Posts Tagged ‘firearms’

More on hunting with muzzleloaders

Posted: August 17, 2014 by gamegetterII in firearms, hunting, shooting, survival
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Those of us with older .50 caliber muzzleloaders,or the inexpensive .50 caliber inlines that can not handle the 150grain magnum charges can still use some of the technological advances in muzzleloading bullets.

The combo of a .44 caliber hollow point bullet-such as the Hornady XTP,and green plastic sabot for use in .50 caliber muzzleloaders is one good combo to use ,another is the line of PA conical bullets from Hornady.

I am not a Hornady spokeperson,nor do I benefit in any way from mentioning their products.

I use the 240 grain .44 caliber XTP jacketed hollow point bullet with green sabot over a 95 grain charge of Triple 7 as my main hunting load in most of the places I hunt in Ohio.

In a couple of places,I use the 240 grain PA conical,as it is heavier than a round ball,and does not require use of a lubed cloth patch. Hornady claims no patch is needed,but I have found the bullets perform much better with a felt patch between powder charge and bullet. Some states require you to use lead round ball or conical bullets during their muzzleloader seasons.

Both will give you great accuracy out to 100 yards,the .44 caliber XTP bullet with green sabot gives good accuracy out to 150 yards in both of my muzzleloaders.

For feral hogs,I use the 385 or 425 grain PA conicals,or the 300 grain XTP’s,when elk hunting with muzzleloader,I cough up the extra $$$, and buy a box of 300 grain Swift A-Frames.

Since I have a newer-(last year)- inline,I’ll use a .45 caliber 240,or 250 grain XTP bullet,with the black sabot as my first round for hunting,as they get a little better velocity,and have more energy. The problem with them is they quickly foul the barrel,making reloads difficult.

I also bought a box of 230 grain lead round nosed bullets to use for target shooting,along with the black sabots for use in .50 caliber muzzleloaders.

They are accurate,and hit to almost the exact same point of impact as the .44 caliber 240 grain XTP’s with green sabot.

The problem is that at ranges much over 50 yards,they start hitting way to the left-as in 3-4″ at 75 yards,and 10-12″ at 100 yards.

I believe that’s due to the powder charge not being 150 grains,causing the bullet to de-stabilize at ranges greater than 50 yards.

Since they are accurate to 50 yards,I’ll use up the remainder of the 200 round box I bought for target practice at 50 yards or less.

I’ll continue to use the Hornady XTP as my hunting bullet,they do not shoot the best out of all muzzleloaders,but they shoot the best out of mine.

Try as many different bullet/sabot combos as it takes until you find one that gets you 3″ or better groups at 100 yards,if you are using an inline with scope-sight it in at 100 yards-that way you will hit a couple inches high at 50 yards,and a few inches low at 150 yards-still in the vital organs of deer sized game.

If you are using iron sights and no scope,sight in at 50 yards because you aren’t going to be taking many shots beyond 50-100 yards,so a 50 yard zero is fine.

If your muzzleloader is like my older CVA,it’s not accurate until a couple of shots have been fired through it. I take mine out and fire 3 shots,run a couple of dry patches down the barrel a day or two prior to hunting season,and leave it like that until the end of the week-or 2 weeks depending on your state’s season-or until I get a deer before thoroughly cleaning it.

Be sure you target shoot at a bunch of unknown distances,and shoot from a variety of angles and firing positions in the months prior to hunting season-that way,you have a much,much better chance of making a kill shot on a deer.

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Tracking wounded deer

Posted: August 16, 2014 by gamegetterII in hunting, Uncategorized
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Sometimes you make a less than perfect shot on a deer,and you hit it at the edges of the vitals,it happens to everyone at some point if you hunt long enough.

If you know you made a bad shot,the first thing you have to do is stay put-do not attempt to track the deer for at least 45 minutes to an hour.

I carry a roll of surveyors tape in my hunting pack,you need to carry something that can be used to mark the blood trail. I use the surveyors tape because it’s brightly colored,and easy to tie around branches,shrubs,logs,etc.

After you have stayed put for at least 45 minutes,go to where the deer was standing when your arrow hit it-or your shotgun slug,muzzleloader bullet,or rifle bullet. Look for blood until you find it,or look for your arrow. Mark the first spot where you find blood.

Walk-very slowly- in the direction the deer ran,look for blood drops on the ground,on branches or grasses at the deer’s height until you find the next blood drops.

Look at the blood,the color of the blood can tell you a lot-bright red blood means you hit an artery-a good sign,dark blood usually means a liver shot,blood with bits of partially digested food-acorns,corn,grasses,etc. means a gut shot.

If you have found dark blood,or bits of food in the blood-stop tracking the deer,let it lie down and bleed out,wait a couple hours before following the trail any farther.

*The only exception to this would be if outside temps are very warm,and will not go down below 40 degrees that night. In that case-keep slowly following the trail,paying attention to your surroundings,and keep looking for places that provide thick cover for the deer-that’s where it most likely is.

