HOW MUCH? - Qua Libra? .. CALIBRE. - Don't be DAFTE

 John Dafte of London was a gunmaker in the 1660-1670 era who is said by some to have made the FIRST Breech loading handgun ..

A captive screw barrel ..

And an early REVOLVER Snaphance gun by John DAFTE

I'm just passing this on .. as a matter of interest. - What do I know?

The modern spelling of CALIBER is the same word as CALIBRE and there are some who say     that it comes from QUA LIBRE - the Latin for 'How Much?' .. sounds reasonable to me, having been taught Latin during my first year at Grammar School I can still recite amo amas amat amamus amatis amant - that's all there is for an 11 year old to know about LOVE.

____________

So .. who needs a barrel anyway?

I'm not going to say anything here other than you can read this story ...

https://gunsmagazine.com/discover/who-needs-a-barrel/

- Been snubbed lately?

NOW .. Those of us with more curiosity than brains should be prepared to find that a bullet fired without any barrel - may well EXPAND from the gas pressure impacting it's base while unconfined by the bore of a gun.

PISTOL & REVOLVER DIGEST Published 1976

The year I escaped from UK weather and came to New Zealand

Publishers back then were not so frightened of being sued by dumbass morons who injure themselves.

Interesting eh

UPSET or EXPANDED Bullets fired from very short revolvers - NO Barrel = INERTIA but No friction.

It's all been done before

DO NOT DO THIS AT HOME.

Boiling water may be HOT - SALTED PEANUTS may contain Peanuts.

Marty K.

Working on an 'Ottoman' FLINTLOCK:

 Delivered LOADED .. mud wasp nest + ball & powder indicate this charcoal burner has been inactive somewhere for many years: I'm so much happier now that the bore is clear - but there seems still to be a ring of lead from the ball remaining right at the bottom - where the 'spike' of the auger prevents the cutter going flat to the plug .. 

I cut-off that spike and flat bottomed the auger to remove the last bits of the lead ball, - then using a dowel wrapped in Scotch-Bright abrasive, polished the surface rust from the "smooth" bore.

Small thing, but I've now placed an antique "Brown Bess" flint into the jaws and it sparks OK .. a giant step for man ..

I bought an old Sterling Silver dish to cut and fit a replacement escutcheon for the one missing from back face of the stock ..

How difficult can that be?

Well the answer is difficult .. for me anyway. I sweated bricks cutting into the silver dish with old 'tin-snips' that I first needed to sharpen with a file - then I leaked in panic as I tried to cut, bend and file the thin silver "escutcheon" to shape & size - then I got myself into a right sticky mess mixing, applying and manoeuvering that silver leaf into place while trying to hold it down tight before the two-part 5 minute epoxy set up into it's death grip. - I seem to have ruined another wooly jumper with splodges of epoxy glue in at least three patches of my puku (beer belly in te reo maori) - and my shirt is now a grubby sweaty mess.

- Was it worth it? ..

Rough Enough.

- Oh Yeah .. that 100 plus year old powder charge that had been pooped-on by a mud wasp - wet with CRC - then soaked in water still managed to crackle & pop on my laundry back step .. smelling a bit like a pommie burnt-banger barbecue:

Next task is to give the whole thing a good wipe-down before a light coating of oily wax gently polished on. - All good, what's next?

Marty K.

"What's the Diff" .. Antique or 'Wall Hanger'?

 How can you tell if an old dirty rusty Flintlock is a genuine antique or a fake .. did I just pay dollars for an artfully aged modern repro from the tribal zone of the Indian Continent?

I honestly don't have the answer as I'm very recent into buying old shooters. - AND if you bought this gun, at a price you could afford, because it looks genuine and is made from traditional steel, copper alloy & wood - how can you lose? .. probably you could shoot it either way, with moderate loads.

"Bird-Mouth" or "Fish-Mouth" Muzzle.

