Gun Lust

 As many of you regular followers are aware, I am a fan of fine firearms. My tastes generally run towards blued steel and wood stocks, but I'm not opposed to other materials. If it goes bang and doesn't say Highpoint on the side, I'm probably interested. I also appreciate a custom firearm as much as the next person; however, one person's "chef's kiss" is another person's "dog's breakfast". 

One custom touch that leaves me very hit or miss is engraving. Done right, engraving turns a nice gun into a masterpiece work of art. Done wrong, and....well, I suppose you can grind it off and refinish the gun. 

So, it is unusual for me to come across a custom, engraved firearm that makes me stop and drool. Such, is the case of the examples below. Our first object of desire is a not so humble Ruger SP101 3 inch .357 Magnum. This example was spotted recently in the Defensive Revolvers group on the Book of Feces. The owner called it his tuxedo gun, and there was a bit of a debate in the comments as to whether it qualified as a Texas BBQ Gun. As a lifelong Texan, I would have no qualms about carrying this Ruger to a BBQ. 

Our second contestant is an example of work completed by JMN Engraving (also found via the Book of Farces). This is the slide off of a Viking themed 1911. My Swedish ancestry is complaining loudly that I need one of these. 

Sigh...now I have to go figure out how to tell The Queen I need to spend several thousand dollars on guns and engraving. Y'all take care.

Thoughts on Gun Safety

I was doom scrolling my Facebook feed here a day or two ago when I landed on a post by an acquaintance I "met" here in blogger land who used to have a blog of her own. She has since taken it private and relegated most of her other musings to Facebook. She leans left of center politically, and her post was a photo of her nightstand upon which a revolver (Taurus snubbie in .38 or .357 by the look of it) was prominently displayed. She proceeded to state that she "hates guns a lot" and wanted "all the gun control". 

I chose not to comment on her post because I had more important tasks on my plate at the time, and I know the person well enough to know that no good would come of me opening that particular can of worms. For reasons that most of you will already guess, that post set my habitually firearm oriented mind spinning like a game of Russian Roulette.

Setting aside (for the moment) the irony of someone who hates guns and wants all the gun control leaving a revolver out unsecured on a nightstand, it got me to thinking about gun safety. Not the liberal left's view of of gun safety, but the actual-for realsies-don't shoot yourself in the face-gun safety. 

So, I thought I would share a little vignette from my deep past to illustrate the point which is guns, by themselves left to their onesome, cannot hurt a sole. For crying out loud, someone found a Winchester leaning against a tree in the woods after 130 years. The silly thing was rusted to Hell and gone, but it was sitting there for 130 years right where the original owner left it bothering nary a soul. 

Back to our story. Once upon a time in the early 1990s, I was a young lad getting back into the shooting sports after coming of age and having my own money to spend. At that time, semi autos still hadn't made the full transition to being the primary sidearm of choice for pretty much anyone beyond the military. Heck, this was a few short years after taking my driving test with a state trooper who was carrying a huge revolver. So, I was the proud owner of a 6 inch Taurus .357 revolver. This was back in the day when Taurus quality was a crap shoot, and I didn't have the money for a Ruger much less a Smith & Wesson. Colts were already discontinued by that point. So, that wasn't an option either. 

Small digression, I worked in the layaway department at Walmart for a time while in college back when Wally World still sold handguns and cool stuff like Marlin Camp Carbines. I was working the desk one night when one of our sporting goods guys (great guy named Bud who was a WWII/Korea fighter pilot who flew F2G2 Corsairs [the Goodyear version of the Vought F4U]) brought an attractive lady back to put a revolver on layaway. It was a monster 7.5" barreled Ruger Redhawk in .44 Magnum. I asked her what she intended to shoot with it. Her response: "Husbands". Priceless. 

On with the main part of our story here. There's a point in here. I promise. So, during college, I was dating this young woman. She had 3 sisters, the youngest of which had never shot guns before. I offered to take them both out shooting at what was then my grandmother's property. We load up the Taurus, my Remington 870, I think I had the Marlin 60 back then, as much ammo as I could scrounge, targets and set off for the back pasture. 

After a little warm up, I gave the Taurus to my lady friend for her to have a go. She took a couple of shots, and then proceeded to take a pose in which she rested her chin on the hand holding the gun with her other arm supporting the gun hand's elbow with the Taurus sticking out at about the 10 o'clock position WITH HER FINGER ON THE (please enjoy this soothing music while our author vents a spleen in colorful euphemisms using all permutations of the universal adjective) TRIGGER. Now, granted, she was unlikely to receive a .357 caliber Qtip out of the deal since the muzzle was pointed at the stratosphere instead of her dome, but she'd have had the potential to be deaf in one ear for life had I not gently reached over and secured the gun before catastrophe struck. Besides, I don't like cleaning blood spatter of guns; and, contrary to popular belief, stainless steel isn't stainless. Ask Number One Follower about his Colt Mustang II. 

The moral of the story is that gun's are not to be taken lightly. If you don't like them, don't get one. If you don't know what you're doing, get some training. If you like guns and want to keep them, start educating people about how to safely handle them. 

Thus endeth the sermon. 

Where's My Battleship?

With the possible exception of thermonuclear devices, I think a free person's arsenal should be limited only by their checkbook and mental health status. Though I would not be opposed to variation on the Swiss system of encouraging responsible gun ownership and marksmanship proficiency.

The Basic Arsenal

 As anyone paying a bit of attention knows, guns and shooting are my hobby (even if I don't get to partake  in my hobby nearly as much as I would like). I tend to spend more time than is healthy reading about guns and shooting, watching YouTube videos on the subject, tweaking my wish list, etc. 

I recently came across a YouTube video by the 3 of 7 Project discussing the five basic firearms that any prepper should own.  He went through his suggestions in some detail including some recommended brands and models. Briefly, his list was as follows:

1) Semi-Automatic .22LR Rifle - His specific recommendation was the Ruger 10/22. 

2) Semi-Automatic, Polymer Framed, 9mm Handgun - He recommended the Glock 19X.

3) Pump Action, 12 gauge Shotgun - I believe the Mossberg 500/590 series was his main preference, but  the Remington 870 was also mentioned.

4) Bolt action rifle in .308 Winchester - The Remington 700 was the specific choice here. 

