JAB

A guy over on the KelTec site sent his off to be hard chromed and put wood grips on it. From the pics he posted, that thing looks gorgeous - you'd never guess it was once a commie surplus gun. The mags in the pics he posted look chromed, too, but I don't know if he had them done or bought some kind of aftermarket mags. I hope it is kosher to post a link to that thread here. I'm not trying to pull traffic away to another site but words can't convey how much of a difference those changes made: KTOG Forum - CZ-82 Hard Chrome

The first firearm I ever owned was a Savage/Stevens .410 single. It was a Christmas present from my parents when I was in my early teens. The second firearm I owned was a single shot 12 gauge. I can't remember the brand name on that one - it is Brazilian made and the brand name is initials and was a Christmas present from my parents a couple of years after the .410. I still have both. Not too long ago I bought a 20 gauge single as a 'starter' shotgun for my wife. She picked out an old Stevens with a short (youth length, I guess) stock. She liked it because it fit her well and wanted a single because of the simplicity (easy to check the chamber and make sure it isn't loaded, etc.) but has decided that she isn't crazy about shooting it. She probably needs a pump or semiauto so the weight will help absorb the recoil so I guess that by default I now have another single. It is old enough that it doesn't have a serial number. It's fun to shoot but it doesn't like high brass loads (doesn't want to eject them.) I wouldn't mind having a couple of inexpensive singles just to play around with - things like putting one of those Tamer stocks like you have on one, etc. I want to leave my old .410 and 12 gauge alone for sentimental reasons and like the 20 the way it is. The funny thing about singles is that people selling used ones often either have collectible guns and know it or have just a plain, old single but seem to think that the barrel is lined with gold. In Walmart the other day I noticed that the price between a NEF Pardner single 12 gauge and a NEF Pardner 12 gauge pump isn't very much, at all.

The question of 'right' or 'privilege' is not as cut and dried as perhaps it should be. Do I believe that individuals have the right to defend their lives by whatever means and using whatever tools they have at their disposal? Yes. This, to me, is a natural right and not something based in any human law, even the Constitution, Bill of Rights and/or Second Amendment. That is my basic, philosophical answer. That said, trying to simply exercise that right by carrying without a permit, etc. goes against the man-made laws of our society. Should the natural law trump the manmade law? Yes - but that won't stop the bastards from tossing you in jail, etc. for not following society's laws - laws which do not recognize a right to carry but which, instead, provide for a way to be 'allowed' the 'privilege' of carrying. An individual can choose to ignore these laws and carry illegally but that individual should be prepared to pay the legal consequences. Do I believe that this is right? No but that is the way it is so whether it is right or wrong doesn't really enter into it - going to jail or not does. I don't wish to go to jail or face prosecution and so I obtained a permit. Is this a compromise of my basic beliefs? Perhaps. If risking something in the name of those beliefs stood a chance of changing things for the good then I may be more willing to take the risk. As things stand, however, there are not sufficient numbers who both believe as I believe and are willing to take the risk to affect any real change or make any more difference than would spitting into the ocean. To fail to recognize that fact is to fail to see reality. That is the pragmatic answer. Do we cede the argument to the 'other side' when we obtain a permit to carry? In reality, no. That argument was ceded long ago, before any of us were born, when any faction of government first successfully interfered with private citizen's right to carry any personal arms he or she desired (I have seen something about a case from the 1800s where a man was cited for carrying a Bowie knife, attempted to fight the charge in court and lost.) This means the argument in question was lost by 'our side' roughly two hundred years ago. For some time, in a legal sense, people in Tennessee basically had no legal right nor privilege to carry so that when the permit system was developed it must have seemed a boon to many who previously had not been able to legally carry, at all, as it was at least an improvement to having no way to legally carry. I agree with others, too, that the chances of this natural right making a return to also be a legal right are slim and none. We didn't lose that right and we are not, currently, giving up that right. That right was lost more than a century ago. Once lost, such rights are not likely to be returned by, essentially working within the system or even from the stance of violating the laws out of protest. The only way to return such lost rights is to hit the 'reset' button, as it were, and start all over. As, again, there is a lack of the support needed for such a venture to be successful and, in fact, such attempts would likely only result in giving the 'other side' justification for implementing even more onerous laws, the only practical thing to do is accept reality even if that reality chafes our philosophical stance. This is the reason I hate to see 'compromise' on issues where our side has not, yet, lost. The other side will say, "Relax. This law doesn't mean that the government is coming to take your guns away," until such time as the government does just that. While I essentially agree with your stance, as I have mentioned in other threads, I do not understand the logic of that statement. Unfortunately, the side that fought for States' rights lost, correct?

