Time to cast,

[Distant Thunder]

Kurt,

That first time I shot my .44-77 at Lodi was a total debacle! I was in no way ready to deal with the fouling I had and in the long shot strings the fouling just killed me even though it shot well here at home (220 yards).

I don't think I shot it in a long-range match after that one. I'm pretty sure I got the fouling problems resolved, but shit shows up at a match that never even looks like a problem at home, so we will see.

I seem to be able to use the irons on my 34" barreled Hepburn and do well. I think I can see pretty darn good. When I have tried irons on the 30" .44-77 I can't make out anything, I can tell if I'm aiming at the target or just a dull grey smudge or shadow.

I have never yet done well with my scoped rifles at a long-range paper match. I've done better at mid-range paper and I love my scope for silhouette. Both my scopes have just plain crosshairs and I'm not sure I'm centering the target that well. The learning curve is definitely there. I'm not discouraged at all, I like the scope and with the DZ or MVA mounts I have no trouble making corrections. I sometimes have trouble with the math that the 7.2" mounts causes me to have to do. Each .001" on the dial moves me .5 MOA, so do I divide or multiply? Being dyslectic I can easy do it wrong. That might not be the best excuse, but it's the only one I've got!

If I went to a spacing that equaled 1/3 or 1/5 MOA I'm sure there would be a complete disaster waiting for me.