Back in May of this year, I wrote a rather long article about what I would do if I was forced to narrow down my collection to a single firearm. In the end, I chose a Glock 19 and I gave a lot of really good reasons for this choice. Since then, I've been thinking about it more and more. I still really like the Glock 19. I have one in my safe right now, and it is definitely a gun I would hate to see go. However, I think if I had to make the choice today, I would choose differently... maybe.
I thought about an old saying I've heard. The gun you have with you is infinitely more valuable than the one you have at home in the safe. This is very true. If you find yourself in a life and death situation you don't get to call time out and run home to browse your gun safe and pick the best gun for the job. You have to make do with what you have.
I work nights, so a night stand gun is fine and I do have one, but it isn't that big of a deal. Most break ins happen during the night and at night, I'm wide awake and in my office working far away from my bedroom and the full size Glock 17 I keep in my night stand. Therefore, the gun most likely to get used to defend myself and my family is the gun I keep in my office. That gun is a S&W J-frame .38 Special. I carry concealed (legally). I do not leave the house without a gun. When I'm grabbing my wallet and keys and mobile phone I grab my S&W J-frame .38 Special and slip it in my pocket.
If it is good enough to carry concealed and good enough to keep in arm's reach in my office, why should it not be my last gun? I could carry the Glock 19, but it sits in the safe. Why? It's just so easy to slip the little J-frame in my pocket that I never want to deal with the hassle of strapping on a holster and concealing a larger gun.
If you ask most gun professionals (I'm talking cops, P.I.'s, top competitive shooters, firearms instructors, gun magazine writers, etc...) what they have on them if you run into them on the street (off duty in the case of cops) I'd be willing to bet more than 75% of them have a J-frame revolver in their pocket. Why? They work and they are easy and convenient.
Now, I will state that a J-frame is a terrible first gun. Many gun shop commandos will tell new shooters, epecially female new shooters to buy a J-frame revolver for their first gun. Don't listen to them. They are small so they are harder to hold on to. They are light so the felt recoil is a lot more. Most of them have barely adequate sights. They are an expert's gun. They are hard to shoot well without a lot of practice and they aren't much fun to shoot at all.
However, for someone who knows how to shoot and is comfortable with a J-frame, I think it might be the last gun I'd ever give up. I'm still not sure if I ever had to make that choice that I could give up my Glock 19, but if I did it would be to keep my trusty little J-frame.
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Pistol versus Revolver
One of the accepted things that you are taught if you work in a gun store is that you push new shooters and women toward the revolver counter. I'm not saying it's right and I'm not saying it happens 100% of the time, but it does seem to be the norm. I was listening to one of my favorite gun podcasts the other day and the host was railing against this. He said that he thought that a double action revolver was the worst choice you could make for a new shooter. He was specifically talking about female new shooters. I want to state my personal opinion on this.
The first thing is that people seem to make a lot of assumptions about gun choice based on gender. They assume a female shooter will have weaker upper body strength, will be more recoil sensitive and less likely to take up shooting as a hobby. I'd have to say that as a general rule, my experience has been that these are all true, BUT I've seen enough exceptions to have learned not to assume anything.
The logic behind pushing female shooters and new shooters to revolvers is that they are easier to operate, less likely to have a mechanical problem and need less maintenance. You can load a revolver, stick it in your nightstand and forget about it for years and it still work fine. The problem with that is that no gun should be just left loaded for years. If you own a gun for self defense, you should be practicing with it. You should know how it works inside and out. You should be taking it out to clean it and inspect it at least monthly and preferably shoot it monthly. If you do that, there is no real advantage to a revolver over a pistol.
In fact, there are several disadvantages. First, revolvers in general have more recoil. With a pistol, the motion of the slide absorbs some of the felt recoil. With a revolver, the only thing absorbing recoil is you. Second, revolvers have lower capacity and are harder and slower to reload if you run out of ammo. Lastly, a revolver may fail less often, but when it does fail it is much harder to quickly get it back into the fight than a pistol.
