G.I. Guide Rod to the rescue

After consulting with the venerable Rick Breneman, he suggested that I replace my full length guide rod for a G.I. Guide rod. I ordered the pair of Ed Brown Heavy Duty Recoil Spring Guide & Stainless Recoil Spring Plug.

Got it installed (was more tricky than my full length guide rod) and weighed it to see if I’ve shaved off some weight.

the Spring Plug looks good.

The new guide rod doesn’t hold the spring straight, I’m guessing it’s wobbling a little inside of the dust cover, I can hear the spring scratching the sides, making it sound “springier” than if you were using a full guide rod. I’ve read on many forums that this will not affect the performance of your gun at all.

that’s 2lbs, 8.2 ounces = 40.2 ounces! Just shy of the 41ounces weight limit for the CDP division.

finally! I get to keep my Magwell.

Trimming off some fat for IDPA

After playing around with ideas to reduce weight of my IDPA CDP Pistol (Permalink to I’m Overweight for IDPA) I remembered that the Kimber originally came with a very lightweight plastic Mainspring Housing. I went ahead and removed my very cool Ed Brown MSH & Magwell combo, which weighs 2.3 – 2.4 ounces btw

and replaced it with my original MSH. here’s the total weight :

 

2lbs 7.1 ounces = 39.1 ounces. YES!!

So If I wanna shoot CDP, I’d have to forego my magwell. loading is a little slower but I think with practice I can be as fast.

 

what would you do?

Plate Carrier

Thinking of putting together a Plate Carrier with appropriate MOLLE accessories so I can grab one vest and have everything I need there in one rig instead of grabbing multiple bags etc.

I got this from LA Police Gear as a Closeout item and got some MOLLE mag pouches and a US Flag patch. what do you think?

 

 

need a flashlight holder, pistol mag pouches and more.

I’m Overweight for IDPA

After getting asked about the weight of my gun and whether I qualify for the division I though I was shooting in, I decided to get a digital scale to make sure my shooting gear is within the allowed weight limit.

When I was shooting my XDm, I had no choice but to shoot in the very competitive Enhanced Service Pistol (ESP) division. When I switched to my Kimber 1911, I decided to shoot in the Custom Defensive Pistol (CDP) division which has two major differences,

1) Must be .45 ACP caliber

2) Must not be more than 41 ounces, gun and empty magazine.

Since the Kimber i’m shooting is .45, I qualify, but do I make the weight limit? I ordered a digital scale from ebay (free shipping!) I can use this scale for shipping small packages too, which is useful.

Let’s see how heavy my Kimber TLE/RLII is :

 

2lbs 6.9 ounces = 38.9 ounces, and one empty magazine weighs :

so total weight is :

2lbs 9.2 ounces = 41.2 ounces, sometimes it shows 41.3 ounces.

DANGIT!

looks like I have to find creative ways of lightening my gear to less than 41 ounces. I need to shave 4-5 ounces. I heard that switching from full guide rod to a G.I. rod will shave some weight. Perhaps getting smaller / lighter grips.

 

what else can I do? any recommendations?

Cool Shooting Gloves from Costco

Found this today at CostCo. these are the Sporting gloves that are on sale for $9.95.

These are very thin, yet provide adequate warmth, but most important, the grip surface has grid lines made out of some rubber material that provides positive grip on your pistol.

I’ve tried it and it doesn’t feel clumsy at all. Must try this at my next match since it’s so cold out here in the NW.

Res-Q-Me. Peace of mind.

Just had a bad dream a week ago about my wife crashing into a lake with the kids in the car and getting stuck. Horrible! Then I remembered there were tools that could cut through seat belts and break the glass or windshield, so occupants could escape. I started looking online for these tools and found a unique and very simple tool called Res-Q-Me.

It’s a glass breaker and a seat belt cutter all in one simple and cheap keychain like tool. I had to get it. here’s how it looks like :

and a great video showing how it works and some TV coverage :

 

if you don’t have one yet, go get it on ebay for cheap, it might come in handy one day and save your life or your loved ones.

USPSA Limited it will be!

Got really into USPSA after my first match a few weeks ago and since I’m shooting .40S&W, decided to focus on the Limited division. What’s nice is that you can trick out your gear a lot more than production, shoot more rounds and still get to reload in most stages, unlike the Open division where you run 27-29rounds in your magazine and hardly need to reload.

Best of most worlds I might imagine.

Just thought I’d share some of the pics of my new Limited Rig.

• XDm .40S&W with pistolgear magwell, dawson FO front, Sevigny black rear, Don’s guide rod, PRP trigger kit, Canyon Creek extended mag release, Pistolgear 140mm mag extension, polished barrel
• CR Speed WSM II Holster
• CR Speed Competition belt
• CR Speed Versa single (x2) & double mag pouch

 

Would appreciate comments and tips on improving the setup :

 

 

Pistolgear 140mm Magazine extensions for the XDm

I’ve decided to shoot USPSA Limited and got myself some 140mm magazine extensions for my XDm from Pistolgear. (http://www.pistolgear.com/proddetail.php?prod=00PG022). Got them installed but they forgot to ship it with the proper spring and follower that’s supposed to let me fit 21 .40S&W rounds into the magazine. They’ve shipped it and hopefully I’ll get it in a few days.

here’s how it looks like on my factory mags :

on my CR Speed Mag Pouch :

 

and in my XDm :

 

can’t wait to go shoot it!