HB13 - Hot Brass # 13

In This Issue
3
Note from the President
28
Offhand Shots from the Editor
10 Shooting Sports
6
The world’s
largest
paintball
event
32
Oklahoma
D-Day
16
Christopher
Miner
Spencer
36
FIELD NOTES AT
THE NRA
MUSEUM
20
40
24
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©The Gun Club of America • Hot Brass - Volume #13 September 2013
A Note from the President . . .
According to Murphy’s Law, everything will go
wrong at the worst possible moment . . .
and remember Murphy was an optimist!
I was a Boy Scout and we were taught the slogan
“Be Prepared.” I always thought of that more as a
survival mentality, which I adopted. But when it
comes to my guns malfunctioning while hunting or
at the range, I must admit from time to time I have failed to
be prepared to repair my guns in the field.
Gene Kelly, President, AGI
I recall a particularly painful situation about 30 years ago when I was deer
hunting and had a shot at a beautiful 4 x 4 Buck at only 150 yards away.
It was an off-hand shot, but I knew I could easily make it as I had done it
before. I fired and missed, and missed, and missed!! What the Heck!!!
After that buck went bouncing off into the sunset, I checked out my rifle,
looking over my scope in particular. Apparently on the trip to the ranch,
which was the first hunt of the year and a last minute arrangement, my scope
had gotten slammed hard enough to loosen the mounting and I could wiggle
the scope. No wonder I couldn’t hit anything. Ugh! – Lesson Learned (again!)
Check over your gear thoroughly and take the time to double check your zero
before you use it.
Over the years, particularly while filming for GunTech video magazine, we
have had guns fail and had to make repairs right at the range to avoid wasting
an entire day with the video crew standing around doing nothing.
So how do you prepare for repairing guns in the field
whether you are on a hunting trip or at the range?
I would suggest you assemble a basic repair kit to add to your cleaning gear
and bring with you every time you go on a hunting trip or to the range.
It looks like a lot, but it will all fit in a small zipped pouch or tool roll along
with your cleaning gear (be sure to include a cleaning rod).
3
As a minimum, the kit should include:
• standard screwdrivers of the sizes
needed for the guns you have with you
(and your buddy’s!)
• a set of steel pin punches
• a brass punch
• a set of jeweler screwdrivers
• a light weight steel hammer
(4oz ball peen is good)
• a plastic or no-mar hammer
• a borelight
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
needle-nose pliers
pocket knife
a 6" flat file
a set of jewelers’ files
a tube of A/B epoxy
gun oil
set of Allen wrenches
(metric or standard depending
on your gear)
• if you are using a shotgun
don’t forget your choke tool!
These tools will cover most of your firearm failure emergencies when you get
back to camp or right there at the range. If you have a gun with parts that are
known to fail (Watch the AGI Armorers Course on your particular model of
firearm), you should carry the appropriate spare parts with you. For example;
on the Remington 1100, spare “O” rings are always a good idea as they tend
to get old, rot and fail. If you are using a magazine fed firearm, always bring
spare mags! Many people don’t have spare magazines for their semi-auto deer
rifle. Get some! So next time you are out hunting or at the range and a gun
fails, don’t let it ruin your day. Be prepared and fix it!
AGI
Until then, good shooting! Gene Kelly, President,
Gun Club of America and the American Gunsmithing Institute
Did you know that every month, the
Gun Club of America hosts a webcast at:
http://meeting.gunclubofamerica.com which
is usually scheduled for the first Wednesday from 5:30 - 7:00pm
Pacific time. It is hosted by Gene Kelly or Jack Landis, sometimes both, and
often with a special guest. Occasionally it is the second Wednesday, so check
your e-mail or www.guncubofamerica.com for the
time and info! You can click on the tab in the center
that says GCA Live Webcast Information, scroll
down, and you’ll find the previous month’s webcast
has been put up for you to watch.
ZEV slide with adapter plate and iron sights
On October 2nd, Jack will host a couple of guests from Glockworx, a
division of Zev Technologies, Inc. Skyping in will be Ray Wong who will
explain the cool products they have in store for the Glock shooter. Gerry
Handl, their tech man will let you know about a couple mysterious problems
that surfaced in a 2 pin Glock 19 and how to fix it. These guys know Glock
improvements inside and out.
On November 6, Jack will host Joe Alesia, aka Lefty Longridge, World
Champion shooter of SASS and Western 3-Gun fame. Joe is also a semi-retired
Los Angeles Sheriff’s Sergeant, Tactical Instructor, and Training Supervisor.
He can tell you what you need to know about cowboy action shooting or
modern combat shooting, including what training is best for you and why.
4
Questions are always welcome on these webcasts!
So join us, learn something, and maybe win something!
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Offhand Shots
from the Editor
By Lenée Landis, Hot Brass Editor
Gene Kelly and his son Jacob, who wrote an article about their visit to
Oklahoma D-Day, have been traveling around the planet this year
immortalizing on DVD some of the incredible work done by gun artisans.
Jack and I were fortunate to get a gun museum on the itinerary this summer
as well. The trip inspired this issue as the troops who handle the big guns
quietly go about their work while the rest of us appreciate the status quo.
Our first stop was Arlington.
The Mission
Our main mission in traveling to
Virginia/Washington DC was to attend
the service for Lt. Colonel Kenneth B.
