2025 Standard Catalog Of Firearms - It Pays To Shop Around

 

Yesterday, after having become quite disappointed with the current format and content (as in lack of certain information) in The Blue Book Of Gun Values, I decided to pick up a copy of  The Standard Catalog Of Firearms as put out by Krause Publications (as best I recall), and was authored or edited by Ned Schwing. When I looked at my most recent copy, the 28th edition dated 2018; I saw something I had forgotten, it is no longer published by Krause Publications but has been published by Gun Digest since at least that year, probably longer and Ned Schwing is no longer the author/editor.

 

Regardless of the author's name or who publishes it, The Standard Catalog... seems to be one and the same excellent source of firearms values and other firearms information as it was when I first picked up a copy of it many years ago (I can say that after having paged through a copy of the current edition in a book store a few months back). So, being disappointed with the Blue Book..., I decided to pick up a copy of The Standard Catalog Of Firearms, and was going to buy one at my local Books-A-Million. I did not buy one there because I was really dismayed by their price for it of $59.99 plus tax (tax would have made the total it $64.94). So, I went online and shopped around. I found out it was being sold at Midway USA for $41.32 shipping included but before tax (tax would have made it $44.72), and also was available on Amazon for $44.01 with free two day shipping and tax included. I opted for Amazon. In all, that was a savings of $20.93 which is a substantial difference between Amazon and Books-A-Million. While I could have already had it in my possession if I had bought it in store at Books-A-Million, I figured what is a two day wait from Amazon since I have waited seven years to purchase an updated version of my 2018 edition. Yes, as I have said many times: I am THE Great Procrastinator.

 

As far as I am concerned, in other words - my opinion is, The Standard Catalog Of Firearms has always given better descriptions and closer to reality current pricing for guns than does the Blue Book of Gun Values. Besides that, the Blue Book's online indexing stinks, in my opinion. You sometimes can run the name of a firearms manufacturer and if you do not have it exactly the way they have it, you get zilch as a return. However, the attraction that kept me purchasing subscriptions to the Blue Book was that they have the online version that offers subscriptions. Last year, or so, though, they changed the format of their online version of the Blue Book and to be quite frank I think the latest version stinks. Sometimes it is quite difficult to find almost any information about a gun you are querying, one that I figure most definitely should be listed but seemingly is not indexed, or at least I cannot find it. So, back to the Standard Catalog I have gone; although I may keep my Blue Book subscription up and going next year when the current one expires. Then again, maybe not, time will tell.

 

As for The Standard Catalog of Firearms, my 2018 edition had 1,472 pages. It is a big book dimensionally as well. It has listings for thousands of firearms listings. They are often, but not always, accompanied by a photograph of the gun being described. They use their own grading system which they fully explain near the beginning of each edition (or at least they did so until 2018 - my last edition). Their grades go from NIB (New In Box), to: Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair and Poor. In the descriptions of those grades, they include what percent of metal & wood finish should remain for each and also other information as to repairs and originality of parts versus replacement parts, et al. 

 

Another thing about one versus the other type of firearms references: I am a child of the 1950s. I grew up with libraries full of books. I used to enjoy reading books quite a lot when in school and afterwards, that was until I needed glasses. I am no slouch when it comes to using a computer although I do not use a lot of social media sites. Yet, I use my online access each and every day for various applications. This blog is one of the things I do online. Therein, writing my bog or reading anything online, lie some of the reasons I like computing and online reference materials. One being because I can enlarge whatever I am viewing on my computer's or phone's screens, that makes it easier on my old man's eyes. I also like the portability of having access via my phone or laptop. Yet, despite all that modern innovation, I still like references in book format, just as much, if not more than online access to reference material. There is just something about picking up a book and leafing through page after page that is much more satisfying than taping away at a computer keyboard or phone keypad will ever be. The other thing is a book is more much more dependable than a computer or the Internet. Books do not depend on power being available to read them (at least during daylight hours) nor do they depend upon Internet access being available or a website being up without problems. 

 

Also, consider this: If I take my reference book to a gun show and someone, somehow, walks away with it (yes as in steals it) - what have I lost! Exactly $44.01 in this case. If, on the other hand, someone makes off with my phone, I am out somewhat more than $300.00 and have to change some passwords and maybe my email address before the crook accesses my info. If they steal my laptop, well let me just say it was much more expensive than my cell phone and has a lot more personal info on it. None of that is an issue with a bound paperback firearms reference book of mine if it gets stolen.

 

I will be happy once The Standard Catalog Of Forearms is delivered (they say tomorrow) and will probably use it immediately in anticipation of bidding in an online auction this weekend. I likely will also continue use of The Blue Book of Gun Values, at least until my current subscription for it expires. 

 

Want to save some money, then shop around a bit for the right price relative to your pocket book; you may find it for a lower price than I just paid. Caveat emptor.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

They All Went Bang ...

...and that is what I like to hear (while wearing ear protection) when I take recently acquired guns to the range for test firing. 

 

Yesterday, I drove to a local, more or less, firearms range. When I arrived, there was one other person there policing brass. I asked her if she had ear protection and she said she did not but I could go ahead and start shooting. Since she had no ears, I decided to wait until she left. That wound up being only a few minutes later.

 

I set up on a bench but did not set up any targets. I was there only to test fire several new to me pistols & revolvers. They were:

Charter Arms Pathfinder in .22 LR, Charter Arms Undercover in .38 SPL, Norinco 54-1 in 7.62X25mm Tokarev, Ruger Mark I in .22 LR, and TEC-9 (Mini) in 9mm.