5) Semi-Automatic, AR-15 Rifle in 5.56mm/.223 Remington

His argument was that those 5 guns could handle the majority of any person's needs from target practice, to home defense, to varmint hunting, wing shooting/bird hunting, big game hunting, concealed carry, etc. His explanation was well reasoned, and I have no particular quibbles with his reasoning or his recommendations. I would be quite content in my ability to handle 99% of shooting tasks with those 5 firearms. 

Being the opinionated gun nut that I am, I would be remiss if I didn't make a list of my own with variations on that theme. 

1) A Bolt Action .22 LR Rifle. There is nothing wrong with a semi-auto .22 or the Ruger 10/22 in particular. I have one, and I enjoy shooting it. It is very accurate and reliable. That said, I feel that the bolt action is more accurate and reliable than even the very best semi-autos money can buy, and there is really no discernable advantage to a semi-auto action on a .22 rifle (except as a cheap bullet hose). 

I have shot various bolt action .22s including the Savage Mk II series, CZ 452, Ruger American Rimfire Precision and others. I got my shooting merit bag in Boy Scouts with a single shot .22 bolt action (probably a Winchester though I have no clear memory of such or anyway to verify it). Since I already have a 10/22, I would most likely lean towards the Ruger American Rimfire series due to the common magazine. If extreme accuracy and excellent triggers are more your speed, the CZ 452 is highly desirable. Also, you can't go too far down the rimfire rabbit hole without someone singing the praises of Anschutz rifles. Whichever route you go, get one with a threaded barrel and you are good to go for quiet plinking, teaching shooting fundamentals, varmint hunting and pest control. 

2) Duty Sized, Polymer Framed Handgun, chambered in .40S&W. Before we get to your obvious question about why I would suggest the .40 S&W chambering over the 9mm, let's talk about what I mean by duty sized. By duty sized, I mean a gun with a frame that you can get a full firing grip with all four fingers of your strong hand and at least 4 inches of barrel. Since Glocks are pretty ubiquitous in the industry and pretty much everyone else builds something to compete with the Glocks, I will use Glock models as a reference point.  In the .40S&W chambering, the two models I consider to be duty sized are the Glock 22 (4.6 inch barrel, full sized, 15 round magazine frames) and Glock 23 (4 inch barrel, "compact" sized, 13 round frames). An argument could be made that the Glock 35 (5.3 inch barrel, full sized, 15 round frame) is also a duty gun. I personally think it crosses over into hunting and gamer gun territory, but you do you. 

So, why .40S&W instead of 9mm? In a word: versatility. With a barrel swap, a .40 can be converted to shoot .357Sig. Another barrel swap and different magazines (and maybe a slide and recoil spring depending...) allows you to shoot 9mm. In a prepper/WROL situation, do you want the ability to feed your self defense handgun from one food source or three? Modern polymer guns such as the Glock or the M&P use the exact same frame for the 9mm/.357Sig/.40S&W calibers. The .40 and .357 even share the exact same mags. So, swapping calibers within the same frame size is quick and easy. 

Given the market share of Glocks in the US (over 50% between civilian and law enforcement last time I saw any stats) and the fact that I shoot them as good or better than everything except a Stacatto C2, I would stick with Glock as the brand for my self defense/concealed carry/combat handgun selection. I would probably lean towards the Glock 23 as it is easier to conceal than the G22 and no less effective.

3) 12 Gauge pump action shotgun. As a poor who cannot afford a Beretta 1301 Tactical Shotgun, I HAVE to agree with 3 of 7 on this one. I would be perfectly happy with a Remington 870 or a Mossberg 500/590, but I really WANT the Beretta. The tang mounted safety of the Mossberg is a nice feature especially for lefties UNLESS you get one with a pistol grip. Then, you will have to get used to shifting your grip to operate the safety. The Remington uses a more traditional trigger guard mounted safety which is great for right handed shooters but not favorable for lefties. I think the Remington enjoys slightly better aftermarket support than the Mossy does. So, the Remington 870 is my choice unless I win the lottery and can get the Beretta. Did I mention I want the Beretta?

4) Bolt Action Rifle in .308. Again, no argument here. I like the Remington 700 AAC-SD Tactical with the threaded barrel. Unless I can find a deal on an older Sendero with a fluted barrel or a 5R barreled version. Arguments could be made for other calibers, but I agree with the choice of .308. America is a .30cal nation and will be for the foreseeable future. The American military has been using .30cal bullets for almost 130 years at this point, and American hunters have been taking game with it just as long. I would not suggest anything smaller than 6.5mm; and, frankly, anything bigger than 7.62mm/.308 is an answer in search of a question in my opinion. 

5) This last section is where I might have a divergent opinion from that of 3 of 7. That's not to say he's wrong because the 5.56mm/.223 Remington AR-15 IS an excellent choice for an intermediate range/caliber rifle. It can do a lot of things really well within its limitations. I would not reject one or hesitate to use one. However, I think compelling arguments can be made for using a pistol caliber carbine or a lever action in this role as well. An equally good argument can be made for an AR in .300 Blackout or a Galil or Tavor or something similar.  Or just skipping this section altogether. It's not like you can't defend a home with a pistol or a shotgun. 

It's an interesting thought exercise (for me at least). I'd really love to find an excuse to put a revolver on the list, but I think it's place is in the "next 5" after the first five are taken care of. What would you pick for your basic five?

Call It a Weakness

Hi. My name is Daddy Hawk, and I have an addiction. I like guns. Some more than others. I have spoken of my love affair for firearms before and 1911s in particular. Say what you will about a 100+ year old horse pistol, but John Moses Browning made arguably the most enduring handgun design of all time. It's a home run of engineering and mechanical art in my humble opinion. 

That said, I have a confession to make. As much as I love a nice 1911, I would take a 3 inch Smith & Wesson K frame (or L frame for that matter) revolver over a 1911 just about any day of the week and twice on Sunday. 

I'm not going to get into the esoteric weeds of firearms Nerdvana detailing the history and development of the various frame sizes. Suffice it to say, you would be hard pressed to find a better balance of power and portability in a medium framed revolver. Here are a few choice examples of the breed stolen shamelessly from FaceBook and other places. 

