NIGHTLORD40K
Member
Only one of the three local indoor ranges is open at the moment, and I was only scheduled for a half-day today, so I packed up my .22 pistols and trekked there after work.
Its a fairly small range attached to a fairly large shop. The backstop is only 15yds from the firing line and I ran my hangars all the way out.
My ammo selections werent fancy, some Remington Thunderbolts, CCI Standard Velocity, and a box of old Winchester Super X Ive been trying to get through for years as its been plagued by misfires and jamming problems due to their bullet profile.
My hopes were high for my new Dan Wesson .22, and it didnt dissappoint-
This was my best group after warming up and adjusting the windage a few clicks. The DW seemed to like the Thunderbolts best.
This gun is silky-smooth and the long sight radius is nice, but Im not crazy about red sight inserts on blued guns. I like the white dot setup on the M17 better.
But.........I noticed an unusual amount of smoke and blast coming from the cylinder gap. Sure enough, it is WAAAAAAY too open. Someone probably reinstalled the barrel without the proper shim in place.
My feeler gauges are at work, so I couldnt couldnt measure it, but even visually I can tell the gap is easily twice that of my M17 or SP101.
Ive got a barrel wrench for my .357 DW, but not the .22 and they arent arent interchangeable. So the hunt is on for a .22 Dan Wesson barrel tool. Ugh.
Still, overall a heck of a smallbore wheelgun!
Next up was my Smith and Wesson M17, this would be the third range trip for it in a little over a year and the more I shoot it, the more I like it-
After shooting the huge (and heavy) Dan Wesson, the mid-sized-but-still-big-for-a-.22 Smith felt refreshingly light in both size and controls. Even the K-frame Target grips seemed svelte after a half hour with the big ol' DW.
The M17 is legendary for a reason. It makes even half-blind dullards like me seem like good shots with ease. It even threw all 3 brands of ammo well, though best results were from the CCI SV. Interestingly, the point of impact didnt change much between the standard and high-velocity fodder.
For giggles, I popped some pills in my tough, yet unrefined, vintage SP-101 and let loose-
Despite its 4-inch barrel and adjustable sights, the SP isnt in the same accuracy league as the others. I tried all 3 different brands of ammo, but just couldnt get the little Ruger to group decently. Sigh.
Then the automatics had their turn-
My M41 was showing its picky side today.....Ive done better than this with it before with Federal round-nosed HV, but Ive been told that they usually do best with standard velocity ammo. My example, however, plain refused to run on the CCI SV I brought, experiencing short-stroking and stovepipes. Im wondering if the old thing already has an extra-power recoil spring installed......
In any event, Im going to respring the whole gun and add a buffer anyway.
Despite a number of duds, the M41 actually grouped best with the cruddy Super-X today, go figure.
Next, I whipped out my plain, but trusty Ruger Standard-
Not too bad for a fixed sight 4-incher, I think. It digested all 3 brands with no problems, even feeding the SV stuff without a hiccup. The old Rugers long, creepy trigger was on full display, however- compared to the precision switch on the M41 anyway.
Lastly, I played a little Rimfire Battleship with the M41 playing for the Allies and the Ruger Standard taking the Axis side. These were shot rapid-fire, which may account for the thorough drubbing the Smith gave the Ruger-
Yep, aside from those two amidships hits on USS Washington there, the poor Ruger didnt come close. Meanwhile, the Kirishima and Graf Spee were pretty well swiss cheese. HMS Exeter survived without a scratch, lol.
Man, what a great time with my rimfires! Even the shop had a decent supply of guns and ammo on hand, though 9mm FMJ was still MIA. The poor employees looked like they had been keelhauled though!
Well, that was my afternoon, hope yours wasnt all doom and gloom. Stay safe!
Its a fairly small range attached to a fairly large shop. The backstop is only 15yds from the firing line and I ran my hangars all the way out.
My ammo selections werent fancy, some Remington Thunderbolts, CCI Standard Velocity, and a box of old Winchester Super X Ive been trying to get through for years as its been plagued by misfires and jamming problems due to their bullet profile.
My hopes were high for my new Dan Wesson .22, and it didnt dissappoint-
This was my best group after warming up and adjusting the windage a few clicks. The DW seemed to like the Thunderbolts best.
This gun is silky-smooth and the long sight radius is nice, but Im not crazy about red sight inserts on blued guns. I like the white dot setup on the M17 better.
But.........I noticed an unusual amount of smoke and blast coming from the cylinder gap. Sure enough, it is WAAAAAAY too open. Someone probably reinstalled the barrel without the proper shim in place.
My feeler gauges are at work, so I couldnt couldnt measure it, but even visually I can tell the gap is easily twice that of my M17 or SP101.
Ive got a barrel wrench for my .357 DW, but not the .22 and they arent arent interchangeable. So the hunt is on for a .22 Dan Wesson barrel tool. Ugh.
Still, overall a heck of a smallbore wheelgun!
Next up was my Smith and Wesson M17, this would be the third range trip for it in a little over a year and the more I shoot it, the more I like it-
After shooting the huge (and heavy) Dan Wesson, the mid-sized-but-still-big-for-a-.22 Smith felt refreshingly light in both size and controls. Even the K-frame Target grips seemed svelte after a half hour with the big ol' DW.
The M17 is legendary for a reason. It makes even half-blind dullards like me seem like good shots with ease. It even threw all 3 brands of ammo well, though best results were from the CCI SV. Interestingly, the point of impact didnt change much between the standard and high-velocity fodder.
For giggles, I popped some pills in my tough, yet unrefined, vintage SP-101 and let loose-
Despite its 4-inch barrel and adjustable sights, the SP isnt in the same accuracy league as the others. I tried all 3 different brands of ammo, but just couldnt get the little Ruger to group decently. Sigh.
Then the automatics had their turn-
My M41 was showing its picky side today.....Ive done better than this with it before with Federal round-nosed HV, but Ive been told that they usually do best with standard velocity ammo. My example, however, plain refused to run on the CCI SV I brought, experiencing short-stroking and stovepipes. Im wondering if the old thing already has an extra-power recoil spring installed......
In any event, Im going to respring the whole gun and add a buffer anyway.
Despite a number of duds, the M41 actually grouped best with the cruddy Super-X today, go figure.
Next, I whipped out my plain, but trusty Ruger Standard-
Not too bad for a fixed sight 4-incher, I think. It digested all 3 brands with no problems, even feeding the SV stuff without a hiccup. The old Rugers long, creepy trigger was on full display, however- compared to the precision switch on the M41 anyway.
Lastly, I played a little Rimfire Battleship with the M41 playing for the Allies and the Ruger Standard taking the Axis side. These were shot rapid-fire, which may account for the thorough drubbing the Smith gave the Ruger-
Yep, aside from those two amidships hits on USS Washington there, the poor Ruger didnt come close. Meanwhile, the Kirishima and Graf Spee were pretty well swiss cheese. HMS Exeter survived without a scratch, lol.
Man, what a great time with my rimfires! Even the shop had a decent supply of guns and ammo on hand, though 9mm FMJ was still MIA. The poor employees looked like they had been keelhauled though!
Well, that was my afternoon, hope yours wasnt all doom and gloom. Stay safe!
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