Monthly Archives: August 2014

Free For All Friday 8-29-2014: The Doctor, cleaning tools, glasses and shot shell reloading.

There’s a few things I really look forward to every year. One of the big ones is the start of a new season of my favorite show: Doctor Who. Now, I’m not one of those people that just started watching a few years back when the quirky attractive guy was playing. I’ve been watching it for a good portion of my life starting WAY back with the 4th Doctor played by the brilliant Tom Baker. Not to get all hipster but I was a Whovian before it was cool. Anyway, this season premier was a particularly big deal because a new Doctor was starting. I had everything ready for it. I was wearing my Doctor Who shirt and we had prepared a big batch of fishfingers and custard (tastier than it sounds, believe it or not). Five minutes before the show was ready to start, **blip**, the power goes out. Fortunately, it came back on before the show was over….ten minutes before it ended. Thankfully, modern technology is modern and I was able to watch it the next morning on demand. Wasn’t as much fun (first world problems, I know) but still, it was great.

Interestingly enough, I had a couple of emails and messages asking my opinion on the new season. Peter Capaldi, the new actor, was fantastic. His take really reminds me of the 4th Doctor and I’m looking forward to the darker, less flirty Doctor. Side Note/fun fact, Capaldi chose the Doctor’s outfit based on his feeling that it would be easier for plans to dress up as. That’s freaking awesome. As far as the episode itself, some people didn’t like the plot but, personally, I thought it was a perfect episode for introducing a new Doctor. It really gave him a chance to shine but didn’t overshadow the regeneration. I think this is going to be a great season. The new episode, features the Daleks, is tomorrow night.

I could go on and on but that would probably kill my page views. On to the questions!

“Do you prefer boresnake or rod/patch for cleaning? After cleaning barrel do you lube the inside or leave dry? If lube do you have to wipe out before using next time?” -Brian M.

Why not both? Personally, I use the boresnake for a quick clean after each trip to the range and also as an initial “get the majority out” stage when I do a big clean. At that point, I switch to the rod and pass cleaning patches through until there is no trace of grime on them. Keep in mind, I clean my guns far cleaner than they need to be. I like them to look like they just came out of their box, partially because I’m just weird like that and partially because I might need to take a close up photo of them at any given moment. As a result, following my cleaning technique exactly might be a bit of overkill for the vast majority of shooters out there.

As far as lubing the barrel, because I use a CLP (“cleaner, lubricant, protectant”, Ballistol for the win!), it’s going to leave a lubricating residue inside that I don’t have to worry about. A thin layer is always a good idea because, considering the metal inside the barrel is exposed, moisture will kill it faster than the rest of the gun. Considering the forces involved, well, you don’t want pitting in that area.

“I am just wondering what kind of eyewear protection wouldn’t fog up while I am shooting. If I buy more expensive shooting glasses will they not fog up as much as the inexpensive ones I wear now.” -Jacki

The good news is that a $300 pair of Oakley shooting glasses will fog up just as quickly as a $10 pair of safety goggles. Or maybe that’s bad news? Either way, the fogging isn’t exactly an indicator of quality as it is an indicator of fit. You see, there’s two factors going into this. First and foremost, your body exudes moisture constantly, in the form of sweat, in order to regulate its temperature. The idea is, as the sweat evaporates, it causes a drop in temperature because science. If that evaporated sweat hits something with a difference in temperature before it can get away and join it’s other evaporated friends in the form of humidity, it will condense and collect. That’s the fog on your lenses. The reason it’s collecting on them is a lack of air circulation around them. There’s nowhere for the moisture to go and, because your body heat is creating a tiny greenhouse between your face and the lens, there’s a temperature difference inside and the sweat condenses.

