Long Live Second Chance-style Bowling Pin Shooting!

otasan · March 23, 2008, 08:09 PM

I own two revolvers and four autoloading pistols. All but my G17 are for pin shooting! The G17 is for CCW, while ALL the others are for "pinacide."

The challenge is to knock five pins off of a table 8 meters downrange. The pins have three feet of hostile table-top behind them, and the typical .40 S&W and NO 9x19 will do the job!

Handguns that can achieve power factor 210,000 are the ticket for pin shooting. The winner is the one who can put the five pins on the ground the fastest! And not any hit will do. The pin's curved surfaces resist penetration, reducing the kill zone to a mere 18 square inches.

By the way, the Second Chance-style of pin shooting limits the firearms to iron-sights only!

So show me a shooting sport that requires the shooter to hit five small targets with powerful handgun bullets as fast as possible. IPSC? The targets are huge and the power factor is 165,000 at most.

Steel Challenge? The targets are huge and the ammo is even weaker than IPSC/IDPA.

With going on 30 years of pin shooting behind me, I believe that it is the closest thing to self-defense shooting that I have ever seen. It is close-range (25 feet), it requires powerful ammunition, precision accuracy, and it is over in a few seconds.

Long Live Pin Shooting!

.351winchester · March 23, 2008, 09:45 PM

Does Second Chance still put one on? Always wanted to give it a try (they had 3-gun type stuff before I knew about 3-Gun), and good excuse to buy a Glock 20 or 629 Mountain (had 8" Anaconda and 1911 though, suitable). Only a couple hours from that area. Got the impression it was an all cop type event, though.

nate45 · March 23, 2008, 10:00 PM

I really enjoy shooting bowling pins, haven't done it in a while. I may get one going at the local range.

It's lots of fun and your right wimpy ammo won't get the job done. I remember back in the mid 80's I was consistently shooting times less than 4 sec to clear the table with my 1911 and Lew Horton .44 magnum. It was hilarious watching newbies try it with hi-cap 9mms. My stock line was now you know why it has a 15 rd capacity.

Ya I think I'll get Pin shooting going around here. Its great fun.

Hunter Customs · March 24, 2008, 09:48 AM

I agree with most everything that was said, I do love pin shooting.
That being said all the large matches that I shot in different parts of the country including Second Chance in MI and the Pin Nationals in IA allowed the use of raceguns with red-dot sights.
Before my pin shooting career came to a close I was shooting an All Sport Forty racegun and my loads was making a 210 power factor. Yep a 210 power factor from a 40 S&W case.
The video on my website was taken of me at South Connellsville PA; that's the All Sporty Forty I'm competing with.
I still have a regulation pin table on my range and about 400 pins in the barn.
All of the big pin matches including Second Chance are finished, sure do miss them shoots.
Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

Ken O · March 24, 2008, 09:21 PM

Yep, pins were a lot of fun. Its been about 10 years since I've shot or seen them available. I had a pin range in my back yard, but it was too much trouble going and setting them back up.

So... I cut the pin shape out of steel, bolted them down to a table, and shoot them like Steel Challenge in my backyard pistol pit. I can hit them four or five times, then spray paint them and start over. No leaning down picking them up etc. I still have close to two foot of snow here, and its a pain to even paint them, the real pins would be impossible.

I just shoot whats available in the area, right now I have IDPA and IPSC. A couple years ago we had Steel Challenge. I don't get into what is better than the other or care. I just go out, shoot and have fun. If you feel that pins are more fun than whats available, by all means get it going!

Gunfighter123 · March 28, 2008, 11:56 AM

Pic of my OLD Clark Pin Master --- done by Jim Sr. and used to win a BUNCH of awards !!!
The load I use for Pins was a 230gr. Hollow Point at about 950+ fps !!!!!
Still got this gun and it is one of the few I own that are not for sale.

Slopemeno · March 29, 2008, 01:33 AM

Clark's guns from that era were really nice. LOVE the Tiger-tooth stippling.

Hunter Customs · March 29, 2008, 09:18 AM

The tiger-tooth stippling that Jim did is the only stippling that really does the job. It could be a little rough on the shooters hand but the gun did not slip in your hands.
The first pin guns I built for myself I used Clark pin master comps.
Clark also had some barrels with a right hand twist, they were an excellent choice when shooting fast 185gr JHP bullets.
Regards
Bob Hunter
www.huntercustoms.com

potentpoefie · March 5, 2010, 01:40 AM

I know this thread is on the old side but I only found it yesterday.

