Sarges Roll Call

2012-01-29T20:51:00.001-06:00

Sight Work

Some days I could shoot the Rock Island’s nickel sights just fine and other days, I couldn’t. It’s getting a set of high hardball sights at minimum, maybe a glow dot up front; but I haven’t settled on them yet and I wanted something usable on it for the time being. So I dug through my parts box and found a half-dozen blue GI rear sights, some of which are new. Next up was to cut heavy cardboard strips pad the jaws of my 6” drill press vice, to avoid marring the slide’s finish. Since I was going to use a hammer, punch and potentially a file, I covered the slide in a double layer of masking tape right up to the edges of the sights. With that all done, I carefully mounted the slide in the vise and set to work.

The 1911’s rear sight drifts out from the left, looking down the sights, and a few light raps on the punch brought it right out. I measured its height and selected the replacement with the cleanest notch, which was still within 0.005”of the original. Here’s where it got interesting because the replacement wouldn’t even start in the dovetail. So out comes the file and I started by removing material off the bottom of the sight. Once it started in the dovetail, I removed equal amounts off the sight’s dovetail about eight file strokes at a time until it went about halfway in. Normally, you’d touch it up with cold blue at this point. Since this was all experimental, I centered it as best I could and touched it up with a marker. I also very carefully serrated the front sight with a small triangular file, which turned out to be an exercise in futility. In fitting the rear sight, I had shortened it and later had to shorten the front sight anyway. Such is life.

I did at least kill the glare and end up with something more akin to a normal, GI .45 sight picture.

Today was ‘zero day’ so I loaded up the folding table, hunting chair, gun tool box, vise, range bag and ammo and headed down to the log pile. I always zero service pistols at 50 yards, for a couple of reasons. First, I’d like to be able to punch some lowlife through the gourd at 50 paces, if that’s all he gives me to shoot at. Second, I like to play at bullseye shooting occasionally and a 50 yard zero is necessary. When I’m zeroing, I shoot from the table with the gun held normally and my hands rested over the range bag. This is to remove as much human error as possible and focus on where the gun is printing.

Early shooting proved it was low-left; so I pulled off the slide, mounted it in the padded vise and tapped the rear sight over just a froghair. This had to be repeated once and when the windage was set, I re-masked the slide again and carefully applied ten light file strokes to the top of the front sight, keeping it as square as possible. The point of impact moved right where it belonged and the last 50 yard group was 3 rounds of Tula hardball, topped off with a couple of Remington 230 grain Golden Sabers. I was pretty happy to see this when I walked down to check it.

Success- and not a single scratch on the finish. This will hold me until the permanent sights are decided upon. I’m also please to report that the gun chugged through another 100 or so rounds of mixed hardball, JHP’s and a few 200 grain semi-wadcutters I’d loaded over four grains of W231 for 626 feet per second- cat loads. It plugged the SWC's into over-lapping holes, right on the front sight, shooting two-hand unsupported at 25 yards. Now to get busy reloading.

2012-01-18T08:49:00.000-06:00

Rock Island Armory Customer Service: A+

On January 2nd I traded for a new Rock Island 1911A1FS with their nickel finish. Feeding problems commenced immediately, primarily due to an undersized and too short chamber. I called Rock Island and explained the situation to Shawn in RIA’s gunsmithing section. I also emailed photos and a synopsis and included a copy with the barrel, which I shipped on January 10th. In a phone conversation later that week, Shawn assured me if he received the barrel by Friday, he’d ream it or replace it and get it out ASAP.

My barrel arrived on January 17th. Its chamber was reamed to 0.482” which is, coincidentally, roughly the maximum dimension per the blueprint. The chamber was nicely polished and a perfect wadcutter throat has also been added. Any and all loads dropped easily into the chamber, and they drop right back out when the barrel is inverted. Further, the ‘breakover point’ at the bottom of the chamber has been perfectly radiused.

This is exactly the chamber and throat I would have produced, if I had two uninterrupted hours and tools already on the bench. This significance of this, from a customer service standpoint, cannot be overstated. These results are not possible unless the service representative is knowledgeable, skilled at his trade, and pays close attention to the service problem and is motivated to make it right- ASAP.

The fact that the barrel was back in my hands in seven calendar days—during a week with a holiday and RIA’s Shot Show preps—is nothing short of amazing. It speaks volumes about Rock Island Armory’s commitment to customer service. To Shawn and Rock Island Armory- thank you.

2012-01-12T16:04:00.007-06:00

Rock Island Armory’s Nickel GI M1911-A1FS

I should know, by now, that there are just some guns I can't get along without. A good Winchester 94, .45 Colt Single Action and caplock rife are necessary personal effects. So it goes with the 1911A1- and I'd been a couple of years without one. So I loaded the mule with trade goods and headed off to the rendezvous. A new Rock Island ‘GI’ in bright nickel scratched my '1911 Itch' this time. The shiny sumbuck just about defies photography, at least at my skill level. As it came from the box:

…and here, with the slick OEM grips swapped out for some GI brown plastic. Not so pretty, but much easier to shoot well.

Bumper-Chrome 1911’s

When I was a kid, you'd occasionally see USGI surplus .45's which at some point, had been handed off to cousin Larry who worked at Acme Chrome Plating. Larry would sneak it into work and plate it with the next batch of bumpers that went through. Eventually these pistols ended up gunshops, where kids like me would slobber all over the display case until somebody ran us off. I think I am genetically predisposed toward redheads and nickel plated handguns.

Shots Fired! Well, sort of…

Got a box of 'Precision Cartridge' 45 ACP with the gun and ran a couple of mags through it this afternoon. Or tried to. Banga-choke-banga-banga-choke-choke. Failure to return to battery combined with push-feeding ahead of the extractor- which was obviously tensioned way too tight. The RIA factory 'ACT' (up) mag also does not impress, and presents the round low into the feedramp. I was getting pissed… it was cold, windy and yet another brand-new 1911 had failed to function well enough to empty a magazine. I fired one ‘single feed’ 20 yard group. Looks like it shoots a tad right.

Or not... Speaking of sights, the guy who polished this pistol missed the flaw on the front strap; but he thoughtfully turned the front sight into something resembling those mirrored-ball pedestal ornaments you see in little old ladies' yards. I shot it again the next day, with the sun directly overhead, it printed right on the sight. A little careful file work on the front sight eliminated the glare problem. Function was still lousy, but I single-loaded the piece and shot a couple of standing unsupported groups at 25 yards, about like one pictured. This with a 7 pound (scaled) trigger, nonetheless.

Under the Hood

Even with CMC Powermags and different ammo, I got a number of FTRB's as soon as the gun got a trifle dirty. I googled around a bit and it seems that a number of barrels with tight chambers slipped through QC. This Rock Island’s chamber doesn't even mike a full .480 at the rear, so my usual luck is holding. Lordy, I should open a lemonade stand. I certainly have a gift for finding raw material.

There are other gremlins in the shiny corn-sheller, which became apparent upon disassembly. The extractor was so tight in its tunnel I that I had to drive it out with an old aluminum cleaning rod. Perhaps they didn't account for surface build-up from the plating on both parts. Regardless- instead of correcting an obvious problem, the assembly-chimp just pounded the extractor into place with his little leather hammer.

I freed the offending part, worked the shank down on a 400 grit diamond stone and reset the tension. Ball and 230 Golden Saber hand-cycled ‘just OK’ when fed from a decent magazine. A second tune-up of the extractor involved filing proper feed and clearance bevels on its nose and groove; this helped a bunch and hand-cycling became downright slick. The extractor itself seems to be of good quality steel and judging from the effort taken to reset it, I’d say the heat-treating is excellent. I generally replace low-buck extractors with an Ed Brown unit, for peace of mind.

When your new pistol has problems, it would be easy to overlook its good points; so let's touch on some of those. To Rock Island’s credit, the firing pin stop plate is literally perfect. I’ve fitted many an oversize stop plate and they simply nailed this one. This is desirable because when properly fitted, this part stabilizes the extractor itself and promotes good, consistent extraction and ejection. It is refreshing to see this in a budget 1911A1. Random micrometer readings around the frame, slide and internals indicate a commendable effort to follow the blueprint. The slide to frame fit is considerably tighter than your typical 1911 knock-off. I'd rate this one as good or better than the last few Springfields I've had in my hands. In parts of the slide and frame you don't see, when the gun is assembled, this Rock Island blows Springfield out of the water. These surfaces are literally finished as well as any production 1911 I've ever seen- and that says something.

Outwardly, the Rock Island barrel is excellent. It mics a proper and perfectly-round 0.580” at the muzzle and reduces to 0.575” about three-quarters of an inch back; essentially ‘match’ barrel external dimensions. Internal and external finish, lugs the upper and lower lugs are very well executed. The rifling is a tad shallow- our only clue that we aren’t looking at a match barrel, after all. The ‘wadcutter throat’ on this barrel is odd, running up the impact surfaces of the barrel further than it needs to; it also stops short of the bottom of the barrel. But the bore is very well finished and doesn't look like it will collect lead. I see nothing in the barrel that says it won't meet my personal ‘carry gun accuracy standard’ of 4” @ 50 yards.

I’ve mentioned this gun’s sluggishness, in failing to return to battery. Even sparkling clean, this was evident in hand cycling certain ball rounds. I originally attributed this to excessive extractor tension, but I was only partially correct.

I also noted that the chamber dimensions were tight, but even a tight-chambered 1911 will usually run for 200 rounds or so before it gets sluggish. My old ’45 Ithaca had a tight-chambered, 7-digit stainless National Match barrel, yet in four days I burned over 700 rounds of 200 LSWC reloads through it at NRA LE Instructor School (Topeka, 1991) in near 100 degree temps, with no malfunctions at all. That particular gun had the full AMTU treatment at some point in its life. I did a similar rebuild on a Colt Combat Commander in the late 70’s; fitted Bar-Sto barrel, tightened rails, the works. This was back when I still had eagle-eyes and that gun produced more than a few 5-shot, 2 ½”50 yard rested groups. It ran great, too. So I know that ‘tight’ guns can be reliable.

Something else was going on here and in an effort to identify ‘what’, I dug out an old Auto Ordnance barrel I’ve had laying around for years. It ran like a top, but had chatter marks in the rifling so I’ve never used it for serious shooting. Take a look at the front of the chambers on both barrels. The Rock Island barrel is on the right:

As mentioned, I think A/O did a much better job with their ‘wadcutter throat’; but I digress. A closer look at the Rock Island chamber, here:

There is next to NO leade into the rifling, which is bad ju-ju for the wadcutter loads I shoot by the bucket-fulls. I grabbed a few oddball rounds which include Winchester USA, Winchester SXT Federal FMJ and Wolf FMJ, all of which are 230 grain. I also added my 200 LSWC reload (1.250” OAL) and a reload using a 255 grain semi-wadcutter intended for the .45 Colt, loaded to 1.175” OAL. ALL these loads have proven reliable in various 1911’s I’ve had.

I began by measuring the length of the barrel, including the hood. I then dropped each of aforementioned rounds lightly into the chamber, and measured the barrel again. A properly-cut chamber will admit in-spec .45 ACP ammo dropped into it and the case head will be flush with or at most, 2-3 thousandths below the hood. This barrel is short-chambered and various loads protruded 15 to 30 thousandths ABOVE the barrel hood.

The final confirmation of this materialized when pushing the ‘high’ rounds on into the chamber, flush who the hood. Resistance was felt as they seated and it was necessary to pluck them from the barrel. This was particularly apparent with the 200 grain LSWC load and the leading shoulder of the bullet showed bright marks where in encountered the sharp edge of the chamber. These loads in particular have proved reliable in other 1911’s I’ve owned.

The ‘Fix’

I plugged the Auto Ordnance barrel into the Rock Island and shot three 8 round CMC mags of Federal ball through it. It is the first three magazines the pistol has cycled without failing to feed. At a little over 50 yards, they were all over an ‘Osama’ target- but at least they were feeding and firing. I’m confident that the bad chamber in the OEM barrel was 95% of this gun’s problems.

So what to do? First, I have the old Auto Ord barrel plugged into the gun; so I’m not stuck with a pistol I can’t shoot. Second, the gun was sold through Davidsons and I’m told it can be exchanged through them without problems. Finally, Rock Island’s customer service is said to be good and I could probably return the gun to them for correction.

Actual Customer Service!

I’m choosing ‘none of the above’. I don’t buy guns to ship them all over the country. I phoned Rock Island and after short wait, was transferred to Shawn in the gunsmithing department. I explained the problem and was pleased to find I was speaking with someone who fully understood my explanation of the chamber problems. He was polite and downright anxious to resolve the matter; even offered to look my slide over and correct any other deficiencies he found. I opted for sending only the barrel. I also emailed Shawn a detailed explanation with photos and enclosed a printed copy with the barrel, before I boxed it up.

I’m anxious to get a good barrel in this gun. I googled all over creation for “Rock Island 50 yard Group” and found practically nothing. That deficiency will be corrected at the first opportunity.

2011-08-10T23:30:00.002-05:00

Every Man Needs a Tractor…

About a month ago, we moved back onto Peg’s old home place, AKA the “Three Ninety Eight Ranch” which is 40 acres of crop & pasture in Central Missouri. We needed a small tractor for it and a few weeks ago I found a 1955 Ford Model 640 for sale by an old gentleman I’ve known for a while. I also knew he hadn’t hurt it any. The 600 Series was the first substantial step up from the old Ns and Jubilees; with a 134 CID ‘Red Tiger OHV, side-mounted distributor engine and enough power to easily handle a two-bottom plow.

Negotiations were opened and before long, I had myself a tractor, Dual Model 100 loader-stacker and a Howse 6’ rotary mower. So it was time to get busy. I have been working hell out of this little 640... mowed the old 16 acre crop field, behind the house, and pushed a big stand of brush back at the east end of the waterway. I wanted to mow it early, to keep the weeds from going to seed- and so I didn't have to wade brush to pick up my doves and quail.

Since the field was cut, I’ve dinged a coyote with my .40 Smith and we’ve watched our little herd of deer from the backyard, perhaps 350 yards out. That means it’s time to set up the range.

An old pile of logs, that was too rotten for firewood, is going in stack at the end of the waterway. That's going to be the back-stop for the range, which will be at least 200 yards across the crop-field. We can probably stretch that out to 300 diagonally, if we're real careful. This will be a back-saver when it comes to getting in the winter’s firewood.

The great news is that in several days of full-throttle mowing in 100 degree heat, this little guy used a grand total of ONE PINT of oil! Being about the same age, we’re both ready for a break at the same time. This keeps either one of us from hurting the other one much.

Everybody wants to drive it… even pretty girls.

Which ain’t such a bad thing, really.

And finally- even the dog approves!

2011-05-20T12:45:00.002-05:00

Kudos to Charter Arms…

Awhile back I picked up an old Charter Arms Undercover .38 Special, made about 1965. It was in good shape, worked OK, and it showed promise as a pocket gun. It also shot pretty well with a good plinking/small game reload, using W231 and a 158 grain Hornady bullet.

Some 200 rounds later, it started developing misfires with CCI primers; admittedly the hardest primers out there. I checked the firing pin protrusion and got a shade over 0.040” which is well under industry standard. So I called Charter, explained the problem and asked to purchase some replacement parts. They eventually sent me a new mainspring assembly, extra-length firing pin and spring and they didn’t charge me a dime for any of it. This breathed new life into a decent little 38 snub.

Given the horror stories we hear of handgun manufacturers who blame service problems on the customer, demand the gun be shipped back on your dime--then return your gun with problem unsolved—this is exemplary service by Charter Arms, for a gun they made FORTY FIVE YEARS ago.

Some of Charter’s competition could take a lesson from them, on how to treat customers.

2011-04-29T15:45:00.004-05:00

Simply Rugged’s ‘Range Master’: A Solid Working Holster

For anyone not familiar with the company, Simply Rugged is an Arizona holster outfit owned and operated by Rob Leahy . Rob has solid background in actually carrying guns and his designs reflect a practical approach to keeping a heavy sixgun within easy reach, keeping it secure and accomplishing it all with comfort and style.

In early 2010, Rob and I discussed the perfect working holster for single actions, via email. To my thinking, a working holster should cover enough of the trigger guard to prevent brush, etc. from getting into/under it when cutting brush, etc. or plowing dirt, if you get tossed by a pony or dirt bike.

Retention is also important and I got reminded of this awhile back. While clearing fence rows and piling brush, I hooked my plowhandle and flipped it out nose-first, right into the mud. You'd always rather not do that but I had to laugh a little as I stopped, poured some motor oil on an old napkin and poked it down the bore with a green sprig. A rawhide hammer loop solves this problem perfectly and I have yet to see a field holster retention device that I like better. A tug on the bottom adjusts it, the gun is held securely, yet it is easily and silently brushed off by the thumb when drawing.

The belt loop is a critical element of a hard-use working holster. It should snug the gun into the body with the cylinder centered on the belt, keeping the gun up out of the way but still allowing fairly quick access. At this height, a 5 ½” SA is easily covered by a barn coat or medium-length jacket.

My short-list list of good working-holster attributes is embodied in the Range Master. I made my usual adjustments, as I do with any new holster. I wet-mold them to whatever I’m going to carry in them, so the gun can be drawn quietly by simply lifting it out. I also roll a slight flare in the outer edge, so the gun can be replaced with equal ease. Good quality leather lends itself well to these improvements and the leather used in the Range Master is top-notch. Afterward, the holster got put right to work. Here are a few photos of it after a full day of chores & mowing.

As friend and fellow blogger Hobie has noted, Rob’s work just keeps getting better and better. The value/price ratio of his leathergoods is high in favor of the consumer, particularly considering the quality of the product. I recommend his holsters heartily and suggest you visit www.simplyrugged.com at your first opportunity.

2011-04-17T21:39:00.001-05:00

Full Circle...

My tag-along gun for the day was my Old Vaquero in .45 Colt. Almost as an afterthought, I realized I hadn’t shot it much since the previous fall, when I killed the last of its ‘zero gremlins’. So after mowing was done, I walked down to the backstop to discover my hard-used target board had succumbed to the last wind storm. Great… I grabbed the biggest chunk, stapled a target to it (none too neatly I might add) and walked back to the 50 yard stake to confirm this old .45 was shooting where it looked with my most used load; a Missouri Bullet 250 grain RNFP over 7.2 grains of W231, for about 825 fps.

Lacking a suitable rest, I plunked down on the ground and shot the six loads in the gun from sitting, rested over one rickety knee and pressing the trigger when the front sight touched the little red dot in the middle of the target. In retrospect, I probably should have held six o’clock.

Now gentlemen, I realize in the grand scheme of accurate sixguns a four-inch group won’t start any ticker-tape parades. The shooter, as usual, is the weak link in this chain because the Vaquero will hold under an inch at 25 with loads it likes. Still, I am pleased as can be. I take much comfort in a fixed sight .45 Colt I can shoot this well after ignoring it for six months, from a not particularly solid position and taking no great care to produce a photogenic group. This old Ruger is the one handgun that would stay, if all the rest of them had to go.

