Field Target is an arms race.

[Bramezy]

Another instance:
2013, second hand Marauder. $350 and came with a regulator installed. I added a $120 UTG scope. It was a $500 rig out of pocket. Won the Nationals and the GP. My son won the GP the next year with the same setup. It had a good factory barrel.

I think Ammon Piat might have used a Marauder to win the Nationals in 2015. And Dan Finney in 2011. Marauders have won the Nationals a few times (if I can remember correctly). 2011, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2019. Some were modified and some were nearly stock.

There were fewer PCP and scope options back then. There’s more options now, some of them pricey, so it’s only natural that’s what we see more often these days. People like nice stuff and often have the money to buy it.

Part of that is the offering today was not the same as it was back then. If you build it, they will buy it!

 

[Franklink]

Assume all the guns are more accurate than the shooter using them...in that event, the shooter that has the following is more likely to prevail:
1) More Practice Time with their equipment
2) More match experience with said equipment
3) More Confidence in their equipment rooted in practice and experience

What you'll notice in the above is that money has nothing to do with any of them...but they all have something far more valuable than money in common, and that is time.

I agree that money doesn't have anything to do with your 3 items.
But money DOES have a profound influence on your initial qualifier of "assume all guns are more accurate than the shooter using them." Cheap guns have a higher incidence of pellets not going where the crosshairs are pointed. Sometimes that can be alleviated with reworking the barrel (recrown, lap, polish) and sometimes it can't. Either way, it takes at least a little bit of knowledge and know-how to get the barrel shooting as good as it should, or more know-how and more money for a re-barrel.

ie flyers are not compatible with winning field target matches. And in out of the box condition, the likelihood of getting a flyer producing barrel goes up as price comes down.

That's not to say that expensive guns are flyer free, just less chance of them. There's also the warranty situation....much easier to get Daystate or RAW to address a flyer problem, then the situation more typical of a budget brand. And that is when the budget option is the rebranding of gun the retailer contracted out the manufacturing of to the lowest bidder.

 

[Tpatner412]

I agree that money doesn't have anything to do with your 3 items.
But money DOES have a profound influence on your initial qualifier of "assume all guns are more accurate than the shooter using them." Cheap guns have a higher incidence of pellets not going where the crosshairs are pointed. Sometimes that can be alleviated with reworking the barrel (recrown, lap, polish) and sometimes it can't. Either way, it takes at least a little bit of knowledge and know-how to get the barrel shooting as good as it should, or more know-how and more money for a re-barrel.

ie flyers are not compatible with winning field target matches. And in out of the box condition, the likelihood of getting a flyer producing barrel goes up as price comes down.

That's not to say that expensive guns are flyer free, just less chance of them. There's also the warranty situation....much easier to get Daystate or RAW to address a flyer problem, then the situation more typical of a budget brand. And that is when the budget option is the rebranding of gun the retailer contracted out the manufacturing of to the lowest bidder.

So you're not wrong, but I do think you missed my point. What I am saying assumes that a shooter has done their due diligence with a gun (ya know, through practice) to determine whether or not a gun is up to the task....meaning it's more accurate than they are. Sometimes, that might include extra barrel prep work or even customization...sure...whatever. Not the point.

The point is, you need to build confidence in yourself and your equipment through purposeful practice. And to do that takes time. He who invests more time, is probably winning. That's the point. What that equipment is, matters less than the work you put in. Give me a sling shot, and 1000 rounds to practice with, and I'll hit the tin can more than the guy who had 5 rounds to practice with. Hopefully you're picking up what I'm putting down at this point.

 

[Franklink]

So you're not wrong, but I do think you missed my point. What I am saying assumes that a shooter has done their due diligence with a gun (ya know, through practice) to determine whether or not a gun is up to the task....meaning it's more accurate than they are. Sometimes, that might include extra barrel prep work or even customization...sure...whatever. Not the point.

The point is, you need to build confidence in yourself and your equipment through purposeful practice. And to do that takes time. He who invests more time, is probably winning. That's the point. What that equipment is, matters less than the work you put in. Give me a sling shot, and 1000 rounds to practice with, and I'll hit the tin can more than the guy who had 5 rounds to practice with. Hopefully you're picking up what I'm putting down at this point.

Practice. Important. Yep.

 

[Kdog]

So how many people actually practice let's just say 2-4 days a week....go to a match nearly every weekend and also practice positionals on a regular basis. I would bet not many. The match experience alone is priceless and takes some time just to get comfortable with a routine. Practicing once or twice before a match will get you know where. Most new shooters have no idea what it takes to be successful at field target and I don't care what equipment there shooting. On the other hand give that veteran FT shooter a entry level gun and he knows how to get the most about of it! Take that to the bank.

 

[Motorhead]

Practice "CAN" also decrease ones ability to shoot well in a competitive format

Can only speak for myself here .. in that exhaustive / intense practice can create a neurotic mental state where one is so fixated on precision and expectation of how a shot is going to happen and the results there after.
When things Don't go as anticipated a lot of such practiced shooters start freaking out loosing there focus on the bigger picture of ONE SHOT AT A TIME !!! Dwelling on misses, worried about more misses self diagnosing in the moment can F you up mentally !!!

If you are a skilled shooter, you know what to do and how to best apply the skills you have learned .... Just sit down and do that !! For myself practice is shooting club matches once a month and very little if any practice outside that.
Morning sight in, confirm your numbers close / mid / far for POI to POA .... DONE !! Now go chill out and get your head into the right place, being relaxed & mind spin calm. When match starts take it One Shot At A Time applying what you know.
Don't fret the misses, don't think about whats coming or what those around you might be saying or acting out etc ...

This is not a smoke show statement either ... I've been there & done this for quite a few years now. 2 National Championships, 2 National GP titles & over a Dozen State championships in Rifle & Pistol to my credit taking this approach.

It is a BIGGER mental game being the operator of any said gun than the gun itself in most cases. A Good to Great gun is required without a doubt, But he/she who wields it is the one doing the work to extract it's best potential