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July 18th, 2014
Starved for shooting news and gun-related content on the web? There are dozens of gun blogs and firearms news sources, but it can be cumbersome and time-consuming to visit more than a few sites on a daily basis. Alltop.com changes all that. This automated site scans 30+ gun websites and links to current articles. Among the sites included are: NRA Blog, NRA-ILA News, Ammoland Gun News, The Firearm Blog, USA Carry, and yes, of course, our very own Daily Bulletin.
If you like stay up with the latest gun rights news, or just peruse a variety of gun-related content sites, Alltop.com can help you source interesting articles quickly and efficiently.
July 17th, 2014
Yet another important gun-related company has left California for a more business-friendly location. Gary Eliseo’s Competition Machine Inc., producer of rifle chassis systems, has moved operations to Northern Arizona. A large, new Arizona facility has been secured, and Gary’s team is busy putting the production machinery in place and organizing supplies and inventory.
 Rifle Chassis Builder Moves to Arizona
Gary Eliseo announced: “It’s official, after 24 years of dealing with the difficult business environment in California, we’re relocating to Northern Arizona. To our friends and customers we ask for your patience during this monumental task. Our new shop will be larger and more efficient which will allow us to better serve your needs. We have some exciting new products planned in the future that we were simply not able to pursue in California.”
Gary is happy about his new digs in Arizona. His new Arizona facility is much bigger: “The new shop is over twice the size of the old one (3600 square feet vs. 1500 square feet). The added space which will let me open a new rifle division. We’ll update the Competition Machine website soon with the new contact information.” — Gary Eliseo
Here’s a photo of the new facility on “move-in” day. Gary says: “This is just an empty shell, but it’s soon to be a very busy place. There is so much more opportunity for us here than in California. Also, this Northern Arizona area is crazy beautiful, I think I’m gonna like it!”
Highway Photo by Wing-Chi Poon, Wiki Creative Commons License.
July 17th, 2014
 Want a Saiga shotgun? Well grab one while you can. On July 16, 2014, the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), a division of the U.S. Treasury that administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions, announced a series of trade sanctions aimed at Russia.
These sanctions will be carried out pursuant to President Obama’s Executive Order 13662 relating to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The OFAC sanctions include provisions banning the importation of rifles and shotguns from various Russian manufacturers. The Kalashnikov Concern, and Izhmash, manufacturers of Saiga rifles and shotguns, were specifically named in the sanctions. This means it will be illegal for American companies to import firearms made by these Russian manufacturers.
Writing in the Truth About Guns Blog, Nick Leghorn declares: “So the importation of new Izmash-produced firearms is now banned indefinitely in the United States. But that Executive Order definitely raises some questions for those currently in possession of a firearm manufactured by the now-sanctioned firearms companies. For example, can a gun dealer sell their existing stock?”
OFAC provides at least a partial answer to these questions in the OFAC Question and Answer section of the U.S. Treasury website:
Q: If I own a Kalashnikov product, is that product blocked by sanctions? Am I able to resell a Kalashnikov product at a gun show or other secondary market?
If a U.S. person is in possession of a Kalashnikov Concern product that was bought and fully paid for prior to the date of designation (i.e., no payment remains due to Kalashnikov Concern), then that product is not blocked and OFAC sanctions would not prohibit the U.S. person from keeping or selling the product in the secondary market, so long as Kalashnikov Concern has no interest in the transaction. New transactions by U.S. persons with Kalashnikov Concern are prohibited, however, and any property in which Kalashnikov Concern has an interest is blocked pursuant to OFAC’s designation of Kalashnikov Concern on July 16, 2014. If a U.S. person has an inventory of Kalashnikov Concern products in which Kalashnikov Concern has an interest (for example, the products are not fully paid for or are being sold on consignment), we advise that U.S. person to contact OFAC for further guidance on handling of the inventory.
Q: If I have Kalashnikov products in my inventory, can I sell them?