There’s two ways to fix this: The first is look for glasses that fit better and allow air to get through. They don’t have to be expensive, just good for your face. Everyone’s face is shaped different and glasses that fit perfectly on one person will look and work horribly on another. If you have a pair of sunglasses that you wear regularly that don’t fog up, look for shooting glasses that are of similar design. Secondly, try putting a good coat of Fog-X (http://www.rainx.com/product/glass-and-cleaners/rainx-anti-fog/#.VACK1lzA750) on the glasses you currently have. If the moisture can’t actually cling to the surface, it can’t collect.

“… we think it’s time to start looking into reloading shells. I was curious as to which shells would be the best for us to use? Can I reload any shell we may have shot? How could I look at a shell and know if it’s good for a reload?” -Michael B.

As much as it pains me to admit, I’m not that knowledgeable when it comes to shotshell reloading. My buddy Steven is though and I shot him a quick message for some advice. Here it is:

Pretty much anything will work fine but, like rifle brass, shells are only good for a certain number of shots. Some brands are better than others. The quality of the shell doesn’t really affect the accuracy or function, just the number of times it can be reused. I’ve noticed Remington and Winchester seem to last the longest. I’ve also noticed I get fewer uses out of the ones with nickel and steel heads so look for brass. Also look for non-ribbed stuff because it seems to last longer as well. Inspect everything before you use it. If a case is starting to go, it’s pretty obvious. If there’s any doubt, toss it. Somebody once told me you can tell a failing case by the sound it makes when you reload it. I thought he was crazy but sure enough, there is a difference so listen closely and learn how your reloader sounds normally. You might not want to blast music out while you reload as a result because you might miss the noise. There’s also a different feel but it’s not as consistent because every brand feels different to me.

Thanks for the questions!

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Choosing a Rifle Scope

A rifle without a scope is just a long pistol. Look, I’m tired at the moment and that’s about a profound as it’s going to get. While you’ll probably never see that phrase on a motivational poster, it’s arguably accurate. While there are some people that can shoot amazing distances with a pistol and some people regularly shoot rifles out to 1,000 yards with no scope, those of us who are human have a limit to how far we can shoot with iron sights. A scope, in this case, makes all the difference in the world.

As with all things in retail, there are choices to be made. This is, again, one of those situation where you do get what you pay for. As the price goes up, the quality scales as well. With just a bit of fiddling at a store, it’s hard to imagine a $1000 scope being much better than a $100 option but once you get into the field, the difference is monumental. It ultimately comes down to 2 things: optic quality and durability.

If you look at how optical lenses are made, you’ll see that it’s a surprisingly manual and extensive process. It’s safe to say that if they’re making lenses for a $100 device, they may cut a few corners. Perhaps the glass won’t be as high of a quality or they’ll lower the standards during polishing. When you’re in bright sunlight at 100 yards or more, those corners will show themselves. First off, the distortion will be worse. It’ll be very hard to make out details. Think of it like the resolution of a camera. You’ll be able to see more detail, zoom and work more with a 12 megapixel image as opposed to a 1 megapixel photo.

The durability part comes down to the build quality. The firing of any gun produces a very violent set of actions on the gun itself and you want something that can stand up to it. A cheaper scope can be shaken apart, depending on the caliber. There’s also the case of the crosshairs inside. When you have that gun zeroed out, the recoil of a rifle can actually knock the crosshairs out of alignment. You’ll hear reviewers and such referring to a scope “holding zero” sometimes. That’s what they’re talking about here and it’s a pretty important thing. You don’t want to waste ammo realigning your sights every 10 shots, do you?

To be honest, if you’re only ever going to be shooting at 100-200 yards, the optical quality isn’t the biggest deal in the world. The durability is more important for about 90% of the things people will be using a rifle for. Those people who shoot long range competitions and such will benefit from the higher quality optics than your hobbyist hunters will. That being said, there will come a point of diminishing returns on the price.

The average rule of thumb is that you want to spend at least have of the cost of a rifle towards buying a scope. That means if you bought a $750 rifle, for example, you’d want to put at least a $375 scope on it. It’s not a perfect rule, mind you, but it puts you in ballpark quality to match your rifle’s quality. Unless you’re really going to be doing some high-end stuff with your rifle, I would go much above the $800 range. That’s just me though. If you’ve got the money and you want to spend it, go right ahead. Keep in mind, this is a bare minimum to spend on the scope. There are some that say you should spend the same amount and a few that will say you should spend more. Like I said before, however, it’s a ballpark rule of thumb for price vs quality.

