Considering a new hobby. Appreciate thoughts on any of these or all 3 - as the best place to start - mostly just interested in revolvers. For just starting, would you recommend anything outside of a 686, does anybody use a 67, or is that silly? Assume you should start all of these groups with a just a 6 shot revolver. ICORE folks have been very nice.

It may depend on what is available within your driving area. I have only competed in IDPA and it was some years ago. If you want pages and pages of rules that you need to memorize then IDPA is O.K. It is barely revolver friendly.

I'm sure there are members of other disciplines that will inform you here.

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H Richard
SWCA1967 SWHF244

I have shot IDPA with revolvers.
I have run side by side by side by side tests; K, L, N, and (Colt) I frames and do the best with my M67. The 686 is definitely the most popular but there are Rugers, Colts (When I get mine out.) and even Taurus.
IDPA revolver power factors are low, 105 for .38 or other speed loader calibers; 155 for cliploaders.
You only get six rounds in the gun, so a "high capacity revolver" would be a disadvantage.
Barrel length not over 4.25".

I have shot USPSA with revolvers but it has been a while and rules have changed. You may now enter a sixshooter at major power factor or an eight shooter at minor power factor. USPSA target placement policy gives the eight shooter a considerable advantage and the fine old 625s are pretty much obsolete in favor of 627s and 929s firing .38 Short Colt or 9mm P.

I have no experience with ICORE, but a glance at their rules show that they do have some Divisions specifying a sixshooter and some not.

As H Richard says, the main thing is what can you get to.
Start out with any gun you have that is reasonably suitable until you learn the ropes and decide if you are serious enough for specialized match gun and gear.

Gov410,

Where are you located, general area
of a state or around a city helps.

Then members might be able
to guide to the best clubs.

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Ubi Est Mea

Local ICORE (of course) or speed steel have been quite revolver friendly, as has bowling pins.


The modern 10-shot 22 revolvers provide a marvelous day at the range in speed steel.



Cowboy style SASS for marvelous vintage single action/cowboy era guns!!! Be aware it's the most fun you can have with your clothes on. And the opportunities for 'having to add more guns' to your collection are practically endless. Whatever you start with it isn't long before you're finding ways to justify buying more of something else as well.

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Dum vivimus Vivamas

I shoot all three with a revolver (not well - but I have fun). As has been said, depends on what you have access to where you live. For IDPA I use a 625-8PC or a Ruger 10mm MC or a 586-4 Brazil. For USPSA and ICORE I use a 929.

Feel free to e-mail me for any specific questions.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

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NRA Benefactor Member

I'm in a southwest suburb of Chicago. Seems closest ICORE is in Indiana a couple of hours away; IDPA in a northern suburb I think.

Well, all those IDPA rules do sound like a lot of fun!! (kidding) Thx H Richard.
Jim Watson, M657 and Pizza Bob - great advice and insights too!
Have to learn more about steel. Never would have thought about a 10 shot 22 but I can see that would be fun. I've got a PC Model 19 that can get me started I guess. Was thinking about a 67 or a Model 10 too. M657- looks like you're right - it's started already! Thank you all!

I have shot ICORE at one club and IDPA (revolver) at 4 clubs. All shooters have been encouraging. I have a 686, so haven’t looked into any other gun. The 686 is just fine, with round nose ammo. You will learn more at an ICORE match, since they are all revolver shooters. But I’m still learning from IDPA after a couple of years. The most important thing is to get a holster, speed loaders and carriers and go once... enjoy !!!

Will

I like NRA Action Pistol. All shooting is from a static position, you'll fire no more than 6 shots in any string of fire. All strings of fire require draw from holster. Some courses of fire that require reloading under time pressure are revolver friendly with the time limits. The time limits imposed for each string of fire are challenging but they are achievable with some practice. It's not a "track meet" every shot fired has 10 points on the line so the missing carries a heavy penalty. Its a difficult shooting sport and it emphasizes pure handgun shooting fundamentals but if you stick with it you'll see your skills improve which can help you perform better in the other sports. The Production Division is most popular--all you need is a K,L or N frame revolver a holster and speed loaders and you're good to go. The problems is not many clubs shoot NRA Action Pistol. IDPA, USPSA and ICORE definitely offer more opportunities but if you can find NRA Action Pistol in your area sign up and shoot it.

A lot depends on what you expect from competing, and also on what the local club is like. There is an ICORE club in OKC, for example, that will tell you right up front you need an 8 shot 9mm (929) to be competitive in their matches: they aren't interested in 6 shot friendly matches. Since I only shoot 6 shot classic revolvers, I just don't go to their club anymore.
Other ICORE clubs do Classic matches.

IDPA is a good place to start with a 686 or 67, since IDPA is 6 shot only, 4" (nominal) barrel. Revolvers are scarce at some clubs just because SSP and CCP are most popular. IDPA has no more rules than USPSA or ICORE, and if anyone has not read the new rules lately, they don't even know what IDPA rules currently are. I actually prefer the previous IDPA rules, where I could shoot on the move, and taking cover actually meant getting behind something, not just standing at a fault line.
IDPA now allows more "run and gun" and we who have been in IDPA over 20 years call the new rules "Son of IPSC." But nothing in the rules REQUIRES you to try to shoot at the National level of intensity and speed.

