No matter who you are or how well connected, there’s one unifying truth about the ammo shortage of 2013—it’s no respecter of persons.

That much was obvious at the recent NRA Show in Houston, where everyone from law enforcement officials to industry personnel—all the way down to your average man on the street—noted the incredible difficulty of procuring ammunition over the last few months. As Chad, an NRA member from Austin, Texas, said, you know times are rough when .22 ammo is missing from shelves.

“You can’t find .22 ammo anywhere,” Chad said. “I found a 525-round box at Academy [Sports & Outdoors] and thought I hit the lottery. That’s the first time I’ve seen it in probably six months.”

Like Chad, many NRA members have dealt with the ammo shortage by implementing a strategy of persistence—they simply keep checking back with their local sporting good outlet, gun shop or feed store, hoping to catch the latest shipment as it hits the shelves. For the people who claimed to have at least limited success finding ammo, this was undoubtedly the most common tactic.

Others, like Houston natives Ronald and Gale, said they’ve simply cut back on range time.

“It’s kept us off the range as much as we’d like to go,” Ronald said. “I’m afraid it’s going to put some of our good ranges—some mom and pop operations—out of business. Personally, this was coming for a long time. I’ve got enough to fend off a good attack, should I say. But like most good Boy Scouts, be prepared.”

As Ronald pointed out, there’s more than one way to deal with the shortage. You can either scavenge whatever is available when it’s available, you can stay away from the range or you can do both. The anecdotal evidence from NRA members at the show seems to point in this direction—gun owners are not only scraping together whatever ammo they can find, they’re also keeping more of it boxed up at home.

“Ammo is so hard to get, most of the people I know, when you do get it you don’t go to the range,” said Scott of Lufkin, Texas. “People that go to the range on a regular basis just aren’t going because you can’t afford to shoot the ammo and then not be able to replace it.”

Supply and Demand
The obvious question many people are asking is why the shortage happened in the first place. The answers aren’t always so obvious, but it starts with the political climate and the ongoing threat of anti-gun legislation. That threat—especially when it comes from the government—fuels an increase in demand for the buyer, who grabs and stashes as much ammo as he can.

Add an Associated Press report from Feb. 15 stating the Department of Homeland Security wants to buy up 1.6 billion rounds of ammo in the next few years—plus an ongoing discussion about it by the conspiracy theorists in the blogosphere—and you’ve got a veritable run on the market. Groups like the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) and the NRA, meanwhile, have called a government attempt to stockpile ammunition a farce, attributing shortages to a simple increase in demand driven by anti-gun politics. Either way, demand skyrockets.

Manufacturers like Hornady, which gets questioned all the time about why it doesn’t just amp up production, said it’s just not that simple.

“We’ve been steadily growing our production for a long time, especially the last five years,” Hornady said on its website. “We’ve added presses, lathes, CNC equipment, people and space. Many popular items are produced 24 hours a day. Several hundred Hornady employees work overtime every week to produce as much as safely possible. If there is any question about that—please take a tour of the factory. You’ll be amazed at what you see.”

The Silver Lining
There is a silver lining in all of this, though. First, a good portion of the Assault Weapons Ban of 2013 was unceremoniously shot down on the Senate floor in the middle of April. With Feinstein’s incendiary measures out of the way, there’s at least some hope tensions will die down. With less for gun owners to fear, the expectation is for demand to settle down and production to play catch up. Many industry officials at the NRA show were at least optimistic about such a possibility, though nothing will likely change in the immediate future.

The ammo shortage has also caused a drastic increase in laser training sales, according to Aaron Moore, vice president and director of operations at LaserLyte.

“We’ve sold a whole lot more laser trainers,” Moore said. “We’ve been up about 700 percent in sales over last year.”

Adaptation may just be the key message for gun owners in America. It’s a different world than even a year ago, which means persistent shopping around and utilizing alternative methods of training are plausible options for many. It also means there’s never been a time to stand and defend your rights as an American and as a gun owner like the present. It’s a constant reminder of how quickly our precious freedoms can disappear if we don’t stand vigilant.

Knee-jerk media outlets are working mercilessly to gain support for the leftist gun-control agenda. Unethical journalists have formed an entire vocabulary of gun-demonizing terms, leading those who know nothing about guns to believe that “assault clips” are more dangerous than walking down a dark alley at night in Chicago.

Just as a reminder, firearms don’t have a brain, they don’t have feelings and they can’t make their own decisions. Calling a semi-automatic rifle an “assault rifle” brands an inanimate object with a negative connotation. In reality, the terms “freedom defender” or “modern musket” should be the politically-correct terms when referring to an instrument which nobly protects American liberties.

According to the NRA-ILA Glossary, “[if the term 'assault rifle' is] applied to any semi-automatic firearm regardless of its cosmetic similarity to a true assault rifle, the term is incorrect.” A true assault rifle is a select-fire weapon capable of continuously firing rounds as long as the trigger is depressed, or until it runs out of ammo. Real assault rifles are heavily regulated by the BATF, and require an extensive registration process for private civilian ownership.

Semi-automatic rifles such as the AR-15 shoot only one shot per trigger pull. Much to the surprise of people who rely on the evening news to learn about guns, the “AR” in “AR-15″ stands for “Armalite,” the name of the company that originally manufactured the rifle.

With all the misleading information forced upon the American public, the editors at G&A hit the floor of the 2013 NRA Show to find out your definition of an assault weapon.

Just three short months after his tragic murder, Kyle’s wife Taya spoke about him at the 2013 NRA show in Houston, Texas, before a large crowd of teary-eyed NRA members. With pictures from across the spectrum of his life and military service on the big screen behind her, Taya recounted the life of her husband—a war hero, friend to struggling veterans and father of two young children. She recounted something he told her in January shortly before his death.

“Chris told me, ‘I would love for people to think of me as a guy who stood up for what he believed in and helped make a difference for veterans, someone who cared so much about them that he wanted them taken care of.’ Well, Chris, well done babe. You did it,” Taya said, wiping tears from her eyes amid the applause of the crowd.

Kyle undoubtedly left a legacy of self-sacrifice in the cause of conviction, something Taya said should give us all courage to stand and fight not only for the Second Amendment, but for all of our rights. With the right to bear arms comes the responsibility to defend our freedom, even at great personal cost. From the battlefields of Ramadi to his native soil of Texas, Kyle knew the cost intimately.

“From the days of Cain and Abel, we know all too well there will always be evil,” Taya said. “But that evil shouldn’t take away our freedoms. In fact, the only way to defeat evil is by taking advantage of our freedoms.”

I would encourage you to watch the video, and as you do, consider Kyle’s life in the words of his widow: “He was an everyday boy who did the best he could at what he loved, and he grew into an everyday man, loving his God, his country and loving his family.” We may not all be heroes in the eyes of the world, but we each have the opportunity to make a difference for others in some everyday way. Be that kind of hero today.

With the surge in concealed carry licenses across the country, people are turning to more innovative methods for firearm transportation. Blackhawk Concealment Bags come in several designs, resembling common luggage items which aren’t usually associated with transporting firearms. Styles include courier, workout, skateboard and racquet bags—making even your nosiest neighbor believe you’re going to the gym, or going out to play tennis.

Depending on the specific design, retail price of the Blackhawk Concealment Bags range from $54 to $174.

Each Go Bag comes equipped with internal Velcro dividers for organizing essential items like MREs, medical supplies and as much ammo as possible. These new offerings come in various form factors to meet the specific needs of each user. Choose from models with padded shoulder straps, or backpack designs with S.T.R.I.K.E. webbing for attaching pouches and accessories.

Retail price of the Blackhawk Go Bag ranges from $34 to $189.

Integrating key characteristics of the rifle into one package enables consumers to purchase the ISR 300 with only one tax stamp. The overall barrel length reaches just over 16 inches with the permanently fixed, integral suppressor. Although permanently welded to the barrel, the suppressor’s baffle core is removable for easy cleaning. Combine that suppression with subsonic 300 AAC Blackout ammunition, and the ISR can deliver .30 caliber penetration without excessive muzzle blast or hearing loss.

The MFR 12.0 rail system allows shooters to run the hand guard “slick” to decrease weight, or to add accessories by placing rail sections at any desired location. Daniel Defense brings the DDM4 ISR 300 to market at $3,199.

The bolt has a 60-degree rotation for ergonomic scope clearance with six locks engaging directly into the barrel. Bolt features also include an innovative safety selector located directly on the bolt shroud, which will completely lock the bolt and a firing pin block that allows firing only after the bolt has been fully locked into battery.

Sauer guarantees sub-moa groups thanks to their tension-free barrel-to-receiver connection, a wide 2lb trigger and secure bolt locking design. Additionally, the Sauer 101 accepts Remington 700 long action scope base mounts and comes with a 5+1 round detachable magazine.

None of this is extremely revolutionary, but with a street price in the U.S. around $1,400, this bolt-action offering will likely hit the ground running.

This new offering, manufactured in Isny, Germany, is available in both wood or synthetic stocks, 22″ or 24″ barrels and a dozen different caliber choices, allowing the American consumer different configurations for their next bolt gun. The crisp trigger and positive locking three-position safety are sure to impress hunters and bench rest shooters alike. Not to mention, field stripping the rifle is simple and requires no tools. Perhaps the most desirable feature is the detachable 5+1 round magazine, which enables easy follow-up shots.

The Mauser M12 will be distributed by Blaser, and comes to the American market at $1,499.

Pincus—who is the owner of ICE Training Company and is also a longtime author, trainer and consultant—made his case for the “warrior expert theory,” which states that through frequent and life-like training, students can learn how to recognize and respond to a threatening incident in a consistent, efficient way. In plain English, it means the more you perform the necessary muscle movements required of a defensive situation, the more successfully you will execute those skills in the moment you need them most.

“We’re all gun enthusiasts here, and the number one reason we have guns is ultimately to protect ourselves,” Pincus said. “That means we all have a right—and I would say a responsibility—to learn how to properly defend ourselves with the appropriate firearms.”

“Our rights and responsibilities have been under attack the last three months, and up to this point we have successfully maintained them,” Pincus said to a packed house of NRA members well aware of the recent threats to the Second Amendment, but maybe less aware of the need for self defense training. “It is up to us to make good on those freedoms we’ve fought so hard to protect.”

With experience as a law enforcement officer and executive protection agent, Pincus has taken his training methodologies and used them to equip law enforcement agencies and combat groups around the world. He also developed the Combat Focus Shooting program, which was designed to be the most efficient defensive firearms training available today.

Core Components
At the heart of the ICE (integrity, consistency, efficiency) training is the concept of intuitive defensive shooting—the assertion that training must work within the framework of what the body does naturally and train it to be as consistent and efficient as possible. That means reality-based training, constant repetition to build muscle memory and a basic understanding of how the body naturally functions.

Pincus stresses trainees understand the importance of context when preparing themselves for defensive shooting skills. First, it means understanding most defensive pistol stops are psychological. While hitting your target is certainly optimal, the psychological impact of being fired upon must be taken into account. If an intruder flees after an errant shot, the stop is still successful.

Second, Pincus trains his students to make their shots in the high, center chest, from an average distance of 9 to 15 feet. Since most defensive scenarios take place in that range, training must mirror those distances. In the same way, students must prepare themselves with “defensive accuracy” in mind, concerning themselves not with groups on a target but overall threat deterrence. Success is measured not ultimately by tight groups on a stationary paper target, but on whether or not a hostile force is stopped.

When it comes to developing consistency, Pincus maintains there’s no substitute for constant repetitions of the proper and most efficient techniques. That means, for example, preparing yourself to shoot unsighted at shorter distances and sighted with one eye closed at the high end of the 9 to 15 foot range. This means Pincus helps students intuitively adjust for a target at 9 feet versus one at 20.

Balance of Speed and Precision
Ultimately, Pincus said, all that training comes down to successfully balancing speed and precision. The deciding factor is distance, which determines how precise a shooter needs to be. At 9 feet, it matters less than at 15. Either way, the number of successful hits on a target comes down to your application of skill in that moment. Speed is more of a result of confidence to make a shot at a certain distance, in a particular setting. Put it all together and you’ve got multiple shots in a hostile threat, high center chest, that form a counter ambush stopping their attack. That is, after all, the main point.

With the events of the last three months now on paper and a political environment ablaze with talk of gun control and mounting restrictions, Pincus said Americans are once again waking up to the necessity of protecting their right to self defense. And as they do, the need for specialized training in defensive shooting—as well as utilizing the right kind of firearms—is more paramount than ever.

