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December 5th, 2014
 Nothing in life is free, except, well, when somebody is giving it away. The Shooter’s Log blogmeisters have compiled a lengthy list of gun giveaways and contests with firearms prizes. These are mostly promotional contests taking place this December (but some extend into the new year). We know many of you like entering contests and sweepstakes… so have at it. As Dirty Harry said famously: “Are you feelin’ lucky?”. But don’t procrastinate — entry deadlines for many of these contests and promotions are coming up soon.
CLICK HERE to Read Original Shooter’s Log Article with More FREE Rebates, Raffles, and Give-Aways.
Firearms Contests and Sweepstakes
(All dates are in 2014, unless noted otherwise.)
- NEW! Trop Guns 25 Guns of Christmas Giveaway. Deadline: December 25.
http://www.25gunsofchristmas.com/
- NEW! The Firearm Blog Springfield Armory XD Mod.2 Giveaway. Deadline: December 13.
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2014/11/13/new-springfield-xd-9-mod-2-giveaway/
- NEW! SIG Sauer P320 Take-A-Shot Contest. Deadline: December 12.
http://www.sigsauer.com/Promotions/P320-Take-a-Shot-Contest.aspx
- SIG Sauer Free Gun Every Month Giveaway. (Active Now.)
http://www.sigsauer.com/Promotions/Sweepstakes.aspx
- NEW! GunWatcher Second Christmas Gun Giveaway. Deadline: December 29.
http://www.gunwatcher.com/Contest
- NEW! Guns Magazine MAC 1911 and Daniel Defense Ambush Rifle Giveaways. Deadlines: February 1, 2015 and January 1, 2015.
http://gunsmagazine.com/giveaway/
- NEW! American Handgunner Armscor and TMT Tactical Handgun Giveaways. Deadlines: Jan. 31, 2015 and Jan. 13, 2015.
http://www.americanhandgunner.com/giveaway/
- NEW! Legally Armed America Ruger 10/22 Giveaway. Deadline: December 17.
http://legallyarmedamerica.com/giveaways/ruger-1022-giveaway/
- NEW! Second Amendment University GLOCK 32 Giveaway. (Active Now.)
http://www.secondamendmentgiveaways.com/
- NEW! Walther Great Guns PPQ M2 Giveaway. Deadline: December 15.
http://www.waltherarms.com/ppq-m2-entry-page/
- NEW! Gun Owners of America, Remington 700 VTR Rifle Giveaway. Deadline: December 14.
http://cqrcengage.com/gunowners/app/register?0&m=4818
- NEW! On Target Kahr Arms CT380 Giveaway. Deadline: December 31.
http://www.ontargetmagazine.com/contest-entry-form
- NEW! Optics Planet Stag Arms Rifle Package Sweepstakes. Deadline: January 2, 2015.
http://www.opticsplanet.com/load-make-ready.html
- NEW! Xtreme 50K Giveaway. Deadline: January 14, 2015.
http://xtremegiveaway.com/
- NEW! Impact Guns Romanian WASR AK-47 Rifle Giveaway. Deadline: December 7.
http://www.impactguns.com/win.aspx
- American Handgunner TMT Tactical Gun Giveaway. Deadline: January 13, 2015.
http://www.americanhandgunner.com/giveaway/
- Guns Magazine Daniel Defense Ambush Rifle Giveaway. Deadline: January 1, 2015
http://gunsmagazine.com/giveaway/
- Guns Magazine Just Right Carbines 9mm Rifle Giveaway. Deadline: December 15.
http://gunsmagazine.com/giveaway/
- Gould Brothers Winchester Gun Giveaway. Deadline: December 31.
http://www.gbxshooting.com/gould-brothers-winchester-gun-giveaway/
- Bergara Custom Rifle Giveaway. (Active Now.)
http://www.bergarausa.com/RifleGiveaway/
- NRA 25-Gun Giveaway. Deadline: June 30, 2015.
https://www.nra.org/sweepstakes/default.aspx?ek=Y4BESWPN
- Gunwinner.com Armalite AR-301A1 .338 Lapua Rifle Giveaway. (Active Now.)
