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Gun Thread: First of the Month After July 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!

Jumpin' cat whiskers!! How in the ever-loving Hell did it get to be August?! I mean, it seems like the summer just started, doesn't it? And now you want me to believe it's August? Holy crap!

With that, step into the dojo and let's get to the gun stuff below, shall we?

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What Would You Do (WWYD)?
I've been, well, suggesting you buy ammo for some time now. I've been suggesting this for 254 weeks to be exact. Have you done this? Have you bought ammo, and since you're practicing diligently and regularly, are you continuing to buy ammo? Since I think it's so important, for some time now I have been including links to online ammo sources and even a couple of ammunition search engines; AmmoSeek and GunBot. These allow you to not only find places with ammo available but to also easily comparison price shop, as well.

Everyone likes a getting a good deal, and yer ol' pal Weasel is no exception. Having said that, I also tend to stick with major manufacturers. However, I cannot say with any certainty that if I found a great deal on Super BlastMaster 5000 ammo that I might not start hitting the buy now button like a boll weevil on a cotton ball. But should you be shopping based on price alone, and what if the SBM 5K is the only thing available? Do you shrug and take out the credit card?

To put a finer point on things, what due dillegence, if any, are you doing when buying range ammo especially with brands you aren't familiar with?

Whoops! Whoopsie-doodle! The ammo and gun blowed up nearly taking out this guy's hand in the process! Where I come from, that's bigly not bueno. This guy didn't buy a baggie full of sketchy looking reloads being sold out of trunk of a car in the parking lot of a gun show, but rather was using legit looking, packaged, commercial ammunition. Sure, sure - all sorts of bad juju can happen on high-speed production lines, but in tens of thousands of rounds of recreational and competitive shooting, I have had precisely 0.0 guns explode.

Still happy to have saved a few bucks?

Until now, I had never heard of Zinc Point ammunition, and some very brief internet research revealed a) I cannot find a functioning website for the business, and 2) I was able to find about a million bad reviews and complaints regarding their products. I don't know anything about the hombre who made the video, but based on the totality of what I found online, I'm inclined to believe him.

But wait! There's more!

So in the follow-up video our guy describes some additional contact with the company's management and customer service people, although nothing was ever resolved. At the end of the day I think he's lucky not to have lost an eyeball or a finger or two. Realizing you're dealing with a shit company is never a great feeling, but as the guy figures out, sometimes you just have to cut your losses.

So what do you guys and gals do? Do you only purchase from big brand manufacturers, or are you willing to go with lesser-known outfits to save money? Do you research a new manufacturer even a little bit before trying the product? Remember, this isn't like trying generic toilet paper where the potential downside of a bad product is minimal. We're talking about live ammunition where a manufacturing defect or failure can absolutely ruin your day, and even a cursory check online might've saved the guy a lot of trouble.

What do all y'all think?

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Guns of The Weasel

Gun Thread - August 9, 2020

Random Sig from the WeaselCollection

Looking around for content, I see I just happen to have a P239 here on the desk. It's a gun I've had for years, and I am a big fan of all metal P series, so much so that I went to the Sig Academy in New Hampshire and took their Armorer's Certification Course. It's a 2-day class covering troubleshooting and maintenance of these popular guns. What motivated me to take the course? Well, I own a number of P-series guns, and I wanted to be able to take them apart and put them back together without having a lot of leftover parts.

Simply cleaning a weapon requires some level of disassembly and I was always curious about all the little pins and springs and other teensy parts that make up the innards of a gun. Frequently my re-assembly attempts ended with leftover parts on the bench, necessitating a frantic YouTube search until a helpful video help was found, or worse, taking the gun and a baggie of loose parts to my gunsmith.

Two things eventually happened; my collection of Sig Sauer semi-automatic pistols grew large enough, and I got tired of paying for simple adjustments, repairs and parts replacement. It was at this point that I decided to take Sig's Armorer's course, so I packed a bag, pointed the car north, and headed for Epping, New Hampshire.

The Sig Sauer Academy sits on 140 acres a little over an hour north of Boston, MA. The facilities include an assortment of indoor/outdoor ranges, classrooms, tactical training areas and a pro shop. It's a really impressive setup, and I'd been to the Epping facility before, taking rifle courses, so I was familiar with the layout. Signing up was simple and done online, including uploading various credentials required for the specific courses. The armorer's courses are conveniently held in locations all over the country, last two days, and cost $430 [now $540 -W]. Upon successful completion, students are awarded a certificate good for three years which allows them to fully service the pistols while maintaining the factory warranty. Recertification is a one-day refresher class.

The P226 in the picture above is the gun I took apart and put back together about 100 times over the course of two days. You start by working on the smaller sub-assemblies and eventually work up to complete disassembly and re-assembly of the pistol. I thought I'd be cute and organize the parts by group to make it easier, but I guess the instructor had seen this before and helpfully mixed everything up into a big pile for me. Eventually, it was fairly straightforward to take a pile of parts and turn it into a working firearm. The course is quite a bit of fun, but it's also no joke. You must demonstrate proficiency working on the weapons to the instructor and pass a written test. I've found the experience gained even helps in troubleshooting problems with other brands of firearms.

I have to say I'm happy to have taken the course, but I haven't felt compelled to keep the certification current. I'm also not sure I'd pay any more than the $430 they're charging {now $540 -W]. The quality of instruction is very good but at that price I don't think it's a bargain for the casual shooter. Not a waste, but not a bargain.

So that was my opinion last year, and its sort of still my opinion this year. What changed? Well, I think my opinion of the relative value of the knowledge gained has increased. In these difficult and uncertain times which we're all living in together, I think the value of what I learned has gone up. Way up. Rather than before simply being a matter of mere convenience, I know I can work on these guns and repair them myself as necessary when it's not practical or possible for me to take them to someone else to fix. I think you need to have at least some familiarity with the operation and assembly of your firearm.