Now, please don't take this as a slam on revolvers. I love revolvers. I own several of them. I like shooting them more, because the slower reload and lower capacity makes me take my time at the range and concentrate more on my shooting skills and less on seeing how many rounds I can spray down range. In fact, I have my daily concealed carry gun within arms reach of me as I write this and it is a 5-shot .38 Special J-frame revolver. I just disagree that gun shop employees (and when I was one, I was guilt of it too) should steer people toward them. Instead, I think they should explain that a gun you don't practice with and understand will not do you any good if the time comes to defend yourself. If you do practice with your gun and train with your gun, either will do the job well.
The first thing is that people seem to make a lot of assumptions about gun choice based on gender. They assume a female shooter will have weaker upper body strength, will be more recoil sensitive and less likely to take up shooting as a hobby. I'd have to say that as a general rule, my experience has been that these are all true, BUT I've seen enough exceptions to have learned not to assume anything.
The logic behind pushing female shooters and new shooters to revolvers is that they are easier to operate, less likely to have a mechanical problem and need less maintenance. You can load a revolver, stick it in your nightstand and forget about it for years and it still work fine. The problem with that is that no gun should be just left loaded for years. If you own a gun for self defense, you should be practicing with it. You should know how it works inside and out. You should be taking it out to clean it and inspect it at least monthly and preferably shoot it monthly. If you do that, there is no real advantage to a revolver over a pistol.
In fact, there are several disadvantages. First, revolvers in general have more recoil. With a pistol, the motion of the slide absorbs some of the felt recoil. With a revolver, the only thing absorbing recoil is you. Second, revolvers have lower capacity and are harder and slower to reload if you run out of ammo. Lastly, a revolver may fail less often, but when it does fail it is much harder to quickly get it back into the fight than a pistol.
Now, please don't take this as a slam on revolvers. I love revolvers. I own several of them. I like shooting them more, because the slower reload and lower capacity makes me take my time at the range and concentrate more on my shooting skills and less on seeing how many rounds I can spray down range. In fact, I have my daily concealed carry gun within arms reach of me as I write this and it is a 5-shot .38 Special J-frame revolver. I just disagree that gun shop employees (and when I was one, I was guilt of it too) should steer people toward them. Instead, I think they should explain that a gun you don't practice with and understand will not do you any good if the time comes to defend yourself. If you do practice with your gun and train with your gun, either will do the job well.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
The Last Gun
Apparently, these posts are going to become a lot more erratic than I had originally thought. I seem to have lost the steam I had in the beginning when I was posting at least one article per week. I will try to do better.
I was having one of those odd thoughts running through my head the other day and started wondering... If I could only own one gun, what would it be? To me, this is a VERY difficult question because I have worked my whole adult life to build my collection so the thought of it being reduced back down to one gun is unthinkable. However, you never know when financial or political forces could give you no choice. Hopefully, the day will never come that this is anything more than a fun hypothetical discussion, but it is a good way to prioritize what is important in a gun choice.
To do this right, I had to set some ground rules.
1. One firearm, period. Not one pistol and one revolver and one rifle and one shotgun. Just ONE firearm.
2. So that it is realistic, I set a price limit. For a rifle, the max would be $2,000. If I chose anything else, it would be $1,000.
So, I had to figure out what things I use a firearms for and then prioritize them into what is the most important for me. Here is my list in order of what I feel is the most important...
Since I really enjoy IDPA and would want something I could be somewhat competitive with, I can't go too small on the gun size or too big on the caliber size. That means probably sticking to a compact or full sized pistol or a medium framed revolver and limiting my calibers to 9mm, .40S&W, .45ACP or .357Magnum. Since single column .45's have too low of a capacity as compared to other similar pistols and double stack .45's are too big for smaller hands, I eliminated it from the list. If I went with a pistol, I'd rather go with 9mm than .40S&W just because ammo will be easier to find and less expensive, but with the hotter defensive loads, it will still do the job.
Now, I needed decide between a pistol and a revolver. My first instict was to go with a revolver. They are durable, simple and (in my opinion) beautiful. However, as I looked at the next two items on the list (teaching and plinking) I realized that both of these are best done with a .22LR. Since I can't get a second gun in .22 in this scenario, I need to limit my choices to guns I can buy a .22 conversion kit for. So... scratch off revolvers.
