Monday, January 17, 2011

Odds and Ends for a Dog Tired Monday

You have probably already heard this, but Aaron Zelman, the founder and driver behind JPFO, Jews for the Preservation of Firearms Ownership, passed away in December.  Go read.  From everything I've been able to determine, a truly great man.  Claire Wolfe blogged about this in December, but it was apparently the family's wish for it not to be reported then.  That's why I haven't talked about it. 

The JPFO has always been a true defender of the 2A, and one of the first organizations I thought worthy of support after the NRA.  In fact, I now consider the NRA second place as a defender to the JPFO.  Well, maybe third when you include GOA.  If you're not familiar with the JPFO, try to watch "No Guns For Negroes", which traces the racist roots of gun control.  All of their videos are good, and some are available for download here.  Of course, you don't have to be Jewish to belong to the JPFO. 

It's possible that you've noticed that I haven't talked much about the Tucson shooting.  I am cautious to the point of paranoia about not using the name of these criminals or their images.   Why?  I believe the human scum that do these things want their fame.  The famous booking portrait of this scum, for example, looks like he's reveling in the fame of being the lunatic of the moment.  I will not give him a moment of fame on this blog.   Instead, I echo this thought
Aside from the names of the fallen, the names that should be remembered are those of the citizens who acted as Americans should, to protect and help themselves and their neighbors in the event of danger. Roger Salzgeber and 74-year-old retired Army National Guard Colonel Bill Badger, who was slightly injured, tackled the shooter. Joe Zamudio (ed. the young man who was carrying concealed and ran toward the danger) helped pin him to the ground. A 61-year old woman, Patricia Maisch, grabbed the magazine the shooter had dropped while trying to reload, and then knelt on his ankles. Daniel Hernandez, Jr., rushed to the side of his new boss, Congresswoman Giffords, applying pressure to her wound, and keeping her from choking on her own blood. Let us commend and thank all of them, and resolve to act as they did if we are ever in such a situation. Let us remember their names, and black out the shooter’s.
H/T to the erudite submariner, John at Improved Clinch

Finally, it's Monday, January 17th.  Have you bought a magazine yet?  Every time you buy a full capacity magazine, you make Pia Lopez and congress critter Carolyn McCarthy cry.

8 comments:

  1. Aaron Zelman will be sorely missed. I just renewed my membership in JPFO.

    I also just ordered a dread "fatally-excessive capacity" magazine from Botach, along with some other goodies. I'll put my tin foil hat on when it gets here so that it doesn't make me hear the voices . . .

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  2. Aaron Zelman was a consistent and staunch defender of the 2nd Amendment for longer than I can remember. I didn't even know about JPFO until I started reading Dave Codrea's "War on Guns" several years ago (at the start of my journey to liberty), but I've come to appreciate all that his organization brings to the debate. Mr. Zelman will be missed.

    I did better than a magazine - I just ordered a whole reloading setup. That ought to make the capacity banners heads explode (again)! Now I can fill my high capacity magazines over and over again...

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  3. Leveraction,

    You continue to amaze and impress me. That is how I spend my cold winter days here in Montana, loading various calibers. Been doing it for over thirty years now - it's rewarding and a real money saver. If you've never done it before, I know you'll enjoy it. Take it slow, be safe, and have fun "rolling your own". I especially enjoy building ammo for my Marlin 1985 GG.

    If you are not already a member of GOA, I highly recommend them.

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  4. That should have read, 1895 GG.

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  5. You guys are great. This is fantastic stuff.

    I've been on the verge of getting started reloading for months now. I've been saving my .308 brass for several range trips, and even some .223. I was reluctant to get a single stage press for only one caliber, but I'm becoming convinced it's the way to start.

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  6. Its been a busy day here in LeverLand - today was the day that I also renewed my membership with the NRA and GOA (even before reading you comment Reg T), and with the talk about Mr. Zelman I went and joined the JPFO as well. Not sure why it took me so long to join them, I guess I just never really thought about it.

    Graybeard, I know what you mean about saving brass. Before I even thought about reloading I was policing up my brass - its something my dad taught me when I was a kid, that they drilled into us in the Army, and it just goes against my cheapskate nature to see good brass laying there on the ground. If I can't use then maybe I can find somebody who can. After weeks of painstaking (but fun) research, I've gone with a Lee Classic Turret press for my main tool and various other pieces of well reputed equipment for case prep and other tasks, and several manuals to make sure I don't blow myself up. Hopefully I'll have something to report within a couple of weeks as to how its going on this new adventure. All I have to do now is find some primers, powder, and bullets. =)

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  7. Lee makes good equipment.Most of my dies are Lee, a few Hornady. I started many years ago with an RCBS single stage press, but when I started shooting greater amounts of .45,.357 and .44, I got a Dillon 550B. Works great, loads rifle and handgun, guaranteed for life, even if you break it through your own ignorance. I do think single stage is the way to start, though.

    Use a loading block. Make certain your primers are seated fully (not sitting higher than the base of the shell.) Check and re-check that your shells only contain one charge of powder, and that none are empty. Check your bullet seating depth (overall length of cartridge) with some calipers, then roll crimp your revolver loads, but taper crimp your pistol rounds (they chamber on the case mouth, not the rim, as they don't have one.)

    One last caveat (besides thoroughly reading your reloading manual a couple of times before you start - and several books would be better :-) - understand what a "squib" load is, if you don't already.

    If you drop the hammer, and it doesn't feel right or sound right, you could have a bullet lodged in the barrel and certainly don't want to follow it with a live round. Bring a cleaning rod with you when you shoot, or a dowel small enough to fit the barrel, and knock the bullet out before you proceed. In all my years of reloading I've only had two, and one was from some "local" reloads I purchased at a gun shop. One was my own, but I managed to stop both times before I did any damage.

    You will be amazed at how good it feels to be able to make your own ammunition, plus tailor it to your needs. Enjoy.

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  8. Reg T, I'm printing that out and putting it on my bench - good advice is always welcome. Especially when I'm dealing with a controlled explosion a few inches from my face!

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