinci. Some of the Akron-based guys shoot over in West PA (Erie or Pittsburgh region), which is actually closer than some of the other OH clubs.

My 'home' range for competition is PCSI in Circleville, south of Columbus, www.pcsirange.com. This is the site of the 2009 Ohio Sectional and US IPSC Nationals, Oct 2-4. It's worth the trip down that weekend, even just to watch the "big guns" shoot on Sunday. More data on that match elsewhere on the Forum.

See the home page on www.uspsa.org. There is a way to search for clubs by state, and each club will have a contact person listed.

Again, welcome. See you on the range.

[Sarge]

Welcome to the forums. As Fran said there is quite a bit of USPSA going on in the buckeye state if you are willing to drive a little. In the Cincy area(quite a haul for you I know)there is a match every weekend. Three are about 45 mins for me the fourth is Circleville at about 1 hour and 45 mins. Circleville is worth the longer drive once a month. And it will certainly meet your expectations for stage length, creativity, round count, number of shooters, etc.. Check it out sometime. As Fran said check out the big match in October. I am shooting Saturday but plan to be there Sunday as well when the top shooters are on the stages.

[IL-SIG]

Welcome to the best forum in the sport. This is the best resource available to you.

Good luck, be safe and have fun!

[Ohioguy]

Thanks for the welcome.

I am willing to drive to get to a good range. Looking at Circleville, it looks as though they have a excellent range. I was surprised to see falling plates and steel targets ranges. Are they available all the time?

I was going to ask if spectators are allowed at events. It seems that it is. So, barring any schedule conflicts, I will be attending the Match as a spectator on October 4. WHo can I expect to see?

Any revolver shooters in the ranks here? I have been shooting a Glock 17 in IDPA, but I want to start shooting the revolver in competition. I am looking for suggestions for a holster, good belt (not the one I have been using-the same one I wear daily to keep my drawers up), and moon clip holders. I will be shooting a S&W 625.

FranDoc, you have a PM.

AS for the others, maybe we will get a chance to meet in person one day.

Good Shooting everyone.

[Chris Keen]

WELCOME !!! Welcome to the greatest shooting forum on the net, and the greatest shooting range in Ohio!

http://www.brianenos...?...543&hl=ohio

Try the link above for a good general idea of what Circleville has to offer. And some and some good-natured ribbing amongst friends.

This post has been edited by Chris Keen: 06 September 2009 - 08:43 PM

[Bill Nesbitt]

Good info so far.

It's common for shooters to drive 2 hours or more for a local match.

Yes there will be revolver shooters at the match in Circleville in October. I think there will be 10 revolver shooters at each match that weekend.

[IL-SIG]

Ohioguy, on Sep 6 2009, 10:38 PM, said:

I was going to ask if spectators are allowed at events. It seems that it is. So, barring any schedule conflicts, I will be attending the Match as a spectator on October 4. WHo can I expect to see?

May I suggest you make a weekend of it. Come down on October 3rd to watch the Ohio Sectional, then stay to watch the IPSC National Championship on October 4th.

[mlmiller1]

OHIOGUY,

Sounds like you are getting some great suggestions. Let me go into something technical for a minute, if you don't mind. You asked for IPSC, you got USPSA. The two terms are not completely interchangeable but most of us use them as if they were the same thing. USPSA is the United States variation or version of IPSC. There are differences but most of what you will be able to shoot in the U.S. is uspsa however, there are a few clubs & ranges that actually shoot ipsc by the divisions & rules of the international stuff. It is sort of complicated, I just wanted you to know there is a difference. There are division differences(that is the gun & equipment you use) & there are rule differences, (that is what you do with your equipment). They have a common history but they are separated now quite a bit.

Since IPSC started in the U.S., people would say ipsc when describing the sport. Once ipsc went international, we had to rename our game uspsa. The games have evolved & moved somewhat in different directions but we kept calling it ipsc. Kind of confusing but some folks never figure out what is going on with the names.

