brickhistory

Black text matters... and doesn't always convey sarcasm. No worries here.

Indeed. Or I could add around $5k to it and get an Ed Brown 1911. Or multiply it by an order of magnitude and get a custom Purdy shotgun. Or just buy a mid-range gun on a whim and write a short description and report on it. Your suggestion could work too, but I'm of a certain station and income in life where Hi-Point equals a moped or a fat girl...

$389 out the door. Just finished putting another 200 rounds through it.

Magnum Research MR9 (note: not my photo) This is an authorized clone of the Walther P-99AS. In fact, Walther makes the lower. Magnum Research (now owned by Kahr) makes the slide, barrel, rest of the upper. The trigger guard is squared off, very 1980s, compared to the Walther, but other than that and the stainless upper, it is identical to my beloved P-99. So identical that magazines, springs, guide rods, etc, are interchangeable. I had no need or intention of purchasing this, but a local gun store was nearly giving it away, so I said, "What the hell." At least I can shoot the hell out of this and not worry about it while I would/do on the Walther - but because I don't want to fork out the larger bucks for a new Walther, not because of it being wimpy. Back to this MR9 - 4" barrel, double/single action, decocker on top, adjustable rear sights and a boatload of different length front sights, 15+1 and with that amazing Walther-designed grip that is the best I've ever held. If it's not obvious by now, I am a yuuuge fan of the Walther ergonomics. I've put 600 rounds through this without a hiccup on any brand of ammo - 115, 124 gr, JHP or FMJ. Would carry this or use it as a nightstand weapon without hesitation. Learned I'm not a big fan of the two-toned gun. Who knew?

Fair cop, guv'nor!

Craig Spegel custom grips. Took nearly 18 months to get them made and they aren't cheap. They don't make the gun shoot any better. They are works of art.

Suit or tux depending on what is appropriate. Let those who still have to play by the silly rules have their moment. I just want to get to the bar unobserved and unhindered...

Errr, moving on... Smith & Wesson SW99 in .45acp note: not my photo or pistol In the very late 1990s and early 2000s, S&W and Walther entered into a partnership where S&W marketed Walther's stuff in the U.S as well as manufactured some components/assembled them in the U.S. One such example is the S&W/Walther PPK/S which is still in production. Another venture which didn't do so well was S&W's version of the Walther P99. I have the Walther P99AS in 9mm and it is probably my favorite handgun. I wrote about it much earlier in this thread. This report, however, is about the S&W SW99 in .45acp. In the now dissolved arrangement, Walther built the frames and S&W built the barrel and slide. In kind of a Frankenstein build, the lower is marked "Walther," and "Made in Germany," while the slide has "Smith & Wesson" and "Springfield, MA." Compared to the P99, this is a much larger pistol. About 1/2 longer (which fits since the .45 has a 4 1/2 barrel compared to the P99's 4.0") and nearly an inch taller. The grip on this thing is huge, relatively speaking. It is considered a duty weapon and a couple of smaller U.S. police departments have carried it. Numerous German/Euro police and military carry the 9mm P99 (as did James Bond for several movies). The closest thing I have to it in function and size is my M&P .45 which S&W moved to nearly as soon as they started producing this. The M&P is 1/2 longer counting the beavertail but 1/2 shorter in the grip. One thing about the grip - both this and the original P99 have the best ergonomic grips - including the then-new adjustable backstraps - of any pistol, including the 1911, that I've ever shot. They just are comfortable and fit the hand well. I didn't weigh the M&P compared to this, but this feels distinctly heavier and it shows when shooting. It snaps up less than the M&P. This is a DA/SA semi-auto, with a single stack of 9 rounds + 1 in the chamber. So no gain compared to the M&P and less than some newer competitors. But 10 rounds of .45 is still a lot of 'bang' to go 'round. The trigger is nothing to write home about, but that might be due to I haven't broken it in yet. I bought it as new old stock and have thus far only put 150 rounds through it. Of those 150, I had to two failures to feed. Both were from a Winchester white box. I had no issues with Federal and Remington ammo. The magazine release is the Euro-style bottom of the trigger guard and not a button. No big whoop, but different. Slides drop cleanly every time. BTW, it will fire with the magazine out. It has a rail up front for those that want it. It comes with three backstraps, three front sights, and two magazines. Summary: a good .45 that looks pretty cool. Too big, for me anyway, to carry concealed but would make a helluva statement for open carry (Go Texas!). No regrets in buying it - it will look good in the gun case displayed opposite the P99 - and will be a regular shooter, but in hindsight, I wouldn't have been worse off if I hadn't purchased it. But it did make my collection an even number now so that worry is off my mind. Until, of course, I get something else and the count is an odd number...which simply must be evened out. (My wife isn't enamored by my logic, but what the hell...)