Try to stalk as close as you can to the cover without spooking the deer,you may be able to get a second shot at it when it gets up from where it has bedded down,as it is not going to be able to get up and run very fast,due to it’s wound. If you don’t get a second shot-keep tracking it,as sometimes keeping the deer moving will help it bleed out faster.*

Keep slowly walking in the direction the deer ran,marking each place you find blood with the surveyors tape. If you lose the trail,and don’t find the next blood drops-go back to the last place you found blood,and slowly walk in a circle,with the trail being the center of the circle,start with a small circle-say 5 yards on each side of trail,if you don’t find blood,walk a slightly bigger circle,keep repeating this until you find blood.

Mark the spot you just found blood,look back at the tape you marked the last blood at-and see if the deer is going the same direction,or if it has changed direction. Keep slowly walking in whatever direction the deer is moving until you find the next blood drops.

99% of the time,you are going to find the deer.

Keep tracking the deer in this manner until you have found it-don’t quit looking-you owe it to the deer to do your best to find it.

We all make a bad shot once in a while-it happens to the best of us.

The blood trail from a good shot is easy to follow,as there is a lot of blood on the ground,it’s very easy to see,and the deer seldom goes more than 50-100 yards or so.

I’ve never had a deer go more than 75 yards when hit with an arrow or crossbow bolt-I once had a heart and lung shot whitetail run over 100 yards up a mountainside in W.Va.

The deer was hit with 3 170 grain bullets from a 30-30 using Remington Core-Lokt ammo.

When we field dressed him,the first shot had hit the heart,and got both lungs-one of the three follow up shots had gone through both lungs,one missed,and one hit him in the “knee”. It’s harder than you think to hit a running deer with a rifle.

That was when I was young,no follow-up shot was needed,I knew my first shot was good-I just didn’t know at the time that a deer runs like hell after being shot-no matter how good the shot is-unless you took a head shot,or broke it’s spine-it’s gonna run very fast.

See my previous post for some good target practice methods to hit moving targets-like a running deer. * I do not take shots at a running deer unless it’s one I’ve already hit,or it’s an Ohio deer drive where a line of guys walks across a cornfield to push the deer out towards the guys standing at the spots deer are most likely to come out of the field at.*

Here’s the link to the target practice…

Improving your shooting skills

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Hunting with a muzzleloader

Posted: August 13, 2014 by gamegetterII in firearms, hunting, preparedness, shooting, survival, Uncategorized
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In this post,I’m going to focus on sidelocks,and modern inlines,the poor man’s inlines,not the high dollar Thompson Centers etc.

In many states,as long as it’s a muzzleloader,it’s legal to hunt deer with in muzzleloader or “primitive weapons” seasons.

Some states,such as Pa,restrict hunters to using only flintlocks during muzzleloader/primitive weapons season.

I do not currently own a flintlock,and have only limited experience with them,so I will not be writing about them.

I currently use two muzzleloaders for hunting,and old-(mid 80’s or so)- CVA Woodsman,and a new-(last year)- Traditions Buckstalker.

Neither of these perform well with any of the high velocity bullet/sabot loads.

You can’t load 150 grain charges in them,so the bullets do not stabilize properly in flight,and end up hitting far to the left. 10″ at 100 yards for my Buckstalker,using the black sabots,and the 240 grain round nose lead bullets that I bought a box of 200 of to use for target practice. They are accurate out to 50 yards or so,and have almost the same point of impact as my hunting load at ranges up to the 50 yards,at which point they start hitting to the left-3-4″ at 75 yds,10″ or so at 100 yds.

I can use either pellets or powder in my Traditions Buckstalker,but only powder in my CVA Woodsman-so I use powder in both.

I prefer Triple7 over Pyrodex,as you get higher velocity with the same amount of powder.

You use FFG equivalent powder in muzzleloading rifles,you can also use FFFG as long as you are using .50 caliber and under.

There is a big difference in velocity with the FFFG,I use it for my hunting load,95 grains of Triple7,with a 240 grain  .44 caliber Hornady XTP bullet,with the Hornady green sabots.

I buy the bullets in boxes of 100 from Midway USA,or any of the plethora of online sellers of bullets.

I use the .44 caliber bullets with the green sabots because I can use them in my old CVA,and my new traditions.

Another reason I use powder, not pellets is because I can use a lighter powder charge for target shooting-I don’t have to use a 100 grain charge-(2  50 gr  pellets),or an 80 grain charge-( one 50 gr and one 30 gr pellet).

I use 70 grains to target shoot,except for the month before hunting season,then I use the 95 grain charge,and the XTP bullets.

I target shoot with the 230 gr round-nosed lead bullets,because the have almost the same point of impact as the 240gr XTP’s, and a box of 200 and the sabots to go with them only cost about 50 bucks including postage.

Beats the hell out of paying $15.00 or so for a package of 20 bullets with sabots.

100 240 gr .44 caliber Hornady XTP’s plus sabots only costs about 50 bucks including postage-again-beats the hell out of $15.00 for 20 bullets+sabots.

