where did limited go?

I had a discussion with Adam during the August 12th Florida Multigun match about the reason behind the creation of Carry Ops and why we adopted another division. Carry Ops was created to bridge between Tac Ops and Open as Limited division has been a dying division at Florida Multigun. There are a few hypothesis for this change but in my opinion it basically boils down to technology in rifle scopes growing leaps and bounds over the past 10 years.

Let’s take a moment to be a little reflective and go back a few years. While I’ve only been shooting 3 Gun for a little over 5 years we have data with match participation going back to 2014. From those early data points we can see that Tac Ops has been and continued to dominate the divisions until sometime around 2018 when Open started it’s growth. By 2018, there were a couple of things that likely influenced this transition.

3 Gun Nation grew and ended in 2018 which at the highest level on TV, Tac Ops was the only division. Open shotguns started becoming more reliable (esp. in the box fed shotguns). There were Open shotgun options before that time but they mainly consisted of some tube fed version highly modified with loading sticks or multiple tubes systems. Also, for our data I would be hesitant not to mention the influence that Derrick D. had as a gunsmith in the area working with our local shooters and growing open with some box fed shotguns.

But, why did Limited continue to dwindle as Open grew? In most rule sets, including then Manatee 3 Gun and now Florida Multigun, the only difference between Limited and Tac Ops was the non-magnified vs Magnified scope on the rifle. Our match has been able to shoot out to semi-longer ranges during this entire time and not just confined to a bay so most shooters welcomed the addition of a little more magnification on their rifle. Shooting a red dot out to distance is an art. In the bays, I bet most shooters couldn’t shoot any faster with a red dot or a LPVO (w/ an illuminated red dot in the center of the reticle) so that is a wash. But at longer ranges in both Area 51 and Long range, magnification is helpful for holds and to help spot misses.

Sometime in the early to mid-2010s we saw a technology leap in rifle scopes. As best I can research there were LPVOs before that time and even into the 1990s but I’m unclear how well they worked as compared to the present day versions. These scopes designed in the early to mid-2010s were true 1x scopes on the low end so they were useful at close distances and most of the time had a bright illuminated red dot on the reticle. These scopes started in the 1-4x to 1-6x ranges and was/is called Low Power Variable Optics (LPVO).

LPVOs didn’t replace the fixed power battle scopes and red dots and red dots with magnifiers overnight. But as shooters got used to LPVOs and their reliability they found their way onto more and more rifles. There were also options at all price points and soon they compared not much more $$$ than a red dot at that time (esp. the higher dollar battle red dots and holographic sights). A new shooter could have 1-6x for the same or similar cost as a red dot and have a lot more flexibility in their rifle set up. This flexibility can be seen in the ability of a shooter to jump back and forth between Tac Ops and Open much more freely without much hindrance in the rifle platform with the addition of the LPVO vs a red dot.

I will conclude with a discussion around how Limited helped me become a better rifle shooter. I’ve heard a similar story on the 3 Gun Podcast as Dave has mentioned himself along with guests saying the same thing. I shot a red dot for almost 2 years on my 3 Gun rifle and I learned a lot about my limitations as a rifle shooter. I had become to dependent on magnification at mid to long range so I learned the art of shot calling at distance. There isn’t a better way to learn how to hit a target at long range than only being able to see it at 1x and not to be able to spot misses. You have to learn how to call your shot and be very focused on the trigger squeeze and trust your holds. Since you can’t see your impacts you also learn how to bracket a target at long range which can also help on those unstable positional shooting even with a magnified scope.

I don’t believe that Limited is destined to make a miraculous come back but I hope there is continued participation in the division. It’s a cheaper simpler option for divisions for 3 Gun with only one optic and the bare bones equipment needed to participate.

Shine