Monday Morning Tease

Dead Foot Arms and Quarter Circle 10 9mm Glock mag pistol folder coming together at last! The buffer tube on there is a Rock River pistol tube...I have a shorter one on order, but the RR feels good and is NOT a brace, which means it doesn't fall under any ATF gray areas.

The Post-Thanksgiving Pre-SHOT Show Blues

What can I say? Thanksgiving is over, and tomorrow I start my annual sprint to the SHOT Show. I looked at my schedule this morning and it frightened me so badly I went back to bed.

Thanksgiving was pretty traditional…turkey smoked outdoors in our pizza oven, sage dressing, dumplings, brandy cranberry sauce and a delicious chocolate "pudding pie" from my Sweetie. All was wonderful! Christmas is going to be fish pie and other Scottish specialties, although I don't seem to be getting a lot of enthusiasm for haggis, which I actually like. What's so icky about a sheep's stomach, I ask you?

I'm going to keep lobbying. Had friends over on Saturday and everybody wanted to go down to the range and shoot. Made for a fun afternoon! 

I spent a lot of Friday tinkering with my competition Glocks and doing a little more work on the Dead Foot Arms/Quarter Circle 10 9mm AR soon-to-be SBR. I made the decision to move production of the last 2 episodes of SG into January after SHOT…not a decision I like to make, but I've just run out of days in this year. As it is, we're working almost straight through to Christmas Eve.

I'm kind interested in the new CZ P10 striker-fired pistol. They build superb guns, and I'm looking forward to trying this one. Whether it's a "G19 killer," as one website suggested…that would be the G19 adopted by the FBI, military Special Forces groups and a soon-to-be food of police departments…well, one never knows, does one (as Fats Waller would no doubt say).

We are FINALLY closer to the building of the on-property video studio for SGO. What a PAIN-IN-THE-ASS this whole process has been! Hopefully, the finished product will be worth it. Essentially, it's a purpose-built studio to facilitate on-line content.

Thanksgiving Week Chores...

I suspect a trip to the grocery store is in order, since it appears that Thanksgiving is on Thursday. This turned out to be a shock to me…I thought I had another full week before the week of Thanksgiving. I am at a loss to understand what happened to that week. I had a lot of working plans.

Oh well, tempus fugitted on me!

In between the podcast and advertising work I refitted the RMR on my competition Glock G19…as I suspected, one of the screws had worked loose, which allowed the battery box to bounce around a little bit. I meticulous re-Loc-Tited the sight, and I'll re-zero over the holiday weekend, since there are no matches.

Today after my Grocery Store Assault, I'm going to work on the magazines and make sure we're all on the same page, e.g. dropping free. I like the MagPuls, but if they're not going to drop I'll go back to the Glocks or ETS. I'm going to add a slightly longer magazine release, which is an allowed mod under USPSA Carry Optics rule, as long as the mag button remains the same size. Glock offers just such a part, and I ordered one from Midway USA.

Physically, I'm alternating the stationary bike with the water rowing machine, trying to build both strength and flex on especially my right leg without stressing it some much that I risk re-re-ripping the quad muscle loose from its precarious moorings. I've also, at the surgeon's recommendation, started wearing an elastic knee brace on the right knee, giving a tiny bit more stability in that leg.

I've also got some rifle work to do, dialing in the Swaro 3.5-18x on the Ruger FTW 6.5 Creedmoor with the Hornady ELD-X 143-gr hunting ammo for a filmed whitetail hunting trip in Texas in mid-December. I'll get it sighted in at 50 yards here at the Bunker, then move it to 100, 200 and 300 yards, the longest distance I have available to me.

Finally, I want to put the Quarter Circle 10 9mm pistol together over the holidays. I have the upper and most of the parts I need…I think. I'm thinking of a Tyrant CNC grip because it's trick. Or one of the Hogue G10s.

Slow Blogging Will Continue...

As usual for this time of year, I am absolutely swamped with getting SHOOTING GALLERY, THE BEST DEFENSE and SGO out the door. Something has to give, and, also as usual, it's my social media presence.

Sorry! I will try to do better…[YODA FLINCHES!]

Shot a USPSA match yesterday at Weld County Sportsmen Club. Those guys always do a great job with stages, and yesterday was an excellent example. Good stages, great squad, big fun.

And yes, I did terribly, scraping in on the bottom five! LOL! I always say that I learn something in every match, and what I learned in this match is that run and gun is hard when you can't run! Ah well, that will be getting better.