I posted this image on-line asking could anyone name this style of flintlock muzzle form, only to be told this .. "I suspect it is a tourist trade wall hanger trying to look like a blunderbuss"

Maybe .. if you can't recognise cast POT METAL and plastic when you see it .. THIS is not either

Here is a useful article from the NRA Museum called 'FAKE' by Jim Supica:

https://www.nramuseum.org/gun-info-research/fake!.aspx

.. But be warned that they reference RL Wilson as an 'expert' with collectible Colts .. well he was an expert thief, liar, forger and con-artist. He definately knew his stuff .. You need to watch this Wilson expose' from C&RSENAL ..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uq8yHzNF3

Enough Patina for an Expert?

When I get an old gun - I want to clean it and remove any active rust before waxing surfaces to protect - and then lubricate moving parts. If there are broken & missing parts I try to fix it. 

- Problem .. these experts say that signs of corrective work and preservation are evidence of fakery ...

I dispute that - how would any genuine firearm survive from antiquity, 200+ years without damage, maintenance & repairs - that would mean only an investment piece kept as a safe queen for centuries would qualify as 'genuine'?

Variables again .. are your priorities MONEY or your interest and use of various kinds of guns?

I have seen an interesting FLINLOCK TINDER LIGHTER complete with remains of a beeswax candle .. that could be either a centuries old 'antique' or a "modern" unmarked Italian reproduction that ceased manufacture in the 1960's so might be only 70 years old.

An "expert" would need to take metalurgy samples and examine perhaps for machining marks etc. - Oh to be aged 'only' 70 years old again ..

Marty K.

Use Of Nitrocellulose Propellant in Black Powder Guns

 EEEK  

.. Now I'm not going to repeat that this can be extemely DANGEROUS - Nor am I recommending that anyone ever experiments at using 'smokeless powder' in any blackpowder firearm or cartridge. - 'Needs Must' - The key to understanding is awareness of VARIABLES.

But .. I just watched Jake from 'Everything Blackpowder' demonstrate shooting a percussion revolver he loaded with mixed powders. Another of his excellent videos - linked here ..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPbXOLQr40A

His video is thought provoking and very interesting to watch. Full Stop.

- Going back in time, there used to be, from around 1900-1945ish various brands of .22" Rim Fire ammunition using 'LESMOK' that was a "Crossover" transitional powder that was something like a mixture of BLACK POWDER & NITROCELLULOSE .. possibly nitrated wood pulp was the base propellant.

Now this 'LESMOKE' powder was in a semi-smokeless cartridge using around 10-20% smokeless powder to it's advantage BUT it was still  dirty stuff  and corrosive to shoot .. They used more powerful VERY CORROSIVE MERCURIC PRIMING COMPOUNDS - because the smokeless powders were less easily ignited than the charcoal-saltpeter stuff.

- Later the makers Winchester changed the priming chemicals and renamed this blended powder range 'STAYNLESS'.

I understand that other cartridges were loaded by manufacturers with blended mixed powder at the time so this clearly shows that the simple prohibitive DIRE WARNING to never use smokeless powder in black powder guns may be questioned by thoughtful shooters.

And it seems that - to this day - the real BIG BORE ORDNANCE on warships actually are loaded with a little old fashioned mixed Gunpowder to set-off the main nitrocellulose charges ..

All I'm suggesting is that - if you know what you are carefully doing .. variations of the generally accepted RULES may work.

I had a mate once who became a millionaire and he would say "Every practical problem has got a practical solution .. The only REAL problem is people." 

Marty K.

Israel has More Nuke Ability Than Britain:

Wintertime STOP PRESS:

 New Zealand Police records show that 60% of criminal cases considered for action are now dropped due to lack of funding and resources. - Pretty good odds to be a Criminal Nutter eh - 60% likely NOT to be prosecuted even before going to Court and being dealt with and given a plastic ankle bracelet.

How do you feel about the current restrictions on lawful civilian ownership of guns?

New Zealand's "Mother Country" - GREAT BRITAIN has four nuclear submarines Vanguard, Victorious, Vigilant, & Vengeance. - Each of these aging rusty vessels from the '90s could carry some 128 nuclear warheads - but their deployment & use is entirely at the whim of USA ..