BIG fan of Pin Shooting. We in South African actually have a full league going based on the rules of Second Chance.

Go have a look at http://www.sapinshooting.com

We shoot the following core events. 9 Pin Tip Over (9 pin event), Stock Gun (5 pin event), Pin Gun (5 pin event), Stock Revolver Forced Reload Event (8 pin event) and Pin Revolver Event (8 pin event)

On the download section is the rule book we work on. So it might be a good help to get you pin shooting started at your local ranges. Something to work from. Get everybody shooting the same way/level. Make it a sport.

How big is Pin Shooting over there at the moment. Does the Second Chance shoot still happen?

NRAhab · March 5, 2010, 11:43 AM

No, Second Chance hasn't happened for quite some time now; pin shooting has disappeared at the national level, although you'll still find local clubs still shooting pin matches from time to time. It's too bad, because pin shoots are probably the most spectator friendly of the handgun games.

potentpoefie · March 8, 2010, 03:30 AM

Isn't that the truth. And loads of fun to be had. You just don't know what those pins are going to do at any given day.

mikejonestkd · March 8, 2010, 08:34 AM

Our local club has pin shoots all summer long on tuesday nights, its tons of fun and a real challenge to do well. They even added a rimfire class, using the tops of old pins for targets. The standard 5 pins at 25 feet and a 3' table top behind the pins apply.

I had the pleasure of being at a shoot when my cousin cleared the table in 1.9 seconds with a glock 35 with 180 grain XTPs. I believe it is still a club record..

potentpoefie · March 9, 2010, 02:26 PM

Holy moly. 1.9 seconds!!!
That's 5 pins with a max of 8 rounds in the gun. Not that 1.9 seconds gives you time to miss.

I am impressed.

We have the following classes except for the core events listed in my previous post.

22 smith (22lr pistol or revolver) - 8 shot max in the gun - 5 heads of pins
22lr manual rifle (bolt/pump/lever/whatever you have) - 5 shot max - 5 heads of pins
22lr auto rifle (semi-auto) - 5 shot max per mag - 5 heads of pins
shotgun manual (bolt/pump/lever/whatever you have) 5 pin setup (forced reload 3 in the gun to start off with)
shotgun auto (semi-auto) 5 pin setup (forced reload 3 in the gun to start off with)
pocket pistol - 5 pin set at the back of the table to just tip them over (any pistol with a barrel of 3.5 inches max)
snubby - 5 pin set at the back of the table to just tip them over (any centre fire revolver with a 3 inch or shorter barrel)
manual light rifle pop and flop - 223 (bolt/lever/pump or whatever you have) 5 pins setup at 100m.
auto light rifle pop and flop - 223 auto loader - same setup as above
manual rifle pop and flop - bigger than 223 (bolt. etc. etc.) same setup as above
auto rifle pop and flop - bigger than 223 auto loading - same setup as above
then last but not least. Shotgun Open class - either manual or auto loading loaded to full gun capacity shooting at 5 pin setup.

You would think auto loaders rule. You would be wrong. Took top honours with a pump action Mossberg 500 a couple of months ago.

These elective events are loads of fun. Then you see what we men expect from our wives. These littel snubbies and pocket pistols are actually expert guns. You need to know what you are doing. bad sights, horrible trigger pulls and sometimes loads of recoil in those light little guns. So now that the guys don't have their supped up sporting arms they struggle with these elective events. I mean who is going to "do up" their snubbies and pocket pistols for an event that is shot like maybe every 3 month. See we alternate the elective events every month.

There is a lot of fun to be had with pins. And as a gun nut i've never seen a sport that covers more kinds of weapons. See we have a licensing issue here in South Africa. We need to prove the NEED to have a firearm. With this sport I can have the guns I want.....sorry I NEED.