Smith Model 10 (.38 Special). Per the creator of this custom masterpiece: it started life with a 4" barrel. A 3" heavy barrel from a Model 13 was put in its place, slab sided and the cylinder flutes slab sided off as well. Trigger and hammer replaced with polished stainless while the frame and barrel were reblued. A normal 4" Model 10 weighs in at around 34 ounces. This one should be about 4 to 6 ounces less. 

The same gunsmith that made the Model 10 above, tweaked this Model 65 (.357 Magnum). It was a police trade in with a 4' barrel. The 'smith swapped out the 4" barrel for a 3" barrel from a "Lady Smith" Model 65, gave it a matte stainless finish and polished the cylinder turn ring. That is just gorgeous in my opinion. 

Last up is a bone stock example of a 3" Model 686+ which is an L frame, 7 shot, .357 Magnum. It's a little heavier than the K frames, but it will handle a steady diet of the heaviest magnum rounds that would wear down K frames over time. The K frames are guns that you mainly shoot .38s out of and carry with magnums for serious purposes.

Modern, polymer, striker fired pistols have NOTHING on these revolvers aesthectically. Tell me those aren't beautiful, well balanced guns. I dare you.

Custom Guns?? Sort of??

Once upon a time, General George Patton was quoted as saying that "Only a pimp from a cheap New Orleans whorehouse would carry a pearl-handled pistol." I shudder to think what the good general would have said had he seen these disasters.

I have nothing against a nice custom gun, but I'm not paying a premium for an otherwise stock Glock or 3-4 times the normal price for a Mil Spec Springer with MIM parts just because it's gold. ESPECIALLY because it's gold. 

To each their own I suppose. I realize there must be a market for this sort of thing; but, for the life of me, I can't figure out who would want one of those.  

Thoughts on Self Defense and Shooting

I tried to keep up with the Kyle Rittenhouse trial as much as I could with work and other life pressures getting in the way. Suffice it to say, that trial was a hot mess in more ways than one. I spend a fair amount of time involved in civil litigation issues with peripheral contact with the criminal litigation world. My general opinion on lawyers (and most professions) is that there is a Bell Curve of talent and performance with a few really sleazy, unethical lawyers or really top notch lawyers on the opposite extremes with a varying degrees of mediocre in the middle leaning towards one end of the spectrum or the other. The way I usually say it is that there are rock stars and rocks in every profession. Unfortunately, the rocks far outweigh the rock stars. From what I saw, the prosecution team tried to take the boulder on the sleazy, unethical side of the curve, roll it down the beach into the ocean, drop it into the Marianas Trench and bury it as deep as possible into the mud. 

If they are not disciplined by the state bar association, I will be very disappointed. 

I will not present an opinion on the outcome of the trial other than to say that I think the verdict was correct legally. You can also bet that this is not the end of the circus. Act two has yet to begin.  

I will, however, share some thoughts on self defense and shooting guns in general (not necessarily related to the Rittenhouse trial) that percolated in my brain over the last couple of weeks.

1) You may have heard someone say that "Only Hits Count" (in competition, in a gunfight, etc.). That's not really true. The truth is that "Only INTENDED hits count". Refer to the Fourth Rule of Basic Firearms Safety: Be sure of your target AND what's behind it. A shot that hits an innocent bystander or destroys the Ming vase holding grandma's ashes is a huge negative. You are responsible for every bullet that comes out of your weapon, and "Oops, I didn't know..." or "It was an accident" will not hold up well in court. 

Also remember that most modern construction housing walls do not stop bullets and, at most, slow them down slightly. If you live in an apartment (which is one huge box of matchsticks and drywall) like I do currently, consider using frangible ammunition and understand that you will have very limited clear lanes of fire. For the love of all that is holy, do not use a shotgun with slugs in an apartment. 

2) Another gem you hear from time to time is: "You can’t miss fast enough". There is a corollary to this one: "A fast miss can turn into an unintended hit".  See number one above. Shooting GOOD is more important than shooting FAST. Unlike in the movies, you don't get unlimited ammunition. Even at the gun range just plinking on a weekend afternoon, there are no magic revolvers that have as many rounds a belt fed machine gun without reloading. I don't know about you, but I can't carry a pallet load of spare ammo and magazines with me everywhere I go. 

So, make every shot count. At the range, take your time, ensure you have a good and firm grip (none of this tea cup stuff and no limp wristing [even with revolvers]), get a good sight picture (whether irons or optics), and then smoothly press the trigger when your sights are aligned with the target. Take a moment to assess whether your shot went where it was supposed to; and, if not, ask yourself why not? If  you are taking your time, you will start to notice things like jerking the trigger, flinching, a weak grip, poor sight alignment. If you find yourself in a gunfight or self defense situation, that is not the time to "spray and pray" bullets everywhere. 

I'm not saying mag dumps aren't fun once in a while; but, unless you are super human (or Jerry Miculek), it is nearly impossible to see the sights and target under recoil and stress while trying to shoot 0.05 to 0.10 split times between shots. Save the mag dumps for the range with a safe back stop. Besides, at current ammo prices, you might as well light a $100 bill on fire. 

3) There are no warmups in a gunfight. The way you shoot cold at the range without warm up is the best you can expect in a defensive shooting situation.

4) Avoidance and situational awareness more important than shooting. There is an old saying that you win 100% of the fights you don't get into. Another saying is: "Don't do stupid things with stupid people in stupid places." 

5) Violence should be your last resort. 

6) There is no such thing as a fair fight. 

7) If you have to fight, fight to win. Fight like you are the third monkey waiting to board the arc, and it's starting to rain. 

8) Fatigue is a thing. Adrenaline is an even bigger thing. Embrace the suck. When you are tired or your heart is pounding like a heavy metal drummer on speed, your ability to shoot accurately is going to suffer. 

9) You will shoot some guns better than others, and it’s okay to have a favorite. But a well rounded shooter should be able to pick up ANY gun and get combat effective hits. I love me a 1911. It is, hand's down, my favorite type of firearm. Interestingly, I shoot Glocks as good or better than I do 1911s. Which really throws me for a loop because I love the aesthetics of wood and steel in a 1911 while the polymer of the Glock is very much function over form. 

