Tell me about .22 Bullseye

[Keystone]

I wonder if any of the big bullseye matches do equipment surveys. USPSA does an equipment survey at Nationals every year and publishes the results. It's pretty interesting to watch the trends of what nationals competitors are using.

http://www.bullseyepistol.com/bullseye.htm this article suggests that they do, I can't find the actual data from the survey, though

Equipment surveys at Camp Perry have changed little over the years. The S&W Model 41 and High Standards dominate the .22 events, with a few Rugers and imports thrown in for variety.

 

[Emoto]

Bullseye pistol.com is a great site! The Blankenship article is a good one.

 

[Keystone]

Bullseye pistol.com is a great site! The Blankenship article is a good one.

I found the site last night while digging around for info. A lot of good stuff on there. I'll get my reading on, and try and build up my flabby muscles to let me hold the gun

I'm looking forward to getting out and shoot.

 

[Emoto]

I found the site last night while digging around for info. A lot of good stuff on there. I'll get my reading on, and try and build up my flabby muscles to let me hold the gun

I'm looking forward to getting out and shoot.

Hope you like it. I just completed my eighth year shooting on a bullseye team last month. I can't believe I have been doing it that long. There's just something about it I like. I like other, more action oriented type stuff too. The main thing is to not get discouraged if it takes you a little time to bring your scores up.

 

[Keystone]

Hope you like it. I just completed my eighth year shooting on a bullseye team last month. I can't believe I have been doing it that long. There's just something about it I like. I like other, more action oriented type stuff too. The main thing is to not get discouraged if it takes you a little time to bring your scores up.

My score right now is zero, right? So my first shoot will be a HUGE increase in my score

If anything, this'll get me out of the house. I'm kind of sedentary, and could use some more interaction with people (outside of the internet)

 

[Emoto]

My score right now is zero, right? So my first shoot will be a HUGE increase in my score

If anything, this'll get me out of the house. I'm kind of sedentary, and could use some more interaction with people (outside of the internet)

Yeah, signing up for a league gives you that extra little kick in the pants to get out there and do it.

 

[George D]

As you get proficient, you are going to quickly outgrow a 22A. I started with a 5.5 Browning Buckmark and then bought a S&W 41. Most people end up spending the big bucks on a Pardini, a Walther or a Hammerli but it will take you a long time to outshoot a 41.

 

[Emoto]

As you get proficient, you are going to quickly outgrow a 22A. I started with a 5.5 Browning Buckmark and then bought a S&W 41. Most people end up spending the big bucks on a Pardini, a Walther or a Hammerli but it will take you a long time to outshoot a 41.

George, how long did you stay with the buckmark? And did you notice an immediate improvement with the 41?

 

[Alex Cannella]

Keystone,

I'll put my 2 cents if everyone doesn't mind. I've been shooting the S&W M41 from day 1 and aside from an ejector issue when the gun was new, it's performed flawlessly. That doesn't mean that the shooter has done the same.

Mike, Jeff, and the others are right, the M41 is expensive compared to the MKIII and other guns, but the gun holds its value and S&W guarantees it for life. Check them out at the gun shows. Used ones sell for nearly as much as the new ones. I believe it retails for about $1200 new and in reality sells for about $900 (4 Seasons). I've seen used ones at gun shows for $750 to $800.

It's simple to take down and clean and with a trigger tune-up, a red dot, some good grips, you're good to go for a long time. It is more ammo sensitive than some other pistols. CCI seems to function best.

Next year will be my 4th year shooting bullseye. It's a lot of fun. If you like competing against yourself and doing a little Zen on the range, it's a great winter activity that will help you to be a better shooter all around. As Mike said, only the top five scores count. If you're having a good night, yours score will be one of them. If not, one of your teammates will do it.

Hope to meet you at the range.

 

[Keystone]

Keystone,

I'll put my 2 cents if everyone doesn't mind. I've been shooting the S&W M41 from day 1 and aside from an ejector issue when the gun was new, it's performed flawlessly. That doesn't mean that the shooter has done the same.

Mike, Jeff, and the others are right, the M41 is expensive compared to the MKIII and other guns, but the gun holds its value and S&W guarantees it for life. Check them out at the gun shows. Used ones sell for nearly as much as the new ones. I believe it retails for about $1200 new and in reality sells for about $900 (4 Seasons). I've seen used ones at gun shows for $750 to $800.

It's simple to take down and clean and with a trigger tune-up, a red dot, some good grips, you're good to go for a long time. It is more ammo sensitive than some other pistols. CCI seems to function best.

Next year will be my 4th year shooting bullseye. It's a lot of fun. If you like competing against yourself and doing a little Zen on the range, it's a great winter activity that will help you to be a better shooter all around. As Mike said, only the top five scores count. If you're having a good night, yours score will be one of them. If not, one of your teammates will do it.

Hope to meet you at the range.

