StPatrick

Signed up, will do Williamson and surrounding.

Sounds like somebody's been hitting their hopium stash...

I grew up in Chicago, but my family moved here when I was 14. Now that I know how the law works up there, and as much as I love the city and the people, I'll never go back. I'd much rather do my yearly 3-day weekend, visit the great restaurants and nightlife, go to a Cub game, and fly back here to TN, than outsource my self-defense to anyone else. I feel for the cops up there, along with those in NY and CA. It seems to me that the thin blue line is stretched out farther in those places. On the plus side, at least nobody gets murdered in Chicago anymore. Pesky guns, always causing problems.

If they have Yosemite Sam on them, I'll take two. I'd also like to place an order for the matching mudflaps now, before the price goes up due to enormous demand. "Back Off" has a whole new meaning if you put that sweet badge on it. If enough men had those, we'd have to legalize polygamy.

Thanks for all the kind advice and exclamation points. Based on the wisdom of the crowd, I think I'll just stay out of whatever it is the man wants to do. I can't wrap my head around buying a NIB gun and not shooting it, so that seems the best course of action. Next on my list is a 1911 to shoot regularly, and I'll refer back to this thread when the time comes. I'm not into collecting, so it will be something that will be fun to shoot for as long as I choose to keep it. That being said, I'm already setting aside a little bit of cash for the 100 year anniversary Colt 1911s, because...well, just because. Hell, in 2051, I'll only be 72, and I can show it to my grandkids and say "this could buy you a year of college tuition. Graduate, work, and get your own, younguns. Now fetch granddad a beer." I'm already a crotchety old man in a younger man's body, so I really look forward to when I can be one with some real style. The dark side is strong in me that way, I guess.

And who doesn't love a happy ending? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ibdPylwpnA

The guy's name is Steven Crowder, and he has had some great posts in the past. Here's my favorite: Good 2A stuff in there; these morons are the Brady Bunch base. Ironic that Crowder is Canadian, eh? He also has some great spots on healthcare. Check out his YouTube channel.

Amen. As many e-mails as I / we all get from NRA-ILA, if this was real, they'd have been all over it, and raising hell. Also, they'd be aggressively soliciting donations.

That's as good a place as any to start...be safe and have fun.

My HCP should be here soon...if I get one of these badges, can I get it with "Chuck Norris" instead of my own name? Think about it...I'll see your tats, theme songs, and smoke machines, and raise you "Walker, Texas Ranger". Don't be ashamed if y'all just peed a little.

Slide glide for parts that experience sliding or shear forces, cheap old No. 9 oil in springs / other rotational parts. Slide Glide is very affordable - if you haven't tried it, put it in the rotation next time you run out of your regular grease.

Also, it should be noted that my response was to a post from a member who is 100% commited to thumb safeties and exclamation points.

The Sig is DA/SA, so cocked and locked is a minor (if any) advantage. I can say from experience that the SRT is excellent. On the plus side, if you ever find yourself in a place where the choice you must make is between Sig and HK, you've landed in a pretty awesome location.

If you've read through to this point, you can see why I thought the badge was an inside joke, and not real. IMHO, it may be real, but it's still a joke.

My dad is interested in getting himself a gun. He's looking more for a collector's piece than a shooter. He qualified as a marksman with whatever the duty 1911 was (Army) in 1973 or '74. All his buddies have Kimbers, so that's what he thinks he wants. He liked the way Kimbers fit his hand, but I'd think that full frame 1911s fit pretty much the same. Being the armed guy in the family, he asked what I thought about them. I have no experience with 1911s, so here's what I told him: "If you want something to shoot regularly that will be like what you used to have, get a SA mil-spec, it's an improved version of the duty 1911. If you want a collector's gun, a Kimber doesn't really fit the bill - they're nice, but not that nice. Kimber makes fine 1911s, but there are better out there, such as Baer and Nighthawk. Dan Wessons are nice, but only if you want to buy now, before 2010 pricing kicks in. If you really want a collectible, and are in no hurry, wait till 2011, and see what is available from the major manufacturers for the 100 year anniversary." (paraphrased) Like I said, I don't know the 1911 platform well enough to speak from experience or expertise. Did I do right? If so great. If not, what should I have told him? Your feedback is very appreciated. Thanks, StPatrick

These things are actually real? I always thought they were an inside joke or something.

Question - what is the reason behind the optics on the shotgun? If a bead sight can pick clays out of midair, wouldn't the long barrel with eyes on the bead be enough? I'm curious, not trying to be a ****-stirrer.

