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The New Obama Administration: Big Trouble for Gun Owners

By
Brian McCombie
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0

Barack Obama Could Bring a Gun Control Storm
Many gun owners had, at the least, an uneasy feeling when Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D) won the presidential election on November 4, 2008.

“Uneasy” because, even though Obama made numerous claims of support for the Second Amendment, the jury was and is definitely out as to what President-elect Obama may eventually offer up in the way of gun rights support — or gun control.

Making the situation potentially even worse, Democrats control both houses of Congress, and their ranks include some of the top anti-gunners in American politics, like House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ).  Any anti-gun legislation, originating from either the White House or Congress, would therefore have a relatively easy time being approved.

“If you look at the voting record of the president-elect and vice president-elect [Delaware Senator Joe Biden], you’ll see that they have voted for and supported draconian gun control measures again and again,” said Andrew Arulanandam, a spokesman for the National Rifle Association (NRA), in the St. Petersburg Times.  “I think hunters and gun owners see a perfect storm coming for the gun-control lobby to exploit.”

Gun Sales Soar in Anticipation of Gun Bans

Fearing that storm, many Americans apparently took the most basic action to secure their rights:  they started buying up guns!

According to the New York Times, “Sales of handguns, rifles and ammunition have surged in the last week [before the election], according to gun store owners around the nation who describe a wave of buyers concerned that an Obama administration will curtail their right to bear arms.”

“He’s a gun-snatcher,” Jim Pruett, owner of Jim Pruett’s Guns and Ammo in northwest Houston, told the New York Times, while his gun shop was packed with shoppers.

Gun Sales Soar As Gun Owners Fear Coming Gun Bans “A spot check by reporters in four other states easily found Mr. Pruett’s comments echoed from both sides of the counter,” the New York Times continued.  “David Nelson, a co-owner of Montana Ordnance & Supply in Missoula, Mont., said his buyers were ‘awake and aware and see a dangerous trend’…In Colorado, would-be gun buyers set a one-day record [on the]…Saturday [just before the election] with the highest number of background check requests in a 24-hour period, according to figures from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation (CBI).”

“We’re not really sure who is promoting the concept that a change in federal administrations might affect firearms possession rights,” said [CBI] spokesman, Lance Clem, “but we do know that it’s increased business considerably.”

Media outlets from around the nation reported a flurry of gun sales immediately following  Obama’s victory.  Most gun shop owners and their customers cited the fear that an Obama Administration would promote and pass numerous anti-gun laws.

Bob Warren, owner of the Skyway Skeet and Trap Club, in St. Petersburg, Florida, spoke for many when he told the St. Petersburg Times, “We’re not sure what he’s [Obama] got planned, but we don’t think he’s got our best interests at heart.”

“This sounds like an Obama effect,” said Gary Kleck, a professor at Florida State University’s College of Criminology and Criminal Justice.  Kleck pointed out that the current spike in gun sales paralleled a similar gun-buying rush just before Bill Clinton’s 1994 crime bill, which included the so-called “Assault Weapons Ban.”

Gun Groups Slam Obama’s Anti-Gun Record

As an election round-up by the Gun Owners Of America (GOA) noted, “Obama ran a campaign high on rhetoric and short on specifics. The President-elect claims he will govern from the middle, but the question for gun owners is which Obama will show up at the White House — the ‘centrist’ from the campaign trail, or the radical anti-Second Amendment extremist who supports gun bans, waiting periods for firearm purchases, one gun a month restrictions, and more?”

One of President-elect Obama’s first decisions was a huge concern to gun owners:  making Rahm Emanuel, a Democratic U.S. Congressman from Illinois’ 5th District, his White House chief of staff.

According to the Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms (CCRKBA):  “Emanuel was ‘point man’ on gun ban efforts for the Clinton Administration.”

“Mr. Obama, whose history on gun rights is abysmal, appears to be considering his party’s most extremist gun control advocates for key positions in his administration,” CCRKBA Chairman Alan Gottlieb said.  “That is not a sign of goodwill toward gun owners or their rights. It’s a red flare warning of high winds and rough weather looming on the political horizon.”

Gun Rights Organizations Blast Obama's Record; Warn of Gun Control Threat The NRA agreed. In a post-election summary, the NRA noted, “We know the people Obama will appoint to his cabinet and to other federal offices will be almost universally anti-gun. Obama’s selection of Rahm Emanuel as his chief of staff is a perfect example of the hostility the Obama White House will have for gun owners’ rights.”

The NRA continued, “The threats to our rights under Barack Obama are real. If we are going to protect those rights, we have to start work now, preparing for legislative, executive and regulatory assaults at every level of government. Some will be open attacks, such as reintroduction of the Clinton gun ban. Others will be stealthier, such as unleashing the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to harass even more gun dealers and force them out of business. Regardless of how they attack our rights, we will have to respond.”

The National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) noted another disturbing situation.  “President-elect Obama’s Web site had posted his administration’s agenda for curtailing the Second Amendment rights of law abiding Americans, thereby validating the concerns of gun owners, sportsmen and firearms enthusiasts all across the country. Curiously, the Obama-Biden gun control agenda was taken down from the Web site after just two days.”

That agenda may well be the blue-print for future federal legislation.

Congressional Power-Shift Equally Disturbing

Concerning Congress, some substantial losses for the Second Amendment occurred.  According to GOA, “many [Congressional] seats that flipped parties also went from strong pro-gun to strong anti-gun.”  In the Senate, GOA noted that four seats in particular went from Republican to Democrat, and an “A” rating by GOA to newly elected lawmakers with a past “F” rating.

As GOA noted, in Colorado, “The retirement of A-rated Senator Wayne Allard set up a battle between anti-gun Rep. Mark Udall and pro-gun former Rep. Bob Schaffer. This is one of three senate seats that flipped from A to F.”  New Hampshire was another example, where “Pro-gun Senator John Sununu was defeated by F-rated former governor Jeanne Shaheen…”  In New Mexico, “Long-time Senator Pete Domenici, who was D-rated and usually voted against gun owners, was replaced by F-rated Congressman Tom Udall. Udall defeated A-rated Representative Steve Pearce, making this a big loss for gun owners.”

North Carolina was another state where gun rights took a beating.  “Republican Sen. Elizabeth Dole ran as a pro-gun control candidate for president in 2000. Since being elected to the Senate from the Tar Heel state, however, Mrs. Dole compiled a good pro-gun record. Dole’s defeat at the hands of F-rated anti-gunner Kay Hagan is a dramatic flip for gun rights.”

“In the battle for the U.S. House of Representatives, gun owners also were hit hard,” GOA continued.  “Of the 18 incumbents who were defeated, 15 were pro-gun (only two were replaced by a pro-gunner). Of particular disappointment to gun owners were the losses of Republican representatives Marilyn Musgrave (CO-4), Tom Feeney (FL-24), Bill Sali (ID-1), and Tim Walberg (MI-7). These representatives were among the most ardent Second Amendment supporters.”

Not that the 2008 elections were all bad news for gun owners.

Amidst Bleak Picture, Minor Gains

As GOA noted, “In the 32 open House seats, the results were mixed. Thirteen seats went to A-rated candidates, while six went to F-rated anti-gunners. Nine new congressmen are ‘Not Rated,’ meaning they have no record and refused to fill out a GOA questionnaire. Four new members fall somewhere in the middle, leaning toward a pro-gun position but no guarantees.”

According to Ashley Varner, NRA spokesperson, the NRA’s Political Victory Fund endorsed 23 candidates for 2008 U.S. Senate races.  Of these, the NRA-endorsed candidate won in at least 14 races, with the outcome still uncertain, at press time, in Alaska, Georgia, Minnesota and Oregon.  Three of these pro-gun Senate freshmen include Jim Risch (R-ID), Mike Johanns (R-NE) and Mark Warner (D-VA).

Varner added, “Of the 248 candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives endorsed by the National Rifle Association Political Victory Fund, the NRA-endorsed candidate won in at least 216 of these races, with the outcome still uncertain in six races.”

The pro-gun and pro-hunting U.S. Sportsmen’s Alliance (USSA) took some comfort in state races.  “Preliminary results show that out of eleven gubernatorial races, only one changed political parties,” a USSA release noted.  “This indicates a remarkable level of stability at the state government level. In a nutshell, for many day-to-day issues confronting sportsmen, the outcome of the election doesn’t appear to radically change things.”

In the larger sense, too, it must be remembered that gun control as an issue—as a way for politicians to make some political hay and grab some votes—has certainly been discredited.  As the NRA noted,

“The gun control lobby must be distressed that many Democratic gains occurred only because the party has run so far from the gun control issue. While they fondly look back to how actively Bill Clinton campaigned for gun control in 1992 and 1996, they also remember the lesson that gun owners taught an anti-gun Congress in 1994, Al Gore in 2000, and John Kerry in 2004. This was a lesson taught by the National Rifle Association that has changed the politics of our issue across the country.”

Gun owners will find out how well this “lesson” was learned, and if our politicians will need to re-learn it well before in the next election cycle, the 2010 Congressional races, and will make their feelings known.

Related Stories:

Lobbyist Exposes Obama’s True Views on Guns
2008 Elections: The Senator from Illinois

Gun Digest is the national bi-weekly source for firearms news, pricing and guns for sale. Our in-depth editorial, exclusive price guide and new product features, brings valuable information to our high profile subscribers. Subscribe Now!

Hands On! Spyderco P’Kal is the Latest Wave

By
Kevin D. Michalowski
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0

The The Spyderco P'Kal - Review by Gun Digest MagazineSometimes you just want your knife opened quickly and there is really no quicker way to flip open a blade than with a Wave system.

Designed by Ernest Emerson, the Wave system is a patented feature that pulls open the knife by means of a hook on the blade as the knife is drawn from the pocket.

The Spyderco P’Kal utilizes a small metal stud in the back of the blade.

The system works best on fatigues or jeans. Don’t try it on dress slacks. It takes a little practice and you are cautioned to stay clear of others as the blade is wicked sharp and the movement could cut those nearby. So practice by yourself before you “go live.”

You can, of course, pull the knife without using the Wave feature … but what fun is that?

As for the knife, not withstanding the Wave feature, it is pure Spyderco from end to end. It is built tough, razor-sharp and fits the hand like someone really thought about the design. The blade shape is perfect for defense and also for very handy daily chores. The G-10 handles are tough, thin and light and the belt/pocket clip is tough enough for anyone.

