So I kinda want to get myself a muzzleloading black powder pistol, just for fun. Anybody got any idea on where to start? Like, a quick google turned up either antiques, or non-firing replicas. Any search terms or websites to find ones that've been, uh, what's the word... stamped?
Anvildude wrote: So I kinda want to get myself a muzzleloading black powder pistol, just for fun. Anybody got any idea on where to start? Like, a quick google turned up either antiques, or non-firing replicas. Any search terms or websites to find ones that've been, uh, what's the word... stamped?
I actually own a 1865 colt it works but I’m to chicken t try her, just had it appraised at $7500. My grandparents bought it back in the 1930’s after they passed I inherited her...
I actually own a 1865 colt it works but I’m to chicken t try her, just had it appraised at $7500. My grandparents bought it back in the 1930’s after they passed I inherited her...
Be sure to strip it down and blue it at home to make it look nice and new
I actually own a 1865 colt it works but I’m to chicken t try her, just had it appraised at $7500. My grandparents bought it back in the 1930’s after they passed I inherited her...
Be sure to strip it down and blue it at home to make it look nice and new
And bubba it up with JB Weld to add a red dot sight and flash light
Right now I have a 0.50 cal Desert Eagle for home defense ... you never know when someone will break in and hide behind your neighbors fridge... I actually bought it because I have always loved the look of it. It is an absolute monster to fire and it usually makes everyone else at the range stop firing.
I do intend to get a shotgun for actual home defense, but where I live... I am not overly concerned about a break in. We did get a Walther .380 for the War Department to have some fun with and she really enjoys it and could most certainly make an intruder have a VERY bad day.
Thanks for the link, Chute. I'm actually curious if there'd be somewhere I could find just the barrel, see if I could figure out my own mechanism and carve my own stock for it. Any ideas there?
djones520 wrote: Oldest is 4, and coincidentally already knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he is never to touch my guns without asking for permission.
With little ones I feel guns should be handled like power tools. Both are just as likely to injure or kill a young one, so teach them what they are and let them use them with supervision. Curiosity kills the cat, so take that away and teach respect.
I am amazed at how many people think kids and guns should be completely separated due to danger, but have a lethal garage that kids can easily get to.
Seconded, this is a good attitude to have.
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OIIIIIIO wrote: Right now I have a 0.50 cal Desert Eagle for home defense ... you never know when someone will break in and hide behind your neighbors fridge... I actually bought it because I have always loved the look of it. It is an absolute monster to fire and it usually makes everyone else at the range stop firing.
Envious.
I've eyed up Desert Eagles... in my case was considering getting one in .44 Magnum. As classy as 50AE is, I just coudln't afford to shoot it lol
I've never gotten into black powder, but it has caught my eye as of late. A local store has a few varieties on sale. The question is, what's cooler, a flintlock or a revolver?
On one hand the flintlock is only $149. On the other hand, I found out there is an adapter kit for the revolver to get it to shoot 45 Long Colt, which I all ready have a bunch of.
Honestly? I'm betting that a BP revolver would be more annoyance than it'd be worth. It's easy enough to swab out a single contiguous barrel, but with a revolver you have the multiple chambers in the cylinder, as well as the barrel and mechanisms.
The thing I'm nervous about is, you know, explosions. I know modern metallurgy is a LOT better, so fewer chances of things like inclusions or weak spots in the barrels, but from what little I've read so far, there's no modern national standard for proofing black powder weapons.
Anvildude wrote: The thing I'm nervous about is, you know, explosions. I know modern metallurgy is a LOT better, so fewer chances of things like inclusions or weak spots in the barrels, but from what little I've read so far, there's no modern national standard for proofing black powder weapons.
Well, there is one saving grace. Muzzle loading pistols aren't really going to be used for much more than target practice or "fun" shooting. You can always go a little light on the powder.
OIIIIIIO wrote: Right now I have a 0.50 cal Desert Eagle for home defense ... you never know when someone will break in and hide behind your neighbors fridge... I actually bought it because I have always loved the look of it. It is an absolute monster to fire and it usually makes everyone else at the range stop firing.
I have a BP revolver. Very fun and accurate. Have to give it a quick scrub after a dozen cylinders due to fouling but otherwise it’s no more a pain in the butt than any single shot BP gun I’ve shot.
Anvildude wrote: The thing I'm nervous about is, you know, explosions. I know modern metallurgy is a LOT better, so fewer chances of things like inclusions or weak spots in the barrels, but from what little I've read so far, there's no modern national standard for proofing black powder weapons.
Hate to say it but you should be fine sticking to the European made replicas. They don't use modern proof marking, but the system set up a couple hundred years ago. Remember, not all black powders are the same same if you go the flint lock path. The finer pan powders have a faster burn rate that can kaboom barrels and black powder burns fast enough to be an explosive, unlike modern smokeless powders which I think don't fall into the explosive burn rates. I have seen a modern 1860 colt revolver reproduction ( for example) loaded with powder to the point that the ball had to be shaved to get the cylinder to turn. Shooting with that much powder didn't seemed to bother the old timers too much at the range. Strangely enough because of the fixed throw of the plunger on a colt you also have to be careful of under loading the pistol because it wouldn't properly seat the ball. The old times that shot competition with those types of loads had some solution like adding corn meal or something else crazy to the cylinder to get a proper seat for the ball. If you want to get into black powder you can probably find some help at a cowboy action shoot. The black powder fans are easy to spot because of the hanging smoke clouds around their firing lane.
cuda1179 wrote: The most extreme trigger upgrade I've ever experienced was upgrading my Mosin Nagant to a Timney trigger. The original Mosin trigger felt like a really stiff Nerf gun made of metal instead of plastic and sliding on gritty sandpaper. The Timney trigger is all kinds of awesome. Clean break, smooth as heck.
If I do end up with an AK I hope I can find something similar.
I'm one of the rare ones who prefers an AR-like two-stage in my AK's. Run them in both of my primary rifles. After some wearing in, it's a very reasonable and crisp break - not the sponge-surprise trigger you get in a standard AK.
I just saw a news article that Remington is attempting to use their bankruptcy proceedings to halt settlement proceedings in a class action lawsuit against the company over defective rifles. A trigger replacement program has apparently been on hold since 2014.
Do any of you use Remington rifles and are you affected by this? How much would it cost to just get the trigger replaced yourself?
If you are referring to the Remington 700 lawsuit, triggers for that gun seem to run $120-180ish. If it was me I'd probably have just bought a new trigger rather than wait.
Breotan wrote: I just saw a news article that Remington is attempting to use their bankruptcy proceedings to halt settlement proceedings in a class action lawsuit against the company over defective rifles. A trigger replacement program has apparently been on hold since 2014.
Do any of you use Remington rifles and are you affected by this? How much would it cost to just get the trigger replaced yourself?
The replacements are easy if not super cheap, I dont have one of the rifles, though the 700 series being very simple it is something that is easily accounted for as long as you are aware of the issue.
The bigger issue is that Remington knew about the issue for years or even decades and sat on it, and their Freedom Group owners have largely pulled a Toys R Us on Remington, sucking any and all value out of it while leaving it to wither and rot and put out garbage.
The point of class action litigation like that isn't to get the plaintiffs money- they'll each get maybe $50 out of it (maybe better, maybe even worse). The point is to provide legal precedence to push better industry standards and safety tests, and make it so that manufacturers of defective products are responsible for any damage done by their products.
Anvildude wrote: The point of class action litigation like that isn't to get the plaintiffs money- they'll each get maybe $50 out of it (maybe better, maybe even worse). The point is to provide legal precedence to push better industry standards and safety tests, and make it so that manufacturers of defective products are responsible for any damage done by their products.
From what I saw of the suit it seemed like it required full replacement of the triggers.
Slinky wrote: Does Remington still own Marlin? How are they going to be affected?
The old Marlin died over a decade ago, they got snapped up in the whole Freedom Group thing just like Remington. Im not sure how FG is handling Marlin in particular, but they dont appear to hve been treated outstandingly well.
That's too bad. The first rifle I ever fired was, like so many other, was a Marlin bolt action .22 when I was at scout camp. I thought it was an amazing experience.
OIIIIIIO wrote: Right now I have a 0.50 cal Desert Eagle for home defense ... you never know when someone will break in and hide behind your neighbors fridge... I actually bought it because I have always loved the look of it. It is an absolute monster to fire and it usually makes everyone else at the range stop firing.
This is my friend Jaquie shooting my DE .50 AE.
Er Meh Gerd ... I love it. My DE is such a disgusting weapon... I love it. Just this past weekend the War Department gave me the go ahead to buy a Springfield 1911.... Have not gotten the chance to throw rounds yet, but I am looking forward to it.
The whole War Department thing ... I started calling her that she just laughed at my reasoning for it. I call her that because, as I explained to her, they tell us who to kill, and we march forth and make it happen.
I can assure you that it is not a derogatory thing, as I say it with reverence.
Slinky wrote: Does Remington still own Marlin? How are they going to be affected?
Remington Outdoor Company (formerly known as Freedom Group) still owns Marlin.
Marlin was screwed when Remington decided to close Marlin's North Haven factory and moved production down to Kentucky. Machinery that had been put in place and operational for almost 150 years was uprooted and moved AFTER Remington had promised Marlin that they would still have the factory in North Haven. Despite having plans etc etc, they could NOT get the machinery running right. They let go the 260 people that used to run the machinery, so Remington was SOL - the Machine Spirits were having none of it with Remington. So it's new machinery and components, some plastic. Marlin's are no where near what they used to be quality wise.
Remington did the same thing with Bushmaster. That story however had a happier ending and resulted in Windham Weaponry:
When the people who bought Bushmaster in 2006 decided to move it “lock, stock and barrel” out of Maine to New York in 2011, the original Bushmaster owner, Mr. Richard Dyke was left with both a dilemma and an opportunity. Almost to the day of the 2011 move, Mr. Dyke’s non-compete clause expired. He still owned the property where Bushmaster had been built, and knew all the workers – now laid off – who had helped him build it. He made a decision to “get back in the game” and promptly put an email out to many of his former employees and friends asking if there was interest in joining him for a new project.
With a resounding “yes” of support, he gathered the financing in two days, and started bringing people back into their long-time Windham manufacturing home. Phoenix-like, Windham Weaponry was on the rise. Within three months, the first productions models of the new Windham Weaponry line had been perfected and delivered. Quality, fit, finish, durability, accuracy and value were all superb – giving credence to Windham Weaponry’s motto “The Quality Goes In, Before The Rifle Goes Out”.
The firearms industry and consumers welcomed this new effort warmly, old friends and contacts were re-established, and sales grew. In less than a year and a half, Windham Weaponry had brought back almost 70 employees, benchmarked impressive sales numbers, and established their name as one of the pre-eminent firearms manufacturers in the country.
Well that sucks about Marlin, I had no idea. I own a Marlin .22 thats plenty old and man that is a great shooter. Once we got it zeroed I was able to shoot charms suckers stuck in the ground about 80 yards away. Friggin love that rifle.
Also have a marlin 22mag I bought 20 yrs ago , has that micro groove barrel rifle. Great gun for woodchucks around the house when I can’t use the 22-250. I also had no idea about marlin.
I have a 1953 pre-Microgrove 336 in 30-30 that I love. Will never part with it. As old as it is, action is buttery smooth. Even comes with Pachmayr flip over scope mounts - yeah that old!
Remington hasnt made any friends in the industry as their actions with requisitions left a bitter taste. Their downfall began when they decided to pull all reps from mom + pop FFLs and only deal with Big Box stores (Walmart, Cabelas, Bass Pro etc). When they did that, we could only get Remington product through distributors, no longer direct. So guess who got recommended last when customers were looking for good rifles?
It got bad enough when Remington released a pistol, the R51-that was almost immediately recalled and returns to the owners never occurred. Instead, 2 years later Remington made a Gen 2 of the pistol and then these shipped first to those who had waited 2 years to hear from Remington. They've also shipped rifles whose barrels were not rifled, as well as sent rifles whose wood stocks were made with unseasoned wood. The stocks were splitting, some while in transit.
