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If it makes you feel any better about your chance at getting the vaccine sooner than later, a lot of group 1 doesn’t want it. Our fire department conducted an anonymous poll yesterday to determine how many doses they needed to get. Only 6% of our department is willing to take it, and yes it is optional. Similarly my wife (nurse) had to participate in a similar survey today at her hospital and only 14% of those polled so far are willing to get it, and yes it’s optional for her as well. I’m a casual observer in a few first responder forums and FB pages, and this thought process is pretty common across the board. A few people had asked earlier in this thread why we wouldn’t want it, and someone had asserted that we were possibly in the wrong line of work if we weren’t willing to get it. To the former I would say that I deal with some form of physical risk ever single day at my job. We are well versed in identifying and mitigating risk when possible. The virus is a known risk, the vaccine is an unknown risk. One I can take precautions for, and even if I do get it my chances of recovery are extremely high. The other is completely unknown as to the short term and long term effects. Once it’s in your body that’s it, you aren’t sucking it out later. The vaccine requires two shots to be effective, and has to be re-administered every year. Other than being a bit overweight I am not in a high risk group for dying if I get the virus, if I was then I would factor that in and it might or might not tip my risk scale. My 22 years of working for federal, state, and local Govt has taught me to trust them 0%. It’s a keep your friends close and your enemies closer situation. There are plenty of good people that work for the Govt, but at every level where decisions are made their are people driven by greed and fear. For those driven by greed it is both in the financial and fame sense, they will do anything to achieve either or both. Those driven by fear just want to maintain the status quo and retire comfortably, and in most cases they are so afraid to make a wrong decision that they are almost frozen and can’t make any decision, or when they do, it is so risk averse that it is ineffective or misguided. There are also those in it for all the right reasons, but they typically won’t make it very high before being choked out by the other two. All that to say, if the Govt is pushing the vaccine so hard, to include some legislators wanting to tie the next stimulus check to you getting the vaccine, then I absolutely don’t trust anything about it. To the individual that thinks we are in the wrong line of work because we don’t want to take the vaccine, maybe we are, but I guess we’ll have to stick it out until you and your friends that have all the answers are willing to come take our place. For some reason there is a nationwide shortage of EMS personnel, so the sooner you can get your initial year of training knocked out to start at $12 an hour would be great. I hope you don’t have an aversion to smells because there is ALOT of vomit, poop, and piss involved. While I personally don’t trust or want the vaccine, I do 100% support your right to choose to get it if you want to. I respectfully request that you honor my right to choose for myself without disparaging me and my profession. I would’ve thought that in a 2A group we would all know first hand the frustration and danger of other people trying to choose for us what they think is best for us. Stay in your lane

I've invested heavily in AR specific tools over the past year or so and increased my knowledge a good bit. I'm planning some armorer's classes in the future to take my understanding of the systems even further. I guess a lot of my friends know that so they've been asking me for help in assembling kits or replacing parts or diagnosing issues. Something that I've come across a lot of recently are headspace issues and receiver extension issues. I had to send a bolt back that wouldn't close on a 5.56 go gauge in any barrel that I had. The company was great about it and they replaced it without issue. I also had a friend bring a rifle by that had the same problem. It was a home built setup that he bought second hand from a shop. Luckily the shop owner knew who made the bolt and took care of it. Another rifle was a complete upper from a reputable company. The rifle headspaced fine but using one of my tools, I noticed that something was off between the receiver and the barrel extension. Or so I thought. I thought maybe the extension was clocked wrong inside the receiver. Even though it functioned fine, you could see wear on the lugs of the bolt where they were having to push past a bind to lock into place correctly. On further inspection, it appeared that the barrel extension lugs were machined poorly and had little tabs that were causing the binding. The company asked for pictures and then asked for it back. They replaced the barrel and sent everything back quickly and it was fantastic. I ran it through an inspection and everything checked out great. Most of these were pre-panic rifles and each one had some small issue. With the current state of things, check your parts before you get out and run your rifles. I'm worried about QC dropping even with the best names out there. And if you are in the Memphis area and want or need anything checked out, I'm happy to help. I'm not a gunsmith and I will happily admit that I don't know everything but I know a good bit and I enjoy doing this stuff. (Also, since I'm not a gunsmith, I don't charge anything. It's purely a hobby for me at this point.)

