[prof_fate]

Had a friend get all excited over SASS/CAS (cowboy shooting) and drug me to a match. OK, looks like fun - thing IDPA or 3 gun but with old west gear.

Simple, right?

Umm..no.

Shot 2 matches now...and wow, it's not easy.

You'd think hitting a 16" square metal plate at 7 yards, or one at 12 yards with a rifle, would be a piece of cake, right? Not if the clock it ticking.

I shot a couple of IDPA matches and did fair for a newbie. SASS? Hell no.

Top shooters can get off 24 rounds from 4 guns in UNDER 16 seconds. And not miss.
Go try that. I did...best I can do with 2 vaqueros is 7.2 seconds..and that's just draw, shoot 5, holster/draw and shoot 5. Not trying to hit a target. Now to continue you need to holster that second one, move and dump 10 rounds form a lever gun. The best I can do with that 8 sec. Really? I am that slow. Timer says so.
then you move to shotgun, which you have to load and reload to shoot 4 rounds. SxS can take 2 or a pump has to be loaded 1 at a time. 14.5 seconds is my best.

And that's at practice. In a match I'm doing about 53 seconds per stage (5 stages like IDPA).

Old ladies were faster than me. A guy in his 80s was faster than me.

Gonna try to hit two matches this weekend and see if I can get a time in the 30second range...not likely, but that's closer to the average folks are doing.

So you want to try something challenging or need a reason to buy more guns this is the sport for you.

 

[chupacabrachus]

Had a friend get all excited over SASS/CAS (cowboy shooting) and drug me to a match. OK, looks like fun - thing IDPA or 3 gun but with old west gear.

Simple, right?

Umm..no.

Shot 2 matches now...and wow, it's not easy.

You'd think hitting a 16" square metal plate at 7 yards, or one at 12 yards with a rifle, would be a piece of cake, right? Not if the clock it ticking.

I shot a couple of IDPA matches and did fair for a newbie. SASS? Hell no.

Top shooters can get off 24 rounds from 4 guns in UNDER 16 seconds. And not miss.
Go try that. I did...best I can do with 2 vaqueros is 7.2 seconds..and that's just draw, shoot 5, holster/draw and shoot 5. Not trying to hit a target. Now to continue you need to holster that second one, move and dump 10 rounds form a lever gun. The best I can do with that 8 sec. Really? I am that slow. Timer says so.
then you move to shotgun, which you have to load and reload to shoot 4 rounds. SxS can take 2 or a pump has to be loaded 1 at a time. 14.5 seconds is my best.

And that's at practice. In a match I'm doing about 53 seconds per stage (5 stages like IDPA).

Old ladies were faster than me. A guy in his 80s was faster than me.

Gonna try to hit two matches this weekend and see if I can get a time in the 30second range...not likely, but that's closer to the average folks are doing.

So you want to try something challenging or need a reason to buy more guns this is the sport for you.

I don't have enough guns to play, but I have thought about it.

 

[LocoGringo]

I did it all backasswards. I started with Cowboy action and progressed to IDPA, IPSC and eventually landed on 3-gun.

You're right, it's definitely a challenge and it's a lot of fun, but I got REALLY tired of cleaning 4 barrels, 13 chambers and disassembling/reassembling 4 guns. Also, I chose poorly in calibers and my revolvers and rifle were .45 Colt. If I had it to do over, I'd go with .357.

That's where I got my username.

 

[idodishez]

Reverse cowgirl style is much easier


"I miss America"

 

[prof_fate]

You clean your guns? Hmmm...not sure what that means.

I'll clean my pistols every ~500 rounds or so, revolvers every 250-300. Have yet to see a difference in a semi auto before and after. On revolvers I get lead buildup on the forcing cone/front of the cylinder and my SS guns look dirty as heck. LIght loads can do that I guess.

 

[LocoGringo]

You clean your guns? Hmmm...not sure what that means.

Yeah, that was back when I was OCD about them. I had stainless Ruger Vaqueros and the powder showed up on them pretty obviously, so I cleaned them after every match. It got old quick. It never occurred to me that it wasn't really necessary.

The good news is that when I sold them, the people who bought them couldn't even tell that they had been used.

 

[unclejed]

It sure looks fun.

 

[prof_fate]

Shot another match today...so much 'detail' to learn and turn into muscle memory on a new sport.

Had 6 misses - shotgun went well (coudl still be faster) and rifle was one of the misses. Slicking up and new ejector spring relly helped the rossi 92.

Of the 5 pistol misses..my first shot of the day was a miss..sucks to start that way! Other 4 were all the new SS vaquero. Had 2 times where i didn't get the hammer locked to wasted time 'dry firing' to get back around to a live round. Have to lighten the hammer spring and see how that works. As pretty as SS is I think I'd rather have blued for the sight picture (no glint and glare). No doubt why all gun sights are black, not white or SS!

 

[NathanXD]

Reverse cowgirl style is much easier


"I miss America"

:lol:

 

[prof_fate]

Pretty cool to see a guy use 4 guns to get off 26 shots (had to try again at the knockdowsn with the shotgun) in 21.15 seconds.

