Guns

Utah fixing Utah

/ hsoi / 3 Comments

It looks like Utah is working to deal with the issues present in their concealed weapons permit process:

SB34 » Out-of-state gun owners who seek a Utah concealed-weapon permit — which is popular because it is recognized by most states — may soon first need to obtain a permit from their home state, if available.

The Senate voted 28-0 on Friday to give preliminary approval to SB34, which would make the change. A final vote is expected next week.

I think the reporter made an error. If my armchair Internet research is right, it’s actually SB36.

This is why HB 356 was introduced in this Texas legislative session. If Utah fixes their situation, I wonder if Rep. Burnam will withdraw his bill from consideration.

From Alice Tripp:

Utah state records show over 5,000 Texans are carrying with a Utah concealed handgun license.  The majority of this number don’t have dual residency, and didn’t obtain their license while visiting or living in Utah.  Most got their license right here in Texas from an instructor offering the Utah license.

Texas doesn’t allow their license to be offered outside the state.  Many feel Utah is “meddling” in other states’ business.

You might be interested in knowing that folks carrying a handgun with an out-of-state license are not allowed past the metal detectors at the Texas Capitol, only because DPS verifies every licensee.   This simply isn’t possible with an out-of-state license and includes Texans carrying with a Utah license.

We’ll see how things pan out.

ATF’s Study on the Importability of Certain Shotguns

/ hsoi / 2 Comments

BAFTE has released a Study on the Importability of Certain Shotguns. (h/t to TXGunGeek)

TXGunGeek is right: it’s not a ruling (as was floated around last week), it’s just a study. But the study of course is going to lead to things.

Right on the first page of the PDF is this:

All interested persons may submit comments on this study.
Comments may be submitted by e-mail to shotgunstudy@atf.gov or by fax to (202)648-9601.
Faxed comments may not exceed 5 pages.
All comments must include name and mailing address.
ATF encourages submission of comments no later than May 1, 2011.

So folks, make sure you comment.

But when you comment, please please please… make it a useful comment. No harsh language. No irrationality. No propaganda nor hysterics. We need well-conceived, fact-based comments. We need to provide useful information. Keep it short, keep it sweet, but keep it useful. Whatever you submit will reflect not just on you but on gun-owners throughout the USA. Be thoughtful.

My first reaction? What’s “sporting purpose” got to do with it? In our post-Heller post-McDonald world, what does “sporting purpose” have to do with anything any more?

Infected Feral Hogs found in 2 Texas counties

/ hsoi

Researchers at Texas Tech University’s Institute of Environmental and Human Health warned area farmers, ranchers and hunters Monday to use caution when handling wild game after finding evidence of the bacteria that causes tularemia in feral hogs in Bell and Coryell Counties.

Tularemia is a serious infectious disease caused by the bacteria Francisella tularensis, said Steve Presley, a zoonotic disease researcher who leads the team that tested about 130 feral hogs from Bell, Coryell and Crosby Counties.

Yikes. Full story here.

The bacteria is normally present, but what’s troubling is they found an unusually high number of hogs carrying the bacteria.

Regardless of which type it turns out to be, Presley says anyone who may come into contact with wild animals—especially those that might hunt or eat wild hogs—should be cautious.

“If you are handling or cleaning or eating wild game, particularly hogs, deer or rabbits, you should be wearing rubber gloves and eye protection when you’re dressing wild game,” he said.

“The bacteria can enter any sort of small cut or hangnail. During this time of year, it might not be as big of an issue, but you should check yourself for ticks, wear tick repellent and avoid biting flies, including mosquitoes.”

Presley also recommends making sure game meats are thoroughly cooked before eating them and says homeowners and lawn care professionals should look for wild rabbit nests hidden in tall grasses prior to mowing.

So you hog hunters take care. Take precaution when handling the animal, ensure you fully cook the meat.

New APD range

/ hsoi / 1 Comment

Looks like the Austin Police Department got a new training range.

Good.

[APD Chief Art] Acevedo also wants all officers to start shooting every month instead of annually.

Right now, all peace officers must qualify with their weapons every year.

Cpl. Duane Peed. “We want to do more than just qualify. We want to decision making training, we want to practice reloading skills, malfunction clearing, shooting from behind cover, different position shooting, we’ll practice with different weapons, not only our pistols but shotguns we have in our patrol cars.”

Very good.

 

GunVault fail… GunVault win.

/ hsoi

I have a GunVault safe. Multi-Deluxe.

A few nights ago it failed to open.

That’s not good.

