Did I mention I owned an AR? See picture at the top of the blog. Some people think AR stands for assault rifle; this is incorrect and doesn’t fit the military definition, see Wikipedia entry. AR is for automatic rifle, aka black rifle. Because it’s scary looking some say Evil Black Rifle (EBR). Others who are familiar with the type will say AR, or AR 15 or M4. My favorite and my daughters is Zombie killer, or ZKM for Zombie Killin’ Machine, still have to pickup the chainsaw attachment.

So now you’re thinking I purchased it for stopping Zombies, not so. I was actually concerned of losing my rights of owning such a weapon with a new administration entering office. There had been many election year rumors and promises which disturbed me. I decided to buy before something was put into place to prevent me from owning one.

It took several weeks of research to determine what I thought was import and then looking at different manufacturers to compare offerings. Also, availability was a factor; I found there were others motivated for the same reasons as I, which began limiting supply. Many companies had orders placed that wouldn’t be filled for as much as six to ten weeks later. The opening screen to their websites advised customers to not call unless their order was older than eight weeks.

I was beginning to get a little desperate, not quite, but concerned. I had several models in mind and they couldn’t be found. If they were for sale on the web there was quite markup I wasn’t ready to pay. Then, at a gunshow in Chantilly VA I found the one I was interested in. It was a LWRC M6A2. This AR had some features that others didn’t which greatly influenced my decision.

Primarily it is a gas-piston operated gun. See figure. Typically AR’s use the hot gas of the bullet to actuate the bolts movement to the rear and eject the spent bullet, then load in a new one. This gun wasn’t like that; instead the gas operates a piston that pushes the bolt back performing the same operation as described. This keeps dirt and grime out of the moving parts, it also keeps the heat out. The bolt remains cool even if you shoot thirty rounds on full auto, all because its piston operated.

The other reason, the gun came with all the name brand after market upgrades I would have purchased anyways. So, with the concurrence of my spouse and American Express I now have my new gun.

Where to shoot? It’s not an easy answer. Unlike rural Pennsylvania, Colorado or Wyoming, in those states if you have enough land you can select the safest remote corner on your property and go to town. Reminder, always know what is beyond your target. Never shoot in an unsafe direction. However, those of us who live in high density populations must come up with an alternative.

Our quest for a location could begin at The National Rifle Association’s search website. Their search engine that will show locations after you input your address or just a zip code. Very useful if you’re in an unfamiliar place and need to do some practice.

In the vicinity of the NOVA Woodbridge campus area are several places I’m aware of. There is the Quantico Shooting Club. It is a very large facility. It’s located on the west side of I-95 across from the main base. They have a skeet range, trap range, several rifle ranges and pistol ranges. There are qualifications to be met for membership, in short: Any member of the Marines, Armed Forces, Regular, Reserve or Retired, or any dependent family member of the same, or any DOD employee or retiree. Former POWs, Purple Heart recipients, and veterans who served in combat zones, who are not eligible to become regular members, will be considered regular members for the purpose of holding office and voting. If you meet the criteria, you apply and pay a yearly fee for access. Not a bad deal for what you get.

There was a convenient indoor place called Shooters Paradise located on US 1, just north of Prince William Parkway. You could actually rent a gun from them and purchase ammunition and shoot it on their range. It was a great way to check out various makes and models of guns. Unfortunately there was a fire two years ago and they haven’t rebuilt.

Near Springfield is Gilbert Small Arms Range, another indoor range. They require a membership and fees but provide an indoor place to shoot and easy to get to location, its just off of I – 95.

If you life near I – 66 there is the National Rifle Association range located in their headquarters facility in Fairfax. You can shoot nearly any caliber there, up to .460 Weatherby – monster of a gun. Prices are from $18 an hour for non NRA members to $14 for NRA members. The range is also indoors.

These are just some of the locations in the local area. In my experience there are also hunting associations or clubs that operate private ranges and cost nothing to use. I haven’t found one I’d like to join, if anyone knows of one in the area let me know.

