In corporate espionage, it is not unusual to find Those Sucking Up Our Air gunning for us. So we highly recommend modern firearms in modern calibers.

"Now I'm hiding in Honduras
I'm a desperate man
Send lawyers, guns and money
The shit has hit the fan" -- Warren Zevon

Safe-Handling, Selection, Purchase, and Shooting for Purposes of Recreation and Self-Defense (rough draft)

"Shooting is Learning." Relax, there's not much to it: It's easier than bicycling, from the mechanism to the exercise. Shooting uses just 2 senses, touch and sight, to monitor your grip, sights, trigger, and tension. Just start shooting -- and learning.

The economics: Shooting is cheaper than golf.

Safe-Handling (especially when shopping around):

1. at all times, treat all firearms as loaded
   • when someone hands you a firearm, double-check that it's empty -- then treat it as loaded
   • only point your gun at your target or in a safe direction
2. don't put your finger on the trigger until you're sure of your target and what's behind it
3. don't be a dick

Wear eye protection; you'll know soon enough when you're without ear protection.

Selection:

Like biking, the hardest part of shooting: So many guns, so little time; so this is a filtered rather than comprehensive listing. Recurring considerations:

• intended use: helps determine caliber/gauge, mechanism, price range
• barrel length
  • keep it short: lighter, faster handling
  • modern shotgun powders don't require a barrel over 20"
• minimize overall length as well
• .22 ammo is cheap: cheap ammo, cheap thrills
• finally, and most importantly: fit
  • the feel of a fine mechanism in your hands

Opinionated couterpoint: You're the one spending time with the guns, so spend time finding the ones just right for you

Rifles and shotguns are for hunting and self-defense against expected threats, so choose effective calibers and gauges. "Pick up a rifle and you change instantly from a subject to a citizen." Shotguns are large-caliber, limited-range rifles. Shot is effective until it loses its center of mass; slugs have poor ballistic coefficients (aerodynamics). Calibers and gauges overlap in blackpowder, African-game rifles. -- see Ballistic Comparisons

Rifles

• calibers: 30-cal family: 7.62mm x 39, 7.62 x 51 (NATO .308 Win.); .338 Federal
• bolt actions: Remington Model 700, Savage Model 10
• auto-loaders: gas-operated mechanisms: FAL, Garand, Kalashnikov
• recreation: hunting (soft-point ammo), long-distance target (match ammo)
• example: 7.62 x 39 Kalashnikov, 16" barrel, $40/500 rounds

Shotguns

• gauges: 12, 20
• pump actions: Mossberg, Remington
• auto-loaders:
  • gas-operated: FN (Browning Gold, Winchester SuperX2), Remington
  • inertial: Benelli
• recreation:
  • hunting (non-lead ammo)
  • clay targets (explosive; trap, skeet, sporting clays, ZZ birds)
• example: 20 ga., 24" barrel, $60/500 rounds (#7/8/9 shot; for self-defense, magnum #4 shot is more costly)

Handguns

• self-defense calibers: .357 Magnum, .40 S&W, .45 ACP
• revolvers: Smith & Wesson (.357 Magnum with a .38 Special look)
• auto-loaders: Kimber, Glock (one handgun, many looks)
• recreation: practical shooting
• example: .40 S&W, $20/100 rounds ($100/500)

Handguns are for unexpected threats: their convenience of carry is at the expense of effectiveness. (see Ballistic Comparisons) Thus, for self-defense, handguns typically require fancy bullets to increase their effectiveness. Because the stopping power of non-expanding .45 ACP ball ammo is well-known, smaller caliber self-defense ammo will need to have enough energy to expand the bullet to a diameter of at least 0.45".

Police veterans Evan Marshall and Edwin Sanow developed this list of the most effective handgun ammo used in documented street shootings. Although it is a popularity list to some extent, the top 3 calibers are evident:

1. .40 S&W 155 gr Federal Hydra-Shok
2. .357 Magnum 125 gr Federal Hi-Shok JHP
3. .45 ACP 230 gr Federal Hydra-Shok
4. .45 ACP 185 gr +P: Cor-Bon JHP, Remington JHP, Remington Golden Saber
5. .40 S&W 165 gr Remington Golden Saber
6. .40 S&W 155 gr: CCI Gold Dot, Federal Hi-Shok JHP, Rem. JHP, Win. Silvertip
7. 9 mm Parabellum 115 gr +P Cor-Bon JHP
8. .40 S&W 135 gr JHP: Triton, Cor-Bon
9. .357 SIG 125 gr Triton JHP
10. .44 Magnum 210 gr Winchester Silvertip

Incapacitation (stopping power) determines who wins: Choose the biggest handgun, caliber, and load/energy you can use quickly and effectively.

Speer Gold Dot bullets produce dramatic crush cavities in denim/gelatin tests. And slow-moving handgun bullets need all the help they can get from designs like the Gold Dot. For example, Black Hills .40 S&W ammo: reliably expands to over 0.60" in 180 and 165 gr. Without reliable expansion, there is the risk of over-penetration.

On the other hand, low-energy loads carry the risk of ricochet; so there is a safety trade-off between over-penetrating velocities and ricocheting masses to consider as well. (Rifle bullets don't need to be quite as fancy because their velocity is much higher and so they expand more readily -- so we just use the cheap sleazy stuff at short ranges.)

Revolvers have three advantages over auto-pistols: there's no slide to pull back, misfires are easily handled (just keep pulling the trigger), and it's easy to collect your empty casings after the gunsmoke clears. (NOTE: simpler mechanism pros, cons.)

Some handguns have the flexibility to change their ballistic fingerprints.

"Once inside, he could live until his water and ammo ran out. He'd heard a man could live on bananas and milk. He'd need a cow and a banana tree. And a ton of ammunition." -- Chris Offutt, The Good Brother

To get a Georgia Firearms License for concealed carry, start at your county's Probate Court. You must be 21 or over, have a photo I.D., have proof of your present address, and have $15, cash or check. Fill out the form, and the clerk directs you to a permits unit for fingerprinting.

The permits unit charges you two different fees: $5 cash for the actual fingerprinting (2 sets); and $24 for the criminal-history check (which must be a money order, cashiers check, or certified check made payable to the GBI -- cash or personal check not accepted).

The background check is local, state, and federal: One fingerprint set remains locally while the other goes to the GBI, whose own check includes FBI records.

Six weeks later, you receive a laminated Firearms License in the mail (good for 5 years; $15 renewal fee). Your license is valid in Florida, Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Indiana, and Michigan, as well as New Hampshire, Texas, and Idaho. (Vermont, Alaska)

Your license is not valid in public (government-supported) buildings, at public gatherings, or where alcohol is served. A handgun must be carried in a holster even when concealed, and a knife must always be carried openly & exposed to view.

For supplementary cutlery, in addition to multi-tools like the Buck Summit, we recommend the Cold Steel SRK (survival rescue knife) for digging out bullets -- and sticking in ears. The Ontario SP-8 10-inch machete is ideal for taking scalps.

Purchase

• new guns, used guns
  • gun stores, outdoors stores/departments, the Internet (via gun stores)
  • gun shows
  • other owners/collectors
• paperwork
  • dealers: required by law to complete paperwork (whether at store or gun show)
  • non-dealers:
    • "private sale": paperwork optional (whether at gun show or elsewhere)
    • extent of paperwork up to non-dealer and buyer (ask for a Bill of Sale)

Last modified: 3/27/2007