A former employee from one of the acquired companies told a Remington acquaintance to "stay the f#@$ away from my table!" at a trade show, calling him a liar because of an early plant closing after being promised to be left at the location. Made the show lively!
Seeing as part of the topic title is "and their uses" I present my latest use.
Let the dogs out yesterday when I got home from work. Little rat dog was taking a dump so I turned to grab the scoop I keep right next to the deck, and there is a rattler about a foot away.
Really glad the dogs did not see it (they all ran straight out into the yard after a squirrel).
Got them all back inside, grabbed the .22 I keep loaded and ready just for this stuff, went back out and shot it then buried it.
Got one twice this size today out by the chicken coop, but did not have my phone handy to take a picture.
Gonna be a long summer at this rate. Wife is bugged out the one was right off the deck and about a foot from the walkway. She is more bugged out one was by the chicken/duck coop.
Ouze wrote: Are you using snake shot or regular ammo?
Regular ammo. Had an ugly incident with .22 snake shot, in this rifle in fact.
I'm at the store and see .22 snake shot. I think "Hey cool! I'm gonna get some!" I buy a box.
Load the rifle so the first 3 are snake shot.
Leave rifle in its place.
A month or two later sons come running in "Papa, Papa Papa there is a snake by the horses' water trough!"
I'm thinking, Hooah! Get to try out the snake shot!
Grab the rifle and head out. Sure as heck there is a big ol' cotton mouth who must have come up from the pond area coiled at the base of the water trough showing his fangs. It actually starts crawling towards us as it notices us.
I take careful aim and CRACK! I hit it in the head. It MAYBE took out an eye. Damned thing is pissed and coming at me faster. I aim and pull the trigger. Nothing. As the second round fed the damned plastic cap on the end broke causing a jam. I cycle it out of there and aim pull nothing. Damned third round fed bad too.
At this point I'm backing up as quickly as I can as this serpent from hell is trying to end me before I end it.
I finally get the jam cleared and aim pull CRACK! A .22 hollow point hits the bastard in the head.
I tossed out the rest of the snake shot after that. If it is not coming from Mr. Mossberg or the other 12 gauge, it is a real bullet at this point.
Yeah, I think you're only supposed to use it in a revolver. Still, the important takeaway is probably that the first shot was a hit and didn't kill it. I've never used it and I guess I never will - my only .22 is also a semi pistol so I bet I would have the same problem.
I'm lucky enough to live in an area of the world were you can go a lifetime without seeing venomous snake in the wild. All we ever get is the very rare timber rattler. I've seen two ever, and I'm well above average for this area. Still, I wouldn't mind taking a crack at one with .410 birdshot from my Judge.
But see in movies and teevee, now any gun being drawn makes that clicking sound?
Guns don’t really do that, do they?
I'm not sure what you mean. Being drawn from a holster? If so, I don't think I've noticed the clicking sound effect. Pulling my carry gun out of the holster does not make a clicking sound.
Do you mean having the slide pulled back and released (to chamber a round) or 'cocking' a gun? If so, yeah, there is some clicking/metal on metal noise involved.
Well you have to pull the slide/bolt back and release it to chamber a round.
The typical "Cowboy" six shooter would usually be carried with the hammer not cocked for safety and as you drew you would cock it, leading to a clicking sound. Its probably translated into hollywood thinking guns always make the clicking sound of the hammer being drawn back, when on any semi-auto/automatic weapons it will be covered up by the slide drawing back. Or in the case of a rifle the bolt being drawn and released.
I don't think any semi-auto hand gun at least can actually have a round chambered at the same time as the hammer is down. Because pulling the slide back to chamber a round also cocks the hammer. At least on my 1911 its impossible to have the hammer down and a round chambered. Likewise on the AK, if a round is chambered the trigger spring is under tension and ready to fire.
So the clicking on a drawn weapon is only accurate for a revolver, assuming the hammer was not already cocked. If its a single action revolver, the hammer has to be manually cocked each time you fire. On a double action the trigger itself also cocks the hammer so cocking is unnecessary, but can be done to save some trigger pull.
The whole gun cocking when drawn from holster is a Hollywood myth, similar to the sound effect used when a knife or sword is drawn in most movies. The only time I can think of when a firearm would make a clicking sound upon drawing is if it is a kydex holster. Other movie sins with firearms include thinking that striker fired guns, like Glocks, will go click every time you pull the trigger on an empty chamber.
Grey Templar wrote: I don't think any semi-auto hand gun at least can actually have a round chambered at the same time as the hammer is down. Because pulling the slide back to chamber a round also cocks the hammer. At least on my 1911 its impossible to have the hammer down and a round chambered. Likewise on the AK, if a round is chambered the trigger spring is under tension and ready to fire.
For 1911s you are right (unless someone is really brave and gently rides the hammer home when they pull the trigger), but for firearms with decockers you can have the hammer down and a round in the chamber.
Not only was it relatively fast, I actually screwed up a piece of the application - that 241 days reflects the time it took for the ATF to send me back the application I forgot to sign and the time to get it back to them. I got it about a week after that.
My guess was it was going to be at least mid-July, at best.
Just picked up two stainless steel Ruger 10/22s. One will be kept at the barn, and one will reside in a case on the Polaris Ranger so that when the next rattler or coyote shows up I don't need to run all the way back to the house.
Right now I only have a bolt/dart/pellet/BB pistol. lol. I've wanted a 9mm since I was 12, which was the first time I shot one. I was hooked. lol. There was no way on earth my mom was going to let me have one though.
I'd like to get one, but I'm really in no hurry. I'm still living with my fols, and there are plenty of guns in this household to keep us safe from predators.
The FFL files does a form 3 to transfer the suppressor from the manufacturer to themselves, then your approved form 4 stamp goes to you after which you can take possession from the FFL.
I saw something today that made me consider copying it. A guy at the gun store had a 10mm Hi-Point rifle in an aftermarket stock. He'd also modified it by sawing off the stock about 8 inches back from the grip, and attaching an underfolding uzi stock to it. He did a great job of contouring the stock to make this look like a factory job. While folded up it looks nice and sub-machine gunny. Unfolded it is comfortable. He said you can find those underfolding Uzi stocks at surplus places for $15.
Had to send my guns away for a while to love with my parents. With us putting the house on the market and having people drop by for showings I figured it will just be easier to have them safely locked away at their place. Now I’m trying to decide if I should just go ahead and spring for a safe for the new place.
That's a yes on a safe. Don't be cheap about it, get a "real" safe, not one of those $99 sheet metal thin ones. Mine is fire rated, and has 12 2-inch locking lugs. Makes you feel secure if you are away, in an emergency, or if you have kids around.
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Vaktathi wrote: Huh, I'm trying to even envision that, might be fun though
For as cheap and cool looking as those Uzi underfolding stocks are I might just get one to play with. I have a Mac-11, which is basically a poor man's Uzi, so maybe I could get it to fit on it? I have been wanting to SBR something.
I just picked up an M&P 9 2.0, and while I haven't hit the range with it yet, its definitely an improvement over the original. The default grip feels almost perfect in my hand (I have smaller hands as far as guys go), and my wife is comfortable holding it as well. I'm keeping it as a home defense piece, but I may carry once in a while.
As for the rail on the bottom, the question is: light or laser? I'm not looking to buy anything over $50, so a combo is right out. I figured the light just because it would be disorienting to an intruder, even if I don't get one that strobes. But the laser seems like a good idea as an assist for the wife if she had to use it. She can shoot, but shes never even been in a fight, so I'm unsure of her ability to aim well once the adrenaline kicks in.
Inquisitor Lord Bane wrote: I just picked up an M&P 9 2.0, and while I haven't hit the range with it yet, its definitely an improvement over the original. The default grip feels almost perfect in my hand (I have smaller hands as far as guys go), and my wife is comfortable holding it as well. I'm keeping it as a home defense piece, but I may carry once in a while.
As for the rail on the bottom, the question is: light or laser? I'm not looking to buy anything over $50, so a combo is right out. I figured the light just because it would be disorienting to an intruder, even if I don't get one that strobes. But the laser seems like a good idea as an assist for the wife if she had to use it. She can shoot, but shes never even been in a fight, so I'm unsure of her ability to aim well once the adrenaline kicks in.
Disclaimer: I have neither a light nor a laser on my EDC at this time.
With that out of the way I have spoken with a number of people, trainers and LEOs, who think that a laser is a crutch at best and a distraction at worst. I've heard of training courses where people focus on the laser point rather than use their sights A light has much greater utility as it can help properly ID a target, or distract an advancing aggressor.
If you are really concerned about your wife's shooting ability under stress look into joining a defensive pistol league at a local range. The one I am part of has three divisions;
- Beginner; weapon held at low ready, or on a nearby prop
- Intermediate; draw and shoot from holster
- Advanced; draw and shoot from holster, one of more magazines loaded by instructor to have snap caps to force remedial action proficiency.
Each week we run through different scenarios and there are frequently moving and/or no shoot targets mixed in with the hostile targets. The stages also mix moving and shooting, shooting from cover, and administrative tasks. We used to start on a buzzer, but this week we switched to a strobe light to start one stage and a blank round being discharged to start the other.
I think they're both kind of handy. On my AR pistol I use a light, and that's my go-to thing for when I hear a noise at night.
For my carry pistol I use a laser because I feel like in a really stressful situation it would be easier to use, especially at night. I don't have tritium sights.
If it were one or the other I would get a light. Carrying a flashlight and a pistol at the same time sucks.
Cothonian wrote: I am looking to possibly get a Marlin XT-17. All the reviews describe is as an obscenely accurate firearm (+ I like the cartridge.)
Anyone know any .17HMR specific scopes with BDC reticle?
BSA makes the sweet series of scopes with a .17HMR reticle.
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Ouze wrote: I think they're both kind of handy. On my AR pistol I use a light, and that's my go-to thing for when I hear a noise at night.
For my carry pistol I use a laser because I feel like in a really stressful situation it would be easier to use, especially at night. I don't have tritium sights.
If it were one or the other I would get a light. Carrying a flashlight and a pistol at the same time sucks.
The only down side ( besides weight, bulk, and figity electronics) I see to firearm lights is that you're flagging whatever you need to look at, and that might be an unnecessary escalation. Carry two lights? Well, I believe in always carrying a light. However any defense firearm that you may have to use in low light conditions should have some sort of aid be it a light, laser, or self illuminating night sight. Tritium can bee your friend though it has a shelf life too. Personally I like tritium.
I was once given a Glock 19 which had a laser on it. I found myself and others would fixate on trying to get the laser perfectly lined up. My accuracy decreased and time between shots increased.
Vaktathi wrote: I would go with a light, it'll have a greater array of utility than a laser to my mind. A laser can be useful, but I think a light is much moreso.
A carry optic is much better than a laser frankly. The difference on accuracy between them and iron sights is...striking. we run a club level carbine match-strictly 35 yards or less. Against iron sight carbines I can routinely run in top 20% using my competition pistol. But I can never outshoot the guys with the optic sights on their carbines. Never.
@Ouze: Just of curiosity, do you have to provide some form of "justification" for applying for a suppressor?
Or is it something that anyone can apply for but it just takes a while for the paperwork to go through?
You don't need a justification but it is a process. Vaktathi understands it much better than I do but I can tell you how it went for me.
The items on the NFA list are short barreled rifles, short barreled shotguns, suppressors, machine guns, and destructive devices. These are lawful but restricted on a federal level, but up until about a year ago, the state I live in banned all of them, so that didn't matter, I couldn't have them. Iowa wound up allowing SBRs, SBS, and suppressors. I still can't get a machine gun, which is something I think about more than you would think. One of my life goals is to get an Uzi, and not some bs semi-auto Uzi with a super long stupid looking barrel, you know? But I digress.
Once it was legal in Iowa, you can buy the suppressor, and then pick a legally qualified dealer to have it sent to. Then you have to apply for the tax stamp, which costs $200, and requires a photo ID, various information like address etc the serial number of the device, and several sets of fingerprints.
