Thoughts On Christmas, And Other 2014 Events.

I'm laying on my bed, propped up on pillows as I type this on my iPad. This "cold" I have is now on its sixteenth day of making my life less than pleasurable. Whatever "strain" this thing morphed into, it is kicking my butt. I don't get sick. Well...there are usually very long time lapses between my illnesses. In fact, I can't remember the last time something forced me to lay in bed for a day. This malady did just that about 10 days ago. Anyway, I'm on the mends, but the cough is very persistent.

Christmas is five days away, and I was thinking about how quickly this year has past and how many changes have taken place since last Yule time. Some happy, some sad, some joyus, others, not so much so.

Here are some events, stream of thought; I have added some really nice pieces to my firearm collection. I retired last May after thirty-five years in manufacturing. My oldest son had a baby boy in June. My wife had her knee replaced. One of our hunting crew members was diagnosed with a very bad case of cancer (He is an ex-military, Vietnam helicopter gunner, and sprayer of "Agent Orange"). My Apple stock split seven ways (Nice! Bought the original shares in 1989). My youngest son and his daughter had a miscarriage (Very sad), but they are "trying" again. Samuel Colt's factory, here in the Hartford area, and his surrounding property, has just been designated a National Historical Park. There were more, but that is enough to ruminate about for now.

I hope to be part of that National Park in some way. I am going to try to volunteer on the project, and help in any way I can. It will be years in the making and rebuilding, but it is woefully overdue, and will help the area immensely. Mr. Browning spend many, many days in and around Hartford as he engineered, built, modified and tested his designs in the famous "Blue Onion Domed" Colt factory.

I hope to be a big part of my grandson's life's as well. I hope to be a bigger part of my hunting brother's life, who is battling that bastard disease. I hope I never need a knee replaced. I was truly amazed how well my wife went through that. She endured what must have been a great deal of pain, and made it seem almost pain free to me. Amazing. That's why the dear Lord gave women the task of birthing. The fairer sex's ability to withstand pain is mind blowing.

Well, the cough medicine is kicking in now (narcotic), so I think it best to draw this missive to a close. Merry Christmas to one and all. I sincerely hope everyone fares well in 2015, and I further wish your dreams and fondest desires are realized.

Shoot straight, and do the right thing.

Gaff

The Six Sided Echo And The Set Screw

4:59:45 PM. I touched off the eight inches of waterproof fuse. Fifteen seconds later, it ignited the one hundred grains of Pyrodex in my eighty-eight caliber cannon. The twenty-seven pound steel contrivance jumped upward and rearward against the nylon braided line securing it to the boat dock's cleats. A five foot plume of white smoke shot down the dock and the ensuing explosion caused an echo to reverberate in a seeming counterclockwise direction around the four mile long lake. Six ever diminishing echoes could be heard as the concussion hit the various hillsides, exchanging and re-exchanging the powerful low frequency sound wave. THAT was cool.

It proved to be folly to try to see how far the .875 diameter steel ball was flung into the lake. We all decided it was WAY out there. I estimated somewhere between 600 and 1000 yards.

It was young Daniel's first hunting trip. His father and a friend brought him to the North Maine Woods to hunt partridge. They were staying in a cabin up the hill from our group. Daniel heard my cannon go off at five PM sharp (dinner time). He was looking closely at the cannon at 5:01. What twelve year old would'nt be enthralled with such a loud field piece? His first question; "Did you make that?" Next; "What does it shoot?" And it went on like that for about the three minutes it took me to reload the cannon. By that time, Daniel's father and their friend arrived on scene. Their first question; "You gonna shoot that again?" "Actually, right now." was my reply. "Excellent" came out of their mouths at the same instant.

I got Daniel situated behind a large bolder directly behind the cannon about 20 feet away, and gave him the task of trying to see how far the ball went. He had returned back to his cabin and borrowed his father's binoculars when I asked him to spot the shot. He was now returned to position behind the boulder, with his ear plugs in. "This is a "Plus P" shot" I stated with authority to the assembled crowd of ten. This powder charge was one hundred and twenty grains. I lit the fuse and walked back to my "safe" location. KA-BOOM!!! Well, that was a few decibels louder, I thought to myself. "Did you see the ball hit the water Daniel?" "Nope." "Oh well, we'll try again tomorrow"; I told him. And we did just that each night for the rest of the week. The "Eighty-Eight" was a rousing success.

