Air and Free Pistol counts at Athens WC

[pilkguns in Jax,ville FL]

Code: Select all

            MAP WAP FP  Total
Morini      38  18  32  88
Steyr       30  28  00  58
TOZ         00  00  26  26
Walther     09  11  00  20
FWB         03  11  00  14
Pardini     02  06  01  09
Benelli     03  01  00  04
Hammerli    00  01  02  03
MG          01  02  00  03
MZ          00  00  01  01
Total       86  78  62  

Morini is streaking ahead but it remains a Steyr and Morini world

[RobStubbs]

How can Morini be 'streaking ahead' when they are behind in the AP stakes ?? Sure there are more Morini FP's (including <at least> one 'UK spec' long arm model) but not air.

Rob.

MAP WAP FP Total
Morini 38 18 32 88
Steyr 30 28 00 58
TOZ 00 00 26 26
Walther 09 11 00 20
FWB 03 11 00 14
Pardini 02 06 01 09
Benelli 03 01 00 04
Hämmerli 00 01 02 03
MG 01 02 00 03
MZ 00 00 01 01
Total 86 78 62


Morini is streaking ahead but it remains a Steyr and Morini world

[pilkguns in FL]

don't know what you mean by "behind"
this the first time I have seen Morini outnumber Steyr in MAP

[RobStubbs]

Try adding the AP numbers up. Works out as 56 for Morini and 58 for Steyr. So as I said, morini are behind in AP (and not 'streaking ahead').

I do agree though that they are building up a larger percentage of the shooting competitors. Must be an even more worrying statistic for the likes of Walther and FWB.

Rob.

[Mike McDaniel]

What I really find interesting is the long-term trend - men seem to prefer the Morini AP to the Steyr by about 3:2. Women prefer the Steyr to the Morini by about the same margin.

It will be interesting to see if the FWB P40 makes any inroads. I suspect that they will have a hard time. Not that the gun is bad, but Steyr and Morini have built up a lot of momentum and a whopping lead.

[Mark Briggs]

The scariest observation to be made is in the free pistol domain. The CM84E owns the playing field, followed by the TOZ. Hammerli, which once had a respectable percentage of pistols on the line, has been relegated to "also-ran" status. (It is interesting to note that the sole Hammerli FP-10 shooter did very well in the qualifying match.)

Perhaps it's worthy to note that Walther, Feinwerkbau, Steyr and Morini all had factory support of one sort or another at Athens. Hammerli had absolutely nothing. Would you travel to a match half way around the world carrying a pistol which you depend on absolutely, only to find there's nobody at the match to fix it if it should break? I know I wouldn't.

[Guest]

What about Anschutz AP? Do you count them as Steyrs?

[Guest]

Mark:

With all due respect, I beg to differ on how one should choose one's FP.

From your post you seem to choose your FP base on the probability the manufacturer would show up at the competition to, just in case, fix your FP. And if they won't be there, you won't use that particular brand of FP.

First of all, they may show up at some of the matches you will be shooting and not in others. Then what? Would you have a few different brands on hand, find out who will be there, then decide on which one to bring? ( Gosh! That would be a great reason to tell your wife why you should buy several FPs, too!!)

Secondly, I always believe a competitor should thoroughly prepare him-/herself before going into a major competition, equipment check included. I don't think one should rely on the factory rep there to make you feel "safe". Yes, they can fix it for you there, but it would still be detrimental to have to fix your FP during a competition. You should be checking and double checking to make sure things go right, and not counting on the factory rep. To have a major breakdown is not good at all, rep or no rep.

Thirdly, do we not choose a FP, or any other gun, depending on the quality and the feel...etc.? If the gun is good, and your shooting style matches that of the gun so you feel good shooting it and got reasonable results, then who cares about the factory rep? Just look at the number of TOZ shooters there. From time to time there are people running into difficulties finding the right TOZ parts. It could be an older model, or it could be discontinued, or any other reason. It could be hard to find parts or hard to find someone to fix it. But from the numbers here they seem to be sticking to it even at this high level.