The suppressor gets transferred to your licensed dealer while you wait. The ATF does a thorough background check, and then after 8 or so months, sends your now-stamped application to the dealer*, and you can go pick up the stamp and the suppressor. I found a dealer who would let me use it while I was waiting, I just couldn't take possession of it or leave his property with it.
I did it as an individual because I am not patient and also because I think supressors will be removed from the NFA list in my lifetime anyway, but you can also do it via a trust. Doing it via a trust is more of a hassle but a much better deal since you can add other people to the trust, whereas as an individual it's assigned to me alone.
I have gotten 2 stamps. One of them I just did all the paperwork myself, went to the county jail to get fingerprinted, etc. I wouldn't recommend it but it works. For the second one I bought it from Silencer Shop and picked it up at a dealer who has a kiosk. The kiosk is essentially an ATM that takes fingerprints, takes picture, uses a touchscreen, and the forms are generated and transmitted electronically.
It's a much smoother process but of course there are only so many so these kiosks out there, the closest one to me was a 2 hour drive. Kinda worth it though, getting fingerprinted at the jail was expensive and irritating. Local police departments will usually do it for free or cheap, but I live in a ruralish area so none of the nearby cops would do it for me since I wasn't a resident.
So, no "justification" per se, just a hassle, paperwork, and a lot of time.
*up until recently the ATF would sometimes send the stamps to you, but they don't seem to do that anymore.
CptJake wrote: I was once given a Glock 19 which had a laser on it. I found myself and others would fixate on trying to get the laser perfectly lined up. My accuracy decreased and time between shots increased.
I took the laser off.
Isnt it funny how that works? I have a scope for my 22 rifle and found everyone did simular. We would hold our breath and try for a perfect shot and just fudge it right up after turning blue in the face. I took the scope off and the fun factor and ammo consumption shot up big time. Its still a pretty accurate 22 with iron sites anyways so I just left it off
.300BLK, BA Hanson 10.3" barrel, Recce 7 suppressor. The host is all Aero Precision & Magpul, BCM charging handle, and the glass is a Prostaff 3-9x 40. I also added a limbsaver pad which was probably not necessary but yolo I guess. Undecided on the final grip but trying this one out.
So far as it's use, it's another overpriced hole puncher.
Not sure what is next. I've wanted a deagle for a long, long time, and the only thing that has really kept me from getting one is knowing deep in my heart that the deagle is kind of a stupid gun. Still, there really isn't anything else out there I really want except probably a Sparrow silencer for my 22/45 lite.
I really like Ouze's latest. I like how the suppressor sits inside the ... "shroud"? ... the perforated thing sleeve thingy ... with just a bit of the actual suppressor protruding.
But I also (perhaps even more so) like his coyote-coloured rig from a few pages back ... I guess the aesthetics are just pleasing to me.
Can never own one because/UK, but I do admit to finding something pleasing about the look of modern gun hardware ... always have done, even in the army (/except for the Sterling ... )
There's plenty of shooting to be had in the UK, War Drone, but it requires committing to going through probationary membership of a club and getting a firearms certificate from the local plod.
I got a Reflex sight for my AK. works great. I've got 8" groups at 50 yards and 10" groups at 100.
Also been trying to get a compensator, but its tough to find a compensator that isnt also a flash suppressor(which is illegal in CA) and at the same time find a store that is willing to ship anything to CA. Most online stores won't ship any muzzle devices at all to CA, even if the device is legal.
Grey Templar wrote:Also been trying to get a compensator, but its tough to find a compensator that isnt also a flash suppressor(which is illegal in CA) and at the same time find a store that is willing to ship anything to CA. Most online stores won't ship any muzzle devices at all to CA, even if the device is legal.
I'm using a slotted, tommy-gun style brake on my AK. It's not very authentic to the platform but it makes it louder and adds a lot of flash and I'm into that. Really works best while bump-firing and screaming "your dirty rat!"
War Drone wrote:I really like Ouze's latest. I like how the suppressor sits inside the ... "shroud"? ... the perforated thing sleeve thingy ... with just a bit of the actual suppressor protruding.
Well, good news bad new about that...
I built it that way because I liked the way the suppressor was stealthed inside the handguard, which is very cool looking. One problem I didn't realize until I had ordered everything is that is that the suppressor is very maintenance intensive. Some suppressors thread directly to the barrel and need tools to come off, which gives them a very reliable point of aim. Mine uses a quick-disconnect taper lock mount, which means that essentially it's a threaded muzzle brake. The suppressor hand tightens onto it, and can be swapped among different firearms if they have one of those brakes installed onto it.
Well, that thread interface needs to be cleaned after ever shooting according to the manufacturer. You use a wire wheel on the brake threads, and a 1" brush (in a power drill is the fastest) inside the suppressor to clean it. The carbon buildup is so extreme that without such cleaning it can get stuck pretty quickly, "glued" into place. Those threads are now not readily accessible to be cleaned because, well, the handguard is now in the way. The handguard isn't difficult to remove - 8x torx screws, hand tight - but it does add an annoying, tedious element to the process.
I might have done that differently, but eh. I might not have.
I found a place in Texas that will ship stuff to CA. I got a PWS J-TAC47 compensator for about $65. We'll see how it does next week once I have a day off on a day the range is open.
Yeah, that’s why there is that fugly plastic thing behind it. It’s kinda flimsy too, I could break it off with just my thumb. Or 2 minutes with a screwdriver. But I need it if I don’t want a fixed mag OR register as an “assault weapon”
I take it you couldn't have that furniture with a Dragonuv/ PSL style stock? Where the pistol grip's part of the stock. That'd look more uniform than that dumb compliance bit of plastic. :/
...Though guys have bolt action AR-15s here, so I've seen worse when it comes to the methods people use to conform to gun laws.
I guess gun laws win out again. You can't have a certain type of gun unless it has a derpy looking attachment. In that case I'd just stick with an M14 or SVT (or those aren't banned too that is).
Speaking of compensator, my new combination flash comp / suppressor attacher thing arrived. The suppressor came with a single mount but is multi-cal so I can put the mounts on other guns and quick swap it.
Here it is on my AR pistol:
Spoiler:
"pistol"
Spoiler:
Here is the product pic:
I got this model specifically because it doesn't need to be timed. I find timing brakes to be exceedingly difficult because I don't really have a great work bench to attach my vise to, it's hard to get the vise blocks to stay in place at 50lbs, at that weight the design of the device actually causes the shims to split, and it's really, really hot in the room where all of this is happening. So, it's not lined up perfectly well and I don't care.
I converted all my AR platform rifles to .300BLK, which is cool, except I have like, 800 rounds of 5.56 here. So, that was poorly planned.
Rather than sell the ammo, I decided to build another gun, obviously.
So far I grabbed a lower, a LPK, and a handguard. I'm in no rush so I am waiting for good sales.
I'm going to send the lower off in the morning to get it engraved so I can convert it into an SBR. I started thinking, though... is there really any good reason to do an SBR anymore? There are now so many good "pistol" braces (snicker) that I'm not sure it's worth the hassle and cost to be able to run a Magpul STR instead of just getting one of these:
The brace runs about $250. So, kind of spendy. But a STR (my preferred stock) runs about $70. If you add in $200 for the tax stamp, then about $80 to ship the lower off and back to have it engraved, we're right at $350, anyway.
So what's the point? Ergonomically they're about the same. The only real difference as far as I know is the pistol can't have a VFG, but I don't use VFGs, anyway. Is there something i'm forgetting?
Um, there's some additional weird legal background, technically if you take possession as a gun or receiver and it transfers to you as a pistol or just as a "firearm", you can convert it to a rifle and then back to a pistol, but if it shows as a rifle on the 4473 when it transfers to you and you convert it to a pistol, that's a no-no according to the ATF apparently without SBR paperwork, so that's one more thing in favor of the pistol too.
Aside from that, when it comes to AR's, mostly just the VFG and quality of stock vs brace. I happen to like VFG's and have one on my Scorpion SBR, but they're not obviously everyone's thing.
Only other thing I think against the pistol is that you'd need to be 21 to buy it as a "pistol" or "firearm" I believe, but only 18 to buy as a "rifle".
EDIT: speaking of 300 blackout pistols, inspired long ago by the first Hera CQR images and by Ouze's journey, I have something on that front as well...
Not quite finished, the upper is not assembled at all yet really but I all the parts are now in hand. I decided to try putting a Binary trigger in it for giggles, but I'm likely to switch it out for a Geissele SD-C once I'm over it, I put one in my 16" DI AR and it's...a thing of true beauty. Going to be an SBR eventually.
I guess I'm probably going to SBR it just because honestly I can and it gives me options. It was transferred as a pistol FWIW.
So far as your build, it looks very, very Mass Effect-y. That front grip really does make it space age. Should go all the way and add some N7 iconography
Yeah, I was struggling trying to find some a while back, but now it's pretty easy to find. It's even gone down in price a bit - last bought 10x boxes of subsonic Sellier & Bellot 200gr for $100, that works out to about 50 cents a round. I think they were closer to 70 cents apiece when I first was buying them.
Side note, I was hesitant to buy S&B ammo since it was foreign and weird. I bought a few test boxes of that initially, and I also got a few boxes of American Eagle by Federal (which cost 20% more).
The S&B rounds were pristine, well packaged, and reasonably accurate for plinking quality ammo - 2" groupings. The American Eagle was filthy out of the box, shot about 5 MOA at 100 yards, and dirtied up my gun so much I'm not even planning on shooting the 2 boxes I have left.
You know, I was going to post this once and never did because I know it makes me look stupid, but it's a nice segue so I am going to post it.
I pretty much always buy plinking quality ammo since my use case is screwing around at the range. PMC bronze is the order of the day. I can usually get, if I work hard, 1.5" groupings. I have a hard time doing this because I have poor fundamentals, and I've done various things to compensate for my poor fundamentals - gotten a geiselle trigger with a low pull weight, added a bipod, added a limbsaver, etc.
When I last bought ammo a few months ago I got a few boxes what google indicated was the best match 308 I could get, gold medal match with BTHP Sierra Matchkings. I was surprised to find out just how much more accurate it was - if I concentrated on my breathing hard, I could sometimes put it in the same hole, or at least cloverleaf. once I got all excited they opened up to about half an inch. Enormous difference in accuracy.
Vaktathi wrote: Um, there's some additional weird legal background, technically if you take possession as a gun or receiver and it transfers to you as a pistol or just as a "firearm", you can convert it to a rifle and then back to a pistol, but if it shows as a rifle on the 4473 when it transfers to you and you convert it to a pistol, that's a no-no according to the ATF apparently without SBR paperwork, so that's one more thing in favor of the pistol too.
Aside from that, when it comes to AR's, mostly just the VFG and quality of stock vs brace. I happen to like VFG's and have one on my Scorpion SBR, but they're not obviously everyone's thing.
Only other thing I think against the pistol is that you'd need to be 21 to buy it as a "pistol" or "firearm" I believe, but only 18 to buy as a "rifle".
EDIT: speaking of 300 blackout pistols, inspired long ago by the first Hera CQR images and by Ouze's journey, I have something on that front as well...
Not quite finished, the upper is not assembled at all yet really but I all the parts are now in hand. I decided to try putting a Binary trigger in it for giggles, but I'm likely to switch it out for a Geissele SD-C once I'm over it, I put one in my 16" DI AR and it's...a thing of true beauty. Going to be an SBR eventually.
How does that drum mag work with .300blk? I thought it wasn't recommended for 300 blackout
Ouze wrote:I guess I'm probably going to SBR it just because honestly I can and it gives me options. It was transferred as a pistol FWIW.
So far as your build, it looks very, very Mass Effect-y. That front grip really does make it space age. Should go all the way and add some N7 iconography
Yeah that vibe really did it for me for the shorty AR concept, when it's finally SBR'd it'll look something like this
Slinky wrote:The basic pistol grip looks a bit out of place, maybe something a bit fancier would look better?
Does look very cool, though, is 300BLK ammunition available widely there now?
