Innholdsfortegnelse for January 2019 i Guns & Ammo

COOPER & THE 1911 Would it be possible to get through a copy of Guns & Ammo without seeing a “1911” or “Jeff Cooper” written 100 times in every article? If not, my money will be spent elsewhere. Anonymous Email HEY, GUN NUTS! Right on Mr. Zaehringer, regarding your letter in November’s “Reader Blow-back” on “Stupid Guns.” It is almost criminally stupid that the manufacturers keep cranking out all varieties of ugly, useless guns that shoot 1,000 rounds on a Saturday in the woods by goofs who are not sportsmen or very good citizens. They are going to get bad legislation passed that will restrict all of our rights including those of us who are real outdoorsmen participating in useful shooting sports. You guys are gun nuts! Lastly, regarding the…

Probably the finest engraved Colt Model 1877 “Sheriff s Model” Lightning revolver extant, sold for a phenomenal $190,650 (including premiums) at the September 20, 2018, Morphy auction. Originally estimated at between $50,000 to $70,000, this rare 3½-inch-barreled blued and case-hardened .38 retains virtually all of its original finish. As well as scroll and foliate patterns, a panel on the top of the grip strap includes a depiction of a bighorn sheep. The deluxe,  special-order checkered walnut grips retain much of their original finish. This is a stunning piece. For more information about this and future sales, contact Morphy Auctions (www.morphyauctions.com or 877-968-8880).…

BEFORE THE MOVIE, Daisy didn’t offer its Red Ryder BB gun with “a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time,” as Ralphie Parker, the young protagonist in “A Christmas Story” (1983), described. It is believed that author Gene Shepherd confused the Red Ryder with Daisy’s Buck Jones model, which did have a compass and sundial. Introduced in 1940, the Red Ryder Model 1938 was still an appropriate icon for the perennial holiday flick and it remains the most popular BB gun in the world. “A Christmas Story” is the first movie I remember watching with my family, so it’s no surprise that it influenced me as a young man. During the days of Betamax and VHS, I watched it enough to memorize its lines, and it wasn’t…

Without question, one of the most rollicking films to appear in 1939 — the year many cineastes consider the greatest in the history of film — was RKO’s “Gunga Din.” It was based loosely on the poem by Rudyard Kipling who is portrayed by an actor in the film. Starring Cary Grant, Victor McLaglen, Douglas Fairbanks, Jr., Joan Fontaine and Sam Jaffe, it is the archetypical example of Hollywood’s “Raj” films. It was a genre that was quite popular right up to the 1970s, after which time favorable depictions of imperialism became unfashionable. The most exciting segment in the film comes towards the end where the British forces are lured into a trap by a wily guru, portrayed to hammy perfection by Eduardo Cianelli. Prominent in the British lines is…

FROM 290 YARDS, prone in the red sand of Zululand, I pressed my cheek to the stock and found the indistinct form of the massive old nyala bull in my scope. Black hide fading with age to a dusty charcoal, gray stripes running spine to flank and orange legs merged perfectly into the morning shadows. Racking the bolt on my 1949-vintage Winchester, I ran a handloaded .300 H&H cartridge into its chamber and loaded the bipod before gluing the amber dot of my Trijicon Accupoint to the bull’s shoulder. Then I squeezed the trigger. Dropping in his tracks to a 220-grain, round-nose bullet, the old bull died with hardly a twitch in the smoky sunrise. Genesis Twelve years after Holland & Holland introduced the single most versatile cartridge in history…

NICKELED LUGER? Q: I’ve been reading your column for years now, and it’s always been riveting to read so much more about the history of a gun then just the specifications. I never thought that I would ever submit a question because, as a first-generation immigrant from Germany, I never thought that I would have an antique gun worth submitting a question about. After 15 years in these beautiful United States of America, that has changed. I got my hands on a 1918 P.08 Luger. It’s an Erfurt 1918 in 9mm with only one date stamp. All serial numbers match, except for the magazine. It’s an aftermarket one. The serial number 43XX is displayed on the frame and the chamber. All other parts display the last two digits. There are…

RED-DOT SIGHTS and mini-red-dot (MRD) sights are hugely popular — and for good reason. Manufacturing efficiencies have made them relatively inexpensive while still retaining excellent build quality. And there is no easier way to make a firearm fast and accurate than to drop one of these sights on top of it. Iron sights used to be king for fast and accurate shooting at close distances. The problem with irons is that the shooter needs to have some training on their use to be reliably effective. The process of sight alignment and sight picture is simple to explain yet difficult to execute well. Think about it, the shooter’s eye has to see the target, then focus on the front sight to put it on target, then focus briefly on the rear…

I RESOLVED that I had to own a Smith & Wesson Model 1917. I wanted a so-called “shooter” in good condition. These century-old revolvers are not readily available in most gun shops anymore, and I didn’t find any that interested me online. Therefore, I turned to one of the hidden gems of the vintage gun-collecting world — the auction house. Auctions are the best source for finding collectible guns in great condition and are an untapped resource for many. Sure, the process can seem intimidating and there are some considerations. The first rule of buying at a gun auction is to stick with firms who know the firearms market and have a reputation to uphold. A few of the respected names among the auction houses include the Amoskeag Auction Company…