Before we go further, let’s talk about the terms and parts with a scope. One of the main words you’ll hear is the “objective” of the scope. This is just a fancy word that means “the big part of the scope that points at the target”. It’s where the light comes in. You have the crosshairs which are the bars inside of the scope that you use to actually point the rifle at your target. Then there are the turrets. These are where you adjust the crosshairs so that it lines up with the path the rifle shoots (the process being called “zeroing”). There are some other items you’ll find on occasion like flip up caps for protecting the lenses, parallax levers for dealing with parallax (that’s another article) and other “nice to have but not entirely necessary, depending” type of things.

When you see a scope being described on a box or label, you’ll see it expressed like so: 6-24×50 or 3-9×25 or 4×32. Ultimately it’s [Number]x[Number] or [Number]-[Number]x[Number]. You can relax, thought, because that’s not implying complex algebraic equations. The first number or set of numbers before the “x” is telling you how much it will magnify. So that 4×32 scope, for example, will magnify the target 4 times which means it will appear 4 times closer than it actually is. A target at 40 feet would appear to be 10 feet away. If there’s a range (like the 6-24 or 3-9), that means it’s a variable zoom and you can change the magnification anywhere between the first and second numbers. The second number (the one after the “x”) is the size of the objective in millimeters. So in our first example, the 6-24×50, it would be a scope that will give you magnification between 6 and 24 times and the objective of 50mm across.

So what should you look for? That’s not the right question. The first question you should be asking is “what are you planning on using it for?” You see, there really aren’t any “one size fits all” solutions for scopes. Each one is going to have a different purpose. While any scope can technically be used for any purpose, you’ll get better performance in the end using a scope meant for its intended purpose. So if you’re only ever planning on punching holes in paper at a range, a hunting scope isn’t going to be the best option. At the same time, I don’t know if I would use a tactical scope while deer hunting.

This all leads me to another rule of thumb: you want simple in the field and complex in a range. Believe it or not, if you plan on using it for hunting then you can go with a pretty simple scope. A standard crosshair is more than acceptable. You don’t want huge, exposed turrets because they can be snagged and damaged by trees and bushes as you move through the wilderness. That can either screw up your zeroing or even damage the scope altogether. At the same time, if you’re looking for those 1000+ yard shots, having a scope with big, sub-sub-sub MOA adjustment turrets and a reticle with bullet drop calculations and such built in is where you would want to go.

I should note that tactical scopes are a whole different beast and that would warrant a different article.

There is one last thing I need to mention and it’s by far the most important aspect of buying a scope: the mounts. You don’t want to duct tape your scope to your rifle. Skimping on the mounts is the equivalent of that. Let me put it another way, let’s say you bought a Ferrari 458 Italia. This is one of the finest cars on the road and, not only a showcase in engineering excellence but it can be argued that it’s also a work of pure art. Upon getting your 458 home, you immediately swap out the tires and wheels with a bunch of cheap, re-treaded spare tires you bought from Crazy Dave’s Discount Tire Hut and took it out to the race track. How well do you think that car would perform on those skinny, cheap tires? With the power and such of the 458, I would give it until maybe the third turn before those tires disintegrated and potentially wrecked the car.

The scope mounts are the same thing. Do not put a Ferrari on your rifle then put el-cheapo tires on it. The scope mounts will make sure that your scope stays in place when you shoot and this will ultimately help your accuracy. I actually saw, on a message board I frequent, someone that had a $1500 scope on his awesome rifle then had $15 scope mounts he bought from WalMart. They broke after a couple hours of shooting and that $1500 scope was destroyed in the process. Credit where it’s due, he was brave as heck to admit it publicly. The forum ripped him to shreds. It was brutal…and funny. With that in mind, I’m going to write this in all caps and even bold it to make sure you know I’m being serious: DON’T SKIMP ON THE MOUNTS.