If a U.S. person has an inventory of Kalashnikov Concern products in which Kalashnikov Concern has an interest (for example, the products are not fully paid for or are being sold on consignment), we advise that U.S. person to contact OFAC for further guidance on handling of the inventory.
July 16th, 2014
Commentary by John Buol
The critics say that the M9 pistol (the U.S. military’s version of Beretta’s m92) must go. We’re told that the 9x19mm (aka 9mm NATO) is a poor pistol cartridge. Our Soldiers and Marines are being hampered by an inferior handgun and cartridge — or so the argument goes.
We are told that the military needs a new pistol, to be called the Modular Handgun System (MHS). According to Fox News: “The MHS would replace the Army’s inventory of more than 200,000 outdated M9 pistols and several thousand M11 9mm pistols with one that has greater accuracy, lethality, reliability, and durability.” The MHS will be a “total system replacement — new gun, new ammo, new holster, everything,” reports Daryl Easlick, Army project officer at Fort Benning, Georgia.
Easlick says that the Army, and other services, demand a pistol with a more powerful cartridge that does more damage to the bad guys: “We have to do better than our current 9mm.”
Does the military really need a new pistol, with a different chambering? Maybe not…
Here’s the real problem. Most Marines, Soldiers, police, and gun owners tend to be novice marksmen, especially with handguns. Very few people have trained to shoot a handgun well enough to offer a competent opinion on the matter. To underscore this point, let’s look at some ranges for evidence of typical skill levels.
Army Pistol Qualification Target
As you can see, there is no real trend in hits and the entire barn door (full sized silhouette) has shots sprayed all over it. And these are the shots that actually hit, all of them receiving full value. On this particular Army course, shooters are given 40 rounds to engage 30 targets and are considered qualified if 16 of the 30 targets are hit, somewhere. Soldiers can miss nearly half the time, even with ten extra rounds, and still pass. The “fast” stages of the course allow two seconds per shot and the bulk of the course is slower. Note the base of the target is blocked by the mound protecting the target lifter and that mound is a beaten zone of many very low, errant shots.
The Marines in the peanut gallery are likely chuckling, so let’s look at examples of their ranges.
Marine Pistol Target Bay
Yet Another Marine Pistol Target Bay, Showing Effects of Missed Shots.
The metal carrier behind the block wall holds a silhouette the same size as the Army target and that waist-high wall has taken a healthy beating from bad shots jerked and flinched several feet off target. Of course, the wall only shows shots pulled off target that went low. The rest ended up in the berm somewhere else. As seen closer up, the chewed-up top line of blocks is not made of concrete. That’s to avoid back-splatter towards the shooters from the excessive number of low shots.
REALITY CHECK: These are the results on actual qualification ranges with large targets, generous time limits, fixed courses of fire, and no real pressure. Imagine how much worse the shooting is when the stress and variables of combat are thrown in. Given the users wielding it, is the M9 truly ineffective? Even if it is, are shooters like this capable of a valid opinion on the matter?
Most Marines, Soldiers, police, CCW, and gun owners won’t invest the effort needed to train to a high level of skill and very few public sector organizations will expend the resources needed to make them do so. I’m not casting aspersions, just trying to address reality. If the Department of Defense (DoD) decides on a new pistol, or any other weapon, the results will be similar because the end user isn’t magically more skillful with a shiny new issue item.
About the Author
John M. Buol Jr. began his shooting career in practical competition, earning Master classifications from USPSA and IDPA. After slotting on the Army Reserve Marksmanship Program, he switched to NATO and NRA/CMP events, earning Distinguished Rifleman and Pistol Shot badges and a series of All Army Small Arms Championship wins along the way. He is a published author (Beyond “Expert”: Tripling Military Shooting Skills) and maintains the Firearm User Network Blog at http://FirearmUserNetwork.com
July 16th, 2014
 If you’re wondering what is happening when at the NRA National Rifle and Pistol championships, here is a calendar of all the scheduled events. The pistol matches concluded last week. Smallbore (rimfire) events are underway this week (in Bristol, Indiana), while the High Power events commenced yesterday (July 15) with clinics. The popular CMP Garand match is held July 19, while the NRA High Power National Championship commences on Saturday, July 26.