I guess that makes me a single-action man and I’m good with that, too. It’s where I started out and there’s worse things in life than coming full circle to something really good.

2011-03-25T20:24:00.001-05:00

The 'Short-Block' Maverick 88

At Sarge's Roll Call and The Sixgun Journal, we have always been about 'working guns'. We're also very much about getting the most gun for your money. Most of my Gun and Pawn Shop cruising is done with those concepts in mind. It was just such a foray that produced an excellent working shotgun.

One of my favorite haunts is Muttly's Gun & Pawn of Knob Noster, MO. The manager, Joe Slater, is a first class guy and a number of the guns featured on this site were bought or traded from him. So while picking up my Charter Arms Undercover, I asked Joe to keep his eye peeled for a used 12 gauge Mossberg 500. Joe mentioned that he had the back half of a Maverick 88, which came in without a barrel. He got into it right and shortly thereafter, so did I.

For those unfamiliar with the Maverick 88, it is a product of Mossberg Arms. The Maverick is essentially a Mossberg 500A with a few cost-saving measures implemented to keep the price down. The essential difference between them is that the Maverick features a crossbolt safety mounted ahead of the trigger, whereas the 500's safety sits atop the receiver for easy access by left-handed shooters. An excellent, photo-rich review of the 8-shot Maverick can also be found here.

So what to do with my back-half of a shotgun? Well first, I inspected its action components. It was not only sound- it had hardly been fired at all. I'm guessing the original owner moved at some point and the OEM barrel got lost, but whatever they case I needed another one. I originally intended to slap an 18 ½“ barrel on it, but after pricing around I discovered I could buy a 20” bead sighted barrel and 7-shot mag tube direct from Mossberg, for very little more money. The deal was done and while waiting for delivery, I gave the OEM tube a few shots of PB Blaster. I'd read Internet tales of woe from several others who swapped out mag tubes, finding the OEM component quite difficult to remove.

When the barrel & mag tube arrived three weeks later, changing out mags tubes was accomplished without grief. The 7-shot tube came with the proper spring and the OEM shell follower was simply re-used for the conversion. I was relieved to discover that follower was made of metal instead of plastic.

The finished product appears below; it is essentially an 8-shot Maverick with the 'field' style forearm.

The first outing proved the gun reliable, feeding and ejecting field loads as fast as they could be cycled, from the hip. Deliberate shooting produced some really good results with 2 ¾” Super-X slugs and 00 Buck; so good, in fact, I thought they were a fluke. Today, it proved otherwise, keeping all nine pellets of 00 in the chest of a B27 at a measured 25 yards- and all but two of those in the 7 ring. I can't tell you how many police shotguns I've fired over the years and most of them won't do this. My 870 Special Purpose, with the improved cylinder tube installed, still wouldn't pattern 00 buck this well. I was also elated to discover that the bead-sighted barrel was regulated perfectly for Super-X slugs.

And just to make sure THAT wasn't a fluke, I fired another Super-X slug from 50 yards. That shot is highlighted in red.

These are splendid results from a 'price point' shotgun.

Comparisons are inevitable and fortunately, I've had a number of Mossberg 500's and 590's through my hands.

My first thought is that Mossberg's barrels are getting better. I bought a half-dozen 590-A1's for a little Sheriff's Dept., 20 years ago, and spent an afternoon zeroing them at 50 yards with 2 3/4" Super X slugs. None of them shot a bit better than this shotgun- and none of them would pattern as well with buckshot.

Second, the actions on Mossberg's pumps have gotten better. This 88 don't rattle much and I'm convinced it has a shorter stroke--and cycles faster--than the 870's I've become so accustomed to.

At six pounds, the 88 is light for an 8-shot 12 Gauge shotgun. This is a two edged sword. It makes the Maverick handle much better than a $225.00 shotgun should. When fired with high-brass shells, you can certainly tell when it goes off.

Finally- Mossberg is flat stocking them better these days. Those damn 590's all had a sharp mould line down the top of the stock and in 15 minutes I looked like I'd been boxing with Sugar Ray Leonard. The synthetic stock on this Maverick 88 is smooth and when mounted, the bead appears precisely centered on the sighting plane for an instant hit on anything unfortunate enough to be behind it. The forend falls under the leading hand and feels good to it. These are superbly thought-out, practical shotguns.

There are a couple of things about the 88 that run contrary to my tastes. While they've become common, I do not like plastic trigger housings. I had durability concerns about these, somewhat allayed by the fact that problems with them seem to be few. The recoil pad could be better, but this is an easy fix. The safety on the Maverick is small, slick and just might be easy to miss under stress. I expect that sooner or later, an enterprising individual will offer a 'big button' replacement. There are lots of these guns in circulation and a market almost certainly exists.

The Maverick is a well-engineered shotgun from a major manufacturer, at a price that's hard to beat.

2011-03-14T20:51:00.004-05:00

'Old Pickup Trucks': The 1986 Dodge W250 4x4

I like old trucks and especially those that haven’t been neutered with EPA garbage. They are gutsy old workhorses from a time when pulling power and payload were the prime desideratum. You can still find them in usable condition; this old 86 W250 (¾ ton) has a carbureted 318, 4 speed and NP-205 transfer case. Front diff is a Dana 44 and the rear is a 60. Anyhow, here’s ‘Old Blackie’. I stand just short of six feet and my nose just misses the top of the side mirror. The 35” BFG A/T’s & 4” body lift stand it up pretty good.

The old 318 is real healthy and thankfully, doesn’t use oil. Lawdy... the abuse we heaped upon 318s as teenagers was awful and the victims were usually old 59-65 Mopar's, often with push-button trannies. We'd goose them backwards for 50 feet, then punch the L button and just stand on it. Chrysler built some bomb-proof stuff over the years and the 318 is a prime example. This one has an Edelbrock four-barrel, hi-rise intake & chrome valve covers…

Someone added in buckets, tach & dig that hot-rod steering wheel!

And finally… ‘surfer sitckers’… we’re only about 600 miles from the nearest saltwater!

Kids have had ahold of it and needless to say, I’ve found a few things I’ll be fixing- but it’s also nice to see of kids taking interest in old iron. Blackie is a tough old truck that spews enough carbon to make Al Gore cry, each time the secondaries on that Edelbrock s kick open.

An early February blizzard provided some snow-wheelin’, and Blackie ain't a-skeered of no snow. We still had over a foot on the ground at the time of this photo, and with the few days we had above freezing, it was hard on top and powdery underneath. Now I had a perfectly valid reason to venture off down below the range... the burn barrel needed dumped.

I knew it was would get interesting when I had to lean on the throttle a little going downhill--and it got real interesting coming back up--but in second gear at about 3200 rpm all four of those 35's were throwing snow and we came right back out. This is the fourth set of Goodrich A/T's I've had and I remain seriously impressed... I've used several other brands with supposedly more aggressive tread and I don't think they would have chewed uphill through this mess.

Improvements to the old truck are underway. Wiper arms/bushings have been rebuilt/replaced and I'm almost done sorting out the wiring abortions committed over the years. A general ignition tune-up and fine tuning of the Edelbrock are also in the works.

To eliminate steering slop, I installed a Borgeson Steering shaft (Part# 000940), new ragjoint and adjusted the steering box slack, all of which helped immensely. Dodge's pre-94 OEM steering shaft 'universal' was a design screw-up and only good for about 4000 miles when brand-spanking new. The other justification for the Borgeson was this- you never know what you're going to find, when a bunch of kids decide to do a body-lift.

The Borgeson shaft as 4" of flex to accommodate those body lifts, and is exactly what Dodge should have used in the first place.

I've gotten Ol' Blackie off in the boonies a few times and it's proving to be a tank. Washed out creek crossings were easily handled. The trick is make sure you get up on what's left of the slab, after chugging across the gravel bar..

Mileage is holding around 17-18 mpg so long as you stay out of the 4 barrel and hold highway driving to about 2000 rpm. In this the big tires are a help. Next up are creature-comfort improvements to the cockpit, which is also short of suitable places to stow firearms... all in good time. I'm having a ball with this old beater and liking it better all the time.

2011-02-21T12:29:00.003-06:00

Updated: Charter Arms ‘Undercover’ .38 Special

I scarfed up an old 1960's Charter Undercover .38 last Friday. The gun was in near-new condition and the 'turn line' on the cylinder appeared only after the weekend's shooting. Please excuse the poor photography; time and weather have been uncooperative.

It has the Bridgeport address which, according to some sources, indicates 1960’s production. I count this as a plus. I've had a couple of .44 Bulldogs over the years, both Bridgeport guns and both excellent in every respect. The second one was utterly dead-nuts on the money at 25 yards with Federal's 200 grain .44 Special lead hollowpoint load. My general opinion of the little guns has been this- Given a choice between a Charter and Chief's Special, I'd take the S&W every time; but the Charters were 'good enough' and a lot of gun for the money. Charter has also consistently offered guns not available elsewhere, like their .44 snubs, and continued to undersell the competition.

I dug out some primed .38 brass and loaded about up 30 rounds, with Hornady’s 158 grain swaged SWC and 3.4 grains of W231. I shot ten of them at 25 yards and I suspect the soft bullets and shallow rifling were a poor match. While I got a few keyholes--and a few high-left flyers--I won't have any trouble qualifying at 25 yards with it. As is, it still shoots well enough to put a hurtin' on Joe Felon at 25 steps.

Smaller holes are from a snake load at about ten feet.

Later, I loaded a few 158 grain jacketed HP's over the same charge of W231 I used with the soft lead bullets; the 'keyholing' disappeared and five shot groups are just under four inches. This is shooting two-hand unsupported at 25 yards. I reckon that is good enough given the application.

If a DA revolver is going to exhibit light strikes, lead-spitting etc. they will generally do it when run hard in double action. So I ripped off a few five shot strings from the hip, as fast as I could. Primer hits remained good & deep. The little gun points well and it was no work at all to stitch-up torso-sized targets at 5 yards.

The little .38 needs only minor improvements. It shoots two to three inches left at 25 yards, but the front sight is plenty fat enough to shave 0.030" off the right side and that should pretty near correct it. Why, you might ask, even worry about it? Because pistol bullets aren't magic and they need to go in the right spot to work. Heck, I might even want to shoot a groundhog or bucktooth little garden thief with it. If you own a gun it ought to be zeroed.

It also needs some grips. I'd forgotten how poorly Charter's 70-era wood combat grips fit my hand- and that the damn things loosen up in about 25 rounds. It looks like current choices are Pachmayr Compacs or Charter's current 'boot' grip.

This will make a useful addition to the armory and it goes to work real soon.

03/18/11 Update: I took a file to the right side of the front sight and knocked off a total of about 0.040". The next batch or reloads were loaded with the Hornady 158 SWCHP, seated out to 1.510" to cut down on bullet jump. Zero is much better, the keyholing is gone and accuracy improved some. Shot this sitting on the ground and shooting over one knee this afternoon; distance was 25 yards. Got four in 2 1/2" but tossed one right for 3 1/2" total. Not match accuracy, but not shabby for a snubnose either:

Don't know if it'll hang around long or not... I'm starting to wish it was a J frame.

2011-01-16T11:17:00.004-06:00

A 'Handgunner's Diagnostic Target' for the New Age!

I have penned a few articles covering the Basics of Marksmanship, the Importance of Zero and selecting a grip that works for you, regardless of what’s popular at any given moment. I’ve covered the accuracy we should expect from a service pistol and our rightful expectations that such an implement should require no ‘Break In’. I hammer this stuff out because deep in my heart, I genuinely believe that an armed and proficient American populace enhances not only its own security- but the security of the nation as well.

To gain that proficiency, there are absolutes:

If If you aren't zeroed, you ain't hitting anything.
If you aren't using a proper sight picture, expect the same result.
A firm, consistent grip and solid shooting stance are required to maintain 1 & 2, and
You can still screw it all up by yanking the trigger!

Of course all this requires work, commitment and some genuine effort on the shooter's part. Oddly, this don't sit well with many contemporary shooters. These poor souls jump on the internet, post tales of their accuracy woes- and they want to hear anything except basic marksmanship principles.

Some of the advice they’re getting makes me scratch my head, too. One good Samaritan replied that poor accuracy (at maybe ten yards) could be cured by taking awhile “to let the gun ‘break-in’ and naturally find its own impact point.” I guess that gun was just wishing the shots around and then one day, as if by magic, it starts cooperating? Silly me. All these years, I believed you had to confirm zero, align the sights correctly on the target and then press the trigger straight back without disturbing them.

Another favorite bit of 'expert advice' is to post a ‘Shooter Error Correction Chart’. These are useful in diagnosing problems with one-hand, precision shooting at 25 and 50 yards; but in my experience they are irrelevant for two-hand shooting at any distance. And of course, we don’t have a clue if subject pistol is zeroed- or the errant shooter is using a proper sight picture, grip or trigger technique.

But nobody wants to hear that. Today, shooters want a graph, chart or webpage to solve all their marksmanship deficiencies in 5 seconds or less. So in keeping with the times, I offer the following:

PDF of Target

Feel free to print it, share it or shoot it. Judging from what I read in the Idiotnet- it certainly can't hurt.

2011-01-09T21:24:00.003-06:00

The Far-Reaching Effects of the Gabrielle Giffords Shooting

Splitting wood is hard work by any standard, but it clears the mind. Unfortunately it does not clear it of concern over current events. The senseless shooting of AZ Representative Gabrielle Giffords, along with her staff and well-wishers, has shocked our national conscience. Decent people are dead and gravely wounded- all at the hands of an idiot whose likely motive was nothing more complex than 'attention for himself'.

I'm afraid gun owners and freedom lovers are in for some perilous times. I expect this event will precipitate a multi-pronged assault on what’s left of our freedom, on these fronts:

1. Freedom of Speech: The Sheriff of Pima County—who blames ‘television and talk radio for a decline in America’ that led to this shooting—has started the media ball rolling. Expect any anti-Obama rhetoric to instantly become ‘hate speech’ with a stigma of murder and mayhem attached to it. And while legislation contrary to the first Amendment is likely to fail- keep in mind than an Obama appointee runs the FCC and that regulatory fiat is only limited by the public’s willingness, and financial ability, to sue for injunction.

Never mind that fact that Ms. Giffords is a conservative Democrat—more conservative than many RINO Republicans—and never mind that the jackwad who shot her has no known ties to conservative groups. It won’t matter. Conservatives are already getting blamed for this crime. The same bleaters who tell us we should forget the WTC attacks will insist that we remember the Giffords shooting forever, all in the name of ‘stamping out acrimony in politics’. They want no clear defining lines between liberals and conservatives- and this gives them an emotional vehicle to promote their agenda.

2. A new ‘Assault Weapons’ Bill: Expect a new AWB, dead-certain to include ‘extended (hi-cap) magazines’ to be introduced in short order. We’ll see if our newly-elected conservatives in the house have the will, and cohesiveness, to stop it.

3. NICS Background Checks: There are limits to what the Administration can do to stop or delay firearm sales, via the NICS check, under Brady-Lautenberg. But again, an Obama appointee runs the FBI, which oversees NICS, and that ‘regulatory fiat’ monster will rear its head here as well. Once it does, you can expect long delays when buying a firearm from a dealer.

Elections have consequences, people- and we’re about to get an unpleasant reminder of that fact.

2010-12-27T01:08:00.002-06:00

A Christmas Story…sort of.

There has been a lot of chatter regarding ‘Christmas guns’ for kids and it reminded me of a Christmas story from my youth.

In the summer of '62 I was given an ancient single-barrel shotgun, which would no longer open and that my folks were satisfied was harmless. I'd drag it around outside like a pissant with a match... not quite knowing what to do with it but convinced that it was just too cool to leave alone. Finally one day, by using both thumbs, gritting my teeth and seeing stars- I was able to get the hammer back! This became easier over time and with oil purloined from the can next to Momma's old sewing machine.

Christmas Eve came and my relatives came around, dragging small children in tow. One particularly annoying little girl was full of small-child exuberance, blabbering on incessantly about Santa and his reindeer while huge flakes of snow buried our little cabin in the holler.

The 'big folks' were off in the kitchen talking about who-knows-what, when some snow slid off the roof. This little girl became ecstatic, certain that the reindeer had landed and that Santa would soon be coming down the chimney! The stupidity of this was more than I could bear; for cryin' out loud we had a WOODSTOVE and Santa, along with our gifts, would have been immolated to cinders. So I said "I'm gonna get my shotgun and shoot Santa off the roof!" Her mouth gaped open in horror and she shuddered at the thought. I reveled in the moment.

Gaining my composure (well as much as you have at six) I peeled six roll caps off and folded them over until they would just fit under the hammer of that old shotgun. I put on my boots, got the old shotgun from the corner and headed out into the snow. The cherub followed me to the door, piehole still hanging open and with her hands on her face, like that little ‘Home Alone’ kid. She could barely watch as I walked to the eaves, thumbed the hammer back and shoved the folded caps in where the hammer would land. I yelled “Take that, Santa!” and hauled the muzzle up as high as I could- and then squeezed her off.

You know, six caps make quite a flash and danged if it don’t come straight out from between the hammer and frame, about where my nose happened to be. I don’t know whether it was the caps or the child's screeching that brought my Mom out in the snow in her low-cuts, but the effect was that my nostrils were scorched and I was getting towed through the snow by an ear apparently designed expressly for that purpose. I got swatted, scolded and sent up to the loft with threats of switches for Christmas. I finally dozed off, dead certain I’d be sold to the Ishmaelites at the first opportunity.

Christmas came with daybreak and despite my recent malfeasance, there was a Daisy Cub under the tree. There were also stern warnings of the fate that would befall me if I misused it and being no fool, I took them quite seriously. Well, mostly. I did manage to shoot myself in the toe with it, once. This was enough to convince me it was a poor practice.

Never did see that old shotgun again… and that kid don’t like me much, even to this day.

2010-12-23T21:08:00.000-06:00

Merry Christmas!

Luke, Chapter II

1 And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world should be taxed.
2 (And this taxing was first made when Cyrenius was governor of Syria.)
3 And all went to be taxed, every one into his own city.
4 And Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judaea, unto the city of David, which is called Bethlehem; (because he was of the house and lineage of David:)
5 To be taxed with Mary his espoused wife, being great with child.
6 And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that she should be delivered.
7 And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn.
8 And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
9 And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
10 And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
12 And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
13 And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,
14 Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

'Glory', indeed! May God bless each one of you as we offer our heartfelt wishes for a Merry Christmas!

2010-11-20T12:12:00.008-06:00

Ruger's Standard Model .22 Automatic Pistol

The Ruger Standard Model Pistol has been a staple of that firm's product line since 1949. Reliable and exceptionally accurate, they are excellent 'working guns' and I've owned a number of them over the years. Back in the 80's, I used to buy up old blue-worn Standard Models cheap; didn't matter whether they were the 4 3/4 or 6 inch version. I'd re-work the triggers and put a stop in them. Then I would clean up the crown and file & drift the OEM sights until they would stay on a D cell battery at 50 yards from the bench.

