graycrait

I'll add my tired refrain:  buy a  .22LR pistol also and shoot it thousands of times.  Most folk can't afford to shoot centerfire to get enough practice to be able to use their handgun like a comfortable tool, safely and effectively.

I have several Sigophile friends who tried to "turn" me to their way of thinking.  One is a Sig Armorer.  They had me for awhile when I had the X5 Tactical.  I've only owned 3 Sigs but had several on lone for a couple months from one of these "friends" all SAOs except for the pair of 239s, one with SRT and the other without, I liked the non-SRT better in that pistol.  X5 is a great service sized pistol and easy to shoot accurately.  Even with a custom holster that prevented the safety from pushing off I don't like carrying SAO Sigs cocked and locked.  The others I had on loan were SAO 220s, very accurate and easy to shoot well, but like the X5, too big for me to carry.  As for carrying the 239s I didn't like they way they shot, recoil impulse or muzzle flip.  I didn't like the way they came to hand. I like my Galloway/RTK enhanced LC9 much better than the 239s.  Most who know me know I will try anything and have them all or at least free shooting access to a lot.  I still carry a Keltec .32, G19 or the LC9 (enhanced).    Your mileage and tastes may vary.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/338751/feinsteins-second-assault-weapons-ban-charles-c-w-cooke

This whole thread makes me grin.  I while ago I took two of the vet techs who work at the clinic I take my pets to the range.  They are pretty gals.  You would have thunk that they had yelled out, "Hey guys I need help!", for all the unsolicited assistance they received.  They finally had to tell a couple of the "trolls" that they were married (and were) and came with me to shoot.  I enjoyed myself.  My wife enjoys shooting also, but she seems to find other priorities on a typical shooting day.  Lately she has been getting the bug to shoot again.  I should take a video. 

The repair is not difficult to do yourself.  If you want to learn how to do it get a copy of Jerry Miculek's "Trigger Job" dvd. Does the gun still cycle?  If it does then the hand might be OK.  This is not a hard repair if the stop is all that is wrong.  Maybe the spring is gone that puts tension on the stop.  If you have even a  mediocre set of hollow ground screw drivers take the screw out of the front of the trigger guard.  That should come out with a spring if memory serves.  Then while you are at it take out the other 4 sideplate screws. Take off the grips.  Swing the cylinder out and pull it out f the frame.  Then take a wooden hammer or screwdriver handle, plastic is OK and with the frame in your left hand with sideplate up, tap tap tap tap with the handle on the bare steel grip until the side plate walks off.  Do not pry that thing ever.  On the bottom of the front of the grip there is a screw, take that out.  Remove the leaf spring where it connects to the hammer.  Remove the hammer block if it didn't fall out already. Pull the trigger and wiggle the hammer out.  Take a small screw driver and at the bottom of the frame you will see a rectangle sort of thing that holds a coil spring up against a vertical pin.  But your left thumb over the hole to capture the spring and pry the rear of that "rebound block" up and off the pin.  Now wiggle the trigger out off its pin. This allows you access to your cylinder stop, take it out.  The part cost is15.95 from Numrich Arms.   http://www.gunpartscorp.com/Manufacturers/SmithWesson-33495/Revolvers-42026/MilitaryPolice-38388.htm  The old M&P has a plunger with spring that puts pressure on the stop, which I haven't done that many of but memory tells me this is not all that complex.   When you do this operation do it on a towel without small children and cats running over your work area.  I've done this on a dinner plate in a store with folks watching, which ain't that much fun, but it is doable.   The issue is will the stop be the only thing wrong, probably and it might even be just the stop spring on the plunger on that front of the trigger guard screw. Lots of folks have had their revolvers screwed up by someone who took out the wrong screws or put the screws in the wrong spots.  Each of the 6 screws you take out need to go back in their original holes unless someone already messed this up which is possible but still not beyond the kitchen table armorer's capabilities of getting them back in the correct spots. 

