A Lefty With A Gun

Appleseed!

2010-05-19T09:47:00.001-07:00

So I finally got around to attending a 2 day Appleseed clinic. In my two word review: Awesome Sauce.

For those not aware of Appleseed, here is your introduction:

We attended the Castlerock, WA shoot on May 15, 16th. It was about a 2.5 hour drive south, so I picked up my son early from school afternoon and headed out to beat traffic and to spend some quality Cabelas time en-route. It was sunny, warm and we were playing hooky from school and work. More awesome.

We stayed at a local state park and got there early enough to setup the van and watch a movie on the ipad before bed.

Day one we showed up early. The range was kind of a mess - the grass was unmowed and there was lots of crap strewn around - just some guys property that needed a bit of cleanup. But never mind that - it was $70 for the both of us, so we settled in.

The first thing we did was the safety briefing. It was thorough and I found that throughout the event they were spectacular about safety. I was very impressed with the focus on safety and the 6 steps to making a rifle safe were stringently followed.

Then we shot a few "make sure your sighted in" targets, followed by some "lets get a baseline" targets. Then they began introducing stuff in stages.

The instruction was very well done - more than I was expecting. They were thorough, they were specific and they gave great demonstrations. I'd heard that some had found this lacking, and it certainly wasn't here. Instruction is done by volunteers, and its probably dependent on the Shoot Boss to follow the curriculum as outlined by the Appleseed fellas.

We learned all the shooting positions, the sling use and the various things to making the shot. Sight alignment, sight picture, breathing, trigger control, follow thru etc. Very well done.

I brought two Marlin 22s. One was a Model 60 with a tube magazine and scope, and the other was a newly purchased Marlin 795 with detachable magazines and iron sights.

The tube was never a huge issue, but did require a bit of alteration of certain things to get it to work in a system obviously setup for detachable magazines.

The scoped gun was much easier to shoot - both of us traded off guns and I always did much better with a scope. We kept one unscoped for comparison and a challenge.

At the end of the day we did two AQT (Army Qualification Test) and I shot both well enough to get my rifleman patch before the first day was ended. I wasn't expecting that, but it was nice. I shot a 229, but screwed up one session and ended up losing from 5-10 points by putting 6 holes in one instead of five. So I could obviously do much better.

My son was struggling a bit more. He's 13 and the weight of the rifle was more of an issue for him. When he used the scoped rifle he did much better, and by the end of the second day he'd also shot Rifleman. I was pretty proud of him and saw him really working - the nice thing is that I saw him start to apply the steps to a good shot and it really helped him. And he was cognizant of this, which is also good.

It was sunny and hot both days (thank goodness) and we came home a bit burnt, worn out and very happy. Oh, and a few burns from hot shells.

I did take a few shots with my Kel-Tec Su-16 and did great, but I'm glad I saved the $$ and brought a 22 for the dirty work.

Overall, I was super impressed.

They worked in the historical stuff during our lunch break the first day - I love that stuff, and having grown up in Canada, it was nice to go over some stuff I might not be as familiar with. But I can tell you about the Hudson Bay Company, so nah nah.

No anti-government stuff. No anti-UN stuff. Just a bunch of well behaved gunnies having fun and learning to be better shots.

My boy got frustrated a few times during the two days, but we worked thru it.

Funny, but it ended up that the two guys on our end of the line all ended up being Mormons too, so we had a fun time making Mormon Militia jokes and making insider cracks. One of the guys brought his two younger daughters, and while it was a bunch of extra work for him (and something I specifically avoided in not bringing my second boy) they had fun too.

I'll probably do it again next year with my second son for sure.

The one issue was raining hot brass. Here is one that I laid on during prone shooting (and this is 3 days after the fact):

Ouch.

PS. I saw mostly Ruger and Marlin 22s. A Mosin and a some M1A 308 rounded out the rifles on the firing line.

Day one with a Kel-Tec SU-16

2010-05-06T11:23:00.000-07:00

So picked up my new Kel-Tec SU-16 Tuesday.

A few things:

1. I bought it on gunbroker. Transaction went fine. What I didn't realize is that WA now requires you to pay sales tax on a weapon you buy elsewhere and ship to an FFL. Ouch. Bastards. That just added 50 bucks to the cost. This is a new law that just went into effect recently. Pisses me off because it unfairly treats gun owners in a way that ordering a book or a shirt online does not do.

2. The paperwork part at West Coast Armory took less than 20 minutes from enter to leave. Less. Last time I was at Cabelas to buy my .308 rilfe, it took damn near an hour to walk thru their crazy system. I hate buying guns at Cabelas.

I took the rifle to the range and got into the LEO bay for some solitary shooting goodness.

But before I get to that, lets talk about the gun.

Its a Kel-tec and exactly what you'd expect. A bit rough, lots of plastic, and some very clever design.

I got the A model because I wanted the stock storage of magazines. I hate the sights on the A model, but I'm going to put a Red Dot on it anyhow, so no big deal. I would have gone with the B model (better sights) but it has a shorter, lighter barrel and I wanted the more heavy duty of the two.

The trigger is fine. I'm not much of a connoisseur of triggers, so unless I strain my back pulling it or it shreds my finger, I'm fine. I'm sure people thing it sucks worse than some of the nice AR-15 triggers out there, but meh.

The Kel-Tec magazines SUCK. I didn't even use them. They are hard to insert, they are hard to extract. The follower tilts all funny and refuses to actually hold ammo. I kid you not, I can't get ammo to stay in the magazines. At all.

Good thing I bought a bunch of Pmags and just used them - flawless.

I shot 100 rounds of brass, some offhand, some from a bench using the integrated bipod. The bipod actually works ok, considering. I love the option to have it, and as much as I'd love a rail system, the bipod is cool. Kel-Tec does stuff like this - nobody else is as innovative and quirky and I love it.

The folding aspect of the gun is easy to do and is very cool - makes it easy to store/transport.

I mounted a red dot on it and got it zeroed at 25 yards in less than 10 shots. Sweet.

No FTF or anything the first day. I came home and cleaned it up.

Tomorrow I plan on taking it to the outdoor range and shooting some crappy Tula ammo I bought to see how it handles it.

Here is a pict of my third target.

IDPA

2010-05-04T21:32:00.000-07:00

I shot an IDPA match today. It was a big positive and a negative.

First the positive: I did quite well. It was an informal match. The range I go to is just starting these up, so I paid my $12 and in I went. I kinda got there a bit late (~5 min or so at most) so I either missed the safety briefing or they didn't do it. I suspect the former. Ugh. Missed my freeway entrance as I was thinking of how to quickly get all my gear together.

I shot it with an IWB Galco holster and my Glock 17 (I only have 2 mags for my 26).

Anyhow, we did three stages, one sitting, one facing an ATM and one sitting in our house. Each involved 2 or 3 bad guys and a couple of innocent bystanders. Ranges were 10-30 feet.

The first one was sitting down at a table, standing and shooting three bad guys in a row. Center of mass on each, then one to the head of the last one. Went fine. Did pretty good after fumbling with my weapon on draw.

The second one was standing at an ATM, drawing and firing from 2 concealed positions. I didn't conceal so well. You learn.

The final one was sitting at a chair in your house, drawing on a guy kicking your door down and then two in your front yard thru a window. I did great on this one as well.

This is where I get to hang my head in shame.

You see, I was using a Galco IWB holster - its a floppy leather holster with a rigid top, but I was kinda flumoxed by it on this last stage (why the last, I don't know) and so I had a safety violation breaking the 180 rule while reholstering. This was post mag eject, post chamber inspection, and no finger on the trigger, but regardless, a violation.

What a dumbarse thing to do. I was called on it, and rightfully so. I don't get embarassed easily, but I sure did then. What a moron. Its kinda ruined my evening, to be honest.

Ugh. First time ever.

I can't even imagine how I'd feel with an ND.

Anyhow, I'll be going again next week (looks like they do it weekly - wow) and hopefully can keep my stupid gear under control at all times.

Hang head in shame again.

ROFL Brady Rating

2010-04-27T20:45:00.000-07:00

Read this today on the Brady Site:

“Since Washington does not require Brady criminal background checks on all firearm sales including those at gun shows, gun traffickers don’t need to leave the state to funnel illegal guns to felons and gang members,” said Heidi Yewman, spokesperson for the Washington Million Mom March.

http://www.bradycampaign.org/stategunlaws/scorecard/WA/

Yeah right Heidi. I bought a gun this past week, and damn if it wasn't to funnel it to felons and gang members! Wahoo.

What a moron. Washington scores close to the bottom, but not close enough for this "common sense" guy.

In another vein, went to the range today and shot my P3AT, A Sig 380 rental and my Glock 26 in the LEO bay. Did repeated drills drawing from concealment and damn, if I didn't put most rounds right where they needed to be. Dead zombies.

As I mentioned, I bought a new gun last week. I've been looking for a Kel-Tec SU-16 for awhile now and I finally gave up and ordered it online thru gun broker. Cost me about $500 for the A model. Nice.

Should be here next week (too long), but acceptable because I bought it for an Appleseed clinic I'm going to with my boy in May. I'm so excited, as I'm mainly a pistol shooter and I really need to get better with my rifle. So now I have a .223 with a bunch of Magpul Pmags coming my way. W00t to that.

I bought the rifle because I figured I'd have to have a second rifle for my son anyhow, so instead of buying another .22 rifle (my Henry US Survival Rifle just wouldn't work for Appleseed) I splurged and bought the .223 I've been thinking of.

I'll pop an optic on it, maybe side mount a mini red dot and smile alot. I'm very excited.

2010-04-03T07:45:00.000-07:00

Took the P3AT to the range today.

It fired fine (as it always has) but it still stuttered a bit chambering that first round. It was really doing it before, often to the point of not chambering the round at all, but now you can just feel a slight hiccup as the slide slams closed.

Huh. I guess its an improvement. Will I trust it? Not sure yet.

The repair order said that the slide/barrel was replaced. By looking I can't tell what was replaced or not (should have subtly tagged both I suppose).

PS. I rented a Glock 21 and XD in .45. Shot both. Liked the trigger on the XD a bit better.

Kel-Tec Back

2010-04-01T17:50:00.000-07:00

Wow.

So in January I get fed up with the problems feeding rounds into my little Kel-Tec P3AT, and I finally get around to sending it in (and by get around I mean buy another carry gun).

Off it went. And I waited till April 1st to get it.

That is quite a while to have it in for warrantee work. I'm used to camera gear and computers that are in and out inside of a week generally. And a lot more complex.

Anywho, its back and it seems to feed fine. I'll take it to the range and try it out next week. Funny enough, in this time of ammo shortages, I have a bunch of .380 ammo sitting around and only this one gun to feed it thru (and it isn't a range gun, thats for sure). I do miss its size compared to the Glock 26 I've been carrying, but I'm not sure I'm going to regularly carry it again. I just got used to that nice big Glock and its promise of 9mm punch.

It will probably be the deep concealment gun, when I can't get away with the 26. I guess we'll see.

After shooting and loving the Sub-2000 this week, I'm really looking forward to adding a Su-16c to the mix sometime this year...

Spring Break Range Trip

2010-03-30T16:24:00.001-07:00

So this week is Spring Break here in Seattle. And so my kids are all home, running amok and doing what kids do.

My son and I have been going to the gym to work out every day and having a ball. He's a healthy kid who likes to run and play soccer, so he spends a lot of time keeping himself fit and eating well. Kinda funny because he has no sweet tooth like me, and it serves him well.

