Nils Jonasson

Canik Wins – 2023 USPSA Area 5 Championship – Full Carry Optics match video.

The 2023 USPSA Area 5 Championship was held at the Brooklyn Sportsman’s Club between May 31st and June 4th, 2023. The shooting schedule had me competing half days on Saturday and Sunday. My main competition at the match included Jacob Hetherington from the AMU, Army Marksmanship Unit, John Vlieger from team Mark7 Reloading and Tom Castro from the Tom Castro Shooting Academy.

Everyone with the exception of Jacob shot together on our little Carry Optics Super Squad. Results are on PractiScore and can be found HERE.

Squad #201

Area 5 is what I would consider a more traditional style USPSA match. It’s not a hose fest with targets 5 feet from your face, and you generally won’t see crazy activators or gimmicky stages that are inconsistent from shooter to shooter. You can however expect to see some very challenging stages that mix some element you probably haven’t practiced much with others you have

Take stage #13 “The Train Station” Time code 5:50 on the attached YouTube video. It was a 2 string stage requiring some accurate distance shooting using only your primary hand after the reload on the first string, then more stand and deliver shooting with another mandatory reload between positions ending with 3 targets draped with penalty targets to be engaged with only your non-dominant hand. This year they were gentle and gave us a time limited of 12 seconds, which sounds bad but actually make the stage easier. Last years Area 5 had an identically looking stage without a par time, which meant every miss you had not only counted against your point total but gave you an additional penalty for each missed shot. This left a large percentage of the match effectively zeroing this 120 point stage due to missed shots. For 2023 the addition of the 12 second par time meant that it was treated like the now fixed time stage it was, meaning the points you score is your hit factor, assuming you didn’t hit a noshoot or fire an overtime shot.

Fun fact – Only 4 people zeroed the stage in 2023 whereas nearly 40 people zeroed the stage in 2022. In Carry Optics Tom Castro won this stage with a 112 point score while I finished 2nd Carry Optics with a 110 point score.

Should YOU spend your money shooting Area 5?

This is one of the best area matches in USPSA and I absolutely recommend attending Area 5. I believe this is my 3rd year shooting the Area 5 at the Brooklyn Sportsman’s Club and I every year they continue to make it better.

Huge thank you to the staff and everyone that makes these matches possible by volunteering your time and energy designing, building, staffing and administering events such as these.

THANK YOU.

Results & Equipment

I’m happy to say Canik pulled out another win at Area 5 Championship this year. Final Carry Optics standing were

Nils Jonasson 1st place

John Vlieger 2nd place

Tom Castro 3rd place

My pistol was the Canik SFX Rival-S which is Canik’s new steel frame 9mm pistol designed specifically for USPSA, IDPA and IPSC competition.

The Basepads I use are a combination TaylorFreelance and Taran Tactical extensions with Grams springs and followers.

Keep your belt up.

Ever had so much shooting gear on your outer belt that it wouldn’t stay attached to the inner belt? Well here’s the solution for you. Velcro!!! That’s right, the same stuff that holds the two belts together. All you need is some extra Velcro and a little time. Let’s get started.

First thing you need is a inner/outer competition belt that is overfull and needs some help. This could be a Blade Tech, CR Speed, Double Alpha or any other brand. Next buy this

Or something like it online, at your local hardware store or fabric store. I like the 2″ rolls for extra coverage.

Once you have your Velcro, apply to the inside of the problem areas, mainly holster or mag pouches. Be sure to clean the area before applying Velcro, then let it sit overnight if possible. This allows the adhesive to set and produces a much stronger backer.

This method keeps everything where it’s supposed to be and allows you to focus on shooting.

What is the best rifle scope for 3 gun?

Best rifle scope I’ve found for 3 gun.

What is the best rifle scope for 3 Gun?

All I can tell you is what has worked for me over the years and what I believe delivers the best performance in the most common situations you’ll find in 3 gun competition.

I have used the Trijicon Accupoint series scopes for years. I started with the Accupoint TR-21, a 1.25-4 power scope, for the first few years. I even managed to win the USPSA MultiGun Nationals using that scope.

I later upgraded to the new model Accupoint 1-4 power TR24 which is probably the best bang for the buck for a close to mid-range rifle scope.

“What makes the Accupoint so good?”

That’s easy, the answer is speed. Close up is where this scope really shines. In most matches, targets are relatively close with shots ranging from pointblank to 50 yards. This scope has some of the best eye relief on the market, is very clear, and the triangle reticle gives you a large glob-like mass directing your focus to its tip. This allows you to blaze through close paper like nothing else.

It also gives you a fine aiming point for long distance shooting. Most matches have only a few 100-300 yard shots. With the right zero this scope is perfectly capable of making hits on long distance shots as well. I’ve found that a 30-300 yard zero works best for me. It eliminates holdover on most long range targets. The only downside to running this type of zero is remembering to hold under targets between 30 and 300.

Trijicon’s newest version allows for more confident long range by increasing the power range to 1-6. The Accupoint TR25 is a little more expensive than its predecessor but does offer some nice advantages. Mainly by taking some of the guesswork out of shots passed 300 yards with the additional magnification.

Yes I’m a little biased toward the Trijicon Accupiont because it’s what I originally started with, but some great shooters, including Taran Butler, have used them and dominated the 3 gun world for years.

Thanks for taking the time to read this article. If you have any questions please feel free to leave a comment below.

Best slide mounted optic for Carry and Competition.

best slide mounted red dot optic for any carry or competition gun.

