what type ball or daisey wheel do you prefer and WHY ple help me out with choosing a style. tks  jon

What material do you use for the sock?
Lynn

how do you judge the wind velocity and how they preform  during rapidly switching 10 to 15 mph winds? do they tangle or hang up partly turned inside out? what do you use for the pivot bearing assembly.  tks  jon

John
How do you decide when to release your shot? Do you wait for the flag to be in a specific position? I have never used flags. I watch the grass and leaves. A top shooter once told me he holds off intil the flag drops,
Tom

Jon, 
the one time I shot a match at Modesto, the wind was strong but steady, very steady. There were a lot of sock style flags being used that weekend. I would estimate ninety percent. That was 2002-3? They were the best style flag for that steady wind. 
Bev Pinney has been using the sock style for years. They are very good in steady wind. 

In switchy winds like Cody Wyoming, Springfield Oregon, Spokane Washington, Butte Montana, Salt Lake City, Grand Junction Colorado, Tacoma Washington, Fort Lewis Washington, Capital City Rifle Range in Washington, Raton New Mexico, Chilliwack Canada, Vancouver Island, Glasgow Montana, Puyallup Washington, Naches Washington, Etna Green, Hamilton Montana, Sherwood Oregon, Golden Colorado, Fort Collins Colorado, Wenatchee Washington etc.etc. I think the daisy wheel flags with a tail are much better. There is no long tail to get fouled around the flag support. The daisy wheel style seems to respond faster than a sock. I've shot matches at all these locations, and more. Bench rest and offhand as well as other shooting disciplines.  If I shot all my matches at Modesto, and if the winds tend to be very steady as was my observation in the past I would most certainly recommend the sock style flags. I hope this post has helped you Jon.  By the way, the best SS BR shooter in the country, my good friend Tommy Mason, uses daisy wheels. Tommy also has much experience at ranges all over this country and Canada. 


  Good shooting,   Joe.  

I forgot to mention what style flags I use. I use sock style for all my shooting, BR and OH. If daisy wheels are better, why dont I use them? Good question!  I use sock style because my youngest daughter made them for me when she was about ten years old. I love those flags.  I dont care all that much for BR shooting so use Tommy Masons flags or whomever's are handy at the moment plus my wonderful wind socks. 

My windsock making daughter Aliann, 16 years. 



       Joe.  

Quote:



HEY!  I've seen good groups shot from arm chairs!  ALL the beer cans landed in the pike off the back poarch - NONE of them on the sidewalk!

A few years ago I replaced my old flags I bought wind flags from Sinclair. I never have liked the daisy wheels so I removed them and made a pointer/counterweight to balance out the front. When you set up your flag make sure that you set up the flag so it is balanced front to back. The better the balance the more sensitive the flag will be. Make sure that your post is plumb. If it is set up crooked the flag will tend to list to that side. Pay attention to the size of your vain the bigger it is the more sensitive it will be to direction changes. Mine are now about 8" X 11". I started using the black tails that Sinclair sells but my eyes are going and I can't see them at distance anymore so now I use engineer tape, pick a color that you see well. I attach my tails using two snap swivels held together with a split ring. It makes it easy to take them off to put them away or dry them in the morning. 
  One last tip. For wind sock material Marlin Bassett used to use material  from a bread bagging machine it was already a tube and he could just roll it off and cut it to any length.

40 Rod