Click the calendar image below to see a large size version (that’s easier to read). You can also download a PDF file with the complete National Matches Event schedule for 2014.
CLICK to DOWNLOAD 2014 National Match Calendars
July 15th, 2014
Editor: In past years, the NRA Smallbore National Championships have been held at Camp Perry in Ohio. This year, because of preparations for the 2015 World Palma Championships, the Smallbore Nationals are being held at the Wa-Ke-De Rifle Range in Bristol, Indiana. NRA Board Member Walt Walters was there to report on the start of the event for NRABlog.com.
View Photo Gallery from Day One of Metric Championships
Competitors began arriving about 8:00 am this morning to complete their in-processing for the NRA National Smallbore Rifle Metric 3-position championship. Sunday, July 13th was a practice day for these riflemen and women. An opportunity to hone their skills and sight-in their rifles for the competition which started Monday the 14th.
The Metric Metallic Sight matches were held on Monday. After completing their 40 shots for record at each of the prone, standing and kneeling positions the overall winner was determined — a new Metric Metallic Sight Champion was crowned.
The Any Sight champion will be determined on Tuesday with competitors firing the same course of fire as the metallic sight aggregate. At the completion of firing, a BBQ will be held for the competitors after which an awards ceremony will be conducted recognizing all the Metric National Champions.
From there the competition switches to Standard 3-Position, Standard Prone, and Metric Prone. By the 25th of July we’ll have four new NRA Smallbore Champions to honor.
July 15th, 2014
 Need Primers? Midsouth Shooters Supply (Midsouth) has a large selection of primers in stock right now. Yes Midsouth has the hard-to-find CCI BR-4 Small Rifle Benchrest primers, CCI 450s (small rifle magnum APS), Remington 6 1/2 small rifle, and Federal Large Rifle Magnum. Midsouth also has large quantities of Winchester primers. And if you need pistol or shotshell primers, Midsouth has plenty of those right now as well.
If you need an extra incentive to grab some primers, get this — for a limited time, Midsouth is offering FREE Haz-mat on Primer purchases. That’s right, Haz-Mat is FREE when you purchase five or more boxes of primers (mix and match qualifies). This offer is for ground shipping only, and regular shipping fees still apply. This offer ends July 20, 2014.
Hot Deal — FREE Haz-Mat with Purchase of Five or More Boxes of Primers.
July 14th, 2014
 iPhone and iPad users rejoice. The Apple iOS version of the Applied Ballistics Mobile App is now available. It has all the features of the much-loved Applied Ballistics Android App with full Apple functionality. This mobile App will run on iPhones, iPods, and iPads.
Price is $29.99. Click here to view details or order the App: Applied Ballistics iOS App.
CLICK HERE for Detailed Summary of App Features (Applied Ballistics Website)
The new iOS mobile App accounts for all major and minor trajectory variables that a shooter could encounter. Conveniently, the App displays single-shot solutions in HUD View or Reticle View.
Real-World Calibration — Shooters can enter their observed drops and the program will calibrate and “true” the predictions based on actual bullet impact. This is done by incorporating muzzle velocity and drop-scaling over various segments of the trajectory.
Sync to Web — A web-sync feature allows you to store your rifle and ammunition libraries online. And you can backup all the profiles online or restore them to a device.
Forum member Snuggie308, who acquired the new iOS App, gives it a thumbs up: “I bought it last night. It is a great tool. There’s a massive data base … built into it. You can’t find a better [mobile ballistics app] in my opinion.” Snuggie308 also reports that the new iOS is iPad friendly, and fills the iPad screen so it is easy to use all the features.
