Stamped on the Stevens Model 355, and its successor Model 335 hammerless boxlock guns, I see the patent date Mar 19,1907. On the Stevens Model 330 and Riverside No. 315 and Springfield No. 311, which are also boxlock hammerless models, I see stamped the words Patented April 20, 1915. On some Stevens’ Riverside No. 215 hammer doubles is stamped Patented Feb 10,1914 . Were these Patents owned by Stevens? What features do these patents protect. and when were these patent dates stamped on the guns? Knowing this would help me to identify models and estimate their dates of manufacture. As you know, because no Savage ( including Savage/Stevens/Fox/ Baker/Davis/Crescent) factory production records have survived, getting a sure fix on Stevens doubles’ models and dates can be difficult. Did these patents issue on the dates noted or did they take effect when the patents were ‘applied for’? Did they expire after 17 years? Hope this is within your realm of expertise. Thank you. FS
Answer:
Interesting question! I have researched this and can try to offer you some information on patents used by Stevens. Remember, the patents were good, unless invalidated, for 17 years after being granted. Sometimes the patent application process was ‘dragged out’ to keep the patented invention under control of the owner for a longer period. Dates and brief descriptions of the three Stevens patents you mention in your letter follow. These were very important patents to Stevens!:
March 19,1907 = #847,659 Ed Elder to J Stevens A&T Co. cocking lever trigger plate on hammerless boxlocks 1907-1914 Stevens (335, 365), also “Pat appl’d for” 2 years previous to 1907.
February 10,1914 = # 1,086,378 George S Lewis to J Stevens A&T Co. plunger strikers (firing pins) with coil springs and pivoted triggers on hammer boxlocks, 1914 -1928 and “Pat appl’d for” two years previous to 1914. Models Stevens (225), Riverside (215).
April 20,1915 = #1,136,247 George S Lewis to J Stevens A&T Co. one piece cast frame, combination cocking lever and extractor on hammerless boxlocks 1915-1932, doubles stamped “Pat appl’d for” and ‘patent pending’ several years before 1915: Models marked: Riverside (311,315) Springfield (311,315), Stevens, Eastern Arms , Central Arms, many other private brands.
This 1915 patent was most significant because it covered both the combination (one piece) sliding extractor-‘comb’ shaped cocking piece with coil-spring powered striker firing mechanism used by Stevens in all their hammerless doubles from 1914 to 1933 (Riverside 315, Springfield 311 and 3151, Stevens Model 330 and 331 etc) and the one piece ‘hollow’ frame which carried the critical parts of the mechanism (hammers and sears) on horizontal pins. This was a unique system, reliable in use and inexpensive to build. The ‘comb’ extractor cocker was much easier to make and fit than the parts which performed the same operations in other guns of that era. It was a genial design.
The system that followed it appears not to have been patented. This was the ‘spade’ shaped rod, which being first introduced in the “Springfield” line in 1932, was not used on Stevens brand doubles until the introduction of the Stevens Model 530 in 1932. This ‘spade’ shaped rod slid down diagonally in the barrel lug (against a spring in later models) to simultaneously actuate the extractor and lift the hammer toes on the internal hammers which succeeded the coil spring powered strikers of the ‘comb’ system. I mention it because it owes a lot to Lewis’ earlier inventions, especially the one-piece cast frame. Beginning about 1933, and until 1988 when they stopped making them, all Stevens doubles employed the ‘spade’ cocker-extractor system with internal hammers. Both systems depended on a movable stud on the fore end iron which, when the fore end iron was assembled to the gun, pushed the ‘comb’ or ‘spade’ into engagement with the lever(s) which cocked the strikers or hammers, respectively.
George S. Lewis worked for J. Stevens A&T Co from 1909 to 1920. His inventions provided the major designs for Stevens hammer and hammerless boxlock guns. Long after his patents expired, Stevens doubles were based on his work. Only Louis Elkas had such a positive effect on Savage/Stevens designs. Lewis later worked for WRA Co’s New Haven Works Manager, Ed Pugsley, who was spearheading John M.Olin’s effort to produce the Model 21 double gun started by his predecessor, T.G. Bennett (Oliver Winchester’s son-in-law) and famed designer T.C. Johnson.
