Delayed Releases: Kimber K6 Revolver & Bond Arms 'Bull-Pup':

I keep looking for news that these two guns are available and being reviewed independently while shot on range .. But NOTHING !

The Kimber K6 was announced back in January but since then there has been  Nout - Nada - Zilch!

Back then they did manage to publish a superb picture of a prototype firing a dramatic flame ring:

- Maybe something happened that they don't want anyone to hear about.. (there's not much metal around those chambers eh).

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- and as for the Bond Arms "Bull Pup" - that used to be aka the 'Boberg' ? - Bond Arms announced that they had bought Boberg way back in November 2015.

Lovely new wooden grips at the gun Show so far - but still waiting ..

- Forum gossip is that maybe the issue Bond Arms has is trying to get the selling price down below $1,000 to encourage buyers. - Bobergs original manufacture involved much expensive precise machining.

 If Bond Arms were listening I'd suggest they approach Rugers lost wax casting facility to see if they can squirt some stainless steel components for them in a near finished state. - That's 'Pine Tree Castings', Newport, NH. - most of the other Stateside gun-makers use Rugers investment castings  already!

I know that we are most unlikely to ever see examples of either short-barreled piece down here in New Zealand because our current regulations won't permit them to be owned or shot outside of Military or Law Enforcement control.

 But they are interesting & new and shooters deserve to have some light shone on the true situation by the shooting media. - However I am well aware that most American shooting magazines are owned by (- and the content is controlled by) - the Industry's leading manufacturers .. no partiality here then.

Marty K.

After researching & writing 1,036 blogs I've got something NEW to try .. I've signed-up to Patreon. - In over five years I've not made one cent from this .. NOW you can send me a wee support $ - starting from $1. to get all this stuff from New Zealand - over a year that's nearly the price of one Shooting magazine. - Am I worth it?

https://www.patreon.com/posts/24075745

Olympic Shooting Results & Medals:

I think that it's all about over - apart from "the fat woman singing" - and the tables are being published so that we can all work-out just how many millions each medal has cost its respective nations tax-payers.

The 'Gold' medals - in this the 'Corrupt Age' - are of course NOT gold - as the last time real gold ones were handed-out was in 1912 ..  only the silver and bronze are genuine honest metal.

Medal standings · SHOOTING

	Country
	1 Italy		4		3		0		7
	2 Germany		3		1		0		4
	3 China		1		2		4		7
	4 South Korea		1		1		0		2
	4 Vietnam		1		1		0		2
	5 United States		1		0		2		3
	6 Greece		1		0		1		2
	6 Independent Olympic Athletes		1		0		1		2
	7 Australia		1		0		0		1
	7 Croatia		1		0		0		1
	10 New Zealand		0		1		0		1

It's perhaps a little surprising that the United States shot below top - scoring only Fifth in the shooting sports - when you recall how infamous they are meant to be for firearms usage.

- Still it will be a small compensation for the US medal winners to get $25,000, $15,000, or $10,000 each - awarded from the US Olympic Committee. - Sadly they have to pay income tax on that cash - as well as on the medals value (Bronze valued at $4. - $600 for the plated one).

The great thing for us Kiwis is that we can count one Silver Medal for the Womans Trap Shooting - Well done Natalie Rooney.

Marty K.

US Gun Sales Up & the Age we Live in?:

The gun manufacturer Smith & Wesson’s share price reached an all-time high on Monday after it was reported that the background checks for new guns had set a new record for July.

Shares in Sturm Ruger, the US’s largest gun maker, also surged on the news, ending the day up 2%, at $69.40.

A total of 2,197,169 firearms background checks were processed last month.Like its rival Smith & Wesson, Sturm Ruger has benefited from a huge rise in gun sales under the Obama administration. Share prices in both companies are close to record highs and have peaked after each mass shooting as gun owners worry that new rules will restrict ownership.

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Nothing at all to do with the above booming gun sales .. but has anyone else noticed that just about EVERY current organisation we live with on this planet is CORRUPT ?

FIFA, Cricket, Cycling, Olympic athletics, Formula 1 motor sport, International political 'facts' (like "weapons of mass destruction") - even the big Charities are run for the benefit of their executives.

- How can the worlds largest "Democracy" select a bum  like Trump as a serious Presidential Candidate? - with the alternative choice a Clinton that nobody likes or wanted?

They prefer the 'Trump Has No Balls' Statues to The Real Thing In America.

 - How can something like a proposed pedestrian  'garden bridge'  across the Thames have cost UK tax-payers 37.7 MILLION POUNDS  already  before a single brick has been laid?

- How can elected Western governments claim that there is no money available for better policing, better health services, better education etc., while cutting corporate business taxes (as they have) by 40% in the last 40 odd years?

