Category: The Gun Thing

Not just the guns, but all the stuff that goes with them

Scumbag Ban

Anti-Gun Nannies, Psychos, The Gun Thing

Here we go again.  Executive summary:  asshole loser shoots three people dead for no reason other than, apparently, their race.  Doubleplusungood:  with an AR-15.  Tripleplusungood:  AR-15 had swastikas painted on it.

Before the Weepies and Gun-Fearing Wussies get going with “Ban all eeeevil assault rifles NOW!”, let’s just face a couple facts.

  1. Said scumbag was 21, so no age ban would have affected him.
  2. The AR-15 was legally purchased (as was the Glock the asshole was carrying).
  3. Had the AR-15 been banned, and assuming he couldn’t get his hands on one illegally, he could have used the (legally-purchased) Glock to do the same job.
  4. Had he preferred to use a non-AR-type semi-auto rifle instead of a Glock, he could have used one of these (which would never be included in an AR-style ban) because hunting rifles (as evidenced by the wooden stock):

    …but which function identically to the AR-15.

Listen, I don’t want to downplay this tragedy.  Society has no place for scumbags like this, and had I been there and in a position to intervene, I would have shot this little cunt in the back of the head without a second thought, before he had a chance to off himself.

Maybe his parents (with whom he was still living) could have done something ahead of time to prevent this, and maybe they couldn’t.  There’s not much a parent can do with grown kids — they’re gonna do what they’re gonna do.

Sadly, freedom does not come without its abuse, and the Second Amendment is no different.  But nothing we do can prevent them being abused, and that’s just the tragedy of it.

And just to be clear on the topic:  there neither is nor could be any new law which would have prevented this.  Random assholes will always find a way to do their evil deeds, and that’s the truth of it.

Gratuitous Gun Pic: Springfield Echelon (9mm P)

Gratuitous Gun Pics, Gun/Ammo Tests, The Gun Thing

This is the latest offering from Croatia’s HS guns — marketed Over Here, of course, by Springfield — the “Echelon”.  (Are gun manufacturers getting their naming criteria from Japanese car companies, I ask myself?)  Here’s the bare-bones version:

…and in its tricked-out regalia:

To be clear, the last “new” gun I shot was a SIG P365 when it was first released, which should tell you how out of touch I am in these matters, so of course I am not well-versed on this Echelon thing’s operation.

But the Honest Outlaw is, having fired it lots (and lots) and subjected it to abuse that I would barely consider inflicting on a Clinton, let alone to a gun.  He ends up loving it (not the mag, though), so from that perspective it looks like an excellent deal, as so many of Springfield’s guns are.

At the end of the day, though, you’re still going to end up with a gun that shoots a Europellet.

By the way:  I’d like to get in touch with Chris on a non-related gun matter, so if anyone knows the Outlaw’s email addy, please send it to me.

Where It Counts

Anti-Gun Nannies, The Gun Thing

I saw this yesterday (link in pic):

…and it struck me that politicians shouldn’t ever take this at face value.  Why?

Because we gun owners seldom show up to demonstrate.  We do, however, show up at the polls, and in greater numbers than the ninnies carrying silly placards.

Wussy TennGov Bill Lee should take note.

By the way, the anti-gunners aren’t having much success, as this weepy article reveals.

Gratuitous Gun Pic: Browning Buck Mark (.22 LR)

Gratuitous Gun Pics

As I get older, I have to face the fact that my eyesight — never good, now terrible — is at this stage of my life, totally shit.  What that means is if I want to continue to enjoy shooting, I shall have to change how I shoot, to whit:  no more iron sights (sob) and instead, resort to one of these so-called “red dot” things, such as seen on this little cutie at Collectors:

Here’s the thing.  I have always thought that Browning prices their products just a leetle too high, asking a premium that is not really justified… except for their Buckmark .22 pistols, which are not only astoundingly accurate, but have, easily, the best trigger of any .22 pistol — and perhaps the best trigger of any handgun, period.  Is that worth a premium price?  You’d better believe it.

So at well over $800 for the above — that’s the gun, the Vortex red dot and Collector’s premium, this would take a big gulp and a re-ordering of a few of life’s other offerings (e.g. food) to get this one into Ye Olde Musket Cabinette.

Other than the red dot thing — which looks like a carbuncle on a pretty girl’s face, but which I have most reluctantly accepted as a necessity — everything about this gun is beautiful:  the rosewood grips, the heavy brushed-stainless steel barrel, just the look of the thing, all cry out:  “Kim, I need a new home!”

