Burris Fullfield 2 3x-9x 40mm

I recently purchased the Burris Fullfield 2 scope for my 10/22 and I also picked up Burris’ Zee rings.  Since I’m still relatively new to the world of firearms I decided to let a friend of mine install it.  He’s been shooting, reloading, and working on his guns for 30 or 40 years.  I’m glad I made that choice after seeing the steps he went through to make sure it was zeroed in properly.

The scope and the rings look fantastic on my 10/22, which has the silver painted action and stainless steel barrel (Wal-mart model I think).  We also had no problems mounting on the Ruger provided base; I had heard in the past that this could be problematic.

When we got the gun to the range I had trouble getting it zeroed in properly so my friend had to take over.  I wasn’t too upset though it was the first time I had shot a gun in 10 months.  He had it setup in no time and I was holding pretty tight groups (for me) at 50 yards.  Obviously my friend was holding extremely tight groups at that distance.

I would definitely recommend this scope if you’re in the market for one.

Volquartsen 10/22 Action Trigger Kit

I bought this kit back in August of ‘07 and didn’t finish installing it until May ‘08.  It wasn’t a difficult installation, I just kept getting side-tracked.  Regardless, I will say that I like how my 10/22 shoots now.

The trigger was smooth and reasonably light without any adjustments after installation.  Also the recoil was noticeably improved; which I assume is the result of the replacement buffer provided with the kit.  At the range I put a couple hundred rounds of varying brands through the gun and I was pleased with the results.

These kits aren’t cheap but if you shoot a lot and are already in the market for one I’m sure that’s of little concern.  Unfortunately I don’t recall how much I spent on it.

Trimming the fat…

I’ve been considering this for a while now and tonight I went through and deleted the posts which involve my profession.  However I did copy those posts to a different blog.  The reason I came to this decision was to separate work and play.  Later this month I am moving to a city that is known for being predominantly liberal.  Sadly, because of that, I have a slight fear that my firearm posts could adversely affect my career.  I’m still a Life Member in the NRA and will be shooting regularly.  I will continue posting on here as well.

My upcoming move is for a new job that I accepted a couple of weeks back.  While starting a new job is exciting I will be losing my firearm discounts and that is sad.  However, I am still waiting on my 1911 and that is very exciting.

Update on my XD

Recently I went shooting with a friend of mine from work.  He claims to be surgical with his 1911 so I figured I’d let him put a couple of mags through my 9mm.  If you recall I thought the gun was shooting low but after he had a few minutes with it he thought is was shooting a little high.  I have a feeling he is right, I was shooting off the bench that day and was hitting the target at 25 yards with little trouble.  It doesn’t hold a tight group which is a bit concerning but I doubt I’ll get it looked at.   My current plan is to just get used to the gun and not worry about it’s quirks.  I’m still waiting for my 1911 after all, if that has problems then I’ll be upset.

Springfield Armory XD 9mm

I recently received my XD; I got the bi-tone model in 9mm.  This is the first polymer handgun I’ve owned and I’m pleased so far.  I was surprised how easy it was to disassemble the gun for cleaning.  I suppose I should have expected this but I didn’t.

Shooting this gun was a pleasure.  Even though it’s a 9mm and the recoil is fairly light for that round the XD absorbs it nicely.  With a proper grip it was easy to get the gun back on target for the next shot.  The first 100 rounds I shot with it were CCI Blazer.  I don’t have any complaints with them but I wasn’t overly impressed either.  While at the range I shot from 25 yards, 15 yards and 10 yards.  I couldn’t hit anything from 25 yards, from 15 yards I could hit the paper and from 10 yards I was hitting the target.  At first I thought the gun was shooting low, I’m hoping that I was just pulling down before I squeezed the trigger.  I have no intention of getting the gun checked out just yet.  I’ll put another few hundred round down range before then.

In the end I really like the XD, I would like to get a 40 or a 45 at some point as well.

Doh!

