Friday Gun Pr0n #255

BenC was kind enough to send in this week's picture:

Model 10

Ben picked this up on a whim because of the price - let's just say it was less than a new Hi-Point - and he won't be disappointed. Everyone should have at least one four inch barreled .38 Special revolver, be it a Smith & Wesson Model 10, a Colt Official Police, or a Ruger Service Six. The Model 10 has had the best run, in production since 1899 in one form or another, and is arguably the very picture that comes to mind when one hears the words "Smith and Wesson".

Nice pick-up Ben - if you get tired of her, give me a shout!

That is all.

Anarchangel Blogmeet Update

Well, considering that it's two days away, I made a few calls and we have a place now for the blogmeet dinner with Chris and Mel Byrne from The Anarchangel. In the traditional format:

What: Blogmeet dinner for Chris and Mel

When: Saturday, February 25th, 7 PM

Where: Angela's Coal-Fired Pizza in Saugus, MA

Why: Chris and Mel are in town and... well, do you really need a better reason than that?

Attendees:
Chris and Mel
Weerd (possibly)
stickman
Chris M. & guest

Hope to see you there!

That is all.

Beating the Drum...

8-year-old in critical condition after shooting at Washington school

BREMERTON, Wash. – Police say an 8-year-old girl critically wounded by a gunshot at her elementary school near Seattle apparently was shot accidentally.

Bremerton, Wash., police Lt. Peter Fisher says a gun brought to the school Wednesday discharged while still in a third-grade boy's backpack. Fisher says the bullet hit the nearby girl.

Is it just me, or are we seeing a rash of these "kid brings a gun to school/day care/etc." stories? This one's got it all - a young child with a gun, a critically injured classmate, the classic wringing of hands over WA not having mandatory trigger locks/safe storage/etc. laws... Again, we see more magical thinking: if only we had one more law, this negligent parent would not be negligent! One more law will turn irresponsible parents into responsible ones! One more law will make people who don't us a lick of common sense start thinking!

Let's face facts here: You've got a kid getting access to a loaded firearm who has absolutely concept of the dangers of the gun. The parents have most likely not had any sort of meaningful discussion about firearm safety; they haven't taught their child the four rules; they're certainly not supervising them to any extent (I check my kids' backpacks every morning, and the Mrs. checks them every afternoon).

Mandating that all firearms have trigger locks to stop the 1-in-a-million time that some kid gets ahold of dad's gun isn't going to solve the problem. All it's going to do is toss yet another roadblock to the law abiding gun owner - try getting a trigger lock off a gun when someone's pounding down your door at three in the morning. Meanwhile, the folks that should have this sort of thing crammed down their throats - the irresponsible, the criminal, etc. - will be completely unfazed by the legal requirement of a trigger lock.

It just seems too convenient that a raft of these stories should be coming out at the same time - especially with a ready, canned response from the Brady Campaign...

That is all.

Another dispatch from...

(image courtesy of Robb Allen)

My Reputation Precedes Me...

My #2 blogdaughter sent me this comic:

(comic from here)

Her comment?

I saw this and all I could think of was "so it's for Jay"

Heh. She knows me...

That is all.

Classy...

Blighted home owned by Conyers family reportedly causes neighbor's insurance to rise

The decrepit condition of an east Detroit home owned by Michigan Rep. John Conyers' family reportedly has driven up the insurance rate for at least one of the neighbors.

According to MyFoxDetroit, one neighbor claimed her annual homeowners insurance rose from $1,700 to $7,000.

Yep. The Democrats are really looking out for the little guy, aren't they? Read the lineage of the house: Conyers' mother signed the house over to him, he signed it to his wife, she signed it to her mother (after she went to jail). It doesn't appear that anyone is caring for the property, which begs the question of why the Conyers are holding onto it. It seems the only person affected is the neighbor with the tripled homeowner's insurance rates thanks to Conyers' eyesore.

Wonder who the neighbor will be voting for in 2012?

That is all.

Another dispatch from...

(image courtesy of Robb Allen)

MArooned Product Review: Remora Holster

I mentioned picking up a Remora holster for the S&W M&P9 compact and Ruger SR9c after reading Weerd's glowing review a few weeks back. It came in last week, and ever since I've been wearing it around to get a feel for it:

Remora

I find the Remora to work better with jeans than dress pants, as jeans have less give to them as well as a more "grippable" surface. The Remora still works well with the 5.11 Tactical pants, it *felt* more secure in Levis. I think it's because the dress pants all have the "expandable" waistlines that don't allow the pants to be held as tight.