Faslane Scotland September 2023

“If the US pulled the plug on the UK nuclear program, - Trident would be immediately unable to fire, making these submarines little more than expensive, undersea follies.”

So much for UK.

Israel, - a NUCLEAR POWER currently in the process of killing 35,000 Palestinians - is believed to have between 80-400 nuclear weapons deliverable by missile - aircraft, submarines and by land forces - produced independently - under the direct control of PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

This Israeli nuclear capability goes a long way to explain the lack of any aggressive action by her Muslem neighbours and Iran .. so far.

Another British NATO ally - FRANCE has around 300 operational nuclear warheads and they are currently commiting to send an army Battalion of 2,000 men to Ukraine to oppose RUSSIAN FORCES .. Good Luck to all of us with that enterprise.

- Russia maintains around 15 nuclear submarines in the Pacific Ocean at all times.

In January 2019, the Russian Navy announced plans to procure at least 30 Poseidon NUCLEAR WEAPON CAPABLE unmanned underwater vehicles, deployed on four submarines, two of which would serve in the Russian Northern Fleet and two in the Pacific Fleet.

- Who can say what the U S, Chinese, Indian navies are up to?

Are you feeling nicely secure?

Marty K.

Up the Spout with an Antique FLINTLOCK:

.625 Caliber "Stopping Power 😮".. This piece landed on my front step recently .. Good One. - It wasn't cheap - as usual, I paid too much eh.

How did I get to be almost 80 before getting a FLINTLOCK ? 

- Well I reckon it's from the Ottoman world - possibly around 200+ y.o. - The LOCK, Cock & Frizzen bits strike me as being wholly genuine and of decent quality - and the wood & barrel look honest, whereas the rest of it's furniture is a bit crude. It ain't no Tower Service pistol .. but it sure has big balls .. around .625 inch bore.

"Patina": As received this antique was a little rusty and had 'pimply splodges' of black carbon/rust solids stuck on the steel - it was dirty and in need of 'TLC'. - DIRT is not Patina.

This thing seemed to have been washed or wiped all over with 'Brass Blacking'.

I had started to give it a clean and brush-up & de-grunge - when I thought I must check down the barrel just in case it was loaded - It had come from an antique shop. - I cut a length of dowel and checked with a tape - only to find that the dowel was solidly blocked 60 mm before the vent. That's SIX BLOODY CENTIMETERS of something nasty and hard lurking in the bottom of the bore.

I started chiseling out what seems to be solid sawdust and fabric imbedded in rusty mortar - Is there a 20 gauge lead ball underneath, sitting on top of a charge of old gun powder?

How can you shine a torch and look down a long barrel without pointing the damn thing at your brain?

- Dunno if you can see in my pics - that eleven inch barrel pipe is round at the muzzle BUT it gradually 'morphs' into a eight sided exterior before the lock, with faded engraving - did they hammer forge that back in the 18th Century? 

- NZ ecologists announce that they have found SMEAGOL SEA SLUGS (gravel maggots) on a beach south of Dunedin .. I'm hoping I don't find one in the bottom of my flintlock's barrel .. The SANDWORMS OF DUNE 2.

NZ Gravel Maggot Smeagol:

I almost need a jackhammer as so far I've chipped-out 1 cm and extracted this ..

This extracted 'infill' from the barrel might, 

perhaps be from a "Mud Wasp" nest?

. BUT there is a suspiciously rounded metallic surface emerging .. Uh Oh.

If that ball measures 5/8 inch dia .. my sums suggest there could be 11/4 inch of powder below.

The good aspect of this loaded condition is that it conclusively proves this gun is NOT a tourist item. - Plus, looking at the next image, you can see the scrapes above the flash pan where flints have impacted the barrel when firing ..

Can anyone suggest what this engraved word is? Namuomiu ?? - What language ?

-Your guess will be better than mine.