With the newer inlines that use the 209 shotshell primer,you get more accuracy,and can make longer shots. Using my Buckstalker,I can put 3 shots into a 3″ group at 100 yds,and a 4-5″ group at 150 yards,more than accurate enough for a kill shot on a deer,elk,or a feral hog at those ranges.

I’ve tried a lot of different bullet and sabot combos,patched round balls,and conical bullets that are sorta like an improved minie ball. The best load I’ve found is the Hornady XTP and XTP magnum. The load I found to be the best for what I hunt is the .44 caliber 240 gr jacketed hollow point XTP with the Hornady green sabots.

Using 100 grains of Triple 7 FFG I get 1820 fps,using FFFG Triple 7, I get 1970fps.

The 95 grain charge gives me almost the same velocity,and seems to be the best charge to use,I get the same accuracy,about the same velocity, a little bit less of a smoke cloud after the shot.

Any charge between 80 and 120 grains works in the Buckstalker,in the old CVA,I never use more than 100 grains.

You have to try different powder charges,and different bullet/sabot combos to see what works best for you.

Most older muzzleloaders are more accurate after a few shots have been fired.

That doesn’t seem to be the case with the newer inlines,as my Buckstalker has the same point of impact for 3-4 shots,then begins to lose accuracy until I run a patch or two down the barrel.

I choose which muzzeloader to use based on where I’ll be hunting,if it’s going to be mainly close range shots-under 50 yds,I use the CVA sidelock,if most shots are going to be beyond 50 yds,I use the Traditions.

Another bullet to try is the newer conicals,you will need a felt patch between the bullet and the powder charge for optimum accuracy and velocity.

Most of the conicals bullets are heavier than the 200-300 gr range of the most popular bullet/sabot combos.

The conicals have the “knockdown power” of the jacketed hollow points,but don’t have the velocity. They will take all North American big game animals.

After you have tried a variety of bullets,and bullet/sabot combos,pick which type works best for you,then pick the exact bullet,or bullet sabot combo that works best for you,in your muzzleloader.

I picked my load after a few years of shooting a whole lot of different bullets,it’s what works best for me,it may work for you-it may not.

Some other bullets work good,but I have not found anything that beats the performance of the Hornady XTP in my muzzleloaders-if you have a top of the line,newer inline,there are 150 grain powder charges/bullet combos that will work better for you.

If you are like me,and can not afford to buy the top of the line muzzleloaders-you can’t go wrong using the Hornady .44 caliber 240 grain JHP XTP bullet with the green Hornady sabot.

Some other great bullets to use are- Sierra Sports Master 240gr JHP,Nosler Sporting Handgun .44 caliber 240 gr JHP-(handgun bullets work just fine in muzzleloading rifles)-Swift A-Frame Bullets 44 Caliber 240 Grain bonded hollow point, Speer deep curl,Barnes XPB, Winchester Silvertips,

Then there’s these…Hunters Supply hard cast Bullets,Goex Black Dawge Bullets,Montana Precision Swaging Cast Bullets 44 Caliber (440 Diameter) 380 Grain Lead Straight Sided Paper Patch.

As you can see-there’s a lot of choices out there,including patched round balls-which were killing deer,elk,bison,feral hogs,bears,cougars,wolves,and any other game animal long before any of us were born.

When hunting,you want to be able to reload as fast as possible. There are “speedloaders” available from many companies,they are just an plastic tube with removeable caps on the ends,the diameter matches the caliber you are using,and you can put your pellets or powder,along with your bullet and sabot,or bullet and paper patch,or felt patch in the tube.

Since I use powder,not pellets,I put the measured powder charge and bullet already in the sabot in the tube. Then,all I have to do to reload is dump the powder down the barrel,start the bullet in the barrel with the plastic bullet starter I carry on a string around my neck,then use the ramrod that’s attached to the muzzleloader to seat the bullet on top of the powder charge. If I’m using my CVA sidelock,I put a percussion cap on,if I’m using the inline,I break it open-(like a single or double barreled shotgun)-and place a 209 shotshell primer in the breech plug,and I’m ready to shoot again. There are plastic “dogbones” for sale to hole 209 primers-get one-beats the hell out of trying to pick a primer out of the box with half frozen fingers !

I know the above description sounds like a lot to go through to reload-but it takes 30 seconds or less with practice.

Hunting big and medium sized game with a muzzleloader is not much different than hunting with a rifle or a shotgun using slugs. You still have to do your scouting,find the food and water sources,along with the bedding areas,and trails to and from theses areas. The newer inlines are more like rifle hunting,it’s just a lot more important to make your first shot count,because it takes so much longer to reload.

You do have more range than a shotgun with slugs for the most part-unless you have a rifled barrel for you shotgun,then it’s about the same range.

With the muzzleloader using loose powder,you have as much control over the load you use as you do if you are reloading your rifle ammo.

I use my inline during Ohio’s shotgun season,because I can make a longer shot,since I don’t have a rifled barrel.

