Pards: What is the reason for wantin' to shoot FEWER guns?

[Mustang Gregg]

We have been watchin' the trend of shootin' fewer guns in main matches (such as the NCOWS Workin' Cowboy the the like). 
It also seems like there are more & more stages written where you may not get to shoot as many rounds off, either.
But I can kinda understand that (well, sort of), since some carbines have less mag capacity.

But what is the reason for anyone to want to shoot LESS??
Not me, for sure.  Heck, we like to see all 4 weapons fired.  We do like reloads, & ya can even even throw in a pre-staged long range rifle & distant targets occasionally for some more variety.

My wife refuses to go to a 2-gun/no-gunwagon match anymore.  An I reckon I will too.

Please let me know what the attraction is.

Curious,
MG

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

I think part of the rationale is that some folks can't afford the full complement of firearms, just like folks couldn't back in the days of the old west. So, they say it is more historically accurate to shoot just two firearms.

Perhaps it is.

Me, I like to shoot. I attend matches to shoot (and to look good, make people laugh, and earn style points, but if the shooting wasn't there, I wouldn't be there). I haven't had a revolver reload yet, but plenty of rifle ones, and the shotguns are usually "must falls", so there's reloading there, too.
Heck, at one match I attend, some of us stay after the match is torn down, to shoot MORE stuff, using non-Cowboy firearms.

Did I say I love to shoot?



AnnieLee

[SGT John Chapman]

Won't catch me writin somthing like that I want to see movin and shootin with reloads,..........all toys should be at least warm when your done,........... if not down right hot.................

[D. R. Greysun]

Hells Bells,
I just want to shoot the few I have more offend!
D R

[Mustang Gregg]

Thanks!  I see your points, Pards. 
If someone don't have enuff guns, they can sure borrow mine.
Heck, ye cain't wear out them Rugers!!!

MG

[Big Hext Finnigan]

Howdy,

I think there are a few reasons behind the idea..
One, as stated is a lower barrier to new folks getting to shoot.
Two, is a more historically faithful path.  Rare was the two gun toter back in the day.
Three, just to do something different.  We are planning a special match that will require one pistol, one rifle and staged shotguns.  Sometimes the guns will start empty and be fully loaded on the clock.  This match is not a substitute for the regualr monthly match, but an augmentation.

Adios,

[Trap]

   HISTORICAL AUTHENTICITY

[Major Matt Lewis]

The GAF Shoot is a Rifle/Pistol Match only because of the Historical Authenticity and the Novelty.  Product Differentation if you will. 

[L.G.]

FEWER GUNS?  Around here, the Josey Wales matches are taking off, which means more guns, not less.  Of course it does get a little tiring carring around 6 pistols on your person!

[thehairlessone]

I cant speak for everyone but I can speak for myself.

I would like to try cas but I simply cant afford to go out and buy all them guns. Not that i wouldnt like to.

I thought there should be a competition for just 1 pistol to get more people involved.

rick

[Mustang Gregg]

When I started, I had got the word to bring only one six-gun.  So I did.
There were several fellers, who didn't even know me,  bring up their $1000 SAA's & say, "Here, use mine!"
I was too bashful to say fine...So I jus' loaded the Ruger on the clock.

MG

[Col. Riddles]

Well get this pards. Our club will be 10 yeras old on June 28th. We have a charter member that in 10 years has only shot 4 matches. He's a night owl & just can't seem to get up on Sat. morning. But he shot his 4th match last Sat. &  I think he finally got hooked. He's now wanting a 66 or Henry to add to his guns. I sold him a Rossi 1/2 octagon 45 Colt, a Baikal coachgun, & a pair of Colt Cowboys sometime back & he finally bought a guncart. Moday he went out & bought himself a case of Win. AA Featherlights. I told him to get a case before the match. But he didn't listen & bought two boxes of something else & complained abiout his shoulder being sore after the match.

He doesn't like the weight of two guns around his waist. He thinks we should shoot one pistol but more stages as the OWSA shoot in Raton, N.M. does every year. I told him that he would get used to the weight if he would come out and shoot more. I loaned him a Montana Skeleton shoulder holster to try. If he likes it he'll buy it from me. If he doesn't I'll loan him a Huckleberry rig & let him try that. But I'm not selling my Huckleberry. If he wants one he'll have to get a new one.

[Lou Graham]

For local matches, I want to shoot 'em ALL and then do it again.  Heck, I'll reload, I'll do the "shoot yur dead buddy's guns" I'll shoot as much as you'll let me!
For a plane trip, I can see an advantage to 1 revolver and 1 rifle.  I can take the Trapdoor in the room Francis would have occupied.  I usually don't get to do the distance events if I fly to a match 'cause there's just not room for that many guns.