Coolidge, USAF Retired at Arlington. I
mentioned his background in a previous
issue, but it bears repeating for those of
you who are new to Hot Brass. Ken was
an electronics warfare officer on a RF-4C
Phantom, flying over 100 combat missions
over Hanoi and Haiphong.
It s a sobering sight to stand in
the midst of 624 acres of the
Caisson at Arlington National Cemetery,
nation’s fallen. The ceremony
taking Ken to his final resting place
itself is an impressive sendoff
with the band, escort troops and gun salute. Following the
service, we witnessed the changing of the guard at The Tomb
of the Unknown Soldier (now called the Tomb of the Unknowns),
saw Audie Murphy’s grave, and the Space Shuttle and Challenger
memorials.
We checked out Arlington House, which is on
the grounds, and flies its American flag at half
staff when internments occur. General Robert E.
Lee lived here before the Civil War, as it was
property that passed to his wife Mary from her
father, George Washington Parke Custis. Custis’
father died when he was six months old, and his
6
From the site, here is the nearby Air Force Memorial
which depicts stainless steel contrails evoking the bomb
burst maneuver of the Thunderbirds. The missing 4th
contrail suggests the missing man formation
grandmother and step-grandfather took him
and one of his sisters to raise. His stepgrandfather was George Washington.
Custis built the house, intending it to be a
living memorial to the President. His only
living child, Mary Anna, married Robert E.
Lee here which is where they lived until
the Civil War. There is a lot of history here.
We wandered over to a little house in the
garden. Since it is a bit of a walk, we found
ourselves the only visitors in what turned
out to be the Robert E. Lee Memorial
museum. Here we found a display of the
Colt revolver given to him following his
service as commandant at West Point from
1852-1855. This appointment capped 32 years
of Army service. While he was there, his son
graduated first in his class in 1854.
There is a huge repository of firearms and
military information, context, and sights in
Arlington and the nation’s capital. With the
availability of photos and info, we wanted to
focus on some of this and salute the people
that enforce all our freedoms, some of the
hardware in use, and show people who have
benefitted.
“This Colt revolver, engraved
with Lee’s name, was presented
to him at the end of his tour of
duty as Superintendent of the
Military Academy.”
REVOLVER: Colt, model
1855, 31/2" barrel percussion
cap, 5-shot, 28 caliber pocket
pistol; serial #4413;cylinder
engraved with dueling scene
flanked on either side with
trees; engraved on rear of grips
"Col. R.E. Lee, U.S. Army."
BULLET MOLD: Brass bullet
mold with steel pouring plate
that casts round balls and
conical shaped bullets. Steel
pouring plate stamped "Colts
Patent”; has steel hinge pin and
guide pin contained in case
(ARHO 2232) and
accompanying pocket pistol
(ARHO 2231). Will cast 9/32"
bullets, max. length 43/8"
Both descriptions per the
National Park Service.
Operation Gratitude
We don’t forget we have people in
Afghanistan. We want to draw your attention
to the centerfold article about Operation
Gratitude. I had the honor to go over there
last year at the suggestion of my daughter
and we had a firsthand glimpse into this
amazing organization, helping pack boxes.
Using the good old assembly line method, each person loads their item into
the box and passes it to the next person. In this manner, they will send out
their millionth box to troops in December. It’s all about saying thank you.
We show you how you can help with a simple gesture which means a lot!
Mission Two: NRA Museum
Our next mission was to bring to you a bit of flavor from the NRA Museum in
Fairfax, VA. There is no admission charged for entry so be advised it is
somewhere you can take your family and you won’t wind up eating beans
and rice for three weeks unless you want to. Kudos to them for making it so.
The 16 galleries showcase firearms from past to present. The only thing that
would have made it better is if they had said “sure, you can shoot them!”
Curiosity takes hold -- after leaving, I couldn’t but help do a bit of research 7
on some of those items in Case E of the Petersen Gallery. There were
specimens of things I had no idea existed. You can take a look at some of
these in the Field Notes at the NRA Museum article on page 36. Shown here
is an example of an unusual item from the Petersen Gallery. Have you seen
one of these . . . ??
The Vampire Hunter is a .38 Special
that comes in an ebony case which
looks like a coffin. It holds these
accessories: a silver vial of holy water,
sterling silver bullets with handcarved
vampire faces, a mirror to identify
your target, and wooden stake fixture
you can use in the event you are
Vampire Hunter:
cleaning your gun when approached
Colt Detective Special Revolver - ca 1975
by a vampire and “he gets the drop on
you,” as explained by Phil Schreier, senior curator for the NFM in a Curator’s
Corner video. This firearm is completely silver plated, including the inside of
the barrel.
The engraving is the work of Leonard Francolini of New Mexico. This Gothic
work covers the piece, including the Rampant Colt dancing atop a coffin and
a cross on the muzzle. To see more of his work, check out francolini.com.
Major John W. Hession's Springfield
M1903 Rifle, photo courtesy of the
National Firearms Musem
Description: Maj. John Hession was one
of the world's greatest long range
shooters of the early 20th Century. A
brass plaque on the buttstock lists a
number of his records and wins. In
1940, England asked Americans to
send their privately owned firearms
across the pond to defend the British
homeland against an anticipated German invasion. Hession added another
plaque that reads "For obvious reasons,
the return of this rifle after Germany is
defeated would be deeply appreciated,"
and sent his prized '03 to the UK. Per
his request, the rifle was returned after
Germany's surrender.
