Category: Gun Schtuff

BLUF
A little over 2400 rounds before it quits.

Ruger Security 9 Endurance Test, by Pat Cascio

Back in February 2018, I tested the then fairly-new polymer-frame Ruger Security 9  handgun. It was a stellar pistol, and very affordable, as well. I liked that gun so much that I added a second one to my modest collection. The first one resides in our bedroom, it is my “nightstand” gun – even though it isn’t stored in a nightstand. My second Security 9 has a trigger guard mounted laser on it, and that is the only difference between the two guns.

Look, we all know that, anything can be broken, under the right circumstance, and I stopped doing “to destruction” testing on just about everything I test. I’ve had more than a few firearms almost self-destruct without doing that type of testing. On the Ruger Security 9, I just wanted to put an obscene number of rounds through it, before it stopped working. Needless to say, no easy task, since we are still in the worst ammo drought in history. The nice folks at Black Hills Ammunition supplied me with a lot of the ammo used in this testing. I also purchased a lot of 9mm ammo out of my own funds, and quite a bit was donated to me – my local FFL often gets ammo in a gun trade – usually partially full boxes, and sometimes they get ammo in plastic bags – they’ve donated quite a bit of ammo to me over the years.

As stated, I wasn’t about to do an article or test to see if I could destroy the little Ruger Security 9, I just wanted to run a lot of ammo through the gun, without cleaning it or lubing it, after I first inspected the gun out of the box – at which time, I lubed it with Breakfree CLP and didn’t do any cleaning after that. I was going to terminate my testing, when the Security 9 had a gun-induced malfunction.

Continue reading “”

First Time Gun Ownership Continues To Soar
Who is buying all of the guns? The answer might surprise gun control activists…

According to The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) nearly 30%, or 5.4 million of the 18.5 million firearms purchased in the United States in 2021, went to first time gun owners. This number is down slightly from 2020’s record breaking gun sales numbers that saw 40%, or 8.4 million of the 21 million total firearms sold, going to first timers. Retailers report that 23% of customers who bought their first gun in 2020 returned to purchase another in 2021, and that nearly half of first time buyers inquired about professional firearms training, meaning many first time buyers quickly became enthusiasts who are serious about gun safety and self-defense.

For decades, gun control groups have attempted to paint gun enthusiasts as “rednecks” living in rural areas, but the data suggests that this is not the case. The NSSF survey found that 33% of first time gun buyers in 2021 were women, and that the number of African Americans purchasing firearms increased by 44%. Hispanic Americans also increased their gun purchases by 40% in 2021. Mark Olivia, NSSF Director of Public Affairs, notes: “Gun owners no longer fit into the tiny little boxes gun control groups wish to put us in. Today’s gun owner is younger, more urban, and more representative of the different demographic groups we see across America.”

The surge in gun sales in recent years is not confined to “red states” or areas with lenient gun ownership laws. Michigan and New Jersey top the list of states that saw the largest increase in firearm sales from January 2020 to January 2021 with 306% and 248% increases, respectively. Even Washington D.C, which has some of the nation’s strictest gun laws, saw an increase in gun purchases of over 200% during the same time period. Year over year, blue-state Minnesota and red-state Alaska saw nearly identical increases in gun sales, over 100%.

Continue reading “”

Can you make a 40 yard supported shot?

Practice and find out, seriously. If you can’t, you have a goal, worthy of attaining, and a demonstrated, not hypothetical, reason for getting there.

Women Now Make Up the Largest Group of New Gun Owners

According to a recent study conducted by Harvard University, women now make up 42% of new gun owners accounting for nearly half of all new gun owners over the past 5-years. This number is up 14% from that same span of time and 3.5 million women joined the ranks of new gun owners between January 2019 and April 2021. An NSSF survey partially backs up this claim by the Harvard study by stating that 1/3rd of 2021’s new gun owners were women.

