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AR-15 and AK Dust test

The Cav Arms guys did an extreme dust test on an AR-15. Turns out AR-15 cannot handle being buried in sand and then run over by a Jeep ... who knew? Apart from the "Jeep test", it did really well.

AR-15 dust test

They also tested an AK derivative, a 5.56mm SAR-3, which did not do as well. It seems odd that the trigger group would fail to function. I have posted videos on the blog showing AKs working under worse conditions.

AK dust test

Posted by Steve on Oct 20th 2009 | Filed in rifles | Comments (26)

The changing gun culture in Switzerland (and some Sig 550 photos)

There is an interesting video at WorldRadio.ch about the famous unique gun culture of Switzerland. At the start of the video a Swiss guy shows the rifle he used in military service, his fathers service rifle and says that his grandfather's service rifle is hanging in his office. How cool is that?

This was my father’s military rifle and of course he got to keep it when he was finished. I have my grandfather’s military rifle hanging on the office wall. This was mine when I did service. It’s quite an old one it was introduced in 1957 and used until 1990. And this is my son’s. It’s the current model. That’s what’s being used today. That’s what we’ll be using the shoot the Feldschiessen today.

The Feldschessen, or Tiro Federale in Campagna as it’s known in these parts is an annual Swiss event and the largest shooting festival in the world. Roughly 200 thousand people come out to target practice all across the country. ammunition is provided by the government.

A shooting content with 200,000 people! Crazy!

And for your viewing benefit, here are some swiss made Sig 550 rifles from CS's collection.

Many thanks to CS for the photos and the link.

Posted by Steve on Oct 20th 2009 | Filed in news, photos, rifles | Comments (7)

Incredible slow motion bullet video

This video is a must watch. It is hands down the best slow motion video I have ever seem!

It demonstrates ...

  • Frangible bullets on different angled surfaces
  • What happens when bullets collide with flying objects
  • Air gun pellets
  • Shotgun pellets
  • Bullets that hit the corner of a hard object
  • ... and more.

Frangible bullets do live up to their claim of not ricocheting. I was impressed that the bullets did not ricochet from the low angled surfaces.

The video was shot by Kurzzeit, a company that sells a high speed video camera that can capture one million frames per second!

A big thanks to Jay for emailing me the video!

Posted by Steve on Oct 8th 2009 | Filed in ammunition, video | Comments (18)

Double Barrel Pump Action Improved

Inspired by the Double Barrel Pump Action we saw on Les Jones's blog, HerrKenny decided to make his own, more professional looking, "Moe Szyslak Special".

The odd shape makes the photo look screwed. It is not.

Centered Bead. "Persuasion" chokes (sharp edged).

Duel Extended Magazines - 16 shot capacity.

The underside.

Firing the double barreled beast.

I am very impressed by the workmenship that went into this gun and I am sure there would be many out there who would pay good money for it.

Moe Szyslak sporting his iconic double barreled pump gun

Thanks to Jake for helping me find out about this gun.

Posted by Steve on Oct 5th 2009 | Filed in shotguns, strange guns | Comments (16)

Janne vs. the .458 Win Mag

It just goes to show you don't need to be a big guy to fire a big gun, although I am sure Janne felt every ft/lb of energy!

One day, we were testing .458 Winchester Magnum reloads and of course, we were just obligated to let Janne (158 cm / 58 kg) to test the gun. Challenge for him was that he had to shoot three full-load rounds within a minute. I think he did a good job.

(They are speaking Finnish, but you get the general idea).

Thanks to Rekyyli for the video.

Posted by Steve on Sep 30th 2009 | Filed in video | Comments (9)

Long range shooting with a snubby

Steve Doran proves that any gun can be accurate if you take the time to practice with it. He takes his Smith & Wesson Model 60 snub nosed revolver (1 5/8 inch barrel) and, firing 158 grain .38 Special factory ammunition and manages great accuracy at 100 yards!

Steve has a write up about the shoot over at his website.

Posted by Steve on Sep 21st 2009 | Filed in handguns | Comments (5)

MP5-SD Video

The MP5SD is the integrally suppressed version of the famous MP5 submachine gun. This video, taken by the THOR Group, shows just how silent the gun is.

Unlike most videos on YouTube the sound on this video is very clear and you can distinctively hear that a lot of the noise is caused by the bolt itself, rather than the escaping gas.

