My Wife's Father Died Yesterday

My wife's mom died last Spring. Like many couples that were married over 50 years, the spouse soon follows. May he rest in peace.

I only have one gun related story that includes my father-in-law. I posted it long ago. It's worth repeating today:

We were cleaning out a closet looking for paperwork and cleaning in general and there it was. It was a 20ga single barrel shotgun. Cobwebs and dust fill and covered it.

We asked him about it. Forty years ago, the family dog had badly bitten a neighbors small daughter. On the face.

My wife's father went to the local hardware store. Bought the shotgun and five shells. He came home and as the Sheriff watched, loaded the gun and shot the dog.

A few minutes later he cleared the empty shell and put the shotgun in the closet.

There it stayed.

--I have that shotgun now. Waiting to be restored.

Killer Robot Sentry

There are now more than 4,000 U.S. military robots on the ground in Iraq and Afghanistan. That number does not include thousands of unmanned aircraft that have clocked hundreds of thousands of flight hours.

The combat robots fitted with large-calibre machine guns deployed to Iraq for sentry duty, proved so successful that many more are on order. They have multiple eyes for 360 degree vision, night vision, zoom lenses, motion sensors, vid and audio capture, automated targeting, vast amounts of armor piercing ammo,

Up to now, a human hand has always been required to push the button or pull the trigger. Military leaders "are quite clear that they want autonomous robots as soon as possible, because they are more cost-effective and give a risk-free war." The units are actually inexpensive. They never get tired, hungover or bored.

Several countries, led by the United States, have already invested heavily in robot warriors developed for use on the battlefield.

--Sitting safe in a bunker, a single controller can secure a large area. I want that!

Virginia Bills

The Crap First:

House Bill 1669, sponsored by Delegate Jennifer McClellan (D-71), is an attempt to regulate the private sale of the firearms at Virginia’s gun shows. HB 1669 would prohibit the private sales of firearms at gun shows by requiring that all sales conducted at a gun show go through a federally-licensed dealer of the gun show promoters choosing.  Make no mistake about it, if passed, supporters of this legislation will soon be calling for a ban on all private sales in Virginia.

House Bill 2343, sponsored by Delegate Joe Morrissey (D-74), is a bill in search of a problem. This legislation would prohibit open carrying in public while under the influence of alcohol and drugs. We have seen no evidence that this is an activity taking place within the Commonwealth as gun owners are among the most law-abiding citizens in the state.

House Bill 2524, sponsored by Delegate Betsy Carr (D-69), seeks to ban the sale, barter or transfer of any firearms magazine designed to hold more than 20 rounds of ammunition. 

The Good Stuff:

House Bill 1732, sponsored by Delegate Bill Carrico (R-5), would allow any person who is at least 21 years of age with a valid concealed handgun or concealed weapons permit issued by another state to carry a concealed handgun within the Commonwealth, so long as he also carries a valid government-issued photo identification.

House Bill 2069, sponsored by Delegate Clay Athey (R-18), would allow an individual to carry a concealed handgun without a permit as long as the individual informs a law enforcement officer of his possession.

House Bill 2062, sponsored by Delegate Rob Bell (R-58), would allow a correctional officer to carry a concealed handgun without a concealed handgun permit.

 

House Bill 1573, sponsored by Delegate Bill Cleaveland (R-17), would seek to codify a version of “Castle Doctrine” which would allow lawful occupants of a dwelling to use any degree of physical force, including deadly force, against an intruder who has committed an overt act against him, without the fear of civil liability.

House Bill 1422, sponsored by Delegate Dave Albo (R-42), would add one family firearm, not to exceed $3,000 in value, to the list of items that every householder shall be entitled to hold exempt from Chapter 7 Bankruptcy. Currently, ten states allow firearm owners to exempt their firearm from the liquidation process. 

-This really shows the rift between left and right, D and R.

Second Amendment Foundation

The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) is dedicated to promoting a better understanding about our Constitutional heritage to privately own and possess firearms. To that end, they carry on many educational and legal action programs designed to better inform the public about the gun control debate.

