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 ON THE COVER:
THE COLT KING COBRA:
A Mini-Snake
For The Masses!
Roy Huntington

MAY 2024, VOL. 70, NUMBER 5, 833RD ISSUE

26 22

14

8 CROSSFIRE
Letters To The Editor
GUNS Staff 26 HANDLOADING
Dragoons With Conicals
John Taffin 28 SURPLUS & CLASSIC
Winchester 150
Payton Miller

14 RIFLES
Things Have Changed
Dave Anderson 52 KNIVES
Bear & Sons Bold Action XV
Pat Covert 53 QUARTERMASTER
• Fisher Bullet Space Pen
• Burris Fastfire C Reflex Sight
• Rocky Lynx Boots

22 SHOTGUNS
All Choked Up
Tom Keer 62 THINK TANK
Heavyweight Slugs In The Marlin 1894
Jeff “Tank” Hoover
Brent T. Wheat
• Otis .30 Cal Brass Cleaning Rod
Frank Jardim

24 MONTANA MUSINGS
Special Guns
Mike “Duke” Venturino 66 GUNS INSIDER
(Un)Sympathetic Squeeze
Brent T. Wheat 54 2A DEFENSE
Confront The Lies
Dave Workman

WIN!
23 CUSTOM CORNER
Foundation 58 NEW PRODUCTS
Series CR920 60 GUN OF THE MONTH
Shadow Systems 64 ADVERTISER INDEX

GUNS Magazine (ISSN 1044-6257) is published monthly by Publishers’ Development Corporation, 225 W Valley Parkway, Suite 100, Escondido, CA 92025.
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WARNING: Firearms are dangerous and if used improperly may cause serious injury or death. Due to the inherent variables in the reloading of ammu-
nition, be sure to verify any published loads with manufacturer’s data. Products mentioned or advertised may not be legal in all states or jurisdictions.
Obey all firearms laws. Always consult a professional gunsmith when modifying any firearm. Be a safe shooter!

4 MAY 2024
 Tenmile
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A LAND CRUISER AT
50 MPH IN UGANDA
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Tim Herald’s safari hunt

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roof rack of his safari truck.

It ended when he took an
East African defassa waterbuck
bull with that same rifle and
optic two days later, after
confirming zero.

Read the full story at

Trijicon.com/50mphDropTest.
 GUNSMagazine.com Online Feature:

Making A Single Shot, Follow Us Today!

Break Open .44-40 youtube.com/guncranks
Watch The Process On YouTube @FMGPubs youtube.com/fmgpubs
Roy Huntington

32

Mini-Snake
For The Masses
Roy Huntington

10 CAMPFIRE TALES
Big Bore Sixguns Part I
John Taffin 38 BATTLESHIP KNIVES
History, Halyards And Halsey
Brent T. Wheat
38

18 AYOOB ON HANDGUNS
Shooting with Shakes
Massad Ayoob 40 MOSSBERG 940 PRO
More Boom For The Room
Jeremy D. Clough

30 S&W MODEL 52
Rarefied .38 Special Semi
Clayton Walker 44 CLUTTER
Genius And Insanity: Which One?
Jeff “Tank” Hoover
46

32 COLT KING COBRA

Mini-Snake For The Masses
Roy Huntington 46 THOMPSON CUSTOMIZATION
Pack Heat Like Dillinger!
Will Dabbs, MD 40
6 MAY 2024
 Celebrating 75 Years
of Rugged, Reliable Firearms ®

In 2024, Ruger proudly celebrates 75 years of manufacturing rugged, reliable firearms. To commemorate this occasion, Ruger is proud to announce
four 75th Anniversary Models, a Mark IV™ pistol, two different 10/22® rifles and an LCP® MAX, each representative of Ruger’s storied past and
bright future. These commemorative models are inspired by iconic Ruger products, and represent each of our three major manufacturing facilities.

The acquisition, ownership, possession and use of firearms are heavily regulated.
LEARN Some models may not be legally available in your state or locale. Whatever your
MORE purpose for lawfully acquiring a firearm – know the law, get trained and shoot safely.
 CROSSFIRE
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR Your Next Gun Story Begins Here!

GUNS Magazine ® welcomes letters to the editor. We reserve the right to edit all published
letters for clarity and length. Due to the volume of mail, we are unable to individually answer CORPORATE OFFICERS
your letters or e-mail. In sending a letter to GUNS Magazine, you agree to provide Publishers’ Randy Moldé • Marjorie Young • Amy von Rosen
Development Corp. such copyright as is required for publishing and redistributing the contents Editor: Brent T. Wheat
of your letter in any format. Send your letters to Crossfire, GUNS Magazine, P.O. Box 460130, Associate Editor: Jazz Jimenez
Escondido, CA 92033, GUNSMagazine.com; e-mail: editor@gunsmagazine.com CSM/Video Producer: Joe Novelozo
Circulation/Production Director: Heather Arnold
Check out GUNSMagazine.com for our digital edition, news, our exclusive Product Index, web Production Manager: Jim Kirschbaum
blasts, online features, to enter the giveaway and more! And if you have any news about hot Digital Content Editor: Ashley McGee
new products you’ve found, or anything you think we need to know about, drop me a line at Website Manager: Lorinda Massey
editor@gunsmagazine.com! Special Projects Editor: Roy Huntington
Editorial Review: Consol Torres

NO JUNK IN DA TRUNK string, which then dropped a weight to CONTRIBUTING EDITORS

I loved your Podcast episode #220 the ground. If I recall correctly, the dis- John Taffin, Dave Anderson,
“De-junk Your Gun.” I was listening tance was only maybe 10 to 15 feet. You Massad Ayoob, Mike “Duke” Venturino,
intently and suddenly Roy hit me in the only got one shot for this and bonus if Will Dabbs, MD, Dave Workman, Jeff “Tank” Hoover

face, ouch! No, I’m not a dancer but I you cut the string. After about 15 shoot-
FIELD EDITORS
did use a Taurus 24/7 OSS. ers and no hits, I was up. Well thank Holt Bodinson, Payton Miller, Mark Hampton John
goodness I was using Sheehan, Mike Cumpston, Alan Garbers, Tom Keer
that chubby .45, I was
the first to drop the FMG PUBLICATIONS
weight. Boy did I feel GUNS: gunsmagazine.com
Editor: Brent T. Wheat
good about my choice
AMERICAN HANDGUNNER: americanhandgunner.com
at that moment. Editor: Tom McHale
Granted my son AMERICAN COP: americancop.com
has moved on to Editor: Erick Gelhaus
much better pistols. SHOOTING INDUSTRY: shootingindustry.com
He even won a SIG Editor: Jade Moldae

in a competition FMG SPECIAL EDITIONS: fmgpublications.com

Editor: Tom McHale
and, lo and behold,
gave it to me. That
After several years of doing small was a great feeling. Needless to say, the
competitions with Colt 1911 clones, Taurus pistols did their job at a time
which I was fine with, I saw my young when what we needed was something
son struggling with stove-pipes and that shot fairly straight and gave us no
attempts to clear the pistol during the major hiccups. We had fun!
competition. At first I thought good Joe via email
he’ll learn what to do in these situa-
tions. Then I realized he’s not having Roy and I both are fans of Taurus
fun but getting frustrated in front of — now. The old stuff was hit-n-miss, SUBSCRIPTION
an audience of peers. but we both agree the best pistol is the CUSTOMER SERVICE
866.820.4045
Being on a tight budget, I decided to one you can afford at the moment. No Email: subs@gunsmagazine.com
get something so he and I can have fun shame there! —BW
together. After some limited research and EDITORIAL
Email: editor@gunsmagazine.com
watching a top competitor for Taurus
clear plates in record time, I tried the TAFFIN KUDOS ADVERTISING
Taurus 24/7 OSS. I picked one up in .45 To Mr. John Taffin: North East: Amy Tanguay, amy.tanguay@fmghq.com
South East: Tom Vorel, tom.vorel@fmghq.com
and one in 9mm. My son got the 9 and After reading your recent Sixgunner West: Delano Amaguin, delano.amaguin@fmghq.com
proceeded to do very well with it. In fact, article about N-Frame .44 Specials, I
at a small range, he always placed in the realized how very tardy I am in reach- PRODUCTION
Email: james.kirschbaum@fmghq.com
top three from then on. He never had a ing out to you.
hiccup with that pistol. You were kind enough to write a ONLINE TRAFFIC MANAGER
I ended up with the .45 and in my sterling review of my second novel Lori Robbins
Email: lori.robbins@fmghq.com
first match using it, there was a situa- (now 33 of them!) in a defunct cowboy
tion where the shooter had to lay on the
ground, shoot under a table and sever a continued on page 56

8 MAY 2024
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CAMPFIRE TALES YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

FIRST BIG BORE SIXGUNS – PART I

S&W SETS THE TONE
John Taffin

S
&W MODEL #3 AMERICAN
— Beginning in 1857, Smith &
Wesson produced .22 and .32
Rimfire pocket pistols. In order to
offer a larger caliber in a more conve-
nient form, Smith & Wesson needed
both the W.C. Dodge and C.A. King
patents. The former provided for a
design that locked at the top of the
back portion of the frame and pivoted
on the barrel portion at the lower part
of the front portion of the frame. This
was to be combined with King’s inven- This original S&W American
tion of simultaneous ejection of spent dates back to 1870.
cartridges. Smith & Wesson was able
to purchase both of these patents and
in late 1869 produced the Smith & the .44 Rimfire, the .44 Henry, which in manufacturing the first cartridge
Wesson Model #3 American .44 caliber was found in the 1860 Henry and 1866 firing big bore single-action sixgun. In
six-shot revolver, the first true big bore Winchester. Now shooters had the December of 1870, the U.S. Govern-
cartridge-firing six-shooter. opportunity to have this first sixgun/ ment ordered 1,000 S&W Americans
For the first time cartridge cases levergun combination, that is, a revolv- for military use. Once the Cavalry
were made of brass instead of copper er and rifle both chambered for the managed to acquire .44 Americans,
and the cases were centerfire instead same cartridge. Smith & Wesson soon began to receive
of rimfire. The .44 Smith & Wesson Suddenly all percussion pistols orders from around the country.
American cartridge was loaded with were obsolete and this new weapon Smith & Wesson had wisely placed
25 grains of black powder under a 218- was such a major improvement over sample revolvers in the right hands.
grain bullet with a muzzle velocity of both the cap-and-ball revolvers and General Gorloff, the Russian mil-
650 fps. It very early gained the rep- single shot pistols of the time. Sam itary attaché, was in the United
utation for accuracy to 50 yards. In Colt introduced the first practical sin- States to order rifles from Colt and
addition to the centerfire cartridge, gle-action sixgun in 1836 but it would received an S&W American from
Smith & Wesson also chambered for be Smith & Wesson taking the lead Smith & Wesson. This resulted in
an order for 20,000 S&W Americans
by the Russian government in 1871.
Six months later the Russian Grand
Duke Alexis would visit Smith &
Wesson and be presented with a fully
engraved, pearl-stocked American
before going west to hunt buffalo with
two notable western figures, Buffalo
Bill and George Armstrong Custer.
The Cimarron Model #3 American
is built on the action of the Model #3
Schofield; however, the exterior is a
faithful copy of the original American.
In fact, placing it beside my original
Original Model #3 150-year-old American shows them
Russian (top) compared looking like the proverbial two peas
to a replica thereof. in a pod. This may be a 150-year-old
design; however, it shoots as well as,

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 Original .44 S&Ws, from top left clockwise — American, Russian, Double Action
Frontier and New Model #3.

or better than many modern target convenient 6 ½". It was definitely a dif-
pistols. Using both factory loads and ferent revolver by the time the Russians
reloads, as well as .45 Colt and .45 got through with it.
Schofield rounds, saw most of my However, it is with the ammuni-
shots resulting in groups right at 1" tion that the Russians contributed the
or slightly above for five shots at 20 most. The S&W Model #3, as men-
yards. The Uberti/Cimarron is now tioned, was available chambered in
also available in .44-40 and a version either .44 Henry Rimfire or .44 Smith
with .44 Specials, .44 Russians and .44 & Wesson American. The .44 S&W
Colt followed by the Schofield. A few American cartridge, while of center-
years back, the New Model #3 arrived, fire design, was very similar to the .22
but it looked like we would never see Rimfire ammunition still being used
a rebirth of the American. Now it has today. That is, the bullet was of the
happened. Mike Harvey of Cimar- heel-type with the base of the bullet
ron Firearms has worked for several smaller than the diameter of the rest
years to see this project come to pass. of the bullet and this smaller part was
After firing one of the first to arrive in inside the cartridge case. This result-
this country, I can say it has been well ed in both the bullet and the cartridge
worth the effort and certainly the wait. case having the same outside diameter.
MODEL #3 RUSSIAN — The The .44 American also known
Russians asked for changes to the as the .44-100 used a cartridge case
American including its ammunition. 0.90" in length with a bullet diameter
In fact, the Russians made several of 0.434" and a black powder charge
improvements to the S&W Model of anywhere from 23 to 25 grains
#3 American revolver as well as to with the muzzle velocity of 650 fps.
its ammunition. For greater shoot- The improved .44 Russian cartridge
ing comfort the square stock and grip used a case slightly longer at 0.97", a
frame of the American was rounded powder charge of 23 grains of black
and diminished in diameter, a lanyard powder, and a round-nosed bullet
ring was added to the butt for securi- weighing approximately 245 grains.
ty, a “knuckle” was added to the back A strange thing happened with the
strap to keep the grip from shifting increased bullet weight, longer case,
in the hand when fired, and a spur and decreased powder charge. Muzzle
added to the bottom of the trigger velocity actually went up 100 fps to 750
guard. The 8" barrel was cut to a more fps and muzzle energy was increased

12 MAY 2024
 CAMPFIRE TALES
from 200 to 316 ft. lbs. Apparently the
heel-type bullet allowed for excessive
blow by and resulting loss of velocity. Targets fired with black
The first 20,000 Model #3s supplied powder loads patterned
to the Russians were basically identical after the originals.
to the original Smith & Wesson Amer-
ican except for being chambered in .44
Russian and they are known as the First
Model Russians. A change was made
in the grip shape. The Second Model
Russian introduced the changes made
above. Pictures exist of Russian sol-
diers carrying their .44 revolvers in a
sash with the spur hooked over the top
of the sash thus preventing the sixgun
from sliding down. The spur also is a
great asset for deliberate shooting and by
placing the middle finger on the spur, a
very secure and steady grip is achieved;
however, at least in my hands it is impos-
sible for me to reach the hammer with
the thumb of my shooting hand when
using the spur. Perhaps the Russian sol- better known today as simply the Model the Third Model was shortened to 6 ½"
diers were marksmen, not gunfighters. #3 Russian, was a somewhat stream- with an accompanying shorter extrac-
The Third Model Russian, also lined version of the First and Second tor housing. Nearly 61,000 Third Models
known as the New Model Russian or Models. The former had a standard were produced with 13,500 going to the
Model #3 Russian Third Model and barrel length of 8", the latter was 7", and commercial market.
RIFLES YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

Ruger American 6mm Creedmoor has adequate velocity and

trajectory for deer hunting along with light recoil, moderate
muzzle blast and excellent accuracy for a nice price!

