Gun Digest 2017 & NZ Labour Day:

Today being the fourth Monday in October is Labour Day here in New Zealand - a Public holiday making it a three-Day Weekend - that is generally reckoned to herald the end of Winter and to be soon enough to get-out into the garden and plant-up the vegetables.

- Well I started this years 'backyard Supermarket' weeks ago - which is just as well 'cos today is grey, cool and too wet outside for gardening - so instead I've been looking through the latest 71st edition Gun Digest instead.

Some excellent articles - so I won't 'do a 1911' and tell you how wonderful it is as long as you correct all its faults - except to note that the catalog section at the back seems to have been hurriedly thrown together by the computer-savvy office junior with some photos appearing on a different page to the entry - or even  totally AWOL.

One story piece compares the velocity performance of various projectile coatings - with surprising results - molybdenum disulfide, copper plated, and polymer coated - with cast, swagged and FMJ pills.

The fastest pills from the experimental measurements were CAST .. followed by polymer-coated, - then Moly-coated, - Swaged,  - FMJ - and last (slowest) .. the Plated projectiles.

- A Spread over a significant variation of nearly 100 foot per second velocity range.

Another story about the 327 Federal Magnum tells the history of .32" developments with the various cartridges that have evolved over the last 138 years since the .32 S&W was introduced and focuses on the very same model SP101 Ruger that I'm STILL waiting for.

- I looked through the Catalog section for Auto-loader Handguns and was pleased to record that five different makers list pistols in .32 caliber - including the clever** Beretta Tomcat with its "tip-up" barrel. ** It is a different and useful design - BUT there is a big problem with frame cracking on early blued guns that the later 'Inox' stainless models seem to have fixed.

Marty K.