The basic A2 grip is a placeholder. I hate it with a passion, they're monstrously uncomfortable, I just happened to have an extra one lying around for now, it'll be gone as soon as I can get a replacement
Ouze wrote:Yeah, I was struggling trying to find some a while back, but now it's pretty easy to find. It's even gone down in price a bit - last bought 10x boxes of subsonic Sellier & Bellot 200gr for $100, that works out to about 50 cents a round. I think they were closer to 70 cents apiece when I first was buying them.
Side note, I was hesitant to buy S&B ammo since it was foreign and weird. I bought a few test boxes of that initially, and I also got a few boxes of American Eagle by Federal (which cost 20% more).
S&B makes great ammo, Czech's produce great stuff.
Insurgency Walker wrote:
How does that drum mag work with .300blk? I thought it wasn't recommended for 300 blackout
Depends on the ammo, some 300 blackout works, some does not, I just put it in there for the shot because it looked cool
Nostromodamus wrote:Is that foregrip considered a VFG? Or is that an SBR? Because it looks like a pistol with a VFG and unless you stamp it it’s a no-no...
Very definitely an angled foregrip not a verticle foregrip, the hand is definitely at an angle when gripping, but yes it's a silly distinction to have to make
Forward grips are muddy in CA on rifles too. If you have a forward "Pistol grip" you have to register as an assault weapon. "Pistol Grip" however is not defined in relation to this law though.
Also, all pistols with a 2nd hand grip of any kind have to be registered.
I've been tempted to get something in 300 Blackout for a while. I also like guns that you don't necessarily see every day.
I ran into something that I wasn't expecting. Replacement barrels for HK 93's that are chambered in 300 blackout. Now, I have an HK93 in 5.56, and I love the thing. Is having another one in an oddball caliber (at least for this platform) worth considering?
The big advantage to 300BLK is that it's optimized for a 9" barrel and that it runs well suppressed.
As such I'm not sure how that would work for an HK93. I'm not super familiar with the platform but it looks like it has an integrated handguard at least 14" or so.
I think the AR pistol is the idea platform for it, and technically an SBR but as discussed I think the hassle vs benefits of going SBR for an AR is very debatable if it wasn't transferred as a rifle.
Ouze wrote: The big advantage to 300BLK is that it's optimized for a 9" barrel and that it runs well suppressed.
As such I'm not sure how that would work for an HK93. I'm not super familiar with the platform but it looks like it has an integrated handguard at least 14" or so.
I think the AR pistol is the idea platform for it, and technically an SBR but as discussed I think the hassle vs benefits of going SBR for an AR is very debatable if it wasn't transferred as a rifle.
^^^^^
On a G3 type gun, replacing the barrel is not an easy process, and Im not sure if you would need to replace any of the locking bits (maybe maybe not? Thats a very finely engineered blowback system). Most places Ive seen charge...a lot to rebarrel those guns, and without wanting to use a short barrel or a suppressor, I dont know what value it would bring other than cool factor or hunting restrictions. You could probably build a 300 blackout pistol of your own for what that job would cost, or be not too far off.
Have some serious envy for you guys with the kit you have on here. The last time I was on a range I used an m60, damn that thing was fun.
Definitely more bite than the British l86 lsw, am thinking of going down the local ish range where they have special fire days being able to use all the extra cool toys ie .50s hmgs, and snipers.
I once ran a M-60 range, day and night fire. We had 7 guns mounted on top of our recon hummers and started with 20k rounds. We only managed to burn through about 13k rounds before we had to clear the range. We had 4 guns go down (broken buffer spring rods, they were older guns) which we could not get back up in time to burn through all the rounds.
Mosin Nagant M91/30, 1932 Tula refurb. Beautiful rifle, a refurb, but shoots good anyway. Got the bayonet and original sling. I got it very cheap from a retired cop, a year ago. Just last week I got 80 rounds through it and did quite good at 50m, standing and prone. I just have it for fun and historical interest. I wanted a Mosin so I saved some money, got a license and bought it.
Also, I have a short Spanish-made 6mm Flobert carbine from the mid-50s. Gift from my grandpa. Looks terrible, very beaten up and not really useful for anything but to teach children how to shoot or to kill time while waiting for the Mosin's barrel to cool off. It was the first gun both my father and I ever shot.
Lastly, an old 12G side-by-side, also Spanish-made. This one means a lot to my father as it was a gift from a very close friend. We don't really use it, as we genereally just do sport shooting and sometimes hunting. Still, I will take good care of it for years to come.
[obvious statement]It turns out hitting a moving target with a snub nosed .38 after running over a hundred yards as fast as I could is pretty difficult.[/obvious statement]
ETA: Traced it out on Google Earth, it was about two hundred yards.
Use: Anti-snake weaponry. I've already capped a couple rattlers and a copperhead. Going to be fencing in the back acreage of the property and keeping a long gun around while working is a bitch. So I picked this little guy up.
I put an aftermarket grip on my Judge. It has a bit of a ridge above your hand. If feels more comfortable when actually shooting it, but it makes pulling back the hammer manually with your thumb awkward.
I just put 15 rounds of #6 shot high brass 2.5 inch shells through it.
Recoil was a lot less than I thought it would be. Definitely glad I had hearing protection, it is loud.
At 'snake killing' distance it is more than accurate enough, and even that small shot took 3 inches off the tip of a rotted branch as thick as my wrist I used for a target each shot the last few rounds. Mostly fired at a paper qualification target and boy does the shot pattern spread at even 10 feet.
Happy with the purchase (and I got a good price too). Not hard to shoot at all. Obviously firing single action (manually cocking the hammer before each shot) is a lot more accurate than double action. Not sure I would want to carry it as a self defense (against humans) gun because the 5 shot capacity and double action accuracy (or lack there of) wouldn't work well for me, but I have the Glock for that anyway.
I'll probably pick up some 45 Long Colt rounds to test accuracy and recoil, and am going to order a few hundred 3 inch shot shells for target shooting and as anti-snake rounds.
My defensive pistol league just started with Go-Pros for the participants and uploading the videos. Great way to see what you are doing wrong and how to compare to those who finish in the top spots.
Ouze wrote: I converted all my AR platform rifles to .300BLK, which is cool, except I have like, 800 rounds of 5.56 here. So, that was poorly planned.
Rather than sell the ammo, I decided to build another gun, obviously.
So far I grabbed a lower, a LPK, and a handguard. I'm in no rush so I am waiting for good sales.
I'm going to send the lower off in the morning to get it engraved so I can convert it into an SBR. I started thinking, though... is there really any good reason to do an SBR anymore? There are now so many good "pistol" braces (snicker) that I'm not sure it's worth the hassle and cost to be able to run a Magpul STR instead of just getting one of these:
The brace runs about $250. So, kind of spendy. But a STR (my preferred stock) runs about $70. If you add in $200 for the tax stamp, then about $80 to ship the lower off and back to have it engraved, we're right at $350, anyway.
So what's the point? Ergonomically they're about the same. The only real difference as far as I know is the pistol can't have a VFG, but I don't use VFGs, anyway. Is there something i'm forgetting?
The only other thing that I can think of is that if you travel for competitions, or just take a firearm with you when you travel, then because this will not be an NFA item you don't run into the issues of notifying the ATF that you are transporting it across state lines, and also you don't run into the issue that some states prohibit NFA items.
Ouze wrote: Yes. Only vertical foregrips are a problem. If you can explain why, you would be the first.
Because reasons
Vaktathi wrote: Um, there's some additional weird legal background, technically if you take possession as a gun or receiver and it transfers to you as a pistol or just as a "firearm", you can convert it to a rifle and then back to a pistol, but if it shows as a rifle on the 4473 when it transfers to you and you convert it to a pistol, that's a no-no according to the ATF apparently without SBR paperwork, so that's one more thing in favor of the pistol too.
Aside from that, when it comes to AR's, mostly just the VFG and quality of stock vs brace. I happen to like VFG's and have one on my Scorpion SBR, but they're not obviously everyone's thing.
Only other thing I think against the pistol is that you'd need to be 21 to buy it as a "pistol" or "firearm" I believe, but only 18 to buy as a "rifle".
EDIT: speaking of 300 blackout pistols, inspired long ago by the first Hera CQR images and by Ouze's journey, I have something on that front as well...
Not quite finished, the upper is not assembled at all yet really but I all the parts are now in hand. I decided to try putting a Binary trigger in it for giggles, but I'm likely to switch it out for a Geissele SD-C once I'm over it, I put one in my 16" DI AR and it's...a thing of true beauty. Going to be an SBR eventually.
Really nice pistol. I'm a sucker for those front grips, but I just can't justify spending the money on that over the Magpul VFG I have on my rifle.
CptJake wrote: I just put 15 rounds of #6 shot high brass 2.5 inch shells through it.
Recoil was a lot less than I thought it would be. Definitely glad I had hearing protection, it is loud.
At 'snake killing' distance it is more than accurate enough, and even that small shot took 3 inches off the tip of a rotted branch as thick as my wrist I used for a target each shot the last few rounds. Mostly fired at a paper qualification target and boy does the shot pattern spread at even 10 feet.
Happy with the purchase (and I got a good price too). Not hard to shoot at all. Obviously firing single action (manually cocking the hammer before each shot) is a lot more accurate than double action. Not sure I would want to carry it as a self defense (against humans) gun because the 5 shot capacity and double action accuracy (or lack there of) wouldn't work well for me, but I have the Glock for that anyway.
I'll probably pick up some 45 Long Colt rounds to test accuracy and recoil, and am going to order a few hundred 3 inch shot shells for target shooting and as anti-snake rounds.
I have a Judge with a 6 inch barrel, and my dad's has a 2 inch barrel. There is a very noticeable difference in the amount of spread with birdshot. I've used mine to shoot rabbit and squirrel, and it works okay for that. Using a .22LR might be more practical though. I also tried skeet shooting with it. That was.....less than successful. I did hit one out of 5 though. With the right anti-person .410 rounds in-house self defense is definitely something the Judge could excel at.
Just visited a local dude who does Cerakote. I've seem some of his work and it's OK and also very, very cheap - $250 for the below.
I dropped off an Aero upper, lower, Atlas s-one handguard, pmag, and moe grip to be done in tiger stripe - base coat of graphite, top coat of sniper grey. I'm aiming for this:
Spoiler:
He said he doesn't have those style of stencils, but I don't care about that too much. Will I get what I want? We'll know in 2 weeks!
It will ultimately wind up as either a 10.5" 5.56 pistol or SBR. Not sure if I will bother SBRing this one but I did already get it engraved in case I want to later.
So, last week the AC went out. Guy came out about 930PM to fix it. Checks out the outside part and determines it needs a new capacitor. We walk back towards his van and all of a sudden he screams like a girl and does a little bunny hop. I'm like WTF?
He shines his light down and there is a copperhead. I'm like "Dude, keep the light on it I'll be right back!"
I run and get the Judge and BOOM!
Poor AC dude swears he'll never do another night call. He has been doing HVAC for 20 years and has somehow never run into a live snake. Between almost stepping on a copperhead and the crazy guy blow gak away he was terrified.
My supervisor at my last base was giddy about his Judge. I've heard a lot of bad things about it though.
I love the concept of it. It seems like a weapon that is designed for one purpose. Making the bad guy very, very, very sorry he was the bad guy. I feel though that my standard 9mm with hollow tips will do the same, and I don't have to worry about accuracy outside of 5 yards.
djones520 wrote: My supervisor at my last base was giddy about his Judge. I've heard a lot of bad things about it though.
Taurus is a very inconsistent manufacturer, so when you hear people sayinf they have a great one vs them having an awful one, they're both right really. They also have pretty terrible customer service to boot.
My daily carry is a Taurus PT111 - a great little subcompact 9mm and I trust it, but I also broke it in every hard when I got it because I was wary of it due to the bad rep. I would not have felt that necessary with an XDM or Glock.
I am thinking about switching to a CZ because they also seem to make great pistols. I wish I could go Glock but the hand feel is just too weird for me, I tried and I failed to love them.
djones520 wrote: My supervisor at my last base was giddy about his Judge. I've heard a lot of bad things about it though.
