American Handgunner articles from May 2003

American Handgunner archives from May 2003

Speakout.
May 1, 2003... MARCH/APRIL I find it quite intriguing the number of deaths per year of people killed in cell phone related automobile accidents (2,600) -- "Death by Cell Phone," the Insider, March/April issue -- is nearly the same number of people who...

Oops!
May 1, 2003... In the Handgun Leather column. March/April. Ironoak Leather's phone number was mis-printed. The correct number is (215) 276-1615. The cool photos shown in the STI/Handgunner match story, March/April, were taken by Handgunner's own Nyle...

Big is better. (Handgun Hunting).
May 1, 2003... The Remington 1868 Rolling block Navy model .50 caliber pistol was the first .50 cal cartridge pistol. With about 25 grains of black powder and a 300 grain lead bullet, it was considered a helluva' manstopper in its day. It worked so well, as a...

What you said isn't what I heard. (Cop Talk).
May 1, 2003... What we say may not be what the other guy hers. Sometimes the wrong communication can start something we wanted to avoid. Thirty years as an instructor has taught me communication is a three-step process. First there is "Message sent." Then...

Body language miscues. (Cop Talk).
May 1, 2003... An Anglo cop is giving a stern lecture to someone he's about to let off with a warning instead of arrest. But the suspect, a Hispanic, is looking at the ground as the officer speaks. The cop reads this body language as an insult. The lawman...

When words are taken wrong. (Cop Talk).
May 1, 2003... The story is told of a SWAT call-out years ago where it looked as if the suspect was about to open fire. A commander snapped to a police sniper, "Take him!" The sniper's rifle spoke immediately, dropping its target. When a lawsuit subsequent to...

It's only your life. (Reality Check).
May 1, 2003... In the month of May we completed n Ladies Defensive Handgun Course at Thunder Ranch and, as always, I learned some new things and reaffirmed some things I'd seen before. In all honesty, I've seen the same things for many years but wanted to...

Hand-me-downs. (Reality Check).
May 1, 2003... For the man of the family there is a point of interest here. Most men cannot teach their wives how to shoot. In many cases, short tempers and impatience have ruined the potential to create new women shooters. In short, men can be assholes in...

Puppies are cute--net guns. (Reality Check).
May 1, 2003... For the women, it is a bold assumption that you presume to be above getting your hands dirty by defending your husband, children and yourself. Women, by what I know of them by nature, nurture, grow and care for things. The thought of taking a...

"The stunning Israeli connection: all-new short-cut lethal hand-to-hand fighting system (that freaks out even hardcore U.S. soldiers) finally revealed by Top Israell Combat Veteran!". (Advertisement).
May 1, 2003... Take a guaranteed FREE TEST DRIVE of the nastiest combat secrets used right now in lethal world-stage fighting! So harsh and effective, this never-before-revealed system has battle-hardened U.S. Spec Op soldiers shaking their heads in...

Simply bad shots better. (Better Shooting).
May 1, 2003... Askins perhaps said it best: "...the average police officer is an abominably poor marksman, knows he is, yet doesn't care, will spend neither his time nor his money to improve his skill, has no interest whatsoever in his service pistol, and...

Foolish fusillades? (Better Shooting).
May 1, 2003... Recently, I got into a discussion with some friends about an incident where a man had been shot and killed by police. No one questioned the use of deadly force. The suspect had just killed a police dog and was pointing a gun at officers. ...

Marksmanship wins. (Better Shooting).
May 1, 2003... The general public knows little about how hard it is to shoot under great stress. They read of twenty shots fired and imagine a two-minute firefight--not realizing the three officers probably fired those shots in maybe two or three seconds....

Lead and diamonds: the Richmond jewelry store shootout. (The Ayoob Files).
May 1, 2003... Situation: Two particularly brutal and heavily armed criminals hit an upscale jewelry store--and meet a firestorm of armed citizen resistance. Lesson: Sound planning beats seasoned perpetrators. Sometimes, the more firepower you have, the...

Have gun--can still lose. (Tactical Advantage).
May 1, 2003... So, you carry a handgun for self defense. Your CCW is up-to-date, you go to the range at least every few weeks and practice, and have attended a shooting school or two. Great, you've checked most of the blocks to make you well prepared and...

Surprise, surprise, surprise. (Tactical Advantage).
May 1, 2003... After driving only four or five blocks you are surprised to see flashing blue lights behind you with a police officer signaling you to pull over. A voice from the speaker in the police car orders you to shut off your car, drop the keys out the...

Wolf! wolf! 911. (Tactical Advantage).
May 1, 2003... What did you do wrong? If you have to show your sidearm to defend yourself, make sure you are the first person to call the police, or ask someone else to report the fact you had been threatened and you had to defend yourself. Make sure the...