I would disagree. If a newbie is not competent enough to handle a striker fired gun, they probably shouldn’t handle anything without supervision or training. All the safety gadgets in the world don’t matter if the user won’t keep his finger off the trigger.

It Snowed Last Night.. 8:00 am: I made a snowman. 8:10 - A feminist passed by and asked me why I didn't make a snow woman. 8:15 - So, I made a snow woman. 8:17 - My feminist neighbor complained about the snow woman's voluptuous chest saying it objectified snow women everywhere. 8:20 - The gay couple living nearby threw a hissy fit and moaned it could have been two snow men instead. 8:22 - The transgender man..women...person asked why I didn't just make one snow person with detachable parts. 8:25 - The vegans at the end of the lane complained about the carrot nose, as veggies are food and not to decorate snow figures with. 8:28 - I was being called a racist because the snow couple is white. 8:30 - I used food coloring to make one of the snow couple a different color and be more racially inclusive. 8:37 - Accused of using black face on the snowman...snowpersons. 8:39 - The middle eastern gent across the road demanded the snow woman be covered up . 8:40 - The police arrived saying someone had been offended. 8:42 - The feminist neighbor complained again that the broomstick of the snow woman needed to be removed because it depicted women in a domestic role. 8:43 - The council equality officer arrived and threatened me with eviction. 8:45 - TV news crew from ABC showed up. I was asked if I know the difference between snowmen and snow-women? I replied "Snowballs" and am now called a sexist. 9:00 - I was on the news as a suspected terrorist, racist, homophobe, and sensibility offender, bent on stirring up trouble during difficult weather. 9:10 - I was asked if I have any accomplices. My children were taken by social services. 9:29 - Far left protesters offended by everything marched down the street demanding for me to be arrested. 9:45 - The boss called and fired me because of the negative association with work that had been all over social media. 10:00 - I cry into my drink because all I wanted to do was build a snowman... Moral: There is no moral to this story. It is what has happened to our world. We need to get back to: LOVE ONE ANOTHER copied and shared

I’ve trained a few shooters and shoot competitively pretty seriously. I’m pro-LEO AND support the cops, but don’t get me started on the lousy gun handling incompetence/shooting skills I’ve seen from police officers. Not all of them, but a significant portion of them make me cringe. I wish they used more ammo and time at the academy and had a more rigorous annual qualification. The LEOs you mentioned ignored the basics—booger hook off the bang switch til you’re ready to shoot. This is more important than any manual safety, heavy trigger, etc.

Correct. And we see a heck of a lot of experienced trained shooters become complacent and do something stupid/careless/reckless.

Striker guns with no safety is NOT the issue. There are plenty of videos of people shooting themselves or having an ND with 1911s and revolvers and whatever else. Also, what you witnessed was an ND, not an AD.

Ego is often a factor. We have LEOs occasionally come shoot USPSA or IDPA and the thinly veiled attitude is sometimes “I’m about to show ya’ll how this is done.” Them they get their asses handed to them and never come back. The LEO/tactical community sometimes writes off competitive shooting as irrelevant because the targets don’t shoot back, etc. But I’ve heard cop after cop comment after sh*tting the bed on their first ever USPSA stage “I’m not used to being on a timer with people watching.” If a little artificial match stress makes a cop’s brain turn to jelly, how will they resct in a real fight?

Do you ever do work as a firearms instructor? I do. I work with complete and total beginners. It is my experience that it is much easier to work with them when you are using Glock style pistols. You are removing as many "complications" from the equation as possible. It simplifies the process for them and helps to put their mind at ease. We don't do any work with fully loaded magazines. The thing is, you have to teach safety from the get go. Its the first thing we cover in a class and the last thing we talk about as we part ways.

I've never said otherwise. Gun handling is not for everyone. But just because some people shouldn't own them, doesn't mean that they don't still have that right.

In fairness I left out one category that deserves some sympathy. Newbies. Lousy time to be starting the path to gun ownership.

I’m a member of the NRA and FPC. No plans to let my NRA membership lapse. Hopefully they are getting their house in order because a strong NRA is needed more now than ever. I joined FPC because they are very active in litigation.

Prayers for an excellent outcome.

Prayers for your surgeons hands and a speedy recovery.

Prayers for you full recovery. you'll be back in no time.

