What National Champions use

John Shue


A 6” Nelson conversion.

Is there a distinct advantage of a 6" Nelson unit over a 5"?

CO1Mtn wrote:Is there a distinct advantage of a 6" Nelson unit over a 5"?

Didn’t ask Shue if his 6” was better than my 5”.

Given his skill level, I’m sure it’s not a perfectly stock barrel.

But, he might only drop a few points using mine!

CO1Mtn wrote:Is there a distinct advantage of a 6" Nelson unit over a 5"?

I have both, the short answer is no. 

The long answer is it depends. The 6" has a bit of a different feel than the 5" and obviously a bit more sight radius if shooting irons. How much these things may or may not matter to you is where the bench racing game starts. For what it is worth, I shoot both of mine fairly equally, so in my case I happily shoot either.

I saw this in Facebook and almost immediately thought, "huh, I wonder what most hm are shooting for 22. So many options."

Jwhelan939 wrote:I saw this in Facebook and almost immediately thought, "huh, I wonder what most hm are shooting for 22. So many options."

Lots of 208 variants, some 1911/22 conversions, a couple AW93’s here and there. With exception to few that’s about it in terms of popularity for rimfire pistols amongst the high master class shooters I know. But the thing to keep in mind is that many of the rimfire pistols that we are familiar with, Pardini, Match Gun, a Model 41, High Standards, Ruger’s even, they can all shoot tight enough to compete with, or made to be a competitive gun. 

The preference, in my humble opinion, comes down to how much can I get out of the gun without having to overhaul it entirely. A 208 is pretty competitive with minor work. Same can be said for a 1911/22 conversion. The rest of the guns have user interface challenges from one shooter to the next or have mechanical problems that will eventually have to be addressed. I rarely see 208’s malfunction but when they do it’s because something has broken. Not a spring, or fouled gun, or “bad ammo”. A 1911/22 conversion gives the shooter an opportunity to focus on one platform, one grip shape and trigger design. And parts are easily had. 

There are positives and negatives to any situation you choose but I think the guns that most high masters commonly gravitate towards are for similar reasons. The guns they choose are hammers out of the gate, and require little work for the shooter to interface with the gun and get the results they’re looking for. And I don’t mean score when I mention results.

I really like Jason's comments. 

But may I throw other factors into the mix. 

AFAIK, most of the current and past National Champions and most current HM's have come from the military markmanship units - one way or another. My casual observation suggests that those military units favour 208's or similar. 

Many of those shooters developed their skills using service pistols (OK, I immediately must qualify that by noting that several are/were very successful in International AP/FP, etc., with Euro guns and anatomical grips). Several of them are gunsmiths and presumably prefer a platform that they can work on or develop themselves.

And then there are range conditions. I am not best qualified to opine on this, but I am finding that a "hard hold" on a 1911 style grip is much better than a Euro style anatomical grip when shooting outdoors in wind/rain/etc. Shooting a Pardini in a nice enclosed range or even indoors is a totally different proposition compared to standing in the middle of a 300 acre paddock next to an inland sea!

I shoot a 208S with the rink slabs that Red Feather sells, best of both worlds. Great grip and balance like a 1911 but with the amazing trigger, reliability and accuracy of a Hammerli.