My new Dan Wesson 10MM Valor was a success too. It did have one hiccup. Not a failure to feed, or failure to fire, or failure to extract. The hiccup was a loose rear sight. The first two shots were in the ten ring, the next was outside the six ring, and the next was off the paper. I said to myself what the heck is going on, I can't even hit the paper? After that magazine was empty, I happened to look at the pistol, and the rear sight had moved halfway out the dovetail. Luckily, I had my calipers and hex keys in my truck. I recentered the sight, and tightened its tiny socket head set screw. New magazine, and eight hits in the ten ring. All's right with the world.

Everyone makes mistakes, and I would have to guess in their haste to ship the pistol by my "deadline", they missed tightening the rear sight. Should it have happened to a pistol costing more than a couple of grand? No. But it did, and it was not a fatal error. It was easily corrected. If the sight had fallen completely out, and then fell into the long grass and black shale...lost...well...that would be another kettle of fish. The Valor performed wonderfully. Another five hundred rounds, and it will be mostly broken in.

Oh by the way, our group managed to bag 28 partridge. Not too shabby for five old farts and a couple of thirty-something's. I think Daniel will remember my cannon for a long time. It sure made those bald eagles leave their perches when it went off. Come to think of it, the loon down the shoreline was none to pleased either. He came back every night though. Must have been good fishing in that spot.

Shoot straight, and do the right thing.

Gaff

Dreams Can Come True.

It arrived yesterday. The FedEx box showed the Kansas City address of CZ-USA as the sender. My anticipation had me childishly giddy. Really. I know, very immature, but I had been waiting since April for this Dan Wesson custom pistol. My Gun Club handled the transfer, and then, off to my shop to field strip and clean the factory oil from the 10MM, Black, "Valor" 1911.


I will be testing this new pistol and 500 rounds of 10MM ammunition this Monday and Tuesday. Bird season opens in Maine on Wednesday, the first of October. Four of my dearest friends, my two sons, my brother-in-law, and myself, leave Sunday morning for the seven to,eight hour drive from Portland, Maine, to our lakeside cabin near the Canadian border. We will be situated roughly in the middle of four and one half million acres of trees and wildlife known as the North Maine Woods. It is quite a spectacular place.

Being roughly three to four hours from the nearest hospital, with no cell service, no electricity, no running water, (you get the picture). We adhere to some very strict rules pertaining to safety. If you get seriously injured out there, you will likely die before you see a doctor. Anyway, we will be throwing lead down range from a wide variety of ordinance, and we will all be extra careful whilst doing so.

I just put the finishing touches on a .880 bore Black Powder cannon. We will use it to "announce" dinner. It should fling an .875 steel ball a good distance out into the lake. My new Dan Wesson is going to be very loud. The "88" is going to make bystanders wish they were wearing their brown boxers.

So, the dream is about to become reality. Shooting my "Dream 1911".  Its a Dan Wesson custom "Valor". It is chambered in 10MM Automatic, it has a relieved slide stop pin, Clark ribbing on the top of the slide, an enhanced magwell, tritium night sights, VZ Frag grip panels, four pound trigger pull, lowered and flared ejection port, extended magazine release, checkering on the mainspring housing and fore grip. A bunch more "standard" features too. With the pistol finished in Black "Duty Treatment", and the addition of a set of elephant ivory stocks...well...that my dear readers (if you're out there) is going to be the "bee's knees", in 1940's vernacular. For me, just perfect, really a dream.

Shoot straight, and do the right thing.