Anyhow, so at the gym today he asks if we could go to the range. Its been while since we went together, so we piled in the car for a few hours around lunch and headed to West Coast Armory's range in Factoria.

This range is awesome, and this fact was compounded by the fact that the LEO bay was empty and they set us up. We dragged in the barriers, setup the bowling pins off we went.

As I've been doing, I like to rent something new for experience on each trip, so we rented the AR-15 again and a Springfield GI 1911 .45 auto. Both were interesting. The former was mostly to give my son an intro to the AR handling and the latter was for me to finally shoot a 1911 platform gun. The Springfield GI is a basic mil-spec .45 and it ran like a dream. I really was expecting more kick, but it wasn't much different than I'm used to with my Glock 26 (for obvious reasons). My son was iffy shooting it the first time, but after the first round, he had no issues. I did have to go over proper grip on the 1911 as a) I think I've gotten lazy teaching him proper grip and b) you need it a bit more with the .45 auto. It did take a few shots for me to get a feel where that .45 was shooting - you really do get a feel for your guns.

For the next hour and a half we shot bowling pins, Zombie targets and I worked on my movement forward and back with my Kel-Tec Sub-2000 rifle (discussed a few posts ago). I'm a damn fine shot on the move, if I do say so myself. One session saw me close on the 8 pins and take them all out with 10 rounds. Bam Bam Bam. Big smiles.

My son liked the AR, but liked the red dot on the Kel-tec more. The AR they have has the basic iron sights found on most low end black rifles of this sort. Nothing spectacular, but certainly serviceable. Of course a red dot would be nice.

One thing I didn't think of was that they let you turn the lights on/off. I had my light mount on there but didn't have the flashlight that goes in it.

Next time I'll remember and do some night zombie shooting.

teh awesomes.

PS. I turn 40 tomorrow. Ugh. Not that I really care. I am in almost the best shape of my life, have zero health problems and so whose complaining...

Carrying a gun?

2010-03-29T10:29:00.000-07:00

Interesting. A graphic on how to identify someone carrying a gun. From the early 90's and could be a bit outdated given the updates in carry modes circa 2010.

http://soldiersystems.net/2010/03/29/grey-man-lesson-spottin-a-hidden-handgun/

Range Report!

2010-03-26T21:58:00.000-07:00

W00t. Range day!

After all this blabbing about stuff other than shooting, I finally got around to visiting the range this week.

I took my Glock 17 with Advantage Arms kit and my Kel-Tec Sub 2000.

The latter has a new addition in the form of a new Kel-Tec quad rail on the front. I sweetened the deal and mounted both a flashlight and vertical forgrip. Forgive me for the tacticoolness, but I wanted some experience with such setups. The quad rail gives me loads of real estate to fiddle with, but I'm mainly interested in the aforementioned additions and a red dot for the top.

Now the interesting thing about the Sub-2000 is its a folding gun, which is awesome for concealing it in a backpack, storage etc. But it folds onto the top, so putting on a top-mounted red dot requires some thought. I purchased a quick release mounting plate and my goal was to see if it would retain its zero with repeated installation/removals.

So off I went to the range.

The mounting plate worked well enough and puts the red dot slightly above the iron sights (who am I kidding, this is a Kel-Tec and they're plastic ;-0). It took me only a few minutes to get the gun shooting where I wanted it. I put 3 magazines thru it and called it good. I installed and removed the Red Dot a few times, as well as putting it a bit forward on one magazine to see if that would affect it.

Happily, it was pretty dead on at 25 yards. Here is my final target before packing it up:

Thats good enough for me - 10 rounds all in the 10 ring. I'd say it's pretty much zeroed.

I shot 50 or so rounds with the 22 kit as well, but was kinda distracted because I'd noticed something new in the rental room that was begging for a look-see. West Coast Armory is finally starting to flesh out their rental gun selection, which is good because I want to expand my experience without the cost. And better, as a Gold member, I get free rentals. Sweet.

First up was an AR-15 pattern rifle (to be honest, I had too many stars in my eyes to even know who made it) and a few boxes of .223.

First off, I was suprised at how easy AR magazines are to load - so much easier than my Glock magazines (and yes, I have several of the 33 rounders). The basic controls on the AR were familiar, so I pretty much dove right in.

This was my first time shooting a .223 rifle and I was pleasantly suprised at a) how light the recoil was and b) how small those cartridges really are.

Franly, the recoil of the .223 was about the same as the Sub-2000 in 9mm. Yup. The hole is bigger with the latter, but that .223 is really rocking at more than double the speed (the Sub-2000 does roughly 1500 fps with 9mm rounds, give or take).

Wow. Awesome. It was a definite hoot - I really need to add a .223 gun to the safe!

Oh tax return, tax return, wherefore art thou tax return?

2010-03-25T18:52:00.001-07:00

A good article on the discussion I've been having with myself for the past few days.

http://www.ornery.org/essays/warwatch/2010-03-21-1.html

More on Healthcare...

2010-03-24T08:41:00.000-07:00

Ran across a great piece in Say Uncle today on the healthcare stuff.

Read it here

Well, I agree with the first part:

"One of the issues with the health insurance bill is the hysterics of the opposition to it. It’s not tyranny. It’s not comparable to Nazis. Sure, I don’t like it. But I’m not going to call everyone a bunch of commie symps and throw bricks through windows (real helpful, Mike). I’m going to voice my opposition and vote the bums out. Except that I can’t really do that because my bums opposed the bill. But you get the point. Ratcheted rhetoric is not how you win."

Amen to that. This isn't tyranny. This isn't some communist plot to enslave us all to Lenin's ghost. You may not like it, but some of the voices sound like the war protesters screaming that Bush should be hanged for war crimes. Fanaticism sometimes comes full circle.

As to the part about creating a dependent class, I'm not sure I agree completely. I can certainly agree that some people will willingly become dependents (out of laziness, character flaw etc), and that some people in power plan on abusing those people for their own gain. The question I have though, is are they the majority or a minority? I'll tolerate a few bozos if the majority benefits. That is as good a public policy as you're going to get in an imperfect world.

Government exists to serve the people. There are things we can't do by ourselves and we get together and provide government the power for these select things. Furthermore, as I see it, government also exists to protect our natural rights and arbitrate when one party infringes them for another. Its obviously a contentious issue on when/where government steps in to arbitrate, but I think healthcare is one of those things that we can do better together than we can do apart.

And what of the bill before us? Its a mixed bag, but it does do some things right. Our entrenched mechanism, and this is coming form someone who has 100% of his healthcare provided for by his company, isn't right for many Americans. A healthcare insurance system that is based on your employment, especially in such a transient age, is an anachronism.

Now I understand that there are some who believe our government is completely broken. They claim it can't can't manage anything, nor do anything right, but that is such a poor generalization that its hardly worth repeating. Government does some things right, even as corrupt and broken as ours currently is. And society as a whole often benefits from the positives.

Note that the same people that often argue the government can't do anything right are the first to give the nuke keys to the department of defense...

I personally think we live in a society that has been completely corrupted. Our leaders don't really serve us - they serve their ends and we get the table scraps. The D&C (a book of revelations from Joseph Smith) opines on man's tendency to abuse power thusly:

39 We have learned by sad experience that it is the ^anature and disposition of almost all men, as soon as they get a little ^bauthority, as they suppose, they will immediately begin to exercise ^cunrighteous dominion.

Ain't that the truth.

But there are well meaning, upstanding people in government too. And they do good things on occasion and I celebrate them for it.

Did you notice the dichotomy there? I'm an optimist by nature, but a pessimist by experience. Its hard to reconcile the two, believe me, but in the end I've resolved that the best I can do is take care of my stewardship (my wife, my kids, my job, my community) and hope for the best. I exercise my rights as a citizen as best I can and continue on.

Oh look, I've wasted another good shooty moment blabing about politics.

Healthcare, Bile and Superior Airs

2010-03-22T12:00:00.000-07:00

Sigh.

I sure loved reading gun blogs. Back when they were full of shooty goodness.

And then they went all ballistic over healthcare. Blah blah blah.

I mentioned last post about noticing the "superior air" that liberals sometimes are accused of having. I even got a quote recently from someone who said that was one thing that turned him to being conservative. I've seen it, and I don't like it.

However, in all honesty, this isn't a Left v. Right thing. Its just the inevitable part of ingroup/outgroup politics. Its all about demonizing and debasing your opposition. Be it guns vs. gunless, soap vs. pachouli or the mother of all debates: PS3 vs. Xbox . We love being better/smarter/stronger than other people, and we love even more to demonstrate it. Or at least parade why we think so.

"Boy are you dumb to like the PS3."

"Look at those knuckle-draggers with their guns."

"Those Tea-Baggers are sore losers"

Etc. Ad Naseum.

This type of behavior is annoying regardless of where it comes from, especially when it gets fatalistic, drama queeny or just down right uncivil.

Case in point: this week's passage of the Healthcare bill. The left is all smug because they got something done. The right is apoplectic that it means Carl Marx is going to be chairing our death panels.

Feh! The amount of bile I see in the gun blogosphere over this is just like the liberal blogs after Bush was installed in office.

I for one am really looking forward to maybe someday having the same care I had in Canada (and I have great healthcare plan for work). I lived about half my life under both and can unequivocally say that I like Canada's system better. Do we get that with this bill? No. Not even close, but in my opinion, there are some good things in there.

But just because I think that does not mean I'm smarter, stronger or better than you. I have my opinions, experiences, and education behind my statement, but so do you and I'm trying really hard to respect you for that.

Hey, lets just go shooting, shall we?

PS. I'm totally going to go buy a Kel-Tec Su-16B rifle. I've got a serious case of the needs. Maybe I'll sell my SUB-2000 with cool rail to buy it.

A Gun! A Gun!

2010-03-17T07:03:00.000-07:00

A gun! You're 43 times more likely to shoot your own family member than a criminal.

This is what I hear from some anti-gun friends of mine. They are utterly convinced that guns are so dangerous that they should all be outlawed.

They're convinced and no amount of data to the contrary will change it. Recently, I've just refused to discuss it and avoid the smarmy air of egoism that comes with it. I've always heard of the liberal superiority complex, and for the first time in my life, I see what they're talking about. She's right, I'm wrong, with a measure of "boy you're stupid" mixed in.

Ugh.

Anyhow today I came across an interesting article that I'm *not* sharing with them. I mean really, why bother with facts when your mind is made up?

Read it here:

http://www.davekopel.com/NRO/2001/The-Fallacy-of-43-to-1.htm

PS. This is one thing that so infuriated them about George Bush - he was stubborn even in his wrongness. LOL. Irony, it isn't just for getting the wrinkles out.

Starbucks

2010-03-12T11:09:00.000-08:00

Being mormon, I don't drink coffee.

But I'm sitting in a local Starbucks drinking a Vanilla Creme and eating an overpriced cranberry scone. Why? Because I can. And because I'm supporting them for not caving to The Brady Thugs.

And yes, I have my gun on me. CC'ing of course. I'm not so much for Open Carry.

Last week I was in Southern Utah for some camping/shooting. I drove up from Vegas where I was at a conference and spent 3 days east of St. George camping and shooting on BLM lands. I brought my 9mm Glocks and the 22 conversion kit for my Glock 17. Put over 1000 rounds thru the latter and finally stopped when I had a bizzare issue.

It seems that the 22 shells sometimes don't always go into battery and the Advantage Arms kit sill lets the firing pin (they are still called firing pins on rimfires, no?) impact the cartridge.

Result? A funny boom and a nice hot spray of something or other on my face. Good thing for safety glasses.

