Gary's Gun Notes #93

It has been extremely busy and hectic around the Reeder hacienda this past month or so. Normally I do the Black Chromex finish twice a week, wednesdays and Saturdays, but this last month it has been 3 or 4 times a week. A large amount of blued guns to do. These things run in cycles. The guns we are working on right now are the ones we ran ads on 4 months ago, and those were blued guns. Next month it may be all stainless guns or a mixture. A lot of what we are doing are guns for the Misfits going to the HHC in two weeks. Several of them ordered guns at the last HHC in March and we are running behind as usual on them, but are working overtime trying to get them all done by the hunt.

Some of the guns we are working on now are also the prototype guns for the six new cartridges we have introduced recently. For those not familiar with them, they are the 240 Banshee and 255 Banshee, both based on the 22 Hornet case necked up to .243 and .257. These diminutive cartridges are not intended for large deer size critters but should do very well on smaller species of deer like the Key Deer and our Coues Deer which rarely get over 75 pounds. These two cartridges were developed for revolvers, standard size, not the stretch frame models and they both work to perfection.

The next two are the 284 GNR and 307 GNR. Both of these are based on the 357 Maximum case necked down to 7mm and 30 caliber. I have done extensive testing with the 307 GNR and it performs flawlessly. The 284 GNR works fine, but some of the shorter lighter weight 7mm bullets are hard to find these days so only preliminary testing has been done on it. As more and more 7mm bullets become available I will be doing more testing on it. The 307 GNR will be a bit more power than the 300 GNR plus you don't have to do the cutting, trimming and such that is required on the 300 GNR. The downside is that a Ruger stretch frame revolver is required for the conversion. The good thing is that the Ruger 357 Maximum revolvers are easier to get and cheaper than in recent past.

The next new cartridge is our 401 GNR, a new 40 caliber revolver cartridge based on the 44 magnum case. It is in theory just a 41 GNR necked down to 40 caliber. The best bullets for this cartridge are 38-40 bullets as they have a cannelure to crimp the case mouth in. The 10mm and 40 S&W bullets are semi auto bullets and do not have a crimp groove so many of them will not be the best way to go. I have been using hard cast gas checked bullets designed for the 38-40. They are 180 grain and 200 grain. The cartridge is extremely accurate and should be good for any critter that would be taken with the 41 GNR. I found these bullets in stock at Montana Bullet Works and at very reasonable prices.

The final of the 6 new cartridges is the 500 GNR. I have had quite a few requests for a .500 caliber cartridge. I put it off for years as I thought someone would come out with a good .500 caliber cartridge that would have less recoil than the big 500 S&W but still have plenty of power for anything in the U.S. When one didn't seem to be forthcoming, I decided to go ahead and release the cartridge I designed 4 years ago. Our new 500 GNR was developed for a 350 grain hard cast gas checked bullet. It is very simple to load for. You just take a 510 GNR brass and run it thru the 500 GNR sizer die and it puts a small neck on the case, necking it down to .500. It, like the 401 GNR above, is very accurate and pleasant to shoot, even with top end loads. This cartridge was also developed for a revolver or Encore and does very well in both. Like the 401 GNR above, bullets for the 500 GNR are available from Montana Bullet Works.

We have been very lucky this past week or so. We almost lost a good friend in John Taffin. John suffered a ruptured blood vessel near his heart and was rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery. After a 6 hour surgery in which they had to cut his sternum open, He came out of it fine and was brought home today. But it was a close call, too close.

Our October HHC (Handgun Hunter's Challenge) is almost on us. We have 46 hunters signed up as of today for this hunt and a great one it should be. Just to get to meet some of the Misfits that I haven't yet met is a bonus to a great hunt. The HHC will be held at our normal hunting spot, the Wilderness Hunting Lodge in Monterey Tennessee, about 90 minutes NE of Nashville. The hunt takes place on many many acres of typical Tennessee landscape, some rolling hills and some straight up and down hillsides. The hunt is good for anyone in that it can be easy or it can be one of the hardest hunts you have been on. You can sit in a ground blind and something will walk by you within an hour or so. There are many hundreds of exotic animals there and many gold medal trophies. Animals like Elk, Red Stag, Fallow deer, Sika deer, Axis deer, Dall sheep, Corsican Sheep, Barbados Sheep, Marino Sheep, American Bison, Australian Water buffalo, Scimitar Horned Oryx, and much more. Plus of course, wild hogs of every type, size and temperment.