If you want to get your hands on a Spyderco P’Kal, check out www.spyderco.com.

 

Gun Digest is the national bi-weekly source for firearms news, pricing and guns for sale. Our in-depth editorial, exclusive price guide and new product features, brings valuable information to our high profile subscribers. Subscribe Now!

Gun Review: SIG P-250

By
Kevin D. Michalowski
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1

When SIG Sauer unveiled the P-250 there were lots of comments about the great and wondrous nature of this modular design and there was even a super DVD showing how quick and easy the pistol came apart, could be reconfigured and went back together.

At the range, I got to shoot the pistol a few times, but the big long line of gun writers behind me led me to think I shouldn’t tear the gun apart right there on the firing line “just to see if I could.”

Well, guess what. It’s all true. With the flip of a lever and tug on the slide you are on your way to modular bliss. Not only can you reconfigure the gun (if you decide to buy the other components) but you can clean every nook and cranny in about half the time it takes to clean other guns. And more importantly, the P-250 shoots like you would not believe.

It took me about one magazine to master the longish trigger pull, but after that I was on target like a duck on a June bug.

Raise Your Sig Sauer IQ

I say longish trigger pull, that’s not really a technical term. You do pull the trigger a long way through its arc to make the gun fire, but the pull is smooth and, dare I say, easy.

Ergonomically, the P-250 is pure SIG and when you get your hands on one, you can feel the quality. This is one pistol that can become anything you want and will serve many purposes for many users.

To get your hands on a SIG Sauer P-250, check out www.sigsauer.com.

Come Back Little Marlin: Marlin 336 Texan, That Is!

By
Sam Fadala
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0

For an old-fashioned meat-gathering mission, the author craved a Marlin 336 Texan. In fact, he believes the company should bring back this classic gun.

“Sweetwater” John was an enterprising old man, his front name earned when he built a still in the mountains during Prohibition.

The few remaining old-timers in the village remembered John’s liquid libation as having “a mighty bite, but sweet.” Sweetwater was long retired, living on Social Security, plus scavenging old gold and silver camps for scrap metal, which he sold in town, 65 miles down the road.

As a U.S. Forest Service firefighter, I lived a year with John and his son Roland. Although already struck with trophy fever, I understood that wild game meant food, not sport, for John: quail, dove, rabbits, javelina and especially deer.

Sweetwater was deadly on whitetails. Took him forever, it seemed, to pull the trigger of his .30-30 carbine. Not me. I’d have three bullets en route before Sweetwater launched one. The only difference was he hit. I missed.

I pledged this past big-game season to meat-making, the way I hunted with Sweetwater so long ago. I’d fill several game tags with a .30-30 carbine having a DF (“difficult quotient”) of three: longbow, DF-1; muzzleloader, DF-2 and .30-30, DF-3.

Gun for the Job

For this mission, I craved a Marlin 336 Texan. After a long search, I finally found one in perfect condition at a gun show. The Texan version of the famous 336 was created as a reliable sidekick. But this one carried stocks of better-than-average color and grain.

I’m a scope man. My PH rifle in Africa, relied on to preserve life and limb of self and client, wears a Leupold 1.5-6X VX-III. But the Texan would go iron-sighted for carry friendly and spark of challenge.

Five animals turned to food with six shots in Wyoming. One antelope buck requiring a follow-up because of a momentary lapse of mental coordination, when I failed to consider the angle.

Off I went to South Dakota in November for more venison. The most enjoyable was my final doe. Early morning was brisk; a euphemism for colder than a well-diggers behind in January Siberia. I perched in a leaned-over homestead cabin reputed to be oldest in the valley — a stubborn testament to pioneer spirit.

A rusty 55-gallon drum lent access to an upper level ledge parted from the roof with a peek-out gap. My buck tag being filled, the object was a fat doe for the SCI Sportsmen Against Hunger program. Typical of the overpopulated area, a plump old dame showed up solo within 30 minutes. At 88 range-finder yards, she stopped behind a grass patch chest high to a donkey.

The 170-grain Silvertip bullet handloaded to 2,150 feet per second from the Texan’s 20-inch barrel parted the grass like a searching cobra. Thank you little Marlin for another perfect show.

I’m not calling for the return of the Marlin 336 Texan for my benefit. I have mine. I want the little gem to come back for you and yours with its good accuracy, strong action and fast handling.

Clean-from-the-breech access via one screw in a compact carry-mate as reliable as sunup is promised. I replaced the original .302-inch front sight with a Lyman No. 37 .410-inch 3/32 ivory (KA 3371674) because at lowest rear sight setting, the rifle still shot high because of improved .30-30 ammo. Hornady’s 160-grain LeverEvolution bullet, for example, chronographed at 2,250 fps from the 20-inch barrel.

Winchester’s new Supreme Ballistic Silvertip also shot “flatter” than older .30-30 ammo. Because the front sight goes opposite the next bullet strike on target, taller brought the group down perfectly. I added a forend band with an integral sling swivel stud plus a plain carry strap and front sight hood with a V-notch for continued protection with better light access. The hood went on only in tough brush and woods conditions.

Rise and Fall

The straight-grip Texan came about as an obvious parallel to Winchester’s Model 94 carbine, with its slim forend rather than a pregnant frontal slab of the regular 336 — in .30-30, of course, and .35 Remington, which should have brought humble praise and adulation from hunters of larger-than-deer game in close cover.

When I asked the folks at Marlin, a spokesperson said the Texan failed after several years, remarkably, from lagging sales. By a 10-to-1 margin, customers demanded the pistol-grip version of the 336.

At one point, Marlin lowered its usual Model 336 sales tag, including the Texan, from $78.95 to $68.95 with “prices slightly higher west of the Rockies.” True, The Man’s Magazine ran an ad praising the .35 Remington caliber in the 336, but the .30-30 continued to be king of sales. The True ad promised the Marlin “unchallenged as the greatest gun for shooting in the tangled deer and black bear country.” Words of wisdom.

The Texan was advertised “with straight grip for lightning-fast removal from the saddle scabbard.” The only problem was it was easier to encounter an elephant in pink pajamas in that “tangled deer and black bear country” than a hunter riding a pony.

You have to wonder if pitching the Texan as a saddle gun didn’t backfire. It sold for $76.95 in 1958, and the Model 94 fetched $79.95. In 1965, the price tag was $86.95. By 1982, the shrinking dollar demanded $220.95 for the Texan and $223.00 for the 94 carbine. The price was always right.

The little Texan takes over nothing. It replaces nothing. It is an addition to the hunting battery; a shining jewel in thickets and black timber, when the average shot is often no more than 50 long steps. It’s perfect in a tree stand.

Add a good variable scope for the best bullet placement. I went iron with the understanding that I would hunt iron-sight style: slow-pacing through the niche, checking the wind constantly, spotting-and-stalking, binoculars working even in thick cover and always going for the closer opportunity.

A particular whitetail heaven I’m privileged to hunt is perfect for creek-walking. Deer cannot hear me coming as I hike down the creek in high-top rubber boots. Deer in that region are the smallest of five whitetail types in my home state of Wyoming. A trophy might dress a 170 pounds, but its rack will look more like a Southwestern Coues than Odocoileus virginianus.

Mule deer also abound in my favorite spot, and they also carry unimpressive racks. Because my goal the first time out with the Texan was prime meat and not “horn soup,” I looked for a mature example with any rack. I found a grown mule deer buck with a retarded headdress and dropped him with a 95-yard shot, a 170-grain Remington Core-Lokt hollow-point doing the work.

My Texan won’t match the surprising groups of the current 336 clan. My XLR .35 Remington prints 100-yard patterns akin to a good bolt-action rifle with Leupold VX-III 1.5-6 set on 6X. But the Texan always delivers bullets into a no-escape pattern at stalk-game ranges.

For shooting across canyons, drag out a long-range, flat-shooting scoped rifle. But in brush and timber, that little Texan suits me fine, and it’ll work for you, too. A 21st century Texan would be the best ever because the current 336 is the best ever. Imagine the new Texan chambered for .30-30, .35 Remington, .308 Marlin Express and perhaps, a new cartridge: .33 or .35 caliber on the .308 Marlin case.

Bring it Back!

Now and again, a company pays attention to a voice from the wilderness. So listen up, Marlin. It’s time to bring the Texan back.

The 2008 Elections Part IV: State and Local Issues

By
Brian McCombie
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While federal laws surely do impact Second Amendment rights, including our ability to buy, sell, and own firearms, state and local issues are of no less importance.  In the recent Supreme Court ruling on Heller, for example, the Second Amendment as an individual right was affirmed. Yet, the justices also noted that lawmakers on all levels could place numerous restrictions on firearms and their ownership.

That means that state and local governments are, in many ways, where the actual, “on the ground” interpretations of the Second Amendment occur. And so we take a quick look at some of the state races of note, as well as states where gun rights look to be at stake, in 2008 and beyond.

For easy reference “pro” means a candidate with a pro-gun record, while “anti” refers to someone on the other side of the fence, as determined by groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Gun Owners of America (GOA). “So-so” reflects a mixed record, while “??” means no records or statements have been found.

Governor Races:

Delaware: An Open Seat, where State Treasurer Jack Markell, D (anti) versus William “Bill” Lee, R, (pro).  Lee is a retired superior court judge, and a former officer in the Marine Corps, who fully supports the Supreme Court’s recent affirmation of the Second Amendment in Heller.

Indiana: Incumbent Mitch Daniels, R (pro) takes on former Congresswoman Jill Long Thompson, D (anti). Thompson received a “D” in the past from the NRA, while Daniels has supported and signed pro-gun legislation more than once.

Missouri is an Open Seat, as incumbent Matt Blunt, R, is not running.  That has pitted state Attorney General Jay Nixon, D (anti) against Congressman Kenny Hulshof, R (pro).
Hulshof got an “A” grade from the NRA in the past, and signed the amicus brief in support of Heller.

Montana is one of those rare states where two pro-gun candidates are vying for the top office:  Incumbent Brian Schweitzer, D (pro) taking on State Senator Roy Brown, R (pro)

New Hampshire has incumbent  John Lynch, D (anti), against State Senator Joseph D. Kenney, R (pro).  Kenny gets an “A” from Gun Owners of New Hampshire.