The shell blew out just above the rim, a nice bit hole. The bullet did exit the gun, but it was pretty disconcerting, so I stopped shooting the kit until I chat with them. No damage to the gun that I can see.

I have a picture of the shell, so I'll post it.

Other than that, I had a ball. Just me, out in the desert shooting. I built a target stand and shot paper plates all day. Did movement drills, drawing drills, shooting with on-gun lights and flashlights in the hand. I shot and shot and shot.

Turns out, I'm pretty good at drawing and shooting. At 7-15 yards I can it a paper plate 99% of the time. Good enough for me.

Bellevue's West Coast Armory Range

2010-02-26T14:43:00.000-08:00

Recently there has been some anti-gunners protesting a new gun range in Bellevue.

Story here

So, as suggested by the good blogger at Insights, I emailed the people listed and told them that:

This is my range and I support it.
I use it to train to safely and effectively carry the gun I'm licensed (by the King County Sheriff BTW) to carry (such a name dropper I know).
They are a lawful and legitimate business that should be supported, especially in a time like this.

A few days later I got a reply from the Land Use Directors. She forwarded me a word document with a management brief prepared for the City Council.

Here is the text of the reply:

City of Bellevue MANAGEMENT BRIEF

DATE:	February 24, 2010
TO:	Mayor Davidson and Members of the City Council
FROM:	Carol Helland, Land Use Director 452-2724 Development Services Department
SUBJECT:	West Coast Armory

The Council has received several dozen e-mails regarding the newly established shooting range called West Coast Armory. Some of the e-mails have been from residents of the Woodridge neighborhood who expressed concern about the recent opening of the shooting range in the Richards Valley light industrial district. Other e-mails are from gun enthusiasts who expressed their appreciation for the new recreational opportunity that is now available to them in Bellevue. This memorandum describes the shooting range use, its location, the operational limitations placed on the use, and the permit process that allowed the range to be established.

Project Description: West Coast Armory (WCA) is an indoor shooting range with associated firearms training and incidental retail. This use is characterized as a “recreation activity” for the purpose of applying the Land Use Code, and falls in the same use category as bowling alleys and gymnasiums. This use was first characterized by Bellevue land use staff in the early-1990s when Wade’s Gun Shop and Shooting Range was established in the Bel-Red light industrial district. Retail sales are prohibited at the WCA location, because miscellaneous retail trade is not an allowed use in the light industrial district. Incidental retail (such ammunition, eye and ear protection for use at the range) is appropriate.

Location: 13216 SE 32^ndStreet. The shooting range is located on the access road to the Factoria Transfer Station. Please refer to the attached location and zoning maps. Uses located in the vicinity include a PSE service facility, warehousing, bulky building material sales, and other recreation activity uses (including gymnastics, dance, and martial arts instruction). There are limited infrastructure improvements in the area of WCA (no sidewalks or curbs); and like most light industrial districts in the City, the pedestrian environment is inhospitable. The streets in this area of Richards Valley are not part of an integrated transportation grid. As a result, access to this area is generally limited to individuals destined for one of the businesses located there.

There was a shooting range that used to be located on SE 30^thStreet. Weapons Safety Inc. was located at 13215 SE 30^thStreet (a short distance to the north of WCA), and operated at that location from 1994 to 2003. The West Coast Armory range seems to have replaced that use in Richards Valley after the prior range was abandoned. The WCA use likely came to the attention of residents living in the vicinity of Richards Valley

in late January when the owner employed a “sign handler” to stand on Richards Road and advertise the newly opened use. E-mails from Woodridge residents opposing the use began to arrive in the Council Office shortly thereafter. Support for WCA appears to have emerged more recently in response to leaflets being placed on cars in the Factoria area urging people to oppose the shooting range use and to contact the Bellevue City Council to voice their opposition.

Required Review: Recreation uses such as this shooting range are permitted outright in the light industrial land use district, and there are no applicable design guidelines in these districts. As a result, land use approvals including notice (such as an administrative conditional use permit or design review) are not required. The establishment of this use required a tenant improvement permit and a business license, which were both applied for and received prior to the business opening.

Operation: Like other recreation activity uses located in a light industrial land use district, WCA is restricted to incidental sales only. Miscellaneous retail sales are not permitted, and this restriction was included as a condition of the required tenant improvement permit. Other recreation activity uses provide illustrative examples of how incidental sales are conducted. For example, the gymnasium located in the Richards Valley light industrial area sells a limited supply of leotards to its students and members. But the leotards are available to the individuals who are otherwise already on the premises for a class or competition. The limited sale activity conducted at the gymnasium does not constitute a miscellaneous retail sales use, and is appropriately incidental to the recreation activity use.

With regard to the regulation of firearm purchase and sales specifically, the State of Washington, by enactment of RCW 9.41.290, has preempted the entire field of firearm regulations. Under RCW 9.41.290, cities may only enact ordinances relating to firearms that are specifically authorized by state law. State law authorizes cities to enact ordinances restricting the areas in their respective jurisdictions in which firearms may be sold, but cities may not treat a business selling firearms more restrictively than other retail businesses located within the same zone.

In response to the communications received by the Council Office, I conducted a site visit on February 2, 2010. The purpose of my visit was to confirm that the operation was being conducted consistent with the conditions placed on the tenant improvement permit. The owner is in the process of making changes to the lobby area of the premises in order to comply with the conditions of permit approval and ensure that retail firearms sales do not occur at the Bellevue WCA location, and that operations include only sales that are appropriately incidental to the shooting range recreation activity use as required by the permit. These corrections are being made through the temporary certificate of occupancy process and are required to be completed by no later than March 18, 2010.

Now that is funny...

2010-02-10T14:01:00.001-08:00

Some NSFW language, but this post just about make me spit out my diet coke.

Disguised Weapons Wanted

Listening...

2010-02-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

For the past year I've been in learn mode.

I do this every time I get into something new. When I started shooting seriously, I began looking around at places from which to absorb things. This is my modus operandi and I love it.

I joined the NRA just to get the American Rifleman (I'd grown up on it at my Grandpa's place).

I subscribed to a bunch of gun blogs. Say Uncle, Gun Nuts, Breda, Smallest Minority, etc.

I subscribed to a bunch of iTunes podcasts - The Gun Dudes, ProArms, and the Handgun podcast. The gun dudes are fromUtah, so I get where they are coming from and they're a hilarious bunch.

After over a year of reading/listening I've learned a whole lot, even though I tend to tune out the right-of-center politics for non-gun related stuff.

Its been an interesting year of learning, growth and challenging my own assumptions. I guess whomever said that only the smart people realize how little they know was onto something.

Taking a New Shooter to the Range

2010-02-06T11:22:00.001-08:00

Recently I took my wife and friend of hers (plus her husband) to the range for a friday night date. The range is new and was very slick - the reinforced barriers between each bay were reassuring.

So here are a few tips from my experience:

#1 If you were a jerk teaching them to use Email, a stick shift or their phone, just stop now. Hire a pro. Seriously, you'll do more damage than good. Patience and understanding is a must in this game, so if you don't have it, just move along.

#2 Work on the 4 rules of safety. Be serious - no joking around. Make sure they know them well. I did this *before* we went to the range, in my kitchen as I taught my wife how to load, unload and take down the gun. With snapcaps. NO ammo in the room.

#3 Start with something small. I like the 22, as do most people for a first time shooter. Teach them to load one round in the mag/cylinder. You don't want them sweeping you with extra rounds after shooting it. Repeat for awhile. Go over the proper grip, trigger control and sight picture.

#4 This isn't about accuracy. Not even close. Set up a target at a nice 3-5 yards at most to start with. Just shooting is the important part at first, not hitting the bullseye.

#5 Praise.

#6 After they get the feel for it, you can add rounds to the magazine and let them do multiple shots. Stay close by to supervise and remind them of the finger/trigger rule every chance you get. They may even thank you.

You may even want to end here. We didn't. They wanted to try something bigger so I changed back to the 9mm upper and we shot a box of that. They were amazed at the increase in recoil and that it was eminently controllable. They even got some Zombie targets for the last magazine or so - lots of fun.

After about an hour at the range, we were done. Time to wash up and go out for dinner where went over what we'd learned and I answered any questions. It was a very good night. We all had a ball.

Big success.

One website I poached liberally from is here.

So where you been?

2010-02-05T15:50:00.000-08:00

I know, I know. Busy doing other stuff. So lets get caught up on where I am as of today.

My last post was in September of last year. Wow. Time flies.

Since then I've done a few things and purchased a few new guns and sold another.

1. Glock 26. Wanted it for two reasons: first to replace my daily carry gun while it went to Kel-Tec for some fixing. I figured while I was at it I might as well get a bigger gun for winter carry. I did a lot of thinking/researching/spreadsheets on the different 9mm options out there.

What I really wanted was a Kel-Tec PF9 but those are impossible to find round these parts. I narrowed it down to the Glock 26, a Walther PPS and a Kahr MP9. In the end I went for the Glock because it would work with my nice stockpile of Glock magazines, which is pretty cool. I'll probably get a PF9 when they become available again because they're so cheap. I love my Glocks for simplicity, reliability and flexibility, and the 26 has not disappointed me. The only issue is thats a pretty thick gun.

2. Marlin XSL in .308. I need a gun that can reach out and touch things from a distance. But I don't like rifle shooting that much, so this was a nice compromise over my annoyingly high-shooting Mosin Nagant. Got it on sale at Cabelas and it shoots like a dream. I popped a illuminated Tru-Glo scope on it with some nice rings and I can shoot a quarter size hole at 100 yards easy enough.

Like I said, I don't like rifle shooting as much as pistols, but its good to have.

I bought a quad rail front end for my Kel-Tedc Sub2000, and it works pretty well, although I noticed on my last range trip it was loose and needs tightening (and probably some loc-tite). I was trying to sight in a red dot that I put on a quick-release platform (the gun folds, so the red dot has to come off) and ended my quest right there.

One thing that bugs me is that I found the Kel-Tec is one dirty gun - after shooting a few rounds of S&B 9mm FMJ - I noticed that the rounds in the magazine were filthy. As in covered with black residue. Not sure if that is normal, but it was disconcerting.

Another big advance for me was that I got my wife to the range. But there is a backstory there too.

I've been going to the local (and cheap) outdoor range close by, but its a bit of a drag in that you can't draw from the holster and the range is pretty basic. I like it, but wanted something more. I dislike the guys at Wade's guns in Bellevue, so I was happy to see that West Coast Armory was opening a new range close by. Its a dream.

Its brand new, has a pro shop and several different bays. I bought a lifetime membership (ouch) and get special access to the LEO bay that will let people move and shoot without the bays in the other two ranges. Its going to be cool. They'll also do IDPA in there I hear. In the regular bays, each is protected by bulletproof dividers, so chances of getting hit by and ND is much lower. That and I'm in the upper membership bay, so that limits who goes in there some.

So I went to check out the range, got a tour and signed up. Once I got over the pain of the initial payment, its going to cost the same as the outdoor range with alot more plusses. Awesome.

Anyhow, back to my story. I have mentioned to my wife I wanted her to learn the basic mechanics of the handguns. I took out the Bersa Thunder 380 and Glock 17 and safely showed her the various parts and how it works (no ammo in sight, snap caps for training). She liked the Glock alot more and felt she'd be confused with all the levers on the Bersa.

Then we recruited a friend and her husband to go on a date night to the range and had a ball. We started slowly, using the 22 upper kit for the Glock and walked slowly thru each.

I did alot of research before hand on how to teach people to shoot, and followed it to a T. But more on that later.