The end result was a target-grade hunting pistol with a great trigger and indestructible sights that could always be counted upon to work and shoot where it looked. I rebuilt several like that for squirrel hunting buddies around Lexington, MO and a good pile of squirrels lived short lives along the old river bluffs as a result. It was all great fun.

My ex-brother in law passed away last year. He was a good guy and we stayed on speaking terms even after an unpleasant divorce. A lifelong bachelor, Larry always had a few extra bucks and he accumulated a number of decent guns over the years. Back in the early 70's I was in the height of my gun-swapping and I sold him a few spares when I needed 'fix' money- for whatever 'gotta have it' that caught my eye. Larry hunted, fished and was a favorite uncle of my two sons. When he passed, he left them each several guns and among them was an early 70's Ruger 'Standard' .22 Pistol with a 6" barrel.

Like a lot of folks, my younger son dislikes the 'feel' of these pistols. The Standard’s slick grip straps, and its Luger-esque grip angle, have long conspired to require extra effort for me to shoot it well. Of course Ruger eventually 'corrected' this with the 22/45 Series and there are aftermarket grips available for older guns like this one. Anyhow he was looking to move it so I gave the old pistol a home... funny thing is that I sold Larry a 6" Ruger 'Standard' .22 about 1975 and he hardly ever sold a good .22 pistol, once he had acquired it. I'm 99% certain this is that very gun.

The first trip out burned about 75 rounds of Federal, 38 grain bulk HP's through it. It fed flawlessly and shooting from the hood of my pickup at 55 yards, the gun proved capable of keeping its shots in 1 1/2 inches at that distance- when I could hold up my end. It did group abut 2" left but this is easily corrected.

Opportunities to shoot are rare during the firearms deer season, but Thursday held one so I did a little shooting with the old Ruger Standard Automatic. Over the past couple of weeks I scrubbed & oiled the internal mechanism and filed & drifted the fixed sights for a 50 yard zero with Federal bulk-pack HP’s. I raided Ebay for an old set of Pachmayr Signatures, made specifically for the A100 frame.

I only had a couple of magazines along, but getting some traction on the naked areas of the grip definitely helped. I fired the last five rounds at a 2” target dot at 25 yards, one-hand unsupported. It turned out to be the best group of the day. Now if I could just do this all the time…

But of course I cannot.

Still, the Standard is proving accurate enough to be interesting. I’m convinced that it’s worthy of a Clark trigger and Volquartsen hammer and/or sear. I’ve always had an affinity for informal bullseye shooting and this pistol is only feeding that fire. I believe with a few refinements and a lot more practice, I'll be able to worry that 2" dot with a whole lot more consistency- and become a better pistol shot, in the process.

2010-10-23T12:48:00.008-05:00

OAL/Crimp Issues in Remington 30-30 Factory Loads

*Updated 11/11/10

I received this from ‘Blake in Georgia’ and am reposting it here as a heads-up to the many folks who like the 30-30, and may be buying up ammo ahead of the hunting season. You can click on any photo in the series, if you wish to view a larger version. My experience with this guy is that he’s genuine- not someone who’d post a BS complaint. Blake wrote:

Alright, I'm experiencing a new phenomenon with my 1989 Glenfield 30A (marlin 336). I noticed that several cartridges that had been worked through the action a couple of times were experiencing some serious bullet setback. They were factory Remington 170gr Core Lokts so I thought maybe a bad batch with poor crimp. I decided Friday that I would carry Federal blue box 170s this weekend for the deer opener. Saturday I carried 4 in the magazine, 1 in the chamber with hammer on half cock. At the end of the day I pulled them out and the bullets in the magazine had moved back about 1millimeter, or enough to halfway cover the crimp mark on the bullet.

Yesterday I only loaded 2 in the magazine and 1 in the chamber and kept 2 in my pocket. When I got in last night I unloaded the magazine through the loading gate and removed the chambered round. The cartridges in the magazine were set back about 1millimeter again, and the cartridge that was loaded directly into the chamber by hand was still factory spec.

Here is a picture of the factory Remington Core Lokt 170s, all 7 had been in the mag and through the action at least once, probably twice or more. The horizontal cartridge is one that is fresh from another box.

Here is a picture of the new factory Federal blue box 170s, all were fresh Saturday morning.

So what's the issue here? I've hunted with this gun or one just like it since I started deer hunting and I've never noticed this happening. Is something wrong with my rifle? It's all original 1989 parts. Maybe two random boxes of bad ammo?

On a side note, should I throw out the really short Remington cartridge? I'm guessing the others will suffer in the accuracy department so I'll save them for plinking. The Federals aren't bad enough yet for me to pass on them but they may be after another trip into the magazine tube.

This was a brand new sealed box. Inconsistent setbacks. J02:

This was a brand new sealed box. DIFFERENT LOT "H24." You can see weird crimp marks on the brass on a couple and still inconsistent setback. H24

Another sealed box. Weird crimps and setbacks. ANOTHER DIFFERENT LOT: K13:

I opened 2 other sealed boxes of Lot H24 and they looked like the others with the weird crimps and setbacks.

Here is what that last sealed box looked like. Lot H17:

Just for a sanity check I went and handled every single other 30-30 cartridge in my box, all 280 rounds, Winchester and Federal. Only one single slightly "off" setback on one cartridge in a box of Federal red box, which is like $9/box at WalMart - I think it's their "house" packaging.

Do I have any course of action here? Should I contact Remington or something? I know I won't be buying ANY MORE Remington ammunition and I hope there is a way for me to get rid of this and recoup my cost.

I wrote that I've left 30-30 reloads in tubular magazines throughout the hunting season; I've also left Federal and Winchester factory loads in 94 Winchesters, stowed in the trunk of a patrol car, for months on end. The soft, exposed point of the bullet gets flattened out but the bullet does not-and must not-set back in the case. When the bullet sets back in a cartridge, it has the same effect on pressure as if you 'shaved the heads' on an engine. You are shortening the compression chamber and pressure can only go up. When it goes up too much, something blows. I added that most of what he photographed would not be unsafe to shoot, except perhaps the shortest one(s). I suggested that of he shot any of the other inconsistently-seated and crimped cartridges, he should single-load them.

Blake contacted Remington and here’s the results of his first attempt-

Wow, I just called the Remington ammunition plant and got laughed off the phone. They said that OAL cartridge length has no impact on anything and that the ammo is fine no matter how far the bullet is back in the case as long as it's not loose. They said to go shoot a bunch and if there is a problem to let them know. I asked if they would warranty my rifle if their ammo damages it and they just cackled that their ammo won't do anything to my rifle.

Unfortunately right now they just lost a customer from that one interaction and I let them know, although I don't think they care.

But then, there’s that old ‘picture worth a thousand words’ thing and it worked to his advantage-

Ok. I sent an email with all the pictures to the main Remington email address. I then called customer service and spoke to a man who agreed with me that compressed rounds aren't "just fine." He had someone from the ammo plant call me and they are going to send me a FedEx box to send them all 9 boxes.

I guess they'll inspect them and reimburse me.

I was on a work call so I missed the call from Remington and they left a message. It sounded like the lady from earlier who told me they were just fine to shoot even once they are compressed.

It will be interesting to see how this plays out and how long it takes.

Interesting, indeed. You cannot produce the volume of ammunition that Remington does, without having an occasional problem slip through the QC net. It’s bad when it happens, but the measure of Remington will be how they handle Blake’s problem- and whether they recall certain lots of ammunition.

We’ll keep you posted here.

*Today, 11/05/10, Blake received his response from Remington which reads as follows:

November 2, 2010

Dear Sir,

Thank you for sending in the 162 unfired rounds of Remington R30302 ammunition. Our ballistic technician found insufficient crimp on some of the rounds you returned. The bullets need to be crimped to prevent a telescoped bullet into the shell case. Further testing did not reveal any other defects. We do apologize for the defect and are sorry for the inconvenience.

A sample no charge order for 9 fresh boxes of Remington R30302 ammunition has been placed to replace the rounds you returned. Please allow 15 working days for the order to complete. Thank you for your support of Remington products.

Cordially,
Bill Conrad
Product Service

Now you would think that would settle the matter, right? Well, not quite. Blake received his 'replacement' ammo from Remington today, November 11, 2010. He writes the final chapter in this story, as follows:

I received the 9 new boxes of 170gr 30-30 from Remington today and am not impressed. They all look just like the last batch in terms of weird brass marks, brass lengths, etc. They all look crimped just fine but I can grab some by the case and push them against the notepad on my desk and push the bullet back just far enough that the marks on the bullet slide under the brass. Is that a problem or is it normal?

I will say that visually the quality looks poor compared to Federal and Winchester.

This is sad conduct from what used to be a pretty good outfit. I saw little things that pushed me away from Remington ammo, over the years, but I always wrote them off as the production line having a bad day, etc. If Remington is so far gone that they replace lousy ammo, with more lousy ammo, they don't need any of my business. I guess we'll see how many of our fellow shooters agree.

Sarge

2010-10-09T17:27:00.002-05:00

Pre-Season Stuff

I'm using this rare break from work to get the rifles ready for hunting season. While digging through the the pile I came across my son's post-64 Model 94 Winchester, the middle gun of the three below-

Frankly I was expecting a little more work getting it sighted in; since it worked out perfect, I had to post a pic of the zeroing target. The captions explain the rest.

The top rifle is my old 1959 Model 94 and it’s a shooter, too. I zeroed it at 200 yards yesterday and 3 shot groups hovered at 3 ½ inches, whenever I did my part. I love these old Winchesters... they invariably shoot far better than anyone gives them credit for.

The reload is 34.0 grains of H4895 with a 150 grain Sierra flat softpoint, WLR primers and any old brass. Velocity runs between 2270 and 2296 fps depending on which 30-30 they’re used in. Most ballistic calculators say it’s still doing about 1620 fps, at 200 yards, and still hitting harder than a 158 grain .357 magnum does at the muzzle. I don't concern myself with the numbers though, because the basic 150 grain 30-30 load is well-proven in the field. Several years ago I killed a nice whitetail forkhorn, using the basic Winchester 150 grain factory load, at 238 paces. The shot centered the shoulder and knocked a chunk of bone, about as big as a quarter, out on the ground upon exiting the deer- who was down in one stride. The rifle was a garden-variety 94 Winchester.

The bottom gun the photo is my wife's Rossi-built copy of the 1892 Winchester Trapper. I recently cooked up a hunting handload for her Rossi and my Old Ruger Vaquero, both in 45 Long Colt.

This load is an adaptation of one of John Linebaugh's personal loads using a 250 grain Hornady XTP over 13.0 grains of Hodgdons HS6 powder. This load is too heavy for anything except the big framed Ruger revolvers, so please DO NOT try it from your Grandpa's Colt Single Action. It is however relatively mild in recoil and was just what I was looking for in a light-kicking hunting load for Peggi's carbine.

I had a limited number of test loads so I fired just three from each gun, over the sensors of my old Shooting Chrony Beta Max. From the rifle it averaged about 1205 fps; it did about 1050 from the 5 1/2" Ruger. Recoil is inconsequential from either gun. Penetration in water was 24" from both guns and the bullets turned into leaden toadstools at either velocity.

I suspected this would shoot to the about same point of impact, in both guns, as they do with our two bulk .45 Colt loads. The XTP load did precisely that, zeroing at 50 yards in the fixed sight Ruger and requiring no sight adjustments to zero to 100 from the 16" lever action carbine.

Sometimes, things just fall together and this was one of those times. Life is good ;)

2010-09-12T10:30:00.007-05:00

S&W's "Allied Forces" SW40VE

I recently acquired a .40 S&W 'Sigma' in the ‘all-black 'Allied Forces’ configuration. The gun follows the 'VE' pattern and is about the size of a Glock 23. Smith & Wesson has a US Military contract for the 9mm version of this pistol, for disbursement to Afgan civil authorities. That contract was a blessing to those of us who actually like the Sigma- but prefer an all-black pistol.

My introduction to these pistols came in late 1994, when I received a call to meet some other cops to test-drive a new .40 caliber pistol. A nearby LE distributor hauled in a half-dozen Sigmas along with lots of ammo & spare magazines. We proceeded to shoot up his ammo and grin a lot. After a couple of magazines I was destroying Copenhagen cans out to about 20 paces. The Sigma's trigger reminded me of that found on Dan Wesson's DA revolvers; short, quick and all business. Our 'test' Sigmas chewed through nearly a case of ammo and never bobbled. For the first time in my life, I was becoming enamored with a rubber gun.

I thought the Sigma had potential, but S&W's good name was not enough to pry the LE market away from Glock. The Sigma suffered some early reliability problems; then came the Glock Lawsuit and those awful little 'Pocket Sigmas' in .380 and 9mm. Smith & Wesson busted their corporate hump and corrected these problems, but the 'Sigma Stigma' took hold and it still haunts an otherwise excellent carry gun. If you believe half the web prattle you read about the Sigma, you'd be inclined to rate them about three points above Bryco and two points under a good homemade slingshot.

So are the new guns better? I decided to find out. Through the good offices of Express Police Supply and Smith & Wesson themselves, I was able to obtain an Allied Forces SW40VE.

My trigger scale goes to eight pounds but judging from the readings, I'll call this one 9 1/2 pounds. This is consistent with Jeff Quinn's 2004 Gunblast Review of a SW9VE, and Jeff is a reliable source. A lot of people fuss about the Sigma’s ‘heavy’ trigger but it works in its intended role. Like a DA revolver, it is as safe for carry as any 'ready' handgun can be. A straight back press results in a surprise break; done consistently it produces good results. Do it inconsistently and you get fliers. There's not a pistol on the market that changes this absolute of marksmanship.

I took the 'Allied Forces' Sigma straight from its box, verified that the bore was clear and began pestering my Chief to head out to the range with me. Getting him to go to the range is never much work, thank goodness. He’s gun savvy, he's an excellent shot, and he just flat likes to shoot.

The target below represents –

10 shots in 35 seconds at 25 yards
10 shots in 25 seconds at 15 yards
Three sets of double-taps in 4 seconds at 7 yards
Two bursts of three shots in three seconds at 7 yards, from ‘low ready’
Emergency Action Drill, ‘Interview’ Position at Six Feet. 3 shots from the hip, strong hand only; shift to weak hand for two more shots. Time: 4 seconds

All stages, except the low ready stage, are started from a locked down duty holster.

Anything inside the 8 ring counts for 5 points and 7’s count for 4 points; 185 are points possible. I shot a 182 'cold turkey' with this gun; maybe two points under what I do with a fullsize Glock. My Chief easily hit a 'post-it' note, practically every shot at ten yards. My wife shot it later that evening and chewed a 10-shot string into a baseball-sized group, at 15 paces. The 'heavy' Sigma trigger doesn't bother any experienced shooter, with good hand strength, who pays attention to marksmanship basics.

This pistol was shooting a little to the right, so I tapped the rear sight over and shot this five shot, 50 yard group with the Federal 165 grain HST load. I was basically sitting on a small tractor and shooting over one knee, with my foot up on the dash, so it’s not the solidest platform. Still, I think we are getting some useful accuracy here. Four shots in a little over 3 ¼ inches, with a flier in the orange dot. Not bad for a DAO pistol derided all over the web as having the worst trigger on the planet.

And here's what standing, unsupported 25 yard groups look like after six months on the gun-

The SW40VE is reliable. As of March 2011, it has digested 1100 rounds of assorted UMC 165 grain FMJ, Blazer 165 grain FMJ, Federal 180 grain FMJ & JHP, Federal 165 grain Golden Saber and HST (duty load), 165 grain JHP reloads and my junk-critter, lead SWC load that barely cycles most fullsize .40's. The VE is not particular. No break-in was allowed and none was needed. There were no malfunctions whatsoever. This is exactly as it should be.

So what, if any, advantages does the SW40VE have over the excellent Glock Model 23?

For one, you get an extra round although it'd take an awful gunfight to need it.
Second, you get a trigger that is heavy enough for any sane carry mode, yet light enough to shoot well if you'll only practice with it.
Third, you get a grip angle that points naturally and dials the sights on target without conscious effort.
Fourth-and this is subjective-but I have noticed that this Sigma recoils less than the G23, with any given ammo. It is enough to notice and if you're a recoil-sensitive shooter, it just might be enough to matter.
And finally, you get a conventionally-rifled barrel with excellent chamber support. Frankly I like lead SWC's for all my non-duty or CCW uses and I wouldn't hesitate to employ them for defense if that's what was in the gun.

Are there disadvantages? Sure. Glock enjoys an amazing aftermarket support system that the Sigma will never have. The Sigma's trigger is 'harder'. Oh, and yes- people will make fun of you on the internet. Try not to cry too hard, will you? Or just tell them they're full of it and refer them here- to an actual shooting review of one.

2010-05-23T19:48:00.008-05:00

Montana Gold's .40 Caliber, 165 Grain JHP Bullet

There are a lot of handgun bullets available to reloaders these days. Being an old 1911/wheelgun man, ‘pistol bullet’ to me has always meant ‘cast’. But I’ve had a Glock 23 around for about a year now and it’s well established that Glock warns that your warranty is voided if you use reloads. My answer is that under this restriction, my future patronage of Glock is ‘voided’ as well. Ammunition prices & availability got stupid after Obongo was elected and reloading components haven’t fared any better. Note to Obongo-voting 'gun owners'- I hope your favorite ‘component’ falls off in the shower.

So like a lot of other Glock owners, I am going to shoot reloads. The good news is that they’ll handle them fine as long as you exercise due caution in selecting components and building your ammunition. An aftermarket barrel might not be a bad idea if you’ve got an early Glock with less chamber support, or if you intend to shoot lead. The stock barrel will shoot lead just fine, but its poly-wog rifling can be a bear to get that lead out of. Plated and coated bullets bring their own set of restrictions. For many, the answer is to simply use jacketed bullets.

I’m a frugal sort and my quest for economical jacketed bullets led me to Montana Gold Bullet Inc. of Kalispell, MT. On Tuesday, I ordered 1000 of their 165 grain .40/10mm JHP for $131.00 shipped. In four days they were sitting at my Post Office in central MO, waiting to be picked up. That is good service by any standard and the bullets themselves are of excellent quality. The photo on the company’s website is entirely representative of what I received. A side benefit is that the jacket material is bright yellow, making your reloads easy to identify among other ammo of the same caliber. Now the only thing left to do was cook up a load.

