M14 Forum

Therealkoop · January 31st, 2012, 06:42 PM

Does anyone compete in 3 gun with thier m14 type rifle? I want to begin this year (currently shooting IDPA) but im not sure what I will need for equipment. Im just looking for something cheap to get me by for now. Planning on using my 870 police, m1a scout, and dan wesson heritage 1911.

I suppose I could use my AR as well if the equipment was cheap. Would be using a BCM ar15, an M&P 9 pro, and the same shotgun.

lowell66dart · January 31st, 2012, 06:46 PM

Here you go....

Is it bragging if you can do it??? Video added 9/10

rq375 · January 31st, 2012, 10:15 PM

holster for the 1911 and some shotgun shell caddies will get you going. On the M1a I like the sadlak mag release, and a titan or cooley comp on a delta-p adapter. Practice reloading your shotgun, that is the bigest time consumer.

Therealkoop · February 1st, 2012, 05:17 PM

My main concern is the amount of ammo I have to carry and mag holders ect.

Do you just attach everything to your normal belt? I have holsters and some mag holsters for the 1911 and M&P, but nothing for the m1a.

Do I need a sling?

rq375 · February 1st, 2012, 06:23 PM

I attach everything to a blackhawk 2" inner/outer belt, and velcro tape the backs of everything so they also stick to the inner belt. Tech-locs make it easy to change things around between USPSA and 3-gun.

you usually don't want a sling unless required by the stage description, it just gets in the way.

on the holster, jump up and down and twist around to make sure it will retain your pistol, if it falls out you are DQed.

for load out, you have to check each stage description for shot count (plus extra for misses) if you don't have anough caddies/pouches someone will loan you some, just try and get squaded with someone else that is shooting HM because everyone else is going to have AR and double stack pouches.

1KPerDay · February 1st, 2012, 07:11 PM

Ask around the club you plan to shoot at. Different clubs have different rules and different round counts per stage. My local club discourages slings, for example. And I've never needed more than 3 magazines for the rifle and that was when I was missing badly on long steel. I could easily have done it in 2 mags. But my club is heavy on pistol and shotgun and not too much emphasis on rifle (I think primarily to keep costs down). Most rifle stages can be done with one 30-round AR mag or 2 M1A mags. And often one.

As for shotgun shell caddies, they are pricey so if you just want to start out, just get a good sidesaddle, butt cuff, and maybe a bandolier and/or forearm shell carrier. My 590 holds 9 in the gun and 12 on the gun, so I can usually run a stage with whats on the gun. But a $10 bandolier helps if you miss or have to dump a round or something.

As for pistol stuff you're already set up for it. Just make sure you have enough mag carriers.

AR guys: a lot of them just stuff a mag in their pocket. It's rare that you'll need more than 60 rounds. However if you want several places make kydex AR mag carriers.

I've used my super-tactical Cabela's upland game vest/pouch for several matches... works fine for carrying mags/etc. and I have an advantage over the guys in my squad because they're laughing so hard they can't shoot straight.

NOTE: these recommendations are for casual/fun/non-competitive shooters. If you want to get serious, get the gear. And practice loading shotgun. That's where 80% of the time is wasted in my experience.

Patrick Kelley will hopefully stop along and give you some actually useful info. LOL

If you decide to shoot a Garand, you need to be more creative. ;)

P.E. Kelley · February 2nd, 2012, 02:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1KPerDay

Ask around the club you plan to shoot at. Different clubs have different rules and different round counts per stage. My local club discourages slings, for example. And I've never needed more than 3 magazines for the rifle and that was when I was missing badly on long steel. I could easily have done it in 2 mags. But my club is heavy on pistol and shotgun and not too much emphasis on rifle (I think primarily to keep costs down). Most rifle stages can be done with one 30-round AR mag or 2 M1A mags. And often one.

As for shotgun shell caddies, they are pricey so if you just want to start out, just get a good sidesaddle, butt cuff, and maybe a bandolier and/or forearm shell carrier. My 590 holds 9 in the gun and 12 on the gun, so I can usually run a stage with whats on the gun. But a $10 bandolier helps if you miss or have to dump a round or something.

As for pistol stuff you're already set up for it. Just make sure you have enough mag carriers.

AR guys: a lot of them just stuff a mag in their pocket. It's rare that you'll need more than 60 rounds. However if you want several places make kydex AR mag carriers.

I've used my super-tactical Cabela's upland game vest/pouch for several matches... works fine for carrying mags/etc. and I have an advantage over the guys in my squad because they're laughing so hard they can't shoot straight.

NOTE: these recommendations are for casual/fun/non-competitive shooters. If you want to get serious, get the gear. And practice loading shotgun. That's where 80% of the time is wasted in my experience.

Patrick Kelley will hopefully stop along and give you some actually useful info. LOL

If you decide to shoot a Garand, you need to be more creative. ;)

I'm stopping by but it would be hard to improve on your advice!

Since OP is just getting started I would not spend much money "tooling-up" with accessories. Since you have experience in IDPA you must be set with a quality gun belt, holster and pistol mag pouches.

Choate Machine Tool offers some inexpensive shotshell caddies that are just the ticket in either 4 or 6 round capacity. I think mag pouches for the 14 can be had at BladeTech. I use ones from www.buybrown.com I prefer Kydex over cloth or nylon soft pouches.

I've been only shooting Major Matches as of the last few years and I typically step to the line with...1 to 2 rifle mags. 6 to 24 shotshells and 2 to 4 pistol mags. Naturally this would depend on the stage.

As 1KPerDay said you really need to know how to load your shotgun quickly. This is something I don't work hard enough on.

The triad of 3 gunning is...Shoot your rifle for accuracy, your pistol for speed and know how to load your shotgun!

Beyond that. KNOW YOUR ZEROS!

Welcome to the wicked fun game of 3 Gun!

Patrick

Therealkoop · February 9th, 2012, 02:43 PM

Thanks guys, Ive been chatting with some of the locals at the IDPA club and getting some info there also. Hopefully Ill be able to get some experience this year!