I went five weeks without the smell of burnt gun powder… My withdrawals were severe. Strange how family can be the greatest thing in life, as well as the greatest pain the ass.
On Sunday, August 24th, I FINALLY got out in the woods. The wind was so strong, I had to wear a M-65 with the liner. Don’t ask how the 220 mile long drive went. There was no way to secure a target at 100 yards at this area of the state forest so, I couldn’t shoot the Weatherby Vanguard Outfitter .243 Win. I’ve been itching to sight in. It’s got a Swarofski Z3 3-10x 42mm on it. Next week, God willing.
So I worked on my AR15, a MP15-3 with a Vortex Diamondback 3-9x 40mm. It worked, lots of logs got shredded. That’s the nice thing about this place it’s an old clear cut and the specific spot where I set up, is where they dragged all the trees, and cut the limbs off the trunks. So there’s lots of old logs you can stand up, and shoot down. People knock the MP15 series, yet in my experience they just work. I did ditch the M4 butt stock and replaced it with a Magpul something or other after buying it. And changed out the standard charging handle for an ambidextrous one. Otherwise, just the usual, sling, did have to add a QD stud to the MLOK hand guard. And a vertical forward grip, and a weapon light, both needed short lengths of 1913 rail. I like the barrel contour, it’s not pencil, but not heavy, and not a Gov profile either. The 1/8 twist seems to shoot M855 better too, compared to 1/7 twist barrels, no surprise there. I sure got it dirty, not sure how many rounds I fired, but I gave it a work out, no issues. Win. LC M855, is the only AR15 ammo I use.
The Glock G34 Gen. 5 MOS, killed logs by the dozens. That Win. L.C. 124gr FMJ 9mm NATO does recoil more, but no failures, none. I know it’s harder on the gun, but, oh well. I can’t find any other 9mm FMJ that I can say, “no failures” about. 1,000 rounds poured into those logs, so I’m satisfied with the gun/ammo combo. The Triple K thumb break holster leaves something to be desired, but it still works.
I shouldn’t say 1,000 rounds into the logs, more like 900ish. I shot some plates, I was able to wedge a sheet of plywood in between some logs and staple paper plates to it. I can hit the plates, but groups, not good. I think the sights being black, with the front having a white dot messes me up. I’m going to need to buy some different color targets and see if that changes or not.
And because the powers that be, have declared my ammo expenses are too high, I bought a Ruger Mark 4 Standard, 6″ barrel, .22LR. I shot it only at plates, and I could group! The sights are non adjustable and black, easy to see against white plates. The sights line up instantly as well for me. Blazer 38gr LRN seemed a bit tighter- when I did my part than CCI Mini Mag 36 CPHP’s. It was tough shooting the plates because of those wind gusts. But I’m pleased with how I did, no the groups weren’t great, nor the distance far, but all things considered, given my vision issues, I did great. Thank God I can shoot pistols again.
One thing to note, the Ruger has a thumb safety, it’s ambidextrous, but while shooting, I never noticed the the right side safety, not even when I’d occasionally shoot left handed- and I could group left handed too! It came with a washer or plug or something to remove the right side safety lever but I won’t fuss with it. But the safety took some getting used to, as I grew up on single action and double action revolvers, then, after brief encounters with a Beretta 92FS, CZ75B Omega, and a Browning Buckmark, I got it right and went with Glocks. So I’m not used to thumb safeties on pistols. But after several trigger pulls which didn’t result in the telltale .22LR “crack”, I got the hang of it.
The Ruger has a perfect balance, it’s simple, fun. The sights are dead on. I was surprised but I really do like the sharp grip angle. In pictures it looks tough to shoot, but when you shoot it, it’s just fine. The trigger is… Nothing special, which I wonder if that’s due in part to the magazine disconnect safety. But, after a few magazines, I got used to the pull and where it broke and reset. The trigger’s wide, which I liked, it seemed to help me get a consistent trigger finger placement and pull straight back. The Ruger doesn’t merely “eject” magazines, it shoots them out! Which is a nice feature too.
The magazines took some getting used to. One broke, I think my fault. The top round often wants to sit a tad too far forward and must be pushed back. One magazine wouldn’t seat period. I quit forcing it, and noticed the top cartridge, but by then it was too late, the magazine had a dent near the hole where it locks into the magazine well. I quit forcing it and just checked each mag from there on, closer to see the top round was pushed back a hair, and no further issues.
I had to quit shooting the Ruger somewhere between 500 and 600 rounds. When I bought it, (new), Ruger had dumped a gallon of an oil/grease substance in the gun. I should’ve taken it apart and soaked it in CLP over night and blown it out the next day with the air compressor, especially the bolt. But I didn’t, instead wiping down what I could, swabbing the bore, etc., and paid for it. The bolt collected so much powder, the firing pin spring got clogged, and light primer strikes. So, that’s my fault. It’s going to get soaked over night in CLP, and blown out tomorrow. That really pissed me off, having to quit shooting that little Ruger. That’s a fun little pistol. It breaks apart like an AR15, has an upper and a lower and the bolt pulls right out. When I cringe that the mags are all empty, or that I have to stop shooting a gun entirely, that’s a very good sign. Not all guns are special.
And the woods were dead! I didn’t see sign of anything. I did get a chipmunk to chirp at me, as he hid somewhere in the thick raspberries… But I never saw him. That’s one reason among many I dislike gun ranges and drive all the extra miles to get away… No people. Plus, no rules either. I heard Mike Rowe give an interview once, about how he was pushing for “Safety 3rd”. The idea being, know the safety rules, but don’t forget to use your eyes and ears and nose, and not just rely on the book. I agree with Rowe’s sentiment.
Then of course since there’s no people, and no BS I’m able to, Make The World Go Away… Those of you who like classic country might recognize that song, by Eddy Arnold. And yes, others recorded it, even Elvis(yikes-rare miss from him), but only Eddy Arnold got it right.
Equip, train, pray and never disarm.
Related, https://2awhiterook.com/thoughts-and-obsevations-from-the-woods-vol-5/
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