March 23, 2008, 08:09 PM	#1
otasan Junior member Join Date: April 17, 2005 Location: Hartford, Vermont Posts: 519	Long Live Second Chance-style Bowling Pin Shooting! I own two revolvers and four autoloading pistols. All but my G17 are for pin shooting! The G17 is for CCW, while ALL the others are for "pinacide." The challenge is to knock five pins off of a table 8 meters downrange. The pins have three feet of hostile table-top behind them, and the typical .40 S&W and NO 9x19 will do the job! Handguns that can achieve power factor 210,000 are the ticket for pin shooting. The winner is the one who can put the five pins on the ground the fastest! And not any hit will do. The pin's curved surfaces resist penetration, reducing the kill zone to a mere 18 square inches. By the way, the Second Chance-style of pin shooting limits the firearms to iron-sights only! So show me a shooting sport that requires the shooter to hit five small targets with powerful handgun bullets as fast as possible. IPSC? The targets are huge and the power factor is 165,000 at most. Steel Challenge? The targets are huge and the ammo is even weaker than IPSC/IDPA. With going on 30 years of pin shooting behind me, I believe that it is the closest thing to self-defense shooting that I have ever seen. It is close-range (25 feet), it requires powerful ammunition, precision accuracy, and it is over in a few seconds. Long Live Pin Shooting!

March 23, 2008, 10:00 PM	#3
nate45 Senior Member Join Date: July 15, 2007 Location: Illinois Posts: 3,746	I really enjoy shooting bowling pins, haven't done it in a while. I may get one going at the local range. It's lots of fun and your right wimpy ammo won't get the job done. I remember back in the mid 80's I was consistently shooting times less than 4 sec to clear the table with my 1911 and Lew Horton .44 magnum. It was hilarious watching newbies try it with hi-cap 9mms. My stock line was now you know why it has a 15 rd capacity. Ya I think I'll get Pin shooting going around here. Its great fun. __________________ "No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms."- Thomas Jefferson ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ (>_<)

March 5, 2010, 11:43 AM	#10
NRAhab Senior Member Join Date: August 20, 2005 Location: Bellevue, WA Posts: 683	No, Second Chance hasn't happened for quite some time now; pin shooting has disappeared at the national level, although you'll still find local clubs still shooting pin matches from time to time. It's too bad, because pin shoots are probably the most spectator friendly of the handgun games. __________________ Join the community at GunUp!

March 8, 2010, 08:34 AM	#12
mikejonestkd Senior Member Join Date: January 3, 2006 Location: Brockport, NY Posts: 3,717	Our local club has pin shoots all summer long on tuesday nights, its tons of fun and a real challenge to do well. They even added a rimfire class, using the tops of old pins for targets. The standard 5 pins at 25 feet and a 3' table top behind the pins apply. I had the pleasure of being at a shoot when my cousin cleared the table in 1.9 seconds with a glock 35 with 180 grain XTPs. I believe it is still a club record.. __________________ You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

March 23, 2008, 09:45 PM	#2
.351winchester Junior member Join Date: December 31, 2005 Location: MI Posts: 1,013	Does Second Chance still put one on? Always wanted to give it a try (they had 3-gun type stuff before I knew about 3-Gun), and good excuse to buy a Glock 20 or 629 Mountain (had 8" Anaconda and 1911 though, suitable). Only a couple hours from that area. Got the impression it was an all cop type event, though.

March 24, 2008, 09:48 AM	#4
Hunter Customs Senior Member Join Date: March 26, 2005 Location: Osborn, Missouri Posts: 2,697	I agree with most everything that was said, I do love pin shooting. That being said all the large matches that I shot in different parts of the country including Second Chance in MI and the Pin Nationals in IA allowed the use of raceguns with red-dot sights. Before my pin shooting career came to a close I was shooting an All Sport Forty racegun and my loads was making a 210 power factor. Yep a 210 power factor from a 40 S&W case. The video on my website was taken of me at South Connellsville PA; that's the All Sporty Forty I'm competing with. I still have a regulation pin table on my range and about 400 pins in the barn. All of the big pin matches including Second Chance are finished, sure do miss them shoots. Regards Bob Hunter www.huntercustoms.com

March 24, 2008, 09:21 PM	#5
Ken O Senior Member Join Date: November 2, 2005 Location: Half way between Grayling and Cadillac, Michigan Posts: 353	Yep, pins were a lot of fun. Its been about 10 years since I've shot or seen them available. I had a pin range in my back yard, but it was too much trouble going and setting them back up. So... I cut the pin shape out of steel, bolted them down to a table, and shoot them like Steel Challenge in my backyard pistol pit. I can hit them four or five times, then spray paint them and start over. No leaning down picking them up etc. I still have close to two foot of snow here, and its a pain to even paint them, the real pins would be impossible. I just shoot whats available in the area, right now I have IDPA and IPSC. A couple years ago we had Steel Challenge. I don't get into what is better than the other or care. I just go out, shoot and have fun. If you feel that pins are more fun than whats available, by all means get it going!