I'd love an M41. However, I already have a MkIII, though. I'll tune it up, run it until I hit a wall or budget allows, and then upgrade to something fancy-like.

It's interesting. Emoto is providing evidence of the MkIII being horrible, based on his experiences at his bullseye club. Jar and eisenhow are providing evidence to the contrary, based on their experience at their bullseye club. Good luck/Bad luck? Who knows...

 

[George D]

George, how long did you stay with the buckmark? And did you notice an immediate improvement with the 41?

I shot the Buckmark 05-09 and then bought the 41. I was shooting mid 260's. My first match with the 41 I shot in the 280's.
For some reason I have dropped back down in the 260's again.

 

[bsimardjr]

Don't buy whatever crappy red dot a store will try to sell you. Ultradot is the way to go.

I agree with this completely. I have four Ultradots on my bullyseye guns (2 marvel conversions, Springfield 45, Model 52.2).

 

[jar]

I shot the Buckmark 05-09 and then bought the 41. I was shooting mid 260's. My first match with the 41 I shot in the 280's.
For some reason I have dropped back down in the 260's again.

Brian Enos has written about how almost every time he changed something about his gear or technique, there was a short term improvement because of the mental focus created by trying to adapt to it.

 

[Emoto]

I shot the Buckmark 05-09 and then bought the 41. I was shooting mid 260's. My first match with the 41 I shot in the 280's.
For some reason I have dropped back down in the 260's again.

I really wish you hadn't said that.

Did you do anything else like a different optic or go from flat grips to target ones or anything?

 

[eisenhow]

.22 bullseye is an interesting mix of a team sport, individual sport, social event, and personal skill development. You're constantly trying to contribute to your team score, improve your own average, meet new people, and improve your own skills. I shoot mixture of action pistol (IPDA, USPSA, and ICORE) along with bullseye. I find that bullseye has improved my overall shooting, and I've met a lot interesting people. It's also an event that keeps me busy over the winter when some of the other events disappear or slow down.

 

[ChargingCharlie]

I am glad you guys have been lucky with your MkIIIs. Unless I miscounted, the score in this thread is 2 bad and 2 good. If you google ruger mkIII jamming you will get more hits than you can shake a stick at. Plus, they are a real pain to field strip for cleaning. I really, really wanted to like the MkIII I bought, but it was a P.O.S. that constantly frustrated. I would never buy another one.

A S&W Model 41 would be a great choice if it is within the budget.

Count me as "lucky" too. Out of 10 matches and all the practicing that went with it (about 2,000 rounds) total, I've had 3 stove pipes and had a 258 average with my MKIII.

 

[George D]

I really wish you hadn't said that.

Did you do anything else like a different optic or go from flat grips to target ones or anything?

The biggest improvment I ever saw with Bullseye was excercise. I was renovating a house as a side project and worked on it every night after work, swinging a hammer, working with my hands. I developed a lot of muscle in my arms. As I was doing this, the season started and I bought the 41.
Excercise, coupled with the overall higher quality of the 41 led to a series of decent scores. As I finished the house and stopped working out, my shooting declined. I really need to excercise more.

 

[Keystone]

.22 bullseye is an interesting mix of a team sport, individual sport, social event, and personal skill development. You're constantly trying to contribute to your team score, improve your own average, meet new people, and improve your own skills. I shoot mixture of action pistol (IPDA, USPSA, and ICORE) along with bullseye. I find that bullseye has improved my overall shooting, and I've met a lot interesting people. It's also an event that keeps me busy over the winter when some of the other events disappear or slow down.

That was a draw, I basically have no social life outside of the internet and work, so getting out, doing something I enjoy with other people who enjoy it is a major drive. I'm also planning on hitting up a gun store this weekend and grabbing a nice 9mm and heading out to IDPA classes. We'll see if that gets past the fiancee. She's resisting...but...dammit...my money, and we're not married, yet! . I could use one of my .45s for IDPA, but I don't reload (yet) and the ~16-17 for a box of 9mm, vs the ~25 for a box of .45 is huuuuge, especially with regular shooting.

Also, I joined Westford Sportsmen's Club partially because of the nice indoor range, that would let me shoot my .45s. I've never used it. Bullseye would finally get me to get out and shoot in it

Yeah, my life is boring. I'm working on it!

 

[George D]

Yeah, we get a lot of social miscreants at Bullseye. You'll fit right in.

 

[JohnFH]

Bullseye is a lot like golf, easy to learn the basics, damn near impossible to master.... the only thing it has going for it is you don't have go and chase the bullets....

 

[Keystone]

Bullseye is a lot like golf, easy to learn the basics, damn near impossible to master.... the only thing it has going for it is you don't have go and chase the bullets....

and with .22lr, you just have to sweep the brass, not chase it

 

[Alex Cannella]

You got that right John. Bull's eye is as much mental as it is physical. One night you have it, another you don't. Excersise and arm strength certainly helps, but breathing, grip, and trigger squeeze fill-in the picture.

