Bodyguard Update!

Remember this? I sent the second version of the Smith and Wesson Bodyguard laser that failed back to the home land. After oh, about 2+ months, this arrived today via USPS:

So the second replacement came in the baggie on the far left, this one came in the spiffy foam container. Pay no attention to the bolt or magazine on the far right. They will be back later as the bench again seems to be backing up! 

So, for now the Mk.1 Mod III laser will be put into service. I noted that several have posted on the Interwebz about the buttons for activation not working. I find it interesting that S&W has sent the buttons (small gray things) with both replacement lasers. I must say that they send the batteries, the Allen wrench, and buttons every time.

So testing coming up! I don't really need the laser, but I am of the thought that I paid for it. If you have a Bodyguard, work the thing! 

Some have posted about the lack of the .380 cartridge in a personal defense incident. I have to say that this would beat a stiff word and a rolled up Newspaper! It is all about tradeoffs. I would much rather have a 1911 or my M&P with me, but sometimes that is not practical. The .380 loaded with personal defense rounds and with the requisite mindset I feel would do well, and better than nothing at all. 

Plastics......

Well, several people kicked my muse in the rear this week but I don't have time to properly post on them. It will take a great deal of thought to give the discussion the time it deserves. That, plus my limited skill in this medium only adds to the discomfort. Lets start here:

So I modified the M&P with a Lightguard. No holster after that. In one day I had this:

Cost? Cleaning a shotgun. For my friend that does this I am thankful. So does getting a holster made of plastic in one day make it better than several weeks in the queue for a custom made leather one at significantly greater cost? For now the answer is: "it depends". Does my friends skill with plastic rival those with skill in leather? I don't know. I don't make holsters. I can't at this time discount either. Having a holster for my carry gun almost immediately is a big deal though.

I love leather holsters on old school stuff. 

 







So as I continue this journey and reevaluate my relationships with Firearms in holsters I carry, the short answer right now is I don't know.

Gotta go, road trip tomorrow! Shoot stuff! 

Many have posted on it....

The USS Laffey DD-724 is home. I look forward to seeing her again. I was not able to get down there. Here is the E-mail from the President of the USS Laffey Association:

ALL HANDS:

THE LAFFEY IS HOME.

I was called to do a 0630 "live" news interview on channel 4. When I parked my car at Pats Point channel 2 news grabbed me for an interview. It was great, even before the sun came up.

The sun DID come up and it was a beautiful, clear day.

It was a very emotional time, watching her from the flight deck of the Yorktown. She was out in the channel and looking good and it brought tears to everyone's eyes.

As she was passing under the bow of the Yorktown I called Joe Folino....it was 0530 in California......and we cried

together. It was a beautiful thing.

They finally got her docked about 0900. The old girl took to her new home and looked very proud to be "FRONT AND CENTER" on display on the main pier. She is the first ship you see in front of the Yorktown.

The news media was all over the flight deck interviewing various shipmates. Associated Press, Channel 2 news Charleston, Channesl 4 and 5 Charleston, The Patch of Mt. Pleasant, Mount Peasant Magazine, and many other independents.

Lee Hunt was our only WWII vet here. He stayed on the pier to watch the arrival and was interviewed after the ship was tied up.

Mac Burdette supplied us with little air horns and a champagne toast. Everyone tooted the horns and toasted the arrival from the flight deck of the Yorktown.

Check out Yahoo news, USA Today website and the news stations in Charleston's websites for the videos and still pix of the move.

Everyone in town has been so excited about this move. We were congratulated everywhere we went.

Did I say that it was a beautiful thing???

I want to thank Mac Burdette, Bob Howard and the entire staff at Patriots Point for saving the "SHIP THAT WOULD NOT DIE" One More Time!!!

Be proud to be a Laffey Sailor today.

We are all heading home tomorrow.

We are emotionally drained and have to go to bed....it 10 PM........what a wild bunch.

Love you all.

Sonny

Show us your Benches!

