IDPA or USPA what is the difference?

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  • warhawk77

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    So I'm wanting to get into a shooting club but I don't really understand the difference of them. I see here in Fort Wayne both groups meet at FWRR so guessing there are some guys that shoot in both and could give me some idea what each are like.

    Anyone have any photos of some shoots? Would like to see how you guys set it up.
     

    sbcman

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    Well, basically all you need to know is that they will both prepare you for a real gunfight. End of story.

    :popcorn::popcorn::popcorn::popcorn::popcorn::laugh:


    To the OP, IDPA and USPSA differ in the approach to the game (and they are both games, not tac-training, just fun that you dump a ton of money into). IDPA is a scenario based game, the round counts on the courses of fire are much lower than USPSA. IDPA invites the shooter to role play a bit with concealment and so forth. Every shooter will shoot every course the same. USPSA is based on the principles of speed, power and accuracy. To me, it's much more of a raw shooting competition than IDPA. In this game shooters can decide to handle courses of fire as they wish, and that is as much of the game as shooting itself.

    A lot of shooters shoot both sports.

    I don't know of any IDPA or USPSA club that requires you to be a range member in order to shoot. Some clubs will give discounts to members though.

    You can youtube all the IDPA and USPSA matches you'll ever want to see from a computer. You can also check out the facebook link in my sig line to see some action in the southern part of the state.
     
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    sbcman

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    Thanks sub man I knew one was pretty much run as a game but not that both where. Might be best to watch a few matches before committing.

    That's not a bad idea, but it's really not the best idea. The best thing to do is to grab a gun, some mags and ammo and hit one of the matches. Any club that cares anything about their future will be very welcoming to new shooters. Surely there is someone on this forum that shoots those matches up your way that could help you get started.

    Hope to see you on the range sometime!
     

    in625shooter

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    They both are games. They have their place (I guess) and both can be fun if you don't get to amped up with some of the cult mentality that seem to partake within them (or any sport). While IDPA started out as a training game with minimal rules and real world everyday firearms and equipment. IDPA quickly became an equipment race. IDPA caused IPSC to come up with "production" class so folks could get into it and be competitive with a out of the box ready da, da/sa or safe action and be competitive however in short order the open and limited class was not enough for the gamers and they invaded production with not so real world 2-2 1/2 pound triggers and slide milling away. So the out of the box production gun was no longer competitive.

    IPSC seems to have more clubs and ICORE is gaining some ground and SASS has always been somewhat steady. Myself I have sort of stopped going to the local IPSC match. Don't get me wrong great guys there and running it but frankly when 5 out of 6 stages are field courses it just feels like ballistic masturbation to me. Not knocking anyone involved just I am at a different phase where when you teach firearms several weeks a year for work when I go to a range and shoot on my time I do it to relax and field courses are just not that enjoyable to me because I do it at work

    Try both a couple times. Several folks shoot both but they do have some different rules/discipline.
     

    rvb

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    So I'm wanting to get into a shooting club but I don't really understand the difference of them. I see here in Fort Wayne both groups meet at FWRR so guessing there are some guys that shoot in both and could give me some idea what each are like.

    Anyone have any photos of some shoots? Would like to see how you guys set it up.

    short answer: try both and see which you prefer.

    FWRR does NOT do IDPA. There are two groups that shoot at FWRR. One is USPSA (Welcome to USPSA.org - Home of the United States Practical Shooting Association). The other is ACPDL (action/combat pistol defensive league, iirc). The ACPDL is a local group that runs matches with their own rules; it is more defensive oriented and more comparable to idpa. The are not affiliated afaik with any national organization such as IDPA.

    i am match director for the FWRR USPSA club. We shoot matches on the 3rd Sunday, starting in May (usually April, but this year conflicted with Easter). We also hold informal practices on the first and third Thursday evenings. You can find more information in this sub-forum on INGO, www.facebook.com/fwuspsa or email me at ftw_uspsa@yahoo.com.

    Go go to youtube and search uspsa or IDPA and you'll get tons of videos.

    I shot idpa for many years, but prefer uspsa. It's a personal preference thing.

    grab your gear and come out and play. Our Thursday practices are a great way to familiarize yourself with how the match operates, square away your gear, ask questions, etc. The first practice of the year is this Thursday.

    -rvb
     
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    ModernGunner

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    I dunno, ACPDL, ICORE, IDPA, SASS, USPSA, ABC-!23... it's all good, and all training is beneficial to some level or another. They're all great fun ('cause ya get to shoot stuff!), and they all have their proponents and detractors, and they'll ALL run ya broke if ya let it (like ANY truly great hobby!)

    IMO, try 'em ALL, see what best fits you're 'style'. At the 'worst', you'll meet up with a lot of great folks with a common bond, and maybe pick up a new great friend or two (or 50!) along the way. How 'bad' is that? :yesway:

    Well, basically all you need to know is that they will both prepare you for a real gunfight. End of story.
    They won't, end of story. It all gets 'whole 'nother level real' when someone is shooting real bullets trying to kill you. Trust me.
     

    warhawk77

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    short answer: try both and see which you prefer.

    FWRR does NOT do IDPA. There are two groups that shoot at FWRR. One is USPSA (Welcome to USPSA.org - Home of the United States Practical Shooting Association). The other is ACPDL (action/combat pistol defensive league, iirc). The ACPDL is a local group that runs matches with their own rules; it is more defensive oriented and more comparable to idpa. The are not affiliated afaik with any national organization such as IDPA.

    i am match director for the FWRR USPSA club. We shoot matches on the 3rd Sunday, starting in May (usually April, but this year conflicted with Easter). We also hold informal practices on the first and third Thursday evenings. You can find more information in this sub-forum on INGO, www.facebook.com/fwuspsa or email me at ftw_uspsa@yahoo.com.

    Go go to youtube and search uspsa or IDPA and you'll get tons of videos.

    I shot idpa for many years, but prefer uspsa. It's a personal preference thing.

    grab your gear and come out and play. Our Thursday practices are a great way to familiarize yourself with how the match operates, square away your gear, ask questions, etc. The first practice of the year is this Thursday.

    -rvb



    Thank an I you for the info and the videos, they help me understand how you guys set up stuff and move around the course. It looks like fun.
     

    rvb

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    Thank an I you for the info and the videos, they help me understand how you guys set up stuff and move around the course. It looks like fun.

    You're welcome. Hope to see you at a match or a practice. The pictures/videos don't do it justice. Watching videos or even other competitors at a match is like watching paint dry, but DOING it is just as much fun as you can possibly have (legally) with a gun in your hand...

    There are 6-7 USPSA clubs w/in 2hrs of Ft Wayne. You can always find a match if you have a free weekend.

    Join us Thursday evening after work!
    https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...ort-wayne-uspsa-thursday-practice-nights.html

    -rvb
     

    smith52

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    About an hour west of Ft Wayne is the Warsaw club, we don't do IDPA but we host USPSA the second Sunday of each month from April through October. Come on out and see what is going on in May shoot with us or check thing out and shoot the following weekend at Ft Wayne. Either way you'll be hooked. Here is some video from this past Sunday at Warsaw [video=youtube_share;dkJT07sdb6c]http://youtu.be/dkJT07sdb6c[/video]
     

    Manatee

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    Try both. Each will help you become a better shooter, but the personalities that show up at matches are somewhat different. You might as well shoot with people you wish to be around.
     
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