Archive for the 'Firearms' Category

And a change in load means that that the 20 gauge (and even 410) is now being used much more for turkey hunting.

American Rifleman.

Washington opened the display box, and, to his delight, found an exquisite pair of matched English pistols …

Sir,
Altho’ [Although] I am not much accustomed to accept presents, I cannot refuse one offered in such polite terms as accompanied the pistols & furniture you were so obliging as to send me by Capt. Fauntleroy. They are very elegant & deserve my best thanks, which are offered with much sincerity. The favorable sentiments you are pleased to entertain of me, & the obliging and flattering manner in which they are expressed add to the obligation & I am Sir, Yr [your] Most Obedt [obedient] & Most H: [humble] Serv [servant]

GW

The Washington pistols at West Point are a pair of identical, flintlock, silver-mounted, English pommel pistols (to be carried in holsters over a saddle’s pommel,) 14″ long in total length. The 8″-long, octagon-to-round brass barrels show clear British proofmarks and are stamped with the initials “RW,” which has been determined to be the touchmark for the London gunmaker Richard Wilson. The sideplates display motifs of lions and unicorns. Both of the grips have engraved silver bands with the name: “Gen.l G. Washington.” Hawkins, the name of a gunmaker, also from London, is engraved upon the lockplates. One interesting feature about the locks is that they are equipped with a sliding-tab safety, located underneath and behind the cocking mechanisms. This allows the guns to be safely carried cocked, loaded and primed. Both pistols, ergonomically, felt right at home in the hand and are in good enough condition that I believe they could be safely loaded and fired.

We’ve discussed this before.  Every man loves nice weapons with exquisite furniture.

There’s a place for composite guns, but there will always be a market for Walnut furniture and noticeably fine craftsmanship.

Gun makers, take notice.

Shooting Illustrated.

For us, the main takeaway is that if you have a bad guy hiding behind a common interior wall, concealment is all it’s really providing. With an AR-15 carbine, there’s a high probability your bullet will perform nearly as well after passing through that wall—even if it hits a stud—as it would if there was no barrier between you and that bad guy at all.

We also learned that the 150-grain 300 HAMR load is rather wicked with regard to terminal performance. Though it may provide deeper-than-desirable penetration in a home-defense setting, from a wound-cavity standpoint you can see why this cartridge is one of the best available for big-game hunting with an AR-15. And finally, do not discount the 125-grain hollowpoint .30-30 Win. load for personal protection. It should not over-penetrate, and it creates a reasonably large crush cavity. It’s clearly a great choice for home defense if your life-saving gun is a lever-action carbine.

If I had to pick one of these cartridges/loads for home defense, I’d probably go with the 110-grain 300 HAMR load because of its consistent 12 to 14 inches of penetration and the lack of over-penetration concern associated with it. The Speer Gold Dot load for the .223 Rem. and the FTX load for the .300 BLK delivered similar, but slightly deeper performance. There are, of course, lots of other loads and carbine cartridges to consider. This test is only a glimpse. But, it does give you an idea of what can be expected with carbines, and even the ancient .30-30 Win., if they must be fired inside a home to save your life.

Well, the .30-30 is a venerable cartridge, and stands today as the load that has probably taken more white tail than any other cartridge.  It would be an awesome home defense round.  It’s also noteworthy that lever action rifles are very popular within the AR community, and for good reason.  Every man should have lever action rifles.

The summary is a bit strange though.  The graphs show the 300 HAMR as over-penetrating, and the last thing you want inside a home is over-penetration.  Moreover, availability is an issue, as is cost.

Garand Thumb titles his video “we end the debate.”  BLUF: There will always be a debate.

Continuing his great video content and presentations, Chris Baker at Lucky Gunner discusses chokes for home defense shotguns.  Sure enough, as soon as he said Lucky Gunner had gotten a shipment of Federal Flight Control in and it may be gone by the time this video was viewed, yep, they’re out of it.

Just to be clear, the price he cites isn’t related to the gun he’s shooting.  The price he cites pertains to the stock Beretta 1301 ordered from the factory.

The gun he’s shooting is modified by Langdon Tactical with an extended mag tube, forend including Magpul attachment points, Aridus Industries adapters, and a Magpul stock.  This raises the price a bit.

I love the .22 WMR round, and have always believed that the .22LR was underpowered for anything other than plinking on trash can lids (which is what I did with it when I was a boy).

But in an AR?  Will it work?  Will the bolt extract the case without major modifications?  Will it be reliable?  How will the mags work without rim-locking?

Color me skeptical until it proves itself.  I won’t be buying one.

He makes his point well enough.  Bronze is softer than steel (although I suspect he’s using a brass brush).

During a demonstration to share holders last week, the operator clicks the key pad on the side of the 9mm smart gun. Once unlocked, the smart gun is operable. @Lodestarguns @6abc https://t.co/gVzML0sARg pic.twitter.com/c8O8zNbp6i

— Christie Ileto (@Christie_Ileto) January 18, 2022