I made an extended shaft DRILL and a long woodscrew with a L Handle to pull this ball by using steel rod that had collars pressed-on .. from an old camp-cot. I 'glued' a center drill into one collar and a woodscrew into another, bent to form a handle, using SELLEYS' KNEAD it - a sort of epoxy putty that smells like old canned sardines in oil.

Well ... THAT didn't work. -The epoxy putty was OK but the woodscrew eventually just pulled right on out of that soft lead ball jammed way down that tube ..TWICE.

- Now the answer has proved to be a new Bunnings 12mmx380mm Auger Bit (Made in China) in a vintage 'cranked brace' - to drill through the lead followed by a bit of poking about ..

I Wonder If That Powder Will Work ..

What a load of crap I bought there ! - but I can now blow air down the clear bore and out the vent & I've got a safe tube to clean and de-rust ..

THE END

Marty K.

30 SUPER CARRY Cartridge:

 If I was Glock Ges. I'd call it '8MM Auto'.

Square eyed people who have their 'Mustn't Miss TV Series' say they think of their fave characters as friends .. I've got news for them - these actor a-holes haven't & don't want to meet them.

I know we all have our most personal favorite calibers and cartridges .. and brands of gun makers too.

One excellent way to raise blood pressures and RAGE is to mock a Glock - or a S&W or Colt 45 after first verifying your range mates preference and size. - Always good for a laugh when you're an old fart like me and immune from attack (mostly).

.380 ACP - 30 Super Carry - 9 MM

The 30 SC drives a 100 grain projectile at 1,250 feet per second velocity with low recoil levels.  This is 347 foot pound of energy (470 J). The 1mm reduced diameter when compared to 9 MM permits  around 20% more ammunition to fit in a double stack magazine - while this caliber maintains the same fine accuracy potential as the early .32" Centerfire target pistols.

Most educated thinkers with IQs above 40 understand that SHOT PLACEMENT is the critical factor for effective self defence from murderous attack - unless your personal SWAT TEAM is three deep between you and the threat.

You need an adequate power level that YOU can shoot accurately and quickly.

60 foot pounds of energy is accepted militarily as sufficient to disable .. That measure is surpassed by .22 LR.

- All you need to do is hit the target WHERE IT NEEDS TO BE HIT.

Greg Ellefritz An Alternative Look At Stopping Power - Linked:

https://www.activeresponsetraining.net/an-alternate-look-at-handgun-stopping-power

The records clearly show that the most effective handgun caliber for ONE SHOT INCAPACITATION is the .32" (8mm). - No arguments .. Just FACTS.

Get your SAAMI Specs here for 30 Super Carry ..

https://saami.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/Public-Introduction-30-Super-Carry-2022-06-30.pdf

- So that's the cartridge of choice for a semi-auto pistol .. while revolver fans can rest assured with the 327 Federal Magnum.

WHY? - Ease of shooting accurately a powerful compact cartridge sized for maximum capacity.

I'm talking about a "Carry gun" - not being 'loaded for bear'.

If you are already set-up for 9MM or .40 S&W or .45 ACP don't panic .. just train and practice with what you have eh.

Here's a good article and video about the Federal 30 Super Carry:

https://www.gunsandammo.com/editorial/federal-30-super-carry-tested/455614

So there you go then .. when will Glock Ges. introduce their 30 SC 8MM Auto models?

Marty K.

NZ has Lead Deposits - Sulfur - Saltpeter & Steel for Guns too ..

"PLUMBAGO" is an old word for the lead ores like GALENA.  - Believe it or not, there is lead naturally in the earth of New Zealand and it was successfully mined in past times - particularly at the TUI Mine in Te Aroha .. an interesting NZ geological report linked below: 

TUI Mine Entrance ..

https://www.nzpam.govt.nz/assets/Uploads/doing-business/mineral-potential/zinc.pdf

Galena is a heavy Lead-Sulfide Ore

"Plumbago" is also the name for blue flowered plants that are said to grow in lead containing soils .. and a species of butterly.