Am still not happy with my shooting, but I'm getting better. My hits were all there, but my fundamental skills — drawing, reloading, target sequencing — are still a bit rusty, which slows me down tremendously. I also have some equipment to dial in…some of my MagPul mags aren't dropping free…some judicious application of 600 grit sandpaper should fix that.

Forget Those Other Pussies...

You're safe with me!

One for Two on Matches...

I shot an IPSC-style match last Sunday and was pretty pleased with my performance. Today, not so much (29 out of 39 shooters). Today's match was excellent, straight-forward, no tricks, fun…I've been trying to think of an excuse, maybe excuses, since the match, but I keep coming up with, "the Force wasn't with me."

I know…lame.

Two big issues I need to address — I need to tighten up my "shooting platform," and I need to tighten up my head. The 2 are related…I don't yet have the edge that I need to consistently do well. At least I know how to work on that. I'll shoot again next weekend. I feel like I'm doing those "stress tests" on John Taffer's BAR RESCUE show…

The only issue I've had with the gun was the elevation on the RMR losing zero, which I "fixed" with an application of clear fingernail polish. Other than that, runs like a top.

My Safe Runneth Over!

Whoopee! Today was New Gun Day, with a Galil 7.62 NATO, my long-sought after 9mm X95, a Ruger American in .450 Bushmaster (BOOM!) and the newest iteration of the Lipsey's/Vickers Glock all arriving at my FFL dealer.

Now, if someone could arrange for me to have time to shoot them before, say, February, I'd really appreciate it. I already have a number of other guns queued up for reviews on both SHOOTING GALLERY and our online doppelganger SGO. I'll probably run the X95 tomorrow, 'cause I've got to make sure my competition Glock 19 is still dialed in before my next match. The Galil is for an episode of SHOOTING GALLERY.

I've also got a rifle to sight in for a mid-December filming, a Ruger FTW Predator in 6.5 Creedmoor with a Swaro 3.5-18x Z5(i). Shouldn't take too long, since I'm using the Hornady 143-gr ELD-X hunting loads, and it costs too damn much to launch a lot of it downrange during sight-in! LOL!

My New Kilt...

...in the appropriate Clan tartan. You'll see my legs at the "Michael Buys The Beer" party at the NRA Convention in Atlanta, which is going to be especially rowdy this year!

Veteran's Day 2016 — The Debt That Cannot Be Paid

Flag from Ft. Sumter, April 14 1861

"Thank you for your service" sounds so hollow for such a great debt. Every day should be Veteran's Day. Thank you.

I am thinking of Glen Doherty, Tyrone Woods and Sean Stevens, whom we honored in the only way we could on Tuesday night. God bless you guys…your sacrifice changed America, as the sacrifice of so many others have preserved Her.

And, as always, my thoughts and my love to the late Robert R. Bane, USN, the Pacific.

It's time to bring them all home, President Trump.

Before "Kumbaya," a Few Points of Clarification

Both Democrats (predictably), the Republican establishment (also predictably) and the discredited MSM (because they don't have a clue) are giving their "mend a divided nation," peace love and flowers speech. Before we all sit down at the same drum circle, I'd like to clarify a few points:

1) We didn't elect Trump to "end the gridlock in Washington."

2) We didn't elect Trump to "reach across the aisle to get things done."

3) We didn't elect Trump to cozy up to the Democrats and see if they can find a "compromise" way to chip away at our rights.

We elected Trump — and I have been all-in for a long time — to END the "fundamental change" of America, to drag the "Obama legacy" into the sunlight, tie it to a post, execute it, then bury it in unhallowed ground. Only then can America move ahead.

A couple of more points of clarification, at least from my point of view (which is, parenthetically, the only one I am qualified to give):

1) I unconditionally respect the rights of other people to their own opinions. I respected it on Monday; I respected it on Wednesday. That doesn't mean I have to respect those opinions.

2) After the progressive far-left takeover of the Democrat party, those Democrat plotted — gleefully — how they were going to strip me of my rights as soon as they were in office. They made it a talking point. They did not give a damn that the vast majority of Americans were against them; rather, they operated on Barack Obama's coda of, "Elections have consequences."