I love the concept of it. It seems like a weapon that is designed for one purpose. Making the bad guy very, very, very sorry he was the bad guy. I feel though that my standard 9mm with hollow tips will do the same, and I don't have to worry about accuracy outside of 5 yards.
I don't intend to use this as my carry gun, it is purely an anti-snake gun. Having said that, with .45 long colt I'm getting decent groups with it at 5-10 yards.
djones520 wrote: My supervisor at my last base was giddy about his Judge. I've heard a lot of bad things about it though.
Taurus is a very inconsistent manufacturer, so when you hear people sayinf they have a great one vs them having an awful one, they're both right really. They also have pretty terrible customer service to boot.
My daily carry is a Taurus PT111 - a great little subcompact 9mm and I trust it, but I also broke it in every hard when I got it because I was wary of it due to the bad rep. I would not have felt that necessary with an XDM or Glock.
I am thinking about switching to a CZ because they also seem to make great pistols. I wish I could go Glock but the hand feel is just too weird for me, I tried and I failed to love them.
I have the XD and trust her to the extreme. Much more then the POS M9 Beretta they're sending me back to Afghanistan with. When I get home I'll finally get my carry permit, and I'll probably get an XDM.
djones520 wrote: My supervisor at my last base was giddy about his Judge. I've heard a lot of bad things about it though.
I love the concept of it. It seems like a weapon that is designed for one purpose. Making the bad guy very, very, very sorry he was the bad guy. I feel though that my standard 9mm with hollow tips will do the same, and I don't have to worry about accuracy outside of 5 yards.
I don't intend to use this as my carry gun, it is purely an anti-snake gun. Having said that, with .45 long colt I'm getting decent groups with it at 5-10 yards.
I have a glock 26 for my carry gun.
Glocks are my second favorite. Springfields just fit the best in my hand I've found.
CptJake wrote: So, last week the AC went out. Guy came out about 930PM to fix it. Checks out the outside part and determines it needs a new capacitor. We walk back towards his van and all of a sudden he screams like a girl and does a little bunny hop. I'm like WTF?
He shines his light down and there is a copperhead. I'm like "Dude, keep the light on it I'll be right back!"
I run and get the Judge and BOOM!
Poor AC dude swears he'll never do another night call. He has been doing HVAC for 20 years and has somehow never run into a live snake. Between almost stepping on a copperhead and the crazy guy blow gak away he was terrified.
The judge works!
Just curious, in the picture in the upper left.... Is that the crater from the gunshot?
Automatically Appended Next Post: I will also chime in and say that the Springfield XDM is an excellent weapon. I have a .40 one and it is by far my favorite handgun, but too bulky for a carry gun. That's what my Taurus 709 is for.
The XDM got a lot funner when I finally found a decent, all aluminum magazine extender for it. 27 rounds of .40 just makes you feel warm inside.
Depending on species you'd likely live after being bitten, but it will be far from pleasant. Definitely want to get medical attention to avoid a large spot of necrosis.
djones520 wrote: My supervisor at my last base was giddy about his Judge. I've heard a lot of bad things about it though.
I love the concept of it. It seems like a weapon that is designed for one purpose. Making the bad guy very, very, very sorry he was the bad guy. I feel though that my standard 9mm with hollow tips will do the same, and I don't have to worry about accuracy outside of 5 yards.
They are good for tactical timmies.
I have only shot one snake-it struck rusty twice and I blasted it on sheer instinct (two coats of hair is battle armor proof against snakes). All other snakes have fallen to shovels and Weiner dogs.
When my parents first bought their house, my father found two 55 gallon drums behind the garage full of ash. So, one day he goes out with the wheelbarrow thinking to get rid of them. Shovel full of ash. Shovel full of ash. Shovel full of snakes.
Shovel goes one way, Dad goes the other, comes back with the H&R and the M2.
Buckshot and burning fuel were applied liberally.
And then he went to get the fire extinguisher to put the garage out.
I just got a Vortex Crossfire II. I haven't sighted it in yet, hopefully tomorrow.
It looks very nice but I didn't research and realize it was x56 (oops) so now it looks like I have a telescope on my rifle.
400% jealous of your 600 yard range. The only range I have easy access to is 100 yards which kind of sucks. There is a longer range but it's a whole thing, you have to join a club and join the NRA and pay a yearly fee, and one of those is a total dealbreaker for me. So, 100 yards.
Out at the range with 2 buddies. First ones there and we've been shooting for about 20 minutes, when all of a sudden a 5 point Buck walks out and strolls across the range. Too bad Deer season isn't for another 6 weeks. Wasn't more than 30 yards away either.
Sadly no pictures of it
Anyway, had fun shooting a bunch of stuff. My AK and 1911. My bud's Mosin, made in 1929 and with matching bayonet, was a treat. Very little kick. He had a beast of a 308 as well, that also had basically no recoil due to a compensator you might expect on a Barret and a special stock.
Out at the range with 2 buddies. First ones there and we've been shooting for about 20 minutes, when all of a sudden a 5 point Buck walks out and strolls across the range. Too bad Deer season isn't for another 6 weeks. Wasn't more than 30 yards away either.
Sadly no pictures of it
Anyway, had fun shooting a bunch of stuff. My AK and 1911. My bud's Mosin, made in 1929 and with matching bayonet, was a treat. Very little kick. He had a beast of a 308 as well, that also had basically no recoil due to a compensator you might expect on a Barret and a special stock.
It's like they know.
I had an occasion once where I had a 10 point walk into the road and just stare at me, as his harem of doe's crossed. It was right smack in the middle of rifle season, I had my firearm in the back of my car. Couldn't do a thing though. So frustrating.
I had an occasion once where I had a 10 point walk into the road and just stare at me, as his harem of doe's crossed. It was right smack in the middle of rifle season, I had my firearm in the back of my car. Couldn't do a thing though. So frustrating.
Eh. They're not that bright. They parade past my father's bedroom window every year on first day. He doesn't even have to get out of bed, just wake up when the alarm goes off, roll over, fire, and yell for my brother to go get the deer.
Hell, I had one one year, just as it went down, some clown blew the deer's head clean off it's neck and claimed it as his kill. Using a rifled 12 gauge with a hollow point slug should be illegal.
He shot a deer that was all ready shot and on the ground? I hope you pointed out your wound, and told him to feth off.
Technically, not a firearm question, but a bow one. I haven't been turkey hunting in 15 years, or deer hunting in 12. Local laws allow in-town bow hunting (lots of restrictions though). As I live on the edge of town lots of animals visit my back yard. Among them are lots of deer, turkey, and the occasional fox. How unsporting would it be to simply hang out on my roof to shoot these things with minimal effort or skill needed?
I feel like if you're shooting it to eat for dinner, then it's not really different than going to the supermarket , but with no gas needed. I would do it for sure.
cuda1179 wrote: He shot a deer that was all ready shot and on the ground? I hope you pointed out your wound, and told him to feth off.
Technically, not a firearm question, but a bow one. I haven't been turkey hunting in 15 years, or deer hunting in 12. Local laws allow in-town bow hunting (lots of restrictions though). As I live on the edge of town lots of animals visit my back yard. Among them are lots of deer, turkey, and the occasional fox. How unsporting would it be to simply hang out on my roof to shoot these things with minimal effort or skill needed?
Are you talking recurve or compound? Anything you can get with a recurve is fair game, shooting a deer with a compound under, say, 20 yards IS unsporting, but technically falls under the get of my lawn umbrella, so have a go at it.
Ouze wrote: It looks very nice but I didn't research and realize it was x56 (oops) so now it looks like I have a telescope on my rifle.
I've got an 8x56 on one of my rifles. It's gigantic and and makes the rifle useless for a lot of tasks, but it does a pretty decent job for low-light target shooting, which is what I use the rifle for. It's really dark around here for a good part of the year.
Mine's a Weaver. I can't remember the exact model, "Classic K" or something like that maybe? It had pretty good reviews for not being crazy expensive. I think a more expensive scope might have even better light transmission, but this one seems to do a decent job and I'd hate to go out and spend $1500 on something that turns out to only be marginally better.
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Ouze wrote: I feel like if you're shooting it to eat for dinner, then it's not really different than going to the supermarket , but with no gas needed. I would do it for sure.
That's how I tend to look at it. I've never been overly concerned with how sporting a practice is, as long as it is safe, sustainable and does not cause extra suffering for the animal.
Then again I'm a rifle hunter who's out to get meat. If I was doing something more challenging like bow hunting maybe I'd understand the sporting thing. (Not that rifle hunting can't be very challenging in some circumstances and bow hunting easy in some circumstances.)
cuda1179 wrote: He shot a deer that was all ready shot and on the ground? I hope you pointed out your wound, and told him to feth off.
All three heart and lung shots, but it had already been running, so you know how they are when their adrenaline is up, they don't fall right away. It had gone down, and then tried to stand up again. Whatever he had loaded blew the neck to shreds and severed the head. Had enough force that one side of the rack came off. From what I saw, it wasn't so much 'hunting deer' as 'splattering deer'.
Surprisingly was not the worst deer kill I had seen.
One year I was sitting there, and as the sun came up I realized the trees were so full of hunters it was like orange apples. I got up and left. About 15 min later a deer came through. It was hit 19 times.
cuda1179 wrote: He shot a deer that was all ready shot and on the ground? I hope you pointed out your wound, and told him to feth off.
Technically, not a firearm question, but a bow one. I haven't been turkey hunting in 15 years, or deer hunting in 12. Local laws allow in-town bow hunting (lots of restrictions though). As I live on the edge of town lots of animals visit my back yard. Among them are lots of deer, turkey, and the occasional fox. How unsporting would it be to simply hang out on my roof to shoot these things with minimal effort or skill needed?
Well in my hunters ed class we talked about sportsmanship. It’s really down to your personal view. What’s sporting for one person might not be for another. Personally, especially if your hunting for meat I don’t think the method should matter, as long as you aren’t causing undue suffering to the animal or other hunters. And of course every hunter should ensure the meat is used by someone. If you’re not eating it yourself at least donate it.
cuda1179 wrote: He shot a deer that was all ready shot and on the ground? I hope you pointed out your wound, and told him to feth off.
All three heart and lung shots, but it had already been running, so you know how they are when their adrenaline is up, they don't fall right away. It had gone down, and then tried to stand up again. Whatever he had loaded blew the neck to shreds and severed the head. Had enough force that one side of the rack came off. From what I saw, it wasn't so much 'hunting deer' as 'splattering deer'.
Surprisingly was not the worst deer kill I had seen.
One year I was sitting there, and as the sun came up I realized the trees were so full of hunters it was like orange apples. I got up and left. About 15 min later a deer came through. It was hit 19 times.
One good thing about CA. Not very many hunters and large areas to hunt in. Crowded hunting grounds sound like no fun at all.
Yeah, if I hunt it's for one of three reasons: To eat it, it's a pest control or dangerous animal, or it's an invasive exotic species.
You want to blast away at something just for the giggles? As long as it's pythons in the Everglades, snakehead, Asian Carp, or Eurasian Boar in the South be my guest.
So, I just found out that I may have accidentally committed a felony 6 years ago.
I have a few rifles I've put together, but I've never really bothered to zero in the scopes. Going over them with my friend, he asked me when and where I picked up my Marlin 336. It's then that it hit me.
I wanted a 30-30, WalMart has them for low prices. My local Wal-Mart (in Iowa) didn't have one in stock, so on my next trip to Omaha I made a slight detour to another WalMart and picked one up.
The problem is, that Wal Mart was across the border into Nebraska. I bought the thing, did my background check and walked out with a rifle. I was an out-of-state buyer, and they just gave it to me without first shipping to an FFL in my state.
I know that they screwed up big time, but could I have gotten hit too?
You may sell a firearm to a person who does not reside in your State by shipping the firearm to a licensed dealer in the buyer’s State of residence and having the buyer take possession of the firearm from that licensee. The licensed dealer in the buyer’s State of residence is responsible for the Form 4473 and NICS background check. Your A&D records should reflect the transfer to the out-of-State FFL and not to the end purchaser.
