UKs' SELLAFIELD Nuclear Site Was 'WINDSCALE':

If you are resident in UK - basically you are not allowed to own guns or knives in case you are so irresponsible as to think about using one to cause injury. (Unless you are a nutter and just ignore the laws like all the other crooks do).

- Of course there are some few land-owners permitted to have shotguns or a rifle for deer culling and there are shooting clubs where you may be permitted to own a long "handgun" that meets the restricting  rules - such as not firing a self-contained cartridge or one that has extensions both forward and back !

UK Handgun !

Meanwhile the honourable leaders of that green and fertile land look after its inmates - oops - that's citizens - by ensuring their safety in every way.

They "closed" the Windscale - (now 'SELLAFIELD') Nuclear Site in 1957 following a fire (read 'disaster') and changed its name from WINDSCALE - hoping that everyone would think that it was under control and had all been sorted.

'Sellafield' is on the edge of the Lake District tourist hotspot in Cumbria.

The 'Closed' Windscale at SELLAFIELD Nuclear Site in Cumbria.

I well recall hearing how a 70s survey of coastal seaweeds by SCUBA divers revealed radio-active contamination through-out the UK coastline (led by David Bellamy) and this shocking revelation was greeted by a  Govt. response of  ' - so what -we knew all about that'.

Anyway - British inmates - oops sorry again, - residents-  might care to note that this "closed"  facility is inhabited by 10,000 workers (- yes that's TEN THOUSAND) and is currently costing tax payers 1.9 BILLION POUNDS per year to try to control and fix - and it will still be highly dangerous for more than another 100 years at best. (- what's the half-life of plutonium?)(Plutonium-244 half-life is 80 Million Years)

- While you folk are not allowed to shoot target pistols or own knives - there is a small matter (Shhhhh) of crumbling concrete storage ponds and silos containing hundreds of tonnes of highly radioactive materials from more than 60 years of operations building H-Bombs.

 - Forget the plutonium -  one small example would be 90,000 tonnes of radioactive graphite that has accumulated 'Wigner Energy' (- look it up) and no-one really knows how to make it safe for disposal. - Apparently it can heat-up and self ignite.

The Sellafield (& Drigg) site embraces Windscale and the remains of Calder Hall facilities among others - and is being used to dump ever more radioactive waste until they can 'process' it.

Drigg 'low level repository site' waiting to be flooded and eroded by the sea.

- Has stacked shipping containers stuffed with waste set in 'grout'.

The coastal Drigg nuclear waste dump is "almost certain to leak radioactive materials in the next 100 to 1,000 years"  - But they've banned fox hunting eh.

Note 1: Calder Hall was opened by The Queen in 1956 (designed to last 20 years) - 'closed' in 1981 - and was 'decommissioned' in 2003. - Does that mean that it's not there anymore?

Note 2: Plutonium (the most toxic substance known to man) is named after Pluto who was the God of Hades(Hell).

Note 3: New Zealand is about as far away from UK as you can get without leaving the planet.

Part of this hundred ? year clean-up problem is that they don't actually know just WHAT there is dumped in those storage ponds and silos for them to deal with!

Ref: 'New Scientist' 24 Jan 2015.   - And they don't trust you to have a gun or knife !!

- the "Representative Parliamentary Democracy" system is about as fit for purpose as the iconic 'baseball cap', - so well designed that it has to be worn backwards!

- Anyone still think that 'banning' guns makes you safer?

Still, mustn't grumble eh.

Life is good,

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/user?u=16618870

'Elephant Guns':

Among the books I've been reading over the Summer holiday break are old stories from Africa of early Elephant and Lion shooting in Southern Africa. Frederick Courtney SELOUS & Samuel BAKER were early pioneers who wreaked havoc among African game and harvested tons of ivory tusks. I'm referring to the era about 1870.

Elephant Guns that were early used - when the European rifles and muskets proved to be inadequate to the job, were really only heavily built double (or single) barrelled muzzle loaded shotguns loaded with round lead ball and a heavy charge of black powder (by the handful !).  Using Four ounce + soft lead balls - and later cylindrical bullets, you might call these Elephant Guns "SLUG-guns". - They were what they had to hand - and did the job as long as your native gun bearers stayed close at hand with the next loaded piece to pass for the follow-up shots - sometimes as many as four or five 'gun-bearers'.

- And follow-up shots were just about ALWAYS needed - normally it took around THIRTY SHOTS to finish a bull elephant - sometimes as many as seventy shots were fired into these huge animals over hours of the chase - and it wasn't always the great white hunter doing the chasing !

Samuel Baker on the job - on the run.

 

I'm certainly impressed by these early guys hunting exploits (I'm no great hunter!) - but looking back at them from today "exploit" is the word. - They slaughtered the wildlife for excitement & "adventure" - but the overlaying reason was profit. I'm not accusing them of anything as, - if I'd been there at the time and had the means - I'd probably have had a shot at it too.

 

 

A Young Selous with African Spear and European Rifle.

(Great legs eh!)

 

There never was any large game for the whites to slaughter in New Zealand (other than the whales that led them down here originally) - as our Maori had eaten all the Moa before we could get to them.

 

Mock Moa Hunt.

 

That's why we introduced rabbits !

 

Marty K.

 

 

US Shot Show News from 'All Outdoor':

You really should click subscribe to get 'All Outdoor's regular e-mail reports/reviews. Somebody there does a very thorough job of selecting interesting shooting news and presenting it with short video clips. I certainly reckon that they deserve a pat on the back for a well-done job.

- My latest e-mail from them had news of the new Sig Sauer P220 10MM Auto pistol that comes in both DA/SA and SA Only versions. To me it looks like an old fashioned piece related to 1911s and Browning Hi-Powers in style - and is handicapped with magazines that take only 8 rounds.

Sigs are sound, reliable, accurate weapons (and expensive!) - but only eight rounds in this day and age? - I know that 8 rounds of full power 10MM ammo should be enough to solve most problems and this flat shooting calibre is suitable for hunting as well as social use.

This same 'edition' from "All Outdoors" also has a piece reviewing the Glock G20 SF (small frame) 10MM that uses 15 round magazines in a comfortable grip. - This writer points-out that this is close to 3 times the capacity of a similar powered Magnum Revolver.

- You pays your money and makes your choice eh.

Further stories review the latest Ruger LCRs which have THREE INCH barrels (in 9mm & 38/357 etc). Only one more inch to go and we might be able to buy / import this model into New Zealand!

3 inch LCR - The 9MM version has a steel frame out of respect for this high pressure round.

Also introduced are new "black rifle" styled furniture for AKs from Magpul:

That looks good dressed-up.

- Magpuls  AK range includes steel re-enforced magazines. That makes buying a basic el-cheapo wooden AK and up-grading to "mans Barbie" fashion bling a worthwhile option. That cheek-piece lifts up to show storage space in the butt-stock.

- Life is good,

Marty K.

Newbie on Range:

Last weekend I took my 14 y.o. granddaughter (yes - I DO feel so old at times!) up the pistol club range. - she had told her mum that she wanted me to let her try shooting - so arrangements were made to have a go before the end of her school summer holidays.

We worked through my usual sequence of guns after stressing to her the three Basic Safety Rules .. #1:Treat all guns as loaded at all times, - #2: Never point a gun at anything that you are not prepared to destroy, - and #3: Keep your finger off the trigger until you are set to fire.

We also went through all the other considerations and specific range rules, etiquette, and also stressed about keeping the muzzle pointed in the safe direction at all times, keeping loaded magazines on your person rather than leaving them around etc. etc.

She was very careful and basically safe - but I was interested/concerned to find that her fingers (thumbs) lacked the strength to cock the hammer on my wee Ruger  .22' revolver to shoot it single-action and needed to use two fingers to fire it double-action..(around 12 lbs trigger pull).

I'd neglected to remember that not everyone is as big'n'ugly as me!!

As it turned-out - her favourite guns were my old BSA bolt action .22" rifle and the club gun - a 10 shot S&W semi-auto pistol - both of which she could manage easily and she got through lots of ammo.

- The bigger centre-fire guns didn't appeal at all, although she did try one shot with a 12 gauge shotgun.

Just in case you are getting bored with seeing our New Zealand blue skies in photos (as above), - here's a shot I took today at home to show the sun-burnt grass (it's no lawn!) and there you go - we do get cloud (but no rain yet!).

Marty K.

P.S. I had another visit  in the garden from some California Quail last week - cute wee things.

New Mags for Glocks and ..:

News from the 'land of the free' is two makers now offering new aftermarket magazines to fit Glocks.  Magpul have a line, and now 'Elite Tactical Systems'  ETS is offering clear polymer magazines in different capacities.

- coming in April these mags are thought to be priced at around US$20 and will be interesting ..