Get that 9mm Keystone. You can do better than $16/box for ammo. You'll enjoy IDPA as well. My son and I just shot the classifier at Harvard last Saturday.

 

[Keystone]

You got that right John. Bull's eye is as much mental as it is physical. One night you have it, another you don't. Excersise and arm strength certainly helps, but breathing, grip, and trigger squeeze fill-in the picture.

Get that 9mm Keystone. You can do better than $16/box for ammo. You'll enjoy IDPA as well. My son and I just shot the classifier at Harvard last Saturday.

I've seen it for 12-15, places. The local fun store runs slightly higher than Dick's/Wally World, but is closer and I like supporting them. I took an IDPA class with GOAL, last Summer. Lots of fun.

IDPA for the (hopefully) Sunshine, Bullseye for the accuracy development

 

[center442]

I've had no problems with my Mk3.

Regarding which Mk3 to pick, I think the regular mk3 is the way to go over the 22/45. The problem with the 22/45 is you can't change the grips, unless the new one that takes 1911 grip panels is available in MA by now. Also, I hated the balance of the 22/45 because the grip frame is so light. Adding the weight of a red dot on top would make that even worse.

Re: barrel length: If you wanted to shoot irons, the longer sight radius of a longer barrel would definitely be better. With a red dot, it doesn't really matter. I don't think it has that much affect on accuracy. Longer barrels add weight and change the balance of the gun, whether this is good or bad is up to you. I have the 5.5" bull barrel stainless model and I'm happy with that choice. The fluted barrel models definitely look cool though.

Don't buy whatever crappy red dot a store will try to sell you. Ultradot is the way to go.

jar, any recommendations on what specific model of Ultradot? I have a MKIII that I've been thinking about putting a red dot on, and I'm a little confused by all the different models available.

 

[ChargingCharlie]

jar, any recommendations on what specific model of Ultradot? I have a MKIII that I've been thinking about putting a red dot on, and I'm a little confused by all the different models available.

The Ultradot Matchdot is a good one to get, but I went with the standard 1" model and still love it. I think the main difference is that you can adjust the size of the dot with the matchdot. I recommend getting it from Larry's Guns. He has great prices and is local (Maine). http://www.larrysguns.com/Departments/Sights-and-Spotters/FONT-SIZE3-COLORBLACKB--SightsBFont.aspx

 

[Dick]

The Ultradot Matchdot is a good one to get, but I went with the standard 1" model and still love it. I think the main difference is that you can adjust the size of the dot with the matchdot. I recommend getting it from Larry's Guns. He has great prices and is local (Maine). http://www.larrysguns.com/Departments/Sights-and-Spotters/FONT-SIZE3-COLORBLACKB--SightsBFont.aspx

+1 I'm currently running 6 MatchDots on a variety of Bullseye guns - 2 Walther GSPs, a Walther KSP, a Gold Cup, Mod. 52-2, and a Steyr LP50 (air pistol). They work flawlessly on all of them and while I don't change the dot size very often (used to use the 2-minute dot for slow fire and the 4-minute for the sustained fire stages) it's good to be able to experiment from time to time. If you do get a model with a fixed dot size, and they work just fine, I'd recommend the 4-minute dot for bullseye. I like the larger 30-mm tube, but many shooters are happy with the 1".

With regard to the different options shown on Larry's web site: the least expensive is the basic Ultra Dot with the 1" tube and 4-minute dot (obviously, there's no functional difference between the black and satin finish). For a little more money you can get the same 4-minute dot in a larger (30 mm) tube. Then there are the two adjustable models, and the only one you should consider is the MatchDot with its range of smaller dot sizes - the 4 Dot is intended for other uses and the dot sizes, except for the smallest, are too large for bullseye.

 

[cstockwell]

+1 on the Ultradot Matchdot. I have one on my GSP expert and one on my Pardini SP1. -1 on Larry's. Larry's pretty much sucks in my experience and lots of others I have talked to say the same. Order it from Midway as they likely even have them in stock as I just got one in a couple of weeks ago from them. One note on the ultradots (and you will see this noted on Larrys website) is due to issues in Japan there is a shortage of availability of these right now. So if you want to get one I would suggest hunting one down that is in stock somewhere and placing that order.

 

[jar]

I have the basic 1" tube model on mine. I'm happy with it. If I ever spring for a fancy gun like a Walther or Pardini or whatever, I'll spring for the matchdot to go with it.

 

[center442]

Thanks for the info and feedback, guys. I'm leaning toward the Matchdot, but now I have to decide if my shooting "ability" is worth the investment.

 

[Dick]

Thanks for the info and feedback, guys. I'm leaning toward the Matchdot, but now I have to decide if my shooting "ability" is worth the investment.

Make the investment and your shooting ability will, with time, rise to the occasion. It's frustrating to not be shooting well and wonder whether it's you or your equipment. With the Matchdot, you don't have to wonder about your sight, at least.