Yes, it has adjustable night sights. You know what it could use though? A stainless guide rod (hint).

I went to G&L Saturday to get my fingerprints done, and darned if this P229 Elite Dark didn't follow me home. Sorry for the cellphone pics, but my camera has crapped out. I put 200 FMJ through it today, and it is a for-real shooter - the SRT is phenomenal, and the aluminum grips are very comfortable. The is definitely warranted; step 2 will be feeding it some Golden Saber 124gr. +P to see how they feed.

Jeff - please let me know when you start making guide rods for the 229.

TGO members, I have a Sig P239 that is a nice shooter, in terms of comfort and pointability. However, no matter what distance I shoot at, 100% of the shots are lower than POI. I know that the 239 is not designed to pick wings off of flies, and I won't pretend that I'm some kind of ultra-marksman, so it's not an oh-no-freakout huge issue. Still, this bothers me a bit. I don't have this problem with my XDm; when I shoot it, my misses are distributed evenly around the POI. I haven't found a way to correct this yet, so I'm asking for help: what are potential culprits? Major differences are A) barrel length, grip length, and C) grip style (239 has Hogues). I will also not disqualify the moron standing behind the gun. Even at 5 yards, the 239 shoots low, and to an extent that covering the target with the front dot does not fix it. This issue is present in both DA and SA. Do I just need to replace the front sight, or is there more to it than that? The barrel sits very low in the slide at the muzzle end, and wear on top of the barrel is more pronounced than on the underside. Thanks, Patrick

If anyone is willing to let a stranger fire their P229 with the beavertail and SRT in the greater Nashville area, please PM me. I am seriously considering buying the Elite Dark in 9mm, and want to make sure I cover my bases before the gun fever takes full hold. I've got a 1979 Fender Stratocaster I don't play much that I've actually considered selling to fund the purchase (along with trading in my 239 if necessary; that's how bad I've got it), so I'd hate to rush in.

Anyone in the Nashville area (I live in Franklin, south of town on 65) who would like to shoot a 4.5" XDm in 9mm is welcome to PM me. I've had mine about 7 months, 2000 rounds, 0 FTF / FTE, except for my tiny little sister limp-wristing one round. She also hit 8 1/2" X 11" paper 95 out of 100 rounds the first time she ever fired a hangun (5 yards) with it, so that was not too shabby. As others have said above, it's very comfortable in the hand. What hasn't been mentioned is the pointability. Short of a single stack 1911, I've never picked up a weapon that felt as close to cops-and-robbers style finger pointing. I did add Truglo TFOs, which helped a bit, since the stock 3-dots left something to be desired.

I took my course today (12/13/09) at G&L. Mark tailored his instruction and advice to those not familiar with or interested in firearms. I spent quite a bit of time lurking on TGO before I bought a gun, and then some more learning how to use it before I even considered taking my HCP course. Not everyone does this. Thus, his classroom instruction, and that inexcrable video (a .357 magnum semiauto? Who edited that steaming pile of ?) was tailored to those who needed the info most. I would expect that most reputable instructors do the same. Gun enthusiasts are not who this course is intended for. In my group of 12 students, there were several who didn't own guns, and at least one person who had only fired their weapon the day before for the first time. There were two or three that clearly hadn't spent much time with the guns they did own before today as well. I think the key difference between my experience and the OP is that my instructor had a current knowledge of the law, was able to explain, in real-world terms, what those laws meant, and obviously cared about what he was doing. Most entertaining for me - once the class was in session, he managed to show his concealed P3 and Smith .38 (pocket and ankle, respectively), while explaining their presence with humor. Combined with the repeated references to "how best to keep loaded weapons at home, along with an OCD sized ammo stockpile", I think he did a great job of acclimating the new shooters to the idea that guns, and the people who really enjoy them, are not dangerous - until and unless they are in the hands of the willfully careless, ignorant, or evil. Sure, I got little out of it beyond the certificate, but I have no problem with that. My TGO / trigger time made it more of a formality, but I was in the room with people who really needed that info. p.s. I hate to be a jerk, but after today, noisily chewing gum and texting during the awful video should be an instant failure. Also, unrelated, stating out loud that you want to pick up surplus hand grenades is a bad idea. Not that they wouldn't be awesome or something, if that's what you're into, but wow...mentioning your desire for destructive devices and used, non-registered guns is a great way to end up on a watch list somewhere.