Vintage Bullseye Battery

[Pizza Bob 1,488]

Before there was such a thing as “action pistol” if you wanted to compete with a handgun “Bullseye” was the only game in town. It was also known as NRA Conventional Pistol and there were several formats depending on whether it was contested with one gun (NRA900) or three guns (NRA2700).

There were three strings of fire: Slow fire – 10 rounds fired in ten minutes or less / Timed fire – two 5 round strings each fired in 20 seconds per string or less / Rapid fire – two 5 round strings fired in 10 seconds per string or less. This was repeated three times with each gun for a total of 270 rounds fired and a possible perfect score of 2700.

The match was contested using three guns, a rimfire gun, a centerfire gun and a .45 caliber gun. I have been using the past tense, but Bullseye is still contested today. There are several clubs here in NJ that compete – but it has nowhere near the popularity of the action pistol games (USPSA. IDPA, ICORE and static and knock-down steel).

Since the 60’s the guns used to compete in Bullseye matches are typically semi-automatic. My father shot in a rimfire Bullseye league and this was the gun he used…

A Hi-Standard Model 102

Today, even though High Standard is no longer in business (after going through several iterations) their guns are still popular. The S&W Models 41 and 46 are the cream of this crop – although there are a number of high-end European guns that could compete in this segment. New shooters just getting into the game may opt for Ruger Mark target models or its competitors. The centerfire portion may be contested with a S&W Model 52 or Walther GSP, but most competitors just shoot their accurized 1911’s for both the Centerfire and .45 portion of the match.

However, back in the day, this game was contested with revolvers. This shooting is all one-handed, off-hand, standing up. Revolvers would have all been used in the single action mode. A typical Bullseye battery of the 1950’s would consist of a S&W Model K-22 for the rimfire stage. A S&W K-32 or K-38 for the centerfire stage and a S&W .45 Hand Ejector Target, Model of 1950 for the .45 stage.

Quite by accident, I have managed to assemble such a battery. It started with the acquisition of a K-22 at a local auction. That was followed by the acquisition of the Model of 1950 from a private individual in the Pacific NW – I found that gun in the classifieds of a forum from that area. Once I had these two I realized I had 2/3’s of a Vintage Bullseye Battery, so I intentionally sought out the last gun and in addition to searching for this particular model, I also wanted it manufactured in my birth year. I was successful in finding one on one of the large Internet auction sites. So here is my Vintage Bullseye Battery…

Left to right:

.45 Hand Ejector Target, Model of 1950. This is an N-frame gun with a 6.5” light (tapered) barrel. Bullseye shooters of the time complained that the light barrel did not hold as well as a heavier barrel. There complaints resulted in the heavy barrel Model of 1955, although the 1950 Model was produced through 1961. The entire production of the 1950 model – from 1950 to 1961 was fewer than 2800 units. This gun was manufactured in 1952. When model numbers were assigned in 1957-58 the .45 1950 became the Model 26 and the HB 1955 became the Model 25.

Next is the K-38 Masterpiece, which became the vaunted Model 14. It has a 6” barrel. This one, according to the original owner, was sent back to S&W and had the front sight undercut. This gun also is a great example of Smith’s bright blue finish (as opposed to the standard blue exhibited on the following gun). This gun was manufactured in 1951.

The third gun is a K-22 Masterpiece. The Masterpiece guns had ribs on the barrels and they varied in dimension so that the weights of the centerfire and rimfire guns could be matched. There was another K-22 of the time called the Outdoorsman that didn’t sport the target rib. This is also 6” barrel with the original Patridge front sight. This gun was manufactured in 1950.

All three of the above guns are equipped with target stocks equipped with a flared base and a thumb-shelf that aided the one-handed grip. The grip on the .45 is rather unusual because it is a Fitz grip and is contemporary with the gun. Fitz was a well-known and popular grip manufacturer of the time. But they were known for their synthetic grips – read that “plastic”. To find a set of wooden ones is unusual. Further research revealed they made some rather interesting wooden target grips. I have seen pictures of grips with a basket-weave pattern carved in them.

Adios,

Pizza Bob

[W2MC 1,699]

Awesome.....and yes, 3-Gun Bullseye was (and is) a tremendous challenge. 

 

[CMJeepster 2,778]

Neat, Bob!  I learned something new today.  "Thumb shelf."

[10X 3,301]

Very cool collection with a theme!  Thanks for sharing, Bob.

 

If anyone wants to get involved in Bullseye, the Riverdale club's winter bullseye league is open to non-members. Centerfire starts Tuesday Sept 22, .22 league Nov 24, and .45 league on Jan 26.  Newbie's welcome, contact me for more detail.

[Krdshrk 3,877]

Oh gawd no - you're turning into one of those Bullseye FUDDS!!  Lol.

These are the guys at SCFGPA that constantly sweep the ceiling and pop rounds off into it... 

[High Exposure 5,664]

2 hours ago, CMJeepster said:

Neat, Bob!  I learned something new today.  "Thumb shelf."

Fun fact:

Glocks have thumb shelves - that’s what those silly little indents on either side at the top of the grip are considered.

It’s an Import point if the pistol has “sporting” features. Just like the serrated “Match” triggers in the compact (G19 size) and subcompact (G26 size) models (the smaller barrels lose a point, so the “match” triggers make up for it. Without them, Glock could not import their pistols - like the .380 Glock 25 and Glock 28. They aren’t in the US because there aren’t enough Import points as the .380 is not considered a “sporting” cartridge.

All that aside - Excellent read Bob. That Hi-Standard looks like something from Buck Rogers.

[10X 3,301]

3 hours ago, Krdshrk said:

These are the guys at SCFGPA that constantly sweep the ceiling and pop rounds off into it... 

Nah, those are the cops.   The bullseye shooters are the ones shooting 2” groups at 25 yards 

[High Exposure 5,664]

1 minute ago, 10X said:

Nah, those are the cops.   The bullseye shooters are the ones shooting 2” groups at 25 yards 

That, unfortunately, sounds about right...