Gaff

Series 70 Government Model

You guessed it, I saw the Colt 70 series Government Model, (true USGI featured), and I had to have it. What made the purchase more inevitable, was my acquisition of a 1970's era, like new, Colt .22 LR, 1911 conversion kit. I found it on a recent trip to Florida to visit relatives. This "Colt Ace" kit allows the .45 ACP pistol to fire .22 long rifle ammo by simply removing the .45 ACP slide from the pistol, and replacing it with the .22 cal. slide assembly. Then, load 10 rounds of .22 LR into the special magazine, slip it up into the .45 cal 1911 frame, rack the slide, aim, and fire 10, .22 rounds at your intended target. Smooth as a silk stocking.

The new pistol matches the finish of the conversion kit, and makes a really nice, complete dual caliber set-up. I fitted the pistol and conversion kit into a blow-molded case last weekend. I have no complaints about the conversion kit. However, the spanking new Colt pistol disappointed me in a couple of ways. First, when I removed the slide stop to clean the factory lube from the pistol before going to the range, the frame's bluing was rubbed off in two places under the slide stop. The back side of the slide stop has a struck number "1". This stamped number was not smoothed, and it's raised edges wore (scratched) the finish off. Another surface on the back was slightly raised as well, and caused the bluing to be rubbed off. Mind you, this is fresh out of the Colt Custom Shop blue box.

Another issue, was one of the new 7 round, blued magazines furnished (2) with the pistol. It would not hold the slide open after it was empty, and refused to drop clear of the frame when the mag release was pressed. Comparing it to the other new magazine, it looked identical, yet, the other magazine worked perfectly.

The last disappointment is with the ejection of the shell casings. After firing 100 rounds of factory ball ammo through the pistol at the range, I noticed a condition that I have not seen before in any of my other 1911's. Most of the spent cartridge casings had slammed into the side of the barrel hood on their way out of the ejection port. The result was a severe flattening of the case's mouth rim.

I realize that this pistol is a true representation of the M1911A1 from the 1930's, and does not have a lowered and flared ejection port or elongated ejector like a modern 1911, but this "malfunction" would still be evident on the pistol during factory test firing, even with those modifications. I believe the ejector's front profile is causing the casing to go directly to the right upon ejection, and not upward and to the right. I also am aware that the military really could have cared less what the spent cartridges looked like. They just cared that the pistol went BANG! every time. They didn't reload, I do.

For a new pistol to come out of the custom shop, or the factory floor for that matter, with this poor ejection trajectory is a disappointment. I am a Colt fan, and own a number of Colt pistols. I don't think this pistol should have been allowed to leave the plant with this issue. I will tinker around with the extractor and ejector, and see if I can improve the ejection. Or, I may "bite the bullet" and send the pistol to Colt.

I may have to write about the Florida trip next time. There are some strange Southern folk down to Florida. Very nice mind you, just a bit strange. A fully automatic UZI made a short, 20 round appearance.

Do the right thing...

Gaff

Back To The Future

I just read an article in a military magazine that describes the US Military's recent request for quote for a new battle pistol. This pistol must have better "one shot knock-down power" than the current M9, 9mm Beretta. What? Excuse me...did I read that right? Holy-Hand Grenades, this can't be happening.

In 1985, the same military decided to replace the currently deployed CQB (Close Quarters Battle) Pistol, the much vaunted M1911 and subsequent M1911A1. It had "one shot knock-down power", and had been used successfully in four fairly large conflicts (Browning designed and redesigned it in the early years of the 1900's and up to 1910, with the intent to have something that would have dropped the Moro tribesmen that had been jacked-up on the local pain-killing chew during the Philippine-American war of 1899-1902). The Berretta won that 1985 contract because it was good, it used standard NATO 9mm ammo, and the price was right. The M1911A1 was then mothballed.

Fast forward nearly 30 years. Now, today, they want what the M1911A1 had delivered for 80 plus years. I need to put a cold compress on my aching head. These guys in the defense brain trust want a complete new platform. That's pistol, ammo, holsters, mag pouches, and accessories (suppressors, sights, special loads, etc). If any of you reading this pay taxes, I should think this might get a bit of your dander up.