I WANT

I have absolutely no need for an Short Barrel Shotgun, and I have issues with paying Uncle Sam $200 for the privilege of a "mother may I?" tax stamp, but that just looks super cool to me. It appears to be a Remington 870 cut down to about 12 inches with ghost ring sights and a ported barrel. 

Black Aces Tactical does something similar for the Mossberg Shockwave 12 gauge pistols. I'm not sure I'm quite mental enough to touch one of those off with 00 Buck self defense loads, but I could see carrying the SBS in a over the shoulder scabbard a la Ash from Evil Dead / Army of Darkness.

I could walk around yelling "THIS IS MY BOOMSTICK!!!" This is Texas. It's legal. It'd be great times.  

Caliber Selection - Part 1

I posted something over at The GunDivas. Go give it a read it your of a mind to.

DRT* - Texas Style

*DRT = Dead Right There

In the wake of the mess in Ferguson, it is refreshing to see a story of the police doing a thankless job that needs to be done...but doing it with style and humility to boot.

Case on point from Austin, TX: Here is an excerpt that gets at the heart of the issue (pun intended):

The incident that unfolded rapidly Friday morning was laid out minute-by-minute during a Monday briefing at Austin police headquarters. Acevedo said about 13 minutes passed from the first report of shots being fired at the Mexican Consulate to the moment McQuilliams fell to the ground from a single gunshot.

Mounted patrol officer Sgt. Adam Johnson fired the shot from 312 feet away using his service handgun, which he aimed with one hand while holding the reins of two horses in the other. It struck McQuilliams in the heart.

In contrast to at least 103 shots McQuilliams fired at Austin Police Department’s downtown headquarters, Johnson’s was the only bullet fired by Austin police during the incident, Acevedo said.

“We’re giving (Johnson) a lot of credit, but he feels very strongly there was some divine intervention and he wanted me to share that,” Acevedo said.

A quick Google search reveals that APD standardized to the Smith & Wesson M&P40 in 2010. I have a small bit of experience with that pistol, and I can honestly say I'm impressed with Sgt. Johnson's feat. Hitting a heart sized target at 25 yards with an M&P40 in one shot with both hands is by no means an easy shot.

He did it at 104 yards. One handed. While holding the reins of not one but two horses.

THEN, he says it was divine intervention. How cool is that? In the heart of the most liberal city in Texas, a police officer credits a higher power for an amazing feat of skill under pressure which undoutedly saved lives.

Well done, Sgt. Johnson. Well done.

A Polite Request

I received a comment and follow up email on my recent post about the open carry brouhaha at Chipotle from a new blogger soliciting feedback on her take of those same events. Julie at "Julie on Politics" asked that I consider sharing her post here. She asked nicely, and I am happy to help a new blogger out since we were all new bloggers at one time or another. So, if you are interested in giving her a look, you can find Julie's thoughts on the Chipotle incident here.

Bob S., I think you will find my comment to Julie more cogent and less half baked than my original post. I've had my caffeine today.

This is Why We Can't Have Nice Things

So, here lately, the North Texas area has been getting a lot of attention, unwanted in my opinion, from aggressive proponents of open carry upsetting the apple cart by carrying rifles and shotguns in public.

I'm sure most of you have seen the Facebook photo of the two dweebs...mall ninjas...wannabees...fools attention whores standing in Chipotle with their EBRs (evil black rifles) on display. I'm not going to post that photo as I don't need those two preserved here in my digital home for posterity. Google "Dallas Chipotle Open Carry" if you really want to see it. Suffice it to say, they look silly.  The one wearing his mirrored shades and holding the rifle at low ready, other than looking like the rifle is bigger than he is, should probably have been arrested for disturbing the peace or brandishing of some other related offense. Maybe it's not too late. There is photographic evidence of the offense after all.

Add to that little drama, the events going on in Arlington where the city council recently passed a new ordinance preventing people from stepping into city streets to hand out literature. This ordinance was the result of a Tarrant County open carry group passing out copies of the Constitution at intersections while carrying rifles and shotguns to the apparent dismay of some if you believe the news reporting of the events. The open carry group is crying violation of their first amendment rights, and they promise civil disobedience when the ordinance takes effect at the end of the month.

And now there is this:

Little orange signs like this are popping up all over Granbury (southwest of Ft. Worth). When I asked the manager at Fuzzy's Tacos what gives, he advised that they were informed that an open carry group was coming to town Memorial Day weekend and wanted no part of that nonsense. So, essentially, what they have done since the sign does not comply with Texas section 30.06 signage requirements is create a reason for a simple trespassing charge. If someone entering the business with a gun is asked to leave and refuses, they can then be arrested for trespassing.

Frankly, I don't blame Fuzzy's for posting the sign. I don't blame Chipotle for their position either. Do I wish they had handled it differently? Yes. Then again, I wish the attention whores had stayed home to beg mommy for donut money or play video games too.

In the meantime, I will comply with the laws of the state of Texas while enjoying my burritos and tacos.

Some People Have All The Luck

I had to attend a business meeting in St. Louis earlier this week. As part of the meeting, which was the final one before retirement for one of my business associates, there as a gift given by another business associate to the soon to be retiree in recognition of their long standing business relationship and friendship. 

This was the gift:

The pictures do not do it justice. It's an absolutely gorgeous gun; and I am, frankly, jealous. The recipient's only comment was "WOW. Just WOW." 

Lucky dog. Pardon me while I go take care of a drool problem. 

New Stuff in the Toy Box

There's a new gun review in Daddy Hawk's Toy Box if you are so inclined.

Training Review: Two Hour Handgun 101

This post was originally posted on The Gundivas earlier today under the same title.

If you have read my bio, you know that I claim no formal firearms training as part of my background. As my involvement in the shooting sports has increased, my desire to change that circumstance has increased as well. Towards the end of August, I was perusing my daily Groupon email when I noticed a deal for a two hour handgun 101 class. One hour of classroom followed by one hour of range time with range fee, gun rental and ammo included for two people for the obscenely low price of $39.

Cha-Ching! Where do we sign up?

Yes, I said we. In my excitement at getting such a deal and my desire to share my hobby with my long suffering wife, The Queen, I signed us both up for this educational experience. Then, I told her I had a surprise for her. The Queen is no stranger to firearms, but she is not obsessed with them like I am. Once upon a time, I took her on a date during which go karts were raced and a select fire 9mm H&K MP5 was rented and fired. The Queen claimed she had a great time at said date. So, this surprise date was going to be well received too. Right?