Keen observers of the firearms industry might have also noticed a distinct shift in the way that firearms companies are producing marketing material with many new products like the recent release of the PDP F Series being specifically marketed towards female shooters. Shooting organizations like “Shoot like a Girl” have also cropped up featuring female firearms instructors whose aim is to bring more women into shooting sports and provide them with a more comfortable environment to train in.

In the study conducted by Harvard University, one-quarter of the women surveyed said self-defense was the main reason they wanted to purchase a firearm for the first time with many citing the uptick in civil unrest and reduction of law enforcement assets during the summer of 2020. Another reason cited by many women as to why they’ve armed themselves is that many of them are now living alone and feel more comfortable having a firearm in the home for self-defense.

Regardless of what is spurring this increase in gun ownership amongst women, I think this is a net positive for the firearms industry as a whole and the women that the industry is trying to serve. Let us know if the ladies that you know are taking on an increased interest in firearms and what they are saying as to how or why they’re getting into firearms.

The original version is still a very good bullet

Tipped Triple-Shock X Ammo:
TTSX Bullets Explained

See the source image

The Tipped Triple-Shock X is an updated variation on Barnes Bullets’ popular Triple-Shock X (TSX) that debuted in 2003, as a premium hunting bullet. TSX was – and still is – extremely popular with a relatively large following, but this tipped version aims to improve upon it with the polymer tip and redesigned nose cavity.

These features offer better rapid expansion and a mushroom effect that splits uniformly into four “petals.” These petals spread away from the center of the bullet on impact, creating a massive wound channel and extreme damage if the shot is in or near any vitals on the target. This effect is similar to a hollow point, but more predictable and consistent due to the features explained below.

Tipped Triple-Shock X Features

  • Lead-Free: Like the standard Triple-Shock line, the tipped version is 100% lead-free. The entire bullet is made of copper, which is very corrosion resistant. And though lighter than lead, it has some benefits that lead and hybrid bullets simply don’t have. One of these is almost complete weight retention, leading to more uniform performance in flight and upon impact.
  • Grooved: Like other bullets from Barnes, these feature grooved rings that help performance at lower pressures. The grooves expand as the bullet passes through the barrel, creating a better connection to the rifling in the barrel. Because of this, accuracy is greatly improved. This is especially appreciated by reloaders, as they have specific uses in mind when creating their perfect ammo for hunting, defense, and target shooting.
  • Polymer Tip: Anyone familiar with aerodynamics knows that a tipped bullet will fly faster and flatter than one with a hollow tip, round nose or other “non-tipped” style. Most shooters describe this as a ballistic coefficient. While this is true, another vital role of the the polymer tip is that it actually acts as a “trigger” of sorts to initiate expansion on impact. When the bullet hits its target, the tip is driven back into the bullet, forcing the bullet to expand. The tipped TSX bullets have a wider and deeper hollow cavity that the tip rests in, so you get an even larger wound cavity with the tipped version. This is great for hunters who want to take down the largest game.

Tipped Triple-Shock X Uses

While this particular bullet is used almost exclusively in big-game hunting ammo, you can also use it for smaller critters – as it has the accuracy to devastate most critters at extreme range, which is good for skittish varmints that won’t let you get anywhere near them.

This bullet shines in the wolf, boar, deer, goat, moose and bear area – and with calibers like .300 Win Mag and .30-06, you will have plenty of knockdown power. If you live in an area with limited tags each season, you want every shot to count and this bullet in most calibers is going to get the job done beautifully.

Whether you’re a reloader, buying various ammo from Barnes directly, or know someone who uses these bullets in their own stock, this is going to be a favorite hunting ammo for you and people you hunt with. There’s quite a following for the TSX and most have jumped over to the tipped style, simply because it outperforms the standard in many ways.

Private Purchasers Clean Up at Fort Worth Gun Buyback

A few days ago, this correspondent wrote about the upcoming gun turn in event scheduled for Fort Worth, Texas. Police were offering $100 gift cards to people who turned in working firearms. As predicted, the police quickly ran out of gift cards. The event, scheduled for four days, ended in three and a half hours.

