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Gun Thread: It's October 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!

Holy Shitballs! How in the ever-loving Hell did it get to be October? Seems like just last week it was September! Going to be a little bit of a rip-off edition this week, guys and gals. Your ol' pal Weasel went to the farm-o this week to check on things and do some neglected chores, so I didn't have much time for Gun Thread writing.

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

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FUNdamentals
Been practicing your fundamentals? Have I not harped on this enough? No matter how great a shooter you are, never ever miss an opportunity to focus on fundamentals. For example, how much thought has gone into your range watch selection? Are you unsure how to proceed in this critical area? There is no need to panic or recreate the wheel, a true-to-life, big time SF 'Operator' reveals his choices.

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More on watches:

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Let's Make It More Difficult!
Our pal WBG made it to the farm with me this weekend to help out with the organic tree farming, and took some time to try out a spiffy new spinny target. Please note this is much harder than WBG makes it look.

This is why you focus on fundamentals, people.

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Safe Queens?

Last week I wrote about an essentially unfired 1967 Browning Medalist I had acquired, and a the topic of safe queens came up in the comments. Where do you fall on the issue? Are all guns made to shoot, or do you think some should be kept pristine? I can see both sides of the argument, so what do you think? Shoot, don't shoot, or somewhere in the middle?

Regarding the Browning in particular, I hope to have a range video with it next time I'm at the farm.

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Optics
Here is a look at setting up your Trijicon ACOG.

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Tying a Package of Lettermail
You have been doing it wrong.

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Texas MoMe Madness!

TXMoMe Program Update!

Exciting updates in the shooting program below! On Friday, our pal Oddbob will be making a hands-on presentation on reloading beginning at 11am., and our pal EdL will be making a presentation on Short Barreled Rifles (SBRs) and suppressors at 12:00pm, followed by a demonstration on the rifle range after lunch.

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I'd like to bring to everyone's attention the upcoming MoMe in Texas on October 18-19. If you're in either the northern or southern hemisphere of the planet of the earth, you need to contact Ben Had for details. The dates and email links for MoMes are always helpfully included on the main page, left sidebar, so you really have no excuse!

There is an entire shooting program for both handguns and rifles over two days, world class food and drink, and the even world classier company of your fellow Morons! More on the Friday/Saturday schedule to come, so stay tuned.

Seriously, people. I have said this probably a bazillion times now. These gatherings are a really good time, and I know of no one who regrets having attended one. No kidding. Would your ol' pal Weasel lie to you? MoMe veterans will attest to the funness. Don't be a dork, do yourself a favor and get your ass to Texas! If you're a TXMoMe veteran, please encourage the scairdy-cats to join in the fun!

TXMoMe Shooting Festivities

This seems like a good time to talk a little bit about the upcoming shooting program at the TXMoMe, or the Conservative's Burning Man, as it's popularly known. What started years ago as an informal plinking session lasting a couple of hours has matured into a full program of shooting activities over two days. I have to thank Ben Had, Cow Horse Queen and RancherBob for allowing the shooting to comprise such a significant portion of the TXMoMe. From a safety and organizational perspective, I think the shooting programs last year were the best so far, and we intend to generally run the programs the same way this year. We haven't lost anyone yet and I'd really like to keep it that way.

For a while I have been conducting a Rifle Clinic on Friday morning followed by range time Friday afternoon and then again well into Saturday. We have also been steadily refining the handgun portion of the program to now include an IDPA-esque move-and-shoot pistol course designed and run by Nurse R & WBG (WeaselBuddyGeoff). There is also the usual static pistol range for those who prefer that style of shooting and a separate setup for gun-curious beginners desiring one-on-one supervision and instruction.

Anyhoo, here's a very rough outline of the schedule of events. Times are tentative and subject to modification/change. I'll move this down to a TXMoMe section below in the coming weeks and update there as necessary.

Friday, 10/18
Rifle Program
8am - 10am: Rifle Clinic (carport)
10am - 11am: Combined Range and Safety Briefing - Mandatory for Friday Arrivals! (carport)
12:00 (carport) and 1pm (rifle range) - SBR Presentation and Demonstration - EdL
11am - 4pm: Live fire (rifle range - targets to 1,000 yds)

Handgun Program
10am - 11am: Combined Range and Safety Briefing - Mandatory for Friday Arrivals! (carport)
11:00am - 12:00pm: Reloading Demonstration - Oddbob
1pm - 2:30pm: Static live fire (pistol range)
2:30 - 4pm: Briefing and Move & Shoot live fire (pistol range)

Saturday, 10/19
Rifle Program
9am - 10am: Combined Range and Safety Briefing - Mandatory for Saturday arrivals! (carport)
9am - 1pm: Live fire (rifle range)

Handgun Program
9am - 10am: Range and Safety Briefing - Mandatory for Saturday arrivals! (carport)
9am - 1pm: Live fire (pistol range)

Again, these times are approximate and programs may change as weather conditions and participation warrant.

You will note there are combined rifle and handgun range safety briefings both days and attendance at one is mandatory. We take your safety seriously and ask everyone who plans to shoot to please also plan on attending this important briefing. All shooters are asked to check in with an RSO (sporting an Orange Cap of Dorkiness for easy identification) upon your arrival at either of the ranges who will answer questions and direct you to an open firing position. The RSOs wield unspeakable power so it is in your best interest to be nice to them.

If you are a novice shooter, or even have never been to the range before and think guns are icky, you are welcome to shoot! Just see an RSO and they will set you up with an experienced shooter to help you. If you miss the mandatory range safety briefing which is mandatory and must be attended, all is not lost. See an RSO to plead your case, be harangued and chastised, and then spend some punishment time on the Disciplinary Range of Shame. In the interests of time and to save yourself the humiliation, please make it to the scheduled range briefings. Thanks.

Please plan on stopping somewhere along your way to Texas and picking up some ammunition if you plan to shoot and aren't bringing your own weapons. Everyone is very generous with sharing, but please don't rely on the generosity of others to provide everything for you. You can really help out by grabbing a box of 9mm or 5.56mm or whatever you want to shoot.

If you are attending the TXMoMe this year, and all the cool kids are, please keep an eye on this section for important information and updates in the coming weeks! I also want to reiterate the TXMoMe is not a gun thing with some socializing attached, but rather is a social thing with some shooting attached. If you aren't a shooter, I guarantee you will not feel out of place and will have a great time. No fooling!

Are all y'all getting excited? Weasel are!!

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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!

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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?