Griff

I find it interesting that when polled the national representatives for SASS (Territorial Governors), voted in about the same percentage as the individual members at the two clubs I (semi) regularly shoot at... except in reverse. The number of comments from members that report not being polled is distressing. I have long maintained that the two 10 second penalties are for 1 - a brain fart, inadvertent error, and 2 - a lapse in safety. Forgetting the order targets are to be shot, and having a firearm in a potentially unsafe condition can have far different outcomes. In the first you simply shoot (at) the targets in a sequence not in accordance with the stage instructions... no safety protocols are disturbed. In the second, you've lapsed into the realm of being potentially an unsafe competitor. The potentially unsafe condition SHOULD have a greater penalty than simply forgetting the target order, or... Being negligent at the loading table falls into this potentially unsafe black hole.

I can't speak to the quality or lack thereof for Pietta C&B revolvers. I have 4 1851 .36 caliber revolvers. They were all built of Uberti parts. The 1st I purchased in 1986, it was assembled by ASM, of leftover parts from the supply built by Uberti for the Colt 2nd Gen series. I've only had one failure of this revolver, the hand spring. I had Lee's Gunsmithing replace it with a Ruger plunger and coil spring. It has been flawless in the years since, tho' it shows the wear and tear. Still runs flawlessy. The 2nd & 3rd 1851s I purchased were Colt's 2nd series... And they immediately went to Lee for the same conversion. Along with the ASM for "cap guards"... or known from the period as Manhattan conversions. The 4th is a Colt Signature Series assembled and finished by Lou Emerato, head of Iver Johnson at the time. It also went to Lee for the Ruger and Manhattan Conversion. It and the ASM are my backup pistols. I have guns I don't shoot... as much as I shoot others, so I prefer those that work. and those built of Uberti parts I've found will work. Even if it may require a bit of massaging to make them reliable. I've found that work to be worth what you will pay.

I just happen to think that's it's a nice platitude to justify why some folks value accuracy over speed. For there have been a number of World Champions that have, to put it simply, missed fast enough to win. Since I'm not likely to ever again shoot fast enough to be considered "competitive", it's a moot point, as one must "practice", or at least shoot more often than I do, to gain, or regain, any semblance of speed. As I've discussed with a couple of those past World Champions, back when I cared enough to "win", one needs to shoot fast enough to outpace their ability to hit reliably, and keep at that pace until their hit percentage catches up... then speed up again. Repeat as necessary to be declared a "winner"! Then continue to repeat, as there WILL be someone willing to gain that little bit extra speed and accuracy to overtake you! That is, if you want to continue to be a "winner". YMMV.

Au contraire. Since we don't compete in a vacuum... the other competitors play a part in just how well all other competitors fare. You can't miss fast enough to BE ASSURED of a win... but if your competitors miss slower than you, you've "missed fast enough to win!"

Actually, this was the way all cowboys did it prior to about 1988 or 1989. Load one, stuff one. I don't recall exactly when I first saw someone loading them singly, but I have always credited (or blamed as my mood changes), Tequila and Evil Roy for popularizing the method. They were among the very first to successfully employ this much speedier technique. But, I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss the load one/stuff one technique... in the right hands, it can still be effective.

Likewise, but in my right elbow. and with my long sleeved shirt over it, I'll bet nobody even noticed. Does limit my range of motion, however.

A newbie doesn't need a gun cart IF: the range they shoot at has long gun racks at each stage while they spot/time/score/pick brass, or just wait their turn at the loading table. I shot for many years w/o a cart. But, one of the first times I shot at a range that didn't have racks, it was a tiring, unsatisfactory day. By then I had the ultimate gun cart, just hadn't utilized it as such... but it grew to be expensive...

