On the Gun Forums, a lot of guys have talked about how good looking a Gun is. When it comes to Sexy Handguns, this one right here really is it. Let’s compare it to what others have already compared it to… Monica Bellaluci.
Beretta’s have been passe and over played for a long time now… Since the first Mel Gibson Lethal Weapon movie. Robocop packed a Beretta. The Grammaton Clerics of “Equilibrium” packed them. The Matrix was probably the last of the big Beretta Block Busters.
And people kinda got tired of seeing them. So they pretty much disappeared from the Big Screen. Replaced by Stainless finished Glocks quite often.
Well, Beretta came back big time in TAKEN 2. A long extended Chase Scene featuring Beretta 92FS‘s, 90-Two, and Storm Pistols. And they looked awesome on the Silver Screen.
But is this a good thing? I mean, isn’t the Beretta old school 80’s?
We all know the US Army just purchased a freaking ton of them, making it the handgun for the US Military for at least another 5 years. Probably longer. Why? Because the 92FS is a very high quality pistol with reliability like the Sun Rise. They are super smooth, consistent, accurate, soft shooting, and extremely safe handguns. I will argue they have the safest of actions of any semi-auto handguns. Yet, when they are run properly, they are just as fast as anything else.
The other handgun that US Military uses is the SIG P226 and the 228… Which are very good indeed, but during the Handgun Trials, the Beretta did indeed outperform the SIG’s. You can argue that all you want, but the Beretta won it. And if you were on the selection board, you would have given the Beretta the nod too. I think what makes the 92 so good is what makes it so distinctive… That open slide. A common upgrade to many handguns is to open up the ejection port. I’ve never heard of anyone wanting to open up the 92 anymore. Clear ejection. Any gunk getting in there gets blown back out too. The feed geometry is ideal. It’s almost a straight shot in from the magazine into the chamber. Unlike a 1911 or other guns which makes the cartridge have to do some gymnastics to get loaded. And then there is the locking block. Under the barrel there is a winged wedge-like block. This is what locks and unlocks the action, allowing the 92 to be naturally and inherently smooth… Probably the smoothest action of any locked breach handgun.
The classic 92FS is also a very good looking handgun. It looks cool. There is something wrong with you if you can’t appreciate the lines and curves of the 92… It just looks like what a handheld weapon should look like. And I think the newest version of the 92 looks awesome.
If there is any downside to the 92, it’s the size. The 92 is indeed a large handgun. But then again, it’s supposed to be. It was designed to be a Full Sized, Duty Sidearm. For the guys out there packing only a handgun in their Fight against Evil, the Beretta was comforting, it had some heft, sure, but it also had something few other handguns had… a huge capacity. 15 Rounds! Back then, that was amazing. Now, 15 isn’t a huge capacity… but then again, I’ve not seen a guy that can shrug off 15 rounds of well placed 9mm hits. A big gun is a comfortable gun for shooting… felt recoil… accuracy… They are just easier to go the distance with than a small gun.
Beretta is the oldest company on the planet. They know how to make a good product. Sure, they have had a few flops… Such as the 9000 model. But overall, you can’t beat Beretta’s track record.
We’ve seen a marked upswing in Beretta sales locally. They are coming back in popularity, so expect to see more of them in the Media and Cinema.
I think I am going to Re-Zero all of my Long Range Arms for 300 Yards. Take your favorite Killing Guns, get out your favorite Ballistic Calculator and really look at your Trajectories. Between your 0 yard and your normal 100 or 200 yard zero range, look at the highest point in the arc to that range. Now change your zero range and push it out to 300 yards. Really not much effective difference there is it? Now take a look at the trajectory between your zero to 400 yards at both 100 or 200 compared to a 300 yard zero. Here’s what I’m seeing. I hold on the Kill Zone regardless of range. No more of this “Hold on the top of it’s back” BS. At most, even with a gun that drops a lot, such as a .308 or .30-06, I might hold at the top of the kill zone – but I’m still aiming for Kill Zone and hitting in Kill Zone. This works out especially well with the Magnums and their flatter trajectories. The old stand by of 100 yard zeroes is still needed for some guns, but for your Hunting guns, it doesn’t make any sense. And that wild ass guess of “Two Inches High at 100” is starting to kinda do the same thing, but without actually knowing what your gun is doing. So next time I go out to zero, I’ll start at 100 to know where I am at, then push it out and actually zero at 300.
The .260 Remington is a great round. Don’t think so? We’ll get to that later…
Check out the 6.5 Creedmore. The Rifle Shooter’s Darling Cartridge. It leaps tall buildings. It is Sub-MOA to a Grand. It’s made of accuracy. It’s everyone’s favorite round. Right?
Well, how come the 6.5 Creedmore is so popular when the .260 Remington isn’t? Ballistic-wise, they are almost identical with the .260 actually having a slight performance edge. Accuracy? Sixes really. But 6.5 Creedmore is the one people are looking for.
The difference is Marketing. Remington doesn’t know how to do it. They had something good YEARS before the Creedmore came out and Remington let it flop. Basically overall performance is like a .25 WSSM, before that round came and went. It’s one people are always asking for too… yet there is the .260, sitting there, ignored. Even by Remington! It makes no sense. They should be all over the .260. But they just don’t get it.
Zombie Tools has just come out with a new design for a Bowie Knife.
I love this… this is the most Ogrish Bowie Knife I have ever seen.
Fore more Zombie Fighting Badassery, check out ZOMBIE TOOLS.
The State of New York is going to pass the Micro Stamping requirement. They do not believe you would actually move out over handguns stamping as they are a smaller portion of your business.
