Moped

The one I got now. It's a Loaded Springer in SS. Got too many other wants to spend a lot on a 1911A1 that's not going to be much better than what I already got.

It's my understanding that they can't get the old M14 platform into Afghanistan fast enough. All the old M14's that were turned into Redstone from the different Rifle Teams and RTUs back during the Clinton Administration, are being retrofitted as fast as possible and sent over. The M4/5.56 has proven not to have sufficient knockdown power at longer ranges is what I've read and heard. Unfortunately many of the M14s were cut up after being turned, so the pool is small. As for .45 being a maintenance pig, I never carried or operated a M2, M60, M16, M1911a1 or M9 that didn't religiously get cleaned while in the field. So it didn't really make a difference. I've seen all of the above breakdown and not function when dirty and/or not properly lubricated. A troop that doesn't religiously keep his weapons clean at all times in combat, needs his and his immediate NCO's butt kicked. My personal experience was Desert Storm, should someone feel the need to question my credentials. As for whether or not the M1911 platform is the best or not, I leave that to the capable hands of the men and women that are selecting the pistol. They are aware of what's at stake and will make the right selection.

That's an excellent idea about the river stones and gravel! I also like glass marbles. I've also used lead round ball pistol ammo. .31 cal and .36 cal seems to work best. The .44 lead round balls are just a bit to heavy, but I've seen pics of people taking rabbits with them. Another fun thing to practice on is one of those metal spinning targets you get for .22lr firearms and pistols. Ole Rufus Hussey was an incredible shot with a slingshot! Now an alternative to the Flipper style slingshot is the old leather sling (Think David and Goliath). That seems much harder to master to me, but people that do master them like to use larger stones and even golf balls. Of course, a simple leather sling weights next to nothing. I've heard of them even being made out of 550 paracord. One thing about using a slingshot in a BOB, is that if you work for somewhere that doesn't allow you to keep a firearm in your car out in their parking lot (like my place of work), the slingshot probably won't be a problem. My purpose in bringing all this up is to get people to think outside the box a bit.

I actually posted part of this on the Blow-Gun Thread, but then I got to thinking that the Slingshot probably needed it's own thread. I've been reading at other forums how handy a slingshot is to have for hiking, bushcraft and to store in your BOB. I finally was sold several months ago that this could be a handy item, so I bought one at Wallyworld for about $7 along with some ammo to practice with. It takes a bit of practice to get good with it and I still have a ways to go, but I can hit a coke can at 15' regularly now and steel shot will go right threw it. I think it would be very effective on frogs, birds, rats and rabbits or any other animal that size. I've also learned that you can modify a slingshot to effectively shoot an arrow with which you can take bigger game. Here is a cool little video of a guy hunting a pig in Hawaii with one. And here is Dave Canterbury (of Duel Survivor Fame) and another guy explaining out to make one. And last a modification for setting up the sling bow for fishing. If you decide that the Slingshot is something your interested in, then I really like this guy's work. Welcome To A+ Slingshots

Deleted my post to start another thread.

What happens to those apps when the phone battery goes dead and you have no way to charge it?

I tend to agree with OS, that most would starve to death trying to survive out in the Wilderness as we know it here in Tennessee. Better to go storing it like DS and Ghooge said. Rice and beans, while it would get old, would definitely keep you alive through a winter. But then what? Not only should you store up a reserve of food, but also heirloom seeds for a garden. Which also means you need something to help you till the ground. And you better have some sort of knowledge about how to long term store what you grow (canning or drying comes to mind). Preparedness and survival is so much more than hitting the woods and going deer hunting long term like a mountain man. In my mind the best thing to do is group up with people you can trust and try to get by together while sharing knowledge, experience and resources.

CS gets about half their sword models from India and the rest come from China. Seems the better ones come from India. But in the sword realm they are considered mostly sharpened crowbars. They tend to run from about $150 up to a little over $300. There are a couple I wouldn't mind having though. The 1796 Light Calvary sword was considered a monster on the field of battle, able to part limb from body with a single stroke. The CS version, while not historically accurate, is quite capable of doing just that. Their 1860 U.S. Heavy Sabre (Known as the Wrist Breaker) is also considered to be pretty good as well. Their Gross Messer is also quite the chopper, but the quality control on that one left it with a bad reputation. That was several years ago. I wonder if it's gotten any better? That was one I wanted back then!

Totally ridiculous. But I expect nothing else from them. Got to justify their selves somehow. If they do declare them DDs, then do all present owners have to register them or will they be grandfathered in somehow?

I stand corrected. All the ones you mentioned are made here. I tend to think of them as fixed blade makers, for the most part or of tacticool folders. I have an Old Hickory. Great modding knives! And I think Ka-Bar makes an awesome Combat knife! To be honest with you, I hate Buck folders. Had three of them and broke the tips off all three. They were garbage. I have a Buck Nighthawk (one of the original ones) and it seems like a good knife, but I never carry it. The CS Scottish Dirk, the U.S. 1917 Cutlass, the 1860 U.S. Heavy Sabre, the 1830 Napoleon Sabre and the 1796 Light Calvary Sabre are made in India. The rest of their swords are made in China.