The last two items are a problem. If I'm going with a pistol in 9mm it isn't going to be great for outdoor use or hunting, but there is a reason they were at the bottom of my priority list. Besides, in a pinch, you could use a 9mm pistol for hunting smaller game (I'd say anything smaller than a boar) and while not ideal, it will fend off smaller 4-legged predators in a wilderness situation. It wouldn't be too great against bears, but choosing one gun means making compromises.
Now, I need to find a 9mm pistol that is reliable, durable, decently accurate, is small enough to conceal but big enough to compete with in IDPA and you can buy a .22 conversion kit for it. There are probably others, but the only one I know that fits all those criteria is a Glock 19. I guess that would be my choice. Hopefully, it is a choice I'd never have to make.
A few other reasons for this choice would be that Glocks very rarely break. If they do break, they are very easy to work on and the factory parts are available from plenty of retailers. In fact, you can put together a fairly complete spare parts kit and all the tools you need (one punch) for less than $75. Plus, you are getting a very handy sized gun that is not overly heavy that has a great capacity and there are tons of aftermarket accessories to make it fit your needs.
If there was any way I was able to keep a second gun, I have no questions about what my second gun would be. I'd take an M4-style AR-15 for my other gun without a second thought.
As an interesting side note, I posed this question on one of my favorite gun forums. I was surprised at the variety of answers I got. Some people went as large as a FAL or M1A and some went as small as I did with a Glock 19. The point is that there is no one answer. Everyone has different things they do with guns. That is the beauty of our hobby is that it is so diverse.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
I was having one of those odd thoughts running through my head the other day and started wondering... If I could only own one gun, what would it be? To me, this is a VERY difficult question because I have worked my whole adult life to build my collection so the thought of it being reduced back down to one gun is unthinkable. However, you never know when financial or political forces could give you no choice. Hopefully, the day will never come that this is anything more than a fun hypothetical discussion, but it is a good way to prioritize what is important in a gun choice.
To do this right, I had to set some ground rules.
1. One firearm, period. Not one pistol and one revolver and one rifle and one shotgun. Just ONE firearm.
2. So that it is realistic, I set a price limit. For a rifle, the max would be $2,000. If I chose anything else, it would be $1,000.
So, I had to figure out what things I use a firearms for and then prioritize them into what is the most important for me. Here is my list in order of what I feel is the most important...
- Concealed Carry/Self Defense
- Home Defense
- IDPA
- Teaching new shooters about firearms
- Recreational Target Shooting
- Wilderness Survival Tool
- Hunting
Since I really enjoy IDPA and would want something I could be somewhat competitive with, I can't go too small on the gun size or too big on the caliber size. That means probably sticking to a compact or full sized pistol or a medium framed revolver and limiting my calibers to 9mm, .40S&W, .45ACP or .357Magnum. Since single column .45's have too low of a capacity as compared to other similar pistols and double stack .45's are too big for smaller hands, I eliminated it from the list. If I went with a pistol, I'd rather go with 9mm than .40S&W just because ammo will be easier to find and less expensive, but with the hotter defensive loads, it will still do the job.
Now, I needed decide between a pistol and a revolver. My first instict was to go with a revolver. They are durable, simple and (in my opinion) beautiful. However, as I looked at the next two items on the list (teaching and plinking) I realized that both of these are best done with a .22LR. Since I can't get a second gun in .22 in this scenario, I need to limit my choices to guns I can buy a .22 conversion kit for. So... scratch off revolvers.
The last two items are a problem. If I'm going with a pistol in 9mm it isn't going to be great for outdoor use or hunting, but there is a reason they were at the bottom of my priority list. Besides, in a pinch, you could use a 9mm pistol for hunting smaller game (I'd say anything smaller than a boar) and while not ideal, it will fend off smaller 4-legged predators in a wilderness situation. It wouldn't be too great against bears, but choosing one gun means making compromises.
Now, I need to find a 9mm pistol that is reliable, durable, decently accurate, is small enough to conceal but big enough to compete with in IDPA and you can buy a .22 conversion kit for it. There are probably others, but the only one I know that fits all those criteria is a Glock 19. I guess that would be my choice. Hopefully, it is a choice I'd never have to make.