White Island (Whakaari) Bay of Plenty

SULFUR .. some 11,000 tonnes of sulphur were mined historically on White Island (Whakaari) - an active volcano that has taken lives several times, most recently in 2019.

Brimstone - SULFUR found at Hot Springs & Volcanic Vents.

Lead, Zinc, and Silver, GOLD & Copper tend to be found together - and like Sulfur, are generally Volcanogenic - and NZ has a fair amount of volcanic activity around our islands eh. - Silver was commercially mined back in 1897 at TARAWERA, Preservation Inlet, Southland.

Silver Bullets - 10% lighter but harder than lead would have been fairly common (or lead-silver alloy) back in the good old days, as silver was sometimes regarded as a nuisence by gold miners - but then they'd have needed ammo for their firearms .. especially if there were vampires sniffing around.

- If you are interested in Saltpeter, Potasium Nitrate .. well you can brew your own by collecting bat shit from caves or by storing urine-rich excrements in heaps kept moist until it magically appears by efflorescence .. this would work better up around Auckland where they have more shit and rain eh.

Mangare Sewage Works, Auckland:

It can be a bit dry Down South.

If you're curious about where you might find some STEEL down here .. No Problem as NZ STEEL in Waikato are busy sucking-up IRONSANDS and smelting it and churning out COLORSTEEL®. and other stuff.

Our Iron Sand (57% iron) is from the West Coast of the North Island - deposited by VOLCANIC activity from the TARANAKI region 2.5 Million years ago.

A lot of ironsand ore is exported by pumping it as a slurry to an off-shore terminal for shipping

Someone is making money .. Sucking It Up - piped 3 km off-shore Taharoa at the 185 tonne Mooring pipe Terminal Buoy.

I guess that what I am saying is that were we to be totally isolated down here in the South Pacific .. we might still be able to make traditional guns and other tools from local resources - including wood for charcoal and for stocks. - Just a thought anyway ..

Marty K.

"Gun Twirling" & The Road Agent's Spin. - Patina:

 Gun Twirling is 100% bullshit or Showmanship.

Gun Twirling Showmanship:

- That reminds me of  an English joke about naming pensioners as "Twirlies" for trying to use their travel perks on London's buses before 10 a.m .. "Am I too early? (twirly)"

Western performers and some 'trick shooters' liked to end a performance with a flourish by twirling the now EMPTY guns around their trigger finger as they re-holster.

Naturally some Hollywood Movie Makers think that this looks fantastic and have their fake gunslingers act it up at least once in every celluloid fantasy .. and it's equally logical that the hard of thinking Gangsta boys will try this with their loaded shootahs when impressing mixed company. Of course the Emergency Depts retain reasonable supplies of blood and plasma ..  It is unfortunate that the run-of-the-mill thickos don't differentiate between SINGLE ACTION revolvers and DOUBLE ACTION guns - nor do they consider that twirling a LOADED firearm is somewhat less safe than playing tricks with an empty banger.

A maneuver that might be more legitimate from the Wild West is the 'Road Agent Spin' where the bad guy agrees to surrender his arm by holding it out butt forward before flicking it back into his grip for immediate discharge ..

Border Roll or Road Agent's Spin ..

John Wesley Hardin is said to have schooled Wild Bill Hickok on this potentially valuable technique ..

172 Year Old Antique Colt 1849 Pocket Model (a 1852 original)

I doubt too many cynical lawmen were caught by the road agent's spin .. certainly they would not have been fooled twice by it eh.

PATINA:

I like a feed of patina every now & then - but I don't like rust nor grot, grunge, or grubbiness .. my shooters may arrive pretending to be sticky Petri dishes growing mushrooms from toilet seats - but I clean them.

Boiling the metal bits works.

I welcome a little characterful corrosion pitting, wear and impact cratering .. but I insist on them overcoming their old age handicaps by accepting repairs & replacements where possible. I failed with this antique Colt - being a useless old fart - but an old IPSC and Antique Arms mate came to my rescue by doing what I couldn't. He got it working great.

 

A friend in need. You know who you are. A brilliant job - Thanks Mate.