Overall it was a great experience and we'll be doing it periodically with contests to see who can shoot the best.

What I'm carrying on a daily basis

2010-02-04T13:29:00.001-08:00

Hey folks. Been Mr. Slacker with the blog already. I do a few other blogs and I'm very good with those. This one? Not so much.

I saw an interesting post on several other gun blogs about what people carry daily, so I decided to add my own.

My wife pretty much thinks I'm nuts for carrying all this, and I can see why. So here is my pictorial assemblage for my on-person carry stuff:

Lets go clockwise from the firearm...

1. Glock 26. I bit thick, but it works and I can use my other Glock 9mm magazines (including my 33 rounders if needed). My Kel-Tec P3AT is in for service and I wont see it for a month or more. It was not doing a good job of feeding the first round.

I carry this glock with the pants clip IWB at 5 o'clock. I carry it without a round in the chamber for obvious reasons. I have one of those trigger sheath things on order, but have no experience with it.

1 Extra 10 rounder magazine. Both full of 124 grain +p Remington Golden Saber hollow-points.

2. Wallet - self explanitory

3. Paracord bracelet - carry 6-7 feet of paracord with you at all times. Useful for alot of stuff and can be undone is seconds.

4. Lockpick kit (red) for picking when I lock myself out or lose the key.

5. SOG Flash II knife - compact, sharp and was pretty inexpensive.

6. Goinggear.com Ferro Rod Flints - these things rock. I forget which model this is.

7. Leatherman Juice XE6 in purple - the girly color makes it easy to find when I drop it on the ground.

8. iPhone in case - for running Surefire's shot timer, of course

9. Uzi Tactical Pen - ha ha I know. Its new and goofy. But its a great kubaton and writes stuff too.

10. Flashlight - iTP A3 EOS Upgraded - 90 lumens on 1 AAA battery - in a very small package. I don't like the controls for this, but have yet to find another mini flashlight that is so bright. With lanyard in orange for finding it. Bought at goinggear.com as well

The leatherman, flashlight, flint and lockpick kit go in a belt holder. The knife in my left pocket (opposite the firearm) and the extra magazine goes either in my pants pocket or a belt holder.

Ah, and I forgot to put my keys in there. They are the standard keysets on a locking carabiner with an REI aluminum whistle and Photon squeeze flashlight.

I've also added a set of latex examination gloves to the mix.

My vehicles all have an extended Bug Out Bag with much more...

Visiting the Big Boxes

2009-09-20T09:45:00.000-07:00

So I did some hiking/cave exploring near Mt. St. Helens this weekend with my boy scout troop. We had 12 boys in the depths of the Ape Caves and had a hoot. It did rain on us Friday night, but I'd brought a comfy tent, big sleeping bag and thick pad. NormallyI'm an ultralight camper and don't splurge much in that department. As my wife says, I usually go out with a hankie, a small sheet of plastic and a blanket. She's not far off.

Anywho...

On the way down, I grabbed by son from school and we left earlier than the rest of the troop. Two reasons:

a) it was a pretty day, I love hanging out with my son and...

b) Cabelas is on the way.

I stopped at Cabelas last week and bought a black powder rifle and a few other things. Cabelas is in Lacy, which is just before Olympai, making it quite a drive from the homestead. About 1.5 hours or so. It takes along time to get there, so this was my first visit.

I tend to frequent the local gun shops here, mostly because I like supporting small businesses and because I don't wanna drive 3 hours for a box of 9mm ammo.

So, anyhow, the revolver I bought last week was defective, so I wanted to exchange it. Ugh. Exchanging regulated items is such a pain. And the best part was that they gave me a brand new one with the same problem. The little doohickey that secures the ramrod on the front of the barrel comes out of the dovetail. Weird. In fact, all the guns they had did likewise.

So after 2 hours of paperwork, shuffling etc, we ended up taking the new one with the same problem and me planning on doing some home gunsmithing. A tap from a punch and maybe some JB weld and it will save me hours staring at a gun counter.

Ugh.

The other reason I went there was to get powder/caps. I figured I'd get that stuff later around home. Nope. Nobody around here carries it. At least within 30 miles.

So I was chagrinned to find that they were outta caps. Ugh.

So we bought some siliconized socks for a few long guns and headed to the campout.

On our way back, we decided to check out SportCo. I think this is the company that took over/replaced/bought out Sportsman's Warehouse. Didn't know they'd had issues, but regardless.

SportCo is quite a bit closer to home. About 30 minutes. Nice.

They had a nice stock of stuff and I found the caps/powder in stock. Easy peasy.

Now I can go to the range this week and shoot this sucker.

PS. Yes, I carry a gun on all scout outings. I figure, I'm one of the adults in charge and since I carry anyhow, I'm going to be prepared for cougars and anything else that comes our way.

P.S.S I looked at a Taurus Judge while buying powder. It was pretty nice. I'd mostly want it for 45 LC and not .410. Seems to me to be a better backcountry gun than the Kel-Tec .380 I carry now. Bigger, and heavier though.

Heading to St. Helens...

2009-09-18T08:04:00.000-07:00

Should be fun enough.

But the best part is that I can swing by Cabelas on the way.

Cabelas used to hold no position in my mind. REI was my sporting goods store.

Well, things change. Now I need primers and Pyrodex and some lube. And I need to look at stocks for my Mossy 500.

REI? They got nothin (and everything they do have there is too heavy for my ultra-lightweight pack anyhow).

So hooray for Cabelas - the only place I can find that will carry Pyrodex. Just gotta figure out how one stores it now....

Took the new Mossberg 500 to the range this week and put some slugs down range. I was surprised at the recoil - I was expecting less and it gave me more. I'd say more than my Mosin-Nagant. Just surprised, thats all...

I managed to hit the target at 50 yards. 3 in the same hole, the rest scattered a bit. Shot standing up too. Need practice.

The other reason I'm going to Cabelas is to exchange the black powder revolver I picked up there last week. The little clip that holds the loading lever fell off when I put the latter thru its intended motion. Plop on the floor, very unceremoniously.

Odd that.

Bleh. Monday

2009-09-14T16:13:00.000-07:00

Having issues with my Mac at home. Stupid snow leopard has got me down.

And, of course, the local range is closed till Wednesday so I can't take either of my two new purchases out for a spin today while I wait for backups to save my skin.

As I mentioned last week, I bought a Mossberg 500 last week to round out my collection. Now I have a nice 20 gauge shotgun with both home and field barrels. Nice, ready to roll. I picked up some buckshot today at the gun store so I now have birdshot, slugs and buck on hand.

I also, in a moment of weakness, bought a black powder Navy revolver from Cabelas this week when I was driving by en route to Portland. $129 bucks for the brass framed Confederate Navy version (i.e. the cheap one) went home with me. Otta be fun for some laughs. Some guy at the range a while back had me shoot some black powder stuff and I knew I'd eventually bite...

I also got a bore-snake and some more hoppes #9 on sale as well. Of course, the sale stuff leaked all over the back of my truck, but its like incense for gunnies anyhow. Mmmm. My truck smells good.

In California...

2009-09-10T10:29:00.000-07:00

So I'm in California for a few days. Flew in yesterday and leave tomorrow AM.

I used to live here in the Bay Area and I don't miss it. Not at all. Ok, maybe the weather I miss on rainy days in Seattle, but that is about it.

There are too many people, everything is expensive as hell, and the south bay (where the mothership resides) has this awful strip-mall aesthetic.

Since becoming a gun owner, these trips to CA have been an exercise in silliness. I bring a gun always (checked luggage, its easy), but since CA has very restrictive gun laws, I have to make sure I pack only my 10 round magazine for the Glock. I can't carry it on me, so it stays in unloaded in a locked box in the trunk. Which does me little good. Today I went on a 5 mile walk down the Steven's Creek Trail and it was the first time I'd been out without a gun on me in more than 6 months. It felt weird. I resent being disarmed thusly - and while I understand I can technically open carry an unloaded gun in CA, that just does not seem like a good idea.

What kinda backward idiots make conceal carry illegal and provide for open carry? Ugh. I sure don't miss CA.

I hate being targeted by these restrictions when I'm a law abiding citizen.

2009-09-08T15:13:00.001-07:00

Amen.

I lived with and believed those misperceptions for most of my adult life.

I'm Baaaaack!

2009-09-07T22:43:00.001-07:00

Oh man, what a slacker.

I mean a month!

To be fair, it was a crazy month. I got sick. My kids got sick. We had several out of town trips (soccer, backpacking trip, family reunion) and I really wasn't at home for much of August.

So here I am, back and the kids are finally in school. Time to breathe. Wahoo.

So here are a few things on my mind:

1. Carrying guns at health care rallies. This happened in August and the media went all apoplectic (yes, I love that word, and it fits). Personally, I see two sides: 1) people should see people exercising their rights with guns but 2) you'll look like a whacko to anyone not plugged into gun rights. Deadly weapons are *not* kosher for the unwashed masses. They see them as scary. Dangerous. More scarier. And so parading around with them makes them think we're barking mad. Of course, maybe they'd stop thinking that if they saw more of them. So yes, I get the point and I respect what some are trying to do here. Where do I fall? Not sure.

2. Healthcare debate. Sheesh. I read alot of conservative blogs nowdays - mostly gunny stuff - but I'm really a bit fed up with the blathering on healthcare. I wanna read your blog to learn about shootie stuff, not your weirdo conspiracy theories on how Obamacare will put mom on an ice flow. I lived with Canadian healthcare most of my first 20 years and it rocked. It was awesome. And it still serves my parents wonderfully. The one thing that puzzles me though, is people who say its the US government that can't do it right, even if others can. Huh, that is an odd thought. Not sure if I see this as realistic or a cop out.

3. Van Whatever his name is. More political crapola. You yanks get all tied up over partisan politics and don't realize that your two party system is broken. Its broken big time. You get corrupt republicans on one hand and corrupt democrats on the other. Money makes them all do the same things for the same backroom dealers, regardless of the rhetoric. We lost power decades ago and its now just a game for the big men. Too bad we don't have a parlimentary system that lets alternate voices have an actual say instead of waste time/effort/money and votes. And yes, I'm very familiar with the downsides of such a system, but they are easier to handle than the wreck of a democracy we have now. Sigh.

4. Obama talking to your kids. Sheesh. Seriously? This is tying you up in knots? The outrage I've been seeing over this from people I otherwise respect is just insane. Do you really think Obama is going to sit down and indoctrinate lil' Billy, reading directly from Mao's little Red Book? Seriously? Hell. Back here in RealityLand, he's just going to tell them to work hard and get good grades. And they released the text before hand so you could stop hyperventilating. The way people were freaking was almost like we were headed for a Killing Fields style camp for reeducation instead of an inspiring (ok people, ignore the politics, look at what he's done/overcome - he's our first black president with a dad who hearded goats!) story to help an increasingly lazy and incapable youth. And yes, I *know* the many of them are weak, lazy and ill prepared to handle freedom - I'm a scout leader and I see first hand the results of parents who don't expect anything from their kids, give them everything and let them fiddle with their stupid X-box paddles as their only chore. No expectations. No work ethic. Just soft and lazy pudding people. I wish this wasn't true, but it is.

Ok, so lets turn the tables. I was a major George Bush hater. I really dislike the guy, but I wouldn't have minded him talk about banalities and maybe tell an inspiring story or two to my four kids in school. Shrug. Like he'd make them read Kristol or something. Ok, maybe the "what you can do for your president stuff was a bit silly" though...