New Sporting Arms Museum
On August 3, the NRA National
Sporting Arms Museum opened at the
flagship Bass Pro Shops in
Springfield, Mo. From their website:
. . . you'll be able to see almost
1,000 incredible sporting artifacts
from the 1600s to modern day,
including some of the finest and
most historically significant firearms
from the NRA Museum Collection.
The Museum will host firearms and
artwork from the Remington Arms
Company factory collection,
a multi-million-dollar collection of U.S.
Military sidearms, engraved Colt
revolvers of the Old West, the guns of
Annie Oakley, treasure guns from the
NRA Museum Collection,
Hollywood guns, firearms of U.S.
Presidents like Teddy Roosevelt and
Dwight Eisenhower, the flintlock
fowlers of English kings, guns of Wild
West outlaws like Jesse James,
and many more.
The Museum is open every day of the
week and it's FREE!
8
A Page out of History
Since the GCA motto of bringing you fun,
education and fellowship mainly touches this
month on those who served our nation or
benefitted from being here. We found the
foreword from the 1895 book, HERO
TALES FROM AMERICAN HISTORY, by
Henry Cabot Lodge and Theodore Roosevelt, which seems to frame the subject
well:
Theodore Roosevelt's Fabrique
Nationale Model 1900
Semi-Automatic Pistol
TO E. Y. R.
To you we owe the suggestion of writing this
book. Its purpose, as you know better than anyone else, is to tell in simple fashion the story of some Americans who showed that they knew how to live and
how to die; who proved their truth by their endeavor; and who joined to the
stern and manly qualities which are essential to the well-being of a masterful
race the virtues of gentleness, of patriotism, and of lofty adherence to an ideal.
It is a good thing for all Americans, and it is an especially good thing for
young Americans, to remember the men who have given their lives in war and
peace to the service of their fellow-countrymen, and to keep in mind the feats of
daring and personal prowess done in time past by some of the many
champions of the nation in the various crises of her history. Thrift, industry,
obedience to law, and intellectual cultivation are essential qualities in the
makeup of any successful people; but no people can be really great unless they
possess also the heroic virtues which are as needful in time of peace as in time
of war, and as important in civil as in military life.
As a civilized people we desire peace, but the only peace worth having is
obtained by instant readiness to fight when wronged—not by unwillingness or
inability to fight at all. Intelligent foresight in preparation and known capacity
to stand well in battle are the surest safeguards against war. America will cease
to be a great nation whenever her young men cease to possess energy, daring,
and endurance, as well as the wish and the power to fight the nation's foes.
No citizen of a free state should
wrong any man; but it is not
enough merely to refrain from
infringing on the rights of others;
he must also be able and willing
to stand up for his own rights and
those of his country against all
comers, and he must be ready at
any time to do his full share in
resisting either malice domestic or
foreign levy.
WASHINGTON, April 19, 1895.
Colonel Roosevelt and his Rough Riders at the
top of the hill which they captured in the Battle of San Juan.
Photo by William Dinwiddie, 1898, courtesy of Library of Congress.
9
“The goal of the Gun Club
of America is to help our
members have MORE FUN
with their guns and meet others
with the same intent. Each issue
we introduce you to some new or interesting aspect of the shooting
sports. This month Jacob Kelly brings you . . .
The world’s largest paintball event:
Oklahoma D-Day
Earlier this summer, my Father and I trekked halfway across the country for a
paintball game. First of all some people might ask “what on earth is paintball?”
or if they are somewhat familiar with the game they might ask “Why would
you travel so far for a game?” Well, this isn’t just any game . . . this is
Oklahoma D-Day, the world’s largest paintball event!
Here’s a little background, my father and I have actively been playing paintball for nearly 2 years now, we started when we went to the local field with
some of my friends for my seventeenth birthday. We were seriously hooked
and have been going back ever since.
How it works
For anyone who doesn’t know much, or anything, about the sport of paintball
I’ll give you a very brief rundown of the sport. The sport is broken into two
main categories “speedball” and “woodsball.” Speedball takes place on small
fields not too much larger than a tennis court with two teams facing off to
eliminate the other. Woodsball takes place in the woods (go figure, I know) or
other outdoor space.
10
The Shooting Sports
Article and photos by Jacob Kelly
More about woodsball
There are usually elements like wooden “stickwalls” or “teepees” or other
fabricated or natural covers scattered about the field. These fields are much
larger and can be tens or rarely even hundreds of acres in size. These games
often are objective-based with one of the most popular variants being
"Capture the Flag."
Players use their markers, colloquially referred to as “paintball guns,” to hit the
members of the enemy team with paintballs. If they break open and leave a
mark it signifies a “kill” and the player is eliminated. The markers
generally do not have magazines but instead have either gravity fed or
motor driven high capacity (around 200 rounds) hoppers that feed the paint
into the marker. The markers use compressed high pressure air (HPA) or CO2
to operate the bolt and fire the paintballs. Additional ammunition can be
carried in “pods” which usually hold upwards of 100 rounds. The paintballs
themselves are generally .68 caliber but can vary slightly based on
manufacturer. Each player also wears a mask that protects the face and eyes,
eye safety is paramount!
Oklahoma D-Day
The Oklahoma D-Day paintball game takes place annually in Wyandotte,
Oklahoma, and has several thousand players in attendance. It has been going
on for over a decade and was started to honor the owner’s grandfather’s
service in World War II, specifically his role in organizing the D-Day landings.
