[ks_shooter]

Had a chance to shoot in my first Highpower Match on Sunday. I recently bought a Bushmaster XM15 Standard Target Model with a 20" barrel. The match was only the second time I have shot it. It was a "58 round match" with a 300 yard prone slow fire substituted for the 600 yard prone slow fire. I managed to shoot a 419 - 4x. It was a lot of fun and I shot better than I thought I would, since I don't normally shoot at anything over 50 yards without a scope. My 13 year old son came along and thought it looked like fun. Next time we are going to share the rifle so he can shoot too. One of the guys there had a decked out CMP model with all the bells and whistles (Krieger SS barrel, match sights, Rock River trigger, etc.). He shot 10 ring almost everytime. Seems to me that probably has less to do with the gun and more to do with his skill. All the same, I think that I will try some modest improvements to my rifle. What is the thinking on the CMP-legal free float handguard from Bushmaster? I modified my trigger pull by allowing the hammer spring ends to rest on the receiver floor, but I still can't measure the trigger pull on my 5 lb. gauge. Is this modification a good idea? It seems like there is still adequate force on the firing pin. Any other goodies that a guy on a budget could try? Thanks.