I am an avid hunter with rifle and Bow and have been hunting for more than 50 years. I have taken big game such as whitetail deer, red deer, elk, moose, buffalo, Russian boar and African Plains game
such as Kudu, Gemsbok, Springbok, Blesbok, and Impala and wrote an ebook entitled African Safari -Rifle and Bow and Arrow on how to prepare for a first safari. Ed is a serious cartridge reloader and ballistics student. He has earned two degrees in science and has written hundreds of outdoor article on hunting with both bow and rifle. He lives in New Hampshire with his wife Susan. He is a Patriot Life Member of the NRA.
I like to think of myself as a great long range shot and I am…mostly. Yes we miss too. It is often the lack of practice or as some say perfect practice that gets us out of the x-ring. Fact is I can stand to go back to school on shooting technique, breathing, slowing my heart rate before the shot. I have found a great article for you and I to read and reread and you don’t have to fire real bullets!
I was at a store the other day and spied good prices for 45 grain FMJ .223 bullets so I checked out the optimal twist rates and bullets for my Colt 1/7 twist rate barrel. Most barrels for the AR type have been sold as 1/9 twist rates thus the range of bullet weights are 45 to 75 grains. The 45 grain heads will work here for 1/9 twist. My barrel has a 1/7 twist rate and the range of bullet weights are 55 to 85 grains. So the 45 grain heads would have been a poor purchase. My barrel is more in keeping with a dual purpose hunting and tactical weights.
It is best as a deer hunter to hand-load small quantities of these heavier heads/powders to see what works best. I would then chronograph them and determine lethal energy needed on deer at ranges. So I will do that this spring in an article. Proper spin of the bullet includes enough velocity too for gyroscopic stability. JBM Ballistics has a calculator for bullet stability
The President agreed that murder rates are at an all time low but never brought it up till Taya did. And the President says in essence paraphrasing “today Gun Ownership is at an all time high but it does not necessarily correlate the low murder rate to gun ownership. And (he said) that shell corporations and trusts are buying automatic weapons and silencers and the government does not know where they are going?”
The President is in his spin zone:
First Mr. President, Texas has the highest number of gun owners and the lowest murder rates in the nation. Should tell ya something!
Second, On automatic weapons Mr. President there are federal laws on the books are against ownership of automatic weapons and silencers unless a Class III Federal License is obtained. And you are subject to a very thorough Federal background check, fingerprints and local law enforcement signs off on the ownership. Today they are almost impossible to get and you need lots of money besides the threat of federal prison for falsification.
Third, When have you seen fully automatic weapons used in a crime or a purchased silencer? Where? When? Not in any Media I have seen!!!
Is this a face of a President you trust when he said:
You can Keep your Doctor and Medical Plan?
Al Qaeda is on the Run?
I want to take away AR 15 green FMJ ammo from Americans because it can kill.
But ammo has been here for 60 years and never been used to kill police. Americans want it for self protection.
Climate Change Obama says is the most important threat today. This in light of 9/11, Benghazi, ISIS, Al Qaeda, the Taliban, Boko Horam, the Paris Attacks, San Bernardino, Russia, Iran Nuc’s, North Korea bombs and now the Philly ISIS inspired Cop Shooter who shot the officer 11 or 12 times with a Police semi auto stolen in a house break-in several years ago.
Everyone I know that hunts, wants to hunt far away places and dreams of an Elk or Caribou Hunt or a Bear Hunt, Deer Hunt, Antelope Hunt or even an African Safari that I wrote a book on. That Said: In light of my recent experience, just don’t take a friends say so as I did. Please do your homework! I want the best for all of my readers!
I found that the NSSF athttp://www.nssf.org/hunting/ provides links to Outfitters and Guides. Click on Find an Outfitter and you will be transported to the American Guide and Outfitter Associations. If your prospective outfitter is not on that list then ask why?
Below is the screen you go to when you click the Find an Outfitter in the above site. See that there is a Maine Professional Guides Association. Goals of the association include the hunter in providing a quality, ethical outdoor experience.
I clicked on the Maine Professional Guides Association. See below. So you too can find a better hunt via these professional associations. If you go to an Outdoor Show ask to see their membership in these organizations and their involvement with them. Outfitters are given awards for the Outdoor Experiences they provide.
As you folks know, I hunted North Carolina’s Buffalo Creek Outfitters who read my bad reference for them. I gave the head of the day to day operations, who called me today, my honest opinion which again I highlighted. He spent more time distancing himself from me and other hunters than endearing us.
If you are going to hunt with an outfitter; You the hunter will sign a legal release of responsibility by the outfitter at the time of the hunt. You should be able to see the release before-hand like at an outdoor show! Ask for it! And ask for recent references of at least 3 hunters and phone numbers. Ask if they provide a post hunt survey to improve the hunt? Ask how big are the deer by age e.g., 1.5, 2.5, 3.5 years and the size of the area is to be hunting. What kind of stands or blinds? Distances to shoot? Reptiles/Bears? Water/ Swamps Fields? Special hunting rules not posted? Penalties?