One of the reasons I love my suppressed .22 bolt gun is that there is no noise from the action other than the firing pin smashing the case rim.

Thanks to Max for the link.

Posted by Steve on Sep 8th 2009 | Filed in Suppressors, machine guns, video | Comments (0)

JB Custom Mare’s Leg Pistol Video Review

The original Mare’s Leg Pistol was a shortened .44-40 Winchester 1892 lever action rifle which featured in the ’50s TV series Wanted: Dead or Alive. Its distinctive design featured a cut down butt stock, shortened barrel and large cocking lever loop.

Since 2005 JB Custom have been look-alike that is registered as a pistol with the BATFE so it can be legally owned without jumping through NFA hoops.

Mares Leg Pistol Lever Action

Steve Doran has produced a video review of the pistol. It looks like a lot of fun!

The standard model sells for $1695.

Posted by Steve on Sep 2nd 2009 | Filed in handguns, rifles | Comments (19)

Why we wear shooting glasses

This animated GIF gave me a really good laugh. Sven says it is from a 1990’s 1980’s South African comedy.

Posted by Steve on Aug 6th 2009 | Filed in video | Comments (4)

TFB Poll: What Women Used for Protection in 1952

Watch the below video then vote.

It is all fun and games until someone gets hurt!

Thanks to Jeff for finding the video.

Posted by Steve on Aug 5th 2009 | Filed in misc, video | Comments (11)

Emergency AK-47 magazine drill video

This video demonstrates a fast AK-47 magazine change technique. The video author calls it the “Shayetet 13 style”. Shayetet 13 are an elite IDF marine special forces unit, similar to the SEALs. I would be surprised if they were the sole inventors of this technique, it was more likely simultaneously discovered by AK-47 wielding soldiers around the world.

Remember, this technique is for emergencys only, doing it repeatedly could wreck your magazines.

UPDATE: I posted the wrong video. The video above is now the correct video.

Hat Tip: FromanMD @ MP.net

Posted by Steve on Aug 4th 2009 | Filed in rifles, video | Comments (24)

Double Rifle fun

Those hardworking boys at American Rifle have been plinking African style with a double barreled rifles chambered in .470 Nitro Express.

Picture 6-32
A spectator shouts “Fix bayonets!” :)

A question to those who know more about these things than me: I noticed that the first rifle shown in the video featured ejectors while the other two rifles did not, Is there any reason not to have ejectors on a dangerous game rifle? In a real-life situation a fast reload could be the difference between taking home a trophy or being taken home in a coffin so I would have thought ejectors would be standard.

Hat Tip: Ed @ Tell Me Why?

Posted by Steve on Jul 17th 2009 | Filed in hunting, rifles | Comments (17)

Video of the Beretta ARX 160

This is the first video I have seen of the new Beretta ARX 160 carbine.

Looks like a very easy to handle rifle. I think this would sell well if it made it stateside.

Posted by Steve on Jun 22nd 2009 | Filed in rifles, video | Comments (13)

James Yeager responds to the controversial training video

James Yeager, the owner of Tactical Response, has posted a video on youtube in response the controversy over the controversial training video which shows a photographer standing next to a target downrange of students shooting live ammunition.

Personally I respect everyone’s right to train how they see fit, as long as they do it far away from me. Although saying that, I think Mr Yeager could have made some better arguments in his video.

Yeager states many people don’t like anybody standing even slightly forward of their muzzle when shooting. That is true, and I can be included in this group of people, but the video showed somebody next to the targets, not just standing slightly forward of the muzzle.

He uses a car analogy in his response. I know driving in a car is dangerous, but I do my best to mitigate the risks of driving as much as I can. I drive a car that doesn’t have any known safety problems, has seat belts, ABS brakes and air bags. If I could afford a new car, I would buy one with those fancy electronic stability control systems. Increasing risk when shooting just because driving is dangerous does not make sense to me.

Lastly, he says you can never be 100% safe. I belong to a rifle target shooting club that has their own private range. The club is over 100 years old and as far as anybody can tell, there has not been an injury on the range in 100 years. There have of course been negligent discharges, but nobody was downrange at the time. Sure it is not 100% safe, but pretty damn close.

Thanks to D. Tanner and Thomas for the link.

Posted by Steve on Jun 19th 2009 | Filed in handguns, video | Comments (54)

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