5. Politics. Feck! Forget it. I bought another gun today. I finally rounded out my arsenal with a Mossberg 500 20 gauge shotgun. Got the 20 because its a bit easier for kids/the wife to handle. And because Mas said it was a good choice on ProArms awhile back. I got the two barell kit (field, home defense) for $279 at Big 5. I'd gone to the local armory and they only had 12's in stock. So I had to go to the big box store. Ugh. But that isn't a bad deal. Sweet. So now I have a sweet home defense shotgun that I gotta get to know.

6. Took my Mosin Nagant to the range a few times in the last few weeks. Here is the short rundown of my travails: 1) Shot 20 rounds, didn't even hit the target at 100 yards. Scared me. I have a 22 LR that I shoot like a champ, so I was concerned. Went home frustrated. 2) Went back. Finally hit the target at 50 yards. Was all over the place. managed to put a few holes in at 100 yards too, but it looks like crap. I was concerned I had a bad bore (no idea how to tell really, I'm a newbie remember) or the crown was crapped up. I decided to put it back in the original wood stock (had it in an ATI synthetic stock - a moment of weakness in Cabelas in July). Maybe that would help. 3) Went back and after a few poor shots noticed I was flinching when I shot. I then analyzed what I was doing and I was flinching like a madman. I mean, really bad. The rifle has alot more recoil than I've been used to with my 22s or handguns, so I was jumping at it. I forced myself to calm down and voila (yes I speak French) things stared to settle down. The rifle shoots a bit high, but I pulled a 2" group at 50 and an 7" group at 100 yards. Not perfect, but much better. Turns out all my worry about a bad gun/bore/crown blah blah was due to me acting all goofy when I pulled the trigger. Controlling myself changed everything.

I have much to learn...

7. Monster Hunter International - this book oozed fun. I really enjoyed it. I had a really hard time with the first chapter though. Let me get this out - I'm a total literature snob. I read. A lot. And I like appreciate literature. Thus, I hate reading poorly written stuff. Why waste time when there are so many great books out there. And yes, I'd flog Dan Brown if I ever met him. I like Steinbeck. I love Nabokov. Willa Cather. Mark Twain. Joyce. But sometimes they don't write stories about vampires, so I read other stuff (aka slumming it). I loved World War Z (after I made fun of someone for reading it), so when I read about MHI somewhere (Gun Nuts?) I bought it for my iPhone and ended up really liking it. The first chapter really didn't impress me and I almost put it down. But in the end I persevered and the writing got better and the story line sucked me in. My only other complaint was that the shootie stuff was too much. I respect that he knows what he's talking about. I respect that he does not talk about 1911 revolvers and "everything is an Ak", but the shooting parts were overdone. I mean, worse than Mac Boland bad. And the shooting hardly does anything good anyhow. So maybe I'd mellow on the tacticool descriptions a bit.

PS. I also like it because the author is Mormon and I saw some mormon theology in there. I saw it immediately and loved it. I knew what I was reading and confirmed with some google work. You go Larry. I forgive you for that shaky first chapter and the gunny-McGunny focus somtimes.

Go get it.

8. Obama Joker. Its just that - a joke. I see no racist overtones here. Its also very clever. I like clever. Those people on the left who freaked out over this are just goofy. And no, I don't think Obama is a socialist. Or a communist. Not even close. That banter is just to rile up and distract one side. The other side gets riled up and distracted by something else. Maybe chickens in a cage or some sort of non-CFL lightbulb armageddon.

9. Little Black Book of Violence - a great read (part way thru) on avoiding violence and why. Very good when you walk around with a deadly weapon every day and want to avoid trouble. I love his advice on how to let things roll over and thru you. I'm getting older and certainly feel a bit wiser than that dumb 21 year old kid I once was. Pick your battles - and most are not worth fighting...

Hot. Hot. HOT!

2009-07-30T17:09:00.000-07:00

Freaking freakity freak. Its hot here in WA. It hit 106 at yesterday.

Ugh.

Well, I used that as an excuse to go buy a nice 22 rifle. I kid. Honestly, I went into the gun shop just to see what they had...

They had a scoped Marlin Model 60 SN (synthetic stock) with an acceptable scope on it for a decent price, so after humming and hawing about for a while, I went for it. It looky like this. Except I have a better scope on it.

I have a Henry Survival Rifle in .22 LR that works great, but its not a great gun for plinking, so I was on the look out for a good, reliable and inexpensive 22. It will serve to teach my son to shoot, go plinking and maybe piss off a zombie or two when they invade.

I took it to the range and its a tack driver. This is the first time I can be accused of tearing a ragged hole in a target. The shots went a bit high and to the left, so after some dial time with the Bushnell scope, I was in business.

This is a 14 round tube fed magazine. And I think I like that more than a 10/22 with a detachable magazine - I'm growing to hate the magazine thumb I get from all the autoloaders I have.

I shot 100 rounds and had no issues feeding. So accuracy and reliability. Sweet.

PS. If you're counting, that is #6

Two Things - Conceal Carry & Heathcare

2009-07-23T22:42:00.000-07:00

Personally, I like the idea of concealed carry permits.

Let me state up front that I really get the whole "its a right, I shouldn't need a permit" idea. I know where you are coming from and I'm not saying your notion isn't without merit. But part of me still thinks that its OK to ask citizens to demonstrate our sanity before putting a gun in our pocket.

Honestly, I don't want felons to have guns. I don't want some dude whose been in and out of the institution and wears a tinfoil hat to carry a gun. I don't want that guy with a restraining order or who beats his wife to have a gun. That just isn't rational or safe.

I want it safe for law abiding citizens to carry guns.

So I didn't have much of a problem going down and submitting to a background check and some fingerprints. Personally, I wish they'd required a few hours of class time too. Honestly, not everyone is as thorough as I am (ahem) and spends beaucoup time looking into concealed carry before doing it. I spent hours reading, watching videos and discussing options and responsibilities before I took the plunge, and I probably still don't know everything I should. But I tried really hard and continue to. I think that anyone who wishes to carry a deadly weapon better be clear on many things first, and mandatory training is probably the best way to do it.

With regard to the national reciprocity bill that got nuked this week: I was all for it because traveling is such a pain now (as I've discussed over the last week). But at the same time, I can see the argument from those opposed that the state with the least restrictions will force others to have to accept this, even if the people of said state want a bit more from their own carriers.

I guess the states with no permit (Alaska and Vermont, any others?) rely on the other gun laws to keep the nutbars out? Maybe that works. Thoughts?

Secondly, healthcare. I love the gun blog-o-sphere. But I'm really getting sick of the healthcare crap getting thrown in all the time. Ugh.

Honestly, I'm a big fan of a more rational approach to healthcare. Our current system sucks. And before you get all uppity, consider that I know what I'm talking about. I've lived with Canadian healthcare for half my life and it is a really great system.

No really. Its always been there for me and my family and all the doomsday crap I hear about it is just silly fear mongering and ignorance.

Oh, and a good conservative friend of mine once outlined his fears by stating it wasn't *any* government healthcare program that he feared, just a US-based one. His opinion was that the US government is just too inept and corrupt to do it right, even if others can and have done a better job of it.

That kinda floored me. Of course, he was more than happy with the MIC and them having keys to the nukes, but healthcare was right out.

Really? Is this a common thought?

Response!

2009-07-21T14:37:00.000-07:00

Got a response from Senator Murray already:

Dear Mr. Morganthen,

Thank you for writing to me regarding S. Amdt. 1618, Senator Thune (R-SD)'samendment to provide for uniform reciprocity for concealed weapon possession across the country. It is good to hear from you.

Senator Thune's amendment would allow gun owner with a right to carry concealed weapon in one state the right to carry a concealed weapon across the United States. Like you, I am concerned about the level of violence in this country, and its effect on our families and communities. Legislation to regulate the use of firearms is and should remain primarily a state issue. I believe that our national crime-fightingstrategy should include reasonable measures to control firearms that strike a balance between reducing street crime and maintaining individuals' rights.

As a U.S. Senator, I have supported common-sense measures to reduce or restrict gun violence while posing the least possible inconvenience to law-abiding gun owners. Please know that as the Senate considers this and other firearms legislation, I will keep your concerns regarding this important issue in mind. If you would like to know more about my work in the Senate, please feel free to sign up for my updates at http://murray.senate.gov/updates. Thank you again for writing, and please keep in touch.

ha ha. It almost seems like they missed my point...

Vote on Natioanl Conceal Carry

2009-07-21T08:48:00.001-07:00

I just got done emailing my senators from Washington to suport the Thune/Vitter amendment to the DOD authorization bill. I used some text copied from a template I found somehwere on the internet and added some of my own recent history traveling thru 5 states and doing the gun juggle.

So I'd urge you to contact your sentaor with your support as well...

Armed Again

2009-07-20T12:57:00.001-07:00

I'm back in Utah. It was sure nice to pop that Kel-Tec back into my pocket after a week without. Peace of mind.

I have my two older boys with me and we did some shooting in the desert a few days ago. I also shot my Mosin Nagant for the first time and was pleasantly surprised at how it handled. The action isn't smooth by any stretch, and that is slightly annoying - you gotta pay attention to the action to make sure it opens, loads the round and closes properly. I'm sure it will get more normal as I do it. The rifle is certainly heavy and I'm sad to report the new resin stock didn't change the weight much at all. I was hoping to take off a bit of the weight. The kick of the gun was totally manageable and I've decided to scope it - I already have the parts, just gotta find a gunsmith to put it on.

We also shot some .22 and had quite a bit of fun plinking with cans and the like. My older boy was quite accurate with his shooting overall. Proud papa.

I'm slowly trying to introduce my kids to the guns, their safe use and right now I'm really drilling in the 4 rules. I made them repeat them like 20x - between each mag change and the like. I sure wish I would have had this when I was a kid.

My 12 year old son shot the Glock with 22 LR kit from Advantage Arms and I even let him shoot a magazine of 9mm just so he could see how it handled. He did a great job of keeping that gun under control and was hitting what he wanted to at 25 ft or so. Not bad.

Now back to work...

Terrified

2009-07-17T09:55:00.000-07:00

I loved this:

http://blog.joehuffman.org/2009/07/17/HesReallyOnOurSideRight.aspx

Joe Huffman points out the irrational feeling many in our society have for guns.

A man in the parking lot adjusting his concealed carry piece is a "gruff, dangerous man" who is ready to kill everyone.

A woman talking on a cell phone from, gasp, out of state has a pistol in her purse with children present!

Etc.

The poster on "The Gun Guys" (who, btw, didn't fool me for a minute when I started reading the gun blogosphere) is either truly terrified of these scenarios or trying to add a bit of melodrama around the scenes to scare the rest of us. The latter is a time-honored technique, honed and polished to a shining turd in the national discourse. Bush and his cronies were very effective and have made their little friends billions of dollars using this tactic. And if you think the left is going to sit by and not learn from their, ahem, little advancements, you're fooling yourself.

As for me, I recognize the fear here. I used to feel it when I saw a gun in public, as I detailed a few posts ago. Guns are equated in the modern media with rapid-fire death. Guns are shown as the "way to solve problems" in 99% of the situations we see portrayed on TV and in the movies. I like a good shoot-em up as much as the next guy, but honestly, the depictions are far from reality. Bam bam! Problem solved and I get the girl. Uh huh.

So consider this:

There are millions of people carrying responsibly each day around you. On your next trip to Starbucks or Nordstrom, consider that someone in your immediate periphery has a legal handgun tucked away for self defense. How many times have you seen a shoot out? Pools of blood at the park or in the restaurant because someone had a gun around children!

