JimB1

I have ordered from them several times. Prices are good, sometimes great but their shipping times are usually longer then other places and communication about when things ship is bad. For example I ordered a set of grips for my victory a few months ago, the web site still said on order when they arrived at my house a week and a half after the order. If the price is right I have no problem ordering from them but usually if there is a time I need something like for a last minute birthday present or something, I don’t use them because I can’t depend on when it is going to arrive. right now I have an open order from 4 days ago for a couple of thing that showed as in stock. The order status shows “on order” I have no idea when they will show up. Maybe next week, maybe Feb sometime. JMHO -Jim

I’ll just leave this here http://about.att.com/story/att_to_invest_an_additional_1_billion_in_the_united_states_if_competitive_tax_rate_enacted.html straight from the horse’s mouth. AT&T is on board for major investments in the US in 2018. https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2017/12/20/handful-companies-promise-bonuses-pay-raises/971199001/ comcast, Wells Fargo, and Boeing are sharing the wealth too...

Well, I'm not a huge fan of .380 just because I don't think it does anything particularly better then 9mm and 9mm wins on cost, availability, variations available and overall usability. The only area .380 wins is in length by about 1.7mm so maybe in a tiny pocket gun there might be an advantage. So I can't help you there since I haven't looked too hard at pistols chambered in it. On 357 on the other hand, I have a little experience. If you are just looking for a range toy, a 6 inch 686 is a great way to go. Accuracy with the long radius on the iron sights is very good and it's a lot of fun. Easy to clean in stainless but a little time consuming with scrubbing carbon rings. If you are looking at home defense or competition, 4 or 5 inch are probably a better option with 4 inch being standard for a lot of competition shooting. Also easier to draw from a holster then a 6 inch. I have a 627 pro and a 686 6" and like them both for different reasons but honestly my favorite is my Ruger GP100 match champion. It's just a all around great gun. Comfortable grip, reasonable weight, decent for recoil with 38 special +p (a little snappy with full power 357s) good trigger out of the box. I know a lot of folks say the S&W has a better trigger and that is true but out of the box, the 686 is much heavier on trigger pull then the Match Champion and I don't find myself wanting a trigger job or a spring change on the GP where it helped the 627 out a lot and the 686 is still stock so it is very obviously heavier double action pull then the GP. The only thing that is a little hiccup in the GP trigger is there is this little plateau right before the break where you think it is at the apex but you need to pull just a little bit more to get it to the break. Out of the box the the single action pull on both the S&W's is just a hair crisper with a tiny bit of creep on the GP before the single action break. I am actually going to throw out something different and say a S&W model 66. I recently held one and I'm impressed with it. If you aren't looking for something to soak up full bore 357 all the time (I shoot 38 specials 95% of the time) the 66 is a great size and weight. Very comfortable to hold and an easy pointer and the price is very reasonable. Though really there are so many good options I don't think you'll be unhappy with any 4 - 6 inch 357 out there right now. -Jim

I don’t know, but it looks to me like this may well be the first time reconciliation actually made a bill better. Calculator says I’ll be paying less but I suspect real world I’ll be about the same +/- I am really pretty concerned about what Murphy and his merry men (and women, and other and none or whatever. Being PC is such a burden on language) are going to be doing to us in 2018 to take back any savings we get federally. -Jim

Doesn’t NJ say “all guns are illegal except...” that to me means the same as “prohibited by state” and having lived in NJ almost 40 years I am sure that is what the state is going to say if it ever gets to court... Maybe I am jaded at this point but this bill will not help us here in NJ at all... -Jim

^this^ 45 Colt and 44 Mag can both be loaded to very powerful rounds but they are big cartridges so generally pretty heavily built guns. 9mm and 45 acp are both good self defense rounds but they aren’t the best choice for hunting in Alaska. I personally like 357/38. You can do everything from barely putting holes in paper using light 38 special all the way up to black bear defense with hot 357 rounds. I suspect I’d like 44mag/44 special in the same way, though I don’t have one at the moment. So if you are not interested in 357 and are looking for a jack of all trades sort of caliber, that’d be my choice. I like the Redhawk 44 mag with a 5.5” barrel https://www.ruger.com/products/redhawk/models.html or the S&W 629 6” barrel https://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/model-629 I understand the interest in using 9mm and 45 acp in a revolver but I feel there are better options for those rounds in a semi so other then maybe needing only one type of ammo for a semi, revolver and pistol caliber carbine or using it for competition like IDPA, I am not sure there is a lot of practical benefit in them but sometimes it’s not about practicality JMHO -Jim

