The Truth About Guns

A construction crew in Redmond, Oregon unearthed a pile of World War II-era ammunition on Thursday, and police called in the Air Force to dispose of it. The linked small-arms cartridges may have been related to a large military exercise that took place in the area from July to October 1943, when elements of the 91st, 96th, and 104th Infantry divisions ranged over seven counties in central Oregon. Those units then deployed around the globe to Italy, the Far East, and France and Germany. The article refers to the ammunition as “unstable,” but I’m pretty sure that at this point the only way it’d be unstable is if you tripped over it and fell down. Read on . . .

Instead of a Lockdown of the Day™, a good story. Some ammunition

Of the four rules of gun safety, “be aware of your target and what’s behind it” is the one most people can’t recall. If they can remember it, they usually focus on the bit that reminds shooters that bullets can travel a long, long way beyond the target before they come to rest. (A .22 can travel a mile before ending its flight.) But the admonition to “be aware of your target” is equally important. We recently reported on a shooter killed by a ricochet off a steel target. [Click here for info on steel target safety.] As these bright sparks learned, targets made of other materials also fight back. Always stay a safe distance from your target and wear eyes and ears. Otherwise, even a tiny fragment from your target can come back and blind you. You have been warned.

At 2:37 into the trailer for the forthcoming James Brown biopic Get On Up, the Hardest Working Man in Show Biz discharges a pump action shotgun into the ceiling. Not being a student of Soul Brother Number One, I don’t recall any such incident. Legally speaking, Mr. Please Please Please shouldn’t have had any trigger time with a firearm; when he was 16-years-old, The Godfather of Soul was convicted of armed robbery and served three years in juvie. In 1988, The Minister of the New New Super Heavy Funk was convicted of carrying an unlicensed pistol, which he’d used to shoot-up his wife’s car. No doubt Get On Up will show firearms-related scenes from Mr. Dynamite’s life. A role model for musical genius, but not much else, methinks.

By CTSheepdog

Greetings from The Constitution State, though at times over the past year I have questioned whether that proud name is valid any longer. For those who live outside Connecticut, you may think challenges to our state’s residents’ natural, individual, US and state Constitutional rights to keep and bear arms are something that only popped up in the wake of the tragedy in Newtown in late 2012. However, serious restrictionist gun control goes back over 20 years, the most visible example – an “assault weapon” ban – put into place in 1994 . . .

That law, and much of the state’s restrictionist legislation has been promoted and lobbied for by Connecticut Against Gun Violence or CAGV. While representing itself as seeking “common sense” gun violence reduction, CAGV’s efforts invariably have more impact on law-abiding gun owners than on suicides or illegal gun use – causes that are responsible for over 95% of all

Press release:

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) and the Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute (SAAMI) have filed a motion for a preliminary injunction on behalf of their members against the State of California in Fresno Superior Court to prevent enforcement of the state’s microstamping law. [Click here to read the motion.] The state statute enacted in 2007, but not made effective until May 2013, requires that all semiautomatic handguns sold in the state not already on the California approved handgun roster incorporate unp

In a brilliant bit of Second Amendment promotion, members of Wisconsin Carry went door to door in a rough area of Milwaukee, offering free training required to obtain a Wisconsin concealed carry license. The south side of town doesn’t have the reputation due to its high crime rate. The city has 10 percent of the state’s residents and 60 percent of Wisconsin’s murders . . .

Wisconsin Carry has been providing free classes so people can obtain the Wisconsin permit since 2009. The Wisconsin shall-issue concealed carry law went into effect in November of 2011. The Badger State 

thebangswitch.com reports that the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms (and Really Big Fires) is refusing to sign importation docs for 5.45X39 steel core ammunition. So far, it’s still possible for ammo companies to import 7.62X39 ammo. But the President’s recent executive order makes it possible for the CIC to turn-off the spigot at a moment’s notice. Should the Russians invade the Ukraine, it’s do svidaniya Ruskie ammo. Of course, there are other countries that make X39 ammo. But worried gun owners have scarfed – are scarfing – as much X39 ammo as possible, raising prices and reducing immediate availability. As for Yeager’s influence on all this, who cares? What’s more interesting is how much Yeager wants to be loved. And you know what, I’m beginning to take a shine to the guy. You? [h/t HB]

In our preview of the RADETEC LED Advisor, feedback in the comments ranged from “cool” to “meh” to “why?” I think my feelings on the Advisor took a similar turn during the course of my review. For the most part, it functioned correctly as I tested the gizmo, and I think they’ll likely sell like crazy. But I don’t think the Advisor is really for me. Here’s why . . .

The New York Times never met a gun control bill they didn’t like. When New York’s SAFE Act was passed as an “emergency measure” twenty-minutes after it was introduced in the legislature, nary a peep of protest did we hear from the Gray Lady. In fact, the paper’s editorial board lauded the act and all of it provisions, from the ban on “assault rifles” to the registration of ammunition sales to a seven-round limit on loaded magazines. As for the pre-existing requirements for firearms purchases – fingerprinting, background checks, tests, fees, etc. – and the de facto ban on law-abiding citizens carrying a concealed weapon in The Big Apple (which somehow doesn’t include the newspaper’s publisher), the NYT is A-OK with all of it. But, when Republ

“A 54-year-old Northwest Side man who allegedly pulled a gun during a property dispute is the first concealed carry permit holder arrested in Chicago,” suntimes.com reports. “William P. O’Connell, of the 7200 block of North Oleander Avenue, lost his permit as a result of the arrest, said a spokeswoman for the Illinois State Police.” Interesting that the cops have no compunction about naming and shaming Mr. O’Connell but delay identifying police officers involved in shootings. Anyway, the news it just out but the deal went down on the 23rd. Like this . . .

