Firearms Showcase Your Firearms

[Mark Sman]

Rossi R92, .357 magnum, 20 inch barrel. 10 shot tube magazine.

Primary Arms red dot SLX MD-20 on a pretty low mount (Skinner). Only about 1 inch higher center than the irons.

Price as pictured $690 all in for rifle (used $500), optic ($125 discontinued sale), mount ($40) and sling ($25).

Six and a half pounds with sling, optic and ten rounds. It weighs less than it looks.

I have braced myself for being declaimed as a heretic and a defiler of John Moses Browning's Winchester 1892 design because of the red dot. But the simple fact is that my eyes don't work like they used to work.

Didn't want to have to use some janky aftermarket sling mount on the magazine tube. So a single point sling mounted to the saddle ring. Which is not a defilement. See Cavalry, US.

Fifty yard zero for PMC .357 158gr JSP moving along at about 1625fps +- 15fps at 5 yards. At close range this thing will hit hard.

Five inch ten shot groups at 100 yards. So 100 yards is the limit for me and this rifle, a better shooter could do better. But velocity would start dropping significantly past 100 yards.

Surprisingly the trigger is OK. Right at four pounds. Some creep, some grit. I am not going to mess with it because I don't want a light trigger in the woods.

 

[LimaCharles]

View attachment 524466

Rossi R92, .357 magnum, 20 inch barrel. 10 shot tube magazine.

Primary Arms red dot SLX MD-20 on a pretty low mount (Skinner). Only about 1 inch higher center than the irons.

Price as pictured $690 all in for rifle (used $500), optic ($125 discontinued sale), mount ($40) and sling ($25).

Six and a half pounds with sling, optic and ten rounds. It weighs less than it looks.

I have braced myself for being declaimed as a heretic and a defiler of John Moses Browning's Winchester 1892 design because of the red dot. But the simple fact is that my eyes don't work like they used to work.

Didn't want to have to use some janky aftermarket sling mount on the magazine tube. So a single point sling mounted to the saddle ring. Which is not a defilement. See Cavalry, US.

Fifty yard zero for PMC .357 158gr JSP moving along at about 1625fps +- 15fps at 5 yards. At close range this thing will hit hard.

Five inch ten shot groups at 100 yards. So 100 yards is the limit for me and this rifle, a better shooter could do better. But velocity would start dropping significantly past 100 yards.

Surprisingly the trigger is OK. Right at four pounds. Some creep, some grit. I am not going to mess with it because I don't want a light trigger in the woods.

Who cares what they think, or rather we. It's yours, make it functional for you. Personally speaking I don't mind seeing what folks do with theirs to make it work for them.

I do however know at least one person whom would be triggered, a very high-strung super neurotic troglodyte. I really don't understand how and why it happened, he started off his career in the analog Army just as I had done, and also like myself we retired in the digital one. But these days, he's luddite central. lol, crazy.

You probably could squeeze more accuracy reloading but if you're okay without it, run it.

I know I haven't posted in here for a spell but I do have some rather nice unseen to y'all things to flex on the poors with, haha. Maybe this after this Wednesday I'll get some pics to upload while doing range time.

 

[Mark Sman]

Probably won't reload for this rifle. I have accepted my current limits with this combo and called it a win.

Almost all hunting shot opportunities where I am at come closer than 100 yards. Most under 50. With this 2 MOA dot I get a pretty good feedback to my brain about what CEP is at range. Not perfect, but quick. If things go to plan I will get out a couple of times this year with this rifle.

 

[Mark Sman]

Bit of a fun one. The evolution of my pistol over mumblemumble years.

S&W Model 19, .357, 6 shot, 2.5 inch barrel. This didn't last long before the days of the Wonder Nine.

S&W Model 59, 9mm, 4 inch barrel. Originally 14 shot magazines, later 15, and now 17. This pistol is better than its reputation. Many people reported problems with this model, but this particular one ran like a champ. The wood grips are a later addition just because I liked them.

Glock 19 Gen 2, 9mm, 4 inch barrel. This one went the longest by far, over 30 years. I have aged and now want a lighter pistol for concealed carry.

Bringing us to:

S&W Shield Plus, 9mm, 3.1inch barrel. Between my friends I was able to put rounds down all of the popular sub-compact/micros. I thought I would do better with the Glock 26 or 43. Did best with the Shield Plus every time. Just passed 500 rounds with it, so it is now primary.

Red Dot is still coming.

 

[uktabber]

Very NICE set of thorough breds you've got there mate!!! The Model 19 SW, the Model 39....classics!!! Thanks for posting!

 

[Mark Sman]

Bit of a different one. This wasn't in the "my pistol" category because I never carried this pistol and never will.

A 1935 Walther PPK in .32 ACP (7.65 Browning) No military, government, or department ownership marks, almost certainly an early export example. I passed over other examples when I purchased this because I really didn't want any N-word markings. Or anything even near that.