You may make an over-the-counter sale of a rifle or shotgun to a non-resident if the transaction complies with all the laws of your State and the laws of the buyer’s State.
The AR15 platform can be built as either a pistol or a rifle depending on how it was transferred.
Due to the vagaries of our gun laws and how they are currently interpreted by the ATF, which is beyond the scope of this thread, you cannot install a stock on a pistol as doing so it is then intended for 2 handed operation.
So, this would be a short- barreled rifle:
because it has a stock and a barrel of less than 16".
However, what Vaktathi has does not have a stock, in which case the barrel size is immaterial. What he has is an arm brace, which the ATF ruled was not considered a stock as it's ostensibly still designed for one handed operation.
So, pistol:
Short-barreled rifle:
Adding a vertical foregrip also would turn a pistol into a SBR. An angled foregrip is OK on a pistol, though.
Ouze wrote: What do you guys think: Aimpoint or Eotech?
I have both.
Aimpoint Pro (with a Vortex 3x swing out magnifier) and an Eotech with their swing out magnifier. Both on AR platforms (Aimpoint on an HK and Eotech on my Range 15 rifle).
I like the reticle on the Eotech better. I have the circle with two mil dots inside it. It is pretty easy to acquire quickly. The aim point dot is okay for close in, but at 100 meters it pretty much covers the head of the targets I use so precision placement is a bit harder.
I would look at the new Vortex holograph sight if I was in the market for a new one.
I dunno about the Vortex; I think I soured on them with the Crossfire II which I really didn't like - it didn't have the clarity or sharpness that the Prostaff that was already on there, and cost half as much, had :/
Ouze wrote: What do you guys think: Aimpoint or Eotech?
I have carried both at work and prefer the Aimpoint. The Eotechs had issues with the battery terminals and would cut out frequently under recoil, they were also annoying to use with our PVS-14s because the buttons were on the front. If I were to use an Eotech today it would be an EXPS model because they have the side mounted buttons and use a single battery, usually a CR123 like my flashlights. The different battery setup and button location corrects a lot of the problems we had with the old 512s, 552s, and the other longer, two battery Eotechs we used at work. Our Eotechs got used in rain, shine, snow, extreme heat, extreme cold and were about 15-20 years old when we finally ditched them. They kinda left a sour taste in my mouth and I really never cared for the size of them.
We now use Aimpoint Micros and I love them, which I've used on my personal rifles for almost 5 years now. They hold up well to the abuse, they don't seem to be effected by the weather as much as the Eotechs, and the button/watch battery works 100% better than the AAs or 123s and have a way longer lifetime. Aimpoint pros are another great alternative if you cant fork out the large sum of money for a micro.
Another one to consider is the Trijicon MRO. I have not personally abused one yet but they have some really good reviews and my friend has really liked his. For the price point ill probably be putting MROs on most of my extra rifles. I am also strongly considering just using Trijicon RMRs. I've had one on my Sig P226 for awhile now and that little thing is amazing. They are really small so they don't mess with your view and the dual-illuminated version don't require batteries because they are powered by tritium and fiber-optics. You can also get the battery version but if you do so make sure you buy a type 2 because the early versions of them had battery issues which causes them to flicker on and off. If you do get one of the older ones by accident you can buy an anti-flicker plate that fixes the issue.
My Eotech uses button/watch batteries (HHS II sight) and is a 2016 manufacture so I've not had those problems (battery or size, and my buttons are side mounted).
We do have a dual illum RMR on one of my wife's guns. She likes it a lot, I'm a bit not in love with it. Seems the dot is hard to pick up in some lighting conditions in my opinion.
The HHS I and HHS II both use EXPSs which are pretty good Eotechs. I used to have an EXPS2 on my old AR before I replaced it with an Acog. The new HHS III I would recommend staying away from because it uses a 518, and like I said we had bad luck with the 5 series.
The dual illuminated RMRs do sometimes have an issue if you are looking out of a well lit room into a darker room or if you are indoors shooting out sometimes. It’s whats called “wash out”, and can be corrected with enough practice. The problem is the fiber-optic piece on top is telling the optic how bright it should be depending on the light source you are in. Which is why it can be hard to pick up because the reticle maybe to bright or low for what you are shooting into.
Son 2 has the choice of an Aimpoint or ACOG on his work rifle. He doesn't like the ACOG as most of what he and his guys do is close range/prep for urban and he feels the constant magnification on the ACOG makes close up acquisition and placement slower than he is with the Aimpoint. He did add a flip out magnifier (which adds a bit of weight which he says he doesn't mind).
For what it is worth, he has shot my Eotech set up and likes it better than his work Aimpoint. I don't think they have the micro. Pretty sure they have the m68.
Back when I was active, it was all iron sights... I is an old dude.
Nothing wrong with that last part at all. I think it’s extremely important to learn how to shoot with you iron sights before you put an optic on your rifle. My rifles usually get used with irons for a few months before I put optics on them, and they keep their irons just in case.
If he really wants to try an Acog, have him look at the TA44. It’s the baby Acog with a small 1.5 magnification. I just took a class with mine on my 12” SBR and it worked fine for 15-500 yards. When I was shooting at 300+ I kind of wished I had a bit more magnification but at the 100 mark and closer that 1.5 worked perfectly.
CptJake wrote: Son 2 has the choice of an Aimpoint or ACOG on his work rifle. He doesn't like the ACOG as most of what he and his guys do is close range/prep for urban and he feels the constant magnification on the ACOG makes close up acquisition and placement slower than he is with the Aimpoint. He did add a flip out magnifier (which adds a bit of weight which he says he doesn't mind).
For what it is worth, he has shot my Eotech set up and likes it better than his work Aimpoint. I don't think they have the micro. Pretty sure they have the m68.
Back when I was active, it was all iron sights... I is an old dude.
We use a CCO, but still spend plenty of time working iron sites. Batteries to run out after all.
Dreadclaw69 wrote: On the topic of sights, do any of you have recommendations for a low/no magnified optic for someone with astigmatism?
I have an astigmatism too. With my glasses my Eotech, Vortex Venom and Aimpoint all work well. Without my glasses the Eotech reticle is all messed up looking. The others being a simple dot are a bit better. Of course, I tend to wear my glasses when shooting...
I have a Vortex Strikefire II and unless I have the BUIS deployed the dot is fuzzy. Good enough for close encounters, but not so good for further away.
I had heard all sorts of tricks like etched reticles, or contact lenses and polarized sunglasses. Guess I'll make sure to ask more questions next time I have my eyes checked.
Ever since I bought my Ruger mini 30 I've been looking for something else to pair it with so I can eat through a huge case (2500 rounds) of ammo I got super-cheap. I was thinking an AK variant, but seriously, who needs to see another AK? Then I pondered a Ruger American bolt action, as that would also have Magazine compatibility with my Mini-30. But bolt actions really aren't my cup of tea usually.
Walking into my local gun store, I found a fairly nice Chinese SKS, in an aftermarket polymer stock, for $250. Anyone ever use one of these? Supposedly they are pretty reliable. I'm also interested in getting opinions on those detachable duck-billed mags some manufactures make.
Never handled a Chinese SKS, but the Russian ones are very nice. They're basically a cross between a Mosin and an AK. Sturdy and reliable and use cheap easily acquired ammo.
$250 sounds like a sweet deal. They're usually in the $400-500 range from what I remember.
The AR15 platform can be built as either a pistol or a rifle depending on how it was transferred.
Due to the vagaries of our gun laws and how they are currently interpreted by the ATF, which is beyond the scope of this thread, you cannot install a stock on a pistol as doing so it is then intended for 2 handed operation.
So, this would be a short- barreled rifle:
because it has a stock and a barrel of less than 16".
However, what Vaktathi has does not have a stock, in which case the barrel size is immaterial. What he has is an arm brace, which the ATF ruled was not considered a stock as it's ostensibly still designed for one handed operation.
So, pistol:
Short-barreled rifle:
Adding a vertical foregrip also would turn a pistol into a SBR. An angled foregrip is OK on a pistol, though.
So, pistol:
Short-barreled rifle:
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Thanks for this...
I thought I was dumb that couldn't understand the difference.
Ouze wrote: If that MPX fired a caliber that was longer, like a 5.56, then that would be pretty much as close to a bolter as possible in terms of profile.
I had thought my next "pistol" would be a Scorpion EVO with a MP brace:
Spoiler:
but now IDK, that MPX does look pretty baller.
Sig also has the Rattler in 300 blackout.
Bigger bullet so MOAR alter like!
I really like the MPX though, and didn't want to start a new caliber just now.
Do_I_Not_Like_That wrote: As I've said before, I like watching gun channels to see old muskets being blasted
Now and again though, you get comedy gold. 2-3 years ago, I posted on this very thread about the Cobray company.
If memory serves, no American dakka member confessed to ever having owned one.
After watching this, I don't blame you
What an awful gun.
While not quite that bad, I'd love to just chuck my USFA Zip .22LR into the river. It's never worked right, but at least it was cool looking and cheap. I'm primarily keeping it around in case there is ever a "gun buy back" program. I'd love to get $250 in credit for a handgun I only paid $180 for new.
The Rattler is very neat as well. I think I like the MPX better for looks though, it really is very bolter-like. I also already have a 300blk sbr and a 300blk pistol so I feel like I got that niche filled.
People seem to love those little PCCs so I think that might be next for me.
Well, that or finally getting that deagle. I got my last ar pistol cerakoted (no pics yet) in that black on grey tiger stripe scheme that you can get a stock deagle in which means now I think I pretty much gotta get one. I have wrestled this this decision for years at this point because I know the deagle is equal parts stupid and cool but it's really not that much money, so yolo i guess.
Grey Templar wrote: Sooooo. I’m bidding on a Romanian PSL complete build kit with an 80% lower. Let’s hope I win!
Did you win it?
Winning, but there's 12 days left on the auction. Though it seems the other bidders have given up since its now about the same price as what a PSL goes for when assembled.
edit: well someone just bid well above the absolute maximum I could afford. $1000 is more than what the gun is worth once its put together.... I don't get why they went that high. Its not a Dragunov.
I finally went out and took some pics of my new build, a stripey boi. A local fellow did the cerakote very cheap and I'm pretty happy with it.
I'm still not sure what the final optic will be, the prostaff on there is just a placeholder.
Spoiler:
I also am not sure if I will SBR it or just keep it a pistol. I got the lower engraved before the cerakote just in case though.
The important part of this story is the cerakote matches a option you can get on a factory deagle, so now I think I have to get one. Don't let your dreams be dreams!
I also think I am about done with the AR platform. I've built an AR10, an AR SBR in .300blk, and 2 AR pistols - one in .300blk and one in 5.56. I'm covered AR wise.
Top to bottom: Ruger Scout in .308, CZ Bren 805 Carbine, Tavor SAR
Spoiler:
The Tavor is apparently a very early one, has a double digit serial number and a 2012 receiver production date on the dial (and a dimming tritium front sight post ). Didn't know that ahead of time, just ordered the cheapest deal I could find, I'm wondering how it got lost and stuck in the supply chain that long
The current collection, probably quite complete for a while
War Drone wrote:Holy Gak, Vak! You planning an uprising?
Nah, I just happen to live in Portland
Monday I got to fight my way through traffic for almost an hour only to find the intersection by my apartment blockaded by a dozen police vehicles, because someone decided that it was a good idea to go on a multivehicle carjacking spree, muck up traffic on I5 by crashing and promptly crash again in another vehicle a block away from my apartment.
'Tis a magical place.
Ouze wrote:So when you hear a bump in the night, which do you go for?
Right now? The Ruger revolver, thats my carry gun and likely the only one I wouldnt have to spend time searching through boxes to find ammo and mags to load
Ideally, once I get it zeroed and have found a loading I really like, the 300 Blackout pistol/eventual SBR will be the home gun. The Scorpion Evo would probably be 2nd. Shooting off a 5.56 indoors in the dark without earpro sounds like a recipe for an instant migraine, and given my apartment setup and surroundings I'm not overly worried about overpenetration.