Well, my P220 started as a P220 classic 22 then I added the 45 upper with night sights so it's similar to the p220 nitron but just has the old style grips. Total into it for me is only about $800. The new p220 nitron is going for about $950 street price but I got a 22lr upper as well and can probably turn around and sell the whole setup for at least $750 so not bad since I've had it several years now. I thought about trading it in on a stainless version but will probably just drop a SRT kit and a Legion trigger in it and call it a day. Thinking about some nicer grips too but the stock ones actually work pretty well for me... Just going to keep shooting mine. It is a good pistol and I like the 45 acp as both a range round and a defense round. Slammedbowtie, what were you looking to trade it in for? Changing calibers, changing brands or just trying to upgrade to a different version? If you were just thinking about a Legion or something, you might want to just think about doing a few upgrades and keeping what you have... The trigger is the biggest upgrade to the Legion series. I have tried a few of them dry fire in store and I like the trigger but I'm sort of ambivalent about the new sights and other upgrades. I like the grips but those are easy to add too. To me the Legion is only tempting if you don't have a P220 already or you just want bragging rights or something Just wondering... -Jim

Fixed that for you

Found this from a month and a half ago: http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2017/10/post_414.html Seems like there have been a ton of unexplained or half explained booms in Monmouth over the last few years... -Jim

Yeah, they changed a lot of the models recently. Got rid of the X5 and X6 (not that I could afford either but man I wanted one or both of them) added (amazingly) a SAO 22 version of the 226 and removed the target sights from everything except the 10mm hunter among other changes... -Jim

OK, you've convinced me. I'll stick with whiskey, it's just safer

Maybe a aftershock from this? http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2017/11/earthquake_rocks_delaware_shockwaves_felt_in_nj.html Otherwise: I don't think I heard anything up here in Middlesex County -Jim

I have a similar model I have seen used ones going for around $7 - $750 or so. Far as trade-in value goes, some places will only give half of what they can sell for, maybe 60%... I think $400 trade-in is low though... for that price, just keep it, at least until you can find a private buyer... JMHO -Jim

Well, if Trump can ever get his justice dept in order, option 1 could very well happen...

I think the correct course for this to take is the way it has always worked when state law is in conflict with federal law. There are three options as I see them; the feds take the states that legalized pot to federal court. If the feds win, pot is illegal everywhere and the gun thing is no longer an issue. If the states win, the feds have to allow it so therefore it is no longer illegal and the gun thing is no longer an issue. The states take the feds to courts, see option 1, results are the same. The people take the states to court for suspending a right for an illegal action that is obstesibly legal in that locale. This is where it is messy. It would need to go to state court first but might end up in option 1 or 2 depending on the results and drag on for years. This is the option these blue states really want to happen. JMHO -Jim

Well, my long winded non-expert answer ...Seems there are a few standards that have stayed reasonably popular through the years (9mm, 38 special, 357 mag, 44 special, 44 mag, 45 acp and 45 colt) then there are a few that pop up every now and then with a good following like 38 super, 454, 500, 50ae, etc. I tend to think of them as tier 2 calibers or maybe niche calibers that fill a specific need but maybe not as generically used as the standards due to suitability or cost (45 colt may be in this list too, I waffle on it ) 40 S&W may be along those lines at some point, maybe with a bigger following. It seems to be losing a lot of backing in law inforcement in favor of newer 9mm options but it also seems to be getting a lot of love in the sport shooting genre which is giving it a new life. 10mm is being given a strong second look by the pistol hunting crowd as well so that is also experiencing a bit of a resurgence and 380 acp seems to be getting a strong second look by personal defense oriented folks so that seems to be on the rise too. 32 S&W is coming back a little mainly on the heels of the 327 mag round as a lower recoiling training round but acceptance of the 327 mag round seems tepid so time will tell on that one. I suspect if these stick around for a while they will all fall into the niche ammo category and not get to the popularity of the standards. With all that other stuff going on with various calibers, I don’t see any reason why the 357 sig couldn’t come back at some point. It seems a very accurate round. The biggest negative I can think of is that as a necked cartridge it has a slightly more complex reloading process (Checking the neck to shoulder length and trimming if needed). I have never used or reloaded them though so I may be off or there may be something else limiting to them that I am not thinking of. Just some thoughts... -Jim