A few other reasons for this choice would be that Glocks very rarely break. If they do break, they are very easy to work on and the factory parts are available from plenty of retailers. In fact, you can put together a fairly complete spare parts kit and all the tools you need (one punch) for less than $75. Plus, you are getting a very handy sized gun that is not overly heavy that has a great capacity and there are tons of aftermarket accessories to make it fit your needs.
If there was any way I was able to keep a second gun, I have no questions about what my second gun would be. I'd take an M4-style AR-15 for my other gun without a second thought.
As an interesting side note, I posed this question on one of my favorite gun forums. I was surprised at the variety of answers I got. Some people went as large as a FAL or M1A and some went as small as I did with a Glock 19. The point is that there is no one answer. Everyone has different things they do with guns. That is the beauty of our hobby is that it is so diverse.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Building an AR-15
First, I apologize to my readers (if I actually have any) for the lack of posts lately. I've just had a bit of writer's block and couldn't seem to come up with anything worth writing about. Today, I'm going to try to cover the basics of what is involved in building your own AR-15. This could get a bit on the long side, but I'll try to keep it as direct and to the point as possible.
The first part you will want to purchase is the Stripped Lower Reciever. This is the part that has the serial number and is considered the firearm by BATFE. This means it's the only part you will need to actually go through an FFL dealer to buy. There are many many brands to choose from and to be honest, most of them are the same other than the logo on the side. I personally don't care for billet lowers because they tend to be overpriced and they leave less room for customization. Avoid the cast lowers because they are of poor quality. If you stick with a good aluminum forged lower from a reputable maker you should be fine. A couple to avoid are Vulcan and Hesse. They are rarely within spec and not worth the trouble. A few that are good and safe bets are DPMS, Stag, Rock River Arms, CMMG, Spikes Tactical, LMT, Bushmaster and Mega. I'd avoid Colt lowers because they use a non-standard pin size so it just adds a level of complication that is not needed.
Once you have your lower, you will want to find a lower parts kit. At the moment, that may be pretty tricky. It seems everyone is out of them. Stick to a name brand on this. I personally like the Rock River Arms LPK's, but Stag and LMT are also excellent. This is where the first customization starts. You can get different safety selectors, grips, trigger and hammer pins, trigger groups, etc... A lot of this will depend on what you plan to use the rifle for when it is complete. I can tell you what I chose, but that does not mean it is necessarily the best. I used a Rock River Arms Lower Parts Kit that included their 2 stage trigger group. By buying the upgraded trigger as part of the parts kit I avoided paying for parts that I was going to just replace immediately anyway. I also replaced the standard grip with a Magpul MIAD grip. However, if I had it to do over again, I'd use Magpul's new MOE grip since it is configured just the way I liked it and is much cheaper. I also bought the AA battery core for the grip so I could store batteries for a light or red dot sight. I upgraded the safety selector to RRA's star safety selector. I already had it installed on another AR and just really like the feel of it. I also replaced the standard trigger guard with the Magpul Enhanced Trigger Guard. This gives you the ability to shoot with gloves on without having to modify the gun. The last modification I made to the lower parts kit is that I replaced the standard trigger and hammer pin with KNS Gen 2 Mod 2 anti-rotation pins. There have been cases of AR's with heavy use wearing out the lower from the rotation of the pins during use. These pins prevent that situation and they look cool too.
The next thing you will need to decide on is the stock. If you plan to shoot High Power rifle matches, you will want to stick with a standard A2 stock. If this will be a self defense gun I recommend either the Magpul CTR or UBR depending on your budget. The new Magpul ACS might be a great option, but is has not started shipping yet. For a long range target rifle, the Magpul PRS stock is great. In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a big fan of Magpul stuff. However, if they aren't for you, LMT and Vltor make excellent stocks as well. If you do go with a collapsible stock, do some research on how to properly stake the castle nut so that the stock stays where you put it during heavy firing.
Once the stock is attached, the lower half of the AR is complete. Picking an AR upper can be pretty tricky. This part is very much personal preference, but I'll give you some personal opinions that you can use as a guide.
1. Get a flat top receiver. Even if you plan to put a removable carry handle on it and never use optics, get the flat top. You never know when you might change your mind and that is a hard thing to change after the fact.
2. If you plan to use this gun for precision target work, get a stainless steel barrel. Otherwise, stick with chrome lined barrels.