THINGS CHANGE
ARE THE ‘GOOD OLD DAYS’ NOW?
Dave Anderson 6.5x54, a Winchester 1894 or Savage innovations are obviously superi-

T
1899, or a Springfield .30-’06. or, such as smokeless powder. It only
he argument can be made rifles took a decade or so for us to put away
haven’t changed much. If I were STAYING THE COURSE our black powder rifles — well, not too
to show up for a deer hunt Things don’t change quickly in the far away because we still take them out
driving a Model T, my fellow hunters rifle world. It’s not so much we rifle- once in a while.
would think I must have lost a bet. But men won’t embrace change; we just There have been other game-
they would hardly notice if I uncased need a lot of convincing. Old Faith- changing innovations such as optical
a nice custom-stocked Mauser 98 in ful worked for Dad and Grandad sights, jacketed bullets, noncorrosive
7x57, a 1903 Mannlicher-Schoenauer and it will keep working for us. Some priming, and of course, stainless steel

Dave’s Fav — the Sako 85 Finnlight .243

Win. Light and compact, it balances and
handles beautifully, has a great trigger,
super accuracy and the 95-grain Nosler
Ballistic Tip is deadly on whitetails.

14 MAY 2024
 Available in the following cartridges:
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260 Remington 300 Win Mag
6mm Creedmoor 300 Norma Mag
6.5 PRC 308 Winchester
6.5 Creedmoor 338 Lapua Mag

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RIFLES

These are the shorter, lighter rifles Dave

reaches for most these days: From top, the
CZ 7.62x39; Ruger 77 .308; Ruger American
.22 WMRF; Howa Mini .223 with folding stock.

and synthetic stocks. Some other inno-

vations were more subtle but as an old

“The difference is I don’t hate

timer I can see their influence. These
include things like laser rangefinders,
inexpensive chronographs and elec-
tronic hearing protection. One could
include optics with reliable, repeatable short barrels as I once did.”
adjustments even though this is a topic
in itself.

THE LONG RANGER game field, can you reliably eyeball 550 With laser rangefinders and inex-
Longer range target shooting has yards from 575 yards? Don’t feel bad, pensive chronographs, we no longer
an illustrious history. Good shooting no one can. have to guess at range or trust muzzle
was done at a thousand yards decades When someone boasts of their skill velocity claims. With accurate data,
ago, even more than a century ago. at estimating range, tell them you’re longer range shooting isn’t so difficult.
But target shooters had a huge advan- going to compare their estimate with How has this affected rifles? Trends
tage — they shot on surveyed ranges a rangefinder reading. They start back- I’ve noticed over the past couple of
knowing the exact range within a yard pedaling in short order — in Tom decades has been greater interest in
or two. Hunters in the field don’t have Wolfe’s useful phrase, “making imag- accuracy, in medium capacity car-
this luxury. inary snowballs with their hands.” tridges and less interest in ultra-high
I know of quite a few hunters who The way we dealt with longer range velocities. This in turn resulted in
claimed expertise in estimating range. game shooting back in the day was to rifles being lighter, more compact, and
Many are not too bad out to 300 yards pursue increasingly flat-shooting car- with (usually) less recoil.
or so, but much less skilled out where tridges. This required higher velocity, Take barrel length, for example. I
it matters. Out on the far end of the which in turn required bigger capaci- have half a dozen rifles with 26" barrels
ballistic parabola when the bullet is ty cases, which required stronger and chambered for cartridges such as .220
falling fast, an error of even 25 yards heavier actions and longer barrels, Swift, .257 Weatherby, .264 Win. Mag.,
can mean the difference between a not to mention dealing with more 7mm Remington Ultra and .338 Lapua.
clean kill and wounded game. In the recoil and shorter barrel life. There are a bunch with 24” barrels. In

16 MAY 2024
 the ’50s and ’60s, barrels for non-mag- branches or bucks snorting, while
num cartridges settled at 22”. These taming the rifle’s report to tolera-
barrels seem to me like the Little Bear’s ble levels. Rifle makers have learned
porridge: not too hot, not too cold, just to make short, light rifles that still
right. Medium works for me, always balance well. I’ve choreographed the
has, always will. load I’m shooting and have a ballis-
tic table with bullet drop and scope
SHORT STUFF come-up data taped to the stock.
The difference is I don’t hate short If your deer rifle is still a 10-lb.,
barrels as I once did. Back in the ’70s, 7mm or .300 Magnum you secretly
for a couple of seasons I used a little hate to shoot because the noise rattles
Remington 600 .308 with an 18 ½” your brain, the recoil jars your glasses
barrel. I liked the light weight and off and false teeth loose, I urge you to
short overall length especially when embrace change. Get a laser rangefind-
still hunting in heavy brush and from er, chronograph and electric muffs, or
the bench it was very accurate. But its even pay the price and get a suppressor.
muzzle-light balance made it hard to Get a 7mm-08 Rem. or 6.5 CM weigh-
shoot accurately in the field. In those ing 7-lbs. all-up. You’ll shoot better and
days I didn’t wear ear protection while cheaper burning 45 grains of powder
hunting and the muzzle blast of the rather than 80.
stubby barrel was appalling. Although, dang it, I’m still tempted
Today I have several rifles cham- One of the first lightweights was the to take out the old Marlin 1893 .38-55
Savage 1920 in .250-3000 (left). A great
bered to .308 and similar cartridges with iron sights and hard-cast lead
rifle but the Kimber Montana .223 on the
with barrel lengths from 16 ½” to 20”. right does everything the Savage will
bullets — but with smokeless rather
What’s changed? Electronic muffs let while adding stainless steel, scope than black powder. See, I’m not afraid
me hear woods sounds like breaking mounting and stable synthetic stock. of change!

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 17
HANDGUNS YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

SHOOTING WITH THE SHAKES

FIGHTING THROUGH AGE

Contestants pose on the Royal

Range after the match. You may
recognize some faces.

Massad Ayoob Grandmaster standing. Ego was on the — is the sibilant noises. Your wife says
Photos: Gail Pepin line. I was shooting with a pistol I often “West” and you hear “Wet.” Well, you

W
teach with, a stock Gen5 GLOCK 19 can also lose the sound of a start whistle.
hen the feces hit the rotating with a SureFire light, drawn from a My first realization it was time to shoot
oscillator and your body is Kydex Bravo Concealment strong-side was when I sensed movement to my
not cooperating with what hip holster from under a fleece-lined right and heard gunfire.
you need it to do, it’s good to be able to woolen shirt. It was loaded with 115- “Oh, pooh!” (or something to that
say to yourself, “I’ve been here before, grain Federal American Eagle FMJ effect) went through my mind as I
and I know how to handle this!” I was 9mm training ammo. belatedly reached under the conceal-
reminded of this in early December I was on the far left of the firing ing garment for my pistol. I had been
2023 at Tom Givens’ Rangemaster line. Hands were in front of me. I expecting a verbal “fire” command
Professional Trainers Seminar, a great waited for the “fire” command. and realized I was behind the curve.
learning experience ending with all of It turned out I waited too long. My first mistake had been not asking
us on the excellent indoor firing line “Uh, oh …” what the signal to fire was going to
of the Royal Range complex in Nash- At 75, more than half-a-century of be. Too late to snivel about it — the
ville, Tenn. firearms instruction had caught up with clock was ticking. I got the GLOCK
The field of contestants includ- me. The first thing you lose with “shoot- out and managed the three shots two-
ed almost three dozen top handgun er’s ear” — the high range nerve deafness handed, three dominant hand only,
instructors, some of whom had earned associated with exposure to loud sounds and three non-dominant hand only

Course of fire included hand

changes, head shots, speed
reload and concealed draws.

18 MAY 2024
Equal parts eye-catching and innovative, the lightweight,
inertia-fed MAC 2 Tactical Shotgun delivers unmatched
performance, ease of maintenance and load versatility.

m il a r m a m e n t c o r p. c o m
 HANDGUNS

Mas finishes at the 25-yard line,

legs still quivering like a tap dancer.

in nine seconds total. Knowing I was myself manifesting as an adrenaline

behind the curve I rushed the last shot response. In a fight or flight reflex, the
just outside the center ring, one point tremors usually hit the hands first but
down, but I still made the time. it hadn’t happened.
I was furious with myself for drop- There wasn’t time to analyze it.
ping a point at only five yards and Draw, four shots, reload, four more in
made my second mistake: I didn’t yell eight seconds. By now I was starting to
“Hey, Tom, I can’t hear the whistle! look not at my target but at the shoot-
Can I have someone give me a shoul- ers on my right, and when I saw them
der tap?” No-o-o … that would have going for their guns, I went for mine.
been too logical. By the time we fell back to the 15-yard
By the time we got back to seven line, the right leg felt like it was trying
yards, something interesting was to flamenco dance. I glanced down
happening. Among other recent mani- and could see the movement through
festations of eldertude, in mid-October my pants and thought, “Darn, this is
a long-standing set of lumbar spine embarrassing,” … which, of course,
issues had manifested as raging sciat- only made it worse and now the left
ica, affecting leg strength and balance, leg started moving in tandem.
and causing severe cramping. Now, my
right leg had gone into spasm, dancing RECOGNITION & REPARATION
a tattoo on the floor of the range. It Back in the ’70s, I had debriefed
seemed awfully coincidental — what enough gunfight survivors to rec-
I think it really was, was my anger at ognize what I came to call “Body

Final score with 50

timed shots: 98%.
Mas is glad it’s over.

ONLINE!
WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM

20 MAY 2024
 Betrayal.” When someone’s hands
tremble or their voice cracks or
they lose control of their sphinc-
ters, we see them as having “lost it.”
And, when we see it in ourselves,
we assume that we’re failing and it
becomes a self-fulfilling prophe-
cy. In the 1980s I started teaching
what I called the “spaz-out drill”
where I forced students to shoot with
their hands shaking to learn if they
crushed down hard, held the sights
on target and rolled the trigger, they
could still get their hits. I channeled
this on the Royal Range and it got
me through.
The legs were still dancing when
we hit the 25-yard line. I rushed
again, and my last shot went high,
above the center zone. I finished
with a 98 out of 100. Tom told me
later the average overall score was
97.4. If anyone but me noticed the
tremors, they were too kind to say
so but several observers told me they
did realize I couldn’t hear the start
signal and was behind the curve.
The course of fire was tough, and
only four people shot a perfect 100.
In the tie-breaker shoot-off, only one
scored 100 again — congratulations
to overall winner Ben DeWalt.
The Professional Trainers Seminar
was a great learning experience. I
thank Tom for this and for my per-
sonal learning reinforcement outlined
above. If you know beforehand you
can shoot with violent tremors — if
you can disregard “how you look,” the
outcome, and focus on the task — you
can finish the job and still be damn
happy to get a “gentleman’s ‘C’” for a
passing grade.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 21
SHOTGUNS

ALL CHOKED UP
SHOTGUN CHOKES DEMYSTIFIED
Tom Keer of the Trapshooting Hall of Fame,

I
bored different diameters into heavy,
only had a second to admire Cider’s unused musket barrels to achieve
point near the alders. I figured he better patterns at close, medium and
nailed a woodcock and loaded long distances.
for that small bird but the explosive “After I had finished boring the
whirring of wings came from a Ruffed 6-bore, I found I had a gun effective
Grouse. I swung when the bird crested up to 80 yards. The gun would shoot
the treetops and my cylinder choke through an inch board at 40 yards. The
quickly spread the ¾-oz. load of #9s. It velocity up to 40 yards was very great;
didn’t take but a half-dozen of the 439 at 60 yards it slowed down to one-
pellets to bring Old Grousey to earth, half and at 80 yards it slowed down to
and when roasted, he tasted delicious another half,” Kimble wrote.
that night. The acorn squash and wild Kimble’s friend Sylvester Roper
rice was pretty good, too. also worked on different designs
and applied for a patent for chokes
HISTORY in 1866. Across the pond, Continen- All modern shotgunners need to shoot at
In the 1800s, gunsmiths looked to tal gunsmiths focused their attention a variety of distances is a choke tube
improve shooting success by tightening on choke designs, too. England’s W.R. wrench and a variety of choke tubes.
and loosening a choke’s constriction. Pape applied for a patent around the
Rhode Island’s Jeremiah Smith is con- same time and in 1874, William Wel- CHOKE TYPES
sidered to have pioneered the concept lington Greener of W.W. Greener’s A cylinder choke has a muzzle
of choke in 1827. Decades later, Illinois’ made significant strides to help shoot- diameter the same as the barrel. A cyl-
Fred Kimble, who is also an inductee ers improve hits and reduce misses. inder choke offers no constriction and

The hits keep coming,

particularly when you’re
matching your choke to
the distance at which
you are shooting.