 

As I said, they all went bang. The Pathfinder misfired once, pretty sure that was not due to the revolver but to the ammo. I fired it several more times and it went bang8 all those other times. 

 

The  Undercover fired flawlessly. I fired two full cylinders through it, 12 rounds total. Remember, I was not target shooting nor attempting to break in any of these handguns. Just trying to see if they all functioned properly.

 

The Norinco fired well but it failed to feed twice requiring a tap to load the stuck round. I attribute that to said pistol evidently not having been fired before as best I could tell. It looked pristine when I got it even though it was evidently first sold circa 1992 according to a receipt that came with it. All steel guns often require a break-in period consisting of 250 to 500 rounds being fired through them to assure they functione flawlessly or not. I put 16 rounds through it. I will break it in at an indoor range, where it will be much cooler than yesterday's 95 degrees or today's forecast 97. Wile I was not target shooting, I did shoot at a certain point on the berm. The Norinco came in right where I was aiming laterally and a bit low vertically, as would be expected for a pistol at 100 yards. I imagine it will do well at an indoor range whenever I get myself to one with it.

 

 The Ruger Mark I fed, fired, extracted,  and ejected flawlessly.

 

The TEC-9 had some hiccups but I think they were caused by user error except one failure to feed properly. The other couple were caused by me and were both due to not inserting the mags completely. I had thought they were in all the way (as I told her years ago but she said I was wrong then too) but they had to really be pushed in very hard to get them to fully in (just like way back then). I only loaded one of the 30 round mags to 20 rounds and the other three mags to 10 or so rounds in each. The mag springs were very strong, hardly used by my guess, due to lack of visible wear. With my arthritis being a bit bothersome, that was enough loading the mags for me. I bought the mags independently from the TEC-9 which did not have any magazines when I bought it. 

 

The thing I was happiest about with the TEC-9 was that it went bang, bang, bang or one bang with each successive trigger pull. Very happy indeed was I because it  did not go banngbangbangbangbang until out of ammo with only a single trigger pull. These pistols, in their early years were notorious for being very easily modified to go full auto.

 

That was it for shooting those latest additions to my  aggregate of firearms. Once again I am a happy shootists because my new boomers all went bang.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Money Spent On Ammo At A Single Dealer - Target Sports USA

Have you ever taken the time to figure out how much money you have spent on ammunition at one particular dealer for about as long as you have dealt with them? Well, I did that today because I am having a bit of an issue with an order recently delivered to me in which 27 of 23 boxes of the ammo I bought were damaged, that evidently during shipment. Now, if I had bought this ammo with the intent of shooting all of it, the boxes being ruined would not matter much, but I had intended to sell much of it at guns shows, give some to my son as a gift and maybe shoot the rest if any was left over. The thing is, the boxes are so badly damaged that I'd have to sell them at a greatly reduced price, way under cost to get anyone to buy them. 

 

So, I contacted Target Sports USA, the dealer from which I bought the ammo. They got back to me quickly wanting to know how many "bullets" were damaged. Yes bullets was the word they used instead of cartridges. I don't know if any of the ammo is damaged as I have not opened the inner paper wrapping around them. I told them to send an insurance adjuster/examiner to determine that if they want to know, otherwise to file an insurance claim for me promptly since I paid for the shipment to be insured, or to arrange for a return/refund for the badly damaged ones. Their site says ammo cannot be returned because of federal shipping regulations as best I recall. Heck, anyone can ship ammo. Thus, I anticipate they may not honor my claim. Add to that  they have done the same at least once before (I think twice but am uncertain on that) by not honoring a claim, and apparently ignored me when I notified them of damaged goods received. One time though, they honored my claim and I think gave me a refund as best I recall and that was for almost exactly the same type of damage.

 

I will say this, I know for a fact that I have been making purchases from Target Sports USA for over ten years now, since at least March 1, 2015. I could have been doing so longer but did not save the invoices. In fact, I have 67 invoices saved and one MS Word document all showing purchases that I made from them. I actually may have made more purchases but did not save the invoices. When I checked my purchases on their website, it only showed 50 since 2020, so I am guessing they only go back so far and delete earlier invoices (but as I said I have 67 plus the Word document going back to March 2015).

 

Today, I decided to calculate how much I have spent there over the years. It worked out to a total of $15,454.48  since March 1, 2015, that  over a period of 10 years 5 months, or 10.42 years, or 125 months, or 3,803 days. That equals about $1,483.16 spent there per year, $123.64 spent there per month, or $4.06 spent per day (boy that last one does not make it seem so much). I am certain that I am not their highest paying customer by far but then I am no slug either. If I figure it correctly, I spent less each year during the first few years and much more since at least 2020. For example over the course of the last eleven months, since September 9, 2024 until today August 21, 2025, I spent $4,059.94 there. That is a little more than 26% of the total I spent with them in over ten years, and that 26+% was spent in only the last 11 months. Maybe I should slow down, then again - maybe not.

 

I have to say, pretty much my biggest and definitely my most frequent disappointment with Target Sports USA has been how little cushioning/packaging material they usually put into their shipping boxes. For example, this time they placed one rather insufficient piece of brown paper inside the outer shipping box atop the inner shipping box. Of course, it appeared that the parcel was dropped landing on its bottom or a bottom corner where there was no cushioning inside the box. A few more cents spent on cushioning probably would have protected this shipment much better. The other thing that bugs me about them is that their customer service is not that great in my estimation, that or the reasons I mentioned above regarding my past contacts about receiving damaged goods from them. 