North Carolina is another Open Seat state.  Here, Lt. Gov. Beverly Perdue, D (pro), and supported by the NRA, against Pat McCrory, R (??).

North Dakota incumbent John Hoeven, R (pro), who has signed a number of pro-gun and pro-hunting measures, against State Senator Tim Mathern, D (??).

Utah incumbent Jon Huntsman, R (pro), got an “A” from the NRA, versus Bob Springmeyer, D (??).

Vermont incumbent Jim Douglas, R (pro), with an “A” from the NRA, goes up against State Representative Gaye Symington, D (??).

Washington State has incumbent Christine Gregoire, D (anti) vying with Dino Rossi, R (pro).  Of note, in 2004, Gregoire did not answer an NRA questionnaire on Second Amendment issues.  A businessman today, Rossi was a state Senator, and in 2004 received an “A” from the NRA.

West Virginia is another win-win state for the Second Amendment, as incumbent Joe Manchin, D (pro) competes against Russ Weeks, R (pro)

States To Watch

California: Anti-gunners in the state houses keep going after ammunition, trying to pass bills to mandate expensive and unproven bullet serialization, plus ammo sales restrictions.  Moves afoot to expand bans on lead bullets, too.

Illinois: Cook County supervisors going after gun stores, while legislature mulls bullet serialization, banning high-capacity magazines, and more gun show regulations.  Governor and Chicago mayor both anti-gun.

New York: When’s New York City Mayor Bloomberg going to stop his attacks on gun shops and firearms industry?  Apparently, never.  Recent discussions in the state house about firearms microstamping, another unproven and very expensive technology.

Pennsylvania: Add one anti-gun governor plus one anti-gun mayor of Philadelphia, and you get: attempted “assault weapon” bans, one-per month handgun buy limits, and cities illegally trying to make a host of their own gun laws.  The NRA and others have Philly in court over many anti-gun regs the city has approved.

Washington State: Legislature keeps going after gun show “loophole.”  Meanwhile, Seattle mayor is definitely anti-handguns, and is trying to keep concealed carry permitees from carrying on city property.

To read Part 1 of this special election series, The Senator from Illinois, Click Here.
To read Part 2, McCain and Gun Owners, A Strained Relationship, Click Here.
To read Part 3, Key Federal Races, Click Here

Hands On! Managed-Recoil Buckshot Still Hits Hard

By
Kevin D. Michalowski
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0

My father always used to say, “Buckshot makes a mess.” I’ve adopted that philosophy when it comes to self-defense with a shotgun. When it comes to stopping the threat, and I mean “right now,” I’ll happily make a mess. Bad guys deserve it.

The problem with buckshot is that old first law of physics; When something hits hard, that means it hits back hard, too. People shooting buckshot sometimes fear the recoil.

So Remington took out some of the recoil and left behind enough punch to make a mess of the bad guys. You gotta love that. With less felt recoil than full velocity loads, Remington’s Managed-Recoil Buckshot is an ideal close-range performer.

Less recoil means second shot recovery is quicker, allowing the user to get back on target more easily. These new loads are built just like the standard eight-pellet 00 Buckshot loads and are buffered for dense patterns, allowing for highly effective performance up to 40 yards.

I shot the Managed-Recoil loads at 25 yards with a cylinder-bore tactical shotgun and was able to regularly put all eight pellets into a 19-inch human silhouette, even with a fancy rapid-fire shooting drill.

This is good stuff that will make the bad guys stop doing bad things. To get your hands on Remington Managed-Recoil buckshot, check out www.remington.com

 

Gun Digest is the national bi-weekly source for firearms news, pricing and guns for sale. Our in-depth editorial, exclusive price guide and new product features, brings valuable information to our high profile subscribers. Subscribe Now!

5.11 Tactical No-Battery Light Sets New Standard

By
Gun Digest Staff
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0

The flashlight of tomorrow is here today. In early 2009, tactical clothing and gear leader 5.11 Tactical Series® will launch an extraordinary rechargeable flashlight that is faster, more cost effective and friendlier to the environment than any other flashlight in history.

The Ultimate Convenience and Performance

Powered by a sophisticated energy management system, 5.11’s Light for Life™ UC3.400™ Flashlight fully charges in 90 seconds and delivers up to 23.5 hours of total runtime (98% uptime) in a 24-hour period. This revolutionary performance compares with charge times ranging from four to 12 hours, and runtime rates ranging from 9% to 25% for duty flashlights currently on the market.

The UC3.400 contains no batteries, but rather a sophisticated energy management system called FlashPoint? Power Technology. This technology utilizes environmentally friendly ultracapacitors that work together with revolutionary computer circuitry to efficiently manage how energy is loaded into the flashlight, and then optimizes how the energy is dispersed to maximize both performance and runtime.

Unlike costly batteries that need to be replaced, ultracapacitors quickly load and unload energy without a chemical reaction. The UC3.400 is rated for 50,000 charge/discharge cycles with virtually no degradation and no memory ¬– even in severe temperature conditions. That’s one charge a day for more than 135 years! Current rechargeable flashlights begin to lose the ability to hold a full charge after the first use, are highly susceptible to temperature fluctuations, and have an expected life of 500 to 1,000 charge/discharge cycles (one to three years expected for a professional user) before the battery must be replaced at a substantial cost.

The high-performance Light for Life UC3.400 produces 270 peak lumens in bright mode, 90 lumens in standard mode, and has a 270-lumen tactical strobe. The three LED bulbs on the flashlight are rated for 50,000 hours and never have to be replaced. At about 16 oz., the flashlight weighs approximately half as much as competitors’ full-size duty flashlights.

Return on Investment

Because the flashlight runs on ultracapacitors instead of batteries and utilizes 3 LEDs that are rated for 50,000 hours each, and it has no replaceable parts to buy or dispose of, it’s incredibly economical and environmentally friendly.

The Light for Life UC3.400 is constructed of top-quality materials to 5.11’s exacting specifications, and is precision engineered to offer at least a decade of maintenance-free operation under typical conditions. It’s also backed by a generous limited lifetime warranty covering normal on-duty/off-duty wear. In addition, with the ability to fully recharge in 90 seconds and no batteries, there’s a reduced need for professionals to carry multiple flashlights for security and safety.

When you factor in the price of the flashlight, zero maintenance or outlay for batteries and bulbs, and reduced electricity costs, you’re looking at an impressive return on investment. At a retail price starting at $169.99 with nothing to replace over the course of 10 years, the Light for Life UC3.400 has the lowest operating cost of any duty flashlight on the market. You can expect a minimum overall operational cost savings of at least 40% – making this flashlight a fiscally responsible move for you and your organization.

Rugged and Environmentally Friendly

Made of a firearm-grade high-strength polymer, the 11.5” UC3.400 casing is fully sealed against the elements. It’s abrasion, crack and bend-resistant. The temperature-tolerant ultracapacitors are rated at -40° F to 149° F (-40° C to 65° C). Also, the water-resistant, ruggedly built UC3.400 flashlight features solid-state construction.

Because the ultracapacitors are made of mostly carbon and aluminum, the UC3.400 contains no heavy metals. Since there are no batteries to replace, there is not only savings in the cost of the batteries, but also for the environment, as heavy metals in traditional batteries are extremely harmful to the ecosystem. Also, batteries can leak and are potentially explosive. The UC3.400 is also RoHS compliant. The fact is, the Light for Life UC3.400 is one of the most “green” tactical light sources on the planet. It generates minimal waste and uses less energy, thereby making it a responsible use of resources.

The Light for Life UC3.400 comes with a 12V DC charging base that plugs into a car, as well as a mounting plate and a belt ring. A full line of accessories will also be available including lens filters, flare cones, holsters and an AC adapter.

“This marks the beginning of a bold new era in flashlight technology,” says 5.11 Tactical CEO Dan Costa. “The ingeniously designed Light for Life UC3.400 is so superior and innovative that it actually renders all others obsolete. It literally revolutionizes and transforms the portable rechargeable lighting industry.”

Costa continues, “Ten years from now, after tens of thousands of charges, you’ll still be able to depend on the Light for Life flashlight to get out there and work for you every day.”

Now Accepting Preorders

The Light for Life UC3.400 is the first product of its kind in the world. Priced from $169.99, the flashlight will be available in early 2009. For a limited time only, 5.11 is offering free “Light for Life” t-shirts by mail-in postcard. 5.11 Tactical is currently taking individual and department flashlight preorders. Please visit www.511tactical.com today to locate your nearest 5.11 Dealer and secure your Light for Life UC3.400 flashlight.

About 5.11 Tactical Series®

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The 2008 Elections Part III: Key Federal Races

By
Brian McCombie
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(Editor’s note:  This is the third in a four-part series on the 2008 elections and the Second Amendment.  The next and last installment will examine state and local elections of note.)

While the 2008 election for president has dominated much of the gun rights debate, there are many other federal seats up for grabs this November. The gun rights records and beliefs of the winning candidates will go a long way to forming Second Amendment issues in the years to come.

With all U.S. House of Representative seats up for grabs, and a third of the U.S. Senate being decided, what follows is only a sampling.  For easy reference “pro” means a candidate with a pro-gun record, while “anti” refers to someone on the other side of the fence, as determined by groups like the National Rifle Association (NRA) and Gun Owners of America (GOA). “So-so” reflects a mixed record, while “??” means no records or statements have been found.

Senate:

In Alabama, incumbent Senator Jeff Sessions, R (pro), squares off against State Senator Vivian Davis Figures, D (pro).

Alaska’s senatorial race pits long-time incumbent Ted Stevens, R (pro), against Anchorage Mayor Mark Begich, D (pro).  The wild card in this race is Stevens current trial, where is defending himself against corruption charges.

In Arkansas, incumbent Mark Pryor, D (anti), got a grade of “D” by the NRA.  Yet he is running against Green Party candidate Rebekah Kennedy, whose website does not even mention the Second Amendment.

An interesting race in Colorado, for an open seat.  Contenders are U.S. Congressman Mark Udall, D (anti) versus former Congressman Bob Schaffer, R (pro).

The Illinois Senate race pits long-time anti-gun incumbent Dick Durbin, D, against Steve Sauerberg, R (pro).

In Louisiana, incumbent Mary Landrieu, D has a “so-so” rating on gun rights. She’s up against State Treasurer John Kennedy, R (pro).

Maine senate incumbent Susan Collins, R (pro) takes on State Representative Tom Allen, D (anti).