Marty K.

BARGAIN of The Century With Royal Connections:

THIS IS A JOKE?

Do not miss this this uniquely versatile property investment from yet another cock-up blamed on Jeremy Corbyn.

This fine example of Royal British Craftsmanship presents a most momentous enrichment opportunity to own Great Britain's very own 'TWIN TOWERS'..

TWO Penthouse Conversions of all metal construction - no austerity flammable plastic cladding here - with your very own SKI SLOPE and Helipad. - Extensive under-cover parking.

This asset rich rental accomodation potential may be located to your choice of high demand localities - as this new structure can be towed to any maritime berth world wide.

Expressions of Interest are sought from Venture Capitalists and Pension Fund managers wanting high returns, to Epstein Maxwell Sunak & Windsor, City of LONDON.

- Imagine magestically rising to the top of your very own STERNWHEELER with an exhilerating "London Eye" attraction  fixed at the back-end, located offshore of Blackpool's Illuminations - recreating the worlds biggest ever STERNWHEELER ..

Not 8 Billion Pounds - not even 2 Billion - bidding for this aristocratic, supreme once-in-a-lifetime investment opens at offers over FIVE MILLION Pounds. - Her uniquely similar sister ship will soon be moving to American waters .. Perhaps you can envisage a lucrative service contract with immigration authorities .. well this fine facility is perfectly suited as a secure 'PRISON HULK' while the hull's useable lifetime may be extended greatly by pouring a baseplate of water resistant marine concrete ..

This opportunity does not include any aircraft, but Popular Personalities Harry & Megan will be available for a Re-Dedication at their usual Fees, plus Naming Rights & expences.

Consider that King Henry VIII's flagship Mary Rose remains a most financially successful attraction to this day .. and it sunk in 1545 ..

No Ground Rent ..

The remunerative scope of this fund-transfer as a floating hotel - perhaps adjacent to a scenic offshore windfarm with superb boating, fishing, diving and catering by Escoffier Trained Chefs .. is further enhanced by TAX CREDITS and 'Non-Res' EXEMPTIONS ..

- Perhaps you envisage utility as a private Plutonium nuclear materials storage unit in the Irish Sea - handy to the THORP Reprocessing Plant at SELLAFIELD, CUMBRIA - connected by pipeline to their cooling water systems and in close proximity to their specialist nuclear police ..

 OPPORTUNITIES ABOUND.

Making Britain GREAT again.

Each qualifying enquiry receives a personal desk-top Corgi Model of your Heritage Investment ..

Marty K.

Where Are Our NZ SAS Working?

 I have no inside information. There is NO WAY I would have made it into this special Regiment. I have met and known three guys through pistol shooting competition who - for the record - were not in the NZSAS ..

My Irish father served nearly eight years from 1938 through WW2 in the Irish Guards and No.1 and No.2 Commando .. claiming that was the only way that he could get away from the Guard's English public school lgbtqia Officers. - He was in North Africa, Italy, and Norway, plus Northern Europe.

Moi, I was once declared - on a standing room only London-Peterborough train - by a drunken soccer fan-yob freshly released from a Spanish prison, to be SAS, and he 'befriended' me loudly for half the trip until he got thirsty and wandered off. - That's as close as I get to special forces ..

There may be some 500-700 men serving in New Zealands most combat fit Regiment .. guesstimates vary but there are perhaps six squadrons. They are mostly - very well trained & capable professional killers who do not question orders. - Naturally the guys will have their own opinions & theories - but they do the job.

Where are they working?

Both Ukraine & Israel are stated to currently be places where these men are deployed. They work closely with Britains own SAS and them-that-know state many of Ukraine's commando style successes are the work of these units .. as are the alert personal guards watching over Zelenskyy .. keeping him safe until his value dissipates .. for BlackRock to take-up their 410 BILLION Dollar rebuilding Ukraine contract.