http://www.gunwinner.com/contest/armalite-ar-30a1-338-lapua-target-rifle-giveaway
- Florida Gun Supply Free Gun Every Month Giveaway. (Active Now.)
http://floridagunsupply.com/free-guns
- Grabagun.com Free Gun Every Month Giveaway. (Active Now.)
http://grabagun.com/giveaway#.U5XQZXZhuVY
- Gallery of Guns Free Gun Every Month Giveaway. (Active Now.)
https://www.galleryofguns.com/about/GGGEntry2014.aspx
- Union Sportsmen’s Alliance Gun-A-Week Raffle Sweepstakes. Deadline: December 29.
http://2014gunaweek.unionsportsmen.org/Winners/rules
- CVA Muzzleloader Monthly Drawing. (Active Now.)
http://www.cva.com/CVA-Contest.php
Accessories Contests and Promotions
December 5th, 2014
Remington is voluntarily recalling Remington Model 887 shotguns manufactured from December 1, 2013 to November 24, 2014. Remington has determined that some Remington Model 887 shotguns manufactured between December 19, 2013 and November 24, 2014 may exhibit a defect causing the firing pin to bind in the forward position within the bolt, which can result in an unintentional discharge when chambering a live round. Therefore, Remington is recalling ALL potentially affected products to fully inspect and repair. Remington has advised customers to immediately cease use of recalled shotguns and return them to Remington free of charge. The shotguns will be inspected, repaired, tested, and returned as soon as possible.
RECALLED: Remington Model 887 shotguns made from Dec. 1, 2013 to Nov. 24, 2014.
Owners of the recalled shotguns should not attempt to diagnose or repair the shotguns themselves. Remington has established a dedicated website and toll-free hotline to help Model 886 owners consumers determine whether their shotguns are subject to recall. Visit 887recall.remington.com or call 1-800-243-9700.
REMEDY/ACTION TO BE TAKEN: STOP USING YOUR SHOTGUN.
Any unintended discharge has the potential to cause injury or death. Immediately cease use of recalled shotguns and return them to Remington free of charge. Shotguns will be inspected, repaired, tested, and returned as soon as possible, at no cost to you. DO NOT attempt to diagnose or repair recalled shotguns yourself. For your safety, STOP USING YOUR SHOTGUN and immediately contact Remington.
December 4th, 2014
 The 2015 Hodgdon Annual Manual (the 12th Annual Edition) has been released. The 2015 Hodgdon Manual now contains over 5000 loads — more load data than you’ll find in any other annual reloading resource. The 2015 Manual has updates for numerous rifle and pistol cartridges. Featured in the 2015 Manual are the new IMR Enduron™ powders such as IMR 4166, IMR 4451, and IMR 7977. Enduron powders feature a built-in copper fouling reducer, along with small kernels for easy metering and good load density. IMR also claims that Enduron powders are not sensitive to ambient temperature changes. It appears IMR 4166 may be a viable alternative to Hodgdon’s popular, but hard to find, Varget powder.
Along with comprehensive load data, the 8 1/2″ by 11″ magazine-style Hodgdon Annual Manual offers authoritative articles by top gun industry writers. You can purchase the 2015 Manual at news-stands (and gunshops) for $8.99. In a few weeks, you should also be able to purchase the manual from Hodgdon’s online store. For more info, visit Hodgdon.com or call 913-362-9455.
December 3rd, 2014
 Smith & Wesson (S&W), has agreed to acquire Battenfeld Technologies, Inc. for $130.5 million in cash. The acquisition is expected to close in December. In acquiring Battenfeld, S&W will become an industry leading in the sales of hunting, shooting, and reloading tools and accessories. Battenfeld markets dozens of popular products such as Tipton gun vises, Frankford Arsenal tumblers, Caldwell shooting rests, and Goldenrod safe heaters.