March 29, 2008, 01:33 AM	#7
Slopemeno Senior Member Join Date: January 19, 2007 Posts: 2,663	Clark's guns from that era were really nice. LOVE the Tiger-tooth stippling.

March 29, 2008, 09:18 AM	#8
Hunter Customs Senior Member Join Date: March 26, 2005 Location: Osborn, Missouri Posts: 2,697	The tiger-tooth stippling that Jim did is the only stippling that really does the job. It could be a little rough on the shooters hand but the gun did not slip in your hands. The first pin guns I built for myself I used Clark pin master comps. Clark also had some barrels with a right hand twist, they were an excellent choice when shooting fast 185gr JHP bullets. Regards Bob Hunter www.huntercustoms.com

March 5, 2010, 01:40 AM	#9
potentpoefie Junior Member Join Date: March 4, 2010 Location: Cape Town, South Africa Posts: 3	I know this thread is on the old side but I only found it yesterday. BIG fan of Pin Shooting. We in South African actually have a full league going based on the rules of Second Chance. Go have a look at http://www.sapinshooting.com We shoot the following core events. 9 Pin Tip Over (9 pin event), Stock Gun (5 pin event), Pin Gun (5 pin event), Stock Revolver Forced Reload Event (8 pin event) and Pin Revolver Event (8 pin event) On the download section is the rule book we work on. So it might be a good help to get you pin shooting started at your local ranges. Something to work from. Get everybody shooting the same way/level. Make it a sport. How big is Pin Shooting over there at the moment. Does the Second Chance shoot still happen?

March 8, 2010, 03:30 AM	#11
potentpoefie Junior Member Join Date: March 4, 2010 Location: Cape Town, South Africa Posts: 3	Isn't that the truth. And loads of fun to be had. You just don't know what those pins are going to do at any given day.

March 9, 2010, 02:26 PM	#13
potentpoefie Junior Member Join Date: March 4, 2010 Location: Cape Town, South Africa Posts: 3	Holy moly. 1.9 seconds!!! That's 5 pins with a max of 8 rounds in the gun. Not that 1.9 seconds gives you time to miss. I am impressed. We have the following classes except for the core events listed in my previous post. 22 smith (22lr pistol or revolver) - 8 shot max in the gun - 5 heads of pins 22lr manual rifle (bolt/pump/lever/whatever you have) - 5 shot max - 5 heads of pins 22lr auto rifle (semi-auto) - 5 shot max per mag - 5 heads of pins shotgun manual (bolt/pump/lever/whatever you have) 5 pin setup (forced reload 3 in the gun to start off with) shotgun auto (semi-auto) 5 pin setup (forced reload 3 in the gun to start off with) pocket pistol - 5 pin set at the back of the table to just tip them over (any pistol with a barrel of 3.5 inches max) snubby - 5 pin set at the back of the table to just tip them over (any centre fire revolver with a 3 inch or shorter barrel) manual light rifle pop and flop - 223 (bolt/lever/pump or whatever you have) 5 pins setup at 100m. auto light rifle pop and flop - 223 auto loader - same setup as above manual rifle pop and flop - bigger than 223 (bolt. etc. etc.) same setup as above auto rifle pop and flop - bigger than 223 auto loading - same setup as above then last but not least. Shotgun Open class - either manual or auto loading loaded to full gun capacity shooting at 5 pin setup. You would think auto loaders rule. You would be wrong. Took top honours with a pump action Mossberg 500 a couple of months ago. These elective events are loads of fun. Then you see what we men expect from our wives. These littel snubbies and pocket pistols are actually expert guns. You need to know what you are doing. bad sights, horrible trigger pulls and sometimes loads of recoil in those light little guns. So now that the guys don't have their supped up sporting arms they struggle with these elective events. I mean who is going to "do up" their snubbies and pocket pistols for an event that is shot like maybe every 3 month. See we alternate the elective events every month. There is a lot of fun to be had with pins. And as a gun nut i've never seen a sport that covers more kinds of weapons. See we have a licensing issue here in South Africa. We need to prove the NEED to have a firearm. With this sport I can have the guns I want.....sorry I NEED.