Plus I get strange looks when using my Mossberg 590 for deer hunting-must be the heat shield…

You can get a new inline like the traditions Buckstalker I have for under $200.00,add another $50-75.00 for all the accessories you will need,and for under $300.00 you have a rifle that’s fun to shoot,is accurate,and can take any big game animal in the USA-even a Kodiak brown bear.

You can also find used muzzleloaders for under $150.00 at most gun shops-just be sure to inspect the barrel to make sure it’s not corroded due to poor cleaning practices.

Another benefit is you get more time to hunt with a gun,as most states have a season for muzzleloaders only.

If you don’t have a muzzleloader-try shooting one-it’s fun,less expensive than shooting most rifles,and it’s a great back-up weapon to have in case you run out of ammo during a SHTF situation…

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Deer Hunting for Beginners

Posted: July 25, 2014 by gamegetterII in Archery, firearms, hunting, preparedness, survival
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Those of you new to hunting are going to find out that it’s not like the tee vee shows.

You have to put a lot of effort into it. You are not just going to walk out into the woods,set up a treestand,and shoot a deer-it just don’t work that way.

You ain’t gonna be posting pics of the Pope and Young or Boone and Crockett 37 point buck you killed on farcebook or twitter,or sending pics to all your best buds on your smartphone-that is simply not reality.

You also are simply not gonna be a good enough shot to take a deer unless you target practice-a lot.

You also ain’t gonna get a deer if you are a couch potato-hunting is work-you have to spend time in the woods,you have to scout locations and deer movements way before the hunting season begins.

What you need to do,if you are a slug-(couch potato)-is get off your fat ass and start hiking in the woods you plan to hunt-you will need to work your way up to being able to do so carrying all of the gear you are going to carry when hunting.

This will take you about 6 weeks-unless you have been a slug for many years-then it may take 8,10,or 12 weeks for you to get in shape!

While you are wandering around the woods you will be hunting in-pay attention to the animal trails-it’s not hard to tell which are deer trails-if you don’t know what a deer track looks like-Google it-if you are reading this,it’s kinda obvious that you have internet access -use it.

What you need to figure out while you are wandering around the woods-the slugs will be sucking wind most of the time-so they actually have more time to look at the ground- is where the deer are bedding down,where their source of water is-(deer have to drink water at least twice a day)-where their food source is-and which trails they travel to and from each area.

Once you have that figured out,you need to figure out where to place your treestand or blind.

One of the most important things you have to consider is wind direction.

You always want to be downwind of the direction the deer are traveling.

If you are going to hunt in the mornings-what you have to do is get into the woods,and to your stand or blind before it gets light. You have to do so very quietly. One thing that helps is trail tacks,they reflect the light from your flashlight-which you should use as little as possible,and with a green filter lens-so the light emitted is green. Deer supposedly can not see the green light.

I don’t really trust that 100%-so I try not to use a flashlight at all. Walk the trail you will use to get to your stand as much as possible-at times when the deer are not likely to be in the area-

If you are hunting a location that is along the trail deer use when they start moving in the am-hike to your stand in the early afternoon,after the deer have left their bedding area.

If you are hunting an evening feeding area-hike to your stand in the morning.

Many states allow the use of bait and attractants-many do not-be sure you know the regulations in your state.

A good thing to do in states where it’s legal-is to place mineral blocks within shooting range of your stand/blind-starting in early spring,keep putting new blocks out as the old ones are used up-the minerals help antler growth. The deer also get in the habit of visiting the block at a certain time of day. Placing a block near your morning stand/blind and another near your evening stand/blind increases your chances of getting a deer by a lot.

If your state does not allow the use of bait or attractants-it’s no big deal-find the bedding areas,the water sources,and the food sources. Put your stand/blind downwind of the trail the deer use to go to and from one of these areas.

If you are going to use bait-where legal-place it near where your mineral blocks are located-this gives the deer two reasons to visit the location,and to stick around for a while.

I use some shell corn-(just corn that’s been taken off the cob)-and some cob corn.

The shell corn gives them some easy to eat food,the cob corn makes them work a little to eat the food.

That keeps them in place longer,and increases you chances of getting a shot.

Deer hunting is not that complicated,it just takes some effort-you have to scout out the place you’re gonna hunt,you have to be in shape-you can’t be trying to sneak into your stand/blind at 4:30-5am and be sucking wind after you walked 100 yards-get in shape!

You have to target practice-if you are bowhunting-you need to shoot at least 50-60 arrows a day-every day-at different ranges and angles.

If you are hunting with a shotgun using slugs-the best practice would be shooting clays,then shoot a few boxes of slugs a week or two before the season starts-just to get sighted in.

If you are gonna hunt with a rifle-shoot at least 3 times a week. I know ammo is expensive-you just have to shoot 3 groups of 3,3 times a week.that’s around a box and a half of ammo.

Give up the soft drinks-the coffee at the quickie mart,the fast food lunch-and you’ll be able to afford to shoot.

