Guns & Gun Related Stuff

[OLDE CUTLER]

OLDE CUTLER,
Being old man, I'd recommend putting a scope on that baby so you can see what you're shootin' at! Those single shot Henry's are all drilled and tapped so you wouldn't be altering the rifle. I suppose it depends on what you intend to do with the rifle what sight you put on it but in my book nothing beats a quality scope to allow us retirees to hit the target be it a paper target or Bambi.
Just my 2 cents worth.
Treefarmer

I probably won't put a scope on it for a couple of reasons. Since I had cataract surgery a few years back, I can actually see open sights fairly well. The target below was shot at 100 yards with the stock open top rear sight and the 300 grain Hornady bullet, which as you can see, I tend to string vertically. I will probably go to a peep sight which will take away the vertical stringing and would make that group below much better (about 1 1/2" or so). Another reason is safety. The Henry single shot is a light weight piece, and the 45/70 recoil is noticeable. I have never had it happen to me, but I have seen people shooting heavy recoiling rifles with scopes on them get eyebrow cuts that can be nasty. The last time I saw this was a couple of years ago at the gunclub. A fellow on the bench next to me got a cut above the right eye from the scope that required 10 stitches at the ER to close up.

[doglegg]

OH, at 100 yards and open sights, that looks pretty good.

[dlr110]

Just a few photo's I took with my CCW and my recent pawn shop pick-ups.
SOG, Camillus, Uncle Henry and Winchester.

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[Colonel26]

I was going to ask the same question as samb, tho I can see it is a Ruger. I've heard good things about their .45. What has been your experience?

I can’t answer for KS, but I carry a Ruger 1911CMD every day. It’s the commander size, 45acp, and it’s dead on reliable and more accurate than I can make use of. I can’t say enough good about mine. The only negative I’ve found is that the front strap is not checkered and the rosewood grips that come with it feel like you’re wearing a cheese grater on your side if you carry iwb. So I put these Hogue wrap around son mine and I love them.

For the record, I also have a Kimber ultra carry 45acp. I wouldn’t trade the Ruger for two Kimbers.

[Colonel26]

Nice morning at the range yesterday. It's been a while since I've slung some lead.

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Is yours the Commander size or the government size?

[treefarmer]

OLDE CUTLER, I thought you said you couldn't see the sights? Ol' Bambi would be in trouble with that group aimed at his shoulder. I think one of those in .243 would be great to play with. I had to look back at the picture you posted and drool over the wood, again.
Treefarmer

[KnifeSlinger#81]

Nice morning at the range yesterday. It's been a while since I've slung some lead.

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Is yours the Commander size or the government size?

Government.

[OLDE CUTLER]

OLDE CUTLER, I thought you said you couldn't see the sights? Ol' Bambi would be in trouble with that group aimed at his shoulder. I think one of those in .243 would be great to play with. I had to look back at the picture you posted and drool over the wood, again.
Treefarmer

Every time I go to the range with the Henry, I have to wipe drool off the stock when other shooters ask to look at it.

[zp4ja]

OLDE CUTLER,
Being old man, I'd recommend putting a scope on that baby so you can see what you're shootin' at! Those single shot Henry's are all drilled and tapped so you wouldn't be altering the rifle. I suppose it depends on what you intend to do with the rifle what sight you put on it but in my book nothing beats a quality scope to allow us retirees to hit the target be it a paper target or Bambi.
Just my 2 cents worth.
Treefarmer

I probably won't put a scope on it for a couple of reasons. Since I had cataract surgery a few years back, I can actually see open sights fairly well. The target below was shot at 100 yards with the stock open top rear sight and the 300 grain Hornady bullet, which as you can see, I tend to string vertically. I will probably go to a peep sight which will take away the vertical stringing and would make that group below much better (about 1 1/2" or so). Another reason is safety. The Henry single shot is a light weight piece, and the 45/70 recoil is noticeable. I have never had it happen to me, but I have seen people shooting heavy recoiling rifles with scopes on them get eyebrow cuts that can be nasty. The last time I saw this was a couple of years ago at the gunclub. A fellow on the bench next to me got a cut above the right eye from the scope that required 10 stitches at the ER to close up.