I think China pretty much makes all of Gerber's stuff. SOG comes from Taiwan and CS comes from China and India, mostly China though. Schrade and Taylor are also Chinese products. Kershaw still makes some of their knives here, but most of the affordable stuff comes from China and Japan. The only large true American maker now is Bear and Son. Of course there are some smaller specialty makers, but that's about it. Honestly, I've about stopped looking at tactical folders anymore. I'm moving back to old slip joints for pocket carry.

Can't help after those statements, but wonder where we'd be if Herod had been successful, when he sent his men to Bethlehem to kill all the boys two years old or younger. I'm not sure Mohamed is the problem. I'd rather go after the people that started Wahhabism and the House of Saud back in the 1800's. They are the ones that really started all this crap. For that I want a Abrams M1A1.

My bedside gun is a blue Colt Agent snub nose. Most of the other ones, I've seen are parkarized. I love it! Awesome trigger on it and very accurate. I've always found Colt revolvers to be superior to S&W, but Colt priced themselves out of the market and now they are all but gone. Much the same way S&W is doing now in the revolver market, IMO.

Mark, I'll get back to you on the Norse Hawk. I'm going to play with it for a bit. I thought you might sell those pretty easy! In Bushcraft circles, the Trail Hawks are pretty popular. A lot of people are looking for a good way to carry them on the packs and such, while big safe. I suspect BCUSA has been responsible for a modest increase of CS Trailhawk sales of late. I'm really surprised the CS hasn't come up with their own sheath by now. Have you considered making a baldric or maybe a possibles bag with a hawk hanger on it?

Wow! My experience with a .45acp snubbie was with a 625 3" barrel. Too heavy for cancelled carry. Now I see that they offer it in Scandium. Now your getting toward a good weight to carry. The 625, at 42oz, would drag your pants off with the wrong belt holster combo. The Scandium at 28.5oz is a lot better!. The price tag kills it though. MSRP is over a $1000. Not worth it in my opinion. Not big on lasers and such either. Not worth a hoot if you battery goes down. Why not follow the KISS principle here?

No, that sounds good! So basically the whole head is covered with a strap under the blade at the bottom. I'll try to get you an outline before you return in April.

Had a 625 with a 3" barrel. It wasn't built on an alloy frame. Heavy as all get out! I'd rather see something in the 20 to 30oz size please.

As it should be.

Voted and we are still ahead 58/42.

Actually, I may have you work up something for my CS Norse Hawk.

Stupid design in my opinion. I'd rather see them shorten the cylinder and frame up and make it a .45acp/.45 LC than this monstrosity. That'd at least be a decent carry piece then. What would then be better is put a 4" barrel on it and then it'd be a really decent kit gun.

The Model 19 (Blue) and the Model 66 (SS) are the same pistol with different finishes with adjustable sights. They were an older model that was built on the K-Frame. The K-Frame is the same frame as the what the Model 10 (.38spl and what most LEO were armed with up until the 80's) is built on. The Model 681 (fixed sight) and the Model 686 (adjustable sight) are built on the newer L-Frame. Both are stainless steel. If you see a 581 (fixed sight) or a 586 (adjustable sight) then it's an L-Frame pistol but in blue.

I wish Ruger would wise up and put a 4" barrel on the SP101. I think that would be an awesome trail gun then! But then we're talking about Ruger. Not the sharpest tools in the shed.

Those are good prices! You should consider going into the custom leather sheath business as a side venture. That's really quality work!

When you think about it, this is a hard question. Your asking what is the best all around .357, so I take that to mean that it needs to be at home in the field, as well as be somewhat concealable. For the field, I think you need a 4" barrel to legally hunt in Tennessee. So that leaves out the SP101 (Excellent revolver, BTW) since 3" is the longest barrel you can get. That also precludes all the J-Frame S&Ws as well. But just about all the 4" barreled revolvers all weigh over 35 oz, which I think is on the heavy end for concealed carry. Currently, Taurus is the only one that makes a light weight .357 mag revolver and that's the 627. It weights in at 28.8 Oz. with a 4" barrel and (here's the huge plus) it's a 7 shot. The S&W Model 19 and 686 both weight in around 35oz give or take a few oz. and the Ruger GP100 weights in at a meaty 40oz. Now I know anything about the Taurus 627. I don't know if it's a quality revolver or not, but I'd take a look at this one first. If weight isn't a factory, then I'd probably opt for a S&W 686 or the Ruger GP100 for a new revolver first. If I were looking for a used one, don't discount the Colts! The Trooper, Peacekeeper series were great revolvers and can still be had for a reasonable price. Colt has always produced the smoothest and best triggers out of the box, in my opinion.