Not often. It does happen, and criminals will continue on occasion to perpetrate their evil.

But for the law abiding citizen like myself, that gun is there only to defend myself and my family. And unlike TV, it will only happen as an ultimate last resort. I'll get myself out of most every predicament, even dangerous ones, without having to draw it.

And personally, I've decided that I will only do so to save myself or my family. If I were in a supermarket and a shoot out happened in front, I'd take myself out the back. No heroics. I just don't want to pay the price for mistakes if I shoot the wrong person or a ricochet hits a bystander. If they come at me in said supermarket, different story, but that is my current thinking. I hear that there is a $10K price tag attached to each bullet I shoot. Ouch. I'll only spend that when absolutely necessary.

So unlike that terrible crime drama you shouldn't watch on TV (read a book, please) I won't go looking to solve every problem with a gun. Blood will not run in the streets. Kids are perfectly safe around me (mine are) and that won't change because some misguided person tries to scare everyone else into thinking otherwise.

How about you?

Still Disarmed

2009-07-15T07:05:00.000-07:00

I'm still in the four corners region and I'm still disarmed.

After just getting used to carrying all the time, and liking the extra reassurance that it gives, I really hate not having my Kel-Tec on me.

Stupid, stupid.

On the positive side, we were out in the desert a few days back and I got to try two new types of JHP self defense ammo in the Kel-Tec. Self Defense .380 has been impossible to find for the past 6 months, so I was happy to visit a few stores with some MagTech and Corbon JHP stuff in stock.

I bought a few (expensive) boxes and took it out for some shooting. I learned early to make sure to test your ammo before it becomes your carry load, for obvious reasons that if it causes a misfeed, then you're SOL and might as well not have the gun in the first place. Makes sense.

So I put 20 rounds of both thru the gun with zero problems. And it was amazingly accurate - shooting both close up targets (7-10 meters - yes the metric system is better) and stuff farther away at 25 m. I setup a man-size target at that latter distance and was able to put 6 rounds into it quickly - center of mass with an acceptable grouping size. This *is* a pistol for close in distance, so I was happily surprised at the results.

The ammo was:

CorBon DPX- 80 grain JHP - solid copper bullet intended to minimize penetration and maximize expansion. This stuff was expensive at $30 a box for 20 rounds. Ouch. They claim it retains 100% of bullet weight and has a higher fps. Mostly greek to me, but ok.
MagTech Guardian Gold - 85 grain JHP +p load (technically) - traditional HP design, and much cheaper at $13 a box.

I'm just happy to have self defense stuff again. I've been carrying around the same 6 rounds of Remmington Golden Sabre for 8 months.

Anyone have any thoughts on their preferred .380 loads for small guns like this? How many rounds do you put thru in testing? At $30 a box, I was hesitant to do more with the CorBon stuff, but maybe I'm being cheap.

Open Carry

2009-07-14T08:36:00.000-07:00

Ok, so someone suggested that Nationwide open carry was the way to address my conceal carry query from the other day.

Honestly, its a good thought, but in the end, I think Open Carry in normal, everyday routine, is a complete non-starter.

Concealed carry is by far the best thing to happen to gun owners in the past 20 years. We get to arm ourselves legally and the malefactors don't know which of their intended victims is really to strike back. With open carry, they know immediately, and its like an invitation to being the fist one shot. With concealed carry, random as it is, the criminal mindset is reinforced negatively - it can work like slot machines, where random reinforcement is enough to drive people to peeing in change buckets rather than go to the bathroom.

Think of that flawed 20-20 episode intending to bunk concealed carry. You know, where the guy with the gun in a classroom was set in the same spot so the armed intruder could come right in and pop him - no guessing, no wondering, just pop pop (simunitions) and they were dead. Oh look! Conceal Carry does not work.

Fail.

And open carry is likewise. I'm all for open carry in the wilderness - that rattlesnake or cougar won't do a double take and slink away if they spot that XD on your hip.

But in the real world, that gobshite criminal will just pop you first...

PS. I noticed on the gun blogs that there is some sort of national conceal carry law making the rounds. Would love to see this pass if it does just that and nothing more...

Selling with a CCW?

2009-07-12T21:41:00.000-07:00

Just noticed this:

http://hueysgunsight.blogspot.com/2009/07/caviat-emptorcaveat-venditor.html

And I think it kinda reinforces my thought that if I ever sell a gun person to person, it will only be to a CCW holder.

Speaking of Concealed Carry

2009-07-12T18:59:00.000-07:00

So I've been on a road trip for the past week. We left about a week ago and headed down to Utah to visit some relatives.

I always carry my P3AT in my back pocket (pocket holster, of course) and do so especially when traveling. I always was very suspicious of people at rest stops etc. when traveling - probably because I'm out of my element.

What I do like about my WA permit is that I can carry in many other western states I visit. My WA permit is good ID, UT and MT, which is where I spend 90% of my time.

But what really pisses me off is reciprocity is fickle and hard to track. For example, on my trip to Utah, I had to disarm thru Oregon. About 4 hours later, I could arm again. Oh, and I can't pump my own gas either, but that isn't a huge deal.

Utah was great, and I carried the entire time there. Now we took a side trip down to the Four Corners area and I can't carry my pistol again in Colorado. Not sure about AZ. Or NM. What a freaking pain in the rear.

Now I know that many libertarians and conservatives chafe at any sort of federal control beyond the military (which is a big exception in my mind, but they never seem to care), but this state-by-state approach is just silly.

Sometimes federal oversight is better than having to arm/disarm a bunch of times in a single day depending on what state you're passing thru.

And each state has different laws on where I can/can't carry. Restaurants that serve alcohol? I don't partake (ahem) but in some places I can/can't carry there. Not that I'd ever want to eat at, say Applebees, but I never know without spending 10 min on my iphone if I can or can't. And no, I'd never willingly eat at Applebees or most other chain restaurants in that vein.

Grr.

Personally, I'd like to see federal oversight over the mess so I can just learn once and forget about it. And I could get my permit once and be done.

Maybe there is something I'm not thinking of? I'm sure my loyal readers will let me know all about it ;-)

So, anyhow, greetings from southern Colorado. Its beautiful down here and I'm just happy to be alive and to share this with my kids.

Concealed Carry is for Crazies...

2009-07-09T14:20:00.000-07:00

Well, that is what I used to think.

The idea that someone would *need* to carry a gun around was something straight out of an old western movie.

Consider that Canada had a pretty smooth history of westward migration compared to the US. The government had the foresight to send out the RCMP *before* the settlers really came en mass - and a result, they managed to keep the western part of Canada much more tame and civil. The rule of law before the rule of the gun - the latter seems to have been much more prevalent south of the border. In fact, the most trouble we had was from whiskey runners coming up from Alberta. Trust me, I grew up near a place called "Whiskey Gap" and "Fort Whoop-up" which were both places where whiskey traders plied their trade.

However, consider that my history also dates back to the forced migration of Mormons from the east/midwest to Utah. As a result of our unique heritage, we Mormons tend to have a self-reliant streak a mile wide. Or at least a history of it - many of us are getting as fat and lazy as the other sheeple thinking that Albertsons and King George will provide.

We've had times where government was out to kill us (extermination orders, Invasion armies heading to Utah) and others when we worked quite well with them (Mormon Battalion, Railroads etc). I'm actually quite proud that this duality - we've worked well together and we've walked away from tyrants and mob rule.

In short, we've shot back and we've walked away when it was the right thing to do. Consider also that our scriptures (The Book of Mormon) have tales of both as well - we've got great soldier leaders who fought against oppression and other great examples who vowed never to shed blood and buried their weapons in the ground. Very cool.

Anyhow, back to the idea of concealed carry. I live in Washington State and I looked into the whole process almost from an academic exercise. I wanted to see what it took to be legal to carry a gun.

As an aside: part of me has grown to see the silliness of asking the government to "authorize me" to carry a gun for self defense. I mean, the 2nd amendment is pretty clear on the whole "Bear" part. I know I'm not alone, and there are a few states who do this.

But part of me realizes that there are *alot* of rubes out there. Morons. Idiots. Goofballs. Tools. People who don't put thought into their actions. Do I want them carrying a gun around endangering me if I'm in the next bathroom stall? Remember that dude who blew up a toilet in Utah at a Fast Food restaurant a few months ago? His conceal piece fell out of his belt and discharged, shattering the toilet bowl. He was lucky no one was injured.

Carrying a gun is a HUGE responsibility as you have the ability to protect yourself or harm others thru negligence. I know that lefties tend to get all in knots over both of these - the police can protect you and the odds of you using it to defend yourself are slim, while the odds you'll make a stupid mistake and hurt someone else are probably up there. I do note that few really know the actual statistics when they opine about this - I sure don't.

That dude in the Utah bathroom was careless and could have killed someone. You can't dismiss it easily.

So anyhow, I went to the local Sheriff's department and setup my appointment. I had to wait a few days and I was back - all I needed to do was fill out a form, get fingerprinted and wait while they ran a BG check on me.

Honestly, I was expecting more. I mean, to drive a car (which can also be dangerous or helpful - and both are definitely more significant statistically speaking) one has to jump thru all kinds of hoops - practical test, written test, eye test. Hell, I can't serve hotdogs (not that I would, I'm a vegetarian) to kids at a baseball game without a food permit.

So in about 30 days my permit showed up. To be honest, all I really wanted it for was so I didn't have to wait when I purchased a handgun.

In fact, soon after I decided to get a carry gun in case I wanted to do so - and I decided on a Kel-Tec P3AT. Buying this tie was much nicer and I walked out with my new tool 30 min after going in.

Honestly, I do like the idea of a CCW permit because it proves I've gone thru a BG check and was clean - at least when it was done X years ago. A rational lefty would argue that this might be the best way to make sure person-to-person sales (i.e. the gunshow loophole) are legit. Personally, I'd never sell a firearm to anyone without a CCW - and I know from what I see in classifieds that I'm not alone.

So, have I carried?

I certainly didn't start out doing it. Before the Kel-Tec, the Bersa was just too big, and being new, I was too self conscious of it. I didn't even consider the Glock. The Bersa is slim and small, but the Kel-Tec dissapears in your pocket.

At first I tried IWB in the small of the back. It was annoying as hell. Couldn't sit down, I felt it was printing all the time. Just hated it. So I only did it on occasion. And often it went into bags I was carrying rather than on me specifically.

A few months ago, I decided to really try to carry ever day. I have expensive cameras and like to wander around a lot, and it gives me a bit of added security - there has been several times where I've been in dicey situations with 10k worth of camera equipment around my neck. Gunnies, photographers have it worse than you, trust me.

Even the Kel-Tec wasn't working IWB, so I got a pocket holster and fell in love with it. I ended up going out and buying some BDU style shorts (needed some new ones anyhow) and found them perfect for carry. I'd plop the gun in its holster into my back pocket and I was good. I could drive, work, play and it just felt right. The size of the P3AT and that holster are perfect in my book.

I now carry every day. Even at home while working or messing around in the garden. Washington is pretty good about letting you carry most places - I just have to avoid post offices, schools and municipal buildings. And yes, I think its pretty silly to have gun free zones. It seems to me that criminals, by nature, will ignore that rule, but I have to? Stupid. And I hate having to disarm to go into the post office, which I have to do daily because I live in a rural area without home delivery.

I guess if something goes bad, we can all run to the post office and let the magical forcefield protect me and my family from danger.

Yeah, that is the plan...

