Want to try 3 Gun

Mike1690 · Oct 6, 2019

Hello all,
I’ve been here for a few years but I haven’t posted much. For some time now I have been interested in 3 gun. I’ve done some research on the net and I feel I’m ready for the next step. I’d like to watch a match or two before “going live”. Can anyone recommend some beginner friendly places to watch and get started that are reasonably close to the people’s republic of MoCo. Thanks

danb · Oct 6, 2019

AGC and Arlington host 3-gun practices. https://associatedgunclubs.org/acti.../2019/09/AGC-AS-2019-Schedule-revised-4-2.pdf

There is a steel challenge match at AGC this weekend (https://www.mdshooters.com/showthread.php?t=238502), IDPA, and also a 3-gun nov 9th.

I highly recommend joining AGC and at try some of the practices.

hodgepodge · Oct 6, 2019

When you're ready, we can talk about 4-Gun.

Anyone is welcome to come visit or shoot* in the monthly Cowboy Action match at AAF&G, outside Annapolis, 3rd Saturday of the month.

*I can loan you guns/ammo. You can buy my luch at Red, Hot & Blue.

davsco · Oct 6, 2019

thurmont / tcsc does 2 & 3 gun, just above frederick. no prob spectating and newbie-friendly. ditto for pntc / peacemaker though a little further drive for you, below hagerstown and above frederick, but imo def worth the drive (usually several natural terrain stages, and targets out to ~500yds.

look on www.practiscore.com and you can search for matches near you.

4g64loser · Oct 7, 2019

the PNTC 2 and 3 guns are solid. I think they offer an intro to 3 gun class if you aren't up to speed on the game. nobody cares if you spectate, just sign in at the HQ building and sign a waiver. they will give you a non-shooter arm band. the folks that shoot it are pretty cool for the most part. if you move between squads and tell them you are new, you will likely get more information that you can write down.

Their precision rifle matches are like that- usually you see spectators become shooters after watching an event.

MEGARMS · Oct 7, 2019

AGC will be hosting its next 3 gun match on November 9th. It is pretty informal and newbie friendly. Keep an eye out and come watch. Don't forget your wrap around safety glasses and hearing protection. Be sure to engage shooters in conversation. We are a very friendly bunch and would love to overwhelm you with what you need to buy and what you should never buy.

erwos · Oct 7, 2019

MEGARMS said:
AGC will be hosting its next 3 gun match on November 9th. It is pretty informal and newbie friendly. Keep an eye out and come watch. Don't forget your wrap around safety glasses and hearing protection. Be sure to engage shooters in conversation. We are a very friendly bunch and would love to overwhelm you with what you need to buy and what you should never buy.

This is totally true. That match was an excellent introduction to the game for me. To be honest, the basics don't seem THAT complicated compared to something like USPSA. Pick up your gun, do some shooting, and put it back on safe before you put it in the dump container (and don't reholster a hot pistol). Keep repeating until you've shot everything.

Bikebreath · Oct 7, 2019

erwos said:
This is totally true. That match was an excellent introduction to the game for me. To be honest, the basics don't seem THAT complicated compared to something like USPSA. Pick up your gun, do some shooting, and put it back on safe before you put it in the dump container (and don't reholster a hot pistol). Keep repeating until you've shot everything.

Tell us what holsters not to buy *wink wink*

erwos · Oct 8, 2019

Bikebreath said:
Tell us what holsters not to buy *wink wink*

You know, the real problem turned out to be somewhat interesting, because it wasn't actually the Omnivore failing. Turns out it was an incompatibility issue between the SERPA midride belt mount and the length of the screws on the Omnivore. A little custom screw cutting would resolve the issue.

In any event, I've got GLS holsters on QLS forks now.

Bikebreath · Oct 8, 2019

erwos said:
You know, the real problem turned out to be somewhat interesting, because it wasn't actually the Omnivore failing. Turns out it was an incompatibility issue between the SERPA midride belt mount and the length of the screws on the Omnivore. A little custom screw cutting would resolve the issue.

In any event, I've got GLS holsters on QLS forks now.

I wondered what happened and didn't want to be the 30th person to ask you during the match.

MEGARMS · Oct 8, 2019

erwos said:
In any event, I've got GLS holsters on QLS forks now.

This is good to hear because we frown on SERPA holsters anyway.

milwriter · Oct 8, 2019

Know your equipment

First of all, 3 gun is awesome! Thurmont and AAFG have fun, friendly matches as does Peacemaker, but yeah, that's a haul.

One piece of friendly advice though. Please be proficient and very comfortable with ALL your guns. Beginners are always welcome...but that means beginners to 3 gun, not beginners to shooting comps. Been to a few matches where it was clear the competitor had not run many pistol matches and hadn't run the AR under stress. Having the manage 3 guns and think through the stages and remember 180s and trigger control and all that -- and work under a timer? Not something you want to be combining if you're relatively green under stress with the separate weapons. If you've run some USPSA or IDPA comps and can run the rifle's controls without thinking? You should be good...

Another option is 2 gun. I know Thurmont does those and they're a blast and kinda ratchet down the complexity.

#1 be safe, and have fun!

erwos · Oct 8, 2019

MEGARMS said:
This is good to hear because we frown on SERPA holsters anyway.