The purpose of the game is not only to have a great time with friends playing
the amazing sport of paintball, it serves as another reminder of the service and
sacrifice that so many made that day.
This event is actually a week long affair where players gather to have fun
throughout the week playing smaller games and in preparation for the
D-day reenactment on Saturday. There are three main factions represented for
the game, the US Forces, the Germans, and the Commonwealth forces. These
factions are all broken down into sub units as well. For example my father
and I chose to be on the Allied side (USA! USA!) when we signed up online.
We then had the opportunity
to choose which sub unit we
were in, with options such as
the 1st Infantry Division,
Rangers, or the 101st Airborne
Division, or even armored
divisions in mock tanks! My
father and I are both big fans
of the “Band of Brothers”
HBO series, and I highly
Privileged to represent the 101st Airborne Division!
11
The Shooting Sports
recommend you watch it if you haven’t seen it, so we opted to be put into
that unit. Within that unit there are several more sub units and we were
eventually put into the 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment . . . Easy Company.
This is the very same unit from the series and the best part is that besides
selecting the Airborne we didn’t even try for that!
We arrived at the location in Oklahoma on Thursday and proceeded to check
in and locate our unit. As we were “newbies,” we didn’t really have a clear
idea of exactly what was going on and when so we just went with the flow of
the day. That day we were able to play two games, each with their highlights.
The first was a “mag-fed only” game. We had earlier been given the
opportunity by one of the vendors to rent one of their magazine-fed paintball
markers for free. Earlier I said that most paintball guns are fed by hoppers;
well there is a small, but growing, percentage of players who forgo hoppers
and use magazines with around 20 rounds maximum to add a different element to the game. The mag fed game was interesting to play as I am used to
playing with an electronic marker and hopper where I use a significantly
greater amount of paint per round.
My father really had the most interesting adventure during that
game however, and has the battlescars to prove it. He went toe to
toe with a semi-pro representing
one of the big brands during this
game; the only problem was, well,
he just didn’t have enough pressure left. He was waiting in ambush in one of the fabricated bunkers Gene, locked and loaded and ready for the drop!
on the field and then popped out to shoot, he and the other player both shot
multiple times at close range, but only my dad got hit.
As I said, he was almost out of air in his tank and the balls, instead of going
out of the barrel, simply stayed in the chamber. As he walked away with the
welts, he noticed the balls rolling out of the barrel. Missed the chance by that
much dad!
Thursday evening was the night game, one of my favorite parts of the event.
Several hundred players represented each side in the game which ran from
9-11:30pm. The battle was fought on a plateau with a large mock-up of a
church and other outbuildings in the center. Each force started on opposite
ends of the field and prepared for the assault.
At the start of the game it was already pitch dark and you could just barely
distinguish shapes of players. Well, that was until they started shooting up the
12
The Shooting Sports
flares, military grade flares, that
made you think it was daylight.
This night battle gave me
personally the most “realistic”
view of what the airborne
troopers experienced when
they landed in Normandy
during the night before the
D-Day Landings.
It was utter chaos at many
points. Unit cohesion was
virtually non-existent after
Watch out Allied Infantry, here come the German tanks!
players were eliminated and had
to return to “Dead Zones” for reinsertion. I ended up separated from the 506th
for most of the game, and this was not uncommon. As you moved around in
the darkness players would shout “Hey, have you seen the 82nd anywhere?”
Or “We’re the 327th, who are you guys?”
I ended up spending much of my time slowly moving down the line behind a
low earth berm with various Allied elements, in an attempt to outflank the
Germans who had taken the high ground in the church. Each time a flare
would be sent up everyone would get as low to the ground as possible to
present as small a target as they could to the multitude of enemy forces in the
church. As the light faded, sometimes we would return fire; the sound of
paint against the church walls was like a heavy rain on a tin roof. With each
round of flares men would get picked off left and right and the force would
then continue to move forward.
We had successfully made it three quarters of the way down the flank when
suddenly a hail of paint rained down on us from our right, an area supposedly
out of bounds. A referee was called forward and searched for an offending
player, none was found and we continued on. Moments later we were hit
once again and the vast majority of the unit of the 327th that I was moving
with was eliminated in one fell swoop. After the game was over I learned that
an enemy sniper had concealed himself just on the edge of the field in a
ghillie suit and had eliminated well over 30 players. The battle concluded just
short of 11:30 with a decisive Allied victory. Though we had failed in our
flanking attempt, other groups managed to clear out the church and the
adjacent buildings and hold them for the win.
Fast forward to Saturday. My dad and I were staying in a hotel approximately
30 minutes away from the field, so we had to get up quite early in the
morning. The Airborne’s insertion time was 7:00 am, we had to be at the field
at 6:30 at the latest. We rose at 4:45 am and gathered our gear, readied the
night before, and made our way to the location.
13
After meeting up with our unit, we gathered in a staging area and were loaded
into deuce and a half trucks to be transported to our “Drop Zone” on the field.
We then had to hold position and wait until the game actually started at 9:00.
At the start of the game we had orders via the TOC over the radio to our
commanders to go and locate an objective at a certain set of coordinates and
hold the objective for 30 minutes before coming to the aid of the landings on
the “beaches.” Unfortunately we were unable to complete that objective as
while we were en route we encountered an entire German division in the
woods and suffered heavy casualties, myself included.