IMG_2937.JPG

Ahh OC, this infamous "scope kiss" as we refer to it. I have had a very minor cut from one. I have seen some pretty good cuts and associated instant "monkey bump" in severe instances. Likely not going to lose an eye or anything. Pretty rare occurrence from my experience.
I would guesstimate average "eye relief" on a scope is roughly 2-1/2" to 3-1/2". Only time I have seen this happen (and also in my instance) was from a very loose hold on the rifle. IE: Rifle not firmly in shoulder crotch and un-square loose shoulder position/ hold.
I was on bench at range with a real loose hold. Also did not steady my shoulder for the anticipated recoil.
To each his own and I respect that. Pretty good shooting for open sights at 100 yards for sure..
Not much game here in the desert that is shot at less than 200 yards
Could be a 400 or 500 yard shot. My old eyes just are not up to that anymore without a good scope, not to mention bullet drop and windage calculation at that distance.
Beautiful rifle by the way. Enjoy in good health and safe shooting.

Jerry

[zp4ja]

Just a few photo's I took with my CCW and my recent pawn shop pick-ups.
SOG, Camillus, Uncle Henry and Winchester.

Hey David,

Second revolver pic looks like a Taurus Judge (can't enlarge pic to be sure). Is that correct?

I carry a Smith & Wesson Governor at times. Usually as a backup carry but sometimes primary/ sole carry. It is my avatar pic. I have a pretty cool leather 6 spare shots shell holder I pack when I carry it.
I love the fact the Governor can shoot three different cartridges, .410, 45 Cowboy Colt and .45 Auto (with full six, three or two round moon clips). Mix and match of all three if desired.
Devastating gun. I posted a silhouette target here a few years back from 21 feet. 3 rounds of 000 buckshot and 3 Winchester Defender rounds with steel discs and 12 BBs..
God forbid ever need to use it but looking at that target, no surgeon on the planet was going to patch that up.

Jerry

[zp4ja]

I was going to ask the same question as samb, tho I can see it is a Ruger. I've heard good things about their .45. What has been your experience?

I can’t answer for KS, but I carry a Ruger 1911CMD every day. It’s the commander size, 45acp, and it’s dead on reliable and more accurate than I can make use of. I can’t say enough good about mine. The only negative I’ve found is that the front strap is not checkered and the rosewood grips that come with it feel like you’re wearing a cheese grater on your side if you carry iwb. So I put these Hogue wrap around son mine and I love them.

For the record, I also have a Kimber ultra carry 45acp. I wouldn’t trade the Ruger for two Kimbers.

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Nice carry Wade and Paul 1911 is personally not my cup of tea to carry but I do obviously respect the design. Personally I just like the DA/SA that my SIGs offer me.
I had a beautiful (and very spendy) SIG MAX 1911 custom by Max Michel (Captain of SIG shooting team). Carried it a few times. Shot crazy good and reliable. Just personally could not get past the SAO so I sold it and got my 1500 back out of it.

Only SAO I own and carry as a backup is my SIG 938. A micro 3 inch 1911 (minus grip safety) as you know. Not sure why that one gets a pass. Likely since it us a backup and I like the gun. Carry that safety off and hammer down.

I am funny about that I guess or particular I should say. I won't buy or carry a DAO slide gun (or any DAO for that matter) or a "hidden hammer" (flush hammer with no hammer spur) revolver or semi auto either. We all do it differently.

Carry in good health my friends. I hope life finds you and yours well.

Jerry

[Quick Steel]

My sister's hands are fairly small. I want to find a .38 sp revolver with a 3" barrel that enables her to comfortably reach the trigger. Her current bedside revolver is a Ruger which is awkward for her. Can any of you pistoleros make a recommendation? I can and will puruse catalogs but I thought one or another of you might have experience with the size issue.

[rangerbluedog]

It only has a 2" barrel, but my petite wife carries a Smith & Wesson 642.
She has demonstrated several times on the range the ability to keep all shots on a man-sized silhouette target out to 60 yards.