Go try and get off 26 shots in your XDm in 21 seconds. And hit the target every time. Oh, and holster, move 3 steps, draw every 10th shot.

I've tried .. not easy. I wouldn't think it's feasible except i've seen it with my own eyes.

Don't know who this is, but 25 shots in ~18 seconds. No misses. Looks easy..till you try it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F1BwUJ4--Qw

 

[Jonnyuma]

That feller in the video is very coordinated.

 

[fredj338]

I shot CAS for years, back when it was still new. I think my badge # is 465? It's the original 3gun, now 4 with an addl pistol. I still love my cowboy guns, but just not enough weekends to shoot everything I like.

 

[prof_fate]

I feel ya there. And to be good at any of it you also need to practice it.

 

[filhar]

Stainless can cause an issue for some shooters, like me. 5 1/2" stainless GW IIs with 2 1/2 lb triggers built for CAS.were great until I got a pair of stock, case hardened, (real Turnbull bone and charcoal) 4 5/8" GW IIs. they draw faster and I pick up sights quicker. For rifle, I use a Marbles tang sight with no aperture and a brass big dot on a Marlin Cowboy Comp. Shotgun is usually a Stoeger Coach gun or a custom Coyote Cap 97 replica.
Cowboy Action is a fun sport (15 years now) and just like any other action shooting gets you out and shooting targets under conditions you don't get punching paper. Filthy Harry here.

 

[Mayor Snyder]

I heard good things about coyote cap also but ive learned the hard way...Do not send this man money...I contacted him last march as I had heard good things...I was looking for one of the Chinese replica trench guns...he said he had a 93/97 prison riot he could put the heat shield/bayonet lug on which he had and the sling swivels...he said it would take 4 to 5 hours of work and that I would have the gun in a couple weeks...I still have the email in which he said this...I gave him half of $ last march, after many excuses he said it was done five months later in august...I sent him the other half and since have heard nothing but more excuses...he has said five times he would ship it and has not...Two weeks ago I woke up and checked my email on my phone and he had sent an email out of the blue at 5am saying he was driving through my town and my dealers who he was suppose to ship the gun to....he stated he was dropping off another gun in my town to another person and could drop mine at my dealer...he never attempted to set this up with my dealer or me just emailed at 5am the morning of he was driving through from minnesota to Arizona for the winter...by the time a got ahold of him he was in kansas city and said he would ship it from Arizona and said hed call me back that's been another two weeks with no contact he won't answer his phone or email...i asked for my money back weeks before he went to Arizona and he ignored that...I've left him voice mails, text messages, emails asking for my money back with no reply, no gun, no money back...UPDATE: after much pestering coyote shipped the gun after he said he couldnt pay me back due to lack of funds from sending other peoples money back...it showed up USPS five days shy of eight months with a partial refund due to no stock sling swivel and an incorrect sling...there was also four loose screws and a small pin broke on one end rolling around the box, I found where one of the screws went the rest i don't know yet, it functions, need to shoot it though

 

[AwPhuch]

I always wonder if these "fast shooter" types are using special loaded very light just barely meet the minimum pressure load rounds

I want to see a match were you use factory loaded what you would buy from the store matches...everyone shoots the SAME type ammo. If the results would be the same

 

[LocoGringo]

Of course there's some gaming...it's a game. For official matches there are minimum velocities or power factors (can't remember which) to standardize a bit, but there's still some gaming just like in IDPA, USPSA and 3-gun (although not much when you've got to knock down steel).

 

[yocan]

I always wonder if these "fast shooter" types are using special loaded very light just barely meet the minimum pressure load rounds

I want to see a match were you use factory loaded what you would buy from the store matches...everyone shoots the SAME type ammo. If the results would be the same

Oh your backwards many wont let you use factory as it destroys ar400 steel. There is a fps maximum (and minimum)

Safety is a momentary choice. Prior performance and certification are completely irrelevant.

 

[5L1mm]

I shot CAS for years, back when it was still new. I think my badge # is 465? It's the original 3gun, now 4 with an addl pistol. I still love my cowboy guns, but just not enough weekends to shoot everything I like.

so when cowboy action shooting was new?
was that the 1800's?
should this be a post for this thread
Im so old that.... XDTalk Forums

 

[fredj338]

I always wonder if these "fast shooter" types are using special loaded very light just barely meet the minimum pressure load rounds

I want to see a match were you use factory loaded what you would buy from the store matches...everyone shoots the SAME type ammo. If the results would be the same

Sort of what IDPA is, especially if you shoot CDP. Personally, I think the min PF for IDPA should be raised a bit to 130 for minor & 170 for 45, after all it is supposed to be about defensive shooting w/ carry gear.
Great shooters are great shooters, regardless of what gun or ammo they use. Watch Bob Vogel shoot, or any Master level shooter for that matter. Not unlike golf, great gear wont make you a great golfer or shooter for that matter.