Category Archives: Weapons

Weapons

The 9E, VP9, and the Pico.

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Two new guns came in that in not handled before.  The Ruger 9E and the Beretta Pico.
The Ruger is an impressive pistol for the money.  Its so close to the SR9 that In wondering why one would opt for SR9, with it’s hundred dollar premium.  The 9E has all the same features and the same trigger.  Great gun for the money. This isn’t like a Smith and Wesson SD9, which is a tangibly lesser gun to the M&P.  This is just what it looks like… an SR “light” model.
Ruger is doing it right,
The Pico is an interesting little unit. Its not for everyone. It’s a very tiny little pistol. Small in a “Wow” this is small kind of way.  Even though it’s unusually small, You can feel that its quality.  Its probably the best made little pocket sized 380 out there.  The trigger is very good for a DAO type trigger  I like it,  I could see myself packing one.  Deep Concealment use…
with the new . 380 ammunition out there now, my hesitations about the cartridge has lessened.
My only hang up about the Pico is the magazine release.  It’s too tiny. Not easily used,  But then again, this isn’t one to be doing tactical reloads with.   How it stands the test of time will be interesting.

The disappointment was the HK VP9 pistol.  I liked everything about it, but one small detail.  Imagine a new BMW M5… with a razor blade in the steering wheel.  See, in the HK, the trigger guard has a channel on the inside bottom.  I’ve not seen or heard anyone else mention that.  But it’s there.  On the pistols I’ve looked at, these channels have rather sharp edges that my trigger finger seems to find.  This causes irritation and distraction when there should be none.  HK Acolytes will of course say “I’m doing it wrong.”   BMW M5 with Razor wheel – “Oh, your holding the steering wheel wrong.”  No… Because it shouldn’t matter how I hold it.  It shouldn’t be there.  In the HK that channel shouldn’t be there to begin with.   So a pistol that could be a 10 out of 10, is only a 8.  There are other small things that detract as well… but that’s for another time.

More on these pistols in due time.

Weapons

Tactical Lever Action Shotgun?

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I don’t know what it is, but some questions have been coming in from multiple folks asking about the viability of a Lever Action Shotgun for Tactical use. This answer is a straight up no. Reason being, is that the Lever Action Shotgun loses the advantage of flexibility that the normal shotguns have, or the ability to top off on the go like a normal lever action rifle. So instead of being the best of both worlds, it’s the worst of both worlds.
Sure, Terminator 2 made it look cool with the firing from a motorcycle and spin cocking it… But that’s about where the cool factor comes to an abrupt end.

The reloading is second to none when it comes to being slow and awkward.
The reliability is questionable in every Winchester and Win-Clone I’ve seen. But even if you had one that ran as reliable as the Sun Rise – it’s still limited with a very short mag tube that you can’t extend, and reloading is about as clumsy as mechanically possible.
Even one as practiced as Master Quinn has a time of running these things.
A Shotgun has it’s advantage in being Situationally Flexible.  You take that away from it – it’s handicapped drastically.
A Lever has it’s advantage in being light and easy to handle, narrow in profile, and easy to top off on the go.   Take those things away from it, and it’s handicapped.
I see no point in these Lever Action Shotguns other than as a Novelty or a Historic Curio Reproduction.
The use of one in a Tactical Situation would be a mistake unless this was the only weapon you had or that it was a stop gap weapon until you could get to a better weapon.
Granted 12 gauge is devastating and 4 or 5 shots from it is formidable… but this is like planning on using a 2 shot Derringer as a defensive weapon.  There are better options out there.  In every metric there are better options.

That being said.   They are still freaking cool and fun… so outside of the Tactical Use spectrum – they are just fine.

Quick Update – There is a Marlin Lever Action in .410… It was produced for a time, dropped, brought back briefly and dropped again.  So examples are out there.  They are rare and hard to find.  I’ve only seen 2 in person.   They are cool and could be viable as a Tactical Lever Action Shotgun.  But they are only in .410 and that’s also a handicap.  But it’s better than harsh language, so there’s that.