Yeah, not so much. More on that later. Maybe.

Word of advise to husbands reading this: don't bill a date involving your hobby as a surprise to your wife who is stressed from caring for three children under the age of five and dealing your sorry hide day in and day out.

Word of advise to wives reading this: when you present your husband with the receipts from your massage/spa day/shopping spree/shooting spree, gently remind him that you didn't kill him for getting your hopes up for something romantic.

Any fail, back to our story.

Notice I am not naming names here. There are two reasons for this: 1) there is no need to publicly shame this business across the Internet for those located somewhere other than the Dallas/Fort Worth area (those in DFW can email me for names if you so desire), and 2) I don't want to discourage other businesses from offering similar opportunities via Groupon.

The Groupon portion of the experience was awesome. Paid online. Scheduled online. Printed voucher. Done. No fuss.

The classroom portion of the event was not bad. It was not great either. The classroom was long and narrow with the tables setup facing the centerline of the room instead of the front of the room. This made watching the video portions of the instruction difficult. There were about 22 to 25 people in the class with 1 instructor. Remember these numbers, they will come back to haunt us soon.

Now, here is a little pet peeve. A training class advertised to start at 7:00 should...you know...start at 7:00. Not 6:50. When we walked into the classroom at 6:55, the instructor had already started a power point presentation and was showing a video clip of Clint Smith talking about something or other, I honestly can't remember at this point.

Before moving on, let me describe our instructor for the evening. Short, overweight and wearing a Springfield XD 9mm in a Miami classic shoulder holster rig. I found it amusing that he continually muzzled the whole class with his loaded XD every time he turned around while demonstrating "proper" muzzle discipline with a revolver and a semi auto.

Back to the classroom material. I don't have a problem with an instructor inserting video clips to enhance a presentation. I've done that myself professionally. However, over reliance on video clips from others more qualified than you just highlights your own lack of qualification. Also, I don't really feel the need to pay good money to watch clips of Clint Smith or Todd Jarrett that I can see (and have seen in some cases) on YouTube for free.

The instructor did do a good job of demonstrating a solid two handed grip as well as the rationale for same. He demonstrated the Isosceles stance. I would have liked to have seen other stances covered as well, but that would have meant cutting out one of the Clint Smith video clips.

Positive take aways from the classroom portion: 1) Mag Out / Round Out for proper clearing of semi autos so that you do not inadvertently reload the chamber from the magazine, 2) you use the pad of your index finger to engage the trigger as using the first joint causes the meat of the finger to interfere with proper operation of the trigger, and 3) Todd Jarrett / Clint Smith are worth whatever money they are getting paid since our instructor felt the need to use their material instead of his own.

Now, on to the range portion. The range where the class was held is a relatively new facility with 7 pistol bays. Remember the number of students in class? Do you see where this train is about to crash? To add insult to stupidity, the range was not closed to outside shooters for the class. Those 7 bays were thus reduced to a mere 5 bays available for the shooting portion of the class. So, 1 instructor is going to run 25 students, some of whom have never touched s firearm, through a minimum of 20 rounds of ammo on 5 pistol bays in under an hour. Oh, and give quality one on one coaching in the process.

Yeah, not so much.

To add a additional level of stupid, one of the lanes rented to a non-class member was a guy trying to impress not one but two girls by shooting his .40 gangsta style. I really wanted a few quiet moments with that bonehead, but such was not to be. For what it's worth, one of the girls was a better shot than he was.

Heck, The Queen is a better shot than he was. But I digress.

The rental guns were supposed to be Smith & Wesson M&P .22s. I was really kinda interested in shooting them to see what all the hubbub with the triggers is about. Alas, when I got my chance to shoot, the lane I landed on had a Sig Mosquito for use. Apparently, one of the M&Ps was taken down by a squib round that left a bullet lodged in the barrel that need to be hammered out, and the Mosquito was pulled in as a substitute.

A word or two about the Sig: I don't like the long DA/SA trigger. I've never liked the DA/SA trigger system. Didn't like it on the Beretta. Didn't like it on the S&W 4506 that my brother in law had. Didn't like it on the Mosquito.  Personal preference. Your mileage may vary. The sights were way high. Point of impact at five yards was about three inches low. Once I figured that out, I turned the number 8 on a standard Texas DPS silhouette target into one ragged hole which is what I expect of myself at that distance.

Watching some of the others in the class, there were clearly some newbies. One guy in front of me had the shakes so bad, I thought he was going to drop the gun. He really needed some one on one attention. Unfortunately, he didn't get it that I saw.

Range commands, though discussed in class, were non-existent on the range. I didn't notice any glaring safety issues, but that could have just been luck given the experience level in the class.

So, bottom line: when it comes to Groupon firearms events, buyer beware.

In hindsight, I should have called the provider and asked some basic questions. My self assessed experience level is higher than a basic, intro class. I wanted to take the class for the sole purpose of starting with the basics to make sure I was not reinforcing ay bad habits left over from my grandfather and also to give The Queen and I a good basis for future firearms activities. A mentioned above, I did get something's out of the class. However, I was left feeling like I should have gotten more out of it.

For the price, I can't complain too much more than I already have.

Burning Candles and Other Stuff

...Not necessarily burning other stuff. I just mean that this post will cover other stuff besides burning candles. Sort of. You'll get the idea.

Three years ago yesterday, this little corner of the blogger world was turned loose on an unsuspecting and largely non-existent audience for the first time. Not unlike a blind man tossing a hand grenade, but it was a start. In the three years since, the blind man got a pair of eye glasses, dropped his cane a few times, had Lasix surgery and then stared at the sun too long. Now, he's busy looking for the pin to the live grenade in his hand and wondering if the counting has already gone past three.

I don't have anything special prepared to help celebrate my little blogiversary other than another whirlwind round up of stuff that's happened since last we spoke.

First up, I've been traveling more lately. Like a lot more. I get to spend next week in town all week which will be a refreshing change. The Queen is kinda partial to the idea of me being home for a change too. Seems she wants help with the kids or something. Having my smiling face nearby is a secondary bonus apparently.