I bought my NAA .22 WMR mini 1 5/8 inch barreled single action revolver for $160 (before tax + TICS so it still came to less than $200) a little over a year ago. I use it for a BUG and, sometimes, as the only thing I have on me when I'm just sitting around the house so I guess that it is technically one of my carry guns. Every rare once in a while, it might be the only thing I have on me when we are just running out to the store, etc. (my town is a very low risk area.) It is hard to imagine a firearm being much more concealable than it is. That said, I don't know that I would choose a small, single-action rimfire revolver to be a primary carry for all or even the majority of situations and locations. I also bought a pretty nice, old H&R 9 shot .22 with a 4 inch barrel at a gun show a few months back for $99. It is a pretty nice plinker/shooter but, again, not my first choice to use for SD against two-legged assailants. Still, it would be better than the proverbial sharp stick. As far as centerfire revolvers that are small enough to conceal and that I would trust for a primary carry, I haven't seen any in my area (and keep in mind that one of the handguns I sometimes use for primary carry is a blued Rossi snub that I got new so I am no brand snob.) I've read here and there about folks finding a Model 10 for around $200 and even seen claims that such guns are 'everywhere'. Well, 'everywhere' must mean all the places I don't go because $300 is about the best deal I have seen and that was one with a lot of holster wear.

Whew! It is good to know that you had previous (and pretty in depth, obviously) experience with working leather. I have made a few holsters that are quite functional and I thought a couple of them were not too terrible to look at but yours are things of beauty. At first, I was under the impression that those first holsters were your first attempts at leather work, period. I was ready to go home and toss my few leather tools in the trash, burn the leather I have waiting for future projects then kick my wife and yell at the dog. (Okay, so maybe that last bit should be vice versa.) Please don't. That finished one with the overlay at the mouth of the holster is simply a thing of beauty. I love leather holsters (and belts, etc.) that incorporate a color or shade contrast into the design scheme. I like that the brown leather of the holster has some variance in tone then you have the contrast of the darker overlay - plus the reinforcement/overlay piece has a really nice shape to it.

I have no experience with the Savage. My first experience with a 10/22 was with the blued with wood stocks model my nephew got for Christmas last month. We took it out to give it a try and using Winchester bulk pack ammo, after taking a few shots to get used to the rifle - and standing out in the somewhat bitter cold - he, my brother in law and I were all picking off empty 20 gauge shotgun hulls from about 20 yards away, right out of the box using the open sights. I have an old Winchester 190 that I picked up used. It is accurate enough and I don't really 'need' another semiauto .22 rifle but that Ruger was such a tack driver that it is making me think that maybe I 'need' a 10/22, after all. I like that the 10/22 and its big brother the Mini 14 have (to me) some pretty classic lines that remind me of an M1 Carbine. I also like that there are extended mags available for the 10/22 and the rifle feels really good in my hands.

Some of those look no worse than the gold plated AK that supposedly belonged to Saddam Hussein. Saddam Hussein's Golden AK-47 Still Holds The Glitter - Weaponsblog

My wife has her HCP but that is largely because I have mine. The other night, I think I finally got her to understand why it pisses me off so much to see that a place is posted and why I try to avoid giving them my business. The way I explained it was more or less as follows (I know you guys know the legalities but this also explains why I take offense to places being posted) : Carrying illegally is no more or less illegal whether a sign is posted or not. There are no additional penalties for a person who is carrying illegally for carrying into a legally posted place. A person who is arrested for carrying illegally will suffer the same penalties, regardless, so a sign has no bearing on carrying illegally and a person who is carrying illegally isn't going to disarm because of a stupid sign that doesn't affect them, anyway. A person with a valid HCP, however, who is carrying legally can be charged with a misdemeanor and end up paying a $500 fine just because of that stupid sign. Therefore, the sign is directed solely at people who are legally carrying. By posting that sign, they are telling me that they don't trust me and don't want my business. So, fine, f*** 'em. I'll try to abide by their wishes and not give them my business.

Such clarification would be nice but I would rather the law allow some latitude in posting the sign but give those signs no weight of law.

