Mega Rad Gun Thread

[Agares]

You know prices are fucked when Turkish 9mm for $10.99 a box is a hell of a deal.

 

[Dean Pentel]

You know prices are fucked when Turkish 9mm for $10.99 a box is a hell of a deal.

I think it's going to get worse pretty soon here. I'd recommend one stocks up on what they want while it's all reasonably easy to find.

 

[Agares]

I think it's going to get worse pretty soon here. I'd recommend one stocks up on what they want while it's all reasonably easy to find.

It's some bullshit. I was looking into getting something in .22wmr but then I find out that rimfire ammo costs as much as 9mm does now. For spicy .22.

 

[Yandex Captcha Solver]

Just saw Blackhorn 209 muzzleloading powder is now going for $80+ for 8oz? I picked up a 10oz jug for $35 about two years ago. The price has tripled per ounce since then. The fuck happened? Did Hogdon just decide to jew everyone out of their favorite powder?

It was pricey years ago compared to 777 or Pyrodex. Now it's just gone pure retard.

 

[Romulus augustulus]

Just saw Blackhorn 209 muzzleloading powder is now going for $80+ for 8oz? I picked up a 10oz jug for $35 about two years ago. The price has tripled per ounce since then. The fuck happened? Did Hogdon just decide to jew everyone out of their favorite powder?

It was pricey years ago compared to 777 or Pyrodex. Now it's just gone pure retard.

thats why you get real blackpowder. substitutes are a meme.

 

[Yandex Captcha Solver]

thats why you get real blackpowder. substitutes are a meme.

Availability of real powder is much worse than substitutes for the same price (disregarding blackhorn 209). I can walk into Walmart and pick up a bottle of Pyrodex or 777, can't say the same for Goex.

 

[Romulus augustulus]

Availability of real powder is much worse than substitutes for the same price (disregarding blackhorn 209). I can walk into Walmart and pick up a bottle of Pyrodex or 777, can't say the same for Goex.

internet. Goex is still OOS because the factory blew up. IDK if they are back yet.

 

[MrB]

internet. Goex is still OOS because the factory blew up. IDK if they are back yet.

The Goex factory was rebuilt last summer and it's been back for a while.
Hazmat fees are a pain in the ass for buying online but you can circumvent that by just buying a fuckton at once to hoard/together with your friends, and some online shops (I know Powder Valley does this at least) do sales where they waive hazmat charges.

 

[WelperHelper99]

lever action rifle is fairly mechanically complex. This doesn't mean one should avoid them as they've proven they work and they've killed a lot of people and animals throughout history. I think if one is interested in accepting 'mechanically simpler and less rounds' a bolt-action rifle is the way to go.

I think it's because of the lever actions complexity is how it works so well, it covers its bases. But otherwise i agree, its why a bolt action was my first.

You're not wrong but it's not quite that broad. Drugs can lessen or even negate a pain-related or psychological stop from being shot. Still, even the most potent drug cocktail one can survive will do nothing against physiological disruptions such as rapid blood loss, skeletal/joint destruction, or CNS disruptions. I bet we all know this but I bring it up to reinforce the idea that it's time well spent to learn human anatomy so one understands what are good targets to aim for and how they'll shift position as people move in relation to you. One need not get super autistic about it.

Quick story for you regarding snubbies: about two years ago a guy is brought into the O.R. requiring trauma surgery. The story from the cop accompanying him was that he tried to carjack someone and that person had a .38 snubbie on him. He had 5 .38 bullets in his body: 1 in the testicles, 3 in the lower abdomen, and 1 in his inner thigh not far from his scrotum. It appears that there was a physical confrontation as the man who was shot tried to forcibly take the other person's jewelry or something as they exited their car. In the ensuing scuffle that person simply jammed the revolver against his attacker's body and emptied it.

So while I think it's a great idea to carry as much gun as you can, a snubbie can stop a fight just fine assuming one is willing and capable.

holy cow, that guy got slammed. But yes. If you have the will to survive and a steady hand, you can hit enough vitals to even take a druggie out. It's why I'm pretty confident with a snubbie

Which is one reason why I got my brand new Model 60 yesterday

Awesome fren, getting some of that 357 magnum power, represent my guy. How does it feel in the hand?