Weapons

Beretta Vertec

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1.jpg_thumbnail0I don’t have a Vertec… But I do have a Blue Gun of the Beretta Vertec.  The weight is completely wrong, but the shape is right on.  I like it.  In fact, I think I’d really like to get a Vertec.    Unfortunately Beretta has long discontinued it.

This was a big mistake.  Not as big as discontinuing the 90-Two instead of just re-naming it.  Maybe bigger than the killing off the Cheetahs.  Word is that Beretta is bringing back the Cheetah.  The least of these three sins.  Beretta, BRING BACK THE OTHER TWO!
Bring back the 90-TWO.  Bring Back The Vertec.  Just do it.

Weapons

A couple Pistol Observations.

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The Ruger LC9S:  I’ve mentioned this pistol before. Said I’d like to take a look at one.  Well, i’ve done that now. I’ve looked. Held. Fired. And my opinion on it is now complete.

I like it.

The trigger is not a great trigger as far as the world of triggers go… But compared to other guns in the LC9’s class, it’s a fantastic trigger.  Compared to the old regular LC9’s trigger, this is a godsend.  This new trigger changes the gun dramatically.   All the sudden this gun is now a very serious weapon.  You can hit with it.  You can actually aim at your target and have a reasonable expectation of connecting bullet to bullseye.  That was not something you could really expect with the old LC9.  This new LC9S is what the Glock 42 should have been.  This gun is now on THE LIST.  I could by this one.  And I just might.

The DB FS Nine:  I’m not going to say that I don’t like it because it’s terribly ugly.  I think it’s disgusting looking… But so is an XDM, but I can live with an XDM.  It looks like a kid drew a pistol and Diamondback milled it out of plastic and regret.  But I know some of you guys out there are thinking “I like the looks”.   That’s good.  Good for you.  Honey Boo Boo’s Mom has a Boyfriend because of guys like you… Where was I?  No… The reason I don’t like DBFSNINE(!&@$T!(@$Y   Okay, I hate the name too.  For the LOVE of all that is holy – can people please use a shred of creativity when it comes to naming a main product line?  You forgot that it’s not just Full Sized – as compared to the DB9, but also Double Stacked… So according to your naming ritual, you should have called it the DB FSDS NINE 9mm… Or add a threaded barrel and it would be the DBFSDSTBNINEOMGIHATEYOUPEOPLE.   Come on.  It’s like DB went out of their way to make me not like this gun.  Okay… The top reason I hate the gun is the trigger pull.  And that it makes me go all Louis Black over here. You have a pistol that looks like it could be a good shooter here.  Six and a Quarter inches of Sight Radius here.  Four and three quarters worth of barrel.   And then you give it a trigger like CZ 100 with a sneezing fit.  Come on!
Diamondback, clean the gun up, give it a good trigger, and give it better name.  Like “F9”.  The DB F9.  Done.  Simple.  Clean.  I’ll give you credit… At least you didn’t do what FN did with the “Five-seveN”.  Gah!  That still makes my left eyelid twitch.  And don’t even get me started on Beretta’s 90-TWO!   I actually had words with the guys at the Beretta booth at SHOT over that wretched mistake.  This gun has POTENTIAL…. I’d love to see that potential realized.

Weapons

Four interesting guns, as discussed on AAR.

