Gary's Gun Notes #123

Another month has gone by and I still don't have any answers to the question I get asked 4 or 5 times every day...”when is this panic buying going to ease up?” I didn't really expect it to ease up yet and it hasn't but the distributors, (all gun shops have to buy thru distributors) are saying that they are beginning to get a bit more product in. Most of it is back-orders that are being filled, but at least some things are coming in. We got 7 of the Savage Axis rifles in this week, and all but one have gone out. The gist of this is they were ordered in November and they got here this week. That is 4 months, any way you look at it. We got a note from Kahr Arms recently that they are running a minimum of 6 months delivery from the time of order. That is all Kahr pistols,and the other companies they own, such as Magnum Research Desert Eagles, and Auto Ordnance Thompsons. One of our distributors said they were so far behind that when they did get in a batch of back orders from one of the manufacturers, it was still 6 to 8 weeks before they could pack them up and get them out. One of the large powder companies that deals with the public is quoting 6 to 8 weeks from the time you order until they can ship the powder out. And they have the powder in stock. They are just so far behind it takes 6 to 8 weeks just for them to pack the powder up and ship it.

One of the dealer magazines had a big article in the magazine this week about the bullet, powder, primer, and gun shortages. The mental midget that wrote the article said the shortages were because “ a lot more people are getting into the shooting sports, such as skeet and trap shooting”. That guy needs to get his head out of his ass and smell the roses rather than what he is currently sniffing. The extreme shortage of 22 LR ammo sure isn't because of skeet and trap shooting. It is morons like that fellow that keep people so confused. And it is amazing how many people do not know of the shortages. We have at least 3 or 4 people come into our gun shop every day asking for various ammo, powder or primers and when told that they are not available, they give us that blank look and say...”why?” I guess they are living in a cave somewhere.

Even with all the shortages, delays and back orders, most gun companies are still advertising their new products that will supposedly be introduced during 2013. I will go over a few of them here but don't hold me to the statement that they will be out this year. A company in Turkey has introduced a 15 shot shotgun that looks a bit like the Kel Tec 14 shot 12 gauge. It is a bullpup design and is called the UTS15, for Ultimate Tactical Shotgun, 15 rounds. It comes in 12 gauge only, is a pump with 15 round capacity. It is chambered in 2 3/4” and 3”. It has an integral picatinny rail on top along with fold down sights. It also has a point and shoot LED spotlight and laser sight. The sights are adjustable and it comes in black or in a full camo finish for hunters. It will be limited in many states for hunting due to the 15 round capacity. Here in Arizona we can hunt with any magazine, even a 100 round mag but some states do not allow this.

Metro Arms, the company that distributes Bersa pistols has several new guns coming out. An offshoot of Metro, Eagle Imports, is bringing in a nice looking “target/combat” 1911 that is a long slide with adjustable sights. It is in stainless and is part of the MAC line-up from Metro Arms. The gun looks great. But I haven't handled one yet so I will hold off on saying it shoots as good as it looks. Sig has joined the polymer family with their SP2022. It will be available in 9mm, 357 Sig and 40 caliber. I mentioned above that Kahr Arm's various companies are running way behind on delivery. One of those companies is Magnum Research, the company that makes and sells the Desert Eagle. They now have a new series of pistols with built in muzzle brakes for their 44 magnum and 50 AE pistols. There are 3 models in each caliber and in 3 different finishes. The downside is the price. They run from $1800 to $2200.

Those of you that are older than navel lint will remember the little wallet holsters that were available for the High Standard 2 shot Derringer of years ago. It was a neat little holster that the whole derringer went in. The holster had a round hole in one side and your finger went in the hole and you could pull the trigger without taking the gun out of the holster. The bullet came out an open end on the holster. Well, that holster isn't available anymore from High Standard but Desantis Gunhide does have it. It is just like the old High Standard holster except it holds several of the new small semi autos. It is called the Pocket Shot and retails for under $45. Another one very similar to it is made by Safariland and is called the Model 22 Wallet profile Holster. It also fits several of the new tiny little semi autos like the Ruger 380. The wallet holster has a square backing that looks like you are carrying a wallet instead of a holster. Nice to see some of the holster makers getting back to basics.

North American Arms, the folks that make the tiny little 4 and 5 shot mini revolvers (remember the ones you carried in your belt buckle?) have come out with a nice idea. It is their new Sidewinder. The older guns had to have the base pun pulled out, the cylinder then taken totally out to load or unload it. Now they have the new Sidewinder, which has a swing out cylinder, much like a double action revolver, except it swings out on the right side. It comes with an extra cylinder that is cylinder and crane combined. It has the push out extractor like a double action revolver also, so no more poking the empties out one at a time. And it is still affordable at under $400 for the dual cylinder model.

