Just a reminder, folks: the unique Pin Shoot, formerly known as the Second Chance Shoot, will be held June 14-18 of this year in the quaint resort town of Central Lake, Michigan.

I’ve been shooting this match since its inception and am glad its long hiatus is over. Picture a carnival midway of live-fire shooting games, only you win guns and expensive gear instead of teddy bears if you do well.

Events for rifle and shotgun, and with the latter buckshot and slugs, pump or autoloader.  Revolver and pistol. From tricked out space gun with optics and recoil compensators to sub-compact street carry handguns. Individual competition and two-and three- person teams. 

You’ll find the updated rules here.

Make it a family vacation. (Yes, there are even events for kids.)

The atmosphere is like no other match you’ve been to. Targets are bowling pins: you need powerful rounds to knock them all the way off the tables. (I’ll be using .45s for almost everything.) It’s the only match I go to where there are bleachers: the reaction targets make it visual, a true spectator sport.  During intermissions, host Richard Davis plays Trivia Quiz with the audience, and the prizes are tickets for a worthwhile drawing at the end of the match. I’ve seen the winners of the drawings leaving in Mercedes-Benz prizes. And, throughout, lots of like-minded people to pleasantly associate with.

I wouldn’t miss it.  It’s the most fun match there is.  Hope to see you there.

24 COMMENTS

  3. This is one match that I have heard of for years, and for the first time, I am considering attending just as a spectator. I know for people like you, Mas, things like this, with all of those in attendance are old hat, but for someone like myself, to actually see the competitors that I only hear or watch on television, it would be like watching sports heroes for baseball or football fans.
    Plus, the thought of one year actually competing myself is intriguing.
    I live in Michigan, so it is just a couple of hours drive right straight north. Wishing you safe travels and much success.

  4. Sounds like fun, I wish I could do it this year – maybe next year. I spent the first 17 years of my life in Munising – in the Upper Peninsula not all that far away – and haven’t been back for about 55 years.

  6. Better watch out as diabolical Michigan Dictator Whitmer may declare this event a health hazard and close it down because firearms are involved (unless a sizable amount of cash is donated secretly to her). I’ve attended four of these shoots, all in the 1980’s and can attest that they are FUN and Rich Davis is a hoot. Maybe one day I’ll make it up there again.

  7. With you recommending.45, can I borrow your Glock 30? I seem to shoot it better
    than my own guns. Would love to go, but forgot to plan ahead. Maybe next year…

  8. When I used to do those in Canada a friend and I (who met you at the Bianchi Cup many years ago, Mas) developed a kick *** pin round in .357 Magnum using an odd, heavy for caliber all lead truncated cone bullet which absolutely owned the tables fired from my then 4″ S&W Model 13. Great times for sure, I loved the shotgun stages too.

  9. Thx. Mas for the shout out. Look forward to seeing you again. You are a class act. Folks my gun crapped out in the 87 shoot. As we say worked all year but not up here. Anyway Mas. didn’t know me well, came to the line handed me his gun, ammo, mags so I could finish my set. That’s the kind of guy he is. He has supported our match for decades. It is the most fun you’ll ever have shooting. We have some new events this year as well.

    • I’ve heard that kind of stuff about Mas before, so I’m not at all surprised. Outstanding example for sure, I would love to come over one year!

  10. The recent massacre at the Sooper in Boulder, CO reminds me of several things: (1) More guns, less crime (see John Lott). A few pistolero shoppers are huge assets, along with well-trained, armed employees. (2) I witnessed no report that the area was a gun-free killing zone, or not. (3) Boulder is a classic haven for glassy-eyed stoners. Just take a drive around that town while dodging all the confidently impaired traffic. Then check on the high frequency of THC involvement in accidents. (4) Peace officers should carry a long gun to a gunfight, instead of just a pistol. (5) Armed citizens should be rewarded, and not jailed, for “potting” criminals. (6) Be alert. (7) Pin shooting practice promotes gunfight survival.

    • You can expect the firearms-prohibitionists to use these recent mass murders, in CO and the previous one in GA, to push their agenda to disarm law-abiding Americans. The leftists LOVE to dance in the blood of the victims of mass murderers.

      They, and their media attack dogs, will push the meme that firearms-prohibition is the magic cure to what they call “Gun Violence”. They will claim that disarming regular Americans is, somehow, the “Silver Bullet” (forgive the pun) solution and will magically stop criminals and mass-murderers from claiming new victims.