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Free For All Friday 8-22-2014: Shoulder holsters, unloading guns and poking a hornet’s nest

Did you know that, according to various studies, more people would rather give a speech in front of thousands of people than undergo a major change in their life even if that change is for the better? Something interesting to think about.

Hi there! I’ve been wondering lately if shoulder holstered weapons are actually useful for concealed carry, or if that’s just plain Hollywoodism. Would they make a bulge too big, make it too difficult to draw the weapon or just be inferior compared to waist ones? Thanks in advance! -Henry J.

For the longest time, shoulder holstered guns were pretty much the defacto way for police officers to carry concealed. Even to this day, shoulder holsters are widely used. It’s a very effective way to carry due to the way our bodies are shaped as well as the way clothes hang off our bodies. It does, however, one or two serious drawbacks. As I type this article, it’s 97 degrees Fahrenheit with super high humidity and a heat index of 111. Shoulder holsters require multiple layers to work effectively (shirt + holster + jacket/over shirt). That may be fine for a lot of places but, here in Florida, there’s maybe one or two weeks where we could use that comfortably. The last thing I want to do right now is put on another layer. Your mileage may vary, depending on where you live. Keep in mind that, even if it’s cold outside, you’re going to step inside where it’s heated at some point and wearing a jacket might still be uncomfortable then as well.

Beyond that, there’s only a few easily avoidable situations where you could potentially flash your gun. The same can be said for IWB carry as well, though. The only major complaint about shoulder holsters that I have, beyond climate, is the draw. Under most situations, it’s difficult to draw quickly without lasering everyone in a 90 degree arc between your gun side and the target.

I was wondering what the best way to load and unload the weapon properly as to not wear out the round that is ejected every time and re-loaded the next morning before I carry again? -Corey M.

There’s lot of reasons why we would un-chamber the round from our pistols on a regular basis. It could be for dry fire practice, trading out mags so that you’re not shooting your expensive daily carry ammo at the range or the regular cleaning that a CCW pistol desperately requires. Ultimately, this is going to cause some wear on the round itself if you do it enough. The bright side is, the wear is going to be mostly cosmetic. If you’re really worried, just pull all the rounds out of the magazine and rotate them out so that each bullet gets to spend time being the one in the chamber.

The big thing to worry about, however, is the extractor itself. Many people, myself included, prefer to carry in the X+1 configuration meaning the magazine is completely full and you have an extra round in the chamber itself. One extra round is one extra round, after all. The worst possible way to load that extra round is to just drop it directly into the chamber, let the slide forward then load the mag. That puts wear on the extractor (the little hook that pulls the spent casing out of the chamber) in a way it wasn’t designed for. The better way is to insert the mag and rack the slide like normal, then take out the mag and put another bullet in then put it back into the gun. There’s some extra steps, for sure, but it will make sure the components last longer. The extractor is a very important component to the operation of a semi-auto and is a strangely neglected component on the gun.

Can you cite a single case where a non-LEO who is open carrying has been shot or had their gun snatched by a criminal? -Bob H.

While this one skirts dangerously close to my no politics rule, it did spark my curiosity. I spent a good long while with Google on this one and I have come to a single conclusion: the internet is a horrible place to do research when it comes to politically charged subjects. Seriously. Open carry is a pretty controversial subject even among the pro gun community and the internet is filled with lots of bad information concerning it. I was able to find some “my cousin’s uncle’s hairdresser knows a guy who works with a guy who…” type of anecdotes but after a few pages in on Google’s search results with various combinations of search terms, I gave up. I’m not saying it hasn’t happened, I just didn’t find anything reliable. I should warn you about using this kind of information in an argument, however. Saying it never happens or it hasn’t happened will only be somewhat effective until it actually happens. Then the other side will use that one occurrence to invalidate everything you try to say from that point forward. Debating 101: Stick with the solid facts that are difficult to invalidate.

