Tag: uspsa

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Mastering the Occluded Dot

a person holding a gun with occulded red dot

Mastering the Occluded Dot Technique in Competitive Shooting

Hey everyone, Aaron here from Rune Tactical! Today, I want to share one of the most significant improvements I’ve made in my competitive shooting career: embracing the occluded dot technique to become more target-focused.

The Journey to Occluded Dot

When I first started in USPSA, the two largest divisions were OPEN and Limited. Iron sights require a more front-sight-focused approach, but the idea of occluding the dot makes your support or non-dominant eye work harder at seeing things faster. This technique forces your brain to superimpose the information from your support eye into your vision, allowing you to act on what you see more effectively and efficiently.

Historical Context

Back in the day, from around 2000 to 2015, shooters would talk about training their eyes by staring at ceiling fans and picking a blade to focus on, trying to make their eyes “faster and more focused.” This is similar to sitting on the couch, picking a character from a TV show, and dry-firing on them every time they appear on the screen. Though seemingly old-school, these methods are still relevant and effective in today’s competitive shooting world.

DON’T POINT A LOADED GUN AT YOUR TV; WE AREN’T RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR STUPID!

The Occluded Dot Technique

The occluded dot technique blocks the window of your red dot sight using a Range Panda dryfire cover or a piece of black tape. The range panda covers are a fantastic answer to the tape residue left on the glass. They are also cheap, so there isn’t a reason not to have one. This forces your brain to rely on the information from your support eye, enhancing your target acquisition speed and accuracy. Here’s how you can practice this technique:

  1. Dry Fire Practice: Start by practicing with an occluded dot during dry fire sessions. This helps you get used to the visual input from your support eye.
  2. Live Fire Practice: Once comfortable, incorporate the occluded dot into your live fire practice. This will help you adapt to the technique under real shooting conditions.
  3. Focus on Fundamentals: When practicing with an occluded dot, focus on core fundamentals like grip, stance, and trigger control. Avoid improving other aspects simultaneously, as it may complicate diagnosing issues.

Benefits of the Occluded Dot Techniquea person holding a gun with occulded red dot

  • Enhanced Target Focus: Forces your support eye to work harder, improving target acquisition speed.
  • Improved Accuracy: Helps maintain a consistent sight picture, leading to more accurate shots.
  • Increased Confidence: Builds confidence in your ability to engage targets quickly and effectively.

Conclusion

The occluded dot technique is a valuable tool in the competitive shooter’s arsenal. By incorporating this method into your training routine, you can enhance your target focus, accuracy, and overall performance. Remember, consistent practice is key to mastering any technique. So, hit the range, stay focused, and keep pushing your limits!

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IDPA ISN’T A PRE-USPSA SPORT

IDPA ISN'T A PRE USPSA SPORT

WRITTEN by Aaron Lawson

First off, this isn’t a bash at IDPA at all—we are just going to go through what separates it from USPSA and why they really don’t cross streams as far as preparing you for one another. USPSA isn’t going to make you good at IDPA; it’ll just make someone have to do a lot of math for procedurals. Yes, the top 20% can cross-game easily, but most average people can’t.

Let’s dive into the specifics of how IDPA stages are typically set up: they usually consist of 18 rounds or less, with 10 rounds in the magazine for most divisions. You start at division capacity(10+1) unless otherwise specified. The furthest a target can be is 18 yards away. One of the key differences here is the presence of 8-round arrays/positions, which often require you to dump extra rounds into targets or perform a standing reload in the middle of the next position. Dropping a mag with ammo on the ground incurs a penalty. This is the first significant difference between the two sports, and it’s important to understand it to avoid confusion when transitioning between them.

The confusion is because USPSA is either 15-rd production or co, lo, and limited are all 141.25 max mag length divisions, meaning you have 23-25 rd at your disposal in a single magazine. USPSA also allows for 32-rd stages. I’ve even seen and shot 45+ rd stages at locals. You can reload whenever and wherever during the stage, unless it’s otherwise specified in the stage briefing.

Fault lines are used completely differently in USPSA than in IDPA. Fundamentally, it is supposed to be similar, but this is the first time I’ve seen it practiced like that. What I mean is that in USPSA, the fault lines mark the boundaries of the shooting area, and shooters must engage targets from inside this area. IDPA will have 4 ft fault lines on an angle at the end of a wall to force you to engage a target from a specific spot, or to say that you’ve exposed yourself to the bad guys if you go past those fault lines without neutralizing the threat.

Another big one is that USPSA generally doesn’t force you to engage targets in a specific order. You shoot them as they become available, whereas IDPA has 3 ways to engage targets correctly without penalty: 1. Going into a position moving right to the left. You must engage the leftmost target & work to the right. 2. Moving left to right. You must engage the right-most target & work left. 3. Targets are exposed. This is closest to USPSA because you work in tactical priority by distance front to back. Targets are required to be more than 3 yds apart to be on different tactical priority planes. An additional note is some IDPA stages have start sticks & targets in the open, requiring you to move past them with tactical priority.

