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Gun Owners?

Started by Kijona, May 29, 2012, 10:33:08 PM

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ShowBizWolf

I do believe you may be correct Rich!

I too found that article when I was reading last night/early this morning and I also found this one here which helped me to determine what model mine may be... http://www.guns.com/2013/04/20/iver-johnson-safety-revolvers-glorious-contradictions/ ...but I still can't get to the bottom of why I have the trigger safety and the single side release latch... oh well... I'll keep searching.

I know it's been fired quite a few times by my dad and he gave me a decent amount of ammo for it. I most certainly want to have the correct ammo. The one vid I was talking about says it takes the black powder 32 s&w short cartridges but I've found so many other comments saying that regular ammo is fine. I don't plan on shooting this gun a billion times at the range, that's for sure lol

rscottlow, I like the look of that Bearcat!! There's no doubt about it, I'm drawn to the revolvers.
Superbike bars, '04 GSXR headlight & cowl, DRZ signals, 1/2" fork brace, 'Busa fender, stainless exhaust & brake lines, belly pan, LED dash & brake bulbs, 140/80 rear hoop, F tail lens, SV650 shock, Bandit400 hugger, aluminum heel guards & pegs, fork preload adjusters, .75 SonicSprings, heated grips

ShowBizWolf

Pics pics... here we go now that I'm home from work:


Superbike bars, '04 GSXR headlight & cowl, DRZ signals, 1/2" fork brace, 'Busa fender, stainless exhaust & brake lines, belly pan, LED dash & brake bulbs, 140/80 rear hoop, F tail lens, SV650 shock, Bandit400 hugger, aluminum heel guards & pegs, fork preload adjusters, .75 SonicSprings, heated grips

Watcher

Re: Trigger safety and release latch.

It's very well possible it was a transitional firearm, where the trigger was added before the latch was phased out or something.  Or it could have been a simple matter of a customer owning the 1st model but wanting the new model trigger system and rather than buy a whole new gun he just bought the frame and swapped.

Especially considering the latch is a part of the barrel/cylinder assembly, unless the timing and tolerances were changed between generations an old barrel would probably bolt right onto a new frame and work just fine.

Unless you take it to a historian you may never know.
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

rscottlow

I agree with Rich...take it to a gunsmith and have them look it over. I think that's always a good idea when inheriting or purchasing an older firearm, not only for safety reasons, but you're likely to get a good history lesson at the same time.
Scott - Cincinnati, Ohio
2009 GS500F

ShowBizWolf

Okay. Sounds like a plan!
Superbike bars, '04 GSXR headlight & cowl, DRZ signals, 1/2" fork brace, 'Busa fender, stainless exhaust & brake lines, belly pan, LED dash & brake bulbs, 140/80 rear hoop, F tail lens, SV650 shock, Bandit400 hugger, aluminum heel guards & pegs, fork preload adjusters, .75 SonicSprings, heated grips

rscottlow

It's a really pretty gun. Don't be too surprised if your local gunsmith makes you an offer.

I do wish my dad and/or grandfathers were into guns at all. I don't have any heirloom pieces to pass down to my kids. My dad never even thought of purchasing a firearm until after I bought my first gun a few years ago. My father-in-law has a couple of pieces that were passed down to him, but nothing of any significant value (sentimental or monetary).

I guess now is as good a time to start a tradition as any. The problem with most firearms these days is that they're plastic. When I think of an heirloom piece, I think hardwood and stainless. Which is part of the reason I'd like to purchase a nice single action revolver like the Bearcat that I mentioned earlier. I like the redwood/blued version of the bearcat shopkeeper...I think it looks really classic. My father-in-law also has a Remington 870 in 20 gauge that I think he plans to hand down to my son one day. And I have the same gun in 12 gauge. My boy is only 4 right now, but one of these days I'm sure he'll be interested...
Scott - Cincinnati, Ohio
2009 GS500F

Watcher

Quote from: rscottlow on January 03, 2017, 12:37:49 PM
I guess now is as good a time to start a tradition as any. The problem with most firearms these days is that they're plastic. When I think of an heirloom piece, I think hardwood and stainless. Which is part of the reason I'd like to purchase a nice single action revolver like the Bearcat that I mentioned earlier. I like the redwood/blued version of the bearcat shopkeeper...I think it looks really classic.

