Originally published at Notes From The Bunker. You can comment here or there.

Another Fabulous Firearms Friday……

I would guess that the most ‘fun’ firearm a person can own is, in my opinion, a .22 pistol. They’re cheap to shoot and, for some reason, I find handguns to be much more fun than most rifles. While ‘fun’ is a great reason to buy something, I’ve hit the stage where I’m pretty much buying only stuff that has ‘practical’ use. Fortunately, the .22 pistols are quite useful.

I’ve owned a mix of .22 pistols over the years….RG, Ruger, Smith, etc, etc. Over the years I’ve had some pistols that were quite nice, some that weren’t, and some that were just ‘okay’.  I hate to sound like a shill for Ruger, but the EOTWAWKI .22 handguns tend to be Rugers. Not necessarily because I like Ruger, I’m actually more of a S&W kinda guy, but the simple facts are that Rugers are durable as heck, and depending on the model they have excellent aftermarket support and logisitics.

Ruger, in a position that is rather unique, manages to hit all the high points in .22 pistol offerings – singleaction revolver, double action revolver, semi auto pistol, semi auto ‘unlimited’ pistol (“Charger”).

The Charger is a 10/22 with no stock and a short barrel. Oh, there are some minor differences to keep you from dropping it into a 10/22 stock but otherwise it’s a pistol-gripped 10/22. (This has actually been done before with the ill-fated Intratec ‘Scorpion’ .22 autopistol that took 10/22 magazines back in the ’90s.) It’s nice that the Charger can use the same magazines as the 10/22 but the Charger really doesn’t fit the niche normally occupied by ‘handguns’. It’s really more of a specialized pistol. However, if a person didnt mind the paperwork, it would make an excellent candidate to SBR with a little folding stock. They’re interesting, and I think I’ll wind up getting one eventually, but they’re a low-priority compared to other pistols.

My first handgun was a Ruger Single-Six. These little guns usually came with a spare cylinder to allow the user to fire .22 LR or .22 Mag. Six sots, single action, reliable and handy, these are excellent guns for carrying around in the sticks for popping squirrels, finishing off wounded animals, plinking, and just about everything else that you would use a .22 for. Drawbacks are the six-shot capacity, slow reload time, long lock-time of that hammerfall, and the barrel-light weight (IMO). To be fair, there arent a lot of circumstances where you need a fast reload or more than a half-dozen shots in a .22 pistol that your’re not shooting at zombies.

Ruger used to offer some double-action .22 revolvers off-and-on over the years. I always thought it was a little odd that Ruger would try to position themselves as having the broadest product line of any manufacturer and then neglect the DA revolver angle. I’m a revolver kind of guy at heart, and their new .22 DA revolver looks pretty tempting. Why a revolver over an auto? No real reason except that there’s no worry about magazines.

The Ruger series of .22 autopistols seems like everyones ‘go to’ choice for preparedness. Their latest incarnation is the Mk III which I’m not a fan of. The MkII had a long history, plenty of aftermarket support, and great mag availability. With the introduction of the MkIII, which uses a completely new and non-compatible magazine, Ruger managed to muddy the waters. Still, for my .22 pistol needs this is the gun that goes to the top of my list. Ruger makes (made) enough variants to fill just about every need, running the gamut from basic no-frills models to target/competition models. I like the simple 5″ heavy barrel models. The taper  barreled ones are probably just as good but I like the extra weight up front. Whenever I can find a MkII at a reasonable price, I’ll buy it.

Smith and Wesson, for a brief time, made a series of pistols that I was very fond of. These were the ’22′ series of pistols….622,422, etc, etc. They were all modern variants of the old S&W Escort model.  I think they were great guns..lightweight, flat, compact, accurate and cheap. It’s kind of sad that S&W discontinued it. I have one that I bought solely because the price was right and there was no paperwork attached. It is lightweight and handy enough to go into a backpack when hunting and fishing with almost no notice. I understand S&W doesn’t carry spare parts for these things anymore (the guns were, as I understand, actually contracted out so it isn’t surprising Smith orphaned it) so it is definitely not a choice for a long term relationship.

