What did you add to your Parker Collection in 2016??

[Big Friend Ten (BFT)]

I've been busy catching up on the days of my youth. Half my lifetime ago life got in my way. Duty called and I hung up my competitive rifle and pistol shooting when I became an officer in the Marines. At the time I was Distinguished with the Service Rifle and had earned 22 of the required 30 points to become a Distinguished Pistol Shot. Heck I was a rifle shooter and shot pistol to prove that anyone could do it. There was of course a rivalry between the USMC Rifle and Pistol Teams. The year was 1988.

In the spring 2015 a Les Baer National Match followed me home and I shot and shot and shot into 150 yards of topsoil serving as a berm in my back field. At the 2015 National Matches at Camp Perry I was close to placing but no cigar for me. It wasn't the Baer's fault but it was to become my backup gun.

On Perry's famous Commercial Row I ordered an Accuracy X Pro Plus 1911. It was July 2015. These target pistols are guaranteed 2" of smaller group guns at 50 yards. The 10 ring for the National Match Course is 3 & 1/4" with slow fire shot at 50 yards after timed and rapid fire strings at the 25 yard line. Steve Huff of Accuracy X hand fits the CNC match grade parts for these guns. Also, Steve can flat out shoot rifle and pistol being the only 6-Discipline Distinguished shooter ever. Steve knows target guns like many of you know Parkers.

My Accuracy X arrived late May 2016, about six weeks before the Nationals. By Perry I had logged in over 1800 rounds through this gun and my scores reflected it. For the National Trophy Individual I didn't win the match but I placed Third Gold with 277-3X (out of 300), just below a USMC Pistol Team and a Army Marksmanship Unit shooters also striving to "go out" (Distinguished). I was in good company.

So to start in my non-Parkers, 150 yards of topsoil bought during 2015 and 16, a top of the line match 1911, and did I mention I needed special prescription shooting glasses so that I could focus on the front sight? Bullseye shooting was so much easier half my lifetime ago...