      They never explain exactly how this works but, apparently, if you disarm law-abiding citizens, then a magic osmosis process occurs whereby criminals and terrorists also end up disarmed. I never could understand how that works. I guess it is sort of like the “trickle down” theory of economics. Funny, the Leftists hated the “trickle down economics” theory. I remember one left-wing politician saying that “trickle down economics” was like saying that the best way to feed the birds was to give more oats to the horse. 🙂

      Nevertheless, the Leftists love the idea of trickle down disarmament whereby disarming the good guys will (eventually) disarm the bad guys. I guess I must be stupid because I still don’t get how that is supposed to work.

      However, I do certainly understand that the real reason that the Left wants to disarm the citizens is so that they may sit comfortably in a seat of perpetual political power. I do understand that. This makes me think that, while the rank and file leftists may believe in trickle down disarmament, the left-wing leadership knows that it is just an excuse to disarm the people and secure more power for themselves.

      BTW, the name of the shooter in CO appears to be, from news reports, Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa. Don’t expect the news media to shout that from the roof tops. They would not want to be Islamophobic, would they?

      • TN_MAN:

        Since you have admitted to being “stupid” I will try to explain gun control in the simplest way. When, not if, legislation is pushed through to totally disarm the American population, everyone including the most hardened criminals and bloodthirsty terrorists will be subliminally contacted by a higher power such as the Messiah Barack Hussein Obama, and instructed to cease doing bad stuff with firearms. This will of course convince them to turn in all their evil guns to the benevolent government for proper destruction. The scrap metal should be transformed into wind chimes which soothes people and make them peaceful rather than be influenced by the sadistic, violent images which firearms project via a satanic, evil aura. I hope this logical explanation penetrates that thick skull of yours. 🙂

        As far as the King Soopers murderer, he was raised in America since the age of three and therefore was brought up as a racist, unlike most non-white people who know better than to be brainwashed by diabolical conservatives. If only the murderer was properly taught in culturally diverse schools by liberal teachers, he would have grown up to be a good Moslem which means he would be peaceful and spend all his time smelling flowers, playing with butterflies, and petting unicorns.

      • Classic left-wing theory will always blame some external environmental factor rather than place any blame on the individual. A leftist will reject individual responsibility like a dog shaking off water! 🙂

        Therefore, they insist that it is always the guns that cause “Gun Violence”. Indeed, that is why the Left coined the term “Gun Violence”. To put the blame where it belongs (in their minds). You will never catch a Leftist using terms like “Human Violence” or “Violent People”. No, no, no, no, no! People are GODD; it is the guns that are EVIL. A Leftist will absolutely reject (in the strongest terms) the concept that: “Guns don’t kill people; People do.”

        It is this kind of thinking that helps fuel the firearms-prohibition movement. It is that kind of thinking that caused the UK to ban handguns and to now conduct regulation of kitchen knives and air guns.

        If left-wing theory was correct, you would expect the UK to be a crime-free paradise. It is not. All the firearm-prohibitionists in the UK did was to create a criminal black-market in the exact same way that their alcohol-prohibitionist forefathers created a black-market for alcohol in the U.S. during the 1920-30’s. See this story:

        https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6534023/Eastern-European-crime-gangs-smuggling-guns-UK-warns-police-chief.html

        However, the dog never learns not to return to lick up its vomit. A firearms-prohibitionists in the U.S. will praise the UK as a model to follow! I guess the U.S. black-market that we have created in narcotics is not enough for them. They want a black-market in firearms to go along with it. I guess the criminal gangs along the Southern border need another source of income to supplement drug smuggling and human trafficking.

        No, Tom606, I have decided that I am not stupid after all. It is the left-wing mindset that is truly STUPID!

      • I have often wondered what would have happened if one of Jack the Ripper’s victims was armed with a little Remington .41 caliber derringer back in late 1800’s jolly ole England.

      • @ Tom606 – “…Jack the Ripper’s victims was armed with a little Remington .41 caliber derringer…”

        The derringer would not be my first choice for self-defense against a knife- armed psychopath if I had lived back in late 19th Century England (or even today for that matter). 🙂

        I have a copy of W.W. Greener’s gun catalog from 1879. It does show Remington derringers for sale for 40s each for a plain, blued model. It also shows that the length of this little derringer is 4.875 inches (3-inch barrels) with a weight of 11 oz.