Another inventor who was very important to Stevens was Andrew E Whitmore. Remington owned and used his sliding rod lockup for their guns in the 1880s, but Stevens also used it on their hammer boxlock Model 325 introduced about 1903. Stevens stamped the left side of the Model 325 frame “Pat s Appl’d For”, but maybe that referred to other patents (note the plural), because the Whitmore 1874 patent would have expired in 1891 and Stevens would have been able to use it freely. Stevens did replace the Whitmore locking system with a much simpler extension notch lock up in their second version of the 325 about 1905.
The Stevens Model 325 was dropped altogether in 1908 but it had ushered in a new era of simpler, stronger, cheaper boxlock doubles which the shooting public trusted and liked. It was the beginning of Savage/Stevens’ dominance of the ‘affordable’ double gun market in America.
The “Shotgun Sellout” exempts large organizations from the most burdensome regulations of the DISCLOSE Act, “Democratic Incumbents Seek to Contain Losses by Outlawing Speech in Elections,” while pistol whipping genuine grassroots groups.
“The Democratic majority has decided that established, powerful interest groups should be exempted from the proposed draconian regulations, while small advocacy groups should have their voices silenced by the DISCLOSE Act,” said Center for Competitive Politics President Sean Parnell. “Exempting the National Rifle Association from these regulations while local groups such as the Oregon Firearms Federation would face stifling regulations if they choose to exercise their First Amendment rights simply cannot be considered ‘reform.'”
“This sort of special carve out for an established interest group is just the kind of insider manipulation that gives the public the sense that Congress is unresponsive to the concerns of ordinary Americans,” said Allison Hayward, CCP’s Vice President of Policy. “How can it be that invasive and onerous disclosure requirements are proper when applied to small, regional interest groups but not large, wealthy national groups?” Read more
Rep. Bryan Lentz of Delaware County, who is running for a Congressional seat in suburban Philadelphia, wants to make it harder for Pennsylvanians who have been denied a license to carry’ firearms in this state to simply get one from another state, in particular, Florida.
Currently, state law generally requires a person to be licensed by the state of Pennsylvania in order to carry a concealed weapon.
But there is this exception allowing firearms for "any person who possesses a valid and lawfully issued license or permit to carry a firearm, which has been issued under the laws of another state, regardless of whether a reciprocity agreement exists between the Commonwealth (of Pennsylania) and the state."
To hear them tell it, the five police agencies who apprehended 39-year-old Oregonian David Pyles early on the morning of March 8 thwarted another lone wolf mass murderer. The police "were able to successfully take a potentially volatile male subject into protective custody for a mental evaluation," announced a press release put out by the Medford, Oregon, police department.
The subject had recently been placed on administrative leave from his job, was "very disgruntled," and had recently purchased several firearms. "Local Law Enforcement agencies were extremely concerned that the subject was planning retaliation against his employers," the release said. Fortunately, Pyles "voluntarily" turned himself over to police custody, and the legally purchased firearms "were seized for safekeeping."
This voluntary exchange involved two SWAT teams, police officers from Medford and nearby Roseburg, sheriff’s deputies from Jackson and Douglas counties, and the Oregon State Police. Oregon State Police Sgt. Jeff Proulx explained to South Oregon’s Mail Tribune why the operation was such a success: "Instead of being reactive, we took a proactive approach."
There’s just one problem: David Pyles hadn’t committed any crime, nor was he suspected of having committed one. The police never obtained a warrant for either search or arrest. They never consulted with a judge or mental health professional before sending out the military-style tactical teams to take Pyle in. Read more
XE Grade Fox Double Shotgun My late grandfather — the one who manned a tank in WWII — gunned Pennsylvania red- and gray-phase ruffed grouse with the same Fox Sterlingworth I now carry afield.
This is how a double gun acquires history and meaning from one generation to the next (and what the anti-gun people don’t understand). Hunts add seasoned character to game-scene engraving and walnut stocks. Guys like us get warm and fuzzy feelings about such stuff.