Well, part of what you feel ties into the fact that a lot of heirloom pieces are civil-war era, "Wild-West", or WWI and WWII firearms.  Not only do these firearms have great personal history, but great social history as well.  Someone's M1 Garand that his grand-pappy carried in Normandy is an AMAZING heirloom!
Someone's plastic Remington 870 they bought from Cabela's doesn't have that kind of heritage.  While it may have personal significance (Pappy's first deer, and also my first deer, and maybe my son's first deer, etc) it'll never have social gravity.
At the same time, if a soldier from Afghanistan was able to take his M16 home, that plastic gun would have great heirloom status.


But in the end, anything can be made an heirloom as long as it has high sentimental value to the owner and to the "ownee".

I'm not attached enough to any of my guns to do such a thing.  It would potentially be my Browning Buckmark, but it's not really sentimental to me and I am even considering selling it for one of the new Ruger Mk4 22/45s.  I never quite liked the 22/45 because of the "dimple" design of the controls and the complexity of takedown.  Despite needing an allen-wrench to take apart my Buckmark for service it seemed simpler to me, and the controls being "platforms" better mimics the 1911.  But now that they've gone and made the 22/45 a push-button take-down and switched from the "dimples" to more "platform" safeties and slide releases I'm all about it.  Being a Ruger fan at heart I like the idea that it's made in my home state with a lifetime warranty.  Browning is a great company, too, but they don't offer a lifetime of service!
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

Big Rich

#1187
My dad has given me one gun - a Marlin Model 60 (22lr, semi auto). It was his first gun as a kid, but he never told me how he aquired it. When I got it I just wanted to clean the action a little bit and refinish the wooden stock - nothing crazy. When I took off the plastic butt plate, there was a name etched in the wood. So I called up my dad and asked "who's Joe Schmoe?". That's when he told me that he ended up bartering for the Marlin, and that kids name was his friend from his youth.

Not an heirloom by any means (at least, not to anybody else), but there's always cool stories with older guns.

Oh yeah! My dad did give me a 22 convertible revolver too. No idea who made it, since the only identification on it was "Made in East Germany". I took it to the range with a bunch of 22lr and 22mags to try and sight it in so my dad could carry it for small game season. Got it pretty sighted in with 22lr and swapped cylinders for the 22 mag..... that's when all hell broke loose. The 22 mag cylinder didn't line up PERFECTLY with the barrel, which caused a slight backfire. It literally snapped the frame directly in front of the rear sight.
83 GR650 (riding / rolling project)

It's opener there in the wide open air...

Watcher

"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

Big Rich

No kidding. My dad was at work when it happened, but knew I was at the range. I called him immediately and said "Dad, nobody was hurt but I have some bad news....."

He was just glad nobody was hurt. Those East Germans don't make them like they use to!
83 GR650 (riding / rolling project)

It's opener there in the wide open air...

qcbaker

I don't personally own any guns, but I like shooting a lot. I was on a youth .22 rifle team for a couple summers when I was younger and I've done a bunch of trap shooting and such. My dad used to own a couple guns but I'm fairly sure he sold them a long time ago... My heirloom piece from my dad is (according to him) his R75 lol. My grandfather was in WWII and brought home a Luger I think, but I'm not 100% what happened to it. My dad has a lot of WWII stuff (helmets, medals, 2 bayonets, stuff like that) but no guns to my knowledge.

Watcher

#1191
Thought I might revive this thread, I've got a couple of new pieces.  One was an impulse buy, one has been a long time coming.  Of the two the long-time coming was a carry gun, but not just a carry gun, something that can be carried CCW and used both with and without motorcycle gear on.