It's a "one size fits many" holster:

Multi-use

The M&P was not available for this picture, but it fits the size #6 Remora holster as well as the Ruger SR9c:

Ruger fits

or the SIG SAUER P250 compact:

SIG fits

I didn't know what to make of the Remora at first. Common sense tells you that a holster without a clip is bad news; little more than Mexican carry with a covered trigger guard. But then you go ahead and use it, and realize that, damn, this thing works. Because there's no clip, it's easier to position in a pair of jeans. Because it's so grippy, it does NOT move out of place even when you're moving quickly.

I'm tempted to get one of the J-frame holsters for it, as that would allow pocket carry as well. So far I'm quite impressed with the Remora as an IWB holster - it has stayed put, allows for a rapid draw, and is very comfortable - all for $30 shipped. I haven't worn it all day yet, but for quick trips out and about this is a superb choice - it's very quick to grab and place in the waistband without worrying about adjusting belts and such. Best of all, you can put your shirt on over the holster like a tuckable and it works just as well.

Big thumbs up for the Remora!

That is all.

This Is Downright Eerie...

Police say 5-year-old Ohio boy found unloaded handgun, brought it to day care

TOLEDO, Ohio — Police say a 5-year-old boy in Ohio brought an unloaded handgun to the day care he attends after finding it in the grass at his apartment complex.

Police say the child thought it was a cigarette lighter and was showing it to friends at My First Days Day Care in Toledo when administrators saw the weapon.

Apparently the kid showed it to his mom, who thought it was a lighter - and apparently allowed him to continue playing with it. That right there is some scary stuff - even if it was *just* a lighter, a five year old has no business playing with it.

Anyone else remember the 6 year old in Michigan shot dead by a classmate who took his mom's gangbanger boyfriend's gun to school? I remember it because Bill Bastard Clinton got up on television and told us - with a straight face no less - that he honestly believed that if trigger locks were mandatory, this shooting wouldn't have happened.

This is the magical thinking of the gun-grabbing left, folks. Gangbangers will stop leaving their stolen guns where children can find them if we just pass one more law. Never mind that there's already a law against stealing the gun. Never mind that there's a law that says gangbangers with multiple felony convictions cannot own firearms. One more law and this sort of thing won't happen.

Guess what, folks? One more law is the equivalent of my kids' "tomorrow" response to "when are you going to clean your room?" The anti-freedom brigade knows damn well that criminals don't obey the law. They also know that ignorant but well-meaning people will go along with pretty much any idea drummed up "for the children", especially if there's a heart-wrenching tale involving a murdered child..

But they want me to give up my rights because their laws have failed. Because they have turned the criminal "justice" system into a sideshow attraction where jail time is a passage of manhood, where repeat, violent, dangerous criminals are routinely released from prison because of "overcrowding"; because they are incapable of adequately punishing those that have broken existing laws, they want just one more law to stop the outrage du jour.

It's long past time we said "enough" - no more laws. No law is going to stop a criminal from dumping a crime weapon in an area where children play. No law is going to magically make people more responsible. Only penalties matter - the gangbanger in possession of a firearm illegally? Simply prosecute him to the full penalty of the law. Start putting these guys away for 15, 20, 30 years - and keep them in jail - and see what happens to the crime rate.

Make the criminals pay - and pay dearly - for their crimes, and you will see this stop quickly.

That is all.

Another dispatch from...

(image courtesy of Robb Allen)

It's Easier Than Thinking!

It's incredibly short-sighted stupidity, but not from MA. Sent in by Stretch:

Toy Guns Becoming A Criminal Offense?

DETROIT (WWJ) – State lawmakers are currently reviewing legislation that targets the use of certain toy guns. A planned proposal before the Senate would make it a crime to possess a toy gun that has its required markings removed or by having a real gun that is made up to look like a toy.

State Senate Republican Rick Jones said that this has become a major problem, especially within the gang community. “People are taking imitation firearms that look real, cutting off the orange end and then threatening people,” he said.

I've got a crazy idea. Rather than criminalizing the toyification (I just made that up!) of a gun or the detoyification (see!) of a toy gun, why not just punish the damn criminals? I mean, I know holding people responsible for their actions is so last century and all, but by turning the focus to the piece of plastic being used (or the toy) instead of the person wielding it, we're taking the responsibility away from the criminal yet again - it's not their fault, it's that darn plastic toy!