Thanks to everyone for the good wishes, prayers and all of the encouragement and advice on PT. I’ve got to be there at 7am so I’ll be “seeing” y’all in a day or two. This is quite a family we have here on TGO. Merry Christmas guys.

No, there’s nothing wrong with us. Our hineys are fresh and clean. Think about it this way. If you got some poop on your hand, would you wipe it off with a dry paper towel and call it good? I wouldn’t. So I am all about a bidet or wet wipes now. If you’re just using dry toilet paper, you might as well still be using leaves. It’s just plain uncivilized.

I’ve said it before and I'll say it again…. There’s something wrong with you guys.

Thanks much. The guys have preferred buying them instead of loan. Getting $40.00 to $45.00 a brick depending which flavor. Unfortunately I’m out of what I was willing to pass on. It was a pleasure to meet great guys who enjoy this sport.

I know a couple cops who shoot lights-out, but they didn’t learn it at work. No disrespect meant to the LEO community and the ego thing is not just cops. I cringe when I hear a new competitive shooter say “I’ve been shooting X years and I know how to use a pistol.” Sometimes I am wrong. I would rather train a newbie female because they don’t have to put their ego away. Their attitude is usually “I don’t know what to do, so teach me” vs “my granddaddy taught me to shoot and I really don’t need to listen to this” that some guys are thinking.

Virginia Mayo Colorado Territory - 1949 Colt Single Action -Something?

I took this guy this morning about 30 minutes after daylight.

It certainly is great to be in the want instead of need on both guns & ammo.

Its circular. You have first timers and you have speculators. The regular user is crushed by both, but probably more so the speculators. Speculators start drying up sources as demand from first timers rise. I have empathy for first timers, I have much annoyance from speculators. The good part is watching the speculators trying to unload after the tide subsides. Main reason I want the tide to end is so I can start negotiating with speculators on their cache of drawer parts they overpaid for hoping to turn a huge profit. Those are the best most pleasing deals!

I think if Trump is re-elected the left will double down on their craziness. They have been emboldened by what they’ve gotten away with the last 4 years. Now, they’re going to be even angrier. So, I expect the market to remain unchanged for some time. Plan accordingly.

Well, if President Trump is reelected I believe the gun/ammo business will get back to some reasonable level, if biden wins, all bets are off.

I'm not sure what the MSRP is on the Gen 5 G22 MOS but I don't think its $825. There is a lot of this going on and just makes me sick. I saw a pack of primers that normally go for $28-$35 and it was listed at $135 last week on another site. CRAZY ! It was interesting seeing the .40S&W with 2 pins instead of 3 pins.

Death is a natural part of life. We may not like it but will all experience it in time. All the animals and fauna will die eventually. "Death is a subject many do not want to discuss." Some fear death. Death is the point where one's spirit leaves this tent, where it exit here on earth (our body), then our soul spirit enters the Hadean Realm (the realm of departed spirits) and eventually the spirit returns to God who gave it in the first place. The body (tent where the spirit exist on earth) is placed in the ground and returns to dust which God used to form our bodies in the beginning of mankind. One can confirm this in the pages of the Holy Bible, which is Gods word to mankind, and in written form. King James had the Bible translated and put into written form many centuries ago. We can all benefit by reading a good translation. We are blessed to have it in this day in time. Matter of fact, one does not need to fear death. One can prepare for death. That is the key to not fearing death. Guys it is going to come. Death to some people, those who prepared beforehand, will be something looked forward too. The Bible tells one heaven is a wonderful place to spend eternity with God and Christ sitting at His right hand. I don't say this callously because death, is separation and it brings great grief and pain to our families, loved ones, and friends who are left behind here in this realm. Those who are left, in this realm, can take comfort in the fact they they can go to the one who had died and gone into the next realm. You can read what King David said after he lost his son he had with Bathsheba, in (2nd Samuel 12:15-23) in your Bible. It is comforting to know one can go to the departed providing we prepare for it. The key to deal with death is to prepare yourself for it before one reaches the end. I know this is a gun blog and death is not a pleasant subject, but we will all face it sooner or later. Why I put this in General Discussion. I have a friend who is haunted by those he killed in war. I told him they had the same chance to prepare themselves as he did, before they met their death in War. Not a good/pleasant subject to discuss, but a needed one in the days of Coved and after.

Rolling Stones. ie..you can't.....

This is my next setup!

