Category Archives: Weapons

Weapons

The Haley Skimmer Trigger

18 Comments

If you are a Glock Enthusiast like I am, you probably raised an eyebrow at the Haley Skimmer Trigger from GlockTriggers.com.   Here’s Haley talking about it:

Now here’s my take on this…  Haley is spot on.  This is a great carry trigger system.  I’ve read several comments that said that this trigger disables a safety, specifically the firing pin block.  This is untrue.

You can see in this picture, a new firing pin block.  It’s the small silver plunger near my little grey colored punch.  If you are familiar with the inner workings of a Glock Pistol, you will see that it looks just like a factory OEM part.  All the parts in the Haley Kit are in fact OEM.  So what are you buying?

Well, for one thing you are buying a lot of physical labor and carefully engineered geometry.  Everything that moves is highly polished.  By hand.  Actually, it’s everything that can be polished is polished.  I talked to Jeff at GlockTriggers.com about this.  “You can’t be doing all these triggers by hand… you gotta be using a tumbler.”
“Well the secret is Don.”
“Dawn, the soap?”
“No, Don, my guy that does the expert polishing by hand.”
Had a great conversation with Jeff.  Solid guy.  If anyone has any question about anything from GlockTriggers.com, you can contact them.  Jeff would be happy to explain anything for you.

Back to the polishing.  If it’s metal, it’s polished.  The springs are polished.  All these parts come in the kit, all are OEM Parts, polished in a way exactly like the stock OEM parts are not.  This removes any grit in the action.  There is also a change that removes all the take up slack.  The result is a much shorter, smoother, and crisper trigger than factory stock.  And since these parts are OEM, they are still approved for use by most Police Departments that require only OEM parts.
I know a lot of gunsmiths can do great trigger jobs in Glocks, and you can get great aftermarket parts from our friends at Lone Wolf.  But these don’t address that initial take up, and do things like smooth out the lifting of the firing pin block.  The Skimmer Trigger is an easy to install trigger upgrade that is safe for EDC use.  It was designed for EDC use.  There are other triggers that are a bit more oriented to Competition or such… and that’s great.  But for a Police Officer or Sheriff’s Deputy, or dedicated concealed carry person… You want the Skimmer Trigger.

Can’t leave well enough alone.

Now, a lot of you guys know that i’m a Tinkerer on some things.  Glock Triggers is one thing I like to play around with.  I changed some things around to try out.  I put in a Ghost 3.5 pound Disconnector, and an 8 pound spring (which actually makes the pull feel lighter).  So now this Glock’s trigger is super smooth, with no take up, with a super light and crisp pull.  Glock Perfection, Perfected.  But I would not recommend this combination to anyone that wasn’t a serious and dedicated Glock shooter.

 

Weapons

Way back in 1911…

39 Comments

The old man closed his eyes and tilted his head back, remembering. “Back when I was a young man we used to shoot guns made out of metal.”

The 1911 platform remains a top selling gun design to this day. The entire gun industry has a 1911 sub-culture. Complete with it’s own language and economy and border security. I mean, if you want to join the 1911 Culture, you got to know your way around. You got to know who the big names are, know those families, know where to go for certain things. Most of the big families can build you a fine 1911, but if you just want certain things… Magazines… Wilson Combat. High Cap bodies… STI. And everyone has rabid family loyalties that remind me of Middle Age Europe. “We fight for House NIGHTHAWK!!!!” *clattering of armor and swords amid the shouts*

The one thing that I shake my head at is the continued push by these great houses to sell these Sub-Compact (in the 1911 world we call them ‘Ultra’) 1911 guns with 3″ barrels. It’s extremely rare that any of these guns fire reliably. If you have one, good for you. But I’ve never seen one that could finish an IDPA Match or a Shooting Class. And most Trainers that I’ve talked to about it haven’t either. I think Rob Pincus was The First Heretic to speak out against these, much to the shock and horror of everyone who heard him.  But he was right.  He’s the Martin Luther of Defensive Pistols.   These pistols just don’t work as a whole.  And it’s the very rare Ultra that does… so rare in fact… that the owners must spend much time petting their Unicorns and playing shuffle board with Big Feet… because I don’t think they are spending as much time on the range with those Ultra’s as they say they do.   If sitting on your couch playing Xbox is “Range Time”, then we’re done conversating.   Ultra’s just suck.  The only one’s I found to shoot reliably are the original Detonics Combat Masters, and even then, that was a less common encounter.  And by Original I mean from within the first 3 factories to wear a variation of the Detonics name.

