Today was one of the better range sessions I’ve had in a while.

I drove to Knob Creek in the last remnants of a thunderstorm from the night before.  We lost power at around 3 AM, but got it back at about 5, so family considerations didn’t prevent the range trip.  Rain was down to drips and drabs by the time I parked the truck.

I got to the range at about 8:30 and began lugging target stands out.  The new gong went at 50 yards, one of the Shoot-n-See targets went at 100 and another at about 10 yards.  The license plate went at 25 yards.  As I was bringing my guns and ammunition to the firing line, the RSO told me that the KCR policy for gongs had changed, and my gong had to go out to 100 yards.  Apparently they’d had some rebound from gongs getting back to the firing line, so they were pushing them out for safety.  I moved the gong, but that ruled out shooting at it with .22’s and pistols for my little group of newbies.  That thing was getting high power or nothing today.

My first range buddy showed up just before 9, and helped me finish setting up.  When the range went hot, we went over the four rules and range etiquette and then got down to shooting.  I started him out on the S&W 22A1, which he ran with no issues.  He was at least hitting the target stand on the 10 yard target every time, and hit the target a few times too.  I graduated him up the the Model 13 running very light .38 loads, and the grin on his face when he started shooting that big chunk of iron was classic.

Next came the 10/22 and Savage Mark II.  He enjoyed the 10/22 a lot, but did a great job keeping a tight group on the 10 yard target and hitting the license plate with the Mark II.

About the time we took our second break to adjust targets, range buddy #2 showed up, and he brought a lot of toys.  He’d been a shooter until a few years ago, but had fallen out of the sport.  He brought along an M-4gery, a Finnish Mosin, and two .22 caliber reproduction guns, one of an AK-47 and one of a PPsh-41.  His ammunition was old enough that his .22 came in a Remington Golden Bucket and he was shooting .223 that he bought at about $50 a case.  He started plinking away with the AR at my 100 yard gong, but didn’t have much luck hitting it.  He did manage to put a few holes in my target stand and part a chain, but I was glad to see that the other chain had enough strength to hold the gong upright without breaking.  I brought out the Garand and started hitting the gong.  It didn’t make much noise, but we could see it moving.  At the next break, we adjusted the chain so that the gong was supported at two points instead of one, so no harm, no foul.  I expected to be replacing chain so I’d bought more than I needed.  We were able to hit it with the 91/30, the Finnish Mosin, and the Garand several times.  It didn’t ring like a gong, but we could see it wiggling, and inspection at breaks confirmed that it had been hit.

Of course, once the Garand was out, everyone got a turn with it.   The grins got even wider, but who can blame them?  Say what you will about the Garand, it’s fun to shoot.

Range Buddy #3 arrived about then, along with his new-to-him Remington 870.  He’d shot a bit as a kid but wanted to learn a bit more about his shotgun and try several other weapons to see if he enjoyed it.  I showed him how to load the shotgun, where the slide release was, and how to aim it.  I blew a small hole in my 10 yard target, and he completed the job.  He also tried to see how far out he could reach, and put a cloud of bird shot into the 25 yard license plate.  It hit it with enough force to flip it up and over the target stand, but didn’t penetrate the metal other than to dimple it.  He had some buck shot, but I advised him to stay with bird shot for a few range trips until he became comfortable enough with it to move up the the big bang.

All of us took turns shooting whatever struck our fancy over the next couple of hours, including comparison shooting the Finnish Mosin and my 91/30, and then it was time to pack up and go home.  The sun came out around 10 o’clock, and the humidity and heat went up dramatically. By the time I got back on the highway, I was craving salt and cold soda, so I must have been a bit dehydrated even though I’d been taking pulls on a bottle of water all morning.

This was a great trip.  I introduced someone who’d never used a gun before to shooting, induced an old shooter to come back out, and re-introduced someone to shooting.  Everyone had a good time, and no-one got hurt.  This was the first time I’ve taken an adult first time shooter to the range, and it was an honor to do this.  Hopefully all three of my range buddies continue to shoot and learn.

A few thoughts:

• By the time we left the range, it was very busy.  I’ve noticed that KCR is always full, even on weekdays.  Whether this means more people are getting into shooting, or shooters are going to the range more often remains to be seen.  My gut tells me it’s a little of both.
• Going target shooting is the equivalent of going to the driving range and hitting a bucket of balls.  I’ll have to remember that so I can provide a point of reference when I explain shooting.
• The RSO today was extremely patient with my group, and never had to raise his voice to get his point across.  I appreciate that.  Nothing can turn off a new shooter than an RSO that thinks he’s a drill sergeant.
• While my group listened to the twice-hourly safety briefing, others weren’t quite so attentive or polite.  Seriously dude, I don’t care how much you paid for your gun, or how much of a fool the guy who sold it to you was.  When the RSO puts down his megaphone to glare at you in mid-sentence, that’s a hint.  I know you’ve heard his speech a thousand times, but I had new people with me, and you were a distraction.
• I need to get to the range more often.