2009-07-08T22:36:00.000-07:00

FWIW, I just ran into a store that had those value packs of .22LR ammo!

I have seriously not seen those on the shelves since, oh, say October of last year. And they had some .380 JHP in stock too! I've been low on SD roundage as well. Score.

Bought 4 boxes and added 2000+ rounds to my stash.

Ahem, I mean, arsenal.

One Becomes 4. And some Ammo...

2009-07-08T14:47:00.000-07:00

So I was pretty happy with my Bersa. It worked great, shot well and was pretty much what I wanted.

I had mentioned recently that I had purchased a Henry US Survival rifle online just after buying the Bersa. It came not long after I got the Bersa and I ran down to Wade's Guns in Bellevue to pick it up. I was chagrined to see that they dinged me something fierce for buying it as I did - they charged me something like $30 for the FFL paperwork (which is fine by me and expected) but then added on a percentage fee for the $$ they feel they lost by me not buying it there. Say what?

Funny that because I tried to buy one from them. The moron kid at the counter tried to sell me a .270 rifle when it was very obvious I wanted this specific rifle. I kept coming back to it, then finally left in disgust when he didn't get it. He didn't offer to order it, just kept going on about stuff I wasn't interested in.

Lesson learned. Either I gotta find a different FFL or just buy local, which really isn't a problem for me anyhow. But not from Wade's Guns in Bellevue, you can be sure of that.

Anyhow, I got the Survival Rifle home and checked it out. It works great for what it is - a survival rifle. If you need to take small game in a survival situation, it will work great. Its light, its compact (it folds up into its stock) and its simple to operate.

Check it out here...

The key thing about this rifle is its light. One can carry a lot of .22LR ammo and this rifle in your backpack. Much more than larger calibers. If I'm getting out of dodge, this will be a great rifle to have along for the ride.

I'd heard about concerns with reliability and build quality, and it isn't the most refined rifle on the block, but it works (and I hear Henry's takeover improved things over Armalite versions).

Happy enough.

So now that I had the hardware, it was time to get the ammunition. I ran into a few sales on bricks of .22LR ammo, so I quickly added several thousand rounds to my personal storage (aka, an 'arsenal' to those who don't own guns). I also bought a few cases of .380 ammo - I figured that a few cases would be good for starters.

This was all last August, and I'm sure glad I put this stuff away as both calibers are largely absent from the shelves today (and have been for the past 6 months at least).

Ok, so I had a small handgun and a small survival rifle.

Someone once and mentioned that guns were a bit like crack. And they are. No sooner had I gotten done with these purchases that I decided that for my purposes, I really needed to fill my arsenal out a bit. I don't regret what I had, but once I began this journey, I realized that I would need heavier duty weapons that would actually serve as self-defense weapons should I need them. This always happens to n00bs. No matter how much you research, you end up spending $$ to learn the hard way. Cameras, bikes, and now guns. Shrug.

So I went back to West Coast Armory and bought a Glock 17. It was high on this list because 9mm is an eminently available round, it has high capacity magazines and what I'm told is legendary reliability.

I was a bit off-put by the lack of a manual safety, and it took me awhile to really get over it. Every gun I'd owned had one. It just didn't seem safe. I thought alot about it, and decided that the Glock was ok in this regard. This was to be a defensive pistol, not a carry piece (way to big for that IMHO) and so it sits in the safe or is on my hip in a holster as the world comes down around me, ready to go.

So I bought it. And waited again for the week to pick it up.

I then bought a few cases of 9mm ammo to add to my growing pile stored in plastic food-grade buckets in the storage room.

Next was a rifle that could really reach out and touch someone. I had spent a fair bit by this point, and so I decided to go surplus for my rifle. I noted that a local sporting goods store had Mosin Nagants on sale for less than $100 and that seemed to be great. Its shoots a heavier cartridge, its reliable (so I'm told) and wouldn't cost me an arm/leg. So I picked that up too. Process was easier for rifles - no waiting period.

Then I added a couple of cases of sardine-tinned 7.62x54R ammo from some ex-communist country. Corrosive joy, I hear. I have not shot it yet because I keep hearing about how I gotta get the headspace checked. Ugh.

My safe was filling up already and I was only 2 months into this new journey.

What I'm glad about is that I did all this last fall before the ammo shortage. If I had waited 5 months, I would have been outta luck. Its still pretty much impossible to find .380 or .22 ammo. The russkie stuff is available, as is 9mm, but its more expensive.

Whew. I love it when a plan comes together.

A few words on safe storage...

2009-07-07T14:03:00.000-07:00

So, after that first trip, I continued to go to the range about once a week. Putting ammo thru the gun wasn't much of a chore, and I quickly picked up on the proper behavior for a range citizen.

I'm not much of a social person anymore (by choice), but I do talk with other gunnies. I'm always looking to learn, and those around me are great places to look for knowledge.

One discussion really stands out in my head; I was talking to this guy about the proper ceasefire procedures at the range, and in the course of his response, he referred to my Bersa as a "weapon". It really caught me off guard. I mean, I know its a weapon. Everyone knows this. Duh. Its a gun, a tool made for one specific purpose. But it was then that the realization that I now owned a deadly weapon kinda hit me. A weapon. Oh yeah.

As it is a weapon, I decided nice and early to have a set of SOP's for dealing with it. I present them to you for your edification and potential additions:

1. Never ever leave the gun out thinking you'll store it securely later. The gun goes into the safe when you don't have it explicitly on you. Back then I didn't have my conceal carry permit, so it was mainly in the safe.

2. Learn and live the 4 rules. Really. Seriously.

3. Practice enough to be competent. Know it like the back of your hand, and you'll make less mistakes.

I've followed these to a T since day one. Owning a gun is a huge responsibility and I intend to take its seriously.

Rant time.

It really pisses me off every time someone forwards me an accidental death news story because its just an example of some idiot not defining and living by the proper operating procedures for having a deadly weapon.

Frankly, as I mentioned earlier, my Grandpa (NRA life member, staunch gun supporter) was not being responsible with his guns when I was a kid staying with them. He didn't do much to teach me to handle them safely, he didn't store them safely and this is a problem. 7 year olds should not have unrestricted access to a gun cabinet. Regardless.

My Dad did no better either.

Every time some kid gets into his dads nightstand and shoots a friend, a bit more weight of the world shifts onto the shoulders of responsible gun owners. Every time some moron gets lazy or flippant with his/her weapon, the rest of us lose a little bit. The anti-gun crowd, to which I was once a full fledged member, sees these stories and it just reinforces their mindset - guns are owned by redneck morons who can't rub two brain cells together.

They learn to vilify the irresponsible and the tool too. They animate the tool because the owner wasn't. There is lots of blame to go round when an accident happens, and in then end that is how "sensible gun laws" come about. The reasoning is simple: if you can't manage to put your gun away from the 5 year olds, we'll do it for you.

So please, if you have not defined a rigid set of SOPs (standard operating procedures) for your weapons, do it now. Learn it, follow it and be rigid as hell about it. Take care of your guns. Respect them. Store them safely. If it isn't on your immediate person, it should probably be put away. That, my friends, is common sense.

I'm proud to say that I've never made the mistake (so far) of leaving my gun out of its safe by accident. I adhere to those rules every time. No variations. No exceptions. I realize accidents do happen, so being cognizant of everything you do with a weapon is a must.

Double and triple check. If you don't, you do the rest of us a huge disservice.

Happy 4th of July

2009-07-04T08:09:00.001-07:00

I'm going to take a break today and spend time with the family.

I love the first week of July.

I get to spend July 1st celebrating Canada and its awesomeness.

I get to spend July 4th celebrating the United States and its awesomeness.

I'm truly blessed to be a citizen of both. I just smile when someone talks about how one their country "is the best" in the world, because I know better. I've lived in three and visited scores more for extended times, and I find something special in each. Truth is, there are many wonderful places to live, and God has given us much to be thankful for.

So lets hear it for good healthcare, education and the RCMP. Lets hear it for gun rights, the desert southwest and the Marines. Lets hear it for the prairies, our melting pot heritage and the Rockies. Lets hear it for being able to say what you want, go where you will and standing up for what's right.

Huzzah!

Pickup Time!

2009-07-02T15:53:00.000-07:00

Wow, quite a rush of people. Thanks for listening to my story.

So, as I was on my weeklong trip, I remembered something I really wanted when I was a kid - one of those cool survival guns. I knew that .22 LR guns were the perfect survival weapon - cheap, ammo was abundant and inexpensive and I could carry a lot in my backpack if I needed too.

I remember lusting after the Armalite gun - the one where you stowed everything in the stock. So I looked it up and found that Henry now made them and that reliability was much improved. So I looked at a few online shops and bought one that night - sending it to a local gun shop (not Westside) to pickup. I knew I'd have to pay a bit extra for that, but I'd checked their inventory and they didn't have one. In fact, when I'd asked, they tried to talk me into a 270 or something silly. So I figured this was the way to go.

So here I was, a few days from my first purchase and buying another. Foodgates: open.

When I got back, I rand down and picked up the Bersa. It felt cold in my hand, but it was mine. And I was now capable of at least some level of self defense, although I was extremely leery. Probably not a bad thing for a deadly weapon.

I now had a nice list of stuff to do:

One: storage. One of my biggest fears was that my kids would hurt themselves with it. The news is awash with those stories you know. Obviously I wanted to have access to it quickly, but wanted it safe from the kids. So I bought a small wall safe and bolted it to my wall with big lag nuts. Done and Done.

Two: buy some of ammo to break it in. Done.

Three: read the manual and clean it. Done

Four: shoot.

First, I knew training would be a good idea. But I looked at classes locally and they were more than I paid for the gun. I'm a quick learner, and I devour information when I get fixated on something, so I figured I start by myself and see where that went.

I'd already started reading gun blogs, read a few books/magazines and asked lots of questions at the gun store/range and of gunnies I knew. Its always worked for me in the past.

So off to the range I went. We have a local range that is pretty inexpensive, so I joined and lined up for my first session with my new gun. The people at the range were nice enough, but I was certainly more than a bit nervous as I loaded the first magazine, inserted it and racked that slide back. Pushing in bullets hurts the thumb, I thought.

Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. Bang. I can tell you I didn't know what to expect that first trigger pull. I knew .380 wasn't the most powerful round. I knew it was barely adequate for self defense.

It wasn't a big deal. The guy next to me was shooting a 9mm and let me try his (and XD if I remember correctly) and it didn't feel much different. Then he had me shoot is Mac .45 and some crazy belgian rifle. He kept pulling them out of those mysterious aluminum briefcases that nobody but gun owners really buy. The one thing I was concerned with was getting shot by accident at the range - note that sometime around then that kid with a full auto uzi killed himself at some machine gun event.

It was nice to pull the trigger on a few other guns without renting. I realized that the recoil issue wasn't a big deal and I could easily control whatever I wanted.

I shot 2 boxes and went home. I wasn't a bad shot. Everything was on the paper, and the groups were good enough for me at different ranges.

When I got home I cleaned it out really good and put it into the safe.

I pondered that first shoot for a few days. I noted that the gun really was just an inanimate object. It was completely safe if I respected it. If I followed the rules properly.

As I proceeded to shoot more (to break it in like I'd read) and cleaned it, I got to know it. And most of my fear evaporated.

At one time I'd been incensed that someone had a gun on their hip near my kids. Now I had a gun and was handling it responsibly...

PS. I realize I'm a moderate. Only those *waaay* to the right think of me as a lefty, but being that far in right field can alter your perspective.