I would suggest that we have come a long way over the years that we humans have been around: The Stone Age - The Bronze Age - The Iron Age - The Industrial Age - The Information Age - and now - The Corrupt Age.

Everyone seems to be lying, lobbying, and fiddling the books to grab wealth for themselves while the rest of us sit back watching crap on TV - sucking fizzy sodas and eating 'fast food'.

- The Rich are getting richer and ...

Does anyone still think that "we the people" are running the world - or is it Big Business and crooks?

Marty K.

Black Powder Charging - Ruger Old Army;

I had the 'Number One' Old Army on range again last week .. fun, fun.

Everyone seems to appreciate it's soft "BOOM" and smelly smoke screen - including a Harley rider first-time lady visitor.

I had some failures to fire - maybe caused by percussion caps not seated solidly? - and indeed also had one go 'crack-fizzle-nothing'. - Life must have been precarious back in those Frontier Indian fighting days eh.

 All went 'boom' nicely the second time around - Maybe I have been getting a wee bit over-confident and need to settle down and seat those caps more deliberately.

I've now used three different systems for charging the chambers with powder - and think that I'll settle for just scooping loose doses from a container on the firing line - making sure to seal the lid in place and remove the container from the firing position before capping and firing.

- Both using pre-weighed doses in small containers and building consumable paper cartridges work fine - but hardly seem to be worth the effort.

Black-Powder Clutter.

The messiest part of black powder revolver shooting is using grease to seal and lube the chambers after seating the balls. I seem to smear the grease around a bit and then - when fired it generously spreads itself further around the shooting bay (splat!) and down-range onto close-by targets.

I actually (almost) enjoy the cleaning and oiling chore after charcoal burning - I must be getting more tolerant with age - but you definitely need to make the soapy boil-up & scrub out the very first job to do BEFORE sitting down to relax!

I was also thinking that JBTFL might improve his first-strike capabilities on his .36" Uberti Navy by unscrewing his nipples a turn - or even by inserting some wee washers or shims under them?

Life is good,

Marty K.

Effectiveness of Handgun Calibers - & Guard Dogs:

Greg Ellifritz's 'Weekend Knowledge Dump' just landed on my desktop .. desktop because my laptop failed in a big way a week ago with a "corrupted hard-drive"? - so I have been rescued again by good friend 'J' who spent more than 12 hours locating, checking and setting-up the new upgraded (recycled & used) p.c. while also stripping open the lap-top and replacing that hard drive with a new, larger-solid state component bought from his favorite computer component suppliers.. involving a lot of driving around Christchurch.

Note: That fairly expensive laptop is only just about two years old - but I guess its maker can't be blamed for the invading viruses that have stuffed it.

- Enough already - Gregs weekend newsletter included this link to a story about effectiveness of various calibers for self defense .. well worth a look:

https://www.shootingillustrated.com/articles/2016/8/9/bullet-penetration-and-expansion/

- And a link to a story by firearms expert  Massad Ayoob about thoughts and practicalities of getting a dog as a pet and for home security:

http://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2016/08/canine-canine-security-trained-protection-dogs-for-home-defense/#protection-dog-3

- And for any of you not aware of Gregs FACT BASED original research as a Police Officer and Trainer - into the effectiveness of the more usual handguns (and long arms!) - from recorded events gathered over a ten year period:

http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/node/7866

I had (sort-of) forgotten the details of Gregs research findings based on ACTUAL shootings and was elated to note that the table for .32s .. only 32"Long & .32ACP - records 72% actually incapacitated by one shot (torso or head hit).

That is a top performance for small caliber rounds/guns dismissed by many as ineffective mouse guns.

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Just as anyone thinking about having a gun in their control - will need to like and to be interested in their use - and to train / practice with that gun..

-  Owning a large effective animal such as a protective DOG has to be taken equally seriously as a long term commitment.

Marty K.

BOTTLENECK Pistol Cartridges & 7.5FK:

The August issue of Guns & Ammo magazine carried a full page advert for the 7.5FK Brno cartridge and pistol.

- Never heard of either of them! - but I noted that this was another "Bottleneck" suped-up round (or is that 'souped-up?) that might be the new improved best-thing-since-sliced-bread.

Actually I should like this new cartridge as it is "a .30 Caliber"  - or more accurately it is very close to being a high pressure, high velocity .32"  - but it currently is not SAAMI specified and it is pricey.

Since 2010 - the 7.5FK promises to deliver a 103gn .30 caliber pill down range at 2,000 feet per second for a muzzle energy of 960 ft.lb. as a long range hunting round.

BRNO 7.5FK Field Pistol. - 2,000ft./sec.

(looks a bit like an old Webley Air-gun)

Don't confuse this proprietary 7.5FK round with the FN 5.7x28 which is also a 'bottleneck" high speed hottie.

