The Most Successful Shooting Platform, the 12 Gauge

The 12 gauge shotgun, in all its many forms, single-shot, side-by-side, pump, automatic, belt-fed, even mounted, have penetrated every part of the shooting world.  It's success as a platform isn't even remotely challenged by any other firearm.  We love the 12 gauge.  And by "we," that's not just Guns.com.  That's everyone.  That's the United States, the Americas, the world.

You can get 12 gauge ammunition virtually anywhere, and even in places where firearms are heavily restricted people get to own shotguns.  And while some are clearly cut out for specific jobs, whether it's competitive shooting, bird hunting, or social work, the fact is that shotguns are so extremely versatile that they're too valuable to ever really prohibit.

Credit where credit's due, some of that is because of the features of some types of shotguns, based on their action.  But overwhelmingly, it's because of the payload.

Shot shells can be home to all sorts of different kinds of ammo, but the ubiquity of the 12 gauge means it gets a lion's share of neat stuff that you might want to make go flaming into a specific direction.  Big shot, little shot, slugs, "specialty" ammo...

Like rubber pellets.  Most everyone knows that police use rubberized pellets and slugs world-wide to deal with rioters and the like.  But they, like a lot of less-than-lethal ammunition, often don't work well, or sadly, work too well.  That's why the twisted minds behind Taser invented this:

The XREP is a Tazer in a shotgun shell.  It's considered to be effective out to 100 yards; any more would require loading it with so much propellent it wouldn't survive the trip, and it might pack too much of a punch.  It's kinda fascinating, actually. "­Creating a device small enough to fit into a shotgun shell casing but powerful enough to incapacitate a subject was no easy task. The development team at Taser had to find a way to balance power with size. Not only did they need the device to travel farther than a standard Taser, but also to have the right amount of mass. If it had too little mass, it wouldn't travel far enough. But if it had too much mass, it could become a deadly projectile rather than a non-lethal solution."

Although sometimes a deadly projectile is exactly what's called for.  You'd think that they wouldn't get more deadly than slugs, but then, have a look at this:

Yes, that is a steel-cored slug with a polymer nose that houses half a dozen chisels.  You can read all about them here. "A slug with an extremely enormous impact effect. When hitting the body, the frontal part of the slug instantly increases from 18.5 to 36-38 mm in diameter–this is the largest slug expansion diameter ever known. It creates an entrance hole with a 3.5 cm diameter, hits powerfully with all its expansion area and disintegrates into six symmetric splinters. The splinter cone causes an extensive area of damage. The unified effect of a hydrodynamic shockwave inside the body, along with splinter damage, ensures an unique instant stopping effect with the Hexolit 32 slug, which provides good results even with imperfect hits."

If you think that's nasty, you should know about the military SCMITR program in the '70s.

"SCMITR was part of the CAWS (Close Assault Weapon System) program, which investigated ~20 mm smoothbore weapons (basically combat shotguns) designed to be effective to ranges of 150 metres against combatants wearing body armor. Flechettes, with their high sectional density, were ideal for penetrating rigid or soft composite armor, but the wounds caused by the tiny darts were considered insufficient to disable an enemy combatant, as the tiny hole would quickly clot and cause relatively little bleeding. The SCMITR darts had the same sectional density as flechettes, but the wide, flat shape of the SCMITR produced a larger, more disabling wound.

"The SCMITR cartridge was loaded with eight of these flechettes, each weighing about 1 gram. Dispersion was low, with all eight flechettes capable of hitting within a four metre circle at a range of 150 metres"

Of course, for defensive loads, statistically, nothing beats buck.  (That goes for 20 gauge, too.)  00 buck shot is one of the most effective loads out there and consistently delivers high rates of one-shot stops and has the lowest rate of number of rounds required to incapacitate a threat.  "Now compare the numbers of the handgun calibers with the numbers generated by the rifles and shotguns. For me there really isn’t a stopping power debate. All handguns suck! If you want to stop someone, use a rifle or shotgun!"

That doesn't mean you can't have a little fun with them, too. If this is the first time you've seen or heard of Dragon's Breath, you're in for a treat.

"In theory, it can be used for signalling. This would make more sense if the militaries of the world still used semaphore. And as far as your lost in the woods, get some attention-type scenario, there already exist better-suited shotgun ammo types. No, this is cool for cool's sake."

Yep, if you can think of it, there's probably a shell for it.  And that's why everyone loves the 12 gauge.

The 12 gauge shotgun is without a doubt the most successful firearm since the flintlock.  They're everywhere, and they aren't going anywhere.  What's your favorite shotgun, and what do you like to shoot from it?