The private buyers did not run out of cash. They got some pretty good deals. C.J. Grisham, who founded Open Carry Texas spoke to a reporter.

From cbsnews.com:

“So we wanted to come out here and get some good deals,” Open Carry Texas President and Founder, CJ Grisham said.

Right outside of the event there was a group of people who were able to offer cash and buy guns themselves.

“We offered them $100 in cash, instead of one hundred in gift cards,” Grisham said. “And if they were just going to take it in there we might increase it a little bit but I think the average price we paid was maybe $150 today.”

Grisham said majority of the people they approached accepted his offer. CBS 11 asked Fort Worth police about guns they hoped would be taken off the street, remaining in the community.

The police said the private buyers were within their rights to make offers and purchase guns themselves. The private buyers purchased about 30 guns, according to Grisham, at an average of about $150.

From the image shown on the video, the private buyers did well. The firearms purchased appear to include an SKS rifle, a double barreled shotgun, a Freedom Arms mini-revolver, a Remington semi-automatic centerfire rifle, an Explorer II .22 pistol,  a Smith & Wesson Scandium revolver, and many more.

The police showed an image of 107 firearms they accepted in exchange for gift cards. Included in the guns turned in was a classic model 12 Winchester shotgun, a Colt revolver, and numerous other rifles and shotguns. As expected, there was the usual assortment of inexpensive pistols, single shot shotguns, and .22 rifles. One of those appeared to be a Marlin lever action model 39 in good condition.

Most of the guns turned in were worth more than $100. The Model 12 Winchester usually goes for over $400. A model 39 Marlin would easily bring $400. There appeared to be an antique Smith & Wesson model 3 top-break revolver. It might have been worth over a thousand dollars.

There was at least one air rifle. Air guns and blank pistols may help account for a slight discrepancy in the reporting of the number of firearms turned in. Some reports state 112 guns were turned in to the police.

Guns turned in to Fort Worth Police (courtesy of Fort Worth Police Department)

From wfaa.com:

“Maybe was inherited, maybe just lying around. They had no use for and they didn’t want it to fall into the wrong hands or the hands of a child,” said Carabaja. “We respect everybody’s rights, everyone that
came in here voluntarily and they got something out of it.”

Officers planned to collect weapons for four days. But they run out of gift cards within hours, collecting 112 handguns and rifles of almost every make and model, according to police. 

None of the funds used to purchase the gift cards came from taxpayer money. The program uses confiscated monies for gun buyback events.

One of their goals is to keep weapons like these out of the wrong hands. 

The academic response to these sort of events is uniform. They do not work to reduce crime or suicides. The only plausible effect is propaganda, to send a message to the public: Guns bad. Turn them into the police. The private buyers countered that message with another: Guns are good. We pay Cash.

T.J. Grisham and the other private purchasers had a good day. The guns brought in were “taken off the streets” and into the hands of the police or into the hands of responsible private citizens.

Some AmmoLand readers were considering attending the Fort Worth event. Comments from those who attended would be a welcome addition to our information about what happened at the event.

Shooter Development — the Eleanor Drill by Sage Dynamics

Making rapid transitions from precision to practical accuracy is what the Eleanor Drill from Sage Dynamics is all about, explains Aaron Cowan. He notes that there are thousands of shooting drills out there and that he uses those that suit his needs. If he can’t find a regular exercise that suits his needs, he will formulate a new one that does.

One of those needs that he sees is making the rapid transition from precision to practical accuracy, whether with a handgun or a rifle.

Continue reading “”

They’ve made several movies on this theme, and none of them were good for humans.

Ukraine Unveils Mini “Terminator” Ground Robot Equipped With Machine Gun.

The latest war machine headed to Ukraine’s front lines isn’t a flying drone but a miniature 4×4 ground-based robot — equipped with a machine gun.