Colt made the Woodsman and some variants thereof, as well as the Cadet/Colt .22 pistols. The Woodsman (Woodsmen?) are great guns but for my needs there has to be a good logistics base behind a gun for me to actaully drop money and buy one. Same with High Standard…those things were great guns but I want something where I don’t have to call Gun Parts everytime I need a rear sight screw.

The only other non-Ruger auto I have is a Beretta 21A. Yup, a mousegun. Bought it back in..uhm…’94 I think. It’s been mostly a safe queen ever since. I carry it very rarely since my S&W 640 is about the same size and a better caliber. I bought the Beretta back in the day because I wanted the smallest possible gun I could stuff in my pocket for when I was still making trips to the Big Eastern City and wanted something discrete. It’s a reliable gun as long as the chamber is kept clean and high velocity ammo is used. I use CCI Stingers in it. About the only thing I use it for now is stuffing it in my vest pocket when I go hunting in case I need to put a hole in Bambi’s brainpan if the .308 didnt do an instant kill. Even then, I usually take the Glock or P35 with me so this thing really is just a safe queen but I cant bring myself to get rid of it.

Other guns I’ve had are an amazing RG-22 that was the textbook definition of a Saturday Night Special. ( I say ‘amazing’ not because the gun was accurate or well-made, just the opposite…I was amazed that something of such design and construction was considered worth the hassle of serial numbering. I think the fit, finish and quality was slightly less than your average $39.99 Crossman CO2 pistol.) I think I paid $20 for it and immediately had buyers remorse. I literally could not give it away. I think I shot it once in my basement, with CB caps, just to see if it worked. I should have mailed it to a friend in NYC for a gun buyback program and split the difference. Same story with a couple Davis derringers in .22 that came my way. (Those were a little easier to give away. This was back when a new one, dealer price, was around $79…so you could actually use them as stocking stuffers around Christmas.) The wife has a little NAA minirevolver and I gotta admit..its cute. Surprisingly well made for something so tiny. We keep it in the truck in case we hit a deer and need to put it down. I think when she was still doing uniformed patrol she carried it around in her bag for the same purpose.

I know some folks are gonna chime in with “What about………” and then mention their favorite. Hey, I can only comment on the guns I’ve actually owned. I’m thrilled that youre happy with your Taurus/Rossi/Smith/Sig/Whatever….but I can’t give opinions on guns I havent owned so if I didnt mention your favorite it’s probably because I’ve never owned one.

Originally published at Notes From The Bunker. You can comment here or there.

Friday = Guns, so……..

It’s a personal preference, to be sure, but for me and a lot of other folks that keep an eye on the uncertain future the .22 rifle of choice is the ubiquitous Ruger 10/22. While Ruger makes a few variants of the 10/22 that are a bit more…desirable…for our specialized needs, none has all the features I figured I’d want. Fortunately, and this is one of the strengths of the 10/22 platform, there are enough aftermarket accessories out there that I can tweak the 10/22 into exactly what I want. Oh, it may not be cheap, but it’s possible. In retrospect, what I was after was essentially a Ruger 10/22 that had all the features and styling of the M1 Carbine – Protected aperature sights, side mounted sling, etc.

First step was the sights. Optics are nice but for the average effective range of a .22 LR, which I figure to about 100 yards and not much further, I figured a good set of open sights was the way to go. The standard sights with the Ruger are all right, I suppose, but I wanted a few special features. First, I wanted a longer sight radius. This meant a rear sight that was mounted back on the receiver, not on the barrel. I tried an aperature sight from Williams, which was my first choice, but found that it just did not have the range of elevation adjustment I needed. I wound up going with the TechSights and I’m quite pleased with them. Easy to install, protected rear and front sight, same sight picture as one my AR and PTR-91, accurate, and plenty of adjustment. Only thing I didnt like (other than the price) was that the sights weren’t made in the US. Can’t have everything, but when I buy gun stuff I like to buy American….firearms ownership is uniquely American, I feel the accessories on my gun should be too. Or, at least, not made in China (or Taiwan, although Taiwan is a bit more acceptable to me, but not much more.) (Two posts on the Tech Sights)

Some fitting may be is required. For me, it was easier to trim wood than metal.

