Gravelbelly Confesses Lust in His Heart

I have to admit to lusting after the "Little Italian Lady" featured in this video.

Newest Addition: Gallery Gun

I have always liked gallery guns, but they're kind of hard to find. To me, those .22 caliber pumps represent the apex of plinking fun.

For the past couple of years, I've visited our local pawn shop occasionally, and I've always checked to see if they had any gallery guns. Then, a few weeks ago, BINGO!

Short version, I now own a Savage Model 29, chambered for .22 short, long and long rifle. The original bluing has long since worn off, and a pleasant patina has taken its place. It has some miles on it, but so does its new owner.

 It did concern me that its previous owner might have shot a lot of shorts in it, which can erode the chamber. Long rifle cases could then expand into the depression and be difficult to eject. However, when I tested it the next day, it performed flawlessly, and the action works smoothly, like licking an ice cream cone on a hot day.

I did some research online, and I found that a the octagonal barrel on my Model 29 pushes its origin to before World War II. The low serial number (52xx) makes me wonder if it dates back to the first year or so of manufacture.

The pawn shop had a gunsmith repair and refinish the stock. This photo does not do justice to the nice finish he put on it. In the lower right, you can see the line where the stock was broken.

From the Barber's Chair: Basic Firearm Operation and Safety

I learned to shoot with a Daisy air rifle. I got mine as a hand-me-down from my cousin -- a Daisy pump. Unlike the slick lever actions the guys in my neighborhood used, my magazine held only 50 BBs, which I had to load one-at-a-time, while the tab of the spring follower bit mercilessly into my forefinger.

It took both patience and pain to load it, so I tended to take more care, aiming each shot. Not so with some of my compatriots who could dump a whole pack of BBs into their lever action models.

My barber brought these memories back to me this morning when he sent me the link to the video below. It's a training video by Crosman in story form -- a boy learning from his grandfather how to shoot an air rifle.

John (The Lawman) Russell plays the part of the grandfather. He died in 1991, so the film has a few years on it. Nevertheless, it teaches timeless principles: muzzle awareness, sight picture, trigger control . . . .

AND if you're a fan of 1950's TV westerns, the scene of Russell with the Winchester will make you smile.

4Sevens Memorial Day Discount

First, a personal note: DLR informs me that not only did my son-in-law win the rifle match last week-end (for the second year in a row), but that his wife/my daughter came in a solid 7th place. It's good to know that the RKBA lives even in the hearts of folk who suffer under the yoke of oppression in the foreign state of Illinois.

As you may remember from my review of the Quark AA2 Tactical Flashlight, I have been very happy with the quality and performance of this 4Sevens product. That's why I'm passing on the following message that I received from the company:

From right now through Memorial Day, May 30th, you can receive 15% OFF your purchase at 4Sevens.com!

Simply use the following discount code when checking out on our website: MEM2011

Made in America

Here is a link to one really cool commercial

Made in America

Here's a .22 I'd love to have:

Pump with Octagon Barrel

And one that would be more fun than a barrel of ammo:

Mare's Leg

.46 Caliber Air Rifle Lethal at 100 Yds.

A member of my church sent the link to this video to my pastor, who then passed it on.

If you want to see what they used to pump the reservoir up to 800 lbs., then you may be interested in watching these two videos:

Girandoni, part 1

Girandoni, part 2

The actual pump & rifle construction are shown in video #2.

And All I Know How to Do . . .

My barber sent me the video link below. Someone has commented that this is Riverdance with boots and rifles.



Warriors have always turned their craft into an art form, and this fine example comes from the Norwegian Royal Guard. They carry M1 Garand rifles (9 lbs.) with bayonets fixed. Do not try this at home, as it's all good fun until someone loses an eye.

And to think . . . all I know how to do with one of those things is shoot it.

Firearms in Church

A couple of months ago, several people in our church got together & negotiated a nice discount on a  class leading to a concealed weapons permit. (I got sick that week, so I could not attend the class.)

:-(

My point is that several people who attend my church now have their CCW permits, in addition to two or three others who already had theirs. I don't know how many of these folks actually carry in church. I hope they all do.

Carrying in church is the subject of an article by Joel McDurmon entitled "Bring Your Pieces to Church" Sunday.

Here's how the article begins:

Imagine the following scenario: At church this Sunday, while reviewing the list of announcements and upcoming events for your church, your pastor added, “Oh, and don’t forget: on Sundays we have our regular target practice. Make sure to bring your rifles. Make sure to bring your pieces to church.” 

Absurd, right? Not so. It used to be the American way.

I hope that piques (not peaks, please) your curiosity to read the whole article. I know that some of you won't, so I want to quote a vitally important paragraph from it.