They're also more user-friendly to those who are inexperienced with guns. The manual of arms, specifically how to ensure the gun is unloaded, is so much simpler than a semiauto, it gives normies much more peace of mind. A lot of people think guns can just "go off" and with a revolver where you can simply push a button to render the gun obviously safe, that gives inexperienced people a big relief. I've taken non-gun people out shooting, or even just to the gun show, and they approach revolvers much less tense than semiautos.

I've also seen similar behavior with tip-up barrel designs too, you can just push a button and you know the gun's status.

It's honestly part of the reason i got a revolver as my first pistol tbh. Order of operations is simple, easy to check if I'm loaded, heavy trigger that won't go off with a mere bump, etc. If I'm in a high stress situation, I don't want to fuck up. A revolver is about as simple as it gets barring a derringer.

 

[Bassomatic]

Availability of real powder is much worse than substitutes for the same price (disregarding blackhorn 209). I can walk into Walmart and pick up a bottle of Pyrodex or 777, can't say the same for Goex.

I don't shoot bp often. But yeah pyrodex is all I can find local. I also reload and am in a pretty gun heavy area we just don't get much in powder. But pyrodex is something we can get.

Long story I'll spare but despite having a woman in my house (Allah kill me) I am anti Valentines day, so I do a hunter Biden cosplay and buy a gun drunk (it's legal to buy online and pick up sober). I'll report back what I ordered (also Mrs bassomatic thinks this is hilarious and based)

 

[Club Sandwich]

all this talk of pyrodex, it's a useful reminder that it isn't actual black powder, it can and will induce rust very easily if not conscientiously cleaned after each shooting session. rinse with near boiling hot water and a small amount of dish soap, allow to rinse thoroughly, do not let the gun sit in the water. once rinsed to satisfaction, inspect for a clean metallic smell (no chemical odor), then oil and lubricate as needed.

 

[Dean Pentel]

They're also more user-friendly to those who are inexperienced with guns. The manual of arms, specifically how to ensure the gun is unloaded, is so much simpler than a semiauto, it gives normies much more peace of mind. A lot of people think guns can just "go off" and with a revolver where you can simply push a button to render the gun obviously safe, that gives inexperienced people a big relief. I've taken non-gun people out shooting, or even just to the gun show, and they approach revolvers much less tense than semiautos.

I'm not going to say you're wrong because the only two revolvers I own I wouldn't recommend total newbies fire so I've never had any brand new shooters run them. Rather, I think modern semi autos are the better choice for new shooters since they're more likely to be what's available to them.

I've trained a few women to operate semi pistols (I am in no way a professional instructor). My own wife, a few friends' wives, and even some co-workers. Some of them were brand new to any firearm. For sure a few of them were nervous about it but a few minutes of introduction, some instruction, and then some repetition dispelled any doubts they had about being able to operate their weapons competently.

some years back i decided to go to various armorer courses from manufacturers and get certified and stayed on top of that, including offering service center work, depot and armorer services for agencies that prefer a current or prior service person do their work for them, et c.

Did you ever take a course like what Larry Vickers or Cylinder & Slide offered on how to build and customize 1911s (or custom gunsmithing for any firearms)?

holy cow, that guy got slammed. But yes. If you have the will to survive and a steady hand, you can hit enough vitals to even take a druggie out. It's why I'm pretty confident with a snubbie

Yeah man. Though I suggest you re-frame your perspective from "will to survive" to "will to win."

Damn shame the baddie lived another day. I guess that’s proof if you’re not carrying 50ae you’re risking your life on a daily basis.

I feel ya on this one. Know that while he did live, he's down a testicle, a few feet of small intestine, he'll have a sick ex lap abdominal scar for life, and he got to do his rather painful recovery in jail while awaiting trial/sentencing.