[Curley Cole]

Dang it all
When I started this I had a mismatched pair (357 and 45lc) well, now a couple of months down the road, my guns are still mismatched ( 357 4 3/4" with stag, 357 5 1/2" wood, 357 4 3/4" poly/ivory, 45lc 5 1/2" engraved poly/ivory and finally a 45lc wood) so I can decide at the last minute which "pair" I want to shoot, and now some one is talking about only one gun....come on guys, that anint playin fair.....

count me in for more guns.
cc

[Sheriff A.E. Moses]

Yeppers, I can see that money is a problem when it comes to CAS, however I would like to have a nice big road bike, but I just can't afford it. There will always be the haves and the have-nots, but most goals in this world are obtainable if you set the priority high enough. I could get that big road hog someday, but I am not willing to give up so many of the others things that I enjoy to do it. I am convinced that most people could actually get a complete set of guns to compete with, they may not be rugers and winchester 73's, but there are lots of other guns to compete with. Not everyone drives a Cadillac SUV!

[Griff]

When I started most matches were just one six-gun, 1 rifle, & 1 shootsgun.  Stayed that way for several years, as there weren't many folks that had 2 wheelguns.  Also, you may not believe this, but it takes longer for 300 folks to shoot a bunch of 4 gun stages, vs. 300 folks shootin' 3 gun stages.   We even used to move around (read downrange) during stages, but with more shooters, and with them came less experienced shooters, something had to give.  Different clubs put different priorities on number of guns, amount of reloading under the clock, complexity of stages, etc.  Viva la differance!
Love the shootin, the more the better.  Would like to have my own club do more long range side matches, etc.  Don't necessarily like the 2 six-gun scenario.  Been doin this 20 years and still don't own a guncart.  Have brought one of my horses out to carry my stuff on occasion, but get a little skittish around splashback, etc.  (Me, not the horses, they're real troopers.)
When you've got 20-30 shooters, you can be a lot more flexible with a limited time schedule.  But when you get 300+, time becomes a real factor in scenario planning.  That's what I love about the OWSA Nationals, lots of shooting, lots of days to do it in.

[Cuts Crooked]

Well Pards, I work Nighthawk, twelve hour shifts, and weekends ta boot. Sumtimes I get off werk, go home and change into my CAS gear, load the wagon, drive to the range, compete, load the wagon back up, drive home, clean irons, change back into uniform, and head back ta werk.

As you can imagine, time gets a bit pinched occassionally when I'm tryin ta get a match into my weekend. So shootin' "Saddle bum" with only two irons saves me a few minutes cleanin irons. And those few minutes can be purdy important when I gotta race ta git back to the herd!!!!!

[Major Matt Lewis]

All this talk of cleaning guns gives me the willies.....

[Col. Riddles]

Hairless One, you can afford all those guns. It will take you some time but it can be done. It's called Lay-a-way. Find a dealer who will let you pay it out as long as you pay something on it once a month. When you get one paid for start on another one till you get it paid for and so on. One of my best friends owns a gun shop and if you're buying a new gun, vss a used gun that he has in stock & has money tied up in, he will let you take as long as you need to pay it out as long as you come in & pay something on it at least once a month. Then he asks the customer to give him a call about 2 weeks before he intends to pick up the gun so he can order it in and have it ready to pick up. Used gun lay-a-ways are limited to 120 days & 20% down. I've done that.

Tell your family that for birthday, Christmas, anniversary & Fathers Day you would prefer money to pay on your guns. Better yet have them all pool the money that they would spend on an individual gift for you & buy you a CAS gun that you need.

Another way is to take a look in your gun safe or cabinet at those guns you haven't shot in a long time and decide if you really want to keep them or would you rather sell them and buy some CAS shootin irons. That's how I bought my Colt SAAs 2 years ago. Another dealer friend emailed me with a good offer on a matched pair that I didn't have the money to buy. But I really wanted them. I had wanted a pair of Colt SAAs for many many years but felt that they were just to expensive for my wallet. I went to the safe & picked out 4 pistols that I hadn't shot in a very long time, sold them and bought the Colts.

One more way to get some gun money is to have a garage sale. Go through the house & get everything you no longer have any use for including clothes & sell it. You'd be amazed at the junk people will buy.

Still another suggestion is to get a part time job or work overtime with that money allocated for your CAS guns.

Where there is a will there is a way. 

[Lucky Irish Tom]

I don't care how many guns we shoot at a match. Generally the more the better, this sport is my stress reliever so the more time I can spend shooting the more fun and stress relief i get, but I'll work through whatever is written especially if its fun.  Several others have said it, but I'll say it too, if your shooting on my Posse you can borrow any gun in my cart.  When I started out I had other Cowboys encouraging me to borrow their shooting irons so i could try different models and calibers so I could make an informed selection when I started buying.  Another thing to look for besides the local gun shop, a lot of clubs have Swap meets once or twice a year where Cowboys sell off guns they aren't using and you can get some good buys at these.  It took me two and a half years to build up to the rig I shoot now, had an awful lot of guns pushed on me to try out during that time.  As far as gun carts go, I'm not real handy with power tools but I got the diagrams for building a gun cart on the web and built one for myself and one for a friend, you can build a knock down cart for a minimal amount of money.