The Pico’s other great selling point is its modularity. The grip frame, quick-change dovetail sights, and caliber are all interchangeable with little to no tool work involved. Beretta will be offering a .32 ACP barrel option that’s easy to swap and a number of different color frames including a LaserMax version with an integrated tactical light and laser. Several holsters will be available when the gun hits the shelves in August.

With base models starting at $399, these USA-made pistols should prove quite popular as soon as they begin shipping.

“If you’re in the market for a relatively affordable third-generation battle rifle, the ARX 100 is it,” Poole writes. “It handles well, is super reliable and offers the greatest tactical flexibility of anything out there. The bench shooter looking for a single-hole paper puncher should look elsewhere, but the ARX 100 is a practical and effective carbine for dynamic shooting scenarios—and is quite capable of pinging steel silhouettes at 600 meters.”

We caught up with Rafe Bennett at the George R. Brown Convention Center to experience firsthand what all the hype is about.

Tucson Police officers work a gun buyback outside a police station in Tucson, Ariz., in January. (Photo by Brian Skoloff/The Associated Press)

Whenever a city has a gun buyback program, the media likes to praise their efforts at “reducing crime.” Gun buybacks have never been shown to reduce crime, and why would they? Let’s look at this logically—who is going to turn in their guns, and which guns are they going to turn in? Criminals intent on using their guns at some future date sure aren’t going to turn them in.

Most of the guns turned in—usually for a small cash incentive or gift card—aren’t even functional. Some of the guns turned in belonged to deceased family members, and are turned in because the survivors just don’t want guns in the house. Does it sound like that would reduce violent crime in any way?

A few months ago, some gun collectors made the news when they showed up at a gun buyback offering to pay more for good finds than what the city was offering. This did not sit well with the media or the authorities, even though the guns would be going to law-abiding citizens. Why didn’t they like this? Because honestly, they are against anyone owning guns.

In this national media and left-driven hysteria pushing for new gun laws, you would think that Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signing a new gun law last Monday would have made national news. In fact, almost nobody heard about it. I’m not sure why, but my guess is because this law makes sense. What is it?

In 2010, Arizona passed a law dictating that police are required to sell seized weapons to federally licensed dealers. Many cities, including Tucson, were ignoring this law when conducting their gun buybacks because they stated the weapons weren’t “seized.” Instead, they were destroying the weapons they seized. Well, the new law has addressed this perceived loophole.

Brewer is a strong Second Amendment supporter and has signed many other pro-gun bills. Proponents of this bill argue that destroying valuable property turned over to the government instead of selling it is a waste of taxpayer resources. Democrats who argued against the bill said it usurps local control and goes against the wishes of people who turn over their unwanted weapons to keep them out of the hands of children or thieves.

The “usurps local control” argument is valid, although one we never hear from big government types unless it suits them. The “keeping the weapons out of the hands of children or thieves” argument is completely irrelevant, in my opinion, as the guns will be sold to federally licensed firearm dealers.

The governor’s office said it received nearly 2,000 letters, emails or phone calls about the bill, with only 25 opposed. The NRA sent a letter in support of the bill on April 22, which argued that selling seized or forfeited guns “would maintain their value, and their sale to the public would help recover public funds.” The NRA letter said the bill doesn’t prevent a private group from holding an event and destroying the weapons, so watch the gun-grabbers try using that tactic in Arizona.

“However, this measure would ensure that taxpayer resources are not utilized to pursue a political agenda of destroying firearms,” the NRA said.

Maricopa County Supervisor Mary Rose Wilcox—a Democrat who champions the buyback events and survived being shot in the buttocks at the end of a 1997 Board of Supervisors meeting—sent a letter to Brewer urging a veto. The bill “would force the resale of guns that would otherwise never have been used for violence,” she wrote. “How many lives would be lost through the use of weapons our citizens hoped to be removed from the hands of criminals?”

Her statement shows a bit of a disconnect from reality—the guns didn’t come from the hands of criminals, and they’re not going to the hands of criminals. It also is a perfect example of many liberals’ point of view; in their minds, guns are evil, and are never used for good. Ever. Period.

Those who favor a society without gun rights seem to be prone to spreading false information. At best, anti-gun leaders unknowingly spread baseless accusations; at worst, they willingly to lie to achieve their objectives. Regardless, it is my observation that a host of gun control myths began circulating during the 1960s and continue today.

For instance, how many times have you heard President Barack Obama pushing the Manchin-Toomey gun control bill because, according to the him, 90 percent of Americans support so-called universal background checks? Well, a Pew Research poll was conducted after the Senate defeated the bill. Turns out only 47 percent of Americans are disappointed the bill failed, while 32 percent describe themselves as “very happy” or “relieved.” So, Mr. President, you can quit arguing that the country is behind you on this.

If we can spread the truth about this myth now, maybe it will die. But there are other, older myths that have festered for years. Unfortunately, as the saying goes, if a lie is spread enough, it becomes the truth. Even some gun owners can start to believe the nonsense, which is particularly dangerous in the current political environment. So the next time you hear a gun-control advocate rattling off one of these myths, shock him with the truth.

Myth No. 1: A gun in the home is more likely to kill a family member than an intruder.
This is probably the most widely circulated gun control myth ever. It’s been argued that a gun in the home is 43 times more likely to kill a family than an intruder. You’re actually safer, argue anti-gun folks, in a gun-free home. That may help them sleep at night, but it isn’t true.

Despite this myth’s popularity, have you ever noticed politicians and journalists never cite a source to go along with it? Perhaps that’s because it’s derived from a seriously flawed 1986 report in the New England Journal of Medicine, “Protection or Peril?: An Analysis of Firearm-Related Deaths in the Home.”

Most notably, the study only accounted for cases of self-defense with firearms in which the criminal was killed. If the bad guy was wounded, held at gunpoint for police or ran away, it was not included in the data. That is a rather incredible oversight since, according to Florida State criminologist Gary Kleck, criminals are only shot dead in about 1 percent of firearm-defense incidents. Fact is, according to Kleck’s exhaustive research, a gun in the home is three to five times more likely to help stop a crime than commit one.

Myth No. 2: Forty percent of guns are purchased without a background check.
In pushing for “universal” background checks, Obama has repeatedly said, “As many as 40 percent of guns are purchased without a background check.” Vice President Joe Biden has also pushed the stat, and their lapdogs at The New York Times, USA Today and other media outlets have reported the stat as fact without questioning the source. As professor John Lott demonstrates, the number is actually closer to 10 percent.

To reach the 40-percent number, one must count family inheritances and gifts as “purchases.” The number is also based on a Clinton administration survey in which many respondents erroneously indicated they had not undergone a background check to buy a gun.

Myth No. 3: Fewer people own guns today.
Given the spate of gun buying over the last few years, it’s hard to believe anyone could perpetuate this myth with a straight face. According to FBI data, there have been a rather incredible 70,291,049 background checks for gun purchases since Obama took office. Gun control advocates argue it’s merely existing gun owners making all the purchasing. However, according to a 2011 Gallup poll, at least 47 percent of Americans own guns, compared to 41 percent in 1993. By most indications, gun ownership is on the rise.

Myth No. 4: Criminals obtain their weapons at gun shows.
The Brady Campaign and others have fought hard to convince us that criminals and even terrorists purchase their wares at gun shows. But what do the facts say? A Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) study from November 2001, “Firearms Use by Offenders,” found only 1 percent of criminals obtained their firearms at gun shows. An earlier BJS study found that only 1.7 percent of federal inmates made their purchases at gun shows. The numbers are backed up by a National Institute of Justice survey, which found only about 2-percent of criminals bought at gun shows.

So how do most bad guys obtain their guns? They’re forced to steal them.

Myth No. 5: People hardly ever use guns for self-defense.
If gun control advocates can convince the public that guns are rarely used for self-defense, then they can portray those who keep them for protection as misguided or paranoid. Fact is, according to a study by Kleck, guns are used up to 2.5 million times per year annually in the United States for armed self-defense. Often these incidents are unreported to the police or the media.

Why? In many cases the would-be victim draws a gun, the criminal immediately runs away and the event is never reported. Gun control advocates should keep in mind that self-defense doesn’t necessarily involve actually shooting a criminal, as this is gun owners’ last resort. There is also, of course, media bias that influences under-reporting of self-defense incidents, but we’ll save that topic for another feature.

Myth No. 6: Your gun is more likely to be used against you by an attacker.
According to Kleck’s book, Point Blank: Guns and Violence in America, attackers only disarm armed citizens in fewer than 1 percent of cases. This is especially true in cases of concealed carry, because the attacker often didn’t realize the target was armed, had no plan to disarm him or her, and flees in search of easier prey. By contrast, according to U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics data, armed resistance against an attacker—especially with a firearm—is the most effective means to prevent injury, or to thwart robbery or assault. In other words, “just doing whatever the bad guy says,” is often poor advice.

Myth No. 7: We can’t trust people with concealed carry.
Those who often perpetuate this myth don’t realize their state allows concealed carry—unless the individual is a citizen of Illinois. Criminals, on the other hand, do seem to notice the freedom by which the law-abiding residents of their locale can carry guns. Research by Lott, for instance, found that when shall-issue concealed carry is introduced, there are decreases in the rates of murder by 8.5 percent, rape by 5 percent and aggravated assault by 5 percent. While some academics dispute Lott’s findings, most concede that concealed carry—at the very least—has not resulted in the “blood in the streets” predictions of anti-gun groups. In his story, “‘More Guns, Less Crime’ Thesis Rests on a Flawed Statistical Design, Scholars Argue,” author David Glenn concludes: “Mr. Lott’s research has convinced his peers of at least one point: No scholars now claim that legalizing concealed weapons causes a major increase in crime.”

Myth No. 8: Urban areas especially need gun control.
There tend to be differing views on gun control in rural areas compared to urban centers, but it is wrong to suggest—as Obama has sometimes done—that gun control can be more effective in cities. To suggest honest American citizens living in metropolitan areas cannot be trusted with Second Amendment rights is not only misguided, but in some cases, may have racial undertones.

According to research by Lott for his book, More Guns, Less Crime, when the gun rights of a given population are restored, violent crime actually goes down. This is especially true, Lott found, for high-crime urban areas and neighborhoods with large minority populations. The greatest reduction in violent crime occurs when law-abiding citizens of the population are allowed to carry concealed handguns.

Myth No. 9: Guns teach kids to be violent.
Anyone who grew up in a gun-friendly household knows firearms teach discipline and other positive attributes. But how do we quantify that when our opponents are so willing to spread mistruths?

Well, we have studies to cite. Arguably the best is, “Patterns of Adolescent Firearms Ownership and Use,” by Terence P. Thornberry, Alan J. Lizotte and James M. Tesoriero. Among other findings, the researchers found that children taught about firearms and their legitimate uses by family members have much lower rates of delinquency than children in households without guns. Additionally, R. Tonso—head of the Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice and Anthropology at the University of Evansville in Indiana—found that children introduced to guns associate them with freedom, security and recreation—not violence.

Myth No. 10: Gun control prevents crime.
We’ve saved the ultimate myth for last. Here are but a few examples of failed gun control policies in action:

• Washington, D.C.’s ban on handguns (since repealed, sort of) took effect in 1977 and the city’s murder rate tripled by the 1990’s. According to D.C.’s own police department, every firearm murder was committed with a handgun
• Chicago copied D.C.’s handgun ban in 1982 and, according to city data, within 10 years its handgun-related murders doubled.
• Maryland and California have both imposed waiting periods for gun purchases and restricted sales of handguns and semi-auto rifles. Yet according to FBI Uniform Crime Reports, their murder and robbery rates that far exceed the rest of the country.

There are plenty more cases in which gun control has backfired, even as nationwide gun ownership has increased and crime has decreased.

×

Are ARs Doomed?

Recent tragedies involving so-called "assault weapons" has prompted more than several elected officials to call for a renewed assault weapons ban.

One proposal by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., has no expiration date—as opposed to the one passed during the Clinton Administration—and even goes so far as to name certain companies and models by name, such as Stag Arms (pictured, the Stag Arms Executive Survivor's Kit.

Will High-Cap Mags Survive?

Along with semi-auto rifles, high-capacity magazines could also be on the chopping block, including 30-round magazines for the AR-15 platform, though handguns could also be affected.