On a recent business trip to lovely San Antonio, I had a couple of firsts. On the flight there from Dallas, I had my first experience with "new plane" smell. Southwest Airlines rolled out a brand, spanking new airplane for us. It was literally the first fare carrying flight for this bird which was one of their new WIFI equipped Boeing 737-800s. All that plastic, leather and adhesives off gassing together is pretty intoxicating...in a "when do we land so my headache will go away?" sort of way. Nonetheless, it was a nice plane and felt a who heck of a lot more comfortable than the little American Eagle regional jet that I was shoe horned into earlier in the week.

The next little story comes from the return leg of the San Antonio checking in for my return flight. I was talking with my business associate when a whiff of Hoppe's No. 9 reached out and rudely assaulted my hind brain. A quick search of the area spotted a Glock in a well cared for tan leather holster. The gun and holster were attached to a gentleman in line ahead of us to check in for our flights. Further examination revealed that the gun and holster were attached to a man in his mid to late 50s wearing brown cowboy boots, pressed tan colored denim pants, brown belt, earth toned button down shirt with a black ribbon string tie, a white cookie duster mustache and a huge straw cowboy hat. Did I forget to mention the Texas Ranger badge and handcuffs?

Why do I mention this? Well, for starters, it's rare enough to see a Texas Ranger out in the wild so to speak much less checking in for a flight at the airport since there are only 216 of them by statute. Second, Ranger rocked his Glock with a very tasteful miniature Ranger badge on the magazine floor plate. I'd be willing to give 50/50 odds that his duty issue hollow points have little Ranger badges on them too. You know...so that the bad guys will know that they've been put down hard by a real American bad ass.

I'd also give 100% odds that no one even thought about jacking with his flight. Because he didn't have to check that heater at the counter and wore it proudly through security.

Now, on to the kid update.

First, a little vignette from a phone conversation between The Queen and I five minutes before I had to start a conference call.

Me: Hello?

The Queen: Hi honey. How is your day going?

[lots of pleasantries, idle talk and lead up later]

The Queen: How do you feel about respiting a four year old boy for two weeks?

Me: It's probably not the best idea we've had lately.

The Queen: But he would give Mini Me someone to play with and make things easier on me.

Me: It's your call. You have to decide if you are up to handling another kiddo. I've got to go for my call now.

The Queen: Okay, see you later.

Five Hours Later...walking in the door at Castle Erickson.

The Queen: It's Daddy. Daddy meet [Insert Name Here].

Me: Hi [Insert Name Here].

[Insert Name Here] has a few issues not the least of which is an incomplete grasp on toilet training. He knows how. He just chooses not to. Perhaps more frustrating than that is trying to communicate with him. I am not sure how best to describe it. There really is no frame of reference. If I didn't know better, I'd say hallucinogenic drugs were involved.


So, to recap. Four kids. Two four year old boys. Two infant girls. No sanity.

Mini Me and The Banshee are still here. The Banshee is still a Banshee. Mini Me has had a few adjustment issues with the new boy in the house. Otherwise, situation normal. Their bio momma is continuing her efforts to get her kids back. She just started a new job. She is getting some out patient help for certain issues. All in all, she is working hard. We are guesstimating she will get her kids back sometime in November. Maybe.

That leaves M&M's situation. We are back in limbo waiting on word for the state where bio mom's mom lives to get the home study back to Texas CPS. We did get word that grandma either has or had brain cancer recently. This may or may not be an issue with respect to her home study depending what kind of drugs she is on and what her treatment status and prognosis are.

Last we heard, the next hearing is still set in mid October. Until we hear different, we continue to treat M&M like our own.

Hope all is well with you all. More to follow when I can.

No Greater Love...

Editor's Note: This post was originally published on The GunDivas.

Since Friday when in first heard about the tragedy in Aurora, CO, I have probably started this post four or five times in my head, on the iPad and the laptop. It’s a serious topic, involving real people, suffering real pain inflicted by a mad man for reasons as yet fully unknown. Obviously, I want to avoid being my normal, snarky, smart alecky self.

At first, I started out thinking that I wanted to talk about the need to examine your core beliefs and establish a personal “rules of engagement” if you will for situations like this. That idea arose from a discussion I had with a friend from church Friday afternoon. He asked the question of what I would have done. Heck, I don’t know. I wasn’t there, and I’ve never been in a situation like that before. I would like to think that I would have the faith and strength of character to put myself between the shooter and those around me and use every tool at my disposal to protect them and get them to safety. Some who were there did just that while others did not. I don’t write that as praise or condemnation. It is merely a statement of fact based on reports I’ve heard so far.

I would like to think that I am ready and willing to die trying in the process. No less a person than Jesus Christ Himself said “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” (John 15:13) That’s not exactly Plan A, of course. My preference would be to make the other person die trying, but that’s a discussion for another time.

I thought about getting into a discussion of gun rights versus gun control; but, honestly, that horse has been run over by the cart after dropping dead from a thorough flogging. I am a member of the gun community. I believe in the right to own and bear arms. Not much is going to change that view. Others believe differently and have little interest in what I have to say on the subject. Though, for the record, I think that gun control advocates are kinda like Ray from Ghostbusters trying to choose the form of Gozer the Destructor. Ask Rahm Emanuel and Michael Bloomberg how well they have succeeded at controlling the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man.

And here I was trying to avoid snark…I apologize.

So, what DO I really want to say about Friday’s events?

Go love someone.

Anyone. Right now. Do not pass go. Do not collect $200. Carry a gun. Don’t carry a gun. I don’t care, but go find someone you care about or really like a lot and love on them.

Why am I saying this?

Allow me to give a little back story first. Ever since my wife, The Queen, and I got married, I have gotten up, gotten dressed and left the house for work before she even wakes up (most of the time…there are exceptions). I have always made it a point to give her a kiss as she lies there sleeping and tell her I love her before walking out the door. Anger, sad, or happy, argument or no, I did this because I wanted to make sure that, if anything happened to me, the last thing between us was an act of love.

Until recently. I have gotten out of the habit. There are lots of excuses, but the bottom line is that I have gotten away from doing what is in my heart.