I’ve wanted to have a gong target for a long time, but the prices for one at gun shows and such have made it a ‘someday’ thing for me.  I love to shoot, but $100+ for a pre-made gong will buy a lot of .22.

One of my co-workers is married to the owner of one of the local machine shops, and she graciously provided me with a few pieces of scrap 1/4 inch steel plate.  A little rough framing, some drilling, and a bit of chain later, and I have a rudimentary gong.

This is a piece of steel that is about 12″ by 12″.  I drilled two holes in it about 2 inches from the top, constructed an 18″ by 36″ footed frame out of scrap 2×4’s, and hung it by some scrap chain using lag bolts that were left over from another project last year.  So basically, this gong cost me the price of a can of spray paint to make it day-glo-orange.

While gathering material for the frame, I found an old license plate I’d shot at before, and decided to make another, lighter weight target out of it.  The frame is identical to the one for the heavier steel gong, and I used some old rope to tie it to the frame instead of using lag bolts and chain.  I drilled similar holes in the frame as I did for the plate steel, so if I want to make another heavy gong out of some of the smaller pieces of plate, all I’ll have to do is get more hardware to do it.

I expect that the license plate will look like swiss cheese after a couple of range trips, but it’s a throw-away.  I think I have some more in the garage, so I can always replace it.  The steel plate should stop .22 and will probably defeat pistol rounds like .45 or .38.  I’m also going to shoot at it with 7.62x54r and .30-06, and I won’t be surprised if those don’t go through it.  Just in case, I’m going to keep this one out past 50 meters tomorrow while I try it out.

I’m going to the range tomorrow morning, so I’ll let you all know how it works.

I recently commented on the behavior of a police officer in Canton Ohio when he interacted with a citizen who happened to have a legally concealed handgun.  MikeM over at Confederate Yankee has done a bit more research on the matter and has put up an excellent article on his views of the situation.  You owe it to yourself to give it a read.

Police officers in Los Angeles went to all of the animal control shelters in LA and took away the guns that are kept for putting down large animals, including pistols, shotguns, and rifles.  Apparently it was done by sending police to the shelters, presenting a letter from someone in authority, and seizing the weapons.  Normally, when equipment is to be turned in, you’d expect that someone would make a call, ask the people who have the equipment to bring them to a central location for turn-in, and those orders are followed.  And that’s all a gun is: a tool, a piece of equipment.  It’s not a magic talisman that makes normally responsible people, including animal control officers, go berzerk and start shooting up the office.  

A woman in Chicago was sentenced to 55 years in prison for trying to shoot a police officer in 2007.  Luckily for the officer, the bullets in her gun had fallen out when she was running with it.

Which begs the question:  What brand of gun was she using that allowed the bullets to fall out during a foot chase?

I want to know so that I never buy that brand.  Even if she just bumped the magazine or cylinder release while running and they fell out afterwards, I want to know.

Although I could see the advertisement now:  “Brand X handguns.  Easiest to unload in a hurry”.

Two American citizens were arrested and spent 5 days in a Canadian jail after trying to cross the border with several undeclared guns. 

The Canadian Border Service Agency said when officers searched their 2008 Winnebago after the pair said they had nothing to declare, agents found a derringer-type pistol, a revolver, three semi-automatic pistols and a shotgun.

While I fully support all of the rights of our citizens, including rights to firearms, those rights don’t extend once you leave our borders.  When you leave the jurisdiction of the United States, you have to follow the laws of the country you visit.  The same goes for any behavior, but firearms laws are probably enforced just as stringently as drug laws.

Even when you travel from one of our states to another, you have to know what the laws are.  For example, in Kentucky, you can put a loaded pistol in the glove compartment of your automobile without having a concealed carry permit and you are perfectly legal.  The same does not go for all of the neighboring states, and it certainly isn’t legal in less gun friendly states such as Illinois and California.  An excuse of “But it’s legal in my state!” isn’t going to fly.

When you’re travelling, you have to learn what is legal and what is not in all of the states you will be going through.  If your CCW license isn’t recognized in one of the states you will be crossing, then you can either play felony bingo and hope you don’t get stopped by the local police or you can stop before crossing the state line and secure your firearm in the manner that’s legal in that state.  If you’re crossing an international border, it is incumbent on you to know the laws that deal with bringing your firearms with you and to follow them.

We as gun owners will be judged as a group by the actions of the most stupid of our brethren.  We have two things to do.  First, don’t be that guy.  Don’t impede the progress we’ve been making by willfully breaking the law because you think it’s garbage.  Second, we have to educate and police ourselves.  If our lowest common denominator messes up, we should make sure they aren’t having their rights abused, but we shouldn’t defend someone just because he’s a member of our tribe.