Just thought I would toss this info out. I hope you find a very good uspsa or ipsc club & have a great time! I suggest you shoot your glock 17 for a bit at first because there are lots of things to think about besides having to remember to reload every 6 shots. Once you get the hang of the game, then bring out that revo & get to work! This game is quite an addiction, I hope you get hooked.
MLM

[Flexmoney]

Yep, you are looking for USPSA matches here in the United States. IPSC is a generic term.

Here is the main page: http://www.uspsa.org/


And, here is the link to the advanced club finder (lets you put in your zip code): http://www.uspsa.org...eretoshoot.html

[Duane Thomas]

Quote

I the club I belong to shoots IDPA indoors, on a very small range. Shots are short ( I still have hard time hitting them), and its all cardboard, nothing reactive. More importantly though, the club offers me nowhere to practice. We have a 'shot every 4 seconds rule' on the outdoor range, and can only shoot from the firing line (even when it is empty), with no movement whatsoever. Its kind of hard to practice doubletaps and shooting around barricades when you are not allowed to, even though the club sponsors IDPA regional events.

Boy, that doesn't sound like IDPA to me.

Aaron, welcome to BrianEnos.com!

Are you sure you need a USPSA club? I shoot and love both sports so I'm not criticizing either one, I'm just saying you could certainly meet your needs for a higher round count, movement, use of cover, etc. by finding a club firing "real" IDPA matches. You might consider checking for a new IDPA club, as well as USPSA clubs in your area. Here's a link to the Ohio page of the IDPA club locator:

http://www.idpa.com/...st.asp?state=OH

As far as revolvers, we have a forum just for that, with many very experienced revolver shooters there who would be eager to answer any questions you may have.

http://www.brianenos...hp?showforum=43

Briefly, in USPSA since making Major power factor in Revolver division requires a caliber .40 or over, as Flex mentioned, most people run the Smith & Wesson N-frame .45 ACPs, most typically the 625. In IDPA they have two revolver divisions, Enhanced Service Revolver (ESR) in which your ammo must make a 165,000 power factor, equivalent to USPSA Major (in IDPA they don't, as in USPSA/IPSC, divide the pf by 1,000 after multiplying the bullet weight in grains times the velocity in feet per second) and moon clip guns are allowed. In ESR, as in USPSA, the Smith .45 ACP moon guns rule. In Stock Service Revolver (SSR) the moon guns are outlawed, the guns must feed off speedloaders, and your ammo need only make a 125,000 pf equivalent to USPSA Minor. In SSR, by far the most popular choice is the Smith & Wesson K-frame .38/.357 Magnum revolvers.

Hope that helped.

[chirpy]

Welcome Ohioguy. There is another USPSA club but it is a ways away. Going to PracticalPistol.net will take you to their home page. From there you can get directions and contact info. I will PM you with another option.

Richard

[Houngan]

Further on equipment:

You can get lost in the speed holsters, but I'll go ahead and say that you can start and finish with the Bladtech DOH and never miss a beat. Plus, you get a considerable amount of peace of mind knowing that you can't drop the gun without somethng silly happening.

For moonclip holders, the Cadillac is the Speed-e-rack, made by Eliot Aysen. Check out some videos of Jerry in the last few years, he's running this rack.

H.

[mlmiller1]

Duane Thomas, on Sep 7 2009, 04:41 PM, said:

Briefly, in USPSA since making Major power factor in Revolver division requires a caliber .40 or over, as Flex mentioned, most people run the Smith & Wesson N-frame .45 ACPs, most typically the 625.

Duane,

If you look into the rules on the uspsa website, the minimum caliber bullet allowed for Major scoring IN REVOLVER is a .38. You can shoot major with a .38 or even a 9mm Revolver (if they make such a thing?). Take a look at Appendix D6 on the uspsa website: http://www.uspsa.org...ulesindexed.pdf

Granted, most competitors shoot the big bullets but you don't have to.

That puts a little different spin on it, doesn't it? I remembered reading that once but then I had forgotten it. Once you put it on this post, it stirred up my brain & I had to go search it out.

MLM

[Walküre]

mlmiller1, on Sep 7 2009, 11:16 PM, said:

Duane Thomas, on Sep 7 2009, 04:41 PM, said:

Briefly, in USPSA since making Major power factor in Revolver division requires a caliber .40 or over, as Flex mentioned, most people run the Smith & Wesson N-frame .45 ACPs, most typically the 625.

