Categories
Category: Gun Info for Rookies
by Lee Williams
It’s hard not to smile or even giggle a little bit when you see how badly President Donald Trump is scaring the country’s paid anti-gun community, especially when you combine the President’s efforts with those of the United States Supreme Court.
No one is feeling this pro-gun heat more than the youngsters working at the Trace, the propaganda arm of former New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg’s gun control empire, who want the public to believe it’s an actual newsroom comprised of actual journalists—a fiction they’ll go to great lengths to maintain.
The Trace kids are extremely busy trying to stop this Second Amendment tidal wave that’s washing across the entire country. They realize that they’re losing, so they’re rabidly coming up with new ideas to counter our coming freedom—and some of their ideas are absolutely crazy.
Two Tracers just released this tome: “New Jersey Just Lost Its Assault Weapons Ban. Here’s Why That Matters for the Rest of the Country.”
The story’s last line is bedeviling. It’s not a quote or taken from any report. It’s completely attributable to the story’s two anti-gun authors:
“If the Supreme Court strikes down assault weapons bans nationwide next year, states could try other strategies, including putting semiautomatic rifles behind a permitting process,” they actually wrote.
Can you actually imagine that?
The highest court in the country says you can legally possess ARs in every state and U.S. Territory, but then some blue state suddenly requires you to obtain a state permit—regardless of the Supreme Court decision?
Do they think that might actually work?
It’s a Second Amendment right, right?
It would be like requiring state permits before allowing someone to read a book or scour the internet, which are rights guaranteed by the First Amendment.
The Trace is redefining desperation.
I’m picturing five-gallon pails of Zoloft, Prozac and Xanax scattered throughout their newsroom, each with a “help yourself” label.
It actually gets even worse. They’ve actually run out of legitimate sources.
The two authors wrote this:
“It’s unclear whether rescinding the bans will cause an increase in gun violence — or mass shootings in particular. Assault weapons have been used in most of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history, and studies have found that assault weapons, combined with high-capacity magazines, may increase the death count in mass shootings,” the story claims.
The link takes you to another hilarious medical study, which falsely claimed that “state assault weapons bans are associated with fewer fatalities.” The study based its findings on one particular source: “Data were abstracted from the Gun Violence Archive, an independent online database of US gun violence incidents.”
We’ve nearly written volumes about the faulty data from the Gun Violence Archive—so much so that it’s hard not to laugh every time some academic clod uses it in their “research.” Suffice it to say, the GVA said there were 417 mass shootings in 2019. The FBI says there were 30, because it uses actual data and doesn’t make stuff up.
The two authors actually supported using the GVA’s faulty numbers.
“The Trace uses the Gun Violence Archive’s definition of mass shooting, which includes shootings resulting in four or more injuries or deaths, excluding the shooter,” they wrote.
Trace history
The Trace calls itself “The only newsroom dedicated to covering gun violence.” Its staff refer to themselves as journalists, rather than anti-gun activists who are paid by Bloomberg to write propaganda.
Since the Trace was founded about a decade ago, scores of newspapers, websites and other legacy media outlets have fallen victim to this ruse. What’s left of Gannett’s flagship newspaper, USA Today, has collaborated with the Trace multiple times, and has even allowed Trace activists to produce and edit content, which appeared in the newspaper under a joint byline.
“We have partnered with more than 170 national and local media organizations,” the Trace boasts on its website. “We’re always looking to start new partnerships.”
The Trace is nothing more than the propaganda arm of Everytown for Gun Safety, which is also funded by Bloomberg.
Both nonprofits share the same president, John Feinblatt. In fact, Feinblatt is also listed as the two nonprofits’ principal officer. Federal tax documents show that the Trace and Everytown also use the same phone number, 646-324-8250.
Both nonprofits were incorporated in Delaware, which is known for its stringent corporate privacy laws.
Takeaways
Now that New Jersey-compliant ARs are a thing of the past, and California-compliant ARs may soon follow, we should take a minute to relax, but only one minute, no more.
The Trace and its followers will certainly come up with more whacky ideas, but they live in states whose judges support whacky behavior, especially if it harms the Second Amendment.
We remain in a constant battle for our civil rights, and anything can still go wrong at any time, according to Murphy’s Law.
“I learned that Murphy is alive and well. He’s in every drawer, under every rock and on top of every hill.”