Han Solo's blaster?

note: not my photo S&W CS 9 - CS for "Chief's Special." This third generation S&W semi-auto was made pre-polymer; 1990-ish. It is a sub-compact, 7+1 9mm. 3" barrel, about the size of the Walther PPK, but considerably wider. For me, most sub-compacts are too small for my hands and when I first got this pistol, I assumed it would be the same. Fortunately, I was wrong. With the fat Hogue rubber grips and the pinky extension on the magazine, it's not exactly a handful, but it's not too small to shoot comfortably. I put 200 rounds of 115gr. ball through it and, save for one probably dud primer, all went bang at the appropriate time and in the expected direction. The first round is double-action and is not too bad for such. Succeeding rounds are single action and break crisply. Don't have a gauge for that break, but it's not bad at all. The safety doubles as a decocker so that if you decide to lower the hammer, you can do so without riding it while pulling the trigger a la a 1911 or revolver. Nice gun, very suitable for CCW, even though there are better options with more modern guns that offer a higher magazine capacity for nearly the same size. If/when I get too feeble to take the beating administered by my XDS .45 for CCW, this very well may become my 'go to' choice. Small, unobtrusive, reliable. I played around with this pistol and put a brand of sights on it called "Big Dot." Those sights are what it says on the label. The front sight is a very large white dot (with a tritium insert for night sights). The rear sight is a wide 'V' with a single white (also tritium) vertical line. The result for aiming is: O I Imagine a very small lollipop and perhaps you can get the idea. Those that are familiar with Heinie style sights will 'get' this as well. The point of the sights is for self-defense. While you can, and I did, make 25 yard shots with them, it ain't easy and takes more work than traditional notch and post sights. But, for 3-5 yard 'oh sh1t' use, it is simply put the big white dot over the torso and pull. Worked a champ. Still pondering if I want to put those type sights on the XDS mentioned above.

Man from U.N.C.L.E. Mad Men does James Bond. Meh...

Regarding the first generation Walther P99 - they designed it in the mid-1990s so it was before the great Picatenny wave swept the handgun world. I'd think a competent gunsmith could make the change for you. But you have a great gun in the P99. If I had to pick only one of mine for some reason, my P99AS would be it. For the CH's "looking for a 9mm" query - if you have/had the S&W 6906 and like it, consider a 3913 or 3914. I love both of those and that would be my carry gun if I went 9mm. I am a big guy with large hands and both 'fit' and point very well. Very good, accurate guns. I also just picked up a S&W Chief's Special 9 (CS9). Not enough rounds through it to write a report - as well as waiting on some new Big Dot sights to see if I like that set-up - but for fit, carry, controllability, and concealment, it shows a lot of promise. I am getting really old-school the older I get and like metal guns over polymer. Once I get where I can't handle the .45 in the XDS, I will go to 9mm in one of these S&Ws. Speaking of which, no mention/consideration of the XDS - either original or Gen2 - in 9mm for your search? I really like my XDS for that purpose.

(not my photo) S&W Model 4566 or Get Your Arm Work-out in while shooting The S&W Model 4566 is a sub-version of the full-size 1911-equivalent S&W 4506. The closest I can equate the 4566 is to a Commander-sized 1911 - 4.25 inch barrel on a full-size frame. Unlike many 2nd and 3rd generation S&Ws, this one is not steel over alloy. This one is all stainless steel. Thus, it's freakin' heavy as hell. While I wouldn't want to carry this thing (more on that later) for long, that massive steel frame and overall weight makes shooting .45acp a breeze. VERY little recoil/barrel rise, solid as a vault, and a very well machined piece of engineering. For the carry aspect, mine is a police department surplus (Madison, WI PD, if you must know. Their serial #2, so I assume it was either a front office guy's or one of the first received and not issued to a line cop as there is no wear, not even holster use, evident on this one.). Imagine lugging a 5lb + loaded service pistol on the horse collar that cops wear as a belt. God bless 'em... Anyway, I've put 300 rounds through this with nary a fault. Decent double-action trigger, really good single action. This is an 8+1 behemoth that will quickly give you Popeye forearms if this was a regular range or competition gun for you. So, I wouldn't carry it CCW as it is a bit big for some, is way heavy for nearly everyone one, but has been reliable and accurate thus far. Not to mention a last-ditch club if it comes to that. A good nightstand gun or an addition to one's collection, as it is mine. I like steel more than I do polymer, but the practical aspect kicks in and I get over it. Finally, it's been a good Sunday. I am typing while drunk, so there's that...