22 MAY 2024
 YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

allows pellets to spread as soon as they

leave the muzzle.
Cone or American tapers were

Custom
used in a variety of constrictions.
These tapers are used today, appear-
ing in improved cylinder, modified
and improved modified chokes. The

CORNER
effective shooting ranges vary and are
between 20–30 yards, 30–40 yards or
45–55 yards, respectively.
To illustrate the different pattern
spread, an improved cylinder throws
40% of the shells’ pellets into a 30"
circle at 40 yards. A modified choke
places 60% of the shell’s pellets in a 30"
circle at 40 yards while an improved
modified lands 65% of pellets in that
same circle at the identical distance.
Bell chokes are the opposite of cone
chokes. Their taper is uniform until it
MR-30 Black King Rifles, as seen in the "Shooter"
flares and widens at the muzzle. The TV series.
idea was to tighten and then loosen Fixed chokes were the standard before
interchangeable chokes landed on the The only rifle to ever win the triple crown of
constriction so there would be an international tactical shooting.
scene. Using a micrometer is the best
ideal combination of velocity (speed)
way to determine its style and
and spread. constriction. Photo: Lars Jacob
Skeet chokes tighten and then open
quickly. They’re preferred for close shots
with 50% of the shell’s pellets landing in
a 30" circle at 25 yards.
1959 in their Model 59. The semi-
automatic came with improved
Ruger MK Pistols
The full choke tightens steeply to cylinder, modified and full chokes, Reassemble Quickly &
throw effective patterns at the 55–65 but they weren’t well received by Correctly Every Time
yard range; 70% of the shell pellets everyone. One gun writer wrote “the
should be in a 30" circle at 40 yards. interchangeable chokes were a novelty
Cone chokes do not have a gradual that would not last.” I think I might
taper and instead tighten aggressively have said something similar in the
close to the muzzle. They are effective 1990s about the Internet being a fad, One-Time Fix
at longer distances. Jug chokes tighten, too. How wrong we were … * Stays in Pistol
loosen and tighten near the muzzle. The Winchester continued to perfect * No Experience Needed
shot is loosened and then tightened as interchangeable chokes and ultimately * Easily installed in Minutes
it leaves the muzzle. They’re frequently arrived at the Winchoke system of three * Not for 22/45 or MK IV models
used in competition shotguns for better interchangeable chokes. The flexibility HammerStrutSupport.com
patterning as well as recoil reduction. carried over into their marketing, and
Slug choke specifically handles slugs, the tagline “3 Guns in One” was legend-
which also can be shot through any ary. Winchester included Winchokes
choke, with the exception of an extra in all actions of their shotguns start-
SUBSCRIBE

full choke. ing with the Models 1200 pump, the

Model 1400 semi-automatic, the Model
A NEW SOLUTION 101 over/under and the Model 23 side-
To shoot targets or game at dif- by-side. They are the standard on which
ferent distances required shooters to current interchangeable tubes are based.
carry several shotguns with different Using the correct shotgun choke
fixed chokes. Winchester arrived at is a key to shooting success. Whether
a solution to make life much easier you prefer a fixed choke or an inter-
— and more affordable — for shot- changeable set of tubes is up to you
gunners when they debuted their but they are an important way to turn
Versalite interchangeable chokes in our frowns upside down.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 23
MONTANA MUSINGS

SPECIAL GUNS world was Walter Cooper’s gun-

smithing and retail store located on
TOGETHER AGAIN! the main street of Bozeman, Montana
Territory in the 1870s. His store not
only furnished firearms for bison
Mike “Duke” Venturino for the .22 PPC and 6mm PPC. They hunters heading for eastern Montana
Photos: Kirk Stovall have reputations for extreme accura- but also supplied other paraphernalia

F
cy. I owned the 6mm but in a time of needed for extended trips into wil-
or many gun buyers, the lure of financial need early in my gun ’riting derness areas. Mr. Cooper was noted
getting guns with special stories career, sold it to Kirk. Its serial number for stamping the firearms passing
or pairs with consecutive serial was 20. After many years Kirk hap- through his shop with WALTER
numbers is irresistible. My good friend, pened on a Sako .22 PPC with a serial COOPER, BOZEMAN M.T.
Kirk Stovall of Bozeman, Mont., has number of 21. He quickly nabbed it. Early on, the Sharps Rif le
four sets of such special firearms. Two These above two sets of guns with Company shipped directly to Mr.
pairs are of modern manufacture and consecutive serial numbers would be Cooper but things eventually took a
two pairs dated from the late 19th nice to have but the next two pairs will turn. Mr. Cooper got behind on pay-
century with interesting histories. knock the socks off historically minded ments to the Sharps Company and
gun folk. One set has consecutive serial was forced to stock his shop with
CONTEMPORARY COLTS numbers complete with factory letters Sharps rif les initially shipped to a
Let’s start with more modern pairs. indicating the guns went somewhere large distributor in Cincinnati, Ohio
One set commemorates the 100th historical. The other pair came from named B. Kittridge & Co. On August
anniversary of Montana becoming a the same lot and sent out on the same 20, 1877, Kittridge received a ship-
territory. These are gussied-up Colt day. What makes my mind fantasize ment of Sharps Model 1874s direct
SAA .45s with 7 ½" barrels wearing the is these rifles/carbines from the 19th from the factory. We will return to
serial numbers of 75MA and 76MA. century were shipped on the same day, that shipment shortly.
The second pair I had something to then were separated for who knows how Evidently, Walter Cooper had def-
do with as I was the original owner many years. And now, Kirk was able to inite ideas as to what configuration
of one. Back in the late 1980s, Sako reunite them in the 21st century. of Sharps Model 1874s was ideal for
of Finland brought out a special run A special destination for Sharps use in the wilds of Montana. Both of
of bolt-action single shots chambered Model 1874 rif les in the collecting these “Cooper Sharps” are chambered

24 MAY 2024
 YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

for the .40-90 Sharps Bottleneck On August 8, 1890, two identical

cartridge, have 30" full octagon Winchester Model 1886 saddle
barrels and weigh about 13 lbs. ring .45-70 carbines were logged
with plain walnut stocks and into the Winchester warehouse.
forearms. These .40-90s don’t They stayed there until January
just sit in Kirk’s gun safes, he 19, 1891 when shipped on order
shoots them and has hunted #25470. Unfortunately, Win-
with them. chester factory letters do not list
destinations.
DIFFERENT ROADS Here’s where matters get con-
Here’s where these two rifles’ fusing. The letters say carbine
historical trail forks. Among the #45538 was returned to Win-
B. Kittridge & Co. Sharps rifles chester on January 22, 1893 by
received on August 20, 1877 “S.H. Company.” However the
were serial numbers 160707 and letter for carbine # 45539 says it
160680. They factory-letter as was returned on June 22, 1893
Business Rifles, which were a by the same company. Both were
special configuration of Sharps Duke’s friend Kirk Stovall not only collects historical received in the warehouse on July
Model 1894s, with 28" round guns but shoots and hunts with them. 8, 1893. Then, both carbines were
barrels. Number 1606680 was shipped from the warehouse again
shipped as .45 caliber and the other chambered for .40-90 Sharps Bottle- on August 7, 1893 on order #18398.
was shipped as a .40 caliber. neck. He then stamped his business Personally speaking, I don’t think
Evidently Cooper bought several name on the top barrel flat. After he one of these carbines was shipped back
of those August 20, 1877 Kittridge- sold them from his Bozeman shop, it’s in January, the other not until June, yet
shipped Sharps rifles including the anyone’s guess as to their travels for the both arrived at the warehouse on the
two we’re talking about. He discarded next century or so. same day. My feeling is someone con-
their 28" round barrels and replaced fused the two months when writing the
them with barrels made by a company ISLAND BOUND records or typing the letters as all infor-
or gunsmith named Davenport. Of The tale of this next set with con- mation in the two Winchester letters
course the replacement barrels were secutive numbers is rather convoluted. is totally identical except for the two
months being different and of course
one digit in the serial number.
Regardless, it’s possible or even prob-
able both Winchester carbines have
been in Hawaii because #45539 has
carved rather neatly into the buttstock
“CVE Dove.” Who was Mr. Dove? His
descendants have a photo of him on a
horse in a military-style uniform with
a Winchester Model 1886 carbine. On
the photo is inscribed “Honolulu Rev-
olution 1893, Citizens Guard Cavalry
Corps.” The Honolulu Revolution was a
fracas over rule of the islands with com-
plicated details too lengthy for here.
Were the Winchesters bought
and shipped to Hawaii for arming
a paramilitary organization? Is the
one hanging on Mr. Dove the same
one with his name carved into its
These Winchester Model 1886 buttstock? No one can positively
.45-70s were shipped from their answer those questions. Regardless,
warehouse on the same day and somewhere along the way these two
are again reunited. At least one
carbines were separated. Now they
was likely shipped to Hawaii.
are together again due to the efforts
of Kirk Stovall.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 25
HANDLOADING

LOADING FOR PERCUSSION SIXGUNS

DRAGOONS WITH CONICAL BULLETS
John Taffin

T
here are five basic models of
Dragoon originally produced
in the short time frame from
1847 to around 1850. First came the
Walker, which was improved quickly
to the Walker Whitneyville Dragoon
or Transitional Model. The grip
frame of the Walker was maintained;
however, the barrel was shortened
to 7 ½" and the cylinder was also
shortened slightly. Then came the
three that were actually called Dra-
goons. The 1st Model had a square
back trigger guard and oval bolt slots,
the 2nd Model had rectangular bolt
slots, and then the 3rd Model went to The first and the last of the Colt Dragoons are represented by the 3rd Model Dragoon
a rounded trigger guard. The lines are (top) and the Walker (bottom).
sometimes blurred with these three
and overlapping did occur. 220-grain both at 0.452”. This is also than conical bullets. This is only
the mold diameter of the .44 Dragoon “generally” as with all sixguns, black
TAKE YOUR PICK bullet. However, the Kerr bullet drops powder sixguns also have their own
I have three 3rd Model Dragoons at out at 0.457" and the Johnston & Dow personality and there will be some
my disposal. The chamber throats on is the largest at 0.462". The latter is that will shoot the latter more accu-
these are all very close together with especially too large for easy use in the rately than the former. When we talk
the Uberti version at 0.449": ASM, Dragoons. So both of these bullets are accuracy we are talking at ranges from
0.450"; and Colt Black Powder Arms sized using the Star Lubricator, which 15–20 yards with the round balls aver-
at 0.451". Both Hornady and Speer accepts bullets nose forward, so there aging right around 1" and the conicals
supply swaged round balls in diameters is no deformation of the soft lead about double that.
of 0.451", 0.454" and 0.457". My most nose. They also drop out the bottom Conical bullets for percussion
used version is the 0.454" with the so sizing is very quickly accomplished. sixguns go back at least as far as the
0.451" for cylinders, which are tight, I make up batches in both 0.451" and 1847 Walker. Specifications from Sam
and the Ruger Old Army was designed 0.454" for use in a wide range of .44 Walker as the representative of the U.S.
for the largest round ball diameter. percussion sixguns. Ordnance Department called for a
Measuring the .44 bullets dropped Generally speaking, I have found 6-shot revolver with a 9" barrel accept-
from my Lee molds shows the 200- and round balls to shoot more accurately ing 50 round balls to the pound, which

In addition to the swaged round ball, John also uses these five .44
bullets. From left to right, 200- and 220-grain round nosed, 217-grain
Johnston & Dow, 222-grain Kerr and 260-grain .44 Dragoon.

26 MAY 2024
 YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

comes out to about 32 conical bullets to

the pound, resulting in a projectile of
about 220 grains. Colt supplied double-
cavity molds for his revolvers with each
one having a round ball and conical
bullet cavity and supplied in .31, .36
and .44 diameters.
Eras Gone Bullet Molds supplies
historically-accurate double-cavity Lee
molds currently for six bullet designs
from the Civil War era. These include
the .44 Colt Dragoon Bullet weighing
right at 260 grains and as it says, was
designed specifically for the longer cyl-
inders of the Colt Dragoons.
Eras Gone has three .44 bullets
apropos for use in the Dragoons and
I also have round-nosed bullets from
Lee in 200- and 225-grain round-
nosed versions. Lyman also has a
round-nosed bullet but in this case it
is a hollow base and weighs out at 167
grains along with the 220-grain Kaido
flat-nosed bullets. Most of these I save
for use in Colt 1860 Army and Rem-
ington New Model Army replicas
and herein concentrate on the Kerr, Typical groups at 18 yards
Johnston & Dow and the 260-grain using conical bullets in the
Dragoon bullet. Uberti 3rd Model Dragoon.

BULLET DESIGN
Mark Hubbs of Eras Gone has this
to say about the Dragoon bullet: “Colt’s the Colt Walker with a little bit of alter- has a mold throwing an 80-grain
Dragoon was a big, powerful revolver ation to the loading port.” conical for these little pocket pistols.
and used a heavy bullet to take full Another design is the .44 Kerr With the Dragoons, I mostly use
advantage of its capabilities. Eras Gone Bullet at 225 grains and the .44 John- a charge of 30 grains measured by
is bringing back a copy of the original ston & Dow at about 217 grains. All volume with the Kerr, Johnston & Dow,
Dragoon bullet in all of its glory. This is three of these .44 bullets feature a heel and Dragoon bullets. My best shooting
a big chunk of lead, 0.80" long, 0.457" in of smaller diameter for easy inser- load is with the Johnston & Dow and
diameter, and weighs in at 259 grains. tion into the cylinder chamber. The 30.0 grains of Pyrodex for just under
Its long heel will allow it to sit deep in loading ports on the replica 1st, 2nd 2" and 715 fps. However, my preferred
the chamber to keep it square when and 3rd models will accept all of these load is with the .44 Dragoon bullet over
loading. It can also be used as part of a bullets without alteration, thus allow- 30.0 grains of 777 (Triple 7) FFFg for
combustible cartridge. ing loading of the cylinder on the gun, a 2" group at 18 yards with a muzzle
“Colt introduced this classic ‘Sugar- making unnecessary to remove it and velocity of 782 fps. This is equiva-
loaf ’ bullet designed in the early 1850s use a loading tool. lent to a standard .45 Colt load. The
and it was used all through the percus- The .36 sixguns are not neglect- Uberti 3rd Model Dragoon has been
sion pistol era. It was also made at U.S. ed with Eras Gone providing the fitted with a Remington post front
Army arsenals during the Civil War .36 Colt Cartridge Works conical, sight in a dovetail. Normally, replicas
and we have copied a slug that was which weighs about 126 grains, and shoot high with the factory supplied
made at the Watervliet Arsenal. This the .36 Richmond Laboratory, which front sight using round balls and even
bullet was designed specifically for the is heavier at 147 grains. Colt’s most higher with a 260-grain bullet. The
Colt Dragoon. This bullet is too long to popular percussion pistol was the installation of the Remington front
load into most other .44 revolvers such 1849 Pocket Model with well over sight brings this heavier bullet right to
as the model 1860 and Remington New 300,000 being sold. This was cham- point of aim without having to file on
Model Army. It will also work well in bered in .31 caliber and Eras Gone the top of the sight.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 27
SURPLUS & CLASSIC

WINCHESTER MODEL 150

FILLING THE RIMFIRE GAP
Payton Miller the honorific “Pre-64” description of Ultimately, the lever-action niche

I
several flagship models. There’s no in the company’s rimfire lineup was
’ve used many Winchester rimfires denying Winchester’s previously unas- taken over by the sexier and pricier
of ’30s, ’40s and ’50s vintage that sailable reputation took a hit with the 9422. It was cut along more tradition-
— more or less — fit the descrip- cognoscenti for some time after. al Winchester saddle gun lines, and is
tion of “budget” .22. This may have been a bit unfair. rightfully revered by .22 fans who may
Most were of the bolt-action per- The year 1963 saw the introduction have seen it as a welcome return to form.
suasion and quite a few of them now of a hammerless, tubular magazine But let’s return to the Model 150.
command far over “budget” prices on lever-action Winchester .22 along We managed to lay hands on one
the used market, once you factor in the with slide-action and autoloading courtesy of a shooting buddy who
ravages of inflation on a 70- or 80-year stablemates. The Model 250 enjoyed a rediscovered it resting unmolested in
old rifle. 10-year production run ending in 1973, the “wayback” of his spacious gun safe.
Nearly all of them I can recall roughly coinciding with a .22 Magnum The weight and capacity specs on
shot and functioned far better than I version called the Model 255. our test rifle are as follows: 5 lbs. and
expected or, in fact, had the talent to But sandwiched in there from 1967 a tubular magazine holding 21 Shorts,
take full advantage of. to 1974 was the Model 150, essen- 17 Longs or 15 Long Rifles. The open
Not to say they’d shade, say, the tially a Plain-Jane, less-expensive rear sight is step-adjustable for eleva-
super-premium Model 52 Sporter, let take on the Model 250. It featured tion. Thankfully, on ours the step was
alone the Target version. However, a walnut-finished plain hardwood metal; on some guns, plastic was used.
there wasn’t one of them I ever shot straight-grip stock and forearm, and Unlike the M250, the M150 features a
YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

— the Model 58, Model 67 or Model an alloy receiver. It was described as barrel band and swing swivels.
69 — that didn’t uphold the company’s a carbine even though it shared the After taking the M150 out to our
legendary reputation. same 20.5" barrel length as the Model local range, we quickly discovered
However, the early 1960s present- 250 rif le. List price as of 1972 was performance was very good as far
ed economic challenges to Winchester $57.95. All told, 47,400 Model 150s as functioning goes. The only caveat
and the company addressed it in were produced. Today, this price tag here was the chamber and bolt face
cost-cutting ways, which horrified translates to around $426, roughly tend to foul up easily and must be
many traditionalists — stamped vs. equivalent to a current entry-level kept clean and free of lead or carbon
milled, alloy vs. steel, etc. Thus came Henry .22 lever gun. buildup. This may entail the use of

28 MAY 2024
 The Model 150 represented a
sleek, modernized take on .22

WRANGLE
lever guns back in the early 1960s.