I recently found out that I could have shot a 50 cal. and the ammo would have been free.  I was unaware of this when I had the chance and chose to attend a family dinner instead.  Now I’m not wishing I hadn’t spent time with my family but I could easily have rearranged my schedule to have gone to the shoot before dinner.  You live and learn I guess!

The rifle is now sitting in the office of one my my employer’s managers and it taunts me everyday.

One day it and I shall meet and fun will be had!

Here’s Hoping

Finally, my company said I can order some below-list-price pistols with their connections. So I plan on getting an XD and a 1911 from Springfield Armory. I’m not sure what exactly I’ll get but for the XD I’m looking at a 4in 9mm. I’ll keep this blog up-to-date on what I decide.

Update: It’s been about a week now and I’ve finally filled out my order. I’ve decided to get a Bi-tone Service model 9mm XD and a loaded, Parkerized 1911 with night sights. I got a pretty good deal but I’ll still be living on a pretty tight budget for the foreseeable future.

Smith and Wesson Model 10

I went to the big gun show in Tulsa again last weekend. I didn’t intend to purchase anything this time but I ran across a Smith and Wesson Model 10 (38 Special). The revolver is in good shape and the price was good, I couldn’t pass it up.

I was able to take it to the range today and I was pleased with the results. My groups were fairly tight even though the gun shot a little high. My target was only 25″ away though so I need to increase that some. I tried a few different types of ammo and so far I am happiest with CCI Blazer Brass 125-grain. The gun is a tad heavy too, which helps deaden some of the recoil. I shot a coworker’s S&W allow frame snub nose and that gun kept trying to jump out of my hand.

The Model 10 is probably too large for a carry gun but is good for a plinker or home protection. It’s definitely an enjoyable gun to shoot, I would recommend it to anyone.

Ruger 10/22

Tonight I had my first opportunity to fire my 10/22.  I think it’s the sporter model with a stainless steel barrel, which I believe is a Wal-Mart exclusive.  It’s definitely heavier than the carbine but still manageable, and if I remember correctly $40 more than the carbine.

The safety and magazine release are a little finicky.  Sometimes they fully engage and sometimes I have to try a few times, I’ll need to have someone look at that.  I put 200-300 rounds of Winchester Super-X ammo through it and was surprised how accurate the gun was at 50 yards.  I had a couple of 8″ targets down-range that we mutilated firing off iron-sights.  It only failed to load one round and I’m not sure if that was the gun’s fault or the Butler Creek 25-round magazine I was using (which I also recommend by the way, I’ll post a link later).  Recoil on this gun is non-existent; the first time I squeezed the trigger I had to ask my friend if anything happened.  After that I fired down range without aiming to verify that something was happening.

Take-down and cleaning of 10/22’s extremely easy, I should probably go do that now that I’m thinking about it.

They’re fun guns, you should get one (or two).

Russian M44: My Thoughts

I finally got my M44 and my 10/22 out to the range tonight.  Man did I have a good time!  The M44 sounds like a cannon and has a noticeable kick.  With the standard metal recoil pad the kick got a little abusive after 60 rounds or so.  By the end I was firing the gun Tommy-gun style, it was surprisingly manageable this way.

Being a top-loading bolt action rifle I thought the cartridges were a little hard to load.  (Keep in mind I’ve not loaded too many rifles so I don’t have much experience with this)  Also while shooting the door on the bottom of the magazine kept coming open and dropping the unfired rounds on the ground.  I’m not sure what the deal was with that but it was annoying. Trigger pull was heavy, the gun shot low and to the left at 50 yards, and the gun itself isn’t light.  Overall firing this gun was an enjoyable experience.

Cleaning it, on the other hand, was a nightmare.  That’s my own fault though for not preparing it properly for a trip to the range.  To make matters worse I couldn’t get the stupid thing apart.  I ran probably 50 patches down the barrel just to get it mostly clean, then I worked on the action for another 30 minutes or so.

I will probably be taking it to the range again this weekend so I may update this post in a few days.