 

[Club Sandwich]

Did you ever take a course like what Larry Vickers or Cylinder & Slide offered on how to build and customize 1911s (or custom gunsmithing for any firearms)?

for the 1911 specifically, i had originally gone to the US Army's MAC's armory course hosted by Colt Defense, then later on Para Ordnance, then some years later a course taught by Matt Gish specifically on the manufacturing and repair of slides, frame, doing custom work, et c. other than that it's been a combination of experimentation and back and forth with some notables and other smiths on ideas and improvements over time.

 

[Romulus augustulus]

all this talk of pyrodex, it's a useful reminder that it isn't actual black powder, it can and will induce rust very easily if not conscientiously cleaned after each shooting session. rinse with near boiling hot water and a small amount of dish soap, allow to rinse thoroughly, do not let the gun sit in the water. once rinsed to satisfaction, inspect for a clean metallic smell (no chemical odor), then oil and lubricate as needed.

Its so hideously bad that i don't understand why people use it. with real blackpowder all you need is hot water and a rag. thats all. if the water is hot enough it will evaporate and you won't even have to dry it off much.

 

[Fried-Rice12]

It was pricey years ago compared to 777 or Pyrodex. Now it's just gone pure retard.

It is likely due to various taxes and other handling fees. You also have to factor in how much money was printed off and the resulting inflation.
But look on the bright side, at least you can still buy stuff like this pretty readily. I cannot.

 

[Falcos_Commisar]

Knew you had a shop, somehow. How'd you break into it? My dream is to gunsmith for a living. Thought about SDI, but institutes of higher learning always seem to be sheisty. Thought about word of mouth, but not sure entirely what goes into doing it as a career. I fixed more than more share for friends or as favors, but eventually would like to do it to pay bills, not just have fun.
In another lifetime, I coulda made it as a clockmaker, a gunsmith or a cobbler. Those times are gone, I'm afraid.

Watchmakers, gunsmiths and cobblers can still make money. However you have to sell yourself 10x more than the prior generations did. Used to be, cobblers and watchmakers were on every street and gunsmiths were one to a small city or so or even one to a gun shop.

I know a watchmaker that's about 1-2 years from "official" retirement (no new clients) and 3-5 years after that from "no more work ever" retirement. His biggest asset is his client list.

Awesome fren, getting some of that 357 magnum power, represent my guy. How does it feel in the hand?

Lovely. The J-Frame is just so nice in the hand. However ~2 hours after getting it I get smacked with a gigantic sinus infection so my weekend was ruined..... Yay. I'll try and shoot it next weekend.

 

[Fried-Rice12]

all this talk of pyrodex, it's a useful reminder that it isn't actual black powder, it can and will induce rust very easily if not conscientiously cleaned after each shooting session. rinse with near boiling hot water and a small amount of dish soap, allow to rinse thoroughly, do not let the gun sit in the water. once rinsed to satisfaction, inspect for a clean metallic smell (no chemical odor), then oil and lubricate as needed.

If you want lots of black powder you might as well roll up your sleeves and get busy. I managed to make a sugar-saltpeter rocket in my high school days, the saltpeter was from fertilizer I got from one of my friends whose relatives owned a big farm. Perks of living in the countryside.
If you are that desperate for saltpeter, try the piss jug method. The other ingredients are not difficult to get, just plain sulfur and charcoal.

 

[HumptiDouji]

That said, I wouldn't want to bet my life on .22LR killing even a person immediately

Wouldn't be too confident either, but there's a lot of difference between .22LR from a little pocket pistol and from a rifle barrel, a 16" barrel will give you shitloads more speed and thus penetration than a little 2" nub barrel, or even a long 8" pistol barrel. If you can magdump someone center mass with a 10/22 or Marlin 60, they're really not long for this world.

The funny thing here is that with old Mini-14s and their flimsy barrel profiles, one of the recognized fixes for their common accuracy issues was to SBR them to significantly improve barrel harmonics. Having seen and handled Mz-14 kitted ones, I was not given the impression that the Mini-14 would be any more appealing as a bullpup if the stock was just higher quality.
In general I have seen extremely few bullpup conversions which look compelling, I feel like bullpups need to be bullpups from the ground up.

