Category: Self-Defense

Letter Re: Checking Your Handguns for Feeding Problems: Round Nose Versus Hollow Points

Jim,. In response to the nifty article written by Z.T.  I believe I have something to add:   Bill Wilson used to sell a great pamphlet on the care and feeding of 1911s. He specifically addressed hollowpoint reloading vs ball reloading.  In it the physical path and critical feed angles were discussed, as well as what a reloader should do if reloading semi-wadcutter or hollowpoint ammo.  I’d get into it, but I’m pretty certain it’s copyrighted – I don’t think they sell the pamphlet anymore but it’s still his intellectual property.  In a nutshell, if you’re going to reload hollowpoint …


Checking Your Handguns for Feeding Problems: Round Nose Versus Hollow Points, by Z.T.

To any avid gun collector, this may seem to be old news. For those of you that this isn’t old news, it may save your life. You should take great care in your personal protection firearm and the ammunition you have loaded in it. If you are like me, shooting your firearms is a hobby that has had to take a back seat because of today’s economy and political climate. For many years, it was nothing to go out and shoot a thousand rounds of ammunition for fun. It wasn’t even that long ago! I remember back in around 2006-2007, …


Letter Re: Stocking Up on 12 Gauge Shotshells

James, To follow up on a recent letter: Yes, stock up on shotgun shells! The availability of shotgun shells here locally (northern Gulf Coast) seems to have improved in some stores-but by no means all retail outlets- in recent weeks. For a while there wasn’t much to be found. Shells that were available generally had a high price or were of a variety that fell outside the range of everyday use (i.e. high-priced shells loaded with tungsten or steel shot.) If a person needs shotshells and you can find a good product that meets your needs, then I suggest you …


Letter Re: Stocking Up on 12 Gauge Shotshells

JWR,  I am struck by the continued availability of a variety of 12 gauge during this severe ammo shortage.  As we all know, the 12 gauge is probably one of the most versatile and powerful firearms we can have in a survival battery, or even just to have around during normal times.  I live in Houston, Texas and can’t vouch for the rest of the country but I see plenty of 12 Gauge ammo everywhere I go.  The Bass Pro Shops flyer I just got even has Federal target loads in it for $6.49 per box of 25, that’s 26 cents …


Letter Re: Selecting a Prepper’s Firearms

JWR, In response to the letter about swapping out devices that use button batteries, I would point out that some EOTech holographic sights use standard AA batteries, that are easily recharged. The EOTech 512 is an example. These sights are robust, easy to use and stay calibrated through heavy use.  Combined with the Sanyo Eneloop AA batteries the EOTech sight would be useful for many years to anyone with a solar battery charger. The Eneloop batteries can be recharged over 1,500 times and unlike other rechargeables, they maintain 75% of their charge after three years of storage. While the EOTech …


Letter Re: Selecting a Prepper’s Firearms

James Wesley, I have found red dot scopes to be real helpful, and great for target shooting and plinking.  The problem of course are the [button] batteries. I have a cheap red dot on one of my [Ruger] 10/22 fun plinking gun.  Everyone loves it.  However, too Many times I have left the sight turned on only to have a useless device atop my rifle. I have spent much money on the special “photo type” batteries for these illuminated scopes (with and without reticles). Those scopes that have a regular reticle and the option of illumination is not as catastrophic …


Voodoo in the 21st Century: Evil Guns and Other Absurd Notions

A recurring theme in western journalism, academia, and collectivist politics is the quaint notion that firearms are intrinsically evil. That is, that they have a will of their own, that somehow inspires their owners to murder and mayhem. I liken this nonsensical belief to voodoo. The “guns are evil” viewpoint was encapsulated by social psychologist Leonard Berkowitz when he wrote: “Guns not only permit violence, they can stimulate it as well. The finger pulls the trigger, but the trigger may also be pulling the finger.” I am astounded that something like that can be earnestly said or written in modern …