According to Forbes, Ukrainian forces are set to receive an uncrewed ground vehicle (UGV) called “GNOM” that is no bigger than a standard microwave and weighs around 110lbs.

“Control of GNOM is possible in the most aggressive environment during the operation of the enemy’s electronic warfare equipment.

“The operator doesn’t deploy a control station with an antenna, and does not unmask his position. The cable is not visible, and it also does not create thermal radiation that could be seen by a thermal imager,” said Eduard Trotsenko, CEO and owner of Temerland, the maker of the GNOM.

“While it is usually operated by remote control, GNOM clearly has some onboard intelligence and is capable of autonomous navigation. Previous Temerland designs have included advanced neural network and machine learning hardware and software providing a high degree of autonomy, so the company seems to have experience,” Forbes said.

The 7.62mm machinegun mounted on top of the “Terminator-style” robot will provide fire support for Ukrainian forces in dangerous areas. The UGV can also transport ammunition or other supplies to the front lines and even evacuate wounded soldiers with a special trailer.

Temerland said the GNOMs would be deployed near term. The highly sophisticated UGV could help the Ukrainians become more stealthy and lethal on the modern battlefield as they have also been utilizing Western drones.

Killer robots with machine guns appear to be entering the battlefield, and this one seems as if it was “WALL-E” that went to war.

Author Stephen Hunter makes valid point about guns

Author Stephen Hunter is best known for his Bob Lee Swagger books. He was also a film critic for the Washington Post until he retired in 2008.

While he writes thrillers, his career might make you think he’s anti-gun.

Well, he’s apparently not. In fact, he made a very good point about guns and massacres.

Possibly you’re old enough to remember the great massacre spree of 1964? Classrooms shot up, strip malls decimated, scout troops blown away, fast food restaurants turned into mortuaries.

And all because, in its infinite stupidity, the U.S. government dumped 240,000 high-capacity .30 caliber assault rifles into an otherwise innocent America.

The weapons clearly had a demon-spirit to them. Compared to anything else in the market, they had that murder-most-easy look. One glance at the sinister gleam of the walnut stock which caressed the military-gray receiver and barrel of the weapon, its magazine wickedly boasting of many cartridges ready and waiting, its photo- and Hollywood associations with war, and some went screwball. They had the overwhelming desire to use it as it was meant to be used. It was not powerful enough for deer and not accurate enough for vermin. It existed only to kill human beings.

Except there was no massacre spree of 1964, despite the fact that in 1963 the United States Army surplussed 240,000 M1 carbines via the NRA. They were available through the mail at $20. Not an NRA member? Eighty bucks, then, from any sporting goods store. Denver’s Dave Cook’s–“Guns Galore at Prices to Score”– had them by mail order, magazine and sling included, postage, $1.25.

The M1 carbine was a semi-automatic rifle with a detachable magazine that could fire pretty much as fast as an AR-15 and used a much larger round, from a pure diameter standpoint.

It was a recipe for disaster by today’s standard and yet, nothing. Not a single mass shooting with such weapons.

Hunter goes on to point out that in the summer of 1964, there were tons of inexpensive semi-automatic, magazine-fed rifles on the open market that could be mailed right to you, but there weren’t people like the Buffalo or Uvalde shooters.

It’s a very valid point and a great example of how the problem isn’t the availability of firearms. They were easier to acquire in 1964 than they are today and they were just as deadly. They could be discharged at a high rate of fire, too.

These were actual weapons of war, even, not something that just looks like one.

And yet, as Hunter notes, no massacres. No school shootings. None of the things we’re told result from “easy” access to firearms.

That suggests strongly that the problem here is something else, something else entirely. We, as a society, would be better off if we could stop blaming guns for five minutes and start looking deeper into why this is happening and why this continues to be an issue.

Yet that’s apparently not allowed by some in our world. They’ve got a vested interest in blaming the guns rather than in solving the actual problem.

Part of that, of course, is also blaming others for not agreeing that guns are the problem despite clear evidence that they’re not.