Someone posted on another forum this morning that the 28 gauge Judge may be back 'on': http://www.gunsamerica.com/blog/the-taurus-raging-judge-28-gauge-revolver/ The article is not 'new' but notice the editor's note at the top of the article is. The editor's note is as follows:

The thing that caught my eye on the Gunblast SHOT report was the Taurus .22 Tracker that has a quick release crane making it convertible from .22 LR to .22 WMR. Looks to have a 9 shot cylinder. I think a DA convertible .22 would be a neat thing to have. I know that they have been made, before, but don't think I have ever seen one for sale and I imagine they would not be cheap if I did.

I like actually having something approaching a real East Tennessee winter, for a change. We used to get snow more often when I was a kid in the 1970s than we have gotten for the last, several years and I have enjoyed things being more along the lines of what I think of as a 'normal' Winter. I have to admit, however, that I have been feeling like I am about to have withdrawal symptoms due to not being able to shoot outside very much. My nephew and I broke out the .22s at my sister's house last Saturday, though, and that has taken care of my needed 'fix' for the time being.

I have one with a 4 inch barrel and rubber grips that I picked up used last year. When I bought it, I thought it was maybe a year or two old but then became curious when reading about them online (unless I read wrong, the newer models are seven shot revolvers while mine is a six shot.) After checking the serial number lookup on Taurus' site, turns out mine was built in 1986. I wanted a revolver with at least a four inch barrel so I could legally use it for hunting backup. .357 may well be my favorite caliber and I already had a snubbie so chambered. However, I was originally looking for a .44 Mag, too, because I also wanted to carry it when trout fishing in case of a (admittedly highly unlikely) bad encounter with a bear. After considering the price of .44 Mag ammo, the actual likelihood of ever needing to defend against a bear and the likelihood that a heavy .357 load would deal with one of the small black bears in this area (that is, if I actually got a shot off and got a good hit - without which a .44 wouldn't do any better), I opted for the Taurus 66, instead. Mine shoots pretty nice with .38 Special, .38 +P and .357 loads. It is heavy enough that the weight plus the rubber grips absorb a lot of the recoil of even 158 grain .357 loads. With .357 ammo it is loud, of course, but not hard on my hands (then, again, I can run a full box of 125 grain .357 loads through my Rossi snub with my hands being none the worse for wear.) I also bought a box of Buffalo Bore ammo loaded with 180 grain lead hardcast bullets to carry for the just-in-case bear scenario. The recoil of the 66 is noticeably harder with those but still not unmanageable or unbearable. I don't know what a steady diet of those 180 grain loads would do to the 66 (although they are supposed to be a 'standard pressure' .357 load) but I probably won't put more than a box (20 rounds) or two through it the whole time I have it and it should handle that just fine. I don't worry about wearing it out with 125 to 158 grain loads. I am no expert on trigger pull but I think that the 66 may well have the best DA trigger pull of any handgun I own - better than any of my DA pistols or revolvers. The pull of the Taurus is somewhat long but really smooth. Of course, I bought it used so a previous owner may have had a trigger job done for all I know. Problems I have had: 1. When I first got it, ejecting the spent brass was difficult, especially when firing .357 loads (.38 was difficult but not as bad.) Ejecting was hard enough that I reconsidered trusting it for any defensive use. Eventually, I noticed that when I turned the revolver with the muzzle pointing straight up, five of the spent casings would pretty much fall out on their own so I knew it was one chamber. I couldn't figure out what was wrong, at first, but noticed that the brass coming from that chamber would always have a hairline scratch down the length of the case. I finally found a tiny burr - smaller than a grain of sand - at the mouth of that chamber. I buffed that off with some fine grit sandpaper in just a few seconds and now ejection is smooth and fast. I suspect that problem is the reason a revolver that was nearly 25 years old looked almost unfired - the previous owner(s) hadn't taken the time to figure out the problem. 2. The ejection rod periodically works loose and can make opening and closing the cylinder a little 'sticky'. Screwing the rod down tight fixes the problem and one of these days I will put a little loctite on it. In all, I like, trust and shoot mine well enough that, loaded with .38 +P ammo (because I don't want the flash and blast of full-on .357 in an enclosed space if I have to use it), I am currently getting it out at night to use as my bedside gun. The only 'hesitation' I would have in recommending one is that Taurus' quality has apparently gone up and down over the years. My 66 seems to have been built more or less during an 'up' period.

Very nice! Did it come to you in sniper trim or had it been 'rearsenaled' to look like the regular models and you returned it to sniper format? I ask because my 91/30 looks to be an ex-sniper. The top of the receiver is smooth but if you look inside it you can see where the screws that were used to fill the scope mount screw holes were cut off and mine has a straight handle on the bolt. I'd like to eventually put it back into 'sniper' mode but from what I have heard it could cost about 2 1/2 times what I paid for the rifle to do so.