2009-07-01T15:57:00.000-07:00

Welcome even more readers. Gun bloggers are cool. And they've taught me much.

So anyway, back to my story...

When I last left you, I was headed to the store to buy my first gun.

I had never looked into it before, but a quick check on my iphone revealed a nice shop close by - West Coast Armory.

I headed down and was greeted by a small store chock full of weapons. Lots of pistols. Lots of what at the time I would have referred to as "assault weapons" on the wall.

The staff was a bit off-putting at first - I think more because I was in over my head than anything - but I managed to talk to him. I confessed I was bit out of my league and he pushed me towards a 9mm taurus something or other. It wasn't very big, but it was a double stack and felt thick and a bit unwieldy. I asked to see the Bersa Thunder .380 and it felt just right (with appologies to the thee bears). It fit my hand (I'm not a particularly big guy) quite well and seemed just to be the right thing for me. And the price was right.

So I plopped my card down and signed the papers. I was told it would take a week to get approval. Not a big deal for me really, I wasn't dying to have it. I figured that if it kept crazies from guns, that was OK. And I still mostly feel that way (although I get around it now by having a concealed permit).

I'll admit to having quite a big pit in my stomach. I can certainly see why noobs feel on the outside of something (be it guns or computers or anything) but this was a deadly weapon and I was quite apprehensive. I was doing it. I'd mulled it over for years, and something was telling me to take care of it. Inspiration if you believe in that.

I was out of town for the next week, so off I went...

New Readers!

2009-06-30T11:24:00.000-07:00

Welcome new readers. I put the word out on a few gunny blogs that I read and they're all ready rolling in.

Thanks for that.

Anywho, back to my rambling story. (See Parts I and II below)

I had mentioned that I lean left politically. But not that far, and I jump back and forth quite a bit. I like to think of myself as middle of the road in a world where the extremes are all that we tend to see exemplified in the modern media.

They'd like to have us think everyone is a die hard Limbauist or a raving abortionist looking to impose "I have 2 mommies" books on everyone else's kids.

As I've matured, I've grown to see that the real world is filled with good people who vary on what they think is rational, acceptable and workable in society. I have friends across the spectrum and I can generally find good things in most people's outlook.

So as I mentioned, I lean left on issues like healthcare, taxes for social spending and the like. I love to see people come together to help the less fortunate. Yes, there will be abuse, but they'll answer to God and he's asked us explicitly in the scriptures to give freely. Its called charity.

I lean right on social issues like abortion, personal responsibility, family and gun rights.

Well that last one is kinda new.

5 years ago, I owned no guns and really felt like guns were an anachronism. I felt we'd progressed beyond a world where people needed guns to solve problems. Thinking with your head and not with your fist, as it were.

I was appalled at the disparity of gun violence in other developed countries.

I felt like having a gun was ridiculous because the odds were someone in my house would be hurt with them rather than use them to defend myself.

I had not touched a gun in 15 years, I'd grown out of them and was, frankly, scared of them.

I remember seeing a woman packing a pistol on a backpack trip with some boy scouts a few years back and was furious that she was doing so (open carry on public lands is mostly OK here in WA state).

Then Hurricane Katrina happened.

As a mormon, I spend a fair amount of time focusing on providing for my family. It is one of our tenets to prepare for emergencies, and that involves having the necessities set aside for a rainy day. Or a hurricane day, as it were.

We store food and other provisions that will help us in an emergency - be it unemployment, natural disasters or a terrorist incident.

Read more about it here: http://www.providentliving.org/

Here is a nice example: A few years ago we went without electricity for 7 days in the middle of a WA winter due to severe storms. We didn't even blink, but many around us were really hurting. No way to heat their house, no way to cook food (if they had it), no way to function. They were out of luck and by the end of the third or fourth day they were getting a bit dicey. Luckily, power was brought back online before things got really desperate.

Weirdly, many didn't learn a thing from those dark days in December. Me? I learned I needed a way to wash clothes without our machines and quickly addressed it.

You have to realize how precarious our current way of living is. JIT (just in time) is the way everything works. Food in the stores, gas for our cars. Everything. Our entire society is now based on efficiencies in a system that could easily just end with frighteningly ease.

Yes, I'm a bit of a prepper. It goes back to our roots as a people persecuted and driven about. There was an extermination order in Missouri to kill us all at one point. So that kinda stuff gets to you. Add in the fact that our grandparents eked out a subsistence living in the western states during the depression and you get a certain outlook on life.

So when Katrina hit and I watched the mess unfold a good friend of mine asked me what I'd do with all that bounty stored away if something happened in Seattle and the golden horde came knocking. He pointed out that non-violence was great code when your opponent is moral, but wouldn't work well when hungry gang members came to the neighborhood and 911 was dead.

It stuck there in my head for weeks. I had nothing to defend myself or my family with. Nothing but words and maybe a stick. Not good.

I fought it for *along* time. It took from 2005 when that went down until the fall of 2008 for me to finally address that need.

In the end I decided a few things:

1. If I didn't have weapons to defend myself and my family, then I was out of luck for sure if it hit the fan.

2. I wasn't sure if I would use them, but the time to make the decision was now, and not when they knocked on my door. I was out of luck if a disaster hit - the shelves would be empty of bullets and guns by then.

3. There are ways to mitigate and control the risk inherent in bringing a deadly weapon into the home.

So off I went to the store, a weird knot in my stomach.

Continued tomorrow...

Welcome, Part II

2009-06-29T14:19:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in my last post, I came to guns in a round about way.

I'd been around them as a kid, but as I grew up, got married and had kids, they were not part of my life they way they had been. And I didn't really miss them as I had other hobbies.

As I mentioned in my last post, my wife and her family was very pro-gun control. Coming from the left, guns were seen as relics of a past - a barbarous past where cowboys shot it out with bad guys because things were not yet civilized. Furthermore, my wife's main concern concerned was that if guns were available in the house, that we'd have an accident and lose a child. She didn't want to be responsible for such issues. I can certainly understand that.

To many not in rural areas, guns are mainly abstract things - the focus of periodic stories of some moron leaving his gun out and a kid shooting themselves (or others) with it. In fact, I remember two examples of gun violence as a kid in Canada (a kid shot himself and another shot a cousin for teasing him). Both not good.

Couple that with some very strong advocating by groups such as the Brady Center etc. and you get a media saturated with statistics that point out the number of deaths in the US vs. everywhere else (including Canada) and you have a pretty air-tight case for gun control. Remove guns, remove the problem. Its an enticing argument and I bought it. Mostly.

Furthermore, the more I refined my philosophy of life, the more I came to see Gandhi and MLK as the heros they were - and that non-violence was the way to enact social change. I grew up in Canada, remember, and I don't carry around the same ideology about the US revolution. We did just fine in Canada without having to resort to rebellion and treason. I also grew to believe that the military industrial complex was more of a threat to this country than fraudulent congressmen or the so-called welfare queens. I think Ike was right on when he warned us back in the late 50s or early 60s about what could become of us. Certainly the Bush years solidified that in many peoples minds.

Add in Christ's admonition to turn the other cheek and to not live by the sword and I was on pretty solid ground.

Until last year sometime.

Stay tuned...

Welcome

2009-06-25T23:26:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the journal of a new gun owner.

I decided to put this together after a a year of wrastlin' with the idea of gun ownership and my political leanings. But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Let me fill in some details before I go on...

I was born in the United States to a Canadian father and an American mother. My parents made the choice to live in Canada when I turned 3 years old, and I spent my childhood growing up in a small town in Southern Alberta. I'm blessed to be a citizen of both countries.

As I got older, my parents would send me down to the states to stay with my Grandparents in rural Idaho. They lived on a farm and I got to spend weeks (and later months) on the farm doing whatever I wanted.

My grandparents were wonderful. I loved spending the summers with them. One of my favorite things to do was to go shooting. You see, my grandpa was an NRA life member and was pretty motivated by the second amendment. We would go shooting on occasion, but mostly I'd just tramp around with a lever action BB gun. Mainly I hunted birds and shot pop cans.

I would immerse myself in my grandpa's extensive collection of American Rifleman magazines. To this day, I love magazines and the information I can glean from them. I'd poor over those magazines and had all kinds of ideas about how I was going to someday get my own Browning Hi-Power and Ruger 10/22.

My grandpa stored his guns unlocked in a cabinet in the room I slept in. They were freely available, as was the ammunition. I remember getting them out on many occasions and mucking about with them. Although I was always smart about handling them, I look back and marvel at the folly of the whole setup. Of course, we didn't wear seatbelts or helmets on bikes back then either.

Weirdly, I don't remember being taught much about the 4 rules of firearm safety. I don't remember getting lectured to keep my hands off. They were just there. Like hammers. Hammers that could shoot bullets.

As it is with kids, as I got older, girls became a greater focus of my attention. By the mid teen years I transitioned from summers on the ranch to working at home and my life as a teenager.

Funny enough, I don't recall Canada being much different than the US for us when it came to guns. We didn't have any handguns but my Dad had several rifles (a Ruger 10/22, a lever action 30-30 and at least one shotgun). He kept them in the back of his closet, and the ammo was likewise available. Again, pretty silly in my book now that I think about it. I do remember taking the Ruger 10/22 out once and firing it in town limits. I was pretty freaked about it, and only did it once - this happened about the time I was in grade 9.

Anyhow, as I got older, I had my own 22 rilfe and we often went shooting gophers on the ranches surrounding our town. Many of us had guns and we used them. We also had BB guns of various types and we shot with them all the time.

I remember going and shooting handguns and rifles as part of scouts as well. I remember at least once going to a scoutmaster's barn and shooting his .357 revolver. It was pretty big and had quite a kick.

But as I grew up, guns became less and less a part of my life.

I went to college in the US and pretty much focused on the things most students do. Books, classes, punk music and the opposite sex.

Interestingly, I come from a culture that has two very interesting components: self-reliance and communalism. Being Mormon immersed me in a culture where we learned to be independent (food storage, hard work) and at the same time we knew that God expected us to take care of one another. And he meant it in a very practical way, as there were many attempts by the early Mormon church to live collectively in what is called "The Law of Consecration" - where all of our bounty was given to the ecclesiastical leaders to doll out as people needed. It didn't last too long - people being people - and God got pretty upset with us and substituted what we refer to as the lesser law of tithing - where we pay 10 percent of our income to the church to help build God's kingdom and help others.

We believe that someday and we believe we'll be asked to live the Law of Consecration again though. And I think most of us hope we can do it with fairness and equality that such a decree deserves. And don't confuse Mormons with communists or marxists - we don't believe that communism was anything but a shady mimic of the law we had tried to live. It held tyrants and sycophants at the top instead of God. A recipe for failure, and that has certainly played out.

So add this background to a youth spent in Canada - land of universal healthcare and what some south of the border refer to as socialism and you find I'm very different than the average American in many ways.

In college I swung pretty far left, influenced by my soon-to=be bride. She came from the same background, but was farther to the left politically and self identified as a democrat. I'd never voted in the US, having grown up in the north countries - and I didn't take advantage of that until I voted for Bill Clinton over Bush in the early 1990s.

My wife's family was incredible. They were highly educated, had money and were very close; I loved them and fit right in.

They were very liberal in most respects - childcare was very open with no spanking etc. Guns were *not* something of interest, and most of the family believed in gun control quite strongly. Guns were not part of their lives and never had been, even though they'd spent years in Boise, Idaho growing up.

Me? I'd had guns. I'd even been a member of the NRA as a kid (thanks Grandpa) but I had little to do with them now and it was never an issue in our courtship or marriage.

Part II coming soon...