THIS WHILE
YOU CAN!

Using 40-grain Federal Champion ammo, results at 30 yards were on a par with what
you’d expect from open sights and vintage eyes.
The 2024 Old West
a dental pick or similar medieval .22 rimfire as far as we’re concerned. Special Edition from
torture instrument. Accuracy at 35 yards was as okay as GUNS Magazine will
The lever action throw was smooth we could manage with the issued open have you yearning to be a
and short, but you don’t want to baby irons. The trigger pull on our speci- gun-slinging cowpoke.
it. Throw the lever hard and fast or men was a reasonably non-gritty 3.5
you may experience problems when lbs., which helped things more than a • The Winchester 1885 —
empties get spun around without little bit. Winchester’s Magnificent
getting thrown clear. With 40-grain Federal Champi- Single-Shot.
We opted to stick with .22 Long on ammo, our best efforts yielded a • British Bull Dog — The
Rifle ammo. Shorts — as cool and fun slightly over one inch 4-shot group Little Big Gun That Truly
as they are — constitute a pain for the with an errant 5th round blowing
Won The West!
fumble-fingered on cold days with things out another half-inch. Again,
any type magazine, tubular or box. this may not sound scintillating, but • British Ammo American
And Longs are virtually impossible to glass would most likely have shrunk Guns — Substitute
come by unless you’re lucky enough to things down considerably. Cartridges for the .45.
stumble across voluminous quantities But once a rough zero was obtained,
• Civil War Battle Rifle —
in a relative’s garage. the Model 150’s true place in the shoot-
The 1863 Springfield.
So we stuck with Long Rif les, ing universe became apparent. For
which remain the first choice for any rapid-fire plinking at clay birds, soda- • The Lightning Bolt —
pop cans, rocks and metal “dinger” AWA’s Unique Mare’s Leg
targets, the M150 is about as much fun Pistol.
as you can have without being arrested.
• PLUS: Henry Big Boy
Although we shot it with the original
iron sights, it cries out for a scope and
and Pedersoli .30-30
fortunately, the receiver is grooved to Leverguns and MORE!
accept tip-off mounts.
ROPE YOUR COPY NOW!
On the used market, the price dif-
Southpaws like Stephen Abernethy ference between the Model 150 and ONLY $14.95
will always have a soft spot for lever 250 is pretty inconsequential. Most Includes FREE shipping and
guns like the Model 150. I’ve seen have been in the $350 to PDF download
$550 range. Visit fmgpubs.com/OW2024
to order

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 29
 Bullseye Beauty — The Smith
& Wesson Model 52 shot the
.38 Special wadcutter and was
wholly devoted to bullseye
shooters. When this game
finally waned, so did the ’52.

The .38 Special In An Autoloader?!?

Clayton Walker Target and S&W’s K-38 “Target Masterpiece” (later, the

T
Model 14) were the most popular choices. Shooters have
oday, most of us are pretty familiar with revolv- long known the .38 special is an inherently accurate
ers chambered for cartridges normally reserved round, and perhaps no more accurate handgun load
for semi-autos. Both S&W and Ruger now catalog exists than the 148-grain wadcutter bullet that domi-
a handful of revolvers in 9mm, which have garnered nated the competitive landscape of decades past.
enthusiastic buyers due to the caliber’s affordability and At least mechanically, the .38 wadcutter has three
availability. Long before that, S&W, Colt and Ruger all things going for it. First, the bullet is typically seated
produced revolvers in .45 ACP. much deeper into the case, allowing for more uniform
But what if I told you about a semi-auto made to feed and and less position-sensitive powder ignition. Second,
fire a revolver round? Although it’s not the only handgun there’s more surface area of the bullet engaging with the
with such a distinction, the S&W Model 52 is hands down rifling, ensuring greater projectile stability. Third, recoil
my favorite, and it’s arguably the most interesting. is typically minimal.
Now, wouldn’t it be neat to get these qualities into an
BACKGROUND autoloading handgun? Both the U.S. Army Marksman-
First, a little historical context as to why S&W would ship Unit and S&W thought so. While I’m leaving out
bother with the endeavor. During the heyday of Bullseye the history of the .38 AMU cartridge and S&W’s exper-
shooting, competitors squared off in distinct courses of fire imental 52A, suffice it to say by 1961 S&W had solved
for .22 LR, .45 ACP, and any centerfire caliber of the shoot- the engineering challenge of getting .38 wadcutters to
er’s choice. Some opted to double down and use a .45 caliber feed through a semi-auto, assuming the projectiles were
1911 for the centerfire stage as well, though others used seated flush with the case mouth.
whichever non-rimfire handgun they could shoot the best. Naturally, it wasn’t enough to chamber an autoload-
Historically, this latter group of shooters almost always er in .38 Special and call it good. Indeed, the rest of
picked a revolver in .38 Special — the Colt Officer Model the gun had to meet the exacting demands of the most

30 MAY 2024
 In the early 2000s, and for
sadly too-brief a time, S&W
would produce the 952 — an
equally reliable and accurate
gun but chambered in 9mm.

talented competition shooters. As a result, the Model It’s not for everyone, of course. The 52 was designed to
52 may be the best fit-and-finished handgun Smith & be the gun to beat in a discipline that’s almost antithetical
Wesson ever manufactured. The slide-to-frame fit is to today’s most popular shooting sports. Its 5-round mag-
glass smooth, and the subtly flared barrel is secured azine further underscores this is not a “go fast” kind of
by a special bushing resulting in a rock solid and con- pistol. Additionally, you’ll have a hell of a time trying to
sistent lockup. find flush-seated, “midrange” .38 wadcutter ammunition
The result was a gun ready for Bullseye right out of the
on store shelves. As a result, the Model 52 is basically a
box. S&W’s accuracy standard was gun for reloaders only.
a 5-shot group of 2" at 50 yards. My Naturally, these qualities tend to
trigger breaks exactly at 2.5 lbs. — be dealbreakers to a great number
and yes, this is the factory weight! of shooters. However, they’re also
the reason why a shootable example
RANGE TIME of an S&W Model 52 should only
The experience of shooting a set you back about a thousand
Model 52 is, in a word, sublime. dollars. For this price, I absolute-
With the classic 148-grain wad- ly guarantee you will not be able
cutter load propelled by 2.7 to find a more accurate, better-
grains of Bullseye, the gun recoils made pistol. I would also contend
gently in the hand and returns to it’s worth learning how to reload
battery with buttery smoothness. purely to supply this superb gun
There is nothing hitchy, mushy, The flush-seated, “midrange” .38 Special with cheap ammo.
or jerky about the operation of wadcutter. A great load then and now, S&W produced the Model 52,
this pistol. Nothing squeaks, though likely you’ll need to “roll your own,” including the “dash-one” and
so to speak.
clanks, or rattles. It’s evident the my “dash-two” version pictured
Model 52 is a product of S&W’s here, until 1993 at which point the
very best gunsmiths. tooling was worn and the popularity of Bullseye had
Believe me when I say no other handgun I own waned significantly. Indeed, most shooters by then had
shoots this well. The gun does whatever it can to punch gravitated to more action-based competitions like IPSC.
a hole right over the top of the front sight. Should Some might argue the Model 52 is a relic of a time since
you miss, the fault is entirely your own as absolutely passed. However, I’d contend any gun providing me with
nothing gets in your way, ergonomically, functional- gilt-edged accuracy and pure ease of shooting will forever
ly, or mechanically. have a place in my safe.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 31
 .22 LR

Roy Huntington
Photos: Rob Jones/The Imagesmith LLC

Snake guns are back in a big way with the Colt King Cobra .22 LR, a positive
sign of renewal for the storied company under new ownership of CZ.

32 MAY 2024
 The King Cobra’s classic

W
rib, underlug and high
e all have them, want them, need them or polish bode well for the
simply aspire to own them. The demand for “return of Colt!” Note the
our attention that a .22 revolver provokes can Cobra logo.
border on an obsession for some, wishful thinking for
others or the culmination of a .22 dream gun. Quality
.22 revolvers showcase a level of attention all out of pro-
portion to their minuscule cartridge and those of us who
fall prey to their siren calls always end up smiling in the
end. Trust me on that one. A .22 “Sixgun,” as Mr. Taffin
might call it, delights in spades — even if it happens to
hold 10 shots. Or maybe because it holds 10 shots?

CHANGING FORTUNES
We all know the often sad and disjointed journey
over the past 30 years or so of Colt, the almost myth-
ical maker of guns. Their legacy of historical icons has
been counter-balanced by their almost constant stum-
bling in the business world. This has often caused those
of us in the shooting community who love the brand to
vacillate between euphoria and despair over their she-
nanigans. But it seems now, with the purchase of the Colt
brand by CZ, a light shines at tunnel’s end.
Sure, the transition hasn’t been without some stumbles
and quality control challenges but movement has been
strongly forward. CZ’s penchant for excellence, design
innovation and meeting the demands of the market is
blending with Colt’s fierce following of loyal shooters, Ten, count
nudging the Rampant Pony back onto the track. ’em, 10 shots
I’ve been fortunate to handle a few recent models from give you
Colt: A Python, a couple of D-Frames and now this King plenty to do
Cobra .22 and have come away trusting (hoping?) the once things
old Colt is returning. In the bad-old-days past, I’ve often get loaded up.
wondered “how can you screw up a name like Colt?” but
they often managed to. Now it appears things are on
track, pushing forward, and the people who are in charge
seem to genuinely care about putting out quality prod-
ucts for customers who have trusted Colt for decades.
Thank goodness.

KING SNAKE
I mean, honestly, what’s not to love there? It’s a .22, it’s
shiny, it’s got a ribbed barrel and it says “Colt” on the side.
Be still, my throbbing heart. Announced late in 2022,
Colt is only really just now getting well into the pipeline
so we waited to do our review until you could actually
get one. I’ll readily admit when I opened the box I had
high hopes, but was also braced for a letdown. I hate to
be a fearmonger; nonetheless the truth is the truth. But
what a delight met my eyes. I examined the stainless .22
and found things as they should be with a Colt: Flats were
flat, edges were as they should be, things locked up per-
fectly, the action was — dare I say it — silky smooth and Shades of the old
the revolver simply felt great in the hand. Colt — adjustable
I found myself quietly muttering “outstand- rear Elliason sight,
ing,” causing my pooch to stare at me wondering what the King Cobra’s
was up. After handling, testing and shooting, this gun version is fully
adjustable and
ended up being a delight in every respect.
easy to see.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 33
34 MAY 2024
 COLT KING COBRA
GEAR LIST
Ammo: CCI standard Velocity 40-grain
LRN and Federal Hunter Match 40 HP
Knife: Böker Traditional Trapper
Targets: Birchwood Casey Shoot N C

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 35
 I have long experience with an original Diamondback If you’re familiar with the Python, Colt calls it an
.22. It’s a sort of a mini-Python and as accurate as a laser. I-Frame while this smaller, svelte model is a D-Frame. The
I wondered if this new “King Cobra” would match it for difference is a lot like an S&W L-Frame vs. a K-Frame. It’s
grace and precision. I shouldn’t have doubted. The barrel not a lot, but enough to make the Cobra a bit more hand-
length on the Cobra is 4.25" and it weighs about 33 oz. At friendly. Women tend to favor D-Frames perhaps because
9.25" OAL, it’s hefty but not too hefty. Cylinder capacity they tend to have better taste than men do with such things.
is 10 rounds and it’s funny how those “extra” four rounds
seems to make a cylinder-full take a long time to shoot. SHOOTING DELIGHT
It’s got that wonderful full under-lug, shrouded ejector I’ve often asked how many .22 revolvers would equal
and superb adjustable sights. I’d lean more toward a stan- “too many” in a collection and I’ve yet to find the defin-
dard black front sight myself, but the fiber one is easy to itive answer. Each one, even of the same design and
see if you like this sort of thing. model, tend to have their own personalities. One
likes CCI Target ammo, while the other excels with
THE MACHINERY Federal Gold Medal Match. One thing they all can
The finish is polished stainless and looks a lot like do though is shoot anything you can fit into
the classic Nickel but isn’t quite as “warm” in color. those modest chambers. From .22 CB Caps and
Grips are excellent Hogue over-molded rubber style shot cartridges, to the hottest .22 viper-killer
and fit my medium hands fine. It begs for a classy set of
wood grips though and if so clothed it really would be
a mini-Python.
The trigger is smooth, although I’d really like to see the
face polished. I’ll attend to it later as I’m keeping this gun
for sure! The SA breaks in the 2 ½-lb. range after about
20 tries with my electronic gauge. It’s crisp and predict-
able with no creep or rockiness at all. A vintage, classic
Colt trigger pull at every level. DA is a remarkably smooth,
almost effortless 7- to 8-lbs. with just a hint of classic Colt
stacking due to the V-spring, but no bumps, grit or nas-
tiness in the least. It honestly feels like the custom trigger
on a blued Python I have worked over by Terry Tussey. My
hat’s off to the assemblers at Colt.
The cylinder release falls right at hand and if you’re
familiar with the Colt heritage, the tug backward won’t feel
odd. If your thumb is encumbered with tens of thousands
of “push forward to release” muscle memory moments from
handling “that other brand,” make sure you take the time
to get settled in with the King. The chambers are nicely
finished and loaded cases seat easily and fully.
The “feel” of the cylinder releasing, opening, the
closing is something specific to Colt DA revolvers.
It’s solidly secure, yet light and agile feeling,
with the corresponding clicks and snicks
sounding just right. It might be described
as a “quiet locking sound.” You’ll see
what I mean if you aren’t already
smiling at your own memories
of such things.