Double guns, put simply, are shotguns with two barrels. Side-by-sides (not to be confused with the four-wheeled types that take us places), and over/unders (nothing to do with Vegas sports betting, mind you) qualify. The classy part has everything to do with what editor Kevin Michalowski calls: “Expensive stuff . . . stuff that makes people say . . . hey, nice!”
This wow factor rules.
Some double guns win you over at first look and shoulder mount. The qualifier: Does it look good, feel sweet in your hands, and kill birds dead? That’s a classy double gun.
Fox Double Guns
As the story goes, President Theodore Roosevelt travelled to Africa in March 1909, shortly after leaving office. The A.H. Fox Company had presented him with an FE grade, 12-gauge double. In a letter to Mr. Fox following the gun’s arrival, Roosevelt described it as “the most beautiful gun I have ever seen.” No doubt functional too as he used it as part of the mammal-collecting safari for the Smithsonian Museum (160 species all told, observed and taken by the Colonel and his group of naturalist/collectors).
Unlike Roosevelt, I have yet to wingshoot Africa.
I doubt that my English setter Radar cares what I carry afield, especially when he’s all business and locked up on a ground-crouching woodcock in a painted New England cover, but I do. That timberdoodle, like others before it, often rises, planes out. Boom. Dead bird, we hope. My setter boy does seem to care a little when I miss, flashing me that glaring WTF look (ask your text-messaging kid to translate that acronym for you). I think my shooting improves dramatically if the shotgun looks and feels good in my hands. Truth is, I know it does.
As mentioned at the start, my Fox Sterlingworth came to me through a family line of bird hunters — it killed a PA grouse on the first shot, fitting perfectly on my shooting shoulder. By fortune or circumstance, I also married into an A-grade Fox double. My wife’s great-grandfather, a.k.a “The Boss,” once appeared in an issue of Field & Stream back in the 1930s. Pictured there, a brace of Pennsylvania grouse held by the man himself, his nosed-minded English pointer nosing them, with The Boss, cooing “good dog” words as the photographer did his work. Absent: the Fox double, having done its job.
I can feel history when I hold it.
A Fausti Classic 16-Gauge Double Gun A Fausti Classic 16-Gauge Double Gun
After a lengthy hiatus, the Fox shotgun was reborn in the late 20th Century. In 1992 Connecticut Shotgun commenced to resurrecting the honorable line, building the Fox in a manner identical to original offerings. They feel, look and function the same way, since old patents are faithfully followed. Serial numbers resumed from when Savage — who entered into an agreement with Connecticut Shotgun — discontinued the A.H. Fox line a handful of years after my paternal grandfather stopped driving that tank. Engraving patterns are also replicated.
A quick history: Fox doubles originated back in 1905. In 1929, Savage Arms bought the company, dropping the line in 1948. Why? Hand labor cost was to blame. As with woodworking and even gardening, all classy doubles require copious amounts of TLC in the form of time and money. Pricey stuff. Fast forward to now.
Picking up where Savage left off, the Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing Company has continued to produce higher grades of the original A.H Fox line since that 1992 rebirth. Precision machining and operators, plus craftsmen who complete all polishing, rust bluing, engraving, stock checkering, and fitting, make the past present; as Connecticut Shotgun enthuses: “Today’s A.H. Fox guns are the same excellent value as those purchased by your grandfather.”
A show of hands out there if you have: (1) Lovingly handled a buddy’s AyA double gun with envy as he looked on with parental pride, or (2) Own an AyA and have had “discussions” with your wife about it (indefinite pronoun translation: the price tag). Neither? You need to put something from the AyA line on your gun guy bucket list.
AyA double guns have drop-dead-gorgeous eye appeal, timeworn word-of-mouth publicity, and earned character in the hands of hardcore wingshooters. Hey, if you were born in 1915 and still had all-day staying power in the 21st Century, we’d brag about you too.
First things first: You say “A-Why-A” not “Eye-A”. Wouldn’t want you stumbling into an Orvis-endorsed wingshooting lodge invitation and have you get off on the wrong foot during conversation at the buffet table.
That said, each AyA double — bearing the features of traditional English guns — is handmade. Built in AyA’s Eibar factory (the birthplace of Spain’s gunmaking industry) the birthing process is detailed. Gunmakers smoke the steel. Parts are fitted. Metal is removed, one file stroke at a time. The forend, trigger guard, frame and barrels must marry with careful effort. Master stockers shape the walnut forend and stock. Engraving follows, and if you’re like me, it’s the first aspect that catches your eye. They’re works of art.