OK, I'll play. Here's my pack: Top to bottom: S&W 686+ Deluxe (357) Brand new, just picked it up from Cheyenne (thanks Bob ) S&W 617 (22lr) S&W 627 Pro (357) Ruger GP100 Match Champion (357)

My usual mixed drink is Jamison's Black Barrel with an ice cube or two (that's the mix part) I do have to make my wife's drink of choice: 1 shot of Jamison's (I just use the regular Jamison's for this) 6 oz of Ginger Ale (whatever kind you like, I like Canada Dry because it's not too sweet) Juice from half a lime Add a lime slice for garnish (or for additional lime juice if the person wants to drop it in) -Jim

Purists say yes and all the top BBQ pit masters use wood or pellet burning smokers so that tells me a lot. I personally like charcoal/wood better then electric or propane for smoking but a lot of that is philosophy. When I am smoking stuff it forces me to slow down and not be doing a hundred things at once. Every hour or two drop a smoke bomb, drop in a few briquettes of charcoal when it's getting low, maintain the temps, etc. I have to be aware of what I am doing. Not necessarily constantly on top of it like grilling fish or something but just aware. I use propane when I just need to get stuff done, grilling steak or chicken for dinner after work or something. Charcoal/Wood cooking is just more relaxing to me. Sit on the deck, have a beer, play guitar, check on the temps, drop some charcoal, have another beer. Repeat until the food is ready. -Jim

Well, depending on how much you are looking to smoke at a time, I am using a Weber kettle grill for smoking most of the time and it doubles as a charcoal grill. You can get very good results using charcoal and smoke bombs made up from soaked wood in aluminum foil. When the wood stops smoking, drop another bomb on the charcoal. Some random thoughts: Pecan wood goes well with nearly everything, it's a mild wood with a sweet flavor. Fish smokes really quick Do not eat the skin on poultry that you smoke (it turns to leather) Beef ribs are better slow smoked. Don't under smoke them because they get tough first then once they get past that they get tender. Soak poultry in a brine for at least 12 hours before cooking to keep it moist Indirect heat is the name of the game Aluminum foil is your friend Do not spoil good BBQ with too much sauce (some say any sauce is too much but I like carolina mustard sauce and anything vinegar based) You can go the dedicated smoker route and initially I got one of the bullet ones but I like using the kettle more. It just works well. This is the first Thanksgiving in years that I am not smoking a turkey (making a spiral cut ham this year) so you can definitely do a 16lb turkey in the kettle, I know from experience -Jim

At least they still ship ammo to NJ. Bass Pro didn’t last time I checked... -Jim

Korth has a great rep but I've never seen one in person. Nice if you have the cash. I'd be afraid to bring it to the range and get it dirty LOL Let us know when you get it and how it shoots. -Jim

This must be brand new because I got permits less then 2 months ago in Woodbridge and it was the normal process and got them in 30 days... I hope this is some miscommunication because I have never had any issues with Woodbridge on permits before and the two ladies that work in the permits department have always been on top of any issues and great with communication when I've dealt with them. -Jim

I can tell you that the gp100 match champion is an excellent revolver with a 4.2 inch barrel. A little pricey but has a really comfortable grip and the best stock trigger of any gp100 I’ve tried yet and the reduced underlug makes it a fast pointer. Also looks very nice to me. Kind of like a modern speed or security six. I have the adjustable rear sight on mine but if you are playing holster games or looking for a carry piece, you may like the Novak rear. Not really a target gun per se, too much light between the front fiber post and the rear notch but there are options to fix that. I sort of wish the just used the normal front sight though instead of the dovetailed one. More readily available front sight options in the standard front for the gp100... Just a thought . -Jim

Man, sorry I missed it. I was really trying to get out there today but it wasn’t in the cards. Hope to catch you all at the next one. My friend Ed said he went and had a great time. Hope he got to meet everyone. I’ve been hounding him to get on the board. He’s just been lurking for a while maybe seeing everyone is friendly will push him... -Jim