Today Christians are so brainwashed and affected by progressive propaganda that we have an uneasy feeling even broaching the subject of guns. Constant liberalism in the media and years of government-school indoctrination have eroded the foundations of liberty in this nation. Today Christians think themselves conservative when they back everything the military does. Conservatives think that to oppose the military is to be a leftist. They have no idea that 1) the tradition of imperialistic war grows out of liberal, not conservative, ideology, and 2) the Bible forbids nations to have standing armies or stockpile offensive weapons. The Bible calls for national defense through an armed populace and militia upon necessity. A standing army is an affront to God. But for some reason, alleged conservative politicians easily persuade Christian voters that the next military maneuver is of necessity an expression of conservative values, and the Christians cheer.

 It is true that many who call themselves Christians support any and every military adventure set forth by the power elite with the same mindless enthusiasm I've seen in middle-agers for their high school football teams. (My barber once told me about a local magistrate who actually threatened to send someone over to "teach a lesson" to a man who criticized his town's high school team -- insane!)

There is a long list of sins from which America in general and the Church in particular need to repent. Two of them are:

1)Remaining unarmed as individual Christian citizens in the face of imminent threats to our peace and security;
2) Supporting a military establishment that has enforced tyranny at home and abroad.

More Guns, Less Crime

The title should actually read: More Guns in the Hands of Trained Gun-Owners, Less Crime

I stumbled upon the video below & thought you'd like to see it. It's about firearms policy in Switzerland.

After the video, I reproduced the video description by crutley2.

When thinking about the mass extermination camps of a holocaust think..

The key to freedom is to be able to have the ability to defend yourself &, if you dont have the tools to do that, then youre going to be at the mercy of whomever wants to put you away.

Guns are deeply rooted within Swiss culture - but the gun crime rate is so low that statistics are not even kept.

The country has a population of six million, but there are estimated to be at least two million publicly-owned firearms, including about 600,000 automatic rifles and 500,000 pistols.

This is in a very large part due to Switzerland's unique system of national defence, developed over the centuries.

Instead of a standing, full-time army, the country requires every man to undergo some form of military training for a few days or weeks a year throughout most of their lives.

Can you say, "Appleseed?" I've never been to one, but I can see where I SHOULD.

The Gathering Storm

CP, a former parishioner from Pennsylvania sent me this:

M1 Haiku

I call my M1 Garand (chambered in .308) Old Thunder. Here's the haiku:

breathe out, squeeze trigger
Old Thunder hugs my shoulder
breathe in, smell cordite

Rifle Marksmanship Video

Deolexrex recently sent me a link to the WWII era Army training films on marksmanship with the M1 Garand Rifle. I've posted on this before, but this would be a good time to put the video of the first film right here where you can see it.

Deolexrex writes:

This is the best I've seen, so, grab some popcorn and your rifle and get some practice in!

RKBA

During WWII the Japanese decided not to invade America because they knew most Americans were ARMED!

(This came from my barber)

Safety: The Mandate of a Gun Culture, 2

Continued from "Safety: The Mandate of a Gun Culture"

Although dlr sent the link to this video in a comment, I wanted to make sure that everyone got a chance to see it. It features one of dlr's sons, and I think it typifies the kind of early firearms safety training that should mark a Christian Martialist gun culture.

If you're like me, you'll find this video entertaining and touching as well as instructive:

Safety: The Mandate of a Gun Culture

In my last post, I mentioned the American and Pakistani gun cultures. To me, the video clip illustrates an indispensable lesson -- a sine qua non of a gun culture.

In the video, the reporter is taken to a "shooting area" which happened to be on a roof in the middle of the village. He seemed to think it odd, yet he shot in a safe direction, toward the side of a nearby hill.

The fact that the village was not littered with bodies indicates an important fact. Although almost everyone was armed and many shots were fired through the day, those who handled the guns were practicing muzzle awareness.

I'm reminded of Theresa, my second daughter. When she was younger, she would not let anyone point a toy gun (or even a finger used as a play gun) at her, nor would she point one at any except imaginary bad guys. The lesson is that if you should not practice unsafe methods, even in play.

Maybe toy guns are a bad idea -- not because they're violent, but because they encourage sloppy gun handling attitudes.

Since it's always good to review the basics, I am including in this post Jeff Cooper's rules of gun safety in his own words:

We hoped by this time that the standard rules of safe gunhandling would have become universal throughout the world. They have been arrived at by careful consideration over the years, and they do not need modification or addition. We trust that all the family have them by heart in all languages, but for those who came in late here they are again:

1. All guns are always loaded. Even if they are not, treat them as if they are.
2. Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy. (For those who insist that this particular gun is unloaded, see Rule 1.)
3. Keep your finger off the trigger till your sights are on the target. This is the Golden Rule. Its violation is directly responsible for about 60 percent of inadvertent discharges.
4. Identify your target, and what is behind it. Never shoot at anything that you have not positively identified.

Those will do. We need all four and we do not need five. It should not be necessary to belabor this issue, but life is not perfect.