In progress. I'm at the part where they put a Gatling gun on the Wright Flyer, but the Signal Corps said it was a bad idea since the hydrogen observer ballons could do the job, so stop it...

For XDS .45 users, Springfield has finally come out with a six-round magazine. It is like a full-length of the grip Pierce front extension, but in addition to adding one more round, provides just a bit more palm contact on the rear of the grip (errr, sts...). Completely changes the way I shoot the thing; much more comfortable and much more in control without the death grip because i fear having the thing shift while controlling the .45's recoil in a very light weight pistol in the five-rounder, even with the Pierce extension. Ordering from the company was in the high $40s including shipping. Worth it compared to either the existing after-market version which looks terrible or having someone modify a seven-rounder which is even pricier.

Right? No. Accurate? Not really. "Rounding out" via squares... Descriping the past, current, and future situation? Absolutely. The ones that recognize how the game is played "successfully" regarding higher rank and positions of authority/change, then proceed to attempt to make it better, are the ultimate goal keepers. The rest of them that adhere to/praise/never want the system to change are you... Each of us has to look himself in the mirror in the morning.

Saw American Sniper last night. Even though I read the book and knew the story, I couldn't speak for a few minutes afterwards. Danged eye irritants... First time I have ever heard silence for a solid 3-4 minutes after a movie and nearly no noise as the crowd departed. Great movie and story told exceedingly well. Nothing grand strategy or ideological; simply a dude who did his job to help protect his bros in uniform. The relief/guilt dilemma of those on the deployment grind and how it screws with the family was perfectly told. Great movie by Eastwood. Great acting by Cooper.

Smith & Wesson Model 3914 LadySmith I think I've come to the end of the internet. I bought the original stainless steel finished version of this 3d generation S&W, the Model 3913NL last spring and wrote a good report on it some pages back. But I don't like silver guns that much. I'm old and set in my ways. So discovering a decent deal on the blued/black version, I bought it. Same cool looking upward rake on the dust cover. Same slim single-stack grip angle that is as good as a 1911's. Same 8+1 capacity, with the first shot necessarily from double-action, the rest single. The trigger on this one is better than the 3913's original one. Some pro gunsmith work on the 3913 had fixed that, but this one is good to go upon arrival. Aluminum frame, steel slide and it's pretty light weight but not compared to the first generation polymer guns that hit at about the same time and dominate the market now. Therefore, S&W quit making their metal semi-autos for the most part. Used or the rare 'barn-find' NIBs are the sole source of them now. The only complaint I've found in on-line research is dudes didn't like having a pistol that had "LadySmith" engraved on it. I don't mind as it's likely to be a range toy/collectable, not a daily carry, but I wouldn't be bothered by the word. Some of my best friends are ladys... Good, reliable (500+ so far), modestly-priced semi-auto that would be a good EDC weapon.

The Imitation Game: Sheldon Cooper of The Big Bang Theory vs. Hitler's Enigma code machine. Fairly fast and loose with history and crams various real people into the characters of only a few and not always accurately. Big on the quirkiness of Turing and his background of why he became the prototype Sheldon Cooper. Not enough skin from Keira Knightly. Good acting, good capturing of the 1940s wartime Britain vibe. Lead actor does a great job with the quirks. Not so much on the accuracy, but the producers are telling a true-ish story, not a documentary. A bit too much focus on the homosexuality aspect as a how it was a crime, not from man on man depiction for which there was none thankfully to this correspondent. It is this "courage" for addressing homosexuality that generated the Oscar buzz for an otherwise good-ish movie. So, here's to Alan Turing for masterminding one of the most critical components for victory in WWII. We cut your nuts off (actually chemically castrated) as your reward. There's a lesson for today in there somewhere... A solid "meh." Not a waste of time/money to see it; will be just as good on a video service vs. going to the theater, however.

Roger, makes sense, thanks. Now back to your regularly scheduled programming...

Stupid question pause in the thread: Nav to pilot, ok, not uncommon. Heavy to fighter - back in the day, was possible (saw it once from E-3 to F-15C). F15E to C-130 after only a few years? Injury (saw it once F-15E to E-8, "no more ejection seat for you!")? No disrespect or insult intended for either community, just not part of either community and it looks 'different.'

I see another politician being hatched...

Conan like 9mm... Conan carry .45... All things being equal, I'll take a bigger hole (sts).

This is exactly my problem with you and those like you. You think you are smarter than everyone else and therefore need to think and act for me/them. That is a sweet gig to acquire.

I wonder if those in the high horse brigade ever wonder about the massive risk aversion incentive (again) this self-loathing behavior begets? Then those same fingers get to point (again) when something goes "boom!" for not doing 'enough.' Win/win.