Here’s the skinny on one of the more affordable, and easily the most famous and popular sidelock AyA doubles out there, the No. 2: Introduced in the late 1950s, the ubiquitous AyA No. 2 — straight-hand stocked with standard walnut and with simpler engraving than other more expensive options — is found in many a gun safes in the United States and around the world (“tens of thousands” have been sold since then, says the company).
Let’s spec it out. The No. 2 Round Action is an easy-to-carry 6 ¾ pounds in 12-bore, while 16, 20, 28 and .410 options are also available. Barrels run 28 inches (other lengths can be ordered). Standard features in this side-by-side hammerless sidelock shotgun include the round-action frame of course, plus chopper-lump steel barrels, forged steel action with a double locking mechanism and gas vents, hardened steel intercepting safety sears, a double trigger with a hinged front trigger, and an optional selective or non-selective single trigger.
Would added visual details close the deal? English scroll engraving, with color hardened or old silver finish, and gold-lined cocking indicators — an automatic safety and concave rib as well —add up to one classy double.
Nope, it’s not an oxymoron. Here’s the deal: Remington took the reins of Parker Gun Works back in June 1934. A handful of years ago, Remington chose to release the new Parker, freeing the brand from its dormancy.
As Remington enthuses in a recent press release, “For nearly a century and a half the Parker Gun has been a fixture on the landscape of American firearms. Considered one of the finest sporting arms ever made, Remington acquired Parker Gun Works operations in 1934. In 2006, Remington, along with Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing, engineered the comeback of this masterpiece. Today’s Parker AAHE 28-gauge combines sophisticated gun making technology with exceptional hand checkering and engraving, making it one of the most elegant examples of craftsmanship in history.”
Are you sitting comfortably in your man cave? Good. Prices will knock you down if not. Hunters and collectors can find some upland seasoned Parker double guns on auction for a mere $10K (even less in the “not mint, but cared for” realm), while some specification-built 28 gauges in this line run to $49,000. Or more. Still, you can’t take it with you, and all that. Online forums are full of these finds. Then again, why opt for less? Why buy a double-wide trailer when you can have one of these custom made?
What can I say guys? Elena, Giovanna and Barbara, daughters of Cavaliere Ufficiale Fausti Stefano — builder of the brand — are married, so you’re out of luck. The company is in their capable hands. All share degrees in accounting. They’re all fluent in several languages, and Barbara has a black belt. All look perfectly comfortable handling a side-by-side or over-and-under.
I’ve handled their classy double guns at the SHOT Show over the years, and marveled at the detailing and feel. Whether you’re a hunter, shooter, collector, or all three, you would too.
As their catalogue goes, some technical sheets on their side-by-sides include 12-, 16-, 20-, 24-, 28-, 36- and .410 bores, while other models are more limited. English stocks are select walnut. Engraving is hand-made with gold borders signed by the artist. Some chokes are fixed; some interchangeable. All please the eye. The flying gold woodcock engraved on a number of models (becasse to French gunners in their traditional covers) won me over at first look.
These are fine Italian shotguns indeed. As double guns go, the Fausti Stefano product line also includes over-and-under game and sporting, plus competition options. A range of accessories are also available.
You can find them online at: www.faustistefanoarms.com (Note: The www.faustiusa.com site, in development as of this writing, will cater to U.S. wingshooters and double-gun buffs.)
Weatherby’s Doubles
First making history in the mid-1940s in the rifle cartridge and production domain, Weatherby quickly established a reputation for quality. Founder Roy Weatherby’s son, Ed, has run the company since 1983. During the transition both side-by-side and over/under shotguns have been introduced.
Weatherby Athena is an example of a fine yet relatively affordable shotgun.
Their Athena D’Italia SBS would look like this in your hands: An engraved trigger guard with roll-formed edges punctuated with the familiar Weatherby “Flying W” (gold-filled in this instance). Double triggers as part of the English design. A hand-selected, oil-finished walnut stock with a straight grip design finishing with a lean forend. This Weatherby side-by-side has a functional feel, while the engraved English scroll with ribbons — the work of the Cesare Giovanelli Studio — adds a nice touch to the user-friendly firearm.