The Guardian reports that the 50/97 special forces operating in Ukraine are British SAS - and where they are, you can guess the kiwis may also be having a beer or three. - SAS are said to have co-operated with Israel's Sayaret Matkal in recent times - But the UK Govt. has issued a D-Notice (DSMA Defence & Security Media Advisory Notice) instructing media it may not report any such activity in Gaza.

NZ does have a "six man team" deployed in the Red Sea "upholding maritime security" while Defence Minister Judith Collins has extended our official 97< defence personnel "standing with Ukraine" until June 2025.

UK Ship RUBYMAR Sunk by missile off Yemen

I suppose every little helps ..

I would expect in due course that a splattering of NZ medals will be presented for the most successful killing performance?

Marty K.

- Don't shout at me please .. Armies are trained and paid to kill people the Government wants dead .. well that's what they taught me to do in the CCF cadre course at school in 1958.

BLACK POWDER, GOLDEN POWDER, CRIMSON POWDER - Not for the colour conscious:

 There's a phrase "There's more than one way to skin a cat".

Governments of all flavours fully consider that they - and their wealth would be safer and stronger if NOBODY other than themselves had guns .. This is a "UNIPARTY" commonality where they adopt the political 'middle ground' while accepting $$ legal bribe donations from weird minorities in exchange for preference.

'Guns are BAD unless they are OURS. All shooters will have to be government approved or government employed.'

Nitro based SMOKELESS POWDERS are what propels most bullets to the target from modern cartridge guns.

But - for some 500+ years before these modern powders, - society mixed saltpeter with charcoal and sulfur - using this MIXTURE for many years in the "new" self contained cartridges that greatly facilitated rapid firing and multiple shot firearms.

But - there were and are other mixtures that work to produce high pressure gases that will accelerate bullets out of a barrel ..

There's all sorts of dodgy stuff used in explosives - fireworks and rocketry that personally don't interest me much, - as life is too short anyway .. but slings, bows and arrows and guns do appeal as tools for independence.

GOLDEN POWDER is a 60:40 (or 64:36) blend of POTASSIUM NITRATE with ASCORBIC ACID (vitamin C).

CRIMSON POWDER is the same stuff modified by adding some 5% ferric oxide- RUST red oxide.

I have NOT made this but read that the technique is simply to add the ingredients to water in a pan and boil them evaporating the water until the fluids turn gooey and change colour from grey-white to yellow tinged - remove from heat - cool & break-up. Link to them that do cook it:

https://castboolits.gunloads.com/showthread.php?464557-My-homemade-Golden-powder!

This stuff has been produced commercially as a Black Powder Substitute but not currently that I know of. One BIG PLUS is it doesn't foul like BP and is not corrosive in barrels .. BUT it is hygroscopic and clumps into a cake when carelessly moist. - GP/CP is less powerful by volume than the best BPs but is usefully adequate while simple to make and CHEAPER. The guys report that GP/CP is as powerful as Blackpowder measured by weight and while it is clean & non-corrosive to STEEL - it is bad for your brass.

This Golden Powder works better than United Kingdom's NUCLEAR DETERRANT TRIDENT missiles burping from their rusty submarines .. Do the British submarines have to be close off the Florida coast so that the Pentagon can release their nuclear arming system?

I did buy a book from U S some years back 'WHATEVER HAPPENED TO THE REAL GOLDEN POWDER by Skip Kurtz - a personal tale of intrigue and criminality from the American capitalist jungle that casts flickering light on shady dealings .. a sort of low level corruption story much like the High Level world of  U S Banking-Sex-Blackmail-CIA-Mossad-Politics-Corruption & Power/ Epstein-Maxwell-Clinton - Assasinations, Ukraine-Israel Slaughter type existance that we tolerate in this Century ..

Imagine the world's "most powerful nation" being offered the choice of criminal dotards Biden or Trump - to rule over all in the land of the free ...

There is a further propellant that I won't mention - known widely as CANDY PROPELLANT - made from a mix of Potassium Nitrate and Dextrose/Sucrose  65:35 ratio. I don't know much about it's features ..

Marty K.

