What are NRA classifications for air pistol?

[zanemoseley]

Assuming they use the same ranks as bullseye what are the percentages for each rank.

[john bickar]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=NRA+rule+books

No apologies for the snark. Get a rule book. I'd advise ordering a paper copy in addition to the free download. I was able to help a few fellow competitors escape the Master class and compete in their correct classification at our recent Sectional, because I had a hard copy of the rule book.

Get it. Read it. You owe it to yourself and your fellow competitors.

[theruleslawyer]

AIR PISTOL
Master ........................................................... 93.00 and above
Expert ............................................................... 88.00 to 92.99
Sharpshooter .................................................... 82.00 to 87.99
Marksman ........................................................... Below 82.00

[SPPcoach]

I was able to help a few fellow competitors escape the Master class and compete in their correct classification at our recent Sectional

John can you expand on this? Did they want to be down rated because of injury or age or is there something else I have overlooked?

[zanemoseley]

Kind of funny they don't have a High Master. The good news is I'm solidly in the Expert class. I've only had 1 round of 600 in my life in the Master class though.

[john bickar]

I was able to help a few fellow competitors escape the Master class and compete in their correct classification at our recent Sectional

John can you expand on this? Did they want to be down rated because of injury or age or is there something else I have overlooked?

If you were shooting Sharpshooter scores would you want to compete against Masters, or Sharpshooters?

These guys were bullseye shooters who didn't have enough matches to have an official classification. NRA international pistol rules allow you to use an "assigned classification" from conventional pistol if you do not have a classification in (e.g.) Standard Pistol.

[atomicgale]

Fresh off the press: WINCHESTER/NRA MARKSMANSHIP QUALIFICATION PROGRAM (from page 12):

SHARPSHOOTER: 40 shots; Score: 290+/400; Do this SIX times

EXPERT: Option One: 40 shots; Score: 326+/400; Do this SIX times
EXPERT: Option Two: 60 shots; Score: 485+/600; Do this FOUR times

DISTINGUISED EXPERT:
Option One: 40 shots; Score: 348+/400; Do this TEN times
Option Two: 60 shots; Score: 522+/600; Do this TEN times
Competition Option: Score 335+/400 or 503+/600 in TWO NRA Sanctioned AP Competitions

Scores MUST be witnessed by NRA Member

[Gwhite]

Those are from the "Qualification" program, which is very different from "competition" classifications. The Qualification program allows people to shoot for awards (medals) where formal matches are sparse. They also used to have multiple levels for some classifications where you would earn "bars", like "1st Sharpshooter". I haven't compared the requirements in detail, but the scores for bullseye Qualification classification were generally lower than for competition classification.

These are the requirements for competition classifications, from the NRA International Pistol Rule Book:

AIR PISTOL
Master ........................................................... 93.00 and above
Expert ............................................................... 88.00 to 92.99
Sharpshooter .................................................... 82.00 to 87.99
Marksman ........................................................... Below 82.00

You can see that there is no such thing as "Distinguished Expert" in the competition classification system. If you shoot at the Sharpshooter level in the competition classification system, you can very easily max out as Distinguished Expert under the Qualification rules. The Qualification system used to be very popular in Junior programs, especially for rifle.

[atomicgale]

@Gwhite: Yes, I agree. Where does one get "NRA International Pistol Rules Book"? Definitely "Competition" levels higher than "Qualification." Seriously, how hard is FIVE-oh-TWO/600. It didn't seem that "Distinguished" to me. Apparently, the NRA requires you "record" each level you earn, from pro-marksman to distinguished (aka: "record" = send them more money).

Yes, while NRA is great at attracting new members & encouraging them . . . .

[GOVTMODEL]

Where does one get "NRA International Pistol Rules Book"?

At http://rulebooks.nra.org

[deadeyedick]

Where does one get "NRA International Pistol Rules Book"?

Probably in the Bullseye pistol forum. From what I can see it has nothing to do with this Olympic Pistol forum !

[David M]

http://rulebooks.nra.org/

[Gwhite]

Where does one get "NRA International Pistol Rules Book"?

Probably in the Bullseye pistol forum. From what I can see it has nothing to do with this Olympic Pistol forum !

Actually, they are the generally the same as the USA Shooting rules, just a few years out of date. The NRA tends to deliberate a lot more than the UIT about rules changes, and with the vast majority of US matches held under USA Shooting rules, updates haven't been a big priority. The NRA also tries a bit harder to accommodate local clubs that don't have electronic targets, and (thus far) hasn't tried to push people out of the sport with stupid rules about air cylinder life.

The one place where the NRA rules are used a lot is for collegiate competition. The NRA runs that program in the US, and we use their rules. I think it's going to change for this year, but for example, last year we still shot air & free pistol with a prep period and then the sighters included in the match time. I know there have been a lot of changes to the equipment rules for international rifle that the NRA has also been slow to adopt because it would bankrupt many school programs to have to upgrade all at once.