MEC 4 air rifle butt plate, legal?

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rmarsh
Posts: 220
Joined: Mon Jul 02, 2012 8:31 pm
Location: Arkansas

MEC 4 air rifle butt plate, legal?

Post by rmarsh »

For international air the rules allow the butt to be adjusted up/down, side to side and turned from side to side. However, with all these adustments the b/p must remain in the same vertical axis as the gun. It cannot be rotated as a sb can.

The MEC 4 b/p has 3 segments which can be individually rotated side to side. Each one remains vertical but if staggered properly the effect would be much like a b/p rotated around a center axis.

Did that make sense? Has anyone had any experience with equipment control at a match using one of these?
jhmartin
Posts: 2620
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2004 2:49 pm
Location: Valencia County, NM USA

Post by jhmartin »

There ya go Rick ... causing issues again! :)

As one who works EC, I'll give you my interpretation, but it could always be appealed to a jury ... (give Dave a hollar)

On an air rifle I would look at the top tip and draw a line to the bottom tip ... if they were not in the vertical axis, I'd call it not-legal and have the shooter adjust it so that the tips were vertical.

And then you have to make sure it's not adjusted side to side if it's "twisted/rotated" any about the vertical axis.
Not sure this would be worth the cost on an airgun....
rmarsh
Posts: 220
Joined: Mon Jul 02, 2012 8:31 pm
Location: Arkansas

Post by rmarsh »

Your right Joel, always a troublemaker!

Obviously, I am unsure of this enough that I am asking questions. I understand your viewpoint and you may well be right.

However.... The rules allow for the butt plate to be swiveled side to side. I have seen many competitors with butts turned in such a way.

The MEC 4 butt still only swivels side to side. It just does it in three segments. Yes, it may approximate a butt that is rotated along a center axis, but it is not. Therefore.... it still complies with the rules. None of the segments are rotated along the center axis, they simply swivel along the vertical axis which is in compliance with the rule. Am I not right?

They can change the rules to prohibit a segmented butt, but can you actually say the MEC 4 does not comply with the letter of rule?

By the way... I bought one of these many months ago for another project and never used it. I just decided to put it on Elizabeth's air rifle and play around with it this weekend. Once I got started turing all the screws, it was WOW! look at all the ways I can adjust this thing! Not that anyone really needs all those adjustments, but they are there, just calling for me to use them!
jhmartin
Posts: 2620
Joined: Mon Nov 29, 2004 2:49 pm
Location: Valencia County, NM USA

Post by jhmartin »

Screws, levers, nuts & bolts ... all the things to keep an engineer happy!

My view is that the intent of the rule is to prevent a tip-to-tip rotation about the bore axis (or an axis parallel to the bore).

When you move the top tip one way & the bottom another, the tip-to-tip looks like a rotation about an axis parallel to the bore.

(as always - IMO - and remember, I'm a pion in the great scheme of things)
Does EC in WCs really get this picky?

<Who want's to build us a solidworks model?>
rmarsh
Posts: 220
Joined: Mon Jul 02, 2012 8:31 pm
Location: Arkansas

Post by rmarsh »

Yeah, I see your point on tip to tip rotation.... I just don't know.

Never been to a WC (yet), so I don't know how picky they will be. I guess I will find out in about a month!

Maybe I'll set her gun up with it straight, tip to tip, and have her train that way. Then before equipment control, rotate the top or bottom tip just to see if they say anything!
cmj
Posts: 162
Joined: Sun Jun 26, 2005 10:17 pm

Post by cmj »

So did you try to rotate the tips and what happened if you did?
rmarsh
Posts: 220
Joined: Mon Jul 02, 2012 8:31 pm
Location: Arkansas

Post by rmarsh »

cmj wrote:So did you try to rotate the tips and what happened if you did?
Once we got the MEC 4 set up the way she likes it.... there is just a little rotation of the lower tip, not much though. Kinda have to be looking to notice. It passed equipment control here at WC with no problems. Boots, jacket, buttons..... not so easy! It all worked out though.
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