UK Royal Ordnance Depot WEEDON:

This British Military Ordnance Depot was built between 1805-06 as the central small arms depot for the British Army - next to the Grand Junction Canal at Weedon Bec. - It was built in this secretive central UK location in Northampton because it was as far away as you could get from any coastal invasion force.

Eight Weedon Storehouses With Central Canal Cut Entering Through A Portcullis.

It was an important place that operated with it's own canal cut and railway branch line right-up 'till it was closed in 1965 and finally sold-off in 1984.

The initial area was 53 acres but later expanded to 153 acres. The heavy walled magazine buildings were separated by blast mounds and in the day stored 1,000 tons of gunpowder.

Magazines - Small Arms Stores.

Originally the gunpowder was delivered by barge but when the main rail line was built it blocked the canal - resulting in a complete section of the tracks having to be lifted to permit the canal barges entry .. rather problematic on a very busy line that curved sharply on both approaches to the canal.
It is notable that in one 13 month WWII period 1942-43 Weedons Depot issued 3,500,000 weapons.

Water Cooled Machine Guns From America. 
(Vickers-Colts M-1915 ? - Destined For The Home Guard?)

Here is a Link to an excellent history site:

 http://www.subbrit.org.uk/sb-sites/sites/w/weedon/index.shtml

Weedons Depot barracks at one time housed 500 men PLUS 121 military prison cells, a hospital, a chapel and a horse stables block.

In 1900 a three story military clothing store was built at Weedons that dressed and 'booted' much of the army personnel from England and Wales throughout The Great War 1914-18.

Today the remaining buildings are being re-purposed for storage and industry, but the main part of the original surrounding land has been developed for housing.

- Here is a link to a very good video-look around at the DEPOT site and buildings .. but the presenter needs to loosen-up a little eh:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKs0WAyC9Qg

Marty K.

Licensed, Law-Abiding & VICTIMIZED:

You should check the facts here as this news was heard on the radio MEDIA .. but following the dreadful Christchurch Mosque Massacres I have heard that yet another Courier Service says it will no longer carry firearms or parts .. and the biggest print magazine importer / distributor has now announced it will no longer handle imported "Shooting & GUN Magazines".

This truly is a disgraceful victimization of a group of folk who have officially demonstrated that they are law abiding and trustworthy citizens. THIS IS PREJUDICE AT WORK .. every bit as much as "white supremacism"  'Hate Crime' and racism.

- The Police Association calls us "a radical gun lobby spewing hate & vitriol on social media" .
It's too bad that politicians are queuing-up to be seen pointing blame & a QUICK FIX GUN BAN at a complex terrorist and crime problem .. but to now have corporate businesses seek publicity and profit for their operations from a mass murder by saying - "Look at us - We are banning Guns too." - that's too much to take.

I think there is a need here for one of our shooter's groups to add imported magazine subscriptions and distribution to their membership benefits .. say 'Guns & Ammo' , 'Handgunner', 'Gun Digest' etc - there should be revenue in it to strengthen their finances.

And how about contracting a network of courier drivers to carry our stuff nationally - our own Ballistic Courier Service between the main centers?

The 'establishment' is trying to strangle our legitimate lawful sport out of existence.

-Time to get organised before we run-out of powder, projectiles, equipment and information.

Marty K.

LIMBSAVER Grip on Glock:

I'm trying one of these rubber "recoil reducing" sleeve grips after Zach our club/range tame gun-smith told me he'd got some in ex USA .. I had said I'd be cutting a length from a bicycle inner tube to see if it might further enlarge the G.19X grip feel for my longish hands ..

US Made LIMBSAVER from UNIQUETEK.

- You won't know if something is perfectly "Goldilocks" sized unless you try the next-up fit - & either love it or reject it eh.
(- there's a joke there: "Always choose a girl with small hands .. as it'll make yours look bigger.")

The Limbsaver feels surprisingly soft and 'tacky-grippy' to the touch .. Made from NAVCOM™ (Noise And Vibration Control Material) - it's really cumfy in the hand and the section that fits the back of the grip is cushioned/dimpled on the inside to absorb felt recoil. - Like me .. it really is a bit of a 'soft-touch'.

Easy to roll-onto the new coyote tan Glock 19X .. but I'm not sure 😏 .

Limbsaver On Glock 19 X.

- The 'Limbsaver' is very grippy and cushioned and maybe I like it - but having only fired 10 rounds "wearing it" .. It might be a soft-touch too far for me? - It is a brilliant design & material .. and it will be a protective sleeve over the nylon polymer (not that it needs protecting) .. but I don't have any recoil issues with 9x19 caliber Glocks .. certainly a forty caliber is somewhat snappy and my previous generation G17 had fairly sharp pimples that did dig in to my softening hands. Hmm - but on this one? Dunno.

Marty K.

US Civil War DEADLINE at Prison Camp:

Radio people were talking about writers having "deadlines" to produce their work when something went 'DING' in my head .. that word sounds serious eh.

It seems the term DEADLINE originated in the 1861-65 American Civil war when Federal prisoners of war were held in an open Confederate stockade Camp Sumter near Andersonville Georgia.

- The DEAD line was an inner perimeter line that - if crossed by a prisoner - he would be shot.

Andersonville Prison Camp Makeshift Shelters, Prisoners & DEADLINE.

This camp extended to 26.5 acres - was built in February 1864 as a temporary facility to hold prisoners until they might be exchanged - but during the 14 months it was used - around 45,000 soldiers were held there and nearly 13,000 died (28%).

Within the camp conditions were foul and there was a claim that a gang of nearly 500 prisoner 'raiders' would prey on the others by robbing anything of value. Link:

https://www.courant.com/news/connecticut/hc-xpm-2014-03-28-hc-andersonville-prison-0323-20140328-story.html

Captain Henry Wirz a Swiss-American was in charge there from April 1864, for 12 months - then at the wars end he was tried by Military Tribunal and hanged for the various acts of cruelty he was accused of.