Most assuredly, when referencing the appropriate article and or use of Google fu. https://support.gunbroker.com/hc/en-us/articles/1260800233069-Marketplace-Facilitator-Sales-Tax-Collection GunBroker.com will update this document as new information is available. Check back regularly. Last Update: December 4, 2020 GunBroker.com will implementing the new Marketplace Facilitator Internet Sales Tax regulations on January 1, 2021. As a marketplace, GunBroker.com will be required to collect and remit sales tax on all sales according to the state law. What is a Marketplace Facilitator? A Marketplace Facilitator is defined as an entity that provides a forum for sellers to promote their sale of physical property, digital goods, and services and is compensated for these services. As such, GunBroker.com is deemed to be a Marketplace Facilitator for sellers on the site. What if I am a private seller and not a business? Even as a private seller, you will have to collect and remit sales tax on your items. When the buyer completes the checkout process the appropriate tax will be calculated for the order. This tax will be paid to you as part of the payment you receive. In a manner similar to how you pay your GunBroker.com fees, GunBroker.com will bill and collect the sales tax amount from you. GunBroker.com, because of marketplace facilitator legislation, is required to report and remit the tax to the individual states for the transactions on the site. How will this flow? GunBroker.com will capture and record the sales tax related to each order. You will then remit that sales tax to GunBroker.com in the same manner as your monthly fees. These amounts will be periodically billed and collected via your payment method on file. GunBroker.com will remit the amounts collected to each state as the marketplace facilitator. Will I have to change my listings? No. On January 1, 2021 the GunBroker.com checkout process will begin charging sales tax on all orders. No changes to your listings will need to be made. Any existing tax information on your listings will be overridden by the new process.

When I met my wife she was scared to death of guns. I laid a AK on the table and yelled at it to shoot about 5 times. She said "what the h-- is wrong with you" I sad I'm proving a point. She eventually got it has been an avid shooter for 15 years now.

And I think the legal term for the last few posts is “thread drift” lol

Bingo "simply owning a gun imparts neither knowledge or skill regarding its use. Only study and focused training can provide real capability" Pat Goodale

Much depends on how active the deer is, if you can, place it at the base of the neck hitting the spine, right where the head meets neck. It puts it down quick, but be prepared for a follow up in case you miss the spine. If it's up and about, or very active, then I go for the heart area, just behind the leg, there are many vitals there that will do the job.

Any water below a damn like Norris will fish well all year. The water comes off the bottom of the reservoir so is mostly consistent temp aside from the solar heating in the summer. You won’t get may fly hatches so nymphing is the ticket. I can’t speak to the French broad but any freestone stream that holds trout will be slower in cold water temps (below 50), but fish still gotta eat, they just don’t move far so you gotta out that fly right in their face. So finding spots where trout will hold is very important. Like pocket water, riffles to the side of rocks, anywhere were food is funneled and they can sit and eat without expending much energy

Oh heck, you're an immigrant? Well, then that changes, well ,nothing, enjoy the venison. Good Job!

You have such a way with words!

My favorite was actually the stink star...

I’ve been preaching the gospel of the bidet at those two for quite a while.

My concern would be the TWRA, not regular police.

My grandson took this one while hunting in Texas.

I have only seen one, this little 4 point. I was hoping for a big doe, but he will do. Going back out Saturday, hope to get my doe, but if another buck comes out, well, I may just invite him home too.

Got this 8 point on my buddies farm near Sardis. Jerk tried to parallel my shooting lane so I shot him out the side of the box when he stuck his head out from behind a tree.

MuzzleLoader Season 11/13 Gun Season 11/24

A female worker cleans the rifling of a 381 mm ship’s gun at Coventry’s arsenal. Great Britain, 1910. Now that is a high caliber woman.

The ATF really has no power to legislate, which is what the people keep letting them do. The people enable this sort of thing by not firing the politicians that can actually affect the way the ATF functions. The whole thing is a sickening political Human Centipede. I wouldn't hold my breath on grandfathered anything from the ATF either. They could have made some money on tax stamps by turning "bump stocks" into an NFA item but didn't. They went straight for the kill on that and could likely do the same here. I've been predicting this for the past few years. Friends probably thought I was crazy or that it was far-fetched, but I've been repeatedly telling people that the way the government could really kill the modern sporting rifle is to declare it a non-transferrable NFA item. Within a few decades, few people would be left alive to legally own one. Within a generation or two, it'll be all over.