The incredibly faulty logic here is that children have been shot by police officers who mistook the toy guns for real, so all toy firearms should have certain features defining them as toys. The problem with this, of course, is that you have cases where wallets, cell phones, etc. are also mistaken for guns - because it's the action of the person confronting the police rather than the object being held.

But yeah, make it a crime to have a toy gun without markings - that'll stop criminals alright!

That is all.

Wanna See Something Funny?

Do a search for "George Bush vacation". What are the results? Yeah, it's all left-leaning sites claiming that Bush took more vacation time than Obama, in response to the news that the latest jaunt to Aspen is Obama's 16th vacation since he took office in January 2009. They're counting every moment that Bush spent on his ranch in Crawford, TX as a vacation day - the same as President Obama jetting off to Hawaii, or Aspen, or Martha's Vineyard, or...

The President is never truly on vacation, we'll be the first to admit that. And while it's sad that right-leaning folks who bent over backwards defending Bush for his vacation are now lambasting Obama for taking time off, it's even worse that the left-leaning folks who excoriated Bush for taking time off "in a time of war" are now falling all over themselves saying "well Bush did it too" to excuse it." "It all started when she hit me back" doesn't cut it as an excuse from my kids - but then again my kids are in elementary school and don't know any better.

The American left should.

That is all.

Live Free or - WHAT?

SCI-FI sends in a rather disturbing story from Live Free or Die land...

New Hampshire man arrested for firing gun into ground while catching suspected burglar

A New Hampshire man who fired his handgun into the ground to scare an alleged burglar he caught crawling out of a neighbor's window is now facing a felony charge -- and the same potential prison sentence as the man he stopped.

Dennis Fleming, 61, of Farmington, was arrested for reckless conduct after the Saturday incident at his 19th century farmhouse. The single grandfather had returned home to find that his home had been burglarized and spotted Joseph Hebert, 27, climbing out of a window at a neighbor's home. Fleming said he yelled "Freeze!" before firing his gun into the ground, then held Hebert at gunpoint until police arrived.

Reckless conduct my eye. While I personally think the warning shots are a terrible idea - if you aren't in mortal fear for your life, don't pull the trigger - the fact is that this guy's conduct was a hell of a lot less reckless than, say, Officer Roid Rage. He didn't want to drop the hammer on the guy, but he also didn't feel like getting into a wrestling match with a guy more than half his age.

There's something underlying here, I suspect; either there's bad blood between Fleming and one or more of the Farmington PD or something along those lines. One of the comments to the story references the police confiscating *all* of his firearms - it's hard to see how they can do that, given that he has yet to be convicted of a crime. Perhaps there was something in his collection that one of the officers was coveting?

What's especially infuriating is that he'll face the same potential penalty as the crook he caught. Now, if this were Massachusetts, he'd be in bigger trouble and probably wind up with a stiffer sentence - he did, after all, practice self-help... Here's hoping that he never sees a courtroom over this, but that if he does, someone along the lines of Alan Gura will be there to defend him.

Live free or die - unless you embarass the local PD.

That is all.

MArooned Product Review: ShotLock Shotgun Vault

A while back, the good folks at ShotLock sent me one of their Shotgun Vaults to review. It took a little bit of time before I could get it set up for review (read: the Mrs. and I had differing opinions of where it was to be placed. And yes, she won), but it's been in place for a bit now and all set for review.

First, we opened the box:

ShotLock

The unit is surprisingly small:

Compact

(That's the S&W M&P9 compact for size comparison)

Here's a closeup of the keypad and lock release:

Buttons!

It's quite simple to set up for a pump-action shotgun - there's a series of metal plates that are bolted to the unit that the action fits over to hold the gun in place; bolt them in the appropriate slots and the unit's ready. For semi-auto or over/under shotguns, there's a pair of wedges that bolt to the unit on either side of the trigger guard - still very simple. Just cut the foam out for the plates or wedges, bolt in place, and the unit is ready to mount to the wall:

No bayo?

It's mounted in the back of the closet, behind a row of dress shirts. ProTip: make sure you leave enough room to get the shotgun in place without hitting the shelf in the closet. Otherwise you'll have an extra hole...

