USPSA Open build

[Anemic AL]

Those are hard to maintain - you don't have readily available spare parts and, most importantly, you don't have many gunsmiths who work on them. Go to a match, have an issue, and nobody will be able to help you figure it out.

I shot Tanfoglio Limited Elite for two years in L10, even getting magazines was a nightmare. The restricted ones would be out of stock. My SVI arrived earlier in 2019 and I never looked back (after a short dry fire recalibration).

That's something I never thought about and actually very good advice; about being sh*t outta luck if I have probs.
Damn, I just ordered a Tanfo Limited Elite 2 days ago.

Funny you mentioned Taurus 92, as I tried competing with my Taurus 92 in Steel Challenge format club matches and then a couple of USPSA club matches. It may be more accepting in the Production Division for you, I tried doing it in the early 90s and people laughed at me.

It was nervous laughter. They were intimidated.


Ok, so it seems a 2011 of some sort is probably the better way to go. I'll start researching into it.

Thanks guys!

[k1dude]

IIRC, your best bets are SVI and Limcat unless you're roster exempt, then you can add STI.

I believe both SVI and Limcat are set up to provide Kalifornia residents custom guns.

But, start out with what you have like others have said. Slowly work your way from Production to Open. By then you'll know if you want to keep competing and you'll know exactly what you want in a custom gun.

[dummykid]

if you are in the Bay Area, you could try my Atlas Athena. It has both optical plate and iron sight plate options.




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[sigstroker]

STI is an expensive route to go, even for the plain-Jane version, if there is such a thing.

Growing up, I shot Colts, because that's basically all there was that wasn't one of them furrin 9mm things. After I got a CZ, than later a SIG, I became accustomed to their grip shape, and I hated 1911's after that. If you like CZ's, I imagine there's a Production model you can start out with. And then change into an Open gun as you see fit. I used a P9 when they were all the rage but never made the leap into Open because USPSA banned 9mm major and I didn't want to pour in the money needed to rechamber into an "approved" cartridge.

[mmlook]

STI is an expensive route to go, even for the plain-Jane version, if there is such a thing.

Growing up, I shot Colts, because that's basically all there was that wasn't one of them furrin 9mm things. After I got a CZ, than later a SIG, I became accustomed to their grip shape, and I hated 1911's after that. If you like CZ's, I imagine there's a Production model you can start out with. And then change into an Open gun as you see fit. I used a P9 when they were all the rage but never made the leap into Open because USPSA banned 9mm major and I didn't want to pour in the money needed to rechamber into an "approved" cartridge.

STI production guns are probably one of the cheapest routes to go for open.

Anything else like CZ, Glock, M&P, etc.. will put you at a disadvantage for open,
and you will need a spare gun,
and it will need to be tuned just as much if not more than any 2011 counterpart

fyi, 9x19 is not banned from open major
it's been the most popular cartridge for the past few years.
Even the top veteran guys are switching to 9mm over .38 super/comp

https://uspsa.org/magazine/view//2019-00#page=34

[Anemic AL]

if you are in the Bay Area, you could try my Atlas Athena. It has both optical plate and iron sight plate options.

Not even remotely close, but I appreciate the offer!


Yea, the STI is probably the cheapest out of the ones mentioned in this thread.

Why do you need a spare gun? Is that why Mayor McRifle said to buy 2? So regardless of what you use, you need to buy 2 of the same model?

[mmlook]

Not even remotely close, but I appreciate the offer!


Yea, the STI is probably the cheapest out of the ones mentioned in this thread.

Why do you need a spare gun? Is that why Mayor McRifle said to buy 2? So regardless of what you use, you need to buy 2 of the same model?

when you shoot major 9mm/.38 out of a pistol, it puts a lot of stress on the gun

not uncommon for stuff to break

also, if you're going to tune the trigger to sub 2lbs on something other than a 2011, the fire control group tends to fail

2011's aren't immune to the above,
but in general they will have a better track record due to
1. they are designed to shoot major 9/.38 super/.40/.45acp
2. their triggers are the most tunable compared to all other pistols

there's a reason 2011's are still the most common pistol for USPSA

[Anemic AL]

when you shoot major 9mm/.38 out of a pistol, it puts a lot of stress on the gun

not uncommon for stuff to break

also, if you're going to tune the trigger to sub 2lbs on something other than a 2011, the fire control group tends to fail

2011's aren't immune to the above,
but in general they will have a better track record due to
1. they are designed to shoot major 9/.38 super/.40/.45acp
2. their triggers are the most tunable compared to all other pistols

there's a reason 2011's are still the most common pistol for USPSA

And that does make total sense. Thanks for that.

I think this is one thread where I need to heed a lot of the given advice. I better slowly work my way up and see if I even want to try Open. If I do, I'll be at the mercy of what's on the roster. Even with the higher prices, it's probably the smarter thing to do.

[IVC]

...because USPSA banned 9mm major and ...

fyi, 9x19 is not banned from open major
it's been the most popular cartridge for the past few years.
Even the top veteran guys are switching to 9mm over .38 super/comp

Just to reiterate this, there is no ban of any kind. In fact, Open is the only division that does NOT have a caliber restriction for major of .40+. That's why you cannot have 9mm major in Limited or Single Stack - it would put you into minor regardless of power factor.

[IVC]

That's something I never thought about and actually very good advice; about being sh*t outta luck if I have probs.
Damn, I just ordered a Tanfo Limited Elite 2 days ago.

You'll love it, just keep on shooting it. Patriot Defense in Texas are your go-to guys to get the necessary work done. You'll need different sights, trigger work and magwell if you want to be set up properly. It's the gun that some of the top guys shoot, so it's completely competitive.

Just make sure you keep the spare parts, especially the front sight. Keep a spare rear, too. I had the front fly off the gun and I had the rear lose the blade which just sheared off. I also had the pin in the rear sight walk completely out and the blade was held only by the adjustment screw. Took me a match to figure out why I couldn't hit anything.

Don't forget Loctite on your pretravel trigger adjustment. That puppy is hard to get to and if it loosens, which it will, your trigger will rest way too forward. The same goes for the overtravel screw, but at least that one is much more accessible.

If you put on a gas pedal, make sure you figure out where to put it based on the size of your hands. The hole pattern is not the same as on SVI/STI so some will be way too forward. My DAA gas pedal was like that - I wold hold it with just the tip of my weak thumb. It was a huge improvement when I moved to SVI.

[IVC]

Why do you need a spare gun? Is that why Mayor McRifle said to buy 2? So regardless of what you use, you need to buy 2 of the same model?

Stuff breaks, stuff gets worked on, people get competitive...

My Tanfo is my backup, together with a CZ TS in .40 with all the "works." If I were to go to a major match, I would bring one of those, with a spare belt and matching magazine pouches (different size from SVI/STI). Then again, the first time I have my gun break or fail during a major match, I'll probably get a proper backup at that time. Why not now? Don't know, I don't ask for directions either...

[AlHO1966]

Have you never competed in a match or are you saying you’ve never competed in open? If you’ve never competed in a match I would just take whatever semi auto handgun you have with a few mags and go try it out. You need a holster and mag pouches.

[RugerNo1]

[mmlook]

definitely good advice

guns that run are always worth more,
new or used.

problem with buying online(new or used),
is you wont know if it runs until you shoot it.

just cause a gun is new, doesn't mean it will run or shoot better than a used gun.

this is especially true for open guns

[eliboudreaux]

You lookin for a 2011? Check out my ad i have an almost bnew built 2011


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