People are scrambling to pick up AR pistols and pistol braces because they think the ATF is going to do to them what they did to bump stocks. Buying that stuff in a panic makes no sense, because *IF* the ATF screws us all over on this, you're either going to register it as an NFA item and might as well put a real stock on it, or you're going to hide it away and risk being charged with a felony if ever caught using it. The ATF needs to be done away with.

I figure either way it goes, January will see lots of lightly used guns and ammo for sale as Christmas credit card bills come due. I feel bad for Newbies too because I can sympathize. I got back in to shooting and bought a .22lr a couple months before the great .22 drought. Luckily I had been picking up 4 or 5 50 rnd boxes every time I stopped in Wal-Mart. I still felt a bit panicked since that was the only rifle I had and my awareness of preparations I needed to have on hand had began to peak. So I did what I always do, I scrounged. I found places to buy ammo that were off the beaten path and ways to find it in stock before it sold out. Now is a different story. Lots of retailers are not even listing the stock on hand in stores. So unless you can stop by physically before it sells out, you are out of luck. For us working stiffs, that is harder to do. Things must not be so bad though. There were 40 boxes of 5.56 Hornady Black on the Academy shelf the other day. Or maybe it was the $17.99 per 20 round price tag that was keeping it glued to the shelf. lol

In general terms, I do not expect the current retail climate to change much at all for the remainder of the year. The whole thing is rather complicated and multi-faceted. Ammunition: This is equal parts a supply issue, a demand issue and retailers taking advantage of the situation. Primers are in short supply, so there is already a constraint on availability at the component level. This naturally causes prices to increase at a wholesale level. Completed ammunition is increasingly in shorter supply, but I know for an absolute fact that you can still buy 9mm FMJ from the wholesale channel for around 22-cents per round because I recently brokered the sale of approximately 52,000 rounds of 9mm and 5.56 NATO ammunition for a small group of individuals. I could go on an absolute tear about this but I am going to refrain for now. Retailers who are charging exorbitant sums for 9mm FMJ should be taken note of and remembered when this settles. One caliber that I can attest to being much more expensive today than it was in February, at wholesale and retail pricing, is 300 Blackout. The price on that shiz is nuts. If you have it, I'd be sitting on it and not shooting it unless I had to right now. Black Rifle Parts: Whole, mass-produced AR-15 pattern rifles are still easy to come by thanks to the absolute glut of them that were produced over the last 10 years. Pricing on them hasn't changed a whole lot. Boutique rifles and component parts are a different story, and those go hand in hand anyway. I don't see this changing until after the election and maybe even beyond that. Supply needs to catch up to the demand. Manufacturers like Aero Precision, Bravo Company Machine, Rosco Manufacturing, Ballistic Advantage, Midwest Gun Works, etc. are all still releasing product albeit in small batches that get cleaned out almost immediately. You can thank social media for that. As soon as barrels, uppers, lowers, handguards, etc. hit these manufacturer's web stores or the web stores of the retail channel, it gets posted by the likes of MrGunsNGear on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, etc. or it makes the headlines on Reddit and major national forums. People are cleaning-out supply as soon as it hits. And while I guess that's nice if it means that there are more armed citizens exercising their Second Amendment rights than ever ( aka "a rising tide raises all ships") there is a pessimistic side of me that thinks there are a lot of parts that will never be used sitting in personal caches. I hope I am wrong. Handguns: You can still buy pretty much any handgun you want right now, but in some cases you may have to wait a few weeks to find the exact variation you are searching for. Also, this is legitimately the only time that I can remember wherein Glocks were seriously selling for MSRP. Nine or ten months ago, at the very most, you could buy a new Gen 5 Glock 19 for $525. These days you're probably going to pay closer to $600 and you might have to wait while your local retailer orders it for you from Lipseys, RSR, Sports South, etc. I blame this entirely on the number of people who are buying handguns to protect themselves for the first time ever because of the current political and social climate and social turmoil. I hope that those people (a.) get training, (b.) own them responsibly, and (c.) keep them beyond 2021 and become advocates for the 2A now that they understand why it matters. I am obviously glazing over other areas of the gun industry right now, but these are the things most people are noticing the effects of and maybe wondering what the hell is driving it all. The ammunition and shortage of AR parts are the things that annoy me the most, presently, for the reasons I mentioned.