You have to exercise,you have to hike the woods you will be hunting with all the gear you will take hunting,you have to pay attention to deer movements,and food sources-because the food sources change depending on what is available for food.

When the deer stop eating one food,and go to another source-like when acorns drop-plan to move your stand/blind accordingly.

That’s the way you get a deer when you go deer hunting.

I have also posted some articles on prohillbilly.com

 

Leave any questions,comments,criticisms, or death threats in the comments section below.

You can also follow me on Facebook at  Starvin Larry

On Twitter @StarvinLarry

 

 

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Why you need to clean your guns correctly.

Posted: July 19, 2014 by gamegetterII in firearms, hunting, survival
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Improper gun cleaning,and lack of proper maintenance is something many people are guilty of.

Every time you fire your weapon,you have to clean it,not when you get time,not when you get around to it,not when you feel like it,not when you have 3 or 4 guns to clean-you have to clean every gun every time you fire it-no exceptions.

Well,being in combat could be an exception-for a day or so.

Guns that are not properly cleaned lose accuracy,they tend to malfunction more,they tend to jam,they tend to have problems extracting rounds,with bolt actions the bolt tends to get hard to cycle,and cartridge casing get difficult to eject,and cartridges can become hard to chamber.

Triggers and some types of safeties can malfunction due to excessive dirt,dust and grime.

 

*please note-any questions,criticisms,complaints,comments,death threats etc can be posted in comments section at bottom of post*

When you get ready to clean your weapon (s),first be certain it’s/they’re unloaded- use a gun cleaning mat-or a piece of cardboard,or some old newspapers-whatever works for you,disassemble the gun as much as is practical,remove the bolt,the magazine,the forearm on a single or double barreled shotgun, etc. and lay the parts out on the mat.

Start by running a brass bore brush of the proper caliber/gauge down the barrel-always go from breech to muzzle,unless that’s not possible with your weapon.

Next,run a patch that’s been soaked in bore cleaner/powder solvent-Hoppes #9 or similar down the barrel,same way-from breech to muzzle. Let the barrel soak for a few minutes,then use the brass bore brush again,run the brush down the barrel several times.

Next run a clean patch down the barrel,then another,after that,run another patch soaked in solvent down the barrel. Let that soak for a few minutes,then run dry,clean patches down the barrel,using a clean patch each time,until a patch comes out clean.

Last step for the barrel is to run a lightly oiled patch down the barrel.

For the bolt-if you’re cleaning a bolt-action,use some solvent on a brass brush,not a bore brush,a brush with a handle on it-looks sorta like a toothbrush-scrub the bolt face,then wipe the solvent off with a clean cloth. Using a plastic pick,clean out all the dust,dirt,grime from around the extractor,and the rest of the bolts moving parts,and around the firing pin.Then what I do is use some lighter fluid-Zippo type-not charcoal lighter-to clean all the old oil etc. from the entire bolt,especially where the firing pin is located,fill it with lighter fluid,then use a wood dowel to push down on the pin-repeat several times-all the gunk-for lack of a better term- will be flushed out this way.

The lightly oil all the moving parts,wipe the bolt off with an lightly oiled cloth,and that’s it for the bolt.

Next,the trigger assembly needs to be cleaned every few times you clean your weapon-unless you are using it in a very dirty/dusty/sandy area-then it should be cleaned every time.

I use either lighter fluid-or brake parts cleaner,both are great at cutting through old oil,and the gunk it makes as it collects all the dirt and dust that gets into the assembly.

Either squirt the lighter fluid,or spray the brake parts cleaner into the assembly,make sure you get the safety too.

Move the safety through all it’s positions several times,pull the trigger back and let it move forward a few times,then repeat a few times with whichever solvent you are using( brake parts cleaner or lighter fluid-not powder solvent-powder solvent is not good for trigger assemblies,it creates a thick film that attracts dirt).

Lightly oil the assembly,wipe it off with a clean cloth-(you can use the same clean cloth for the whole process)-re-install the bolt,and wipe down all metal parts of your weapon with a lightly oiled cloth-unless your weapon is coated with Cerakote,etc.

 

Another thing I’ve noticed a lot of guys don’t do is use copper solvents.

If you are shooting FMJ military surplus ammo-it’s a must,even if you shoot mostly hunting ammo-it’s still a must,it just takes a couple hundred more rounds to foul your barrel.

What happens is every time you fire a round,a small amount of copper from the bullet gets deposited on /in your barrel’s lands and grooves the copper builds up over time,and it effects accuracy-more copper = less accurate.

The same thing happens with lead,and with the polymer tips used on many of today’s bullets.

There are multiple products out there that all claim to solve copper fouling.several stand out, a few of them are J-B non imbedding bore cleaning compound, or Birchwood-Casey’s  bore scrubber used in combination with a penetrating oil called Kroil-I use the combination of one or the other of the bore cleaners+ the Kroil on really badly fouled barrels, for regular use,I use Hoppes Benchrest #9.

