Constable Nelson #11784

Maybe so.... but more modern terms can aid in recognition... I doubt many folks would know what the terms serpentine, saker, culverin and basilisk mean ... Easier to just say "cannon"...

True...for rocket tests. The bombers were painted that way to give the REST of the group something readily identifiable to build their formation on...… The patterns used varied WILDLY....white with multicoloured polka dots was a good one......lol

Plainsman Down Under started with a 2nd category for cartridge guns...that worked as it developed an interest...now of course it is run "right"...and is working. At the recent SASS regional here the Plainsman match had more than 20 shooters....including a 12 year old girl which is way cool! We never had nor relied on dummies, knives, hawks or bows and arrows....it IS a shooting event after all..... YMMV....

I like the "benevolent Dictator" line! My usual comment about a TO not being perfect (and especially being blamed for not being faster on the uptake than the ACTUAL SHOOTER - who wants to blame the TO for a P or whatever) is... "I'm worth what I'm being paid." Extension question : Has anyone else noticed how often these "blame-the-TO comments" come from folks who never run the timer themselves? Just curious...

The book is almost always better.... for fairly obvious reasons....(movies can't be 11 hours long lol) BUT... my current favourite movie... which started as a book..is "The Martian". One can go from book to film and back without anguish..... helps that the author was one of the screenwriters I suppose.. IMO they did a GREAT job of harnessing the SPIRIT of the book and putting it onscreen.....

Recently developed a Wild Bunch inspired interest in old military guns...… Got myself an 1895 Steyr Infantry Rifle ( 8 x 56R Straight Pull, 5 round Mannlicher style en bloc clip fed) and the matching Austro-Hungarian service pistol...the 1912 Steyr. My cuurent faves...lol (Picture doesn't show mine...but close enough!)

As a British Field Marshal (Sir William Slim) is reputed to have said "The British Army always manages to fight its battles uphill, at night, and at the junction of two or more maps" Cheese sandwiches notwithstanding....

The dazzle painted ships OTOH..... THAT was actually a very effective system.... made it hard to tell even which direction the ship was steaming! It did lead to comments though in the Royal navy...when applied to old ships.... "Looks like some old Portsmouth tart in her daughters summer dress"! lol

The Lee Enfield is the worst by far... what a waste of a classic rifle... (OK..there's millions of them ...but still...that's just wrong). The Starfighter? Meh... Paint isn't permanent...it was probably done for some special purpose.... Might have been like the Assembly aircraft the USAAC used in WW2.

Yup...that's right up there.... Persian Gulf 91. Action alarm sounded about 2am.... (and that's a sound that would wake the dead) Then "Actions stations, Action Stations...Assume Damage Control State 1, Condition Zulu." We had Iraqi aircraft inbound...… THAT got the heart pumping.... lol (I'll explain further... I'd been in the Navy 12 years... and only EVER heard "For Exercise, for exercise, for exercise, for exercise, Action Stations Action Stations For exercise!" Rather different when its for real.....)

We don't eat out as much Down Under as you folks (tend to) do.... but I am spoiled for choice here in Canberra when I do choose to.... (I think we have more restaurants per capita than anywhere else in the country) Within 5 minutes walk I have a great Chinese restaurant. TWO Indian places...A take out chicken place which isn't half bad....and most recently...a Nepalese restaurant! (That's different...but GOOOD) Within 5 minutes DRIVE...well...into double digits for eating options then.... A longer trip will get me to Steakhouses, Turkish, Japanese, French, and even Ethiopian.... (really good BTW...and if you've read Wilbur Smiths book Cry Wolf you'll have read a very accurate description of the food) BUT.... I tend to eat at home nearly all the time... Rather spend on guns and travel.....lol

No reason why clubs can't start offering Side matches for all these guns.... you might be surprised at what happens. Down here in Australia we have a stage based side match called "The Pat Garrett" All your main match guns are used...(although not all on every stage) PLUS a RIFLE cal lever action. HUGELY popular side match....which of course grew from modest beginnings... Our Regional is next week...has 150-odd shooters attending...and I would not be at ALL surprised if nearly 100 shoot the Pat Garrett 4 stage side match. Be creative...give it a go and OFFER some interesting side events at club level (or above if they do take off) I wasn't aware Wild Bunch started with a wider choice of guns...but I AM already planning to offer a "Not a 1911" pistol side match at next years WB State match here.....be interesting to see what old guns turn out for that.... (Full disclosure - lol - I now have a 1912 Steyr so I am pretty keen.....)

Words of gold here. I am definitely NOT that "reasonably handy fellow" so I went for the Ruger Old Armys… That happened to be around the time the fixed sight 5.5" guns came out and an old and handy friend in GA got me a pair and tuned them to perfection. I know shooters who have a great time with Remington and Colt clone C&B......but those DO take some mechanical aptitude to get and keep running well. Whichever way you go...enjoy!

If folks are going to argue it so hard...and want to start in a racing crouch or whatever then yes, good stage writing can provide useful remedies. I just don't get WHY folks argue it. In my OTHER shooting game...(where the Default position is used most of the time) even at the WORLD shoot in fact, no TO would start the timer until the shooter was standing upright and facing front! (Couldn't even be looking where you were going first) I didn't hear ANY bitching about it. Is it THAT big a deal?

Some of you gents would really enjoy the Long Range events at Chisholm Trail, the Australian Regional Match...which coincidentally starts on Monday. Monday? I hear you say... yep... because it starts with nearly 2 full days of various long range events... and some of those are LONG Range...…(One year out to 1300 yards IIRC?) Those guys (and gals) are KEEN! I'll try to attach the schedule for your amusement. Chisholm Schedule 2019.pdf