For more information about the activities of the Foundation, or to make a Donation to help support SAF.org and the Foundation, please call 1-425-454-7012 and speak with the Second Amendment Foundation staff directly. If you would like to volunteer to support the Second Amendment Foundation with either time or money, please send us an email stating how you would like to help! The Second Amendment Foundation also maintains an Attorney Referral Service. Call 1-800-426-4302 to contact the Second Amendment Foundation if in need of pro-gun rights attorney.

Interested in becoming a Second Amendment Foundation member? Joining SAF and being nationally recognized as an individual who wants to protect your rights, and the rights of those around you has never been easier! Please contact the SAF Membership department at: 425-454-7012!

--Join this org. Do it. Don't make me get up from here!

Ammo Storage Idea Follow-Up

Back in November I posted regarding an Ammo Storage Idea. The idea was simple. Store ammo in used, cleaned, well dried, bottles. It beat the milk cartons the ammo came in. As a test I took one of the bottles and stored it under water for two months!!   I took that set of ammo with me to the range this weekend.

The inside of the bottle and all the ammo was bone dry. I shot about 300 rounds from the bottle without any issues. I still think that I am going to order some desiccant packets to add to the bottom of each bottle.

--I think my next test will be to bury one in the yard.

2011 NRA Annual Meeting! I'm in!

I am going to the 2011 NRA Annual Meeting. It will be the first time for me.

It should be fun!

I will be taking my camera and collecting lots of blog fodder for the weeks that follow.

My initial impression of the website is not so good. It fouled up my registration, flagged me as a non-member. I called the toll free number listed and it was disconnected and gave me the main customer services number for the NRA. They at least knew I was a member and could see that the web site was hosed, but could do nothing.

I will not allow these initial issues to damper my excitement. All I need to know now is who else is going?

--Need to know the carry rules there!

The ones with the cute names are the worse.

Hummingbird

Meet another of the warriors in the up coming Killer Robot Uprising.

This Helicopter UAV Drone can carry over 1000 pounds of ordinance and flies whisper quiet.

This autonomous Killer Robot can fly into places the ground based units could never reach.

FireScout

Between this and it's larger siblings like the FireScout, we will have our jobs cut out for us.


--Remember, if you find one of these following you. Use .308 or larger.

Range Report

I went to the NRA HQ Range this morning because of over crowding there yesterday. It opened at 8:30am. I wanted to get there first thing. I arrived at 8:37am. I was number 32 on the list. You have to understand that there are only 15 lanes. That means I did not get to shoot until 10:30am.

I blame all these uppity women crowding the place.

I will not complain too much because tactical pants and bare midriffs is my favorite look on women half my age. Especially when it includes a 1911s or Glocks as their jewelry.

My main goal was to sight in the new scope for Squirrels Bane. It took about 20 rounds to zero that scope in at 100 feet. It's a 3x to 9x zoom. A tac driver. I really need to air it out at 100 yards or more. But for now it will do. Bane is a Ruger 10/22 with an integral silencer. It's been upgraded with a lot of tactical plastic, grips and banana mags. People always notice it. The old guy in the lane next to me today said, "Son, that's just wrong." Referring to how quiet and accurate Bane is.

Alice went along too. I adjusted the flip in 3x today and synced the LASER with the EOTech. I asked the range commander if it was OK to shoot from the hip using the LASER. He said, "Sure, if you let me try it!"

Man that is fun.

I also ran a box through my Glock 21 as usual.  I did some holster draw drills. Never missed. Gotta speed it up though. I am kinda chicken though. Would like to find a class to teach me before I fix bad habits.

I have been chatting with Andy and TBolt about meeting there on Feb 20th to have a Blogger Shoot. Then a tour of the NRA Firearms Museum and Lunch!  Let us know if you would like to join in!

--Friends, Firearms, Food and Fun! 

How handy are your self defense guns?