To keep costs down, I use.40 S&W range pick-up brass exclusively. I assume all of it has been fired through Glocks and I do not load it ‘hot’- period. Hodgdon’s Data Center indicated that appropriate charges of the Winchester 231 powder I’d be using, would fall between 4.8 and 5.3 grains for 1001 fps on the top end with 32, 500 CUP of pressure. I had no intention of crowding the high end of that bracket. My goal was to build a junk critter/garden pest load, and a 850 fps or so bulk load with the 165 grain Montana Gold JHP bullet. I’d done some similar work with Missouri Bullet Company’s 170 grain SWC, so I wasn’t exactly flying blind. An overall cartridge length of 1.125” soon established itself for feed reliability and was used throughout load development with this bullet.

For the pest small/game load, I started with 4.o grains of W231; this produced an average of 696 fps with standard deviation in the low 20’s. It also proved itself on paper and anything the size of a squirrel at 25 yards would be toast, if divided by the front sight. Recoil was nil and even at 50 yards, this powder-puff dropped bullets on the front sight. Fired casings gathered in a pile not far from my right foot.

For the bulk load, I toyed with from 4.5 to 5.0 grains of W231. The 4.5 grain load shot OK but at 751 fps, it didn’t offer much over the 4.0 grain load.

4.8 grains of W231 produced better results. The Chrony Beta Master says this is the most consistent load, averaging 827 fps with and extreme spread of 40 and a standard deviation of 15. Recoil is inconsequential and fired cases land about five feet away. 50 yard offhand groups were 6" in diameter, nice and round and right above the front sight. Shooting from an improvised rest closed the group to 3 3/4".

At 5.0 grains, chronograph sessions over two warm days show an average of 861 fps. Recoil was about equal to commercial 165 grain FMJ loads. Rested groups from the stock G23,were 2” at 25 yards or 4” at 50 yards- discounting called fliers.

Finally, I loaded a few of these bullets over 8.0 grains of HS6; what Hodgdons currently says is the top charge for a 165 grain bullet. From the G23 they averaged 1022 fps. I fired one into a 30" column of water contained by two kitty litter jugs and a washer fluid jug. An old Brownell's catalog served as the bullet catcher and it was backed by a piece of waferboard. This arrangement (the 'Jethro Bodine Ballistics Lab') has worked for .45/230/FMJ and .40/180/FMJ, so I figured it'd work for this.

The jacket shattered into shards in the first 12" of water and it made the first jug buck a little. The core, weighing 145 grains, continued in a straight line penetrating the full 30" and knocking a 1/4" dent in the catalog. The core had expanded a bit and measured about 0.440 x 0.465 inches.

The pieces of jacket material were sharp and substantial. Personally, I would not want them spinning off into my tender vittles at 900+ fps, presumably in the first 6-8 inches of the wound channel. The following is a poor cell phone pic, but you get the idea.

For my uses, I settled on 4.8 grains of W231 as my bulk load with this bullet. That load gave the most consistent chronograph results, best accuracy and it provided useful velocity. It’s worth mentioning that throughout the load spectrum (just under 700 fps to 1022 fps) there were no malfunctions of any kind with the Montana Gold 165 grain JHP bullet. Feeding and ejection was positive and fired casings showed no signs of stress or inordinate expansion at the feed ramp. This is mute testimony to both the reliability of the Glock 23 and the excellent feed profile of Montana Gold's bullet.

While this bullet won't group with Missouri Bullet Company's 170 grain SWC, it is plenty accurate for most Action Shooting games and the load wouldn’t embarrass you at the 50 yard line in a PPC match. I can certainly recommend it for high-volume shooters looking for a jacketed .40 caliber bullet, at a good price.

2010-05-12T23:58:00.008-05:00

Are you nuts? A 94 Winchester at 330 Yards?

I like to shoot guns. I also like to talk about them, which gets me into silly little exercises on occasion. The inspiration for this exercise was a discussion I had with "Joe,"regarding the sight steps on my pre-64 Winchester Model 94. I have been working toward determining if the steps correlated to 100 yard increments.

After some experimentation I settled on a fine .300 bead for the front. I then set the elevator on the lowest notch, and filed the top of the rear sight until in was on the middle of a 7" paper picnic bowl at 100 yards. Last time I shot it, I put three shots through such a bowl at 100 yards; then moved back to 200 yards (actually about 210) and raised the elevator a notch and proceeded to put two more through the same bowl with one just off the edge. This was beginning to show some promise, so I decided to plink a little at 300.

Okay, it was 335 per Earth Google.

I was using the original iron rear sight and my reload of 34.0 grains of H4895 and a Sierra 150 grain flatpoint. After some experimentation I settled on a fine .300 bead for the front. I then set the elevator on the lowest notch, and filed the top of the rear sight until in was on the middle of a 7" paper picnic bowl at 100 yards. Last time I shot it, I put three shots through such a bowl at 100 yards; then moved back to 200 yards (actually about 210) and raised the elevator to the second notch and proceeded to put two more through the same bowl with one just off the edge. Given the combination of old eyes, old rifle etc. I am pretty dern happy with that.

This time, the 'target' was a 12" picnic plate taped to the front of two, 2 1/2 gallon detergent jugs filled with water and backed by an old Brownells catalog. Behind that, I stood a 16" by 48" piece of waferboard to record the location of 'strays'. From the old folding table I shoot from, the view looked like this. The waferboard is visible under the red dot.

I have a hard time seeing that too, so how 'bout some zoom? I left the dot there for reference and you can just see the picnic plate at the bottom of the waferboard.

Oddly enough, I had a little trouble hitting the plate. In eight shots I only hit the plate once, and the jugs twice. I did hit the waferboard seven times. You see, that old "It's too far!" gremlin got in my ear and I started this session on the 4th notch. Mistake; wasted some shots that went high. I was also shooting just far enough to the right, that my two hits on the jugs were both on the right edge. The first hit on them was high and left the jugs 3/4 full; the second was lower and emptied them out. Neither grazing hit 'exploded' the jugs at this distance. Since I never centered them, I'm discounting today's terminal ballistics result.

The Handloads.com ‘ballistic calculator’ indicates that bullet is still running about 1250 fps at 330 yards; roughly equal to a .357 mag from a 3-4 inch barrel. Both the hits showed signs of minor expansion and both had started to yaw before they hit the waferboard, 6 feet behind. I've got a set wheel ramps, suitable for a semi, made of of 3/16 rolled plate. I stood one of them behind the waferboard. I didn't think I'd shoot through them at this distance, particularly using softpoints, but the ol' 30-30 raised a good dent in them all the same. Pieces of bullet jacket are in the pic next to a nickel, for reference

Here's the waferboard backer, which I forgot to pick up; it got soaked for a day before this photo. That makes the bulletholes hard to see in the photo, so I highlighted them. The blue dots are hits, some sideways from passing through the edge of the jugs. The big white X represents the aiming point, where the plate was. Total group was 16 1/2 inches, but that also includes one sight adjustment.

Closing thoughts…

I'm going to tap that Winchester's rear sight over to the left a frog-hair and try to get in at least one more session before the range closes for hay season, etc.

May be a few days. At least I now have the elevation all sorted out, so there will be no sight adjustments to muddle the group. My goal is to get five in a row on the plate. Once there however...

1. I'm sure I could make a killing shot at this distance, with the windage corrected and the sight on the 3rd step.

2. The 30-30 retains ample killing power at 335 yards.

3. There are better tools for blowing things up at this distance.

4. This was a lot of fun!

2010-05-05T20:54:00.000-05:00

Some 50 Yard Plinking With A Couple of Glocks...

We’ve got a firearms qualification coming up so it seemed like an ideal time to check zero on the two main pistols I carry these days; my issue Glock 22 and personally-owned Glock 23, both in 40 S&W caliber. These guns are nothing special. The G22 (top) has the dreaded, 8 pound ‘New York’ trigger and the G23 (bottom) has the standard 5.5 pound unit. I did smooth the grip a tad on the G23 and I replaced its front sight with a Meprolight unit.

For targets, I used the Birchwood Casey’s depicted below. They are 12 ¼”x 12 ¼ and really nice for handguns because you can see your irons well against the light background. This would matter because I decided to shoot at 50 yards today; likely about the longest distance either pistol might be pressed into service.

We recently switched to Federal 165 grain HST as our .40 caliber duty load. So far I have killed one deer with it, which had reportedly been hit by a car and was down in the median. When I walked up on it however, it bolted off on three legs toward a busy highway so I only had a second to plant an HST into its shoulder. The deer went right down and was dead almost immediately; the HST penetrated about 14” deer, including the shoulders, and it was recovered nicely mushroomed under the skin on the far side. I don’t know what else you could ask of a 40 S&W hollowpoint.

On to the shooting… three shots groups, with the Federal 165 HST were the order of the day, standing unsupported at 50 yards. Two groups were fired from each Glock; one with the front sight touching the red center dot and one with a six o’clock hold, about four inches under it. I used a single target and each individual group mentioned, is highlighted in red.

The G22, center hold, 50 yards. I hit just a tad high-

The G22, six o’clock hold, 50 yards. That’s more like it!

Well, six o’clock worked for the G22; same hold with the G23 at 50 yards-

The G23, with a center hold at 50 yards, was much better-

Since the G23 is also my summer “farm & fishing gun” I let fly with three rounds of my 40 S&W small game/pest load which is a Missouri Bullet 170 grain lead SWC over 4.0 grains of W231 in range pickup brass, for about 840 fps. Recoil is nil and it makes short work of groundhogs and everything smaller. I held right under the dot for this group, highlighted in blue-

Some closing thoughts… I could just about always get a couple of shots in 2 ½” yet I still managed to throw one out. I need to shoot more. I’ve benched both guns and both are easily capable of 3 ½” or less at 50 yards, with good ammo. That is significant because it meets my personal definition of ‘combat accurate’- capable of making 100% head-shots at 50 yards. Ridiculous?

Watch the North Hollywood Bank Robbery videos sometime.

2010-03-20T16:38:00.002-05:00

Legal Disclaimer

It recently occurred to me that I've never done a legal Disclaimer for this site. While the Roll Call remains linked to The Sixgun Journal (the archive of my older articles) Sarge's Roll Call should probably have its own.

It is rather unfortunate that in these dawning years of the 21st century, the concepts of personal responsibility and common sense seem to be all but dead . So...

1. This site offers sensible discourse on the safe, sane and lawful uses of firearms, for recreation, hunting and self-defense. This isn't Disneyland . Trees die to make targets, and really nice sets of grips. Animals die to make food, or when they threaten the safety of people or domestic animals. They also die from disease, over-population and starvation when people don't hunt them. Predatory people have to be shot sometimes too, to prevent them from hurting or killing other, innocent people. This happens because the bad people have made a conscious choice to engage in conduct that is harmful to others, and in the process they expose themselves to the lawful use of deadly force. Unpleasant business, but the choice is theirs. They can certainly choose to avoid the reprehensible conduct that exposes them to it.

Reading about this stuff will not cause your children to be born naked and toothless. They are born that way anyhow. But if you are squeamish about any of these subjects, you would be better off somewhere else.

All written material, photographs, graphics and design may not be reproduced, re-written or resold without the express written permission of the author or webmaster. Single copies may be printed or saved digitally, for your personal use. The Webmaster adds "You still can't steal the graphics!" The Webmaster is a redhead, has Coamche/Apache blood and is a good shot. I wouldn't cross her if I was you.

3. YOU, and YOU ALONE are responsible for the lawful and safe application of any information or ideas, which you glean from my writings. You are responsible for determining what is lawful and safe wherever you are, at any given time. Possession of handguns, for instance, is legal where I live. I am told that there are still places in this nation where the simple possession of a handgun is a felony offense. What is legal in here in Missouri won't necessarily be legal in "New Yawk Sitty", or anywhere else. Don't cry to me if you get your tail in a wringer because you didn't ask somebody, like BATF, your local Prosecutor, or your state Attorney General, before engaging in a course of conduct that turns out to be illegal. One more time - YOU, and YOU ALONE are responsible for the lawful and safe application of any information or ideas, which you glean from my writings.

4. Reloading Data - you will occasionally find here specific reloads that I have used, that were safe in my guns, using my components, with me putting them together carefully. These reloads may be unsafe in your guns, especially if you don't put them together carefully. Wanna reload? Buy manuals from the people who make the equipment, powder and components. Many offer a handbook for free. Then, start at the lowest powder charge listed and work your way up, observing the guidelines that they offer. There is absolutely no excuse for building an unsafe reload. For my money, the single best sources of reloading information on the web are Hodgdon's and http://www.handloads.com/

5. PRIVACY POLICY

As a visitor to our website, you may read articles and other materials, without giving us any personally identifiable information. We DO NOT collect any information other than what you provide in an email to Sarge or information automatically collected by our web stat analysis program. We assure you that this information is kept secure and not used for any other purpose.

Thank you for looking in. Be careful, and have fun. You really can do both if you follow a few simple rules, and use the common sense that the Good Lord gave you.

2010-02-22T01:47:00.014-06:00

Finally- A Pre-64, Model 94 Winchester

You know those pics you’ve been seeing of my wife, shooting my Rossi 92? I knew I had kissed that rifle goodbye, when I saw how well she handled it. Aside from the obvious benefits of getting your wife out shooting with you, sharing your shootin’ irons with them opens the door for getting others! The subject of this article was my Valentine’s Day gift, and nothing could have been better. I’ve been wanting a Pre-64 Model 94 in 30-30 for a long time.

This old Winchester Model 94, and a few others, showed up on the Summit Gun Broker site a couple of weeks ago. I contacted Mark and soon had a deal working for the 1959 model, shown at top.

Mark is always great to deal with & it didn’t take long to get my Winchester cut from the herd. His prices are great too- I got this pre-64 for less than post-64, idiot-button equipped 94's are selling for. A previous owner had attempted Injun-Art on the stock; I should probably thank him, considering the money he saved me.

The metal is near-perfect with only mild finish wear and a few character marks. The receiver drilled & tapped for the Lyman 66A receiver sight.

At a crisp 3 1/4 pounds, the trigger is a breath of fresh air from a time when lawyers didn't run gun companies.

The weather broke so I got this 94 out for a quick test drive. All I had for ammo was a conglomeration of old 150 grain reloads, from back when I was trying various powders to find 'the' 30-30 load- various charges of W748, IMR3031, BLC2 and H4895. It would do to insure that the gun worked OK.

The old girl handled them all just fine. Empties are ejected smartly over the right shoulder and fired casings show no signs of undue pressure or oddball chamber dimensions. All I had to do to get the gun on paper at 115 yards, was knock the back sight a tad to the left. Three shot groups at that distance could be covered with an empty 30-30 case, meaning just under two inches. Considering the menagerie of ammo, battered OEM sights and rickety folding table I was shooting over-without a bag-I am downright pleased.

With the rain beginning in earnest, it seemed like a good time to clean the gun up some. Since I had nothing to lose with this stock, I pulled the wood & went to work with fine sandpaper and steel wool. Once the grunge and old varnish were gone, I started rubbing in Kiwi brown boot wax. I know that sounds ridiculous but I have used it to good effect on several old, open-grain gunstocks. I also used fine steel wool to knock the beginnings of rust off the barrel & magazine tube. A little cold blue and a coat of Hoppe’s Gun Oil finished the clean-up. In addition to being dinged, the original bead was a little tall and required the third notch on the rear sight's elevator to attain zero. I replaced it with a 0.015 shorter Marble’s bead, which I had on hand.

Once upon a time, Winchester flat knew how to build a lever action. I am fortunate to have found an example of their better efforts. I've been looking for a solid, bargain-priced pre-64 for some time, to build into my 'ideal 94' Winchester. At some point I’ll replace the stock & forend, perhaps with the Carbine variants. Carbine ‘ladder’ sights’ and a narrow, barrel-mounted post would complete the transition of this Winchester into my ‘made to order’ 94.

The 30-30 is a grand old cartridge, too. I flattened a big forkhorn at 238 long paces with a 94 some years ago, using the basic Winchester 150 grain load. Even at that range, you could hear the “whack” as it knocked a nickel-sized chunk of shoulder bone out the offside exit.

The 30-30 took its maiden voyage with the 1894 Winchester and that perfect pairing has definitely stood the test of time.

2010-01-26T01:14:00.005-06:00

A Few Updates on the Rossi Puma Model 92…

These are excellent little rifles which have just a few flaws. Left uncorrected, you are stuck with a neat little gun that will never shoot up to its potential. Here are a few that cropped up with this particular gun, along with the corrective measures that were taken.

The factory sights on this ‘92 were worthless for anything but dinging tin outlaws at 40 feet, with mouse-fart loads. The front post was way too short and the rear notch was way too wide for any precision. The carbine shot a good 6” high at 25 yards, which was remedied to some degree by gritting my teeth and just bending the rear sight leaf down. This was a temporary fix at best. Until I got usable sights on this 16" .45 Colt, I was sending ammo downrange and getting more questions than answers for my trouble.

These rifles have oddball sight dovetails of about 0.385” which eliminates the myriad of good 3/8 dovetail sights available for other rifles. So "usable sights" in this case meant the Marble Folding Sporting Rear Sight No. 95, Brownell's part # 579-000-082, and the Marbles 50W .500 tall front sight, with a 1/16" gold bead, which is Brownells part # 579-105-031. Both are made specifically to fit the Rossi dovetails.

After installing these sights, I fired 60-70 rounds of two.45 Colt reloads, which see a lot of use in my sixgun. They are listed below with the chrono'ed velocity from the Rossi-

*factory duplication load of a 250 RNFP over 7.2 of W231 at 950 fps
*John Linebaugh's 'working load' (Ruger only) of 13.0 of HS6 and a 255 SWC at 1232 fps

Both the lead bullet loads zeroed easily at 100 yards with the Marble's sights, the Linebaugh load shooting a tad higher from the bench. Oddly, I see little difference between them when shooting offhand. With the RNFP load I couldn't miss an old teakettle, at either 50 or 100 yards. Three shots through it at 50 yards could have been covered with a folded dollar bill. It was sure nice to be able to hold a normal sight picture with this rifle- and actually HIT distant targets with it. Only one thing stood in the way of making it downright easy to hit with.

The trigger on this rifle scaled at six pounds and ‘creepy’. On this light little carbine it was all the more noticeable and I decided I was going to fix that. Now there is a 92 ‘smith named Steve Young, who Cowboy shoots under the name of Nate Kiowa Jones and does business as http://www.stevesgunz.com Young is a specialist on these guns, has a wide following and he reportedly does fine work on them. He also offers some much needed parts for them like metal magazine followers and plugs for that ridiculous bolt-mounted safety. Young also offers sights and can vastly improve yours, particularly if you have the barrel-band mounted front sight. Additionally, he offers a DVD with tips on tuning the 92.

In fact I have one of Mr. Young’s videos on the Rossi; it is worthwhile source of info on disassembling the 92’s . His method of working on them made my skin crawl. Watching Young stick springs and parts on a bench grinder, with the attendant big shower of sparks, flat gives me the heebie-jeebies- particularly when there are no references to minimum acceptable dimensions of those parts, ‘post bench-grinder’. No… I was going to find a way to do this without setting the shop on fire from grinder sparks.

