GARY'S GUN NOTES
I have been searching and talking to our distributors for something new and exciting to tall you about over this last month. I found quite a few things that are new this year. The only problem is none of our 4 main distributors have had any and don’t see any being delivered anytime soon. That part of that that bothers me is our hunting seasons are weeks away and no hunting guns or ammo appear anywhere on the horizon.
All the gun magazines are telling us about all the new products coming out but sometimes I think the gun magazines are living in their own little world with no reference to the real world. One of my favorite gun magazines, in fact one of only 2 that I call a real gun magazine, is GUNS. And I know many of the articles are written months or sometimes a year or so ahead. The covers are done months ahead and so on. Yet this month GUNS is promoting Ghost guns. 80% guns. I don’t know any gun shops personally that will carry ghost guns. With all the bad press in the media and everywhere we look on the internet about ghost guns, what a horrible time to put one on the cover and say “You can do it!”
One of my best friends works for the ATF. Recently he called and asked me if we sold any ghost guns. I told him not only no but hell no. He mentioned that the ATF was coming down hard on the 80% guns with no serial number. The 80% guns started out as a good idea. A person could build one gun for himself with no serial number but he couldn’t sell it or trade it off. It was his and he had to keep it. Now though there are “dealers” at gun shows that have 80% ghost guns lined up on their tables, finished and for sale and with no serial number. Highly illegal.
I have customers come in our shop and ask us to order 5 or 6 or more lower receivers to build the 80% ghost guns. We won’t sell them as it makes us part of this ghost gun situation. The liability part of it is scary too. We get young guys bringing in AR-15s to sell and when we look they have no serial number so it is a no sale. We also get guys bringing in AR-15 ghost guns half finished and they have run out of ability and can’t figure out how to finish them. Again it is a no go as we won’t touch them. Again just asking for trouble. And I can’t afford to lose our liability insurance over a ghost gun.
I hate saying anything bad about some good friends at GUNS magazine but helping promote ghost guns is just asking for trouble. If a mass shooting happens with one of these guns it just makes all gun owners look bad. With some rabidly anti gun people in office now it just doesn’t make sense waving the red flag in front of them.
I hate negative articles or folks just bad mouthing another just because they don’t like the product. I try not to let any of that on my forum and I feel like a hypocrite typing the above so I’ll just leave it as is and if I offended anyone that feels the opposite, well, life is what it is.
Back to the subject of new guns and ammo for this fall. There are a lot of new guns being mentioned these days, mostly shotguns. A company called ADCO is a distributor for several brands of really nice looking shotguns for the hunting fields this fall. I get flyers in every few days from the distributors promoting these new shotguns. They look nice and the prices aren’t bad but I haven’t had one on my greasy little paws yet so I will hope for the best. EAA has some good looking shotguns . Their model 620 is mainly a tactical shotgun but will be fine for the hunting fields.
Supposedly ammunition is getting easier to find, but I believe that is a myth. A couple of weeks ago I thought maybe it was loosening up as we got about 4000 rounds of 9mm, 243, and 22 ammo in in one or two days. But then within another couple of days it was gone and we are back to begging our distributors for ammo. Another case of ammo that came in was low velocity sub sonic 30-30 ammo meant for suppressors. WHAT? Who hunts with 1000 FPS 30-30 ammo. But it sold immediately. My feeling is some manufacturers are emptying ammo that has been on their shelves for years. With the demand people will buy anything. As a for instance we got a case of 50 AE in, also a case of 500 S&W, and a case of Hornady 475 Linebaugh over the last month or so.. But of the 12 boxes in the case, all but 3 or 4 boxes have sold. I guess there is something for everyone out there. But as far as the ammo situation loosening up, no, it ain’t happening. Some of the big box stores are getting ammo in but that was sold to them a year or two ago and paid for back then, so they will get some stuff in from time to time that just isn’t available at your local gun shop. So don’t expect any great influx of ammo at low prices anytime soon. Hopefully sometime down the road but not yet.