Such proposals have caused unprecedented demand for high-capacity magazines before it's too late, which has in turn led to...

Industry Chaos

With the legality of certain firearms and feeding devices up in the air, demand has risen to an astronomical level, and orders are being placed faster than companies can keep up with.

Stag Arms is reporting two years worth of backlogged orders, while Smith & Wesson has $332.7 million in backlogged orders—nearly double its backlogged orders in 2011. Ammunition is also in short supply; vendors are having trouble keeping ammo in stock, and even law enforcement agencies are being affected.

“This is the largest and hardest stampeding ‘buffalo herd’ (tactical firearms consumers) I’ve ever seen in my 30-plus years in the firearms industry,” said S.P. Fjestad of Blue Book of Gun Values. “Are they destined to run off the cliff and plunge to their deaths? We’re going to find out in the next six months.”

The Inevitable Legal Quagmire

If history has taught us anything, it's that no new law passes without a little push-back in the following months. That said, should new gun control legislation be signed into law, it will open the door for countless legal battles in statehouses across the nation regarding wording or interpretation of these new policies.

This could obviously affect gun companies, who would be forced to either shut down or restructure if an "assault weapons" ban passes.

"Until gun shops, cops, game wardens, courts and your buddies get the new facts straight, few people will know exactly what is and isn’t legal. I don’t think anarchy will result. Rather, law-abiding citizens attempting to do the right thing will have a permanent pain implanted in their posteriors," writes Joseph von Benedikt of our sister magazine, Shooting Times. "... There are only so many government contracts to be had, and if private-citizen sales go away, it will strangle a huge industry that provides jobs and quality products for Americans."

The Rise of Bargain Guns

In the midst of all this hubbub, all Americans are still faced with a grim economy—and that includes gun owners. Crippled by our wallets, many of us are unable to expand our collection.

Luckily, a few companies have stepped in with some modestly priced handguns, rifles and shotguns for the coming year. You don't have to break the bank to get a quality product, and these new offerings help shooters enjoy their hobby without winding up in the poorhouse.

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 5

Biggest Issues Facing Gun Owners in 2013

◄ Back

Next ►

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Two Midland residents, 32-year-old Samuel Pompa and 19-year-old Jonathan McDaniel, had friends over for parties. At one point, both groups of people ended up outside, and apparently an argument ensued. When the argument turned physical, McDaniel’s group retreated inside his house, hoping to avoid an escalation of the altercation.

Pompa, however, arrived at McDaniel’s home a short time later with a baseball bat and kicked the door in. McDaniel, in fear for his life and trying to protect the other people inside his house, fired one shot from a shotgun. Is there an old saying about bringing a bat to a gun fight?

Midland Police responded to a shooting call around midnight and found Pompa with a shotgun would to the chest. Pompa was transported to Midland Memorial Hospital, where he died from his wound shortly thereafter.

Check out the video from KWES-TV in Midland:

KWES NewsWest 9 / Midland, Odessa, Big Spring, TX: newswest9.com |

While there are many weapon systems that are lighter, easier to use or have more range than a shotgun, when it comes to close range, the shotgun rules. One shot and the fight was over.

Neighbors said they were surprised, as both men involved seemed to be nice people. Police have made no arrests in this case, and no charges are expected to be filed against McDaniel. However after an autopsy is conducted, the case will be sent to the district attorney’s office.

What do you think? Was McDaniel justified in using a shotgun against Pompa?

One activity that’s almost universally enjoyed by the gun community, though, is sitting down with a bowl of popcorn to enjoy a nice, action-packed gun movie. Be it The Duke tracking down outlaws in the Wild West, or McClane foiling yet another international terror plot, a good gun movie is able to capture its audience with a mix of action and drama, keeping viewers on the edge of their seats for about two hours—give or take.

Although some of the stars playing these action roles are supporters of our Second Amendment rights, even more will put the gun down on the movie set and rally against those rights not long after. They may be out there marching to ban guns altogether, or appearing in Internet videos calling for tighter gun control. Though they’re out there giving gun owners the cold shoulder, these celebrities have made a living by wielding firearms—and in doing so, providing hours of entertainment for those they’re campaigning against.

×

Goldfinger (1964)

Arguably the best in the James Bond collection, Goldfinger is often cited as the quintessential 007 flick. Considered a major influence on the every Bond film that followed, Goldfinger introduced such 007 elements as tongue-in-cheek humor, reliance on technology, and of course, the Aston Martin DB5. Pity, though, that the greatest Bond of them all, Sean Connery, lent his voice to an anti-gun PSA that aired in the U.K., saying, "It is said that a total ban on handguns, including .22s, would take away innocent pleasure from thousands of people. Is that more or less pleasure than watching your child grow up?" Unfortunately, the anti-gun sentiments would be shared by another Bond.

First Blood (1982)

If you want a good shootout, there's no better series to turn to than Rambo, and like most series, it doesn't get any better than the original: 1982's First Blood. Sylvester Stallone plays John Rambo in the movie that helped defined the action genre, yet Stallone had no qualms bashing the American gun culture around the turn of the century. After the death of comedian Phil Hartman in 1999, Stallone—living in the U.K. at the time—appeared on Access Hollywood saying, "Until America, door to door, takes every handgun, this is what you’re gonna have. It’s pathetic. It really is pathetic. It’s sad. We’re living in the Dark Ages over there."

The Terminator (1984)

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger as an unstoppable cyborg from the future, 1984's The Terminator featured plenty of cyberpunk-style shootouts as the T-800 pursues Sarah Connor across Los Angeles. The Terminator became an unexpected box office success with its non-stop action from start to finish. However, Schwarzenegger isn't quite as fond of firearms as the silver screen made him out to be. Over time, the former Governator's opinions on firearms began leaning left; he supported Bill Clinton's assault weapons ban in the '90s as well as the Brady Bill, and was quoted in Time as saying, "I'm for gun control. I'm a peace-loving guy."

The Untouchables (1987)

Ah, The Untouchables… Before starring in the movie that helped revitalize the Western genre, Dances with Wolves, Kevin Costner starred as Eliot Ness in one of the best gangster movies of our generation. Based on the real-life Ness' attempts to bring Al Capone to justice during Prohibition, The Untouchables features one of the greatest shootouts in cinema history. Though he's handled plenty of firearms on screen, Costner has called for tighter gun control in the past. In 2007, Costner told reporters, "I'm a hunter, I hunt but I think there should be gun laws. I think there should be a lot of gun laws. I don't want to lose my shotgun but there's a real good reason why I use my shotgun. It came from my grandpa. His cheek was on it. My dad's cheek was on it and I go out and hunt with my dogs. My gun's an heirloom to me and my son, one day, when I'm gone, is gonna know, 'Your dad hunted with that.' But, even though with the connection that I have to my gun, can I look at the NRA and say, 'I think you're out of line?' I can say that."

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

The 1992 cult flick Reservoir Dogs is the film that put director Quentin Tarantino on the map. This ultra-violent crime flick established many elements that would appear in Tarantino's future films, including a non-linear storyline, tons of swearing and plenty of trigger-happy bad guys. As it turns out, though, Mr. Pink himself, Steve Buscemi, would apparently rather see more restricted gun rights, appearing at the Million Mom March in 2000.

The Departed (2006)

Neither Matt Damon nor Mark Wahlberg have hidden the fact that they're not exactly that big into guns—quite the opposite, as a matter of fact—but that didn't stop them from starring in 2006's The Departed. This action-packed thriller was chock full of firepower—from the beautiful Colt Python to the always-intimidating Franchi SPAS-12—and was widely received by critics, earning the Oscar for Best Picture at the 79th Academy Awards. Despite the acclaim given to a thrilling cops vs. mob action flick, Damon has stated, "I actually hate guns. They freak me out."

Skyfall (2012)

The latest installment in the Bond saga saw Daniel Craig—who took over the role of 007 with Casino Royale—deliver another gripping performance as Bond tries his best to protect M from a cyber-terrorist. Billed as the best Bond film since Goldfinger, Skyfall certainly does its part to introduce a younger generation to MI6's premier agent—and like its predecessors, is chock-full of guns, car chases, guns, shootouts and guns. Off the set, however, Craig is admittedly a little hesitant to pick up a PPK, going so far as to tell the New York Daily News, "I wouldn’t touch a gun in my everyday life."

Django Unchained (2012)

One of Tarantino's latest projects, Django Unchained, takes the same old Tarantino formula of violence injected with some Western flavor, retelling the story of Django—played by Jamie Foxx—a spaghetti western character from the 1960s. This critically praised flick features an arsenal of old revolvers, rifles and shotguns—including a gorgeous Colt 1851 Navy—and won Tarantino an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. Though owing much of the film's success to it's sensational action sequences, Foxx is a little more reserved when it comes to firearms, appearing in the now famous "Demand a Plan" video.

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 8

Anti-Gun Celebrities' Best Gun Movies

◄ Back

Next ►

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

The most recent, “Are you kidding me?” news story came from West Virginia, where a 14-year-old middle school student was arrested and suspended simply for wearing an NRA T-shirt. I looked into the story, convinced that there had to be something else involved—an assault on a teacher, drugs, something.

Nope. Jared Marcum was arrested simply because he wore an NRA T-shirt to school and refused to take it off. On the shirt was a picture of a hunting camoed AR-15 and the words, “Protect Your Right” along with the NRA logo. The shirt apparently upset a teacher in the cafeteria, who told Marcum to take off the shirt or turn it inside out. Marcum informed the teacher that the shirt didn’t violate the school’s dress code, so he was sent to the principal’s office.

“When the police came, I was still talking and telling them that this was wrong, that they cannot do this, it’s not against any school policy,” Marcum told The Associated Press. “The officer, he told me to sit down and be quiet. I said, ‘No, I’m exercising my right to free speech.’ I said it calmly.” After the incident, local police charged Marcum with disrupting the educational process and obstructing an officer.

Check out the video from WOWK-TV in Charleston, W.V.:

According to the Logan County School District’s dress code, students are forbidden from wearing anything that displays profanity, violence, discriminatory messages or sexually suggestive phrases. Garments that glorify alcohol, tobacco or drugs are also banned. Still, Marcum’s lawyer, Ben White, insists that the NRA shirt did not constitute a violation of the dress code, let alone grounds for an arrest. White requested copies of the surveillance tape from the cafeteria.

Video evidence in the case, White said, indicates the situation in the cafeteria deteriorated when a teacher raised his voice while confronting Jared. Other students jumped up on benches and began chanting Jared’s name.

“I think the disruption came from the teacher,” White said. After his one-day suspension, Marcum returned to school wearing the exact same T-shirt that got him suspended. Marcum was joined by about 100 other students across Logan County, W.V., who wore shirts with similar gun rights slogans in a show of support for free speech.

“I’m still confused, thoroughly confused,” Marcum told a local TV station. “The school didn’t even make a statement to the news agencies, much less myself.”

The case has been turned over to the local juvenile prosecutor.

“My sense is that no charges will be imminent,” White said.

We at Guns & Ammo can’t believe any prosecutor would be stupid enough to press charges against Marcum, but then again, who would have thought Marcum would have been suspended and arrested in the first place?

This is a complete and total failure of leadership. Apparently there is no responsible adult supervision in Marcum’s school; if there was, the teacerh, the principal and the police officer should have been the ones punished for misbehavior.

However, there is one thing we all learned from this story: Jared Marcum’s parents are doing a darn good job.

What do you think? Is the school justified in suspending Marcum, or does the suspension violate his First Amendment rights?

(Photo by Brian Flannery/Daily News)

Nowadays, it’s not really that hard to offend someone. So much as a display of something vaguely resembling whatever inanimate object you rally against is enough to prompt phone calls to the ACLU about how appalled you are.

Of course, as we gun guys can attest, firearms seem to take a lot of heat and prompt some pretty outrageous responses from those who think they know better.

Kid draws a picture of her father fighting monsters with a gun? Arrest the dad! Student bites his Pop-Tart so it looks like a gun? Suspend that little punk! That’ll teach him!

Sadly, it should come as no surprise that something with guns actually printed on is frowned on as “insensitive” and “low-taste.” At least, those are some of the words being used against Victoria’s Secret model Karolina Kurkova, who on Friday paraded around New York City in a dress covered in various handguns and rifles.

As is common with anything in this kindergarten country of ours, more than a few people had a problem with this.