O’Connell was involved

Greg Penglis reckons the Second Amendment is the Rodney Dangerfield of civil rights: it don’t get no respect. Writing for canadafreepress.com, the flight instructor argues that the government’s constant infringement on Americans’ natural, civil and Constitutionally protected right to keep and bear arms is so egregious, it might as well read, “A well equipped government, being necessary for security and order, the right of the government to be ultimately armed against the disarmed citizenry, shall not be infringed.” But Penglis’ rant is more than the usual pro-firearms freedom kvetch. Here’s his proposal for a new and improved

I’ve dreamt of getting my private pilot’s license ever since I can remember. About two months ago, the planets finally aligned. I had the time to take the training course at a good local flight school. Now that ground school is over I need to get some hours in an actual airplane to keep moving forward. That costs money. To fund the first third my flight airtime I decided to sell off my old competition rifle. There’s just one problem: no one wants to buy it . . .

This isn’t a matter of price, parts or advertising. The gun boasts about $2,500 of top-of-the-line kit. Everything from a Noveske barrel down to a Magpul aluminum trigger guard. (I’m asking $1,750.) I listed the rifle for sal

Schultz Media Relations sent this email blast to TTAG central, of which I’ll share with you:

A Highly Detailed Private National Firearm Owner Registry Exists

March 2014- We are NOT accusing Gun Broker, LLC of anything improper nor are we implying anything improper by Gun Broker. In fact we think their business model is neat with many tens of thousands of satisfied buyers and sellers. We are NOT aware of any underhanded activities by Gun Broker including inappropriate release of any member’s personal information. Gun Broker appears strong in support of firearm ownership–that’s also good business, that’s how they earn their money. But the Internet is buzzing (when doesn’t it?) about their “refusals” and requests for more information from applicants . . .

Basic Backgrou

I spent the better part of Saturday hanging out with our man Leghorn. As I watched TTAG’s T&E guy wolf down half-a-pound of Schmidt’s barbecued brisket (moist), we talked about carry vs. home defense guns. I asked Nick why he carries a Wilson Combat Bill Wilson Carry 1911 (review here) but relies on a suppressed SIG SAUER P226 Mk25 for protecting home and hearth. Nick said he carries the 1911 because . . .

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“In the weeks since that blood-soaked first day of March, police nationwide have stepped up gun training. More armed patrols visit train stations and public squares. Experts call for quicker use of guns in emergencies.” – No Guns, Just Knives: Chilling Details of ‘China’s 9/11′ [at usatoday.com]

“An officer’s weapon accidentally fired when a fleeing auto thief’s open car door struck the officer in San Francisco’s North Beach neighborhood Saturday morning,” ktvu.com reports. In fact, the headline writer reckons Fleeing car thief causes accidental gun discharge by SF officer. You say accidental, I say negligent. Let’s call the whole thing slightly off. Actually, more than slightly. Check this out . . .

The incident occurred around 10:40 a.m. near the intersection of Montgomery and Broadway streets after the officer approached the driver of a parked stolen vehicle, according to San Francisco police spokesman Albie Esparza.

The importance of securing your firearms from children cannot be overstated. When an unsecured firearm leads to a gunshot injury, it’s usually because one child finds the gun and shoots another. But this disaster can unfold in many terrible ways, and a Georgia toddler recently shot his own mother when he found her loaded handgun . . .

23 year-old Joanne Winding thought she saw a prowler outside her Hinesville, GA home on March 26th. The young Army wife retrieved a handgun and loaded it, in case the prowler tried to break in. Nobody tried to break into her home, but Winding failed to secure or unload the handgun before she went back to bed. 

‘Oops’ doesn’t quite cover it.

Whether you’re talking guns, gasoline, matches or drain cleaner, nothing on Earth can ferret out trouble like an unsupervised 2 year-old boy. Winding’s toddler apparently found the loaded heater next to her bed, and promptly shot her

By LC Judas

While my previous posts on the virtues of the .40 S&W round seemed to stirred the sleeping dragon known as the “pistol caliber wars”, that wasn’t really the intent. And today it’s time to talk about what the .40 Smith & Wesson brought about by the nature of round’s existence. There is a lot to thank the .40 for and it usually gets no credit. The round’s virtues go far beyond the fact that it reliably penetrates the 12-18 inches of ballistic gelatin, as it was originally designed . . .

First, the fact that the .40 is easily one of the best upgrades to 9mm handguns there ever was is an easily overlooked and fun fact. I use the Browning Hi Power case for my example. While Smith & Wesson and GLOCK made most of the original sales of handguns chambered in .40 to law

Ruger came out with the SR-556 a couple years back now, and it was very well received. The piston-powered rifle seemed to be rugged and reliable, and when I abused one out in the desert of Arizona it worked like a charm no matter how I neglected it. But it seems that a flaw has been identified in the “varmint” heavy barreled version of the gun that could lead to the gun “going off” when you don’t want it to, and Ruger has issued a recall for all varmint variety rifles. Make the jump for the low-down from their website . . .

WHY WE ARE RECALLING THESE RIFLES
We have determined that the disconnector in the two-stage trigger system on our SR-556VT™ modern sporting rifles was not properly heat treated by a vendor and that the disconnector can wear prematurely. T

I’ll be on Kate Krueger’s Talking Guns program in a few minutes. If y’all want to listen in, click over to her website and click the “Listen Live” link. I’ll have the full audio on the TTAG podcast as soon as it’s over.