I was considering a lot of things as a carry item, and since most of my time is spent on bike simplicity and use with gloves was a concern.
I'm typically a thumb-safety user for handguns, but with thick gloves on I can see that being a hindrance more than a benefit, so I was actually considering a revolver for a while.  Realistically, though, the jacket and gloves are going to come off when I get to where I'm going so something lower profile is really a better idea.  Plus reloading a revolver with some Alpinestars SP2 gauntlet gloves on is basically impossible, where as with an auto it might just be a little more difficult.
So I figured for a while that a compact is a decent compromise, but it's still got the same issue as the revolver where it's bigger than necessary outside of actually riding.  It's got the same downsides as a full-size where it's harder to conceal when wearing casual clothes, unless I want to open-carry, but if I'm going to open-carry I'm just going to carry full-size.

Sub-compact is mostly dominated by .380s and they're a more than a little small for use with gloves on.  As much as I'd like a Sig P238 or equivalent they're going to be a strictly off-bike carry gun and I'm rarely off bike.  Size up a little bit?  P938?  Better, but still a little small and with a 1911 manual of arms the thumb safety is difficult to use in riding gloves.
I'm a big Ruger fan, I looked at the LC9 and EC9 (especially attractive because of the price), but they've got almost an odd thinness to them and grip traction isn't great.  They are contoured on the sides of the frame which is probably really comfortable to wear but a little odd in the hand (opposite of a palm swell), and the grip is a little on the smooth side.  Once again, probably wears great but grips traction is a little down.

Then I came across the Smith & Wesson case.  Basically fell in love with the M&P Shield pistols, they're almost perfect.  Thin but not weirdly so, "full-size" calibers, no thumb-safety to fumble with, big enough to feel good in the hand with gloves on yet small enough to handle and conceal otherwise, big enough trigger guard for a gloved hand, positive mag-release button that can be used with gloves but not accidentally disconnected, and a surprisingly good trigger for a CCW gun.
Got it.  Specifically it's an M&P 9 Shield 2.0.  The 2.0 brings a number of changes over the normal M&P series, but most notably the grip is a lot, well, grippier and the trigger is way better.
I nearly got the full size M&P 9 2.0 as well, but I don't need to spend the money on that, I already have a full size 9mm (Ruger SR9).

Still playing around with holster options.  I picked up a Galco KingTuck Air IWB which feels great so far, and it's nice and tight when dressed down, but it's a little "hidden" when I've got my jacket on.  I'm thinking a low profile kydex OWB holster might fit the bill.  It'll be more accessible on the bike but may still be concealable with a loose t-shirt.  Spare magazine is a concern as well, there doesn't seem to be many good IWB magazine pouches and OWB pouches are a little bulky.  Might just be something I need to learn to deal with.

Anyway, the impulse buy.  It was a lightly used Heritage Mfg "Rough Rider", a single-action revolver in .22lr.  For $150!  :2guns:
I live in cowboy country, was kinda geeked on getting a "cowboy gun", but something like a Ruger Vaquero in .45 Colt is not only expensive to buy (like $800) but expensive to shoot.
Cowboy fix for $150 and the most inexpensive ammo you can get?  It's a range toy anyway, sign me up!  Just need to get a holster for it.
+1, if anyone is familiar with Hickok45 on YT he shoots one and gives it a thumbs up as a surprisingly well made and fun to shoot revolver.  Something I kind of want to do is test it out with CBs or some CCI Quiet-22 and see if it's hearing-safe.  If so, could be a gun I can hike into the desert with and do some plinking.  Out here public land is ok to shoot on, so long as it's done safely and doesn't damage any property or protected wildlife.  Being single-action the rounds load and unload manually, so I can even easily recover the brass cases so I don't leave any garbage behind.
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

mr72

Cool stuff Watcher. Good point about operation with gloves. I still like my Kahr pistols but I do need to try them with my moto gloves.