First Look: Federal .22 WMR Punch Personal Defense Ammunition
A defensive 22 Magnum cartridge that packs a punch.

One of the latest trends in the concealed carry and personal self defense world is sub-caliber, rimfire firearms for concealed carry, and Federal Ammunition is expanding their Punch Personal Defense rimfire line by releasing a .22 WMR cartridge option recently announced at the 2022 NRA Annual Meetings and Exhibits Convention in Houston, TX.

The .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, also known as .22 Magnum, was originally introduced during the late 1950s by Winchester, and with its larger case capacity it is able to push the same types of projectiles found in .22 Long Rifle cartridges faster and flatter. It has since been offered as a rimfire caliber option for a multitude of both rifles and pistols by all major gunmakers.

The .22 WMR Punch Personal Defense cartridge features a nickel casing that comes loaded with a nickel-plated lead core 45 grain jacketed hollow point bullet known as the Punch JHP. Federal’s ballistics engineers optimized the .22 WMR Punch Personal Defense to provide deeper penetration and expansion when fired from sub compact rimfire handguns. For example, from a two inch barrel, this load is capable of 1,000 fps muzzle velocity, and if fired from a rifle length barrel, it is capable of reaching 1,800 fps at the muzzle.

Pairing the Federal .22 WMR Punch Personal Defense with a small revolver such as Ruger LCR could offer a defensive carrier a good amount of convenience and portability without sacrificing ballistic performance, especially considering the overall size and weight and the fact that small revolvers can be carried in pockets or other non-typical manners.

Federal Premium .22 WMR Punch Personal Defense cartridges come in a plastic case of fifty round and retail for $25.99. For more information about Federal’s rimfire Punch Personal Defense cartridges (which also include a 29 grain high velocity .22 Long Rifle option) and other defensive, hunting, training, tactical, or match ammunition, please visit their website at federalpremium.com.

 

Know the lying demoncraps infesting the White House, this can almost be seen as confirmation

White House denies claims from guns group that ammo ban is under consideration

The White House is denying a recent claim from a gun foundation that a limited ammunition ban is under consideration, which would drive the price of legal ammunition higher.

The Biden administration supposedly informed Winchester Ammunition that “the government is considering restricting the manufacturing and commercial sale of legal ammunition produced at the Lake City, Mo., facility,” a spokesman from the National Shooting Sports Foundation told the Washington Examiner on Friday.

A White House official denied the claim.

Currently, Winchester is allowed to sell surplus ammunition after meeting the military’s needs on the civilian market, but Mark Oliva, the NSSF spokesman, warned that banning the practice would “significantly reduce the availability of ammunition in the marketplace and put the nation’s warfighting readiness at risk. Both NSSF and Winchester strongly oppose this action.”

This practice now represents roughly 30% of the 5.56 mm/.223 caliber ammunition sales.

Earlier this week, a bipartisan group of senators announced they had agreed in principle to the framework of new legislation to instill additional restrictions on guns that may have a chance to be passed in the Senate. Twenty senators, 10 from each party, signed on to the legislation, demonstrating the support it would need to pass the 60-vote threshold.

A White House official told the Washington Examiner that the reports on a possible ban “are way off,” while Oliva warned that the implementation of such a policy “jeopardizes the fragile negotiations of the framework deal that was agreed to by the bipartisan group of senators.”

After mass shootings, such as the ones in Uvalde, Texas, and Buffalo, New York, it is typical that gun owners flock to firearm stores in order to buy weapons over fears of new gun control legislation. That fear also prompts ammunition purchases, which have led to a shortage. Both gun and ammunition manufacturers saw their stocks go up after the Uvalde shooting.

“The typical hypothesis is that this is an exogenous shock, unanticipated, and as a result of a mass shooting, the reaction is there is an expectation that legislative steps will be undertaken to potentially restrict ammunition, access to guns,” Brian Marks, the executive director of the University of New Haven’s Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, previously told the Washington Examiner.