Founded 22 years ago, Battenfeld Technologies has generated a largely organic* compound annual revenue growth rate in excess of 18% (Since 2006). Based in a 145,000-square-foot facility in Columbia, Missouri, Battenfeld Technologies develops and sells shooting, reloading, gunsmithing, and gun cleaning supplies under several brands, including Caldwell, Frankford Arsenal, GoldenRod, Lockdown, Tipton, and Wheeler Engineering. Battenfeld grew rapidly by developing new products and by acquiring smaller accessories makers such as BOG-POD and GoldenRod.
Acquisition Helps S&W Expand Accessories Business with Strong Brand
James Debney, Smith & Wesson President and CEO, said, “Battenfeld Technologies… fits perfectly within our core firearm business. It also allows us to move more strongly into the hunting vertical as well as establish a strong platform for growth in our existing firearm accessories business[.] Battenfeld Technologies’ sophisticated sourcing and distribution infrastructure, should provide a solid framework for organic and inorganic growth as the new accessories division of Smith & Wesson. Our intention is that eventually all existing Smith & Wesson®, M&P®, and Thompson/Center Arms accessories will be housed within this new division.”
*Biz Terminology 101: Organic growth is the process of business expansion due to increasing overall customer base, increased output per customer or representative, new sales, or any combination of the above, as opposed to mergers and acquisitions, which are examples of inorganic growth.
December 3rd, 2014
The 2015 NRA National Indoor Rifle & Pistol Championships start January 1, 2015. Unlike the NRA’s National Matches at Camp Perry, the Indoor Championships are shot as a postal match, through multiple sectional tournaments all across the country. This means you can join the action from the comfort of your local range. The scores from shooters around the nation are compared by the NRA, which names the winners in each classification.
The Indoor Rifle & Pistol Championships include a variety of disciplines: Air Pistol, Rimfire Pistol, Air Rifle, and Rimfire Rifles. There is even a BB gun class for Juniors. The Indoor Championships involve multiple sectional tournaments, held in a variety of states from January through mid-April. This is like a super-duper postal match. Winners will be announced by the NRA in late May. There will be nearly 300 sectionals in 2014, so you’ll probably find an event close to home. Here are dates for 2013:
Open Sectionals: 1/1 – 3/18 | Collegiate Sectionals: 1/1 – 2/12 | JR. Sectionals: 1/1 – 4/15
The 50m Free Pistol is one of the events in the NRA National Indoor Championship. It takes skill — the pistol is shot one-handed, with iron sights, and the Ten-Ring is only 50mm (about 1.97″) in diameter. A competitive world-class score is 560 or better out of 600 possible points. Learn more about this challenging discipline in this USA Shooting video:
Story based on report in NRA Blog.
November 30th, 2014
According to CNN, more guns were sold on November 28, 2014 (Black Friday), than on any other day in the history of the United States. Background check processing was running well ahead of Black Friday 2013 when the previous single-day record of 144,758 FBI-processed gun transactions was set. In fact, so many Americans lined up to purchase firearms on Black Friday 2014 that the FBI was processing three background checks every second.
Think about that — three gun sales per second. That’s triple the normal rate of gun sales. The website The Blaze reported: “The typical Black Friday boom in gun sales doubles the number of background checks handled by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), from one per second on an average day to two per second. By Friday afternoon, that figure had reached three checks per second … putting 2014 on track to blow past the prior Black Friday record of 144,758 FBI-processed gun transactions in a single day.”
An FBI spokesman said that FBI staffers would be working overtime all through this weekend to deal with the vast number of background check requests, working to ease the backlog.
Photo courtesy BullocksGuns.com, Flint, MI.
November 27th, 2014
Chris Cheng, Top Shot Season 4 Champion, has launched a new weekly series of YouTube webcasts, The Second Scoop. Each week Cheng will provide a timely mix of Second Amendment news, gun-related gear reviews, and marksmanship topics. Cheng’s Second Scoop commentaries offer insight, a bit of humor, and “first looks” at new shooting sports products.
In this Thanksgiving week edition of The Second Scoop, Chris focuses on the Ferguson, Missouri Grand Jury decision which spurred violent riots. Then Chris explains the impact of a court decision on California’s waiting periods for firearm purchases. In his “gear talk” segment, Chris talks about the brand new Taurus Curve, an innovative .380 ACP compact carry gun. With a distinctive curved frame, this little “equalizer” is the first-ever production pistol with integrated LED lights and a targeting laser.
