Any competitor who was in master grade (the old grade) as at the 1st October but has not recorded a score of 630 or better in the previous 12 months should be automatically down graded to A grade by the club.

In all grades other than master the competitor must apply to the club scorer to be down graded if they have not achieved a score equal or better to the grade they are currently in during the previous 12 months. This has always been the practice as per PA grading policy.

Definition of ‘Muzzle’ for PA 25 Yards Service Pistol

There would appear to be some confusion in the minds of a few shooters as to the definition of the word ‘muzzle’; particularly when it comes to some strange and/or optimistic interpretation of the applicable rules in this event.

Additional information

Artificial Support

An explanation and some illustrations can be found at ‘Artificial Support’

Grip Safeties

At the October 2006 Executive / Management Meeting was resolved that:

· “the NRA rule changes with respect to grip safety be enforced as of 1 January 2007.” and

as the PA Service rules for holster have followed the NRA Action Pistol / International 1920 Match rules

· “’all standard features of guns must operate properly’ be applied to all PA Service, Service Unrestricted, Service 25 Yard matches and the WA1500 Match as at 1 July 2007.”

For the PA Service matches this specifically relates to Note 02 – Safety Mechanisms which previously provided “Where a grip safety is the secondary safety, it may be disabled by pinning.”

From 1 January 2007 this will change to:

Equipment Control, Rules 2.3, S/ 4.2.6.1, S/ 4.2.6.5, 10:

The proper functioning of all safety mechanisms applicable to the type, make and model of pistol are to be checked at Equipment Control, e.g.

• transfer bars as fitted to revolvers,

• a grip safety may not be disabled.

The type of holster/belt combination is to be inspected at Equipment Control.

“…retain during”; experienced Equipment Control personnel can normally verify this by checking the ‘feel’ of the pistol in the holster.

S/ 4.2.6.5 “…unsafe holsters.

Match Officials are required to prohibit the unsafe use of any holster by any competitor”. The type and style of holster and position is to be checked at Equipment Control. Additionally, the Range Officer/s have responsibility for this once the shooter is under their control.

25 Yd Service Pistol – Shooting Vests

Following the completion of this event at Belmont, a ‘shooters meeting’ was held to discuss the match and some interpretations of its rules. This meeting was well attended and a few points are noteworthy:

Shooting Vests for 25 Yards Service:

While not all shooters at the nationals used ‘shooting vests’ for this event, there was seemingly unanimous agreement that they should be allowed within the intent of the 25 Yards Service Pistol rules, provided:

· The vest did not provide artificial support, and

· The pocket used for carrying the ammunition for each series was ‘normal’. I hope that we do not get into a process of defining ‘normal’ (some attempts at reinforcing and shaping the top of the pocket to facilitate loading, and sub-pocket sections to hold five-rounds ready for the next series have already been detected).

Many shooters (myself included) typically shoot the PA Service events in a pair of jeans and a knit-weave polo top, neither of which are all that conducive to carrying 25 rounds in a pocket. A shooting vest is a convenient solution - the use of vests is there for the convenience of the shooters, not to provide an advantage by fudging the intent…

S25/ 4.2.8.6 All ammunition necessary for a stage must be carried loose in a pocket (one pocket only) at the beginning of the stage…

Again, there was unanimous agreement that carrying ALL ammunition for a stage in one pocket was the way to go. Although there is no real advantage to a shooter in loading the first five shots other than from a packet (e.g. an ammunition tray), this rule keeps it ‘simple’.

Loading at 45.70m (Service Pistol & Service Pistol Unrestricted)

One important observation that came from the rules revision related to the procedures for loading for the 45.70 stage for Service Pistol and Service Pistol Unrestricted. The ‘old’ rules covering this aspect were written in the context of PA National Championships, i.e. the two matches were not conducted concurrently.

The reality of most club-level shooting has both Service Pistol and Service Pistol Unrestricted shooters side-by-side at the firing line – often there could be SPU shooters at the firing line to load while SP shooters could be back 2m to load the pistol. Even allowing for the separation between ‘service’ shooting bays, this was not a ‘good thing’.

To ensure that all shooters on the 45.70m line are not only safe, but also ‘appear to be safe’, all loading for 45.70m is at the firing line:

· For Service Pistol, LOAD, and HOLSTER at the firing line, then retire the 2m. If for any reason the shooter needs to remove the pistol from the holster before the command “START” this may only be done at the firing line.

· For Service Pistol Unrestricted, LOAD at the firing line and place the pistol on the ground, then retire the 2m.

If this procedure is followed there will be no other shooter forward of them while they are loading a pistol.

For Service Pistol:

At 45.70m: After the completion of preparation time the Range Officer calls "165 SECONDS LOAD".
The shooters stand at the firing line and,

- Load their pistols,

- Ensure that their pistols are in the appropriate safe condition for their type,

- Holster the pistols,

- Retire approximately 2m behind the firing line, and

- Assume the start position.