Double whammy; SloJoe’s antigun policy and military increases ‘going back to cold war era postures’, look to be cutting into civilian ammo availability

Biden Administration Moves to Cut Off Lake City .223/5.56 Ammo From the Commercial Market

Apparently not content with its efforts so far to make gun ownership more difficult and expensive for America’s 100 million firearm owners, a source tells TTAG that the Biden administration is taking steps to reduce the availability of .223/5.56 ammunition available to the average shooter.

A person with knowledge of the situation tells us that, more than just “considering” the move, Winchester, which operates the US Army’s Lake City ammunition plant, has been informed that it may no longer sell M855 and SS109 ammunition produced in excess of the military’s needs on the civilian market.

How would that affect the civilian supply of .223 and 5.56 ammunition? We understand that as much as 30% of the commercial market’s sales volume of .223/5.56 is produced by Lake City.

Apropos of nothing in  particular……….

Take out “The” and  “of ‘assault weapons’” and it would still be right.

The Reality of ‘Assault Weapons’ is Far Too Boring and Inconvenient for the Media.

We’re hearing a lot of claims and counter-claims about modern sporting rifles right now. While these “modern” guns are more than half a century old, honest gun owners still buy and use them every day. Occasionally, criminals use them as well, but that’s rare. About one-out-of-eight gun owners have a modern sporting rifle today. And as we’d expect, rifles are used in armed defense situations about an eighth of the time.

Semi-automatic, magazine-fed rifles were introduced to the civilian market here in the US in 1905. The US military adopted them about three decades later for use in World War II.

The civilian version of the modern sporting rifle, the AR-15, was introduced in 1956 so it has been with us for over six decades. In addition to its low recoil and plastic stock, the AR platform’s real innovation is its modularity. The AR can be adjusted to fit people of almost any stature in seconds, which is why it’s so popular. It’s the gateway rifle, the volksgun. I think that is why the democrats want it banned.

Here are two recent news stories that involve the use of a modern sporting rifle . . .

Homeowner with an AR stops two home invaders
It was mid-morning when a homeowner in Brownsboro, Texas heard the sounds of breaking glass coming from inside his home. The homeowner grabbed his AR rifle and went to see what was happening. The homeowner saw two strangers in his house. The defender told the intruders not to move. The second intruder, a female accomplice, ran away. The defender let her go and called 911.

Police arrested the male intruder. The homeowner pointed out the broken glass near his front door. Police arrested and searched the neighborhood for the second robber.

The defender was not charged with a crime.

The homeowner never pulled the trigger as he defended himself. That’s the usual outcome and happens in over 80 percent of defensive gun uses. There are exceptions, of course.

Woman with concealed carry license stops felon with an AR
A woman with a concealed carry permit was attending a graduation/birthday party at an apartment complex in Charleston, West Virginia. The party had spilled out into the parking lot with about 40 people at the celebration. At about 10 at night, a man drove through the parking lot and people shouted for him to slow down.

The driver took offense and came back a half hour later. He climbed into the back seat of his car and started shooting at the crowd with an AR rifle. The woman shot back several times, stopping the attacker in what would have been a mass shooting. No one else was injured.

She called 911 and remained at the scene. Emergency medical services declared the shooter dead from multiple gunshot wounds. The attacker was a convicted felon with a long criminal record. Police are investigating how he got his firearm.

Gun control laws don’t stop criminals from acquiring and using guns. They never have. But there is more we can learn from these two news accounts. AR rifles don’t turn honest homeowners into enraged murderers and they don’t make criminals into unstoppable killers. Modern sporting rifles are actually mundane. And as we’d expect, our neighbors only use lethal force as a last resort.

The reality is, however, that honest reporting about ordinary citizens defending themselves doesn’t make much money for the mainstream news media. They find it more clickworthy to say that a particular piece of steel, plastic and aluminum is horribly frightening and unusually deadly. Apparently that’s the only thing that keeps us watching through the commercials.