Why am I mentioning this now? Well, for two reasons; first, it saves me from having to think of new things to write about, and more importantly, it identifies something you need to be thinking about in addition to buying ammo and practice. Your trusty carry handgun isn't going to do you much good if, say, a trigger spring breaks, and you do not have the spare part and knowledge to replace it. Yourself.

I would encourage you to start looking for general maintenance references and resources for your most frequently used firearms and identify the most common parts subject to wear and order replacement parts now. I'm talking about springs, pins, grip screws and firing pins, that sort of thing. Anything that is subject to wear and tear through normal use. You need to have these spare parts now, and not try to source them when they break and are needed in a hurry. You should also have a basic maintenance kit with the tools needed for precision work. A small set of gunsmithing screwdrivers, needle nose pliers, punches, and a small brass hammer. I am sure you can think of other things to add. Clearly label the parts and get a small inexpensive fishing tackle box to keep it in. There are countless reference books on basic firearm repair, and you can probably find one with an exploded parts diagram for your particular firearm. Keep this with your tools and you will thank yourself later.

Here's a video example someone made of a Sig P226 reassembly, and there are a lot of others. It's difficult to see detail of some of the small parts, but you get the idea.

What do you think? I'm sure a lot of you are already doing this. Right?

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Range Trip
Our pal RedMindBlueState sends us the following results of a day at the range with RMBS Mom. They take their MoMe prep seriously!

The RMBS Mom had another range day today. One Browning Buckmark off a rest at 5 yards. Definite improvement. She's starting to group reasonably well. We're focusing on sight alignment and sight picture at the moment. We'll have her ready for Corsicana!

Will you just look at those targets? Very nice RMBS Mom!! Congratulations!! October will be here before you know it and I can't wait to see you again, blazing away on the range in Texas!

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I'm Hit!
I can recall the first time I realized I'd been shot. I was at a busy indoor range plugging away at my cardboard target when I felt something thump me in the chest. Looking down, I saw a ragged copper bullet jacket fragment on the bench in front of me. I'm hit! I'm HIT! Weasel down! MEDIC! OK, it wasn't quite that dramatic. As a matter of fact, I wasn't even bleeding, but still! Clearly someone's shot had found metal somewhere downrange and a bullet chunk bounced back to hit me.

So here is an interesting scientific test on steel plates and ricochets. I love shooting steel and that's what I use predominately on the range at Weasel Acres. They're durable and the clang! when you hit them sure is satisfying. You can leave them in the weather and simply touch them up with spray paint during a shooting session.

What do all y'all think? Do you use steel, and if so, what steps do you take to mitigate ricochets? Are you mindful of istance and angle of fire to the target?

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You n' Uranus!

C'mon, people. Did you really think I could resist posting this?

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Oregon and Texas MoMe Madness!

I'd like to point out the two upcoming MoMes; one in Oregon on August 19th, and the other in Texas on October 20-21. If you're anywhere near Salem, OR contact Kindltot and if you're in Texas contact Ben Had for details. The dates and email links are also helpfully included on the main page, left sidebar, so you really have no excuse!

Seriously, people. I have said this probably a hundred times now. These gatherings are a really good time, and I know of no one who regrets having attended one. No kidding. MoMe veterans will attest to the funness. Don't be a dork, do yourself a favor and get your ass to a MoMe!

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Musical Interlude
Here is The Allman Brothers Band and One Way Out live from Germany in 1991.

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Gun Basics 101
New video from the She Equips Herself gal! This week's video is on concealed carry products.

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Armed Attorneys
Popped a cap into a bad guy? Here's what to tell the cops.

Bonus Content!
This is really good advice, people. Shut the *%^$# up!

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Cigar of the Week

This week our pal rhomboid scores again with this excellent review of the Charter Oak Broadleaf maduro

Today's cigar is a Charter Oak Broadleaf maduro, in the lonsdale vitola (size and shape) - 6.2 X 46. Rolled in Nicaragua, this cigar sports a dark Connecticut broadleaf wrapper, with Nicaraguan fillers. Firm in the hand, with a "toothy", or somewhat veiny and rough, exterior. The burn was uneven, and required frequent touch-ups, but the draw was fine. Lots of smoke, and as to flavor, hints of cocoa sweetness, generally a mellow maduro profile, no spice or bold dark earth notes. A good stick for a medium experience with flavor at a good price. That price is just above $5, and up, online.

Excellent as always, rhomboid! I think I may have to order a box of these bad boys. Thank you!

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Here are some different online cigar vendors. You will find they not only carry different brands and different lines from those brands, but also varying selections of vitolas (sizes/shapes) of given lines. It's good to have options, especially if you're looking for a specific cigar.

Cigarsinternational.com
Cigarpage.com
Famous-smoke.com
Cigarsdaily.com
Neptunecigar.com
Smallbatchcigar.com
Bobalu Cigar Company
Cigarbid.com

A note about sources. The brick & mortar/online divide exists with cigars, as with guns, and most consumer products, with respect to price. As with guns - since both are "persecuted industries", basically - I make a conscious effort to source at least some of my cigars from my local store(s). It's a small thing, but the brick & mortar segment for both guns and tobacco are precious, and worth supporting where you can. And if you're lucky enough to have a good cigar store/lounge available, they're often a good social event with many dangerous people of the sort who own scary gunz, or read smart military blogs like this one. -rhomboid

Anyone have others to include? Perhaps a small local roller who makes a cigar you like? Send me your recommendation and a link to the site!

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Ammo 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
American Elite Ammo NEW!

***Mail Bag***

This week's mailbag entry is from our pal WTM. Very true!

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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?