Michigan’s long-time incumbent, and long-time anti, Senator Carl Levin, D, is opposed by
State Representative Jack Hoogendyk, R (pro)

Sounds like a bad joke, but in Minnesota incumbent Norm Coleman, R (pro) takes on comedian Al Franken, D (anti).

Two win-win situations in Mississippi:  for one seat, incumbent Thad Cochran, R (pro) versus State Representative Erik Fleming, D (pro);  for the other seat, incumbent Roger Wicker, R (pro) against former Governor Ronnie Musgrove D (pro).

An open seat in Nebraska has NRA-endorsed Mike Johanns, R (pro), a former secretary of agriculture against political newcomer Scott Kleeb, D, who’s views on the Second Amendment are not found on his campaign website.

Looks like a loss either way in New Jersey, with incumbent Frank Lautenberg, D (anti), taking on former Representative Rep Dick Zimmer, R (anti)

But it is a win either way in South Carolina, with NRA-endorsed incumbent Lindsey Graham, R (pro) versus Bob Conley, D (pro), NRA and GOA life member.

South Dakota race features incumbent Tim Johnson, D (so-so) against State Representative Joel Dykstra, R (pro).

Another open seat in Virginia, with former governor Mark Warner, D (so-so), versus former governor Jim Gilmore, R  (pro).

House of Representatives:

CO: 1st Dist. Inc. Diana DeGette, D (anti) vs George Lilly, R (??)

CO: 6th Dist. OPEN Ted Harvey, R (pro) vs Hank Eng, D (??)

GA:  10th Dist. Inc. Paul Broun, R (pro) vs Bobby Saxon, D (pro)

IN: 5th Dist. Inc. Dan Burton, R (pro) vs Mary Etta Ruley, D (??)

IA:  3rd Dist. Inc. Leonard Boswell, D (pro) vs Kim Schmett, R (??)

MD:  6th Dist. Inc. Roscoe Bartlett, R (pro) vs Jennifer Dougherty, D (??)

MI:  2nd  Dist. Inc. Pete Hoekstra, R (pro) vs Fred Johnson, D (??)

NJ:   5th Dist. Inc. Scott Garrett, R (pro) vs Dr. Dennis Shulman, D (anti)

NY: 4th Dist. Inc. Carolyn McCarthy, D (anti)  vs  Jack Martins R  (??)

NC;  10th Dist. Inc. Patrick McHenry, R (pro) vs Daniel Johnson, D (??)

OH:   5th Dist. Inc. Bob Latta, R (pro)  vs George Mays, D (??)

PA: 12th  Dist. Inc. John P. Murtha, D (pro) vs Terry Ronzio, I (??)

SC:  2nd Dist. Inc. Joe Wilson, R, (pro) vs Rob Miller, D (??)

TX:  18th Dist. Inc. Sheila Jackson Lee, D (anti) vs  John Faulk, R (pro)

VA:  8th Dist. Inc. Jim Moran, D (anti) vs Mark Ellmore, R (pro)

WI: 2nd Dist. Inc. Tammy Baldwin, D (anti) vs Peter Theron, R: (pro)

To read Part 1 of this special election series, The Senator from Illinois, Click Here.
To read Part 2, McCain and Gun Owners, A Strained Relationship, Click Here.
To read Part 4, Local & State Issues, Click Here

Lobbyist Exposes Obama’s True Views on Second Amendment

By
Richard A. Pearson
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October 10, 2008

Fellow Sportsman,

Hello, my name is Rich Pearson and I have been active in the firearm rights movement for over 40 years. For the past 15 years, I have served in the Illinois state capitol as the chief lobbyist for the Illinois State Rifle Association.

I lobbied Barack Obama extensively while he was an Illinois State Senator. As a result of that experience, I know Obama’s attitudes toward guns and gun owners better than anyone. The truth be told, in all my years in the Capitol I have never met a legislator who harbors more contempt for the law-abiding firearm owner than Barack Obama.

Although Obama claims to be an advocate for the 2nd Amendment, his voting record in the Illinois Senate paints a very different picture. While a state senator, Obama voted for a bill that would ban nearly every hunting rifle, shotgun and target rifle owned by Illinois citizens.

That same bill would authorize the state police to raid homes of gun owners and forcibly confiscate banned guns. Obama supported a bill that would shut down law-abiding firearm manufacturers including Springfield Armory, Armalite, Rock River Arms and Les Baer.

Obama also voted for a bill that would prohibit law-abiding citizens from purchasing more than one gun per month.

Without a doubt, Barack Obama has proven himself to be an enemy of the law abiding firearm owner.

At the same time, Obama has proven himself to be a friend to the hardened criminal. While a state senator, Obama voted 4 times against legislation that would allow a homeowner to use a firearm in defense of home and family.

Does Barack Obama still sound to you like a “friend” of the law-abiding gun owner?

And speaking of friends, you can always tell a person by the company they keep. Obama counts among his friends the Rev. Michael Pfleger — a renegade Chicago priest who has openly called for the murder of gun shop owners and pro-gun legislators.

Then there is his buddy Richard Daley, the mayor of Chicago who has declared that if it were up to him, nobody would be allowed to own a gun. And let’s not forget Obama’s pal George Soros — the guy who has pumped millions of dollars into the UN’s international effort to disarm law-abiding
citizens.

Obama has shown that he is more than willing to use other people’s money to fund his campaign to take your guns away from you. While a board member of the leftist Joyce Foundation, Barack Obama wrote checks for tens of millions of dollars to extremist gun control organizations such as the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence and the Violence Policy Center.

Does Barack Obama still sound to you like a “friend” of the law-abiding gun owner?

By now, I’m sure that many of you have received mailings from an organization called “American Hunters and Shooters Association(AHSA)” talking about what a swell fellow Obama is and how he honors the 2nd Amendment and how you will never have to worry about Obama coming to take your guns.

Let me make it perfectly clear — everything the AHSA says about Obama is pure hogwash. The AHSA is headed by a group of left-wing elitists who subscribe to the British view of hunting and shooting.

That is, a state of affairs where hunting and shooting are reserved for the wealthy upper-crust who can afford guided hunts on exclusive private reserves.

The AHSA is not your friend, never will be.

In closing, I’d like to remind you that I’m a guy who has actually gone nose to nose with Obama on gun rights issues.

The Obama I know cannot even begin to identify with this nation’s outdoor traditions.

The Obama I know sees you, the law abiding gun owner, as nothing but a low-class lummox who is easily swayed by the flash of a smile and a ration of rosy rhetoric.

The Obama I know is a stony-faced liar who has honed his skill at getting what he wants — so long as people are willing to give it to him.

That’s the Barack Obama I know.

Sincerely,

(original signed)
Richard A. Pearson
Executive Director
Illinois State Rifle Association

Editor’s Note: To learn more about Barack Obama’s record on guns, read Brian McCombie’s article, 2008 Elections: The Senator from Illinois.

Gun Review: Smith & Wesson M&P Auto Pistol

By
Massad Ayoob
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Mostly praised for its features and functionality, the new Smith & Wesson M&P may be notable for something even more important: a manufacturer’s willingness to listen to the end users of its product.

Officially introduced at the SHOT Show in Las Vegas in first quarter of 2006, the Smith & Wesson Military & Police semiautomatic service pistol became widely accepted in law enforcement, combat pistol competition, and the armed citizen sector in less than a year. Articles in the firearms and law enforcement press, and on the Internet, have concentrated on its mechanical features and its “shootability,” both of which have much to recommend them.

However, there is another story hidden within.  It is the story of a rapidly changing old-line company that has found within itself the courage to break not just one mold, but two.  Smith & Wesson found the courage to step past its old products and develop something dramatically new. The firm also found the courage to take a new approach to handling consumer complaints and responding to end-user needs.

Background: the Smith & Wesson M&P Pistol

Joe Bergeron, head of autoloading pistol production at S&W, led the development of the M&P pistol. Something of a child prodigy as a young engineer at Colt’s, Bergeron came to Smith & Wesson with a deep understanding of how semiautomatic pistols work, and of how they are designed, and of how they are manufactured. These are three different things entirely, and they made Bergeron a triple threat in the industry, and the logical man to spearhead the M&P project.

Bergeron and his people came up with a new design that didn’t look derivative. It was the first time Smith & Wesson had done so with a semiautomatic service pistol design in 50 or more years. This is not to say that it didn’t incorporate features from other designs.  However, those features were add-ons, not whole design concepts that defined the pistol.

From Heckler and Koch came three concepts, two now almost universally adopted and the third worthy of the same acceptance. The polymer frame, first seen in the 1970s on the HK P9S and that company’s semiautomatic adaptation of its machine pistol, the VP70Z, has now become the new standard platform for police duty sidearms.

Another now-ubiquitous feature is the attachment rail molded into the frame’s dust cover. Appearing first in the early 1990s on HK’s USP, it was originally proprietary to HK’s own UTL (Universal Tactical Light, built for them by InSight in New Hampshire), but this feature was soon standardized into a Picatinny rail format by the industry.

Even later incarnations of HK service pistols now use the Pic rail specifications.  The third feature was the ambidextrous slide release, first seen on major brand service pistols in HK’s 2000 line.

From Glock, which picked up the polymer-frame ball that HK dropped, ran with it, and popularized it, came the multi-part trigger incorporating a safety device. On the Smith the trigger differs from the original Glock in execution, however.

From Walther came the widely copied concept of interchangeable backstraps to adjust grip frame size to fit a broad variety of hand sizes.

Smith & Wesson had a tool in its toolbox that the competitors did not: an extensive, scientific study of hand size done in the early 1990s for their Sigma project.  With this, plus updated knowledge of ergonomics gleaned from the rapid advance of that science as applied to pistols in the last decade, S&W’s M&P team leaped ahead of the competition with a series of grip inserts that offered not only different trigger reach, but alternate sizes and shapes of grip width to more appropriately fill the shooter’s palm.  The result is probably state-of-the-art in the interchangeable auto pistol backstrap today.

No SmIG, Smock, or Smalther

The M&P ends a long history (and, for S&W fans, a somewhat sad one) of derivative firearms design. Let’s go back about twenty years…

In the late 1980s, under then-CEO Steve Melvin, Smith & Wesson inaugurated its AIP (Automatic Improvement Program).  The result was that its standard double-action service autos, dating back to the Model 39 of 1954, were updated into a third generation that appeared in 1988. Mechanical defects in the originals had been pretty much cleared up in the second-generation guns of the late 1970s and early 1980s, which bore three-digit model numbers (Model 459, Model 645, etc.).

