I just got a box of these in the mail: S&B 7x57 173gr "Cutting Edge" SP. Supposedly the rapid increase in diameter of the bullet creates a larger entry wound. I'm more interested in how much a heavier bullet may improve accuracy. Also got a box of 139gr PPU 7x57. Mausers are fun.
Shotguns are probably not the best choice for home protection. In the event of a break-in, what exactly do you plan to do? Legally, it varies from state to state, but you can pretty much do no wrong by hunkering down with your family and calling the police, preparing to use lethal force if the perpetrator threatens to come into your room. For this, any firearm capable of penetrating the FBI recommended distance (12 or 18 inches, I don't recall which) will suffice. Most of the popular handgun rounds are sufficient for this, come in a semiautomatic weapon, and can be manipulated with one hand, leaving the other hand free to call 911, hold a flashlight, or open doors. Those last two points would also be useful if you're planning to "clear" your house, although that is frankly a stupid idea when it's you, one (relatively?) untrained and inexperienced person, against an unknown intruder (or several), with intentions unknown, leaving your family unguarded. Semiautomatic 5.56mm rifles/carbines would also be handy, due to the speed of follow-up shots and decent terminal qualities (more on that later). Your duty is to protect your family, not your valuables. You have homeowners insurance that covers theft, correct? Generally, shooting through walls is a very, very bad thing. As a civilian, you are 100% responsible for every round that comes out of your firearm, no matter who or what it ends up lodged in. Only shoot at things you see. Looking at the data, I would strongly advise either Jacketed Hollow Points (pistol) or a .223 cal/5.56mm (rifle) rounds. The JHPs would have a higher tendency to mushroom and stick within an intruder (but are more likely to remain lethal after passing through drywall), and the 5.56 tends to fragment on impact with either a person or drywall, reducing the lethality to things behind the target while doing a significant amount of fucking up to the target. As for the spread of buck: inside a home, you will be at ranges where the spread of any sort of shotgun pattern are insufficient to do much to account for shitty aim. Devote some time to professional training or practice if you'd like to be better prepared for aiming under stress. The combination safe is a great idea, but keep in mind that when those infants become toddlers/kids, then they might learn to watch you, or they might develop sensitive fingers/a knack for locks. At some point in the future, teaching them the basics of gun safety would be good. You say they're infants, so they probably don't have separate rooms yet. When you're planning that, see if all the rooms can be stuck close together, or at least on the same level. That would make defense easier and make you less likely to do something like go downstairs to protect your daughter, forcing you to turn your back to an uncleared room or an intruder therein.
Just a thought, but in a pressure situation will you be able to open the safe? ie: "Oh shit there's a dude kicking in my front door!", will you be able to get into the room, open the safe, and get the gun out and ready to use in time? Like it might take you 15 seconds to do it with no pressure, but I can see myself fucking it up once or twice when the pressure was on. I'd hate to be fumbling with a combination when the dude is in the house.
Although this is a digression from the guns & ammo focus, for home security good deadbolts, strong hinges and doorframes, solid doors, and an alarm system are your friend. Try not to have windows around your door that could be a) broken and b) fit an arm through. A strong door will deter most people, so those who do stick around and devote the time, force, and violence necessary to opening a strong door might have a certain violent intent, further supporting you if courts become involved. If it comes with a backup battery pack, I'd consider a keypad lock instead, so you can have some 4 digit number (it varies, 4 is common) otherwise insignificant to you or unknown to others (not a birthday, birth year, address, etc.). This should provide faster access than spinning a combination wheel to precisely the right spot once, reversing direction for a full spin, spinning it to precisely the right spot twice, then spinning it back to the precisely right spot a third time. I mean, how fast can you type "fuck"? That's about as fast as you could punch in the code (maybe the last digits of the gun's serial number could serve as a code? Memorization of the serial number, assuming you have few enough guns for this to be feasible, might pay off in the event that your gun is lost or stolen).
So I got the best gift of all this Christmas, the gift of firearms. My mom and her boyfriend got me a Ruger 10/22 and I was wondering if you guys had any suggestions in regards to accessories (scopes, sights, modifications)? I'm mostly going to be shooting targets and cans and such.
Congrats on getting the most modifiable gun ever created. There is literally nothing you can't do to them. http://www.parts4ruger1022.com/
I know this is somewhat off topic, but I figure that people that know about guns probably know about knives too. Last week, while hunting, I lost my heavy-duty folder in the woods, and I've been looking for a decent knife to replace it (ideally in the $50 range). Anyone have any suggestions for a heavy-duty, large blade folding knife that can take a lot of abuse? Or, for that matter, have one to sell? I'll happily cover postage and packaging if you've got a quality blade going for relatively little. Cheers!