If you are looking for a very unusual trophy, they have the little Muntjac deer there. The Muntjac is a deer weighing about 20 pounds and has fangs. There is a fang coming out of each side of his upper jaw, sometimes extending over 3 inches. The Muntjac is extremely hard to hunt as it stays in the heavy brush most of the time. Most people hunt them with shotguns and with a handgun it is extremely tedious. They also bark like a dog and are very aggressive. The one I took a year or so ago was spotted chasing a small group of elk barking like a dog.

And speaking of elk, if you have always wanted a nice 6X6 bull Elk on your wall, this is your chance and at a great price. Out here in Elk country a good 6X6 taken with a guide/outfitter would cost you around $10,000, maybe a bit more. But these Elk are sale priced at just $2450 and that is a steal. Alan Wilson, the owner of the lodge is dropping his prices to rock bottom for us on this hunt. The Elk meat alone is worth that amount of money, not counting the hunt itself and the trophy. Kase is going to try for one with his ever present 378 GNR. And should you spot a 5X5 or a 5X6 odd antlered Elk, it is $1975, an even better deal.

We also have some other surprises to be had at the hunt. On Friday evening we will be giving away a Water Buffalo hunt, a $2500 value, free. We are also giving other prizes away that evening and also Friday evening they are bar-b-qing a whole hog for us. So this is going to be one terrific hunt. If you think you might want to join us consider this my personal invitation to you.. Just call Sherry, the owner's wife at 931-260-1600 or 931-839-2091 and put down your $250 deposit and you are set. If you want to join us, do so soon as we only have 3 or 4 openings left. If you do put your deposit down, let me know so I can add your name to the list. There are several husband/wife combos that are scheduled to be there along with a father/daughter team and at least one lady hunter by herself. One of the 3 lodges has been set aside for the married couples and lady hunters.

Well, let's see what is new on the firearm front. Ruger has had a very successful year or two with their SR9 and SR9-C 9mm pistols. They have been awarded Handgun of the Year and are extremely well made autos. Now Ruger is coming out with the SR-40, a 16 shot 40 caliber pistol. If this one does half as well as the SR-9, it will be another success story for Ruger. And like the SR-9, the price is extremely reasonable with retail just a hair over $500. S&W has their new Bone Collector series of 500 caliber revolver out and I will give it one thing. It should take the award as the ugliest revolver currently on the market with the exception of maybe the Rhino from Chiappa Firearms. But the S&W 500, at 80 ounces empty, is also one of the heaviest. Just my humble opinion.

If you are looking for a reasonably priced 1911 you have several choices. Armscor, High Standard, Rock Island Armory and now American Tactical Imports are all offering 1911s without all the frills for around $425. These are excellent base guns or excellent just as a good 1911 for concealed carry. They work great and you are not paying for a lot of frills that you may not need or want.

Since Taurus has come out with the Judge revolver in 45 LC/410 shotshell, there have been several other companies follow suit. Magnum Research has one of them with their own 45/410 revolver called the Hammer. I find it interesting that Taurus has come out with a statement to the press saying and I quote.."Shotshells in 410 bore are not considered especially effective in personal defense, birdshot loads, while unlikely to generate lethal penetration, are likely to generate disabling pain, and could easily blind a person if fired at the face". It is amazing to actually see someone telling the truth these days. Even with all the specialty revolvers out designed for home defense, a study recently released said that the most common home defense weapon is still the 12 gauge shotgun.

Remember the Steyr Scout rifle? The rifle designed by Jeff Cooper that was a really bad flop here in the states. Well, they are bringing it back again. This one has Jeff Cooper's signature and crest on the gun and sling and comes in 308 caliber. This one, priced at $3000 may not be a rapid mover with our slow economy.