barlowc - introducing myself

[barlowc]

Hi guys! I'm another BITOG member that came over here. I have the same username on both sites.

I'm new to firearms and shooting. I recently purchased my first, a new Ruger Mark III Target in Stainless Steel.

As I had written in a thread in BITOG's Firearms forum, I was finally able to go to the local range yesterday and put about 200 rounds of Remington Golden Bullets through it.

I shot most of the rounds while the target was at a distance of 20 feet, which the range operator said would be a good distance to start with. I also shot 4 clips at 30 feet. Overall, I was able to fire rounds in relatively close groupings. Getting them tighter will be the skills I’ll be working to develop over time.

It was a lot of fun, and not as intimidating as I expected. I'm certainly looking forward to my next trip to the range. Let me know what tips you have for learning good technique and making the most out of my range time.

[wwillson]

Welcome to our forums!

I have exactly the same pistol, but in the Mark II version. I bought it about 20 years ago and have put a huge amount of ammo through it. I'd guess 100,000 rounds, I don't know for sure, but it's a LOT. I've never replaced a single part in all that time.

Congrats on your purchase of a fantastic and fun pistol!

Wayne

[BarryinIN]

Welcome, barlowc!

You could not have done better for a first gun. I shot a ton of ammo through a pair of MKIIs when I worked in Chicago. I worked 8:30pm to 4:30am, and since I belonged to a club with an indoor range and 24-hr access I went there a lot, especially in the winter.

Funny thing. I've had at least four Ruger .22 autos but never had the model I always wanted most- a 5.5" stainless like yours. I wanted that before they even made them in stainless, so much I wanted to get a blued one and have it plated. They've been as close as the nearest gun shop for 30 years and I haven't done anything about it.

[Pablo]

Nice first choice!! I have the blue/black version in 22/45.

Good shooting and good on you for not being so proud as to ask for assistance. I still remember my first time shooting a hand gun, I wasn't going to let anyone know, etc....although I read a lot and had shot rifles and shotguns for years, and followed all the safety rules - still my pride slowed my learning process and could have cause some bad habits.

Learn a firm grip and freefloating trigger finger. Get a Prohands Gripmaster finger exerciser. Use your full hand on the unit, then use all your fingers except your trigger finger.