3. Stick with a quality manufacturer. Good ones for uppers are BCM, LMT, Noveske, CMMG and Sabre Defense. Rock River Arms, Stag and Bushmaster also make pretty good uppers but some consider them a step below the ones I listed first. I'm sure there are others but those are the ones I feel confident in recommending.
4. Get a good quality Bolt Carrier Group from either BCM or LMT, but do not waste your money on the Enhanced version. Do get the Full Auto bolt carrier though. It has a bit more mass and is more reliable. Buying this part will NOT make your gun fuction full auto and it is not illegal to use.
5. Don't go cheap on the sights. There are a lot of cheap, airsoft quality sights out there. Don't use them. They will fail you.
6. If you decide you need a quad rail, don't go cheap on that either. I would say that YHM is the bare minimum, but you'd be better off with MI, GG&G, Troy or Daniel Defense. Larue Tactical also makes great stuff. If you don't need a quad rail, don't buy a quad rail. It is a lot of money for something that you don't actually have a need for. This same tip can be used for red dot sights. EOTech, Aimpoint and Trijicon make good stuff. Most of the rest is not worth messing with.
7. Avoid hanging too much "stuff" off your AR. It is meant to be a high speed, low drag fighting rifle. It is very easy to start buying red dots and magnifiers and lights and lasers and vertical foreward grips and backup sights and coffee makers and DVD players and turn a 7 pound battle rifle into a 15 pound boat anchor. If you don't NEED it, don't attach it.
8. Unless this will be for target use ONLY, make sure it has a 5.56mm chamber and not a .223 chamber. You can shoot .223 in a 5.56 chamber but you cannot shoot 5.56 ammo in a .223 chamber. With ammo as difficult as it is to find right now, don't limit yourself.
I hope this helped at least some. If you do some research on some of the forums I have linked on the right you can get a lot more specific info and ar15.com has some great instructions on how to actually put it all together. Good luck with your build. Your biggest challenge will be just finding the parts in the current market.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
The first part you will want to purchase is the Stripped Lower Reciever. This is the part that has the serial number and is considered the firearm by BATFE. This means it's the only part you will need to actually go through an FFL dealer to buy. There are many many brands to choose from and to be honest, most of them are the same other than the logo on the side. I personally don't care for billet lowers because they tend to be overpriced and they leave less room for customization. Avoid the cast lowers because they are of poor quality. If you stick with a good aluminum forged lower from a reputable maker you should be fine. A couple to avoid are Vulcan and Hesse. They are rarely within spec and not worth the trouble. A few that are good and safe bets are DPMS, Stag, Rock River Arms, CMMG, Spikes Tactical, LMT, Bushmaster and Mega. I'd avoid Colt lowers because they use a non-standard pin size so it just adds a level of complication that is not needed.
Once you have your lower, you will want to find a lower parts kit. At the moment, that may be pretty tricky. It seems everyone is out of them. Stick to a name brand on this. I personally like the Rock River Arms LPK's, but Stag and LMT are also excellent. This is where the first customization starts. You can get different safety selectors, grips, trigger and hammer pins, trigger groups, etc... A lot of this will depend on what you plan to use the rifle for when it is complete. I can tell you what I chose, but that does not mean it is necessarily the best. I used a Rock River Arms Lower Parts Kit that included their 2 stage trigger group. By buying the upgraded trigger as part of the parts kit I avoided paying for parts that I was going to just replace immediately anyway. I also replaced the standard grip with a Magpul MIAD grip. However, if I had it to do over again, I'd use Magpul's new MOE grip since it is configured just the way I liked it and is much cheaper. I also bought the AA battery core for the grip so I could store batteries for a light or red dot sight. I upgraded the safety selector to RRA's star safety selector. I already had it installed on another AR and just really like the feel of it. I also replaced the standard trigger guard with the Magpul Enhanced Trigger Guard. This gives you the ability to shoot with gloves on without having to modify the gun. The last modification I made to the lower parts kit is that I replaced the standard trigger and hammer pin with KNS Gen 2 Mod 2 anti-rotation pins. There have been cases of AR's with heavy use wearing out the lower from the rotation of the pins during use. These pins prevent that situation and they look cool too.