Strike two. (Combat Shooting).
May 1, 2003... The LEM design also allows "second strike" capability. If a hard primer should fail to do its thing, the shooter can pull the trigger again for another try. This "uncocked" pull is much heavier since now the trigger has to compress the powerful...

HK'S LEM lands on earth. (Combat Shooting).
May 1, 2003... HK has developed a new trigger module for the excellent USP pistol. Called the LEM (Law Enforcement Module) -- as opposed to the Lunar Exploration Module of the Apollo days -- the new trigger is an improved double-action only design. Compared...

Universally behaved. (Combat Shooting).
May 1, 2003... All USP's made since October 1999 have a manual lock inside the back of the magazine well. With the LEM, the action must be uncocked before the lock can be engaged with the key provided. Once locked the pistol cannot be fired, nor can a round...

Exotic gunsmithing: part one. (Pistol Smithing).
May 1, 2003... When a custom gunsmith really reaches his or her prime they become accomplished metalsmiths, blacksmiths, metallurgists, woodsmiths, and tool and die makers and reach a level where no matter what a customer wants, they can be satisfied. Members...

Even autos can be purty. (Pistol Smithing).
May 1, 2003... Revolvers hold an innate graceful beauty that most semiautomatics do not have. However, there is considerable exotic custom work that can be performed on semi autos that will give you something nobody else has, and at the same time empty your...

Tapered delight. (Pistol Smithing).
May 1, 2003... One of the most exotic areas in which these artisans work is custom metalwork, like octagon barrels for revolvers. Only a handful of gunsmiths have the ability to cut a tapered octagon barrel. Larry Crow, Hamilton Bowen, Jim Stroh, myself and a...

Don't try this at home, kids. (Hand Loading).
May 1, 2003... Everyone makes mistakes. It's human nature. But what we'd rather, not do is make them in front of a crowd of witnesses who see, and know, exactly what you did wrong and are not at all bashful about rubbing your nose in it. Let me present...

Headspace, legend, and other lies. (Hand Loading).
May 1, 2003... Somewhere there's a stone tablet with the words: "Automatic pistol cartridges headspace on the case mouth" boldly emblazoned on it. One of the really neat things about conventional wisdom is that sometimes it's true. And sometimes it's...

New leather designs for concealment and hunting. (Taffin Tests).
May 1, 2003... Jim Lockwood of Legends in Leather is a master leather craftsman specializing in reproducing exact duplicates of the rigs worn by "B" western movie heroes, big-budget Western stars and the familiar leather seen in TV westerns of the 1950s and...

A deuce of makers. (Taffin Tests).
May 1, 2003... Leathersmith C. Rusty Sherrick works in horsehide and exotic leather and has come up with a high riding concealment rig for a 3 1/2" New Thunderer in .45 Colt. Being of horsehide it maintains its shape without being bulky and also holds the gun...

The 911 turbo holster. (Handgun Leather).
May 1, 2003... Mitch Rosen is short of neither talent nor bravado. His skill at leathermaking is evident in every facet of his handmade holsters, from the expertly boned fit to the finely sewn stitching. His self-assuredness is equally evident in every facet...

The upper limit. (Handgun Leather).
May 1, 2003... 'Splain this to me, Lucy--how in the world is it possible to sew two flat pieces of leather together and create a holster so exquisitely beautiful that it belongs in the Met? The answer is in the hands of Mitch Rosen, an artisan who has...

Rescuing a classic. (The Six Gunner).
May 1, 2003... Everyone who has read my articles, columns and books over the years knows of my passion for the .44 Special. Be it a Colt Single Action or New Frontier, a Smith & Wesson 1950 Target, a Ruger Flat-Top or Old Model .357, the .44 Special gives me...

"It's as plain as poo on your shoe". (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... That's what Sergeant Alan Piper, a senior scientific investigator of the Queensland, Australia, police told reporters about the arrest of a betting parlor holdup man. It was the poop that got him. Fleeing the scene after pulling his robbery...

He took their paper, but he left his gold. (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... It takes a real mental giant to lose money on a successful bank robbery, but this dude had the talent. Striding into the Wachovia Bank branch in North Miami Beach, our man pulled a pistol from his pocket, did the usual stick-up speech, and...

He was too smart for those dumb old cops. (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... Twenty-year old Alex Pauleus is one crafty critter. He and two pals had pulled a clean armed home-invasion robbery of an apartment on Court Street in Brockton, New Jersey, and the cops didn't have anything on him. He thought. Sorta bluffing...

We don't have all the stupd ones. (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... Just one more piece of proof that stupidity knows no borders, folks. This 47-year old wannabe crime-king stuck up a post office in Halmstad, Sweden, and initially, everything went better than expected. He told 'em to freeze and they froze. He...

