Les Jones

Guns > Weekly Gun Links

"What caliber should my first defensive handgun be?" It's one of the most common questions around, and Chris Byrne gives an excellent, comprehensive answer that looks at all of the considerations.

Cutter looks at gun choice as a religion. Turns out I'm Jewish.

Alphecca has the weekly check on the bias.

Countertop is putting together the Gunnies - a gun-blogging awards program. Nominations are closed, but it should be interesting. There are lots of good gunbloggers out there. I like SayUncle for his mix of gun porn and right to bear arms news. For new gunbloggers, Tamara and Xavier are both great for different reasons - Tamara for her wit and outstanding writing, and Xavier for his in-depth articles and pawnshop finds. And they're both Smith &Wesson fans, which is a major plus in my book.

Reloading - I'm Finally Tempted

Countertop is also blogging about his early attempts at reloading.

Denise at The Ten Ring recalls her early adventures in homebrewing ammo, including a cautionary tale of a squib round. (A squib is an underpowered round which, in the worst case scenario, plugs up the barrel. If you shoot the gun again there's nowhere for the next bullet or the gas behind it, and the gun can blow up).

I love revolvers, but they're more vulnerable to squib problems precisely because they're the only type of gun where a misfire or squib doesn't stop you from immediately pulling the trigger and firing again. If I was going to reload, I wouldn't start by reloading for a double action revolver.

Luckily, after Denise fired one squib the next round was also a squib rather than a full-powered round. Rather than having to replace a gun or sustain an injury she just had to replace a barrel. Otherwise her gun could have wound up like this destroyed Colt Anaconda.

The other major danger with reloading is putting a double powder charge into the case and exceeding the gun's safe operating limits. To avoid that problem most beginners stick to gunpowders so bulky that the case can't hold a double charge. You'll notice the mistake right away because powder is spilling out all over the place. Advanced reloaders who use less bulky powders weigh each round to make sure it's not overcharged. Also, the more-expensive progressive reloading presses help prevent the problem in the first place.

I mostly shoot popular calibers where handloading wouldn't help save much money. I could save a little reloading for my .30-30 Winchester and .303 British, but I figured I'd have to shoot a lot to make back the original investment on the reloading equipment. Then Denise linked to the Lee Loader. And - synchronicity, dude - tonight the Cabela's reloading catalog came in the mail. On page 20 they sell the Lee Loader for just $13.99.

That's four bucks less than I paid for the last box of .303 British I bought. To clarify: that's four bucks less than I paid for a 20 round box of .303 British. I've already got some brass saved up, so if I buy a Lee Loader, some powder, primers, and bullets, I'm in the reloading biz. Amazing. I may or not save much money, but it would be fun for a lark. If I decide to reload, should I step up to something slightly more advanced? I don't want to get too deep into this, but I noticed the Lee Anniversary Reloading Kit is only $69.99 from Cabela's.