Should the shotgun be needed, a simple parting of shirts and punch in the code, and the gun is ready:

590 to go

It has to be kept with an empty chamber, for obvious reasons, but the convenience can't be beat. It's secured to the wall with three 3" wood screws (mount into studs for best results; larger wood screws can be used if desired). The locking mechanism is simple to use; the buttons are prominent and easily accessed; the door swings easily out of the way for immediate access. Push a few buttons, twist the release knob, and eight rounds of 00 buckshot are at your disposal.

In the Vault, it's protected from unauthorized access while at the ready - and that's a good combination.

That is all.

And The Count Marches On!

You know, it's funny. It seems that whenever I post a near-DGC, someone writes in with an actual DGC to round out the day. Reader Mike sent in today's addition:

Burglar Shot & Killed While Breaking Into Rural Home

ALVARADO (CBSDFW.COM) – A man visiting a home in rural Alvarado shot and killed a suspect who was attempting to break into the residence early Sunday morning, said Johnson County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Tim Jones.

Sheriff’s deputies and Mansfield Police responded to an emergency call reporting a burglary at a home in the 4100 block of CR 617 at 2:04 a.m. Sunday, Jones said.

The second-to-last line of the story confused me for a moment: "Neither the resident nor the victim were arrested." Until I realized that "victim" referred to the person who was in the house about to be burglarized and not the goblin what got ventilated. It's refreshing to see a report that does not refer to the person committing the crime as the victim - but then again, this is Texas, isn't it?

Dead Goblin Count: 258

That is all.

Late-Breaking Blog Meet!

No, this isn't another update for Ambulance Driver, this a separate and new blog dinner. I got an e-mail this past weekend from Chris Byrne from The Anarchangel, and he and Mel will be in MA through Sunday. They're free Saturday night for dinner, and will be in the "northern part of the state [MA]" Saturday anyways. I'm waiting to hear exactly where Chris and Mel will be Saturday afternoon, but I'm guessing the meet will be in the same general area as the meet for Ambulance Driver on Sunday (Northeast MA).

It'll be Saturday night, so most won't have to work in the morning. Figure dinner around 7 or so, probably running a few hours, home in time to get to bed early to be up for church in the morning. Or something like that. C'mon out, meet Chris and Mel, have some dinner in the heart of blackest Massachusetts, in the shadow of Meninostan...

So who's up for back-to-back blogmeet dinners?

That is all.

Obvious Compensation...

Reader Tim sends in the feel-good story of the day.

'Now it's my turn': Greenbrae man, 90, testifies about shootout with suspect

When a residential burglar fired a gun at Jay Leone last month, he was initially too angry to realize he had been shot in the head, he testified Friday.

"To tell you the truth, I never felt a thing," said Leone, 90, of Greenbrae. "I said, 'F—- you, you son of a bitch, now it's my turn.'"

Chuck Norris has nothing on Jay Leone. 90 years old, shot in the head, and he still gets three shots to center-of-mass on a guy literally a third of his age. And he's *pissed* about it. Go look at the guy - I'd be happy to look like that when I'm 50, let alone 90. And the thought of the 30 year old goblin who attacked him getting to prison where they'll find out that a nonagenarian got in three shots to his one? Priceless.

And the guy Leone shot can even get a candle from the Bradys!

That is all.

New Meme Time...

Glenn B. has a good one.

I have never seen or heard one like this before although Heaven could probably attest to the fact that it has been done before, somewhere at sometime by someone else. I am going to go ahead with it anyway and here is how to play along. I will write down 5 things that indicate, to me, that a gun owner or shooter maybe is an honest one; I say 'maybe' because I have known some seemingly honest gun owners to tell some really tall tales. Then I will tag 5 other gun owners who are also bloggers and I hope each will play along, each listing, in their blogs, at least 3 things that are indicative a gun owner is an honest one, then sending the challenge of this meme on to 5 other gun owner who are also bloggers.

Let me see. I bet I can come up with five items...

1. You really do own guns that you've never shot, have no interest in shooting, and don't care if they ever get shot.

2. While you appreciate the military history and significance of the M1 Garand, you agree that modern rifles with detachable magazines are superior.

3. Deep down, you love buying new accessories for your AR-15/Ruger 10/22/1911 because it allows you to do work on a firearm without having to actually gunsmith.

4. You know and admit that you need to get to the range more often than you do and/or need more training.

5. You really do clean your guns as often as you pretend online...

---

And five bloggers to tag: I'll choose from my blogchildren:

Borepatch
Nancy R.
Merlin
PISSED
Mad Saint Jack

Don't let me down, kids!

That is all.