Press the buttons, whirring noise, door doesn’t open. There’s even an FAQ on their website about it that says to contact tech support. So I called, left a phone message. Since then I use the key to open it and also kinda forgot about the issue because I’ve had other things distracting me.

I just got a callback. They know the problem. There’s a little steel cable inside the mechanism. Press the buttons, motor activates, pulls the cable which undoes the latch, and viola. Cable broke. I could see the cable. Google searching after the original phone call turned up a lot of this. It also turned up a lot of mixed reactions to how their customer service handled it.

Well, mine was OK. They said that some mechanisms can be repaired, some cannot. Something about some older ones being made by someone else that’s now out of business and they took all the schematics with them. Don’t hold me to that… phone call was a little bit ago and I’m distracted by other things right now. But I told the rep my serial number, he took my address, and a replacement will be shipped to me. Said when it gets here, there’ll be an RMA in the box, just box up the old unit and send it back. That was no fuss no muss! Well, one small fuss… the particular unit is backordered and it could be up to 4 weeks before I see it. So… I guess if I don’t see it by the end of February I’ll contact them again.

But hey, that’s good customer service.

But it also concerns me.

What if I needed access into the safe right then and there? Whirring is the last sound I want to hear. Failure to provide access when needed, that’s not even the last thing I want — that’s something I never want. That really bothers me. While I appreciate the customer service, I want to see what the replacement mechanism looks like. I hope it’s more robust, more stable, and not prone to such failure. Yeah sure all mechanical things fail, but this bugs me.

I’ve been looking at V-Line stuff for a while. I like it because it’s simple mechanical, no batteries, no electricity. I never liked how the GunVault’s pads worked… they are “squishy” feeling, and on more than enough occasions I hit them incorrectly because they are just sensitive. All ways to fumble and fail. I don’t like that, given the purpose and intent. The bummer with the V-Line tho is I really like how the GunVault accesses things… through a “side panel”. The V-Line has some “under the desk” stuff but it’s not the same nor as roomy. Heck, Karl’s a V-Line dealer.

Anyways, I’ll reserve making a decision until after I get the replacement unit.

Magpul iPhone case… not so impressed

/ hsoi

The rest of my Magpul goodies arrived yesterday, including that which I was most excited about: the iPhone case.

And… I’m disappointed.

I’m not really sure how much protection the case can give the phone, and no I wasn’t going to fling my phone around just to find out.

I’ve had one case that I can’t remember who made, a Speck ToughSkin, an xGear Nitrous Oxide, and now the Magpul case. Wife uses an OtterBox Defender. There’s no question the Defender is the toughest case giving an amazing amount of protection; my only gripes are the fact the screen protector is slightly above the screen so sometimes taps don’t take or you have to tap harder, and the little plastic part for the earpiece is uncomfortable to hold against my ear, but those are the tradeoffs for that high level of protection. The first case I had? I don’t remember who made it and that’s fine… it didn’t last long. The ToughSkin was certainly that; good protection, good grip, a little too rubbery so it was hard to slip in and out of a pocket, and eventually the little plastic frame cracked. The xGear has been alright… rather slippery and I’ve dropped my phone because of that more times that I care to count, but certainly it lands just fine and is protected. So far it’s really been the best case for the way I use and carry my phone.

And that’s the problem I’m feeling with the Magpul case. It’s just like a thin layer of their semi-flexible polymer that’s tightly stuck to the phone case. Sure, it’s going to protect from scratches and so on, but dropping on a hard surface? How much impact will it absorb? Furthermore, there’s no ridge around the frame of the phone’s screen to protect that in case it lands screen-down. Furthermore, I use those “film” screen protectors, and without any sort of case-lip over the edge of the screen, the protector’s edges are exposed and more likely to get pulled up. I do like the feel of the case: slick enough to slide in and out of a pocket, but still grippy enough to hold onto. The form factor is also extremely slim, barely changing the phone’s profile. And of course, it looks damn cool. 🙂

I guess I had it in my head that, being a Magpul, it was going to be a tough case. Maybe I like PMAG’s too much and figured it might be as tough as one of those. Maybe I slipped into fan-boi mode and went more for the cool factor than truly ensuring it was a solid case. Don’t know. Don’t care. I’m not upset I spent the money on it, and I am going to try it out for a bit to see how it works out. But I’m not getting rid of my xGear case yet.

Female student attacked on UT campus

/ hsoi / 5 Comments

A female University of Texas student was attacked on campus: (h/t Robert)

On Wednesday around 12:30p.m., UT Police say a woman walking near the Jester West Dormitory area was attacked.

She told police someone wearing all black clothing had been following her.

Middle of the day, on campus.

