Action Pistol

Background

In Australia the Action Pistol (formerly International 1920) Match comprises four courses of fire shot at the National Rifle Association (NRA) of America’s Action Pistol Bianchi Cup. NRA Action Pistol match comprises sixteen different recognised courses of fire.

Course of fire

The four courses of fire in Action Pistol Match include the Falling Plates, the Mover, the Practical and the Barricade events. Each course of fire in the Action Pistol Match is 48 rounds x 10 points each, totaling a match score of 480 points.

Two types of targets are used in Australia i.e. 8 inch steel falling plates and the NRA target, which is a cardboard rectangle with a rounded top. The target has a printed inner X 10 ring used for tie breaks, an outer 10 ring and an 8 ring. The remainder of the target scores 5 points.

The Action Pistol Match shooting is available to all pistol shooters who hold a holster proficiency card.

The Falling Plate event is a series of six 8 inch plates, each worth 10 points and one X. The plates are shot at 10, 15, 20 & 25 yards with the time allowed to shoot all plates varying from 6 to 9 seconds. Competitors may stand, kneel or go prone to shoot the plates, but the starting position is always to stand with hands shoulder high. The plates are a hit or miss match. The saying is "there are no 8's on plates" as they can make or break your match.

In the Mover event the NRA target will move from behind a barricade, travel 60 feet in 6 seconds then disappear behind another barricade. The competitor stands in a box central to the mover. At 10 yards and 15 yards the competitor needs to fire 6 shoots on each pass. At 20 yards and 25 yards the competitor fires 3 shots on each pass (done twice) - this gives the competitor 48 rounds. The competitor has 7½ minutes to complete the whole course.

The Practical event consists of 4 stages, each stage having 3 strings and 12 shots – a total 48 rounds. Each stage is shot at 10, 15, 25 and 50 yards. At the 10 yard line one of the strings require the competitor to shoot 3 shots on each target using only his/her weak hand i.e. left hand if right-handed or right hand if left-handed. The competitor has between 3 to 15 seconds to complete some of the strings depending on the distance.

In the Barricade event the competitor stands in a box behind a solid barricade. The course of fire is 6 shoots from one side of the barricade at one target and then 6 shots from the opposite side. This is shot from 10, 15, 25 and 35 yards. All strings are 6 shots and times range from 5 to 8 seconds.

These four events combine to give a match aggregate. The Australian record is 1920 183x shot by Mickey Fowler of the USA at the 2000 National Championships in Canberra.

Perfect score

An inner X count of 48 allows for a maximum overall score of 1920 points (192x).

Schedule

Shot on alternating Saturdays and Sundays during the year