The book is still offered by Amazon whereas Golden Powder author Skip is departed ..

Police Behaviours Regarding Lawful Firearms Owners - CORONIAL INQUEST:

RNZ National announced midday Tuesday 20th February that the Government of Finland was to build 40 new rifle shooting ranges to train their population defensively and had contracted to buy new "Single Shot Semi-Automatic Rifles" from a Finnish Arms Company ..

Expert Journalism.

https://www.police.govt.nz/sites/default/files/publications/ourcode.pdf

In his Commissioners Comment to the online version of NZ Police CODE OF CONDUCT Andrew Coster refers to integrity, trust and confidence. - I confidently assure the Commissioner that some 250,000 FIT AND PROPER Lawful Firearms Users have lost any trust and confidence in NZ Police Management as the result of having been treated as outcast scum by them - they have repeatedly accused us of being irresponsible, careless, dishonest associates of criminal gangs - and of being the root cause of violent acts of terrorism. - This despite us having been certified by police as Fit & Proper Persons to own guns.

How many of New Zealand's 10,549 sworn officers are themselves fit and proper ?

Both the CODE OF CONDUCT and Commissioner Coster avoid use of the words FUTILE - DECEPTIVE - INAPPROPRIATE - MISDIRECTED - WASTEFUL - INEFFECTIVE - & FALSE PREMISE.

The multiple murders of Australian BRENTON TARRANT in March 2019 were followed by heavily controlled statements designed to demonise gun owners and to overlook police neglect in granting TARRANT his firearms licence. We citizens were forbidden any access to anything this killer said .. and no public trial was held. - Police ran BUY BACK 2021 demanding that a range of legally owned guns be surrendered for destruction at a cost exceeding 100 Million Dollars with zero benefit on violent crime figures.

Harsh new NZ Firearms Regulation and Licensing requirements have been piled on top of fee increases - with complicated and time consuming application documentation. A new but pointless Puna Kōrero mō te Pū gun register has been established to discourage and limit lawful gun ownership - this is reported to be costing us a further 1 Million Dollars every Week.

There is a strong case here that such expenditure is a further MISAPPROPRIATION OF POLICE FUNDS - diverting essential police resources away from crime prevention into an area of political spin and attempted social control.

A recently received NOTICE OF SHOOTING CLUB / SHOOTING RANGE INSPECTION - instructs members to refer queries to a dedicated "clubs and ranges team' at clubsandranges@police.govt.nz."  - this informs of further useless police expenditure by a dedicated team misdirected towards a grouping of exemplary law-abiding, non criminal 'Fit & Proper Persons'.

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The First Phase CORONIAL INQUEST into the Christchurch Masjidain Attack was completed on 15 December 2023. - Deputy Chief Coroner Brigette Windley reserved her findings.

There remain outstanding & unexamined the 3 most important of the 13 Issues regarding Police Responsibility, - perhaps to be examined at an undetermined future date.

- COLFO was to have a representative/observer at the INQUEST. 

- ANY COMMENT OR OBSERVATIONS?

Shooters have voted one representative into Parliament - Nicole McKee - and she is making her voice heard .. BUT WHERE ARE THE SHOOTERS ORGANISATIONS?

For decades these Clubs, Groups and Controlling Bodies have been taking membership fees from sports people to represent our interests - only to DO NOTHING to stop this victimization, other than to send a few easily ignored letters - while the police spokespersons have repeatedly misrepresented the facts, and pointed the finger of blame at FIT & PROPER firearms owners ..

Membership of sporting shooters clubs is falling. 

The number of legally Licensed FIT & PROPER gun owners is falling.

Control of feral pest animals such as pigs & possums is falling.

Firearms Licenses are being withdrawn for Driving offences.

No Licence is required for Police to use restricted firearms as weapons.

Police numbers are falling as they are recruited to Australia ..

Violent Crime is rising.

Criminal Gang Membership is rising.

Distrust of Government is rising

Common Sense is draining away as fast as Wellington's sewage and piped water does, into the grimy streets.

Marty K.