If society collapsed and you could only grab one, which would you grab?
total teotwaki and complete breakdown of the modern world? The milled AK (sam7r), that thing is built like a Vickers gun, it's a giant chunk of proper old world machined steel and would certainly outlive me in such a situation and anything I'd do to abuse it, its accurate enough to hit anything id realistically be shooting at (and probably never beyond a hundred yards or so) and 7.62x39 ammo is relatively plentiful. Not my favorite rifle to shoot, the trigger sucks, the rifle is heavy, the accuracy is not stellar, the ergonomics are mediocre, but it'll run until the end of time.
I also am very fond of the short 300blk for the home, it's my go-too as well. I like that it has a flashlight on, because I never liked that pistol and maglite cross arm thing.
I wish I could like my AK more than I do. I know it's a great platform. Unfortunately my vision just really isn't up to the job with irons - i can barely see the front sight post which is a real challenge, and I never really found a good rail system that worked for me for getting optics on it. Once the bump stock ban goes into effect and I transition it away from it's current role as a lead fire hose, I might try doing some kind of scout scope or something like that again.
The iron sights on AK's are pretty bad, about the worst of any major rifle line I can think of, but I can at least hit minute-of-bad-guy with them, probably not much more than that though
I used to not think they were so bad...until I got introduced to proper aperture sights.
So I got my Mosin finally. Whats really interesting was looking up all the markings.
Sadly there are no detailed records of Mosins, but going by the markings I was able to piece together the following.
So the manufacturer symbol doesn't really show in the photo, but it is a very very faint Hammer+Sickle surrounded by Laurels. That means this was originally made by Izhevsk, in 1942. Serial numbers lots for Soviet Mosins were done with a Letter followed by the number that rifle was in the lot. Once the lot number reached 9999 the numbers would reset back to 0001 and a new random letter was chosen. So there is no way to know when during 1942 this rifle was made. Only that it was the 6007th rifle in batch Y.
The Buttplate had the serial number changed to match the weapon. From what I found, this was often done if the weapons were sent back to the factory to be refitted or refurbished and they had non-matching/missing parts.
The magazine plate and the Bolt have not had new numbers carved on them, so they are most likely the original pieces. The magazine itself is not numbered, however it has an Arrow in a triangle stamped on it which matches the Izhevsk plant.
The stock has Arrow Triangle symbols roughly etched into it too, as well a number of other faint impressions.
The import markings on the receiver indicate it was originally imported into the US by R Guns of Carpentersville Illinois. No indication of the year, and while they still exist their website doesn't say anything about being an importer or when they started up.
So it seems that the rifle was made in 1942, which was pretty much the most frenzied action of the Eastern Front. At some point, the rifle was refurbished and the buttplate of a different rifle was made to match it, though most of the rest of the rifle seems to be original parts.
I bought it on consignment through a local gunshop, so no further information on its travels sadly.
Fortunately, the internal workings seem to be relatively free of Cosmoline. Only the wood seems to still have any real amount still on it. I'll still be cleaning it of course but at least its been taken care of.
We're excited to announce that Century Arms will be importing the famous Puşcă Semiautomată cu Lunetă (PSL) once again! We do not have an ETA however they are currently on the way.
There will be 2 models available. One model will come with a non-matching Russian optic, while the other one comes with a serial matching Romanian optic to the rifle.
No price details other than it will be more expensive than previous offerings due to production costs. When we have more info, we'll let you know.
The conclusions were mostly good stuff, the general conclusions about handgun cartridges are pretty spot on, though some of the stuff at the end about .410 handgun comparisons and mega-cartrige handguns vs rifles started to get a bit wonky, and I think the idea about body armor being an essential disaster prep item is hilariously hyperbolistic. Ultimately though, no trauma surgeon in the world is going to be able to tell a .9mm wound from a .45ACP wound, carry what you like is pretty much the best advice out there.
My personal belief is use the largest caliber you can use accurately and comfortably. Got tiny hands? Use a 9mm. Got big hands? Go for something bigger.
As for body armor, maybe its not essential, but it can't hurt to have it.
Grey Templar wrote: My personal belief is use the largest caliber you can use accurately and comfortably. Got tiny hands? Use a 9mm. Got big hands? Go for something bigger.
As for body armor, maybe its not essential, but it can't hurt to have it.
Have an exalt. And the armor's even better when it's self propelled rather than worn. But that's a bit pricey.
Grey Templar wrote: My personal belief is use the largest caliber you can use accurately and comfortably. Got tiny hands? Use a 9mm. Got big hands? Go for something bigger.
As for body armor, maybe its not essential, but it can't hurt to have it.
Have an exalt. And the armor's even better when it's self propelled rather than worn. But that's a bit pricey.
I have suit of body armor that is......haphazard. It's all stuff I bought online, piece by piece when "special" pricing comes up. As a larger person, finding the supersized body armor is hard, but it's usually unissued.
I have a level 3A vest. It has pockets for plates. I have plates (not meant for this vest but they kinda fit)
I have a Polish Kevlar helmet and a German crotch protector thingy.
I got this stuff simply for the giggles. The coloring of these things don't match. I'm considering using an airbrush and fabric dye to see if I can coat it all with black to make things a little more uniform.
I was going to buy an SKS to use up a huge block of ammo I got a few years ago. I wanted a handful of reliable detachable magazines for it too.
I looked at prices for SKS magazines compared to AK magazines and the price difference astounded me. It's an extra $15 to $20 for an SKS magazine (not counting Promag magazines, as I hate their stuff).
So, my choices were: Used SKS with no detachable mags and I might have to restock it, or a new AK pistol that comes with two magazines all ready in furniture I like.
Once magazines were accounted for it was only an extra $50 for the AK pistol, so that's the route I went.
I miss when decent milsurp SKS rifles were $200 and AK's were $500.
Now SKS's are usually $~450-600, with more rare versions now heading into $1k-1.5k territory, while quality AK's are pushing more towards $1k and 5.45 guns are now effectively extinct except outside of parts kits.
von Hohenstein wrote: I would love to get my hands on a KRISS Vector or a HK MP7 but they are illegal all over europe.
With a bit of luck, I might get the chance to visit the US in near future.
Is there a chance to rent a KRISS Vector or a MP7 at a shooting range or are they military/police only in the US as well?
Semi-auto Vector's are widely available for sale, renting one at a range would definitely be a possibility, a full auto one would require going to some place like Battlefield Vegas or something that engages in machinegun tourism. MP7's are essentially nonexistent in the US, being both foreign and post-1986 in manufacture, are essentially only military/police, though some of the big rental places like Battlefield Vegas might have one through some clever legal tactics that a typical person would not be able to leverage.
I know it's a stupid, expensive, and not useful gun but... as a famous director who wanted to justify having sex with his adopted daughter once said, "the heart wants what the heart wants".
von Hohenstein wrote: I would love to get my hands on a KRISS Vector or a HK MP7 but they are illegal all over europe.
With a bit of luck, I might get the chance to visit the US in near future.
Is there a chance to rent a KRISS Vector or a MP7 at a shooting range or are they military/police only in the US as well?
Semi-auto Vector's are widely available for sale, renting one at a range would definitely be a possibility, a full auto one would require going to some place like Battlefield Vegas or something that engages in machinegun tourism. MP7's are essentially nonexistent in the US, being both foreign and post-1986 in manufacture, are essentially only military/police, though some of the big rental places like Battlefield Vegas might have one through some clever legal tactics that a typical person would not be able to leverage.
Best way to shoot that is Russia/Ukraine.
There are some ranges where they offer modern full auto packages to foreigners.
Anybody here into AK-74s or anything else that shoots 5.45mm? Anyone who is into AKs prefer 5.45mm over 7.62mm?
What about 5.56mm AKs? I've heard 5.56mm AKs do well with steel cased ammo. Do 5.56mm AKs have issues shooting brass cased ammo instead of steel though?
Hordini wrote: Anybody here into AK-74s or anything else that shoots 5.45mm? Anyone who is into AKs prefer 5.45mm over 7.62mm?
What about 5.56mm AKs? I've heard 5.56mm AKs do well with steel cased ammo. Do 5.56mm AKs have issues shooting brass cased ammo instead of steel though?
I've got a 5.45 Bulgarian SLR-104fr, an AK74M copy. The 5.45 round really is excellent, for any sort of target/distance shooting I'd take it over 7.62x39 any day of the week. I really like 5.45 as a shooter.
The problem is that cheap surplus ammo is banned and commercial imports can disappear at any time because its all from Russia/Ukraine, and no 5.45x39 guns are being imported anymore or likely ever will be again (russian imports are banned, Bulgaria doesn't want to make them anymore for a number of reasons, nobody else is making them, and even parts kits are drying up), and only one domestic company makes 5.45 ammo and its not cheap. Also, there just doesn't exist the same variety and quality of 5.45 ammo that exists for 5.56 guns.
5.56 AK's can be fantastic, but mags are something of an issue, seemingly everyone's 5.56 AK mags are slighly different from everyone else's (largely due to 5.56 AK's being disparate creations of many different nations rather than a centralized pattern copied by others) and as such mag compatibility can be an issue, but it's not as bad as it used to be and Bulgarian mags will work in *almost* anything. If you can find one and some decent compatible magazines however, they're great.
Never seen issues with brass or steel cases either way in AK's. As long as the mag is good and the chamber machined correctly, it should work just fine. That said, you are more lilely to run into a failure to extract with 5.56, simply because of the lack of taper like a 5.45 or 7.62 case, but no moreso than any other 5.56 gun and with no bearing on steel vs brass.
Currently rewatching the BSG reboot, and am on to the last season.
Then lawyer pulls a four chambered pistol on Lee Adama. From a cursory google, I know what the pistol is. But the ammo is described as Magnum?
Now, as a totally ignoramous when it comes to guns, is that the same magnum round as Dirty Harry?
With regard to ammunition "Magnum" just means that it is a longer than standard cartridge, the classic Dirty Harry revolver was IIRC a .44 Magnum but there are a whole host of other Magnum pistol rounds varying greatly in how powerful they are, like .357 Magnum and .22 Magnum among others but I think those would probably represent the three most common, there are Magnum shells for shotguns and I believe there have been Magnum rifle rounds too but I'm not 100% sure on that.
With a non-semiautomatic chambered for a Magnum round it is usually compatible with the standard or parent round the Magnum round was based on, so for example a .357 Magnum revolver will probably also fire .38 Special ammunition since the shorter cartridges will fit inside the chamber, it doesn't work the other way round though,
Hordini wrote: Anybody here into AK-74s or anything else that shoots 5.45mm? Anyone who is into AKs prefer 5.45mm over 7.62mm?
What about 5.56mm AKs? I've heard 5.56mm AKs do well with steel cased ammo. Do 5.56mm AKs have issues shooting brass cased ammo instead of steel though?
I've got a 5.45 Bulgarian SLR-104fr, an AK74M copy. The 5.45 round really is excellent, for any sort of target/distance shooting I'd take it over 7.62x39 any day of the week. I really like 5.45 as a shooter.
The problem is that cheap surplus ammo is banned and commercial imports can disappear at any time because its all from Russia/Ukraine, and no 5.45x39 guns are being imported anymore or likely ever will be again (russian imports are banned, Bulgaria doesn't want to make them anymore for a number of reasons, nobody else is making them, and even parts kits are drying up), and only one domestic company makes 5.45 ammo and its not cheap. Also, there just doesn't exist the same variety and quality of 5.45 ammo that exists for 5.56 guns.
5.56 AK's can be fantastic, but mags are something of an issue, seemingly everyone's 5.56 AK mags are slighly different from everyone else's (largely due to 5.56 AK's being disparate creations of many different nations rather than a centralized pattern copied by others) and as such mag compatibility can be an issue, but it's not as bad as it used to be and Bulgarian mags will work in *almost* anything. If you can find one and some decent compatible magazines however, they're great.
Never seen issues with brass or steel cases either way in AK's. As long as the mag is good and the chamber machined correctly, it should work just fine. That said, you are more lilely to run into a failure to extract with 5.56, simply because of the lack of taper like a 5.45 or 7.62 case, but no moreso than any other 5.56 gun and with no bearing on steel vs brass.
