Tuesday, January 12, 2016

Setting My Sights On A New Gun

Along with planning reservations at hotels or lodges, picking out a charter boat service, figuring exactly where to go and what to do on our hoped for Alaska fishing trip this spring or summer there is another consideration for us. That other one would be our safety while out and about in the wilds of Alaska. Heck, thar be bars out thet away - bigguns too!  


While Alaska's slogan may be: Beyond Your Dreams, Within Your Reach, my slogan is Arrive Alive and Stay That Way. Along those lines I figure it would be prudent to acquire some large cans of bear spray once we get there. I also am thinking it would be a darned good idea for me to bring along one or two firearms for protection. The Remington 870 immediately came to mind as my number one choice for that out of all the guns I own. Filled with alternating rounds of slugs and 00 buckshot, I think it would be a quite effective bear gun, even for Brown Bears. In addition to that, both Brendan and I are pretty adept with it and both of us can definitely hit the broad side of a barn
 with the buckshot.

I'd also like to have a capable handgun with me though for the same purpose - protection from bears. I have nothing that comes even close to being qualified as even a decent gun for brown bears, heck not even for black bears. So, I am considering buying a new revolver. I am not certain I will get one, mostly because with the expenses for the trip, I am none too sure I could afford one. Heck, I am not too sure we can afford the trip but with a little luck I can eke that out. Me managing to find another $600 to $900, in my hands, for a decent revolver in a bear sized caliber and about another $200 for enough ammo to become familiar with it could be the magic trick of the century. Then again, I can hope - can't I!

Along those lines, that means with sheer hope and nothing else driving me at the moment, I decided to do a little research on 44 magnum revolvers. Yeah, I know, I could get a lot more punch out of a 454 Casull but I kind of like my wrists without fractures. I also want something that would be manageable for 5 or 6 rapidly fired rounds and from what I understand that is a lot less likely with a 454 than with a 44 magnum. I digress so let me undigress and get back to the point which was me researching revolvers in 44 magnum. I have pretty much narrowed down my choices to three revolvers:

Ruger Redhawk model 5004 with a 5.5 inch barrel


Ruger Redhawk, model 5026 with a 4.2 inch barrel


Taurus 44Tracker4SS with a 4 inch ported barrel 


Based on past experience with the cost of things versus quality, I am guessing that the Taurus, which is available for about $635 (including tax), in my neck of the concrete jungle, is not as good a revolver as is either of the Rugers, either one of which I can get for right around $900 (tax included) give or take of few shekels. Granted that both brands get great ratings, for these specific guns, from Gun Tests Magazine; however, the Rugers are noted by them to be workhorses that have been known to shoot thousands upon thousands of rounds (15K though one particular rental gun) without failures nor being much worse for the wear. I seriously doubt the Taurus would stand up as well even though they essentially say it is built like a tank. So, I lean toward the Rugers. Of course, which brand I tend to lean toward is and will remain a moot point if I cannot garner the funds to put one of them on my hip.

Thus, I am left with needing to figure out a way for me to come up with between about $835 (for the Taurus and 200 rounds of ammo) and $1,100 (for one of the Rugers and 200 rounds of ammo) well before a month or two has passed. I figure that will leave sufficient time to order one, wait for it to arrive, shoot it enough to get used to it and whatever else before we make our trip; it will also leave me some time to make money for the trip although I do have some put away for that already and my son will pay half of everything except airfare (which I told him I would cover for both of us).

Okay, that leaves me at the point where I need to ask my readers for help. No, I am not about to ask anyone to send me donations so I can buy a new gun. It would be nice to get some free money but it's not my way. Heck, I turned down a free transfer of ammo (yes in NY there is an ammo transfer fee if you have ammo shipped from out of state to an FFL and it must be shipped to an FFL or Dealer Of Ammo if you buy online). Well, my FFL was going to give me a freebie today for the transfer of a shipment of 200 rounds of 35 Remington I had ordered from Palmetto State Armory. I very politely declined but made sure to convey that I truly appreciated the offer.

Anyway, what I am seeking in the way of help from my readers are some suggestions as to how I might raise a quick grand or so while doing it legally, ethically and without hocking anything or selling any of my other guns. I figure somebody out there might know of a way to raise some quick cash, or of a fast track job that pays well, or of some other way for me to come up with the cash I would need to get one of those revolvers. Yeah I know, and I guess by now you know, it (me coming up with the cash for one of these guns) probably ain't gunna happen but as I think I said somewhere in my blather above: I can dream, can't I!  

All the best,
Glenn B

3 comments:

Peter said...

The Taurus Tracker will do for what you want. I recently did a 'torture test' on two Taurii, the Tracker and it's big brother the M44. Do this search on my blog for 'Taurus Tracker' and you'll find the articles: https://goo.gl/so4iPu

Your 870 will do very well for 'bear medicine': it's what Alaska Fish & Game uses. They load theirs with Brenneke rifled slugs, which I highly recommend. Buckshot simply won't cut it with a big bear - its penetration is far too limited.

B said...

I have a Tracker in .357. Well made, durable gun. Solid.

For the difference in price, really, you gotta go with the tracker. Do ya really think you'll shoot more than 10K rounds in the next 3 or 4 years?

Glenn B said...

I think there is a good chance I, and then my son when he inherits it, will shoot that many rounds in our lifetimes. Maybe his son will add quite a few more someday (but a grandson is just a twinkle in my imagination right now).

Anyway, after reading Peter's review and after seeing many other reviews/comments about the Taurus, I am opting to try for the Ruger Redhawk. Ruger evidently is a much more reliable brand of firearm. This gun will need to be relied upon heavily if we actually wind up needing it for defense against a bear. It may later wind up being a carry gun too. I prefer to rely on a gun for carry that is less likely to fail, and the Ruger gets the nod in that department from what I have seen.

Along those lines, I have started a bleg (begging by way of my blog) in the hopes of raising some cash to obtain the Ruger. Not something I have ever done before, nor that I foresaw me doing, but my reasoning for doing so is in my GoFundMe campaign description at: https://www.gofundme.com/cqjgwyh6.

If I cannot raise enough cash for the Ruger, I may then go with the Taurus or just say to heck with it and depend fully on my 870 which could be a major pain while trying to fish with that slung on my person. Time will tell how it al works out.

All the best,
Glenn B