Col. Charlie Beckwith said that. He should certainly know.
The Second Amendment Foundation’s Investigative Journalism Project wouldn’t be possible without you. Click here to make a tax-deductible donation to support pro-gun stories like this.
Most of us have shot a classic .22 plinker but moved on to “bigger” and “better.” However — sometimes — simple pleasures are the best!
Early into my shooting career, some of my absolute favorite moments resulted from cool, calm days where I had all of the time in the world to sling .22 rounds at dime-sized targets — and with little concern about ammo cost or being battered by the forces of recoil!
As I investigated what else the rimfire world had in store for me, I would repeatedly come across articles referencing some of the kings of the category: the Winchester 52 and the Remington 37, for example. Many of these designs were once considered the gold standard of accuracy within 100 yards and my interest was firmly piqued.
Unfortunately, my dreams of owning these legends dissipated once I picked them up. Today, I’m a lot more excited by those rifles that, to me, represent a golden mean between raw accuracy and ease of use. Indulge me and I’ll tell you what I think makes for a perfect “offhand plinker.”
The Walther KKJ is an exceptionally well-made “sporter” rimfire rifle. If you can see it with the naked eye, you’ll hit it with this.
“Seeable” reactive targets don’t much care for minor point-of-impact shifts. A rifle with a pencil barrel can zap them, hot or cold.
Two Ends Of The Spectrum
On one hand, we’ve always been awash with lightweight, affordable rifles and many of them have been of extraordinarily high quality. I learned recently that Ruger has produced more than 5 million of its famous 10/22 rifles. I would reason that within a half-hour drive of your current location, you can find a gun store with a 10/22, new or used, currently sitting on the shelf.
It’s no mystery why the rifles are beloved. The 10/22 is easily shouldered and aimed. It is robust and reliable, and tolerant of a wide variety of ammunition. When I was in my late teens, I had fired a gun before. However, the groups I coaxed out of a 10/22 got me to think about shooting differently. “Maybe I have some talent for this,” I told myself.
Additionally, America’s used gun market is awash with a number of .22LR rifles intended as either entry-level tools for pest control or “boy’s” or “youth” rifles that would serve as a child’s first introduction to marksmanship without mom or dad having to break the bank. The Winchester 67, Remington 514, and Stevens 15 are all prototypical examples of the type. In general, they are light, easily operated and despite their humble origins and no-frills materials, they tend to shoot surprisingly well!
Still, spend some time with them and their limitations come into focus. Most have very simple folded metal or “buckhorn” sights, thin barrels prone to heating up quickly and stiff triggers. Budget price points often necessitated budget materials so expect beechwood or plastic stocks, along with stamped steel construction of various small parts.
The Winchester 69 has Clayton’s vote for offering
buyers the most usable accuracy for the least spend.
The Bergara BMR — Its light weight makes for a rifle that can still be comfortably shot offhand even with a mounted scope.
Winchester 63 with a period-correct Weaver low-magnification scope. Light and simple is often best!
Winchester’s vaunted Model 52 is of the perennial kings of rimfire accuracy and craftsmanship, it’s also a boat anchor!
The Other End
As one moves from “budget” to “premium” in the rimfire rifle category, the upgrades are obvious. At the upper tier of the quality spectrum, buyers can expect to find longer, thicker barrels that aid accuracy. A 26″ tent-pole of a barrel not only offers more runway for the powder of a rimfire cartridge to fully and completely burn, but it gives open sight users more distance to ensure perfect alignment between the front and rear units.
The barrel thickness also ensures it heats and cools in a more uniform manner, which reduces any temperature-based point of impact shifts.
Along with those long, gorgeous barrels and hand-fit actions, you’ll also usually find very generous and beautiful walnut furniture, often with metal fixtures for the buttstock, sling attachments and other accoutrements. One look at these guns and you’ll immediately be transported back to an era where no cost was spared to provide the rimfire shooter with the best accuracy the day’s engineering and experience could allow.
The trade-offs, however, are size and weight. Most of the .22s you’ll find in rimfire competitions tend to be big. Extra mass provides more stability and precision, but makes it a rifle much harder to heft and shoot offhand. It’s not to say one can’t do so but those interested in the attempt normally have specialized shooting jackets dedicated to such a purpose.