The big changes in the third generation were ergonomic.  Trigger pulls were smoothed out considerably, and grip profile was changed completely, causing these four-digit model number pistols (Model 5906, Model 4506, etc.) to bear a remarkable resemblance to the popular SIG- Sauer.  Perhaps inevitably, these Gen Three Smiths were nicknamed “SmIGs” by the cognoscenti.

1993 saw the debut of the Sigma, S&W’s answer to the market-dominating Glock.  It was like a Glock in its shape, construction, and takedown, and in .40 S&W caliber, there was even one-way interchangeability of barrels between the brands. Glock sued Smith and won a substantial settlement.

The Sigma did not take hold in the law enforcement market, though it would become a bestseller when S&W cut the price and reinvented it as an entry-level auto pistol for the armed citizen market. By then, gun buffs were derisively calling the Sigma a “Smock.”

As the end of the century approached, S&W entered what would be an ever-tightening relationship with Walther.  The collaboration led to an “Americanized” version of the German Walther P99, dubbed the SW99.

It got off to a rocky start when, in a highly publicized move, the New Jersey State Police adopted the SW99 in 9mm, and then cancelled the contract due to claims of repeated malfunctions. Some of this gun’s European design features did not work well with American law enforcement handgun doctrine.

The decocker, a push button flush-fitted on the upper left portion of the slide, was extremely awkward to operate, and the gun could be holstered cocked without that condition being visible to officer, instructor, or supervisor. These features did not endear the SW99 to the U.S. law enforcement establishment, and it too languished in the wake of ever-increasing Glock dominance of the American police market. Meanwhile, predictably, the SW99 had become known as the “Smalther.”

By contrast, no such cute nickname has attached itself to the S&W M&P, nor is that likely to happen.  It does not resemble any other popular gun.  Its “sculpturing” is distinctly Smith & Wesson, with slide lines that hearken back to the S&W Model 41 target pistol of the late 1950s.  Grasping grooves on the slide are cut in a distinctive wavy format popularized by Smith & Wesson’s Performance Center several years before.  The grip tang sweeps backward in a sleek and functional style reminiscent of nothing so much as a Robar grip re-shaping on a Glock.  The Military & Police has its own design, and it has its own look.

Imperfection and Correction

No new design ever survives its “beta testing” in the field without unexpected glitches cropping up.  The first guns that get into the field are the ones that endure rough currents on the final “shakedown cruise” before the product sets sail on the turbulent seas of a competitive marketplace.

Let’s take a quick look at handgun history. The Colt of 1911 did not come under scrutiny for design improvement needs until the early 1920s, and the recommendations of the Army Ordnance Board did not go into effect, creating the 1911A1 pistol, until the latter part of that decade. Making this classic gun “drop-safe” took much longer still.  The 1911 design continues to evolve.

In Smith & Wesson’s own yard, the imperfections in the basic Model 39 design lay dormant from its introduction in 1954 until 1967, when the Illinois State Police became the first large police department to adopt the gun en masse. With some 1,700 troopers qualifying with them regularly and carrying them in the field, problems with extraction, feeding, and breakage now immediately became apparent.

Design changes were implemented rather quickly in the 39-2 series, but some core problems were not substantively addressed until the second-generation guns emerged more than a decade later. It took most of another decade for the refinements of the third-generation guns to at last fulfill the promise of the original S&W service automatics. The process had taken some thirty plus years.

And therein lies a tale, perhaps the most interesting part of the short S&W M&P auto pistol saga.  Within less than a year, Smith & Wesson has identified shortcomings in the M&P design, and has moved immediately and substantively to correct them.  This backstory is one of the most encouraging selling points of the M&P, yet has gone virtually unnoticed.

The Backstory

From the early stages of the M&P project, Bergeron had sought end-user input.  Gun-wise cops and police instructors such as Dave Spaulding were flown to the Springfield, Massachusetts plant and solicited for input as they worked with the prototypes.  Bergeron listened, and implemented recommendations.

Example One: The Iowa State Patrol, looking to trade in their tired S&W 4046 pistols, wanted a more modern polymer handgun firing the same .40 S&W round. They acquired three test samples of the M&P.  One suffered repeated feed failures.

The matter was reported to Bergeron, who set about tweaking the design. The problem was cured. ISP adopted the .40 M&P and is in the process of phasing them onto the street at this writing. The author has heard of no such feed problems with M&Ps since.

Example Two: Aware that a straight-thumbs grasp of the duty pistol had made the jump from IPSC competition into law enforcement training, and likewise aware that with some pistols (such as the Beretta and the SIG-Sauer) this grasp over-rode and deactivated the slide stop, Bergeron and his crew originally designed the ambi slide stops of the M&P in a low-profile configuration which, to boot, was shielded by a small outcropping of polymer.

Unfortunately, the part had now become so small and deeply hidden that it was no longer accessible to a thumb that was trying to use it to close the slide.

This writer and others noticed it immediately and brought it to Bergeron’s attention. This was one of the first “fixes” to be incorporated into the ongoing design.  By summer of 2006, M&Ps were coming through with fully functional ambidextrous slide stop/slide release levers.  The current units seem to be, like Mama Bear’s porridge, “just right.” The straight thumbs hold does not over-ride, yet right-handers and lefties alike can easily and deftly lock the slide open for inspection, or thumb the slide release lever down to achieve the fastest possible speed reload.

Example Three: This writer’s initial T&E sample M&P was one of the first .40s to leave the factory. It functioned perfectly when properly grasped, but when deliberately “limp-wristed” as by an officer with an arm injury, it would constantly malfunction with chamber misfeeds.  The writer left a voicemail for Bergeron on the matter, and others doubtless touched bases with him on it as well.  Before long, a colleague received another test sample, deliberately fired it with limp, relaxed hold, and was unable to induce a stoppage.  This seems to be the way all of the M&Ps have come through since, in both 9mm and .40 S&W.

Example Four: Early test samples of the M&P exhibited inconsistent trigger pulls. Shot One would have a crisp break, Shot Two might feel heavier, and on Shot Three the trigger might feel as if it was dragging.  This appears to have been, no pun intended, smoothed out at the S&W factory. The last several M&Ps inspected by this writer have all shown consistent trigger pulls.

Example Five: Smith & Wesson originally announced that the new pistol would be available in four calibers: 9mm Luger, .40 S&W, .357 SIG, and .45 ACP.  The .40 was the first to be offered to the market, and as noted above, problems were addressed and cured as soon as they reared their heads.  By the time the 9mm came out, the platform had been thoroughly tested for the smaller caliber.

The 9mm M&P has been winning IDPA matches for S&W factory team members Ernest Langdon and Julie Goloski, both former national champions in the game. David McDonald of Team Blackhawk is kicking butt with his .40 M&P in competition. Other shooters are also doing well with the Military & Police autos, usually in 9mm.  This speaks well of the engineering and beta testing that went into the 9mm version before it “hit the street.”  A major Ohio police department has adopted the 9mm M&P as standard issue, having placed an order for guns numbering in four figures, and also reports no problems.

Beta testing is now taking place with the .357 SIG version. It is something of an oversimplification to state that this cartridge is simply a .40 S&W necked down to 9mm. Some manufacturers who produced multiple models in .40 have decided not to market the same guns in .357 SIG. S&W produced the Sigma briefly in the caliber, then discontinued it, returning to 9mm Luger and .40 S&W as calibers of choice. Homeland Security testing resulted in the approval of the HK pistol in 9mm, .40, and .357 SIG, but of SIG’s own models in 9mm and .40 only.  Joe Bergeron tells me that, so far, testing of the .357 M&P is progressing with excellent results.

The .45 ACP version of the Military & Police exists only in prototype at this writing. It will probably be slightly thicker through the slide than the other three chamberings, but otherwise will differ little in appearance.  Having proven to “shoot soft” in its first two calibers, there is no reason to believe that the combination of impact-absorbing polymer frame and low bore axis will not likewise tame the powerful .45 ACP cartridge when it is offered on this platform.  Again, it’s proof that S&W is going carefully with each new variation of the M&P, and acting immediately upon any shortcomings found in factory experimentation or field-testing.

With a large US military contract for .45 ACP pistols coming up, S&W will keep a particular eye on the development of their newest .45. At least one version of the contract reportedly calls for a manual safety.  As witness the Taurus Millennium and 24/7 pistols, it should be no problem to incorporate an ergonomic frame-mounted thumb safety on a striker-fired, polymer-frame pistol such as the S&W Military & Police.

Perfection is Hard to Attain

As diligently as S&W has pursued the ideal of perfect function with their new pistol, it has still eluded the M&P design in some small ways. The wavy, sharp-edged grasping grooves on the slide made operation quick and positive when the gun is in hand. However, at least one user found that when the gun was carried in deep concealment in a belly band next to bare skin, the sharp edges of the slide cuts abraded him unmercifully. He told this writer that two hours into a day shift, he called home to his wife to bring him a Glock in the same caliber at work.

The M&P is clearly chasing the Glock pistol, and one of the Glock’s strongest points in the field has proven to be the virtual invulnerability of its TeniferTM finish.  Tenifer cannot be applied to pistols in the United States, and the S&W M&P is a “made in USA” product.  Therefore, S&W finishes it with MeloniteTM, which has been called an American analog to Tenifer.

This claim has not yet been definitively established.  I know one purchaser of a .40 M&P who wore his new Smith next to his bare skin in an inside the waistband holster that did not shield the rear of the slide from body contact, and in one day of hot Southern summer produced rust in the slide grooves.

Summary

The Smith & Wesson Military & Police semiautomatic pistol is a very young gun, but the maturity and functionality of its design has been greatly hastened by a company policy of closely monitoring field reports and immediately acting upon any genuine shortcoming in design or execution.  This is an extremely positive sign from the manufacturer.  It bodes well for this particular new product, and for future offerings from Smith & Wesson.

Gun Review: Taurus PT 24/7 OSS DS

By
Kevin D. Michalowski
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When Taurus originally came out with the 24/7 line, everyone talked about the ergonomics, light weight and wonderful grip. Now the Taurus 24/7 OSS DS offers all these features plus a longer barrel and sight radius – and the new double strike feature lets you simply pull the trigger again on a misfire.