And then I came within about 2 seconds of dying on the way home from work today. A fool in a large, black pickup ran a red light right in front of me. I can’t say for sure how fast he was going, but I would guess at least 40 and probably 50 or more. I believe he was accelerating. He would have hit my comparatively small Nissan Maxima square in the driver’s side had I made the intersection just a second or two earlier. Honestly, I can’t say for certain that I would have died, but I have investigated enough car accidents to know that serious injury and a trip to the hospital was the bare minimum that I would have gotten away with had he hit me at that speed.

It has shaken me to my core that I might not have made it home to my wife and foster kids this evening. Fortunately, I did get to hug and kiss The Queen and baby M&M this morning before I left. The Queen woke up early, and we shared a little three way hug before I had to go.

12 people in that theater Friday morning didn’t get to go home to their families, and at least 50 or 60 others came close to sharing their fate. Those 12 will never be able to love or be loved again (except in memory). They are beyond the cares of this world now. If it were possible to resurrect them right now, my bet is that their one wish and desire would be for more time with their loved ones.

When the dust settles, no one cares about how good or bad we are with a pistol or a rifle. No one cares how many or how few training classes we’ve taken. What they care about and remember most are the times we were there for them, when we hugged them when they needed it most, when we listened to them, shared their joy, their pain and their lives.

Go. Love. Someone. Now.

Who'd 'ave Thought?

While I try to decide what to include in my next update regarding M&M and The Queen to satisfy kymber's curiosity, I thought I'd take a moment to gloat a little about my most recent competition experience.

I participated in one of the local clubs' USPSA (United States Practical Shooting Association) match last evening/night with positive (at least for me) results. I placed second out of four shooters in my division (single stack) and 30TH out of 43 shooters overall. I won two of the four stages within my division; and, more importantly, I was even two places ahead of cousin B. in the overall standings.

For those who have not been following my escapades in the shooting sports, that's a huge improvement for me.

I went into the match intending to focus on accuracy over speed; and, for the most part, I succeeded in spades. I shot well enough to get 404 out of a possible 450 total raw points (which means I didn't miss the "A" scoring zone very often in the 90 or so rounds fired). I was slightly bummed on one stage when a good target was ruined by someone who forgot to tape the target after the previous shooter sticking me with their hit on a no shoot for a penalty. How do I know it wasn't me? There were four holes in that target when there should have only been two. I shoot .45 ACP which makes a significantly bigger hole than either 9mm or .40 S&W on a cardboard target. The no shoot hit was most definitely NOT a .45.

The most difficult stage of the evening had 14 targets each requiring two shots for a total of 28 rounds. Guess who only has 26 rounds worth magazine capacity in his current rig? Yeah, that would be me. Fortunately, there was someone willing to loan me a spare mag. I also wound up having to bum eight rounds of ammo off another shooter after an administrative error by the match director forced a reshoot of the first stage. I was scorer on that stage, and they really should have listened to me when I told them the scoring sheet did not match the stage. But, who am I to say I told you so?

Also of interest, I ran into the VP of the other local IDPA club from a couple of posts ago at last night's match. He is a real nice guy, and there did not appear to be any hard feelings about my complaint. He runs a Smith & Wesson M&P 9 that has had over 50,000 rounds through for those who are interested in that sort of thing.

Speaking of round counts, WARHAMMER! has now officially passed the 500 round mark. It has actually fired 508 rounds mostly in competition since I am not blessed with an over abundance of time and money to train. A fuller report on WARHAMMER!'s performance thus far will follow at a later date; however, I have to say that I am happy with it overall even if it's probably not the best competition gun when measured against combat tupperware and high dollar, bespoke race guns (top shooter last night was running a $6000 custom 2011 in .38 Super). There are things that I would like to change on it: some cosmetic, some not. The short list of mods is a fiber optic front sight, an extended magwell, a cerakote job on the frame for a reverse two tone look, new grip panels and possibly a trigger job.

The one gripe I have isn't directly related to the gun but to the Chip McCormick 10 round Power Mag I bought as my third mag. It will not reliably feed the tenth round when fully loaded. Load it with 9, and it is dependable as the day is long. Put the tenth round in, and let the curses begin. At less than 500 rounds, it should not be having a weak spring problem in my opinion. The Sig factory 8 round mags have been almost flawless with the exception of one incident in which I had a nose down round that didn't feed which I suspect was the result of me not loading the mag properly. I foresee three more factory eight round mags and another mag carrier in my future.

Oh well. Life goes on, and remember: a slow hit is better than a fast miss.

GGGRRRRrrrrr......

Ladies and gentlemen, your humble Shepherd got seriously vexed last evening to the point of my tighty whiteys becoming uncomfortably twisted. I present the following, redacted, email exchange without further comment as a public service to shooting clubs everywhere.

-------- Original Message --------

Subject:	Match Direction
Date:	Thu, 22 Mar 2012 21:58:40 -0500
From:	[Shepherd K]
To:	President@[localidpaclub].com

Mr. [President],

I feel compelled to write to you regarding the match direction at this evening's match at [local gun range] in [nearby city]. Frankly, I was disappointed in the attitude displayed by the match director and more than a little offended.

First, a little background. I am new to [local IDPA club], and relatively new to IDPA competition. Tonight was to be my second match with [local IDPA club] (5th match overall), and I had intended to pay for my membership upon arrival. I arrived promptly at 6:00 (I was driving over from [a location about 40 miles away] and traffic delayed me) and went in to pay my range fee. The range employee asked a gentleman who was apparently with [local IDPA club] whether or not to take my range fee as there were 38 shooters already signed up. The gentleman told her to go ahead and take my money at which time I proceeded to the match area to pay the match fee and my membership. Before I was able to accomplish either of those tasks, the MD (whose name I did not get) came in and said abruptly that I could not shoot as there were too many signed up already. I explained that the other gentleman had indicated I could. The MD reiterated words to the effect that I could not shoot, turned and left.

I have two problems with the way this was handled. First, the [local IDPA club] website makes no mention of limits regarding the number of shooters, etc. I fully understand space and time limitations; however, if this is to be a club policy, it needs to be plainly stated on the website so that people such as myself are forewarned and can plan accordingly. Second, the MD made no effort whatsoever to be courteous, see to it that my range fee was refunded or make some sort of accommodation to insure that I could be given priority at a future match. Additionally, if the MD's decision on limitation of shooters was not based on club policy, he needed to communicate that to the range staff to avoid someone such as myself being hassled.