3) Socialism, even in it's Democratic Party guise of "progressivism," is evil, a boot on the face forever, to paraphrase Orwell. Socialism is the handmaiden to totalitarianism. It has never worked; it will never work. If you as an individual would like to participate in a socialist experiment, move to Venezuela  or any number of African pest-holes. They would be happy to have you, and the money in your wallet. Bring your own food. I unconditionally oppose any compromise on moving America in that direction. I opposed it on Monday; I opposed it on Wednesday.

4) I see no difference between "progressives" and, say, violent anti-Semites or America Nazis — they hold opinions which I do not and can not countenance. Moreover, progressives are, as are their analog anti-Semites and virulent racists, evangelical in their zeal to spread their vile teachings. Compromise? What compromise is there with evil?

5) If you are a liberal, that is, you come with a different world view than mine, fine, we can talk, argue, maybe find some common ground. If, however, your liberalism extends to limiting my rights or exercising power over my life, there is no common ground to be found.

6) On Monday, I was a small "l" libertarian and a single-issue voter. Nothing changed on Wednesday morning.

7) I'm all for "civil," not so much on "compromise."

Before "Kumbaya," a Few Points of Clarification

Both Democrats (predictably), the Republican establishment (also predictably) and the discredited MSM (because they don't have a clue) are giving their "mend a divided nation," peace love and flowers speech. Before we all sit down at the same drum circle, I'd like to clarify a few points:

1) We didn't elect Trump to "end the gridlock in Washington."

2) We didn't elect Trump to "reach across the aisle to get things done."

3) We didn't elect Trump to cozy up to the Democrats and see if they can find a "compromise" want to chip away at our rights.

We elected Trump — and I have been all-in for a long time — to END the "fundamental change" of America, to drag the "Obama legacy" into the sunlight, tie it to a post, execute it, then bury it in unhallowed ground. Only then can America move ahead.

A couple of more points of clarification, at least from my point of view (which is, parenthetically, the only one I am qualified to give):

1) I unconditionally respect the rights of other people to their own opinions. I respected it on Monday; I respected it on Wednesday. That doesn't mean I have to respect those opinions.

2) After the progressive far-left takeover of the Democrat party, those Democrat plotted — gleefully — how they were going to strip me of my rights as soon as they were in office. They made it a talking point. They did not give a damn that the vast majority of Americans were against them; rather, they operated on Barack Obama's coda of, "Elections have consequences."

3) Socialism, even in it's Democratic Party guise of "progressivism," is a nightmare. It has never worked; it will never work. If you as an individual would like to participate in a socialist experiment, move to Venezuela  or any number of African pest-holes. They would be happy to have you, and the money in your wallet. Bring your own food. I unconditionally oppose any compromise on moving America in that direction. I opposed it on Monday; I opposed it on Wednesday.

4) I see no difference between "progressives" and, say, violent anti-Semites or America Nazis — they hold opinions which I do not and can not countenance. Moreover, progressives, as are their analog anti-Semites and virulent racists, evangelical in their zeal to spread their vile teachings. Compromise? What compromise is there with evil?

5)

DOWN RANGE Radio Podcast Postponed Until THURSDAY!

For obvious reasons.

We will have the podcast up first thing THURSDAY AM!

Monday Tick-Tock

So I've done everything I can…you're gonna vote or you're gonna not. Let's leave it at that.

It's been a long election cycle, and it has exposed the already existing fracture lines in American culture and the fundamental truths we all feared —the elites hate us, the system is rigged against us, every word  that comes out of politicians' mouth, whether it is a Republican or a Democratic mouth, is a lie.

The biggest "take-away" for all of us in the Gun Culture is how casually the Republicans, who have depended on our votes for at least 2 decades, will throw the Second Amendment under the bus. A good example is the weasels at NRO, so-called "Constitutional Conservatives" who pray for a Democratic victory so they can "consolidate" the "conservative movement," under their leadership. If it takes sacrificing the 2nd (and, what the hell, the 1st) to retain their dacha by the lake, well, so what? They do not own or use firearms, do not possess concealed carry permits nor know anyone who does. They do not participate in the shooting sports, collect classic firearms, dabble in home gunsmithing, turn out every autumn for dove or whitetail deer hunts, buy anything at all, ever, from Cabela's or Bass Pro (forget Midway USA!…they've never even heard of it), subscribe to OUTDOOR or SPORTSMAN'S CHANNEL, agonize over "9mm or .45."

They are the epitome of "not us," and they hold us in the same contempt as the most liberal progressive.

