TargetTalk

Will this be a good gun to shoot bullseye, with a little work I want to shoot bullseye,I have a MKIII, and it is a nice shooter, shoots better then I do and want a 45 that will do the job, ould it be better to save up or have work done on the gun as I get better, I know trigger sights, and better grips. The reviews are good on the gun REM 45 R1 a little help would be cool thanks

It is hard to advise you because it depends on how seriously you want to compete and how much money you can come up with. I think the Les Baer is the best choice for the money if you want to be serious but if you can't afford it the R1 will do as well as it cost. In this realm I think the term "you get what you pay for" really comes into play but it depends on your situation. Whether another in the same price range would be better is only a guess and it would depend on luck more than anything else. -- Bill --

Most of the guns you can buy are useless for Bullseye.

The way I would do it is to go to a match and ask if anyone has a "wad gun" for sale.

There almost always is and you would have something that would work, even if it cost you a little more.

You need a gun that will group well at 50 yards. Most out-of-the box guns won't. If you are going to have a gun customized little by little, then get the most inexpensive good base gun you can. Most any of the name brands will be made well. You may also find a good used one that would be suitable. I like Springfield Armory because of their forged frames, but also because they support the shooting sports. You'll end up investing several hundred to get the gun "accurized" with match barrel and bushing, as well as, good adjustable sights or optical rib, new internal parts (like sear and hammer), and trigger job.

One other consideration is if you don't reload now, you will have to, to get quality match ammo at reasonable costs. This might require a layout of several hundred dollars if your time is important to you and therefore you get a progressive press and accessories.

The Les Baer Hardball is your best bet at $1700.

Orion wrote:The Les Baer Hardball is your best bet at $1700.

While the Les Baer is a viable option, don't overlook good used wad guns for a lot less money. Also you may find that buying an inexpensive base gun, like a Springfield Armory Milspec and sending it to someone like David Salyer might be a lot less expensive than buying a Les Baer. Another gunsmith who is just starting out, Frerking Custom Works (www.fcwguns.com) might build you a good gun for less than the Les.

Another thing you might want to try is going to a match and seeing if you can borrow someone's wad gun to try. What I don't think anybody wants to see is you coming out to a match with a gun that just wont cut it and shoot in the 500's while you shoot next to a guy that is shooting in the 850's and get discouraged and never come back.

At least if you shoot a good gun you will know what you are capable of. Then if you do get a gun that needs work and shoot it until you get money together you will see the difference and understand the value of a real wad gun. Scott

One other thought: If you decide to go the route of buying a basic 1911 pistol and having it accurized, try to find one without a firing pin block safety. The extra parts make trigger work more difficult and removing them is a violation of the rules.