Mr. Young makes no mention of sear work in his video, but the interface of those parts is the sole source of 'trigger creep’. The full-cock notch on my 92’s hammer goes deep into the part and resembles a hacksawed notch, more than anything else. While it was not poorly finished, I still gave it a few strokes with a hard Arkansas stone, taking care not to change any angles. I also lowered the sear engagement shelf by maybe 0.005” while I was at it.

The trigger sear was nicely finished. Here I applied an old 1911 trick, by breaking the release edge of the sear at a 45 degree angle. The amount removed is less than 0.002” but this chamfer prevents the sear edge from camming the hammer back, as it levers out of engagement with it.

Finally, I took about 20 light file strokes off each side of the trigger return spring, tapering it toward its bearing surface against the return cam on the trigger. A file cut it nicely and I followed with an Arkansas stone, to smooth the edges. The resulting trigger breaks at 3 ¼ pounds per my RCBS Trigger Scale. It is crisp and entirely reminiscent of the prewar 92’s and 94’s I’ve handled.

Another little 92 Gremlin showed itself... While taking the gun apart, I noticed that the stock screw was loose. Since I hate loose screws on a gun, I naturally tightened it when I put it back together. Mistake. These guns are evidently quite sensitive about the spacing between the upper & lower tangs, which was evidenced by the cartridge carrier binding after I snugged that screw down. By shimming the stock, top & bottom, where both tangs seat I was able to tighten it without impeding function. At some point I'll drill the stock for an aluminum spacer tube, cut to length, which will just admit the stock screw while controlling upper & lower tang spacing. Once that is done, I'll Acraglas the works to get a good fit that'll stand hard-kickin' loads.

Today’s post comes on the heels of some back-40 range time with this 92 Trapper 45. With good sights and the trigger cleaned up to 3 pounds, I was able to consistently hit empty 12 gauge hulls at 25 yards, or put 2 of 3 in a 3" Target Dot at 50 yards, shooting standing unsupported. This was with the 255 grain factory-duplication load. Just for grins, I leveled one of the 335 Keith Howitzer loads at an old, expired can of chicken noodle soup, 50 yards distant; now I’ve got noodles scattered all over my backstop. We always have a few Robins that stay through the winter and I'm sure they will have a heyday with that.

I hate a gun that won't zero and to tell the truth, this one was about ready to go down the road until it got usable sights. Of course my wife liked the Rossi all along, so it wasn't in too much danger of going off to market…

She also shot it pretty well. 12 rounds applied at a fairly rapid pace, from 15 yards, produced the results seen below.

I can see right now, that Missouri Bullets is going to get another order; and that I’m gonna have to get busy reloading again.

2009-12-24T16:29:00.001-06:00

Merry Christmas!

Luke, Chapter II

'Glory', indeed! May God bless each one of you as we offer our heartfelt wishes for a Merry Christmas!

2009-12-16T02:51:00.009-06:00

Defining Artifacts

Throughout a man’s life, he passes through physical and spiritual trials that forge him into what he becomes. Some are easy and quickly forgotten. Some of them leave marks. We press on, holding fast to the things we believe in and hoping to finish with enough of us left to recognize.

Some of us go through a pile of guns over a lifetime. If we’re lucky, we eventually we find one that just speaks to us. In my case it was a .54 caliber Santa Fe Hawken; a testament to perseverance through hardship and hard use. If kindred spirits live in walnut and steel, this old rifle is surely inhabited by mine.

I found it languishing in a pawn shop and it cried out to me. I was an easy mark; I am weak for rust-browned, 1800’s caplock firearms. I honestly couldn’t tell you who made it. Nearly all maker’s marks were filed away by a previous owner, to make it more authentic. He succeeded wonderfully, though I don't think he was a serious shooter. The rifle's proofmarks are all but illegible but they suggest Italian bloodlines; Pedersoli and Uberti have made excellent rifles of this type.

Despite its considerable potential, Santa Fe has been contrary to work with. The rear sight, for instance, was added as an afterthought and over a filler for the original dovetail. Both sights flopped around like a loose tooth, rendering accuracy all but unobtainable. Considerable effort has made them usable, but I'll eventually replace them with something authentic- and far more precise.

In the beginning, this rifle wouldn’t shoot. The muzzle was a mess and like my own ‘muzzle’ at times, negated whatever other good qualities it possessed. I eventually cut it back an inch and a half, to expose some good rifling. The effort was successful but I’ve got still a few saw marks to file out. Accuracy has been restored and the gun is now holding three inches for three shots at 100 yards.

The bore itself is an oddball, running .530" at the lands and .555" in the grooves. It was rough as a cob and the Destroyer of Patches. Copious shooting and swabbing with 0000 steel wool, have smoothed it until uniform resistance is felt when ramming a ball down. It’ll work with either .520 or .530 ball, the former being easier loading and the latter being more accurate. No conventional .54 conical will fit it.

The lockwork is perfect. The set trigger breaks at about 1 ¾ pounds and the hammer precisely centers the nipple when it falls. The drum angles into the chamber and this is by far the most reliable standard caplock I’ve ever used. I have fired it in misting rain, snow and on hot days so humid that the smoke wouldn’t clear for the next shot. It simply does not misfire, even with the Triple Seven it prefers.

The stock fits like it was built for me alone. When I shoulder it the cheek piece melts into my face and directs recoil away from it; the sights fall directly under my eye. The tackwork is asymmetrical and reminiscent of the Indians who inhabited the land before me. My connection with them begins with my father, my mother and continues with my wonderful wife; all of us carry the blood and spirit of the Original Americans. When I carry Santa Fe up into the hardwood ridges, they all come along with me. Generations of hunters, warriors, patriots and pioneers live on with me in this old rifle.

The tackwork has personal significance. As my hand closes on the grip I feel five; one for each son and a daughter. The Cross reminds me that I am imperfect, in need of God’s forgiveness and mercy- made possible only through our Lord's sacrifice. Should I pass from this life in the solitude of those hardwoods, that Cross under my fingertips will provide solace in what lies beyond.

There’s a notch in the stock under the Cross. I didn’t put it there but to me, its meaning is clear. It signifies crucibles of smoke and fire and desperate but necessary actions; hazards undertaken by the few so the many might live out their lives in comfort and peace. That Notch is a tribute to brave men and women who took up the gun in defense of self, others or freedom.

And speaking of trials…it took months of sorting out the bore, crown, sights, patch thickness, ball sizes and powder charges to get old Santa Fe to make a holes where it looks, at one hundred paces. I despise inaccuracy and I hated it with a passion in this gun. I threatened to sell it, trade it or wrap it around a tree.

I could never bring myself to do any of them. I’d exile it off to a far corner and try my damndest ignore it. But the glow of the tacks would catch my eye, like the fire in my wood stove on this cold winter night. This ritual repeated itself until I found cures for its ills. I’ve grown even fonder of the rifle and its place here is secure. When I put it down for the last time, I won’t need another one.

It is ironic that Santa Fe's 'questionable pedigree and numerous imperfections' run consistent with the courageous Americans who founded this country, conquered the wilderness, defeated its enemies- and are still fighting for it on this very day. Perhaps that's why I love early American firearms. They reek of courage, rugged individualism, risks taken for great causes- and the FREEDOM of the high country during a time when the only restraints on a man were those imposed by God and Nature.

May God bless this Nation and rekindle that fire in every American heart.

2009-10-18T10:06:00.002-05:00

Missouri's 'Antler Point' Restriction

(Re-posted from Nov. 2008. Keep up the pressure. This isn't going away until we make it go away.)

Beginning in 2004, the Missouri Department of Conservation began testing Antler Point Restrictions on hunters, as a deer management tool. In 2008 it was extended to 65 counties, comprising the upper 2/3 of the state. From MDC Online:

“The APR requires a buck to have at least 4 points on one side to be legal. The restriction applied to the archery season and all portions of the firearms season except the youth portion. The expectation was that restricting the bucks that could be taken would promote a larger doe harvest. An additional benefit of this restriction would be that more bucks survive longer and grow antlers large enough to be considered trophies by hunters.”

MDC's “Hunting tips for counties with antler-point restrictions”offers this sage advice- “Bring binoculars and give yourself plenty of time to count antler points before you take a shot. Wait for a buck that has at least four points on one side. Successful hunters wait for the best shot – when the deer turns broadside. Learn to recognize antlers from this view to minimize errors in the field.”

Right.

Now I am generally not a vocal critic of MDC and many of its recent changes have been good ones. The 'Telecheck' system eliminated the need to haul your deer across the county to a check station. Missouri deer hunters also enjoy one of the simplest 'legal firearms' descriptions on record.

Still- this Antler Point Restriction nonsense is for the birds.

First, APR stacks the odds against novice hunters- and as a father and husband who's been in on a number of 'first deer' I can tell you that these hunters need all the help they can get. Many of these are kids, out with Dad or Uncle Fred for their first deer hunt. Under the 'old rules' they'd see maybe 1-5 shootable deer per season; and they might get a safe, sure shot at only one of those. They are thrilled to get any deer at all and even a forkhorn buck is a big deal to them. APR deprives this vitally-important group of opportunities. New hunters are quite literally the future of hunting and the last thing we need is to discourage them.

Second, APR is a slap in the face to 'traditional hunters' who use iron-sighted .30-30's, military rifles and period firearms from 1830 forward. Folks, this is deer hunting at its finest and it is the essence of hunting in general. APR essentially requires that the traditional hunter adds a substantial set of binoculars to his kit; and spend more time 'glassing' than enjoying the nostalgia of the traditional hunt.

Third, APR turns a uniquely American test of hunting & shooting skills into an equipment race. We have done just fine with a 10 year old set of budget binoculars here and most of our 'deer guns' wear carefully-zeroed iron sights. The only 'scoped rifle in the outfit has a 4X on it, which has facilitated precise shots and instant kills at well over 200 yards. Now, by edict of the crowned heads at MDC, all of our optics are obsolete. I suppose we could run down to China-Mart and drop a grand on some new glass; but I am disinclined to have the state dictate how I spend my recreational dollar.

Fourth, APR does nothing to alleviate the hundreds of thousands of dollars in property damage and personal injury caused by deer each year, in Missouri. MDC obviously knows this because the Kansas City and St. Louis areas got a 'hall pass' on APR. Now, this would probably never occur to the Commission- but us 'dayum hillbillys' don't liked to wreck our pickups anymore than them high-falutin' city slickers do! Someone in my neck of the woods learned this first hand. By the third day of the season, there was a spike buck lying dead along 135 Highway, just south of US-50. He was doubtless passed over by hunters but he died just the same and somebody got a repair bill- thanks to APR.

My final complaint with APR is that it promotes the notion that deer hunting is all about 'points and trophies' rather than harvesting the winter meat. Every young deer hunter I've mentored, has been taught exactly the opposite. We've killed a few decent bucks over the years, but shooting a big rack was never the driving force behind the hunt. And frankly- 'an obsession with racks' has never been a character trait of the better hunters I've ever known. I hate to see MDC foster this kind of thinking.

I have a grandson and two granddaughters; I looked forward to having the honor of taking them on their first deer hunt. I sincerely hope that the Missouri Department of Conservation mothballs this stupid 'antler point restriction' before that day comes.

2009-10-06T13:32:00.006-05:00

Rossi's 'Little Big Gun': The 92 Carbine in .45 Colt

Rossi's copy of the 1892 Winchester has a long and successful history with US shooters and the 'Cowboy Action' craze insured that the little lever actions would stay popular here. Rossi has continued to improve them and the current guns are pretty darn good. They have excellent metallurgy that optimizes the strength inherent in the 92's design and the finish, on the examples I've handled, puts many US makers to shame.

I picked this one up at the annual 'Apple Fest Junk Sale' from a fella who had it on his table. It's a 16" Rossi 92 in .45 Colt, barely a year old and with nary a mark on it. The spot on the stock is a bug that lit there to get in the family album.

I didn't buy this right off because he wanted four bills for it, but when I priced around they were bringing well over that now (plus FFL & shipping, etc.) and this one came with a Steve Young spring, follower, safety plug & DVD, case, sling & swivels, barrel-mounted peep & original sights, box of ammo, 50 230 FMJ bullets, etc. Given the condition and all the extras, I don't feel like I got beat up too bad. Besides, it'll make a nice stablemate for the Old Vaquero depicted next to it.

Plinking off the hood of the pickup yesterday revealed that the gun's good for an inch at 50 yards, if I don't screw up too bad. Real 'accuracy work' will wait for the trigger to be cleaned up a tad. This carbine also feeds any bullet style slick as a whistle, from 240 grain Sierra JHC's to 325 grain Keith Semi-Wadcutters.

Does it have warts? Like all short-stocked guns this one boots me harder, with heavy loads, than it ought to. This makes me feel like a sissy when the same loads I shoot with impunity through my sixgun, get my attention when shot through this trapper. What I really need is something to slip or lace onto it to lengthen the pull and keep that slick little buttplate from sliding all over my shoulder. Much as I like the Mini 14 and 10-22, I always hated their OEM buttplates. While a pad seems ridiculous on a poodle shooter, I find the 580+ Minis far easier to shoot well simply because they stay put when shouldered. I watched Peggi shoot it with standard 255 RNL's and she was draining the magazine like it was a .22 rifle. I gave her a couple of 1100 fps (from a sixgun) SWC's to try and they didn't bother her none either. The gun just fits her.

I also understand these have an odd-sized dovetail. As it stands, I can use the issue sights but I had to yank the elevator plumb out of the back sight to get it in on at 50 yards. I'll probably just undercut the elevator to work at it's lowest setting and zero the next couple of steps up from there, for say 200 & 300 yards, with a specific hunting load.

And the little gun will hunt. I loaded a few 335 Keiths over what we'll call 'over 20 grains' of Winchester 296 and they produced 1364 fps from the Rossi's 16 1/8” barrel. I would expect a wound profile in game not unlike the old Trapdoor carbine load, which was known for shooting through several feet of horses & men. For lighter game, a Sierra 240 JHP can easily be driven to 1550 fps and I have seen that bullet is plenty for deer at 1300 fps. The sedate factory duplication load of 7.2 of W231 produced 950 fps from this carbine and insignificant recoil. John Linebaugh's 'working load' (Ruger only) of 13.0 of HS6 and a 255 SWC ran 1232 from the Rossi; and in reality you don't need much more for the anything but biggest of game.

It's been ages since I had a rifle & pistol that shared ammo, but I have to admit it's nice to load some ammo knowing that it'll feed two guns. Being able to load them on carbide dies and roll crimp when seating, makes it even nicer. My .45 Colts aren't long-range affairs, but I've got rifles with some reach for when the need arises. The old cartridge does so many other things so well, I can sure live that small compromise.

2009-09-25T11:55:00.010-05:00

Lone Wolf Distributor's Glock 23 Barrel

09/30/09-accuracy update at the bottom of this page*

The Glock series of pistols is probably the most modified platform since the 1911-A1. Aftermarket parts abound for it and perhaps one of the most sensible mods for reloaders, is to replace the OEM polygonal barrel.

In mid-June, I ordered a Glock 23 replacement barrel from Lone Wolf Distributors, hereinafter referred to as LWD. This barrel is the conventionally-rifled, direct replacement for the factory component in .40 S&W caliber. I use lead lead bullets for my bulk reloads and I do carry the 23 off duty, so I needed a barrel that would handle the full spectrum of loads and do it well. I also wanted the barrel 'blind marked' so the cartoon Wolfy-Thing didn't show and I wanted the black oxide finish.

The chambers of aftermarket barrels run considerably tighter than the 0.432+ usually found in Glock .40 caliber barrels. Internet reviews of LWD's chambers indicate that some users have found them too tight for best reliability with reloads; right about 0.425”.

This led me to request that LWD open my chamber mouth a couple of thousandths, as I have done when ordering 1911 barrels from Bar-Sto, etc. This concept is lost on LWD, who insisted that I send dummy rounds of the reload I intended to use. Huh? Cutting a chamber for one reload is an exercise in futility. What happens when you have to (or simply want to) change bullets, dies etc.? You've got a chamber for something you no longer use- that's what. I finally gave up on trying to explain this and just sent a set of dummy loads. In total, it took about three months for delivery of the barrel.

The barrel itself was perfectly finished; the flat black oxide finish was deep, consistent and looks entirely at-home in a G23's slide. I'd probably have taken a photo of it but I was just too anxious to shoot it. Dan Shepard, LWD's resident gunsmith, did an exceptional job on the chamber reaming, which finished at 0.427”. He also nailed the most important aspect of getting SWC's to feed, which is adding a radius where the top of the feed ramp meets the chamber. The fact is that I tweaked the dummy loads I sent LWD, so they were about 0.002” fatter than my regular reloads.

These are 'drop-in' barrels and the LWD did just that. If anything it's a tad looser than the factory tube in my 2009 G23. This combination easily digested its first 100 rounds of Missouri Bullet Company's 170 grain SWC reloads and an assortment of jacketed factory loads. The LWD barrel prints somewhat to the right at 25 yards from this particular gun. My intention was to zero the gun with the LWD barrel at 50 yards once its accuracy was confirmed. Then another G23 came into the picture...

Like myself, Peggi has gotten past her gag reflex with Glocks; we are sixgun & 1911 people. She'd shot my G23 occasionally- and well enough to make it clear that she needed one of her own. While trolling the Summit Gun Broker site, I noticed that he had some used, 2^nd generation G23's at a decent price. I contacted Mark at Summit and Peg soon had her own Glock. Hers is a 1998 gun and it provided another test bed for the LWD barrel. Just like the first outing, there were no malfunction regardless of the load. Peggi's G23 also shoots right to the sights with the LWD barrel...go figure.

For the accuracy check, I plugged the LWD back into my '09 G23. This little gun has proved exceptionally accurate with the OEM barrel, printing 50-yard groups that rival all but match-grade pistols. I fired the LWD equipped G23 for accuracy at 50 yards, using my tailgate as a bench and my range bag as a rest. I expected that the groups would be 5-6 inches right of the bullseye.

What I didn't expect was that there wouldn't be any 'groups' at all. 2-3 shots of five would get in or near the 5 ½” bull, but the rest would string out laterally to the right- sometimes as much as a foot! I tried reloads, Golden Sabers and UMC 165 grain ball and UMC 180 grain JHP's. The only thing consistent about the exercise was that this barrel, in this gun, wouldn't shoot worth a damn. Average 'groups' were 14” or more. By comparison, the last Auto Ordinance 1911 I had came with a lousy chatter-marked barrel, loose bushing, wrong link and poor lower barrel support. It still grouped around 8” at 50 yards.

To deem this 'disconcerting' would be an understatement. LWD markets these as “Drop-In Match Barrels” and classic definition for 'match accuracy' with pistols has long been two inches for ten shots, at 50 yards. That's from purpose-built target guns of course; but combat pistols still often surprise with their accuracy, as this G23 has proven using the OEM barrel:

This group (which includes one more, about an inch and a half off the edge of the envelope) came from a typical 0.433” Glock chamber- so chamber dimensions are not the LWD barrel's problem. No, something else is wrong here so I grabbed a set of micrometers and compared the three G23 barrels I had on hand. The dimensions are listed below.