If you’re in the market for the best optic for your concealed carry or competition pistol, look no farther than the Leupold Delta Point Pro Reflex Dot Sight ( 2.5 MOA Dot)

With close to a dozen quality red dots on the market today, Leupold stands out for having quick and easy battery changes, clear glass quality, a reputation for being extremely durable, along with great customer service.

It was the most used optic this year at the USPSA Carry Optic Nationals and for good reason. Not every red dot is strong enough to hold up to the pounding of constant slide movement and I don’t recall seeing any Deltapoint Pro’s fail at nationals.

If you have any questions about this sight or competition in general feel free to leave a comment.

Open Guns. 9mm or 38 Supercomp?

pros and cons of 38 supercomp vs 9mm major when building a open gun for competition.

I’ve been asked what caliber Open gun would be best for USPSA/IPSC competition a lot this past month. It’s something I’ve had to research a great deal lately because of the Open build Mclearn Custom did for me last month. Caliber is the number one question when building a major open gun and deserves careful consideration.

The two main options nowadays are either 9mm major or 38 supercomp. Both have pros and cons and both are good options. I want back and forth for a long time deciding

PROS & CONS

38 Supercomp Pros:

Softer shooting
10 plus reloads per case
More consistent ejection
Many powder options
Able to use standard upright C-more with large viewing area.

38 Supercomp Cons:

Expensive initial investment “Starline Brass”
Losing brass at major matches that are lost brass matches
Having to pickup brass all the time

9mm Major Pros:

Little to no initial investment
Don’t worry about retrieving all your brass
Major matches don’t cost any extra because of lost brass

9mm Major Cons:

Erratic ejection because of mixed headstamps
Unreliable with upright mounted C-mores “because of #1”
Snappy compared to Supercomp
limited powder choices when making major
short brass life “2-3 reloads max”
Need to use micro dot sight or side mounted C-more

I originally wanted to run 9mm and not change my reloading setup or worry about picking up brass like a crazy person. It was a struggle, on the one hand 9mm brass is cheap and easy but I really wanted to run a standard C-more mounted upright, any chance of a malfunction is not an option at nationals level matches. I had to take a deep look at what my goal for the pistol would be. Winning was that goal and after going round and round I finally decided that the extra initial cost of 38 Supercomp would put me in a better position to perform at my best.

Here’s a picture of the completed open gun by Mclearn Custom

Armalite 3 Man 3 Gun Championship

Held in Topton PA, the Armalite 3 Man 3 Gun Championship attracted almost every top 3 gun shooter in the United States with over 100 3 man teams competing for the top spot. I had the opportunity to compete with Todd Jarrett and Brian Nelson as my teammates in this challenging yet incredibly fun team match.

The 8 stages were a mix of relay style shooting and massive group stages. The match used one day format that was tough on the shooters towards the end of the day, but rewarding because of how quickly you could get in and out.

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Weather was a cool 90 Degrees and 95% Humidity which you’d think coming from 115F in Arizona would be easy, but no! at about 10AM everyone was drenched in sweat, but the tress, cloud cover and breeze made it bearable.

Huge thank you to Taran Tactical Innovations for setting up the team and making it possible for us to compete in the match. I used a TTI Glock 34 pistol, 24″ TTI Benelli M2 Shotgun and a 16″ TTI TR-1 Ultimate rifle. All my pistol ammo was reloaded 9mm with 124gr Berry’s Bullets while my rifle was ASYM Ammo 55gr Range Training ammunition.

We started off a few seconds back because of a foot fault penalty but took the lead on the second stage of the day, we maintained the lead until the last stage where a tactical mistake cost us dearly. After the dust settled, Team Taran Tactical won 3 of the 8 stages and placed 4th over all.

Armalite3man3gun — Team Taran Tactical Innovations, Nils Jonasson, Todd Jarrett and Brian Nelson. Photo credit Paul Begovich.

Look for Video on my YouTube soon.

A Learning Experience

This is the excerpt for your very first post.

What you do when you fail is more important than when you win.

Most people won’t ever win a National Championship or finish top ten at the World Shoot, but a lot of people will get disqualified for one thing or another.
Sadly I am no exception to this, and have been DQ’d more times then I care to admit. Not just at local club matches but major Nationals events.

Recently I competed in the 2016 Infinity Open In Texas and was Disqualified because the RO felt I broke the 180 when a door I opened hit the end of my muzzle. Now whether or not I actually committed a safety infraction as a result is beside the point. What matters is how You react to the news that your whole match is over.

It takes a great deal of time money and effort to shoot big matches like this one, even for someone like me who is fortunate enough to have sponsors like Taran Tactical Innovations, Mclearn Custom Guns, Blade-Tech Industries, Berry’s Bullets, Asym Ammunition and other amazing companies supporting me, It’s still hard to accept. I think being frustrated is pretty natural. The LAST thing you should do however is put the Range Officer on blast or lose your temper with match officials.
Since arbitration of a safety call of this nature isn’t allowed in USPSA, your one and best option is to disagree with the RO but accept whatever call is made and GO HOME. No one wants to see you throw a tantrum or flip your shit, It makes you look petty and childish.

What has to happen afterwards is an evaluation of the situation to determine whether or not something needs to be corrected in your training in order to prevent it from happening again.
Running with your finger on the trigger, sweeping yourself, accidental discharges, things like this are fixable at club matches and in dry fire/practice, if you use your disaster as a learning experience, It turns into a valuable lesson instead of a waste.

Good luck at the range and stay safe.