Gun Culture

There are pockets of gun culture in this country, and I think most WARSKYL readers would count themselves as participants in that culture. It is in the Middle East, however, that you will find the Mecca of gun culture (pun intended).

Back in the early '80's, I remember reading an article in Soldier of Fortune magazine about the arms trade in Pakistan along the Afghan border. Whole villages of gunmakers were turning out replicas of just about any firearm imaginable. And they were doing it mostly with hand tools.

Quality of steel seemed to be the only unknown in buying one of those weapons. Their raw material came from Russian tanks and other materiel destroyed during the occupation of Afghanistan.

Anyway, my barber sent me the link to this video that shows the continued thriving of the small arms trade in Pakistan. Notice the comment that these people "believe in many sons and a lot of guns." Ahhh . . . if only they were Christians.

"Have You Ever Thought about Putting Your Rifle Away?"

At the end of his interview with Benjamin Busch, National Public Radio correspondent Scott Simon asked, "Have you ever thought about putting your rifle away?" He wisely avoided commenting on the answer and let the interview end there.

I sometimes find NPR's liberal bias maddening. This interview, however, is a listening must. Here is the link:

Bearing Arms

Thanks to my wife Laura for drawing my attention to this powerful audio presentation.

Point Shooting a Long Arm (Rifle, Shotgun)

Some time in the 1980's I remember having read an article about point shooting a rifle. It might have been in Soldier of Fortune magazine. At the time I owned an H&K 91 (which, as much as I love my M-1 Garand, I still dearly miss). I tried the position in dry-fire mode, but I don't recall if I actually tested it with live fire.

The weapon's sling goes from the butt under the right arm and then over the left shoulder and back to the front swivel. The rifle butt rests firmly in the abdomen while the right hand grasps the rifle's grip and the left hand rests on top of the barrel to stabilize it. (Sorry if the description's not clear enough -- I don't have pictures)

The end result is that the rifle sticks straight out from your abdomen, and it will shoot where you look -- out to about 100 yards, if I remember correctly. Without rearranging the sling, you can carry the rifle, muzzle down, by letting it hang under your right arm. You can then bring it into action by swinging the barrel up and planting the butt in your abs.

I have not verified the claims to accuracy, and I think this would take a little more practice than point-shooting a handgun, but if I were a soldier in a shooting war, I think I'd want to test this method for accuracy and speed of getting my weapon into action.

Rifle Shooting Techniques: M1 Garand

The link below goes to a declassified WWII era training film on rifle shooting techniques. The rifle used, of course is the M1 Garand. I love the intro to the film where it shows the soldier firing his M1 -- I can feel the reassuring "nudge" his shoulder gets at each shot. Ahh . . . sweet memories of days at the range.



As to its value in teaching shooting techniques, I give this film four stars. I may be prejudiced, though, since on a few occasions when my wife was away, I've been known to fall asleep with my Garand beside me.

Thanks to dlr for sending me this link.

Revolutionary War Vets?

I think I just discovered that Project Appleseed (see my post, "Rifle Shooting Techniques") exists under the broader umbrella of the Revolutionary War Veterans Association. The RWVA also has an arm called Liberty's Price. (Thanks to DLR for sending me the updated links.)

It seems that the organization has recently undergone growing pains and a crisis regarding its overall purpose. (The details may be buried in forum posts somewhere on the site[s].) Nevertheless, as far as I can gather from a short perusal, the RWVA looks back to the days of the minutemen, when virtually every American had the skills of a rifleman. Its purpose seems to be to encourage today's Americans to, once again, become riflemen.

The Project Appleseed arm pursues this mission by holding Appleseed shooting events in which aspiring riflemen seek to achieve an "expert" ranking. The course consists of firing at a man-size target at 500 yds. from the standing, sitting and prone positions.

The Liberty's Price branch of the movement describes its mission as follows:

Liberty's Price is a meeting ground that will focus on broader areas of rifle and pistol training and related skills, other areas of interest relating to preserving Liberty, and politcal [sic]activism. Liberty's Price is not associated with any specific group, but will strive to support and assist all who work to preserve Liberty.

I encourage the Christian Martialist to learn all he can from such organizations and to get the training he needs wherever he can lawfully and legitimately find it. Also, enjoy the fellowship of people who unapologetically pursue the mastery of firearms. But in doing so, remember that a non-Christian, inclusive organization will interpret our heritage as Christians and as Americans differently than we do. And, although our agenda may agree at many points with theirs,we will ultimately have to diverge in order to remain faithful to our calling.

In the RWVA you will find many good neighbors. Love thy neighbor (and let him know you serve Christ, the King). You will also find some brothers. Love the brotherhood (and share with him your vision and mission). Participate joyfully, but let your participation be an extension of your calling, rather than a distraction from it.

. . . oh, wait a minute. I never really spelled out the vision/mission/calling part, did I? Hmmmm. Could this be fodder for another post?