...you don't go bock.

My gunny friend recently replaced his G19 with a G34, which isn't quite the pinnacle of Glock tacticoolery, but is quite a ways up the mountain. A sound ribbing was had, aspersions were cast, and trip to the local indoor range was planned.

At this range trip, my trusty XD (having recently performed flawlessly at some move'n'shoots with some old ammo loaded into mags that were left in my car for years) was more than up to the task, and to be quite honest, riding high in my esteem from its excellent performance.

After some initial play, we started to settle back into our grooves, and decided a challenge was in order; best three shot group at 7 yards.

He threw his first group for some reason, the sun was in his eyes, the target was moving, swamp gas reflecting off Venus, whatever the reason, I knew he could have shot it better, so I proceeded to take my time with my shots to really rub it in. I got two shots touching, and one an inch lower. "Ok, one more time." He said, and I smirkingly accepted.

It was at this point that the planets aligned, time stood still, a flipped coin landed on its edge, and he and the Glock became one. He shot, in under three seconds, three shots on top of each other. Technically, the first two were off by the thin crescent moon of paper that flew off, and the last bullet hit just inside the edge of the single hole.

After I picked my jaw up off the floor, I said, "Give me that," and proceeded to shoot that big, blocky, stupid, ugly Glock better than I did my XD. On a subsequent group, I accidentally doubletapped on the short trigger reset and sighed because I had just blown my group. "Damnit, I didn't mean to doubletap. Where'd that second one go?" "...Right into the first hole."

I respect Glocks. I don't shoot them, or like them, but I respect them. They are ugly, lack style of any kind, huge on the grip, heavy on the trigger, and command a level of fanboy-ism which only recently seems to have surpassed that of H und K. But I can't argue with results, and I won't ignore miracles when they happen.

The last Glock I shot was my friend's old 19 a few months ago. My group was meh. Before that, I hadn't shot a Glock for probably three years. There is absolutely no reason for me to pick up a G34, the biggest, and bulkiest, and Glockiest of all the Glocks, and shoot it like it was made for my hand.

After this experience, I started picking up different Glocks at the shop. I picked up a Gen 4, and to my amazement, it felt good. Not manageable or alright, but good. The grip width (frontstrap to backstrap) on the Gen 4s is definitely slimmer than the Gen 3s, and even a little slimmer than the Gen 3 SFs. I also noticed that the patented Glock humpback is exaggerated if the grip length is short. This meant that a full size Gen 4 with the smallest changeable backstrap minimized the humpback and had almost the same grip as a 45. The grip is almost straight all the way down to the hump at the bottom, which (way down there) actually fits perfectly against my palm.

I'm pretty sure Glock and I met each other half way, though my shifting must have been entirely subconscious. The point is not that I can shoot Glocks now, the point is I can suddenly shoot guns I've barely touched better than a gun I've shot for six years. I can take a hint.

So, I sold the Ruger GP100 and the 1911, and bought a Gen 4 Glock 34. I really liked those guns, but at the end of the day, they were pleasure guns, not working guns. The way things are going, I'm worried there will be more need for working guns in the future, and my pleasurable collection is getting some very practical scrutiny.

Since I've started carrying it, I've noticed some other annoyingly better things. The G34 fits near perfectly into my Galco XD Service holster (due to the extremely similar frame shape), the G34 balances better than my XD, and (worst of all) the damn huge-ass gigantic brick of a G34 feels noticeably lighter on my hip than my XD. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot, Over.

Well, whatever the reason, you know what they say; Once you go Glock, you don't go bock.




Damnit.

Glenfield Model 25

Click to embiggen!

My Rifle MK3 - Free America

The latest version of My Rifle after some Free America modifications.

Click any for large size.



As you can see, we've got a normal capacity magazine with 30 rounds of GET OFF MY LAWN ready to go.


Don't tell Dianne Feinstein, but this button will drop the mag without a bullet or other tool to release it! All I need is the finger I was born with! It's anarchy out here! Cats living with dogs! Mags dropping all over the place!


The Lumaforce Tac-5 is mounted and set for 230 lumens of disco fever. I always liked my support hand forward (which is part of the reason for the dissipator conversion), so the on/off is right at the tip of my thumb ready to light up my target, and backlight my sights (No red dot or night sights yet).

My M1A is not My Rifle just yet, but once I get more 308 ammo, it will certainly be shooting for the slot.

The sling is a Butler Creek hunting sling that functions moderately as a shooting sling, but it's mainly built for comfort. The neoprene padding and easy adjust make it very comfortable to carry on long hikes into mountain lion and "rural horticulture" territory.


It got a rattlecan paint job partly for hunting and partly because I like the color. The flat black was ok, but I really dig the contrast created by the lighter stock. I learned from my G22, and took my time with the Krylon, which has only had minor chipping, which is surprising given the places I carried it through.