 

These products all require some scrubbing with a bore brush,and leaving them in the barrel to soak overnight-be sure to keep your barrels pointing downward,you do not want these products running into your trigger mechanism,or soaking into your stock.

 

http://ads.midwayusa.com/product/716170/birchwood-casey-bore-scrubber-2-in-1-bore-cleaning-solvent-5-oz-liquid?cm_vc=ProductFinding

http://www.brownells.com/gun-cleaning-chemicals/solvents-degreasers/bore-cleaning-paste/j-b-reg-non-embedding-bore-cleaning-compound-prod1160.aspx

http://www.midwayusa.com/product/1322137203/kano-kroil-penetrating-oil-and-bore-cleaning-solvent

 

 

Another bad habit I see is the use of far too much gun oil-the key is to use a very light coat,as oil attracts dirt and dust.

Another problem too much gun oil creates is that in cold temps,it gets thicker,and can gum up parts that are supposed to move freely,and prevent them from moving.

Parts such as your firing pin-as I found out on a late season extremely cold Ohio deer hunt when my first shot was low-saw the snow fly slightly beneath and behind the deers belly-as it had gone under the deer-when I racked the pump on the shotgun,aimed and pulled the trigger for a second shot-all I got was a click-same with the third and final shell-click.

The excess oil in the trigger assembly prevented the firing pin from traveling far enough forward to hit the primer hard enough to detonate it.

After spraying liberally with brake parts cleaner,moving all the moving parts by hand,and pulling the trigger several times after cycling the pump with a spent shotgun shell in which I had placed a pencil eraser in place of the old primer to prevent damage to the firing pin due to having no shell in the chamber.

The shotgun worked fine after that-now I clean the trigger assembly thoroughly before deer season.

 

Remember that a clean firearm functions as intended,has fewer malfunctions,and is far more accurate than a dirty firearm.

There is sort of an exception to the rule-some rifles just are not accurate until a round has been fired through them,I had an old Winchester model 70 in.270 that was like that-used to keep a box of cheap ammo,and fire a round into the dirt in front of the targets at the range before I started shooting at my targets,did the same the day before deer season started-and left the rifle like that-with the one round having been fired through it- left it like that until the end of hunting season,or I got my deer- whichever came first.

Clean your guns-every time you shoot-no exceptions-other than the examples I gave-every time-no excuses.

A dirty gun can jam or otherwise malfunction at the worst possible moment-see above scenario that took place when deer hunting.

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Improving your shooting skills

Posted: July 16, 2014 by gamegetterII in Uncategorized
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Some of the things I use to improve my accuracy with shotgun,rifle and handgun-

After you have become familiar with your weapons,learned how to safely operate them,fully understand the rules of safe firearms handling,and to hit targets with a reasonable degree of accuracy,here are a few ways to improve your accuracy,increasing your chances of surviving in any SHTF scenario.

One of the best ways to practice hitting a moving target with a shotgun using slugs,or a rifle is to take and old tire,duct tape a target to it-so target covers the hole in center of tire-then depending on your surroundings-you can have a friend roll it down an incline,the tire will bounce as it rolls,because whatever hill you roll it down is not going to be smooth. If you can’t safely do that- you can set up a sort of tire swing and push the tire so it swings back and forth. Just be sure that whatever is behind the target is going to stop your bullets. (preferably a dirt berm).  Shooting at a moving target is great practice for deer hunting,small game hunting,even combat shooting.

Another good way to improve your accuracy is to have a friend toss plastic 16-20 oz water or soda bottles that you have filled about 1/4-1/2 of the way with water in the air for you-(for shotguns only)-or toss them so they roll and bounce along the ground for shotgun,rifle,and handgun practice. You are not going to hit many of them with a handgun or rifle-as it is very,very difficult to hit a moving target that’s that small with a rifle or handgun. It can be done,it just takes skill,and a lot of practice.

Another thing you can do is hang several of the same plastic bottles,and 2 liter plastic bottles,about 1/4-1/2 full of water from a tree branch-or a frame that you have made-give them a good push and they will swing back and forth for a couple minutes-long enough for you-or a friend to start them moving,then get back behind the line you shoot from.

Shooting clay targets that have been thrown with a hand clay thrower,rather than shooting at a range,where the clays fly the same way every time-or at least the same way from each stand,is a great way to hone your shooting skill-shotgun only, handgun if you have enough property that there is no danger to any other person,or others property.

One more thing I use to hone my shooting skills is to take a bunch of clay targets,drill a small hole in each one,then hang them from a tree branch,or a frame that I’ve made with fishing line-you can buy 1,000 yard spools of monofilament line for a few bucks at Wally World. This is great for handgun practice,rifle practice too,if you have the room,and a safe backstop.

The times when you don’t have a friend to toss targets for you,do what I used to do when I was a teenager and wanted to keep my shooting skills sharp-take empty beer or soda cans,toss them up in the air with one hand,while holding your shotgun in the other,then shoot the can as it’s on it’s way back down. This is a great way to practice getting on target quickly. You may miss more than you hit at first-do not give up-because once you start hitting most of the cans you toss up,you will miss much,much less when hunting rabbits or pheasants or grouse,or ducks and geese. Being able to hit game helps out a lot when you are counting on eating that game for dinner,and feeding your family with game you have harvested while hunting.

My suggestion is that after you have become able to hit your target regularly,you go take as many of the tactical/combat shooting courses offered by various guys/groups as you can afford. There are a lot of guys/groups conducting classes for tactical or combat shooting for rifles,shotguns and handguns-take advantage of the courses-they will increase your chances of surviving should any of the fucked up shit that is likely to happen here takes place.

There is a reason for taking these classes,these guys know their shit,unless you are a recently returned from combat vet-the rest of us don’t know shit about combat shooting,or how to move,shoot,and communicate as a team.

My recommendations for training…

http://masondixontactical.wordpress.com/

http://mountainguerrilla.wordpress.com/

http://www.maxvelocitytactical.com/blog/

Knowledge/info about basic rifle marksmanship…

http://westernrifleshooters.blogspot.com/2007/11/basic-rifle-marksmanship-series-part-i.html

http://westernrifleshooters.blogspot.com/2008/02/basic-rifle-marksmanship-series-part.html

http://westernrifleshooters.blogspot.com/2008/06/basic-rifle-marksmanship-series-part.html

http://westernrifleshooters.blogspot.com/2009/01/basic-rifle-marksmanship-series-part.html

http://westernrifleshooters.blogspot.com/2009/01/basic-rifle-marksmanship-series-part-iv.html

Please note-WRSA has a ton of very good info on their site-home page…

http://westernrifleshooters.wordpress.com/

 

 

You do have a team by now-right?

If you don’t have a team,work on it,there ARE guys in your area that want to be able to survive any of the fucked up shit that is very likely to happen here-it takes time,you will find other guys.

Even if you don’t have a team,you are doing PT every day,right?

Reasons why you need to be doing PT,and putting together a team/group/tribe…

Hopefully more of you are getting wise to all the bullshit our government is doing-as in taking away our rights a little at a time,the possibilities of our economy quickly going in the toilet again,only worse than last time,and for much longer,the ever increasing militarization of our police forces-which are become more and more like jack-booted thugs,and less and less than the police that used to “protect and serve” We,as in anyone not a cop-are the enemy,an Indiana sheriff,while discussing his dept’s new MRAP, said the USA is a war zone,and citizens are the enemy.

The government’s “regulatory agencies” such as the EPA,BLM,USFS,USFWS,BATFE,DEA,etc. are all heavily armed now,and all have their own “special” units-as in their own versions of SWAT teams.Aside from that,they are overstepping their authority,enacting rules/regs based on what the enviro-nazis and animal “rights” whackos tell them to do. We no longer have any input,the enviro-nazis and animal”rights” whackos are trying to get ALL lead ammo banned,the HSUS,PETA,and the rest of the animal “rights” whackos are trying to get all hunting and trapping banned on all public lands.

Read.

Learn.

Train.

Do more PT.

 

Getting started with firearms.