The majority of the people I have meet in the IDPA community have been extremely helpful, kind and friendly. I hope that I simply caught the MD on a bad night; however, I have to be honest and state that the manner in which tonight was handled has left a bad taste in my mouth. The first gentleman I encountered did assist me in getting a refund and was very apologetic. Unfortunately, it was too late to "unsour" the experience.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me.

[Shepherd K]

Sent from my iPad

-----------------------------------------------

From: [VPPresident@[localidpaclub].com]

Date: March 23, 2012 9:21:43 AM CDT

To: [Shepherd K]

Cc: [all other local IDPA club board of director members]

Subject: Re: Match Direction

[Shepherd K], 

Thank you for writing to [Local IDPA club President] to let us know of an issue you had at one of our matches.  At Local IDPA club we work hard to insure each shooter has the best IDPA experience in the DFW Metroplex. 

With that said, I am disappointed to read that we did not communicate with you clearly regarding our match capacity limits for the [local gun] range.  Furthermore that one of our MD's was not courteous when discussing the matter with you directly.  

As Vice President I am responsible for the management of each of the MDs in the club.  I apologize on behalf of Local IDPA club for any inconvenience you suffered. To rectify your particular situation the following actions will be taken today: 

1. A post will be made on the Local IDPA club forum regarding the [local] range sign in policies and capacity limits.
2. I will speak with the MD ([short guy with an attitude]) so this situation does not happen in the future. 
3. The remainder of the [Local IDPA club] BOD will be notified of this issue.
4. [Local IDPA club] will waive your match fee for the next two matches.  Please let me know when and where you wish to attend a match so I can notify the appropriate MD.

Should you have any questions or wish to discuss this matter further please do not hesitate to email me directly or call me at [XXX-XXX-XXXX].

[VP Local IDPA club]

------------------------------------

 

From: [Shepherd K]

Date: March 23, 2012 12:16:15 PM CDT

To: [VPPresident@[localidpaclub].com]

Cc: [all other local IDPA club board of director members]

Subject: Re: Match Direction

[Local IDPA Club VP], 

I really appreciate your prompt and thoughtful response. I also appreciate your offer to waive my next two match fees; however, that really is not necessary. Further and unfortunately, it will be the latter part of April before I will be able to make it to another [local IDPA club] match because of scheduling conflicts. 

I am more interested in trying to prevent a future recurrence by improving policy or procedure. In that vein, with the high turnout at matches (not just at [local IDPA club]), I would suggest that there be a mechanism to offer shooters who are turned away due to venue capacity issues a reservation or pre-sign in for a later match. I hope you would agree that such a mechanism would be a reasonable courtesy to members who come a long way through traffic but arrive a little too late to make the cut.

Again, I appreciate your response and willingness to address the issue. 

Sincerely,

[Shepherd K]

Step One...

Last night, I finally had a few minutes of nothing better to do. I took the opportunity to lay out the Rock River Arms AR-15 lower parts kit next to the Spike’s Tactical stripped lower receiver and start actually, you know, assembling the two parts of the puzzle into a more or less complete whole. I thought I’d take a few moments to share some lessons learned last night that I hadn’t seen in my surfing the DIY how to world of AR-15 assembly on the internet.

First, unless you are an experienced gunsmith and/or were trained by the military as an armorer, I highly recommend you spend a little time on YouTube watching the videos of how to actually do the assembly. I found the CMMG, Inc. and Brownells videos to be very helpful, if slightly divergent on order of installation. That is not to say that I don’t have a few minor quibbles with how they present the information.

For instance, if you were to just watch the CMMG tutorial video, you might just believe that the front pivot pin, spring and detent can be easily inserted without tools. Word to the wise, do not attempt this step without the proper pivot pin installation tool unless you enjoy hunting around your work space for an almost microscopic, brass detent. I was lucky. My detent slipped and fell onto the piece of bubble wrap that was lying on the tray I was using as a work bench instead of shooting across the room under spring tension.

I also disagree with the order of installation on both videos. Brownells starts with the magazine release while CMMG starts with the bolt catch. The magazine release really isn’t a bad place to start. In fact, you could argue for it being tied for first with safety selector switch, spring, detent and pistol grip. It is preferable to do the magazine release BEFORE the bolt catch; however, it is required to do the safety selector before you install the trigger group as the safety selector switch will NOT go in if the trigger is already in place (ask me how I know…yes, that’s right, someone had to install the trigger twice) as the trigger partially blocks the safety selector mounting hole (which is proper when you think about it as the safety functions by blocking the hammer from moving up and down). The magazine release is simply a matter of ease of installation. The release is a lot easier to screw in if you don’t have to worry about clearing the bolt catch each time you turn the release into the release button.

Let’s talk about tools for a moment. You’ll notice I didn’t mention anything about a vise block. Brownells recommends using a little hunk of wood or plastic that fits into the magwell opening so that the receiver can be mounted into a vise for easier parts manipulation, etc. Personally, I didn’t find parts manipulation to be an issue (with the exception of the aforementioned pivot pin issue which would not have been helped by the vise block anyway), and I’ve got fairly good sized hands. I do recommend that you go ahead and invest in a non-marring hammer (brass or otherwise). I opted for a lighter weight, steel, claw hammer tapping on a punch set. Fortunately, I didn’t have any errant strikes, but the potential for an ugly tool mark was there. Lastly, unless other manufacturers do things differently, you will need a hex head screw driver with a shaft at least four inches long to install the pistol grip. I have a hex head tool…which is not four inches long making things a tad difficult. I will remedy that after a brief detour into a tool store this evening.

Overall, things went smoothly despite my newbie yet easily correctable mistakes. The trigger and safety selector switch work just fine. The trigger, as you will recall, is a single stage, and it’s a tad heavy. I don’t have a trigger pull gauge, but my guess is that the pull weight is somewhere between five and seven pounds. That is way too heavy for a precision rifle, but this is not intended as such. I am building this one up for home defense, range fun, USPSA carbine matches and maybe the occasional Bambi/wild hog encounter while out walking in the woods. Other platforms will handle mosquito swatting duties out past 100 yards. More important to me a smooth, steady pull and a crisp break. I will reserve judgment on this trigger until the build is complete, and we get a chance to see how it performs at the range. In the meantime, that’ll do Donkey.