I think a kydex OWB is the right answer especially with a motorcycle jacket, but of course in TX (as well as AZ IIRC) open-carry is ok so I wouldn't have to worry about complete concealability especially when actually on the motorcycle. I think my leather moto jacket would cover my little CM9 in an OWB kydex holster just fine when standing and walking around. The one big thing that sometimes stops me from carrying on the bike is that my office is a legally-posted no-guns zone so on the rare occasion once or twice a week that I go into the office I would have to have a place to disarm and lock up my firearm before going into the office. There's just no good way to do that on a motorcycle. But other than that I am fully in the habit of carrying everywhere everyday, either my ultra-concealable Ruger LCP with a clip that works sans holster for like 9 years now or in a pocket holster or ankle holster, and/or often my Kahr CM9 in a FIST kydex IWB. I made a few OWB kydex holsters for the Kahr pistols which work great but they are too bulky for my tastes.

This all reminds me, I need to get to the range. It's been a while, way too long. Thanks for the reminder!

Watcher

#1193
Quote from: mr72 on October 26, 2018, 04:10:25 AM
... of course in TX (as well as AZ IIRC) open-carry is ok so I wouldn't have to worry about complete concealability especially when actually on the motorcycle. I think my leather moto jacket would cover my little CM9 in an OWB kydex holster just fine when standing and walking around.

Even so I still think when I'm open-carrying I'll be open-carrying, if I'm concealing I want to conceal.  Despite being in AZ it's actually a fairly liberal area (with a lot of out-of-state traffic and temporary residency this time of year), so the last thing I want is someone to think I'm trying to hide something.  In this way I want it out of sight and out of mind or blatant as can be.
Sort-of-concealed is a big miss for me.  My mind may change with experience.

Quote from: mr72 on October 26, 2018, 04:10:25 AM
The one big thing that sometimes stops me from carrying on the bike is that my office is a legally-posted no-guns zone so on the rare occasion once or twice a week that I go into the office I would have to have a place to disarm and lock up my firearm before going into the office. There's just no good way to do that on a motorcycle.

That's quite a damper.  My company's stance is essentially "don't be armed on the clock".  I can carry in, disarm in the back-room (I have a safe code so that's handy), re-arm before I leave, then carry out.  I'm definitely going to start.  Part of what prompted me to finally go out and get something is a shooting down the corner.  It's not the BEST area, even so I never really felt unsafe (even with drug-addicts and homeless wandering around pestering everyone), but maybe I've been lucky or just haven't really understood the potential danger.  I do often leave alone late at night, I do own a nice motorcycle, it is a sketchy area, I have enough reasons now besides the typical "Yay, 2A, it's legal, armed citizen, etc" reasons.

Quote from: mr72 on October 26, 2018, 04:10:25 AM
But other than that I am fully in the habit of carrying everywhere everyday, either my ultra-concealable Ruger LCP with a clip that works sans holster for like 9 years now or in a pocket holster or ankle holster, and/or often my Kahr CM9 in a FIST kydex IWB. I made a few OWB kydex holsters for the Kahr pistols which work great but they are too bulky for my tastes.

To me pocket isn't a possibility and not just because my Shield is too big.  Gloves makes it inaccessible, and I usually have other things in my pocket that hinder it such as pocket-knives, wallet, flashlight, chapstick, etc.
Shoulder isn't really possible either, I just don't dress the part and on the bike it would be very hard to access.
Ankle never made sense to me.  It's just so inaccessible, and my intended use is more or less anti-mugging or anti-vehicular theft so that's as bad as not carrying at all.  Plus you're limited to a very small package, otherwise you're going to walk funny.  You might walk funny regardless.
For a police officer as a last-ditch weapon I guess I can see it, but for an armed citizen I think it doesn't make much sense.

Quote from: mr72 on October 26, 2018, 04:10:25 AM
I think a kydex OWB is the right answer especially with a motorcycle jacket.

I picked up a Blackhawk paddle holster and it's much more ideal when under a jacket.  With every upside comes a downside, though, and as expected it prints heavily if I just wear a T-shirt.  So it's an over-shirt/jacket/hoodie only sort of option in regards to concealing it.  For colder weather it'll be great, and when riding the retention is a win, but I think my Galco IWB will be the primary carry method.

But I'm fairly new to this, so it may just take some trial and error to see what works best.
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

mr72

Quote from: Watcher on October 26, 2018, 11:59:50 AM

I picked up a Blackhawk paddle holster and it's much more ideal when under a jacket.  With every upside comes a downside, though, and as expected it prints heavily if I just wear a T-shirt.  So it's an over-shirt/jacket/hoodie only sort of option in regards to concealing it.  For colder weather it'll be great, and when riding the retention is a win, but I think my Galco IWB will be the primary carry method.