 

Some things I found excellent about Target Sports USA have been: great prices, usually fast shipping, a usually decent inventory, an easy to navigate website, free shipping on cases of ammo, free shipping on any amount of ammo purchased with their Ammo+ membership, an 8% discount on ammo with that same membership making prices even better (which saved me about $324.80 minus the cost of the membership which was about $110.00 per for the past year; so I actually saved about $214.80 off of their already low prices). That may not seem like much but it could buy a case of 9mm, 115 grains, FMJ ammo at today's prices.

 

I am uncertain as how I am going to proceed if they decide not to honor my claim for either reimbursement or a return and refund for the damaged product. If they decide not to reimburse me via insurance for the damaged product, or to not allow me to make a return for a refund, I am going to remind them of what I spent there. If that does not change their tune, then I may tell them to go screw themselves if they expect me to pay another penny to them for anything. I'll then also be contacting my credit card company to see what they will do for me regarding reducing my loss. American Express is excellent in that regard, it's one reason why I use my American Express card whenever possible. I have to balance my loss against how much I save on ammo by purchasing from them before I do something as drastic as deciding not to purchase from them again. That is because they almost always have the lowest prices, at least that I have found, on ammunition when you calculate in the cost of shipping usually even without the Ammo+ membership. Oh what to do if they do not honor my claim, decisions - decisions, decisions! 

 

Then again, if they make good, I will be a happy camper or is that a happy shootist!

 

Edited to add, on September 5, 2025: Much to my relief, target Sports USA sent me a return label for the ammo in the damaged boxes. The lady in customer service, at first wanted to know how many of the actual cartridges were damaged; which was what they told me the first time I had the same issue with another order. It was evident, she only wanted to refund any money at all, if cartridges were damaged. After a bit of back and forth though, she relented and sent me the label. Luckily I found a box from a prior ammo shipment that fit all of the damaged boxes perfectly. I went to the UPS store and because it had a preprinted label, they accepted the ammo for shipment (which if I understand correctly, they do not usually do for ammo shipments saying they have to go through a UPS customer center - and the one near me closed their customer counter thus eliminating chances of shipping ammo through UPS in most instances for the average Joe). So my worry apparently was for nothing (that is at least once I receive my refund, it will have been so) and I am quite happy to remain a loyal Target Sports USA customer.

  

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

Nice Dancing - Don't Know If I Ever Shared This Video Before

 She has all the moves to keep any straight man happy, that is for sure. I, for one, never get tired of watching this one. 

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Don't Expect Potential Gun Buyers To Be Serious...

...if you are not a serious gun seller. This evening, while browsing a gun forum which I frequent, I came across a thread by way of which someone was trying to sell some guns. I read the title of the thread, the sale was called a "SAFE CLEANOUT", then I read the opening post and saw only three guns were being offered for sale. The info given about two of the firearms included: make, model, caliber. It gave the barrel length for one of those two and its finish; for the other of those two it mentioned an optic and number of mags it came with. For the third gun, there was a date, supposedly of manufacture, make and model and its condition listed as "great" and said it was accurate. A price was listed for all three. That was essentially all the info given for the guns.

 

The seller did list location of the sale. There were no photographs of the guns. The seller went on to say that photos would be available only to serious buyers. I laughed at that most of all.

 

You may be wondering why I laughed. It was because I found it ludicrous as far as gun sales go. The ineptness of some folks to use what should be common sense when trying to sell a firearm or almost anything else is astounding. So what was it exactly that set me off laughing? Well that was a combination of things but one final thing really got me guffawing.

 

First of all, the description of the sale as a "Safe Cleanout" had me thinking, wow it must be a really small safe because the seller was only offering three guns for sale.  Then, the descriptions of each were lacking. If you want to sell anything, especially a firearm let me assure that most potential buyers would prefer as much info as possible right up front. They mostly do not want to have to ask lots of questions, the answers to which should have already been made clear, with a very good description, by the buyer in his offering advertisement. Those things, with reference should include: make, model, issue (many models of firearms have various issues, or versions, with differing modifications); caliber, MM  (millimeter size of ammo), gauge or bore size (last two for shotguns); finish, type of grips, type of sights and or optics, number of magazines or cylinders, type of action and so on. 

 

The last thing that made me laugh and guffaw the loudest, was that the seller stated he would send pictures to only serious buyers! First of all, it is insulting to any potential buyer that they are not serious enough for the seller to have posted pics without them asking. Secondly, what actual serious buyer wants to buy from a seller who is not serious enough about selling an item to list pictures in his offering; sure some folks will ask for pictures and then buy but why have to bother if the seller was not serious enough in the first place to include pics! It is a turnoff for many potentially SERIOUS buyers.

 

The condition of each gun, both cosmetic and mechanical (if known) are important pieces of info to include when listing a firearm. As for mechanical condition, saying it is fully functional, has functional issues, and or is missing parts (and therefor is a parts gun or gunsmith special) should be stated. As to cosmetic condition, the  seller should be telling potential buyers the estimated condition by using an accepted format, such as NRA condition codes for modern firearms, or the NRA condition codes for antique firearms. As for me, I much prefer a simpler description for the cosmetic condition, one that plainly states the metal condition as a percentage of remaining finish. Other important condition info to include is whether or not there is any rust, how bad is any rust, or are mars of any type on the metal, wood or polymer parts. More info can be supplied by the seller but the things I just mentioned are basic.