The same goes for adding one of the most common and historic tools for improving one’s group: the scope. As my military buddies like to say, “Ounces make pounds.” Where rimfire rifles are concerned, I’ve found a 24-oz. scope moves offhand shooting on a big, wood-stocked rifle from the realm of “challenging” to “impromptu strength training.” Show me a guy who can heft a scoped Winchester 52D and shoot a great group offhand, and I’ll show you a guy who looks like Hulk Hogan.
Above, the Ruger 10/22 is well-represented in America’s gun stores, and for good reason.
The Middle Path
For the rest of us, many of the design specs and equipment choices maximizing mechanical precision come at the expense of practical accuracy. In simpler terms: Bring the scope to eye level, and your arms will almost instantly begin to feel like wet noodles and the reticle will wobble all over the place. To quote the old infomercials: There has to be a better way!
Indeed, there is no shortage of rimfire rifles which got an extra degree of TLC from the maker over the budget model yet weren’t fully optimized for bench work. The Winchester 69 remains perhaps my favorite rifle of all time. Yes, the trigger guard is stamped steel and the trigger pull isn’t astoundingly light, but the gun is like a laser in my hands. Within 75 yards, if I can see it, I can hit it. Of course, beyond that I probably can’t see it!
I also have a tremendous affinity for a number of quality pump-action rifles. Often, models like the Remington 12, Winchester 62 and Browning Trombone exhibit very high quality workmanship, are fast into action, and shucking rounds in and out of these platforms is a joy.
Still, I’m not picky. Just about any mag or tube-fed rifle with a thinner barrel, decent wood and a good set of aperture sights has my eye. To this latter point, I find “peep” sights allow for tremendous practical accuracy without the weight of a scope and mounts, yet they also eschew the alignment imprecision that often goes hand-in-hand with buckhorns or folded steel sights.
One key to finding a great offhand plinker is to look for the phrase “sporter.” Through the generations, the term has defined guns designed to be used afield — i.e., picked up and shot. Winchester made its storied 52 in a “sporter” configuration (a gun perpetually on my “one day” list), and Browning still makes its excellent T-bolt rifle as a sporter.
The wood-stocked version of Springfield’s new 2020 Waypoint rimfire rifle also comes with an accuracy guarantee and a stated weight of 6 lbs., 3 oz. Truly, a “best of both worlds” deal.
Elsewhere, composite materials help to keep the weight down. I purchased my Bergara BMR not only because of the Spanish gunmaker’s well-established reputation but because it was light enough for me to heft even with a scope included.
With a user-adjustable trigger — currently set at 2.5 lbs. exactly — and capable of eye-popping groups from the bench, I don’t feel like I’m giving up much to the walnut-stocked, bull-barreled monsters of yore.
Many sporter-weight rimfire rifles feature simple sights often challenging to aging eyes, but (right) the aperture sight is a godsend on a small-caliber rifle, enabling high precision with hardly any additional weight.
Freedom of Choice
Our own Massad Ayoob recently wrote he didn’t like the finger grooves on the third-generation GLOCKs because he didn’t like a gun telling him how he needed to shoot it. The same goes for me with the weight of many .22 rifles — a gun telling me it needs to live on the bench isn’t usually one that’s fun for me to work with.
Sure, the long guns I’ve gravitated to might very well give up some accuracy at the 50-yard line and beyond. I don’t know how many dudes are winning rimfire matches with clapped out “department store” rifle. Regardless, there have been countless golf balls, shotgun shells, playing cards and wood chips obliterated by my ugly, dinged-up .22 and the slight impact shift between a hot and cold barrel doesn’t normally matter on targets I don’t need magnification to see.
Ironically, the older I get, the more time I seem to spend with designs historically positioned as youth rifles. That is, they’re lithe, simple and inexpensive. To me, the feats of marksmanship putting a smile on my face are those coming as a result of me using my own two eyes and hands to zap something just at the threshold of my vision. Almost always, I’m going to reach for a .22 rifle to scratch the itch.
If it’s been some time since you’ve gotten away from the bench rest, or if you’re the kind of shooter who has regarded any sort of .22 as a novelty, here’s your invitation — buy a svelte, light rimfire rifle. It probably won’t cost you very much and I bet you’ll immediately rediscover just how fun offhand shooting can be.