And if I had the cash, it would be mine.  I’ve owned several Buck Marks in my time — all either given away or sold because poverty — and I miss them badly.  As it is, I’m going to have to sell one of the other guns in my safe to get this one.

I mean it.

Texas Plinking

The Gun Thing

Let’s see:  1,000 yards, shooting prone only, at a 1″ MOA (10″ at 1,000 yards) plate, in central Texas weather conditions and without a spotter…

I’d be lucky to hit the berm.

Still, a bunch of folks have tried, using all sorts of strange and exotic rifles, and here follows a series of episodes (links in each pic).  (Note:  watching long-range shooting is usually akin to watching paint dry, in slow motion.  This isn’t.)

Episode 1:

Episode 2:

Episode 3 (featuring Courtney):

Episode 4 (that’s a Chey-Tac):

And then, in Episode 5, some ol’ boy named Chad shambles up with a Mosin-Nagant 91/30 (!!!!) using a house brand S.W.F.A. scope and Sellior & Bellot 7.62x54R ammo:


…and much hilarity ensues.

Just the thing for a long, lazy Saturday.

Just FYI:  TP’s host (Brandon) is an excellent shot, as he shows in this video.  His comments on scopes are particularly useful.

Unfortunately, he’s not a good speaker — he tends to rush his speech — and the budget scope he likes is the Arken Optics EP5 5-25x56mm, which I cannot wait to try out, maybe next year if we have a ULD draw.

Ammo Musings

The Gun Thing

Got this little flyer [sic]  in the mail from AmmoMan over the past weekend, and it gave impetus to all sorts of random musings about The Gun Thing and the feeding thereof:

Well, no prizes for guessing what calibers are America’s current favorites, huh?  Too bad that I’m not in the market for any of them.  Next line:

Okay, that’s a little better, in that I need me some .38 Spec practice ammo (at 30c/pull), and CCI is one of my favorite ammo manufacturers.  I still have a couple hundred rounds of .308 Win — too bad I don’t own a rifle thus chambered, though — and I only shoot 185gr .45 ACP nowadays, and not the heavier 230gr.  The Remington El Cheapo Plinkers are fine, at about 6c per pull, but I have enough .22 ammo on hand not to be tempted into buying it.  (Their quality control may have improved since, but I used to get a ton of dead strikes with the Thunderbolts, so I’ve switched pretty much exclusively to Federal Target and CCI Mini-Mags, because life is too short to hear “click” instead of “BANG”.)  Next up:

Hmmm I see that like .38 Spec, .22 Mag is running at 30c/pull (!) which makes it five times more expensive than its smaller .22 LR cousin.  But that Hornady stuff is mustard… I’m tempted.  Not by the Blackout, though, which I know is the favorite of all the short-range sniper cognoscenti  at the moment.  But whoa:  $1.40/round for .30-30?  Even for the good Hornady stuff, it’s still sheesh.  (I’d rather go with the lighter 150gr Federal Power-Shok — by no means a slouch of a cartridge — at 90c/round.)  And if we’re talking like-for-like bullet weight, Fiocchi can be had for about the same.  Finally, I’m not in the market for 12ga ammo, although if I ever get the funds to contemplate that CZ Coach gun…  I also note that there is much cheaper 12ga 00 buck available at 45c/round (compared to the Super-X above at 70c), but I have no idea what the quality thereof is like, not being as familiar with shotgun brands as I should.

I know that you could probably do better, on an individual basis, for any or all of the above at SOTI (Somewhere On Teh Intarwebz), but my experience with AmmoMan has always been good — ordering, delivery cost/time etc. — so give them a try if you haven’t already.

And as always, the reminder:  I get no kickbacks or discounts from ANY company I mention on this website.  (more’s the pity)

Finally, seen on some ammo/gun website:

Wait:  an ersatz mil-spec AR/XM7 SIG-scoped clone (yeah, I know SIG Swiss magic yadda yadda) in 7.62mm NATO… worth $5,700?  Did I step into some kind of Twilight Zone time capsule which propelled me into 2100 AD (where $6 grand might be acceptable for such a rifle)?

And as for the Suburban Warrior holding the 24k gold-plated weapon in the approved limp-wristed SWAT “ready” stance, complete with $300 wraparound Oakley sunglasses and backwards-facing 5.11 cap over a suitably-grim “operator” expression…

I see these wannabes at the TDSA range all the time, and most of them are just average shots.  When their guns are running properly.

Which reminds me… it’s almost time to make the trek to TDSA again:  that is, when the Texas summer weather goes from BROIL to SIMMER.