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Dougan wrote:king of using an old bum-bag for the spare magazines, and sticking the empties in my pocket...?

This will be fine at 25m and 5m0 but at 10m and 15m you have 20 secs to get 12 rounds off to include a reload. With that reload you need to dump the mag and get the new one in pretty quick and the problem you will have pulling it from a baggy pouch like a bum bag is its orientation.

From a mag pouch you will orient the mags so you know as you pull them they will be the right way round for a quick insertion.

The other think you may want to think about is are you going to shoot strings of 5 and 7 or 6 and 6 at the short stages. The former means you don't have to think about manually re-cocking the rifle after the reload. You need to count though - don;t wait for a click to prompt the reload of you are opting for the 6 and 6 method. And if you are doing 5 and 7 remember that 7th shot on the second string. I've known people forget that in the past.

nfrancis wrote:The other think you may want to think about is are you going to shoot strings of 5 and 7 or 6 and 6 at the short stages. The former means you don't have to think about manually re-cocking the rifle after the reload. You need to count though - don;t wait for a click to prompt the reload of you are opting for the 6 and 6 method. And if you are doing 5 and 7 remember that 7th shot on the second string. I've known people forget that in the past.

You're 'avin a laugh! razz - No, seriously that's an excellent tip, and maybe one for the future; but I'll stick to counting to 6 (like T&P1) for the first go...

...I've already accepted that I may not get all my shots away...it's not a course of fire I can shoot all the way though at my club; but the SAW is a perfect opportunity to try it.

I'll have to give the loading aspect of things more thought, as I don't want to invest in new kit just yet...

nfrancis wrote:

The Cupcake Kid wrote: Likewise, you can practice the different positions and holds at home using a door frame as a barricade.

Barricades only for pistols (LBPs and LBRs) don't forget.

The memory isn't what it used to be

Personally I would sight your rifle in for every distance possible between now and match day, and mark them on a piece of tape wrapped around the turret. Simply dial in the distance when you get to the line and aim for the middle. I find it much easier rather than aiming off, especially when time is tight as you don't have to keep changing your view to look where your shots are going. I also use a magnification setting that allows me to see where my shots are hitting at 50m. This allows me to either dial in a correction or hold off on the fly should the wind or light conditions be different to when I sighted in. There's nothing worse than thinking they've all gone into the middle only to find when you get to your target that they are all way to the left or right etc. Also ask the R.O's if you can shoot on an end target if possible. This will reduce your chance of cross shooting and make it easier for you to identify your target at the longer distances rather than counting in from the sides and so on. If you can't get onto an end target, make sure you scan down and check your target number before shooting, especially after changing mags or positions. At the end of the day go there to learn and enjoy it. Good luck :-) Gwyn

Thanks Gwyn - I'll try the tape on the turret zeroing

I'll be using a x6 scope, so doubt I'll be able to see the shots at 50m - If I do it again I'd look getting some loading kit and a better scope , but I'll have to make do this time...as long as I don't make a complete numpty of myself I'll be happy.

What magnification do you use for 50m, and do you think a scope with parallax is advantageous?

I use between 16-25x @50m on my .22 depending on how I'm shooting (16ish if I'm shooting like a t.. and 20-25x if it's going ok) and 14-20x with the .44 (same reasons). No one holds it steady on the higher settings, you just learn how to release the shots when it's in the middle of the target. Just see what gives you the best results in practice and keep the reticule simple. Whizzy lines and Christmas trees etc are best used for saving the world on your Xbox :-)

Dougan i believe you will need target turrets to do the marking off different distances.I would also say the scope would need to be decent quality to suffer the constant winding up and down,i've seen one or two have problems even with decent scopes.

Wow Gyn, up to 25x? What is your low end magnification for the close targets, or do you use the side mounted sights like the American 3 gun shooters?
There are not many scopes that offer such a large range of magnification and the few that do are serious money, March spring to mind.
I found anything over bowl too much for the quick exposures at close distance,

DM

6-24x is ideal in my experience, but have also used 8-32x with no problems, only time it became an issue was for 10m stage weak shoulder in bianchi practical.

Dougan as has been mentioned try and have a go with someone else's scope to see what mag suits you.I use 4-16 on my .44 and find that fine for me tough i haven't try out to fifty yet.On the smallbore i have a 6-24 though i haven't used it beyond 20 again haven't shot out to fifty,i would like it to go a little lower for the close up stuff.