I'm no Einstein, but hey! fellas, we already have the gun; and it's no "plastic fantastic" striker fired handgun. There are many, many manufacturers already tooled up to produce a new variant of Browning's Battle Pistol if that's really what you want. In addition, many 1911 pistols currently reside in military warehouses in storage crates. Did you know it's nearly impossible to get rid of anything that is stamped "United States Property" if it is still under military control. Lightning strike is about the only way I know of. Any WWI through Vietnam era pistols out on the market today were brought home by GI's. A good portion of them, against regulations. The Pentagon must have tiptoed lightly past this infringement, and let the former personnel keep their "equipment".

This is very troubling. I must digest this information further, and research the topic a bit more. I mean, I just ordered a 1911 in 10mm. Man-Oh-Man, that, is knock down power. I will post further on this when I am more enlightened on this seeming stupidity.

Shoot straight and do the right thing.

Gaff

The Other End

As I said in an earlier entry that the Colt M1911-2011 reproduction I purchased was a "bookend" to my collection of M1911's, I have recently entered an order for the other end. As you may know from reading another earlier entry, I have a couple of Dan Wesson V-Bob 45's. I decided as a retirement present to myself, to order from the Dan Wesson Custom Shop, my dream M1911...

It will be another Valor, however, not the bobbed version. This pistol will be a full size, five inch barrel. The most special feature will be the caliber. I ordered it in 10mm automatic. Valors are not offered as standard in 10mm. This caliber will send a 180 grain hollow point projectile at nearly 1,300 feet per second muzzle velocity, as compared to the 850 FPS of the .45 caliber. It is the ultimate combat/self-defense round. Other custom features will be added as well. A Clark rib on the slide will improve the slide cosmetics and provide quicker sight acquisition. Tritium night sights, checkered front strap and mainspring housing, as well as a one piece magwell for faster magazine changes. I asked that the slide stop hole be countersunk. This will allow the use of laser grips if I choose. I selected the black duty treatment finish and I will add my own elephant ivory stocks. The ultimate "modern" M1911. I think Mr. Browning would approve of these "modifications" to his design.

The Dan Wesson factory is very busy. I am told I will not have this firearm until September. As long as it arrives at my FFL before September 27, I will be happy. I want to carry this sidearm as I hunt the North Maine Woods first week in October.

I will post when it is in my hot little hands. Patience and anticipation are not my strong points. I must work on those...

Do the right thing.

Gaff

Another Pony Enters The Stable

May 1st, 2014, a day that will be retained in memory as the Royal Colt Remembrance Day. Again, perusing the glass cases filled with sidearms, I saw the second most beautiful Colt I have ever laid eyes upon. The first being the M1911 reproduction described in an earlier post.

This Colt is another limited edition (one of three hundred), I also have a Ruger Talo SR1911. This one, is a Colt/Talo edition of a series 70 Government Model. The finish is Royal Blue (Gloss Army Black), polished frame and slide, laser etched, minimalist markings, jeweled hammer and barrel port, and extraordinary stocks with inlaid silver Rampant Colt cloisonné. Oh man, a Colt Series 70, M1911A1 Government Model, and it's a beauty.

Out comes the VISA card, and home comes the pistol. This has been an expensive year for M1911 acquisitions for me. These opportunities keep foisting themselves upon me and cannot be ignored. Looking on GunBroker that evening, I saw another one of the 300 "Royals" at a bidding price of $2,200.00! Wow, I made money already (not really). No depreciation on this baby, I just got a 40% return on investment. That is really pretty sweet. I think this is another "safe queen".

I have plenty of M1911's to shoot, this one is so damned fine looking, that it will remain in factory new condition. I have not, and will not, rack the slide or drop the hammer on this pistol. That will be for another day, and perhaps another family member to do. Heirlooms are like that you know.

Shoot straight, and do the right thing...

Gaff

Well, the little spring goes in there, and goes around and around, whoa, whoa...

I may have made a mistake, or, I may have overestimated the 1985 stand-in for the M1911. I am now, the slightly less than proud owner of a Beretta 90 Series automatic pistol. I say that, because I have now owned this pistol for a few days, I have since field stripped it a couple of times, and I have felt its worth. Granted, this is not the exact pistol chosen by our military in 1985 to replace the M1911 as the standard sidearm of the US Military, but it is virtually the same design.