Pat’s Product Review: H&K Knives Entourage

For the life of me, ever since I was a little boy, who regularly carried some kind of folding knife, could I understand how a “switchblade” knife (read: automatic opening knife) is any more dangerous than any other knife. Somehow, I think we have Hollywood to thank for this nonsense going back many, many years, where they portrayed gang members using a switchblade to intimidate or kill someone. How on earth one can justify how a folding knife opens, to how lethal it is, is beyond my comprehension. I’ve said this many times in the past in my knife articles, …


Letter Re: Selecting a Prepper’s Firearms

Jim: I’m writing in response to: Selecting a Prepper’s Firearms, by Frog. First I can say that I like the idea of adding a Bushnell red dot to a few of my ‘tools’ – I wanted to add one with out getting stuff that would fail, and have been unwilling to buy anything overly expensive due to today’s crazy market with it’s inflated prices.  Red dot scope for say a 10-22 with a folding stock would be perfect match. (and it’s around $100) – totally good call. I only see a few issues with selection of firearms like the glock …


Selecting a Prepper’s Firearms, by Frog

Introductory note: This guide is mainly aimed at the American prepper. Without a doubt, firearms are one of the most important preps we have to make; without a way to defend them, none of the other supplies we amass are truly accounted for. So, when the beginning prepper sets out on the road to self-sufficiency and preparedness, we want to maximize our dollars; buy once, cry once. Perhaps you’re not a ‘gun guy,’ like some of us, or perhaps you’re only used to hunting, or sport shooting. Which guns should be considered, and why? Hopefully, this will help. Gun number …


Pat’s Product Review: CRKT Kangee T-Hawk

I’ve always been a fan of western movies, and movies about the Founding of this country – America, and early pioneers. If you watched the movie with Mel Gibson, The Patriot   you will see many Patriots in the movie – and as it was in real-life – using tomahawks in Close Quarters Battle. Given my druthers, I’ll take a well made and well-designed tomahawk into CQB over a knife any day of the week. And, even our American Natives, used some primitive type of tomahawk in battle. And, when trading posts popped up as the country grew westward, Native Americans …


Michael Z. Williamson’s Product Review: Traditions Training Cartridges

Traditions Training Cartridges are weighted and built like real cartridges.  They include a rubber insert to function as snap caps. Unlike most aluminum snap caps, however, they are heavy and strong enough to properly cycle, without becoming damaged. I recently tested these in 12 gauge, .223 rifle and .45 ACP.  The .45 ACP pack contained 5 cartridges with 6 rubber inserts.  They were “loaded” with 230 grain ball projectiles, and apart from their black coating, were almost indistinguishable from live ammo.  I cycled these through an Auto Ordnance 1911 clone, through a dozen different magazines with no problems with the …


Make Your Own Inexpensive Frangible Slugs, by Sailor Frank

]Editor’s Note: See my warning about this technique, below!] With the current ammo shortages that have been plaguing the country and seem to have no end in sight, having a way to stock up on a key caliber for your preps is vital. Hindsight being 20/20 many of us now wish we would have put more of our valuable prepping budget towards stocking up on ballistic wampum. I believe I’ve found a way to still stock up on some very useful ammo while still making your valuable prepping dollars stretch just a bit farther. The shotgun is universality accepted as …


Pat’s Product Review: Ruger SR556E

I’ve always been a big fan of Ruger firearms – all of them! There’s many reasons for my liking Ruger firearms, first of all, I find their firearms robust, strong and well-designed. Ruger doesn’t simply copy some other designs for the most part – instead, they are innovators in many ways. I still remember when the first Ruger P-85 9mm handguns came out, and everyone thought they wouldn’t last because they were made from “investment casting” aluminum frames- Ruger proved everyone wrong.   A few years ago, I tested the Ruger SR556 piston-driven AR-style rifle, and loved it. Everyone was …


Letter Re: CCW Permit Holders are The Good Guys

JWR, One topic that has come up recently is that license holders are more law-abiding than the general population, presumably because they’ve undergone background checks by the state.    The reality is that this has been shown in multiple case reviews.   A 2011 study in Texas concluded that CCW/CCL permit holders generally do not use guns to commit crimes and they commit crimes of any nature much less frequently than the general population of Texas.   According to an article by the Beaufort Observer concerning the study:  “The Texas Department of Public Safety published a list of crimes committed in …