I've installed 3 of these safeties, two in my own Glocks and one in a friend's.  Why did I do it? Because it was interesting Glock aftermarket.  I no longer have them installed and used industrial Devcon 290 black to fill the void where you have to cut the frame to install the safety.  I gave the jig and spare safety to a bona fide gunsmith friend of mine in case he has need of it.   I think they unneccesarily add a degree of fiddliness to a Glock.  I think the 1st-3rd Gen Glocks are fabulously simple.  The Cominolli safety works as advertised. 

I fixed the reticle using a single strand of dental floss and super glue. The old scope works fine and needs a little more TLC but lenses are clear. I'll have to reposition the rings but this gives you some idea what a 29" barrelled toggle action 1022 looks like with an old Redfield 3200 12X target scope.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=65Q-2E6Tz7M   Also some folks like a strand of Kevlar from fishing line.  I think I am going to use dental floss as my reiticle holder has the grooves just like in the video.  If it doesn't work it is an easy refix with some other material.

Redfield 3200 12x crosshair and holder

mikegideon,   Thanks on the nitrogen offer.     Already confirmed the ordering place for 10' of .0005" tungsten wire with some gent up in NY.   Craig

Thanks for the tips and may have found a $15.00 source for .0005" tungsten.  Also I am going to buy a 100 page book on this subject.  Can't be that hard.  Also was wondering about purging with nitrogen also.  Hope to find that out too.  I could send the scope out and wait a year to get it back at significant cost or learn to do it myself.  Option 2 sounds cheaper when considering my time is pretty cheap.  

I've got an old Redfield 3200 12x that a fella gave me and it has broken crosshairs.  Does anyone know of a source for .001" wire in relatively small amounts.  I'm too cheap to send this off to someone else when it looks like I can do the repair myself.    

Yes, that is a .22LR. Urban Rifle Supply markets that 29" sporter taper.  Green Mountain makes and sells a 28" sporter taper.  Both are for 10/22.   The long sporter taper makes a nice off hand .22.

Description: PWS T3 Summit toggle receiver, Urban Rifle Supply 29" barrel, OEM trigger housing with Kidd trigger kit, Tasco 6-24x40 AO. OEM Ruger Black Laminate Mannlicher stock had to be hogged out a bit and the muzzle protector on the end reshaped to accomodate the slightly different profile of the URS barrel over the much shorter OEM barrel which normally ends at the muzzle clamp.

Interesting flash hider.

Interesting.  I bet if you take your time you can find out a lot about that drilling.  Like others I think condition and finding the right collector is the issue.  Lots of interesting stuff on drilling, especially out west where you can hunt bear and turkey during the same time frame.    http://www.gunsinternational.com/Drilling-Combination-Guns.cfm?cat_id=290   http://www.champlinarms.com/Default.aspx?tabid=30&ctl=GunsDetails&mid=409&StyleID=4&GunID=1656   http://www.rockislandauction.com/viewitem/aid/53/lid/1643

OK, well I can't find any 10 rdrs and am keeping my fingers crossed that I can use my current 15 rdrs regardless of what might happen.  Probably 'nuff said on this subject.

I was looking at my 20 or so G19 mags and thought, maybe I should pick up a couple of 10 rdrs just in case, but oh no... they are all gone on every site I looked for them.  Did guys like me buy what few were left on the market or did fellow gun folk who live by "free market capitalism" get them all?

In Ruger MKIII, II and I pistols, as well as Ruger 10/22s, it is OK to dry fire on an empty chamber (please check first). The bolts and firing pins are designed so that that the firing pin will not hit the edge of the barrel chamber as usually happens with other rimfires as long as the firing pin stop is installed as it normally is. 