Posted: July 13, 2014 by gamegetterII in Uncategorized
Tags: , , ,
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 Most of you know by now that the people in charge of the government and financial institutions are not doing a real good job of creating any kind of recovery from the market meltdown, and are well on their way to creating  the next, new and improved version of economic collapse.
This one is most likely gonna be a lot worse,and last a lot longer!
I don’t remember where I copied the pic below from-it does have the guys site on it,so he still gets credit for the pic.
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I’m going to go over the firearms stuff from the beginning-as in so those new to firearms shooting,and hunting can learn a few things-those who are already at an advanced stage in training don’t really need any of this info,but those who are new need to learn.
You will need to have more than 1 firearm,at the minimum,you need a rifle,shotgun,and handgun.
The rifle and shotgun are far more important.
You are better off having more than 1 rifle,and the reason is you want a rifle that can serve as your “battle rifle” for defending your home and property.
You also will need a rifle to hunt with,if you have a place to go outside of the city.
If you talk to 25 guys about guns,you’re gonna get 25 different opinions on what guns to have.
This is my opinion,others have different opinions,no one is “right” and no one is “wrong”-different guns/combinations of guns work for different people,in different locations.
What I feel you should have is:
1) A good semi-auto rifle in either 5.56/.223 , 7.62×51/.308, or 7.62×39
2) A bolt-action rifle with a good scope in 7.62×51/.308,.300 Win Mag,30-06,.243,.270,6.5-284,6.5 Creedmore…
(the 7.62×51/.308, 30-06,and .300 Win mag are the best choices,simply due to availability of ammo,with the 7.62×51/.308 being the most common.)
3) A .22 either a good bolt-action,or a semi-auto like the Ruger 10-22.
Personally,I would go with the 10-22 as there are lots of accessories,they are very common,and spare parts are available.
Shotguns-
I feel everyone needs to have at least 2 shotguns, a good pump or semi-auto,and a single shot or double barrel for a back-up,because a pump or semi-auto has more moving parts-that means more shit can break,and replacement parts may not be available at all in an extended SHTF situation-unless you have a house somewhere waaay out in the boonies with a complete machine shop,and your own source of power.
Gauge is up to you,most people believe the 12 gauge is far more powerful that the 20 gauge.
Fact is,the 12 just isn’t all that much more powerful, Field&Stream magazine did an article on shotguns recently which covered this issue-bottom line is a 20 gauge is powerful enough,and has a hell of a lot less recoil.
Handguns-
This one has even more differing opinions that there are concerning rifles…
get something that fits your hands,is not too heavy,or too big,or too small.
Semi-auto is preferred,and not some cheap off brand piece of shit made somewhere where the tolerances they machine parts to are very,very sloppy.
As with all of your firearms-you need to have a handgun that works-every time you pull the trigger.
Your handgun also has to be easy to aim,hit to the same point of impact every time-providing you are holding it exactly the same,line up the sights exactly the same,and pull the trigger exactly the same way.
If you are defending yourself in battle in some SHTF scenario-and you are down to using your handgun-you are already in deep shit-so you had better be able to count on the handgun.
Your rifles:
The semi-auto that you choose is up to you-there’s lots of options.
My first choice would be to get an A-R platform rifle for several reasons,the magazines fit all A-R’s,so you can borrow a mag if need be, a lot of parts are interchangeable,once you learn to run the gun,you can pick up an A-R and be able to use it,and shoot accurately-plus the ammo is reasonable priced,does not weigh as much as 7.62×51/.308,0r .30-06, so you can carry a lot more.
You can pick up a brand new Bushmaster for $700.00-$800.00
You can also get an A-R in other calibers than 5.56/.223.
 The A-K-47 is pretty much indestructable,but it’s not all that accurate, has a horrible trigger,and it’s heavy-unless you make some improvements to it.
Ammo for the A-K-47  (7.62×39) is plentiful and inexpensive
The A-K-74 is the “new” (mid 70’s),improved version of the A-K-47,it uses 5.45×39 ammo.
There’s nothing wrong with the A-K’s,other than you have to make improvements to them,and the ammo is less common than the 5.56/.223 that the A-R’s use,and parts will become real hard to find real quick in any extended SHTF scenario.
Most guys have A-R’s and that’s another reason to stick with the platform,lots of parts,lots of ammo,everyone already knows how to shoot everyone else’s rifle.
Bolt action with good scope-
Again,I would stick with what’s common,7.62×51/.308,30-06,.300 Win mag. 7.62×51/.308 is the most common,as it’s a NATO round.
Just don’t get some cheap garbage rifle-you get what you pay for.
You can still get a rifle that is dependable and very accurate for about the same cost as a lower price range A-R.
I like Savage bolt-actions-the company went through a period where they were producing junk-that was resolved,and now they are making very,very accurate bolt-action rifles,many come with their Accutrigger-which is a user adjustable trigger,some of their upper mid price,and high price rifles have what they call the Accustock,which allows for perfect adjustment of stock to receiver and barrel fit,which improves accuracy.
My brother has a savage 110 in .30-06, I have a model 11 in .308-both rifles can put a 5 shot string into a 3″ bullseye at 300 yards,and are capable of holding that minute of angle or less accuracy out to longer ranges-neither of us have a scope that’s much good beyond 300 yards…either that,or we’re both getting old,and our eyesight is going…
A word about scopes-a cheap scope is just that-cheap,and it will fog up,the crosshair wire(in cheap scopes) will break,the windage and elevation adjustments wil stop working,it won’t hold a zero,etc,etc.
Example-a mid-priced savage bolt-action is $700-800.00 or so-the scope should cost that much at a minimum-no sense buying a good rifle and putting some junk scope from wally-world on it-you wouldn’t spend thousands of dollars restoring an old muscle car-then put one of today’s 6 cylinder engines in it would you?
The .22,preferably the Ruger 10-22.
Same thing as with the A-R platform rifle-there’s millions of them out there,there’s a plethora of aftermarket parts,and they all operate the same,so anyone can pick up their buddy’s rifle and already know how to use it.
That,and you can feed yourself and your family, group or tribe with it,it’s not super loud like a 5.56 or .308,and can kill rabbits,squirrels,even a feral hog with the right shot.
Handgun-
I prefer a 1911 style in .45 APC, with a revolver as a back-up in either .357 mag,or ,44 mag.
However-the problem with my choices is ammo,as those are not commonly issued to law enforcement,and are not military calibers,ammo will become very scarce,very fast.
I would recommend  sticking with a 9mm,not a cheap piece of shit,something like a Beretta,Sig-Sauer,Smith&Wesson,or Glock-if you’ve got a few extra bucks.
One last point to make-as this already getting way too long-all these weapons can be purchased used at gun shops,pawn shops,gun shows-take a friend who is knowledgeable about firearms with you,and you can find some great deals-that means more money for ammo.
My past firearms articles…
Read.
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Prepare
Train
Do more PT.
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