5 Comments
Fast gun segment on Armed American Radio.   I picked 4 of the more interesting Concealed Carry Gun Options.
Ruger LC9S, a Striker fired version of the LC9 we are all familiar with.  Much better trigger pull – to the point it means this slim ccw gun becomes a very serious option.   Even for me.
Ruger has another really good CCW option, the LCRx.  This is like the now familiar LCR revolver, but this one has a standard style exposed hammer, which means you can thumb-cock the action for a more accurate shot. I like that.  At only 13.5 ounces, you might think they are snappy – but with that nice rubber grip, it’s a pussycat to shoot.
Springfield XDS 4.0   This is the same gun as the XDS we all know and love, but with a longer 4 inch barrel.  A little better velocity because of that longer barrel, but the big advantage is the longer sight radius which makes it easier to shoot more accurately with.
Browning 1911 .380.  This gun was just recently announced.  It’s the 1911 .22 that’s been out for awhile, but rechambered for .380 auto.  What they did was they took a 1911 and scaled it down to only 85% size.  So it looks and functions just like the classic JMB design, but small.  Taking a gun that’s just too cool, and making it a viable defensive options.  Especially if you have tiny hands. Or you just want something different.  Probably wont be available until March of 2015, but that’s just a guess.  I’ll be looking for this at SHOT SHOW right off the bat.
Weapons

Dear Beretta, I want you to build me a gun.

10 Comments

Beretta, who loves  ya, Baby….
telly-savalas-who-loves-ya-baby
You know I do… Your curves, your lines, you’re a full figured Italian Goddess…. You’re Beautiful…
Can you do something special for me?  I’m wanting something a little different… some custom work.   Let me explain – please listen to me…
I want this gun, right here.   A 92FS Compact:
92FSc1
But with a Black finished Slide.  Two toned finish.  That’s the easy part.  Here’s where it gets tricky.
The most accurate semi auto pistol I’ve ever fired was the CZ 97B, which has a threaded barrel bushing to center the barrel in the slide perfectly.  That gun was telepathic.  The 92 is very accurate, but there is more accuracy in there that can still be found.
077
The 92 series has a bit of play there in the barrel, that a screw in bushing would remedy.   Not like how the AMU did it, with threading the barrel and putting a shaped nut on the barrel.  I want the slide threaded and a bushing that threads into the slide like the CZ97B.  I want this on my Beretta 92 Compact.  Okay, now just for pure looks… I want a recessed target crown like on a Nighthawk Custom T3.  Like this:
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I want that on my Beretta 92 FS Compact INOX with a black slide.
Can you make this for me?
I’ll give you all my best lollipops…

Weapons

Something “New” from Marlin

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newMarlin

I have to admit – I like the looks.  But there are two things that disappoint.  1.  They are adding some really cheap sights and acting like it’s an upgrade.  That’s just sad right there.   This is really no biggie though, as I’d replace it the same day I got the rifle.  With this.  It begs for the Lever Rail.  2.  The stock – which is fine on the outside… It’s laminate wood on the inside.  I’d rather have seen a sturdy synthetic stock used here to take a pound of weight out of the gun and narrow it up a bit.

It’s interesting that they are having FNC do the Finish on it.  I’d have thought Remington would have kept that work in house and use the same finished that they used on the 700 XCR Tactical Rifles.  I don’t know what advantage FNC’s finish is going to have.  Or maybe… FNC did the finish on the XCR rifles?

Really though – it’s just an 1895 GBL with a Green Stock.  I like it, but I’m not excited about it.

What would really excite me though, is if I could get that in an 1894 .44 Mag.   Now THAT would be sweet.

Weapons

Pick The Brand

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SIG-P220-1-Courtesy-Ryan-Finn

DA/SA Service Grade Automatics.   Who’s your favorite?  Okay, we’re talking the Brand on the whole, considering all the related models and variations they make.  Who’s your Top Brand and why?

SIG?
Beretta?
CZ?
Other?

The Traditional DA/SA auto seems to be in the gold years with more and more trainers and advocating striker fired guns with uniform trigger pulls from first to second shots.  Glocks, M&P’s, an XDM’s being the Striker Triad.   But I think that the DA/SA platform still has its place, and I still love them.  Especially for Open Carry, Duty Service… They are big, menacing, sexy, and very stable and accurate.   Outside of 1911’s I shoot them them best.  A lot better than Safe actions or DAO guns.