A: Width of barrel locking block at breechface
B: Height of barrel locking block at front, under slide recess
C: Muzzle diameter
D: Chamber diameter at entry point
E: Width of lower locking lug

Barrel	A	B	C	D	E
1998 G23	0.598	0.597	0.590	0.433	0.377
2009 G23	0.600	0.597	0.590	0.433	0.378
2009 LWD	0.596	0.5965	0.590	0.427	0.375

Using measurements taken from two Glock 23 barrels manufactured 11 years apart, the LWD barrel checks 0.002-0.003 undersized for width in the barrel locking block and lower lug. Since these dimensions control lateral supported during firing, I'm guessing that might have something to do with this barrel's tendency to string horizontally.

I had another G23 on hand and it was only fair to try the barrel in that gun, as well.

The 50-yard exercise was repeated with Peggi's 1998 G23, using the 170 grain SWC reload. In this gun, the LWD barrel produced nice, round, centered groups- about a foot in diameter. Three in a row. Just to check myself, I grabbed my 2009 G23 out of the bag and fired 5 rounds of the same ammo using the OEM barrel. The result was four rounds in 4 ½ inches, with a fifth opening the group to 6 inches. The contrast was stark and so is the truth. This LWD barrel shoots less than half as well as the factory tube, in either of the Glocks I tested with it.

I'll keep the barrel & here's why. I have long contended that Glock, who will never admit there was a chamber-support problem in the first place, made subtle changes to mitigate this problem. You take a look and decide for yourself.

The LWD will replace '98 G23 barrel on the left. It provides ample chamber support, it shoots to the sights in Peg's gun and its accuracy deficiencies won't matter much inside 25 yards- where most of her familiarization work with it will occur.

I've also identified two areas where it can stand improvement. There's a slight burr inside the muzzle, which can be felt as a rough, sharp edge when running a fingernail along the end of the rifling there. I'll recrown it and see if that helps. I've also noted that there is almost no 'leade' into the rifling, which is a gradual ramp (for lack of a better term) that gives the bullet a polite introduction to the lands. This is apparent by running a tightly-patched cleaning jag into the bore from the chamber, which takes a hard bump to get it stated into the rifling. It may be that a little throating will also improve the LWD barrel's accuracy- but I suspect that its undersized exterior and lug dimensions will prevent it from ever living up to its 'Match' billing.

Am I busting Lone Wolf's chops here? Only a little. They have a tremendous variety of items in stock and their prices are competitive. Their customer service is excellent and they remained polite throughout my dealings with them. J.R and Dan Shepard are good folks and I would certainly do business with them again.

Are their Glock barrels 'accurate'? This one sure wasn't. If you're a hose-monster who slings ammo downrange at 15 yards, you'll scarcely notice. If you're an accuracy buff who's been corrupted by old Bullseye and PPC shooters, my suggestion is that you shop elsewhere. There are other 'match barrels available and- your factory barrel deserves a hard look.

It just might be more accurate than the barrel you're trying to replace it with.

*- The 'burr' in the muzzle was sharp enough that you could not only feel it with a fingernail, you would leave visible shavings after dragging your nail across it.

Using a fine silicon Dremel stone I had previously recut to 45 degrees, I hand-turned it in the muzzle until a bright chamfer appeared around its circumference, encompassing both the muzzle and the ends of the lands. I followed this by wrapping the same stone in 400 emery cloth and repeating the process until the crown was both bright and smooth, when again subjected to the 'fingernail' test. J.R. Shepard of LWD acknowledged the burred crown as a QC issue and I'm sure LWD would have recrowned and refinished this barrel, if I hadn't done it myself.

I shot the gun again at 50 yards. Excluding called fliers and/or taking the best three of five (Sarge's 'before coffee' accuracy exception) while using my bulk reloads, LWD's barrel is now making groups of 3 1/2 to 4 inches at 50 yards. Later in the day and with more time to concentrate, I fired four more groups with the re-crowned LWD G23 barrel in the 2009 pistol. What you see below is entirely representative of those groups- including the shot that went 1 1/2" off the paper, to the right from the top bullethole. I'll eat that one and write it off to 53 year-old eyes and forgotten eyeglasses. The other four shots are within 3 1/2 inches, which is pretty damn good with range-mongrel brass, me 'on the handle' and waning light. FWIW, Lone Wolf's barrels will shoot lead semi-wadcutters just fine.

This acceptable accuracy for a combat pistol. It will make a safe, accurate barrel for my wife's G23- plenty good enough for 50 yard work on silhouettes when she's ready.

When I get the barrel cleaned up again, I'll post a couple of pics of Dan's excellent work on the critical juncture of barrel-to-feed ramp. This barrel is still running 100% with SWC reloads, which I could never get to work with reliability in .40 caliber XD's. This degree of reliability, from an aftermarket barrel with 0.006 tighter chamber dimensions than OEM, is certainly worthy of honorable mention.

2009-08-22T22:33:00.002-05:00

The Importance of 'Zero'

I shot quite a bit on unsupervised, state-maintained public ranges a few years ago and watching this new generation of handgunners has convinced me that ‘accuracy’, in the classic sense, isn’t important to many of them. I watched in wonder as groups of 2-3 shooters would take turns loading magazines, while one of them would step to the line and empty those magazines as fast as they could jerk a trigger. 200 rounds would go downrange in a matter of 15 minutes, with volume of fire being the obvious goal. They were having just a hell of a good time exercising their Constitutional rights and I got a kick out of watching them.

I was usually one bench away, at the 50 yard line, busting cans or clay birds on the dirt berm with whatever handgun I happened to be carrying and/or hunting with. The hose-monsters sometimes noticed I was actually hitting something and a few even came over and asked for help on how to do it. When they did, the first thing I did was check their zero.

The importance of proper 'Zero', AKA sight regulation, cannot be overstated. If your zero is off, you'll never reach your potential as a pistolero.

If our sights are properly aligned, a proper zero means that unless you 'flinch'- each and every shot will go exactly to the center of the top edge of the front sight. But before we start- let's get a proper sight picture.

Note that the front and rear sights are perfectly aligned for height and that an equal amount of light is visible on each side of the front sight. The front sight is in sharper focus than the target, which is a little blurry. This is to expected because the eye simply cannot focus on the front sight, rear sight and the target at the same time. That's OK because we don't need to see a fly speck on the target. We do need to align our sights perfectly in relation to it.

If our goal is 'bullseye' pistol shooting, we'll adjust the sights to move the Point of Impact (POI) to the center of the target with a six o'clock hold, as illustrated below:

That's great if you're shooting standardized targets at known ranges with one load- as in NRA competition. The six o'clock hold is easy on the eyes and since 'bullseye' is fired over a fairly long course with one hand, minimizing strain on the human component translates into higher scores.

Many of us however carry a handgun for hunting, defense, or duty and we need to be able to hit something small, over various ranges. In those applications we are better served by Direct Zero- where the POI exactly centers on the top edge of the front sight:

I set mine up exactly as illustrated above, at 50 yards. Using that zero and a careful hold, you can hit damn near anything you want out to 75 yards or so. Pistols shoot a lot 'flatter' than many people think and the trajectory of even the slower rounds, like the .45 ACP, can be optimized by zeroing at the longer distance.

'Zeroing' involves adjusting the sights and that means means moving the rear sight in the direction you want the bullet to go. With adjustable target sights, you just turn a couple of screws.

Champion's excellent 860-002 Classic Target Sight
for the 'Bo-Mar cut'
http://www.championgunsights.com/proddetail.asp?prod=860-002

But most defensive/service handguns have fixed sights, which require drifting or arbor-pressing the rear sight to accomplish 'windage' (left-right) adjustment. There are various gee-gaws designed for moving fixed sights and gunsmiths usually offer this service, for a fee. Personally, I just use a hammer and drift punch.

Elevation adjustments are accomplished by chaging the height of the front or rear sights. If you're handy, and unafraid to alter your sidearms, a few file strokes can often pull it off.

Some closing thoughts-

You zero to a single, specific load. If you change bullet weights, your zero will change right along with it. Pick a 'zero load' that's readily available and does what you need. I stick with 158 grain in .38/.357, 180 grain in .40 and 230 grain in .45 ACP.

When zeroing your pistol, SHOOT OFF A SOLID REST! We are not showing off here; we are removing as much human error as possible.

Be CONSISTENT in your hold, sight alignment and trigger squeeze when zeroing. You need to learn these things anyhow and the bench is a good place to start.

I said in the beginning that the importance of proper zero cannot be overstated. I'll guarantee you that there is not a top-ranked competitive shooter in any discipline who cannot tell you exactly where his match gun shoots, using his match load. It drives me nutz when a poor internet newb posts that he's shooting low-left with his new blaster, then some retard posts one of those 'shooting error charts' - without ever asking if the newb's sights are zeroed! Proper zero is an absolute of fine shooting, and if you ain't got it then all the 'Error Charts' in the world won't get it for you.

So get with it folks... get Zeroed! After all, the object of shooting is hitting something- and we wouldn't want to look silly while trying do that, now would we?

2009-08-01T21:20:00.005-05:00

'Long Distance' With the Glock 23

Hang out on Internet firearms forums for long, and you'll eventually run across the modern version of the 'Postal Match'. Today's postal matches are far ahead of their predecessors, because in addition to foregoing mailing costs, the results are available immediately. They also provide an interesting diversion for gun aficionados who simply click-in for whatever they can learn on their favorite pastime.

These Postal Matches might involve anything from 'three-gun' to 'pistols at ten paces'. The most recent one I participated in was entirely results-based; without specifying any particular weapon, the event was 'A single shot fired at the head of a silhouette or similar target, at 100 yards.' People with any sense would go to the closet and drag out Ol' Thunderstick, blow the dust off the Moonscope and set to work- right?

Well, nobody ever accused me of being overburdened with good sense. Several years ago I bought 300 rounds of (then) cheap .40 UMC loads using their 180 grain JHP bullet. Using that load, I've been able to bust a few laundry jugs with my little Glock 23, at 100 yards.

Not every shot mind you, but often enough to know it wasn't a fluke. Since this was a 'one shot' match, I figured I only had to be able to do it once. Here's the setup 114 yards from the target frame, mostly 'cuz that's where the shade is this time of day. Target is a TQ19.

The TQ19 isn't a big target by LE qualification standards, so I covered all but the top third of it's head with the top edge of the front sight, tweaked the alignment and pressed the trigger straight back until the crack of the shot surprised me. So did the target-

I'm sure glad I didn't have to try and do that twice. ;)

2009-06-28T00:13:00.006-05:00

The .40 S&W- Your Tax Dollars at Work!

The .40 S&W cartridge generates a lot of emotion. Shooters either love it, or they won't touch it with a ten foot pole. It has been referred to as a hard-kicker and an 'Answer in search of a question.' I have seen it ridiculed as inaccurate, or because no SAAMI 'Plus P' standards exist for it. I have even had a little fun at the .4o S&W's expense, myself.

When the cartridge was introduced in 1990, I was the Sgt. and ‘firearms guy’ for a rural MO Sheriff's Department. When a deputy would rave about their new .40 S&W, I would politely ask to see an example of the wondrous new invention. While they were thumbing a round from a magazine, I was clearing my Ithaca 1911 and locking the slide open. I would then hold my pistol with the barrel pointed skyward and drop their entire .40 cartridge, nose down, through the barrel of my 1911. As it dropped out the ejection port and landed on my desk, I'd say "Looks like they made it a little undersized; believe I'll just keep what I've got."

Despite my early disinterest in this cartridge, it is a sound concept. The .38-40 Winchester broke ground for it in 1874 and it achieved fair popularity in that firm's rifles and the various Colt revolvers. Again in 1963, the basic concept was championed by Elmer Keith, Bill Jordan and Skeeter Skelton as the 'ideal law enforcement cartridge'- the .41 Magnum. Their original idea of a .41 bullet, at moderate velocities, was entirely sensible. Unfortunately, it was also lost in the rush to make their new .41 just as powerful as the .44 Magnum.

This '.41 Magnum Mistake' sort of reversed itself in 1986, but this time in a true .40 caliber. The FBI had undertaken adapting Norma's (and Jeff Cooper's) 10mm Auto for law enforcement use. While it handily 'split the difference' between the .38-40 and the .41 Magnum, it recoiled more than The Bureau liked and they watered it down some. It didn't take long for clear thinkers to realize that these ballistics could be accomplished in a shorter cartridge than the 10mm- making it tenable in mid-size service pistols. The .40 S&W cartridge was the eventual result and those interested in the details of its development should reference Charlie Petty's fine article on that very topic. Charlie was there and you simply won't find a better account.

I finally accepted the .40 Smith & Wesson, partly because it wasn’t going away; but mostly because it just makes sense. I have used a lot of handgun cartridges over the years and I'm impressed with how well its ballistics overlaps many of them. For example:

Proponents of the 9mm cite reduced ammo costs, and suggest that the +P+ 9mm can do anything the .40 S&W can. The first argument is flattened by the fact that many .40 S&W autos can easily be converted to 9mm- but the reverse is not the case. I personally don't think that a 147 grain 9mm does the same damage as a 155 grain .40, at significantly higher velocities; but I'll admit to being predisposed in favor of bigger, heavier bullets in most cases.

The 125 grain .357 hollowpoint is widely thought to be the standard by which defensive pistol cartridges are judged; from packable revolvers, it achieves around 1350 fps. The .40 can match this with a bigger bullet. Typical 158 grain loadings of the .357 generally run about 1250 fps; the .40 will do it with 155's. On the other end of the spectrum, Alaska Backpacker's 200 grain hardcast .357 load produced 970 fps from my 2 1/4" Ruger SP101. Double-Tap offers a 200 grain .40 S&W load, with a similar bullet, that does 1050 fps from a Glock 23. Unless you load the .357 heavy, from a long barreled revolver- it's a fair statement to say the .40 S&W can run right along side of it.

Comparisons of the .40 to the .45 Auto frequently degrade into a loose approximation of 'theological discussions ' between Afghan warlords. Yet I must point out that in my own unscientific tests, the .40/180/JHP compares quite favorably to the .45/230/JHP. I was surprised to find that even Remington's 180 grain flat-point FMJ load disrupted water jugs significantly better than .45 hardball- and it often ‘riveted’ to a degree in the process.

Buffalo Bore and Double Tap both offer loads that take the .40 to its full potential. All the major ammo outfits offer suitable defensive ammunition with expanding bullets ranging from 135 to 180 grains. My personal preference in this application is a 165 grain or heavier holllowpoint, going as fast as it can be safely driven.

I’ve reached the point with this cartridge where I can carry it and not wish for something bigger, regardless of whether it's loaded with ball or hollowpoints. I just wish DOD would pull its head out of its ass and catch on to this fact. Flat-point FMJ in the .40 S&W would make a perfect military pistol cartridge, generating considerable 'thump' while retaining significant magazine capacity.

Some complain about the .40's recoil and I have to wonder what they've been shooting, to draw such a conclusion. If they’d ever fired heavy-loaded .44 Magnums or .45 Colts, they'd scarcely notice the little dab of recoil that the .4o S&W generates. It's a given that top-heavy plastic pistols are going to jump around a little when firing loads suitable for service or defense. The answer to this problem is to build some hand strength, perfect your technique and learn to shoot the damn thing. I know petite females who have managed to do this. Does this require further explanation?

As to the .40 being 'inaccurate'? This cartridge went from inception to introduction is six months. Gun and ammunition manufacturers were working round the clock to get hardware on the market for it. There may well have been 'bugs' in the early offerings but they are long dead and the cartridge itself is as accurate as any other service cartridge- including the venerable .45 ACP.

‘Reloading the .40 S&W’ would warrant a separate article and it would be one which has already been written, by authors much more knowledgeable than myself. One need only reference the various powder manufacturers’ websites, for more loads than you’ll ever care to try. I took my usual simplistic approach to reloading it- which means W231, lead bullets and velocities more in line with the .45 ACP. My 'general use' .40 loads consist of a lead SWC and just enough W231 to work the action reliably. I put these up in range pick-up brass and because much of that shows signs of being previously hot-loaded and fired in, er, 'ample' Glock chambers- I wouldn't load those casings hot anyhow.

This first attempt produced good accuracy at 25 yards, from the Glock Model 23 they were to be used in. I also wanted to see if it the load's trajectory would suffice for a 50 yard shot at a varmint while working around the farm; so I stapled up a business envelope and let five rounds fly in its general direction. I did throw one shot off the edge of the envelope; maybe an inch and a half. It was a called flier, but the gun & load sure held their own.

I've only owned a couple of bone-stock service pistols that shot this well and I believe this is the first one I've had that beats 3 inches using bulk reloads, in range-mongrel brass. This is all we can ask of any service pistol cartridge.

I can honestly say 'Thanks' to the FBI for their re-invention of the 10mm- which ultimately led to the introduction of the .40 Smith and Wesson. I don’t even mind the fact that we taxpayers funded the effort. In this case at least, those tax dollars were used for an excellent investment.

Author’s note- Since starting this article, I had occasion to use the .40 to ‘permanently discourage’ a 100+ pound pit bull, in a flat-out charge, from chewing off valued parts of my anatomy. He was almost too close when I saw him and the shooting was rushed, as is usually the case when a pistol is called upon to resolve an emergency. The round gave a good account of itself in this little difficulty and if anything, my confidence in it has risen.

2009-06-12T11:12:00.004-05:00

In Anticipation of Independence Day...

It is only fitting that we journey back to the public reading of the Declaration of Independence from an oppressive, Draconian tyrant. I pray that the Lessons of History are not lost on this generation of Americans- may the blood of patriots never be shed in vain.

2009-05-22T21:09:00.009-05:00

Glock’s Model 23

The Glock pistol in .40 S&W cartridge is America's most widely-used law enforcement sidearm and it has proven entirely capable in that application. That fact has not been lost on the general shooting public, either.

I'm an old-school pistol shooter and Glocks, initially, did not impress me. There were well-documented issues with KaBooms and the grip angle was all wrong for us 1911/P35 guys. Glock (who will never admit they screwed anything up in the first place) eventually made subtle changes and both issues were mitigated to my satisfaction. So when a Department-Issue Glock 22 was offered to me in September, 2008, I accepted it and committed to mastering these guns.

My duty gun came with the 8 pound trigger, which I didn’t exactly see as an asset. Despite the trigger pull, ‘Total Immersion’ in the G22 soon resulted in my shooting it as well as the 1911 in typical defensive shooting exercises. This was a startling revelation to me, after spending three decades with the 'Army 45'. It also led me to try the Model 23 which is still a.40, but in the next smaller size.

