Abe E.S. Corpus

No 5th Saturday match this month since it’s so close to The Bushwhack (SC State SASS match), but there will be a four stage Wild Bunch mini match at The Bushwhack on April 10.

The Geechee Gunfighters announced a WB match on Saturday, March 29, 2025. Matches are held at the Palmetto Gun Club in Ridgeville, SC. Contact info is on their website. I will miss this one but it should be a good match.

I’m happy to be corrected.

A fellow on my posse at the Florida state match (Wild Bunch side match) used an 1887. The downside is that it only holds four rounds (as I recall) in the magazine, forcing an on the clock reload on stages with more than four shotgun targets.

Slippery Stew sent out the following information about the (six stage) match: You can view the stages for Wild Bunch right now by going to the Belton Bushwhackers website: STAGES ROUND COUNT 147 pistol 22 rifle 30 shotgun

The Belton Bushwhackers will hold a Wild Bunch match the Saturday after Thanksgiving. More info will be posted at www.beltonbushwhackers.com

I can attest that this is a nice rifle.

No club in South Carolina offers a monthly WB match. We ran a match in Greenville on 5th Sundays until we lost the date to a larger number of host club members who wanted to shoot Three Gun. A couple of years ago the Belton Bushwhackers started holding WB matches on 5th Saturdays. That’s about 30 minutes from me so I shoot that match unless I have a conflict. We have a four stage WB mini-match at the SC State SASS match. Belton has hosted that match for the last several years. There is an annual Carolinas Wild Bunch Shootout that the Gunpowder Creek Regulators in Lenoir, SC have hosted for the last few years. It’s a “must”.

Details are posted at www.beltonbushwhackers.com.

Let’s assume for the sake of this discussion that the stage instructions are silent. The new language says “must”. I think this is another area that needs to be corrected in the SHB.

Prior to 2024 the rules as I understood them allowed any shooter to stage loaded magazines or loose ammo. That prior language remains under the heading “Cartridge Belts, Bandoleers, Magazines and Pouches” (SHB 17.4 p. 20) but seems to be contradicted by the first bullet point under the heading “Ammunition Belts and Loops” which reads “Ammunition required…must be carried on the shooter’s person…, or be safely staged AS REQUIRED BY STAGE INSTRUCTIONS.” (All caps not in original). I expect this another cut-and-paste from the CAS Handbook. I liked being able to tell new shooters that they can stage magazines rather than requiring them to purchase magazine pouches. I’m not sure that is now an accurate statement. Please don’t tell me what a Match Director has discretion to allow ow waive in a local match. I know that.

37 shooters which I believe set a record. We had a great time. It may move to the Spring next year.

This will be a good match. Looks like shooter can use a rifle OR engage the rifle targets with pistol.

I didn’t read the title of the topic very well! Thanks for responding.

A new cowgirl shooter in my club has a new .357 Uberti. Can you advise the manufacturer and “generation” of these kits?

Neither shotgun is legal. The only pump shotguns allowed are the Winchester 1897 (original or replica) and the Winchester Model 12. Despite the name, the Rock Island shotgun is a reproduction of the Ithaca Model 37. Stainless 1911s are legal for both Modern or Traditional.

Same page of SHB ver. 17.4, the first sentence under “SHOTGUNS” reads: ”The Winchester model 1897 and model 12 pump in 12 gauge…are allowed.” That’s probably just an editing oversight but that’s the ambiguity.

This question came up at the Wild Bunch side match at The Bushwhack. Ever since the Model 12 was approved for WBAS the rules have dealt with the requirement that shooter load and stage the shotgun the (internal) hammer down. At one time we had to “demonstrate” it to the TO; that requirement went away but staging the M12 with a cocked hammer remained a SDQ. Now the rules for CAS and WBAS eliminate the penalty for moving from the LT to the stage, and staging the long guns with action closed, hammer cocked, unless there is a live round in the chamber. Assume the shooter stages a Model 12 with hammer cocked, action closed. The TO cannot, of course, see the condition of the hammer. After the beep the cocked hammer becomes apparent when the shooter is unable to cycle the shotgun. Still a SDQ for failing to follow loading procedures or a “no call” unless a live round was in the chamber?

I believe this is another editing issue in the Handbook. Pre-2024 the shooter was required to cycle the rifle or shotgun before discarding it. If that was done, there was no penalty for an empty case/hull in the gun, nor for a live round in the gun unless it was in the chamber. The 2024 rule changes conform the requirement to that in CAS: the shooter must CLEAR the long gun, and Minor Safety penalties apply to empties or live rounds left in the gun (a live round in the chamber still being a SDQ). If my interpretation is correct, shouldn’t the references to the long gun being cycled (for example in the glossary) be eliminated?

A 16 gauge Winchester Model 12 was for sale at our state match. A fellow in my club asked whether it was legal for Wild Bunch. I checked the Handbook (including the latest version released on April 10 and found inconsistent language. The pre-2014 language was retained saying that the 1897 and Model 12 IN TWELVE GAUGE are allowed. The new paragraph under slide action shotgun says between 16 and 12 gauge. I assume the writer intended to change the rule to allow 16 gauge pumps, but this is another point that needs to be clarified.

Hosted by the Gunpowder Creek Regulators in Lenoir, NC. Always a great match. https://www.facebook.com/share/bfLaj6JgRsKz1B6s/?mibextid=WC7FNe

The shooter’s book with all of the stages is available on the state match website. Round count for the Wild Bunch mini-match is 26 rifle, 70 pistol and 12 shotgun.

Most holsters made to fit a single action revolver will serve for Wild Bunch. Drop your 1911 in and confirm that it covers the slide forward of the ejection port. If so, you’re good.

I guess that makes sense in that a break action shotgun cannot be cycled. I don’t like this. It penalizes the shooters who have purchased the pump action shotguns around which the game is based. This penalty should only be applicable to doubles or single shot shotguns.

When WBAS went to the requirement that the long gun be “cycled” at the end of the string (enough to cock the hammer), there was no penalty for a fired case or hull left in the chamber. That meant the shooter was not penalized for a failure to extract, or in the event an extracted case or hull fell back into the chamber. I’m hoping that this change was not intentional but was the result of cutting and pasting between Handbooks in an effort to make the games more consistent. I got used to the philosophy of getting rid of unnecessary penalties. That said, I do my best to understand, apply, and play by the rules as they change from time to time.