This is but a smattering of the fine shotguns available today. Space does not allow us to cover everything you might see on gun racks around the country. But with guns like these, your fowling piece can match the beauty of your favorite hunting grounds. You hunt feathered game in gorgeous places. Whether you pursue grouse and woodcock in alder bottoms under October’s towering blue skies, or wander in grasslands, on crop edges and shelter belts for late-season pheasants, classy double guns fit nicely into the picture.
This article appeared in the May 24, 2010 issue of Gun Digest the Magazine.
As satisfying as it was for Obama to seize control of one-sixth of the economy, he has had to suffer protest from the "little people" (like us). So he is pushing the Orwellian "DISCLOSE" bill (HR 5175) to make sure gun groups and other pro-freedom forces cannot mobilize their members in the upcoming elections.
When Obama says "disclose," what he really means is "disclose gun group membership lists"
Not surprisingly, these efforts to shut down free speech don’t apply to Obama allies, like Democratic-leaning labor unions. They only apply to groups which are not reliable Obama allies, like Gun Owners of America.
But, for those groups whose free speech is targeted for Obama’s wrath under this bill, the consequences are severe:
* Under Title II of the bill, GOA (and other groups, as well as many bloggers) who merely mention public officials within 60 days of an election could be required to file onerous disclosures — potentially including their membership lists.
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* Also under Title II, GOA could be required to spend as much as half of the time of a 30-second ad on government-written disclosures.
* In addition, Sections 201 through 203 would potentially put the government’s snooping eyes on any American who voices a political opinion, despite the fact that the Supreme Court, in Buckley v. Valeo, declared that Americans have a right to voice their opinion to an unlimited extent, if unconnected with a political campaign.
Here’s an idea: If Obama is so irritated at the Supreme Court’s defense of political free speech by groups like GOA, why doesn’t he apply his sleazy new rules to his political allies, as well?
ACTION: Please urge your congressman to vote against the anti-gun HR 5175. This bill has moved out of committee and has now been placed on the House calendar.
I urge you to oppose HR 5175, a bill that will deny the free speech rights of all Americans. Under Title II of this bill:
* Groups like Gun Owners of America (and other groups, as well as many bloggers) who merely mention public officials within 60 days of an election could be required to file onerous disclosures — potentially including their membership lists — even though the Supreme Court has previously ruled in NAACP v. Alabama that membership lists (like those of GOA’s) are off limits to government control.
* Also, groups like GOA and the NRA could be required to spend as much as half of the time of a 30-second ad on government-written disclosures.
* In addition, Sections 201 through 203 would potentially put the government’s snooping eyes on any American who voices a political opinion, despite the fact that the Supreme Court, in Buckley v. Valeo, declared that Americans have a right to voice their opinion to an unlimited extent, if unconnected with a political campaign.
Here’s an idea: If Obama is so irritated at the Supreme Court’s defense of political free speech by groups like GOA, why doesn’t he apply the new rules in HR 5175 to his political allies (like the labor unions), as well?
Suffice it to say, if you care anything about the First or Second Amendments, you will vote against HR 5175. GOA will be scoring this vote on their rating of Congress.
FLINT TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Flint Township police are investigating after an elderly man got a hold of a sawed-off shotgun while a 35-year-old man burglarized his bedroom.
Police werecalled to the Brookstone apartment complex on Drummond Drive around 5 a.m. Thursday.
Investigators said the intruder, a Flint resident,had forcibly entered the second-floor apartment.
The man then entered the woman’sbedroom, roused her at gunpoint and began to assault her, according to police.
Her screams awakened her living partner, who was sleepingon a couch in the living room.
Police said the man entered theroom and saw the suspect set down his gun while rummaging through the bedroom. The man then grabbed the gun and shot the suspect. Read more
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WALTERBORO — An Army specialist just home from the Middle East shot and critically wounded a robber who tried to hold up his family after they stopped with car trouble late Thursday, authorities said.