36 MAY 2024
 All in all, this is easily a 25- or 30-yard squirrel-get-
ter and my 8" 80-yard steel gong went “tink” neatly time
after time. Sheer .22 pleasure, if you ask me. I don’t nor-
mally get too caught up on the accuracy of specific loads
when testing a .22 due to the fact each gun will vary,
sometimes wildly, from load to load and you honestly
need to target your own gun with a good cross-section
to find the loads it favors most.
In our test gun’s case, that Federal Gold Medal Match
mentioned shot very well, as well as CCI’s Select Preci-
loads, guns like the Colt King Cobra can manage them sion Lead Round Nose. I think this could be a 1.5" gun
all, even all in the same cylinder full. How fun is that? easily. But they all shot fine. I’d call this a sort of do-
I fired about 15 different loads through the Colt, everything .22 revolver. From targets and plinking, to
mostly target loads, a few classic hunting loads like CCI small game, hiking, camping, farm and ranch and even
Mini-Mag HPs and a couple of special loads like sub- home defense in a pinch, the King Cobra can manage the
sonics and the Aguila “Colibri” low-velocity load. I also job. Add in a good field holster and a few accessories and
tried a few CCI .22 LR shot cartridges just for fun, too. be prepared for a great time.
Everything went bang, every single time, which is a good I’m shamelessly pleased to see Colt return to the fold
thing as sometimes .22 handguns can be fussy with some like this. Some may wring their hands and doubt, worry,
loads. Not this King Cobra. name-call and argue on the forums about “Colt this” or
Cutting to the chase, using a Ransom rest (their “Colt that …” but I’d hold comment until you get a new
manual shooting rest, not the fancy fixture one) and gun in your hands. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt the
my very best shooting glasses, some loads could chase particular bit of satisfaction you get when you say, “Oh,
2" or even 1.75" at a full 25 yards. I think it could do even this? Why — it’s a Colt.”
better once you discover the “magic” load it really likes MSRP: $999
— and get someone who can see better than I can to do
the shooting. Colt.com

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 37
 Where Halsey and Halyards Meet

Brent T. Wheat Our featured knife is a semi-custom blade built from a

H
high-quality stainless steel knife blank designed by Mike
ow many knives do you know can legitimately Johnson of Amarillo, Texas and purchased from Payne
claim a possible physical participation in four Brothers Custom Knives. The knife was actually assem-
active conflicts — WWII, Korea, Vietnam and bled and finished by our own Roy Huntington. The 3"
the Lebanese Civil War — along with supporting some sheepsfoot-profile full-tang blade is intended for utility
of the most legendary admirals in American military and rope work, especially around boats; making it was a
history and at least one U.S. President? If you add in the natural choice for this project. The blunt point is perfect
countless unknown sailors, marines, soldiers and secret- to avoid accidentally puncturing things like sails or epi-
squirrel-types who are part of its amazing backstory, you dermis while cutting a rope under tension.
have a noteworthy cutting tool. However, a great blade and quality craftsmanship
Let me introduce you to “The Battle Wagon,” a semi- aren’t the most noteworthy aspect of the knife. Its claim
custom knife built from D2 steel and history. to fame is the handle material, made from reclaimed
teak off the deck of the Battleship New Jersey. Roy
ANCHORS AWEIGH discovered the museum ship is replacing worn teak
My new knife isn’t for sale (unless we come to some from the 53,000 square foot deck and bought a supply.
simply ridiculous financial terms) but if you’re the When he offered to build me a knife from the wood,
“crafty” type, you can build your own version — or what- I jumped at the chance and had him build a second,
ever else your abilities and creativity can achieve. I’ll slightly more eye-catching version for my brother, a
explain in a moment. major naval history junkie.

The Battle Wagon and

its yet-unnamed sister
knife. The D2 stainless
steel rigger blade
profile is unique but the
real claim to fame is the
handle material — made
from reclaimed teak
deck from the USS New
Jersey battleship.

38 MAY 2024
 HISTORY COMES ALIVE
To get a sense of the age and history of the teak adorning
my knife, I reached out to Ryan Szimanski, the Director of
Curatorial and Educational Affairs for the Battleship New
Jersey Museum & Memorial in Camden, N.J. You might
also recognize Ryan from the museum’s popular YouTube
channel.
According to Szimanski, the reclaimed wood is from
a variety of vintages but all of it has been witness to some
important moments in naval history.
“About half of the deck seems to have been replaced in
the 1980s, near the end of the ship’s service, but we defi-
nitely still have some original wood from the ’40s, ’50s and
’60s,” Szimanski said. “We can tell, based on the type of
bedding compound, type of caulk and type of fasteners or
studs used to attach the teak to the deck.”
It’s difficult to know exactly where each specific piece The knives above were built by Roy Huntington using a
of wood came from, but some bear marks that help date full-tang knife blank designed by Mike Johnson of Amarillo,
Texas and purchased from Payne Brothers Custom Knives. D2
it. “My favorite pieces are the areas around the ship’s 5"
is so hard Roy needed a cobalt drill bit to open the tang holes!
guns. The wood still has the crescent-shaped divots from

the 7-lb. brass shell casings being ejected out of the back
of the guns,” the curator said. There are plenty of dents
because he noted during Vietnam, the New Jersey was the
only battleship still in active service in the world and fired
more rounds off the coast of ’Nam than during its WWII
and Korea service combined!
Though the available wood is a mixed bag, it’s all his-
torical. “Some of the important people to walk on our teak
include Admirals William F. “Bull” Halsey Jr., Raymond A.
Spruance and Chester Nimitz, as well as President Reagan,”
Szimansky noted. In my case, I choose to believe they all
trod repeatedly over “my” personal piece of knife handle.
There is also the fact the wood has seen, at minimum, shots
fired in anger off the coast of Vietnam and Lebanon, if not
also Korea and WWII.
Pretty heady stuff for a utilitarian knife primarily intend-
ed to shorten an errant mainsheet! Actually, since I don’t
sail very much, the Battle Wagon will spend more time
cutting super-braid fishing line than anything else — but
now I have a great story to tell whenever it leaves the sheath.
For those interested in acquiring their own reclaimed
teak decking for a project, it is still available through the
website www.battleshipnewjersey.org. For the less-mechan-
ically-inclined, there are also products made by museum
volunteers available for purchase. Szimanski notes one vol-
unteer is currently crafting a guitar from the teak.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 39
 Jeremy D. Clough

C
ompetition betters the breed. This has been
common knowledge since the halcyon race days
of the ’60s when the automaker’s slogan “win on
Sunday, sell on Monday” ruled the roost. In fact, the ear-
liest races were contests less of speed than reliability, for
manufacturers to prove the durability of their wares. It’s
not all that different with defensive guns — many of the
innovations we take for granted came from competition.
Think red dot sights, the 2011, etc. Among the latest plat-
forms to benefit has been Mossberg’s formidable 12-gauge
semiauto, the 930, which has been substantially upgrad-
ed to create the 940 Pro.

PAYLOAD PLUS
And yes, I know carbines are more popular these days
even for home defense. But the shotgun does what it’s Mossberg’s 940 is a refined tool designed to be used hard
always done, which is deliver a heavy, fight-stopping with modern gun-handling techniques as well as
payload at close range. It’s hard to imagine something accessories like a dot and light.
doing it more efficiently than a semiauto 12 gauge. I’ve
gotten split times between shots down to 0.18 seconds and matching AR-style front sight tower with ears to
with a 930, which is pretty quick for sending out the protect the fiber optic front. After spending some time
equivalent of a mag full of 9mm. with a 930 SPX Tactical at Gunsite, I liked it enough to
Introduced 15 years ago, the 930 SPX Tactical com- buy one, the gun writer’s second highest compliment. I
bined the gas system of the 930 with state-of-the-art used it as a defensive gun, which is the highest. A serious
features for the time: 7+1 capacity, an 18 ½" cylinder- piece of equipment for serious use, it is, at its heart, a
bore barrel, a pic rail with removable ghost ring rear buckshot gun.

40 MAY 2024
 The magazine tube clamp serves as a
sling mount or for other M-Lok
compatible accessories like a
flashlight. It also provides added
support to the mag tube extension
should the gun be dropped.

It also proved tremendously

popular for 3-gun competition, and
as light loads and new reloading tech-
niques became more prevalent, areas
for potential improvement appeared.
The engineers at Mossberg, who are
no fools, took a good look at 3-gun
champion Jerry Miculek’s competi-
tion gun and began to morph the 930
into something a lot like it. Voila: the
940 Pro.
The barrel looks a little thicker at the muzzle, a dead
giveaway for the interchangeable choke system, an
acknowledgement this gun isn’t limited to buckshot and
slugs. It comes with a flush cylinder bore tube installed,
and additional Accu-Chokes are available from Moss-
berg (the competition-oriented JM PRO shotgun comes
with extended Briley tubes). The 930’s red fiber optic
front sight remains, but that’s it — it mounts directly to
the barrel without the tower, which is rendered unnec-
essary since there is no pic rail in the rear and no ghost
ring clamped atop it.
The receiver is drilled and tapped, so feel free to add
a rail. I didn’t put a caliper on it, but the hole spacing
looks the same as the 930. In its place the receiver has
been machined to accept a direct-mounted optic. Per-
sonally, I like a ghost ring but the added height of the
original system makes it harder to get a good cheek weld installed. Sadly, my Holosun 507 doesn’t have the right
on the gun, increasing recoil and making it harder to footprint but I had an older Trijicon dot I used instead.
use an optic. Internally, the gas system has been modified for added
reliability including a corrosion-resistant nickel-boron
DOT THE EYE coating on some components and ventilated spacer tube.
These days we put optics on everything — I just A feature pioneered by OR3Gun Inc., the vented tube lets
mounted one on my Spyderco. What was once a compe- spent gas and other debris exit faster to reduce buildup
tition-only device has become small and rugged enough in the gas system, and likely accounts for the lengthier
for general use and the lower pocket-style mount makes cleaning intervals offered by the 940. On the outside of
it much more practical to use one on the 940. It accepts the magtube, a polymer barrel/mag clamp adds a revers-
RMSc footprint optics and comes with a cover plate ible sling swivel and one M-Lok slot per side for mounting

Mossberg’s 940 Pro builds directly on

lessons learned from the 930 being wrung
out in the crucible of 3-gun competition. It
stays cleaner, reducing cleaning intervals,
and handles and loads faster.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 41
 a flashlight or other accessories. It also provides extra
support for the screw-on mag extension, should the gun
be dropped.
The safety remains in its familiar location on top of the
receiver, easy to reach with either hand, and the cocked-
hammer indicator inside the front of the trigger guard
is also unchanged. Meanwhile the bolt handle is larger,
knurled and round, and the bolt release is substantially
larger than the 930’s round version. Both features help
with fast manipulations.
A friend of mine who’s a nationally ranked USPSA
shooter tells me he’s not interested in 3-gun because it’s
basically a shotgun reloading competition. He’s not wrong;
doing it fast is hard but makes up a lot of time. Bigger con-
trols aren’t the only thing. Efficient reloading includes
twin-loading — hold two rounds end-to-end in your hand
The 940 Pro includes the cocked hammer indicator to and sweep them down the bottom of the gun, driving both
provide tactile confirmation of whether or not the gun is into the mag tube through the loading port. Once you
cocked. If it sticks out, the gun is ready to fire … if not, the master this comes quad load with two stacks side-by-side.
hammer is not cocked and the gun isn’t ready to rock.
This technique explains the trim lines of the 940’s
forend, which has no frustrating step where it meets the
receiver since it would stop your hand from sweeping
forward during twin loads. It also explains the nicely
opened up port which is beveled all the way around
and the flat-ended elevator (aka, “lifter”), which elimi-
nates the commonly found notch that so enthusiastically
seizes your thumb when pushing shells in. A hi-viz alu-
minum follower lets even the most inattentive range
officer know your gun is empty at the end of a stage
The loading port is nicely opened up and beveled all the way and is colored orange to contrast with the usual red and
around. The shell follower is high-visibility orange and green shotshells.
beveled for reliability.
MAX CAP
Capacity is listed online as 7+1 and in the manual as
6+1; mine held six in the tube but you can “ghost load”
the 940 by slipping an extra cartridge beneath the bolt
and onto the lifter, making total capacity eight, but we’ll
come back to this. Candidly, I think six instead of seven
is a good decision. Springs take up room. Add another
2 ¾" shotshell and the spring has to be made of thinner,
weaker wire or have fewer coils even though it’s now
pushing a heavier load. My 930 held seven but ate springs
so frequently I sacrificed the extra shell for a stronger
spring and added peace of mind.
The flat-ended elevator (aka, “lifter”) eliminates the notch The black polymer buttstock comes with an impres-
found on the 930 that so enthusiastically seizes your thumb sive complement of shims for both the rear and front to
when pushing shells in. adjust for length-of-pull, rise (whether it tilts upward or

42 MAY 2024
 The 940 gas system has been modified for added
reliability including corrosion-resistant nickel-boron
plating and a ventilated spacer tube.

downward) and cast (whether it angles to the left, right,

or is straight in line with the barrel). Mine also had an
extra thin recoil pad. However you’re shaped, the 940 At 50 yards, the 940 put all of the slugs into one ragged hole.
ought to fit you. Considering you can quickly put 700+ grains of lead into a
When people say “it must be nice to get paid to shoot,” palm-sized group at most fighting distances, the .223 begins
to look a little anemic.
I often think of an afternoon several years ago patterning
buck, slugs and 3" magnums from the bench. My shoulder
kept the memory fresh. The 940, however, is surprisingly
comfortable to shoot. I put around 200 rounds through
it, about 40 of which was birdshot. The rest was buck and
slugs, which never hurt me.
The only malfunction I had was when a ghost-loaded
round didn’t feed properly. I was never able to duplicate
it, though I tried a dozen or so more times. Loaded as
intended, it never bobbled though I never cleaned or oiled
it. Word to the wise: Save ghost loading for the range,
not for defense.
Shotgun ammo ranges from super light bird loads to
heavy 3" magnums, and any mechanism capable of man-
aging such a broad array of recoil impulses is a serious
engineering accomplishment. Remember John Browning
invented gas operation but stuck with recoil operation The 940 Pro comes with an unusually comprehensive set of
when he created the first semiauto shotgun — and even spacers and shims allowing you to adjust length of pull, cast
it had an array of friction rings that need adjustment and rise to fit almost any body shape and size.
based on the kind of ammo you were shooting. From
this backdrop, the gas-operated 940’s ability to function are the only small arms whose projectile changes size in
with everything is particularly impressive. flight. This is what makes it a thinking person’s weapon
and why it’s important to pattern your gun with your
BUCK IT UP chosen ammo so you know exactly where those pellets
You often hear buckshot spreads about 1" per yard, will go at each distance. While I used a simple red dot,
but the 940 Pro did a good deal better, usually putting the rings of some reticles may line up with the pattern
all its pellets in 4" to 5" at 7 yards, with several groups size at some distances, but you’ll have to learn that on
in the 3" range. Ten-yard patterns ranged from 5 ½" your own by trial and error. Me personally, I’ll leave the
to 8" and the few groups I shot at 25 went from 15" to more complicated reticles to others and stick with a dot
21", basically covering the chest area of a target. This is zeroed for slugs. At 50 yards, there was’t really a group
the distance at which the shotgun’s oft-misunderstood to speak of. They just tore a huge hole, like Sonny Lis-
increased hit probability really comes into its own, at the ton’s fist went through the paper.
cost of the payload it delivers, and should be considered And now we’re back to knockout blows — exactly what
its maximum range. the shotgun does best and the 940 does exceptionally
Federal provided both 00 and #1 buckshot for the test. well. While a top-level competitor would probably benefit
While I’m fairly devoted to 00, the #1 Maximum Buck- from the JM version of the 940, the Pro is well-thought
shot is well-named. I think the term is “dense pattern” out enough to run in matches and still sit reassuring-
but if you were painting a car you’d say the 16 .30 caliber ly by the nightstand for home defense. Win on Sunday,
pellets give good coverage. live on Monday.
The 940 can be purchased with a Holosun installed
but my small Trijicon dot showed the gun particularly Mossberg.com
adept at sending slugs where I wanted them. Shotguns FederalPremium.com

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 43
 A picture of Albert Einstein’s desk taken the day he died.