 

 One of the most important pieces of info to include is a visual representation of the actual gun for sale. In other words, post good, very clear photographs of what is being sold. Picture the complete gun from both sides, and from the top and bottom too. Offer close-ups also of any special features, engraving, markings, or of any damage.

 

What including that info does is this:

 

1. Shows that the seller is serious.

 

2. Saves both the seller and potential buyers a lot of time because when that info is there for all to see, the potential buyers do not need to contact the seller and each potential buyer ask several questions about it.

 

Telling a potential buyer the seller's terms in advance is very important. Knowing whether or not the seller will ship or is only making an offer for a face to face sale is important to most buyers. Showing types of payment acceptable to the seller is also imperative. This also rules out unnecessary inquiries of the buyer by potential buyers and thus saves each of them time and effort. 

 

If you post a gun for sale ad, don't leave out information or pictures and then say something like: photos will be emailed to serious buyers only! The reason to to not say that and to provide photos and a really good description is to show potential buyers that you are a serious seller and not some nefarious buffoon trying to screw them. It is of benefit to the seller in another way, giving all that info shows the seller is serious and thus let's the buyers see the seller is making a serious, good and hopefully an honest effort as opposed to trying to rid himself of items he failed to show pictures of in the first place. It also helps weed out some buyers with ill intent by way of alerting the seller to those who ask unnecessary questions about what already was made obvious and by way of those who question and try to change your seller's terms. Beware of them. It can also offer protection to the buyer when a seller later claims the gun was in poor condition and then leave you bad feedback. If you showed everything in your offering you have proof otherwise when bad feedback or a bad claim made against you as the seller. Along those lines, giving the serial number of a gun, in an offering, and of course sending the gun with that number, protects the seller as well. For some reason, unknown to me though, many sellers think showing the serial number somehow puts them at great risk. Unless you were trying to sell a stolen firearm, I cannot figure the fear of showing the serial number; and if it was stolen and offered by you: go to jail - go directly to jail, do not pass go.

 

Thus, in brief, what you should try to accomplish, if offering a gun for sale, is to attract serious potential customers, and ultimately someone to buy it, by way of showing you are a serious seller.

 

One last thing and this should be obvious to all: Make certain your offer to sell and your terms of sale follow all laws an regulations in the area in which you are selling, in the area to where you are shipping (shipping company rules and local, state a federal laws on shipping must also be adhered to) and where the buyer resides also make certain it is legal under federal law and regulations. Some, if not all, gun laws suck but you need to obey them to stay out of prison. You also would want to follow all rules of the venue through which you are selling it: such as gun forum rules as to sales, auction house rules, online auction company rules such as those of GunBroker.com to name one such company (my favorite).

 

Note, the above is a basic rundown but not all inclusive of how to sell a gun via an ad. If I was selling one right now and listing it, say on GunBroker, I'd probably think of some other points to make. So, there are other things you can list in an offering to show yourself as a serious seller if you ever list an ad for a firearm sale and actually make a good and quick sale.

 

Good luck with your sales. 

 

Al the best,

Glenn B

Conway, AR Gun Show

 My son and I attended the Conway Gun Show this morning. I brought along two rifles to sell. My son carried around my Savage 111 Long Range Hunter in .300 WIN MAG. Not one person asked to look at it. I strolled through the aisles hefting my CZ 457 Royal. The vendor at the first set of tables I walked by told me to come back if I had not sold it by the time I was leaving. That made me hopeful that I'd be leaving the venue with lots more cash than the $67 I had in my pocket.

 

 As I passed one table, I noticed a package of twenty 7.62X39mm stripper clips for $12.00. I figured I'd buy them if still there later. Almost everyting else I saw was way overpriced. Yet, I did see one new Beretta 92FS with an asking price of $625.00, out the door. That was not bad at all. The lowest price I saw on AmmoSeek for the same pistol was $646.49 shipped. Add another $20.00 to have it go through my local FFL and the price into my hands would have been $666.49. So, $625.00 was a very good price without a waiting period due to shipping, to actually have it in hand. If I did not already have four 92FS pistols (two of which are regular and the other two are 92FS Compact L, Type M), I may have bought that one. Let's face it, with inflation at its current level,  saving $41.49, or 6%, off of the rock bottom price shown on AmmoSeek, is a good thing making it a good bargain. That money could get you a couple or few boxes of 9mm ammo at today's prices. Heck, with my Ammo+ membership at Target Sports USA, that amount would be sufficient to pick up four boxes of CCI 9MM, 115 grain, Blazer Brass ammo, shipped. 

 

 There was one other firearm with an almost decent price on it by today's pricing. That was a nice looking Chinese SKS. The seller was not a show vendor but an attendee. He was asking $550 for it. I should have taken a look at it right after he walked in but I did not. Later, I saw him as he was leaving and should have looked it over and asked him what was his bottom line. I would have offered $400 if it was in excellent condition, and if it had matching numbers maybe an additional $25. With him walking out the door, still with it, it may have been the perfect time to haggle with him. There is almost always the chance of a disappointed seller making a good deal at that point, instead of leaving without making a deal at all and thus with the same amount of cash as when he got there. It was a Frank Fritz (RIP) "buy it when you see it" moment; a would have, could have, should have at least looked at it kind of a thing. I failed at doing what I usually would have done and missed out on that potential opportunity. While I would not pay his asking price of $550, even that was at least a decent price by today's pricing. Who said you cannot find good or even decent deals at gun shows nowadays (or ever)?

