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    Lawful Carry: Simply Rugged Holsters

    Back in December, I had the privilege of attending a class at Gunsite. The class was made up of 18 shooters and focused on revolver shooting with a little bit of lever guns. I feel right at home with revolvers and lever guns, and I jump on any opportunity I have to attend training to further my skills. I decided to take two seven-shot revolvers with me—a Smith & Wesson Model 686 Plus and a snubnose Model 617 Taurus.
    The FBI Glock 19M
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      Glock 19M : FBI Issues New Pistol

      Every few years, the FBI looks for a new pistol. I was initially trained with revolvers. When the field SWAT program was transferred to the Special Operations and Research Unit, we acquired the 9mm S&W 459 pistol, while field agents carried the S&W M13 revolver.
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        Against All Odds: Shomer-Tec Food Procurement Survival Kit

        Shomer-Tec prides itself on offering a unique line of military and law enforcement products, along with spy and revenge products. Yes, revenge products. A quick look at their website and the picture becomes clear: they offer some useful stuff plus some possibly gimmicky items. One kit I had been curious about was the Food Procurement Survival Kit, which revolves around two unique dual-action fishhooks that are designed to catch prey and lock them in, preventing them from escaping.
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          Beretta 71: Wet-Work Wonder

          The Beretta 71 was a fairly common plinker in the 1950s and well regarded. The Model 71 is a fixed-barrel, open-slide blowback .22 Long Rifle pistol. The little 17-ounce Italian single-action autos dried up when the Gun Control Act of 1968 made little guns into “bad guns” and ceased importation of many small handgun models. The 71 essentially became a secondhand-market curiosity for Beretta fans.
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            Long Guns: Czech Vz61 Skorpion Machine Pistol

            The Czech Skorpion is a hard weapon to assign a purpose. It’s a machine pistol, which means it isn’t really a pistol or a submachine gun, though it’s usually classified with the latter. Although versions were reportedly made in .32 ACP, .380 ACP, 9x18mm Makarov, and 9x19mm (9mm Luger), in years of encountering the Skorpion, I have only seen .32 ACP versions.
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              Small Caliber, Big Savings: Reloading the .223

              My first reloading experience was in Dad’s basement shop, watching, then helping him reload .38s and .30-06. I was about ten, and I still have the trophy he won at a local DCM (Department of Civilian Marksmanship) match with his handloads. Later, during my toolmaking apprenticeship, I moonlighted for a gentleman who made bullet-making dies for the benchrest competition elite. Most top shooters used Bob Simonson’s dies, including the founder of one of today’s premium bullet companies. I learned a ton about accuracy from Bob.
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                Bolt-Action Thumper: .450 Bushmaster Ruger American Ranch Rifle

                The .450 Bushmaster is descended from the "Thumper" concept popularized by Jeff Cooper. Cooper was not a fan of the 5.56x45mm NATO round and envisioned a need for a large-bore cartridge in a semi-auto rifle that would provide one-shot kills on big game animals at 250 yards. Bushmaster Firearms worked closely with Hornady and the .450 Bushmaster “Thumper” was born.