Underground

As seen in Thunder Roads LA-MS May 2018 Vol. 14 – Issue 5.

Amid the chants of “Traitor!”, Governor Phil Scott (R-VT) signed expansive firearms controls into Vermont law; which has ranked in the top-ten best pro-firearms states in most polls since 2010. Scott signed two control bills into law. S.55 covers a raise of age to all firearms at 21-years unless a hunting license is presented, a hard limit to 10- and 15-rounds for long-gun and handgun magazine capacities, bans all non-family and non-reported private sales, and bans bump-stocks. S.221 covers “extreme risk protection orders”.

The Kalashnikov

As seen in Thunder Roads LA-MS Dec. 2017 & Jan. 2018.

Everyone, within the firearms community, has a platform that first brought them into said community. The Kalashnikov platform held it for me early on. It was entirely based on an unmatched simplicity and a higher reliability than other rifle platforms available on our market. Of course, there is no such thing as the perfect machine, but the AK and its derivatives come very close. With the endeavors of American companies, followed up by the pursuits of the Russians, the Kalashnikov platform can be made as modular as any AR-15. Spetsnaz rifles started showing up with Texas Weapon Systems Dog-Leg top covers, EoTechs and UTG forward rail-integrated systems (RISs). All before the days of ZenitCo. But, they learned from what they moved out of the U.S.

Solace

As seen in Thunder Roads LA-MS Nov. 2017 Vol. 14 – Issue 10.

Solace: to make cheerful.

On occasion, a trip to the range comes with a desire to relax while seeking quiet entertainment. By far, the most fun that I have during range trips is when I go out shooting .22 LR in some form or fashion. The most annoying aspect of shooting rimfire, with my Tinnitus, is the periodic splattering of blowback from some rounds in semi-automatic rifles. It doesn’t diminish the quality of the experience, though. I challenge myself to take the white from inside the paper target’s diamond or removing clay pigeon chips off a range berm.

Dominance

As seen in Thunder Roads Louisiana Oct. 2017 Vol. 14 – Issue 9.

SIG-Sauer and Glock continue to hold the covers of magazines and the front of web-pages across the internet. For SIG, the headlines consist of the Army’s M17 variant and the “voluntary upgrade” program on “unsafe” P320s in the civilian arena. For Glock, their headlines cover the good and the bad of the new Generation-5 line of handguns. Of course, both issues were met with various degrees of controversy.

Proficiency

As seen in Thunder Roads Louisiana August 2017 Vol. 14 – Issue 7.

If you are willing to learn, you will learn every single day of your life. If you are analytical, you will learn to tell the difference between what is fraud and what is truth. Unfortunately, not everybody is so keen on conscious learning throughout their lifetime. We see this if you were to set down a firearm on the table in front of someone like myself and someone who is wholeheartedly anti-firearms. Quite a few of the latter will be frozen solid with fear of what is nothing more than an inanimate object, and this is common knowledge. But, there is something about this reaction that is somewhat disingenuous.