Gun Thread: Not Guilty Edition!

Howdy, Y'all! Welcome to the wondrously fabulous Gun Thread! As always, I want to thank all of our regulars for being here week in and week out, and also offer a bigly Gun Thread welcome to any newcomers who may be joining us tonight. Howdy and thank you for stopping by! I hope you find our wacky conversation on the subject of guns 'n shooting both enjoyable and informative. You are always welcome to lurk in the shadows of shame, but I'd like to invite you to jump into the conversation, say howdy, and tell us what kind of shooting you like to do!

Well this has been a great week. I spent a few halfway productive days at the farm, and the jury in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial came back with the best of all possible verdicts; a big, fat collection of not guiltys. Apparently, at least in Kenosha, Wisconsin, the system is sort of still working. The fact the charges were brought in the first place is more than a little troubling, but I will take the result of the ensuing trial any day.

With that, let's get to the gun stuff below, shall we?

Q: Has Weasel said everything he wanted to say about the Rittenhouse trial?
A: No, no Weasel has not said everything he wanted to say regarding the Rittenhouse trial.

We discussed this some last week and I cannot recall who mentioned they thought it problematic to a televise a criminal trial. I happen to agree with the sentiment, if for no other reason than the addition of this element to the proceedings usually has the effect of turning them into a circus. If you have a legitimate personal interest in what is going on, then buy a bus ticket and head for the courthouse.

Having said that, as long as these things are televised, then we might as well get some good out of them. Back in the days of courtroom sketch artists and print coverage, the potential still existed for bias in reporting and political grandstanding, we just didn't have the opportunity to see it with our own eyes and to form our own opinions. In that regard, I suppose the the ability to watch a good thing, and in this case it allowed us to witness first-hand the prosecutorial overreach and disregard for the defendant's constitutional rights.

During the testimony and deliberations I tuned into the Rekieta Law live stream on YouTube periodically, and have to say I found the analysis by the panel of attorneys to be most interesting and enlightening. Chiefly among them was our own pal and sometimes Gun Thread commenter Andrew Branca, Attorney and author of the book The Law of Self-Defense, which Mr. Branca is currently offering for FREE if you pay for shipping.

Free is a very good price-point, and I encourage you to order a copy and study it. I have said this before, but if you have to shoot someone in self-defense, your troubles are only getting started. It's likely to be both financially and emotionally ruinous for you and your family, and you need to know the law in advance so you do as little as possible to help the prosecution. Mr. Branca has a couple of Law of Self Defense membership options offering various benefits available which you might be interested in. Check it out and don't forget to thank Mr. B for his generosity.

So what do you all think? Clearly the end result was a blessing, but what are your thoughts on media coverage in the courtroom? In this specific case, do you think it helped by shaping public opinion?

Have you ordered the free book yet?

First up, we have this beauty from our pal Nevada Dave

I had a friend of mine play around with his laser and thought it came out pretty good. It's an old STI frame with a bar-sto barrel, Ed Brown slide and Novak sights. It holds 14 in the mag with one in the pipe of .45ACP goodness.

Very nice, Nevada Dave! Now maybe am AoS logo?

Next up, our pal blaster reports on what he and hrothgar have been up to.

Hrothgar bit on one of the PSA PSA's and picked up a blem AR15 upper and lower for a VERY reasonable full rifle build price. It looks great in tan furniture maybe he will send a photo along! It went to the range with the Moron Gun Club last week and shot pretty well out of the box, but he wanted to get it zeroed on the iron sights. I have a Bushmaster AR acquired about ten years ago that I never zeroed so sounded like a good reason for a range trip.

I first zeroed an M16 in, ahem, 1984. The technique hasn't really changed that much. This NRA article has a 5 step process - we only did the last 3 which is pretty much : how the Army taught me.

Zero targets are available on the internet for printing on regular 8.5 x 11 paper. We used these.

We were a little worried we wouldn't be able to even see the silhouette at 25 yards given that it isn't 1984 anymore. But it worked out okay. We had a "draft" zeroing target, then we finalized on another. On mine there really are six rounds on target! Then we each put a full mag into another target at 15 yards and despite our finely tuned zeroing while seated with a bag, standing we both ended up shooting consistently low and to the left, but not too badly. Tempted to dial in a couple clicks right and up but that undoes the work of the zero!

