RFI: Gun Laws

I need some general advice on the above topic, but specifically with regard to the Lone Star State.

If any of my Texas-based Powdered Wigs would care to drop me a line, with your telephone # so we can chat, I’d appreciate it greatly.

Thankee.

(And no, it’s not about me, it’s a hypothetical.)

Being Ready

John Walters has posted his list of 10 essential guns that will help you survive the time when civilization starts to crumble and fall over.  His conclusion says it all:

Ten guns.  Thousands of dollars.  Hundreds of training hours.  This isn’t hobbyism.  It’s insurance against hard times, written in steel and gunpowder.  My uncle understood what I’m only now fully grasping: preparation becomes necessity without announcement, and those ready sleep while others pace in darkness.

Acquire these tools.  Learn them.  Maintain them against the day when phones die and police stop coming.  That day approaches regardless of elections or economic indicators.

Civilization persists where force maintains it.  Ensure you possess sufficient force.

I think that everyone who visits my website with any regularity will be familiar with the concept, because I’ve been hammering on about it for over two decades.

As for his list, I have no problem with anything he says, because his rationale is well supported by common sense.  (I may disagree with a couple of his specific guns, of course, as may any one of you, but that’s absolutely unimportant:  the category and the need they address are well stated.  Also, some of the categories kinda overlap, but that’s also not a major fault:  there’s nothing wrong with a little redundancy, as any fule kno.)

  1. Pump Shotgun: 12-Gauge
  2. AR-15 Platform
  3. Service Pistol: .45 ACP Long-Range
  4. Hunter: .30-06 Springfield
  5. Rimfire Battery: .22 LR
  6. Concealed Companion: Subcompact 9mm
  7. Battle Rifle: 7.62x51mm NATO
  8. Revolver: .357 Magnum
  9. Tactical Shotgun: Semi-Automatic 12-Gauge
  10. Precision Instrument: Bolt-Action .308

One could argue that the “hunter” (.30-06) and “battle rifle “(7.62x51mm) could be addressed by the same rifle (e.g. an M1 Garand), and the “hunter” likewise with the “precision instrument” (e.g. a scoped Mauser in [pick one]  chambering).  As I said, there’s some overlap.

Interestingly, I am deficient in both shotgun categories — I don’t own a shotgun of any description at the moment — and I don’t really have a subcompact handgun either.  (If Clint Smith carries two 1911s, I see no reason why I shouldn’t, or else carry two .357 Mag/.38 Special revolvers, as I sometimes do.)  And really, those handguns are just there to buy me the time to get to the trunk of my car, where Hell Awaits To Be Unleashed™.

I am also somewhat leery of the “precision instrument”, mostly because my eyesight is becoming so crap that any shot needing to be made over 400 (300 even?) yards would see me seeking deep cover or retreating instead.  (I do have a decent precision/hunting rifle or two, of course, but I’m no longer confident of my ability to reach out and touch anyone further out than the above, with any degree of confidence.)

I’m getting to the point, in other words, where my “hunter”, “battle” and “precision instrument” categories will soon be blended into a .357 Magnum lever rifle (with an old Ruger/S&W revolver as a companion piece when it comes to halitosis-range combat).

But don’t let me be a downer:  get out there and do as the man says.  Practice till you can’t practice anymore, and then practice again and again, as often as you can.

Your life may well depend on it.

Reader Response

Following yesterday’s post about staghorn grips, Longtime Reader Anthony B. has a suggestion — not just for the Single Six — and Altamont Co. looks like they know what they’re doing.


(Wrangler grips also fit the Single Six line)

I wasn’t actually planning to get new grips for my Single Sixes, but now that I see the options…. hmmmm.

It’s always good to find a “new” gunny vendor (i.e. one I’d never heard of before), so many thanks, Anthony.

Once Again, A Simple Solution

We all knew about this disgusting abridgement of our rights, but here it is in black and white:

Rep. Michael Cloud, R-Tex., sent a letter on Tuesday to President Donald Trump urging action on a centralized registry of guns and gun owners that, according to Gun Owners of America (GOA), violates multiple federal statutes. 

Cloud argued the database violates the 1986 Firearm Owners’ Protection Act and congressional spending bans on centralizing records or searching them by name.

“No one in their right mind can look at ATF’s digital, searchable 1.4 billion record database of firearm transactions and tell me that isn’t a gun registry. Several federal laws prohibit gun registration, so it’s truly shocking to see how ATF has disregarded the will of Congress here,” Aidan Johnston, GOA Federal Affairs Director told Just The News.

According to Johnston, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ (ATF) digital database, managed by the National Tracing Center in West Virginia, has surged to 1.4 billion records, a significant increase from the 920 million records reported in 2021. 

The database contains various forms of identifying records such as firearm transaction records, names, addresses, and serial numbers. The records are primarily digitized from paper forms when gun stores go out of business, which happened at an accelerated rate under the Biden administration due to its zero-tolerance policies.

The ATF hides behind a definition:

…the ATF claims this is a tracing system rather than a registry.

Of course it does.  This ignores (uh huh) the fact that it’s a de facto  registration device — just an unintended consequence rather than a feature rather than a bug.  And as for the database’s apologists:

The ATF did not provide documentary evidence that traces from these records have produced successful violent-crime prosecutions.

Needless to say, avoiding the danger of appearing on said database just requires gun owners to utilize ummm impromptu purchasing methods (e.g. the “Texas transfer” and going to a nearby ELGS*).

Not that I would ever do anything like that to avoid appearing on the ATF’s “tracing system”, of course.

You all know the “simple solution” of this post’s title, don’t you?

Abolish the fucking ATF in toto, fire (not transfer) all its agents and bureaucrats, and burn the National Tracing Center to the ground.


*ELGS:  Evil Loophole Gun Show (coined by Rachel Lucas)

Intriguing

C.W. thinks that this is the best-looking Single Six ever:

…and I have to admit that I can’t disagree with him that much.  Hmmm… I wonder whether those staghorn grips would look better on the stainless, or the blue?

Staghorn grips are like hen’s teeth nowadays.  Ajax used to make them, but they seem to have been discontinued, and I can’t afford the cost of custom-made ones.  All that’s left seems to be fake ivory, which I think would be a poor substitute.

Comments and sources would be welcome.

But that reminds me:  I haven’t played with these for at least a month or so.  Time to rectify that, so if you’ll excuse me… it’s range time.

RFI: .22 LR Pistols

This may seem like a strange thing to ask about (coming from me), but I’d like a little personal input on the S&W SW22 pistol, as seen here for example:

Specifically, what’s the trigger like?  I’m not interested in any .22 pistol trigger that isn’t as good as the Browning Buckmark’s.  Ordinarily, I’d just get a Ruger Mk IV, but the trigger’s terrible (by comparison).  Ditto the Walther PPQ pistols, which are even worse than the Ruger’s.

Reason for asking:  I’m going to be getting a .22 silencer at some point, and none of my existing pistols have threaded barrels, or can be made to have one without much gunsmithing.

Of course, I could just get another Buckmark, like the Micro:

Or, if push came to shove, the Browning 1911-22 compact model:

Those three, then, are the front-runners so far.

But the SW22 is priced a lot more attractively (#NoBrowningPremium), hence my specific interest, but only if it has a decent trigger, hence my RFI.

And I’ll be selling one of my other guns (Because Poverty) to buy any other gun including this one… so watch this space.