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Looming Economic Crisis Provides Reason for Europe to Rethink Gun Control http://ping.fm/dIfXJ

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Looming Economic Crisis Provides Reason for Europe to Rethink Gun Control

Everyone in the gun community has heard the expression, “It’s better to have and not need, than to need and not have.”  But to many of our friends across the pond, this expression is as foreign as American football. 

For the most part, citizens within European countries have taken a position of “I’ll never need, so why bother having” with respect to guns and, more specifically, owning a firearm for self-defense. 

This has been true for some time even despite a recent reminder of what a heavily armed spree-shooter can do to an unarmed populace, as in the case with Anders Behring Breivik. 

Following that tragedy, lawmakers across Europe counter-intuitively called for more gun control, as if that would somehow stop sociopaths from plotting and executing terrorist attacks. 

But hopefully times are a-changing.  With Europe on the brink of an economic collapse, hopefully citizens are starting to really take a long hard look at their gun rights, or lack thereof. 

Dan Mitchell of the Cato Institute recently wrote an article titled 'European Economic Crisis Highlights an Increasingly Important Reason to Oppose Gun Control,' where he pointed out that many of the middle class and lower income citizens might need to arm themselves for personal protection with a systemic economic disaster looming on the horizon.  

Mitchell, who travels abroad to lecture, said this about his experiences in talking to Europeans.  

"About a year ago, I spoke at a conference in Europe that attracted a lot of very rich people from all over the continent, as well as a lot of people who manage money for high-net-worth individuals. What made this conference remarkable was not the presentations, though they were generally quite interesting," Mitchell wrote.

"The stunning part of the conference was learning – as part of casual conversation during breaks, meals, and other socializing time – how many rich people are planning for the eventual collapse of European society. Not stagnation. Not gradual decline. Collapse," he wrote.

As he goes on to correctly point out, if the shit hits the fan, rich people can always leave their countries and flock to their respective safe havens in the U.S or in the Caribbean, etc. 

But what about the poor and the middle class who lack the means to get away?  What do they do?

To some extent, the London riots were a prime example of what would potentially happen all across Europe if a full-scale economic collapse were to occur.  Many defenseless, law-abiding citizens would fall victim to attacks by hoodlums, robbers, and other criminals.

As Mitchell pointed out, “If politicians destroy the economic system with too much debt and too much dependency, firearms will be the first and last line of defense against those who would plunder and pillage.”

If they haven't already, our European friends might want to take a closer look at our Second Amendment. 

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California Sheriff Draws Legal Fire For Way She Hands Out CCW Permits http://ping.fm/qoM3R

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California Sheriff Draws Legal Fire For Way She Hands Out CCW Permits

With few exceptions (the great city of Fresno comes to mind) it’s nearly impossible for the average, law-abiding Californian to obtain a concealed carry permit. 

In fact, even former law enforcement officers have a difficult time exercising what many believe is a fundamental right, i.e. the right to carry a firearm for self-defense outside the home. 

Take, for instance, former police officer and sheriff’s deputy Tom Scocca.  He applied for his CCW permit in Santa Clara County three years ago.  But he was turned down by County Sheriff Laurie Smith despite his obvious credentials. 

In addition to his law enforcement background, Scocca owned an investigative firm and was licensed to openly carry a firearm.  He now works as the director of global investigations at a major Silicon Valley tech firm.   

Why did Sheriff Laurie Smith decline Scocca request for a CCW permit? 

Well, the answer seems to be: simply because she can.  See, due the fact that California is a “May-Issue” state, the decision of who gets a CCW permit falls to the sole discretion of the police chief or country sheriff, in this case Sheriff Smith. 

But this fact has not stopped Scocca from filing a federal lawsuit against Sheriff Smith, which alleges that she issues CCW permits in an “arbitrary and capricious way.”

"California law says she has the right to say no," said the 53-year-old. But "the 14th Amendment demands everyone be treated equally. When she has issued to people who are similarly situated to me, then she is not complying with the totality of the law."

In looking at the facts and examining the 49 people in the county that have a valid CCW permit it’s clear that Scocca has a point.  

For one thing, while she has issued CCW permits to people who are similarly situated to Scocca, she has also issued CCW permits to people who are arguably less qualified to own a firearm than Mr. Scocca.  In other words, they don’t have a law enforcement background. 

Another point is that she has given CCW permits to individuals who are not primary residents of Santa Clara county.  People like Bart Dorsa, the grandson of the Eggo frozen-waffle inventor Frank Dorsa Sr., who lives in Moscow and Stephen Bechtel Jr., the chairman emeritus of San-Francisco-based Bechtel, who lives in San Francisco. 

California state law requires that permit holders be “a resident of the county or a city" where the permits are issued.

And lastly, of those 49 people with CCW permits, 13 have donated money, at one time or another, to the Sheriff’s campaign to run for office.