Jeff “Tank” Hoover TAKES ONE TO KNOW ONE?

D
Clutter and extremely high IQ are as synonymous as
eep within the bowels of the World Wide Web is chicken and eggs, and no one knows which came first.
a picture showing Albert Einstein’s desk taken However, in my case, I might have a clue. I’m patient-
the day he died. Covered with pamphlets, books, ly waiting for the high IQ part, but I’ve got the cluttered
legal pads and a host of other materials piled 3-, 4-, and part covered in spades. Perhaps this answers the origi-
even 5-levels deep, it looks rather slobbish. His book- nal question?
shelves aren’t much better. Scientists, researchers and I haven’t always been clutter-challenged. It just hap-
even anthropologists have observed a peculiar trait from pened. My wife opines the clutter started appearing when
Mensa members known for their intelligence. That is — I started scribing articles. Some say it results from having
they’re slobs. a brain full of ideas bouncing off the intercranial shelf,
while others just call it scatter-brained.
As ideas manifest, I start working on the project. Then,
as another idea pops in my head, I start working on the
freshest thought, or at least lay the groundwork before
it disappears.
Nothing is more frustrating than having thoughts,
ideas, or solutions disappear as fast as they came. Lord
knows how many ideas for solving world hunger, disease,
famine, or world peace have disappeared in better minds
than mine. Yet I’ve no doubt it happens.

INSPIRATION?
By having work items lying about, it’s easier to con-
ceptualize what it is I want to accomplish. Lucky for me,
my wife is very understanding. No matter how many
guns I have strewn around the house in different stages
of assembly, break-down or awaiting the installment of a

44 MAY 2024
 scope, sight or sling, she
never complains. Well …
almost.
Our formal dining
room table, or as she calls
it, “our formerly” dining
room table is the perfect
station for working on long
guns. The hutch next to the
table makes the perfect
storage facility for ammo
for upcoming tests, targets,
small tools and other shoot-
ing paraphernalia.
The bottom drawers hold
my Lee APP press, assorted rudgingly
Tank even g gs
etimes thin
sizing dies and gas checks agrees, som d !
out of han
so I can clamp the press on get “kinda”
our table and watch Westerns you never know when you
while sizing bullets. Targets, might need to precisely measure pork chop thickness to
various gun tools, including multi-head screwdriver kit prevent any arguments while serving.
and various needle-nose pliers of every shape, size and
function round out the mix. READ IT
I have a large collection of Allen wrenches sent from My wife calls it the “command center of chaos,” but
various companies along with their wares. Every size, it’s really my Lazy Boy chair. Next to it sits a pile of lit-
style and metric are covered, I just can’t remember erature stacked precariously high, defying the laws of
which wrench fits what part? But I better save them, physics and gravity. So impressive, I’m deemed Jenga
just because. champion of the house for only I know how to remove
Glassine baggies? I have gaggles of them, more than any book, magazine, or literature piece without making
any self-respecting crack dealer would have. These bags the 4-foot tower of periodicals collapse. It’s a good skill
held various screws and other small parts at one time, to have but one my wife doesn’t totally appreciate.
and they always come in handy. Speaking of screws, I
have the World’s Largest collection, but have no idea what LOADING BENCH
they go to. Sandwich bags of various handloads round Show me a clean, tidy loading bench and I’ll show
out the mix. They are sprinkled about the house in places you a psychopath. I mean really, who in their right mind
I’ll “never lose them,” though I always end up searching maintains a clean loading bench, especially during load
for them like an Easter egg hunt when it’s time to shoot. development. A cluttered bench is an archaeological dig
Looking in the napkin basket, there is a set of dial of sorts, allowing one to pick and probe at past projects,
calipers. I keep them here because I’m always mis- experiments, hopes and dreams should your data book
placing them, and get misplaced.

The smaller BOXES

kitchenette
table is perfec
t for Tank to
If only we could subsist on cardboard, I would
clamp his Le
e APP press never need to shop, hunt or fish again for meals in
onto and size my lifetime. I get more boxes from deliveries than
bullets while
watching W most. My favorites are the ones hazardous materi-
esterns or
hunting show
s. als come in, mainly because they are packed full of
primers, powder and other goodies.
Extra thick and durable, these boxes are perfect
for storing heavy items. Giving them to neighbors
makes them wonder what the heck I’m up to with the
bright red “Explosives” label on the box. I can take
down, break down and reduce the boxes to flattened
status, lickety-split. In fact, you could call me a pro-
fessional boxer — I’m so good at it.
While cluttered quarters may be indicative of a high
IQ, maybe I put the cart before the horse? Either way, I
guess it doesn’t really matter, I am what I am.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 45
 Will Dabbs, MD

B
y the summer of 1934, life was getting tough for John
Dillinger. The fame he had so vigorously courted
now threatened to literally kill him. J. Edgar Hoover,
Melvin Purvis and the FBI had declared him Public Enemy
Number 1, placing a $10,000 bounty on his head — nearly posted themselves on either side of the front door to
a quarter million dollars today. In the throes of the Great the building.
Depression, this much money got people’s attention. Every- Once inside the crowded bank lobby, John
body in the country knew his name. Dillinger threw back his long coat, skinned his 1921
Thompson out of its pillowcase and loosed a burst
ONE LAST SCORE of .45ACP into the ceiling. The distinctive chatter of
It was just before noon on a brilliant Saturday, and the powerful submachine gun instantly put everyone
South Bend, Ind., was hopping. The town was prepar- in the bank on the floor. However, it also alerted a
ing for its big Independence Day celebration. Locals of all nearby patrolman named Howard Wagner, who came
ages were out living their lives. A brown Hudson coupe to investigate.
pulled up outside the Merchant’s National Bank and Wagner was packing a .38-caliber revolver in a full
parked without arousing much interest. flap holster. Once near the building, he realized some-
Two of the four men exited the car and moved straight thing was amiss and reached for his sidearm. In response,
into the bank. They both wore long trench coats and Homer Van Meter unlimbered his customized Win-
carried oddly shaped parcels wrapped in pillowcases chester Model 1907 rifle and cut the lawman down. One
under their dusters. The other two, similarly adorned, of the heavy 180-grain bullets pithed the cop’s entrails,

46 MAY 2024
 The buttstock on the
Thompson removes with the
push of a button. With the
stock removed and a stubby
20-round magazine in place,
the big gun becomes
surprisingly concealable.

tore through a kidney, and spent itself on the country-

side beyond. Patrolman Wagner fell where he was shot,
bled out and died. Van Meter’s associate, George “Baby
Face” Nelson, then threw off his long coat to expose a

Packing Heat
1921 Thompson of his own equipped with a 50-round
drum magazine.
By now, Dillinger and his associate inside the bank
nearly had their pillowcases filled with cash. However, all

Like Dillinger! the gunfire brought the townspeople out in force. Many
of them were armed.
A local jeweler named Harry Berg stepped out into
the street, leveled his handgun and fired, striking Nelson
squarely in the back. However, the gangster’s bulletproof
vest caught the round. Now enraged, Nelson torqued
down on the trigger of his Thompson and sprayed the
neighborhood. Berg made it back into his shop safely, but
at this point, the world’s manliest teenager joined the fray.
Joseph Pawlowski was only 16 years old. However, he
nonetheless leaped onto Nelson’s back and began beating
him about the head and neck with his fists. In response,
Nelson threw the kid through a plate glass window and
gave him a quick squirt from his Tommy gun. Miracu-
lously, save one round through his hand, young Joseph
came through unscathed. He later grew up to become a
concert violinist and symphony conductor.

THE GUN
John Taliaferro Thompson spent most of his adult life
The Thompson submachine in the Army as an Ordnance officer. He was directly
gun ushered in an entirely new responsible for the adoption of the .45ACP as the U.S.
era in close combat weapons. military’s standard handgun round. Thompson imag-
Its reputation far outstripped
ined his eponymous gun as a sort of “trench broom”
its actual criminal use.
with which Allied soldiers might sweep the WWI trench-
es free of the Huns. The first prototypes were available
just as the war ended.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 47
 John Dillinger (left) was considered devilishly handsome back in his day. He was also diabolically
violent and a career criminal. Baby Face Nelson (right) was a lunatic. He was quick to unlimber his
Thompson when things went pear-shaped.

The Thompson was actually designed by a team of

engineers and first produced in a single lot of 15,000 guns
by Colt. These early M1921 Thompsons were things of
mechanical beauty. They could be fed by either 20-round
box magazines or 50- or 100-round drums. Later M1928
guns were externally identical save the markings, but
they used a heavier actuator to effect a slower rate of fire.
The Thompson fired from the open bolt, utilizing
a contraption of dubious effectiveness called the Blish
Lock. This thing operated on a curious principle called
stiction. Stiction is short for static friction and posits
two dissimilar metals — in this case, steel and bronze
— would exhibit a greater than expected frictional
force when subjected to high pressures. It was
a neat idea, but later military Thompsons
functioned just fine without a Blish Lock
at all. The Thompson sported separate
levers for both safety and fire selection
and weighed nearly 11 lbs. empty.

The end result looks a little

weird but works like a champ.

48 MAY 2024
 THE CONVERSION
There is no photographic evidence of the specific
configuration of the Thompson John Dillinger
used to shoot up the Merchants Nation-
al Bank in South Bend. However, in
the superlative Johnny Depp movie
Public Enemies, the gun is shown
suspended from a shoulder strap
of some sort with its buttstock
removed. I thought it might be a
fun project to create just such a
rig in the unlikely chance I might
ever wish to give up doctoring in
favor of becoming a professional
Depression-era highwayman.
The buttstocks on the M1921 and
M1928 Thompson are readily removable.
Just depress the button at the top and the
stock slides free. The stock of the later M1A1
military Thompson was fixed in place. It could be
removed but only with a screwdriver.
While live Thompson submachine guns are just
stupid expensive, spare parts remain surprisingly plen-
tiful. Properly marked original M1921 components are
essentially “unobtainium” but the same bits taken from
Building up a concealed carry rig for a Thompson SMG
wartime M1928 guns are fairly easy to find. I needed to requires an old belt and a leather punch.
look no further than Gun Parts Corporation to find a
replacement M1928 stock mounting iron.
This component consists of a sliding tray mating to years away. I found an old leather belt I could live without
the back of the Thompson receiver along with the release in my closet, cut it to length and punched corresponding
lever and push button. In the original gun, there is a holes with my leather punch. A couple of washers spread
spring underneath the release button captured by the the stress out a bit. The end result comfortably rides in
wooden stock. When I ordered the mounting iron, I also my armpit like it was born there.
picked up the lever spring and two associated screws.
To make this thing work for this unintended purpose, TRIGGER TIME
I needed to craft a base to retain the spring and mount the Though just sinfully heavy when fully loaded, the
support strap. This was just a simple piece of scrap steel Thompson submachine gun remains a shockingly
with holes drilled for the mounting screws. I also drilled a effective close-quarters tool. With the stock removed,
hole to accommodate the release lever guide. I harvested the gun really is compact, while .45ACP at 850 rpm
the steel stock from an old oil drum and hammered it flat. means not having to say you’re sorry in any of the
I needed a piece of leather for the support strap as world’s recognized languages. The drum is indeed
widespread use of synthetics like nylon was still several quite bulky underneath a long coat, but with a stubby

A closeup of Will’s
reproduction of
Dillinger’s shoulder rig
for the Thompson.

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 49
 little 20-round box in place, you could pack this street across-the-room ranges, the Thompson thusly config-
howitzer under a decent jacket in a crowd without ured would be a force of nature.
anyone being the wiser.
In action, the gun remains quite controllable. The THE REST OF THE STORY
matching front and rear pistol grips do a splendid job Alas, being a Depression-era gangster had a lousy retire-
of interfacing with the human form. Running it on the ment plan. As the four bank robbers made their way back
sling while applying forward pressure is not conceptu- to their waiting car, the accumulated cops and armed civil-
ally dissimilar to the accepted method of employment ians opened fire. Most of their rounds struck hostages, but
for the modern HK MP5K micro-submachine gun. At one connected with Van Meter. Dillinger’s loyal sidekick
caught a .22-caliber slug to the forehead
right at the hairline. This zippy little bullet
then tracked around the man’s skull to exit
out the back without penetrating anything
vital. It did, however, leave the inveterate
killer in a mighty foul mood.
The four shaken gangsters roared off with
the local cops in hot pursuit. The policemen
paced the criminals for some 45 minutes
until a handful of roofing nails tossed out
the window blew their tires and disabled
their squad car. The gang ultimately escaped
to Chicago.
The fourth member of the crew has never
been reliably identified. Theories abound,
but no one is really sure who he was, even
today. Dillinger made off with $29,890 or
about $630,000 in today’s money. That’s not
a bad haul for a single afternoon’s work.
A little more than a month later, the
28-year-old Van Meter was cornered by
police in St. Paul, Minn. and cut down.
Three cops with Thompsons emptied
their weapons into the man after he fell.
Van Meter’s relatives later complained the
police had “used him for target practice.”
In November of 1934, FBI agents con-
fronted Baby Face Nelson while he was
driving a powerful V8 outside Chicago. In
the firefight that followed, two FBI agents
The improvised concealed carry
rig is shockingly effective.
were killed. For his part, Nelson caught
eight buckshot pellets to his legs and a single
.45ACP Thompson slug to the abdomen that
ultimately killed him.
Melvin Purvis and company gunned
down John Dillinger outside the Bio-
graph Theater in Chicago roughly a
month after the robbery. About 15,000
people filed through the Cook County
morgue the following day to ogle his cold
corpse. Dillinger had been ratted out by
his sort-of girlfriend, a local madam who
went by the name Anna Sage. Sage will
forever be known as “The Lady in Red”
despite the fact that her attire on the fateful
evening was actually an orange skirt and
white blouse. Sometimes history is funny
like that.