The Hollywood-obsessed bloggers over at TMZ, for example, said Kurkova was “seemingly oblivious to the fact police had a deadly gun battle last night with the Boston Marathon bombing suspects” Thursday.

Maybe if TMZ actually did their homework, they’d know the dress has nothing to do with last week’s events in Boston, nor does it have anything to do with the attempts to ban “assault weapons” in Congress.

“It was against war and not anything to do with the personal use of guns,” Israeli-born designer Nili Lotan told the Daily News, saying it was actually a reference to the conflict between Lebanon and Israel.

Still, Lotan said she would be hesitant to use the same fabric again, given the tragic events in Boston and Newtown, Conn.

“Would I ever do (a gun print) again? I’m not so sure, because today it would provoke the wrong impression,” Lotan said, adding if she did use a gun print in the future, it would have “a very strong statement against allowing guns.”

Talk about ironic. Anti-gun fashionista makes anti-war dress, criticized for being insensitive because, oh dear, there are guns on it!

We at G&A won’t pretend to be fashion experts—by and large, our online staff’s wardrobes consist of flannel, tactical shirts and a few sports jerseys. This kind of nonsense is exactly why we stay far away from the world of fashion; it’s all confusion, self-righteousness and hypocrisy.

We’ll stick with our non-designer jeans and button-ups, thank you very much.

As a gun writer, I like to consider myself a little more well-informed than the average gun owner about most things that go “bang.” Buying and selling guns, ammo and accessories online is no big deal, right? Well, thinking you’re smart and well-informed, and being smart and well-informed are two different things. As of right now, my PayPal account is restricted until I fill out their, “I’m sorry I broke your rules,” document, admitting I violated their Acceptable Use Policy. What did I do?

I had the temerity, the audacity, the cojones to sell an AR-15 magazine on GunBroker, and accept payment through PayPal. When Paypal found out, they restricted my account so that I can now deposit money into it—but not withdraw any—until I fill out and send in their Acceptable Use Policy affidavit.

EBay is well known to be hostile to gun owners, treating firearms, parts and ammunition like the plague, but I thought I was safe working through GunBroker, which specializes in hosting auctions of exactly those kind of products readers of Guns & Ammo would be interested in. Lesson learned. I guess that’s why sellers on GunBroker don’t have PayPal listed as a payment option, but instead take money orders, checks, credit cards, etc.

GunsAmerica has recently instituted a policy that states everything bought on their site has to be paid for with USPS Postal Service Money Orders. As GunsAmerica explains, “If you use USPS money orders and mail them USPS, you generate what they call a ‘nexus’ and if, God forbid, you are scammed online, they will respond to your complaint.”

The USPS has Postal Service Inspectors, and they take fraud seriously.

“Credit cards are the safest way to pay for internet purchases, but only gun dealers are allowed to have a merchant account that can take payments for guns online.” If somebody trying to sell you something online is saying something different, they’re either wrong or somehow trying to scam you.

In doing research for this article, I also found this on GunsAmerica: “Paypal is not an option. Please do not attempt to use it to pay for or to get paid for GunsAmerica sales. Paypal is violently anti-gun and has suspended and frozen thousands of legitimate gun seller accounts over the years.” Too bad I didn’t know that earlier, but hopefully my pain can be your gain.

GunBroker and GunsAmerica are the two of largest Internet auction sites devoted to firearms and accessories, but not the only ones. There are also GunAuction.com, ArmchairGunShow.com and ArmsBid.com, just to name a few. If you’ve never used one of the online auction sites to buy or sell guns, ammo, or accessories, there are a few things I’ve learned over the years that will help you out.

To buy or sell anything through an online auction site, you’ll have to set up an online user account. Sellers on these websites live and die by their reputation, which is referred to by various terms such as their “feedback” or “user level.” GunBroker uses a grading system that should be familiar to anyone who went to school, A+ being the best. How many total votes they’ve received is also listed, so a seller who has a high grade with a huge number of sales is always the best bet. Sellers to look for on GunsAmerica have a user level that says they are “Trusted” or “Gold.”

Online auction sites are so popular and useful, they are used by gun stores and professional sellers as much or more now than they are by private citizens. This isn’t a bad thing. Selling stuff online requires very little investment and reaches a wide audience, so gun stores and FFL holders can often sell guns more cheaply online than stores who only do face-to-face business.

When you have something to sell and have an account set up, most of the auction sites have easy-to-use walkthroughs to show you how to set up your own auction. The fees they charge for putting up a listing can range from a few bucks to a few dozen, and the fees are usually only charged after the item has sold. Most of the time the fees are calculated as a percentage of the selling price—1 to 2 percent on GunsAmerica based on your membership level, and 1.25 to 5 percent on GunBroker based on the price of the item sold.

One helpful hint: Always upload a photo of what you’re selling. If you don’t, not only will most potential buyers pass up your listing, anyone still interested will just email you asking for a photo.

GunBroker and its like aren’t the only useful places to track down good deals online. Whatever type of firearm you fancy, chances are there is a forum devoted to it somewhere—such as ColtAutos.com, where collectors gather.

Perhaps the largest firearms forum is AR15.com. “Arfcom,” as it is known, is a huge site that isn’t just devoted to ARs, and gun companies know this. Manufacturers have a large presence on the site, not just through ads but through forum posts talking about new products, or talking their customers through problems they may be experiencing. Many companies frequently have special deals available only to members of Arfcom. Arfcom also has their Equipment Exchange, where members who want to buy, sell, trade or get involved in group buys send emails back and forth.

When dealing with individual sellers, the potential for being scammed is always higher. There’s no way to completely eliminate fraud, so just use common sense—if a deal seems too good to be true, it probably is. Also, if the seller only provides stock photos, wants you to mail your payment to a P.O. Box or maybe a different state even though they’re selling one of their “personal” items, or does anything else that raises your red flags, you have only yourself to blame if you send your payment and never see anything in return.

When is the best time to buy and/or sell? Well, if you’ve got any sort of semi-auto, magazine-fed rifle you’re looking to part with, now would be the time. The same goes for any ammunition or AR or AK magazines—they are all drawing premium prices. Legally, buyers are responsible for making sure the products they’re purchasing are legal in their city/state, but as a seller, you should learn which states have banned certain items. That is why so many gun companies have stopped sales of ARs and standard capacity magazines to departments and even individual law enforcement officers in ban zones such as New York, because they don’t want to run afoul of new and ever-changing gun laws.

When you post your listing, you want as many people as possible to have the chance to look at it, so don’t have it run over a holiday weekend. Again, use common sense—Hawaiian shirts sell better in June than they do in January. If you live in a place which sees snow on the ground six months of the year and only want to sell your competition rifle to a local, February is not a good time to put it up for sale.

×

How to Clean Your Handgun

Today’s defensive handguns are rugged, reliable machines, but they won’t stay that way if they’re not properly maintained. While most shooters will be careful to keep their guns dry and free of debris, it’s not uncommon for handguns to be fired without the benefit of regular cleaning and proper lubrication. Shooting handguns dirty or dry (or both) can result in malfunctions and permanent damage.

Click here to read more.

How to Store Your Gun

Modern firearms are powerful tools that experienced shooters understand need to be treated with respect. While a gun is in use, we carefully follow a set of common sense rules to keep everyone safe. But how do we practice firearms safety when the shooting or hunting sessions are over? Most of the guns folks own will spend the majority of their working life at rest, placed in one state of storage or another, until the next shooting event. Since they remain powerful tools between trips to the range, it’s very important to store them properly.

Click here to read more.

How to Choose Your Child's First Gun

When introducing your child to the shooting sports, it's important to choose a firearm that's best suited to their abilities.

Click here to read more.

How to Zero a Rifle in Five Steps

It doesn’t matter whether you’re going hunting or planning a fun day at the range; you want to hit what you’re aiming at, so the first step is to make sure your rifle is properly zeroed.

Click here to read more.

How to Interact with Police While Carrying

Don't end up in the slammer because you don't know the rules. James Tarr goes over how to interact with police while carrying a firearm.

Click here to read more.

How to Choose Your First Home Defense Gun

Most people looking to purchase their first firearm have a long list of questions. Handgun or long gun? Pistol or revolver? Shotgun or rifle? What about caliber and ammunition type? Finally, how can the gun be stored so it is both ready for home defense, and inaccessible to curious children and criminals?

Click here to read more.

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 6

More G&A Basics

◄ Back

Next ►

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

The topic of doomsday prepping is quite divisive. To many, the idea of stockpiling food, fuel, generators, medical supplies, firearms and ammunition to prepare for a natural disaster and/or large scale civil unrest seems more than a little extreme. On the other hand, preppers are typically surprised at how many of their neighbors fail to take basic precautions for themselves and their families in the event of a catastrophe.

You need look no further than Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath to comprehend the importance of disaster planning. Americans were able to see firsthand the chaos that ensued in the days and weeks following the hurricane. The importance of self-reliance became crystal clear, as government assistance was not readily available. In fact, many credit Katrina as being the catalyst for the recent wave of interest in prepping.

To put it simply, “If it’s predictable, it’s preventable.”

Sure, being prepared is great. But some tend to take prepping to the extreme. For instance, most would agree having a first aid kit in your vehicle is a reasonable step to help ensure you can provide medical treatment, if necessary.

Although converting your personal vehicle into an ambulance would enable you to better treat someone who was injured, your significant other might not appreciate rolling around in your “meat wagon.” It’s important to strike a balance between preparation and practicality.

Regardless of your stance on prepping, there is a definite correlation between preparing for a hurricane, wildfire, tornado—even a zombie apocalypse—and preparing to defend your home from a criminal intruder. When it comes to home defense, you can learn a lot from preppers.

Preppers tend to be, well, prepared. This is in stark contrast to many homeowners, who seem to believe that their hunting rifle or shotgun will virtually appear in their hands fully loaded, should someone break into their residence.

Assuming you will readily access and load a firearm you’re not used to shooting—particularly one that’s not intended for defensive shooting—is far more absurd that someone who goes a little overboard planning for worst-case scenario. Far too many homeowners confuse mere ownership of a firearm with having a practicable home defense plan.

At the very heart of prepping is the acknowledgment that bad things happen even to good people and that we are vulnerable. Therefore, preppers by nature take the notion of protecting and providing for their family very seriously. Storing supplies is one thing, but preppers understand that without weapons and training, they will likely be unable to safeguard their cache from desperate neighbors who were less prepared but better armed.

A diligent prepper understands the pros and cons of various types of firearms and has ample personal defense ammunition on hand. With an understanding that skill-at-arms may be all that separates their life-sustaining rations from hungry, desperate outsiders, the true prepper has considered likely home invasion scenarios and developed a solid plan to safeguard their family and supplies. And you can bet that the hard-core prepper is not only mentally prepared to take a life if necessary, but also proficient in the tactical storage and deployment of firearms because he understands that in an emergency, seconds count.

While some preppers take the concept of having a safe room to the extreme—i.e., spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on an underground bunker—the concept of having a designated room in your home where family members would converge in the event of a break-in is certainly viable.

A safe room is intended to be a rally point, where you can account for all family members and share information relevant to thwarting the home invasion. This is also the place where you or a designated family member can call 911 to initiate the police response.

Integral to the safe room concept is the notion that it’s much easier to defend a single room than to search the entire residence for bad guys, who could be waiting to ambush you. You should consider keeping a safe in the room in order to store a rifle or shotgun. While it may be more practical to be armed with a handgun while moving to the safe room, there are several advantages to having a long gun once you’re there.

Because of the longer sight radius and multiple points of contact to your body, a long gun is inherently easier to shoot than handgun. A long gun will also provide you better ballistic capabilities than a handgun and, in the case of an AR-15 with a 30 round magazine, a much higher ammunition capacity.

When you’re armed with a long gun and monitor the door to the safe room from a position of cover, you’re at a tremendous advantage because you can narrow your focus to a single point. Of course, a prepper would have his most essential supplies in this room, but from a home defense standpoint, this is unnecessary.

A safe room doesn’t have to be elaborate, but at a minimum it should have a solid core door that is capable of being locked with a deadbolt from the inside. Ideally, there should be large, heavy furniture items within the room that can provide a degree of cover.

You may be tempted to dismiss preppers as paranoid or out of touch with reality. Just remember, the same is often said of individuals who carry a concealed handgun or own an AR-15 for home defense. There’s a fine line between paranoid and prepared. If the unthinkable were to occur, the paranoid prepper just might look pretty darn smart.