Over at God, Gals, Guns, Grub,  he was kind enough to show off his gun room and benches. I must say his setup is very impressive. He asked for fellow Bloggers to do the same.Here is my rather pedestrian gun room (click to well, you know):

I really can't handle anything other than basic disassemble and clean here. I can reload however. If I need anything else done I show up at one of my machine shops I have strategically placed around my fair town, LOL! 

The thread however brought me the sadz. For now the bench looks like this:

 












Empty and devoid of life. After having several storied and interesting Firearms here lately, I feel sad. 

Oh wait. I did find this:

A Hopkins and Allen top break .32 Safety Police revolver and the barrel ring from the Glenfield 75 just got back from glass beading. I have not decided to just paint the barrel ring or try the cold bluing stuff out. 

Oh yeah I do need to give this the once over:

Remington Model 742 in .243 caliber. Suddenly I don't feel so sad! 

I'm Waiting on the Tactical Cup Holder Now!

Tam posted about the Crimson Trace Lightguard for the "9mm bullet hose". So I thought I would try one out. Her link to Amazon showed the unit on a training gun. I thought I would need to fix that:

As she points out that immediately makes these useless. 

First step, get the guy I gave that Remington 1900 shotgun back to yesterday to make me another Kydex holster. He will. 

For the Lightguard? Looks like this:

 










That will work! It is not a Surefire flashlight but will light it up! So now I am waiting on the tactical cup holder and GPS nav unit to hang off of this thing. Curse you Tam! 

UPDATE! Remington Arms 1900

Guess what? For the first time in God knows when, this shotgun made some noise today!






I view many posts from Bloggers about how we as legal responsible gun owners are "winning". To be true hearts and minds are paramount. On the other side I present another reason we are winning.

Remember this? (Click to enbiggen any photo)

 














I did some digging. This is a Remington Model 1900 Shotgun. Based on my Google-Fu, this particular boomstick was made from 1906 to 1910. Unfortunately my reference manuals here and more Google-Fu gave very little more information about this shotgun. 

Without a schematic and a gun that does not even show up in the Standard Catalog of Firearms, I chose a minimal cleaning and function check. This shotgun is based on the Model 1894, just made a bit cheaper. 

So first get the crap out of the barrels. Here is what I got:

The action side did not look any better:

The forearm? Pretty much the same:

So here is the forearm action soaking in "something" after cleaning:

Gentle cleaning is rewarded with this:

A long time was spent on the barrels. For some reason the left side one was more uh, dinged up than the right. No matter, they both cleaned up well:

The forearm action? Cleaned up well:

So the wood got some oil soap and lemon oil. The function check? Looked like this with dummy rounds:

That looks great! So later today we shall see how she works. 

For now? For this 100 year old gun? Where is it? Standing guard. Right here:

Imagine how many pistols, rifles, and shotguns are languishing around in basements, attics, back closets, under beds and even forgotten by owners. With even a little care these firearms will function. 

Sadly I will return this shottie to its owner. 

Any advice?

So I am really trying to get the Glenfield Model 75 C Marlin 60 off of my bench. This is my rifle, given to me for the work I did on the other 60. My problem is this. The magazine tube ring that attaches the tube to the rifle was loose. I attributed that to the fact that the dovetail looked pretty beat up. I bought a new one and it arrived today. 

New one on the left, old one on the right. That ring is supposed to go here:

So I have heard several methods to fix this. The rifle is a beater cosmetically, but I would like to keep it around. The options I have been told about are:

Use a punch to rough up the surface of the magazine ring on the bottom where it meets the barrel.

Use a punch to beat the dovetail ON the barrel to hold the ring in place after it is installed.

Use epoxy on the barrel to raise the base of the dovetail.

Use a brass shim to go the same as the epoxy.

Any help out there? I don't know how to proceed. I think any of the above would work. 

 

The Bench is Backing up!

The Glenfield Model 75C has some problems. This rifle is pretty much the same as the Marlin 60 that ran through here recently. The magazine tube ring is toast. There are several other small issues with it as well. I know I can buy new parts such as the bolt and trigger assembly but I prefer to put original parts back into service if I can. Plus I think I have spent more time here now than it is worth. No matter. 

