Happy Birthday Mr. President (no not you Obama - fuck you)

How did I miss it? Today was the 102nd birthday of President Ronald Wilson Reagan. (Thanks for the reminder to Cap'n Bob and the Damsel.)

How appropriate, he was born in the year - the numbers of which one of the greatest pistols of all time is labelled - 1911. I never realized that before, it just never clicked. From now on, every time I hold a 1911 in my hands, I will be sure to give him a thought. I sure do miss him; he was an excellent president. See more on Ronnie here:

http://www.ronaldreagan.com/

and here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ronald_Reagan

All the best,
GB

I Think I Will Just Have To Carry My .45

With the passing into law of the NY SAFE Act (gun control act), it seems that 10 round magazines will be allowed after all, even after the law goes into full force. The thing is, they have to be owned prior to 90 days after the legislation was signed into law. After that - you would only be able to buy new 7 round (or smaller capacity) magazines. You can still carry 10 rounders that you owned prior to that but will only be allowed to load them with 7 rounds. Any higher capacity magazines would have to be sold or disposed of out of state,, destroyed or turned over to the Gestapo or KGB henchmen of the governor (as in the state police) before the end of a year from enactment of the law. Note, that is all only so in my understanding, check the law yourself to make sure that what I am saying is correct. I got my info here:

http://www.longislandfirearms.com/forum/topic/58478-ny-safe-act-fact-sheet-for-gun-owners-11813/. 

Looking at the law was, to say the least, a pain in the eyes. The legalese and the manner in which it is presented in broken sentences and broken paragraphs with numbers all over the place, makes it truly hard to decipher. That even after I spent 32 years in law enforcement.

I figure about the best way for me to remain in compliance with the new law is to change what I carry. Instead of one of my Beretta 92 series pistols (I have three of them) with their 15 round mags {grandfathered under the old law in NYS} and instead of my Glock 26 with 10 round mags and its 15 round mags {grandfathered under the old law in NYS}, I can just carry my Remington R1 1911 with its standard sized 7 round magazines. I'll just have to carry more mags at all times than I otherwise would have been carrying when I carried a 9mm.
 
By the way, I have already bought 2 bus tickets and plan to be at the rally/protest, of the NY SAFE Act, in Albany on February 28th. Hopefully my son will be using the second ticket. Hope to see some of you there. Yes, I probably will be armed. Last I heard, while Albany is the capital of the Sovietistas' Socialist Repooblik state of New York, it is not yet a gun free zone.

All the best,
Glenn B

I Used To Write For The Firearm Blog - Until The NY SAFE Act Was Passed

I think I sent in 3 blog posts and 2 of them were published. Then the NY SAFE Act was passed and that pretty much took me out of contention as being an author who could do any reviews of firearms offered by manufacturers for reviews. Oh well, I asked to be removed from the list of contributing authors since the editor at that blog had figured that it would be difficult for me to receive any firearms, for review, and then return them to the manufacturer, under the new law. I figured he was right. Well, it was fun while it lasted.
 
FUCK THE NY STATE SAFE ACT, ALL THE LEGISLATORS AND SENATORS WHO VOTED FOR THIS TYRANNICAL LAW, ANYONE WHO CONTRIBUTED TO HOW IT WAS WRITTEN AND WHAT FIREARMS, MAGAZINES AND ACCESSORIES WERE BANNED OR RESTRICTED, AND MOST OF ALL FUCK GOVERNOR CUOMO WHERE THE SUN DOES NOT SHINE.

If I was a vindictive person, I might be more than just pretty upset about all of this and want to say something nasty about they who supported the bill and about they who passed it into law. As it stands now, I will be participating in yet another protest of the SAFE ACT up in Albany, NY on February 28th. At least this time it is on a weekday and the legislators are scheduled to be in session. How much do you want to bet there are more than just a handful of NY State Troopers and local police there this time as opposed to last month during the first such protest.

All the best,
Glenn B

Hatch Resistor Gloves RFK300

A few years ago, while I was still employed as a federal agent, I was issued a pair of Hatch Resistor, RFK300, cut resistant, Kevlar lined, goat skin leather gloves, for use on operations. I was never one to wear gloves while working, unless out in the bitter cold, mostly because of the possibility of them interfering with me being able to operate my sidearm while wearing them. The gloves I had tried before, even many marketed as ‘duty gloves’, were just too big around in the fingers to be able to get the gloved finger into the trigger guard at all or without the possibility of an accidental discharge. The glove simply made the finger too thick so it would invariably press against the trigger when the finger entered the trigger guard. So, after some testing at the range, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the Hatch Resistor gloves that my agency had issued did not interfere any way with the safe operation of my issued pistol or my issued long arms. They fit snuggly but not too tightly, except maybe at the wrist and that changed as they stretched slightly after some wear. They were for the most part quite comfortable. Although apparently not marketed as cold weather apparel, they also kept my hands fairly warm even in bitter cold weather; yet, they did not make my hands overly warm in hot weather.  

I was pretty impressed with them and decided to use them on a regular basis whenever I was out in the field in any situation that could call for hand protection. Thus, I wore them while: executing arrest warrants, making warrantless arrests, performing searches of prisoners, executing search warrants, when qualifying at the range (intermittently), running through tactical exercises at the range, during handcuff and self-defense training, climbing fences, and in inclement weather as well. I also sometimes wore them while driving. Since I was assigned to a national security group and then to a narcotics group for at least 4 years of the time that I used these at work, they got a lot of use. It was also inevitable that I also wound up wearing them when off duty and I have used them while in the woods on hunting trips in NY and while out hiking in the mountains of Arizona.

 

As for actual use while shooting, I have been able to safely and easily actuate the triggers, magazine releases, and safeties; extract and insert magazines;  and operate the slides on my: Glock 26, my previously issued SIG 229, my Beretta 92FS, my Remington R1 1911 and other pistols I own. I also have worn these while shooting my Remington 870 and many of rifles I own, all without any problems. 

 

In all, I have had these gloves for several years now. Most of that time was while I was still employed in federal law enforcement and I have continued to use them since I retired in late 2011. They were one of the few issued items I was allowed to keep upon separation from government service and I must say I am happy for it. I still wear them often and still occasionally wear them while shooting. These gloves have held their shape well, have remained a snug fit, all outer stitching is intact, the interior lining is also intact with no holes or rips and the leather has remained supple over all those years. The only care that I have given them in all that time amounted to a quick cleaning now and again and in total only one or two coatings with a leather conditioner.

 

I cannot say that they have no faults. They are not all that easy to get on, or at least were not for me when new, because the wrist opening seemed inordinately smaller than it should be for the size of the glove; note these gloves only go to the wrist. While the wrists of the glove sometimes did feel a bit tight when I first wore them, they stretched a bit with wear and they do go on much easier now and are no longer tight around my wrists. The main part of the glove always fit my hands very well and as I said, while snug they were never tight. Maybe I would have been better off with an extra-large instead of a large and if and when I buy another pair as a replacement for these I may try the larger ones. As it has been going so far though, I do not anticipate needing a replacement for at least a few to several more years –  these gloves certainly seem as if they were made to last.

 

I just bought my son a pair of these this past Christmas and they seem as well made as my older pair. The new pair goes on, over the wrists, easier than did my old pair and fit snuggly just as they should. They still are made goat skin and that results in a nicely supple yet evidently tough leather. As with my original pair, they are Kevlar lined. The new ones seem as well made as my older pair and so far they havbe been a big hit with my son. If you are in the market for a pair of cut resistant duty gloves or shooting gloves or even driving gloves, I highly recommend the Hatch Resistor, RFK300.

 

All the best,

Glenn B