In order, my recommendations.   1) Best bang for your buck is a Ruger MKIII 22/45 which can be had any normal place for about 320.00 OTD for a 5.5 or 4" bull barrel model. I would buy a used MKI or MKII also, hard to shoot these guns apart. Next step of from a Ruger  series is a S&W 41 at 3 or 4 times the price of a Ruger. Next would IMHO be a Benelli MP95.   2) Buckmarks are generally more expensive for the base models vs Ruger, are harder to find generally, and have less aftermarket available but are very good guns.   3) S&W 22.  They work and shoot well with little aftermarket, but they have a big grip if this is a gun a woman may also be shooting.   4) Ruger SR22, small fun plinker with no real aftermarket, sized about like the  below Walther but no zinc alloy.   5) Walther P22, nice fun plinker, but I never liked the zinc alloy parts and the safety is kind of cheap in my opionion.   6) Used  S&W 622, 422 or 2206.  The 2206 is all steel the other two have two different colored aluminum frames.  EWK Arms makes aftermarket for these.  The OEM firing pins are this gun's achilles heel if there is one.  Great suppressor host. Complete disassembly is a chore.   7)  Used Sig Trailside.  This is sort of a specialty gun that takes some care, but is ergonomically pleasant and accurate.   8) Fun  is a Beretta Bobcat in .22LR.  The only reason I own it is because they don't make a Keltec P32 in .22LR   9) Taurus PLY22, the poly framed one, not the metal Taurus P22 (I shot one of those apart).  The PLY22 fills the hand and is small deadly and fun gun to shoot.  Patterned after the Bobcat.    Summary:  With a bit of trigger work and the right grip the Ruger mechanically can rival most any target pistol in the sub-1000.00 category if you can hold it.  It will likely shoot a million or more rounds and there is a lot of aftermarket.   NOTES:    1. I did not omit the Sig Mosquito by accident.  You literally couldn't give me one of those.  I hate that gun.  I like the feel in the hand but the amount of pot metal and the way the trigger is designed - how could Sig stamp their name on that gun? I have completely disassembled two, again, what were the designers thinking?  Been there done that and ain't going back.    2.  The ISSC M22, even though it looks kind of like a Glock, doesn't make it one.    Been there done that and ain't going back.   3.  There are a lot of older High Standards out there that are excellent, and in a new facility are currently being made at high dollar prices.  Some High Standards can be had for around 300.00 but do some research on mags, etc first.   4.  Browning Challengers in models I, II or III are out there too in the used market.  The Buckmark is their offspring. Research before you buy.   5.  Colt Woodsman was the Browning Challenger's father I believe off the top of my head. Research before you buy.   6. GSG and or Sig 1911 .22.  I have shot these guns, think they are cool but won't own one personally for no good reason.  If you are a 1911 guy and want a fun suppressor host this a fun gun.   7.  I am not a fan of the Advantage Arms conversions for Glocks.  I have personally owned 5 AA conversions for Glocks over the years.  Been there done that and ain't going back.

White dog is 11+yr old Staffy Bull, Roscoe. Brown and Black 5 month old Airedale, Barkley.

I have a friend who runs a OEM 34 barrel in his 35 for plinking and shooting steel plates.  I asked him why he didn't use a conversion barrel and he told me he didn't have one, but had the 34 barrel and it works well enough for shooting steel plates, etc.  I watched him shoot it with impunity by simply changing the OEM 35 barrel for a 34 barrel, then slap 9mm mags in the "35"  and go to town on steel plates.  If I had a 23 or 22, or 24 I would try it with one of my own OEM barrels but I don't and won't use someone else's gun but I saw it with my own eyes as working.  When I asked this hardcore and very prolific shooter,  "Doesn't the smaller OD of the OEM barrel in the .40 slide cause accuracy problems?  He told me that for his purposes of shooting steel it works just fine.  Although I have frittered away some serious money just for a gun experiment I am not buying a .40 just to play around with this.  

I have an option looming for me in .22WMR, keeping a custom BSA Martini in .22WMR or having it converted to .22LR.

I have had a lot of handguns, always looking for the perfect one.  There are a number of guns that I shoot better than a Glock 9mm, but none I trust more.  M&P is close but it has some fiddly internals and more parts in comparison to the Glock.  As far as shooting better it is a qualitative thing with me at the range only, I think being able to put rounds on target at relatively close range in numbers makes all the major players the same.   A Glock can take a beating, parts rarely break and when they do they are cheap and available everywhere practically.  Mags are durable too.

Here is a Marlin 336 I had a while ago it was a fun fast little lever gun. Stipple monster got this one too: