GUN SHOPPING

GUN SHOPPING


J. Croft
http://freedomguide.blogspot.com


Know what you want. Know what you need.

If you don’t know what you need, I’ll tell you; you first need a Constitution Rifle, a weapon you can strike the enemies of Freedom down at hundreds of yards away. This and the mastering of the technique and art of rifle shooting is the foundation of our Constitutional Republic and of Freedom-the means to defend our Republic, our Freedom. Beyond that there are the needs for every day home and personal defense-those can be met with pistols, shotguns, and even semi-automatic “assault” rifles. .22s for target practice, plinking and small game.

BEFORE YOU BUY…

Know your guns. Know each type, know the models, their strong and weak points, what to look for. Can you get spare parts, is it rare and collectible or total junk. Can you get ammo for it, how badly does that particular weapon treat it’s brass. Check to see if parts are intolerably loose.

HOW TO ACT AND DRESS

Most sellers are going to be adult mainstream American males. Dress and act acceptably to them, but not in a way that suggests you’re patronizing them. KNOW ABOUT GUNS because these guys certainly do and are mostly Law and Order types. Remember, they don’t have to sell to you so don’t act like it’d be a bad ideal to sell to you. Be:

*A hunter looking for a new rifle

*A decent, hardworking family man looking to protect his family

*A collector starting out(REALLY know history)

WHERE TO LOOK:

Yard sales, flea markets, etc.

A source for a gun-probably not what you’d like but it beats nothing. Also, it takes some additional legwork. Its pot luck; there could be a drought of guns, or there could be ten guns, or it’s ten guns that are useless.

Gun Stores-yes for parts, ammo and accessories, otherwise hell no! Why? Federal registration form 4477

Used to be yellow, you could orbit the tables at gun shows and it’d be obvious who had the forms-who was a dealer. A couple years ago they changed the color scheme to white, which makes it look just like all the other paperwork dealers like to lug around.

I can refuse to buy guns off dealers on principle: they KNOW by obeying illegal federal edicts to coerce you to submitting to registration via the 4477 they’re laying the groundwork for confiscation. I mean, anybody remember that scene from “Red Dawn” where the Nicaraguan general gives orders to hit the local sporting goods stores and gather up those forms? Anybody remember where all those gun owners wound up? The concentration camp.

Now we got home grown communists, and they’re going to do the same thing-because people are too soft to not boycott anyone that makes them submit to becoming targets.

Gun shows

My God do I love gun shows! One of the last vestiges of unfettered Freedom-Americans walking about, armed. Aside from that, gun shows are one stop shopping for not just guns, but bulk ammunition, web gear to secure your extra magazines, manuals, training videos. You will meet many people a lot like you who are preparing for the worst, or just enjoying their Freedom. That being said, there are downsides to a open air arms market.

Junk gun sellers and other hustlers.

More than a few guns are junk from the design board. More than a few guns that aren’t junk from the design board are manufactured poorly. More than a few guns that aren’t junk when they were new become junk when substandard parts are substituted, or the barrel wears out, or the weapon isn’t taken care of. These guns should be labeled as parts guns and priced accordingly but there are more than a few sellers out there who will… misrepresent what they got.

So don’t be a mark: know your guns, how they work, what to look for. Check out the headspace with a caliber gauge, feeler gauge for the HK/Cetme rifles, and a bullet for the muzzle-if it goes all the way in it won’t shoot right. Know where to check for excessive wear, cycle the weapon to make certain it won’t bind or is too loose, check the feed and function of the magazine with dummy rounds. Use those same dummy rounds to make certain the weapon will feed, extract and eject. Check the sights-make certain they’re aligned, and tight. Study up especially for the Cetme and M1Garand/M14 rifles as they require specialized knowledge. Know who are the scumbags, who will slip a bad gun in once in awhile, and who you can trust.

Times are tough, but there’s no excuse for conning Americans.

Licensed dealers versus private sellers

Next thing is to spot and avoid licensed dealers, because the same rules apply to them as gun shops; you buy from them you’re registering yourself with the federal government as a gun owner. Like I stated above, gun ownership is a Right that cannot and must not be subject to license as said license will inevitably be taken away by the beast. So, walk around, orbit the tables. Look around at the seller’s area and if you see paperwork with the white 4477 sheet smile and move on. Trust me you’ll find a private seller for anything you need.

F-troop and their lame ass traps

Unfortunately the BATF loves gun shows too; they swarm and look to entrap people, and profile everybody who they talk to, looking for violations of their unconstitutional, arcane rules.

One time, I had this 400lb fat slob of a agent come up to me, showing interest in a Enfield bolt action rifle I had bought. He rudely grabs it out of my hands and trying not to retch from his fetid breath tries telling me that it’s a “assault rifle”. The fucker comes at me tries to sound like he’s part of the gun culture and it’s just so obvious.

Another was when this skinny 5 ft loser comes to me, wants me to straw purchase a Mini Uzi for him off this one dude I used to buy guns off of regularly. There’s a low grade predator/vulture vibe with these people that coupled with their obvious lack of knowledge about guns, obvious lack of respect and love for them that comes across. Exit the conversation with them as quickly as possible and never, ever speak or acknowledge their existence again. Tell others so they to can shun them and hopefully their lack of performance can get them fired, or at least demoted.

There ARE skilled BATFags out there, that are good at entraping Americans with their rules. When they do, it’s going to be you against the beast and the rules are rigged for you to lose. They decide to bust you those fucks will strong arm you into becoming one of their snitches-you’ll be running around trying to get people to straw purchase a gun for them, or buy a machine gun off of you, or some other bullshit.

What to get as of October, 2008

Military pattern semi-automatic main battle rifles in 7.62x51 NATO. They offer the best optimum of range, cartridge and firepower. With them you can engage and hit your enemy past 300 yards, well past most troops marksmanship training and well past the effective range of fully automatic assault rifle fire. You have the small arms advantage, so keep your enemy beyond your battle sight zero. I have experience with all of the following rifles, save one. I will list them in order of personal preference.

M14

Development of the M1 Garand of WW2/Korea, with a greatly improved gas piston that’s self regulating and a detachable 20 round magazine. This incredible rifle is accurate, reliable, the 7.62mm NATO round is devastating. The iron sights ramp up to 1200 meters allowing fire from several trained riflemen to fall on enemy targets like machine gun fire. The front sight is sized so that the average width of a soldier matches the width of the sight at 250 yards-battle sight zero. That means you can fix your sight on a traitor and if he’s the same apparent width as the sight you just squeeze the trigger. If he’s ¾ the width of your sight, ramp up the elevation knob to 400 meters and shoot. If he’s ½ the width, ramp up to 5. Past that you’ll need some kind of range finding device as the size of the target becomes too small to judge accurately enough to get a range-but you can hit him with the M14. Every M14 is threaded and tapped for a scope mount, but you must shop around for the best one to get; getting one, you can employ modern rifle scopes with rangefinding and bullet drop compensators which will allow shooting past 500 meters, and much more accurately.

Especially if you use a proper shooting sling; the M14 was designed to utilize a shooting sling that loops around your support arm. Marksmanship standards for American soldiers was much more stringent back when the M14 was made. Join the Appleseed program at www.appleseedinfo.org learn what has been forgotten, so you can use your M14 to its maximum potential.

FN/FAL



This rifle was the competitor against the M14 in the 1950s. We went with the 14 but most of the rest of the Free World went with the FAL. About as long as the M14 it’s not nearly as elegantly balanced-although it boasts a pistol grip and a break open disassembly which spares the muzzle crown from potential abuse. The controls are easier to operate and some models have a last round bolt hold open device which peels valuable seconds off reload time like the M14. Most don’t. The triggers vary from decent to grinding horror, the rear sight is inexcusably crude-a simple ramp that goes just to 600 meters and wobbles to boot. There is a aftermarket M16 type sight produced by DSA Arms that largely rectifies that design flaw. The weapon has a adjustable gas regulator, and can take a M1907 shooting sling fairly well once you get a front handguard you can put a Harris bipod M16 adaptor into. Sadly, I had to sell mine due to economic difficulties.

M1 Garand


I learned how to shoot with one of these. Eight shot .30-06 semiautomatic. Most things I stated about the M14’s shootability apply to the Garand except you cannot mount a rifle scope directly over the receiver-you need a offset scope or a scout mounted option. Buy HUNDREDS of the eight round en bloc clips as you will lose them in battle. .308 barrels exist to convert the Garand.

HK91/CETME



German design meant for mass production, this rifle will work as reliably as an AK-47 and is unique as it employs a roller delayed blowback operation. Which means it will KICK-unless you’re shooting a CETME as it’s just different enough that the recoil impulse is ameliorated. The HK91 just has a recess for the cocking handle to engage to hold the bolt back, meaning it takes valuable time to cock the handle fully back to seat a round in the chamber-time you could get killed in. HK91 has an atrociously heavy trigger that makes precision shooting very difficult, so get a CETME trigger pack and buttstock and put them in. HK’s are well made and reliable. CETME was well made and reliable when they were produced but when Century Arms imported them in the late 90’s and put them into new receivers to be legal… they botched a lot of them up. I got one for $250 when they were cheap and it took a second rifle to cobble the parts into a functional, shootable rifle. The ergonomics blow, the rear sight is even cruder that the FAL, the barrel at 18 inches is a little too short for the .308, but it WILL shoot and shoot very accurately. Get a scope mount and a Burris Fullfield II with ballistic plex sight and you’re good out to 500 meters.

AR-10

This is the one .308 MBR I haven’t owned nor shot. That’s because I have a dislike for the design itself as it blows gas directly into it’s action where Eugene Stoner has lots of critical, small, sometimes fragile parts that the gasses and debris will inevitably clog up… or sand, or muck from the outside. My rifles need to be able to handle abuse as they will see combat and the AR series has proven that without a modification to use a gas piston it will not. Original magazines that hold the bolt open are still expensive and the M14 converted mags won’t keep the bolt hold open.

.50 BMG rifles



You NEED to get one of these! the .50 BMG cartridge offers a whole new world of target engagement; you can make kills out to 1000 meters or more, engage lightly armored vehicles the tin badge gods will use to gun down Americans, even engage helicopters. Their downsides are that it takes practice and skill to effectively use one, they’re long, heavy, they’re very expensive. They are worth the cost and effort to master. They are also the most difficult arms to get private buys on as the cops and BATfags watch buyers of these arms like a hawk so make arrangements to transact away from the gun show.

Single shot rifles start at about 1200 dollars. Some models you have to take the bolt out, cram a round into the extractor claw on the bolt then reassemble the bolt. Some models you can literally chuck the round in and slam home allowing a decent rate of fire. Some break open like a shotgun but most use a bolt action.

Some bolt action models utilize a magazine, allowing a potentially greater rate of fire so long as you have spare mags and a assistant to keep them loaded.

The Barrett Model 82(M107) is a semiautomatic 10 round .50 BMG rifle. It even boasts iron sights graded out to 800 meters. This rifle is huge, heavy but since it’s semi auto could be used to engage helicoptors. Not quite as accurate as the bolt action .50’s.

Extremely accurate bolt action rifles



These are your sniper grade rifles made by Remington, Savage, Winchester, Sako, AWG, etc. They shoot .308, .300 Winchester Magnum, .338 Lapua, and a few other proprietary long range sniper rounds. They all will shoot a dime out past 300 meters and really are fit for master shooters as only they can wring out the most from them. They really are marvelous weapons and I wish I had the time to refine my skill to justify purchasing one. All of them will use rifle scopes as expensive as the weapon itself. These will have a rangefinding recticle known as the mil-dot, have target knobs and be very rugged.

“Assault rifles”

These will be semi-auto only versions of true full auto assault rifles. They still have their place as they are more compact, or can be than full power battle rifles, and do offer more rounds to use.

I don’t like the AR’s and never will-the M4 craze is going to go by the bye when people discover how hard it is to use all those kewl CQB optics and forgrip to engage targets past 200 meters when ammo is scarce, and they have to fuck with cleaning a forever jamming rifle.



The AK series rifles are rugged but require more refined technique to use its crude sights and trigger, but folding stock models can fit inside a duffel bag. They are also more reasonably priced and I cannot see myself paying over 500 dollars for a carbine when I could use that money to get a .308.



The SKS has developed a cottage industry of aftermarket accessories to try and upgrade it. Ten shot internal magazine, 7.62x39mm it’s typically better left as is because all the zytel duckbill magazines suck. The SKS-D that feeds from AK-47 magazines is another story, as it’s more than a match for the AK’s. A Liberty Trainer version, configured like a Garand is a good option for low cost Rifleman Training. Go to www.appleseedinfo.org for more information on the modification.

Military surplus bolt action rifles



Mausers, Enfields, Mosin-Nagants: these three are currently cheap to get and have reasonable stocks of ammunition. All of them have iron sights graded out to 1-2000 meters because that’s the 19th century heritage of volley fire of whole companies onto targets to achieve a machine gun effect. All of them feed from stripper clips holding 5 rounds generating a decent rate of fire. They’re accurate enough to hit a man sized target at 500 meters and can be gunsmithed into much greater accuracy. Mausers are the easiest to load but the bolt can be clumsy, the Enfields have 10 round magazines and extremely rapid bolt throw but the rimmed rounds jam unless loaded staggered in the clips. Mosin Nagants require effort to press the stripper clip down, and the bolt requires manipulation by the palm of the hand, not the fingers like other rifles-but they’re the cheapest and steel core ammunition can be had by the case.



American bolt action rifles, the M1903 Springfield and M1917 Enfield are much more expensive, but feature much better aperture sights and were designed to shoot accurately using a shooting sling. Enfields are above 500 dollars and Springfields much more than that. Unless you get lucky your money’s better invested in a semi auto rifle.



Swiss K31 rifles are straight pull bolt action rifles, incredibly accurate but the round it shoots is scarce in the USA and converting it to fire 7.62mm NATO is extremely difficult. Too bad because otherwise they’d be the perfect bargain rifle.

Swedish Mausers fire a 6.5x55mm round. In the 90’s both rifle and ammo could be bought by the crate but they rapidly disappeared. The round is devastating and the rifle itself is very very accurate.

Can commercial rifles cut it?

In a pinch. Hunting rifles are made for lightweight carry and are reasonably accurate-but their recoil can make them uncomfortable to use. Also, many civilian hunting rifles are usually well made, but some parts just aren’t up to military standards of ruggedness and reliability. Also, do you think you can find your caliber five years after martial law is fully enacted and there’s no more ammunition to be had?

If that’s what you got and all you’re going to have for the foreseeable future, get spare parts or consider a trade up to something else above. Otherwise, have spare, extended mags if it feeds from a detaching magazine or learn to grab four-five cartridges at once to more rapidly reload instead of grabbing for your ammo pouch several times.

.22 training rifles



Need to target practice, train, hunt small game, have a relatively quiet rifle and the .22 fills that niche. The Ruger 10/22 has detaching magazines and can be configured into a target rifle, a folding stock for discreet carry, or as a Liberty Trainer to save on centerfire ammunition expenditures. The Marlin 60 is rugged, costs nearly half as much, feeds from a 18 round tube and is more accurate than a standard barrel Ruger. Very easy rifle to find. Numerous bolt action and pump action 22 rifles exist as well.

Handguns

You use these when you’re attacked. You use these to fight your way to your long gun. You use these in home defense, or very close quarters. Because to facilitate their small size the cartridges they fire have to be much weaker than rifle or shotgun rounds. That being said, handguns do have their uses.

No revolvers if you can help it!


They’re bulkier than automatics, are limited in capacity, clumsy to reload. The .38 special will live on in snub nosed revolvers because you can store them for years loaded. The .357, .41, .44, .45 Colt, .454 Casull, and the .500 S&W are handgun hunting rounds-they recoil violently taking time off from shot recovery and the muzzle flash and blast are tactically debilitating. .44 magnum and more powerful revolver rounds might have a specialty use for those wanting to punch through soft vests and have repeat shots, but if so a folding stock AK in some kind of luggage might serve better.

Short list of semi-automatic handguns

The following are handguns I’ve owned-tried.



A .22 like the Beretta/Taurus is good for summer carry but hit for the head! Any other guns in this class are junk, I’ve tried them. .25 is the same story.


The Ruger .22 automatic is a great target pistol and it’s quiet action is favored by those that fit suppressors.

In the .380 auto the Makarov is a sensible gun in price and reliability given the power of the cartridge. Reloading is clumsy given the heel release.

The CZ 52 in 7.62x25mm gives a handgun user the potential to penetrate soft body armor. Eight shot magazines, awkward balance and the need to replace the issue cast steel firing pin with a aftermarket forged pin are the bad points on this pistol.

With the latest hollowpoint rounds I consider the 9mm, the .40 S&W and the .45 ACP to be close enough-they’ll do the job if you’ll do yours and shoot to kill. Less common cartridges like the .357 Sig and 10mm are semi auto pistol rounds with .357 magnum power. No I don’t care for Desert Eagles they’re too big.


Glocks are reliable-except there’s no manual safety. You grab the gun its loaded and ready to fire. The trigger isn’t the best, but the target model triggers are good-but you MUST BE ESPECIALLY CAREFUL. I’ve owned the 9mm 17, 17L longslide and the 10mm model 20 and I must say the 10mm equipped with extended capacity magazines in a submachine gun pouch makes for a most potent handful of firepower. Close behind it in combat capabilities are the new .357 Sig chambered Glocks-you can use standard .40 mags with them.



I like the Browning Hi-power 9mm once you remove the magazine disconnect. Fits better in the hand and extended magazines are around. Get modern high profile sights because the 1930’s era notch and blade are difficult to pick up even target shooting.

I don’t care for the Smith & Wesson models. Just something bleh about their accuracy and reliability. Rugers are even worse in their reliability and their ergonomics suck.


Beretta/Taurus 9mm are solid handguns, they never jam but they are wide at the grip.


I like the M1911 series handguns once quality iron sights are installed. They’re called an expert’s gun and I agree; the light trigger pull and pointability allow more precise shooting than with other models. I would practice and shoot with extra magazine stuck between the fingers of your support hand and practice swapping magazines out of your gun so you can keep up with the 15+ round 9mm and .40 handguns out there. Plus in a ammo-short world full metal jacket might be all you can get so that swings the advantage back to the .45 ACP.

Haven’t tried the new Springfield Armory series of Croatian handguns but I’ve heard good things about them.


I detest the Tec 9. Someone designed it to fail yet make it kewl enough for them to be popular. All they do is jam up. You can’t holster them, their sights and trigger suck.

The M-11 could be a much better handgun with quality magazines and sights but as is-no! I’ve owned four of them and they’ve all failed to feed with the original zytel magazines. When they do feed and fire however, they can be surprisingly accurate. The threaded barrel allows attachments. Still a 9mm so get the pistol version. No decent holster options exist.

“Throwaways”

These are useful for a few shots or maybe a few magazines. I’m talking about the Hi-Point series of handguns-oversized blowback pistols that fire 9mm, .40, and .45. Don’t expect them to last anywhere near what a Glock can, but if you perceive a need for a handgun you can afford to lose they’re not bad.

Jennings, Lorcins, etc. just pass on them. Don’t even waste your time.

Shotguns…

They carry relatively few shells, but a 12 gauge can do a lot of damage no matter the load, even birdshot when used very close, but you want buckshot for shot that will penetrate up to 25 yards and slugs out to 100 yards-if you have sights instead of a bead.

Single shot shotguns can be reloaded quicker if you grab shells and keep them in your left hand as you operate. Double barrel shotguns with internal hammers can keep up and even exceed the fire rate of pump and semi-auto tube fed shotguns if you keep shells in your left hand.

Tube fed shotguns have the advantage of being able to be reloaded as you shoot, but for rapid reloading requires some kind of tube speedloader. For pump action the Mossberg, Remington and Winchester is the short list and is good for basic home defense. Semi autos the Browning Auto 5 is no longer produced but is reliable. The new Mossberg 12 gauge semi auto was accepted by the Marines.

They could be better… The Saiga 12 gauge shotgun is an AK-47 modified to fire 12 gauge rounds from a 5, 8, 10 round box magazine. Aftermarket 20 round drums make it even more devastating.

Here’s the whole problem with shotguns: even with slugs they’re out of their element after 100, even 150 yards. Fit a rifle bullet in a sabot you still have the problem of stabilization so you need to induce spin-but will the weapon’s design allow for accurate groups?

I have an ideal for a solution; three or four fin stabilized elongated projectiles loaded in a standard rifled slug. You can find the design here: INSERT LONG RANGE SHOTSHELL DESIGN

WHAT TO LOOK FORWARD TO?

I’d look for the gun shows to be banned soon. Open air arms bazaars are not compatible for the technotronic society the beast is about set up for us. Slaves and guns don’t mix. In fact all private sales will be banned.

A new wave of gun control legislation thanks to the Second Amendment destroying Heller ruling by the 9 old pedophiles in the ‘supreme court’ have stripped the last vestige of the Bill of Rights from us. A new assault weapons ban will be passed.

Quiet efforts to quietly round up those that resist will escalate.

Sooner or later, we are going to wake up to find troops kicking in our doors in a hot martial law to seize guns. Most will give them up valuing their soft lives than Freedom and so will lose their soft lives anyway. Have spares of your guns, ammo, gear stashed away.

Ask yourself are you willing to defend yourself from the beast with a gun. Ask yourself are you willing to give everything up, even your family, even your own life in a war for your Freedom. If you cannot resolutely answer yes then at least provide comfort and arms to those that will say yes.

SECOND AMERICAN REVOLUTION VICTORY GUIDE 2.0