One of the great dilemmas is where to keep your guns so they are handy if you need them. We need to also ensure they are secure from children and burglars.

Most people keep them in safes. Safes in basements or garages. Not really handy at all. Some people believe that hiding firearms in secret stashes is better. I kinda like the idea.

The mantle clock gun case is one of these ideas. I saw this one on CheaperThanDirt.com for $39. There are also wall clocks and picture frames that do the same thing.

In my house I would be fine with these as my kids are old and responsible enough to allow them to be stored this way.

--Might have to get one.

Just got back from the NRA Range

I was going to make a quick run to the NRA HQ Range, to sight in a new scope on my rifle, Squirrels Bane.

I knew I was in trouble based on how full the lot was. When I got inside it was packed. When I got to the waiting list to add my name I asked the woman behind the counter how long the wait was going to be. (15 mins is the longest I had ever waited).

She said it was a 2 hour wait. Wow.

I thought about waiting as I wandered though the waiting area. No seats on the nice leather sofas. No spaces on the benches. Even the class room was almost full. I bagged it. They open on Sunday at 8:30am.

It was 50/50 men and women. Higher ratio than usual. I shouldn't be surprised. It's Virginia.

--Women in shoulder holsters are hott.

Proposed law in VA

HB 2069 Carrying concealed handguns; penalty.

Introduced by: Clifford L. Athey, Jr. | 

SUMMARY AS INTRODUCED:

Carrying concealed handguns; penalty.� Amends the section requiring a person to have a valid permit to carry a concealed handgun, making it legal for a person who may lawfully possess a firearm to carry a concealed firearm so long as he informs a law-enforcement officer of his possession as soon as practicable if detained and he secures the firearm at the officer's request or allows the officer to secure the weapon.

--This is very interesting in light of what recent events!

The Web! It's a series of Tubes!

I love the resources that are readily available to the users on the internet. For concealed carry permit holders the U.S. CCW Carry Concealed Reciprocity Map is an excellent asset. Below is a snap shot of the map for me, a resident permit holder in Virginia.

--Might have to get a non-resident permit or two to increase my coverage!

The Thunder

Years ago, I was hunting one day on a 400 acre farm and a few hours after I got into position it began to rain.

I didn't want to get soaked and I wasn't sure how long the rain would last.  So I took advantage of a huge John Deer tractor that was parked right in the middle of the field. It was the kind that had the big enclosed cab.

I climbed in and sat in a very comfy seat. I cracked open the windows a bit so it didn't fog up in there and waited.

A beautiful deer slowly broke cover, never looking at the tractor twice. It  was coming right for me, my heart was racing with involuntary buck fever. I waited and watched for it to get in the perfect position, in front of the crack in the window and my barrel sticking out. When it was about 60 yards away, (an easy shot for my Savage 110FP and a 12x scope) it turned and gave me a perfect profile shot.

I pulled the trigger.

Two things happened. The deer dropped with a perfect heart shot and my hearing turned to a whining test pattern tone.

--Damn. A .308 is loud in an enclosed space.

Snow. We has some.

--Do Not Want.

Body Armor

Every gun show I attend there is usually a couple vendors that are selling body armor. Not just simple vests either. They sell Kevlar helmets, Army surplus flak jackets and even shields. Even Amazon sells armor, vests and helmets.

There has been several innovations in body armor in recent years. Dragon scale styles, ceramic plates and new carbon fiber based armor. Google is a huge rabbit hole if you are interested in body armor. Not all vests are rated the same. Some are good for hand gun calibers only. Some are good up to .308 rifles. Some say that they can even stop a .50bmg (yeah right) but I bet you will still have a very bad day.

I was amazed to discover that body armor is restricted/disallowed for civilians in some places. It is a felony in some cities to own it. Other states require a permit to buy it and wear it. Dumb.

UPDATE: Maryland currently only restricted convicted criminals from possessing body armor. And don't commit a crime wearing any! There is proposed legislation restricting it further. Good catch guys.

--Yet another reason to love Virginia.