Any good rangemaster coulda told 'em. (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... No matter how old that smoke-pole is, or how long it's been stored, it ain't unloaded until you've checked it, and checked it again. A salvage worker in a steel yard in Kiev, the Ukraine, learned that lesson the hard way. When the Soviet...

How'd they spot us? We was hidin' real good. (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... Every crook ought to know that your getaway ride should be as plain-Jane as possible, then you dump that sucker quick. Feds and local cops in Martinsburg, W. Va., figured they were running against the clock after a bank robbery in which the...

I think we got the wrong van, man. (The 10-Ring).
May 1, 2003... Yeah, we think you did, too. Responding to a series of vehicle break-ins at railroad commuter parking areas, transit cops on Chicago's South Shore staked out some lots, one with a cop hiding inside a van. Early in the surveillance, Officer...

Trail gun extraordinaire. (Taurus' Stellar Tracker .45 ACP).
May 1, 2003... It's an unfortunate fact of life that things don't always go the way we wish. Although we hope for the best, time and experience teaches us we must expect and prepare for the worst. In the case of the outdoor sports enthusiast, preparation...

Specialization is for insects: pocket tools for pistol people.
May 1, 2003... The older I get the more forgetful I become. Of course, some people say I've always been that way and I just happen to be taking note of it now. I respectfully disagree with their collective opinions but nevertheless, it brings up a good point....

Iron vs. steel: The Steel Challenge where iron men take on cold steel!
May 1, 2003... The Steel Challenge is just six years older since its rebirth in 1997 and has provided the gun industry--and the media--with the speed shooting excitement needed to show the fun and enjoyment of shooting. With the avalanche of anti-gun...

Magazine spring madness: 'creep' to your 'elastic limit' to un-earth the urban legend of 'spring-set'.
May 1, 2003... The shooting sports are full of some of the most knowledgeable and capable people you'll meet anywhere. I've been impressed consistently with the abilities of those I meet at the range to diagnose and fix a gun problem with as little as some...

Master forger!
May 1, 2003... Knifemaker Kirk Rexroat is one of those people many of us would like to trade places with. Instead of grinding out paper, Rexroat grinds steel. His daily commute can't be too far. When you live in Wright, Wyoming -- a town of only 1,200 people...

The old and the new: Damascus & Titanium join forces in this caspian class-act.
May 1, 2003... Titanium is the latest material to take the gun business by storm. Smith & Wesson started it with their Airlite revolvers, Remington uses it for a rifle action, and now Caspian Arms has made a Government Model frame from the wonderful stuff....

Gun juice and elbow grease: are today's high-tech cleaning goodies worth the bucks? You bet!
May 1, 2003... Okay you old-timers out there, we have to face the fact Hoppe's No. 9 solvent, that mystical purveyor of all that smells good about guns, hits 100 this year. Shall we wax and wane prophetic for a bit here? Dare we reminisce of the old days,...

Walther's P-38: though Teutonic technology.
May 1, 2003... Walther's P38 has lead a surprisingly long life. My first introduction to this famous pistol came as a mere child via my step-father's gun collection. A veteran of World War II he, like many others, had brought a few items home from the war....

Just do it: shooting the S&W model 1.
May 1, 2003... In the late 1850s Smith and Wesson applied the White patent to a top-hinged, break open cartridge revolver chambered for the Model 1 Cartridge. This was your basic black powder .22 Short, which was kind of a magnum version of the rimfire...

.500 S & W Magnum. (Handgun Hunting).
May 1, 2003... It's finally come to pass -- a true biggie in the revolver business is chambering a .50 of their own design. Of course, this isn't a new thing for S & W, as they teamed with Remington for the .44 and .41 Magnums in the days of yore. In this...

A 325 at 2,000 fps! (Handgun Hunting).
May 1, 2003... SSK and others have made extremely powerful single shot .50s on the XP receiver, and the introduction of the Encore made it possible to chamber several very powerful ones, such as the .50 Alaskan in that excellent pistol. The Encore, with...

Novak "extreme duty" 1911 magazines. (Gunnysack).
May 1, 2003... People who think the extractor is the most important part of a 1911 pistol are wrong. It's the magazine. Before the extractor can do its thing the magazine must serve up a cartridge at the right time and place. It's also true the majority of...

Kart EZ-fit barrel. (Gunnysack).
May 1, 2003... Kart's EZ-fit barrel makes it possible to get a real match barrel fit with considerably less work. The secret to accuracy in a government model-type pistol is the fit of the bottom barrel lugs to the slide stop pin. Unless the pin fits properly...

Shooting specs. (Gunnysack).
May 1, 2003... As we grow older we lose some ability to accommodate between objects that are close or far away. Shooters have it even worse because the front sight at first appears fuzzy and later on there will be a bunch of them. Sooner or later we're going...