[dlr110]

Just a few photo's I took with my CCW and my recent pawn shop pick-ups.
SOG, Camillus, Uncle Henry and Winchester.

Hey David,

Second revolver pic looks like a Taurus Judge (can't enlarge pic to be sure). Is that correct?

I carry a Smith & Wesson Governor at times. Usually as a backup carry but sometimes primary/ sole carry. It is my avatar pic. I have a pretty cool leather 6 spare shots shell holder I pack when I carry it.
I love the fact the Governor can shoot three different cartridges, .410, 45 Cowboy Colt and .45 Auto (with full six, three or two round moon clips). Mix and match of all three if desired.
Devastating gun. I posted a silhouette target here a few years back from 21 feet. 3 rounds of 000 buckshot and 3 Winchester Defender rounds with steel discs and 12 BBs..
God forbid ever need to use it but looking at that target, no surgeon on the planet was going to patch that up.

Jerry

Yes Sir, that is a Judge and I love shooting it. It will usually get everyone's attention on the firing line!

[Quick Steel]

Thank you Blue. The 642 moves to the top of my list.

[Steve Warden]

Took my Henry 22 (Frontier model) out to the Ft. Dix range.
(How many of you guys went through Dix?)
Only the second time I've had it out.
On the bench rest elevation seemed okay, but looks like impact is a tad right. A pretty stiff wind of 16-18 mph was blowing left to right, so I don't know how much drift that was causing.
Henry recommends a brass rod and small hammer to adjust the sights left-right. I'll have to see what I can find for the next outing.
Oh, that top left was freehand, 25 yards. Yup, wore the AF Marksmanship ribbon proudly on my blues!

[mikek]

I went through Ft. Dix, Aug. 75 E-1-3 Basic Training. Been to the ranges had to March from the barricks both ways. It must have been miles. To be young again. Thanks for the trip down memory lane. . Mike

[Unk]

Quick Steel,

My wife's night stand gun is this Colt Detective Special with Hogue grips. Her Dad gave it to her years ago.

The other pic is with the faux pearl grips that were on it when he gave it to her. They are quite a bit smaller than the Hogue grips, and may work better for smaller hands.

[jerryd6818]

Yup, wore the AF Marksmanship ribbon proudly on my blues!

Steve, what was the Air Force Qualification regime?

In the early to mid '60s, the Marine Corps was 50 rounds, 5 points per round.

200 yard line.
10 rounds slow fire, off hand.
10 rounds rapid fire. Sitting

300 yard line.
5 rounds slow fire, kneeling
5 rounds slow fire, sitting
10 rounds rapid fire, prone position

500 yard line.
10 rounds slow fire, prone position

For a total of 250 possible.
220 was Expert
210 was Sharpshooter
190 was Marksman
Below 190 was non-qual

You were supposed to qualify once a year. My first time was in Boot Camp of course, on 17Aug62 on the "A" course and I shot 220 on the nose for Expert. Because of duty stations and school, the next time I qualified was 9Dec64 on the "B" course (every thing from the 200 & 300 yard line) at MCAS Cherry Point NC. I qualified 239 Expert. The last time I qualified was 2Apr65 at Cherry Point 2Apr65 again on the "A" course this time. I qualified 224 Expert.

Pretty dadgummed proud of that. Since every Marine is a rifleman, no matter what your MOS, qualification in the Corps is a pretty big deal.

[Quick Steel]

Unk, thanks for the photos. While I like Hogue grips your assessment is like mine, i.e. they will make the grip a bit too large for her. The older style grips of the lower photo will be easier for her.

[Quick Steel]

Jerry, Congratulations on your rifle skills. In Basic at Ft. Polk-Tigerland, I qualified as expert along with 4 others out of a 115 man company. I repeatedly maintained that classification for my 5 years in the Army. But after Basic with the M-14 it was always with the M-16. I qualified expert with everything else I was tested on: M-60, M85 .50 cak, main tank gun 105 mm. and so forth. I seem to have pulled a muscle just now patting myself on the back so I better fess up to the one weapon I never scored expert with. That would be the .45 pistol. Reached Sharpshooter but never got to Expert. Natually I have many excuses: we fired single handed; received almost no range time; fired once for familiarization then tested.