The poor hunt was, in the end, my fault; my fault for not doing the homework. There are far better outfitters…
Further ask if they are members of a state or national outfitters association. These groups have guidelines to live by and are a source for you to praise or zing your outfitter.
The American Guide and Outfitter Associations listed state by state but North Carolina nor most southern states save Texas are listed but can create memberships and a place to go to get unbiased info on Guides just not where I hunted. See Montana http://www.montanaoutfitters.org/ for example
In the end what I said to this Outfitter in constructive feedback is that you should have a Anonymous Hunter Feedback Survey Rating 1 to 10 (10 being the highest) and a box to collect the info without the hunters name. In that way I offered constructive feedback which he said he would consider.
Today it is possible because of military spec’s to buy an upper from one manufacturer and purchase a lower from someone else. Both need to go through an FFL dealer to purchase. My new AR is a hybrid where the Colt upper is mated to a mil spec lower. See Image below.
I shot 40 rounds (no glitches) with my son who also already owns an AR like semi-auto. Accuracy at 25 yards with open sights is a half inch. I had a Tasco Red Dot sight already so we mounted it too and sighted it in. Groups were similar with a red or green dot Image.
Back at home we cleaned it, took out the bolt and firing pin for cleaning and inspection. It was an easy task that looked harder than it was. Taking the forward and rear pins out then separate the upper from the lower. Of course many of you know this already. Next is to get a sling that works for me and connection points that I prefer. Forward is a hand grip that makes better sense than holding the picatiny rail. Recoil? What’s that? Of course it had recoil but it was not noticeable at all.
I will run this rifle through its paces for accuracy so there is lots more to come.
Santa thought, now is a good time without going into detail. Nuff said? I agree! My firearm that Santa gave is a civilian AR model hybrid of an upper unit mated to a lower unit. I had the upper and Santa provided the lower after my background check at the FFL dealer. But it could be that you got a semi-auto pistol for conceal carry as well. See your local Police to obtain a permit!
Congratulations and… Incumbent on the owner is to become trained in the firearm use and care and to maintain safety at all times. The ownership of any gun carries with it great responsibility.
On the safety issue, it is vital that under that Christmas tree comes with the knowledge that all firearms should be under lock and stored safely, preferably in a Gun Safe or stored in such a way that children and the bad guys do not have access. Keep your bullets in another place is recommended when stored away.
Use of locks that thread through the breech are also an inexpensive way to make it safe helps too and are provided with new purchases. Use them if a Gun Safe is not immediately available but a gun safe should be one of your highest priorities.
Taking this kind of rifle to the range should be done by someone already familiar with it or have a friend that has experience with one.
If you are a member of a Shooting Club or Fish and Game Club, like I am then you should have access to safety handling and training with your firearm. If you are not a member of NRA or a local Club you should tackle that as a priority. Get this one done, as they say in the TV add!
If you are like me, you will want to be highly skilled in the use of any gun. Read, study and train. Regular use of this kind of firearm and training is necessary for optimum performance.
In an age where our current leaders and wanna be leaders ( I was thinkin’ Hillary and Bernie Sanders) and some nutty Marxist College Professors like Obama and that Senator from Massachusetts known as Pocahontas among many others on the Left are selling you the idea that Man-made Climate Change decreed by so-called “scientific consensus” (a contradiction in terms) is responsible for the “workplace violence” of Paris Shootings, San Bernardino Massacre at a Christmas Party, the Boston Bombing, Oklahoma jihad beheading and of course ISIS (Obama says they are just thugs and have nothing to do with Islam. Right!? This is pure insanity by our government!
God Almighty blessed us with intelligence at least when we are adults to see that “If you do not protect your family no one else will” in a leftist society gone PC bananas. The police are helpful and I am grateful for them, but I am responsible for my families safety, no one else. Out at a shopping mall, at the theater wherever there are large masses of people I need to be prepared and vigilant and avoid places that have lots of people but do not allow Conceal Carry or Open Carry. In fact many Police Chiefs in light of the San Bernardino shooting have encouraged Concealed carry by qualified trained, permit carrying civilians like you and I.
President Obama and the lack of Homeland Protection he offered by leftist administrators and Justice Department has single-handedly pushed America to arm itself to the teeth by threats to the Constitution and continues on that path by Obama threatening to use his pen to override the Constitution and throw down the second amendment leaving you helpless at the hands of terror from the invasion from the southern border and those jihadist who want you to convert to Islam or cut your head off.
We the People are still in charge so protect yourself and family today. It is not because of Man-made Climate Change (a lie) it is because of an irresponsible federal government not addressing Islamic Jihad. The more Obama threatens the 2nd Amendment the more we buy guns and ammo for protection. American homes are increasingly becoming arsenals so safety and locking up firearms is ever important. Accordingly get trained, practice often and be safe. Confidence comes with practice.
Packin’ Heat is rapidly becoming an American Thing in the face of Islamic terror and it certainly is not due to Climate Change!