Pretty good pitting and this is after minustrations with steel wool and other magic chemicals. Over several days. This is as good as its going to get. 

So this shows up. A Remington double barrel shottie. I don't even know anything about it (yet). 

Wait, I take that back. I do know something about this Shotgun! Either something lived in it or someone used it as a spittoon!

Sigh.... 

Oh, the Marlin 60? Ran great! Yeah me! And more importantly I was honored to give that rifle to its owner. 

We are winning! Oh, I'm back too.

Sorry for my absence. I hope to get around and comment and view Blogs as soon as I can.

First congratulations to my twenty-one students (tied the record for this class for attendance) on Saturday. Basic Pistol. Most have never fired a Firearm before:

They had plenty after classroom and live fire exercises!  Some that know me ask why I do this. I don't need to.

To me it is very simple. My Father and Grandfathers gave me this gift so many years ago. What was once considered a right of passage is sadly fading now. They taught me. I remember running around mountains with them with a Winchester rifle slung on my back. The soft words "see it, shoot it" at distance with a rifle so long ago, the quick vermin shot with a Colt Woodsman pistol as well.


I have a "III" after my name. Unless there is a bright star in the east and camel crap in my front yard anytime soon means I am the last of this line, this heritage passed down from the generations.

I am trying to pay it forward. Perhaps some student will remember the echos of my Father and Grandfathers later. This is why I do this. 

 

Ok, let me get this straight.

So ELO (sorta) had a reunion concert in 2001. Well no, not really. I observed enough on youtube to get the DVD only because it was recorded in 5.1 Dolby and DTS. So tonight I fire it up. Had a serious flashback to oh, 1978 or so. Why? Well Jeff was sporting the same fro and sunglasses from a live tour in *cough* 1978. There were some differences though. 

Who is the female background singer?

And who are these cello players?

Certainly not this one.

As to the female backup singer? Rosie Vela. Talented and linked to Jeff Lynne. So why is a dude sporting the same look from '78 hooked up with someone like this? Oh, yeah, I forgot. Rock star. 

So the intro works liked this. Same opening song from '78:



I am underwhelmed. If you want to run the wayback machine better, choose the Eagles "Hell freezes over" DVD. It was mixed much better. Or perhaps it is my Stereo. It could be a contestant for Retro Sundays! 

So for now, new shooter class tomorrow, and this! 

Same song, different verse! Glenfield model 75 in much worse shape than the Marlin 60. 

 















Yes the steel wool has come out for this one. More later!

Sigh....

So over at NC Gun Blog Sean points out an Appleseed event. Really close by. On the weekend no less. So now I am left with a problem. My long gun game is non existent in any real definition. For the .22LR first day? No problem. Colt (Walther) M-4. For the next day it gets interesting. Old .243 Winchester? Old .30-06? Go get a Colt 6940 AR? Sigh.... 

If you come I look forward to seeing you! 

From The Bench...

A Marlin Model 60! I don't know why my friend asks me to do this, he is just as competent is these matters if not more than I. This rifle many held in youth and the first they fired. Produced since 1960 and still made today. It does not have the plethora of aftermarket accessories such as for the Ruger 10/22. This however should not dissuade one from looking at an inexpensive .22LR rifle. 

Since virtually every part is still readily available for it except for the barrel and stock this would be an excellent used purchase in my opinion.

 






This rifle represents my friends sad pilgrimage to his Grandfather's house in TN after he passed away recently. According to my friend his Grandfather was a gunsmith and this rifle along with others sat in a non-climate controlled safe for at least 25+ years. 

Looks like someone wanted the scope:

So we get to it:

Everything dry as a bone. SO... you know what's coming next for the action parts, right? 

A bath! 

Meanwhile the stock gets some TLC. A bath with wood oil soap and several applications of lemon oil over several days. It came out better than I expected.

.














Oh, look a squirrel!