Thanks for the questions!

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Getting the Heck out of Dodge: Dealing With and Surviving a Riot.

Ask any expert: society is fragile. It doesn’t take much for it to collapse and when it does, it’s not pretty. Law and order go out the window while bricks and trashcans go through windows. Civility is replaced by rage. Humanity is replaced by something else…something feral. There is no reasoning at this point, there is only survival. When the riots broke out up in Ferguson, I started to wonder what I would do if it happened here. How would I handle it? Where would I go? I’ve been researching for the last few days and I’ve noticed some major trends in advice.

First off, the best bit of advice is to avoid being near a riot before it even starts. Don’t let anyone tell you that a riot just pops up out of nowhere. You’ll never be walking to your car after shopping at the mall when a riot just jumps out of the bushes and says “booga booga I’m a riot!” There are always signs leading up to one even though it may only be a couple hours worth of leadup as opposed to days like in Ferguson. It may be a protest going on and on or a crowd at a sports game getting a bit unruly. If you keep your head on a swivel, like you always should, the signs are there loooong before one actually happens. It’s like building clouds on a summer day. You look at the sky and it goes from blue to cloudy to anvil clouds to darkened skies and eventually the storm is unleashed. Sometimes, even though it gets dark and nasty looking, the rain that follows isn’t as bad as it looked. Sometimes the clouds will disappear before any rain falls. Other times it’s a borderline hurricane with lightning, hail and tornadoes. Learn to watch for those metaphorical clouds. It doesn’t always guarantee a riot but I wouldn’t go swimming if the sky looks that dark that’s for sure.

So let’s say that, for whatever reason, you find yourself with a riot on your hands. There’s a couple different situations you could find yourself in and, though they’re handled essentially the same way, there’s a few slight differences in how they should be handled.

The ideal situation is one where you live safely outside of town and the riot is just between you and your home. In that case, take the long way home. Don’t try to even shortcut near the riot or just give it a slightly wide berth. Circle as far away from it as feasibly possible. Even if it takes 2 or 3 hours to get home, it’s worth the extra miles on your car.

Second worst situation is if you live safely outside of town but you’re in the middle of the riot when it breaks out. This is where things get a bit dicey. Your goal is, first and foremost, survive and stay safe. Secondly, you should try to get out of the middle of things. This can be a lot more difficult than it would seem. In most cases, the police will try to set up a perimeter to contain the violence. Even if you have nothing to do with the riot, you’re probably not going to get through. The police aren’t going to listen to your pleas any more than the rioters will. You’re either going to have to find another way out or weather the storm however you can. The bright side is that the police will be focused on where the heaviest rioting is. Head in the opposite direction and you may find a way out. You may be going quite a long way on foot so I hope you’re wearing comfortable shoes.

The worst situation is if your home is right in the middle of the riots. Here, you don’t have a sanctuary to go to and you’re probably not going to have any way out either. You’re likely going to need to hole up and fortify. The biggest reason this is the worst is because you’re most likely to be completely separated from your family for a long time in this situation, at least more so than in the other scenarios. Your kid may be at school, your husband or wife may be at work. They will be stuck there because there is no safe place waiting for them at home. The school certainly isn’t going to drop your kid off in the middle of the craziness. Make arrangements for a friend or family member who doesn’t live in the middle of things to pick up your kid(s) and take them somewhere safe. If the spouse is at work, make sure they stay there or again, someplace safe. It’s going to eat at you not to have everyone there where you know what’s going on but if they’re someplace safe they need to stay there. That’s more important than being together in this case.

Now, there are some consistent bit of advice across the board that you should follow. The biggest rule of them all is:

Stay Calm – It’s very easy to get freaked out because, frankly, everyone around you is freaking out. No one is going to listen to reason so don’t bother. Just keep your head about you and keep thinking and analyzing your situation and surroundings. If you’re with your family, keep them close and keep them calm as well. Don’t get separated. Lock arms or carry them if you have to.