This is a very early PPK, one of the first years with the 90 degree safety.

I bought this because of "Walther PPK 7.65mm with a delivery like a brick through a plate glass window."

But I am done with this one. Bought and shot it for fun. For what it is worth, it is fun. Very little recoil and surprisingly accurate. I can see why back in the day this was considered a good concealed carry option.

For tomorrow's pic I am thinking . . . Colt.

 

[LimaCharles]

Reloading .380 ACP is very underwhelming.

 

[Mark Sman]

Reloading .380 ACP is very underwhelming.

What do you run them through?

 

[LimaCharles]

What do you run them through?

Lee single stage to expand them all first, because no matter how much I tried to get the tooling to go deeper they weren't expanding at all. The only cartridge that I have to first expand on a single stage before moving on to a progressive. But the pictured press for the majority of the work is the Hornady LnL auto progressive.

 

[Mark Sman]

Lee single stage to expand them all first, because no matter how much I tried to get the tooling to go deeper they weren't expanding at all. The only cartridge that I have to first expand on a single stage before moving on to a progressive. But the pictured press for the majority of the work is the Hornady LnL auto progressive.

Interesting. What with the price of factory .380 the value for reloading it is probably high.

 

[LimaCharles]

Interesting. What with the price of factory .380 the value for reloading it is probably high.

Ya, I'm not going to pay 45 ACP or 10mm premium prices for 380 ammo. When you factor in the math for powder, primers, and projectiles for just 380 alone, yep I'mma reload it instead. I only reload the expensive stuff which keep the costs down to much lower. The great thing about expensive calibers one rarely shoots, is that we can bulk reload for much cheaper and be getting better quality ammo.

 

[Junglejim]

View attachment 524466

Rossi R92, .357 magnum, 20 inch barrel. 10 shot tube magazine.

Primary Arms red dot SLX MD-20 on a pretty low mount (Skinner). Only about 1 inch higher center than the irons.

Price as pictured $690 all in for rifle (used $500), optic ($125 discontinued sale), mount ($40) and sling ($25).

Six and a half pounds with sling, optic and ten rounds. It weighs less than it looks.

I have braced myself for being declaimed as a heretic and a defiler of John Moses Browning's Winchester 1892 design because of the red dot. But the simple fact is that my eyes don't work like they used to work.

Didn't want to have to use some janky aftermarket sling mount on the magazine tube. So a single point sling mounted to the saddle ring. Which is not a defilement. See Cavalry, US.

Fifty yard zero for PMC .357 158gr JSP moving along at about 1625fps +- 15fps at 5 yards. At close range this thing will hit hard.

Five inch ten shot groups at 100 yards. So 100 yards is the limit for me and this rifle, a better shooter could do better. But velocity would start dropping significantly past 100 yards.

Surprisingly the trigger is OK. Right at four pounds. Some creep, some grit. I am not going to mess with it because I don't want a light trigger in the woods.

Always had a thing for lever action rifles, always dreamt of having a .30-30 hanging on the rear window of my 79 Ford truck and watching over the vast lands of western US. But I went home so I have a Hilux and an M-16 and no ranch

 

[Mark Sman]

Well is tomorrow by UTC, so lets do this thing.

Colt Trooper MkIII, .357, 6 inch barrel. Nice squared adjustable target sights.

Again, never a gun I carried. The reason it has stuck around for so many years is that it shoots very well.

Full house .357 is very manageable out of this gun. Standard pressure .38, or especially target wadcutters only make a steady push as far as recoil.

This is the only .357 revolver I have that makes Buffalo Bore 180gr Hardcast a round I can use effectively. With my other revolvers that round flips the barrel up and you feel like you got punched in the hand. For whatever reason with this revolver it just feels like a stout full house .357 round.

This picture sucks at showing the blueing. That is glare on the barrel not finish wear, except right next to the muzzle where blast tends to make a ring.

 

[Mark Sman]

S&W M&P, .38 special, 4 inch barrel, 6 shot

Yes it is indeed a Military and Police (M&P). The Model 10 was called the M&P before Smith & Wesson adopted a numbering system in the late 1950's. The lineage for this model goes back to the Model 1899 Hand Ejector. S&W resurrected the M&P branding in the early 2000s I think.

Older M&P revolvers and early Model 10s are not rated for .38+P. There is a rabbit hole about how the pressure limits were changed years ago. Enter at your own risk

This one was originally blued. But it was a service revolver carried by my father for over 30 years. After three decades in a holster the blueing was almost completely gone. So he sent it in to S&W after retirement and had it refinished in nickel.

This revolver was in holster as part of security details for multiple US Presidents and two Popes.

Riots, jail breaks, blackouts, stakeouts, holdups, apprehensions. Three decades in service and never once fired at a person.

After that it had a pretty pampered life, only going to the range.