The unit regrouped
at a nearby Dead
Zone and waited for
orders and reinsertion. We ended up
being sent to aid the
1st Infantry division
to capture their
beach objective. I
personally found the
fact that the Airborne
was on the beaches
more than a little
Just like the real military, there's a lot of hurry-up and wait.
odd, but hey, I wasn’t in
charge so we went with it. There were mocked-up landing craft that would
release groups of players onto the beachhead every five minutes or so. The
enemy was incredibly well dug in and had excellent fields of fire, one in 5
troopers made it to the cover of the “sea-wall” without being eliminated.
The enemy had the definite advantage and they used it. They eliminated our
tank support rapidly and proceeded to swat down every attempt to seize the
beach. There was allegedly some questionable conduct by the enemy forces,
such as not leaving the field after being eliminated and wiping the hits to
cover it up, but for the most part they just beat us bad fair and square.
I’m seriously glad this re-enactment wasn’t the real thing because the Allies
were having a bad day on our fronts. That is a unique feature of Oklahoma
D-Day unlike scripted re-enactments, anything can happen and the Germans
could win.
I spent the remainder of the day moving with the unit, doing a lot of walking
between objectives. The main highlight of the afternoon was when we were
tasked with asset denial. The enemy had a mission to take control of an
artillery shell prop. We located it first and held position waiting in ambush for
an enemy tank crew sent to retrieve it. Well, the tank didn’t show up. Instead,
our unit ended up ambushing the majority of a German division. I was
eliminated in the ensuing firefight which seemed to be going in our favor. The
last hours of the game were a final Allied push to seize the church and the
surrounding plateau. The game had to be called prematurely though as the
14
stormclouds that had been
brewing that afternoon decided to cut loose and delivered a downpour complete
with lightning. The last thing I
heard was that, unofficially, the
game this year was a tie. I do
not presently know the final
scores and statistics though.
(Allied forces won by 200
points, Editor note.)
I enjoyed my experiences at
Little Shermans, Allied tank support!
my first Oklahoma D-Day and
I am seriously considering going back again next year. For more info on that
go to their website, http://www.ddaypark.com/paintball/dday/
If you’re already a paintball fan, I highly recommend you give this game a try
or one of the many big scenario style games that take place each year. If
you’ve never played paintball, hop on the internet and find a field close to
you - it’s an adrenaline rush like no other sport I’ve ever played!
Keep Shooting, Jacob Kelly
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Today
15
History provides a perspective that gives us a greater
depth of appreciation for what we enjoy today.
This is 7th in a series of firearm inventors.
Christopher Miner Spencer
Christopher Miner Spencer, born in June of 1833, is
another of the American inventors who was
powered by a wild imagination, gathered skills at
an early age, and possessed the work ethic to
bring it all together. Over his lifetime, he had
42 patents for such diverse items as a silk
winding machine to a repeating rifle to an
automatic turret lathe.
According to The Illustrated Popular Biography
of Connecticut - 1891, (compiled and published
by J. A. Spalding, Hartford, CT) he went to live
with his grandfather on his farm at the age of 12.
While there, he acquired his first gun, Grandpa’s
Revolutionary war musket. He promptly went to
work to improve it, first fashioning his own
Christopher Miner Spencer tooling. He is said to have used an axe to make
an old knife into a saw, and then used the saw to shorten the barrel. His
passion for firearms became a creative outlet.
At 14 years old, he went to work at Cheney’s Silk Mill, apprenticed the next
year at a machine shop, returned to Cheney’s and worked there as a machinist
for about 3 years. He continued gaining experience as a machinist, including
working at Colt Firearms. In Joseph Wickham Roe’s 1916 book, English and
American Tool Builders, he tells us: “After some years at the Colt Armory he
went back to Cheney Brothers and soon obtained his first patent for an
automatic silk-winding machine. This was adopted by the Willimantic Linen
Company, with some modifications made by Hezekiah Conant, and was the
machine which Pratt & Whitney began manufacturing in their first rented room
in Hartford.”
His first invention ignited his thought into what would eventually be his creation of the Spencer Repeating Rifle for which he got a patent in 1860 at the
age of 27.
Spencer Repeating Rifle
“Commercially successful” was the difference between the Spencer Repeating
Rifle and other early lever action breech loading rifles, however the same
issues applied at the time as in modern times. Although they were able to sell
orders to the Union during the Civil War (1861-1865), there were problems:
the federal government’s procurement system included people unfamiliar with
gun making decisions; the company did not have an adequate ability to
produce the number of rifles ordered in the timeframe needed as they had no
production facilities in place; skilled machinists were in short supply;
and the cost was more than twice that of muzzle loaders.
16
The benefits of this rifle were its reliability under combat conditions,
a 7 round magazine, an ammo carrier with 10 preloaded magazines
which made it easier to continue reloading, and a rate of fire
exceeding 20 rounds a minute versus a couple from a muzzeloader.
One downside was its 10 pound weight though complaints ceased
once used in actual combat.
Spencer was tireless in his efforts on behalf of the rifle, however. He
even brought it personally to President Lincoln where they shot it on
the Mall by the Washington Monument while Spencer explained the
operation as President Lincoln had suspended orders based on a
mishap. The President seemed to appreciate the experience and did
not suspend orders for the rifle again, though he also didn’t lobby for
more orders.