My Glock 23 was purchased via OMBGuns “Individual Officer Purchase Program”- and the savings to privileged categories is substantial. Unfortunately, so is the wait and it took about six weeks for the gun to arrive. One of the first things I noticed was how much sharper the G23's grip checkering and finger-ridges were, compared to my old issue G22. They were also noticeably 'taller', to the point of limiting contact surface between my hand & the G23’s grip. Shooting the gun only confirmed that its unnatural feel was not helping my instinctive shooting with it. Trends may change, folks-but absolutes don't. You have got to be able to attain a firm firing grip on the gun, and it must be an instinctive, subconscious process.

I have never been afraid to modify a handgun to suit my purposes. A sheet of 240 Wet & Dry emery cloth was wrapped around various bench paraphernalia and applied to the G23’s grip, until it’s feel matched that of my duty gun. The de-horned G23 appears on the right in both photos:

The grip modification made for much nicer handling and the results on target validate the work. I shot my Dept's Basic Qualification with this 23 and posted a ‘possible’ on the first run. This course includes 'yank & blast' at 6 feet, 2-taps from the holster, 3-taps from low ready and it finishes with 10 rounds each at 15 & 25 yards. The time constraints are realistic. The improved contact surface made a hurried firing grip easy to acquire and this helped me keep all but two rounds inside the 5 inch ‘X ring’'. Both of the ‘stragglers’ were still good centerline hits, maybe 3" below it.

The little gun is fairly accurate, too. Rested 25 yard groups with Remington UMC 180 FMJ are right at two inches; 50 yard results are five rounds of the same load into four and one half inches. All this requires, of course that I get off five, perfect shots and in that regard I am far less consistent than the gun. I shoot much better on 3D targets and anything the size of an empty cartridge box is likely to get nailed out to 75 yards.

Is there a significant ‘velocity loss’ from the G23's shorter barrel? To answer that question, I chronographed four, .40 S&W factory loads through the 4.5” G22 and the 4” G23. Given the current ammo situation I fired only ONE round of each. (Want more? Ship me ammo ;) My Chrony Beta Master was used to record this data at a firing distance of about six feet.

Load Tested-----------Glock 22 Velocity-----Glock 23 Velocity
Remington 165 Golden Saber----1105 fps-----1076 fps
Remington 180 UMC/FMJ------1061 fps-----1015 fps
Remington 180 UMC/FMJ------1016 fps------990 fps
Fiocchi 165 JHP------------------1085 fps-----1058 fps

In every case, the compact gun lost less than 50 fps and this is inconsequential.

The Glock 23 is only ½” smaller, in grip and barrel length, than the fullsize gun. It weighs 31 ounces, loaded with 13 rounds. These fiqures simply can't reflect how much better the Glock 23 conceals. I just finished a week of carrying it under a loose shirt, using a cheap Uncle Mikes IWB holster. The weather was warm and much of that time was spent in & out of a classroom. Whether sitting, driving or just walking around, the gun stayed put and rode in relative comfort. I was surprised at how well this combination worked.

Is the Model 23 ‘Perfection”? No. It definitely needs conventional rifling as an option for the US market, where we still cast bullets and load our own ammo. While the factory sight picture works just great, they are plastic. Even the basic gun should be furnished with steel sights. Why? Cops are notoriously 'hard on equipment' and the holstered duty pistol often gets a few knocks on door jambs, car doors and the like. Plastic sights aimply cannot be fitted as solidly to the dovetail as steel ones can. As an old range officer I can recall more than one occasion where a Glock shooter was unexpectedly grouping left or right- and upon examining their issue plastic sights, I invariably found something like this:

Image courtesy of Tango44, at GlockTalk

The good news is that the user can easily change the gun to suit his or her tastes- Glock pistols enjoy fantastic factory and aftermarket parts availability. Even in stock form, the Glock 23 is a powerful, accurate carry gun that lives up to Glock's reputation for reliability.

The Model 23 is a heck of a lot of gun in a nice, compact package. To say that I am impressed with it would be an understatement. Coming from an old 1911 man, that is no faint praise.

2009-05-05T09:16:00.005-05:00

The Joys of a Good Single Action…

I'd been looking for an ‘Old’ Vaquero in .45 Colt for some time. I cut my teeth on single-actions, mostly Rugers, JP Sauers & Colt-pattern black powder sixguns. This happy state of existence got mothballed when word came that I had been accepted for the police academy. I had an old Model 28 and two months of wait before it started- so I figured I better get to learnin' this double-action stuff, lest I embarrass myself. Oh, I acknowledge the efficiency of more modern defensive handguns- but single actions have held my affection, all my life.

I prefer fixed sights and I wanted a sixgun that would take the heavy loads. I passed on a couple of Old Vaqueros back before obama-fright drove the prices dizzy, and the ones I had priced recently were higher than New Vaqueros. I was actually looking for a used Glock when I called a dealer and just asked if he had any of these laying around. He said he had one, the finish wasn’t great but it must shoot OK ‘cause the prior owner killed a deer with it.

I looked it over and everything was right; perfect timing on all six, reasonable tight lockup and close to 0.050 firing pin protrusion. The gun was dirty but the bore was perfect & showed no leading. The forcing cone was well done end evenly worn…looks like maybe they got the holes in all the right places on this one. The trigger was typical New Model which at least told me that nobody had butchered the innards yet.

Per the serial# it is a 1999 gun, so I guess it stands to reason that it’d be a little worn. The colors had long since rubbed of leaving a patina and the aluminum ejector housing had worn through to the ‘shiny’ in a few spots. That didn’t bother me none ‘cause a new one would get roughed-up this bad if I carried it six for months. As it stood, it priced about$175 under the going rate for Old Vaqueros and that suited me fine.

Actually, the only thing that concerned me at all was whether the gun would shoot close to the fixed sights. While pricing .45 Colt ammo (35 bucks a box for BLAZER!!) it soon became apparent that any ‘ammo money’ would be better spent on reloading components.

I did pick a box of Starline’s excellent brass and some Hornady 255 swaged RNFP’s. The bullets weren’t my first choice but there were no SWC’s, LBT’s or even 240 JHP’s available locally- including the Sierra Outlet Store. I set about loading the Hornady over mild-to-moderate doses of W231. I had seen a published load of 7.1 grains with an OAL of 1.650” using this bullet, but the crimp lands back in the bearing surface a ways and that's probably not conductive to best accuracy. Velocity was in the high 700’s, seated out like that; the 0.005 barrel-to-cylinder gap may also play a role in that reading. The 25 yard point-of-impact with this load, when shooting two-hand unsupported, was close enough to be encouraging.

I fiddled with charges up to 8 grains, getting the velocity over 900 fps but not improving much of anything else. The closest I’d come to benching the gun so far was been to shoot it rested over one knee, while seated in a plastic lawn chair. Despite that arrangement, several six-shot groups gathered inside 4 inches, with clusters of 3-4 shots about halving that. Ongoing efforts burned 150 of the Hornady slugs, with almost no leading present. The bore proved slick and the gun was showing promise.

Initial 50 yard shooting revealed that the gun printed 6” low and about 3” left at 50 yards, using essentially factory-dup loads. Since we are taking fixed sights here, I wanted to remove all doubt before regulating them. My experience with 5 ½” Ruger SA’s in this caliber indicates that when zero is reached with the factory-duplication load, zero with Sierra 240’s at 1300 will be within a couple of inches at deep-woods whitetail range. The creep in Ruger’s lawyer-proof SA trigger sure wasn’t helping my shootin’ none…so I decided to tackle both problems at once. Pretty soon the gun was a collection of parts on my bench.

One of the great things about the advent of cowboy shooting is the proliferation of useful information on tuning these guns. Sources indicated that halving the full-cock notch depth would produce a safe, shootable trigger, so I dug out the files, stone and feeler gauges and set to work slowly. The result was an almost creep-free trigger of about 4 ¼ pounds using the factory springs- eminently more shootable and it passed the ‘push off test’ with flying colors.

While I had the gun apart I also cleaned up some burrs and cold blued the hammer and trigger. I have always disliked the appearance of the shiny ‘non-Colt-looking’ ignition parts on NM Rugers and bluing them sure helped that.

I also prefer the looks and improved handling of checkered, hard rubber grips on my single actions, so I added a pair of Vintage Grips. I'm not going to sugar coat the fact that they were a bitch to fit. They were partially drilled, about a 'half-hole off' and the side that mates to the frame was so far out of square that the bottom of one grip hung out in thin air. It was necessary to true them up in about every direction to get them to fit well. Unless you're just looking for a grip project, I wouldn't recommend them at all.

I replaced the aluminim ejector rod housing with a steel part from Borchardt Rifle Company. This is a quality product. It was a good fit to the Vaquero and the only problem was that the matte blue on its top surface was a poor match to the rest of the revolver. A few passes with 0000 steel wool corrected this. The end result of all this tinkering made the gun considerably more 'shootable' and far more in line with my notion of what a single action should be.

I also made a few light file strokes across the top of the front sight, taking care to keep it square, and serrated its visible edge with the rough-cut side of a mill file. It worked out just right and the elevation was near-perfect at 50 yards. Several shots directed at a 100 oz. laundry detergent jug, at that distance, filled it with holes and sent it skittering for cover. Offhand work on cans at ranges from 15-25 yards confirmed that we were ‘getting there’.

More Load Development…

Since this was going to be a ‘do-everything sixgun’ I figured I better get busy on developing a .45 Colt load for game to about 500 pounds. While there are several schools of thought on this I subscribe to the one that says a deep, full caliber hole in the right place will get the job done as well as anything. A 255 SWC at 1050-1100 fps will bore through meat and bone with vigor and I figured such a load would shoot pretty close to the factory-duplication load..

The first order of business was to select a load. John Linebaugh’s articles on the .45 Colt report that he settled on 13 grains of HS6 for loads in this range. I’ve had good luck with this powder, finding it accurate and kinder to bullet bases than faster powders.

For bullets, I turned to Missouri Bullet Company of Kingsville, MO. I’ve corresponded with its owner, Brad Alpert, and found him knowledgeable on alloys, bullet hardness and the like. Like myself, Brad believes that super-hard bullets are unnecessary for most applications. He offers a good 255 SWC in his ‘Cowboy No. 9’ which has a big meplat and Brinnel’s at about a 12- soft enough for proper obturation, but plenty hard for penetration on game. (This bullet can be had 50% harder if you really need it that way.) A phone call got 400 SWC’s on the way and the price was right. I also wound up some of with his 250 grain RNFP, dubbed ‘Cowboy #1’ in MO Bullet lingo. Whatever you call these bullets, they are shooters! The Old Vaquero loved them and put 5 out of 6 of the RNFP’s into ¾” at 25 yards. The 255 SWC shot equally well, planting another 5 of 6 shots into 2 9/16” inches at 50. A full report on the results with these bullets, including target pics, is here for anyone interested.

This old Ruger surprised me, proving capable of near ‘match accuracy’- two inch groups at 50 yards. Reaming the cylinder throats to a uniform 0.4525" should enhance accuracy even more. Whether or not my aging eyes can use that much accuracy on a given day, is a moot point. The accuracy is there and I sure can't blame the gun for any misses,.

I was quite happy with 'just' single-actions for years and could return to that blissful state with little effort. When I hang up this tin star in a few years, you can bet that the lion’s share of my handgun attention will vested in one or another iteration of Sam Colt’s invention- which revolutionized America.

2009-05-03T23:19:00.004-05:00

Missouri Bullet Company’s Cast .45 Colt Bullets

I have been working up some loads for an Old Vaquero I picked up a few months ago.

My goal was to build a set of loads that would 'cover all the bases' and still shoot to the sights. As you view these targets you will note that the gun shoots a little left. This was rested shooting and oddly enough, the gun hits where it looks when I fire it two-hand, unsupported. Anyhow ignore the windage dispersion because when the load development is finished- I'll zero the gun to shoot in the middle of all of them.

I'd been corresponding with Brad Alpert at Missouri Bullets for some time. He soon convinced me that he knows his bullets and alloys, so I decided to give his bullets a try.

The first step was to build a factory-duplication load, and I used MO Bullet's 'Cowboy #1' which is a 255 RNFP. My goal was to break 800 fps and 7.2 grains of W231 averaged 825 fps. It turned out to be a shooter, too:

For my 'second gear' load I used John Linebaugh's 13.0/HS6/255 SWC load- recommended for Blackhawk-size Rugers, only. With MO Bullet's 'Cowboy #9' it runs 1045 fps, and it'll kill anything wandering the woods down here. Since this is a hunting load, I shot it at 50 yards. I did brain-fart and load one of RNFP's into the cylinder-full that made the following group. It's the shot farthest left, and you may count it or discount it at your discretion:

To say that I'm happy with these bullets is an understatement. These are bulk bullets, underselling a considerable segment of the market, and they shot exceptionally well in this old Vaquero. Missouri Bullets will be getting more of my business.

http://www.missouribullet.com/

Now all I’ve got to do is get the heavy-bullet load cooked up!

2009-05-02T12:26:00.004-05:00

Ruminations of an Old-School Pistolman…

I’ve been at this stuff awhile and it recently struck me just how radically our thinking on the subject of handguns has changed. At one time, the budding pistolero would read up on the collective works of various gun-gurus, consult a few experienced handgunners, evaluate his needs and then select a handgun.

The general consensus was that one should start with a good .22 handgun and this still makes a lot of sense. It was understood then, that a LOT of shooting would be required to make the journey from novice to expert. Close attention to established marksmanship fundamentals, and due diligence in their application, would still be required; or all that ammunition was simply wasted.

All this work with the rimfire was usually undertaken in the high hopes that perhaps in a year or two, we’d be ready for a real handgun- a .38 or .45. Committed individuals looking for some excitement turned to the .357 and hairy-chested, he-man types might eventually be able to handle the .44 (gasp) Magnum!

Our perception of marksmanship has changed, too. For decades, the gold standard of accuracy for both handgun and shooter was the X-ring of the Official NRA 25 and 50 yard pistol targets. For those unfamiliar with such things, the 50 yard target has an X-ring spanning 1.695 inches. Yes, people hit them regularly at that distance. They did it using ONE hand.

Boy, things are different today! Let’s look at some of the differences.

Today’s budding shooter wants to be an operator. No, not like Lily Tomlin; more like Steven Segal. This operator stuff is just too important for him to waste time with the little 22, so our stalwart decides that his first hand-fusil must at least be a 9mm. To determine what he should buy, he gets on the Internet and finds thousands of ‘cool pics’ of tactical-black handguns, equipped with all manner of flashlight mounts, etc.

The Internet is also where he seeks ‘expert* advice’ which usually means from the guy with the highest post count on his favorite firearms forum. The Internet has also changed the definition of accuracy, with the standard being more of those ‘cool pics’ of targets fired at seven to fifteen yards. Never mind that these targets would have gotten you laughed off the range in 1975.

I shot quite a bit on unsupervised, state-maintained public ranges a few years ago and watching this new generation of handgunners has convinced me that ‘accuracy’, in the classic sense, isn’t important to them at all. I watched in wonder as groups of 2-3 shooters would take turns loading magazines, while one of them would step to the line and empty those magazines as fast as they could jerk a trigger. 100-300 rounds would go downrange in a matter of 15 minutes, with volume of fire being the obvious goal. They were having just a hell of a good time exercising their Constitutional rights and I got a kick out of watching them.

I was usually one bench away, at the 50 yard line, busting cans or clay birds on the dirt berm with whatever handgun I happened to be carrying and/or hunting with. The hosers sometimes noticed I was actually hitting something, but few came over and asked for help on how to actually do it. When they did, the first thing I did was check their zero. Then I walked them through the basics of sight picture, alignment, hold and trigger release. I’d sit them down at my bench, let them shoot over my range bag and often within 20 rounds, I’d have them chasing cans across the berm. It ain’t all that hard when you adhere to the basics.

My perusal of the various Internet gun forums, tells me that many handgun shooters are interested in improving their results. Unfortunately, many get mislead into thinking that ‘mods’ are the answer so they bolt all manner of gee-gaws on their pistol in hopes of buying some skill.

When that don’t work, they watch videos of the various IPSC magicians charging through speed stages in colorful, sponsor-provided attire. Now these guys and gals are fast, and they definitely can shoot; but they didn’t get there by bolting fender skirts and fuzzy dice on their handguns. They did it by ingraining the basics of marksmanship, repeating them until they become second nature, and then making small changes in their technique that allowed them to do it faster. Yes, they burn a lot of ammo- but every round goes toward perfecting accuracy- so it can be done faster by means of committing it to the subconscious. Yes, ‘equipment’ plays a role- but only in the fine point spread that wins specialized matches.

No boys and girls, this modern age of handgunning, with all its fancy guns and equipment, hasn’t changed a thing. There are still absolutes and you must follow them if you intend to hit anything. You still have to zero your sights. You still have to align them, properly and in relation to the target, and you still have to press the trigger without disturbing them.

Want to get better? Want the subconscious ability to hit well under stress, when you life is on the line? The answer is to live with the gun. This topic came up in discussion awhile and my summary answer to the question follows. My good friend Rob Leahy of Simply Rugged Holsters thought it relevant enough to re-post it on his website:

“To me at least this means that you prove the gun, select a carry load and dead zero the sights to that load at 50 yards- meaning that a beer can divided by the front sight grows a hole through the middle. Then you build a bulk reload that shoots to the same spot. You might even build a third, small game and pest load which just cycles the action and also shoots to the sights at say, 20 paces.”

“From that point on you immerse yourself in THAT gun. For me that means ‘to the exclusion of everything else’. When the zero is dead-nuts, you get off the bench drone the accuracy work until you are sick of it. You shoot big and small game with it. If starlings or bluejays are a nuisance and they are dumb enough to offer safe targets of opportunity- they become delicacies for the barn cats instead. When the zero is proven to that degree, you start improving your own ‘zero’ by shooting bullseye targets offhand. When its ‘easy’ you ain’t improving- force yourself to do something harder!”

“For some variety, you do yank & blast (spitting distance), double-triple taps, point shooting and any other fast-close work that forces you to keep the gun running while moving around with it. I work hard enough at that aspect that I sometimes have to really hunt for mags I have dropped along the way. I don’t pay attention to where I changed magazines, or how I released the slide if I ran dry. (I do cuss myself for running dry, though.) All that matters are centerline hits- and that the gun seemed to run itself.”

“You’ll be through about your third 500 cast bullets about now, a pound and a half of powder and at least one bottle of Hoppes. It’s dirty work but few things are more comforting than knowing you can kill a 20-yard bluejay, with the gun you just shoved in your ‘work’ holster.”

I didn’t come up with anything new here. Elmer Keith painted an accurate picture of the process when he wrote:

"More time is required to master the handgun than any other type of firearm. To become an expert sixgun shot, one must live with the gun. Only by constant use and practice can one acquire a thorough mastery of the shortgun. You must work and play with it, eat with it, sleep with it, and shoot it every day - until it becomes a part of you and you handle it as surely as you would your knife and fork at the table." (Sixguns, page 57)

"Pistol shots are not born. They get that way by constant hard work and steady practice, studying each and every move and perfecting their technique..." (Sixguns, page 59)

I credit another friend, Jim Taylor for first citing these Keith quotes in his excellent article, Old School Gunology’ located on his page at the Los Angeles Silhouette Club’s website. A good collection of Jim’s work is available there and it is well worth your time to peruse it.