But I'm fairly new to this, so it may just take some trial and error to see what works best.

Well, I've been at this for over a decade now, and I can tell you that when I am carrying the LCP, no matter what method, even on the beach clipped inside the waist band of swim trunks, NOBODY knows I'm carrying. Ever. And even when I carried my Kahr CW9 with the full-length grip IWB I thought the butt stuck out like a sore thumb and certainly everyone would see it but NOBODY ever saw it. Ever. I mean, everyone was shocked to know I was carrying. The CM9 is better for my peace of mind and only one round shorter magazine, so that works well. But like I say, nobody ever has known I was carrying, even with my S&W SW9VE which is a "compact" aka full-size double-stack 9mm.

As far as holsters go, far and away the most comfortable for me is either my Crossbreed Supertuck or an Alien holster I have which has a sort of neoprene backing but otherwise is basically just like the Crossbreed. Problem with these holsters is they are just a giant PITA to put on and remove, so if I have to disarm in the car, it's pretty much a no-go unless I want to walk around with an empty holster all day. I like the FIST ultra-thin Kydex holsters with J-hook, they work extremely well and are reasonably comfortable to wear all day, that's what I typically carry my 9mm in. Not as stable or as comfortable as the Crossbreed type, but man are they easier to manage. I have a few.

I have a Galco tuckable leather holster for my LCP and I never ever use it. I find the Kydex holsters or the kydex-on-leather like the Crossbreed are just way better in terms of retention and fit. I might try a Galco belt-slide holster as an OWB under a jacket or overshirt kind of thing, looks like it'd be uber comfortable and very usable.

One thing I really notice is that these IWB holsters wear holes through my jeans from the inside where the end of the barrel rubs. I put iron-on patches in all of them to prevent this. It's a serious pain.

As far as method of carry where you can get to it on a motorcycle, I actually think off-body is a really good option, especially with a single-stack tiny pistol with a clip like my LCP (they make those clips for hundreds of single-stack guns). You can clip the gun to the inside of an exterior pocket with a flap over it on a messenger bag and this is very easy to get to. I do this quite frequently too, and have probably a half dozen or more messenger bags that I use for this. I also have carried the LCP like this in a side pocket like where you would put a water bottle on a backpack. When you do a lot of outdoor activities like I do, you find ways to make this work. Everyone in my family always expects that I'm going to be carrying, so I try to find a way.

Watcher

#1195
Picked up an AlienGear IWB holster called the "Cloak Tuck," on paper it looked amazing but in practice it's a bit of a miss.

It's your typical Hybrid IWB, but instead of leather the backer is made of a perforated neoprene.  Super soft, very comfy to wear, seems like it would be amazing in hot weather.

But...  There's a steel insert in most of the backer and it makes it fairly rigid.  That's great as it supports the holster shell, but when worn 4-5 o'clock it holds the 6 o-clock area of my waist-band open.    Open enough I can feel it, open enough I can just stick my hand in there and feel my buttcrack.  Not super great.
My Galco KingTuck lays flatter.

Maybe I can bend that steel insert to confirm to me a little better, but if I have to modify it to use it I'm not inclined to proceed.
The company has a satisfaction gaurantee, within 30-days I can send it back for a full refund.  I really want to like it, but if I can't use it I can't use it.  Probably I'll just send it back.
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

dougdoberman

I've been carrying a first gen Shield in 9mm daily for three years now.  I put some Apex parts in it which made the trigger pretty much as good as you're ever gonna get on a striker-fired carry weapon.  Ergo, I haven't seen any reason to move to the Gen 2.  Magguts +1 spring and a Fixxer Grip Extension for the magazines.