When Taurus originally came out with the 24/7 line, everyone talked about the ergonomics, light weight and wonderful grip.  Now we have some more to talk about. The 24/7 OSS DS, offers all these features plus a longer barrel and sight radius and the new double strike feature lets you simply pull the trigger again on a misfire.

Now there are two schools of thought on this: One is that any misfire should be immediately met with a malfunction drill. The other is if you can quickly pull the trigger once more and make the gun go “bang” you’ve just saved that three-quarters of a second it takes to “tap, rack and roll.”  I’ll go for the double-strike option any time. If the firing pin hits the primer twice without a result, I’ll look for cover and run the malfunction drill.

But there was something else I liked about the Taurus: The orange magazine follower. Yes, that’s right, ORANGE. And I now think all magazine followers on all fighting pistols should be orange. This visual indicator of an empty magazine is outstanding. It is especially good in a training situations when you are checking or clearing a weapon.

Getting on with the real meat of a gun test, the OSS was a dream to shoot. With 15 rounds of .40 S&W on top of that orange follower, there was lots of shooting to be done. The long slide and comfortable design of the OSS made rapid fire accurate and fun.

When I moved over to the .45 ACP model, I noticed the magazine followers were not orange and therefore should be fixed, but I also noticed that the guns came with a magazine-loading tool for a reason. Even though the .45 ACP holds 12 rounds and the .40 S&W holds 15, getting that final round of .45 in the magazine was something of a chore. The loading tool really helped.

Shooting the .45 was every bit as comfortable and enjoyable as the .40 S&W, though I tended to shoot the .45 quite a bit low. I’ll chalk that up to my 6 o’clock hold on the target. A dead-center hold seemed to work better.

All in all, both guns are worth a look if you want a long-slide model with plenty of firepower.

If you want to get your hands on a Taurus PT24/7 OSS DS, check out www.taurususa.com.

Senator John McCain and Gun Owners: A Strained Relationship

By
Brian McCombie
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You might have assumed that the National Rifle Association’s (NRA) recent endorsement of Arizona Senator John McCain ( R ) for president was a slam dunk, especially given the anti-gun record of his opponent, Illinois Senator Barack Obama (D).  Yet, while the NRA is definitely opposed to Obama, its relationship with McCain has been a difficult one, even with the endorsement.

Speaking about McCain’s record, NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre told the Associated Press, “He’s cast more than 60 votes in the Senate in support of the Second Amendment.”

In a prepared statement, LaPierre added, “John McCain has more than two decades of pro-gun and pro-hunting votes in Congress. He has stood time and again to preserve our Second Amendment freedom and our rich hunting heritage.”

All good.  So why the friction? Well, as the National Journal reported in September,  “One of the biggest battles McCain has had was with the National Rifle Association. He sponsored legislation requiring background checks at guns shows and a bill to tighten campaign finance laws, including restrictions on issue ads by third-party groups in the waning days of an election.  Those stances earned McCain a ‘C+’ rating from the group in his 2004 re-election race after previously consistent ‘A’ grades in past races.”

“We have had two disagreements with John McCain on gun shows and campaign finance. However, we like to examine everyone’s record in its entirety,” NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam told the National Journal.

Certainly, McCain helped his cause when he picked Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as his vice presidential running mate.

As Newsweek reported, “Like many Alaskans…Palin is a lifelong hunter and strong proponent of Second Amendment rights. A longtime member of the National Rifle Association, she told USA Today when she was running for governor as a Republican in 2006 that, ‘We hunt as much as we can, and I’m proud to say our freezer is full of wild game we harvested here in Alaska.’”

In addition, “Palin publicly applauded the Supreme Court’s recent 5-4 ruling in District of Columbia vs. Heller that struck down the District’s 32-year-old ban on handguns.”

So, too, did McCain, who used the Court’s decision to publicly affirm that the Second Amendment was an individual civil right.

Yet, that did not sway the Montana Shooting Sports Association, which endorsed Ron Paul over John McCain and Barack Obama.  McCain, though, received a backhanded sort of endorsement.

According to the Associated Press, “The group gave Republican John McCain a D in its scorecard. [Democrat] Obama got an F. Paul, on the ballot under the Constitution Party banner in Montana, got a A from the group.  But the MSSA says ‘pragmatic’ voters should choose McCain, because he is not as bad on gun issues as Obama.”

Meanwhile, Gun Owners of America (GOA) remained unconvinced on McCain.  As John Velleco, GOA’s Director of Federal Affairs, wrote, McCain flip-flopped on gun control during his 2000 presidential run, when he spoke in favor of banning so-called “Saturday Night Special” handguns.

In addition, McCain, “entertained the idea of supporting the ‘assault weapons’ ban. His flirtation with anti-Second Amendment legislation quickly led to a political marriage of convenience with [the anti-gun group Americans for Gun Safety.]  Within months of the formation of AGS, McCain was featured in radio and television ads in Colorado and Oregon supporting initiatives to severely regulate gun shows and register gun buyers. Anti-gunners were ecstatic to get McCain on board.”

According to Velleco, “In fact, as recently as 2004, McCain was able to force a vote on a gun show amendment…John McCain tried running for president in 2000 as an anti-gunner. This year it appears he is seeking to ‘come home’ to the pro-gun community, but the wounds are deep and memories long.”

Yet, no presidential election is run in a vacuum.  McCain, after all, is running against someone.

As NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam told the National Journal.  “McCain has a solid pro-gun voting record. There are two disagreements. You [have to] contrast that with Barack Obama’s record, which is a consistent record of voting against gun rights, hunting rights and even self defense.”

To read Part 1 of this special election series The Senator from Illinois, Click Here.
To read Part 3, Key Federal Races, Click Here
To read Part 4, State & Local Issues, Click Here

SOURCES:

McCain NRA AP 10/9/08:
https://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5gNHyi-Dusche-SUEbzEpf4fY9JtQD93MVT5G0

NRA La Pierre statement,  McCain, RTT 10/9/08:
https://www.rttnews.com:80/Content/PoliticalNews.aspx?Node=B1&Id=736854

McCain NRA National Journal 9/2/08:
https://www.nationaljournal.com/conventions/co_20080902_1482.php

Palin, Newsweek 8/29/08:
https://www.newsweek.com/id/156276

MT group, AP story on KPAX-TV.com, 9/12/08:
https://www.kpax.com:80/Global/story.asp?S=8999567

GOA McCain:
https://www.goapvf.org/mccain.htm

The 2008 Elections Part I: The Senator From Illinois

By
Brian McCombie
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0

When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled, in the Heller case, that the Second Amendment was an individual right, Illinois senator and Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama was quick to voice his support for the ruling. Throughout his campaign, in fact, Obama has maintained his support for gun owners and their right to keep and bear arms. Yet there’s a troubling pattern when it comes to Obama and his views on guns and gun control; a pattern that has alarmed gun owners and groups such as the National Rifle Association.

For example, when he was running for the Illinois State Senate in 1996, Obama filled out a questionnaire distributed by the Independent Voters of Illinois–Independent Precinct Organization. Among the questions asked, according to the New York Sun, was one about gun control.

“It asked candidates if they ‘support state legislation to … ban the manufacture, sale and possession of handguns,’” the Sun reported. “Mr. Obama’s typed response was, ‘Yes.’ His [presidential] campaign later said a staffer filled out the form and unintentionally misrepresented Mr. Obama’s position.”

“I have never favored an all-out ban on handguns,” Obama said when confronted with the questionnaire.

Yet Lois and Alan Dobry, board members of Independent Voters of Illinois, remembered it all differently. They actually “interviewed Obama when he submitted the questionnaire,” Bloomberg reported. “It is inconceivable, they said, that he was unaware of the answers, which he defended.”

“He was unequivocal,” Alan Dobry said of Obama’s support for a handgun ban.

More recently, Obama was asked about his views on concealed carry. At the time, Obama was campaigning in Pennsylvania, soon before that state’s presidential primary. According to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Obama’s response to that question was, “I am not in favor of concealed weapons. I think that creates a potential atmosphere where more innocent people could (get shot during) altercations.”

Then there’s Obama’s now-infamous quote, uttered at a fund-raising event. While describing small towns and rural areas of the country that have experienced difficult economic times, Obama said, “And it’s not surprising then they get bitter, they cling to guns or religion, or antipathy to people who aren’t like them, or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.”

That supposed “bitterness” of gun owners has become a campaign issue. According to ABC News, The National Rifle Association has “announced it is firing away at the Democratic presidential candidate with a cache of TV and radio ads.”

Two of the ads focused on votes Obama took previously or positions the senator has said he supports. They included a vote for a federal bill that “would have expanded the definition of ‘armor-piercing’” ammunition, and in the process banned nearly all big-game hunting ammunition. Also, there’s Obama’s assertion, in a 2004 Senate debate, that the Clinton-era assault weapons ban should be renewed.

A third ad, “Way of Life,” featured Scott Siefert, a Michigan farmer, who referred to Obama’s line from that fund-raiser.

“Because I believe in traditional American values, go to church and exercise my right to own a firearm,” Siefert said, “Barack Obama says I’m bitter. Well I’m not bitter, I’m blessed.”

Last, Obama’s choice for a vice-presidential running mate was not one to curry favor with gun owners: Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del.

“The Delaware senator’s grade from the NRA is a big, fat ‘F,’ based on votes to retain the ‘assault weapons’ ban, impose background checks on private sales by individuals at gun shows and [for voting against easing] … lawsuits against gun manufacturers,” the Examiner noted. “This is not a guy who’s enthusiastic about the individual right to self-defense.”

At a Charleston, S.C., debate in July, when Biden was vying for the presidential race, a video clip from a Michigan man asked this question: “To all the candidates, tell me your position on gun control, as myself and other Americans really want to know if our babies are safe.”

According to Politico, the man then “picked up what appeared to be a semiautomatic assault rifle” and said, “This is my baby, purchased under the 1994 gun ban. Please tell me your views. Thank you.”

Biden’s response?

“I’ll tell you what, if that is his baby, he needs help,” Biden said. “I don’t know that he is mentally qualified to own that gun.”

To read Part 2 of this special election series McCain and Gun Owners, A Strained Relationship, Click Here.
To read Part 3, Key Federal Races, Click Here
To read Part 4, State & Local Issues, Click Here

Gun Digest is the national bi-weekly source for firearms news, pricing and guns for sale. Our in-depth editorial, exclusive price guide and new product features, brings valuable information to our high profile subscribers. Subscribe Now!