Don’t Draw Attention to Yourself – Calmly (but briskly) walk to a safe place. Try to blend in as best as you can. No one is looking at you. Look for a less crowded area and make a beeline for it. Rioters tend to group together so get on the edge of that group and get away.

Stay Out of It – Smashing cars and stealing flat screen TV’s make look like fun but don’t give it a try. If you want to stay safe, don’t join in. Even if you sympathize with the rioters, your primary concern should be yourself and your family.

Being Selfish is Being Smart – This one hurts to say but now is not the time to be a hero. If you see someone getting assaulted or what have you, ignore it. I know it would gnaw at my conscience for a long time afterwards if I did that but my family is more important and I can’t protect them if I’m injured or dead. My family is my biggest concern and, even if it means leaving a stranger in trouble, I will do what I have to in order to get to them and protect them. Stepping in to help someone will draw far too much attention to yourself. I feel rotten for even typing this, mind you, but we have to do what we have to do.

Watch Your Feet – Keeping upright and walking is of utmost importance. If you trip and fall amidst the crowd, you will get trampled. If you do fall, go fetal and protect your head with your arms and hope for the best. The ideal situation, believe it or not, is if a bunch of people trip and fall on you. This will cause the crowd to instinctively avoid the pile of people and it could result in some breathing room for you to get back on your feet and moving again.

Backstreet’s Back, Alright – If they’re rioting in the streets, which they always are, they stick to main roads. Places where you’d normally get stuck in traffic is where they’ll be rioting. Now’s the time to see the less visited places of your town/city. The alleyways and back roads will be significantly less crowded so head to those. Knowing the layout of the city, it goes without saying, it vitally important. How well do you know your city? Probably not as well as you should. Why not explore it more this weekend to get a handle on its layout beyond the main roads you always take?

Have Gun Will Travel Should Stay Hidden – If you’re one of the millions of CCW holders in the country, you’ve got a good advantage in most cases. A riot, believe it or not, is not a good place to have your gun out. Remember: you’re not dealing with rational people at this point. In most cases, a criminal will flee at the sight of a firearm. In riots, if there’s enough people around, they’ll charge right for you. Trust me, you don’t have enough bullets. The ideal situation is to get away from the crowd as quickly as possible. Once you’re safely away from the main riots, you may still encounter people taking advantage of the lawlessness. Then and only then should you consider drawing if there is no other choice. A group of 3 or 4 people are more likely to flee than a group of 30 or 40 rioters.

Have a Rally Point – If you’re all separated before the riot starts or, worst case scenario you’re separated in the middle of it, have a point to meet at. It could be your home which might be safely outside the violence, a relative’s house or even a landmark or park that you know is in a safe area. It’s best to have a main one and a couple of alternatives. Make sure you all know how to get to them before everything goes to crap because the middle of a riot is not the best time to be looking at a map.

In riots, much like in life, the cool and rational minds prevail. Stay alert and stay alive. Those with a plan have a natural advantage. Have a plan and stick to it.

Image Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons.

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Free for All Friday 8-15-2014: Target ammo and steel vs lead

Didn’t get any questions last week. I was starting to think I had answered everyone’s questions and that I wouldn’t be able to do this column any more! Thankfully, that didn’t turn out to be the case. We have two questions this week.

I saw .38 special ammo today at the LGS. Full metal jacket and lead round nose. Both were the same price. Which is better for target shooting at the range? -Mike H.

Under most circumstances, my answer is always “go with the cheapest for the majority of your practice”. In this case, however, price is removed as a factor. If it were me, I’d go with the full metal jacket option. Unjacketed lead rounds are typically dirtier for multiple reasons. One of the main reasons is that they usually seal it with a bit of paraffin and that stuff gets on everything. It’s also going to leave more lead residue all over and lead, as we know, is poisonous. when a round is jacketed, it reduces the amount of lead that gets expelled from the gun when it’s fired. It doesn’t remove it altogether, mind you, so you should keep that in mind…but that’s an article for another day.