×

Remington 870 Special Purpose Marine Magnum

During a major disaster, you need guns for both defense and obtaining sustenance: The 12-gauge shotgun is arguably the best for each. Load it with 6’s to kill birds for the pot, slugs to take down deer and elk, and buckshot to fend off would-be looters. Since you’ll be too busy finding food and avoiding the undead to clean your gun, we’ve selected a reliable, anti-corrosive model: the 870 Marine Magnum. There’s a reason Remington has sold about 10 million 870s since 1950 -- they work -- and the nickel-plated Marine Magnum version is as rust-proof as it gets.

Kahr PM9

The PM9 is an intriguing little gun with a thin frame and 3-inch barrel. It’s convenient and comfortable for daily carry, yet packs a sturdy wallop when its seven-round magazine is fed +P 9mm ammo. A polymer frame and stainless slide add durability. During the apocalypse, you need a gun you can keep on your person at all times, even if you go outside at night to relieve yourself (forget indoor plumbing). Kahr makes just such a gun.

McMillan TAC-50

If you want any kind of security at your post-apocalyptic shelter, you’ll need to set up a perimeter. And what better way to keep plunderers at bay than with the extended reach and terminal ballistics of the .50 BMG? The McMillan TAC-50 is renowned for its accuracy, and weight-shaving measures such as barrel fluting reduce its heft to 26 pounds with optics and bipod. It’s not exactly light, but it’s less robust than other .50-caliber guns and mobile enough for transport in case you need to switch caves.

Holland and Holland Royal Side by Side Shotgun

We make this recommendation not as a gun to procure food or kill zombies, but because one day repopulated humans or our alien overlords will inherit the earth. Given that most of our written history will be wiped out during the disaster (on the bright side, this will include the '70s), we need at least one Holland and Holland Royal to survive. How else will future peoples know that we were once a civilization that appreciated art, culture and fine scroll engraving? Sure, we went out as a bunch of stinky, toothless, knuckle-dragging looters, but dammit we invented the best-bespoke shotgun!

Bushmaster Carbon 15 M4 Carbine

Desperate human looters. Terrorist invaders. Herds of zombies. Post-apocalyptic Earth is not without its pitfalls. But with an M4 carbine and a few 30-round magazines, you are set for a lot of onslaughts. There was a time when many didn’t consider semi-auto rifles a good choice for tight-quarters defense, but that changed when low-recoil rounds like Hornady Tap ammo hit the market, enabling shooters to get back on target in a hurry. Add to that the medium- to long-range ballistics of the 5.56/.223, and Bushmaster's AR-15 can be considered one of the most versatile rifles available.

Springfield M1A SOCOM II

When society falls, there will be two kinds of people: Those who starve to death a week after the last Whole Foods closes, and those who own deer rifles. So, if one day you wake up and discover that you’re a doomsday sportsman, we suggest the Springfield M1A SOCOM II. Chambered in .308 Win., it packs plenty of punch for practically any big-game animal in North America. And since safety traveling to and from the hunt has never been of greater concern, we picked a gun with a host of tactical features -- a 16-inch barrel, 10-round magazine, Tritium front sight and an extended optics rail, to name a few. Eat well and stay safe.

Smith & Wesson Model 629

Semi-autos are all the rage these days thanks to advantages such as fast magazine reloads and increased capacity, but revolvers may reclaim their dominance once gun cleaning supplies run short and gunsmiths close up shop. Their design is simple and reliable, with far fewer springs and moving parts to maintain. As the author’s revolver-carrying, retired law-enforcement grandfather puts it, “I carry a revolver because I know without question that it will go bang every time.” After the world goes to hell, the last functional repeating firearms on the planet could very well be stainless steel revolvers such as Smith & Wesson’s Model 629.

AK-47

One pervasive theme of this essay is a focus on reliability, and the AK-47 is arguably the most durable autoloader ever invented. You can practically pick up a handful of sand, throw it in the action and Kalashnikov’s brilliantly simple design will keep on running. That’s why Arab tribes are still able to use many of the AK-47s confiscated from Russian troops in the ’80s. The AK and its many variants require little maintenance, and it seems even when their tolerances are a little off, the action’s ability to cycle is not affected. With a 30-round magazine of 7.62x39 ammo, it will take a determined effort if anyone’s going to steal your canned goods.

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 8

8 Must-Have Guns for the Doomsday Prepper

◄ Back

Next ►

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Boston Police officers respond as 78-year-old runner Bill Iffrig struggles to stand after the first explosion near the finish line of the Boston Marathon on Monday. (John Tlumacki/Boston Globe)

We at Guns & Ammo stand with everyone else in this country who is outraged at the attack at the Boston Marathon that left three dead and many injured.

The reaction from Boston Police and federal agents was swift and immediate. After the FBI released photos of the suspects Thursday, one of the suspects, 26-year-old Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was killed after a car chase and shootout with the police early Friday morning. The second suspect—Tamerlan’s 19-year-old brother, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, who apparently ran over his older brother after that morning’s events—was captured Friday evening in Watertown, Mass., seriously injured from an apparent suicide attempt, but alive.

The normal human instinct, when confronted by atrocities such as the Boston Marathon bombings, is to wonder, “How can I help?” The second reaction is usually, “What could have been done to prevent it?” The question you have to ask yourself is, if you’re somewhere a bomb or other similar weapon is used, are you going to run toward the injured to help, or run in the other direction in an attempt to stay safe?

There’s no right answer to that question, and your answer may change depending on the circumstances. If I’m attending a parade with my children and somebody starts shooting up the crowd—and they’re not directly in front of me—my first responsibility as a parent is to get my boys to safety. If I’m there on my own, then my response will probably be a little different. Every one of us has to make our own decisions, and then live with them.

Just be aware, a common tactic of terrorists is to set off one bomb, and after a short period of time—long enough for EMS to respond and another crowd to gather—set off another, possibly bigger bomb in the same location. I’m not recommending not helping the injured, but everything in life, even just crossing the street, involves risks.

No one who isn’t employed as a first responder ever wants or expects to be somewhere where there are a number of injured and bleeding people on the ground. That said, apart from terrorist attacks, anyone past a certain age has either been in or witnessed firsthand a serious car accident. Whether the injured persons are strangers or family members, the last thing you want to do is panic or do something that makes the situation worse.

Nobody likes feeling helpless, but even if it’s a major accident, police and EMS are still minutes away, and those minutes can be the difference between life and death. I highly recommend everyone get basic first aid training. Not only should this include CPR, but how and when to apply bandages. Don’t know where to go for training? Every community has many venues which offer CPR and basic first aid classes, but when it doubt, contact the Red Cross.

In a car accident, the basic rule is don’t move anybody if you don’t have to, because they may have head or spinal injuries. The majority of the injuries at the Boston bombing were from shrapnel. Bleeding is stopped, or at least slowed down, by direct pressure. Beyond that basic advice, the way to learn is to do—if you haven’t taken a first aid class in a few years, now is better than later.

But how could this bombing have been prevented? Given this is the work two individuals with an unknown motive at this time—the Tsarnaev brothers are of Chechen descent, but authorities still haven’t called this attack politically motivated—it’s impossible to stop people from going nuts, or to predict who is going to do what.

Unless you want to outlaw every chemical than can help you clean your bathroom, fertilize your garden or power small engines, people with even the crudest grasp of chemistry or access to the Internet will be able to make homemade bombs. Forget bombs—do you want to outlaw the hard liquor that is the basis for Molotov cocktails? That didn’t work so well during Prohibition. No, the price of freedom in our country means that crazy people have the opportunity to do crazy things.

If you are going to be at an event where there will be a lot of people, keep your eyes open, use your common sense, and don’t be afraid to listen to your inner voice if it’s telling you that something just doesn’t look right. Also, if you are somewhere where a bomb goes off or something similar happens, keeping your wits about you, and looking around for anyone acting strangely, may make all the difference in stopping additional attacks.

Ben McCormick, 8, right, and 4-year-old cousin Conor Gillis take part in a vigil Tuesday for victims of the Boston Marathon attacks. (David Friedman/NBC News)

The video shows a Feb. 7 press conference presided over by Emeryville (Calif.) Police Chief Ken James, who refers to current proposed anti-gun laws.

During the press conference, James makes several statements that are completely irrational in regards to “reasonable gun laws helping our officers on the street.”

But the most over the top statement is, “One issue that always boggles my mind is the idea that guns are a defensive weapon. That is a myth. A gun is not a defensive weapon. A gun is an offensive weapon, used to intimidate, and used to show power. Police officers do not carry a gun as a defensive weapon to defend themselves or their other officers, they carry a gun to be able to do their job in a safe and effective manner and face any opposition that we may come upon. If it was a defensive measure, why did we lose 55 officers last year to gun violence?”

The above comment is so nonsensical and divorced from reality, it would be comical if it weren’t so terrifying. Based on the content of James’ statement, it is clear that either he is remarkably stupid, or thinks the public is. I would hope that someone as “Darwin Award” stupid as he comes across couldn’t get elected to high office, but you never know—especially since we’re talking about California.

Most police chiefs are elected to office, which makes them politicians. Many politicians like having control over the people they purportedly “serve,” which is why so many police chiefs are very anti-gun when the majority of street cops are not. Does James actually believe the inanities that are coming out of his mouth?

Of course, James isn’t the only public official spewing nonsense through a public forum. In March, our esteemed vice president, Joe Biden, took to YouTube with this brilliant home defense advice: If you think there are troublemakers near your home, just walk outside with a double-barreled shotgun and fire two blasts in the air.

As if that statement wasn’t ignorant enough in regards to gun safety, Biden went even further with Field & Stream, saying if you want to keep bad guys away from your house, “Just fire the shotgun through the door.”

Earlier this month, Colorado Rep. Diana DeGette also made a fool of herself during a public forum hosted by the Denver Post. While discussing high-capacity magazines, DeGette said, “I will tell you these are ammunition, they’re bullets, so the people who have those now they’re going to shoot them, so if you ban them in the future, the number of these high capacity magazines is going to decrease dramatically over time because the bullets will have been shot and there won’t be any more available.”

Great, except that’s not true at all. Anyone with half a brain will tell you magazines can be reloaded with ammo, a fact apparently lost on DeGette.

When the public and media called DeGette out on her error, her office doubled down on stupid: “The Congresswoman has been working on a high-capacity assault magazine ban for years, and has been deeply involved in the issue; she simply misspoke in referring to ‘magazines’ when she should have referred to ‘clips,’ which cannot be reused because they don’t have a feeding mechanism.”

Also wrong.

Such statements would be comical if they weren’t so terrifying; after all, these are the people charged with not only defending our rights, but in James’ case, our lives.

Poly Technologies AKS-762 carbine in NIB condition chambered for 7.62x39mm cal. with 16 in. barrel and hardwood furniture. Who’d have ever thought that a Chinese Poly Tech AK-47 like this would actually be one of the better investments in the last 25 years!

So why did an AK-47 finally make it to Gun of the Week status over at Blue Book Publications after all these years? There are a few reasons. The first is because the AK-47 and variations have affected our post-WWII civilization more than any other single artifact.

The second reason is its internationally recognized iconic profile with high-cap curved magazine and gas tube over the barrel makes it the most recognizable and loved/hated gun in the world. It’s like a weapon of mass destruction, only in slow motion, and that’s why it has justifiably picked up such nicknames as “the Grim Reaper” and “the Serial Killer.”

The third reason is because next to AR-15s, AK-47s remain one of the hottest selling imported semi-auto carbine/rifles since Obama was elected (and re-elected).

Two international icons in one image! Russia’s Mikhail Kalashnikov and his world-famous design, the AK-47 (Automat Kalashnikov, designed during 1947). Approaching 94 years old, Mr. Kalashnikov has to be very proud of the tens of millions of AK-47s that have been manufactured worldwide, easily making it the most mass produced and identifiable firearm ever produced.

If John M. Browning was alive today and could only spend a couple of minutes inspecting an AK-47 compared to its American counterpart, the AR-15, there is no doubt in this writer’s mind that he would choose the AK-47. With Mikhail Kalashnikov’s rifle design, it emulates the simplicity and reliability of Browning’s M1911 semi-auto pistol design.

