Washington state monthly matches at Upper Nisqually Sportsman's Club

September 6, 2014 UNSC practical rifle match update:

Following last month's match, we received a report of bullet frag landing on another range. We reported the incident to the Board of Directors, and told them that we won't use pistol until they get a chance to discuss the issue. So, for the September 6th 2014 match, we are not going to have a pistol stage. The match is otherwise as posted in the previous course of fire announcement.

Hopefully, we will be able to re-integrate pistol shooting once the Board of Directors deals with the report.
 
How about paper targets for the time being for the pistol stage, easy enough to score with one target per page and all shots placed on it.
Really like having the pistol at the matches so I'm sure there's got to be a work around temporarily.
 
How about paper targets for the time being for the pistol stage, easy enough to score with one target per page and all shots placed on it.
Really like having the pistol at the matches so I'm sure there's got to be a work around temporarily.

I agree! A few USPSA style paper targets would work great, and it only takes a few seconds to tape up the holes between shooters.
 
How about paper targets for the time being for the pistol stage, easy enough to score with one target per page and all shots placed on it.
Really like having the pistol at the matches so I'm sure there's got to be a work around temporarily.

I just talked to Unknown on the phone and we'll give it a try. Bring your pistols and ammo!
 
Thanks Kevin and Anton, I haven't had so much fun shooting poorly in a long time! Please put me, Laurel, and Joe down on the list for October.
 
Congrats to Eric, Steve and Jake for taking the top three spots at yesterdays match!

I had a good time hanging out with everyone again and I learned some things as well. I tried a different format this month and I think that there was too much waiting to shoot and we ended up going a little later than we like. Next month we will go back to what we did before that was working really well.

 
New guy here... bounced over from reading some of the posts from the Puget Sound Area group. I'd love to sign up for the October match, but I have some questions...

I've just purchase a Savage Axis in .243, and I've put a Bushnell 3-9 scope on it, but I've only got about a dozen rounds thru it, so I'm not that comfortable with it yet. In addition, I've only got about 30 rounds of .243 ammo total right now. I've seen that you had some kind of "extended orientation" in the past, so that newbies can not only get the safety briefing, but can also get more comfortable with shooting at longer range...any chance of that happening in October?

I do have an SKS with a 3-9 scope and probably over 100 rds of non-ferrous ammo (Privi Partisan, Fiocchi)...according to the iStrelok app, I'd be pushing it to expect any accuracy at more than about 400 yds...If you're not having an "extended orientation", would that combo be allowed if I just didn't shoot the 400+ yd targets?

I'm willing to try anything, but I don't want to be "that guy" who slows the process down for everyone. If that means I can only observe, that's OK too.
 
Welcome!
.243 ammo is available at several places someone might even have some here... anyone need your location to tell you where to pick it up.
Show up early Orientation is done before the match.


New guy here... bounced over from reading some of the posts from the Puget Sound Area group. I'd love to sign up for the October match, but I have some questions...

I've just purchase a Savage Axis in .243, and I've put a Bushnell 3-9 scope on it, but I've only got about a dozen rounds thru it, so I'm not that comfortable with it yet. In addition, I've only got about 30 rounds of .243 ammo total right now. I've seen that you had some kind of "extended orientation" in the past, so that newbies can not only get the safety briefing, but can also get more comfortable with shooting at longer range...any chance of that happening in October?

I do have an SKS with a 3-9 scope and probably over 100 rds of non-ferrous ammo (Privi Partisan, Fiocchi)...according to the iStrelok app, I'd be pushing it to expect any accuracy at more than about 400 yds...If you're not having an "extended orientation", would that combo be allowed if I just didn't shoot the 400+ yd targets?

I'm willing to try anything, but I don't want to be "that guy" who slows the process down for everyone. If that means I can only observe, that's OK too.
 
Welcome!
.243 ammo is available at several places someone might even have some here... anyone need your location to tell you where to pick it up.
Show up early Orientation is done before the match.

Well, i just ordered (online) several different brands of (inexpensive) ammo for the.243, so i'll see if i can get some practice in with that rifle between now and Oct 4. I may be able to get out to the kenmore range (100 yd) next Friday, if the ammo gets here in time.
 
Welcome Rick,

Come on out and give the match a try. The stages are timed so you won't be slowing anyone down.

Honestly just come to learn and have fun, don't worry about the timer when your up, just concentrate on making your shots and learning from your first match.
We have some of the best people you'll ever want to hang out with on a Saturday and I can guarantee that if you want help or suggestions more than a few will step forward to help you out !