Hands On! Alpen Apex Binoculars Great for Duty Use

By
Kevin D. Michalowski
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0

Vickie Gardner, vice president of Alpen Outdoor Corporation, often tells people, “If you don’t want to throw your binoculars to someone else, you paid too much for them.”

Well, Gardner has good news for those who carry binoculars in hunting trucks, police cruisers, DNR trucks and on water patrols. The Alpen APEX binos, Model 495 offer 10×42 magnification in an amazingly small and tough package and the BAK4 glass and prism design bring startling clarity for a binocular that retails for about $350.  The folks at www.binoculars.com have this to say about Alpen products: “Alpen products feature the latest ergonomic designs, finest-quality glass and optical coatings, and cutting-edge technological advancements. Add Alpen’s exceptional customer service and lifetime product warranty, and it’s clear why Alpen products are all the rage in sports optics.”

All the rage? That’s likely because these are compact binoculars that provide bright, clear images and take the kind of punishment people other than birdwatchers dish out to their gear. The Apex binoculars weigh in at just 24 ounces and are waterproof and fogproof. The roof-prism design makes for a slim profile and the 304-foot field of view at 1,000 yards gives you a good look at distant objects. These binoculars provide all the durability and clarity of glass that costs twice the price. They will serve your needs.

If you want to get your hands on a pair of Alpen binoculars, check out www.alpenoutdoor.com.

 

Gun Digest is the national bi-weekly source for firearms news, pricing and guns for sale. Our in-depth editorial, exclusive price guide and new product features, brings valuable information to our high profile subscribers. Subscribe Now!

Cowboy Up: Cowboy Action Shooting Primer

By
Dave Morelli
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0

A brief primer on cowboy action shooting, partner. The gun writer with no name gives today’s gun fighters a run for their money.

Spring is when I get the cowboy shooting stuff in order.

The cowboys around here shoot all year, but the challenges of winter wind and sub-freezing temperatures make me think about more pleasant shooting in spring. Plus, cowboy shoots have more participants as the weather warms, and people are one of the biggest pleasures of cowboy action shooting.

You will have a difficult time finding a better caliber (pun intended) of people than cowboy shooters, and I look forward to shooting with these folks as much as I like levering rounds through my favorite Winchester.

Here’s a brief primer on cowboy action shooting.

The Cowboy Scene

Cowboy action shooting is governed by the Single Action Shooting Society (SASS), which has sanctioned shoots divided into many categories. Aside from various shooting styles, there’s a division between black-powder shooters and smokeless-powder participants.

According to the SASS handbook, 12th edition, smokeless categories include Traditional, Modern, Duelist and Gunfighter. Black-powder categories are Frontier Cartridge, Frontiersman and Classic Cowboy/Cowgirl.  The B Western Category is like the open division, with flashy and fancy costumes.

There are also age divisions in cowboy action shooting. Juniors are 16 or younger, and are divided into Young Guns, 14 to 16, and Buckaroos, 13 and younger. Forty-Niners are 49 and older, seniors 60 and older, and Elder Statesmen/Grand Dames are 70 and older. There are also divisions for women.

Costuming is important at a cowboy match, and competitors must wear authentic garb throughout the shoot and ceremonies. It’s unique to the sport and part of the fun. No Cordura or nylon — only natural materials like cotton and lots of leather.

Get Your Six-Guns!

To get started in cowboy action shooting, you need two pistols, a rifle and a shotgun. The pistols must be single-action six shooters, and the type of sights will decide whether you shoot traditional or modern.

According to the rulebook, pistols with adjustable sights place you in the modern category. The Traditional category requires the blade for a front sight and a notch or slit in the frame or hammer for a rear sight.

Revolvers must be centerfire from .32 to .45 caliber and in common revolver calibers. Participants in the Buckaroo Category, for the youngest shooters, can use .22 rimfire calibers.

The rulebook lists the legal revolver for each shooting category, so if you’re just getting into the sport, that can help you decide which gun to choose. I’ve always liked traditional-type revolvers, which have fixed rear sights. I shoot in the Gunfighter category, and a traditional revolver is required for that.

The main revolver emulated in cowboy matches is the Colt Peacemaker Model 1873. Many shooters use Remington or Paterson conversions, but Colts are the one. A new-model Colt will easily cost you $1,300 or more, and you need two to compete.

Most shooters rely on modern replicas for match guns. Ruger remade the single-action-type revolver in the 1950s, and in the mad rush of cowboy shooting, the gun evolved into the Vaquero. The first Vaquero — now classified as the Old Vaquero — was replaced a few years ago by the New Vaquero.

Although it looks like a Colt Single Actions, the New Vaquero is profiled more like the Colt. The biggest difference is the grip size. The New Vaquero has a narrower grip, like the original Colt. The New Vaquero comes from the factory with a smooth trigger and opens to a chamber for reload stages.

The Vaquero differs from Colts in that the flat springs have been redesigned with coil springs, and the hammer is protected with a transfer bar. I have shot two Old Model Vaqueros with 4.625-inch barrels for about 10 years, and they are still going strong.

The transfer bar makes the revolver safe for six-shot carry. SASS rules dictate that only five rounds can be loaded in the revolver, and the hammer must rest on an empty chamber. That is for safety, as some shooters use original Colts and replicas that are not safe with six rounds. You can recognize the transfer bar by the profile of the hammer, because it doesn’t have the firing pin attached. Many modern replica manufacturers are switching to the transfer bar. Examples include Taurus’ Gaucho and Beretta’s Stampede.

The Italians gave us Spaghetti Westerns and excellent-quality old West replica handguns. Uberti and Pedersoli make excellent rifles and handguns, and several companies import these guns and then add special features to them. Cimarron, EMF Co., Taylor and Sons and Navy Arms import several varieties of revolvers that mimic old Colts but are much less expensive.

They also produce Schofield-type revolvers and replicas of some early conversions. Many cap-and-ball revolvers of yesteryear were converted to cartridges so folks could use existing parts and frames to meet the new technology. You might check out replicas of those guns if you wanted to emulate that time period.

Holstering revolvers in period-correct or B-Western style is also important. Leather will make or break your look. You can find leather in all price ranges, and it doesn’t hurt to start with less-expensive stuff until you determine your style and shooting category.

If you shoot Traditional or Duelist, you might want to go with a cross-draw for your second revolver, unless you plan to use a border-shift technique (drawing your weak-hand gun with your weak hand, shifting it to your strong hand to shoot and then returning it in reverse order).

If you shoot Gunfighter events, you will likely want a right-and-left holster, with the top of the gun forward on both. When I shoot a Traditional or Duelist match, I border-shift my weak hand gun.

Rifles at the Ready

The rifle is probably the most romantic weapon of the old West. The lever gun is the symbol of the West and is still a tactically sound defensive rifle. With a little practice, you can fire a lever carbine as quickly as you can line up the next target. Some shooters are so fast that their brass lines up on the side of the rifle just like with a semiautomatic.

Rifle selection depends on the category you intend to shoot. In general, a rifle must be a lever- or slide-action manufactured about 1860 to 1899, with a tube magazine and an exposed hammer. The calibers must be a pistol caliber for main-match shooting. The .25-20 and .56-50 are exceptions. It’s wise to have your competition pistol and rifles be the same caliber. That comes in handy when reloading ammo, as all your supplies are the same.

Experienced cowboy competitors have several favorite rifles. Early Winchesters had a toggle-action operation system, which still makes for a smooth, fast lever gun. The 1860, 1866 and 1873 Henry rifles are period correct, and the lever is as fast as on newer models. I like the 1873 iron-frame. Many shooters are putting short-stroke kits in these to decrease the travel of the lever to chamber a round. They are SASS-legal within certain specifications.

The Marlin and Winchester 1894 models are great cowboy guns. Even though the Winchester is out of production, you’ll always see a few at every shoot. It has a smooth action and is a great shooter. The Marlin is still in production, and you can’t go wrong with one of the company’s cowboy series rifles.

My club has an SASS-sanctioned Black-Powder Blow Out every spring. I normally don’t shoot black powder, but I like this match. For this, I prefer toggle models, such as the 1873, because they are simple to take apart.

In black-powder matches, there’s a good chance you will have to hose out the action between stages, as it might foul up and make the lever difficult to work. Also, this makes cleaning the gun after the match easier, as complete disassembly is easy.

I shoot smokeless and black powder in my 1873, but you must not use smokeless loads with pressures that are too high. I shoot the same smokeless load in my rifle as my pistol, which produces about 750 feet per second with Hogdgon TiteGroup.

Shotguns, Too

Shotguns are also category-specific for some shooters. Generally, folks use any side-by-side or single-barrel shotgun from 1860 to 1899 without automatic ejectors. Guns can be box-lock or external-hammer guns with single or double triggers.

Lever-action, single-barrel, tube-feed exposed-hammer guns of the period are OK, but the only slide-action allowed is the 1897 Winchester original or replica. Various categories require that only certain shotguns can be used. For example, the Frontiersman category requires a side-by-side or lever-action shotgun. All guns are shot with black powder.

Until recently, you could find an original shotgun for a good price. I just found a smoking deal on GunBroker.com for an original 1897 from 1905. I had to remove a poly choke and reface the barrel, but it was well worth the time. It’s very cool to shoot matches with an original gun. (That goes for pistols and rifles, too.)

Stoeger is still a good choice for double-barreled shotguns, and the Chinese make 1897 replicas that are a less expensive option than originals. Remington markets some inexpensive doubles that are good for cowboys.

Shotguns can only be loaded with two rounds at a time. That keeps pumps equal with doubles. Also, it’s wise to have a spare shotgun, especially if you travel far to shoot. Some originals are finicky and can break down. The same goes for the newer replicas.

One thing about cowboys is there will always be folks that let you borrow a gun to finish a match, even if you shoot better than they do. It’s the cowboy way.

Cowboy Practice

I have always shot in the Gunfighter class, except when I just wanted to do something different. My mentors always told me to practice with my weak hand, and I stress this to my students, too.

Shooting as a gunfighter has made me do that. Plus, it’s cool to shoot like gunfighters in the movies. The biggest problem I had is lining up the sights. Now, no matter the type of gun I’m shooting, my scores are better with both hands because I’ve trained my eye to go from gun to gun.