After the sights, I wanted better options for the sling. I don’t really like traditional sling mounts that put the sling on the bottom of the gun. I much prefer the side mounted slings since they let the rifle lay comfortably flat against the back. There were a few options but most were replacement stocks, which I didnt really feel was necessary, or plastic replacement barrel bands for the front of the gun. I don’t mind some plastic parts, but a part that was going to take the stress of a sling should not, in my opinion, be made of plastic. Fortunately, this  ProMag Ruger Barrel Band caught my eye. I ordered one up and it arrived last week. The reviews mentioned that one of the rail segments would probably butt up against the stock in such a manner that some fitting might be required. Indeed, that was the case. Options are: remove metal from the band or remove wood from the stock. Wood cuts easier than metal so I removed some wood. Didn’t bother me, I have a bunch spare old 10/22 stocks sitting around. Once mounted, the barrel band took a SureFire Scout just fine.(Although in reality, I have no need for a light on a .22 rifle, I just wanted the side sling mount….but I suppose if you’re heading out to the chicken coop at 2am to see what the fuss is about, it might make good sense to have a light on the end of your Chicken Defense Carbine.) Now I just need a sling bar on the back end of the gun to go with the side-mount sling at the front. (There’s a company selling an M1 Carbine-style stock for the 10/22 that would be perfect but Im just not ready to spend that much coin.)

Once sights and a sling mount were taken care of, all that was left was to swap out the standard magazine release for an extended AK-style release and we were done. A solid little 10/22 that was a bit easier to carry, had a better set of sights, and could field a a couple tacticool accessories like a light and bipod in case the gophers ever decided to get their act together and go Zulu on me.

Total outlay is around $120~ but the majority of that is in the sights, and I don’t mind popping the money for sights if theyre good, durable, and do what I want them to. I doubt I’ll be tweaking out all my 10/22′s like this one, but the one that I did tweak out a bit has been fun and accurate to shoot. If I had the money, I’d probably swap out the barrel for a threaded version to add a suppressor to, but thats a buncha money that is way down the line for right now.

Originally published at Notes From The Bunker. You can comment here or there.

Saw one in the wild today. Seemed pretty cool. Might have to get a few.

Originally published at Notes From The Bunker. You can comment here or there.

:::phone rings:::

Me: [Business name]!
Caller: Is this Trader Brothers?
Me: No, it’s [Business name]…that’s why we answer the phone with “[business name]!”
Caller: Oh. Well, I musta got the wrong number…..

“Well, it looks like your looking for some gun stuff…what’d ya need?”

“I’ve got an Uzi I was looking to sell. I’m 75 years old and it’s just too damn heavy to shoot.”

“Really? You know, I just happen to be in the market for one….”

Two hours later he comes into the shop. It’s a genuine Uzi from Action Arms, not one of the Vector clones or the (shudder) Centrury Chinese guns (derisively called ‘choosies’). Just the gun and one rusty magazine. Barrel nut is missing. A quick look online shows replacements are $25. We talk and I tell him what I can offer.

“Look, the best I can offer you is [X]. It’s worth more than that, no doubt. You can take it to a gun show and I’m sure you’ll find some takers but theyre probably looking for it for resale so theyre going to need to get it at a price that leaves them some room to move. But you might find someone who wants it for themselves and they’d give you more than [X]. I’m ready to give you $X, right now, cash money. You dont want to, thats perfectly fine too. No hard feelings, we can still be friends.”

“Mmm…I bet you could do [x+50]…”

“You know, I appreciate that, I really do. I wish I could. But I’m serious…[X] is what I’ve got right here, right now in my pocket. I really can’t go [x+50]. I still have to pay my rent and then explain to my wife why I’m walking in the door with an Uzi. I’ve got [x] right here, so it’s up to you.”