If you keep safety, fun and learning as your goals I know your going to have a great time and look forward to the next match.
We're all learning when we come out to these and every time no matter how experienced you are you come away with what worked and what you need to work on, so treat it as a personal learning experience and not a competition.

Be sure to get the time for the new shooter orientation from KevinD or Unknown so that your good to go for the day and hope to see you out there.
 
Tentative course of fire for the 04 October 2014 Practical Rifle match at Upper Nisqually Sportsman's Club. (There is a website for the club if you need directions, or info about the club.)

100 Yard range will have three banks of our mini targets.

Left Center Right
6 Square targets 6 Rectangle targets 6 Diamond targets
16 sq inches 10" sq inches 7.5 sq inches

All three stages are 6 rounds in 60 seconds, two points per hit.

Stage 1. Square rack: Begin kneeling next to the small roof top that will be tipped onto it's side so as to be used as a support if desired. Shooter begins standing at low ready, bolt open, loaded magazine is OK. On start signal, engage the six targets on the rack with one shot each. All shooting shall be done from kneeling position.

Stage 2. Rectangle rack: Begin seated, rifle on the ground in front of shooter. Rifle will have an empty chamber, magazine may be loaded. On start signal, shooter engages the six targets on the rack with one round each. Shooter must remain in seated position while shooting.

Stage 3. Diamond rack: Begin standing with empty rifle in hands, at low ready. No magazine or ammo in rifle. On start signal, engage the six diamond targets with one round each.

All these strings are to be shot without any pillows, butt stock bags, or any other support than the rifle, sling, bipod, or provided range equipment such as the side of the rooftop prop.


550 RANGE LAYOUT
535 Yards: 60% IPSC 50% IPSC T6
500 Yards: 50% IPSC 60% IPSC T5
435 Yards: 12" square 12" round T4
325 Yards: heads & halves 50% IPSC T3
300 Yards: 40% IPSC Hostage flapper target T2
200 Yards: 6" square 8" round T1

ALL STAGES FOR THE 550 YARD RANGE WILL BE 6 ROUNDS IN 90 SECONDS, TWO POINTS PER HIT. START AND STOP WILL BE SIGNALED BY A WHISTLE. OVERTIME SHOTS ACCRUE A TWO (2) POINT PENALTY

STAGE 4 (LEFT SIDE) Shooting position is seated with any support desired. Begin standing holding all gear in hands, or otherwise on the shooter. On start signal, shooter will engage targets near to far, shooting only the big head (not the hostage) on the heads & halves target. Hits on the no shoot are minus 2 points. Tripods, or the prop placed at the shooting position may be used for additional support if desired.

STAGE 5 (RIGHT SIDE) Shooting position is kneeling with any support desired. Begin standing holding all gear in hands, or otherwise on the shooter. On start signal, shooter will engage targets near to far with one round on each. Only one round shall be fired at the hostage flapper target. Hits on the no shoot are minus 1 point. Tripods, or the prop placed at the shooting position may be used for additional support if desired.

STAGE 6 (LEFT SIDE) Begin standing with rifle placed on the ground at the shooting area completely empty, bipod folded, magazine out of rifle if possible. Magazine can be loaded, but not in rifle. On start, engage T2, T5, T4, T6, then one shot @ each head target on the heads & halves target rack. Hits on the no shoot heads (the full sized ones) are minus one point.

STAGE 7 (RIGHT SIDE) Begin standing with rifle placed on the ground at the shooting area, completely empty, bipod folded, magazine out of rifle if possible. Magazine can be loaded, but not in rifle. On start engage T6, T1, T5, T3, then two shots at the flapper on the flapper/hostage target. Hits on the no shoot are minus 1 point.

STAGE 8 (LEFT SIDE) DOGHOUSE. Begin standing, magazine in rifle, chamber empty. May not chamber a round until rifle is on target. On start enter the doghouse and alternate large/small, large/small, large/small on the heads & halves target rack. No prone allowed. Range bags, or other devices (pillows, or butt stock bags) used for additional support must be carried/held by the shooter prior to the start signal.

STAGE 9 (RIGHT SIDE) PARAPET. Using the mid height level of the parapet. Begin standing, rifle at low ready, chamber empty, magazine loaded. May not chamber a round until rifle is on first target. On start signal, engage the flapper target with one round, then T1, engage flapper target with one round, then T3, engage flapper target with one round, then T4. Hits on the no shoot target are minus 1 point per hit. Only allowable support will be rifle, bipod and sling.