Twoother robbers returned fire as they pulled their wounded accomplice into a getaway car and sped away from the McCleod Road crime scene, according to Colleton County Sheriff George Malone.
None of the victimswere wounded, but their cars were struck by bullets, deputies said.
Hospital, where he was being treated for several gunshot wounds, deputies said.
David Jayquon Jakes, 19, of Smoaks was later transferredto Medical University Hospital in Charleston, where he remains in intensive care, Chief Deputy Ted Stanfield said. Read more
CHICAGO (STMW) — For the third time in two weeks, a citizen has shot a bad guy in the city.
A 23-year-old felon was shot to death as he tried to rob a Northwest Side pawnshop Tuesday afternoon.
Michael McMillan, 23, of 309 N. Menard, was pronounced dead at Our Lady of the Resurrection Medical Center at 1:17 p.m., according to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office.
The slain suspect was convicted in 2006 of armed robbery and sentenced to boot camp, court records show.
Police sources said the owner of Fullerton Pawners Inc. shot the robber at about 1 p.m. inside the store.
Two accomplices, one wearing a black backpack, ran away. One may have been wounded, sources said. Read more
Buying furniture from Smart Buy Home Furnishings may be a smart move, but trying to rip off the store is not, two men found out over the weekend.
Just after noon on Saturday, Springfield police arrived at the store at 2845 W. Chestnut to find one store manager, a 45-year-old disabled woman, holding the would-be burglars at gunpoint.Marlene Woodman, 65, manages the store with her daughter Angela Mallard, 45.
Woodman credits Mallard with protecting her. Mallard said she stands just under 5 feet 2 inches and weighs 127 pounds.”
Angie is my hero,” said Woodman, who has heart problems. “She was afraid of what they would do to me. They thought I was by myself.” Read more
Ithaca 28-Gauge Model 37 Pump Shotgun Lord Tennyson wrote, “In the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love” Well, it’s spring, and although I can’t rightly be termed a young man anymore, I’m in love with Ithaca’s new 28-gauge Model 37 pump shotgun.
My first shotgun, nearly 35 years ago, was a new Ithaca 20-ga. Deluxe Featherweight, and it pained me when Ithaca fell on tough times a few years ago. Now, however, Ithaca is back in competent hands in their new headquarters in Upper Sandusky, Ohio, and although the company’s production is limited to around 3500 guns per year, the guns it does produce are gems.
The new 28-ga. M37 is available in three grades, A to AAA, with prices starting around a cool grand. I handled an AAA Grade at the 2009 SHOT Show and, brother, that was it for me.
Ithaca’s new 28-ga. is available on special order only, and I fully intend to order one as soon as I’ve bailed out the banks, the Big Three, Moe’s Pizza, and apparently everybody else.
It’s a shame that many younger shooters are unaware of the Ithaca Model 37. Based on the sainted John Browning’s patents for a bottom-ejecting shotgun, the M37 always struck me as the quintessential upland pump.
It is so refined, so exquisitely styled, so just plain pretty, that even today I have a hard time passing one up on the used-gun rack. What really hurt the M37, in my opinion, was the fact that it wasn‚Äôt offered with a 3″ chamber until it was rechristened the Model 87 some 20 years ago, and by that time the brand’s prestige had already dimmed.
In 2005, however, Dave Dlubak acquired the company, and he’s really turned it around. I’ve spoken to Dave and to Ithaca’s management team, and I’m glad to report that they are True Believers in the grand old name of Ithaca.
But even bigger news may be in the offing for Ithaca. They’ve got an all-new, 100% American-made 12-ga. over/under prototyped, and I hope like hell it makes it all the way to production. Until then, the 28-ga. M37 will do quite nicely for me. Ithaca’s back, folks. (See www.ithacagun.com.)
NAA’s The Earl
The Earl by North American Arms.
Then there’s The Earl by North American Arms. For those of you who came in late, NAA is the pre-eminent manufacturer of .22 mini-revolvers (and they field a pretty good team of centerfire pocket pistols, too).
The Earl is the latest of NAA’s mini-guns, and it’s a pip: a five-shot .22 Magnum that looks for all the world like an 1858-pattern Remington percussion revolver.
