Posted by Pete van Meurs on
URL: http://oldforum.flyshooter.com.au/Factory-fly-gun-rules-question-tp5707503p5707511.html

Hi all,

Lee-Anne alerted me to this thread and I must say I am somewhat aghast that it got this far. Let us please make absolutely certain that we are all on the same train here. My understanding is that  'Factory' class came into being in order to attract first-time shooters to have a go at the 300 Fly. The fact that so many seasoned competitors have opted to double enter is probably regrettable in itself. However, if their equipment is on par with the new guy then we have allowed it in order to make up numbers. None the less, most times this event is won by a seasoned shooter which can potentially drive the newbies away as he/she would probably expect to be competing against others of similar standing. At our club matches at Eagle Park it is not prohibited for an experienced guy (or gal) to enter 'Factory' class but it is tacitly understood that it would be bad form to do so.

All this discussion of re-barreling has so far come from guys who have 'Custom' class rifles (and compete regularly in this class) and now would appear to the "outsider" to be looking to possibly improve their odds among themselves in Factory class. At no stage has anyone called for input by those that shoot 'Factory' class only.  Frankly this is crap, we have to go back to basics.

Factory class is for beginners (of sorts).

If a genuine factory barrel is not available then park it (in so far as using it in a match is concerned) and bad luck.  The commercial cost of a re-barrel is not far short of the price of many new rifles, so no bitching about cost! Let 'luck of the draw' determine if you have a good one rather than having a good one by design!!!!!!!!!!

Accuracy is all about the "Three B's". Barrels, Bullets and Butt-nuts. In 'Factory' class one is allowed to become a better 'Butt-nut' with practice and/or experience. It is also expected that the shooter will use hand-loaded ammo with a 'Bullet' that has shown to work well in the factory-fitted barrel. However, to up-grade the 'Barrel' is definitely not on in my view, as experience (over the past lots and lots of years) has shown that there is almost invariably a decided improvement in accuracy over the original offering.

Where to from here? If an organising club is silly enough to foot the bill for three sets of trophies then we could split "Factory" class into three divisions. 'Standard' would be rifles as per current rules used by relative new-comers, 'Advanced' would have the same gear but seasoned competitors, 'Expert' would be the preserve of the re-barreled mob. If this sounds like a ridiculous idea, you are dead right!!!!!!

I can't think of a better way to stuff-up 'Factory' class than allowing re-barrels. Re-stocking (no 3" fore-ends) would be reasonable if the 'Sporting' nature of the rifle was retained, but this is once again subject to abuse and hard to determine and police. "FACTORY" means "FACTORY" with the allowed mods of trigger and bedding as these are common-place on field rifles. Want to re-barrel your  favourite hunting rifle and shoot it in a match? No problem - enter 'Custom' class.

If you want to better fill your day (as a seasoned competitor) then offer to spot for a newbie and spend time talking to these people offering what assistance you can. This will do so much more for the sport than trying to win the 'Novice' trophy.

As a result of all the fore-going I state here and now that I will never again enter 'Factory' class as a serious entrant. Let me qualify that by saying that I might enter on a 'pre-disqualified' basis just to see how I might have fared against other seasoned shooters just for the fun of it. I think it behoves others in my situation to consider doing the same. Leave the 'Novice' class to the novices!

That's about it for now. Look forward to your responses.            

 Pete