LINK TO Wikipedia page:  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Wirz

"And he, the said Wirz, still wickedly pursuing his evil purpose, did establish and cause to be designated within the prison enclosures containing said prisoners a “dead line” being a line around the inner face of the stockade or wall enclosing said prison and about twenty feet distant from and within said stockade; and so established said dead line, which was in many places an imaginary line, in many other places marked by insecure and shifting strips of [boards nailed] upon the tops of small and insecure stakes or posts, he, the said Wirz, instructed the prison guard stationed around the top of said stockade to fire upon and kill any of the prisoners aforesaid who might touch, fall upon, pass over or under [or] across said “dead line” 

It is generally accepted that the record of history being written by the winners - is not always without bias. There is no question but that conditions in the camp were hellish and prisoners lacked proper shelter, food, clean water and all other necessities.

Despite many of the prisoner witnesses stating they never saw Wirz act inhumanely .. he was found guilty of the multiple charges and at 10.32 a.m. November 10 1865 he was cruelly hanged in Washington .. his neck not broken - and slowly choked to death in front of 200 witnesses and 120 guards.

War is Hell.

Marty K.

The BLACK & TANS In Ireland:

The "Black & Tans" were a force of 9,500 armed temporary constables sent to Ireland 99 years ago to combat nationalists fighting for Irish Independence. This notorious police force existed only for three years from 1919 to 1922.

These men were mostly recruited from unemployed ex British Army Great War veterans, into the Royal Irish Constabulary Special Reserve - and this group usually includes the separate RIC Auxiliary Division that was a counter-insurgency force made-up of former British army Officers.

The name 'BLACK & TANS' comes from the coloration of the fox hunting pack of black & tan "Kerry Beagles" of The Scarteen Hunt of County Limerick. 

Note: The Special Reserve's uniform "black" was actually a very dark RIC Green.

Kerry Beagle

 At least some of the infamy of the Black and Tans may be undeserved as many of the war crimes attributed to the Black and Tans were actually the work of the officer "Auxies"..

There were around 9,500 men recruited at a pay of 10 shillings a day with full board & lodging in Ireland.

After only three months training they deployed into Ireland wearing makeshift uniforms .. burning and sacking many villages .. including  Tuam in County Galway in July 1920 (There is a TUAM Street in Christcurch N.Z.) -  Trim, Balbriggan, Knockcroghery, Thurles, Templemore  & Trallee - also burning and destroying the city center of Cork.

This was all in living memory of the Great Irish Famine of seventy years earlier and the following land evictions and the 'Boycott' movement against English landlords.

The numerous war crimes the Black & Tans committed against the Irish people greatly strengthened anti-British feelings and support for the IRA.

A sad time in the history of the British occupation of Ireland.

Marty K.

Assault Weapons On Christchurch Streets:

Six days after the horrible terrorist slaughter of defenseless family members at two Christchurch mosques - our Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took decisive action against legally licensed firearms owners nationwide.

In the days following this massacre the residents of Christchurch will need to accept increased numbers of police patrols by officers armed with assault weapons of the same kind that are to be permanently banned from legal possession by registered, trained and licensed 'Fit And Proper' sporting shooters.

I trust that these brave officers are themselves at least as well trained and qualified by endorsed firearms license as those sporting gun owners who are now made into criminals by an Order in Chambers..

Police Commissioner Mike Bush commenting on the raised level of armed security alertness says that this increase in use of now banned MSSAs throughout New Zealand will not be for ever.

Bearing in mind at all times that Police are subject to the SAME laws regarding the use of firearms and the use of force for self-defense as all of us - is there one word that covers this sad development?

HYPOCRISY :
  a situation in which someone pretends to believe something that they do not really believe, or that is the opposite of what they do or say at another time:

I truly and fully sympathize with our fine Prime Minister's need to be seen to take action and to strengthen firearms law - But full and careful consultation with expert knowledgeable firearms users must be conducted.

Marty K.

JIM SHOCKEY - Thinking Hunter on The Radio:

Oh WOW .. what an amazing Sunday morning Radio NZ listening that was down here a few weeks back.  - To be entirely accurate - I listen online via my "Amazon Echo" Artificial Intelligence device (which is an incredibly stupid & sometimes very annoying wi-fi device). But I can explore the world's broadcasting networks while continuing the necessary local functions such as cooking and the essential once a year .. vacuuming of the cat's fur from the carpets 😄.

- First, Professor Brian Cox explaining our place in the galaxy & universe and the likelihood of LIFE out there .. followed then by a thoughtful interview with north-american JIM SHOCKEY who is a big figure in the world of hunting .. talking about why we hunters hunt - the very different perspectives of real folk living with wild nature .. and the artificial moralities of city inmates who daily consume millions of processed chemically produced animal corpses.

 (Have you tasted chicken lately? .. I bet you haven't as it is now FLAVORLESS apart from a faint chlorine aroma) - Approaching 1.5 BILLION six week old 'broilers" are raised for slaughter every year .. I may have to get & keep some hens again for real eggs and an occasional old-fashioned tasty roast.

Jim Shockey

Professor Brian Cox.

- So much cerebral stimulation over cups of coffee has to be either very good or very bad for the space between my ears.  - Followed by hours on almost intelligent "Brexit" chatter from LBC Radio London.

.. I switched later to 'Blues & Roots Radio' for some quality folk and blues while I cleaned some toys. (No switch actually needed - just the voice command "Computer - Play Blues & Roots Radio".)

Life is good - unless you are a 6 week old meat chicken,

Marty K.

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