If you’re going to be loafing around the Internet, you might just as well read something constructive.

*Expert: "The Village Idiot, ten miles from home."

2009-02-22T20:06:00.006-06:00

A few patterns with the 870 Express....

Using the 21 inch barrel and three different RemChoke tubes. I used Winchester 'Universal' El Cheapo 2 3/4" 3 dram equivalent field loads, stoked with 1 1/8 oz. of No. 7 1/2 shot. I have pretty well settled on this shell for the lighter birds and it has produced satisfactory pattens in several other shotguns I've used it in.

Distance was 40 yards and the targets were Champion 25 yard 'Slowfire Pistol' that measure about 11x16 inches. Not SAAMI standard pattern testing I know, but big enough to get a few pellets on just the same.

Anyhow, pics are of the back of each target from the Improved, Modified and Full tubes, left to right in that order. Lacking a dead bird to trace around, I used my cell phone to make a 2 x 4 1/2 inch rectangle on the back of each target behind the aiming point. Click to enlarge...

I don't know exactly what I proved here but I did convince myself that I'll be able to kill a few doves with this outfit. I don't turkey, goose or duck hunt but I think the Improved tube should be about right for jump shooting doves & quail on early morning walks, around dew-laden corn fields.

It ain't 'zactly bee-yooteful, but this little shotgun will wander no more in search of a home ;)

2009-02-17T19:21:00.021-06:00

The 870 Express 'Special Purpose': One Versatile Shotgun.

Cruising the pawn shops like an old shark can have its payoffs. While cruising one of them last week, I noticed a black scattergun on the ‘Used’ rack that looked a tad different than your typical riot gun. I made out the profile of a short 870, with a vent rib. ‘Chop Job” I said to myself as I asked to look it over. I just hoped it was cheap- and that they hadn’t cut the poor thing off in the middle of a vent.

I was wrong; what I held was a near-new, synthetic-stocked 870 Remington Express 'Special Purpose' Magnum with a 21 inch barrel tapped for Rem Chokes. The bolt showed no exterior finish wear and the breech face didn’t look like it had seen ten live rounds. I checked the gun and threw it to my shoulder, sighting down the twin beads.

While these stocks don't fit me perfectly, I can still get along with them. To their credit, they come with a decent recoil pad & QD studs. I also noticed something that Remington did to insure that the gun they conceived to cut into Mossberg’s market, wasn’t mistaken for one on the rack!

The price was more than fair considering the 'extras' which includeda spare 30” Rem Choke barrel, a decent case, an assortment of choke tubes, their wrench and a sling.

The action on this Express isn’t as slick as the dozens of old 870’s I’ve fired over the years, but I figure time and hard use will correct that- and ‘Hard Use’ is something this shotgun will definitely see. A short 12 gauge with screw-in chokes will do everything I need a shotgun to do, which is actually quite a lot.

My Department recently had a shotgun (NOT an 870) pulled from service, so I relinquished my issue 870 to a marked unit. This shotgun, once proven, will replace it. Because this one is mine, I can outfit it to my tastes. Its ability to employ Rem Chokes means I can also bird hunt with the short barrel, and I can't think of a better way to get really close your fighting shotgun. This choke system is among my favorites for its versatility, the nice patterns it produces, and that fact that it sits flush with the muzzle.

I took this shotgun out for its trial run and since I’d also use it for a slug gun occasionally, I installed an Improved Cylinder choke. It soon became apparent that it shot a little to the left, with both shot and slugs. I removed the barrel and checked it for straightness; while looking it over, I noticed that the Bradley-style bead wasn't screwed in quite ‘square’ with the rib. A minute’s work corrected this and the shot patterns immediately centered behind it.

I also discovered, to my absolute glee, that by carefully centering the Bradley atop the small center bead, I could frequently clobber Coke cans with a Super-X slug at 50 yards. Even the misses would slice the edge of the can, or land an inch or so to one side. This gun was definitely living up to the ‘Special Purpose’ logo stamped into its receiver.

Everything was great, right? Well, not quite. Living up to my reputation for being able to find a lemon in a jar of Maraschino Cherries, I found a problem. During the first 75 ‘proving rounds’ a shell would occasionally hang up on the chamber at four o'clock. A quick wiggle of the forend would feed it, but I couldn’t trust this 870 as a duty shotgun until this condition was corrected.

I cursed my bad luck. In nearly 30 years of law enforcement and firearms instruction (and at least that many 870’s) I had never seen this malfunction. I consulted the resident ‘870 Armorer’ who suggested that I lightly break the edges around the chamber. It’s no secret that these ‘Express’ guns are less refined than the earlier versions. I read the related Armorer’s Manual from cover to cover, which suggested that a new carrier, dog and spring might be needed. I left messages at Remington Arms. I wore Google out, searching for similar problems and cures. No definite solutions surfaced. While this gun had barely been fired, I was sure that ‘Break In’ shooting wasn’t going to cure its problem. I was also not interested in shipping the gun back to Remington.

I polished the edges of the chamber, per my Armorer’s recommendation, which helped but did not eliminate the problem. The shells were simply feeding up a little low, and they weren’t centering on the chamber.

My son Mark happened to be on leave from the Army and he dug his old 870 Express out for a look-over. His gun has exhibited the boring reliability that made these shotguns famous. Being a mechanic himself, Mark readily agreed to my examining/swapping parts between the guns until the problem could be isolated.

I dropped the trigger plates from both guns. Mark’s shotgun, made in ’84, matched mine (a 1992 gun) for carrier spring tension. They both seemed to raise the carrier to the same height. Finally I lined both trigger plates and examined them closely. A little light came on when I looked at the shell carriers ‘straight on’ and you can see why in the captioned photos:

Now I don’t know if the flat carrier profile of the later gun was a QC error, or part of the cost-cutting program that allowed Remington to compete with Mossberg on their own playing field. What I do know is that a flat carrier will not center a shell as well as a curved one. So I pulled the shell carrier from my ‘problem child’ and went to work at the 6” vise, bending, comparing, and then bending some more. Pretty soon my shell carrier matched the basic contour of the carrier from Mark’s shotgun. While I had mine apart I also removed a few burrs from the slide bars, which accounts for their shiny appearance in the photos. Some cold blue will fix that. The only other modifications to this gun will be those necessary to add a magazine extension and a metal follower.

I slapped my shotgun back together and grabbed two boxes of field loads from my dwindling supply, along with some buck & slugs to insure that the heavy loads would work as well as light ones. I hot-rodded them through as fast as I could feed and shuck them; my shoulder & cheek being reminded that I was shooting too fast for proper mounting of the gun. My new-old 870 blew through 40 rounds without a hint of hesitation, so I ran 20 more through it working the action slowly enough to provide an opportunity for ‘low lift’ or a chamber hang-up. No problems whatsoever; this shotgun’s sole gremlin has been exorcised.

That’s a good thing. I have hunted and trained with 870’s for so long that I can run one in my sleep. I’ll probably sleep better, knowing that this versatile shotgun stands ready to meet any need that arises.

2008-11-21T06:44:00.006-06:00

Missouri's 'Antler Point' Restriction

Right.

Now I am generally not a vocal critic of MDC and many of its recent changes have been good ones. The 'Telecheck' system eliminated the need to haul your deer across the county to a check station. Missouri deer hunters also enjoy one of the simplest 'legal firearms' descriptions on record.

Still- this Antler Point Restriction nonsense is for the birds.

First, APR stacks the odds against novice hunters- and as a father and husband who's been in on a number of 'first deer' I can tell you that these hunters need all the help they can get. Many of these are kids, out with Dad or Uncle Fred for their first deer hunt. Under the 'old rules' they'd see maybe 1-5 shootable deer per season; and they might get a safe, sure shot at only one of those. They are thrilled to get any deer at all and even a forkhorn buck is a big deal to them. APR deprives this vitally-important group of opportunities. New hunters are quite literally the future of hunting and the last thing we need is to discourage them.

Second, APR is a slap in the face to 'traditional hunters' who use iron-sighted .30-30's, military rifles and period firearms from 1830 forward. Folks, this is deer hunting at its finest and it is the essence of hunting in general. APR essentially requires that the traditional hunter adds a substantial set of binoculars to his kit; and spend more time 'glassing' than enjoying the nostalgia of the traditional hunt.

Third, APR turns a uniquely American test of hunting & shooting skills into an equipment race. We have done just fine with a 10 year old set of budget binoculars here and most of our 'deer guns' wear carefully-zeroed iron sights. The only 'scoped rifle in the outfit has a 4X on it, which has facilitated precise shots and instant kills at well over 200 yards. Now, by edict of the crowned heads at MDC, all of our optics are obsolete. I suppose we could run down to China-Mart and drop a grand on some new glass; but I am disinclined to have the state dictate how I spend my recreational dollar.

Fourth, APR does nothing to alleviate the hundreds of thousands of dollars in property damage and personal injury caused by deer each year, in Missouri. MDC obviously knows this because the Kansas City and St. Louis areas got a 'hall pass' on APR. Now, this would probably never occur to the Commission- but us 'dayum hillbillys' don't liked to wreck our pickups anymore than them high-falutin' city slickers do! Someone in my neck of the woods learned this first hand. By the third day of the season, there was a spike buck lying dead along 135 Highway, just south of US-50. He was doubtless passed over by hunters but he died just the same and somebody got a repair bill- thanks to APR.

My final complaint with APR is that it promotes the notion that deer hunting is all about 'points and trophies' rather than harvesting the winter meat. Every young deer hunter I've mentored, has been taught exactly the opposite. We've killed a few decent bucks over the years, but shooting a big rack was never the driving force behind the hunt. And frankly- 'an obsession with racks' has never been a character trait of the better hunters I've ever known. I hate to see MDC foster this kind of thinking.

I have a grandson and two granddaughters; I looked forward to having the honor of taking them on their first deer hunt. I sincerely hope that the Missouri Department of Conservation mothballs this stupid 'antler point restriction' before that day comes.

2008-10-19T07:55:00.008-05:00

Ruger's Mini 14 '580 Series' Ranch Rifle

The last month has brought about significant changes. After almost 12 years as the investigator for a prosecuting attorney, I accepted a staff position with the PD in a military town. Thankfully, the new outfit is small enough that 'the brass' still run some calls and do real police work on a pretty regular basis. I also inherited the firearms training program, which means time more time spent in an aspect of law enforcement I have always loved.

A nearby national security asset underscores the value of stand-off weaponry- which to me means 'minute of noggin' at 200 yards. With that in mind, I recently swapped into a like-new 2007-production Mini 14. It's .223 Remington cartridge and 'Ranch Rifle' designation fit my secondary intentions for it quite well . Now, I don't have any heartburn for the AR15, but I definitely prefer the handling and two-stage trigger of the M14 platform and the Mini follows that basic layout.

My blue '07 Mini is in the 580-38xxx serial range and for those unfamiliar with the '580', it is the end product of a complete re-tooling aimed at enhancing the accuracy of this popular firearm. The last Mini 14 I owned was an old '78 model and while it was no slouch in the accuracy department, it was apparently an exception to the rule. Mini 14's have established a poor reputation for accuracy in the 30 years that have passed, between these rifles.

My current Mini was obtained in 'used- like new' condition and the bluing on the bolt was pristine until the first two magazines went down range. It wears the fiberglass handguard and hardwood stock common to the newer Mini's, and is equipped with a nice rubber pad where the slick, plastic buttplate used to be. This rifle has the 'straight' barrel profile which mics at 0.575 just ahead of the gas block and reduces to 0.565 about 3 5/8 inches ahead of that fixture.

The trigger is typical Mini meaning it is two-stage, like bolt-action military rifles of the 19^th and 20^th centuries. My RCBS Premium Trigger Pull Scale indicates that three pounds of force is required to overcome the first stage; five and one half pounds gets you through the second stage and fires the rifle.

As is common with these rifles, that second stage has some creep. This is due to hammer/sear engagement angles which actually cam the hammer backward a few thousandths, during the final press. If you pull the slack out of a stock Mini's trigger and then release it, the hammer will snap right back into full sear engagement. Leave it to Bill Ruger to design a lawyer-proof trigger. Of course there's a trade-off for everything and until you master it, the Mini's trigger can make precision shooting a real challenge.

A breezy fall day provided the opportunity to get acquainted with my 580 Mini. One of 'Sarge's Rules' is that the very first thing you do with any rifle, is to precisely zero its iron sights. They are on there for a reason and if all else fails- having a perfectly zeroed firearm can make the difference in who goes home to the Missus, and who goes home to their reward. A measured 210 yards separates my shooting table from the target frame and to my thinking, a 200 yard zero is just about right for most centerfire rifle cartridges.

Adjusting the 580's rear sight for windage involves loosening/tightening the opposing windage screws, and moving the aperture in the direction you want your group to go. Loosening the windage screws also frees the aperture to rotate up or down, to facilitate elevation adjustment. While the lack of click detents is something of a nuisance, it does provide a very fine degree of windage adjustment. I was also pleased to find the sight picture in sharp focus, even with with my prescription glasses in place.

6o rounds of Remington/UMC 55 grain FMJ was used for the initial shooting. Starting at 25 yards, I rough-zeroed the sights. I was soon back at 210 yards, firing three-shot groups and adjusting as I went. Usually I would get off 2 good shots of the three, and it soon became apparent that the Mini 14 was keeping its shots within a couple of inches each other- when I held my end up. Four inches at 200 yards seemed to be about the best I could manage with the aperture sights .

Once the irons were 'on' I installed an old Bushnell 4X on the Mini, and repeated the process. It's crosshairs are so coarse that they blank out a 3" orange dot at 200 yards, but once I went to a bullseye target things got better.

I shot a while longer and noticed the groups were starting to scatter. A quick check of the mounts revealed that one of the receiver mount screws had worked itself loose on the rear ring. Since I was about done shooting for the day, I decided to just pull the scope off and reinstall it to determine how much the zero changed. I was happy to discover that the rifle still shot within three inches of its 210-yard zero. There were no malfunctions with the factory magazine and Remington's 55 grain, full metal jacket UMC load.

Next, I set about finding a reload that would shoot to the same 200 yard POA and the Rem/UMC 55 FMJ load; I had some Sierra 55 BTHP's on hand, with the ever present H4895- my standby rifle powder. Since I was using Lake City cases, I backed off the max a tad and started at 25.7 grains. To tell the truth, this batch of cases has been sitting around primed for so long that I can't recall what primer I used in them.

Luckily, the first load out of the chute was good and it shot exactly to the UMC load's point of impact, with either the scope or iron sights. It also grouped just as well and typical three shot, 210 yard groups looked like the pair pictured below. The group highlighted in red has two shots in just under 2 inches, with a third straggler opening it up to 3 ¾ inches. The dropped shot below the bull was simply operator error.

The best 3-shot group of the day was 1 3/4" using the aforementioned UMC load. I think the rifle is actually shooting this well, as long as the barrel stays relatively cool. Once the targeting was done, I splattered several 100 oz. detergent jugs at 125-210 yards from rested field positions, using the irons. The initial shooting session laid any accuracy concerns to rest and convinced me that my rifle possesses satisfactory accuracy for 200 yard varmint shooting- regardless of the number of legs those varmints might have.

With the accuracy & reliability issues resolved, it was time to order some magazines. I contacted Ruger Law Enforcement Sales division and attempted to obtain a half-dozen of the factory 20-round component. I was promptly informed that Ruger does not sell directly to LE Agencies. I would have to go through one of two LE distributors to obtain the mags.

So I called the first (closest) one and learned that they were out of stock, but 'hoped' to have some 20 round Ruger magazines, 'soon'. I also learned that the Dept. price for these was over $41.00 each. Oddly, Ruger has a 'promo' going for new rifle buyers that gets them a free 20 round mag, and two more for $29.95 each. I guess that's my punishment for not paying $600+ for a new Mini 14. I finally just said 'To hell with it' and ordered some 20 round ProMags from Brownells.

When the ProMags arrived I gave them an 'acid test'- 50 rounds of over-length, lousy reloads I've been needing to shoot up for awhile. I knew the powder charge was safe but the primed LC brass was a freebie. I later learned that many had only been neck sized- if they were sized at all. To make it usable I pulled the decapper from a sizing die, and just ran the brass through primed. The end product was still pretty sorry with most over SAAMI overall length for the cartridge. The ProMags never missed a beat even with this junk ammo. I am really happy with these magazines, especially considering their price.

It is my opinion that these new Ranch Rifles are the best Mini's we've ever seen. Their non-slip buttpad and improved sights make them easy to mount quickly and shoot well from field positions. This particular specimen shoots better at over 200 yards, than many earlier Mini's would shoot at half that distance. While testing the ProMags, I managed to warm the barrel up pretty good while emptying of a couple of them. Even with a hot barrel, the last three-shot group of the day was 3 7/8 inches at 210 yards. In my experience, your average AR/M4 will not beat that significantly.

The accuracy improvements in these new Mini's, is a landmark accomplishment.; Ruger seems to have finally resolved the single weakness of the Mini 14. Now all they need to do is make it easier/cheaper to obtain factory, 20 round magazines.

Then- we'd be good to go!

2008-10-11T07:40:00.002-05:00

The "Idiot Vote"

Just about everybody over eleven understands that voting is, and always will be, a choice between the lesser of two evils. None of these people are perfect and just like the rest of us, they have all done things that they'd rather not see splattered all over FOX and CNN.

Election-year politics are simply a grandiose effort to make each candidate look better than they actually are- and their opponents look far worse. What's absurd is that this entire effort is aimed at idiots who lack basic cognitive and analytical abilities- people incapable of evaluating the candidates and making up their own minds.

This decision making process should be based upon what all these folks actually did as public servants- before they announced their candidacy. Their core issues, the causes they support and the bills they sponsored or voted on are all a matter of public record. In some cases, they did nothing at all and voted 'present'. These are facts, not election-year bullshit. They cannot be changed. They can only be 'spun' in the hope that we, the voting public, at too stupid or lazy to check the facts.

But the facts are easy to get. Once obtained, you simply hold them up against your own core values (assuming you have any) and make a decision. For instance...if you are serious about your Second Amendment rights, you'd have to be an idiot to vote for Obama. This is crystal clear to most of us, yet some gun owners will inevitably vote for Obama.

Of course this is America and McCain-Feingold notwithstanding, we are pretty much free to express our opinions on these topics. I'm all for this, despite the fact that I have learned to ignore it.

I simply refute the notion that idiots should decide an election. Anyone who hasn't made a choice by now is probably not going to make a reasoned one- or they simply lack the core values which most people will use as their personal standard for evaluating a candidate.

This is rather sad. Poor choices can have dire consequences.