My Rifle MK2 - Dissipator Conversion

There has been a modification to My Rifle.



For a bit of cash, I had the good folks at RifleGear (right down the street!) do this dissipator conversion.



I wanted to do this to make the rifle more comfortable, more sling-able, and more unique/awesome. I had a few options for accomplishing this. Free floated rail farm aluminum handguards were too damn heavy, and would require a low rail-mounted front sight (I like the classic A2 front sight appearance). Carbon fiber free floated handguards were nice and light and looked great, but cost more to buy than the whole job I wound up going with. They put on a low profile gas block at the original carbine length sight position, and because the front of the M4 profile barrel wasn't wide enough, they had to use a clamp-on front sight instead of just drilling new taper pin holes on a fresh A2 sight. If I had more cash to spend, I would have gotten a barrel without the M4 profile, but it'll have to do for now.

I was surprised that I could definitely feel the difference in balance. It was noticeable, but not enough to be a distraction. I wonder how much it will affect the recoil.

You might notice the rear sight is different. I took a hacksaw and file to the original removable carry handle rear sight, and touched it up with the rattle can. This was because the large screw heads on the right side (it's a lefty) got caught on my clothing, and on the left side, the forward screw head interfered with upward flipping ejection port cover. Chopping it meant I could use it without it getting caught on my clothes or interfering with ejection, while looking sweet. I really like what it does to the profile of the rifle. Eventually there will be a TRS-25 cowitnessing on the newly exposed flattop. The ACOG is nearby, set for rail mount.

Because this modification was not high priority, and I'm a function over form guy, I've done this as inexpensively as possible. I'll post range results when I have them.

M1oAr

[clicky for full size!]

Close up 1 (large!)
Close up 2 (large!)

BULLY!

UPDATE: Fixed "click for large size" images

---

After a discussion about someone's Perfect Gun, I started to think about what my Perfect Gun would be.

I love full power cartridges, iron sights, and wood stocks. This meant I liked WW2 rifles. I had some issue with bolt action rifles only because I shoot rifles lefty (cross dominant), but actually found some functions fit lefties better. The Enfield safety is perfect for lefties, the Mosin straight-handled bolt (and any other mauser straight-handled bolt) actually gave more opening leverage left-handed, and the Enfield's bolt handle hanging rear of the receiver was very accessible to lefties.

I started picking bits and pieces of rifles that I would combine into my perfect rifle, and actually came rather close to a rifle currently in existence. The Ishapore SMLE Bulldog.

PRO: It has the weight and balance of an Enfield. It's shortened to make it easier to point and maneuver. It's chambered in 7.62 NATO / .308 Win, which meant no rimlock, and that there would be plenty of surplus available, and that the popular cartridge would remain in production for some time! It would easily take a trigger job to turn it into a snappy two stage. And the mags hold 12 rounds without getting in the way of prone firing.

CON: It has the Enfield stock, which meant a jaw-weld instead of a cheek-weld (difficult to fix without disturbing the lines of the rifle). It has open sights (mojo makes aperture sights for them, but I'd rather see how much a gunsmith will charge to figure out how to install a No.4 ladder sight, or one of these for the sight radius).

All in all, it was a great fit for what I was looking for.

Lucky for me, I found one.
Double lucky for me, it was one of the 3rd party importer rebuilds instead of a bubba'd one.
Triple lucky it was a $150.

Sorry for the cell phone pics, (I'm actually surprised how well they came out) I'll put better ones up when we unpack the camera.

Clicky for full size!

Looooove that profile!


I was not expecting the wood to be this good. It's all matched, and very nice.


They removed the front sling mount point (no real reason for it now!), but left the bayonet lug intact! This shorty needs one of those patented Enfield No.1 sword bayonets! There is a split in the wood on the forward top handguard. It has been repaired with some glue by the previous owner, but I think I might be able to do a bit better.


It came with the sling, which is kind of thin for the proper shooting sling that it is, but I'll have more to say about it once I've tried it out.


The finish is definitely not the usual Brit finish (shitty, cracking oven paint), instead it's much more hearty. It shows some wear on the corners, but just enough for character.

"The greatest single battle implement ever devised by man."

My new-to-me Garand. CMP Service Grade purchased by a nice fellow who didn't even get a chance to shoot it before he had to sell it. More than 50 years old and a longgun between private parties, so it was cash and carry (I love paperless rifles). When I got it home and started fondling it, the first thing that surprised me was the weight. I knew Garands were heavy, but it didn't feel heavy, it felt perfectly balanced. It snapped to my shoulder and cheek like it was returning home. The trigger was a crisp two stage, and much more than I had been expecting of a military rifle. As I disassembled it for detail cleaning I marveled at the brilliance of the complex-yet-simple action. The same action that refused to fail Americans from desert's scorching heat to the north's blistering cold. Truly, a machine worthy of General Patton's famous praise.