This configuration’s popularity, made famous in Eastern Europe after WWII, was followed in Asia as the Cold War warmed up, and it remains the weapon of choice in many countries today for both military/LE forces, as well as insurgents and rebels. Ever seen a Middle East terrorist holding up an AR-15 in defiance? So how can the AK-47—short for Automatic Kalashnikov carbine/rifle introduced in 1947—that has been mass-produced by the millions in over 20 countries by multitude of military arsenals become collectible in America?

While imported in very limited quantities before 1965, most U.S. military collectors were not that enamored with the clumsy looking AK-47 with mediocre build quality and an noisy outside control lever for safe, semi-auto—similar to a Remington Model 8—and full-auto modes on select fire models. That all changed with America’s involvement in the Vietnam War circa 1962-1975. The U.S. Army, supplied with the new Colt M16s—select fire, gas operated in 5.56 NATO—were experiencing quite a few problems from the fouling that resulted from the non-chrome lined barrels and the dirty burning powder of the ordnance-supplied 5.56 NATO ammunition.

It didn’t take long to figure out that the North Vietnamese and Viet Cong, armed with select fire AK-47s, had a better infantry weapon because of how it performed in a wide variety of combat conditions compared to the problematic M16s. With a simple but robust design, reliable and effective firepower, as well as ease of maintenance in the field, the AK-47 proved to be a fierce adversary during the thousands of firefights in Vietnam. Even though use of enemy weapons was strictly prohibited by the Army, some U.S. special services forces were authorized to use enemy equipment, including AK-47s, in the field. The problem was the telltale sound of the AK-47s 600-round cyclic rate would usually draw fire from U.S. troops in the area, regardless if an American was firing it.

While it might have lacked the power and accuracy of the M16, it more than made up for these shortcomings in its ease of use, cost, reliability and readily available parts. After the Vietnam War ended, most Americans knew what an AK-47 was, and a small but emerging AK-47 marketplace predicated on inexpensive pricing ($200-$250) began flourishing. Most of the new demand was for its reliable shooting value, as almost nobody was using this “assault rifles” as a sporting weapon, let alone taking one out into the north woods in an attempt to gun down Bambi.

The updated AKM, released in 1959, featured a stamped receiver and slanted muzzle brake. It was also approximately 33-percent lighter than the older AK-47. Today, there are far more model AKMs in America than the older semi-auto AK-47s.

Today’s AK-47 marketplace is a lot more complicated when considering how many military arsenals manufactured them, including Russia, China, Romania, Yugoslavia, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Bulgaria and even Egypt. In addition to these original carbines, there are also arsenal reworks, non-original parts guns assembled from a variety of arsenals, upgrades, and a variety of alterations. Almost anything is possible when looking at an AK style carbine/rifle these days—caveat emptor!

I’ve always said that gun collecting became more difficult after Eli Whitney developed interchangeable parts for firearms manufacturing, and no gun configuration proves this opinion better than the AK-47. One thing is for sure: Early Russian-made semi-auto AK-47s with milled receivers in over 98-percent original condition are getting harder to find every year. This area of gun collecting requires a lot more knowledge and education than it used to. Up until circa 1989, nobody altered or tried to put together a parts AK-47, since at the time, the asking price was so low it didn’t make any difference where it was made or what configuration it was.

During 1988-1989, Poly Technologies from China made the Rolls Royce of AK-47s, the AKS-762. These carbines were hand-crafted to Chinese military specifications and easily had the best quality of any AK-47 made before or since. Receivers were milled out of blocks of high ordnance steel using modern CNC machinery which guaranteed ultra-precise tolerances on all the components. All parts were then carefully polished before the high luster bluing was applied. The wooden furniture was nicely finished blonde hard wood, and metal side-folding and under-folding stocks were also available. These Poly Tech AK-47s were expensive at the time—$550 MSR compared to the typical $275-$295 for a good used one manufactured in Eastern Europe.

Even so, sales were encouraging until they were banned in 1989 by the Bush ban following the mass murder in Stockton, Calif., where the gunman used an AK-47 to kill all six of his victims, in addition to injuring 29. As a result, Poly Tech AK-47s and variations were only imported for two years, and these models in mint original condition are getting harder to find and more expensive every year.

Fortunately, I have had the opportunity to shoot both the semi-auto and full-auto versions of the AK-47. Compared to the other machine guns brought to the range that day, the AK-47 chugged away methodically with its distinctive cadence due to the relatively low cyclic rate (approx. 600 rounds per minute). Compared to the much faster cycling rate of the M16 (up to 900 rounds/minute) and ultra-fast rapid fire of a MAC-10 or MP5, it was a pleasant surprise not having a 30-shot mag. go empty within a second or two. Five or six individual bursts were actually possible, and firing it was very controllable. The AK-47’s slower but effective rate of fire actually translates into fewer rounds of ammunition that need to be carried by the experienced user (good or bad) since it isn’t an ammo hog in full-auto mode. It also never jammed or had a malfunction of any type, which is more than could be said for most of the other full-auto ordnance, after it was “warmed up.”

So what’s this Chinese Poly Tech AKS-762 worth in today’s marketplace? More than you think, especially after the recent Newtown tragedy, which has been responsible for spiking the values of both AR-15s and AK-47s. This particular carbine is in As New condition, and still has the original box with serial number on the outside that matches the gun. Chances are you could have bought a gun like this in the late 1980s for around $500. Now it’s going to cost you approximately $1,650, and if it has the very desirable side-folding or under-folding stock, add about another $200!

A cut-away view of the simplistic AK operating system and trigger group, complete with component/parts listings in Cyrillic script.

During the same time period, a new Colt AR-15 (R6550) had an MSR of $860, but was actually selling for around $1,000 due to the Bush Bill that had recently passed. Now the Colt Model R6550 is selling for approximately $2,600. While the Colt AR-15 has gone up 160 percent, this Poly Tech AKS-762 has gone up 230 percent. The Poly Tech AK-47 Legend has performed even better—with a $500 100-percent price in 1989, it’s now worth $2,300, an increase of 360 percent, and with a folding stock, this variation has gone up a whopping 560 percent!

As a comparison, the average price of an ounce of gold in 1989 was $381—now it’s currently at approximately $1,650, an increase of over 325 percent. Moral to this story? Simple—some Poly Tech AK-47 variations have turned out to be better investments than almost any other firearm, and they have even out performed gold during this time period!

One thing is for sure: If anybody would have told me back then that I’d be writing about the old world quality of Chinese-made AK-47s and how well they’ve performed as investments 25 years later, I would have bet a lot of my Brownings and Winchesters against it!

Images and some information courtesy of Rock Island Auctions, Automat Kalishnikova by the Kalashnikov Foundation, and AK-47: The Grim Reaper by Frank Iannamico. For more from S.P. Fjestad, check out his blog at BlueBookOfGunValues.com.

The Intermedia Outdoors family has lost one of its most valued and talented writers—and just all-around good guy.

J. Guthrie, 37, died April 12. Why is it the good die young? Quick wit, outgoing, always made everyone feel comfortable and welcome. “Mister Jim, pour yourself a drink, pull up a chair, and let’s talk,” he would say in that casual, southern drawl.

J. was a special talent, a special friend. Think deep-fried catfish, gumbo, jumbalaya, black-eyed peas, ham hocks, and turnip greens—and his love of firearms, hunting and shooting—when you remember J. Guthrie. This good old boy was as southern as southern gets. His family had roots in the Deep South, and he was proud as hell that he had family fight for the Confederacy during the Civil War.

When I phoned to tell him I wanted him to write the back page column of Guns & Ammo, there was complete silence—then an abrupt, “Do you have the right phone number? … Do you really want me to follow in the footsteps of Jeff Cooper? I idolized Jeff. You need to know, Mister Jim,  I’m no Jeff Cooper.”

When I assured him he was the writer I wanted to pen the  column, he paused again, and said, “Mister Jim, it’s an honor. I won’t disappoint.”

He didn’t, true to his word as always. Was he the perfect writer, always on deadline? No. But he was as honest as the day is long, and he always respected the magazines and editors he wrote for, including Shooting Times, Petersen’s Hunting, RifleShooter, Game & Fish and North American Whitetail.

J. also was a contributor to Guns & Ammo TV, and he was hellbent on making the show the best shooting show on cable TV. Some of his best work was done in the last year, when we filmed our “Direct Fire” segments. When we were discussing the informational and entertainment elements early on for this 13-week segment, I had no question who needed to play a major role. It was J. Guthrie, hands down.

J. also worked on our Modern Rifle Adventures and Ruger Inside & Out television shows.

When we were early in the planning stages of launching Modern Rifle Adventures, I was asked by my superiors which writers in the group would be the perfect fit for this ground-breaking show on modern sporting (AR) rifles. Without hesitation, I said J. Guthrie and Dick Metcalf. J. was the brash, young rookie, Dick the seasoned veteran. They played off each other so well—it was simply pure joy to see them grow into their roles.

Dick recalls, “I’d tell him everything would be good if he’d just remember I was the hero and he was the sidekick.  He’d say, ‘We ain’t makin’ no John Wayne movie, old man . . .’”  J and Dick worked together on three of our TV shows, all told.  “I loved that boy,” Dick says.  “He was my partner and my brother.  He was larger than life.  My world today is so much smaller without him in it.”

Again, J. didn’t disappoint. He never did.

J. now joins the ranks of talented writers who contributed to Guns & Ammo over the years, those who are no longer with us—to name just a few, Elmer Keith, Jeff Cooper, Bill Jordan, Bob Milek, John Wootters and many, many others.

J., we will meet again down the road—just remember, don’t call me Mister.

×

We Will Miss Him Deeply

J. Guthrie – a man that that provided warm and glowing light to every room he entered, every conversation he participated in, and in every one of the many, many friendships he enjoyed. I will miss him deeply, not only for his unique style and genius in all his media contributions he left us with, but because of the strong professional relationship we enjoyed. J. was a wonderfully strategic negotiator – and it was damn hard not to love working with him on any project. J. brought levity, insight and creativity to every project we worked on, and to every person he touched. He had a lighthearted saying for every situation, and could make me laugh at the toughest situations we faced. Few people have the gift of binding together so many people of so many backgrounds, but J. created bonds that corralled all people to him. My heart goes to his wife, children and family, and his passing from us is a gift to those he now shares the Heavens with. I will sorely miss you J.

—Mike Carney, Senior VP, Group Publisher, InterMedia Outdoors

A Toast to a Great Friend

I have fond memories of a 2011 hunt I did with Guthrie, a name he wanted his friends to call him. We hunted antelope in New Mexico when he and Donna Boddington were guests on Benelli on Assignment. We were with outfitter, Kirk and Roxy Kelso, during a two-day season, which was far too short and went way too fast (see attached photo: from left, Guthrie, Kirk Kelso and Joe Coogan). We had a great and successful time and laughed a lot, thanks to Guthrie. We always talked about hunting together again, and as recently as last week, I'd hoped he could join me on a South Texas turkey hunt, but regrettably his busy schedule did not allow.

Our heartfelt thoughts and prayers are with his family at this most difficult of times. And for all who knew Guthrie, I have no doubt there will be many a toast of Maker's Mark raised around campfires all over the world—here's to you Guthrie, save some game for us.

—Submitted by Joe Coogan, Benelli USA

A Successful Hunter

J. Guthrie took a nice true swamp talker with 1 3/8-inch spurs at Osceola Outdoor with Zack Moye. As Guthrie said, "I put the ole snake charm on that boy!" And damn if he didn't dump the bird a little over 40 yards to kill the bird with those No. 7 loads.

—Submitted by Zach Moye

An Industry Favorite

This is just unbelievable. I’m heartbroken. Utterly heartbroken for his wife and children and those so close to him. I’ll miss the "Miss Lisa" he’d greet me with all the time. I attended a writer event at Blackwater in 2008 that we (Mossberg) hosted, and he was there—it's where this pic was taken. J. had me laughing for three days straight and immediately he became one of my favorite industry people.

—Submitted by Lisa Baker, Mossberg

A Family Hunt

J. Guthrie, John Guthrie and myself were on a turkey hunt in South Carolina and just had lunch. J. decided to take a nap with his dog. Two hours later, we got him up and into the woods.

—Submitted by David Morin

A Man with Energy and Passion

I first met J. when his new show, Modern Rifle Adventures, started airing on Sportsman Channel a few years back. I was handling the PR for the show and needed his help on understanding the gist of the show and where he wanted to take it. Even though our first correspondences were via email, I could sense his energy and passion for all things outdoors. When I finally met him at SHOT Show, it was like I knew him for years. You will be missed J.