I’m thinking the Holy Trinity for DA/SA’s is SIG, Beretta, and CZ.  Across the board, I think the Beretta Brand takes the lead for consistent quality.   From what I’ve seen and dealt with with 8+ years behind a Gun Counter and… ahem… a few more years of shooting… I’ve seen problems with all of them.  I’ve seen far fewer though with Beretta.  But that’s not just the thing. It’s also how good they’ve been.  How smooth the triggers and slides were.  How tight they locked up.  I don’t think any brand for any type of auto is nearly as smooth as Berettas.  SIG’s are second and CZ is 3rd overall for smoothness.

However, for an out of the box trigger – the very best DA/SA trigger I have ever felt was on a CZ 97B.   Just incredible!  But other CZ triggers left me disappointed.  Same with SIG, overall very good, but not quiet as good overall as SIG’s I’ve fired.  One SIG though, a 229 SAS…. Oh man.   That was truly a great trigger.   Flip side, the SIG’s have shown some triggers that were less than stellar.
Beretta though wins in the same way a Race Team wins the Championship overall without having actually taken first place.

My 92FS had a very good trigger to start out with.  I swapped the main spring for the “D Spring” and it got a lot better.  It’s not a GREAT trigger.  This makes me wonder, why doesn’t Beretta just use the D Springs as standard?  Because the difference was dramatic!

I love the 92.  I love the SIG 220/226/228/229.  I love the CZ P-01/SP-01.  Overall though, I think that Beretta takes it.

What are your thoughts?

Weapons

Stop It

2 Comments

Stop showing me videos of your Mag Dumps, and show me a video of how fast you can reload!

Stop showing me an AR-15 with a Cosmetic Change and telling me that you designed and engineered something different.

Weapons

Armchair Quarterbacking: PARA USA

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I’ve never really been all that fond of Para Ordinance for various reasons.  However Para Ordinance became PARA USA, moved from Canada to the US, and have been working hard to forge their spot in the American Gun Culture.  Some years ago at a Media Range Day at SHOT Show, I browsed the offerings at PARA’s booth and was impressed with what I saw.  The gun was a very basic 1911 for Wild Bunch competition.  Nothing fancy, just very “GI” style.  Simple.  And good.  It was very good.  I shot several other 1911’s from other makers, but the one that stuck in my mind, even the one I liked the best, was the Para.  During SHOT I went to the PARA booth and looked at the pistol again.  It wasn’t a fluke… I really did like the gun.  It was at that moment when I realized that PARA USA is a company to take seriously.

Now it’s about 4 years later and PARA USA has continued to improve their guns.   They’ve made huge strides to the point that PARA USA is now one of my TOP 1911 Makers.     They are making some 1911’s I want to buy.  Not their whole product line… but close.  They can do a few simple things to really hit it out of the Ballpark.   Let’s take a look at PARA USA’s line up.

Let’s start at the top of their own roster and work down.  The Executive Carry.    The gun looks good, with a nice finish, nice grips, and that awesome bobtail.  But it has a 3″ barrel.   This is basically a full length grip, bobtailed, and an ultra compact barrel.  If this was a revolver, this would be the equivalent of S&W Magnum Grips on a Snub-Nose.  It makes no sense to me.  The grip frame is the hard part to conceal, not the barrel.  Bobtailing it is a nice touch, but if you are going to have an ultra compact barrel, give it an ultra compact grip frame as well.  At least an Officer’s length grip frame.  Bobtail that.  This gun is just a bit off because of the short snout.   Because of that, I wouldn’t buy this one.  However, if it was sporting a Commander length slide and barrel – I would.  A nice clean Lightweight Commander on a Bobtail frame is missing from PARA’s line up and it should fit right here in the EXECUTIVE category.   That’s 1 missing gun.

The other missing gun from the EXECUTIVE Category is the CCO configuration.  A Commander Length barrel and slide on an Officer’s frame.  Basically just the opposite of the PARA Executive they have right now.  Colt’s CCO was a breakthrough for concealed carry 1911’s.  SIG followed that pattern and hit a home run with it in the C3 and RCS models.  Smaller frame for easier concealment, and a nice length barrel that doesn’t give up much on ballistics and sight radius.  It NAILS it.  PARA doesn’t have a CCO type 1911, and they should.