Stockless pistol grip M14

Wondering if that is some folding stock variant where the actual folding part got lost somewhere.

the Winchester 1300 and clones can run the mini shells pretty well without any modifications and once you get the rhythm going you can bang them out pretty fast.

Best I've learned you can never count on the Mini Shells to run 100% reliably with magazines, but you answered his question better than I could have hoped to. I recall Paul Harrell showing off one of those rubber gadgets you're supposed to shove into the loading gate of shotguns to help with cycling Mini Shells, have you tried those out, and do they help at all?

I don't have a big personal interest in Mini Shells, but I'll keep that detail in mind for the 1300, I've kind of wanted one since I learned it's Duke Nukem's shotgun.

Its so hideously bad that i don't understand why people use it.

Like some people say, it's all they can find. It works ok for cap and ball revolvers and loading cartridges, which will satisfy a lot of people, so provided you clean your guns properly after shooting (which you need to with real blackpowder anyway), it will be adequate.
The only thing Pyrodex fundamentally cannot do is priming, it burns like shit in open air, which is why it's worthless for flintlocks and the like, where that MUST happen.

The other ingredients are not difficult to get, just plain sulfur and charcoal.

It's a dead simple recipe, but it's gonna get involved if you want it to not suck, you'll want a good source of clean charcoal which you'll probably have to make yourself, and then you'll want to corn it. It isn't difficult, but to a lot of people it's a hassle they don't wanna deal with, they just wanna shoot some every now and then.

Going back to priming, if you're willing to settle for Pyrodex for loading, but wanna shoot a matchlock or something, it would be easy to make a small batch of non-corned powder just for priming.

 

[Club Sandwich]

I recall Paul Harrell showing off one of those rubber gadgets you're supposed to shove into the loading gate of shotguns to help with cycling Mini Shells, have you tried those out, and do they help at all?

i haven't, i always experimented with modified parts instead, since i have a variety of them from people wanting them swapped to salvaged from clapped out trade-ins. i imagine they work most of the time depending on the exact action, with probably best with any sort of shotgun that has a lifter assembly that retains the shell base with positive pressure rather than just letting it sit there. Winchester 1200 and 1300 use a "pinching" action from the lifter pressing upwards on the shell body and the shell stops inwards against the base of the shell. Mossberg will have a seat for the shell to balance on and will be retained loosely by the shell stop on either side which again press on the shell base itself (although on a Mossberg it'll probably not work well if upside down or at any angle other than straight vertical...). a BPS will work fine, an 870 probably won't work without a fancy modified lifter since the stop is on one side of the receiver only for older models and newer models work against the bottom of the bolt carrier and not the rim or shell base. probably clones of the 870 will also be an issue with the mini shell.

basically if you want to use a mini shell in a semi-auto, you will need it significantly modified. if you want to use them in a pump, stick with a Winchester 1200 or 1300, or a Browning BPS. the M&P 12 should also run them (i honestly don't know) since the feeding assembly is a mirrored copy of the Ithaca 37 which in turn has a similar (but improved) Browning BPS action.

 

[WelperHelper99]

Lovely. The J-Frame is just so nice in the hand. However ~2 hours after getting it I get smacked with a gigantic sinus infection so my weekend was ruined..... Yay. I'll try and shoot it next weekend

Aw sucks you're sick man. But I'm glad you've taken the J frame pill, and a pretty snazzy stainless steel one at that. Tell me how 357 feels!

Wouldn't be too confident either, but there's a lot of difference between .22LR from a little pocket pistol and from a rifle barrel, a 16" barrel will give you shitloads more speed and thus penetration than a little 2" nub barrel, or even a long 8" pistol barrel. If you can magdump someone center mass with a 10/22 or Marlin 60, they're really not long for this world.

Yet another reason for me to get a 10/22 once I get a shotgun- this Mossberg 500 is calling my name rn, beautiful wood, 28 inch barrel, etc. Hopefully I'll get both this year, a nice 22 repeater in wood, and a nice cheap hunting shotty.