Hey Noob! Now that I am shooting trap etc. quick question on shotgun shells. Steel shot or lead? Which is better for trap shooting? Thanks as always!! -Skylar R.

I’m about to contradict myself completely here. I’d go with the lead shot. First off, it’s cheaper. Secondly, I’ve yet to go to a skeet range that doesn’t say “no steel shot allowed”. Steel is a bit more destructive when it comes to the machines and equipment at the range and someone is always going to accidentally shoot the launchers. Don’t believe me? Take a look at them if you can. Lead shot, while still destructive to the equipment, won’t do as much damage. In the end, most ranges will have notices telling you which kind you can use and what the maximum shot size you can have. If they don’t have it prominently posted, ask a rangemaster what they’d prefer you use.

Thanks for the questions!

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How to read that Trijicon ACOG style Chevron Reticle Thingy…

I first came across this weird looking reticle when I purchased my Lucid HD7 red dot sight. My initial thought when I saw it was “well that’s weird” then I immediately swapped it over to the T with the dots under it and forgot about the chevron style for a while. Then I saw almost the same exact reticle associated with one of Trijicon’s ACOG sights. “That’s odd”, I thought, “it seems that more than one company uses that weird reticle”. Curiosity got the better of me and I finally looked in to what the heck this reticle is for and how to use it.

Side note: While a bit embarassing to admit, I always thought “Chevron” was just a gas company’s name until I started flying. It was then that I learned that a “chevron” refers to the pointy triangle shape. As it turns out, there are chevron symbols used all through the aviation world from landing strip makers to pilot rank indicators. Live and learn.

First off, the “why”. This is designed to be a combat reticle. The concept, as it seems, is to allow you to use it for close combat up to 200 meters then use it as a somewhat accurate “scope” style past 200 meters. There are other styles that do the same thing so, ultimately, it comes down to personal preference. Still, you never know when someone is going to hand you a carbine outfitted with a Trijicon sight or similar style while zombies are trying to smash down your front door so knowing how they work ahead of time is a good thing.

As far as the “how” goes, it goes a bit like this. The tip of the big triangle is what you would use for the vast majority of your work and, according to Trijicon, you would use this point up to 100 meters. If your target is between 100 and 200 meters, then you would use the inside point. When you’re between 200 and 300 meters, you would move the aim to the pointy tip of the vertical post (or the bottom flat areas of the chevron, if you prefer). Each horizontal line below that typically adds another 100 meters to the range. So, for example, if your target is 400 meters away, you’d line it up with the top horizontal line (coincidentally with the giant 4 next to it, in the illustration).

I know what you’re thinking: “So do I need to start carrying a laser range finder with me as well to know which of these things I need to line up to?” While that would be awesome to have as an attachment to a gun, no. You’ll notice that the length of the horizontal lines change as it goes down the sight. This is another neat trick that Trijicon has added. According to them, the lines are calibrated to a width of 19 inches at the given range (including the points at the bottom of the chevron). Why 19 inches? As it turns out, that’s the average width of a man’s shoulders. So all you have to do is quickly line up the width of the line to the shoulders and that will give you a rough range. If the shoulders are turned or not visible, well, you might have to estimate. Art class tells us that the average shoulder width should be equal to 3 head widths so that might help you there.

In the end, just knowing how it works helps a little but it doesn’t help nearly as much as practicing.

Images courtest of Trijicon, Inc.

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Free For All Friday 8-1-2014: Rust and rifle calibers.

I get asked quite often when I’m going to put out more videos. I think an update at this point is probably warranted. It comes down to two things: time and quality. With time, it just comes down to a complete and utter lack of it. I work two jobs as it is and making the videos takes an incredibly long time. It really comes down to a choice of either keep up with the blog’s updating schedule or make videos. This brings me to the quality thing. I have a very particular vision for the videos in my head. While I’m happy with the videos that have been posted so far (although I’ve considered re-doing a few of the earlier ones with the better equipment I have now), they’re still not where I’d ultimately like them to be. I mean, if you all didn’t mind a bunch of quickly thrown together vids with little coherence or uniqueness, thats fine but there wouldn’t be much to differentiate myself from the loads of incoherent and indistinguishable videos on YouTube already. With that being said, I don’t want to release more videos if I can’t put enough time into them to make them the quality that you deserve. As soon as my schedule clears up, I’ll be back to them because I really do enjoy making them.