Thanks! It's too bad that 5.45mm availability isn't what it was, but it looks like ammunition can still be found for decently cheap. For steel cased ammunition (in general, not just 5.45mm), how big of a difference does the coating make? I've seen steel cased ammo coated in lacquer, polymer, and zinc, and I'm wondering if there is advantages or disadvantages to any of those.
I've tried to shoot lacquer coated 7.62x39 in my mini-30. It works okayish. if you do a lot of rapid shooting there could be a possibility of some of that lacquer melting and gumming up your breach. not that hard to clean off though.
A deal that was too good to pass up. Brownells had a special on Howa .308 barreled actions, which also lined up with $20 off promotional code, and I also had a $20 off next purchase code. So, I picked up a new heavy barreled action for $189, and snagged a new factory stock for $53 on eBay using their recent discount. I also have some leftover weaver mounts that will fit it. Now all I need is a decent scope.
cuda1179 wrote: I've tried to shoot lacquer coated 7.62x39 in my mini-30. It works okayish. if you do a lot of rapid shooting there could be a possibility of some of that lacquer melting and gumming up your breach. not that hard to clean off though.
So if there is a choice, does that mean you'd recommend getting polymer coated or zinc coated steel cased ammo over lacquer coated?
cuda1179 wrote: I've tried to shoot lacquer coated 7.62x39 in my mini-30. It works okayish. if you do a lot of rapid shooting there could be a possibility of some of that lacquer melting and gumming up your breach. not that hard to clean off though.
So if there is a choice, does that mean you'd recommend getting polymer coated or zinc coated steel cased ammo over lacquer coated?
I can't speak for the polymer or zinc coated. I've never tried them. They might be worse, might be better. Educated guess though that the zinc might be better.
In an AK I've never seen coating matter, lacquer or otherwise. About the only thing ive seen with lacquet is lots of gunk left behind in the bolt, but nothing that stopped operation and only after an absurd amount of shooting without cleaning.
I'm having a bit of an issue with the new AK pistol I just got. The first thing I like to do is customize it. I got a new pistol grip that is ergonomic and feels great. However it's not playing nice with the single point sling attachment I got. The sling point attaches between the receiver and the pistol grip, and is making the pistol grip attach weirdly.
Are there any other sling attachments out there that attach to the rear of an AK pistol? Or if I wanted to go the cheap route, could I drill a hole in the rear of the receiver and bolt on a eye hook from the local hardware store?
Not too sure about sling attachment points in general though, the rear ends of AK receivers, particularly on pistols, can be really odd depending on who made it and when. Importers liked to do all sorts of weird things to receivers.
As for drilling one yourself, as long as you're not doing anything to a critical operating surface or putting in a huge rivet that the bolt carrier is going to slam into, you're probably ok, but I'm no gunsmith.
As for drilling one yourself, as long as you're not doing anything to a critical operating surface or putting in a huge rivet that the bolt carrier is going to slam into, you're probably ok, but I'm no gunsmith.
Yeah, if you are down low enough and far enough back that none of the moving parts will interfere it should be fine.
though on second thought, I'd check up on the wording of the laws around what is legally defined as a fully automatic weapon. as I recall it did involve the # of holes in the receiver, so putting a hole in might "technically" get you in trouble.
It's something to keep in mind for sure, drilling new holes always risks ATF attention, but in this case, as long as you aren't drilling them where the auto-sear would go, you should be fine, there's no law against drilling a hole for a sling loop, only against something that is readily convertible to a machinegun which such a sling loop hole would not be. That said, IANAL.
Hey guys, with all the firearm specialists here I thought maybe I could ask you for help. Last summer, when I was cleaning out the attic of our old family dacha (lots of really interesting old stuff there), I came across this revolver: (pictures spoilered for size)
Spoiler:
I have never seen anything like it before. The chamber has holes in it on the back (to release fumes or gases?) and you have to open a little hatch in order to get access to the chamber for reloading (like the Nagant M1895). The firing mechanism is in working condition (though the ejector rod has gotten loose and falls out and the trigger won't stay folded up anymore) but I have no idea what kind of ammunition this gun fires. Judging from the size, I guess it would be something like a 7-8mm round (it is similar in size to a Nagant M1895 revolver). Anyways, I am really curious to learn what this gun is and how old it is (it looks kinda old) but I am not very knowledgeable on revolvers (or any hand weapon really that isn't an AK or SKS rifle). I tried to do some searching on Google and rented a book about revolvers, but to no avail. So I was hoping that someone here knows a thing or two about revolvers and revolver manufacturers and could point me in the right direction. The gun has only a a few small markings:
Spoiler:
They are an H with a small 5-pointed star above it and an oval with the letters E, L and G in it along with another small 5-pointed star.
Any help is really appreciated. If I can find out what kind of munition this gun fires, I may actually try to see if I can get it firing again next summer.
That appears to be a Galand, which was invented by a french person around the late 1800s. I can't find a specific model, but it is closest to the "Velodog". It came in 8mm, .32, and 7.65.
Looks like a Belgian pinfire Lefaucheux revolver. I don't know much about them, but it's a cool find.
I suspect it's a 7mm of some sort, no idea on where one might find or make pinfire ammo unfortunately, though people do atill occasionally shoot such guns so its not possible.
Pinfire? To be honest I had never heard of that before, but it is really cool, because it was the first kind of metallic cartridge and it means that this revolver is really quite old (which means that the owner was likely my great-grandfather or even his father). Really a piece of firearm history. Unfortunately it also means that ammunition for it is pretty rare and I am unlikely to be able to get any. Probably still going to try fix the loose rod though.
I have looked up Lefaucheux revolvers, and they do look a lot like this one, so I think it is probably one of them. That would be consistent with the proof mark being from the Belgian city of Liége (good find Anvildude). I looked into that a bit more and it seems that his specific proof mark was in use since 1810 and continued to be used for breechloading handguns until 1924. Considering that pinfire cartridges were invented in 1832 and started falling out of use after the 1860's (which was the height of their popularity), that gives about a 30-year frame in which my revolver was likely made (though it could also be made after that since pinfire revolvers continued to be made into the 1890's). That means this thing is like a 150 years old. It still looks and works pretty good taking that into consideration. It is easily the oldest gun I have ever had in my hands (not that I have a lot of guns). Many of these guns appear to have been made by small gunsmiths and sold to military officers as 'private purchase', since at the time most militaries had not yet officially adopted metallic cartridge sidearms (France was the first in 1858). This is likely how this revolver ended up on the attic of our family dacha, considering both my great-grandfather and great-great-grandfather were military officers.
I am going to continue searching and see if I can find the exact model, and if I can figure out what that H with the start above means. So far I have looked at lots of pictures of Belgian 7mm pinfire revolvers and I found a near-perfect match, but it is on some auction site and doesn't have much information beyond that it came from Belgium. Thanks a lot for pointing me in the right direction guys.
The H with the star above is the inspectors mark, probably a St. Etienne arsenal inspector. I dug around real quick but don't have a name for this weapons inspector.
the star over the letter makes this gun post 1877 but before (most likely) 1893, since the final proof lacks the crown that was adopted that year.
BaronIveagh wrote: The H with the star above is the inspectors mark, probably a St. Etienne arsenal inspector. I dug around real quick but don't have a name for this weapons inspector.
the star over the letter makes this gun post 1877 but before (most likely) 1893, since the final proof lacks the crown that was adopted that year.
Thanks! That is really useful information. That pins the date between 1877 and 1893.
I'm not sure you'd ever want to fire this weapon again, both for safety reasons and just in case it were to break.
That being said, a while ago I was watching the Outdoor Channel. They had a special episode of something, where they were showing what to do about weapons with outmoded ammunition. One part was how to convert an old rimfire rifle to accept new centerfire of a slightly different caliber, one was how to modify existing brass to convert the cartridge into an older round. The last one was how to convert a certain round from rimfire to pinfire, for use in an old pistol like yours. It didn't seem ridiculously complicated. I'll see if I can track down more info for you.
Automatically Appended Next Post: Doing a little homework, it looks like what you actually have is a version of the Lefaucheux revolver.
The folding trigger identifies it as the Lefaucheux "pocket" revolver variant
These were only made after 1866 until 1877.
Definitely Belgian. If it was military issued it would be single action, while civilian ones were usually double action. Your variety is more than likely a 7mm, although there is a chance it could be 7.7mm, or even 8mm.
Ian at Forgotten Weapons does a great overview of Pinfire guns, and I think one of the ones he has on the table is broadly the same as the one you found Iron_Captain, though the video is primarily about the Pinfire system than any one gun.
Ouze wrote: I too would be hesitant to fire it before having it inspected by a qualified gunsmith.
With how old the ammo for these guns is, I am more worried about having that inspected I don't think I will fire it. Even if I were to somehow get pinfire ammo somewhere, it would be way too old and precious to actually fire. And making ammo myself with a reloading kit isn't something I have ever done before. I also don't know if I would be able to get a reloading kit legally. So I am probably just going to fix up and clean the revolver and put it up as a nice classy display piece in the dacha's living room. That will be really nice now that I know the story behind it.
cuda1179 wrote: I did a little more research on that pistol.
The folding trigger identifies it as the Lefaucheux "pocket" revolver variant
These were only made after 1866 until 1877.
Definitely Belgian. If it was military issued it would be single action, while civilian ones were usually double action. Your variety is more than likely a 7mm, although there is a chance it could be 7.7mm, or even 8mm.
Thanks a lot for the information. That narrows the date range down even more. This one has both single and double action. If you press the trigger, it cocks the hammer and releases it right away, but you can also cock the hammer manually and then it stays cocked until you press the trigger. It looks almost exactly like a Lefachaux M1858 revolver, except that it has no trigger guard, a folding trigger and a smaller grip. Therefore I think this is may be a pocket version of that revolver. Wikipedia mentions that it was also made in a double-action variant, and the Forgotten Weapons video says that Lefaucheux revolvers and copies of it were made in Liège as well.
Iron_Captain wrote: This one has both single and double action. If you press the trigger, it cocks the hammer and releases it right away, but you can also cock the hammer manually and then it stays cocked until you press the trigger.
Thats just Double Action, since I'm pretty sure all Firearms with Hammers can have them held in the cocked position. Double action just allows you to use the trigger instead of having to do it manually every time.
Iron_Captain wrote: So I am probably just going to fix up and clean the revolver and put it up as a nice classy display piece in the dacha's living room. That will be really nice now that I know the story behind it.
Wait, I don't think you're supposed to do that. I don't know much about this but there was a part of this thread way back when a dude was going to clean the patina off a old gun like that, and everyone said the patina added a lot of value or something. I imagine those same people who know more than I do will pipe up now.
Will make an awesome display piece for sure, rich with history.
Never understood that. Over time it actually destroys the gun. Seriously, I have an 1813 Sutton that I maintain in fireable condition. It's worth more than most people's houses, yet I should allow it to rust?????
(It should be noted that I'm talking about Preservation, not buffing it or recoating it or any of that gak)
Patina is either oxidation or the remnants of the oils and stuff used to prevent oxidation.
In other words- it CAN'T harm a gun more than cleaning it could.
If it is oxidation, you'd want to seal it, yes, to prevent further oxidation, but that oxidation that's already on there is going to protect the surface from FURTHER oxidation. (Unless, of course, it's like, pitted/bright orange sort of really heavy, nasty rust. But in that case the weapon is probably beyond value anyways).
If it's the remnants of old oils with dirt in them, then it's probably the stuff meant to stave off oxidation in the first place.
In either case, cleaning it off removes that protective layer. Even if you replace it with something modern, you've still caused it to loose a little of its surface. And the value proposition is a historical thing- this is what the weapon looked like, these are the parts that were more worn, more touched. This is where/how it was stored. All that affects and can be read in the patina, to an extent.
Of course, always ask a Professional, as so few of us are.
I actually bought it because I have always loved the look of it. It is an absolute monster to fire and it usually makes everyone else at the range stop firing.
Bigger bullet so MOAR alter like!