 

 Of course excellent, good or just decent deals at gun shows are a rare commodity and that has been likewise in the few decades I have been attending them. Granted, it is more difficult to find such a deal today as opposed to 45 years ago or so, when I went to my first gun show, but a couple or a few decent to outstanding deals can be found at almost every show. That is if you look hard enough and haggle as best you can. You are more likely to find dealers willing to come down in price on Sundays instead of Saturdays, in my experience. That can be either because they sold almost nothing on Saturday and need to get some cash, any amount within reason for a y given item, or because they have done so well, so far, and are more willing to sell something for a little less because their coffers are filled with how much they have already brought into them.

 

Not long after the guy with the Chinese SKS departed, I went back to the vendor who had told me to come back with the CZ 457 Royal, if not sold by the time I was ready to leave the show. I offered it to him at about $200 less than the lowest price found on AmmoSeek. Mine is unfired in excellent condition, in the box with papers, essentially brand new. He offered me $100 less than my low-ball price. I am pretty sure, had he bought it, he would have asked quite a bit more than the lowest online price when he offered it for sale, or so is my guess.

 

The only thing I bought at the show were 100 rounds of Norinco 7.62X39mm ammo (banned from future imports by Clinton back in the 1990s) and the pack of 20 stripper clips, that I mentioned earlier, for 7.62X39mm ammo. The ammo had an asking price of $50, I got em for $45. I gave them to my son as a gift since he had asked me earlier for a hundred bucks to buy ten boxes of it from the same vendor. I only had $67 on me, and my credit cards while far from being maxed out have to much on them for me to use them for anything other than what I need, at least until the 1st of next month when I pay them off in full. So, I got what I could afford while leaving a bit of cash in my pocket. I had asked Brendan if he wanted me to take $100 out of the ATM and loan it to him but he said forget it. So, I surprised him later when I gave the 100 rds. to him as a gift. The stripper clips had an asking price of $12.00. I got them for $10; I think I think I was lucky the vendor still had them. Until today, I had not seen them offered for sale below a dollar apiece, a buck each has been the offering price for a couple of years now in my experience. So. .50 cents each was such a deal and a good one at that.

 

All in all, Brendan & I enjoyed the show. Well, I think we did, but know I did (I just asked him about it and now I know he enjoyed it). It was a nice way to spend about a couple of hours together, actually about three hours with the drive.

 

Some other things of note: I would have taken some photographs of the show, to display the wide variety of guns and other things for sale except for the numerous signs at the entrance forbidding anyone from taking photographs. This is the only gun show, in my memory, where I have ever seen such a disappointing rule and there were at least two, to a few, signs saying so. If I had been permitted to have taken pics, I would have made certain to take them not only of tables displaying guns, firearms parts, their accessories, and ammo, but also of what I think were the annoying amount of tables with odd ball stuff, at least oddball to sell at a gun show. 

 

Those off items were anything from: bread and other baked goods, jam, hot pepper sauces, pepper mills, coffee grinders, knickknacks, fishing rods & tackle, axes, hatchets, fantasy swords, brass knuckles, toys, jewelry, and even a few tables with only potted house plants for sale. Never before, to the best of my little gray cell's abilities, do I recollect house plants being sold at a gun show; that was weird to say the least and the vendor selling them had at least three tables of them. Those are sad examples of what things are allowed to be sold at gun shows, in my opinion, but it happens at all gun shows nowadays and I am not blaming the promoter of such shows but I am disappointed that such has become the norm. It is amazing what unrelated junk items are allowed to be sold at so called 'Gun shows' or Gun & Knife shows. I, for one, do not even particularly like the sale of knives being allowed, other than bayonets, but I can tolerate them as they are also weapons. I suppose folks have accepted the fact that knives always will be sold therein. I imagine it is much akin to peanut butter & jelly (fruit preserves are to my liking), as they go well together and so it seems for knives and guns go together to many folks. 

 

However, in my estimation, those other non gun related items, like house plants, really do not have a valid place at a gun show. I suppose though, the promoters do not attract enough firearms vendors, and financial concerns demand they fill as many tables as possible to stay in business and make a profit. Thus they allow what I, and many others in my experience, believe are junk vendors into the venues. As I said, it is like that at all gun shows. I am not, by any stretch of the imagination, singling out G&S Promotions. It has been that way for decades at most, if not all, guns shows I have been to in the past 30 years or more. Although, I remember some of the shows I attended early on that did not allow anything but guns and items that were directly related to firearms, I miss those days. Sadly the trend to allow things unrelated to firearms seems to be continually getting worse. Sooner or later, if not restricted now, the amount of tables selling items unrelated to firearms may outnumber the number of tables from which guns are sold, at some shows.

 

 

Regardless of my qualms along those lines, the show promoter Stephanie E. of G&S Promotions is a very nice lady and runs a very professional operation with good people working for her. I have been to several of their shows with Brendan, and to a few by myself, both as a vendor and as an attendee. I think they host some of the best Shows in AR (anywhere for that matter) along with those run by Kerry Murphy Promotions; although, I must say Stephanie is much prettier than Kerry!