In 1969 my draft number was 45... and while I like to camp, hunt, & sometimes fish... I like to pick where I camp, under what conditions, and much prefer hunting game that I can eat. So I joined the Navy... Served three times in and in the waters of VN... Got shot at more'n once... even tho' I was a "supply type", I spent a fair amount of time totin' a long & short gun... I don't care where you served, nor in what capacity... you signed the same blank check as everyone else. You gave up control of your life for the duration of that enlistment... and any that may have followed. While I don't need the "thanks-for-your-service" I hear so often nowadays, (sometimes it rings a little hollow). I never heard when it would have meant more to me as a young man that wondered if my fellow man, if not the whole country looked on me as just another "baby killer." It took 20 YEARS for someone other than a family member to welcome me home. I clearly remember the day it took place... it was far more than a simple "thank you"... It was some 25 years ago, I no longer remember the exact words that were spoken, but the context and emotion with which it was said made it one of the few times I've been moved to leak from the eyes. And I wasn't the only one of more than a 100 vets standing in the church that were so moved.

This topic predates any responders on this topic yet. The answer in 1985 when I first heard it posited was no... Frankly, haven't any of you read the "Introduction to SASS"? Isn't there a line in there about using guns of the "old west"? Something to the effect of Civil War to 1899? I know for a fact that it didn't take me 8 years of college to get that BA in History to learn that 1911 doesn't fall between "Civil War & 1899". Label me insensitive, but frankly, cowboy action has a set of rules... and I'd venture to say that nearly every rule change has relaxed the criteria to play this game. As others have noted... If you want to shoot your 1911 in competition, badger the WB fellers. Tell 'em that they shoot too much, you need some relief. IME, it takes more manual manipulation to operate a 1911 than it does a SAA... and again, in case y'all ain't ever noticed, the cyclic speed of the 1911 is pretty well fixed... as slow as I am, I can fire 5 shots much much faster with my SAA than my 1911. And, my changing of magazines might be tad slower than some can transition between revolvers. I don't know this "Arthur" feller y'all talk about, but if he made me hurt as much as my arthritis does, I'd kick his s(ass)... Leave SASS alone. Now... the above is the sugar coated version of what I think. Don't ask me to give you the grown-up adult version. Y'all clearly ain't ready for that.

I misstated my intent in the original post I made. Now, modified to clarify. Not allowing spring modification would have been hypocritical of me, it's one of the first things (and remains pretty much the only thing), I modified.

Really, if there were no short stroked rifles or pistols, no one had them, essentially, no one had ever heard of them, you still wouldn't be interested in playing with cowboy guns? You started playing only because there already were such modifications available? Maybe I misstated that... changed to read 35% of income...

BTW, don't be critical of my post... blame Creeker, he's the one that asked.

1st - roll the clock back 35 years. 2nd - never allow any modification that alters the operation of rifle, shotgun or handgun from the parameters to which it was built. Lighter springs and smoothing parts to ease operation, ok... but not shortening stroke of lever stroke or hammer pull strictly verboten. This would include "reprofiling hammers". I.e., no SBH hammers on any model except the SBH, and other changes of this ilk. 3rd - increase advertising budget 35% of income. 4th - offer a free 1 year annual membership to any current member signing up a new member. 5th - offer discounted 3, 5 or 10 year memberships. One of the above is offered tongue-in-cheek... Flame away... have fun with your flaming, but try to be creative at the very least. In this case copying, is not a form of flattery; it's simply redundant and shows a lack of creativity. If the above offends you, too bad. Every decline in membership has followed the relaxation of the rules. The fact that so have the increases, is merely coincidence.

Allie, where I said "$x.xx" a seller would insert his/her price, the abbreviation "OBO" after the price is short for "or best offer"... That is not an auction, nor is it considered bidding. It simply indicates a willingness on the part of the seller to negotiate an acceptable price agreeable to both parties. In the usual course of business it is understood that a lower price can be negotiated. As compared to the usual meaning of a auction, where buyers are competing to buy the item, usually by offering higher prices than the minimum demanded by the seller. The few times I have purchased something off the Classified, I have seldom paid the full asking price. And that is really no one's business except the buyer and seller's. If the SASS Classified charged a fee for use of the site to conduct such sales, then yes, it would be SASS' business also.

Hmmm... the warm fuzzy feeling of "belonging" isn't enough?