upgrade question

[Craig E.]

Hi folks.
I am curious if others out there have information to encourage me. I recently upgraded from a 46 to an LP1. My question is what kind of timeframe others have experienced before shooting better with a new pistol than the old one that was doing well enough to consider the need to upgrade. I am extremely satisfied with the new pistol. It is comfortable, balanced well, has a glorious trigger and nice sights. It is fun to shoot! Just wonder when I will shoot as well consistently as I did when I thought the 46 was a little cumbersome. TIA Craig
alance2002-at-yahoo.com.41413.0

[Joe Matusic, MD]

I too started with an IZH-46. I shot with it for several months and found myself wanting more. I was getting pretty good with this gun. The grip was good and the trigger was ok, but the gun was nose heavy, had to be cocked each time, didn't have a great finish. I was really wanting a 5 shot repeater also so I went to perhaps the most expensive 10m pistol the Steyr LP5P (the only PCP 5 shot repeater at the time, now there is the FWB version). I really like the LP5P's features, fit finish, everything. But when it comes to scores, my scores went down and never actually got as good as the IZH-46. Part of this was spending a little less time due to having more kids, but the biggest part was probably that it was a different gun. Once you get to the IZH-46 level and above, all of the guns have virtually the same inherent accuracy. Yes, that's basically true. What you get with more money is a lot of extras and those extras may mean better or in some cases worse scores. You get better grips, better sights, PCP vs CO2 or single stroke pneumatic, much better fit and finish. There are small idiosyncracies to each gun that may be an advantage or disadvantage to you. If you have the chance, its always best to try all of the 10m pistols avaiable to see which one fits you the best. I live too far away from others to do that, so I have went through an IZH-46, Steyr LP5P, FWB P34, Morini 162E and 162IE, SAM K11, and a Daisy 91. Don't get me wrong, I am very happy with the other guns. My favorite is actually the Morini 162IE with its very predictable electronic trigger. I wish they made a 5 shot repeater in PCP.
Back to your actual question, a few weeks or so.
Joe.Matusic-at-Camc.org.41422.41413

[Mark]

I started with a pair of TAU-7's and shot them for about a month and a half before I was presented with an opportunity to buy a pristine LP-1. This gun was 10 years old, but had been fired very, very little, so I couldn't resist and bought it.
My scores tanked with the new pistol - what a disappointment. It was a whole new learning curve for me, but after about a month I was back on par with the scores I had achieved with the TAU's. Since then the refinements of the LP-1 have allowed my scores to climb substantially.
Being somewhat of a glutton for punishment, I recently bought an LP-10. I spent about an hour and a half with my vernier calipers and trigger pull gauge, adjusting the LP-10 to be as similar as possible to the LP-1. My first six targets with the LP-10 produced scores identical to the last six targets I had shot with the LP-1. Since then my scores have been creeping up a couple of points per match. Selecting a successor pistol that's very close in design to your original pistol seems to nullify the learning curve of transitioning to a new pistol.

Mark.

.41424.41413

[GaryN]

All depends, (don't you just hate that phrase).
If you were fighting fit and feel problems w the 46, and the LP1 fits much better, you could start shooting better once your body gets used to the new fit.
If you adjusted and fit the 46, your body has to get used to a new pistol, and that takes time.
Just shoot a lot (live & dry fire) to build the muscle memory for the new gun. Concentrate on a well executed shot each time, so your muscles will be trained correctly. Do this at least 4 times a week. And don't shoot the 46 or you will confuse your muscles during this retraining period.

When I switched from my SSP Pardini K58 to a co2 Walther CPM1 it took about a month to match the score. But it really took 4 months, as it took that long to get the Walthers grip fitted for my hand, lots of trial & error. Until the grip fit, the Walther was harder to shoot because it did not fit. In my case, my score went up due in large part to the co2 pistol being easier to cock than the SSP.

Gary
gsnaka-at-attbi.com.41426.41413

[Mark Rogers]

I went from the IZH to a Tau-7 and now finally the Morini 162E. I too found that my scores are not really much "higher" with the Morini, but rather more consistant. I would occasionaly shoot 560 with the IZH and touched 570 with the Tau-7 once, but there were many "hills and valleys" with these 2 pistols (more valleys!). It took me a few weeks to get used to the balance difference between the Tau-7 and the Morini, as the Tau has a balance point more toward the grip. However, I shoot far more consistantly in the 560-565 range and into the 570's. I think that is one of the differences there.
I look at it this way - I teach instrumental music at the high school level. When I have a student progress to a professional level musical instrument, they sound awful during a transition period! The reason I give them is this, "a student instrument has "training wheels" on it, a professional model doesn't. It allows you to do more and thus you must be in control of your game." After a short time they become more proficient and slowly progress. Perhaps this is they way many people adjust to a "higher level" pistol, if you follow the way I drift ;-)
Mark

: Hi folks.
: I am curious if others out there have information to encourage me. I recently upgraded from a 46 to an LP1. My question is what kind of timeframe others have experienced before shooting better with a new pistol than the old one that was doing well enough to consider the need to upgrade. I am extremely satisfied with the new pistol. It is comfortable, balanced well, has a glorious trigger and nice sights. It is fun to shoot! Just wonder when I will shoot as well consistently as I did when I thought the 46 was a little cumbersome. TIA Craig

mrogers-at-esu9.org.41428.41413

[Joe G.]

Hi Craig, I don't remember if I had mentioned this in our other discussions but I had done basically the same upgrade as yours. My original match type pistol was a Gamo Compact which I used for a short while before upgrading to an original IZH-46. With that changeover the benefit was quickly realized as I started shooting better scores soon after it's arrival. I stayed with the IZH as my main gun for close to two years when I got my Steyr LP-1. This time although the fit, comfort and trigger was better I did not start shooting consistently better scores with the LP-1 until I had at least a few weeks in with it. In addition you have to give yourself time to eventually find all the right adjustments and settings to make the gun truly a good match for you. Don't rush it, it will come and is definitely worth the effort. See ya at the next match. Joe G.


Josephjfg-at-aol.com.41429.41413