“If you are trying to fight someone off take the bottom of your palm since it’s the hardest part of your hand and like get them right here under the nose and it shoves the nasal cavity back into the brain,” said UT student, Caitlin Clemenson.

“They teach you how to kick punch where to do it and they teach you about pepper spray,” said UT Student Cara Bessom.

You know what hits harder than your hand? You know what’s more effective at shoving body parts back into the brain?

A snub-nose revolver.

I don’t care what the martial arts guys tell you about a 90-lb. woman being able to defeat a determined 250-lb. man. Sorry, but physics and biology will win out here. Your kick, your punch… it means little to someone hell bent on raping you. Pepper spray? Sure it sucks, but people can fight through it.

Ladies, steel and lead are far more convincing.

1 in 4 American women will be assaulted in her lifetime. Every woman has a right to defend herself. Concealed carry reform now!

Support a woman’s right to self-defense. Support concealed carry on college campuses.

A little word substitution

/ hsoi / 3 Comments

Would you have the same outrage if this was about free speech?

U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer is going to introduce “Common-Sense Concealed Firearms Act of 2011”.

Let’s take her press release and do a little word-substitution:

 

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) today announced that next week she will introduce the Common-Sense Speech Act of 2011, which would require all states that allow residents to speak in public to have minimum standards for granting permits.

Senator Boxer said, “The tragic events in Tucson earlier this month are a reminder of why we need common-sense speech laws. This measure will establish reasonable permitting standards for Americans who wish to speak. According to a recent poll, more than 60 percent of respondents believe there should be a reasonable permitting process for those who wish to speak.”

Senator Boxer’s legislation would require all states that allow residents to speak to establish permitting processes that would include meaningful consultation with local law enforcement authorities to determine whether the permit applicant is worthy of the public trust and has shown good cause to speak.

Currently, two states do not permit residents to speak, while three states, including Arizona, allow residents to speak in public without a permit. The other 45 states require residents to obtain permits to speak, but the majority of these states would not meet the standard set in this bill.

 

 

Words can be even more damaging than a gun, but if anyone tried the above, they’d be rode out on a rail.

Your 2A rights are what maintain your 1A rights. Lose your 2A rights and your 1A rights aren’t far behind.

 

Shooting tips from Julie Golob and Karl Rehn – acceptable sight picture

/ hsoi

From AccurateShooter, an interview with Julie Golob performed by Kelly Bachand (you may know him from the first season of “Top Shot”).

Here’s a good explanation of the concept of “acceptable sight picture”:

As [former IPSC National Champion Mike] Plaxco explained it, an acceptable sight picture is the degree to which you need to see your sights to make a good shot at X-distance. For instance, at 3 yards you only need to see a vague outline of the back of your slide superimposed on the target. At 10 yards, you need to see a rear sight and a front sight coarsely aligned. At 25 yards, you need a clear front sight in the rear sight’s notch, and at 50 yards you better have a perfect sight picture, the front sight clear and sharp, flush with the top of the front sight, with even gap on either side.

Brian Enos’ book Practical Shooting: Beyond Fundamentals discusses this concept, as well as many other relevant topics.

Karl Rehn actually helped me with this. We had some discussion some time ago about how to improve your split times. One key was then later reinforced in a comment Karl made here on my blog.

 

re: speed. Try working the problem backwards. At 3 yards, set yourself a par time of 1 second. Start with gun pointed at target, finger on trigger, trigger prepped. Lean forward and grip the gun as hard as you can. On the go signal, pull the trigger 5 times as fast as you can. Don’t wait for any visual information. Just observe what you see as you are pulling the trigger as fast as you can. Then inspect your hits. If they are all in the A-Zone, then whatever you saw is all you need to see. If they are not all in the A-Zone, back off the par time to 1.25 sec, 1.5 sec.

At 3 yards you should be able to shoot 0.20-0.25 splits.

You can work at it and get down to 0.15 splits at 3 yards, but honestly once you get to 0.20 splits, your time is better spent moving back to 7 yards and finding out what you need at 7, 10, 15 etc.

 

 

The key is to “just shoot” and not worry about the sight picture. Of course, you must do it in a safe and controlled manner, but still just shoot. The point is that you shouldn’t try to have your eyes do the work, then shoot, but instead just shoot. Let the mechanics work themselves out. Then instead of your eyes being involved in the shooting process, your eyes are just observers… let them take in what’s going on with the gun and sights. This will help your brain to say “OK, I know mechanically we’re shooting a good Bill Drill, so this is what the eyes see when shooting that good Bill Drill”. Your brain will learn what’s acceptable.