This Beretta, is a 96A1. It is a tactical version of the 92F, the civilian model of the military's standard M9 service pistol. The 96A1 is chambered in .40 Smith & Wesson, where most of the series 90 pistols are exclusively 9mm Luger (Parabellum). It also has a 1913 Picatinny rail dust cover that the 92F is lacking. I chose this caliber on the recommendation of my ex-military son. He carried an M9 in Afghanistan during his deployment there, in 2006.

My oldest never liked the 9mm as a pistol round, and thought the .40 S&W would perform better in the Beretta platform. He was interested in shooting the Beretta again, and I was interested in obtaining the pistol that dethroned the M1911 after nine and a half decades. My thought process lead me to believe that this pistol needed to be part of my M1911 collection, because of its winning the US military's testing of a replacement battle pistol. In fact, a Sig Sauer P226 won the contest/test, but it was "too expensive". This decision, from an entity that spends $600.00 on a claw hammer.

But I digress. I have the bloody thing now, and as God is my witness, I am not impressed. It is comfortable, it is lighter than an M1911, due largely to its forged aluminum frame. But by golly, there are a lot of little springs, and pins, and plastic, and a de-cocker, a rolling firing pin thingy, and more plastic. I look at it, field stripped, and I wonder to myself how long it would take to completely disassemble this thing. I'm thinking, a long time, a very long time. I bet those little springs are hard to find when they shoot out from their retaining place at the most unexpected time. I have not counted the parts in the exploded parts drawing yet, but I guaran-damn-tee you, it is a heck of a lot more than sixty. The M1911A1 has sixty parts, total. I can completely disassemble it in about 20 minutes (less the sights and plunger tube), with a .45 ACP cartridge and the firing pin or hammer spur.

In a previous blog entry, I said that I might purchase a Glock, to see how it compared to the M1911 in complexity. If the Austrian is anything like this Italian made pistol, well, let's just say, too much mustard for one hotdog. I will get back to you on that, in a later missive.

For now, I want my son to put 100 rounds down the pipe, then I will fire 100 rounds, then HE will clean it, I will watch, then I will put it in the safe. My opinion will need to coalesce further. Right now, as I type this, I am muddled. I need to see this gun do its thing in MY testing. I hope it does it perfectly. John Browning's design did.

Be well, and do the right thing.

Gaff

The End of the Beginning

Today was a special day.  Saint Patrick's day, March 17, the year of our Lord 2014. It is a great day to be Irish, and to acquire a WWI M1911 Colt reproduction pistol.

I happened to be at my local firearm purveyor yesterday looking at a Dan Wesson Valor in Black Duty-Coat finish. After which, I asked to look at a Springfield Armory M1911. The owner said ..."if you want a "real" M1911, I just got two in from Colt. I ordered one in "Army Black" with display case for a customer in August, 2011, and it came in three days ago. The customer backed out of the order, so, it's available"...

I could not believe my ears and eyes. He opened the cardboard box, slid out the blue Colt box, opened it, and out fell the period correct, early twentieth century, military M1911 manual. Beside it, still wrapped in the brown crispy vapor paper, was the pistol. Correction, "The Pistol", one of four thousand. A factory polished, deep black, exact replica of the pistol test fired in March 1911 for the army by John Browning. And later, taken into the Great War by America's Dough-boys. The original M1911, with all it's simple elegance, and it's shortcomings too. The tiny sights and dainty thumb safety being the most obvious.

I might not get another chance like this, I think it was fate, or some other such romantic rationalization...it's pricey...but not crazy...screw it...I'll take it (tomorrow). I have been threatening myself to get a "real" M1911 for my collection for sometime now. This pistol would mark the beginning of the over 100 year old design, the bookend next to Genesis, so to speak. Well, this would be one fine way to accomplish that. It looks exactly like a new M1911 purchased in, say, 1913. This is before they, Colt Firearms, needed to pump them out for the war effort in 1916. Around that time, Colt needed to boost production and started to back off on the fine finishing and polishing they had been doing to each pistol. The pistols that went to war, for the most part, functioned perfectly, they just lacked the finer finish and polishing that was given to Colt pistols up to that time.

