Important Random Gun Trivia

Steven R. Berryman

 

[from The Tentacle of July 22nd 2013]

In keeping with the lazy informal mode of the sizzling summer, here is an assortment of blurbs relating to firearms, keepin’ it short and tight to match the attention span of the season!

What’s the best home defense weapon?

Buy a slide-action 12-gauge shotgun with an 18” barrel. Load it with alternating rounds of 3” magnum loads of 00 buckshot and then bird shot. DO NOT do what Vice President Joe Biden suggests and shoot off warning rounds from the balcony (or deck).....because this will get you arrested, and any real burglar will have already freaked when you racked the slide a minute earlier.

The pellets of this recommended ammo will not over penetrate walls too much, yet spreads into a pattern so large that you don’t have to aim real good....know what I mean?

What handgun ammo has the statistically best odds of stopping an assailant in one shot?

A landmark study by Evan Marshall took in very broad real law enforcement data on “one shot stops” from a very large database. Evaluations were that a .357 Magnum round – almost always used in revolvers – in 125 grain (weight) is best. It beat out even the .44 Magnum, .45 Auto, and many other venerable contenders. This, because the kinetic energy of this round at ~1,300 feet per second penetrates just right, and transfers energy most efficiently. Use of a “hollow-point” intensifies the effect, by mushrooming out to a larger diameter; but it tends to bunch up in impacting winter outerwear a bit.

Should I buy an automatic pistol, or a double-action automatic pistol, or a revolver?

Revolvers carry less ammo, but are more reliable, and have great ammo available. Best for those that don’t shoot often or may have to shoot in a panic situation without much practice. Automatic, like the famous Colt .45, carried in World War II are widely available and carry a big punch. After the slide is racked, which loads a round from a removable magazine, the hammer is also cocked. Not safe to carry in this “cocked and locked” condition, no matter what they say! Double-action is better, as you may lower the hammer back down after racking slide. Then you may shoot and fully cycle the hammer by squeezing the trigger a full length. This action resembles shooting a revolver that has not been cocked. Cornfuzed yet?

Did Dirty Harry (as portrayed by Clint Eastwood) use a .44 Magnum Smith and Wesson revolver?

Well, yes and no. In the movie version, this weapon in a blued version was used in both 6” and 8” barrel versions, depending on the needs of a given scene. But as explained in the novel version, Inspector Callahan (Harry) loaded it with .44 Special rounds instead of Magnum rounds – which carry more powder. The .44 Special rounds – or cowboy loads – don’t over-penetrate, transfer energy to the target better, and “Harry” learned through trial and error that it’s much easier to get that second shot off with less barrel rise after discharge. Of course, it’s only a story.

What are the three most important rules of safe firearms handling?

· Always handle the firearm as if it were loaded, even when you know that it is not!

· Never point a firearm at anything that you don’t intend to shoot.

· Do not put your finger inside the trigger guard till you intend to shoot.

How should I safely store my firearms? [Except for a quick action safe used for primary home defense.]

· Unload firearm, and lock the ammo in a different, hidden location.

· Use a gun safe, and make the location secret and/or hard to get to.

· Use trigger locks even inside the gun safe as a second line of defense.

· *Safely dispose of anyone that has learned of your secret locations!

Only kidding.

True or False:

Guns only serve gun owners. False.

Non-gun owners are essentially allowed to freeload on the backs of gun guys. This is because the crooks and burglars never know who is packing a pistol, or who has that home defense shotgun ready to rack and rock. About half of Americans are gun owners, and thieves are chicken, by definition.

True or False:

Gun laws restricting firearms don’t work. True!

Criminals, by definition, don’t obey laws, they defy them. A crook will get a gun if he wants one. Law enforcement rarely enforces “straw purchase” laws, anyway; this is a true statistic. Burglaries are a chief source of guns in the wrong hands.

True or False:

If I don’t purchase a firearm in Maryland by October 1, 2013, I will:

· Be forced to visit State Police for permission;

· Be forced to pass a firearms training class at my own expense;

· Be fingerprinted like a criminal;

· Not be able to purchase magazines over 10-ten rounds capacity; and

· Not be able to purchase 54 specifically and generically named rifles.

UNFORTUNATELY ALL TRUE.

Lastly, if I already own a banned firearm, can I keep it, shoot it, hunt with it, and lawfully pass it down to my kids?

Thank God, YES

SRBmgr@gmail.com