When asked if there was preferential treatment or favoritism on behalf of the Sheriff’s office, Deputy County Counsel Cheryl Stevens wrote in an email to the Mercury News that, “We do not maintain that information or consider that information when the sheriff approves the permit."

Many permit holders, Stevens continued in the email, had applied for permits long before Smith was first elected, and they have been renewed "because they continue to meet" the requirements.

In response to this flat out denial of preferential treatment, Scocca raised the obvious question.

"There's no quid pro quo?" he said. "You can't help but wonder."

We’ll keep you updated as this lawsuit progresses.  It’ll be interesting to see how Sheriff Smith defends her inconsistent, if not unfair, treatment of CCW applicants.

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Gun Duel Between Steve McQueen and Yul Brynner No Contest http://ping.fm/B7eYA

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Gun Duel Between Steve McQueen and Yul Brynner No Contest

One of the amusing, insider affairs of 1960 film The Magnificent Seven was the on-and-off-camera rivalry (more like an active dislike) between its star Yul Brynner and newcomer Steve McQueen, who only had a TV show (Wanted Dead or Alive) and a part in the Sci-Fi movie The Blob to his credit.

Both men had a charisma that leapt off the silver screen, but that was where the similarities ended. Brynner, a one-time Russian with Oriental eyes and a cat-like agility, was a skilled photographer, author and a major star, appearing in blockbuster films like The King and I and The Ten Commandants.

Compared to Brynner back in 1960, McQueen was almost nobody, really just one of five other actors on the set of The Magnificent Seven including James Coburn, Robert Vaughn and Charles Bronson, another face struggling to make their mark. But McQueen was different. He had a ruthless drive to succeed at any cost.

Vaughn, who would later achieve stardom in the TV show The Man from U.N.C.L.E, commented on it in a 2008 self-biography, A Fortunate Life.

“In 1960 I was signed up for The Magnificent Seven playing alongside Steve McQueen and Yul Brynner,” Vaughn recalled. “Steve was intensely competitive. It wasn’t enough just to be successful ---he had to be more successful than anyone else.”

This drive, as many a biographer has postulated, may have been fueled by a troubled childhood. According to many accounts, McQueen inside was an angry man, dreaded by film directors because of the difficulty of working with him.

Biographies explain that McQueen was always making demands trying to change scenes to his advantage. When other actors would be goofing off between takes, playing cards or joking around, McQueen would often be with a director saying, “Can we film the scene this way?”

According to Vaughn, he complained about the gun Brynner was using in the film, a Colt Peacemaker with an ivory grip.

“You didn’t notice it?” McQueen asked. “It has a f*ck'n pearl handle. He shouldn’t have a gun like that. It’s too f*ck'n fancy. Nobody’s gonna look at anything else with that goddamn gun in the picture.”

McQueen also complained about the size of Brynner’s horse, mostly that it was the biggest. Vaughn told him he had the biggest horse.

“I don’t care about yours,” McQueen told him. “It’s Brynner’s horse I’m worried about.”

McQueen at the time couldn’t challenge Brynner’s stardom, but he could try to steal scenes in the film and ultimately the film itself and in this he was largely successful. Stealing a scene is quite a bit more subtle than adding lines or rewriting a script: it means, perhaps while an actor recites dialog, the other actor in a scene does something unscripted, like lighting a cigarette in a strange way or something else interesting to divert audience attention to himself.  This is called in the parlance of 1960s Hollywood (or 2011 Hollywood for that matter) as being “non-giving” or a “self stroker.”

Anyone who has watched the film can see several examples of scene stealing by McQueen. In one scene he removes his hat to properly judge the sunlight in preparation for a gunfight as he sits in a wagon next to Brynner. He takes a shotgun shell and wiggles it, allowing the pellets inside to loudly jiggle. These were unscripted adlibs.

Brynner was less than pleased.

“This annoyed Brynner, who claimed that McQueen was trying to steal scenes,” a biography of McQueen reads. “Brynner also refused to draw his gun in a scene with McQueen, not wanting to have his character (Chris) outdrawn.”

This is where McQueen had it over Brynner. A former U.S. Marine, McQueen had experience with guns and was reportedly good with them. His practiced ability to draw fast with a prop gun was described as “manic.” Brynner on the other hand had little use for guns and little experience with them (though the film makes it seem otherwise at times).

McQueen openly expressed contempt for Brynner’s lack of gun skills.

Brynner went on to further stardom, but McQueen soared higher in the 1960s. His performance as the character Vin in Magnificent Seven is what many people consider to be the most memorable of that film. It led to his subsequent appearance in The Great Escape and the famous motorcycle jump performed by stuntman Bud Elkins (doubling for McQueen) that made McQueen a mega-star.

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