The Browning/Colt pistol in this box/display case is really quite special to me. I will field strip the new pistol, lightly coat it with Mil-i-tec oil, grease the rails, reassemble, and then remove the factory checkered walnut stocks. In their place, I will install a set of pre-ban ivory stocks that I have saved for just such a special piece. It will look thrilling. White grips on the black frame, understated yet elegant. After applying Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax to the ivory grips, I will repackage it, and place it gently on the top shelf of the gun safe. I have decided not to shoot this pistol. For the time being that is.

I think my grandson might be really excited to fire the first magazine out of it in about fifteen years or so. His father and I will teach him the correct way to behave around firearms, and the great respect needed for their power and lethality. He will also feel the deep satisfaction of placing controlled fire onto a target with accuracy and poise. I hope to be at his side that day when the M1911 roars to life. Seven hits in the ten ring...that'll be something, especially with those tiny sights. Ah...to have young eyes...

Thanks to Mr. Browning, and Saint Patrick. You guys really made my day.

Gaff

The Most Unforgettable Character I've Never Met...(Sorry Readers Digest)

I mentioned and quoted someone in my last post that I have been pondering and studying for a while now. As I learn more about this man, I am more and more impressed with his 86 orbits of the sun.

Lieutenant Colonel John Dean "Jeff" Cooper is this man. A battle tested marine of two wars, a hunter of African big game, trainer of kings and presidents from around the world, mentor to the common hand-gunner, historian, inventor, innovator, race car driver, pilot, author, and on and on. Renaissance Man? Well, I think he closely approaches that appellation's definition, and in many ways achieves its meaning and stature. Oh! and he loved John Moses Browning's M1911 pistol.

The legacy of Col. Cooper is varied and widespread. He left us with a universal approach to proper behavior with a firearm that is now, de rigueur globally. "A firearm is ALWAYS loaded." Sound familiar? "Never point a weapon at something you don't intend to destroy", "Do not put your finger on the trigger until your sights are on the target, AND you have identified the target, AND what is beyond." That's him.

His ideas about the "Combat Mindset", and preparing for the unexpected in everyday circumstances, is the basis for his curriculum concerning survival during a lethal encounter. Yes, having certain self-defense skills is important, but the ability to keep a cool head (the mind), is the difference between living and dying when the "Goblin" is dead-set on your demise. Turning fear into anger, if you have a defensive firearm, focusing on the front sight and threat/target, aiming "center mass", and squeezing the trigger for the "surprise" break. These things are meant to STOP the Goblin's threat, NOT to kill. When firearms are part of the encounter, death is most likely the final outcome to that deadly situation, but in Col. Cooper's mind, KILLING is the purview of the criminal felon, STOPPING threat is the primal reaction of the human being. Providing the skills, and more importantly, the trained mindset to STOP lethal threats is what his later life was dedicated to.

Over the years, from the late 1950's on, Col. Cooper developed his "Defensive Pistol Techniques" which are used worldwide. He developed the "Scout" type rifle from his extensive hunting experience in Rhodesia. He also was prominent in the development of competitive pistol design (the Bren Ten), and practical use pistol competitions.

Col. Jeff Cooper made a very good living getting paid for his knowledge, and using his experience and abilities to train men and women to protect their own lives, the lives of their loved ones, and or the lethally threatened. His training grounds, "Gunsite", and home "The Sconce", in Arizona, is used to this day to instill his ideas and practices into the minds and bodies of paying customers. I hope someday to pay a visit myself, and learn what I can in one week's time, from the devoted employees and followers of his way of training and preparation for the deadly situation we all hope will never come to pass.

I will close this entry with a quote that is engraved over the mantel of Col. Cooper's home, "The Sconce":

"Mind must be the stronger, heart the bolder, courage must be the greater, as our might lessens."

From the manuscript of Otho A.xii, The Battle of Maldon

If this entry peaked your interest, look him up...he's the real deal.

Happy New Year to One and All!

Gaff