—Submitted by Michelle Scheuermann, The Sportsman Channel

We Called Him Brother

Guthrie hunting with Osceola Outdoors and killing his turkey on March 7, 2013. At this time, he was filming for Ruger In and Out TV. Guthrie has left his mark on Osceola Outdoors and will forever be remembered and greatly missed!! I felt honored to have known him and am glad to have called him a brother!!

—Submitted by Mike Tussey

One of the Best Gun Writers

RIP J. Guthrie. A humorous storyteller and a fountain of information. One of the best gun writers I've had the pleasure to hang out with in my travels. This photo is from my first traveling assignment for InterMedia Outdoors. Photo taken in Memphis in 2010.

—Submitted by Alfredo Rico

Doing What He Loved

J. Guthrie seen here shooting a new rifle and round from Federal Premium for an article for RifleShooter at Osceola Outdoors.

—Submitted by Zach Moye

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 9

Remembering J. Guthrie

◄ Back

Next ►

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Zombies are rather popular in American culture right now, especially among gun owners. The biggest example of the undead’s popularity is the TV show The Walking Dead, which saw huge ratings in Season 3. Not only did it have good ratings for cable—it’s broadcast on AMC—most nights it beat every other show on TV, including shows on the big three networks (ABC, NBC and CBS).

One reason zombies and The Walking Dead are so popular is the heavy emphasis on firearms in the genre. When you’re dealing with a creature that wants to eat you and can only be “killed” by destroying its brain, nothing works better at keeping their teeth away from your neck than guns.

That said, there is also a large contingent of gun owners whose opinion of the zombie craze can best be summed up by the conviction, “Zombies are stupid.” OK, I get that—if you can’t get past the whole “dead walking the earth” thing, the entertainment value of anything zombie tends to slide toward zero. That said, The Walking Dead is hugely popular for a lot of reasons, and there are a lot of lessons—symbolic and otherwise—in it for anyone interested in firearms for self defense and emergency preparedness.

The Mother of All Natural Disasters
Can you think of a more extreme example of a natural disaster than the Zombie Apocalypse? Emergency responders overwhelmed or out of the picture entirely, power and utilities down, deadly creatures roaming everywhere. Even the federal government has gotten into the emergency preparedness game with Ready.gov, recommending everyone have a kit loaded with everything you and your family would need to survive for 72 hours.

The best perspective on why you should prepare for the Zombie Apocalypse is something that’s been posted for years on the FAQ page of the forum at ZombieHunters.org:

Q: Do you really think Zombies are real or is this some sort of zombie movie fan site?
A: Zombie Squad realizes that it is quite possible for someone to live their entire lives without encountering the undead nuisance. However, we hold fast to the belief that if you are prepared for a scenario where the walking corpses of your family and neighbors are trying to eat you alive, you will be prepared for almost anything.
Zombie Squad is very serious about promoting public awareness of the need for survival preparation and contingency planning.

The Long and Short of It
Everyone tends to think of a natural disaster as a short-term event, hence the “72-hour” bags. But what if the problem goes on and on? The heroes in The Walking Dead have been dealing with corpses for three seasons—about a year in their world—and it appears their world has forever changed. Finding food and water is just as much of a priority for them as avoiding the undead. It took months, if not years, for life to return to normal in Louisiana after to Hurricane Katrina, and people in New England had no power for weeks after Sandy.

You Dance with Who You Brung
After a disaster is not the time to be thinking about buying a gun for protection or stocking up on supplies. The survivors of The Walking Dead use whatever weapons they can scrounge—knives, screwdrivers, handguns, crowbars, shotguns, baseball bats, rifles, a samurai sword and even a crossbow.

Also, the survivors quickly found out sound attracts walkers, so in the third season we saw them using guns with homemade suppressors. I particularly like the one made from the body of a Maglite. In the most recent season, they twice stumbled upon supplies of AR-15s—and ammo—and they are very very happy about it. If you don’t have what you think you might need to defend yourself or your family simply from a burglar—much less the looting which frequently follows natural disasters in this country—you’re doing it wrong.

Hurricanes and Tornadoes Don’t Riot or Loot
Whether the undead ever walk the earth or not, there will be more natural and man-made disasters. Most of the problems besetting the people living in those areas aren’t the storms themselves, but the people using the situation as an opportunity to misbehave. In The Walking Dead, the biggest problem the main group has to deal with by the third season isn’t the zombies, but rather other survivors who want their stuff. The mere presence of a gun won’t deter a zombie, but it sure works on regular people thinking about causing trouble.

Even without any disaster, the world is full of thieves—protect what you’ve got, and don’t start yapping to your neighbors how you’re a one-man army, and you’ve got a generator and enough guns, ammo, food and water to last for years on your own. If things get bad they’ll be standing on your porch knocking. If things get really bad, they won’t knock.

You Can Never Have Too Much Ammo
Does this really need explaining? In the zombie genre you’ll see guns, guns and more guns to deal with the shambling hordes of zombies. Most of the time little thought is given to ammunition by the director or producer, but we know different. Guns have to be fed. Most of us will never burn through an entire magazine shooting at people, living or dead. However, for those rare exceptions, there is nothing like having a lot of ammo available, preferably already loaded into magazines which hold a large number of rounds.

In October, G&A published a story in which an older gentleman with health issues was beset by home invaders—three guys with guns and masks entered his house, plus there was a driver in the getaway car. The homeowner fired multiple shots at the men, seriously wounding one and driving the others away. While they weren’t zombies, the lesson is clear.

Teamwork Saves Lives
Whether it’s the Zombie Apocalypse or a tornado that’s torn up your town, things will need to get done. It is far better to be part of a team working together than trying to go things on your own. In The Walking Dead, somebody always needs to be on watch to make sure the biters are sneaking up behind you. In the aftermath of a natural disaster, you’ll discover your neighbors have all sorts of useful skills, such as carpentry, plumbing or auto repair. Some of them can also stand guard on your house while you sleep.

People working together can accomplish a lot more. During the L.A. riots, store owners worked together to defend their properties. Thanks to teamwork—and their “assault rifles”—they saved their stores.

×

AKMS

The AKMS doesn't appear until Season 3, presumably scavenged by the group between the second and third seasons. The particular model used in The Walking Dead features rails along the top, plus a tactical handguard—both of which would come in handy during the Zombie Apocalypse.

Beretta 92FS

The Beretta 92FS appears throughout the series, and most recently is wielded by Carl Grimes. The 9mm 92FS features a 15-round capacity and features a 4.9-inch barrel length, and Carl's is fitted with a makeshift suppressor.

Colt Python

Rick Grimes carries a Colt Python as his sidearm throughout the series. Chambered in .357 Magnum, Rick's Colt features a 6-inch barrel with a nickel finish.

Glock 17

The Glock 17 appears numerous times throughout the series, and is used by several characters—makes sense, considering this 9mm pistol is the most widely used law enforcement sidearm in the world.

Heckler & Koch MP5K

Caesar Martinez carries a Heckler & Koch MP5K as his main firearm in Season 3. A shortened version of H&K's widely used MP5A2, the MP5K is a shortened version designed for close-quarter combat, and features a tactical forward grip in place of the standard handguard.

M4A1

Like the AKMS, the M4A1 is another rifle that didn't appear much until Season 3, also presumably scavenged between seasons and now being used more frequently. The M4A1 is a shortened version of the M16; this 5.56 carbine features a 14.5-inch barrel, and in The Walking Dead, is equipped with a variety of sights, from an Aimpoint sight to a 12x sniper scope.

Mossberg 500

The Mossberg 500 appears frequently throughout the series in the hands of various characters. More recently, this 12-gauge was upgraded with a KNOXX SpecOps NRS stock and pistol grip, making it one B.A. zombie-killing machine.

Mossberg 590

In earlier seasons, the Mossberg 590 is the weapon of choice for Shane, until it is replaced by the previously mentioned Mossberg 500. Like its successor, the Mossberg 590 is fitted with an extended magazine tube, plus a collapsible KNOXX SpecOps NRS stock with pistol grip.

Remington 870

Remington's classic shotgun, the 870, appears numerous times in various iterations throughout the series. From the upland bird-hunting 870 Wingmaster to the tactical 870 Police Magnum model, this pump proves to be quite handy in the Zombie Apocalypse.

Remington Model 700 VLS

Another classic Remington, the Model 700, also appears more than a few times throughout the series. In particular, Rick Grimes uses a variation, the Model 700 VLS (Varmint Laminated Stock), throughout Season 3. Chambered in .204 Ruger, .22-250 Rem., .223 Rem., .243 Win. and .308 Win., the Model 700 VLS features a Monte Carlo cheekpiece and a beavertail fore-end for better stability.

Smith & Wesson 3913

Designed for smaller-framed shooters, the Smith & Wesson 3913 "Ladysmith" is carried by Andrea throughout The Walking Dead. This 9mm semi-auto features an 8-round magazine with a 3.5-inch barrel, weighing just 1.75 pounds.

Stryker Strykezone 380

OK, we know what you're thinking: "This is Guns & Ammo, not Bows & Fletchlings." However, Daryl Dixon's use of crossbows through the entire series is worth noting. Starting with a Horton Scout HD 125, Daryl picks up a Stryker Strykezone 380 in Season 3.

◄ Back

Next ►

Picture 1 of 12

Guns of 'The Walking Dead'

◄ Back

Next ►

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

Lucky for us, we’ve got NSSF President Steve Sanetti.

In an interview with CNN’s Deborah Feyerick, Sanetti offered his take on the state of affairs for gun owners in Connecticut.

Specifically, Sanetti touched on the tragedy at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn.—where the NSSF is coincidentally headquartered—and urged lawmakers not to bend at the whim of a madman.

“What happened was a horrible, horrible, unspeakable tragedy. It’s a human tendency to try to want to make some sort of meaning out of a meaningless, senseless, brutal act,” Sanetti said. “But I do think they’re lashing out at the wrong people and the wrong objects. … Less than 3 percent of rifles are ever used in a violent crime of any sort, and yet, they’re demonizing the rifles because they look bad. They look like machine guns, which they’re not.”

Sanetti added the recently passed law in Connecticut—which bans over 100 firearms and limits magazine capacities to 10 rounds, among other regulations—will do little to prevent another tragedy like Sandy Hook.

When the law was signed by Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy on Thursday, April 4, the NSSF issued a statement regarding gun control legislation and its effect on violent crime—or its ineffectiveness.

“Gov. Dannel Malloy today signed into law a package of gun-control legislation that was assembled in secret by a small group of state legislators and that never received a public hearing. Most legislators had little time to even read the actual bill language,” the NSSF wrote. “The unfortunate results of this process, which made it appear that all points of view were being heard when in fact true expertise was shut out when it was most needed, means that mistakes in what is now enacted law will have to be corrected.”

One example, the NSSF wrote, is that the new law provides procedures by which vendors are required to carry out universal background checks in private transactions. However, that measure conflicts with federal law and essentially keeps private transactions from being carried out legally.

“We share the goal of wanting to make Connecticut safer for our citizens following the unspeakable tragedy at the Sandy Hook Elementary School,” the NSSF said. “In the end, however, public safety has not been enhanced and the unintended consequences of behind-closed-doors lawmaking will cause considerable confusion until the General Assembly corrects its mistakes.”

In his interview with CNN, Sanetti built on the NSSF’s statements by offering a common sense approach to gun regulations, focusing on the mental health aspect and a reformed background check system.

“Mental health records are not in the system. They’re supposed to be in the system for the last 20 years, but you find that most states—for valid privacy purposes—are not transmitting the mental health records in a searchable format so that when a background check is done, they can say whether or not this person is mentally qualified to have the gun,” Sanetti said. “We think that’s a scandal. We need to fix the background check system to import those mental health records with due concern for the privacy and [ethics] of mental health treatment. But we need to get those records in the system so that a dealer isn’t inadvertently delivering a gun to someone who’s mentally disturbed.”

Check out the full interview from CNN.

Clinton Keller was booked into the Washington County Jail on suspicion of residential burglary and theft Thursday. (Photo from KSL)

Another great personal defense story broke last week in a news report out of Utah in which St. George homeowner Eric Martin, who was in bed with his girlfriend, awoke to noises in his home. Martin retrieved his handgun and confronted an intruder, Clinton Keller, who then fled outside.