Tomorrow we'll start piecing things back together, with the sure and certain knowledge that no matter who wins, we are on our own, in uncharted waters. We have always been a fractious tribe, but in the clutch the tribal bonds we hold are stronger than the issues that divide us. There are going to be bruised feelings, anger, a lingering sense of betrayal...but we have fought together before, and we will fight together again.

I have said in talks and in the media that not only are we a different culture, we are a better culture. I truly believe that.

Who Shocked the Monkey?

As we all slouch toward the Apocalypse, my favorite headline of the week;

More Tampa Bay area residents report seeing mysterious monkey

Note to locals…"Tampa Bay" is a body of water. If the monkey is in Tampa Bay he/she is swimming, or perhaps sailing to Tampa. Anyway, I am concerned that this monkey is the beginning of some discount Florida "Yeti" mythology when the simple answer is that it's one of Hillary's surrogates, gotten loose from the circus.

Oddly, I discovered that in 2001, Peter Gabriel, who wrote "Shock the Monkey," spent some time at Georgia State University trying to teach 12 Bonobo apes to play keyboards. This explains much about the present state of popular music.

Instead of reasoned political analysis, I'm spending the morning watching the DeanMartin/Robert Mitchum barnburner "5 Card Stud" and tinkering with my match Glock, which I will put to use tomorrow. It's the G19 with the Suarez top end and RMR. Since I want to shoot this in USPSA Carry Optics, I pulled the Suarez trigger and put in a Vogel trigger from GlockTriggers that I had lying around the Bunker. The Vogel uses a stock Glock trigger and highly polished internals, so there is no exterior modification to the gun. Still an excellent trigger pull! Now, if I can just make myself shoot it as well as a 1911.

I managed to humiliate myself on camera last week with some really crappy shooting on close-in targets with a couple of Glock. Granted, I was filming, but there's no excuse for snatching that trigger the way I did, not once, but twice. Ironically, I changed to a box-stock 1911 Sig shooting .45 ball and everything went back to hunky-dory. Tom Yost, one of the best shooters I know (3rd in the IDPA Nationals, just behind Vogel and Seeklander…they don't keep HOA score that way, but there it is), says of course, all those hundreds of thousands of rounds through a 1911 over the years has a lingering effect.

Met with my orthopedic surgeon yesterday…not the news I hoped to hear, but not unequivocally bad. The 3rd surgery on my shattered right leg still hangs in the air like a malevolent moon, shedding a nasty light on 2017. Fingers crossed that I don't have to go there. He also ix-nayed any more weighted squats, which have kinda been my foundation exercise.

Busy weeks ahead, with filming for both SHOOTING GALLERY and SGO. Have some cool guns to feature on SGO, including the new Ruger American in .450 Bushmaster (there's a hig-buster for you! Damn, but I wish it was in .458 SOCOM, a caliber I reload!), the new Galil ACE in 7.62 X 51 (a gun I've shot a good bit and really like, BTW…as I think I mentioned on the podcast recently, I am considering making the Galil the "house carbine," because I live in a rural area…depends on if I ever get the .30 cal suppressor that's in the queue) and my choice for USPSA Pistol Caliber Carbine, an IWI X95 in 9mm! The Quarter Circle 10/Dead Foot Arms 9mm AR build is continuing apace.

I'll also finish my review of the Honor Defense 9mm, which I remain impressed with. It is a sold little gun that runs like a top. I would not hesitate to carry it. It's an ounce lighter than a G19, but you give up  some capacity (7+1 or 8+1 for the Honor Defense). I'm reaching out to Galco for one of their paddle holsters to give carrying the Honor Defense a try.

Finally, the inevitable political plug…for your own sake, for the sake of the Second Amendment:

VOTE! 

Still Trying to Survive the Election

Hopefully, I'll shoot a match Sunday…I'm really looking forward to it for sure. Shooting a Suarez G19/RMR set-up out of a Comp-Tac Flatline holster. Spent the day yesterday with my friends from Streamlight — yes, they are sponsors! — for an episode of SHOOTING GALLERY.

I'm amazed at how far lights have progressed...800 lumens seems a good baseline…my bedside light is a 2200 lumen Pro-Tac flame-thrower. I replaced the TLR2 on the house carbine, the Tavor, with one of the new TLRs for a quantum increase in light. Streamlight is a great company to work with, One of the lights I didn't get a chance to talk about on the show is the Siege lantern (along with the AA mini-Seige and the new Super Siege. Living off-grid, we have battery-powered lanterns strategically placed throughout the Bunker for power outages while we figure out WHAT THE HELL went wrong. My Sieges have been workhorses.