It's been in a IWB Mini Ventcore by Stealthgear USA from day one, with spare mag either in their IWB carrier on my left side, or in my pants pocket.  FABULOUSLY comfortable.  I know it's a cliche, but 95% of the time I literally can't feel it's there.  Basically zero printing ever, at least on my body and with the clothing choices I make.  I normally wear some sort of shirt over an untucked tee, but it's concealed just fine with only a loose tee.
If you can't be a good example, at least try to be a horrible reminder.

mr72

That holster is very similar to the Alien Gear and Crossbreed holsters I have. I agree, this type of holster is super comfortable and conceals very well, but if you have to disarm they are a pain.

All of this talk reminds me I need to revisit my Alien Gear holster since I basically never go to the office anymore so my need for simple disarming is less important.

I bought a bunch of Kydex and parts from DIY holster and made some holsters that are cool. That's actually a pretty fun exercise if you are interested in such things. Surprising what you can do with a little heat, some foam rubber puzzle mat blocks and a sheet of Kydex.

Watcher

Quote from: dougdoberman on November 09, 2018, 05:17:06 PM
I've been carrying a first gen Shield in 9mm daily for three years now. {snip} I haven't seen any reason to move to the Gen 2.

It's been in a IWB Mini Ventcore by Stealthgear USA from day one, with spare mag either in their IWB carrier on my left side, or in my pants pocket.  FABULOUSLY comfortable.

As a new purchase the Gen2 seems a no-brainer unless the $50 difference in price is going to make or break it.  I'm sure your Apex is better than my stock trigger, but my stock stringer is pretty damn good and came on the gun.
The rest of the updates are just icing.

Checked out that stealthgear holster, looks like it's exactly what I want!  Seems a less bulky version of the Aliengear.
Ordering one tonight.
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

Watcher

I ended up getting that Stealthgear holster.  Actually, I liked it so much I got several.

Thanks for the suggestion!



Now it's time for a new AR.  I previously had a S&W M&P15TS, with a 14.5" barrel with a pinned/welded flash hider to make it 16", and a Troy full length hand rail.
I really liked that package, but given my apartment life and dedication to motorcycle travel it's a bit of a big package, despite it being a relatively compact system.

So this time around I'm thinking an AR pistol.  Given the ATF's current position in that "pistol braces" can be shouldered, a pistol is a much more viable option now, and in a lot of ways preferable to a full size carbine/rifle.

But I don't want to go too short.  Tiny barrels really cripple the capability of 5.56, in addition to making the weapons way louder and potentially less reliable.
In my research, though, it seems like ~12" barrel is the threshold where you start to really lose velocity.

So I think I'm settled on a BCM Recce 11.  It's long enough to retain decent ballistics, but small enough to fit into a backpack (especially when separated), won't be excessively loud, and can be easily converted to a proper SBR if I wish.

The one area I'm indecisive is in optics, though.

As a defensive weapon, I love the idea of the ridiculous battery life you get with an Aimpoint, but I find them needlessly expensive and the field of view is quite narrow.

The Trijicon MRO has the desired battery life and a larger FOV than an Aimpoint, bonus points for being cheaper and USA made, but they currently have parallax shift issues so if I want to run my pistol in any courses (which I definitely do) and shoot in "disruptive environments" the performance will be less than ideal.

The EOTech EXPS2-0 solves the FOV and the parallax issue, is USA made and priced pretty damn good considering the technology, but would require more frequent battery babysitting.  We're still talking a USE life of thousands of hours and the sight wouldn't be left on in storage, but I'd still be changing the batteries in months rather than years.  But, it uses a common flashlight battery that I currently own rechargable versions of, so cost of batteries is nullified and I can switch them out on a routine (like every first of the month put a fresh one in).

Or Vortex UH-1.  Basically a knockoff EOTech with a charging port so I can just plug the optic in once a month to charge it.  Also you can disable the auto off feature so I could literally leave it on in storage so long as I can remember to charge it monthly.
Also takes the same battery as EOTech so if I DO forget to charge it I can swap the battery out.
Downsides are the adjustment knobs aren't protected and retention is weak (some users reported too easy to lose zero), and glass has a blue tint to it.



Proooooobably gonna go EOTech, but I can't decide.
"The point of a journey is not to arrive..."

-Neil Peart

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