Hope that clears things up a bit. We’ve got two questions this week!

I’ve recently noticed a very small patch of surface rust forming on my Remington 870 express’s receiver. This is my home defense gun so other than the trips to the range with it (which are fewer and farther between than I’d like them to be) it sits safely and protected in a nylon gun bag away from any moisture. I was really shocked to see the rust so I started looking online and I found a lot of things saying this model is apparently very prone to rusting easily? There was a plethora of “fixes” to prevent this, all very different. What is your preferred measures? Also, how would I remove the rust that’s already formed? -Corey M.

I’d make the “guns have two enemies” joke to start out with but I think I used that joke already. Seeing one of your beloved firearms getting surface rust is heartbreaking. It’s not the end of the world, though…well…at least not if you catch it early enough. The first thing to do is get the rust off of there as soon as possible. Depending on the finish of the gun, a light brass bristle brush or some super fine brass wool will take care of it. Use it just enough to get rid of the rust and try not to overdo it. You don’t want to start digging into the finish or the metal more than you absolutely have to. I know I’ve said that multiple ways in the last three sentences but it’s an important thing.

If the rust has really started pitting the metal, you may need to send it off to be refinished. That kind of work is best left to professionals, sadly, so you’re probably not going to see a guide for that on the site. Would be fun to try, though.

But I digress. Once the rust is gone, now we move on to prevention. First off, storing in the nylon case isn’t always the best idea, especially if you live in a humid area. The fabric will absorb moisture and then hold it right up against the gun which, due to the contact and enclosed area, will rust a gun far faster than just leaving it sitting in a corner somewhere. A good protectant will do wonders to prevent most corrosion so keeping a good coating of something like FrogLube or Ballistol on the gun is very important as it will provide a barrier to moisture. Ideally, changing the storage method is the best way to go but, if you absolutely must store it in a nylon bag, I’d recommend storing one of those silica bags in the case as well. Those little ones you get inside shipments won’t be enough. Look for the ones that are made specifically for gun safes.

I was thinking about getting a hunting rifle. I was looking at a .308 or a 30-06. I was leaning to the .308 but someone told me that the 30-06 would be a better choice due the wide range of grain size ammo. You could hunt anything with a 30-06 by changing the weight of the bullet. What do you think? thanks as always! -Skylar R.

Hey look! A Year of the Rifle related question! Thanks for giving me the opportunity to plug! Size wise, both rounds are perfectly suited for animals up to Elk but I’d recommend something larger if you’re planning on going after moose, big game in Africa or Cthulhu. The general consensus seems to be that the 30-06 has more options available when handloading because, from what I can tell, most factory loads on the 30-06 are a bit on the conservative side. One thing to really consider, however, is the rifle itself that will be shooting said caliber. Most 30-06 rifles tend to be on the heavier side and carrying that heavy rifle and ammo out into the wilderness will get old fast. You can get very accurate .308 rifles with a short action which makes it very easy to transport.

Another thing to consider is, of course, ammo prices. A quick glance at ammo prices show 30-06 at about $0.55-$0.60 a round while .308 is running around the $0.40-$0.50 range. While it doesn’t seem like much in the grand scheme of things, you’re still going to be able to buy more .308 ammo for the same money and that will let you practice more before you head out.

Beyond those factors, the actual performance of the 30-06 and the .308 is close enough that it all comes down to the shooter’s ability. If it were my money, I’d go with a .308 which, oddly enough, is the caliber I chose for my Year of the Rifle rifle. Just sayin’….

Thanks for the questions!

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