The next thing you will need to decide on is the stock. If you plan to shoot High Power rifle matches, you will want to stick with a standard A2 stock. If this will be a self defense gun I recommend either the Magpul CTR or UBR depending on your budget. The new Magpul ACS might be a great option, but is has not started shipping yet. For a long range target rifle, the Magpul PRS stock is great. In case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm a big fan of Magpul stuff. However, if they aren't for you, LMT and Vltor make excellent stocks as well. If you do go with a collapsible stock, do some research on how to properly stake the castle nut so that the stock stays where you put it during heavy firing.
Once the stock is attached, the lower half of the AR is complete. Picking an AR upper can be pretty tricky. This part is very much personal preference, but I'll give you some personal opinions that you can use as a guide.
1. Get a flat top receiver. Even if you plan to put a removable carry handle on it and never use optics, get the flat top. You never know when you might change your mind and that is a hard thing to change after the fact.
2. If you plan to use this gun for precision target work, get a stainless steel barrel. Otherwise, stick with chrome lined barrels.
3. Stick with a quality manufacturer. Good ones for uppers are BCM, LMT, Noveske, CMMG and Sabre Defense. Rock River Arms, Stag and Bushmaster also make pretty good uppers but some consider them a step below the ones I listed first. I'm sure there are others but those are the ones I feel confident in recommending.
4. Get a good quality Bolt Carrier Group from either BCM or LMT, but do not waste your money on the Enhanced version. Do get the Full Auto bolt carrier though. It has a bit more mass and is more reliable. Buying this part will NOT make your gun fuction full auto and it is not illegal to use.
5. Don't go cheap on the sights. There are a lot of cheap, airsoft quality sights out there. Don't use them. They will fail you.
6. If you decide you need a quad rail, don't go cheap on that either. I would say that YHM is the bare minimum, but you'd be better off with MI, GG&G, Troy or Daniel Defense. Larue Tactical also makes great stuff. If you don't need a quad rail, don't buy a quad rail. It is a lot of money for something that you don't actually have a need for. This same tip can be used for red dot sights. EOTech, Aimpoint and Trijicon make good stuff. Most of the rest is not worth messing with.
7. Avoid hanging too much "stuff" off your AR. It is meant to be a high speed, low drag fighting rifle. It is very easy to start buying red dots and magnifiers and lights and lasers and vertical foreward grips and backup sights and coffee makers and DVD players and turn a 7 pound battle rifle into a 15 pound boat anchor. If you don't NEED it, don't attach it.
8. Unless this will be for target use ONLY, make sure it has a 5.56mm chamber and not a .223 chamber. You can shoot .223 in a 5.56 chamber but you cannot shoot 5.56 ammo in a .223 chamber. With ammo as difficult as it is to find right now, don't limit yourself.
I hope this helped at least some. If you do some research on some of the forums I have linked on the right you can get a lot more specific info and ar15.com has some great instructions on how to actually put it all together. Good luck with your build. Your biggest challenge will be just finding the parts in the current market.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
2009 may be remembered as the year of the .22
If you've had your head in the sand for the last 6 months, you may not have noticed that the price of ammo is going sky high and that is IF you can find ammo at all. Some calibers have become flat out impossible to find. This trend will really hurt the firearms training industry because people can't find or can't afford enough ammo to complete the courses they'd like to take. At the same time, concealed carry classes are booked solid. The shop I used to work in is now putting 75 people per week through the class and said they could easily do 100 if they had another instructor. That is just in one single shop.
For all those reasons, more and more shooters are turning to the .22 Long Rifle cartridge. It is cheap and at least for the moment it is still fairly easy to find. You can shoot all day for $20 worth of ammo. In comparison, I spent 1 hour at the range this past weekend and used up $90 worth of ammo shooting mostly 9mm and a little 12 gauge. If I had been shooting .45ACP I can't even imagine how much I would have spent.
There is a lot of value out of a day at the range with a good .22. Without the recoil and without the limited quantity of ammo, you can spend your time working on proper sight alignment, trigger control or drawing from a holster. I truly think you can improve your shooting just as much shooting a .22 as you can shooting your chosen self defense caliber. Now, of course you need to practice some with the caliber and gun you will use for self defense, but I think if you put 200 rounds of .22 down range in an afternoon (about $8 worth of ammo) and then a single box of your chosen self defense caliber, you'd be just fine.