Well, here is the thing… your customers are not going to want stamped guns. Its bullshit science, easily removed or worn off, its a useless requirement. But is going to do this regardless. NY thinks you guys are blustering.
The stigma of rolling over and doing the stamps is going to hurt you worse than just pistol sales. I sell a lot of rifles, tons of Remingtons. I can easily see the customer base turn against you, even here where you are hugely popular.
Look at S&W and the Department of Urban Housing Agreement. S&W almost didn’t survive that, and they are still suffering from it today.
You guys need to move to a state where you would be cherished, appreciated for who you are.
Come to Utah.
A state that has one the highest guns per capita than anywhere else. Not only come to Utah… but come out to Vernal, Utah. We have the highest per capita in the State.
Just saying…. why live where you are not wanted? Live where you would be loved!
Besides… Utah was built by people leaving New York. Its like a tradition.
It’s kind of like a cross between a Walther P99 and a Steyr M series. But the Caracal is better than both. I like it. A lot. I loved shooting it at the MAG-40 class, as Zak from Lone Wolf was kind enough to let me shoot it.
I’ve been thinking about thinking about the Caracal a lot since then. I want one.
Three 1911’s in class. All three are having problems on the third day.
Rob Pincus was right.
On YouTube I watched a video by a fellow named James Yeager about how there is no such thing as One Rifle for everything. He calls it a myth.
I call Bullshit on that.
History is full of instances where a man has just one rifle and did everything with it, just fine. Survived to tell the tale. James Yeager is free to express his own opinions, but he is not free to his own Facts. US History, be it Frontier History, Western Expansion, Wild West, Military History… what ever kind of history you want to call it. Only in our Modern Email Era do we enjoy having more than one rifle for different purposes.
In this Modern Era, the late Colonel Jeff Cooper considered a One Rifle concept and called it the “Scout”. His Scout Rifle Concept is a proven winner. Steyr manufactured their Scout with Jeff’s blessing and assistance. And it pretty much did what was promised. Now Ruger and Savage are making Factory Scout Rifles with pretty good success.
Any one of these would make for a fine “One Rifle” solution.
Historically, the One Rifle has been a Winchester Lever Action in .30-30, .32 Special or the like. Today a good solid and smooth cycling Lever Action is truly a thing of joy. There are few things you can’t do with a .30-30. I’ve even killed an Elk with one at 200 yards, and I’m sure I’m not the only person in history to have done so.
Today’s Rifleman though is packing an AR. The Black Rifle has gone mainstream… and for many new shooters, the AR is The One. The AR-15 might be kind of light for a One Rifle, but an AR-10 type rifle gives you some considerable advantages in terminal performance on big game.
After some consideration, I’m thinking a new One Rifle is more than doable. Let’s do that AR platform in .308. Let’s hit it with a light weight, 16″ True Polygonal Rifled Barrel, and let’s give it some lightweight furniture with an adjustable stock. Simple, Clean, and effective in most any situation. Give it an adjustable 1-4 power optic. Give it a tough finish, resistant to abrasion and corrosion.
Contact CrusaderWeaponry.com to order you a Crusader One Rifle.
SIG sent me one of their ACP units. This Video gives some of my impressions. On YouTube there was one comment worth note.
“For that weight you could get a Kel-Tec Sub 2000…and WAY MORE ACCURACY AND VELOCITY.”
Probably one of the most astute observations ever made on YouTube. He has a good point. However the ACP remains much more compact. The SUB2000 is about the same size when folded, and that makes it easy to pack around, but then when deployed, it’s pretty much as long as a standard carbine. The ACP remains the same size packing and engaging. It also uses a gun that you are familiar with… one of your own pistols… With a Trigger Pull that is far superior to the KT’s. And as far as I know, you can’t get the SUB 2000 in .357 SIG, 10mm, .45 Auto, .400 Corbon, .45 Super, .460 Roland… or any of the myriad of other cartridges you can rock and roll with in the ACP.
When I brought the ACP to work, the general consensus was that while it is “Cool” it’s actual usefulness remains limited… because it doesn’t have a Shoulder Stock. Now, you can jump through the hoops and get your Class III Approval and get a Shoulder Stock for your SIG ACP… Then you have an actual Pistol Caliber SBR… Fullfilling the promise of SIG’s name the “Adaptive Carbine Platform”. With out it… Shooting from the Sling is helpful and does stabilize the shot, it’s no where nearly as solid as a simple shoulder stock.
Also, for you Gaming Nerds out there, we’ve come up with a D20 Rule for you guys. For every 2 Inches of Rails your gun has, you get a +1 to your Hit and Damage. So the SIG ACP will give you about a +5 to your basic gun. IRL, the ACP is just making your gun bigger, more uncomfortable, heavier, and less convenient to carry because I’ve yet to see anyone make a Holster for this beast.
Like I said before, in the video… The SIG ACP does has it’s applications. I also mentioned that it would be cool for riding a Motorcycle. I’ve proved that theory TRUE. I rode into town on my ZX-11 (Knees doing slightly better and I’m on some really good painkillers) with the SIG ACP, as shown, slung. Packing a Handgun, I would have to either open my jacket to get to the Shoulder Rig or get up under my jacket to get to a pistol in a Belt Holster. The ACP, slung at the side allows for rather easy engagement as all I had to do was reach down, grab it, and bring it up to target. Not that I actually tried aiming it while on a moving motorcycle… I don’t live THAT far out in the boonies. In the video I mentioned my KTM and rolling the ACP up in the mountains. Uh… that would be a poor choice. The ACP bouncing around banging it’s sharp edges on you. Not fun.
Overall, I like it and it has it’s place, but I am going to send this thing back to SIG.