Hmmmmm....

Just my 2 cents. :-)

[Mark Briggs]

Thank you for your comments. If you snoop around here long enough you'll find a few of my posted responses to those who ask the common "what should I buy" question. I think you'll find that most of my responses have stuck to the "pick what fits you best" line of thought. Factory support is one of the variables that influences the purchase decision, but ultimately form fit and function will take precedence in the decision-making tree. As a case in point, I once wanted to buy a Walther FP, but found it far too heavy for my liking so I didn't purchase it. It wasn't until much later that I discovered Walther no longer supports this gun. Had the pistol fit me and I had purchased it, I would have been stuck with an orphan.

My current FP is a Morini CM84E, with a Hammerli 150 as my backup gun. I bought the Hammerli before I learned about the fragility of free pistols and the importance of factory support. Since then I've learned that Hammerli factory support is minimal, at best. If you can find the part you need then you'd better be ready to spend very serious cash to buy it. Luckily for me, my pistol came with many spares (about $800 worth!). When I did break a part for which I didn't have a spare it took me four months to get a replacement. If I have another breakdown then I'll likely sell this pistol and buy a different one. I just can't afford to spend the effort it takes to deal with Hammerli to try to get a gun fixed. I'd much rather spend the effort on training.

I'll contrast this with my Morini. I bought the gun brand new, with absolutely no spare parts other than an extra battery. A close friend also bought my pistol's "twin" that was imported at the same time as mine. He had no end of problems with it and the Morini factory provided him fantastic support, including virtually rebuilding the pistol. I've now had problems with my breachblock cracking. It took me a week and a half to have a replacement breachblock in my hands. And when I ask technical questions, I get technical answers. Morini represents probably the finest factory support in the business - I just wish other manufacturers would follow suit.

Yes, I agree 100% that competition guns need to be kept in absolutely top condition. And mine are. But it takes a good supply of parts to keep them running, and it takes good technical know-how from the factory to resolve some of the more difficult problems. Some manufacturers just don't have what it takes to meet these criteria.

As for the TOZ, I've owned one of these pistols and consider it to be a fine shooting iron. It just didn't fit me well so I sold it. But the TOZ is the Volkswagon Beetle of pistols. Very functional, easily serviced, cheap, and common as fleas on a dog. I don't know many serious shooters who own a TOZ and don't have a backup TOZ or at least a bag of spare parts to keep their gun functioning. Comparing the TOZ to any current free pistol is a little unfair because it's had 40 years to fill the market. And since it was cheap, there are lots of them around. A big field population of these pistols allows for cannabalization of some examples to keep the rest of the fleet going (gee, sounds a lot like the VW Beetle, doesn't it? LoL).

Factory support needs to be an important consideration in choosing one's next free pistol, but by no means is it the only consideration. Once one has narrowed the field to a few different models then one has to take a long hard look at the resources that are available to keep each of these pistols operational for as many years as you intend to own it. Under this scrutiny a clear winner will emerge.

[Guest]

Mike does that make the Steyr a girly gun and the Morini a manly gun?

Sorry couldn't resist LOL ;~)

What I really find interesting is the long-term trend - men seem to prefer the Morini AP to the Steyr by about 3:2. Women prefer the Steyr to the Morini by about the same margin.

It will be interesting to see if the FWB P40 makes any inroads. I suspect that they will have a hard time. Not that the gun is bad, but Steyr and Morini have built up a lot of momentum and a whopping lead.

[David M]

Another interesting thing from the games. but the figures don't show,in Airpistol for Morini. is the increasing numbers of the shorter models (with extended rear sight) being used.

[Mark Briggs]

Ah, I was beginning to wonder how the "short" version was doing. Thanks for that clarification, David. Glad to know I'm not the only one who's decided to go with the short one.

Hope all's well "down under"!