And, really, if he didn’t want to take [X] I would have been okay with it. True, these tings haven’t been brought into the country since ’86, but they do turn up with fair frequency. But, at the same time, I’d really like to cross “compact, fits-in-backpack, military-rugged 9mm carbine” off my list of things to buy so I can get it done and move on with my life.

So, when it was all said and done, he sold me the gun for what I offered and promised to come back sometime if he needed some gun stuff. In the meantime, I dragged what I call my “Uzi Hope Chest” out of the basement. Don’t look at me like that. I figured that someday I’d have another one of these things so I’ve been acquiring mags and accessories.

So, anyway, that how a wrong number wound up putting an Uzi in my gun rack.

I’ve been wanting a .50 BMG for a while now but, interestingly, Ive never actually fired one. It would be kind of silly to finally get a .50 and discover that it’s a bit much for my delicate frame. Fortunately, luck intervened and I got to shoot a .50 yesterday.

A customer came by and we were talking rifles and he was telling me about his McMillan .50. Turns out he had it with him out in his car and he brought it in to show me. As Im standing there, a friend of mine came by to see if I wanted to go to the range with her to test out some magazines in her .22 pistol. My customer looks at me and says “You’re going to the range? Right now? Well, take the rifle with you and try it out!” He gave me a few rounds of surplus AP (and offered some API which I declined and told him to save for a rainy day), I rendezvoused with the girlfriend and the three of us headed to the range.

The rifle is a single shot McMillan with laminated stock and a huge muzzle brake. Weighs about 26#. Now, I admit I was apprehensive about shooting this thing. Turns out it was all for naught…my Hklone in.308 kicks more than this thing. The muzzle blast, however, was spectacular. Imagine sticking your face right up at the tailpipe of a big diesel truck and someone cranking the engine over – now add a bit more pressure and you’ve got what it felt like to have the blast wave rolling over you. BUT…recoil was tame. How tame? My 115# girlfriend shot it off the bench and thought nothing of it.

The bullets punched through both sides of the hanging steel tanks at the end of the 100 yard range. Fifty caliber entrance and a big chunk of steel knocked out at the exit. It was like being one of the old-style angry thunder gods.

This thing does stretch the limits of man-portability but on the other hand you could, theoretically, sit in the center of a two mile circle and be within range of all within that circle. So…there may not be that much hauling around. It realistically has over twice the range of my .308…more if you really know what you’re doing.

I’d like to have a .50 in case the next election puts them on a ban list.

The customer, btw, offered to sell me the gun with a buncha brass and ammo. Tempting. Really tempting. But I don’t have the money right now and Im waiting until next May to get a .50 with the hopes that well wishers will have donated to my “Im getting married and we’re registered for a .50” fund. (You did kick in a few bucks, right? Who registers for toaster ovens, linens and napkin rings? I can get that at any shopping mall. No, a newly married couple needs anti-materiel firepower!)

Obligatory picture of girlfriend with .50:

Someone asked my opinion on a gun for those Very Bad times in life. Unfortunately, its one of those questions that isn’t easily answered. Why? There’s many factors to consider –
Is the person familiar with the operation of automatics vs. revolvers?
Whats their level of skill? Weekend shooter? Competitor? Once a year?
What is the scenario under which they envision needing a gun?
Are there any other limiting factors?

If you [work with/sell/repair/recreate with/compete with/collect] guns, at some point someone will ask you to recommend a gun for them. Historically the answer is usually a 9mm of some type or a .38 revolver for the inexperienced. Theres some validity to this reasoning and I’ve often given it as an answer when pressed. But…and this is all my opinion so feel free to say Im fulla crap…heres a succinct and honest recommendation: buy the best quality firearm you can afford, that you are likely to practice with, in a caliber that you can shoot accurately, fast and comfortably.
“best quality firearm you can afford” – some will say buy the best quality firearm PERIOD. No, buy the best you can afford. If you put yourself in debt to buy a top-of-the-line BurglarBuster 2000 you wont have the money to afford practice ammo, defensive ammo, a holster and a cleaning kit. But more importantly, you wont be able to afford to practice and if you don’t practice than your gun is about as useful as a Roman candle. Buy a quality gun that you can afford and still be able to buy ammo and range time.

