This one is gonna be a combo, a range report and a report on the inaugural Eastern Panhandle Blog shoot (hey, I didn’t come up with the name…)
First, the blog shoot; Murphy over at Lagniappes Lair honcho’ed this one and found us a nice place to shoot, his AAR is HERE. Peacemaker is a new range, and while we didn’t get to use the new 1000 yard range (a class was there), it’s a nice facility.
It was a tad short notice, but I was kinda disappointed in the turnout, as I’d expected more DC area shooters to participate. We did have visitors (Bubblehead Les from Cleveland, not a blogger, but a frequent commenter) and Keads who drove up from the Charlotte area. Locals were Murph, myself, Andy, Marty, New Jovian Thunderbolt, Proud Hillbilly, and Stretch and the other Andy ( both frequent commenters, but no blog).
We donated enough to pay the range fee and still donate over $200 to Wounded Warriors, so all in all, it was a good day.
I think the best shots of the day were Marty, at 250+ yards with his Beretta Storm Carbine actually hitting a steel plate four time with only a red dot!!!
As usual, we had soup to nuts for guns, Stretch brought out some nice old .22 pistols and also had a nice old Winchester 92 in 30-06. , we had a bunch of M-1s and Murph and Proud Hillbilly both had Arisakas that were actually fire-able and were shot. The other Andy had an old K-98 Mauser and Les brought a Sporterized 8mm Mauser we shot a few times. Keads brought pistols galore and a nice Winchester 94, and we were all sharing back and forth as always.
That 250 yard gong was just plain fun too 🙂 Multiple folks, shot after shot, hit after hit… And the RSO was just grinning and shaking his head (personally, I don’t think he’s seen that many people do it that often)!
On the pistol side, I picked up a new Ruger Mk III 22/45 and this was the first extended outing with it.
What you get is the pistol, two mags, the usual instruction books, and a little gun rug, etc. All for mid-$300 range, which is NOT a bad deal in my book.
The grip angle is a faithful reproduction of the 1911 grip angle and similarly placed controls with a button safety at the left rear, a button slide release mid frame on the left, and a mag release just aft of the trigger guard on the left frame.
Likes- It’s a pretty accurate little pistol, consistent if a bit stiff trigger, and sight picture is similar if you ignore the rounded back of the slide. The grip is identical to a full size 1911, and the pistol is heavy enough to ‘simulate’ a 1911 very well.
I don’t have any target pics, but it easily put 10 rounds into a 3 inch circle at 10 yards repeatedly.
Dislikes- That trigger is not real great, and I’m probably going to a Volquartsen trigger like Sean did, but I’m going to take his advice and just have the Smith do it…
This would get the trigger closer (actually a bit lighter) to my 1911.
I’m also going to put different front and rear sights on it to mimic my 1911.
Ammo- I shot mostly CCI Blazer through it, but tried some of the Remington Subsonics (Thanks Stretch), and was not impressed with them, they didn’t eject all the time (stovepiping), and weren’t nearly as accurate. This could be due to the fact that the gun is new and tight.
Overall, I’d recommend the gun to anyone looking for a good 1911 trainer/general fun pistol. The few faults are all fixable at a reasonable cost, and it’s a nice little shooter for a mass produced pistol (and if I get ‘really’ bored, I can throw a suppressor on it)!
Damn!
Was supposed to get roped into taking the old lady out Christmas shopping, but I ended up having to take the work truck into the shop for repairs.
There are about a thousand things I would rather be doing. Top of the list is shooting in W.VA.
The subsonics don’t cycle well.But I like them for the Old single shot Remington I have.It was made in 1935
MSGT- We’ll do it again
Fuzzy- Thanks, interestingly they cycle fine in my MKII, wonder why???
That Ruger WAS fun to shoot. Thanks! Nice to meet you Sir! Lets do it again.
I need to get a .22 pistol of some sort in the future.
I really liked the 22/45 I shot in May. It’s on my list of guns to have. Sounds like you all had a great time!
I’ve got a 22/45–it was the only reasonably priced .22 available locally with a halfway normal grip angle. Mine is slightly ammo sensitive–One brand of Walmart bulk ammo runs well over 99%, the other has a fail to fire averaging at least every other mag.
If I recall correctly, the trigger can be improved significantly by eliminating the expletive deleted magazine interlock. I will never again knowingly buy a pistol with both a mag interlock and a requirement to dry fire for disassembly–that’s an accident waiting to happen.
Xavier had a post on a blast shield to keep the trigger cleaner and smoother: http://xavierthoughts.blogspot.com/2008/11/ruger-mkii-blast-shield.html Next time I disassemble mine, I’m going to do that.
This was a great Blogshoot! I hope this becomes an annual event. I plan on going there every couple of months. It’s worth the 90 minute drive from my house.
It was good to see you again NFO!
Good to see old friends and a few new ones!!
Why is it that even though I have a Mark III, I also want a 22/45? This hobby is a disease.
Good to meet up with you again, NFO.
Next year, if it happens, we’ll try to get to it. 🙂
Could not make it. Short notice for me and plans were already firm for the date. Maybe next time.
I, too, am looking at the 22/45 MKIII Threaded barrel. Of course, you just bought the one that our gun store had so now I have to wait until they re-stock it…
All, thanks for the feedback and comments; and as I said, I would recommend the pistol for anybody that shoots 1911s!
Newbius, they’ve restocked 🙂
It figures. I lived in Purcellville for four years, got re-stationed in Dayton, OH, and finally find out which people on here were “local”. Yes, I spent some time trying–No, I didn’t come right out and ask anyone.
Oh well. It’s not too far to drive still, so next time there’s a shoot, please let us know and I’ll be there with the twin to JayG’s long-ish range rifle (and others).
Oh, and happy birthday, which was the reason I was over here today specifically…
Happy Birthday! JAy G told me 😉
NFO, it’s your birthday? You let us spend Saturday at a range with you and didn’t mention it! Happy Birthday, young man.
Happy birthday Sailor!
Gerry
Happy birthday, sir!
Jet- drop me an email and I’ll add you to the list for next time…
And I didn’t tell anyone about my birthday because I didn’t want to catch a ration from y’all… LOL
Happy Birthday, NFO! Hope is was a great one!
Happy birthday, NFO!
Happy Birthday Sir.
I’ll ask you what I asked my friend Nate at his 95th yesterday (and he’s a Pearl vet), “What do you want to be when you grow up?”
Happy Birthday, NFO!
Happy Birthday!
May the vice squad not raid the party.
BTW, my lever action .30-06 is a Model 1895.
Leave it to St. John of Ogden to design a lever action that can handle rounds designed for a Mauser strength bolt action.
Happy Birthday! Hope it’s a blast 🙂
Thanks all, Stretch, sorry about the mis-ID, my bad! But that is one hellva desigh!!! 🙂
Happy Birthday NFO!
Thanks DT!
Late to the party (what else is new?) – Happy Birthday!!!
Does this mean we have to call you OlderNFO?
Finally able to sit down after the weekend Fun Shoot! Anyway, Congratulations on Surviving another year in our Declining Civilization!
I have the same Ruger handgun with a longer (6 in) barrel and can thread a needle with it. It’s a superb choice for a target weapon.
Blame JayG, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!
Wouldn’t you know it. I missed a couple of days and I missed your Birthday.
Hope you made it one to remember 🙂
BTW~ I like the looks of this gun.
I LOVE the Ruger Mk 2,3,4 pistols…get the one with a Bull barrel, target sights and trigger…right out of the box you can shoot a match with it. I know I did it.