These are great lights, and I strongly recommend them to preppers and people who just want a solid secondary light source. If I could do a stand-up pitch for this light, I would be happy to do it! Now there's the Super Siege, which is a rechargeable and can recharge your cellphone, pad or othre Streamlight USB light. The AA mini-Siege is almost small enough to fit in a bug-out bag and definitely enough to have a place to live in your car.

I am so lucky to have sponsors like Streamlight!

Tuesday on Monday

Got back last night from Red Oktober, the very first all-AK championship match, in St. George, UT. The land around St. George is arguably some of the most spectacular on the planet…Zion, Monument Valley, the Virgin River Gorge. And it's familiar, thanks to John Ford and his most famous star, John Wayne. The Southern Utah Practical Shooting Range has grown by leaps and bounds since the last time I was there (filming COWBOYS, parenthetically) and is one of the best ranges for our style of shooting I've ever been on.

Name sponsor was Rifle Dynamics, probably the premier custom AK maker in the country, with a host of other AK suppliers on board, including Century Arms, K-VAR, Dead Air with their AK-specific suppressor aptly titled the Wolverine, M13 Industries and others. The match was the brainchild of my friend Brian Nelson, who served as Match Director. Brian and I (along with his dad, Ken) have shot both Cowboy and 3-Gun together…in fact, we were on the same squad at one of the Crimson Trace Midnight 3-Gun matches.

I thought the match was superbly designed. It wasn't a 3-Gun match, with extreme athleticism and long-range shots…this was an AK match after all…but the stages were innovative, fun and challenging without requiring 300-yard shots and shooting while you're strapped into a bondage device with a ball gag. My favorites included a stage based on ENEMY AT THE GATES, which had the shooter starting in ditch under a blown-up bridge. Another house-clearing stage had the shooter use a breeching shotgun to enter the house, followed by a flash-bang grenade. C'mon…that's FUN, which is what shooting is supposed to be! Ranges were out to 100+ yards on a couple of stages, and more than on new competitor discovered the Zen of Zeroing the hard way.

What struck me and Brian was the number of totally new competitors — people who have never competed in any kind of match. In the SHOOTING GALLERY episode (you should see it around the end of January 2017), I refer to the "Lost Tribe of the Kalashnikov." AKs were all the rage a few years back, but as ARs came to dominate the market —and thanks to the staggeringly large aftermarket, becoming both more versatile and more accurate — the AK slipped from its high point.

One of the highlights of filming this episode was meeting Jim Fuller, the founder of Rifle Dynamics and one of the 3 nicest people in the world. Jim has done something I think is unique, beyond building the best AKs in the world. The thrust of Jim's focus has been and continues to be building the AK's culture, the Lost Tribe of the Kalashnikov. He teaches classes in AK building, essentially training his own competitors. He worked with Sharp Bros., the manufacturers of some of the most…eclectic…high end AR lowers on the market, to create arguably the best milled AK lower in the world. It was great to spend some time with Jim, and I think you're going to be impressed.

A bottom line? I'm an AR guy and have been for decades. While I've shot many AK platform and various ComBloc guns, I don't think I've ever owned an AK. That said, the Rifle Dynamics AKs were superb, lightweight, fast-handling and accurate. The custom guns accentuate the AK's advantages — weight, a bullet-proof magazine, comfortable ergonomics, a couple of effective cartridges and reliability that is stone-cold legendary — while delivering what AR shooters have come to expect — accuracy, modularity and superb handling characteristics. Comes at a price, but what doesn't?

I plan to film an AK build with Jim at the Sharp Bros. facility in Nevada for SGO early next year.

BTW, I have ordered a sort-of AK, one of the new Galil ACEs in 7.62 X 51 NATO. I absolutely loved that gun when I first shot it over in Israel. It's handling characteristics are, at least to me, flawless. A lot of the issues with earlier Galil iterations have been corrected. Judicial use of polymers have gotten the .308 ACE under 9 pounds, roughly on par with the SCAR 7.62, the Colt 901 (without the quad rail) and the Ruger SR762 and only slightly heavier than the "lightweight" DPMS Gen II.

The ACE runs with the standard SR-25/PMag magazines, of which I have a ton or so around the Bunker. The charging handle is moved to the left side, which I like, and the stock is reasonably comfortable. Mine will be topped with a Trijicon MRO.

Can't wait to get mine!