This example was also tuned up by George Hyde. The lead designer of the M2 Hyde and M3 Greasegun SMGs. Regulation at that time and place meant you couldn't lighten the trigger much at all. So Mr. Hyde would do a deep dive inspection making sure all tolerances and parts were in specification. Then extremely light and careful polishing to make the double action as consistent and smooth as he could.

The result is pretty good, and the trigger feel on this example is the equal of any Performance Center, Korth, or Manurhin I have ever pulled. Some of those have lighter triggers because they run the spring down to just enough for competition. And also they have worked on the geometry and tolerances over the years. But for DA smoothness to the break, this revolver compares favorably.

This was the first pistol I ever fired. And it will probably be the last. I have already started to whittle the collection down, and when it gets down to whatever my current carry is and this. The new one will lose. I don't care if it is a Phased Plasma Pistol in the 40 watt range.

 

[Mark Sman]

Always had a thing for lever action rifles, always dreamt of having a .30-30 hanging on the rear window of my 79 Ford truck and watching over the vast lands of western US. But I went home so I have a Hilux and an M-16 and no ranch

I would prefer the HiLux anyway. For social work the M-16 is a better choice. What about one of the Miroku 1894 .30-30 clones. Is .30-30 ammo something you can get in your neck of the woods.

Ranch is still possible on some of the Islands. And also can you let Armscor know that we would like them to start cloning the 1873, and the 94 for that matter.

 

[Junglejim]

I would prefer the HiLux anyway. For social work the M-16 is a better choice. What about one of the Miroku 1894 .30-30 clones. Is .30-30 ammo something you can get in your neck of the woods.

Ranch is still possible on some of the Islands. And also can you let Armscor know that we would like them to start cloning the 1873, and the 94 for that matter.

.30-30 is damn near impossible to find here. Last time I check .30-06 is about $4 per round, so I could only imagine the cost for the .30-30. This is 9mm/.45acp, .223/5.56, .308 territory.

Armscor sticks to guns and ammo it can sell by the boat loads. They are still trying to make their TCM ammo acceptable.

 

[Mark Sman]

.30-30 is damn near impossible to find here. Last time I check .30-06 is about $4 per round, so I could only imagine the cost for the .30-30. This is 9mm/.45acp, .223/5.56, .308 territory.

Armscor sticks to guns and ammo it can sell by the boat loads. They are still trying to make their TCM ammo acceptable.

That isn't a list of "traditional" lever action calibers. People do make them though. Browning and Henry make excellent box magazine .308.

But if it was just for fun, best bet is probably going to be a .22 lever action to make the dream work. Twenty two, all of the fun for a fraction of the price.

Following on with mythos of the "West":

Uberti Cattleman, .45LC, 4 inch barrel, 6 shot, birdshead grip

A Colt Single Action Army clone from Italy. Spaghetti Peacemaker. Uberti makes a decent clone. The birdshead grip is not really traditional but it is fun.

This revolver is starting to develop a drag line around the cylinder. The timing of the stop is now slightly off, causing the stop to run a touch shallow. I am selling this on soon to a friend who is more of a CAS/SASS guy than I am. He is willing to go through the headache.

Because of CAS/SASS competition ammo (cowboy loads) some people see the 45LC as anemic today. But when 45LC is loaded to standard pressure it barks.

 

[Mark Sman]

Winchester 9422, .22LR, 20 inch barrel

This is a very fun rifle. I picked it up years back when they were still made in New Haven. Incidentally it breaks down very quickly into two parts by unscrewing a bolt above the trigger with a penny and pulling the assembly down and out of the receiver.

I see Winchester is now selling a captive import from Turkey for a reasonable price. My only complaint on the new clone is that they still didn't drill and tap the top for a scope. Why? It is a side eject.

Henry did the same thing, no tap. But theirs ships with rings for the groove top at least.

 

[Mark Sman]

Ruger GP100, ,357, 4 inch barrel, 6 shot.

This is fairly pleasant at the range and decent accurate. Again not a carry piece, but it did make it out to the range alongside the R92. The PMC 158 JSP I am using out of the R92 almost certainly wouldn't expand out of this 4 inch, they would just punch through. But the PMC isn't punishing recoil out of this thing like some heavy 357 can be.

 

[Mark Sman]

"Pediculum Interfectorem"

S&W K-22, .22LR, 6 inch barrel, 6 shot

Another fun one, but this is also destined for the chopping block very soon in the great gun drawdown.

This is a 1953 Smith and Wesson K-22. I picked it up years back when these were out of fashion and thus cheap. Basically no recoil, and with the 6 inch barrel it has fairly low noise levels. Especially with heavier subsonic 22LR. This was a good confidence builder for newer shooters.

This thing knocked down alot of groundhogs and rats on my buddies farm. For as often as this thing actually was in a holster, the finish held up well.