Hell yes that's a great gift. If you're handy, you can make some big improvements with a trip to a hardware store and a few hours back home (I.e. trigger stoning, bedding, polishing). Even for plinking, a crisper trigger and slick action is nice. If you don't want to get too dirty, get a custom trigger assembly or better parts. I use Volquartsen guts in mine and it is worlds better than the factory trigger. Lots of options out there. Optics-wise, a one piece weaver mount with BKL dovetail rings and a Mueller scope will give you lots of value. It's not the cheapest, and far from the spendiest optics setup out there, but pretty good for any general purpose 10/22. Keep it clean and have fun with it.
One of the best Christmas gifts I've got in a few years was a checkering kit and book on the subject, and I've started to learn how damn difficult learning how to checker will be. It's the last major skill I need to be able to do a complete custom hunting stock, so it's something I've been anticipating for awhile. Spoiler Uff da. I've got a few stocks that would be much better with some clean, classy, well-executed checkering so I've got the right learning projects waiting, so it's a matter of practicing until I'm ready.
I've resumed work on a laminate stock to mix things up for a day and have been making mucho progress with some new tools. These are the tools I've used to do the shaping, minus a hacksaw. Spoiler I'm thinking the natural color may be good as-is... no stain necessary. Spoiler Time to replicate that pattern on the other side. It's easy to use the seams and points along the inletting to measure with and make sure it's all aligned and symmetrical.
One last post today... a little carving, just to try it. It looks pretty good sitting in my new front rest.
I've been hoarding nice walnut blanks. I'm gonna make some damn fine stocks with this haul. Spoiler These are factory seconds from a famous manufacturer and I will do various different designs with them as there's a lot to carve out of these things. I'm thinking three for a CZ 452 and three for a Winchester 70, and doing American, English, and Bavarian style hunting stocks. Photos from the seller. The top three is english walnut and the bottom three is claro walnut and there's a mix of flat to quarter sawn too. Ebony tips and steel or skeletonized ebony grip caps on all with some inletted swivel studs and you bet I'm gonna do a lot of checkering. All of it is top-grade stuff so it deserves top-grade treatment. There's maybe 4-6 more coming too. I wonder how long it's gonna last.
I've moved on to learning my checkering like it's the real thing. The cradle and blanks are all for practice... I'll make an adjustable cradle once I'm working on real stocks and know what I want. Spoiler I was feeling ambitious tonight and made a pattern and put it on a stock. I cut the master line and quit for the night, because at this point I'm just gonna fuck it up. Spoiler
Future gun porn. There's lots of wood to carve in these uninletted blanks and re-shape into something good looking. The darker ones are claro walnut and the lighter is english walnut. Yep, I may have to put a new stock on the Winchester before next deer season...
So this past Saturday, I drove down to Richmond to meet up with a friend. He's been having a rough go of things lately. So I decided to take him shooting. We ended up going here. It was awesome. It was his first time at the range. We met up with one of his friends who brought along his Glock 17. I brought my HK 45, and we rented a 1911 Kimber Custom. We also rented a full auto FN P90. The range had mounted a red dot sight on it. It was a blast to shoot. Incredibly light, accurate, small frame, but very comfortable to shoot. It had a very intuitive design as far as grip. I was blown away by it, and it was the first opportunity I've ever had to handle the P90. If you're in the Richmond area, I'd highly recommend that range. I dare say it's even better than my range back home.
My Spanish M1916 Mauser sporter is coming along. The stock is an unknown from my favorite local gun shop. I bought it 'cause it was walnut and partially-inletted for a small-ring Mauser action. Fortunately each step of the military barrel has a straight profile, which made inletting the barrel channel much easier. I just wrapped sandpaper around a 3/4" dowel and worked at it for 2 days. The step for the chamber I routed out, then carved out the corners by hand. I did the same for the front ring of the receiver. It still needs a lot of work; the recoil lug doesn't make contact with the stock. I'll glue in a piece of wood or bar-stock to make up the space and help spread the recoil load. I also mean to add a reinforcing crossbolt through the stock just behind the lug. I've got to even out the inlet for the lower receiver to get it to seat flush with the upper receiver. Once I get the stock fitted, I'll finish it with Tru-Oil. While that happens, I'll have the sights fitted by the same shop where I found the stock. A Williams Streamlined front ramp (height to be determined) and the Lyman 57SMT receiver sight I bought last year.
Looks like a nice stock to start with... very similar to that on my Winchester in the photos above, made the mid-80's. If you haven't been using an inletting black, I'd definitely start. It's the most helpful thing for the job that I've encountered. A dark dry erase marker will work, and dark shoe polish too. The job is just easier when you know exactly where to remove material. That'll look great with open sights, especially after some work with tru-oil.