The Applied Ballistics iOS Mobile App runs the state-of-the-art Point Mass ballistic solver. This solver, along with the built-in library of ballistic coefficients, makes this the most accurate, precise, and complete mobile ballistics app available for iOS devices.
Ballistician (and former missile design engineer) Bryan Litz wrote this solver. The program integrates the equations of ballistic motion numerically, using a 4th-order Runge-Kutta method, the preferred method of solving dynamic equations for aircraft and missiles. The application also comes with G1 and G7 BCs for over 1,300 bullet types.
Bryan Litz tells us: “We have worked extensively on this product. With the success of the Android version of the application, released two years ago, the demand for the iOS version has been high. We are excited to now offer a full-featured iOS version that runs on iPhones, iPods, and iPads.”
Available now through iTunes, the Applied Ballistics Mobile App costs $29.99, and requires iOS 7.0 or later for proper functionality. Compatible with iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices, this App is optimized for the iPhone 5 series of smart phones.
July 14th, 2014
Here is a simple but effective product that can benefit varminters and game-hunters. The slip-on, padded RRR (“triple R”) gun rest cushions your rifle on any surface and helps eliminate noise when shifting the gun from one shooting position to another. The RRR slip-on rest is made of neoprene (wet suit material) with a built-in, thick Armaflex foam cushion on the bottom. This $19.95 sleeve protects the finish of your rifle, while providing a cushioned layer between your rifle and the supporting surface.
Hunters will appreciate how the RRR slip-on rest quiets the gun when the forearm is placed on supporting surface (watch video). The padded, neoprene covering acts like a sound deadener. With the RRR in place, the rifle forearm doesn’t clang or rattle, even when you set the gun on a metal frame or hard surface.
Video Shows RRR in Use in the Field
 This padded sleeve works great when shooting from a truck, providing a padded surface when aiming from a truck mirror or door frame. Likewise, the RRR rest works well in the field when shooting from a tree-limb, or a boulder.
The patented RRR slip-on rest fits rifle stocks from 1¼ inches to 2¼ inches wide, and will not interfere with your scope. Installation is easy — after unloading the rifle, simply slide the RRR over the barrel and fore-end, with the RRR logo on top, so that the cushion section is under the rifle stock.
► The RRR slip-on rest cushions your rifle. This helps to keep the shot from going high even when the rifle is placed on a hard surface.
► The RRR protects the finish on the stock of your rifle from scratches when resting on hard surfaces.
► The RRR can be slipped over the fore-end with a sling attached.
► The neoprene, water-resistant RRR works well even in wet or snowy weather. (But you should remove from gun after a wet hunting session.)
July 13th, 2014
In the real world of self-defense, you can’t stand still like a bullseye target shooter*. You may need to move to cover, go to the aid of a family member, or otherwise move while being able to shoot. We’ve seen a variety of “move and shoot” drills, but most involve walking a few steps, then stopping, then moving again.
Here’s a drill that raises the degree of difficulty to another level entirely. In this video, instructor Dave Harrington engages 24 targets (one with a double-tap), while striding briskly (and continuously) on a powered treadmill. That’s right, Harrington stays on the treadmill for nearly a minute, and goes 25 for 25 with two (2) mag changes. (Shots 7 and 8 are a silhouette double-tap, for a total of 25 shots.) Harrington makes it look easy. But do you think you pull this off with no misses?
Shooting from Treadmill — Firing Sequence Starts at 1:20
Our friend Dennis Santiago, who also is a firearms instructor, says Harrington’s treadmill drill is no mean feat: “OK, this I am impressed by. This is not easy.” Another viewer commented: “That, I assure you, is a whole lot harder than it looks to run it clean like [Harrington] did.” As Harrington notes, a treadmill “is extremely unforgiving … you either possess the skill or the treadmill will take you to school.”
*That’s no knock on our bullseye shooters. They are very skilled. However, self-defense is a different challenge altogether.
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