50 MAY 2024
 ®

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missile. The same button is also used
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52 MAY 2024
 QUARTERMASTER
BURRIS FASTFIRE C REFLEX SIGHT earlier Burris model, which died an untimely death — not
surprising when you consider I can destroy an anvil using
BRENT T. WHEAT a rubber mallet. With the Fastfire C, I’ve got a worthy

W e all want the top-of-the-line sights for our top-of-

the-line pistol, but after we finish lying about it to
our gun buddies, we go home and start
replacement that checks all the boxes at a price most
can afford. Would I mount it on the pistol I use to assault
terrorist hideouts? No, but then again, I only do such
shopping for a more sensible-priced things in Internet forums. For the real world, I
optic. Among the “reasonable” optics, believe the Burris is a good sight for the money
I’ve become a fan of Burris and their when you’re on a tight budget.
newest Fastfire C Reflex sight.
Priced about one third of the upper- MSRP: $276
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I ’ve waxed poetic before about Fisher Space Pens, but I never got
around to talking about the Bullet model.
When you need to carry a robust pen in your pocket or notepad, the
bullet pen is ideal. It’s about the size of a .308 round when capped
and slips into nearly any pen or pencil loop, even tucked into your hip
pocket. Pull it out and you’re ready to make notes, regardless if it’s
cold, hot, raining or otherwise being ugly outdoors.
I’ve found mine is especially useful in the center console of my
truck where, so far, no other pen has survived more than a few
months due to the extremes of hot and cold. My Bullet Pen keeps
ROCKY LYNX 400G rolling merrily along, ready to capture award-winning thoughts
INSULATED BOOTS on paper — if I should ever have one. Meanwhile, it does keep my
BRENT T. WHEAT shopping lists and the occasional note to a fishing buddy legible.

F or the last 20+ years of my career

at the cop shop, I wore Rocky
boots. Whenever my expensive duty
MSRP: $34
SpacePen.com

boots started looking a little ratty, I

purchased a new pair and the old ones OTIS .30 CAL SECTIONAL ROD RIFLE CLEANING KIT
were relegated to recreational duty.
Seven years retired, I’m still the guy FRANK JARDIM
on the deer stand wearing black boots.
T he king of the pull-through cleaning kit now makes traditional sectional

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Most cops are nodding their heads in
rod kits of lifetime quality. American-made from solid brass and offering
understanding.
strength you’ll never get from a similar aluminum rod, this kit is sized for rifle
However, when Rocky offered up a
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pair of their new Lynx 400g insulated
It has a 6" swivel handle rod, four
boots just in time for the Midwest win-
7" brass rod sections with deep male/
ter, I jumped at the chance.
female threaded ends and a 1.5" com-
Aside from the Realtree Escape
ponent adapter that screws into the end
camo pattern, these boots look great
of any rod section. The rod accepts the
and the looks match the noteworthy
shorter 8-32 threaded shanks of the kit’s
comfort and performance. So far I’ve
extra-dense bristle phosphor bronze
not gotten cold feet and I love how the
brush, pierce-point patch holding jag
nylon exterior cleans up after a muddy
and mop head.
day afield. Mine are a little snug so I’d
Fully assembled, the 35.5" of cleaning rod is long enough for every rifle in
suggest you actually try on a pair before
this caliber range or retrieving a blood pressure pill from under any refrigerator.
buying. Regardless, my unbroken string
Consumables include a 20-pack of cotton patches, nylon double-ended brush
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GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 53
2A DEFENSE

CONFRONT THE LIES

WE ARE THE REAL ‘GUN SAFETY ADVOCATES’!
Dave Workman to engage in ‘scholarly research on the The advantage I had was I wrote

W
Second Amendment as well as reflect about it later. Everyone in the room
hen I testified against a on how the Second Amendment and knew what I do for a living and the
couple of extremist gun other Constitutional rights affect their head of the state’s largest gun control
control bills before a state daily lives.’” lobbying group was seated about 10
House committee in Olympia, Wash. What’s wrong with kids learn- feet to my rear — she didn’t dare try
in January, I deliberately wore my ing about their Constitutional rights? to refute me.
winter blue nylon vest with the great Every public school in the country If you want to make a dent in the
big patch identifying me as an NRA should provide this sort of instruction. gun prohibition movement’s armor,
Certified Pistol Instructor. It’s important for young Americans to have the facts on your side and be
The purpose should have been know about rights secured and pro- willing to confront these fakers in
obvious. In a room full of self-pro- tected by the First, Fourth, Fifth, Sixth public. When somebody spouts off at a
claimed “gun safety advocates,” I was and other amendments, as well as the community meeting about gun safety,
the only person who could it’s always fun to pull out
actually prove it. The rest your NRA instructor rating
were, and I’ll be polite here, card and ask, “Do you have
stretching the truth and one of these? I teach fire-
using camo-speak to mask arms safety. Do you? Where
their true activism as gun does your group hold fire-
prohibitionists. arms safety classes, because
I’d like to sit in. I might
CORRUPT BUSINESS even volunteer to help.”
About the time of this
hearing, writing for Business DOWN AND DIRTY
Insider, veteran journalist We’re in the midst of an
Laura Italiano complained election cycle that has all
in an “analysis” piece about the earmarks of a gutter
the organization’s out- fight. Forget all the stuff
reach efforts to youngsters. you’ve been told about
Her assertion: “No Ameri- upholding lofty ideals and
can is too young to join in rising above the fray. People
YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

their absolutist defense of the Second Second Amendment. They are rights, who are afraid to fight will proclaim,
Amendment.” The article was posted not privileges, and, yes, it is okay to be “We’re better than that.” They need
at the end of the second week of testi- “absolutist” about protecting your rights. to roll up their sleeves, get off of their
mony in New York State’s “corruption Ita liano’s “ana lysis” was a pedestals and get down here at ground
trial” in a Manhattan courtroom that symptom of a broader effort to level with the rest of us. You can still
targeted “lavish spending” by then- malign, discredit, demonize and remain the “adult in the room” but
Executive Vice President Wayne defame not just the NRA, but gun don’t be shy about confronting lies and
LaPierre and other NRA officials. owners in general and the Second distortions with facts and figures. Be
Italiano apparently wanted to smear Amendment itself. Anti-gunners steadfast without being boorish.
the entire organization because of the get away with it because too few If someone claims, “studies have
then-alleged financial misdeeds of gun owners try to correct them, and shown,” demand to see the research.
some of its leaders. LaPierre is gone, even when they do, the media often “Which studies are you talking about?
but the NRA was not destroyed, ignores it. My testimony in January Who funded them? Can you at least
despite the best efforts of New York wasn’t reported, even when I told share the titles of these studies?”
anti-gun Attorney General Letitia the committee that since 2014, when If someone mentions gun-related
James and her team. Washington State gun laws started deaths, you be ready with actual body
Italiano didn’t like NRA’s “What getting more restrictive, the number counts from a local police agency or
the Second Amendment Means To of homicides statewide had doubled. law enforcement group. My statistics
You” youth essay contest for children In Seattle — the state’s largest city, come from the FBI Uniform Crime
in grades K-12. Her real beef was this run by far-left Democrats — the Report, Seattle Police, and Washing-
annual contest “encourages children number of murders had tripled. ton Association of Sheriffs and Police

54 MAY 2024
 A History
Chiefs; official agencies and groups or animal that may be legally hunted
that preclude someone calling you a or trapped.’” She also took offense
liar because you are merely quoting about another program under which

Of Guns
data from bona fide sources. Similar “High schoolers can apply for an
sources are, or should be, available in all-expense-paid summer Youth Edu-
your state. cation Summit in Washington, DC.”
When a gun control advocate claims, She really didn’t like free online
“I’m a gun owner,” your job is to ask as
politely and innocently as possible, “Oh,
how many guns do you own? What do
training programs available in several
states, but an online look at this project
revealed it is “designed to help new
And guns
you have, rifles, shotguns, a couple of
handguns, maybe? How do you store
them? Where did you take a gun safety
course? When was the last time you
hunters of all ages learn how to be
safe and responsible members of the
hunting community. From the organi-
zation that built the first-ever hunter
of war
fired those guns?” education program in 1949, this
Getting back to Italiano’s article, she state-of-the-art course is the most
quoted Kris Brown, president of the comprehensive online hunter educa-

“Oh, how many guns do you own?

What do you have, rifles, shotguns,
a couple of handguns, maybe?
How do you store them? Where did
you take a gun safety course? When was
the last time you fired those guns?”

Brady gun prohibition lobbying group tion instruction in the United States
(artfully described as a “gun violence … and it’s 100% FREE.” Again, what’s Sit back and enjoy this special
prevention group”) who apparent- wrong with this? edition of Surplus Military &
ly stated, “It’s very dangerous for
IT’S GO TIME Classic Firearms. From
younger Americans to be indoctrinat-
ed with the viewpoint that the Second Guns and the Second Amendment black-powder trapdoor
Amendment allows every American to are going to be election issues this carbines, holsters for the M1911
lawfully possess a firearm.” year, at all levels. This column has pistol, cast bullets for military
Oh, what’s dangerous about teach- been encouraging and urging readers bolt-action rifles, Europe’s 1911,
ing younger citizens about their to get in the game, attend candidate horse-soldier handguns to
constitutionally enumerated and forums, be willing to ask questions the weapons of The Man from
protected rights? I learned that stuff about Second Amendment rights and
U.N.C.L.E., we’ve got the guns,
in school from about the 5th grade your own state’s constitutional guar-
forward. I’m guilty of not sleeping antee — and have it in your pocket so and their stories, covered.
through those classes, so I learned Ms. you can quote it.
Brown is at least wrong-headed, if not Gun rights politics — i.e., defend-
downright wrong, because citizens
DO have the right to lawfully possess
ing your Second Amendment — is not
a spectator sport. The people deter- Order Today!
a firearm. If Brown doesn’t like it, well, mined to destroy your rights play dirty, fmgpubs.com
too bad. because in their book the end justifies
Italiano also took issue with other the means. When you are in a nasty or call
NRA projects, including one which — fight, expect somebody to accuse you 760-975-3880
Heaven forbid! — offers “cash prizes of hitting “below the belt.”

ONLY $14.95
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ing ‘any North American game bird there I was going to hurt.”

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 55
CROSSFIRE WE GET LETTERS good back story and a laugh. It’s one of
An Inch Or A Mile In your article on the Marlin 336 the reasons I subscribe to your publica-
continued from page 8 (March 2024 Cover Gun), you refer tion, have for many years, and hope-
to “New Haven, Mass.” New Haven is fully will continue to do so for many
shooting magazine around 2000. It was in Connecticut. years to come.
called Zack Bodeway, Texas Ranger and Richard I also read American Rifleman each
is still available on Kindle. month. Great technical info for sure,
I believe you wrote it from a hospi- You, and the approximately 42,000 but lacks that “certain something”
tal bed. A review by a shooting writer other readers who wrote in about this, from your contributors. Keep up the
I have been reading ever since you are correct. Heck, I’ve even been there. great work and please continue to add
started writing was, and continues to Not sure how this happened but I own life stories, experiences and humor to
be, an appreciated thrill! total responsibility! Sorry, Marlin and your articles.
Enough summers have passed that I Connecticut! —BW Garry Schwarz
have gone to work for and now retired
from the FBI. And, I continue to read Dr. Dabbs: Kris musta been off his
all of your articles, whether in GUNS WHINERY REVISIT meds … or something. Keep writing
or online. Concerning March 2024 Letters to the way you write. There are plenty of us
Yes, I carry a 9mm small Shadow the Editor, “From the Whinery.” who like your voice. Keep up the splen-
Systems daily now but revolvers will Kris obviously is entitled to his / did work in all the places you write and
always be my favorites. My only gun- her opinion but seems like he / she has with the care you give your patients.
fight occurred before you wrote that some issues concerning writing style. Steve Kopischke
wonderful review. It was with a then- Personally, I look forward to every arti-
standard investigator Chief’s Special. cle written by Dr. Dabbs. His different I may be a newer reader to the pub-
Yet, here I am. way of looking at things is reflected lication and firearms community in
Thanks for years of knowledge and in his writing style and his wit and general, but have been greatly enjoying
pleasure gained from your work. You, humor are not only appreciated, but the work of Dr. Dabbs and the other
Elmer, and Skeeter are the best and sought out. writers for GUNS Magazine and Ameri-
always will be. All of your writers are excellent in can Handgunner. There recently was a
G. Wayne Tilman their own way but I especially enjoy a complaint directed to Dr. Dabbs’ style

We Get Letters
56 MAY 2024
 An Inch Or A Mile
of writing in the Letters to the Editor I polled several of our staffers and AN INCH OR A MILE
section of the March 2024 issue. the consensus was that they had never I enjoy your magazine very much.
Personally, I find his side stories a heard of a coating particular to 5.7x28. I’m writing because I saw a glaring error
welcoming addition to just the specs and I’m thinking they (the internet) might in Pat Covert’s article on the Tops Field
details about the firearms. If I were only be referring to lacquered steel cases, Dog knife. The article states this knife
interested in the latter I would simply which generally aren’t reloaded. If has a 154CM blade. If the manufac-
pass time on gun manufacturer websites. there is a coating on your brass, it’s turer submitted this info they submit-
Having a story to go with a firearm not something none of us have experienced ted incorrect info. If Pat did it, he needs
only makes the reading more entertain- with processing. American Handgun- to realize for a blade to be 154CM long
ing and enjoyable, but also more acces- ner Editor Tom McHale also made an it would be 60.6" long! That would be
sible to individuals like myself who have important point when he added, “I’ve one heck of a blade, slightly over 5 feet
much to learn. It’s my opinion for what not tried the 5.7x28 because I hear long. I could believe 154MM. That would
it’s worth. Thanks to you guys for all you it’s pretty finicky and can be danger- make the blade roughly 6" long. A much
do and the work you put in covering a ous if mis-loaded.” Other published more believable number. I’ve been doing
plethora of topics within the firearms resources agree, including one per- metric conversions in my head for about
community each month. son who said “I certainly wouldn’t 65 years, so when I observe such an error
Ross M. call this a ‘novice reloader’ cartridge.” it immediately peaks my attention and I
Roy Huntington also mentioned you must follow up and check to make sure
can only get two or three reloadings I’m reading it right. The metric to inch
5.7X28 RELOADING before case-head separation becomes conversion is 25.4 mm to the inch, or
A while back I started shooting an issue. 2.54 centimeters per inch.
5.7x28 and now have enough brass If you’re a longtime handloader and John A. Turner
to clean and reload. According to the want to try the 5.7x28, make sure to follow
Internet “experts” there is a lacquer published recipes from a reliable source The “154CM” refers to a type of
coating on each case and wet tumbling and don’t deviate until you’re very famil- stainless steel. 154CM is a proprietary,
the cases will remove the lacquer and iar with possible results. Personally, I’d American-made high-carbon stainless
cause jams when shooting. Is there any just grab all the used brass I could then steel that was first used for knives in the
truth to this and if so, how would you trade it off for factory ammo, or other 1970s. I should have added “stainless
recommend cleaning 5.7x28 brass? toys and surprises. —BW
James Cox continued on page 65

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 57
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7423, ABKT.com

58 MAY 2024
 MSRP is subject to change without notice. FMG Publications presents the MSRP in good faith and is
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GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 59
 FIREARMS PA
SUBMIT
T
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YOUR is a covert-role pistol built for
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60 MAY 2024
 GUNSMAGAZINE.COM/GIVEAWAYS

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GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 61
THINK TANK

MARLIN MODEL 1894 IN .44 MAGNUM

‘CHUBBY CHASERS’ REJOICE!