It’s made entirely of stainless steel (except the grips, of course) and even includes a faux loading lever that serves as a cylinder pin release. It even has a 4″ octagonal barrel with a barleycorn front sight.
Initially available in only .22 Magnum rimfire, a .22 Mag/.22LR conversion cylinder is expected to be offered soon, perhaps by the time you read this. At a suggested retail of $289 for the .22 Mag version, I’d have an awfully tough time passing up The Earl.
Some shooters condemn all .22 mini-guns as “mouse guns” or worse, but I beg to differ. A .22 in my shirt pocket sure beats a .45 left at home. Besides, The Earl really isn’t meant as a self defense gun; NAA’s affable president Sandy Chisholm says “it might become your favorite plinker.” I can see that. (See naaminis.com.)
Charter Arms .357 Bulldog I’m happy to report that it seems that Charter Arms has really gotten its act together. A few months ago I had the chance to spend some time with their .357 Target Bulldog Stainless and was impressed.
This Charter Arms .357 Target Bulldog did pretty well at 25 yards offhand.
While its double-action trigger pull was a bit stagy until a few hours of shooting smoothed it out, its single-action pull was one of the nicest I’ve ever seen. Its 4″ barrel and neoprene grips made it quite comfortable to shoot even with fast-steppin’ 125-grainers, and it shot right on the money.
With a suggested retail of $449 and a street price substantially less, the five-shot .357 Target Bulldog strikes me as a good buy for the woods bum who wants something small but substantial on his belt. It should serve well as a home defense revolver, too. Those who remember the quality of Charter Arms first Bulldogs back in the mid-70s will find a lot to like in the .357 Target Bulldog. Welcome home, Charter Arms! (See www.charterfirearms.com.)
With a street price of around $1200 as of this writing, Remington’s R-15 VTR is a superbly accurate AR.
Remington R-15 I have to admit, with all due embarrassment, that until recently I had never owned an AR. I’ve had plenty of M1 Carbines and AKs and SKSs in addition to the usual complement of Krags and Trapdoors and 03s and Mausers, but somehow the planets never lined up sufficiently for me to buy an AR.
That oversight has been corrected in the form of a Remington R-15 VTR in .223. As a life-long fan of Remington autoloaders (from the Model 8 of 1906 on up to today’s Model 750 Woodsmaster), I’m kind of glad that my first AR had the Remington name on it.
A camo-dipped version of a Bushmaster Predator, my R-15 shoots consistent .75″ groups at 100 yards if I hold my mouth right. Frankly, I remain amazed by its performance.
To anyone who ever questioned whether an AR is a legitimate sporting arm, the R-15 definitely answers in the affirmative. I can’t wait to introduce it to some Indiana woodchucks. (See www.remington.com.)
.30 Remington Cartridge
The new .30 Remington AR
Speaking of Remington, I like the looks of Remington’s new .30 Remington AR cartridge. I have a soft spot for the old .30 Remington Autoloading cartridge (sort of a rimless .30-30 Winchester), and the new Remington .30 is a worthy successor.
Based on a cut-down, necked .450 Bushmaster case, the stubby new .30 provides low-end .308 Winchester ballistics with a 125-gr. spitzer.
Make no mistake: the short .30 Remington AR case can’t accommodate the longer 150- to 165-gr. bullets like a .308 bolt rifle can, but for someone who wants a real deer-level cartridge in an AR platform, it should prove decisive.
I’m not going out on too much of a limb when I predict that this is one case that will be extensively wildcatted.
Mossberg 464 .30-30
Younger hunters, and some not-so-young, will find plenty of value in the Mossberg 464 .30-30.
By now you’ve read all the compliments for Mossberg’s 464 .30-30 lever-action, and I’ll throw a few more on the pile. We wrung one out pretty thoroughly last year and it performed just as advertised: short lever throw, positive ejection, easy loading, etc.
Externally it resembles a hybrid between a Marlin 336 and a late-model Winchester 94, but there’s an impressive amount of steel in its upper receiver.
With a street price hovering around $400, the 464 should find friends among those who believe that a .30-30 is all you really need for woods-range deer hunting. For beginning hunters, it should be an absolute peach. Now: where’s that 464 in .22LR? (See www.mossberg.com.)