Nice job, guys! It's great to have a regular range buddy to work with, isn't it? All ya'll stay tuned in the coming weeks for more range antics from this wacky duo.

Next up, our pal JerseyDevilRider reports on a recent range trip with his AR.

Last Saturday I took my brother-in-law to my sportsman's club for trap. It was closed but fortunately we came prepared. We took to the rifle range first. Pictured is my Modern Material Patrol, which is manufactured in New Jersey, if you can believe that! Experienced shooters who've fired say the pop up sites are some of the best they've used. So any inaccuracies on the target are all me. Second picture is the target. We shot at 50 yards. I wear dollar store readers so I messed around with and without them. Told my lovely wife that I need to make a trip to the eye doctor. Shot center, high, and low, so I didn't do too bad.

Not too bad at all, I'd say! Nice shooting JDR - we'd love to see more of your work!

Next up our pal Butch repots on some range practice with a .22LR.

I recently bought some .22LR from various manufacturers and took my S&W Victory 22 and my Ruger 10/22 Takedown to my local indoor range to see if they would digest them. All fed without problem. I think the 10/22 sights are shit; POI was nowhere near POA. It couldn't possibly be my fault!

10 Yards

25 yards

Anyway, I had excess ammo I did not feel like carrying home, so I tried my hand with the Victory at 10 and 25 yards; targets attached. Meh. In my defense, I have not been to the range to practice for the better part of a year. Not all Morons are crack shots; I need to get to the range more often.

Reviewing the targets I've never seen a clearer example of shooting in socks that are too tight. Seriously, what's not to like? You have a ton of hits and haven't been to the range in a year. I'd say you were doing pretty well! Just make it a habit to practice a little more often, and always go to the range with a plan or training objective in mind. You don't have to make it a big deal, just pick the area where you feel you needed some extra work from the last trip, and concentrate on that first the next time you go. I cannot overemphasize this; having a plan at the range makes your practice that much more focused and effective. Finally, don't confuse plinking with training! Plinking is fun and that's what I do a ton of anymore at the farm, but if I were getting ready for a match or otherwise trying to up my game, my practice routine and range time would look a lot different.

I also applaud your using a .22LR for practice. It's economical and fun to shoot which generally results in more trigger time. I have said this before, but you can practice all the major components of rifle marksmanship at a small fraction of the cost of centerfire cartridges. Practice, practice, practice is the key!

As long as we are talking about the .22LR, here's a video on the ballistics of the cartridge.

No matter how hard you try to avoid it, rust on firearms, particularly stored firearms, can still happen. Here are a couple of videos on rust treatment and removal should you need it. I caution you to test any proposed treatment on an inconspicuous area first, and if you are dealing with a collectable or otherwise valuable gun, leave it to professionals!

Anyone have their own solution they'd like to share?

Finally, our pal hogmartin reminds us of a Winchester 9mm ammunition recall.

Gun Basics 101

If you have't noticed, winter is on the way. Here's the She Equips Herself girl with some concealed carry ideas for fall outfits.

Cigar of the Week

For those interested in a slightly milder cigar than I typically recommend, take a look at the Romeo y Julieta 1875 from Cigars International.

Link-O-Rama

I'm really very seriously not kidding around anymore. Buy Ammo
AmmoSeek - online ammo search tool
GunBot - online ammo search tool
SG Ammo
Palmetto State Armory
Georgia Arms
AmmoMan
Target Sports USA
Bud's Gun Shop

Our pal CBD sends us this week's funny.

Please note the new and improved protonmail account gunthread at protonmail dot com. An informal Gun Thread archive can be found HERE. Future expansion plans are in the works for the site Weasel Gun Thread. If you have a question you would like to ask Gun Thread Staff offline, just send us a note and we'll do our best to answer. If you care to share the story of your favorite firearm, send a picture with your nic and tell us what you sadly lost in the tragic canoe accident. If you would like to remain completely anonymous, just say so. Lurkers are always welcome!

That's it for this week - have you been to the range?

posted by Weasel at 07:00 PM

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