Chris releases a new Second Scoop video each Tuesday. Watch all of Cheng’s Second Scoop webcasts (as well as his gun review videos) on the Top Shot Chris Cheng YouTube Channel.
November 26th, 2014
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. What better way to celebrate the occasion than to blast away at some bearded gobblers (of the paper variety). Here’s our festive Turkey Day target, ready for some family fun. This special Turkey Bullseye Target was created by our friend and Forum member Pascal (aka “DesertFrog”). CLICK HERE for FREE Turkey Target.
Get Turkey and Other Critters
For your convenience, we’ve packaged the Turkey Target along with five (5) other varmint/animal-themed targets. These are all offered in .pdf (Adobe Acrobat) format for easy printing.
CLICK HERE to download all SIX targets in .Zip archive.
November 20th, 2014
Story by Kyle Jillson for NRABlog.com
The NRA Foundation is proud to support Louisiana State University’s Mobile Marksman Project, a system developed by the LSU Mechanical Engineering Capstone Design Program to help high-level quadriplegics to participate in the shooting sports. The nearly $2,200 grant funded the 2014 system, the team’s final design iteration.
 Created in 2009, the Mobile Marksman Project is a manually-controlled shooting platform that allows handicapped hunters to aim and fire a mounted firearm with head-tracking software and a small tube that is activated with a puff of air.
Capstone Design Instructor Capt. Dave Giurintano and the Mobile Marksman team worked with high-level quadriplegics to address system requirements and create a lightweight, portable system that is simple to use and enjoy. Recent additions include recoil-absorbing legs and a rail-mounted camera that displays the crosshairs and target on a high-resolution digital screen.
“It has been our profound pleasure to have a hand in working on it, to extend the hunting and shooting experience to everyone, regardless of physical disability,” said Garen Armbruster, Mobile Marksman Team Leader.
Established in 1990, The NRA Foundation, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization that raises tax-deductible contributions in support of a wide range of firearm-related public interest activities of the National Rifle Association of America and other organizations. These activities are designed to promote firearm and hunting safety, to enhance marksmanship skills, and to educate the general public about firearms.
November 18th, 2014
It is with great sadness we announce the passing of John Adams of Fallbrook, Calfornia. One of our very first Forum members, John has been a stalwart supporter of this site for nearly a decade. He generously donated funds, reloading components, and equipment to our site, year after year, asking nothing in return. A modest man, John was also an innovator, who developed his own wildcat cartridges, designed reloading tools, and put together some great-shooting rifles.
On Saturday, November 15, Johnny Adams (John’s son) sent out this message to John’s friends and acquaintances in the shooting community: “I have to inform everyone of the sad news that my father, John Adams, died unexpectedly this Saturday Morning. He has been battling cancer for a number of years and has finally succumbed to the disease. He has asked me to include this photo of him and asked that his friends remember him in this way.”
John was a very active benchrest shooter in Southern California, and one of the dedicated organizers of the monthly Varmint Silhouette Match in Pala, California. Shooting that match with John as my mentor was one of the most enjoyable highlights of my shooting career.
 Those of us who knew John would tell you he was a generous, good-hearted man who had a real love for shooting. I am honored to say John was my friend, and I will forever be grateful for the things he did to help this site get off the ground, and to help many new shooters get started. When I had a chance to shoot at the Pala Varmint Silhouette match, John took the time to help practice with me, and he even provided the rifle (a wickedly accurate 22 Dasher) and the ammunition!
Many years ago, John was involved as an owner of the SAECO company that made presses and other reloading equipment. He had a vast knowledge of shooting hardware, and he never gave up his avid interest in shooting-related product design and engineering. He remained interested in new products and new techniques until his last days. Just a few weeks ago he called me to chat about new developments in spotting scopes.
John, Rest in Peace old friend. We’ll miss your presence at our matches in California. You were a generous soul and a true friend of the shooting sports. The shooting community is much diminished by your passing….
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