The first Army order was delivered late, coming after the first Navy
order, but the 5th Michigan Cavalry issued them 5 days later. The
Spencer rifle made a difference in the Civil War with the units that
received them, changing the types and tactics of war. They were
used at Hoover’s Gap with Colonel Wilder and the Lightning
Brigade, and at Gettysburg with the Michigan Brigades and
General Custer.
In late 1863, the company offered this as a lighter carbine and the
government ordered and received over 45,000 of these.
The guns were mechanically successful but the underpinning
company failed. The Spencer Repeating Rifle Company went
into bankruptcy in 1868 as its surplus war rifles flooded the
market and they couldn’t stay afloat on new orders. Spencer
had sold his patent to the company for $1 a rifle royalty in
earlier years but had still worked hard to make it a
success. The company was briefly bought by Fogerty
Rifles before Winchester bought them out the
following year.
Spencer
Carbine
Model
1865
.50 caliber,
20" barrel
Photo by
Hmaag
Billings and Spencer
Joseph Roe’s book noted: After the war, Spencer went
into business with another Colt employee, Charles
Billings, and they created Billings & Spencer. Billings
and Spencer was one successful Colt employee
partnership as was Francis Pratt and Amos Whitney
of Pratt & Whitney, a leader in the turbine engine
field today.
When Billings & Spencer started up, they
developed a drop hammer. Spencer then
invented an automatic turret lathe to turn
screws automatically, which was an
enhancement of a prior machine he
invented.
17
The venture was successful, however Spencer moved on in 1874 to take a job
which would result in another partnership.
In 1876, Spencer and others formed the Hartford Machine Screw Company,
again, a very successful enterprise.
Spencer Repeating Arms Company
In 1882, Spencer turned his energy to firearms again, leaving the Hartford Machine Screw Company. This time his focus was a repeating shotgun, the first
commercially viable pump shotgun. In time, financial hardship arose and the
company was bought out and moved to New York around 1890.
About three years later, he started up the Spencer Automatic Machine Screw
Company which manufactured screws.
Summary
His contributions were many and diverse, making important jumps ahead
which enabled people to do things better and faster. The contribution his
repeating rifle made to the Union side in the Civil War is inestimable.
Nothing seemed to slow this energetic and brilliant man—not the demands of
business, the whims of commerce, or a rocky financial situation. A couple
years before he died, he added aviation to his list of accomplishments, making
20 flights before he passed at the age of 88.
Battle of Middleburg. A moment of the Civil War with troops using Spencer rifles.
1st Maine Cavalry Skirmishing, drawing by Alfred R.Waud, 1863, Library of Congress
18
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At AGI we are working to preserve the gunsmithing arts and all of our personal freedoms through every course we produce.
By Robert Dunn
It saddens me to think the
Carcano rifle, at least in this country (U.S.A.), is thought of as the
gun that killed John F. Kennedy. I won't even speculate on that topic, but I
am tired of hearing how bad the Carcano rifles are and how it would be
hard to hit the side of a barn with one of those Italian pieces of junk! For
gosh sakes folks, the rifle was designed in 1890! Though the Carcano is not
the most accurate firearm in the world, it sure can get the job done: it took
care of business for the Italians, as well as the Japanese for many decades!
The Carcano rifle was brought into use by the Italians in 1891, thus
receiving the designation of M91 (Model 91). The M91 was designed to fire
the 6.5x52mm Mannlicher-Carcano cartridge. Salvatore Carcano
developed the rimless cartridge during his time working at the Turin Army
Arsenal. Both the rifle and the carbine versions of the Carcano were
produced from 1892-1945. There have been around 3,000,000 Carcanos'
manufactured, if you were to include all of the variations of this rifle that
have been designed and produced. Before World War II, the Japanese
Empire used the Type 1 Carcano rifle, which was manufactured by Italy.
The six round magazine accepts en bloc charger clips to fill the magazine
with ammunition. The en bloc charging clips were designed by Ferdinand
Mannlicher but the specific clip used for the Carcano rifle is similar in its
shape and design to the German Model 1888's clip. After the cartridges are
loaded, via the clip, a spring-loaded follower pushes the cartridges up into
the path of the forward moving bolt in order to feed and chamber a round.
Carcano
bolt face;
two locking
lugs and a
fixed
extractor
When the gun is empty, the follower allows the shooter to easily use
the rifle as a single-shot. The bolt handle acts as a safety
lug, as it locks forward of the receiver ring. The
bolt contains two locking lugs and a fixed
extractor. The rifle cocks upon opening. When
the safety is engaged, it will lock the firing pin
and you will not be able to rotate/cycle the bolt.
In order to take the bolt
out of the gun, the trigger
must be pulled as you cycle
the bolt rearward. To
disassemble the bolt, like
many other bolts of this style,
the cocking piece must be
20
A photo of the bolt
disassembled
rotated into the fired position to relieve the tension of
the firing pin spring before you unscrew the cocking
piece nut. To unscrew the cocking piece nut, you
must push down the spring-loaded cocking piece nut
retainer. Next the cocking piece and the safety can be
removed. Be careful when taking the safety off that
you don't launch it into your eyeball or forehead, as
it will be under spring tension until the safety
comes out. Then all you have left is the firing pin
and the firing pin spring. The bolt is very similar to
an early Mauser design.