Any new shooters (first two matches) may use a spotter to call shots, and help adjust aim if they wish.

************************
To expedite the match we are going to try out the following changes at the October match.

1. Shooters will be squadded prior to the match, and will be assigned their shooting order. It is the shooter's responsibility to be ready to shoot when it is their turn. Shooters who aren't ready to shoot will be by-passed for a shooter who is ready. By passed shooters will not be moved to the bottom of the shooting order..they will simply miss their chance to shoot that stage.

2. If you want your brass, find someone to shag your brass before you come to the shooting line. The RO's will not be shagging brass, or waiting while someone shags your brass. Any brass pickup will be done between the time one shooter leaves the line, and the next one comes onto the line.

Any brass not immediately collected, will be picked up some time later when it does not hold up the match, and will be available after the end of the match for shooters to pick through and find their brass.

3. Squads will be required to find people from within their squad to spot their own shots, and assist with the scoring duties. Having the squads do their own scoring and spotting will preclude us from raising match fees in order to hire people to do that work for us. Those who were kind enough to volunteer to help, often don't get time to shoot, or to properly prepare to shoot stages, so they miss out. We didn't think that was fair to those who were being kind enough to help run things.

4. The range officer's duties will be to give start and cease fire signals, act as a safety officer, and insure that shooters move on and off the line quickly.

It is hoped that these changes will help us finish up the matches by around 2:00 PM and possibly find time to do even more shooting.

Please bring any other time saving suggestions to the match in October.
 
I finished up the 4 plate racks for the next match, although we will only use 3 of 'em. Each rack uses a 10 foot long 4-5 inch thick round post with eight plates mounted onto it.

1. 2" x 4" rectangles
2. 3" x 5" diamonds
3. 4" squares
4. One rack with mixed plate shapes on it.

Hopefully, these racks will work out better than the last time we tried to use the mini plates. Jake says that this is the system he uses, and he has good luck with it. We will find out at the October match.
 
I finished up the 4 plate racks for the next match, although we will only use 3 of 'em. Each rack uses a 10 foot long 4-5 inch thick round post with eight plates mounted onto it.

1. 2" x 4" rectangles
2. 3" x 5" diamonds
3. 4" squares
4. One rack with mixed plate shapes on it.

Hopefully, these racks will work out better than the last time we tried to use the mini plates. Jake says that this is the system he uses, and he has good luck with it. We will find out at the October match.

I think that will work well,

I came across a little extra conveyer belt, you guys are welcome to it for the range if you pay shipping!!
 
As someone who'll be shooting my first match in October, I'm trying to get as much info as possible to prepare properly for this, so I've been making "scale size" targets from the info given in post #475, and checking to see if I'll actually be able to see them with my inexpensive scope.

The 50% or 60% IPSC ones are relatively easy to make "scale size" targets for, since I can get the standard IPSC target sizes...but I'm at a loss for these:
"325 Yards: heads & halves 50% IPSC T3
300 Yards: 40% IPSC Hostage flapper target T2"

I can't find anything described as "head & halves" for IPSC targets, nor can I find any dimensions on the "hostage flapper" targets. Can anyone give me some approximate dimensions on those? (If that's allowed)...

Thanks.
 
As someone who'll be shooting my first match in October, I'm trying to get as much info as possible to prepare properly for this, so I've been making "scale size" targets from the info given in post #475, and checking to see if I'll actually be able to see them with my inexpensive scope.

The 50% or 60% IPSC ones are relatively easy to make "scale size" targets for, since I can get the standard IPSC target sizes...but I'm at a loss for these:
"325 Yards: heads & halves 50% IPSC T3
300 Yards: 40% IPSC Hostage flapper target T2"

I can't find anything described as "head & halves" for IPSC targets, nor can I find any dimensions on the "hostage flapper" targets. Can anyone give me some approximate dimensions on those? (If that's allowed)...

Thanks.
As long as you have even a halfway decent scope you'll be fine. As for actual target dimensions, I don't have exact numbers, but below is a picture of the "heads and halves" target that might help.

Hostage.jpg



The 40% IPSC hostage flapper will be the same type of target as the other IPSC targets you made, but there till be a round flapper in the chest region that swings when you hit it.
Product_13.png
 
As long as you have even a halfway decent scope you'll be fine. As for actual target dimensions, I don't have exact numbers, but below is a picture of the "heads and halves" target that might help.

Hostage.jpg



The 40% IPSC hostage flapper will be the same type of target as the other IPSC targets you made, but there till be a round flapper in the chest region that swings when you hit it.
Product_13.png

Nine,

Thanks, that really helps.