Clicky any image for full size


The rear handguard is darker and more beat up than the stock. The blemishes are captured well in the pictures, but the dark wood masks most of them under normal light.




Ditto for the front handguard.




The stock is beautiful walnut, with a few dings.




The internals after a thorough cleaning to remove some nasty blobs of cosmo.


Wanting to get to start practicing as soon as possible, I decided to make my own Garand dry firing adapter using a Dixon dry erase marker. I cut it at the vertical line of the "D." Remember to cut long so you can shorten it later. The point is to get the bolt to stop just after the hammer catches, so it's easy for you to reset the hammer by pulling the bolt handle back only a short amount.

My Rifle

Stag. Lower, LPK, upper, stock, and buffer are Stag Arms. It's really nothing too special, but it's reliable. I'm not sure why Stag gets a bad rap. The only issue I had with it was some upper/lower pin fitting, but after that, all it needed was lube and the occasional cleaning. I cycled about 500 rounds of wolf through it (only 500 because it's useless for anything but short range plinking), and it stank, but it cleaned up just fine. I had some issues with feeding initially, but those disappeared when I broke it in and/or learned how to lube it properly. It has been smooth and accurate, and I'd buy another in a heartbeat. The carry handle sight holds a zero nicely, no matter how many times I remove and replace it.

Handguard. The Magpul MOE Handguard was the only purchase that was made only for aesthetic reasons, but it turns out that it's actually a better fit for my small hands. Since it's easier for me to get a grip around the smaller handguard than around the standard handguard, I've noticed more recoil control, and better general control when holding the rifle by the handguard.

Zero. It's zeroed for 200 yards with the Improved Battlesight Zero. I'm waiting until I can get some better distance estimation before I zero it back to 300 yards. I've considered a thinner sight post because I really like them, but I'm going to wait to make sure it would improve my shooting. If it ain't broke, and all that...

Flash Hider. It's fitted with a Vortex flash hider, which virtually eliminates muzzle flash, especially under semi-automatic fire. While flash elimination is technically useful, it really doesn't apply to defense shooting, so it's really just a neato purchase. But the best thing about it is that it rings like a tuning fork when the bolt closes. Just a little bit more character for the rifle. :)
*SHHHUNKiiiinnnnnnnnnggggggg*


Left. The Stag lefty upper is due to my cross dominance. Interestingly enough, I shoot more accurate single shots left handed, but more accurate rapid fire right handed. Despite being a lefty upper, I don't have any problems shooting right handed. I also haven't had any complaints from other people who have shot it right handed. Because the upper is the only part that is left handed, I've worked out different ways to operate the mag release (on the AR that isn't mag-locked), and can reach the bolt release with my left middle finger, but I have to break my grip to do it.

Stock. A Stag Arms 8 position stock with a zip tie around the back of the stock to attach the small clip of a sling that won't around the thick loops for a sling to run through. Just more mounting points.

Beard Saver. There is a crocheted wrap around the beginning of the stock to keep errant beard hairs from becoming pinched between the stock and buffer tube. When this happens, beard hairs are yanked out, much to the shooter's annoyance. You can decrease the chance of this by getting a stock that fits the buffer tube better, or you can eliminate it by buying something like the Magpul UBR. Or you can just spend a few fractions of a cent on a short length of camo yarn, and do what I've done. No beard hairs have been lost since then. Some electrical tape has also been placed over a hole in the top of the stock which, much less commonly, was known to pull beard hairs.


Grip. Inside that Magpul MOE grip is a complete replacement (lefty) bolt, and a field repair kit of spare parts. Aside from storage, the grip also improves on the original ergonomics in a number of ways. It's thicker, which allows for a stronger grip because it fits my hand better. It's at less of an angle, which gives my wrist a more natural, and therefore more comfortable and stronger, position. Finally, the new backstrap repositions the web of my hand so that the trigger pull is more straight back. All these things mean more comfort in shooting, and more strength in one-handed holding. I bought it for the storage, but the ergonomics were a pleasant surprise.

Safety. I use an ambi-safety because I find it easier to operate from both sides. Using my thumb to push it down into the firing position, and the first joint on my trigger finger to drag the lever back to safe. I have small hands, and I don't know if you're supposed to be able to flip the lever to safe with your thumb, but I can't, and this is what works. With practice, it's very smooth to go back and forth without compromising your grip.