Here we can see the knurled tab safety in the
"Off" position above and the "On" position below
Like many firearms, I enjoy taking them apart and
studying their design. Though most of them are
chambered for calibers I don't shoot very often or
reload for, it really is a fun rifle to shoot. The gun
pictured in this article is a Model 1891 Cavalry.
There are a lot of resources on the internet and a
wealth of books on the market that can help you
identify the various models. The Carcano rifles are still popular with
collectors and they can be usually be found for a decent price, so there's no
reason not to have at least one in your safe!
GI Insurance
Airman Jones was assigned to the induction
center, where he advised new recruits about their
government benefits, especially their GI insurance.
It wasn't long before Captain Smith noticed that
Airman Jones had almost a 100% record for insurance
sales, which had never happened before. Rather than ask
about this, the Captain stood in the back of the room
and listened to Jones's sales pitch.
Jones explained the basics of the GI Insurance to
the new recruits, and then said: "If you have GI Insurance
and go into battle and are killed, the government has to
pay $200,000 to your beneficiaries. If you don't have
GI insurance, and you go into battle and get killed,
the government only has to pay a maximum of $6000."
"Now," he concluded, "which bunch do you think
they are going to send into battle first?"
We have SwapmeetDave.com to thank for this one - Thanks Dave!!!
21
with the
"Caveman" Chef
Bacon-Orange Grilled Dove Breast
Can be used as an appetizer
Dove hunting is upon us! Check your season start and end dates.
I thought I would focus on the beautiful White-Wing Dove in my
recipe. This is a great appetizer to add to any entrée! Quail quarters
are also a good substitution . . . or any bird for that matter!
Ingredients:
• dove breast (appetizer 2-3 per person,
dinner 4-6 per person)
• bacon - one strip for each breast
• orange juice – enough for marinade
• sea salt and pepper
Paleo Chef, Patricia Cashion
Preparation:
Soak dove breast in orange juice overnight in a bag. Sprinkle with sea
salt and pepper. Wrap each breast with bacon and secure with a toothpick. Two ways to cook: GRILL until bacon is cooked on outside, OR
BAKE in the oven until bacon is cooked (about 10 minutes).
Chef Cashion is a shooter, and caters to the shooting industry
with healthy Paleo cooking to keep you on target.
www.shootforhealthy.com
Helpful Hints from Chef Robert: Keep in mind that each type of bird will be
prepped a little different but we all know how to adapt, improvise and overcome!
It would be almost sacrilegious to skin a duck or a goose before turning them
into dinner but in the case of the pheasant you will want to start by skinning
the bird/birds and chopping them in half lengthwise.
Another thing to consider with pheasant is the "hang time." Hanging the bird
will tenderize the meat and help to develop and balance the gamey flavor of the
meat. Two to seven days of hanging will do the job, the longer the hang time,
the more of a gamey taste you will acquire. The temperature will also
determine how long you will want to hang the bird/birds, a warmer temperature
will require less hang time.
Something else you need to think about is what to cook in. If you are using cast
iron, make sure that you have a well seasoned pan or the acids from the citrus
will react with the cast iron and give the food an iron like quality. For this recipe,
it would be best to use a small roasting pan or a deep skillet that can go
directly from the stove to the oven
22
The following recipe is something that
I have been cooking since I was in
Jr. High School. The most recent
creature to be covered in this sweet
delicious sauce is pheasant. It all
started with a duck when I used to live in
Denver. I must say that duck may be the
best way to try this recipe but the
pheasant sure does the trick too!
Chef Robert at GunStock 2012
Orange Pheasant
By: Chef Robert Dunn
(or duck, goose, chicken, cornish hen etc.)
Ingredients:
• 2 pheasant (or bird of choice) - skinned and split down the breast
• 1 can of frozen orange juice concentrate
• two oranges (the zest from one and the juice from both)
• 1 large onion (chopped)
• 2 teaspoons of paprika
• salt and pepper (to taste)
• 3 tablespoons of butter
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon of soy sauce (if you don't have it use more salt)
Preparation:
First, preheat oven to 350°, then take 2 tablespoons of butter and
sauté the chopped onion in a skillet until it is translucent. Meanwhile,
skin and chop the pheasant. Wash the pheasant and pat the meat dry.
Get the zest from one orange and set it aside for later. Juice the two
oranges and set the juice aside.
Next, you will want to coat the bird halves with the paprika, salt and
pepper to taste. Then, add to the sautéed onions. Cook for a few
minutes on each side and then add the sugar, orange zest, the juice
from the two oranges, two heaping tablespoons of the frozen orange
juice concentrate, the soy sauce and the last tablespoon of butter.
Continue to cook on the stove until all of the ingredients are bubbling
and incorporated into one another. Transfer everything from the skillet
to a roasting pan or if your skillet can go into the oven, it is time to put
the food into the 350° oven and roast for 45 minutes to an hour,
basting every ten minutes or so.
If need be and the liquids are drying up too quickly, simply add a little
bit of water and stir into the sauce. If the meat is not tender . . .
simply continue to roast it in the oven until it is how you like it. This
meal goes very well when served with your favorite type of rice with the
sauce poured over everything! Enjoy!
Share YOUR favorite recipe with your fellow GCA Members!
23
Email recipes to: [email protected]
Join us in Giving Back . . .