One of the biggest differences is that an esp-equipped gun for IDPA is often a limited minor gun in USPSA. A carry optics gun for IDPA could be a carry optics gun if it doesn’t have a mag well or ported barrel. If it has a mag well but no ports in the barrel, it’s a limited optics gun. Mag well and ported barrel? Welcome to Open Minor & I hope you got a 170mm.

Accuracy is king in IDPA. You ultimately want all DOWN ZERO because .15 split into -1 is going to cost you .850 seconds if you don’t make it up. That’s a steep penalty. Putting a third shot on a target can be beneficial because of this. A 3rd .20 split for down zero, you are still almost half a second ahead of just letting it go. But, sometimes, this leads to an extra or unplanned early reload, which eats some of the time spent making that shot up. In USPSA, if you’re fast, you can do pretty well by shooting 90-95% of available points. USPSA’s biggest penalty is a no-shoot. It basically takes 20 pts to eat a no-shoot, which hits scores hard. An uncalled mike hurts a lot in both sports.


Even the stage walkthrough process is different. No air gun for IDPA, I guess, because a bad guy isn’t going to give you a chance to airgun before he tries to rob you.

It’s not that you can’t shoot both sports & have fun. In fact, I recommend you do that – but the idea that starting in IDPA is going to prepare you for USPSA isn’t going to work the way you think it will. You will still have a lot of questions about how to shoot USPSA, but you will likely have good fundamental gun handling & solid accuracy if you do start in IDPA. Also, the cost of entry for IDPA is substantially less than USPSA. Having a competitive carry optics gun (shadow2) & rig for USPSA costs about $2300-2600. Keep in mind that IDPA has a 45 oz weight limit. This means polymer and striker steel guns are more competitive. You also have savings with the ability to use off-the-shelf mags if you choose.

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Unlocking Victory: The Vital Role of Gun Maintenance in Competitive Shooting

The Overlooked part of Winning

Often times in competitive shooting there is always someone whose got a gun they’ve been tinkering with & haven’t had time to go to the range to test it but they wanted to come to shoot the match or they did a hotel special, like hastily installing a new trigger or sight, the night before nationals start. These are bad ideas.

Why Are These Bad Ideas?

Importance of Reliability: 

This plays into multiple areas of match performance. The most significant area you won’t realize it will affect is your mental game. How is this going to affect your mental game? It will affect your mental game by taking some of your focus away from the match because some of your mental focus is transfixed on: Is the gun going to run today? If it doesn’t run, this often snowballs into trips to the safe areas and time spent trying to band-aid the situation to make the best of it. The time spent in the safe area takes away from loading mags, stage walk-throughs, and watching the other shooters run the stage. It puts you at a mental disadvantage overall. If the gun does work, then you are happy & you are still mentally transfixed on it working, which is still a mental distraction. No mechanical gain is going to make up for the mental distraction.

Tuning Your Gun for Optimal Performance VS. Finding the Balance: Avoiding Over-Tuning

Tuning your gun for optimal performance with your grip & your ammo might not be a reliable combo for long-term use. We have watched people make a gun completely unreliable by short-stroking the recoil system, cutting coils & adding recoil buffers because that is how the gun doubles best with their combo of factors. But it doesn’t run if the gun is dirty or stuck in a small port; it doesn’t run. Yes, You’ve optimized performance but over-tuned everything & the gun no longer functions with typical match demands. But man, it doubles like a dream. At about the 75% mark of where a lot of people want to tune their gun to, the gun is pretty well tuned up & doesn’t require the Maintenance schedule of an exotic car & recoils back to the same spot, and has a sub 3lb trigger.

Matching Gun to Ammo and Shooter & The Power of a Dumb Reliable Gun

Not all guns like all ammo or even bullet profiles or powder charges. your grip can have affect on this as time goes & you learn or develop your abilities you may change your ammo combination which in turn lead to you needing to change striker springs/ hammer spring or recoil springs maybe both will have to be changed. a simple change in oal can have big affect on your sights coming back on target how is this so? an increased overall length will change the feed angle & drag caused by stripping the next round out the mag.

Key Maintenance Considerations

Most competitive Shooter use there guns more in a year than they get used by most customers in a life time.