Jeff “Tank” Hoover stable, so a faster 1:20" twist rate is gas check, which is good for high pres-

L
perfect for doing so. This twist rate is sure, high velocity loads.
ever loonies are rejoicing over fast enough to stabilize the heaviest of The next mold is also a favorite.
the wonderful job Ruger is heavy .44 caliber bullets, which we all From Lee Precision, their 310-grain
doing with the Marlin line of know how well they penetrate out of radiused flat-nose profile sports two
lever guns. Overall, these rifles are proportion on game. crimp grooves and gas check design.
slimmer, smoother and more accu- Besides being bargain-priced, it is a
rate than their New Haven brethren. I THE SLUGS well-designed mold dropping won-
was particularly excited, with a twist, One of my favorites and first MP derfully hard hitting, accurate slugs.
for the new 1894! This is because of Molds I ever ordered is their 300- I also have an old LBT mold
Ruger’s attention to detail, namely grain radiused hollow-point design dropping 320-grain bullets. It’s a dual-
changing the barrel’s rate of twist for sporting three crimp grooves. This crimp groove, radiused flat-nose, gas
the .44 Magnum 1894. makes it useful for .444 Marlin loads check design. As you can see, there’s
Traditionally, .44 Magnum lever in the deepest groove, while the top a few redundancies in my choice of
guns have a slow 1:38" rate of twist. two crimp grooves can be used for .44 molds. Weight, 300+ grains, flat nose
For the chubby chaser guys loving fat, Special or Magnum loads, depending to transfer as much energy as possible,
heavy bullets — and you know who on cartridge overall-length limitations. and a gas check at the base of the bullet
you are — this just doesn’t cut the There’s no denying its usefulness, or make accurate load development easier
mustard. We want our heavy bullets versatility, especially since it sports a in the long run.
Plus, gas-check slugs allow you to
shoot longer without worrying about
bore leading.

THE LOADS
I’ve learned over the years when it
comes to shooting heavy .44 caliber
bullets in Marlin 1894 rifles, you get the
bonus of free velocity from the longer
barrel, approximately 400 +/- FPS. The
Ruger Marlin sports a 20 ¼" barrel and
boy does it make a difference.
Powder wise, I stuck with the old
standby of Hodgdon H110, sparked
with a CCI 350 magnum pistol primer.
Typical 50-yard groups from the 1894. The bluing, wood fit/finish, checkering make
I used my standard charge of 21.5
the 1894 a classic for lever gun lovers. grains of H110 for all three bullets.

62 MAY 2024
 YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

The 1894 carbine is one good looking,

accurate gun. You won’t have to give
the shirt off your back to get one. Have
your local shop give Ruger a call.

The LBT 320-grain dual-crimp gas

checked slug clocks out at almost 1,750
FPS. The Lee 310-grain radiused flat-
nose gas check slug almost reached
1,800 FPS. Lastly, the MP Molds 300-
grain HP flat-nose gas check with
Comple te Col le ction O
3-crimp grooves made it to 1,800 FPS. T he f
Besides handloads, I used some
Buffalo Bore 305-grain cast loads for a
factory offering. The Buffalo Bore load
went over 1,800 FPS when clocked with
by J
my chronograph. oh n Con nor

ACCURACY
Accuracy was as good as I could In Paperback
hold at 50 yards with all loads. The Or
Skinner Sights peep with white-lined Kindle Version
“bear buster” front sight is a great asset
for accurate shooting. My smallest
groups went under an inch for 3 shots, A close-up of the cast bullets used
with most groups going 1" to 1.2". It and factory ammunition. Left to right,
didn’t matter which load I was shoot- Buffalo Bore 305-grain factory load,
ing, as they all shot about the same. Lee 310-grain, MP Mold 300-grain and
Bottom line, this gun is a shooter! LBT 320 slug.

THE GUN swivel proudly showing it is a Ruger-

Ruger continues their excellent made Marlin. The 1894 has always been
work on the Marlin line since purchas- a favorite of mine as they share the same
ing them. I was ecstatic when I heard calibers since our revolvers for the “one ine,
fine w s age
my favorite gun manufacturer was box feeds both guns” convenience. “Like sig t
h
or's in please. ”
purchasing my second favorite man- Carrying the 1894 slung over your Conn
More
ufacturer. It’s a match made in heaven shoulder with a sling is both comfort- well. c H
~ Do
in my eyes. ing and comfortable. Anytime you can
Wood-to-metal fit is excellent, sling 300+ grain slugs at 1,800 FPS
sporting nice checkering on the wrist with 10 rounds at the ready, you def-
and forearm with a diamond pattern. initely have the means to handle just
Weight of the gun runs 6.4 lbs. and about anything in the woods.
overall length is 37.75" with a 20.25" I like this gun a lot, especially
cold hammer-forged barrel having with the 1-20" rate of twist. The gun
6- groove rifling in a 1:20" RH twist. will be staying with me. Looks like I
Magazine capacity is 10 rounds for wrote another article for free, since
Magnum loads and 11 rounds for .44 my paycheck will be going to Ruger. The complete series of excuses,
Special loads. I’m still coming out ahead, and you alibis, pithy observations and
The American black walnut stock will too, with this latest addition by general ephus now in a new book.
sports a red bullseye near the sling Ruger/Marlin. Order at Amazon.com
search for Guncrank Diaries

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 63
 Advertiser Index
MAY 2024
The companies listed have featured advertisements in this issue.
Look to them first when you are ready to make a purchase.

ADVERTISER PAGE ADVERTISER PAGE

American Handgunner Subscription . . . .51 SDS Imports LLC. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Bravo Company USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67 Silencer Central . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Capstone Precision Group. . . . . . . . . . . .15 Spartan Blades USA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Cimarron Firearms Co.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13 Springfield Armory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
D & L Sports Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23 Standard Manufacturing Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
EOTECH Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
The Bradford Exchange . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
HSS Corp. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Kirkpatrick Leather Co.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Trijicon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Nighthawk Custom . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Walk The Talk America. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64
North American Arms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 WRB Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Ruger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 XS Sights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

64 MAY 2024
GUNS INSIDER CROSSFIRE
GUNS INSIDER An Inch Or A Mile
continued from page 66 most striker-fired 9mm pistols? They’re continued from page 57
there for a reason — they’re intended
immediately stretched out to await as a little backstage area for your trig- steel” after the designation to make it
handcuf f ing. But, rat her t han ger finger to hang out until showtime. clearer. —BW
approach the semi-immobilized sus-
pect, I attempted to use my portable STOP POINTING
radio to call in the cavalry. If you hadn’t worked it out, inter- THE TRUTH AND
Now at least 20 years after the fact, limb interaction is the reason we NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH
I have a very clear recollection of being never, ever, never “hold someone at Dear Brent: Regarding your Insider
unable to press the transmit button on gunpoint.” Cops used to do this every “Tales of the Suburban Trapper” March
my radio without causing my trigger day of the year but the discovery of 2022 issue. It has been a long time since
finger to simultaneously begin curling our old friend sympathetic squeeze I just stopped reading something and
from its position alongside the trigger put an end to the practice. Now, if a sat there laughing. I can just picture the
guard of my GLOCK 45. In the slow- cop is holding someone at gunpoint, scene of your Mom finding the dead
motion replay on the widescreen in my the suspect had darn better be a can- muskrats in her kitchen. Thank you for
brain, I remember being so angry my didate for immediate application of your contributions to GUNS Magazine
right finger would not stand still while deadly force. Same rational goes for and for making me laugh. Well Done!!
I was merely trying to push the darn CCW holders. Harold C. (Hal) Hansen
radio button. This is why using a low-ready
For several seconds, a raging bat- position is important. It allows you Thanks Hal! It’s the truth, sure as
tle ensued as I fought to separate the to clearly see the suspect’s hands yet I’m sitting here. I might have embel-
actions of the two digits, yet it seemed allows nearly instantaneous firing if lished a tiny bit (I’m a writer, after all)
both of my index fingers were tied a problem suddenly develops. Most but Mom’s reaction was pretty much as
together by an invisible piece of twine. importantly, it builds in a small mar- described! —BW
If the suspect had been aware of my gin of error if something untoward,
predicament, he might have had time such as interlimb interaction, a startle
to sneak off into the darkness or press response or simple spontaneous brain NOT A FAN
an attack. If nothing else, he missed a flatulence, occurs. So what’s the deal? Smith and Wes-
good laugh as I was locked in the pro- When you consider sympathetic son is now touting their “new” lever-
verbial mental quandary of not know- squeeze (and the startle response, and action Model 1854, their first lever
ing whether to “go potty” or go blind. a zillion other things), it turns out Col. action rifle in umpteen years. Great
Fortunately, the thundering herd Jeff Cooper was pretty smart when he … I love lever actions but this one looks
was nearby and soon joined me. We codified the four basic gun-handling familiar. With a tiny bit of looking, it
took our little mud-covered buddy rules. If you follow the rules to the let- becomes obvious it’s a near-duplicate of
into custody and no one was the wiser. ter, at least two separate-but-concur- the Henry Big Boy X. And, both are
However, I knew for the space of five rent violations must occur in order for knockoffs of the Marlin 336. The pat-
to 10 seconds I was entirely incapa- a tragedy to happen. This is why keep- ent on the 336 must have expired? I’ll
ble of organized reaction during this ing a straight trigger finger until the just keep my 1952 336 .35 Remington.
critical moment. sights are on target and not pointing at If they wanted to copy something,
This totally insignificant incident anything you don’t expressly intend to why not do something useful and cre-
remains so memorable because of the destroy — such as a captured criminal ate a new Winchester 71 clone? A 7/8-
profound shock I experienced upon — are so important. scale 71 in .44 Magnum? I’d buy one!
realizing my finger kept closing on This whole discussion might seem Jack Thorne
the trigger without authorization. I’m like a minor academic point and
absolutely sure if I had been forced to something you won’t need to worry
fire my pistol, I would have also trans- about, but in today’s political climate, HOLT FAN
mitted on the radio at the same time. using deadly force against someone It is a real pleasure to finally read
The moral of the story is simple — who doesn’t clearly warrant such another article written by Holt Bodin-
sympathetic squeeze is real and it hap- treatment will cause grievous reper- son. Of all your contributors, I enjoy
pens. Even to you. cussions for you. him the best. He’s so informative.
The simplest fix for the problem is to If you avoid shooting people or BF Smith
simply to keep doing what we already things you don’t intend to shoot, it
do: trigger finger off the trigger and vastly increases the odds you’ll always Well, shucks, we emerge from our
held straight unless actually firing. have the opportunity to go home and cave and receive an honest letter-to-
Have you noticed those scrunchy little give your Significant Other a good the-editor. I better get cracking to keep
pads on the frame above the trigger on squeeze — using both hands! this guy. —Holt

GUNSMAGAZINE.COM 65
GUNS INSIDER YOUR NEXT GUN STORY BEGINS HERE!

MY MAIN SQUEEZE
UNDERSTANDING INTERLIMB INTERACTION

O
f all the issues and concerns thing. You might remember several covering “one of their buddies.” If so,
that need to be considered if high-profile events where suspects “Houston, we might have a problem.”
you’re going to be carrying a in handcuffs were killed by cops. The Interlimb interaction also has
firearm, especially for self-defense, the cops claimed with never intended to a cousin named “startle response”
one I’d nominate as “Most Likely To pull the trigger but nobody believed wherein you tend to clench your hands
Be Ignored” is the idea of “Sympathet- them. Scientists then “discovered” if you are badly startled or lose your
ic Squeeze.” interlimb interaction. balance. It doesn’t happen every time
And, we aren’t referring to a really I put quotes about the word discov- but there are plenty of bullet holes
understanding romantic partner. ered because the phenomenon had been where there shouldn’t be because
Whether you’re a student or instruc- well-known for years among physiolo- people weren’t minding their safety
tor, anytime this idea is brought up in gists but nobody had ever really applied rules when a loud noise happened or
a shooting class the general response is it to the human endeavor of holding they tripped.
an unspoken look of “Yeah, yeah, right. people at gunpoint. Basically, the cops
When do we get to the part WAY BACK WHEN
where we do backflips and shoot Years ago, I had a memorable
five terrorists, and look fabu- instance of sympathetic squeeze,
lous while doing it?!?” For lots of which finally and utterly con-
people, sympathetic squeeze is vinced me this is a serious mat-
simply a silly myth, like Bigfoot, ter. Things turned out fine and
astrology or alcohol-free beer. even a bit entertaining but could
But it ain’t. And it’s an have been much different.
important notion — especially I was working mid-shift at
for cops — but even for “Nor- the cop shop one winter evening.
mal Earth People” like you and We had chased a stolen car out
me. Let me explain. into the countryside after dark
where, as is required by the Offi-
REFLEX ACTION cial Car Thief Handbook, the
If you aren’t familiar, sympa- suspect crashed and bailed out
thetic squeeze or more techni- into a plowed field. He ran some
cally, “Interlimb Interaction,” is a distance into the stubble and
the process whereby one hand lay down in the mud.
involuntarily moves when the Approximately 10,000 police
other is commanded to do officers were searching the area
something, typically in times of great were telling the truth they never meant and a younger version of Your Match-
stress. It might sound like a parlor trick to shoot the prisoner. However, in the less Hero volunteered to walk the field
but it’s real, and if you happen to be heat of the moment, they did try to in search of our catch of the day. Mov-
holding a gun when it occurs, things open a door, pick up a piece of gear or ing cautiously down the grassy berm
can go from humorous to horrible in otherwise engage their non-gun hand. of a drainage ditch, I suddenly spied
a split second. The basic reflex fired (literally) and our suspect lying down at the end of
The sympathetic squeeze is a reflex people died. my flashlight beam.
and reflexes come as standard-issued And, lest you think this problem is At low-ready, I addressed the immo-
policy for all normal human bodies. the exclusive domain of cops and CCW bile suspect using highly descrip-
They serve a valuable survival function holders, consider another hypothetical tive terms which I euphemistically
and can sometimes even be entertain- situation — a group of upland game or described as “Commands” in the
ing, such as when the doctor uses the duck hunters in a field. As they get back police report. In reality, I enthusiasti-
little rubber hammer to make your leg to the truck after a long day of hunting, cally informed him I would blast his
flop around. cold, tired and hurried, someone goes nevermind to Neverland if he made
However, research during the to open the door or tailgate while hold- any freelance moves.
1990s into law-enforcement shootings ing their still-loaded shotgun. You’d The bad guy complied with my
of already-subdued criminals made it better hope their finger isn’t on the threats — I meant “orders” — and
clear sometimes reflexes can be a bad trigger and they aren’t unconsciously
continued on page 65

66 MAY 2024