What do you shoot for centerfire?

I'm still in my first season of shooting bullseye, today I almost got to 2300. I'm shooting a S&W 41 for .22 and a Les Baer Concept III for both centerfire and .45. Recoil anticipation has been a big hurdle that I am getting better at overcoming especially since I've gone to 185 grain bullets.

I wish there were more options for centerfire target pistols in .32 and .38. I'd love to sell my 41 and buy a Pardini .22 & .32 combo but it's a bit pricey for me.

.32 ACP Pardini.  They are showing up more and more.  They are more accurate than my AW-93 .22.

Chip

The Pardini 32 acp is what I use, great trigger and very accurate. The gun has a fixed barrel so you do not have to worry about the gun "getting loose" like a 1911. You also have the same gun feel as the 22 if you use the 22 conversion so you still only have to learn 2 guns.

What ammo are you guys using for the Pardini 32 acp?

Check out Target Talk there is a lot of info.

http://www.targettalk.org/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=42516

I'm shooting wadcutter ammo out of my ball gun this season for CF and .45.  No matter what you WILL eventually need to get past your recoil problem.  Dryfiring profusely, competing as much as possible with the .45, and ball-and-dummy drills are the cure.

Peel the bandaid off fast.  Don't prolong it with a .32.

I've read the Target talk topics and those here. But I was wondering what people specifically using the 32acp in matches were shooting. Hornady, XTC reloads, cast reloads, etc

I've done nothing but dryfire and rehearse firing the 45 for the past few weeks. Today's training was the best that I have done. I plan to stick with the 45 at least until I am shooting in the mid 2500s.

Hornady factory.  Needed the brass.

Chip

Shoot the 45 with the lightest bullet that will function.  Don't worry if they shoot on the long line until you get past your recoil issue.  Shoot only timed fire.  Practice, a lot.

I found that 2 shot drills are way more effective at building shot process instead of strings of sustained fire.

You play the full commands, going through your entire process, then fire 2 shots in 2 seconds.

Since reacting to recoil isn't part of your process, and you really don't have time to anticipate recoil, it helps a lot.

You can set the bullseye timer app to loop that program.

It saves ammo and drills process much harder.

When process takes over, you are in a good position to succeed.

Seems to me that over the last 15 years every Champion at Perry shot 45ACP in CF. So makes sense to me to shoot 45ACP. 

I shoot with a guy locally that shoots 22 and 32 gsp does excellent with them 830's to 50's, he then shoots his 45 and scores 700 flat. Maybe a better idea is to shoot a Nelson, or Marvel. They will shoot just as good if not better than a 41. I have a Chambers unit and its great, very expensive, but my guess is it will hold its own with the Pardini at 50 yards. 

I like Wobbley's advice, If you are not shooting over 90 in SL then it makes no sense to shoot middling range ammo, the guys that shoot 185gn JHP loaded with 4.5 vv310  or bulls eye generally get the finest machine loaded ammo from Zero, Atlanta, ect......

Jerry Keiffer has a string somewhere on this sight about that and he makes a lot of sense. Also lead loaded under 4.0 Bullesye is a load easier on the pistol than Jacketed bullets. 

I use 3.8/3.9 bullseye over a Zero 185 LHPSWC and it shoots well. If I change the recoil spring from 13 to 11 I can load it down to about 3.55 gn.

Indoors I see no reason why you would shoot a load on the heavier side.

Since the OP asked.... I shoot a 952-2. If I didn't have a 952 I would shoot a 52.

Len

learn to shoot the 45 in both, venturing off to a lower caliber cf gun will just make your 45 scores wrose, and hinder you getting better, just my opinion as ive done it several times and so have many friends, all including me are back with just the 45 and doing well

Thanks for all the replies guys. I'll stick with the .45 for both CF & .45. I am really please how I shot yesterday with my new 185 grain bullets. I was struggling to break 2000 and then suddenly jumped to almost 2300 after switching bullets. 

This will save me money anyways for more "toys".

Zane, what do you attribute the jump to? Do you think it was reduced recoil or do you think the bullets you are not using are more accurate?

I think a lot of it was just the recoil reduction of the lighter bullets. I also switched from bullseye powder to wst which I felt like was a little less snappy.

I doubt the new bullets are more accurate as they're bevel base where my 200 grain mold was flat base.

I'd attribute some to practice but the jump was too drastic for just that.

Just for fun I'll try the M52-2 I recently lucked into. But I suspect I'll use the 1911 when I'm serious...

I bet the improvement was your mind saying "hey we went with a lighter bullet, so it will have less recoil" then it believed it...

I still new at Bulleye but I thought 45 cal had to be used for center fire.
I could easily be wrong.


OK, never mind. Was not thinking about midrange.

I may be a traditionalist, but I shoot 38 revolver in CF.  However, my early years of handgun shooting were almost all revolver.  That's what cops shot then.  One of these days I'll get a 45 wheelgun and do the whole 2700 with revolvers.

rfmiller wrote:I may be a traditionalist, but I shoot 38 revolver in CF.  However, my early years of handgun shooting were almost all revolver.  That's what cops shot then.  One of these days I'll get a 45 wheelgun and do the whole 2700 with revolvers.

Ive wanted to do that also. At this point I haven't developed a load that my model 19 really likes at the 50 yard line.

What to shoot in the model 19? Try 5.7 gr of Bullseye behind a 110 gr XTP. I know this is a 25yd target but I benched this same load in my 27 at 50 yds and it performed great. Sorry no pictures. I mostly take pictures of good targets shot with one hand. Remember for CF you don't have to shoot DR legal loads in your wheel gun.

I've been mostly loading full wadcutters. Mostly around the 4 ft of BE range. I haven't gone too much more then that. Might try jumping up a few tenths

To paraphrase Foghorn Leghorn,  I am aghast . . .I say aghast, to find that not everyone shoots CF with either the 32 S&W Long or the 38 Super!

38Super!! wrote:To paraphrase Foghorn Leghorn,  I am aghast . . .I say aghast, to find that not everyone shoots CF with either the 32 S&W Long or the 38 Super!

My dad shot 38/45 for a few years... now that's a oddball!!