More information, I like information. Earlier I shared some frequently visited websites. Here are some more of my favorites.

www.theboxotruth.com or The BoxO’ Truth is a website that is run by gentlemen who goes by Old_Painless. With the help of others he conducts practical shooting experiments using everyday materials. You get to see the outcome for yourself, its very interesting. There are also many other practical minded articles about guns and self defense.

www.lwrci.com , is LWRC International website. They are an Automatic Rifle (AR) manufacturer of high quality guns. What set this company apart from others in my purchasing decision was the technology employed in several models of their guns. They implemented a short-stroke gas-piston operating system; this keeps the hot gas out of the upper receiver of the weapon, keeping it cleaner and far cooler then traditional gas operated AR’s.

www.dillonprecision.com, aka Dillion Precision Products is a maker of progressive reloaders and carry a complete line of accessories needed for reloading. When I purchased my AR, reloading seemed the only way to control the cost of owning such a gun. I had planned on purchasing a system by RCBS or Lee as my father-in-law had. However, during my search I found a used RCBS, the owner once learning of my objective recommended instead the purchase of the Dillion Precision system. I’m glad I followed his advice, shooters are like that. He gave up the his sale to help me out.

www.midsouthshooterssupply.com, Midsouth Shooters – another shooters supply. They’ve had items when others don’t.

www.nra.org, the National Rifle Association – like it says. Your advocate for gun rights. This is a great resource for information of all types and education. Become a member, pay your dues and let the professionals keep up with the law makers. When it’s important they’ll notify you via email or snail mail. They’ll ask for donations. Do/don’t donate, that’s up to you. In the end they are the 800lb gorilla on your side.

www.usacarry.com, USA Carry about Open and Concealed Carry Information and Community. They are a great resource for open and concealed carry information. It proved invaluable when I applied for and received my Virginia CCW card.

Well, time to throttle back the faucet of information. Want you to have time to absorb and explore those sites for yourself. Hopefully they are of some use to you. If nothing else bookmark it for later browsing.

While watching the Outdoor Channel on TV I ran across a short commercial featuring Larry Potterfield of MidwayUSA.com. He was demonstrating how to rate your concealed carry handgun. It was an interesting way of rating the defense factor of the gun and its owner. The system is based on the owner’s ability and type of gun used for defense, it measures the response time to for the first bullet to hit the target, the number of successive shots on target in the first 3 seconds. Points are awarded for the first shot, then the number of on target successive shots, then a lookup chart is provided that gives the knockdown factor of the bullet used. The total score is the rating of the shooter’s skill and gun capability combined. The system provides a basis for comparing your weapons results to others in the list. I like how this works, it removes the subjective or opinionated information from the equation and provides an objective score.

Well I’ve discussed a shotgun, handgun and I guess another handgun as a solution to self defense for the home. The choice of a semi-automatic pistol was the best for me. The physical size, stopping power and ability to hang a light on it were all pluses in my book. The fact that I can easily and safely store it also helped my choice. There is also something to be said about its portability. I confine that discussion to a different posting later and while I didn’t discuss cost, a handgun is likely to cost more than a shotgun. But that didn’t factor in my decision.

There are many reasons to have and not have protection for one self. In the end it made sense to me to have something for the home where I can defend myself and loved ones and do so effectively. To purposefully arm oneself for defense is a personal decision, with many possible consequences, only after one has conducted their own research should they decide whether gun ownership is for them.

In this post I was going to offer up Taurus Internationals revolver, “The Judge” as a compromise between a handgun and shotgun.The first time I saw it was at a gun show and it was an earlier model which took 2 ½ inch shells, there is a newer version which accepts 3 inch shells. The gun that can be loaded with a .410 shotgun shell filled with birdshot or buck shot and it can also shoot a regular .45 long colt bullet. Versatile weapon, definitely something that gives you a choice of load to use and I like that. At the same I don’t think of it as a sole home defense weapon. I’ve changed my mind after reading several other articles. Let me start with it only holds 5 rounds, just 5. For it to really to do its job and because of its low capacity it would have to be loaded with the .45 cal. long colt. This is a man stopper for sure and it will over penetrate. You could step down to #4 buckshot but its capability is reduced when compared to the larger 12 gauge shotshell as it does not pack the punch to stop someone. Physically the .410 holds less shot.