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

 

 

Best Sellers

Do you know the most popular book in the entire history of the world? You probably know or have guessed, it is the Bible, but what is the most popular novel in the history of the world?

That novel is about a hopeful and chivalrous gentleman on a seemingly hopeless and foolish quest. It was written by a Spaniard in the early 1600s and has not been outsold by any other novel in over 400 years.  I may have read it in gramnar or high school as  I know the essence of the story but cannot recall if I actually read the book or just heard the story. My little gray cells vaguely remember reading it way back then. Regardless, it is on my bucket list to acquire a copy to read either again or for the first time.

That novel is: The Ingenious Gentleman Don Quixote of La Mancha, by Miguel de Cervantes.(2)

 

1. https://www.britannica.com/one-good-fact/whats-the-best-selling-novel-of-all-time

2. https:/en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don_Quixote

A Culinary Delight

This evening, I picked up an extra large pepperoni pizza at Joe's Italian Bistro, in Texarkana, AR. It was made in true NY City style, closer to that than any others I have eaten in a couple or few years now. I had three  slices. It was delicious. I would rate it a 7.5 as compared to pizza rated 10 from a really good pizza parlor in NYC. Maybe it could have used a bit better cheese but the cheese was still good. Definitely needed, in my opinion, 1.5 to 2X the pepperoni. The pepperoni was kind of sparse on a few slices. Regardless, it was the best pizza I have eaten in a long time. That was an unexpected joy.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Homebound Hidden Handguns & Long Arms

I know that many firearms owners carry handguns virtually all of the time. Some even carry while in their homes, or if not actualy carrying at home, have one or more readily available inside their abodes. What I am interested in discussing is whether you have hidden, loaded and easily accesible, handguns or even long arms, wthin you living quarters.

 

A bunch of a firearms forum members, up on Long Island, NY, discussing a similar topic as this one, years ago, said they kept loaded handguns on shelves behind other items like a picture frame, in or on a night table, in specially made gun concealment wall hanging frames, in drawers, in closets, hidden in false books, in a holster attached to their couch, and even under the pillow each night (yikes). Some said they kept long arms at the ready in a closet, next to entrance doors, under their beds, hanging on a wall and so forth. 

One fellow firearms enthusiast surprised just about every other forum member when he said he kept a loaded and easily accesible handgun, hanging in a waterproof bag from the pipe that was attached to his shower head. The bag was something like what a diver or canoer might use to assure personal propery is kept dry. He said the pistol was made of stainless steel. Plenty of the forum members derided him for that, thinking he was paranoid. I and several others thought it was not such a bad idea considering the amount of home invasions in NY at the time, and as long as their were no young children in the home.

 

I am left wondering,  if you do likewise. If so, in what places do you keep your loaded and ready firearms at home. Of course, I imagine some folks do not keep loaded firearms in the home because they have young children, but some with kids have probably figured out, or at least believe they have figured out, safe places to keep a loaded gun at the ready, places which they think  their youngsters cannot access (beware, kids often get into the seemingly most secure and or secret places).

As for me, I have a handgun either on my person or within fairly easy reach, such as on my coffee table when watching TV. I also have a shotgun loaded and ready in my bedroom and keep my every day carry pistol on a bedside table when I go to bed. There is also a bed holster holding a Charter Arms Bulldog revolver - loaded with 44 S&W Special ammo - hanging from the holster's flap that is between my mattress and the bed frame. I have a spare bedroom/storage room with another handgun in it. I do not have one in the bathroom but have been thinking about putting one in there too. No guns in my kitchen but several big sharp knives and a machete too. As for me, there are no children in my home and if have an expected, or even unexpected guest, come by with or without children in tow, I take appropriate safety precautions.

 

What about you folks? Do any of you have innovative places, or simply any places, where you keep a loaded gun at the ready in your home?

 

As I have said often before, there always has been one thing I liked about the Boy Scouts Of America, their motto: BE PREPARED!

 

 All the best,

Glenn B 

On The 80th Anniversarry of Nuking Nagasaki...

 ...the mayor of that city has given the human race a dire warning of what he thinks is going to happen to the world. I whole heartidly agree with him. 

 

We need to change things and use some logic to abolish nukes and maybe war in general and we need to do it soon, or else we face destruction like the world has never seen. More at the source: https://www.foxnews.com/world/nagasaki-mayor-issues-chilling-warning-80th-anniversary-atomic-bombing.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

President Trump Is The Man...

 ...and probably is the only man, who currently can persuade Vladimir Putin & Volodymyr Zelenskyy to end the war between Russia &  Ukraine. He has been bending over backwards to give Russia & Ukraine every chance to find a peaceful resolution to the conflict but both Putin and Zelensky have seemed hell bent on keeping the war going on and on and o; and that appears especially true of Putin. Well, as of late, maybe Zelenskyy is ready to be diplomatic but Putin does not really seem ready because each and every olive branch offered by President Trump has been stomped on by Putin with new massive attacks on Ukraine. That is or was maybe until now. Trump hopes to meet with Putin within a week or so (more at the source: https://www.foxnews.com/politics/trump-announces-face-face-talks-putin-next-week-three-way-talks-ukraines-zelenskyy. After that, Trump hopes to have a three way meeting (no Schumer and the rest of you TDS types - not a sexual get together) between the three leaders to achieve peace in the Russia/Ukraine war.

