I like shooting. The sense of focus and achievement through distance and speed has always been fascinating. I also enjoy hanging out with the guys I shoot with, most of them are easy-going people and they always make me feel welcomed. However this is nevertheless a dangerous and controversial sport given the weapon nature of firearms. I'm a civilian who want nothing more then just enjoyable shooting experience, here are a few rules I set up for myself to stay out of harms way:
1.Thou shalt not kill. Killing for fun is a sin and food can be bought from the supermarket.
2.Always abide by the law wherever you are. If a license is required, get it. If possessing or handling a firearm is prohibited by the law, don't do it there at all.
3.Follow the firearm safety rules under all circumstances:
a. Always point the muzzle in a safe direction; never point a firearm at anything you don't want to shoot.
b. Keep your finger off the trigger and outside the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.
c. Keep the action open and the gun unloaded until you are ready to use it.
d. Treat every firearm as if it's loaded.
I'm just glad I've never been in the situation of really needing a gun.
It all started by chance. I was paying for a pair of sandals at the Columbia Outdoors in Festival Mall, the shopkeeper(a cute one^^) had some problem verifying my card so we get several minutes to talk about where I’m from, how do I like it here and her teacher is a real PITA…..then, upon I asked her if she knows any place I can shoot a rifle, an old guy cut in our conversation, introduced himself. Turned out he’s an active member of PPSA(Philippine Practical Shooting Association), owns a gun shop, and his team routinely practice at a nearby range which takes no more then 20min drive from my hotel! Wow!
Of course I wouldn’t let this opportunity slip away, I don't get to pay with guns very often…:D After we returned form Tagaytay , I hopped in the van again, arrived the range around 4pm. People were friendly, I don’t know if it’s a Philippine thing or not, they seem to be always in the mood for joking and making friends. Amazing. There's two 30m and one 45m slots for pistol marksmanship and IPSC in this outdoor range, plus another big labyrinth for USPSA style practice. I’m more into longer range rifle shooting so I was happy to find they have a nice 24" floating barrel AR and a long distance range, but it’s closed for safety issue -- a road construction work is taking place some 800m behind. ~sigh~.
I borrowed a forty-five(a re-barreled vintage M1911A1) and 100 rounds to the firing line. The .45ACP ammunitions were reloaded full charge with 230 grain lead bullet to reduce the danger of ricochet when shooting at steel poppers. While we were waiting for the range to clear, I mentioned an experience of shooting a 1911 with a 60 year-old barrel in it, the bullets just tumbled all the way down range, gave a terrible group. As a response to my concern, the range officer took the gun and fired several shots at a group of steel poppers 45 meters away -- a remarkable distance for pistols. He didn’t miss a single one, proved what they gave me was no doubt an accurate combination.
M1911 and 100 rounds .45ACP
And then, the tourist got he’s turn. Forty-fives are notorious for their heavy recoil, I took up the weaver stance, griped the gun firmly, lined up my sights with the target 25m away, pulled the trigger. Its military style trigger feels very different from that of an air pistol. The pull was heavy and there’s no distinct 2-stage but just a long creep, the hammer will be released only after the trigger is pulled all the way in with considerable effort. My first few rounds missed the target by far left cauz I was shooting too fast with incorrect trigger pull. After slowing down I managed to put all the leads on target but with a distinct left shift, as can be seen in the 1st string below:
Paper Target
The range officer observed my hold and stance, told me to raise my left thumb a little bit to counter the leftward swinging imparted by the trigger pull. I got some significant improve, the 2nd string were all centered in the A-Zone, As for how about the spreaded-out third string, I got tired…=.=
Pistols are difficult to master IMO. When shooting a rifle we have a solid 4-point lock comprised of two-hand hold, shouldering and cheek welding on the butt stock. In the case of pistol one or two hand floating in the air is all we got. I don’t know how to shoot a pistol, even back to the college shooting team days. If I have the time I'd be coming back for more practice and probably join them for IPSC.
After I’m through with the pistol, a guy showed up with a well equipped 11.5” Bushmaster, Aimpoint M2, RIS forearm and a nice adjustable stock.
Bushmaster 11.5”
It is capable of full auto!! Since full auto feature are restricted inside the military and law enforcement circle in most part of the world, it's not very easy to get a chance shooting in this manner. Rifle cartridges used here are all factory FMJ load because lead bullet will fill up the rifling under the high velocity of a rifle.(900~1000m/s compared to ~400m/s from a pistol)
Full Auto capability and Genuine Aimpoint M2
This gun is fun to shoot. First I tried it out at 25m and got a one(big) hole group slightly higher then the aiming mark. Then, as a “tourist package”, they put some ten water bottles 50 meters away. I took up prone position and picked those off one by one in quick succession, it’s unbelievable easy with the Aimpoint M2..:D:D:D A real pity we didn’t get to try it at targets further away like 100m, or even 300m.
Full auto mode is barely controllable even with its light weight, thanks to the effective muzzle break and stock buffer. I tried a few rounds standing off hand, then they told me to try the machinegun position by resting the forearm on a sand bag with my left hand gripping the stock tube. It’s not difficult to place multiple hits on the paper target at 50m by shooting short bursts in this way.
Gotta love these people. Easy going and generous on letting stranger play with their beloved toy :D
我們是走水路過去的
飯店還不錯