It has occurred to me thought that this rise of the Ultra is not a push by the gun companies… but by the demand of the Consumer.  The Peoples Republic of Shooters are shaking the gates of the Great Houses demanding wine, cake, and cheeses, and more varieties of Ultra Compact 1911’s.  They don’t want the full sized 5″ 1911 for concealed carry anymore.    They want something smaller and lighter and less effective… because they have forgotten, or in fact never learned, why it is we carry a gun in the first place.   I don’t understand many things in life.  Such as why some people don’t like Bacon.  Why pop culture calls that girl, Justin something, an artist.  Or why someone preparing for a fight will prepare around ineffective or unreliable weapons.  (ineffective such as .32 and smaller calibers.  .380 Auto is the minimum, but it’s better than harsh language)

Then it occurred to me that they are not making ready for a fight.  Not just any fight, mind you. But a fight for their lives and the lives of their loved ones.  Packing a “cool gun” is just for that’s own sake alone and not for the sake of lives.  It’s for the sake of Cool.   A 1400 dollar custom Ultra… I’m not going to say any names…

KIMBER

Might be expensive… and might be as beautiful as Hellen of Troy… But it was made to be only that.  Beautiful and Expensive.  This reminds me of a song from “A Funny Think Happened On The Way To The Forum” which considering the name of the show, I find humorously ironic.   “You’re Lovely, all you are is Lovely.”   This is a gun that is not made for saving your life.  It’s made to be Lovely, and nothing more.   Like a trophy Wife or Girlfriend or Personal Assistant… it’s something to show off and make you look good.   And that’s fine if you are showing off cars or girls… but in my mind, showing off something like a Kimber Ultra Duper Cool Carry, you spent a ton of cash for shows that me that you have a lot of money to waste on something superficial and useless.

If you want a 1911, DON’T get one with less than a 4″ barrel.  Just don’t.  You can have and enjoy a 1911… that’s fine.  But going below a 4″ barrel you are taking risks and forgetting the actual purpose of having a gun on you in the first place.     Of the current production 1911 builders, I’m down to 2 choices.  SIG and SPRINGFIELD ARMORY.  Going above that into the Semi Custom or Custom category, I’ll take an STI or NIGHTHAWK.   Those are my choices.  You can choose what you want.  I’ve forged my opinions at the foundry of Range Time.  On Live Fire Ranges where I have taken classes and have taught classes and have seen every example of 1911’s common in North America.  I’ve seen all of them fail at some point.  But some are more failure prone than others.  These names I’ve mentioned… these Great Houses of 1911’ness… have failed the least that I’ve seen.

I was most pleased that in my last Defensive Pistol class that I taught, in West Virginia it was… there was not a single 1911 of any stripe at the range.  SIG’s, Glocks, M&P’s.  And you know what the problem child gun of the day was?  SIG.  A 229.  Interesting that.  Could it be that the SIG is the latest Metal Gun to show it’s age?  No, not hardly.  But I’m just putting it out there that the 1911 is getting long in the tooth and coming around full circle.

What do I mean by that?

Back in the day, it was just known that 1911’s, brand new out of the box, wouldn’t run right.  Kimber actually, with the Kimber Custom model broke that mold… as they were putting out 1911’s that worked quite well as far as 1911’s go, right out of the box.  This causes a stir because you could buy a new 1911 from Kimber, and actually go shoot it instead of sending it straight to a gunsmith for them to rebuild so it will work.  (The Age of COLT was at an end at that time)
And now it’s seemingly perfectly acceptable to sell 1911’s again that don’t function well out of the box.  I’m not talking about a mere “break in” period.  I’m talking about guns that just don’t want to be reliable.  If these 1911’s were teenagers, they would have nose rings and ear gauges.

Weapons

Remember that old Daewoo Pistol?

14 Comments

LH9C

Some time ago, Daewoo was importing a great little pistol into the US.  Then for whatever reason, it was abandoned.  Leaving all Daewoo pistols in the US orphaned.

I remember shooting one once and was very impressed.  It was a great handgun.  I liked it.  The owner smiled and said I couldn’t buy it.  I had offered him the 500 cash I had on hand, but he wouldn’t sell.  At the time, I really wanted one myself.  I believe I was living in Hanover County Virginia at the time.  And that was a long time ago.  Long after Daewoo stopped sending those guns to US Dealers.

Well, I have rediscovered these guns.  They are now Lionhart Industries pistols.  Here at work we have a couple in our vault and I’ve checked them out.  They are ever better than I remembered them to be.  And for some reason smaller and lighter than I remembered, but essentially they are that neat little Daewoo that I wanted so many years ago.

Check them out here… http://www.lionheartindustries.com/ 

 

Weapons

3D Printing

12 Comments

My sons and I were discussing current events today and the subject of Printable Guns came up.  Along with other topics such as how most new tech is driven by the porn industry….
So, were talking about the 3D printers will one day combine printing circuits which will allow you to print a drone, and the controller for it.  And print your own robot…. And once the porn industry gets a hold of it, you can take creeper pics of some hot chick you saw, then go home and print her as a Lovebot to molest… Or download a celebrity. 
Back to the gun issue.  ITAR shutting down the plan for a 3D printable gun is the government building sandcastles in front of the coming tide.  It’s futile.  The cat is out of the bag.  And since schematics and detailed plans are already out there for most any type gun… The only issue is one of material science.  And instead of printing a gun, print molds to make guns out of better materials.
Colt started out with a wood carved revolver… Now look at it all.  I’m looking forward to seeing what happens next.