I have just about decided that a basic model .22LR Henry lever gun will be one of my next firearm purchases if not the very next one. I have my dad's old Glenfield 30-30 lever and have always loved shooting it, maybe more than any other rifle of any other action type I own, but don't 'love' the price of 30-30 ammo for just shooting paper. A .22LR lever action would be a lot cheaper to shoot and I am betting it would be just about as much fun.

Mine would be a little more 'personal'. I'd take my dad's .357 revolver and go back to the 1980s. I wouldn't even need ammo for the .357 - it would just be to show him as proof that I really was from the future (as the revolver would also be residing in his sock drawer at the same time.) Then I would warn him of the cancer that he would not otherwise know about until the early '90s and tell him that he should get checked regularly for stomach cancer - specifically a type that tends to 'hide' among the folds of the stomach until it has reached a more advanced stage - and begin treatment as soon as the cancer was discovered. Then I'd return to the present and get him to go shooting with me rather than wishing he were still alive to do so.

I am of two minds with regard to that statement. On the one hand, I think you have a very valid point, depending on the crime and the person's history, etc. It does get old hearing of some scumbag killing someone while out on probation for armed robbery or attempted murder. On the other hand, too often jail/prison seems to be little more a training ground for thugs. For some of them, it's like going to school to learn to be a better thug and sending them there is about like throwing Brer Rabbit in the brier patch.

Looks like a couple of dead varmints, to me. Have you tried different brands/types of ammo to see what your rifle likes best? I have found that the brand of ammo used can make a big difference in my accuracy with pretty much every .22 I own - especially when comparing the 'bulk pack' varieties. I have even had pretty noticeable accuracy differences with various ammo types/brands out of my little NAA mini in .22 Magnum. I think the ammo brand makes a lot more difference in how accurately I shoot a rimfire than with my centerfire rifles and handguns (of course, if I were a better shot then ammo brand might make a bigger difference in centerfire, too.)

I can't speak for this one but the big bore, precharged pneumatic air rifles I have seen on American Airgunner do seem like they would be louder than a .22 using subsonic ammo and certainly louder than CeeBees. It is still pretty impressive to see someone take a wild hog or a whitetail deer with an air rifle (iirc, in at least one case, a whitetail deer was DRT with one shot - didn't even run.) Unless I am mistaken - and I often am - I believe I saw a couple of air rifles featured on American Airgunner that did use the same type of tanks as a paintball gun. I am sure that they have shown some airguns that can be turned up for more power or turned down to get more shots from the same amount of propellant. I believe that they have even shown a few that are capable of using more than one type of propellant source.

My HD shotgun is a Mossberg Maverick Security 88. As someone mentioned, earlier, these are Mossberg's 'value line' and my understanding is that they are pretty much identical to the Mossberg 500 except for the way the pump/forearm attaches and the location of the safety. It seems that it is difficult or impossible to change out the forearm as is but apparently you can swap out the assembly for that from a 500 and change it easily. I've no desire to change the forearm/pump for a different style so that doesn't matter, to me. The real difference between the Mossberg and Maverick lines is that the Mavericks are assembled in the USA but have some parts that are made in Mexico whereas the Mossbergs are, apparently, made entirely in the USA. There are two Security 88 models available - one with an 18 inch barrel (not sure what the mag capacity is on that one) and one with comes with a 20 inch barrel and a seven round mag tube. The 20 inch barrel version is the one I have. If I were going to be firing hundreds of rounds a year out of a defensive shotgun or if it were going to see really hard use I am not sure the Maverick would be my first choice. For a shotgun that will only see 100 rounds or so a year, just to stay in practice, and that will spend most of its time tucked away with the hopes that it doesn't have to be used (but ready if it does), the Maverick is a fine shotgun that I don't expect to wear out until long after I am gone.