Lots of new long guns slated to be released this year....maybe. Benelli has a new left hand shotgun coming out for you southpaws. It is the M-2 model. Legacy Arms is a company that has several handguns, rifles and shotguns. One new shotgun is the new Escort shotgun designed for the ladies. The gun is hot pink with splotches of brown and black mud like splatters all over it. The camo finish is called Muddy Girl Camo. I think they plan another one with camo that looks like a Double Whopper with cheese to be called the Fat Girl Camo....maybe. Mossberg has upgraded their Model 500 shotgun this year with high polished stock and forend. The overall look reminds me of one of the nicer Winchester pumps of several years ago. Not sure if all their shotguns will be available in this finish but the one I saw really looked nice. They are getting a lot of orders for their new patrol rifle called the MVP Patrol. It is a bolt gun chambered in 223 that takes AR-15 magazines. It is slated to be released in 308 later this year....maybe.

Speaking of new camo guns coming out, the company Citadel that makes the neat little M-1 Carbines, like the old original 30 M-1 Carbines except in 22 LR, has several new models coming out. One has a camo finish called Harvest Moon....don't even ask. Last year they came out with a camo pattern called Moon Shine and this is the same company that makes the Muddy Girl camo mentioned above.

The Steyr AUG bullpup rifle has been super popular for many years but also super expensive. Now there is a AUG lookalike that is being made in Harrisburg PA, that is slated to be shipped by summer....maybe. It is a bullpup design very much like the Steyr called the Tavor SAR and chambered in 223. Expected price should be in the $2000 range.

Years ago several companies came out with revolvers, shotguns and rifles in various colors, light blue, gold, red, white and others. Now a company out of Turkey has come out with a whole line up of shotguns in several different eye catching colors. The company is Armsan and the guns are semi auto shotguns that come in a bright metallic red receiver and forend cap, another with a green receiver and cap, another with a dull military green receiver and cap, another has tan receiver and cap and of course there is a full camo model. For those that walk on the wild side with Lou Reed.

Remember when Anschutz only came out with subdued, classy 22 rifles? Well, Lou reed must have visited them also as they have a new rifle called MSR RX22 which looks like a 22 rifle out of a Star Wars movie. bright silver aluminum stocked target rifles with expanding buttstocks and skeletal buttstocks. With their very precise peep type target sights sitting high on top of all this, it does look a bit different. Scheduled to ship this summer....maybe.

Everybody that has ever heard of Bo Diddly knows that the Israelis only use the best weapons and accessories. They have to, to survive. Well, a company that has supplied the Isreali Army with various products for years has now gone commercial and is offering the same products that the Israeli soldiers use to the public. The company is FAB Defense. They have over 300 tactical items, battle proven, for your tactical rifles, handguns or shotguns. Included in their line up are holosights with no batteries to run down, special night sights, M-4 type stocks and a lot more. They can be seen at www.themakogroup.com.

Got Tactical Balls? If not, they are available. They are little 1” balls that are battery operated that are intended to distract and disorient if someone comes into your house at night. You simply throw these little steel balls toward him. They are off centered so they wobble, flash with extremely bright lights, including a strobe effect to totally disorient the intruder. They say the little lights will totally blind the intruder with the intense flashing lights that wobble across the floor. It says they are to disorient the intruder so you have time to get the family out to safety. Yeah right. Not if you like in a state that has the Castle Doctrine. If you do, while he is disoriented you light him up in another way. Speaking of lights, a knife company called SOL, or Survive Outdoors Longer has a lighted knife. It has a small LED light in the handle that shines a small bright light on whatever you are cutting up. So this way if you are field dressing a deer at night you can see whether you are slicing the deer or your finger, or both.

You will notice that I haven't mentioned, even once, a Zombie anything. Well, just so you Zombie lovers won't feel left out, EOTech has just come out with a Zombie version of their red dot sight. The reticle is the biohazard symbol, and the finish is a green camo pattern that they say is “completely and totally invisible to Zombies” That is reassuring. It is called the Zombie 2. Well, what did you expect...the Zombie Fat Muddy Girl?

Ruger's own AR-15 type rifle, called the SR-556 has been a big success and now they are coming out with a varmint model of the gun, called the SR-556VT. It has a heavy barrel, two stage target trigger and other features for the varmint/target shooter. Expected out this summer....maybe.

For years there have been bullet drop compensated scopes on the market and for the most part they were not at all reliable. After all that scope doesn't know if you have mounted it on a 357 Magnum lever gun or a 300 Ultra Mag bolt gun, so how can it accurately tell you where to hold for the shot. For years Shepherd scopes were the only company that had bullet drop that was accurate because they were for one particular cartridge, one bullet weight, one speed only. But they were expensive. Now Burris has come out with their 4C scopes, which stands for Cartridge Calibrated Custom Clicker scopes. The scopes come in a 3X9 or a 4.5X14 and once you buy the scope, which is very reasonably priced, you provide Burris with the specific load date on line and they will produce a customized elevation knob to fit the scope and you are set. It also displays 10MPH wind drift for the load you are shooting and has the yardage customized to your specific load.

Ever tried to load a 30 round AR magazine? By round 15 it gets pretty hard. There is a solution to this. Pick up a Lula loader. I tried one recently. It snaps onto the top of the magazine and by moving a toggle back and forth you drop in a round about every second and can load a 30 round mag in about 25 to 30 seconds, and do it with no sore thumb. It is a great little device, made by Maglula.