 

Being that Trump, in the last day or two, announced the placing of nuclear submarines closer to Russia (they were probably already there but Trump is exercising brinkmanship or the art of the deal), maybe Putin has finally seen the light. That light shining on the fact that if Putin wants war with NATO or the USA, and if he keeps threatening it through his flunkies, then the USA is ready, willing and to go at it should Putin start it and so it seems are our NATO allies. European countries, especially those that used to be under Soviet tyranny do not want to be oppressed again and other do not want to be under Russian rule for their firs time.

 

I hope and even pray (although I am not a regularly praying man) that this does not come to WW III but I think we are closer than ever to it. If I think anyone can prevent it, President Donald J. Trump is the one man who can do it. Let's face it it, it sure as hell was not Joe Biden nor Kamala Harris who was getting it done, all they did was prolong it.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

I Am A Child Of The Cold War...

...a war that luckily never turned hot. I think the reason it did not go hot is that the Soviet Union's (USSR) leaders as well as those in our government all realized that if it did there would be no winner and the world would be lost as we know it. Of course there was also some remarkable diplomacy and brinkmanship that played out well for all of us.

 

Sadly though, we are involved, once again, in a cold war with Russia and have been ever since Russia invaded Ukraine. No matter what President Trump tries, it seems he cannot quell the desire of Vladimir Putin for more power by way of victory in Ukraine and after that - who knows! As with other rulers from Russia and the former USSR - more  power and tyranny are apparently the most desirable of goals for them. One must hope that Putin realizes that if he starts WW III, there is not going to be a winner. Then again, maybe like Adolf Hitler, Josef Stalin and others - he is blinded to that fact by his insatiable lust for more power. To say the man is an egomaniac is a huge understatement. If he were to be assassinated today, I would stand up an applaud the assassin and then hope maybe beyond any hope that the next ruler of Russia was much more sensible and moderate to his approach to world affairs. 

 

There was a song, many years ago in my younger days (my late 20s, yes the Cold War was still ongoing then), about fear & paranoia that the end was upon us. People feared the end because they had thought the then president of the USA, Ronald Reagan, was about to start one with the USSR. Luckily in real life just as in the song, it all turned out to be a false alarm. That song is below in both the original German and then in an English translation and it expresses the paranoia perfectly:

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fpu5a0Bl8eY

 

 

The thing is today, if it appears the end is upon us because of something caught on radar approaching in the air, it probably will not be a false alarm. I doubt it will be an attack on us at first but rather that a NATO nation will be attacked by Russia either mistakenly or purposefully just as almost happened in Romania and as has almost taken place in Lithuania More at the source:  https://www.foxnews.com/world/nato-member-scrambles-jets-after-russian-drone-attack-witkoff-meets-putin. Either way, if a NATO nation is attacked - mistakenly or purposefully - it may not matter which as the wrath of NATO may rain down on Moscow in such a case. If that happens, then the nukes most likely will be sent flying in all directions from all nuclear armed nations. One can only hope that Trump can bring an end to this madness before WW III is commenced and that any flying objects detected on radar will be nothing more than red or luft (air) balloons, or maybe a flock of birds. Yet, with the latest attack on Ukraine coming within only a half mile of Romania (a NATO nation and thus a U.S. ally), it is probably only a matter of time before such an attack hits one of our allies.

 

If that happens, nuclear war could follow. An invasion on our shores would possibly, maybe even probably, soon follow. Russia may have depleted a lot of its armaments in Ukraine but then so too has the U.S. by sending them to Ukraine and the U.S. is dependent upon Red China for the minerals to make much of our weaponry. Red China has not depleted any of their armaments and they are an ally of Russia at least for now. We would be in a mire of deep shit doo-doo if they joined in, which I am certain they would. 

 

Along those lines, I hope you are at least somewhat prepared with a decent stock, for a month or several months, of: food & water, necessary medicines, first aid supplies, gas masks with plenty of filters, firearms and ammo, bladed weapons & tools, and whatever else you may need. I don't know about you but if the commies actually invade, I want to send as many to hell as is possible before they send me to the same place.

 

(I have to note, that song brings a few tears to my eyes because I clearly remember and feel the worldwide paranoia of my childhood; a paranoia that was felt within my home. I could see it in my mother's face when one sunny beautiful day in 1962, the noises of NY City were muted by the sound of powerful jet fighters flying overhead and then causing a sonic boom. I actually saw four or five of them, as I best recall, fly low right over our home in Brooklyn, NY; and I do mean low and directly over our apartment building. Then seconds later we heard the sonic booms of them breaking the sound barrier. We did not know they were sonic booms. My mother panicked and got me back inside quickly and under the bed. She told me it must be the Russians attacking, she thought they were dropping bombs. She was afraid, very afraid. I had only a child's idea of what was happening, but I already knew from grammar school that we needed to run, duck and take cover (what a farce, them teaching us that in school). I either had just turned seven years old, or was  just under seven with my birthday coming soon, but am pretty sure that happened during the October Crisis, so I would have been seven by them. That crisis, was better known as the Cuban Missile Crisis. It was supposedly the closest the world had come to a nuclear war up until then; the thing is though, we may be closer to one now. 