Just to be clear, it was the belt loop that was from the SERPA line, not the actual holster. Omnivores have a thumb release which is very safe to use. I don't use SERPAs.

milwriter said:
One piece of friendly advice though. Please be proficient and very comfortable with ALL your guns. Beginners are always welcome...but that means beginners to 3 gun, not beginners to shooting comps. Been to a few matches where it was clear the competitor had not run many pistol matches and hadn't run the AR under stress. Having the manage 3 guns and think through the stages and remember 180s and trigger control and all that -- and work under a timer? Not something you want to be combining if you're relatively green under stress with the separate weapons. If you've run some USPSA or IDPA comps and can run the rifle's controls without thinking? You should be good...

I don't think it's THAT hard. I would say that being very familiar with 1) your weapons' controls and 2) reading the rules carefully beforehand really gets you 90% of the way there. Being a good shooter is certainly helpful, don't get me wrong, but being slow and careful will still be fun if nothing else.

What I think was more eye-opening to me at my first match was the amount of gear you need to be genuinely competitive. You can walk into a USPSA or IDPA match with a stock Glock 34 plus a decent Kydex holster and mag pouches, and be perfectly competitive in Production if you've got skills. In 3 gun, I was really sucking wind on the shotgun portions because I didn't have a good twins/quads load setup, plus the whole (new to me) need for a quality retention holster as discussed above so your pistol doesn't pop out while you're running hard. The long guns you need to bring to be very competitive are also more specialized - your average HD shotgun is not set up for 3 gun success, and even my beloved class rifle would have benefited from some minor tweaks (like... comp/brake).

I don't mean this to scare anyone off - bring what you got, just understand that it has limitations. If it means you're a little slow, you should still show up.

MEGARMS · Oct 8, 2019

erwos said:
Just to be clear, it was the belt loop that was from the SERPA line, not the actual holster. Omnivores have a thumb release which is very safe to use. I don't use SERPAs.

I don't think it's THAT hard. I would say that being very familiar with 1) your weapons' controls and 2) reading the rules carefully beforehand really gets you 90% of the way there. Being a good shooter is certainly helpful, don't get me wrong, but being slow and careful will still be fun if nothing else.

What I think was more eye-opening to me at my first match was the amount of gear you need to be genuinely competitive. You can walk into a USPSA or IDPA match with a stock Glock 34 plus a decent Kydex holster and mag pouches, and be perfectly competitive in Production if you've got skills. In 3 gun, I was really sucking wind on the shotgun portions because I didn't have a good twins/quads load setup, plus the whole (new to me) need for a quality retention holster as discussed above so your pistol doesn't pop out while you're running hard. The long guns you need to bring to be very competitive are also more specialized - your average HD shotgun is not set up for 3 gun success, and even my beloved class rifle would have benefited from some minor tweaks (like... comp/brake).

I don't mean this to scare anyone off - bring what you got, just understand that it has limitations. If it means you're a little slow, you should still show up.

This is true. Bring what you got. We all started off that way. You end up watching and talking with other guys at the match, borrowing their gear, and figuring out what it is that will work for you. It is a lengthy, pretty expensive process, but I found that the research, trying out, shopping for, and getting new stuff was a ton of fun. Once you have your rig built and the right guns, your pretty much done spending for years to come; except for ammo and match fees of course.

davsco · Oct 8, 2019

MEGARMS said:
Once you have your rig built and the right guns, your pretty much done spending for years to come.

well that's the biggest lie of all time!!! my wife keeps asking me when i am going to stop spending on more stuff i 'need.'

but as ref'd above, bring what you got, do NOT buy anything for 3 gun (or any other competitions) til you've shot a few matches and have been able to check out what everyone else is using.

jimbobborg · Oct 8, 2019

davsco said:
well that's the biggest lie of all time!!! my wife keeps asking me when i am going to stop spending on more stuff i 'need.'

You don't really "need" it, you want it :lol2:

erwos · Oct 10, 2019

I will say that while I generally agree with the idea to not buy stuff up front, I have zero regrets about getting a Stoeger M3K to use as a proper 3 gun shotgun. Shotguns are one of those areas where you either have what you need or you really don't have what you need, and I fell into the latter camp.

MEGARMS · Oct 10, 2019

erwos said:
I will say that while I generally agree with the idea to not buy stuff up front, I have zero regrets about getting a Stoeger M3K to use as a proper 3 gun shotgun. Shotguns are one of those areas where you either have what you need or you really don't have what you need, and I fell into the latter camp.

You shouldn't have any regrets about buying that shotgun. It is definitely the best sub $1000 option as far as 3 Gun shotguns go. I still wouldn't recommend anyone buy any shotgun without coming out and trying several guns of more experienced shooters, and talking through their experiences. I would NOT ever buy a used JM Pro or M3K because those that run good do not typically get sold.

Right out of the gate, I started with a JM Pro. Unfortunately, mine was built on a Friday afternoon and therefore it had to go. Then it was on to an M3k, and yet another gun built after a liquid lunch. I know lots of guys that have both of those guns and they run perfect. Unfortunately, neither of mine did.

At that point, I decided that this game was challenging enough without having to deal with equipment malfunctions, so I stepped it up to a Benelli M2. Admittedly, I have 2 1/2 times into that gun than I had in the other two, but I can count the number of malfunctions it has had in two years on one hand. That gun runs perfectly. I have decided that that when it comes to Action Shooting for ME, Buy Once, Cry Once is the way to go.

The great part about 3 Gun Shooters is that we have at point A before. We love to share our stories and let new guys try our guns. If you don't have a shotgun, then show up, tell the match director, and he will very likely find someone or a few someone's to loan you their gun throughout the match.

Mike1690 · Oct 11, 2019

All,
Thanks for the great info. I did pick up a M3K, mainly because I didn’t have a shotgun. Otherwise I’m going to try what I already have. Think I’m going to watch the AGC match next month.

Want to try 3 Gun

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