I live pretty far from any practice matches, so I don’t get to practice as much as I’d like. However, Action Targets makes some high-quality steel targets suitable for cowboy shooting. Cut them in round or cowboy configurations.

DS Welding also makes targets, including the Original Bird/Can Thrower, which is a shotgun target. I missed a similar pop-up target during a match once. By practicing more, the pop-up is dead meat.

Having a few targets around keeps me in shape when I can’t make it to practice matches.
Action Target also has a new hostage target that’s a silhouette plate with a 4- or 5-inch rotating target that goes back and forth when hit in the disc of the head. That gives a cowboy shooter a big, fast, precision target. It’s a fun, challenging addition to a cowboy shoot.

All cowboy matches require all-lead bullets. You can mold your own, but with companies such as LaserCast and Meister around, I don’t bother. It gives me more time to pour lead for my buffalo gun.

Give it a Try

Cowboy shooting is one of the fastest-growing shooting sports, and it’s easy to see why. It’s more fun than a tree full of young hoot owls. Shooting guns has been a part of my work for years, and to get dressed up like a cowboy, mountain man or B-Western hero and shoot guns in old West scenarios with like-minded grown-up adolescents is just plain fun. In fact, that’s the whole idea behind cowboy shooting — having fun.

Gun Review: S&W 317 AirLite

By
Editor Dan Shideler
-
1
The Smith & Wesson AirLite achieves its remarkable 9.9-oz. weight through a combination of carbon steel, aluminum and Titanium alloys. The author says the gun feels like it's made of molded styrofoam.
The Smith & Wesson AirLite achieves its remarkable 9.9-oz. weight through a combination of carbon steel, aluminum and Titanium alloys. The author says the gun feels like it’s made of molded styrofoam.

Innovations in firearms — real innovations — almost seem to be a thing of the past, don’t they?

I mean, imagine for a moment this is 1910. In the past five years, you would have witnessed the introduction of the Browning Auto-5, the first successful semiauto shotgun; the Remington Model 8, the first successful semiauto high-power rifle; and the Standard Model G, the first gas-operated autoloading rifle. What’s more, the Colt Model 1911 pistol and Winchester Model 12 pump shotgun would be just around the corner.

What a great time to be a shooter. Every day, it seemed, one of the big companies came out with something truly new and extraordinary.

It’s different today, of course. Today we work ourselves into a lather about this new cartridge, that new frame alloy, this new camo pattern or that new laser sight. Nothing wrong with that; these are improvements, and we’re properly appreciative of them. But true innovations — that kind that make you go all squishy inside — are few indeed.

My last squishy moment came in Fall 1997 at the old Bristol Sporting Goods store in northern Indiana. My mother had just died, and I was looking for a little trifle to distract my father from his troubles. All of a sudden, there it was in front of me: a brand-new Smith & Wesson Model 317 AirLite .22 snubbie.

Feeling Squishy

I had heard Smith & Wesson had introduced some new super-lightweight revolver but hadn’t actually seen one yet. I suppose I was expecting something like the old 15-ounce Colt Cobra, but when the guy behind the counter handed the AirLite to me, my first reaction was, “You gotta be kidding.”

This couldn’t possibly be a real gun — it was more like those super-loud Wasp capguns we had when I was a child; the ones that took plastic caps molded in a round, red little ringlet.

That little J-frame has now passed from my father back to me. In fact, it’s sitting on my desk as I write this, and my reaction is the same as when I first laid eyes on it: You gotta be kidding. It’s an early one with a serial number lower than 2,000, and it pretty much matches its description that appeared in the catalog section of the 1999 Gun Digest:

Smith & Wesson Model 317 AirLite, 317 LadySmith Revolvers.
Caliber: .22 LR, eight-shot.
Barrel: 1-7/8 inches.
Weight: 9.9 ounces.
Length: 6-3/16 inches overall.
Stock: Dymondwood Boot or Uncle Mike’s Boot.
Sights: serrated ramp front, fixed notch rear.
Features: aluminum alloy, carbon and stainless steels, and titanium construction. Short spur hammer, smooth combat trigger. Clear Cote finish. Introduced 1997. Made in U.S. by Smith & Wesson.
Price: With Uncle Mike’s Boot grip: $451.
Price: With Dymondwood Boot grip: $484.
Price: Model 317 LadySmith (Dymondwood only, comes with display case): $505.

I still have the receipt for my Model 317, and it says I paid $449 for it — nearly full retail. I never buy guns for anything near the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, so I must have been very impressed with the AirLite. I still am, come to think of it.

Remarkable Combination

Many have rightfully questioned the usefulness of an 8-shot .22 LR revolver. Aside from their effectiveness as a self-defense gun, the author sees value for the savvy collector.
Many have rightfully questioned the usefulness of an 8-shot .22 LR revolver. Aside from their effectiveness as a self-defense gun, the author sees value for the savvy collector.

Gun Digest must have been asleep at the switch in 1996 and 1997. It didn’t get around to mentioning the AirLite in print until the 1999 edition, and that was limited to a single sentence in the “Handguns Today” section by Hal Swiggett:

“[At the SHOT Show], the one that caught my eye was the Model 317 AirLite, an eight-shot .22 with 2-inch barrel, weighing only 9.9 ounces.”

In my opinion, the AirLite rated much more of a hullabaloo than that; maybe something on the order of a 72-point banner headline screaming: “S&W INTRODUCES LIGHTEST DA REVOLVER EVER!”

That’s pretty much what the AirLite was. Its most similar predecessor was the old aluminum-framed, nine-shot Hi-Standard Sentinel .22 snubby, which came in at around 16 ounces with a 2-inch barrel.

The Sentinel was a great gun (notwithstanding its tendency to shoot high at almost any distance), but compared to the AirLite, it was a bloated heavyweight.

The AirLite achieved its remarkable weight by a combination of carbon steel (barrel, hammer and trigger) and aluminum or titanium alloys (everything else), plus strategically placed milled-out areas (grip strap and trigger guard). In all, it adds up — or subtracts down — to a revolver that feels like it’s made of molded Styrofoam.

Early as it is, my M317 didn’t come from the first production run. According to Supica & Nahas in Standard Catalog of Smith & Wesson (Krause Publications, naturally), the earliest Model 317s carried a serial number prefix of “ULT,” which was followed quickly by the “LGT” prefix. The Model 317-1 designation was used for the still-later adjustable-sight versions and a very rare 2-inch snubby with a stainless-steel barrel manufactured in 2000. Only 120 of those were made, so it’s the rarest of the AirLites. (If you find one, buy it. Better yet, tell me where I can buy it.)

Mixed Reviews

Current opinion of the M317 AirLite is mixed. It’s one of those love-it-or-hate-it things. I love it, of course. Others find fault with its sleeved barrel; plastic-looking Clear Cote finish; short, sharp hammer spur, which makes single-action operation uncomfortable at best; and its stippled serial and model number on the crane recess and butt.

Still others say the Model 317 AirLite is a gun without a purpose.

“What good is an eight-shot, fixed-sight .22 snubby?” they ask.

That’s a pretty good question, one for which I have no ready answer. The AirLite is a descendant of the original Model 34 Kit Gun, which in my opinion is probably the finest, most gracefully economical .22 revolver ever built. The original Kit Gun, as you will recall, had an adjustable rear sight, even in its 2-inch version — quite a desirable feature if you shoot a variety of .22 ammo and really like to dial ’em in there.

Smith & Wesson must have recognized that right off the bat, because in 1998, it introduced the Model 317 AirLite Kit Gun, an adjustable-sight version of the original AirLite with a 3-inch barrel. So where does that leave the plain old M317 AirLite?

The only possible answer is that it was intended as a supremely portable self-defense bellygun. This supposition is supported by the AirLite’s combat grips and bobbed hammer spur. It even has a crosspin for a lanyard concealed in the outline of its grip frame, I suppose if you literally wanted to tie one on.

Shideler would prefer a .32, .38 or .45 ACP for personal defense, but if he had to use the S&W AirLite .22 LR he would grab some Aguila 60-grain .22 SSS, or Sniper Sub-Sonic (left).
Shideler would prefer a .32, .38 or .45 ACP for personal defense, but if he had to use the S&W AirLite .22 LR he would grab some Aguila 60-grain .22 SSS, or Sniper Sub-Sonic (left).

Regrettably, any discussion of the AirLite as a self-defense gun begins and ends with its .22 LR chambering. I’m a big believer in the .22 LR, but if I knew I’d need a defense gun in the next two minutes, I’d reach for a .38 Special or, at a minimum, a .32 ACP (and that’s assuming a .45 Colt is out of reach). The AirLite must have been intended for a consumer who prefers revolvers, believes in the stopping power of eight .22 LRs, will be shooting only at combat distances or puts light weight above any other characteristic. That’s a pretty skinny demographic.

If I were to carry the AirLite as a defense gun, I’d probably stoke it full of the Aguila 60-grain (that’s right, 60-grain) .22 SSS Sniper Sub-Sonic .22 LR ammo rather than something like a CCI stinger. I don’t really trust any of the hyper-velocity .22s to expand reliably out of a 2-inch barrel, but I’m pretty sure that Aguila’s 60-grainer would burrow in pretty deep.

Or maybe S&W introduced the AirLite just to show the world only it could build a 9.9-ounce revolver. If that was the case, well all right then. It’s a good enough reason for me, but the fact remains that I don’t see many first-generation Model 317 Airlites, new or used, floating around out there. To me, that’s one earmark of a sleeper-in-waiting.

How does the AirLite shoot? Who cares? It’s a belly gun, so you’re pretty sure to hit any belly you’re aiming at, especially if that belly, like mine, resembles something that blew up in Lakehurst, N.J., in 1937. Oh, the humanity.

The Current Scene

The Model 317 AirLite still exists in the S&W lineup in the form of the original 2-inch, fixed-sight bellygun, and as an updated kit gun with a 3-inch barrel, adjustable rear sight and HI-VIZ front sight. Both versions have the now-familiar-but-nevertheless-ugly S&W safety lock just above the cylinder release. Suggested retail is $672 and $735, respectively (ouch). Street pricing runs from five to six big bills. (Ouch again.)

I’m the last person to suggest that you should run out and buy a brand-new AirLite for $500 or $600. But if you’re offered a good deal on one, you might consider it. If nothing else, it’s the finest cap gun ever made.

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