I normally shoot Production Division in USPSA with a semi-auto because with my Model 66 shooting minor 6-shot, I am not going to win anything in USPSA Revolver Division. I have even had one uninformed RO tell me I had to have a major caliber to shoot 6-shot in USPSA, which is absolutely not true, you can always shoot just for fun.

Steel challenge is the easiest competition to start because you just stand and shoot rather than dealing with complicated movement. You can even use a .22, but don't be surprised if a 12 year old girl beats you.

USPSA/CRO
IDPA/SO (previous IDPA Match Director for 15 yrs)

P.S. NRA Action Pistol is my favorite, but I haven't been close to any clubs sine I left KY decades ago. Par time scoring and accuracy is King!

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Science plus Art

I used to shoot IDPA with revolvers and semi's, became a 5 gun shooter.
I liked it--quick, compact stages while still challenging. Then we got into the "rule dujour" swamp. People spent more time arguing if there was a procedural for moving your foot than shooting. When I starterd they sent you a rule book--now it's on line and goes on forever.
Went to USPSA but shoot semi's. Rules are clear and simple. The one thing I dislike about USPSA is the round count per stage--up to 32 I believe as opposed to the 18 round max for IDPA. The stages are more complex and are not revolver friendly, unlike IDPA.
I like both for different reasons, but recently shot an IDPA natch with a revolver and felt pretty good if I got through a stage without a procedural. Now back to USPSA with semi's.

That about sums it up perfectly.

USPSA: I like the higher round count and good straight ahead stages that require you to plan ahead a bit just for the sake of the stage. Excellent day out. Excellent group of people interested to shoot and have fun. It can be hard from what I have seen with a 6 shooter and a 40+ round stage but hey...

IDPA: You need to plan extremely carefully but not for the stage sake but for the underlying rules which make little to no sense and bear no relevance to reality of a real life situation contrary to what they claim. Go to the local mall with a stiff burlap vest on and see how that goes down. On top of it, I have seen a fair share of people argumentating on and on over infractions rather than get on with it and have a nice day out shooting. Little more revolver friendly due to the shortness of the stages.

Often there are smaller less publicized clubs that run matches you can find. And often these are a little less up tight about the rules. The only revolver I shoot in idpa or icore is my old late fifties production pre model number combat masterpiece.works fine. I am not a top shooter, usually finish in the middle of the pack but have fun and enjoy the experience and especially icore with the other revolver fans. A huge mistake people make is to think you have to be a top competitor to have fun. Honestly I think the opposite is true. The less serious you are about it, the more fun it is

re: 'run & gun' vs 'stand & shoot' matches vs personal physicality etc
I have buddy going back to early IHMSA days. Over the decades he has continued in just about every different handgun discipline from the ones I followed, yet he has fun.



He has become a national level competitor in his favorite, which I can not even name. Full custom bottom feeders, choreographed footwork between maximized location for high-cap mag changes, cardboard obstacles and defining footpaths with complex shoot/no shoot targets from various positions from prone to kneeling to off-hand behind/around the corner. I went to watch; even his wife excels at this competition. Not for me. He "still likes" revolvers but has limited free time to pursue his action sport. Very demanding mental and physical level of performance, along with very high$ equipment. He's a high-stress owner/manager Type A personality who uses this type of activity to 'relax'.


My goal at the range is also to 'relax'. Curiously I find the demands of my own level of 'participant' revolver stand & shoot, to serve the same purpose as my buddy.



Whatever you choose, from actual 'gamesmanship/competition' to 'mere participation' there are a surprising variety of target platforms that will serve your purpose.

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Dum vivimus Vivamas

I used to shoot a lot of IDPA with a revolver and still do with a bottom feeder. It is still fun and the rules are not that hard if you can read.
I mostly quit with a revolver as there were very few competitors to compete against and it is not as much fun if you can't compare performances.

I really like I core. I drive 1 1/2 Hrs once a month to compete. It is a small group and usually about 15 shooters. We usually shoot as one squad and shoot six stages. It is a lot of fun and high round count stages make for a good bit of reloading practice. This club shows overall scores and also individual classes. I shoot Classic as I like speedloaders and six rounds but we get shooters in all classes shooting.
It really depends on what is in your area.
I shoot a little USPSA but would not consider it unless I had an 8 shot revolver at least.

In addition to those is steel challenge, which is my second favorite - I shoot my 8-shot and 10-shoot revolvers.

My favorite is a home grown all falling steel match.

So there are other options. The three you mentioned are great as well!

So the easy answer is to shoot whatever you have access to. Shoot them all. Shoot often.

No need to buy anything either. Just show up with what you have - as long as the equipment meets safety requirements.

Shoot some matches. Then start to figure out what gear you need, what gun to shoot (buy?), and what game(s) you prefer.

Good luck in Chicago, sorry.

Thanks much! Great information. OKFC05 - Funny comment on the 12 yo girl - but probably not far from the truth for me!