I wonder if you ever got to fire the .45 cal "Grease gun/Burp gun." We carried those in our tanks in Germany. A lot of fun to shoot. During my advisor's training at Ft. Bragg I had the opportunity to fire a wide variety of weapons, many Soviet, Chinese, European like some nice Cech heavy machine guns. Those were some fun days.

[jerryd6818]

Dang Garry, that all sounds like fun. Congratulations on your skills. I'm impressed. My Waterloo was the M-14 grenade launcher. Good thing I wasn't a Grunt. We fam-fired the BAR in ITR and that old girl was a hoot to shoot. We were cutting the stakes in two that they had the targets attached to and they were not happy with us.

[Steve Warden]

Jerry, I'm not one for remembering numbers, all I know is that I qualified high enough in Basic Training to earn my Marksmanship ribbon. We were firing the M16 modified to shoot .22LR.

Funny story to go along with that ribbon. We were down to our last 2-3 days of training, in formation decked out in our blues (fortunately no jacket and tie - early September down near San Antonio). I had started dipping Skoal while down there, to the point that with a small pinch, I could swallow the juice and not have to spit. Well, I had a pinch in at the time, forbidden in formation. From where I was near the rear of the formation on the outside column, the TI catches my eye. He strolls on back and asks me, "Airman Warden, whatcha got there?" I figured here was talking about the pinch I had, but I wasn't going to give in. "Excuse me, Sir?" I asked quizzically. "There on your chest. What's that ribbon?" I answered a bit proud, "That's my Marksmanship ribbon, Sir." He came back, "You know you have that thing on upside down?" I looked down at it, then back to him, "Sir?" "Cochran, (Cochran wasn't the brightest bulb) is Airman Warden's ribbon on upside down?" Cochran eyeballed it for a few seconds, then said, "Oh, yes, Sir. It's upside down." The TI came back, "You dipstick, you can't put those on upside down." He turned and went back to the front. I never swallowed the pinch or spit out, but to this day I swear he knew I had it and he wanted to see what I'd do with it. Had he wanted, he could have called me on it and had me recycled (sent back to repeat weeks of training).

I hit marksman again when I had to qualify before going over to Germany. While there, they considered me for currier duty, and I qualified as marksman again, though I was never called on for that duty.
The last time I had to shoot was to qualify again simply because it had been awhile since I last shot. This was at Dix. Storms were brewing that day, and in the middle of shooting the skies opened up. I mean it POURED! I'm laying prone in a rut that's filling up to about six inches deep. "THEY AIN'T GONNA CALL OFF THE FIGHTING JUST BECAUSE OF A LITTLE RAIN!" bellows the range officer. I'm trying to wipe water out of my eyes and blow the rain out of the peep sites, and still get all my shots off before cease fire. All said and done, I qualified, but missed marksman by less than five points, I believe.

As an Avionics Technician, fixing aircraft, we weren't required annual qualification.

My brother was an Air Force range instructor down in Shreveport, LA. He took me out and I was going to try for a star on my ribbon that signified dual qualification, M16 and 9 Mil. We got started and a few folks showed up so I had to cut the session short, missing out on my star. Oh, well.

I kinda miss my AF days *sigh*

[Quick Steel]

Steve how did the AF arrange their award classifications? In the Army, in ascending order, it went Marksman, to Sharpshooter, to Expert.

[Quick Steel]

Jerry, Fortunately I never had to fire a grenade off an M-14. By my time we were using the M-79 grenade launcher, a highly accurate piece. But perhaps someday I'll get around to telling the story of some NVA who could use the old rifle launched grenades with impressive skill.
I got to fire the BAR; I found it a bit heavy tho there is no question it was a formidable weapon. I remember that it was a great favorite of the older NCOs who had actually used it in combat. They all had great stories about it. Talk about serious training, designated BAR troops were taught and had to master replacing the firing pin while in the assault!