Re: F-T/R Bullet Weight Cap (proposed), discussion.
<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: gstaylorg</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tactical</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><span style="color: #FF0000">The idea of F TR was for a limited class to exists so guys could use basic 308 weapons and be competitive.</span> I first shot F TR in 2006 with a GAP built M40A3 and did very well with 175SMKs.
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Today you just cant compete with the long throated 308s with that type of rig, with normal bullet weights and velocities.</span>
Now I am one who has wanted some restrictions since day one because I dont wnat F TR to go the route of IPSC where the weapons no longer serve any function but the class they shoot in. Currently a guy can pick up his sniper rifle or Palma rifle and be competitive in F TR.
What I would like to see is a Overal Length Limit. You can run what ever bullet powder you wnat but if its over SAMI Max Length Specs your have to go to open. I wnat this for several reasons.
1. It is easy to sheck with simple gauge. Which limit of bullet weight would be nigghtmare to check.
2. It still allows guys to experiment but within the specs for a 308win
Which after all is what the class was set up for.
This will drop down the speeds of the 155s and guys will get to try best bullet within SAMI Specs.
Minus that I say limit the bullet weight because its getting stupid what guys call a 308
Seems simple to me. </div></div>
I think this is an important point in this discussion, so I'll emphasize it again. Whom are we really talking about here? The vast majority of F-T/R shooters compete at the local level, <span style="font-style: italic">not</span> in the upper echelons of national/international competition. <span style="font-style: italic">Very few</span> of these competitors are using long throated .308s with uber-heavy bullets. Most are showing up with their Remmy 700s and FGMM 175 SMKs and at the local level they still have a very good chance to win, or at least place using this type of setup.
So I have to ask the question whether this hypothetical projectile weight limitation is really aimed at the select few competing at the highest level of F-T/R, rather than the <span style="font-style: italic">multitude</span> of local shooters that currently participate at the local level? The more I ponder this issue, the more it seems that this is the case as most competitors at the local level aren't using the rigs or loads in question. Am I wrong? Are we talking about a rule change here predominantly aimed at only the highest level competitors where projectile weight is actually in the process of becoming an issue?
I'm not naive and I understand that the individuals at the top levels of any sport are usually the driving force behind innovation and rule changes meant to accommodate advancement in the technology used in those sports. I'm not trying to stir the pot; my only point is that if this proposed rule change is primarily due to competitors at the highest level, we should be perfectly clear and up front about it for the purpose of this discussion. </div></div>
I am surely not at the highest level, and I shot my first year with a 24" barrel, though not in a stock rifle. This yr that rifle has a 30" tube, and I'm OK with that.
A new shooter will always look around and see that the guys who have been doing it for a while are using better or at least different more specialized equipment, and they'll eventually get some. I think where people get discouraged is after they start to gain some skill and realize that they need to get a very specialized tool in order to be competitive at the next level, and whether it's true or not the psychologically they believe they need what the "pros" are using.
All that said, I'm not certain that this discussion is really pertinent to new shooters. They expect that they will not have exactly what they need; at least in my case, I didn't expect my rig to be ideal my first yr. I guess to me it's about what makes sense, and whether or not it can be made to work, shooting a bullet in a 308 that is heavier than what is typically chambered in a 300WM just doesn't make sense to me.
I like the idea of an OAL limit as opposed to a weight limit.