Here’s one more gun to add to the Executive roster.  The LDA Officer… But with a standard 1911 trigger mechanism.  Not everyone likes an LDA Trigger in their 1911, but the Officer platform is a good one, and should be reflected in the Executive, Elite and Expert lines. One thing that the LDA has that I’d like in the Executive line is that front strap checkering.  That Lightweight Commander Bobtail – I’d like some fine checkering on the front strap.

I’m not going to comment on the Competition guns, because I think PARA nailed those as offerings and every competitive shooter I know would change things anyway to their own liking and everyone has a difference of opinion so you’ll never make everyone happy there.   But it’s a solid line as it is.

Now, for the Tactical side of things.  The Black Ops line.   Sharp.  I could buy one of these.   Wait a second here… How come the Black Ops 1911 Single Stack doesn’t have the Checkering like the Double Stack?  If this is to be a full featured combat oriented line, let’s not skimp on it.    Also, the Recon, your Commander length tactical gun.  Where’s the Single Stack version of the Recon?

While we’re talking Tactical, not all Tactical ops are Black Ops.  I’d like to see Tactical versions in OD Green and FDE (Flat Dark Earth).  Same guns, just not blacked out.  I know you’ve had them before, I sold them.  FDE the slide and frame, and use the regular black parts and grips for a nice contrast.  Would look very sharp.

Now on to the Elite Series.  The PARA Elite is a wide range of 1911’s that we can probably say is PARA’s main line.  Or at least it should be. My only hang up with the Elite Series is that they are using Fiber Optic Front Sight Posts on all but the Elite Pro.    The Elite Pro is one of my very favorite guns from PARA’s line up.  It hits all the right buttons.  Now, where is the Elite Pro Commander?  There’s another gun that’s missing from PARA’s line.   Another one is an Elite Bobtail Commander.   Again with Bobtail Commanders?  I know.  But still, my point is valid.  Ask Dan Wesson.

The ELITE LS HUNTER.  This gun is one that I’ve been waiting for… a 10mm Long Slide – I must have this.  Thank you for making this one!   Now, if you could just add 10mm options to a couple other Elite or Tactical guns, thank you.  And to keep up with STI – mayhaps a double stack version as well?

Reverse Two Tone.  I want to see more Two Toned guns, specifically in the “Reverse” scheme.  Light on bottom, dark on top.  Make a lightweight bobtail commander in 10mm, in reverse two tone – and you’ll have my order by the end of Oct.   Seriously.   I’ll order it through Blackstone Shooting Sports in Charlotte.  I’m not kidding.  I will.

The Expert line.  I’m giving you some Golf Claps over here.  Bravo… You have it nailed here.   Simple lines, no frills, and “No Gills”.  None of those forward slide serrations that ruin the lines of a handsome Government model.   THIS is the 1911 that I want the OTHER companies to make!   And PARA USA made it.    This makes me quite happy that I am moving to the town that makes it!   Can I get a black slide on that Stainless frame?  In a Commander?

The Warthog is listed under the Expert category… and that’s fine.  But remember what I said about the CCO?  A CCO Warthog…. Call it the “A-10” model, as in “A-10 Warthog“, the Infantryman’s favorite jet plane.  It would be the Goldilocks for concealed carry double stacked 1911’s.  The regular Warthog is just a bit too short in the snout for me.   I know it’s been popular, but trust me… a 4″ version would be even more so.  I could have sold twice as many, because that is what the most common remark about it was.   Springfield found this out when they made 4” versions of the XDS, as did SIG with the C3 and RCS.  That’s the configuration that is IDEAL for concealed carry.

That’s about it for PARA USA.   They are doing a really great job and I’m happy to see it.  They’ve come a long way and are now a great 1911 company!   Well done, PARA USA!!!   *Standing Ovation Here*