So "heads & halves" = approx life size human head shapes and half size human head shapes...interesting! And, I figure (from the hits shown in the pic) that the "no shoot" heads are the white, correct?
 
Nine,

Thanks, that really helps.

So "heads & halves" = approx life size human head shapes and half size human head shapes...interesting! And, I figure (from the hits shown in the pic) that the "no shoot" heads are the white, correct?

Normally the whites are the no-shoots, though the MDs like to mix things up sometimes. The larger set of heads might be about normal head size, perhaps a little smaller.
 
Our flapper hostage target has a circle of steel about 5" diameter behind the head that flaps from side to side...not from center chest. The 50% IPSC targets aren't true IPSC shape, but that is what we call 'em. They are about 10" wide, by around 16 inches tall with shoulders that slope upward to a head that is about 2.5-3 inches square. IPSC targets have square shoulders. Our 40% and 60% IPSC targets are shaped like the true IPSC profile...our 50% is just called that because it is in between the two in size.

As long as you figure your elevation dope, you should be fine. Our targets are large enough that you can even be off your elevation a little and still get a hit at the October match. The September matches cold bore at 535 yards used a 6" square, so occasionally, targets are a little tougher.
 
Our flapper hostage target has a circle of steel about 5" diameter behind the head that flaps from side to side...not from center chest. The 50% IPSC targets aren't true IPSC shape, but that is what we call 'em. They are about 10" wide, by around 16 inches tall with shoulders that slope upward to a head that is about 2.5-3 inches square. IPSC targets have square shoulders. Our 40% and 60% IPSC targets are shaped like the true IPSC profile...our 50% is just called that because it is in between the two in size.

As long as you figure your elevation dope, you should be fine. Our targets are large enough that you can even be off your elevation a little and still get a hit at the October match. The September matches cold bore at 535 yards used a 6" square, so occasionally, targets are a little tougher.

Thanks for the info!
Considering I've not shot out to more than 100 yds for the last 30 years, this should be interesting...a real fun learning experience.
 
Rick3,
You will have a ball. Everyone seems to have fun, and the group is really great about helping new shooters get a foothold. New shooters can even use spotters for their first couple of matches. If you need help with a dope chart, let me know.
 
Rick3,
You will have a ball. Everyone seems to have fun, and the group is really great about helping new shooters get a foothold. New shooters can even use spotters for their first couple of matches. If you need help with a dope chart, let me know.

Well, I don't know if I need help with a dope chart as much as I need help with my LUCK...I took the rifle out to the range this past weekend to get in some more practice, and after about 4 shots, my Bushnell Banner scope died: I can't move the turrets at all, and I can hear something "clinking" around inside when I move the scope around.

I've replaced the Bushnell with a Pentax with BDC lines (from another rifle), but the Pentax clicks are not stable/reproducible (fails the Box Test in several ways), so...instead of using a chart with "number of clicks/MOA" for various ranges, I'm not going to touch the turrets, and I'll depend on some printed versions of the iStrelok reticle, like this:

axis pentax.jpg

Ahhhhh...the challenges of inexpensive equipment!
 
Ahhhhh...the challenges of inexpensive equipment!

You know, you can end up wasting a lot of money with inexpensive equipment. I will be there this weekend and I hope you get everything worked out by then. Maybe you have heard of the mantra: "Buy once, cry once"?

Good luck! I have a suspicion that you will love the match and its challenges and want to shoot more. Then you can look at really good stuff. I really enjoyed the match there in Washington earlier this year and hope to shoot at that match more as the years go by. If we have time, you are welcome to check out my equipment after the match. I will be showing a new shooter what long range precision is all about as it will be his absolute first time seeing a practical steel match. I hope to have him shoot a few rounds down range and you are welcome also.

See you there on Saturday!
 
I am taking a course up in Montana, and met a Canadian couple from Vancouver who are interested in shooting at UNSC. Apparently they need a letter of some sort to come over the border with guns and ammo. I'll tell them get on here and PM Kevin/Anton for more info.

Looking forward to this weekend's match.

Shamir
 
shamir,
Feel free to refer them to me, and I'll do what I can to help them out. Kevin and I are both members at the club, and I will be happy to help them figure out what documentation I can provide that may help them with getting firearms in for the matches.
 
Hey Anton/Kevin, I may have to skip Saturday's match. Just realized I won't be able to make it up to the range tomorrow to zero my new rifle in its stock, and I know I can't zero at UNSC on Saturday. I'll confirm tomorrow evening.