It definitely complements a person’s collection but it wouldn’t be the first or only choice for a self defense weapon. In snake country or on a farm where there are rodents this would be a very useful weapon to own. Additionally, where state and local laws permitted, it would be a great car gun. If I were a long haul driver whose truck had a sleeper compartment I’d have one in a second. I see one in my future, probably used, at the moment there are too many other things on my list. In the next post I’ll finish up this discussion and we’ll move on to something more interesting.

I decided on the Smith & Wesson M&P .40 with a Streamlight TLR2 flashlight/laser combination unit. Also, in accordance with my earlier discussion of keeping others safe, I’ve loaded it with what some people consider as special ammunition. Instead of using a full metal jacket bullet or jacketed hollow point , the first three bullets in my clip are frangible bullets. Frangible ammunition is made of finely ground copper /tin powder that is molded into a bullet when tons of pressure is applied. The advantage is upon impact with a hard surface; the bullet turns to dust and imparts all its kinetic energy into the impact area.

The likelyhood of the bullet passing through the wall or a person injuring someone else is far less due to its nature.
Now, don’t kid yourself. I said the first three rounds. After that, the other 12 rounds are jacketed hollow points. Again, in my opinion I want to protect myself and my loved ones. That being said if the first three don’t do the job I figure I’ve given the intruder the chance to retreat and whatever happens after is on them.
Again, safety in mind – its kept fully loaded in a safe. Enter the combination and I have access to it in a flash. Not something you can do with a shotgun. Also, its smaller than a shotgun and easier to handle. The attached light allows positive identification before pulling the trigger and the laser is very intimidating when the laser dot is on your chest. Next we’ll talk about the compromise between the shotgun and pistol.

Back to home defense. After reviewing the last post on the subject I wanted to add some additional information. There are defensive training resources out there that one can sign up for. The NRA has developed two courses that address personal protection. One is the Basic Personal Protection in the Home Course and the other is Personal Protection Outside the Home Course. Each are one day courses which cost anywhere from $150-180 and may satisfy some safety requirements you may be trying to fulfill. I recommend them to anyone that wants to become comfortable with using a gun for self defense. They are taught by NRA certified instructors providing professional instruction and materials. One of the courses will have you at the gun range shooting the same day. Instructors will even provide you a semi automatic gun to complete the course.

One more try, back to home defense. We covered the shotgun as a means to defend oneself. Now, lets talk about the handguns. There are two types, revolvers like those seen in the old west and civil war movies and semi-automatic pistols which we see in many of todays movie and TV shows. There are advantages and disadvantages to both.

The revolver is the simpler of the two to use. Its design makes it intuitive to operate and easy to determine if it is loaded or not. A malfunctioning round doesn’t require special intervention to clear, just pull the trigger for the next round. They are easier to take care of with fewer moving parts and mechanisms to clean or oil.

Semi-automatics carry more bullets, from 8 to 33 rounds and faster to reload. They are slimmer in design making them easier handle and conceal for defense. Actual shooting of a semi-auto is easier as less strength is needed for pulling the trigger. Picatinny rails are common to semi-autos which are used to attach accessories to. Things like a laser light, flash light, or a combination unit of both. A telescopic sight or scope can also be attached. All of these are used to assist in identifying and aiming the weapon at the target.

As you can see each type has their advantages. A conservative belt and suspenders guy might decide a revolver is the way to go. That is because of its simplicity and least likely to malfunction. Then there are the throw as many bullets at’em as you can kinda guys. They are comfortable and familiar with their gun, capable of maintaining it and clearing a dud round if needed. Perhaps they’ve even added an accessory such as a flashlight to it. I’ll continue with what I chose in the next post. In the meantime a little entertainment.