A video from a police dash camera is making the rounds.  In a nutshell, an Ohio CCW carrier is approached by police at a traffic stop, tells the officer that seems to be in charge that he is legally carrying a gun, and the officer becomes very angry, to say the least.

Here’s the video (Language warning):

My initial thoughts:

• The situation the officers roll up on seems suspicious, but I’m not qualified to judge whether it was probable cause for the tactics they use.  It’s possible that this took place in an area known for high levels of prostitution, and the officers seem to recognize the passenger and the woman outside the car.
• I did vehicle searches at checkpoints in the Army, and removing the driver and passengers prior to starting one is pretty basic.  I’m not a police officer, but if the officers had taken the driver out, after forcefully taking charge of the situation as they did, they would have given him an opportunity to inform them sooner without interrupting them.  There is also the issue of safety.  If the driver had tried to flee or fight, the officer in the car would have been at a disadvantage.
• The only place I can fault the CCW carrier is that there was indeed a police officer in the car with him for several minutes, and he could have notified him then, even if he had to assert himself and initiate communication after being told to be quiet.  It is possible that after the forceful way that the officers took control of the situation and made sure that all communications were initiated by the police that the driver was cowed into silence.
• That being said, when the driver tried to tell the officer, the officer prevented him from finishing a sentence.  The driver was hesitant, and was obviously very nervous.  The officer raising his voice and cursing didn’t help.  Even when the driver tried to hand his CCW license over with his drivers license, the officer refused to take it.  The driver was handcuffed while holding his CCW license, so the officer knew he had something in his hand.
• The officer’s abusive use of profanity and threats of both physical harm and future harassment were unprofessional and probably actionable.   Note that most of these happen after the driver is disarmed and neutralized by being handcuffed.  At that point, even if the officer initially felt threatened, he was in no danger whatsoever.
• The driver did himself a big favor by remaining calm, being polite, and not becoming emotional or resisting.  Even when he was uncomfortable, he apologized for complaining to the officers.
• Incidents like this are the reason I believe that any interaction with the government should be recorded.  Without that tape, the driver would have no reliable third party to act as a witness for him.

When I took my CCW class here in Kentucky, how to interact with police was covered pretty extensively. Basically, we were told it was a bad idea to surprise a police officer.  What we were advised to do, and what seems to work very well, is to hand over your license along with your identification.  Not have it in your hand, not try to hand it over after the license has changed hands.  Do it in the same action. I have only had to inform an officer once, and that was when I was a witness to a traffic accident. By giving him both my driver’s license for his report and my CCW license, he knew to ask the “Are you carrying and where is it?” question without me surprising him.  The officer was pleasant and professional after making sure I knew not to touch my gun or make any movements toward it.

I am curious to hear from those of you who live in Ohio as to how you were instructed on this responsibility to inform.  Was a specific time frame discussed, or was it as nebulous as the notes in the video from Ohio Concealed Carry lead us to believe?  What methods for informing were you told about in your training?  Is there a way to inform that is more common than others?  While one would hope that this officer’s reaction to being informed, late or not, is an aberration, is a negative reaction to being informed the norm, or do the majority of officers react in a polite and professional manner?

Hopefully, the officer in this incident is reminded of his obligation, even when he is angry or going through an adrenaline dump, to be professional.  I also hope that this incident, now that it is getting so much exposure, can be used to improve police conduct with CCW holders, as well as help CCW holders know how to better meet this responsibility to inform.

Update — I asked Breda how she was told to inform an officer that she was carrying, and she looked it up.  She says that a CCW holder is supposed to keep their hands on the steering wheel and verbally inform the officer that they are a CCW holder and they have a gun.  In this case, I think the driver should have done this as the officer was coming up to the car, even if the officer was interacting with the woman on the side of the road.  Interrupting the officer might have pissed him off, but the driver would have been legally in the right from the get go, taking away any excuse to berate and threaten him.  I’m not saying the officer would have reacted differently, but the driver would have definitely been on the side of the angels in that circumstance.  David Hardy reports are that the officer has been suspended pending an investigation and the charges against the driver have been dropped.

Yesterday, I took Arizona State Senator Klein to task for breaking safety practices by showing off her carry gun and muzzling a reporter.

Today, thanks to Uncle, I’ve gotten more information:

I was asked to show the reporter my weapon so that they could take pictures of it. I ensured that the chamber was clear before displaying the weapon. That is basic gun safety and something that I do instinctively, just like virtually every gun owner.

Senator Klein’s side of the story is that she was asked to show her gun to a reporter and demonstrate some of its features, including the laser.  She cleared the weapon, showed him how the laser showed up on a wall, and he inadvertently got muzzled when he saw down.

I’d like to express my sincere apologies to Senator Klein for yesterday’s diatribe.  While I think that her decision to no longer show people her gun unless it’s at a range is wise, I should have waited to hear her side of the story before taking her to the woodshed over basic gun safety.