        However, the same catalog shows Webley Bulldog revolvers, in .450 caliber, for sale at 45s each. The Webley is listed as having an overall length of 7 inches with a weight of 18 oz.

        So, for a mere 5 shillings extra, one could get a revolver that holds five (5) .450 caliber centerfire rounds versus a derringer that only holds two (2) .41 caliber rimfire rounds.

        The ballistics of the .450 caliber (from Barnes Cartridges of the World) are a 225 grain bullet (Diameter = .455 inches) at 650 fps (blackpowder load) for a muzzle energy of 211 ft-lbs. The derringer fires a 130 grain bullet (Diameter = 0.405 inches) at 425 fps for just 52 ft-lbs of energy (less energy than a .25 ACP round).

        Now, I grant that the Bulldog revolver is a bit heavier, is a bit larger, and would be a bit more difficult to conceal. However, my choice would be to meet Mr. Jack with 5 rounds of .45 caliber from a double-action revolver versus two puny rounds of .41 rimfire from a single-action derringer.

        I would think that my life is worth the extra 5 shillings and the extra effort to conceal the slightly larger gun. YMMV 🙂

      • TM_MAN:

        The only reason I mentioned the Remington derringer was that many American women of that time period carried one for self defense due to the gun’s small size. I would carry a Colt 1873 in .45 Colt with 4 5/8″ barrel or maybe one of the shorter models like the Banker’s Special or Sheriff’s Model in the same caliber although they are slower to reload. The .41 rimfire cartridge for the Remington derringer was rather puny but better than nothing and a favorite backup gun of many cowpersons of that era.

      • @ Tom606 – Yes, derringers and other small pistols, chambered for the .41 short rimfire round, were more of a threat than a real weapon. They had no stopping power. However, they had just enough velocity to put a bullet into a human body, but they would seldom perforate it. So, getting shot with one of these derringers generally would require surgery to extract the bullet. Given the state of medical knowledge at the time, the risk of infection and (eventual) death would be high.

        No one wanted to be gut shot. Not even with one of these little derringers. So, the threat that they poised would often cause a thug to back down. They were popular because of this reason and because they were so small and concealable.

        However, it is unlikely that a true psychopath, like Jack the Ripper, would be deterred by one. Especially if it was in the hand of a woman. No, IMO, a woman would need a more serious weapon to deal with Mr. Jack. One capable of stopping him quickly enough to prevent him from using his knife. A large-caliber Webley Bulldog revolver would have been about the smallest, lightest, and most affordable weapon capable of doing it that was readily available in late 19th Century England.

        Anyway, just my 2 cents. We will never know for sure because Jack the Ripper was never caught or brought to justice.

      • There was speculation that Jack the Ripper was a member of one of London’s prominent families and therefore not pursued too vigorously by the police. Now if only Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson was on the Ripper case with the good doctor armed with his trusty Webley revolver in case Jack attacks them. Hopefully Jack got parasites from eating some of the flesh taken from his prostitute victims and died a slow horrible death. Should have use that Tabasco sauce, Jack!

    • I’ve lived in Denver for several years and have shopped at King Soopers countless times, always armed. Boulder is a place where hippies gravitate to en masse and nearly everyone living there is stoned most of the time, and this was back in the 1980’s. I doubt any of the shoppers at the King Soopers in Boulder was armed when the murderer slaughtered those 10 people inside. Don’t know if the killer wore body armor, but I doubt his head, crotch, arms, and legs are bulletproof and an expanding projectile of adequate caliber in those areas would have bothered him greatly.

  11. My heart goes out to the family of the officer who lost his life. We don’t know any of the details yet but we do know that he ran to the sound of the guns. I’m sure the Democrats will praise him and use him to sell their gun prohibition agenda, in contrast to their hate-filled anti- police rhetoric of the past year.

  12. Sadly, the left will use ANY adverse gun shooting to push their radical agenda. Be it a so called mass shooting, a child finding a gun left unattended, or some illegal immigrant picking one up and accidently killing an innocent woman walking with her dad. So long as it involves a dead innocent and a gun, they and the MSM will blast it 24/7 to attempt to saturate the minds of the people to show just how bad guns are.
    When I see things like the the left speaking about how the Supreme Court being conservative and so the common sense gun reforms being hard to pass, it makes me wonder if everyone is reading the same U.S. Constitution, because the 2nd amendment makes no adjustment based upon political expediency.
    Buckle up folks, it is going to be a rough ride.

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