By Jim Dickson | Contributing Writer
Shooting half inch groups at 50 yards with one hand and no rest is not something everyone can do.
Most people cannot do it with a rifle fired offhand using both hands and most rifles aren’t capable of that accuracy.
But they haven’t spent time with the new incarnation of the High Standard Supermatic Trophy .22-caliber match pistol.
I remember many years ago when the High Standard Supermatic Trophy pistol made in Connecticut would chew up the X ring of a target at 25 yards. The current ones made in Texas are shooting half-inch groups at 50 yards. That’s a big improvement.
Now most people can’t shoot that good but having a gun that can makes a big difference in just how far you progress. With a pistol like this your accuracy can continue to grow as long as you shoot. I have fired far too many pistols that simply could not come near these tiny groups even when fired from a Ransom rest and that does put a firm cap on how well you will be able to shoot them. With a gun like this you can keep on improving to your full potential, and you can easily fire 500 to 1,000 rounds at a time and that is precisely how you improve.
This is a strikingly beautiful pistol with mirror polished blued steel trimmed with gold on some small parts, but beauty is as beauty does and this beauty delivers superb accuracy all day long from a machine rest if fed good match ammo such as Eley Pistol Match or Eley Ten X. This is a gun to challenge your abilities as a shooter.
Right now the current production High Standard .22 target pistols are used by the largest percentage of shooters in the .22 pistol matches at Camp Perry each year. High Standard takes pistols there every year to show and take orders on, and spends the rest of the year filling those orders for our most elite pistol shooters. These are extraordinary pistols exhibiting the finest precision workmanship possible with 21st century technology and manufacturing techniques. Fit and finish is outstanding. Since moving to Houston, Texas, Alan Aaronstein, the new owner of High Standard and one of the best gunsmiths in America, has steadily improved the gun at all levels from the magazines to the barrels.
Remember, there are only three ways to learn to shoot. Shooting, shooting, and more shooting. The difference between an exhibition shooter or a top competitor on the firing line at the National Matches and a regular shooter is the enormous difference in the amount of ammunition fired. You simply cannot get too much practice if you want to be a top ranked shooter.
While we are on the subject of intensive shooting practice it is worth noting that High Standard supports every High Standard pistol ever made with parts and service all the way back to their first pistol in 1932 with a 90% fill rate of parts on demand. No other gun company in the world supports their pistols back to 1932.
The current production models have the grip size and angle of the Model 1911 pistol. This is extremely important for shooters who also shoot in the .45 matches. It is just as important for those of us who carry a surplus WWII M1911AI for all serious pistol work in the real world outside of the matches. High Standard went from the slanted Luger style grip to the Model 1911 style grip at the request of Major Sharp of the Army Marksmanship Unit at Fort Benning, Georgia in 1967.
The finely checkered wooden grips sport the best thumb rest on the left side that I have ever seen on a pistol. This one really works. It’s not just for show. The pistol has the weight and balance to hang steady with the grip locking into the hand for precision shooting quite unlike so many pistols that just won’t seem to settle down and be still for shooting.
The rear sight is firmly attached to the frame with a bracket that the slide goes through. This replaced the previous slide mounted rear sight in 1967. With this method the tiny tolerances between the slide and the frame can no longer affect the accuracy of the sight picture. I might add that the slide moves with no discernible horizontal movement at all between the slide and the frame. One has the impression of two pieces of oiled glass with no tolerances between them moving as slick as possible when the slide is racked back.
Windage and elevation screws on the adjustable rear sight are easily turned with a penny making it super easy to adjust the point of impact precisely to whatever type of ammo and range that you are shooting.
The barrel assembly is anchored so precisely to the frame that it might as well be one piece. It soon becomes obvious why High Standard pistols have won more National, Regional, and Club matches than any other make of pistol. As an example, two High Standard Victor target pistols won the gold and the silver medals at the Atlanta, Olympics a few years back.
Adding a touch of class, the trigger, magazine release, safety, and slide release are gold plated adding a regally tasteful touch that contrasts nicely with the highly polished blued finish on the rest of the gun.
The pistol sports a 5½-inch barrel with three threaded holes in the bottom where you can attach weights if you so desire and there are two threaded holes in the top for optical sight mounting. It has a crisp trigger pull of just under 2¼ pounds.
Weight is 2 pounds, 13 ounces. It measures 9½ inches long by 6 inches high due to the slant of the bottom of the grip forcing the barrel up at an angle when it is measured with the grip resting on a desk.
I had 750 rounds to fire through this little masterpiece consisting of:
500 rounds of German SK Match Special
250 rounds of Lapua Pistol King
Both of these were imported by Capstone Precision Group and they certainly performed for me.
The gun shoots precisely and it is incredibly fun to shoot a gun this accurate enabling you to engage the smallest targets that you can see and hit them. Shooting to the accuracy limits of this one is a challenge worthy of any shooter’s skill.
When I picked up the test model at Reeves Ace Hardware in Clayton, Georgia everyone had been admiring it. This gun exudes an unmistakable aura of quality. The quality makes it’s MSRP of $1,500 a bargain. This is one gun that I highly recommend and I don’t remember ever saying that in print before.
There is an old saying among blacksmiths, “A workman is known by his tools.” It is very true. If you are a world class shooter or serious about becoming one this is the .22 pistol for you.