Save some money, shoot more often and have more fun. If you've forgotten your .22 pistol or rifle in the back of the safe for a while, pull it out and give it some use. If this ammo shortage continues, that .22 might be your new best friend.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
For all those reasons, more and more shooters are turning to the .22 Long Rifle cartridge. It is cheap and at least for the moment it is still fairly easy to find. You can shoot all day for $20 worth of ammo. In comparison, I spent 1 hour at the range this past weekend and used up $90 worth of ammo shooting mostly 9mm and a little 12 gauge. If I had been shooting .45ACP I can't even imagine how much I would have spent.
There is a lot of value out of a day at the range with a good .22. Without the recoil and without the limited quantity of ammo, you can spend your time working on proper sight alignment, trigger control or drawing from a holster. I truly think you can improve your shooting just as much shooting a .22 as you can shooting your chosen self defense caliber. Now, of course you need to practice some with the caliber and gun you will use for self defense, but I think if you put 200 rounds of .22 down range in an afternoon (about $8 worth of ammo) and then a single box of your chosen self defense caliber, you'd be just fine.
Save some money, shoot more often and have more fun. If you've forgotten your .22 pistol or rifle in the back of the safe for a while, pull it out and give it some use. If this ammo shortage continues, that .22 might be your new best friend.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
My wife is a keeper
Well, I already knew that, but it got confirmed again last week. April 4th was our 5th wedding anniversary and my wife gave me the gift every gun nut wants. A shiny new gun. Last month, I had put a $100 deposit down on a Glock 19 to start a lay away. My plan was to slowly pay it off after our anniversary because my extra cash until then was going to buy my wife's gift. For my anniversary gift, my wife paid off my lay away! We went this past Saturday to the gun shop to pick it up. It was just a plain jane Glock 19 like millions of others that have been made but I really like that model. Then, I look in the case and notice they have a new one with the OD frame (that is Glock's Olive Drab frame for those that don't know). Other than the color of the polymer frame, it is identical to any other Glock, but they make a very low percentage (I don't know the exact number, but I've heard about 5%) with the OD frame. I decided that since this gun would be sentimental to me and would never get sold, I'd like it to be a little more unique. So, I swapped out the standard black Glock 19 that was on lay away for the OD one. I like it a lot and have not regrets. I'll be heading to the range this weekend to break her in. I'm just hoping that between now and then I can find some extra ammo.
I'm sorry for the short post, but things have been busy. I'll try to write something with more meat next week. Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
I'm sorry for the short post, but things have been busy. I'll try to write something with more meat next week. Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
Thursday, April 2, 2009
"2 is 1 and 1 is none" - Clint Smith
That saying is a famous "Clintism" from Clint Smith at Thunder Ranch. Clint Smith is considered by many to be the top firearms instructor in the country. This particular "Clintism" though has always made a great deal of sense to me. Basically, what he is saying is that any tool you use (be it a gun, knife, flashlight, etc...) is a man made thing and can fail. If you don't have a backup, you having nothing when it fails.
This is one of many reasons I believe anyone who owns a gun for self defense should own more than one gun for self defense. Many years ago, I worked part-time in a very large gun shop. I was talking to one of the other sales staff during a slow period. This guy also worked there part time and his full time job was as a law enforcement officer. He told me a story he had heard from a fellow officer he had met in NYC.
For those of you that don't know, the gun laws in NYC are ridiculously strict. It is very difficult to get a permit to own a handgun, and the process can take many months even if you are finally approved. There was an owner of a small jewelry shop who apparently had been robbed by some gang members on several occasions. He got fed up and applied for a permit to buy a handgun. After about 6 months of red tape, he finally got his permit and bought a handgun. Not long after, a couple of gang bangers tried to rob him again, but this time they got lead instead of gold. It was a perfectly legal, self defense shooting. The gang bangers had him at gun point and he prevailed by pure luck. When the police took his statment, they took the gun as evidence. He pleaded with them that those gang bangers had friends and that was his only gun. It would take months to get another permit and he'd never survive that long. The police had no choice but to take the gun until the DA ruled that it was a self defense shooting. Sure enough, a couple of weeks later, friends of the original robbers showed up and killed ths shop keeper in his store. Think how much different that story would have ended if he had owned more than one gun.