The bolt assembly after polishing:

I am ready for reassembly but the recoil spring guide rod was discovered to be bent upon removal. I ordered a new one and recoil spring as well. With luck my friend will get to fire his Grandfather's rifle this weekend. I will of course ask to shoot it after he does! 

I will let you know how it turns out and if I mentioned any products here, I paid for them so the FTC can go away! 

Light a Candle

So the Brady Campaign thinks that by lighting a candle today "gun violence" will be brought to the forefront of issues. Weer'd suggested another idea. Here is my late contribution, and I would have forgotten except for Brigid's excellent post today.   

Here is my contribution:

As far as lighting a candle to stop violence goes, I thought long and hard about the picture you see. Over 125 years of evolution of a tool, one that allows the weak to stand against a predator. There is a reason for this. I encounter victims of violence that have had their lives shattered by two legged predators that have no regard for the law and view others as prey. 

Ask one of my students in my Concealed Carry Handgun class if lighting a candle would have stopped a predator from beating her all day. I think it would have been just as effective as the restraining order issued against him. I think her response is much more appropriate now. 

Many gave their lives to defend our way of life. How sad to think many now are of the opinion that lighting a candle will do anything to ward off evil.   

Gun Sales Up?

They might just be! I have TWO basic Pistol classes this month!

Need to check the laundry:

Sorry, gotta run. I need to clean my Glock!

I'm told its dishwasher safe, but I am not taking any chances!

Go Here!

Another person has decided to be responsible for their personal safety. I applaud this and recommend you give her all the support and guidance she may ask for in this space. 

The fact she called out the contest offered by a girl and her gun and noted the gifts offered by the community here is profound.

Go stop by and say "Hello" to Anne! I am glad she is here and I know my followers will welcome her. 

Colt .22 Peacemaker Update

In a previous post I commented on my efforts with a little Colt .22 Peacemaker. I HAD to go shoot it today as soon as I got out of work. How is it? Well it seems that once you figure it out life is good. 

It took some rounds to warm up to the pistol, but its a great one! Sadly I will return to its owner after another light cleaning. 

So the question for tonight for all my long gun friends is this. I need to step up my game in this area. A friend recommended this:
Colt LE6940 Review What say you? Any comments welcome!

Paperwork! Bah!

I detest paperwork as a rule. I do however make exceptions:

Lets see what we have here! This kind of paperwork I don't mind at all! (Well except for the yardstick I can't find after taking the pictures for the Historians, but I don't think I ate it and the cleaning person came last week, so its all on me to find it!)  

Giveaway!

Over at A Girl and Her Gun, a fantastic giveaway is afoot! From her Blog:

"The prize:

I will pay $300 towards any reputable beginning self defense shooting course in the United States.

Who Can Enter:

Any female who is interested in taking the next step in learning how to defend herself in the event that she may need to. I would really prefer it be a new shooter that hasn't had any formal training to this point.

How To Enter:

Leave a comment specifically saying you would like to enter or email me at agirlandhergun@gmail.com subject Give-A-Way.

This will run from January 3, 2012- February 3, 2012 at midnight and must be redeemed by September 2012.

Well done young lady! 

I am passionate about bringing new people on board. The BIG SMILE is always worth it!

In a Rut?

In my last post, Tango Juliet remarked I was in a S&W rut. I beg to differ sir!

This afternoon an automobile approached stately manor. As soon as the wheels hit my driveway, my property values went up 20%, the children within a three block radius all became well above average, velvet ropes parted, champagne fell from the sky...etc.   


Why? Because according to my friend: "Drop in grip safety my A$$!" 

A Kimber 1911 something. Got it back together and as soon as he left, everything went back to normal.


Well except for this little project. 

A little Colt Scout variant. She sounded like a gravel truck. So first the usual minimally invasive stuff. Let it soak in some CLP overnight. 

. 














That was less than satisfactory. So on to the next step. 

After looking at everything I decided it needed a bath. 

Then a soaking!

Now? Well take a look:





Function check was great! And you don't see stuff like this anymore:

Take a look at the snap cap. 

Can't wait to shoot this Revolver this weekend!