Gun Talk

[ClearedHot]

Looks like @M2 started a new business.  I've seen the Helo hog hunts but using a suppressed SAW from the back of a pickup truck is a new level of fun.  @M2 can we put the SAW in the Helo?

 

[ClearedHot]

Zeroed in my MPX yesterday, this thing drives nails at 50M.

 

[M2]

Sometimes cheap can be more fun!  I'm picking up a Rock Island TM22 (in reality, built by Derya Arms in Türkiye and rebranded by RIA) tomorrow that's about half the MSRP with only 5 rounds through it!




Yea, it looks like (and is) a cheap .22 AR-wannabe; but reports are it's a decent plinker (with the right ammo!) and you can never have too many of those!

I figured since I scored 2K rounds of .223/5.56 over the weekend at a great price ($500), I have credit to spend on another toy!

Range report to follow...

[cragspider]

@M2 I’ve got the M&P 15/22 and that is a great little plinker. If that RIA 22 is half as good as the 15/22 that should be a fun little toy. 

[ClearedHot]

On 10/29/2025 at 9:31 AM, M2 said:

I figured since I scored 2K rounds of .223/5.56 over the weekend at a great price ($500), I have credit to spend on another toy!

Where?  Always looking for cheap .223.

Also, just bought my first AK...had no idea 7.62 ammo was so expensive these days, I always thought it was cheaper than .223.  War in Ukraine?

[M2]

17 minutes ago, ClearedHot said:

Where?  Always looking for cheap .223.

Also, just bought my first AK...had no idea 7.62 ammo was so expensive these days, I always thought it was cheaper than .223.  War in Ukraine?

Private sale up in Austin.  I was surprised it didn't get snapped up before I got there.  Six 200 round boxes of .223 and four in 5.56, and Winchester white box.  I've got enough good ammo to cover any non-range needs, this will mainly be range use.

7.62x39 has always hovered around 40₵ a round, and of course I've loaded up on the stuff over the years.  I see it now can go for 90₵ upwards which is ridiculous.   You'd think with the hundreds of billions or more rounds (300B+ according to some estimates) made since 1944, it'd be as cheap and easy to find as water.  5.45×39 started replacing it in the early 1970s although many of the old caliber rifles are still in use. 

Global conflicts are still a factor, but I think it's more to do on the 2021 US import ban on Russian ammo (thanks Uncle Joe!!), nitrocellulose and antimony shortages and remnants of the COVID-19 manufacturing and logistics disruptions which still haven't caught back up.

[ClearedHot]

Airmen plead guilty to false statements in shooting that suspended M18

"Details about his death were released for the first time Friday, including that the alleged shooter, Marcus White-Allen, had pointed the gun at Lovan’s chest in a “joking manner.” White-Allen after the shooting allegedly urged the other two surviving airmen to lie about what happened, according to the statement."

[brabus]

So failure to adhere to one of the most basic gun safety principles. You can’t fix stupid.

[M2]

3 hours ago, ClearedHot said:

Airmen plead guilty to false statements in shooting that suspended M18

"Details about his death were released for the first time Friday, including that the alleged shooter, Marcus White-Allen, had pointed the gun at Lovan’s chest in a “joking manner.” White-Allen after the shooting allegedly urged the other two surviving airmen to lie about what happened, according to the statement."

This stupid shit was going on decades ago when I first enlisted.  Sky cops would routinely shoot each other playing "quick draw" with their duty pistols at ECPs.  Nothing more dangerous than a bored military cop with a firearm...

[brabus]

I’ve done (forced) cop-led active shooter drills with everyone using their M9 (and pointing at each other per instructor direction). Yes they were 2-person checked unloaded, but I still felt it was a dumb idea. We’re not talking highly trained shooters, we’re talking mostly run-of-the-mill shoe clerks. Only two of us in the group had  firearms experience beyond basic AF training. 

[Lord Ratner]

On 10/19/2025 at 9:49 AM, Lord Ratner said:

Bought some toys to make range day a lot more fun: 

https://ar500targetsolutions.com/product/12x20-ar550-reactive-hostage-target-system-1-2/

 

And this fancy bit of kit:

https://shootingtargets7.com/products/dueling-tree-target

 

I'll report back in a couple weeks with the review

Okie doke, I can now say definitively that anyone here who has been shooting at paper or cardboard at the range needs to invest in some steel targets. These things were an absolute hoot.

 

Especially for CCW practice, the instant feedback changes the way you train. 

 

I know a lot of you know this, and I did too, but for whatever reason I just never considered buying my own steel targets. 

 

And if you're looking for a dueling tree, the one I linked above is *fantastic.* I think we'll get a Texas Star next to add to the challenge. 

[busdriver]

10 minutes ago, Lord Ratner said:

Okie doke, I can now say definitively that anyone here who has been shooting at paper or cardboard at the range needs to invest in some steel targets. These things were an absolute hoot.

And now you and everyone else who peruses this thread should graduate to the next thing:

https://www.practiscore.com/

Find your local match, shooting whatever floats your boat.  Essentially every club, and every discipline in the country uses that website.

[Smokin]

7 hours ago, brabus said:

I’ve done (forced) cop-led active shooter drills with everyone using their M9 (and pointing at each other per instructor direction). Yes they were 2-person checked unloaded, but I still felt it was a dumb idea. We’re not talking highly trained shooters, we’re talking mostly run-of-the-mill shoe clerks. Only two of us in the group had  firearms experience beyond basic AF training. 

During my first requal in M9s, the instructor told everyone to point their guns at him and practice pulling the trigger to get the feel of it.  My chin hit the floor.  Had I been in his chain of command, I would have pulled every qualification he had.

[uhhello]

38 minutes ago, busdriver said:

And now you and everyone else who peruses this thread should graduate to the next thing:

https://www.practiscore.com/

Find your local match, shooting whatever floats your boat.  Essentially every club, and every discipline in the country uses that website.

It's the best.  I was a bit intimated going into first match but the people couldn't have been any more welcoming and helpful.  Adding stress to any shooting makes it much much harder.  

[Smokin]

Just so we're not always beating up on cops' shooting skills here; skip to about halfway through.  Dude was apparently wearing two plate vests and thought the motorcycle helmet would stop a bullet.