Nikon StabilEyes. (Gunnysack).
May 1, 2003... Binoculars are generally limited in magnification due to the difficulty of holding the high powered glass still-enough for useful viewing. The StabilEyes 14x40 image stabilized binocular from Nikon helps to solve that problem. You may have seen...

Matt Burkett s Practical Shooting Handgun Techniques, Vol. 1-3. (DVD Review).
May 1, 2003... If you recognize Matt Burkett's name, it's probably because he's been busy winning some important matches over the last few years. What's less well known is Matt has been offering some private, high-dollar training in his corner of the Arizona...

1911 Grips. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Alumagrips Introduced at the 2001 SHOT Show, this ultra light quality handgun grip is designed to fit the Full Size Colt 1911, Commander Size 1911, cod the Officers Model. In addition, the grips will also fit most Colt clones by companies...

Inner Piece Thumb Break Holster. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Desantis Holster and Leather The Desantis Gonhide Model #098 "Inner Piece Thumb Brook" Holster will comfortably conceal the full sized .45 Government Model in the waistband. Originally designed for the FBI's elite HRT unit, the #098 is now...

EZ Set Target and Stand. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Evans Targets Evans Targets, a family owned and operated company, is now manufacturing, in addition to its reactive steel, rifle and pistol targets, it's own Ez Set Target and Stand[C]. The Stand's unique design allows the shooters to...

Rough Rider S/A Revolver Black Stain. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Heritage Manufacturing, Inc. Heritage Manufacturing located in Opa Lacka, Fl., announces the availability of the popular Rough Rider Single Action Revolver in a new BLACK SATIN FINISH. With last year's intro of the Silver Satin Finish...

XD Sub-Compact Pistol sights. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Heinie Specialty Products Heinie Specialty Products announces the availability of fixed combat style sights for the NEW Springfield XD Sub-Compact Pistol. These are designed to create o faster, more precise sight picture. The sights era...

Swing & Drop9 shooting tree. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Steel Targets Midwest The Swing & Drop9 features a hi-directional plate transfer system which compliments a more comprehensive training than simple knock down or swinging plates. Made from 3/8" AR-500 Steel, the plates function with all...

Gore-Tex Waterproof Shooting Gloves. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Whitewater Outdoors Whitewater Outdoors Gore-Tax Waterproof Shooting Gloves provide superior protection thanks to the waterproof, breathable Gore-Tax fabric. The gloves feature on ultra-sensitive trigger finger and deluxe RX-7 gripper...

3C LED flashlight. (Spot Light).
May 1, 2003... Streamlight Inc. Streamlight Inc. introduces a new 3C LED flashlight and announces improvements to the original 3C xenon bulb flashlight. The new LEO model is equipped with ten white LEDs that provide up to 100,000 hours of power....

Add it up.
May 1, 2003... 750 Number of guns missing from the FBI'S inventory, according to an audit by the Justice Department. Oops... 169 Number of arrests related to Super Bowl in San Diego. 2 Number of riot/looting sprees in Oakland. One for...

On credibility. (The Insider).
May 1, 2003... Take a moment and walk the conceptual dog with me here. We often get readers who write or phone and tell us -- often with great vigor -- how they rely on Handgunner for real-world information, training, news and, as one reader told me: "For the...

Hunting works. (The Insider).
May 1, 2003... Under the "family that hunts together stays together" department, I offer my own. In a shameless case of simply wanting to see my family in the pages of Handgunner, take note of the smiling faces herein. The deer Ms. Suzi has was taken with one...

Homeland security to allow pilots with guns. (The Insider).
May 1, 2003... If they can ever get it sorted out, any pilot of any commercial passenger airline will be authorized to carry a handgun in the cockpit in accordance with Transportation Sedcurity Admin. guidelines. There are things to be resolved yet, like...

"Unarmed civilians" Duuuh. (The Insider).
May 1, 2003... This, from former President Jimmy Carter's Nobel Peace prize acceptance speech, Oslo, Norway, December 12, 2002: "There is a plethora of civil wars, unrestrained by rules of the Geneva Convention, within which an overwhelming portion of the...

Chainguns and real leather holsters. (The Insider).
May 1, 2003... Proof that no matter how high-tech we get, on old fashioned piece of leather with a Browning Hi-Power nestled inside con still be comforting. Here, Russ Rybka (son of leathermaker Thad Rybka) and helicoptor pilot for the good guys, proves it....

S&W goodies. (The Insider).
May 1, 2003... A recent factory tour and visit with S&W historian Roy Jinks revealed some interesting things. Most importantly, I got to handle a genuine S&W flush valve . After handling it I could see how Smith got the idea for their first big-bore handgun....