Consider that there are reduced recoil defense loads (buckshot) in 12 gauge but not in 20 gauge. The only thing I have ever seen in 20 that claims to be reduced recoil are Remington Buckhammer slugs. Apparently, reducing the recoil of 20 gauge buckshot would reduce the effectiveness too much. I don't know - that is just the explanation I have read. I have also been told by people who's opinion I trust that a reduced recoil 12 gauge buckshot load doesn't have any more felt recoil than a 20 gauge - maybe even less. Consider also that, while 20 gauge shells are plenty available, 12 gauge seems to be available even more readily and in a greater variety of loads, making 12 gauge possibly a little 'more versatile' than 20. I have nothing against a 20 but maybe you should try some reduced recoil buckshot out of that Remington and then decide if you really want to trade for a shotgun in a different chambering or if you might just want to trade for a different 12 gauge in a more versatile platform. I am not that familiar with the 870 but I also wonder if you might not simply be able to pick up a longer barrel to switch out onto it for hunting, etc. and simply make the shotgun you have a little more versatile.

That is something I am going to have to try.

Hey, there has to be some reason that bullseye competitors shoot one-handed, right? Honestly, with some of my handguns, I have found that I sometimes have better hits on a paper target when using the old bullseye stance of standing completely sideways to the target, putting my weak hand behind my back and firing one-handed at the target. I imagine this allows me to get my shoulder, arm and hand more in line and aligned with the target while reducing the effects of possibly twisting my torso more one way or the other between shots. I suspect it allows me to not only use the sights on the handgun, itself, but in some ways allows me to actually sight down my shooting arm. Of course, that stance doesn't always work better and when it does it tends to be with handguns that have little recoil. I don't practice that stance all that much because I'd hate to try to maintain stability and retain my firearm with such a stance/grip in a bad social situation. Still, though, it is fun to shoot that way on occasion.

I can shoot some in the wooded area at home. Mostly, I try to stick to .22 rifles and handguns there so as not to make too much noise but I do sometimes shoot 9mm, .38, etc. For centerfire shooting, though, I usually go to my mom's or my sister's (they live next to each other) as they live more 'out in the country' than I do. I like doing that because it means shooting with my nephew and/or my brother in law. I can sometimes get my mom to shoot with us, too. Mostly I stick to handguns, shotguns or my Hi-Point 995 carbine there but sometimes break out the rimfire rifles or even centerfire rifles. In the case of centerfire rifles, that is usually more just for the fun of hearing the 'boom' and feeling the recoil. It is safe to shoot them there but difficult to put targets at any real distances while still having a clear shot on them. When the weather is nicer, I am there nearly every weekend shooting and usually run at least a few through one of my carry guns. For a more formal, indoor range I go to Farnsworth's. The price to shoot there is $5 per half an hour. It probably isn't the nicest setup around (it is pretty cold in there in the winter) but I like it and it works well for me. Of course, Farnsworth's is my favorite LGS so I like going there, anyway. If I want to really shoot rifles, I go to the above mentioned Spring Creek range. It is a nice drive and, as it is right there at the Hiwassee river, I have been known to take along my fishing pole, too. I agree that it would be cool if they had ranges out to 200 or 300 yards. Still, when hunting, etc. I am realistically not likely to have a shot at much more than 100 to 150 yards, anyway so the 100 yard range works for me. Here are a couple of pics of Spring Creek that I took back in January of '09. The target holders can change from one visit to the next, especially since I only get down there once or twice a year. For example, when these pics were taken the 100 yard target holders were the plywood stands you see in the pic but the last time I was there the plywood was gone and they were using the same orange, plastic webbing that they use at the shorter distances: 25 yard range: 100 yard range:

I shot this target at 100 yards with my HRR using 40 grain .22 WMR Winchester Super X HP ammo. It was at the Spring Creek range and there was pretty much zero wind that day. All shots were offhand as that is pretty much the only way I shoot a handgun or a rifle - I stink at shooting from a rest, just never practiced it and am no good at it. I was using a two-handed grip and more or less a Weaver stance. I am not all that great a shot and, as you can see by the color-coded circles around the 'hits', it took some 'dialing in' to get some decent shots but I was able to dial in. I set out doing this pretty much as a joke but when I actually got a couple of holes in the paper I thought, "Maybe it is really possible." Again, this shows more what the little cheapo revolver is capable of than what I am capable of. A better shot could likely get an actual group with the thing - I'm not sure I could even repeat hitting the target, again. As for those who think that a .22 WMR from a handgun is a waste, at the time the stands for hanging targets on the 100 yard range at Spring Creek were plywood. From the Heritage'w 6.5 inch barrel, those Super X rounds easily penetrated the backstop and kicked up nice, little dust clouds from the berm a few feet behind the backstops. The clean holes in the paper also indicate that there was no tumbling or keyholing at 100 yards. Rough Riders may be cheap but, at least in the case of this one, they aren't junk.