 

They were scary times that lasted until Ronald Reagan's cunning brinkmanship and diplomacy in the 1980's brought the cold war to an end, instead of starting a hot war as many had feared he would do. The cold war had gone on for many years, in fact for around three decades by the time it had ended under Reagan. It seemed like it was all over for good for a bit; yet, here we go again and once again the world is a very scary place in which we live thanks to the aggressiveness of the Russians! Hopefully President Trump also has the cunningness to carry out the diplomacy & brinkmanship needed to save us, the world, from destroying ourselves. I hope with all my heart that the words of Nina's song (English version) never come true: "This is what we've waited for, this is it boys, this is war..."; because war with Russia means WW III and it may well be the actual war to end all wars, unless that is cockroaches can fight wars. I am feeling the same fears of my younger years they're not nice at all. Let's hope that sanity triumphs.)

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Sometimes Guns I Buy Are In Near Pristine Condition...

 ...if not actually pristine or even flawless. Take for instance the three I just purchased from the Hessney Auction Company. Two were listed "as new" the other said nothing special in its description. The two shown "as new" were the Norinco Model 54-1 and the Ruger Mark I Target pistol. I have got to hand it to then at Hessney -

 at least this time as they do not always get the descriptions right but they did just fine this time on those two. The Ruger had a tiny bit of finish wear, maybe half a percent. Besides three tiny scratches at the same spot on the frame, it is truly in 'as new' condition, in fact I have seen guns sold new in the box that looked worse. 

 

The Norinco is another matter. In it's dilapidated box was the manual and a receipt. The receipt showed it was purchased in San Bruno, CA on May 11, 1992. Whoever purchased it and owned it since then may not have taken care of the box, maybe even drove a semi over it or let a kid destroy it, but he certainly took excellent care of the pistol. It looks as close to perfect as one can get for a pistol from back then. My guess is that no one ever fired it. While I have not disassembled it yet, the outside is about as pristine as any new gun I have ever seen and the magazines (two were included) look as if they may have been in and out of the gun once before I checked it. It does not appear to have been reblued. All I can say about it other than that is - WOW, it is a nice one.

 

The third gun was a Charter Arms Undercover revolver. While it was not listed "as new" it probably should have been so. It looks barely used and I remind you that "as new" does not mean it appears brand new. It means it looks as good as new more or less, as I understand it. In other words, it appears very close to looking like new. While there is a cylinder ring is is barely noticeable; meaning by my guess that it was fired very few times. The only possible thing wrong with its description that I have noticed so far is that it said it has walnut grips. I think they may be plastic but I'll have to take them off to be sure and give them the hot pin test on an inner surface if they look like plastic on the inside. If they are wood, that should be obvious when looking at their inner side. Maybe, if they are wood, that fact is not so obvious on the outside - possibly due to the finish used. 

 

I am patting myself on the back for bidding on these and having the high bids. It is not always the case that I wind up with guns listed "as new" that are in as good a condition as any of these three. If my phone's camera was working properly, I'd post pictures but for sometime now it has been taking foggy photos since the lens cover broke. I have had a new phone for over a month but have not set it up yet (as I have said before, I am THE Great Procrastinator). Once I get it set up, I hope to  take pics and post them here.

 

All the best,

Glenn B 

Another Gun, Another Caliber...

 ...of ammo that I need to pick up. You may recall that in my last post, I mentioned having the high bid on a Norinco Model 54-1 in 7.62 Tokarev. I am not going to say that I have never owned any of that ammo but to the best of my recollection, the five rounds of it that I gave away at a gun show this past weekend was all of it for me. Those few rounds were in a bag of maybe 150 other rounds of mixed calibers that I found loose in range boxes & bags, partially filled ammo boxes, ammo cans and other places. Those were all of the unspent rounds that I had accumulated over the years for whatever reason. Many were at least 10 to 20 years old but all evidently in good enough condition to shoot. Those that I found which were corroded, were kept by me. They will be disposed of properly at a later date. All of the ones I gave away looked to be in good shootable condition.

 

 Now, back to the 7.62 Tokarev ammo (aka: 7.62X25mm). It is a bottle necked pistol round which I guess makes it somewhat unusual among pistol ammo. There are other such pistol rounds out there but the are in the great minority. 

 

The pistol, for said ammo, arrived at my local FFL yesterday and I picked it up promptly. That is one of the few things I never procrastinate on getting done. It looked excellent on first glance at the store but I need to give it a much better inspection today. 

 

After looking it over better, I want to shoot it. So along that line, I ordered some 7.62 Tokarev ammo for it yesterday. Three boxes of Sellier & Bellot FMJ and two of PPU JHP set me back almost $160.00 at Saint Barb's Bullets. That included shipping and tax. My go to online ammo store, Target Sports USA, did not have any in stock, that was disappointing. 

 

Anyway, that is the thing about buying a new gun in a caliber different than that of your other guns. It means, tracking down and acquiring a new caliber for yourself. It may also mean paying more for it than other ammo if it is sort of an odd ball caliber.

 

 Then today, I woke up and I thought, I would like to shoot the new pistol as soon as possible, procrastination be damned. So, I called a few local ammo dealers to find that not only do they not have it in stock but most of them apparently had never heard of it before. Obviously not one of the most common types of ammo, which by the way is probably what makes it rather expensive for a small pistol round. It sells for about $25.00 per box of 50 rounds. Not cost prohibitive, yet way above the price of a much more popular pistol round like 9mm Luger (aka: 9mm Parabellum).

 

So, as it turns out. it seems I will have to await delivery of my ammo order before I can take my new pistol to the range for some shooting goodness.

 

A range report to follow, sooner or later.

 

 All the best,

Glenn B