I have had folks ask if we will see any Remington shotguns or rifles this fall. That is a tuff one to answer. When Remington was auctioned off a while back there were several winners. One company bought the remaining guns that were in the warehouses. One company bought the manufacturing plant. Another bought the land. Another bought the Remington museum. One smart guy bought the names and trademarks. One company bought the new ammo plant in Arkansas. Now whether the company that bought the existing guns and uncompleted guns in parts can get someone that is smart enough to dump all the ideas that Remington put into the last 10 years of guns and redesign some guns that are worthy of putting on the market, that is a big IF. Quite a bit of ammo is coming out of the Lonoke Arkansas plant which is a good thing. At least it keeps Remington’s name in front of gun folks. The one fellow that bought all the trademarks, firearm names and such is probably rolling in dough right now. Folks that want to put anything out with Remington’s name on it has to go thru him first and I am sure pay him some trademark fees.
Another question I get every few days is if there will be any new Marlin guns this fall. During the Remington auction, Marlin was up for sale too. Remington owned Marlin and Ruger bought Marlin. The word is that Ruger will be releasing some Marlin rifles by the first of the year. The models were the 336, 1895 and one or two others. The 39A was listed as a strong possibility. As I mentioned last month Ruger says they will have the new Marlins out by the first of the year but with all the shortages of steels and other metal products if they run a bit behind it wouldn’t surprise me. Ruger is one of the best firearm companies around and they won’t rush anything out just to me a deadline.
There are dozens of reflex sights on the market these days (why don’t they just call them red dot sight, reflex sights sounds like they are making up names as they go along). One of the best is the new Bushnell RXS-250 Reflex sight. Bushnell you say? The name Bushnell brings to mind some real inexpensive scopes they sell as a package deal with some inexpensive rifles from some of the big box stores. But thru the years Bushnell has put out some really good products and this Reflex sight is one of them. It is designed for rifle, pistol or shotgun. It has a 50,000 hour battery life. It is compatible with the Deltapoint slide cuts, optic ready plates and will mount to just about any gun.
Thru the last few years I have told you about the new Taurus G2C which was a great little 9mm and we sold them as quick as we got them in. Then came the G3C, a little bigger but just as well made gun as the G2C. Now they have the new GX4. This little beauty is as good as any in the past plus you have the option of carrying it with 10, 11 or 13 round magazines. It weighs just a tiny bit over 18 ounces and is the perfect concealed carry gun. And for those of you that like to take the gun down and clean it after every shooting session there is a neat little pin system that is a quick and easy take down. Plus the price is well under $400 so it is a win win situation. Check one out when you get a chance.
There are two of us getting ready for very special hunts this fall. Actually 6 of us but 2 hunts. Good friend Alcorn Russell who has hunted with me at our HHC (Handgun Hunter’s Challenge) and several times in Africa, has a Brown Bear hunt in early September and is getting ready for the hunt. How do you get ready for a handgun hunt for Brown Bears? Lots of questions and very few answers. What gun. What caliber. Do I buy new running shoes if my first shot doesn’t do it. Who do I make my life insurance out to. Lots and lots of questions and very few real answers. But good luck to Alcorn.
Another hunt is an African lion hunt. This one is also in September, around the 22nd. There are 5 of us on that hunt in South Africa. They are Erik and Nick Stenberg, Blake Naugle, Michael Mendes and myself. This hunt is for big male lions and while we call it a handgun hunt, some are a bit more sensible and are bringing rifles. Not being one of the sensible ones, my battery is all handguns. They are an encore in 378 GNR as my main gun. Back up guns are my 429 GNR in a revolver and my 510 GNR also in a revolver. Which of the last 2 will be my main back up gun will be decided sometime between now and the morning we head out for a meeting with a lion. In the meantime we, like Alcorn, are enjoying the getting ready. We have a year’s worth of paperwork and such to get done in around 3 months. But the rush is what makes it fun.
That’s it for this month. If you plan to go out and burn up some ammo (that you might not be able to replace) do so sparingly and take a youngster or lady with you. They are our future…honest.
God bless,
Gary