Keller had apparently entered the house through an unlocked rear door, and had already spent some time removing items from the house and stockpiling them on the lawn. Apparently he forgot about that, because he tripped over some of Martin’s belongings on the lawn, allowing Martin to catch up.

Check out the video from KSL TV in Salt Lake City

As Martin explained, “I said, ‘Do you know what I have pointed at you?’ He said, ‘No,’ and I said, ‘Do you want to know?’ And he of course doesn’t respond to that one, so I tell him, ‘Let me explain. I’ve got a 9mm pointed at you with high-velocity hollow points in the chamber,’ and I explained to him what that will do to him if he moves.”

Martin added, “He tried to get up once, and I explained again that this was the last time I was going to have this conversation with him, and he stayed on the ground at that point.”

Martin’s girlfriend, who was inside the house along with Martin’s 8-year-old son, called 911. Martin was able to hold Keller on the ground until police got there. Oh, did we forget to mention Martin was nude?

“Imagine five police cars and seven officers rolling up to a scene with a naked man holding a weapon pointing at someone, and holding him down on the ground,” Martin said. “The police got a kick out of that.”

Another great story of home defense, another great reason to buy a robe.

The gun-owning American public has seen and been through panic buying before, but never on a level compared to what we are seeing now. At SHOT Show last January, I asked all the black rifle makers if they had any product beyond what was being displayed on the walls of their booths. Their response? No.

I also asked ammunition makers if they had any ammunition left on the shelves.

“Sure,” Steve Hornady told me with a laugh. “I’ve got .470 and .500 Nitro.”

Jeff Hoffman, president of Black Hills Ammunition, pretty much told me the same thing. “We have a little bit of the hunting calibers on hand, like .270, but everything else is gone. It’s only skipping once on its way out the door.”

Why is it so much worse this time? The current situation was not caused by internal forces, but external. The sole reason for the current panic is politics. This new politically induced buying panic is much worse than in previous years because the anti-gun politicians have been pushing so much harder in their efforts to openly ban anything and everything that has a trigger—not just “evil assault weapons.”

During the last panic, “military-style” rifles were in high demand and hard to come by. Certain calibers were nearly impossible to find—9mm, .45 ACP and .223, for example—as were primers. As bad as things have been in the past, they don’t compare to what we are currently seeing.

Not only can’t you find a “military-style” semi-auto rifle on a shelf anywhere, but consumers have also been buying semi-auto shotguns, tactical bolt-action rifles and just about any type of high-capacity semi-auto pistol on the market. Nobody was ever panic-buying handguns before. In addition to the above popular military calibers being hard to locate, consumers have been buying every centerfire caliber available—some areas of the country have even seen a run on .22 LR!

During the last panic—when ammo and components were in such short supply—many people started throwing out conspiracy theories. Ammo makers were deliberately making less ammo, or hoarding it to drive up prices. That was not the case; the fact of the matter was avid shooters and politically astute gun owners were worried about not being able to get the ammo and components they needed, so they bought a lot more than they usually did.

So why is it worse this time around?

First, ammunition manufacturers have been running at or near capacity for at least 10 years. Some of their production is still earmarked for military contracts, even though the U.S. military’s presence overseas is being reduced. But the fact of the matter is most ammo makers have barely recovered from the last ammo-buying panic. Nobody who makes ammo has had it sitting around getting dusty on their shelves. They were barely able to keep up with commercial demand before the country went into panic-buying mode.

If the demand is so great, why aren’t Winchester, Remington and other companies expanding so they can make and sell even more ammo? It’s not that easy. First, to expand any business requires a lot of time and money, and there are never any guarantees. Who’s to say next year nobody buys any ammo because everybody bought it this year? In a business as political as the gun and ammo industry, sales spikes are common.

Hornady gets those questions so much they have a section on their website that answers a lot of the frequently asked questions.

As to why they can’t just “make more,” Hornady’s response is simple: “We’ve been steadily growing our production for a long time, especially the last five years. We’ve added presses, lathes, CNC equipment, people and space. Many popular items are produced 24 hours a day. Several hundred Hornady employees work overtime every week to produce as much as safely possible. If there is any question about that—please take a tour of the factory. You’ll be amazed at what you see.”

As Hornady’s Neal Emery told me recently, “We are producing as much as we can, much more than last year, which was a lot more than the year before, etc. No one wants to ship more during this time than we do.”

That’s not to say ammunition makers aren’t expanding when and where they can. Black Hills Ammunition recently moved into a much larger facility. Remington has been toying around with the idea of expanding their ammunition-making capabilities for quite some time.

“Even though we’re in the middle of panic buying, we don’t see the demand for ammunition going away any time soon,” Keith Enlow, Freedom Group’s senior vice president and ammunition manager, told a group of writers recently.

Remington’s official line on their current ammunition production is as follows: “Remington is at full capacity at this time in a majority of categories of ammunition. We are continuing to look at how to increase capacity and supply our ammunition products to the various channels of distribution/sales that we support.”

Second, during the last big panic, it was really only the avid shooters or politically active gun owners who saw a threat and responded with hoarding—excuse me, “bulk purchasing.” This time, it appears anyone who owned a gun perceived a threat, and anybody who didn’t own a gun—but thought it might be a good idea to own one—not only went out and bought a gun, but as much ammo as they could afford.

That’s another point. Since Obama took office, there have been 65 million NICS checks done. Even if only two-thirds of those resulted in guns bought, that equates to 40 million new guns in the hands of consumers. All those new guns need to be fed, in addition to all the others still in the hands of consumers.

Is there a way to prevent such a shortage in the future? The only way to sidetrack panic buying/hoarding is to have a huge surplus of ammo on the market—which would probably drive the price down. Ammunition makers aren’t keeping supplies in reserve to drive the price up; honestly, at this point they could charge whatever they wanted—and they would get it. As Emery told me, “As far as preventing this again, we don’t have much to comment. We will continue to grow and expand our capacity to meet high demand.”

I think the current situation is best summed up by what I heard a clerk in my local gun store say to a customer: “We are not experiencing a gun or ammo shortage. We are experiencing a customer surplus.”

Well, that’s precisely what EOTech is doing. Starting today, EOTech is launching a year-long Facebook contest with weekly prizes—plus a grand prize at the end—in honor of its 1 millionth holographic weapons sight.

To enter the contest, head over to EOTech’s Facebook page and click “Like.” Once you do that, check out their promotional video and register to guess where in the world the sight is that week. A new video will be posted every week with the sight in a new, secret location. According to a press release from EOTech, fans are given a better opportunity to win by sharing the promotion with their friends.

The contest begins today and runs through the end of the year. Weekly prize packages include a EXPS3-0 holographic weapons sight and G33 magnifier kits—a retail value of $1,268. At the end of the year, a $10,000 grand prize package will be given away, including a WL1-AA LED tactical long gun light ($469), a X200XP handheld thermal imaging unit ($4,999), a M914 weapon mounted night vision system ($4,799) and a Beamhit 190-3 Personal Marksmanship Training System ($329).

“The recognition of this 1 Millionth sight milestone is our way to give something back and share our gratitude and appreciation for all the support our various customers have given us throughout the years,” said Ed Schoppman, vice president of marketing and sales.

Check out the promo video from EOTech, and be sure to visit their Facebook page to enter!

As you read this, New York has already banned magazines that hold more than seven rounds and expanded its “assault weapon” ban, and the NRA is working to defeat hundreds of bills that have been introduced in other state capitals. The most dangerous of the bills propose to ban guns or magazines; limit the frequency of gun purchases; repeal laws that protect the right to self-defense; impose taxes on firearm purchases; ban the purchase of ammunition online; impose gun registration; and require so-called “universal background checks” on all gifts, sales or trades of firearms, even between family members, friends, neighbors, co-workers and other personal acquaintances.

The NRA opposes any effort to diminish the ability of law-abiding Americans to keep and bear arms for legitimate purposes. Contrary to what some in the media suggested in March, that includes opposition to so-called “universal background checks.” Criminals will never submit to a background check system, so despite its name, such a system will never be “universal.” Further, we do not support criminalizing the private transfer of firearms between honest citizens, which is precisely what such a system would do. And lastly, if background checks become mandatory for all private transfers, it will be only a matter of time until we’re fighting against bills calling for the federal government to maintain permanent records on all firearm sales, and only a matter of time after that until we are fighting against bills calling for those records to include the make, model and serial number of every firearm sold. Gun control supporters know as well as anyone that some touchdowns are scored with a single big play, but most points are earned by moving the ball a few yards at a time.

There’s at least one crucial difference between a football game and politics, though. Football games end when time runs out in the fourth quarter. Politics is a never-ending battle, as demonstrated by the fact that on March 14, the United States Senate Judiciary Committee—which 20 years ago approved an “assault weapon” and magazine ban that studies showed didn’t reduce crime, and which some anti-gun activists disparaged as a “joke,” a “fictional ban,” and a “charade”—approved yet another ban, by the same author, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.).

Many in the media are describing Feinstein’s new ban as a rehash of her federal “assault weapon” and “large” magazine ban of 1994-2004. However, the new “Assault Weapons Ban of 2013” (S. 150)—approved with Feinstein and the committee’s nine other Democrats voting for it and its eight Republicans voting against it—has been expanded to prohibit almost all semi-automatic shotguns and detachable-magazine semi-automatic rifles (unless specifically exempted by name), various fixed-magazine and compact rifles, and various fixed-magazine and detachable-magazine pistols, along with magazines that hold 11 or more rounds, regardless of the firearms in which they are used.

The new ban would also prohibit people from selling, trading, or giving away “assault weapons” they currently own, unless they went through a licensed dealer. And it would prohibit owners of the magazines from selling them under any circumstances. Essentially calling for “confiscation without compensation,” the bill would prohibit you from leaving them to your heirs in your will.

Along with the legislation to move America closer to national gun registration by imposing “universal checks” on all gifts, sales, trades or other exchanges of firearms, S. 150 now goes to the full Senate, which may be voting on the bills by the time you read this. Now is the time to call your U.S. senators and House members at (202) 224-3121 to state your opposition to these bills. You can also reach them through the “Write Your Reps” feature on our website, at www.nraila.org. The next four years are going to be some of the toughest the Second Amendment has ever faced. The time to take a stand is now.

Chris W. Cox is the Executive Director of the National Rifle Association Institute for Legislative Action and serves as the organization’s chief lobbyist.  Please give your support to NRA-ILA today by going to www.NRAILA.org/donate.

Charlie Blackmore was one of those Wisconsin residents who obtained a CCW. A Marine Corps veteran, Blackmore was driving home from work at 4 a.m. recently when he saw a large man kicking something on a sidewalk. As he got closer he realized that the “something” was actually a woman.

Blackmore jumped out of his car and told the man to stop. When the man approached him, Blackmore pulled his handgun and told the man to get down on the ground. He held the man at gunpoint while calling the police. Several times while waiting for the police to arrive, the man made moves as if to come at Blackmore. Blackmore said he told the man, “…if he came at me I was going to have to take him down, and I told him that. I warned him multiple times not to come towards me because he was a big guy and I wasn’t playing around, and he didn’t seem like he was playing around.”

Check out the video from WITI-TV in Milwaukee:

When the police did finally show up they had to force the suspect to the ground. They then asked to see Blackmore’s concealed carry permit.

“I put my hands up turned around and said, ‘You can grab it out of my wallet.’ Checked my permit, gave me my wallet back, and then interviewed me for their paperwork,” Blackmore said.

The attacker apparently was an ex-boyfriend of the victim, who suffered a bad laceration to her face and a possible broken nose. She was apparently attacked on her way to work.

Blackmore said that situations like this are why he supports Wisconsin’s concealed carry law, and the rights of gun owners.

“We do good things. Not all of us are bad or crazy gun nuts,” Blackmore said. “There are good people.”

According to the news story, the West Allis Police chief had some borderline idiotic comments that I wish were the exception, but rather tend to be the rule coming from police chiefs—who are usually anti-gun politicians. He said these types of situations “really are judgment calls for gun owners.” Since when did coming to the aid of a woman being beaten by a large man become a judgment call? Wouldn’t that pretty much be a pass/fail question on the character and morality test? Also, while the police “don’t encourage this behavior,” they “appreciate citizens watching out for each other as long as they do it legally and are willing to accept the consequences.” The police tend to forget that it is the citizens who are and always have been the first line of defense against criminals, the world over. The police only show up when they’re called, usually after everything is over.