Weapons

My Rifle.

15 Comments

This is my person AR-15.  I’m not done tweaking it yet.  I’m going to shoot some Olive Drab Green on it, a little brown on it, and some MagPull Flat Dark Earth… But I’m in no hurry to do so.  I’ll select color and pattern after I move to NC.  Get the local colors there.  Going all FDE isn’t going to do me a bit of good out there.  And I’m not going to do it in anything fancy like Ceramic empregnated polymer or epoxy based resins or teflon infused bone.  None of that.  Krylon.  Spray on, rattle can, Krylon.  Why?  To remind me… that this rifle is a Tool and not a Precious Keepsake.  The wear on the Krylon will be viewed as Training Badges.  Scars gained in activities that develop and teach skills.
Also, I’m going to order a drop in trigger for it – because, to be honest, the trigger is Meh.  I was going to order a popular now trigger that starts with a G and no one can pronounce the name the same way twice.  But instead, I’m going to order one from “Black Rain”.  They have a solid adjustable unit that lets you tune it.  I like that.
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Instead of taking the time to order put parts together, I just started out with an off the shelf rifle.  I selected a Daniel Defense DDM4V7 Light Weight.  Then Joe at Crusader Weaponry installed the BattleComp muzzle brake and hit the Bolt Carrier Group with a Permanent treatment of Crusader Weaponry’s SLIPSTREAM lubricant.  Makes the gun run slick and snot, and it feels like a .22LR when shooting.

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Here you can see the BCG better.  The Slipstream gives it a satin grey finish… nothing flashy or “pimped out” about it.  It’s just slick.  If you hand cycle it slowly, you can actually feel the bolt lock and unlock within the action.    On top of the rifle is the Lucid HD7 Gen 3 FDE optic.  Backing it up is a set of MagPul flip up sights… which is kinda pointless as the Lucid is bullet proof and the batteries last forever.

I’ve thought about putting an upgraded optic on it… something “Better”.  But looking at the so called better options… I’m really not seeing any Red Dots that qualify as tangibly better. I’d have to go all the way up to the Trijicon SRS… and those suckers retail for over 900 bucks, for only some sort of perceived “Betterness”.  Yeah, I’d rather spend all that extra coin on ammo.

If I do switch off this optic… it would only be for something that was magnified  Perhaps in a 1-4 variable.  But to be honest, nothing as really sold me to justify the swap.  Vortex has a PST 1-4 something or other that looks cool, but has huge unprotected turrets that can easily get spun unintentionally.    Forget that.   Yeah, I’m happy with the Lucid HD7’s.   They define “Bang for the buck” value.

Weapons

Semi Auto Pistol Genetics

8 Comments

SemiAutoDNA

 

Feel free to suggest other pistols that are not mentioned and where they should be.  The roster for most boxes are easy to fill.  But the Metal-Striker box is the hard one.  There are just not that many out there.   If I was going to design a new pistol, I’d do a Metal Striker pistol.  Because there just isn’t that much competition out there for it.  One thing is for sure though… I’d make sure I’d stay away from Kahr’s trigger mechanism, because those motherfuckers sue everyone that makes anything even remotely similar.

Weapons

S&W 1006

17 Comments

I need a S&W 1006.  The gun the FBI couldn’t handle.

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The best alternative to the 10mm Glocks and EAA Witnesses or a 1911.  Not that I dislike those options, they are the common ones.  I want something different, and I think the 1006 looks like the one to get.
The FBI version was the DAO 1076.  The 76 also was slightly shorter in the barrel, like a Commander version of the 1006.  I actually like the decock/safety, but I think I’d rather have the longer barrel with the 10mm.  

 

Weapons

1115

18 Comments

I’m switching up my carry ammo for my Beretta.    According to Hornady my previous carry load, their XTP Custom 115 grain load, zips out at 1155 FPS.   I used to really like the XTP’s, and the Winchester SXT’s, which were about the same.  With the ammo drought going on, the load I wanted to get for my Beretta 92FS was the PDX1’s, were just not available.  I’ve actually been waiting for those suckers to come in since I got the 92!
Today, we did get in some 9mm defense stuff.  1 case.  Just one.  So I snagged some.  Hornady’s new Critical Duty 135 grain +P.  These suckers are stepping out at a very respectible 1115 FPS.  Only 40 FPS slower, but a lot heavier.   Felt recoil is increased some… I feel more push, but not as sharp of a kick as I was expecting.  Accuracy is spot on.  I dig that.  And the fact that’s as heavy as my old favorite .40 cal loads.  This is a comfortable load for me and a comfortable load for the big full sized Battle Handgun Beretta 92FS.
Accuracy and Reliability are there, and according to all the reports I’ve read, the Terminal Ballistics are there too.  I hope I never have to find out though.