  • Firing pin block/ Striker plunger spring every 6 months! This a safety feature that keeps the gun safe…
  • Trigger return springs once a year
  • Recoil spring if its super light for application you may need to change it every 1k rds or once a month most are every 6 months
  • Mag Springs every 6 months/ every 5k (this also depends on mag total)
  • Hammer Spring/Striker spring Every 6 months or 5k rounds

Competitive shooting demands precision, reliability, and an understanding of the intricate relationship between guns, ammunition, and shooters. As one fine-tunes their firearm, finding the balance between performance & expectations, the need for meticulous maintenance diminishes, and the gun effortlessly returns to its position with a sub 3lb trigger. However, it is essential to acknowledge that not all firearms are compatible with every ammo or shooter, necessitating adjustments in striker springs, recoil springs, or overall length. Regular maintenance is indispensable in unlocking the path to victory in competitive shooting.

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Choosing the Right Gun


One of the most frequently asked questions by newer and even intermediate shooters is, "What's the right gun for me?" We often hear comparative questions and statements like, "Is this better than this?" or "Do you think I'd do better if I had a ____?"
Alex cote getting the gun up fast going into position	As an instructor, former MD, and competitor, I have noticed that one thing remains the same from beginner to advanced shooters. What is most comfortable in YOUR hands will be the most comfortable and consistent for YOU to shoot. In turn, on a topic of growth, you'll find a more direct correlation of progress with a gun that is naturally comfortable to you over something that isn't. Don't expect a price tag to produce progress you haven't worked for! But also remember reliability is equal as well; it must work as well as be comfortable, whether it is a $500 Glock or $5,000 2011. Guys and Gals have won championships with everything from Glocks, Sigs, Walthers, Caniks, and 2011s. So, remember, the type of gun used doesn't make the shooter, but the connection between gun and shooter can. One saying I always loved was, "Go ahead and get that 2011; someone out there is still going to beat you with a plastic gun". This means that someone who's comfortable with that plastic gun will not succumb to your new imaginary skills just because you finally own that 2011 you're not yet comfortable with.

	



Now, let's talk about the financial aspect. Yes, some firearms are priced higher for a reason, but does that automatically make them' better'? The answer is, it depends on your needs and comfort. There's a trade-off between your budget and your practice. A shooter with a $500 Glock, if that Glock is comfortable for them, and $4500 in Ammo to practice with will outperform the shooter with a $4500 2011 and $500 in Ammo. It's not just about the initial cost but also the ongoing investment in practice. So, remember, it's not about the price tag; it's about finding the right balance for you.

	Lastly, let's talk about modifications. If there are one or two things about your firearm that you don't like, it's okay to make some changes. Most platforms have a significant aftermarket presence, offering everything from gas pedals to grips. But remember, these modifications aim to enhance your comfort and reliability, not to' bling out' your gun. It's about finding the right balance. Don't make the mistake of constantly modifying and changing your setup, as it can lead to reliability issues and prevent you from truly getting comfortable with your firearm. So, be mindful of your modifications and focus on what truly improves your shooting performance.



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Limited Optics
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Cajunized CZ Shadow 2 w/ Flat Armory Craft Trigger – Trijicon SRO 5 – SSI Nitrofin – CZ Oversized Safety – LokGrips LokJaws – LokGrips Brass Magwell – LokGrips Basepads – Lokgrips Brass Oversized Mag Rel - Rune Tactical Springs/Followers



CZ USA Dan Wesson DWX – Trijicon SRO 5 – LokGrips Lokjaws – LokGrips Aluminum TS Gridlok Magwell – LokGrips Oversized Safety (Mod) – TS Gas Pedal –Henning Basepads – Rune Tactical Springs/Followers
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Jay beal on Dryfire

Jay beal dryfiring in stage walk through
Jay beal dryfiring in stage walk throughWhy would someone dry fire every day, even for only a few minutes? I will cover some reasons for doing this and the skills I prioritize. All of this comes from the perspective of a competitive shooter who wants to develop the skills and confidence to perform at the top end of my ability, on demand, in competition.  First, the specific skills I practice and how I train them matter far less than the regularity with which I handle the pistol. Training every day builds a deep familiarity and connection to the gun, allowing me to look at a small spot and present the dots/sights to that spot without thinking specifically about how to do this. That is the main benefit of handling my competition pistol every day, regardless of whether it’s for 5 minutes or 50.
The skills I maintain focus on developing are simple: draws, reloads, and target transitions. There are obviously variations to all of these skills; for example, the draw is not always “wrists below the belt,” but it could be a table start or hands starting on a wall; this principle of variety applies to any skill in working on.  Overall, Allowing myself the opportunity to train every day without the pressure to have an entire 45-minute session makes it far more likely that I actually handle the pistol every day. Often, these shorter sessions become longer or even an additional dry fire session later in the day. Maintaining daily gun handling skills over Extended periods, such as years, has only had a positive impact on my shooting, and I’m sure it would be for anyone who wants to get better at shooting.I currently use the full-size 5” Walther PDP steel frame with a 14-pound flat wire spring and the Rune Tactical guide rod. I use CR speed for my belt and magazine pouches. I use a GX products Vice on a BOSS hanger for my holster.