- Being aware that Glock quickly changed from all polymer to using a folded steel shell inside their magazines makes me question if these new ETS items might not swell and hang-up in the mag-wells - it will depend on the choice of plastic and wall thickness of-course. - How well will those polymer feed lips last?

ETS Clear Magazine looks Useful.

 

Warning - Warning: Don't even think about leaving these clear loaded magazines laying in full sunshine! - The temperature of the cartridges would rapidly rise to very dangerous levels. That loaded mag. pictured  above could be the model for a solar collector !

Also new to me is Tru-Glo TFX after market sights that combine Fibre-optic 'glow in the sun' sight optics with Tritium 'glow in the dark' inserts and a white outline too.

 

 

Looking great in the photos - but maybe they "costalotta"?

 

 Also recent news for me is the Russians announced they will be taking delivery of 70,000 AK12 rifles in 2015. This order will greatly help Kalashnikov Concern to keep-on working - and the AK12s are considered to be much improved with better ergonomics, better recoil characteristics, - and can use western style optics and add-on bling.

 

AK12 for 2015.

 

- I'd been thinking that the AK12 was the shotgun version - not an updated model in various chamberings (durrrrrrr)

 

Marty K.

I'm Back (Maybe) & Police Policy:

I've been relaxing in the long hot days while watching the grass die from drought - There's never been so little rainfall in some locals here in New Zealand in the records!

- Never fear, - it'll green-up again over Winter / Spring.

So - What's been happening? - The Doomsday Clock has moved forward to 3 minutes before midnight - warning of apocalypse racing towards mankind.. but don't worry about it eh.
(See my posting 8th June 2014 for more info.)

New Zealand Police Association frontline officers expressed concerns that they weren't getting enough training with real guns since they've started using video game-like simulators !! Live Training with their Glocks and Bushmaster rifles has dropped from 13,000 training sessions in 2011 to 5,000 only in 2012 and 7,500 in 2014. - They'll be running round next pointing their fingers at targets - going "peouw-peouw .. bang you're dead".

- Mind you - The Commissioner of Police still requires we sporting kiwi target pistol shooters to attend our club live firing range at least twelve times a year - to demonstrate our serious interest in the use of handguns. - Does that indicate that our frontline law enforcement senior administrators are not serious about their use of firearms ?

- Oh, and while we're on the topic - it seems that The NZ Police hierarchy have secretly introduced an "amendment" into Parliament to give them the right to charge us increased fees for 'services' such as license applications and import permits. They told the consultative liaison committee at the last meeting that they were considering maybe looking at increased charges - while all the time they had secretly made the move to have the law changed without telling us shooters about it.

- Seems to me that they are well set into thinking that law abiding certified 'fit & proper' firearms users are to be treated like scum and penalised at every opportunity to discourage their use of their legal rights as firearms users. - This is a hostile and punitive move against legal shooters.

I was seriously thinking that I'd call it a day with this blog after a full year - but we definitely need all the voices we can raise to protest at being treated like undesirables and criminals.

We have only until February 5 to make submissions against the parliamentary amendment bill - think about it - every nut, spring, screw and pin for a gun will have to have an IMPORT PERMIT application fee paid to the police - Guess how much you'll have to pay in future.

Marty K.

Graphene for Body Armour & Armoured Baseball Cap:

Graphene (a form of carbon) is claimed to have been isolated by The University of Manchester (U.K.) and can be formed into sheets that are only one atom thick - and are 100 times stronger than steel.

Graphene Sheet.

 

Tests are suggesting that pure graphene will perform twice as well as fabrics currently used in bullet-proof vests. Multiple layers perhaps in a composite  structure show great promise but - if / when this body armour is issued - don't smoke while wearing it - as graphene is highly chemically reactive - 100 times more than thicker sheets - and will burn at low temperatures (300. degrees C). ( A glowing cigarettes temperature rises to 1292 degrees F - 700 deg. C )!

 

Manufacture of graphene is commencing at several plants in the North-East of England.

 

Artists impression !

- Don't Mess With Me - I'm Bullet-proof.

 

- Coming soon - Maybe.

----------

 - Meanwhile, 'Bulletsafe' USA are developing a bullet-proof baseball cap that will help protect the central processor.

 

  - Neat eh, - but would I trade-in my old IPSC NZ cap for one? - maybe - if it looked a bit more "shootist"! - How about some bullet loops on the sides? ;-)

That range looks (and the extractor fan sounds) a little like my old Manchester Street "Dungeon" Range - now long closed, earth-quaked and gone from the map.

 

Marty K.