Kovnik Obama wrote:Hum. I don't know if this is so OT that it should warrant it's own thread, but as a prospective handgun owner, what would be a good first buy?

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dogma wrote:

Hordini wrote:
I guess I'll have to keep my eyes open for a deal if I want to get one. The burning issue sounds unfortunate. How do you keep from burning yourself? Just wear gloves or something?

Gloves, and don't put your finger near the cylinder. Basically you need to adjust your left index finger downward about 3/4 of an inch, then your fingertip and the ball of your hand are out reach.

I didn't say this first, but its a collector gun, not something for actual carry, so these issues aren't huge.

dogma wrote:

Hordini wrote:
I guess I'll have to keep my eyes open for a deal if I want to get one. The burning issue sounds unfortunate. How do you keep from burning yourself? Just wear gloves or something?

Gloves, and don't put your finger near the cylinder. Basically you need to adjust your left index finger downward about 3/4 of an inch, then your fingertip and the ball of your hand are out reach.

I didn't say this first, but its a collector gun, not something for actual carry, so these issues aren't huge.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Frazzled wrote:
Thats weird actually. I've never had that from my .44mag or even the old blackpowder .44.

It is weird, but I'm not the only person to have this complaint. Might be a technique thing?

Raul Rodriguez was "the neighbor from hell" who walked his children to the bus stop with a gun on his hip, aimed a rifle at his next-door neighbor and finally fatally shot an elementary school teacher after a birthday party in 2010, jurors heard Thursday.

"He hit me with the barrel," Gregory Ruth testified in the punishment phase of Rodriguez's trial. The 47-year-old was convicted Wednesday of murder in the May 2, 2010, slaying of Kelly Danaher, which he videotaped with a camera in one hand and a gun in the other.

Ruth told jurors he was on his knees building a fence when Rodriguez approached him and pointed a rifle at his face. He said Rodriguez then hit him between the eyes with the barrel.

"I felt he had some psychological issues," Ruth said. "He was violent."

Ruth said he took the gun away from Rodriguez and hit him with it. Although police intervened, no charges were filed.

Called a bully

Ruth was one of a parade of neighbors who testified that Rodriguez complained, harangued and harassed them in their rural neighborhood in northeast Harris County.

Asked how long they were neighbors, Ruth said, "Eternity."

He and others said Rodriguez continually called the police for the smallest infractions or noise complaints.

Several neighbors also testified they feared the "bully" and even watched Rodriguez kill a Rottweiler dog after shooting it repeatedly, either with a high-powered pellet gun or a .22 caliber rifle.

Neal Davis, an attorney for Rodriguez asked each witness if they also saw the dog attack Rodriguez. They did not.

Finally, the jury heard from the victim's mother, who testified her granddaughter still mourns.

"Grief in a 3-year-old is the most heart wrenching thing you can see," Connie Danaher said.

Family to testify

The prosecution rested late Thursday and the defense is expected to call several members of Rodriguez's family, including children who have been in the courtroom to support their father.

Rodriguez was convicted of going to the Danaher residence, a few lots away from his home, just after midnight because he was upset by the noise from a birthday party that included karaoke.

Rodriguez stood on the road next to Danaher's driveway and shined a flashlight at the house until Danaher and others came out.

Rodriguez, who was videotaping the confrontation, drew his gun and threatened to shoot as Danaher, a physical education teacher, approached in a T-shirt and shorts.

A group from the party, several of whom were drunk, joined Danaher as Rodriguez called the police and said he was in fear for his life.

For the last seven minutes of the 22-minute video, Rodriguez and the crowd shout at each other, then, three of the men apparently rushed Rodriguez who fired a shot that can be heard before the video goes black.

Rodriguez faces a maximum of life in prison when the jury returns to state District Judge David Mendoza's court. Because of scheduling conflicts, the trial is expected to resume June 25

treadhead1944 wrote:

Kovnik Obama wrote:Hum. I don't know if this is so OT that it should warrant it's own thread, but as a prospective handgun owner, what would be a good first buy? If I want something good to learn with and not too expensive?

Smith & Wesson Police Special, 6" barrel, .38 super. Easy to shoot, ammo is cheap, and there are a lot available on the used market for cheap.

dogma wrote:

Hordini wrote:
I guess I'll have to keep my eyes open for a deal if I want to get one. The burning issue sounds unfortunate. How do you keep from burning yourself? Just wear gloves or something?

Gloves, and don't put your finger near the cylinder. Basically you need to adjust your left index finger downward about 3/4 of an inch, then your fingertip and the ball of your hand are out reach.

I didn't say this first, but its a collector gun, not something for actual carry, so these issues aren't huge.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

Frazzled wrote:
Thats weird actually. I've never had that from my .44mag or even the old blackpowder .44.

It is weird, but I'm not the only person to have this complaint. Might be a technique thing?

A Texas man convicted of shooting and killing his unarmed neighbor during a dispute over loud music received a 40-year prison sentence on Wednesday.

Raul Rodriguez, 47, faced a minimum of five years and a maximum of life in prison. He claimed he shot schoolteacher Kelly Danaher in self-defense under Texas' version of the "stand your ground" law.

But prosecutors argued Rodriguez provoked the incident by confronting Danaher, 36, and his friends with a handgun and demanding they quiet down at a late-night birthday party in May 2010.

The Houston case captured more attention in the wake of Trayvon Martin's death in Florida. There, George Zimmerman says he was being attacked and cited the state's "stand your ground" law after shooting the unarmed teen. But prosecutors charged him with second-degree murder.

Two dozen states reportedly now allow citizens to stand their ground even outside their home. The specifics vary by state, but generally justify a person not retreating and using deadly force when a threat is perceived.

As in Florida, Texas law includes public areas, "if a person has a right to be present at a location where force is used."

But veteran attorney Andy Drumheller told Yahoo News that the Houston jury appeared to draw a line with Rodriguez leaving his home and going down the street.

"The law is not designed to create this bubble that you can carry with you everywhere you go," said Drumheller, a former prosecutor now practicing criminal defense in Houston. "The jury's verdict is a cautionary statement on the limits of this defense."

The Rodriguez case is also unique because the former firefighter was recording video during much of the ordeal.

Rodriguez, who had been calling police about the loud party, dialed 911 again as both sides shouted at each other near Danaher's dark driveway.

"Tell you what, pal, you just pulled a gun on the wrong [expletive], OK?" one of the partygoers is heard telling Rodriguez on the home video.

Seconds later the partygoer warns, "When I go in that house and I come back, don't think I won't be equal to you, baby."

Rodriguez, who told police he suspected the men were drunk, tells the 911 operator that he's scared and will defend himself, if needed.

"I don't want to do this, and it all started over them playing their music real loud … it's about to get out of hand, Sir. Please help me. "

Seconds later, he says, "I'm standing my ground here, now these people are going to try and kill me."

The video is dark when Danaher and two other men apparently lunged toward him, laughing loudly. Rodriguez fired his gun, killing Danaher and injuring two others.

In lobbying jurors for a lenient sentence, defense attorney Bill Stradley blamed the tragedy on his client's misunderstanding of the state's "stand your ground" law. Something he predicts will happen with other Texas gun owners in the future.

"And they will find themselves, like Raul Rodriguez, charged with murder," said Stradley, according to the Houston Chronicle.

"Raul believed he had a right to be where he was. But he had two seconds to make that call, to pull that trigger."

Bill Stradley blamed the tragedy on his client's misunderstanding of the state's "stand your ground" law.