Duane,

If you look into the rules on the uspsa website, the minimum caliber bullet allowed for Major scoring IN REVOLVER is a .38. You can shoot major with a .38 or even a 9mm Revolver (if they make such a thing?). Take a look at Appendix D6 on the uspsa website: http://www.uspsa.org...ulesindexed.pdf

Granted, most competitors shoot the big bullets but you don't have to.

That puts a little different spin on it, doesn't it? I remembered reading that once but then I had forgotten it. Once you put it on this post, it stirred up my brain & I had to go search it out.

MLM

Yep, I was going to post the same thing upon reading Duane's post - no major caliber requirement for revo. I would guess that 625's are more popular due to (1) the restriction on max 6 rounds before reloading, thus negating any advantage to 8-shot .357's and (2) the possibility of softer-shooting loads. The second is speculation on my part, as I have unfortunately never shot a 625 - but it would make sense. The .45ACP really isn't a particularly hard-recoiling round when compared to many higher-pressure offerings, and the 625 is a large N-frame. The most common .357s are still K- and L-frames, which will have less mass to soak up any potential recoil (plus, K-frames do not lend themselves to high volumes of shooting heavier loads). FWIW, I own a 586 and shoot it in local quasi-IDPA matches.

OH is great for practical shooting - not only do we have a decent number of good clubs, but we here in NE OH are close enough to make it to matches in some of the surrounding states with relative ease.

[Duane Thomas]

Guys, thanks for catching my mistake and correcting it.

[Blueridge]

When I started USPSA I used a revolver from the beginning. I was advised that it would be easier to use an auto first, and then go to revolver. I had competed in IDPA prior to USPSA and began with a Beretta 92D. I then moved to shooting revolver the next year. From my experience I would suggest starting USPSA with the revolver, as the difference between auto and revolver is quite a bit.

It might be a bit of "mental overload" at first, but certainly (in my opinion) better than spending time shooting an auto when you want to shoot revolver. Equipment setup, reloading, recoil issues, and a number of other aspects are so different using a revolver than an auto that I really don't see the benefit of shooting auto to get ready for shooting revolver.

[Ohioguy]

You kind of read my mind. I was going to ask just that question. I am off to work now, so I'll get back to this tonight.

[41mag]

Come to Rayners Range this Sunday and squad up with me. Bring what ever you want to shoot. I can probably scrape up some gear for your revo too if you want to shoot that. I won't have time between now and then to load ammo so you would have to find some 45acp RN (preferred) on your own.

In the course of shooting the match I could try to answer all your Questions about revo, show you my set up and talk about the alternate set ups.

I will be out of town till Sat.

Fran will probably be there.

http://www.raynersrange.com/

I try to be there between 8 and 9 am.

Revo Rocks (and you get all your brass back!)

good luck

This post has been edited by 41mag: 14 September 2009 - 08:19 AM

[Ohioguy]

41mag, on Sep 14 2009, 11:18 AM, said:

Come to Rayners Range this Sunday and squad up with me. Bring what ever you want to shoot. I can probably scrape up some gear for your revo too if you want to shoot that. I won't have time between now and then to load ammo so you would have to find some 45acp RN (preferred) on your own.

In the course of shooting the match I could try to answer all your Questions about revo, show you my set up and talk about the alternate set ups.

I will be out of town till Sat.

Fran will probably be there.

http://www.raynersrange.com/

I try to be there between 8 and 9 am.

Revo Rocks (and you get all your brass back!)

good luck

PM sent

[FranDoc]

E-mail incoming re: transit to Rayner's.

If y'all ain't never been down in them parts ... it's down the road from here ... "a piece" -- over the creek, past the pasture, watch out for cows that get out of the fence, DEFINITELY watch for deer. If you're on a gravel road, you might be close, you might be 20 miles away.

Do NOT trust Google, Mapquest or most any other online mapping service. Rayner Lane in Blue Rock OH isn't exactly "on the beaten path". 41mag & gazda4 are locals, gave me the best directions yet.

Long ride, tough match. If you come, plan on making a day of it. Pat is one of the best revo guys to show you "how it's done".