Lock. California legal ARs must be in one of two configurations. This configuration includes "evil" features (pernicious pistol grip, atrocious adjustable stock, and foul flash hider!) so it must have a magazine of a capacity no greater than 10, and that magazine must require a tool to remove. I've used a Bushmaster mag lock (the silver nut where the mag release should be) with a Bushmaster 20 round magazine body that's blocked to only take 10. At first I was bothered by only having 10 rounds in a defense weapon, but I realized that I could do more with 10 rounds in this rifle than I could with more rounds in any other gun.


Sling Mount. At the base of the buffer tube is a Vltor ambidextrous single point sling mount. It's set for lefty right now, and I like the single ring instead of two rings on both sides. I may replace it with one of those new slider mounts that lets the mount clip slide from left to right, but it's not to difficult to hold it right handed in the same mount. I like the idea of single point slings for some situations, but I've tried to keep as many slinging options open as possible.

But all that is just half of what makes this my rifle. The other half is me.

Me. I can't say that I have shot my rifle until the pins walked out and the handguard grooves wore smooth, it only has about 1500 rounds through it. But I've tried to learn from each one of those rounds. I have no interest in making noise and flash, I want my rifle to be an extension of my will. Live fire practice was only a part of the training. In fact, for every real bullet I've shot, I've probably shot three imaginary ones. Practicing shooting "O"s on the teevee with my unloaded rifle has grown the rifle to my shoulder, the stock to my cheek, and the sights to my eyes. As I've said before;

You will be amazed when spotting a target, snapping your rifle to your shoulder, lining the sights on your target, and achieving a motionless trigger break comes as naturally as reaching your hand out, and catching a ball in the air.

I'm not sure the rifle is a complete extension of my will just yet, but it's damn close. I look forward to that day, and will continue to work toward it.

Dragon Food

My Hungarian surplus 7.62x54r light ball has arrived!

1976, eh? A good vintage.
(there's still some left, get it while you can)

One must keep his dragons fed.

And these dragons rather like this flavor.

Normally, I'd just toss these oversized spam CANs of ammo into the closet; sealed up tight, and ammo unchecked. But these are not normal times, and I'd prefer the peace of mind of knowing for sure that this ammo is clean and ready to go, no matter how unlikely the opposite may be. Besides, extra ammo cans are cheap.

So these two spam cans will be opened, the ammo inspected, and the contents portioned into two spare ammo cans. I decided that I might as well open and inspect the second can of '78 Hungarian surplus I already had, and join it with the two new cans of '76.


The '78 is the one in the bottom right, with the can opener duct taped to it. The ammo can on the right has the remnants of the first can of '78, already on stripper clips.


Make sure you've got a can opener. These cans are a bitch to open without one. Ask me how I know.

I recommend using a rag or cloth to make the can opener's operation easier. That thin handle has a way of digging into your hand part way into the first can. By the third, you'll wish you started with the rag.


Here's what greets you once you've popped the top.


Each wax paper wrapped bundle holds 20 rounds of rock and roll.


I cover the inside of the can with wax paper. While I'm not certain why it would be a problem to have the ammo touching the metal of the can, the spam can has the ammo wrapped in wax paper, and the insides of the can covered with cardboard, and that stuff keeps extremely well. It's only little extra effort, and it seems prudent.


Remove the ammo from the bundle, and inspect it for rust or heavy dents. I usually pick up five in my hand, and roll them back and forth to check all around the casing, then inspect the primer for any weirdness. This is a slow, time consuming process, but doing it now will save you a lot of headache later. Do it while listening to music, or in front of the teevee, but DO IT. Rust and corrosion likes to spread, and one bad apple can, and will, spoil the whole bunch.

The late 70s Hungarian surplus continues to impress me. Not a single dent or ding, or a spot of corrosion or rust. Each round is almost a perfect copy of the last in outward appearance, and makes you confident about the level of consistency you can expect. This surplus also is not covered with a light film of cosmo, that must be wiped off of each individual round. This is a welcome relief after spending hours at a time for days cleaning other surplus 7.62x54r. My thumbs ache just thinking about it. You couldn't just wipe it off, you needed elbow grease.


When you're done, it should look like this :) That's 500 rounds of 7.62x54r in that ammo can. It could probably take a few more bundles, but I decided to keep the number round.

The '76 differs slightly from the '78. It lacks the red sealant (lubricant?) around the primer and case rim. I thought the red rings added a nice flair to the ammo. :)


Also, the '76 seems to have a darker, smoother finish on the casings. At first the smoothness of the '76 seemed to be greased, but closer inspection does not support that. If they are greased, they may stick in a hot chamber. I'll be sure to watch out for that.


Inspected by lucky number 13. :)


As done as I'm gonna be.

I finished the first can of '76, and dug into the second can to get an even 500. The last spam can will stay like this until I get some more ammo cans from the gun show at the end of the month.

A time consuming process, but worth it when you pick up the heft of 1000 rounds of Dragon food, and carry it off to the closet.