FN 5.7x28mm - Can Drive its .22"s at 2,800ft.per.sec.

Next addition is the .22TCM that looks like a 9mm necked down to .22" but it's actually based on 5.56x54 brass. This bottleneck also runs at  2,800 feet per second with 40 grain bullets and there is a conversion based on Glock 17 magazines.

 .22TCM Compared to FN5.7x28, and .223" Rem.

Then there is the .357 SIG - developed in 1994 that can push-out its 9mm sized bullets from a .40" size necked-down case at around 1,500 ft. per sec.

.357 SIG

- Then there is the .32 NAA from 2002..

.32NAA is a suped-up .32 ACP that appears as a necked-down 380acp case that can push its 60gn pills out at 1,222ft.per.sec.

- These bottlenecks all bring to mind that 'oldie-but-goodie' - the .30 Luger (7.65x21mm) - even this antique could manage 1,200ft.per.sec. way back when my old Co. Wicklow Dad was in shorts and bare feet.

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- However - while recognising that it must be fun to pee-about looking to re-invent & improve the mouse-trap in hope of making a fortune - may I just slip-in an observation that even our nearly as ancient European 9x19 Luger can be driven as fast as 2,000 feet per second with a 50gn bullet? (Liberty Civil Defence Ammunition)

.. Time will tell as to how many of these will still be around in 2116 eh.. but we should remember that bottleneck rounds do feed very reliably in autos.

Marty K.

After researching & writing 1,036 blogs I've got something NEW to try .. I've signed-up to Patreon. - In over five years I've not made one cent from this .. NOW you can send me a wee support $ - starting from $1. to get all this stuff from New Zealand - over a year that's nearly the price of one Shooting magazine. - Am I worth it?

https://www.patreon.com/posts/24075745

PRIMERS .. Small Rifle & 'Small Pistol Magnum' - What's the Diff?

I know that large primers are bigger (.210") than the small (.175") ones eh.. but -

I am anticipating my 327 Ruger's landing down here by getting some hand loaded ammunition ready and the question has arisen as to which are the right small primers to use for this rounds HOT top-end loads.

For 'ordinary' or lesser power ranges - normal small pistol primers should suffice - but it seems that the factory Federal 327 cartridges are loaded using small rifle primers - and I have seen various suggestions that these small rifle primers are the rule - but others say that small pistol magnum primers are the go.

Small Pistol primers have cup thickness of 0.017".

 Large Pistol Primers measure 0.020" thick

Small Rifle Primers vary in cup thickness from 0.019" up to 0.025"

Large Rifle Primers generally measure 0.027" thick.

Note: Considering the different thicknesses and hardness of the brass used to make primers - trying to 'read' pressures by looking at the flatness after firing must be a very approximate art.

The issue I'm addressing here is that the 327 FM is a *HOT* cartridge with an internal pressure ceiling of 45,000 psi. - and there might be a problem at these high pressures with the thinner standard pistol primers suffering 'flow-back' and even pierced primers that may leak hot gasses to the rear.

However - on the forums - I am reading that - for some makers anyway - their Magnum Small Pistol primers are exactly the same spec. item as their 'Small Rifle Primers' - except for the packaging.. Not confirmed.

Rifle primers use tougher/thicker cups than pistol primers to withstand the higher pressures - and the firing pin blow of rifles is usually harder than the firing pin blow of pistols. Rifle primers are said to contain more priming compound than pistol primers.

Problem is that the hotter Magnum (and Rifle?) primers will produce higher velocities and internal pressures than the standard Pistol item so.. Warning: - Do not develop your load using standard primers then change to magnums.  Kaboom? - something to do with "Brisance".

- So that may resolve this issue at least for the small primers.

I read that the 327 cases are both longer than the other .32"s and have beefed-up thicker inner walls at the base and may also have different heat treatment in their manufacture to handle the higher pressures.

The 327 Federal Magnum is a powerful .32 - up there with the 32-20 Winchester, the .30 Carbine and the 357 Magnum. - writer 'Chuckhawks' says they should be known as .303 calibre (same bullet diameter) - and Jeff Quinn at Gunblast has a good opinion of these too..

- An interesting review and comparative testing of the Ruger SP101 in 327 Federal Magnum here:

http://www.gunblast.com/Ruger-SP101-327.htm

So I now need to buy some small rifle primers ..

Marty K.

After researching & writing 1,036 blogs I've got something NEW to try .. I've signed-up to Patreon. - In over five years I've not made one cent from this .. NOW you can send me a wee support $ - starting from $1. to get all this stuff from New Zealand - over a year that's nearly the price of one Shooting magazine. - Am I worth it?

https://www.patreon.com/posts/24075745