You don't just need a second gun though for an unlikely event like that. What if it is something much less dramatic like one of them breaks. What if one is stolen? What if you find yourself in a fight and your primary gun is wrestled away from you? If you don't have a backup gun, I hope you have your affairs in order.
Here's another scenario to consider... You buy a gun for home protection. You have practiced with it and you feel confident you know how to use it. One night you and your wife and sleeping the sleep of the righteous when you are awoke by the sound of broken glass. You do what most people would do. You tell your wife to dial 911, you grab your gun and you go see where the noise came from. Now, if it was just a limb breaking a window in a storm, you will be fine. If it is a bad guy who flees when he sees you, you will be fine. If it is a bad guy that you manage to defeat in a gun fight, you will be less fine but you will be fine. However, what if you lose? What if the bad guy is faster than you and he kills you or at least injures you badly enough to take you out of the fight? What about your wife now? What about your kids now? If you had the only gun, you just left her unarmed with a pissed off bad guy in the house. If you had two guns, you could have left one with her. Better yet, you shouldn't go clearing a house anyway unless you are going to retrieve a kid, but that is another article.
The point of all this is... there are many many scenarios where one gun is not enough. Since none of us can know what circumstance we will be faced with, we have to prepare for as many of them as we can. You will be much better prepared with at least two guns in your arsenal than you were with one. Remember, 2 is 1 and 1 is none. Thanks for your wisdom Clint.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
This is one of many reasons I believe anyone who owns a gun for self defense should own more than one gun for self defense. Many years ago, I worked part-time in a very large gun shop. I was talking to one of the other sales staff during a slow period. This guy also worked there part time and his full time job was as a law enforcement officer. He told me a story he had heard from a fellow officer he had met in NYC.
For those of you that don't know, the gun laws in NYC are ridiculously strict. It is very difficult to get a permit to own a handgun, and the process can take many months even if you are finally approved. There was an owner of a small jewelry shop who apparently had been robbed by some gang members on several occasions. He got fed up and applied for a permit to buy a handgun. After about 6 months of red tape, he finally got his permit and bought a handgun. Not long after, a couple of gang bangers tried to rob him again, but this time they got lead instead of gold. It was a perfectly legal, self defense shooting. The gang bangers had him at gun point and he prevailed by pure luck. When the police took his statment, they took the gun as evidence. He pleaded with them that those gang bangers had friends and that was his only gun. It would take months to get another permit and he'd never survive that long. The police had no choice but to take the gun until the DA ruled that it was a self defense shooting. Sure enough, a couple of weeks later, friends of the original robbers showed up and killed ths shop keeper in his store. Think how much different that story would have ended if he had owned more than one gun.
You don't just need a second gun though for an unlikely event like that. What if it is something much less dramatic like one of them breaks. What if one is stolen? What if you find yourself in a fight and your primary gun is wrestled away from you? If you don't have a backup gun, I hope you have your affairs in order.
Here's another scenario to consider... You buy a gun for home protection. You have practiced with it and you feel confident you know how to use it. One night you and your wife and sleeping the sleep of the righteous when you are awoke by the sound of broken glass. You do what most people would do. You tell your wife to dial 911, you grab your gun and you go see where the noise came from. Now, if it was just a limb breaking a window in a storm, you will be fine. If it is a bad guy who flees when he sees you, you will be fine. If it is a bad guy that you manage to defeat in a gun fight, you will be less fine but you will be fine. However, what if you lose? What if the bad guy is faster than you and he kills you or at least injures you badly enough to take you out of the fight? What about your wife now? What about your kids now? If you had the only gun, you just left her unarmed with a pissed off bad guy in the house. If you had two guns, you could have left one with her. Better yet, you shouldn't go clearing a house anyway unless you are going to retrieve a kid, but that is another article.
The point of all this is... there are many many scenarios where one gun is not enough. Since none of us can know what circumstance we will be faced with, we have to prepare for as many of them as we can. You will be much better prepared with at least two guns in your arsenal than you were with one. Remember, 2 is 1 and 1 is none. Thanks for your wisdom Clint.
Stay safe out there... and watch your six.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