“that you are likely to practice with” – You plunk down money for that high quality affordable handgun and a box of ammo. You go to the range, determined to do your best and to become familiar with your new purchase, you load up, fire six rounds of .44 Mag and say “Im never doing that again!’. If you don’t enjoy shooting you won’t do it as often as you would if you enjoyed it. If a .45 is too much kick and blast and makes you flinch and cringe, get a .40. If that’s too much, get a 9mm. If the .357 Magnum terrifies you when it goes off, shoot .38 Specials. If you don’t enjoy shooting the gun, you won’t want to practice. Get a gun you’ll want to practice with. Get a gun that makes you say ‘Man, I hope I can get some time this weekend to go to the range’.

“that you can shoot accurately, fast and comfortably” – If your gun makes you flinch, twitch and jump when you shoot it you wont shoot comfortably, you wont be able to shoot it quickly, and it almost certainly wont be accurate. If youre not comfortable an automatic, get a revolver. If you cant shoot the revolver quickly, get an auto. Get what you feel most comfortable and perform best with.

For some people, heck for most people, this really will mean a 9mm or a .38 Special. For a few small people it might mean a .380 ACP and for some gorillas it might mean a 10mm. But anyone who can swing a golf club, knead bread dough, or do a couple chin ups can handle a 9mm or .38 Spl.

Whats your standard of marksmanship? One well-known writer on the subject said: “Set up a silhouette target or simply a twenty-four-inch wide by thirty-six-inch long sheet of wrapping paper at a measured twenty-five yards. Then with your friend timing you and blowing a start and stop signal on a loud whistle at five-second intervals, draw your pistol of choice (in a serious caliber) and fire five shots at the center of the target mass, within the allotted five seconds. Reload and repeat. If all of your shots can be contained within a ten-inch circle four times out of five, your survival index is probably adequate. If not, you need training.” (Tappan, “Survival Guns”)

My criteria is a bit more simple- staple a standard paper plate to a target board. Start at, say, 10 yards. Draw and shoot five rounds into the target area. Ideally, you want to do this as fast as you feel comfortable doing. If all your shots stay in the plate, move back another five yards. Repeat. Increase the distance. When you can no longer keep all your shots on that plate you’ve established the maximum distance you can shoot handgun effectively. Given that most handgun events seem to take place at relatively close distance, shooting in the ten to twentyfive yard range seems to be the area to concentrate on.

“Yeah, that’s all great theory but I’ve got a job, a mortgage to pay and barely time to go to the range. Whats gonna work best for me when the power goes out and 911 isnt answering the phone, huh?”

If you want something that youre only going to shoot once or twice a year, doesn’t have any tricky levers or buttons to remember, and can be had fairly cheap then I’d say get a police trade-in .38 or .357 ($250~) or a trade-in Glock 9mm or .40 ($400~). Buy some inexpensive ammo to practice with and become familiar with your gun. Buy a couple boxes of the expensive defensive ammo (usually a hollowpoint with a name like Gold Dot, Golden Sabre, HydraShock, XTP, SXT, etc) and shoot one or two boxes so you know exactly how the gun will perform with it. Load up the ‘good ammo’ and put your gun in a safe place for when you need it. (Storing it loaded vs. unloaded is up to you. Imagine the scenario you think most likely to require your gun..will you have time to load it? In the dark? When youre twitchy with adrenalin? Practice loading and unloading. Personally, I leave ‘the house gun’ loaded at all times.)

That’s 1000 words on handgun selection. I could use up another 1000 but it would just be rehashing the above.

From todays email: Botach has Glock mags for $13.95