Superior Concepts 10/22 Laser Stock I belong to the school that holds that you can’t have too many gadgets. And a couple of the more enticing gadgets I’ve seen lately are the Superior Concepts 10/22 Laser Stock and Accessory Band.
Superior Concepts Laser Stock (laser visible at end of forend) and barrel-band Accessory Mount.
The Laser Stock first: This is a nifty aftermarket stock for the Ruger .22 autoloader that incorporates an easily-adjustable laser sight.
The switch for the sight is inset into the left side of the stock’s forend, where it falls naturally under the thumb. A little pressure on the switch and zing! a brilliant laser dot is projected as far out as you’re likely to use one. It’s available in a wide variety of stockl styles, from tactical to plain-jane.
The Accessory Band is one of those slap-my-forehead-why-didn’t-I-think-of-that things: an accessory mount that replaces the barrel band of the 10/22.
For those such as I who possess only limited gunsmithing skills (okay, very limited), it’s a no-brainer. (See www.laserstock.com.) << Read page 1
This article is an excerpt from Gun Digest 2010. Click here to order.
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Inside This Issue
• There is a gun Mecca right in the heartland. Brian McCombie takes a look.
• IWB = Total Concealment: Hide your pistol inside your pants. Dave Workman has the details.
• M.L. Brown writes that patriots used a wide variety of firearms in 1776.
• Live-fire training in a controlled setting has many advantages, says Scott W. Wagner.
• With the console vault, writes Dave Workman, you can safely lock a gun in your vehicle.
06/09/10 – In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, some municipalities have begun revising, “local ordinances to allow—or, at least, not specifically forbid— guns on municipal property,” the Lancaster New Era reported, and a few have already changed their ordinances to allow possession.
These municipalities have been challenged on their existing gun bans, and research by their legal advisors determined that the bans were in violation of state law. Pennsylvania’s constitution states that, “the right of the citizens to bear arms in defense of themselves and the State shall not be questioned.”
Furthermore, Pennsylvania’s Uniform Firearms Act gave the state the right to make gun laws and regulations, and provided cities, towns and other local governments little leeway in making their own gun laws.
“The Constitution is still the law of the land,” added David Dumeyer, chairman of West Hempfield Township supervisors.
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But unless the threat occurs in a home or workplace, Pennsylvanians are not justified in taking lethal action if they can retreat "with complete safety."
Now a state legislator, backed by the National Rifle Association, has won the first round in his attempt to broaden the state’s laws governing self-protection.
A bill by Rep. Scott Perry, R-York, would eliminate the need to retreat under certain circumstances, make law-abiding citizens immune to lawsuits if they injure or kill someone in self-defense and expand the places where deadly force can be used to include a deck, patio, porch and vehicle.
"Individuals understand they don’t want to wake up at 4 in the morning to the sound of breaking glass and don’t want to be thinking about, as they’re wiping the sleep from their eyes, whether to defend themselves or not," Mr. Perry said.
The controversial bill, opposed by the state’s police chiefs and district attorneys, sailed Tuesday through the state House judiciary committee on a 22-4 vote.
"In our view, it’s a solution in search of a problem," said Joe Grace, executive director of CeaseFirePA, a group that works to reduce gun violence. "I think it’s a feel-good bill for the gun lobby."
In a letter dated Monday Dauphin County District Attorney Ed Marsico, president of the Pennsylvania District Attorneys Association, notified the judiciary committee of his group’s opposition to the bill.
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It "will provide violent criminals, including gang members, a ready defense for using violence against one another. Further, the bill encourages the taking of human life even when there is a safe option of retreating. I want to discourage the use of violence unless it is absolutely necessary, not encourage it," Mr. Marsico wrote.
Someone caught today between an armed assailant and a fence in an alleyway might have to scale the fence to safety before being justified in firing a shot in self-defense. Under Mr. Perry’s changes, there would be no obligation to run.
With what some refer to as a "stand-your-ground" provision of the bill, "You do not have a duty to retreat." Read more
Looking to go armed, but are stuck in the weeds as to what to arm yourself with? Here are 20 of the best concealed carry gun options that will keep you on the defensive.
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