Instead of illuminating the
as we normally do—and t
be a great idea to marsha
assist in their fall drive. A
Wonder? Write a note,
or have the neighborho
added to the packages
one thing . . . having so
else did for you is won
the MISSIon: to lift
member’s face and express to
and support of the American people
sends 100,000+ care packages filled
and personal letters of appreciation
U.S. Service Members deployed in h
behind and to Veterans, First Respon
Care Givers. Each package contains
$75-100 and costs the organization $
and security, assembling of package
armory in Van Nuys, California.
Operation Gratitude has sent almost
this is written. This has been done
donated goes to making this happen
wonderful things they do, or the sug
make, or just want to send a few do
www.operationgratitude.com. We g
sending mail:
AGI
e good deeds of someone in the firearms community
there is no lack of good deeds—we thought it would
al our forces and help out Operation Gratitude to
Anyone and everyone can do this! What, you
a letter, a card and say thank you. Have your child
od kids draw a picture. These personal notes are
Operation Gratitude sends. You know, e--mail is
omething in your hand that someone
nderful.
t morale, bring a smile to a service
our Armed Forces the appreciation
e. Operation Gratitude annually
with snacks, entertainment items
addressed to individually named
hostile regions, to their children left
nders, Wounded Warriors and their
s donated product valued at
$15 to assemble and ship. For safety
es occurs at the Army National Guard
t 982,000 packages as of the moment
by volunteers. 98 percent of money
n. If you want to check out the
ggestions they have for things you can
ollars for postage, their website is
give you all the particulars about
The Firearms Community Gives Back
Who doeSn’t love gettIng MaIl?
aSkS operatIon gratItude:
Without a doubt, the most popular
items in the care packages we send are
the letters of thanks written by grateful
Americans of all ages. Some messages
are a single sentence long, some go on
for a full page or more and others are
little more than a sweet drawing and a
heartfelt “Thank you.” Each letter is
cherished and greatly appreciated by
the recipient! There is no such thing as
a “typical”
The
letter
troops love to write
— that’s what makes each one so
back when time allows:
very special.
“I’m always excited to receive
a package! I’ve gotten great pleasure
Kids send cheerful drawings
in reading the personal hand written
like the ones shown on these
letters and drawings from kids and
pages and the troops decorate
adults alike, and I’ve got a few with
their living and work spaces with
addresses that I will be replying
precious reminders that they are
to today. SrA D.S.”
not forgotten by all of us back home.
With our Fall “Holiday Drive” coming up soon,
we thought now would be a good time to emphasize our on-going
need for cards, letters and drawings for the thousands of care packages
we send each year . . . not only to deployed troops, but to Veterans
and Wounded Warriors as well.
Want to WrIte SoMe letterS?
Thank you! All letters will be screened by
Operation Gratitude; do not seal if placing in
an individual envelope (unless it is the
envelope to mail your one letter to us).
Please allow us enough time to screen
holiday letters – the earlier we receive
them ahead of time (for Thanksgiving,
Christmas and Hannukah), the better.
Please note: It is difficult to give an exact
deadline — for Thanksgiving, we should
receive letters/cards by early October;
for Christmas and Hannukah, by early
November.
26
The Firearms Community Gives Back
As you write, please keep in mind the
following important guidelines . . .
• Since the cards/letters will be shipped
in our care packages, please sort and
bundle them by type
(Troops/Veterans/Wounded Warriors)
and send them together to us in a
single package.
• ”Thank you” letters not related to a
specific time of year/holiday are most
appreciated.
• No individual envelopes are needed, but if you do wish to put
individual notes into individual envelopes, please leave them
un-sealed. You do not need to put postage on the individual
envelopes . . . just onto the package you send us.
• Please avoid glitter.
• Sample salutations include:
Dear Service Member, Dear Hero, Dear Brave One.
(We do not use “Dear Soldier” or “Dear Sailor” because your letter
may end up going to a Marine or Airman!)
• Avoid politics entirely and religion in excess; it is acceptable to
write “God bless you” and/or “I’m praying for you.”
Keep the message upbeat and positive.
• Talk about yourself; ask questions (not about death/dying);
express thanks.
• Please include your own contact information (mail or email)
so recipients can choose to reply.
• STUDENTS: Use FIRST Names Only; Adults may include full name,
address and email.
• Handwritten or hand signed letters or cards are most appreciated.
Drawings are great too!
• Write as many letters as you can – they will be distributed
throughout different Military locations.
• If you do not receive a reply,
Send them to us,
please be understanding.
as many as you can write,
and
GCA will deliver them to
“Receiving support from
Operation Gratitude . . .
home is always welcomed
Send them to us at:
here and my favorite part
Hot Brass / GCA
of care packages are the let351
Second Street
ters and drawings from the
Napa,
CA 94559
kids. Those make my day!
Attn:
Lenee
Thanks again! AM2 A.R.H.”
thank you for your Support!
27
If you have been in the military, chances
are you had the opportunity to shoot a
number of firearms the average shooter will
never get the chance to put a trigger finger
on. These occurrences may have been
under circumstances a civilian shooter will
never experience. Our inspiration for this
article comes from the question “How is a
Beretta 92 different from an M9? Is there
much difference between a civilian or military firearm? We checked out the Marines
hardware to see what’s out there.
So what’s the difference between your
Beretta 92 and a military issue M9?
This pistol is a close proximity defensive
double action firearm. There is no difference in the design. They are identical exUSS Carter Hall USCENTCOM At sea cept for the finish. The military firearm is
U.S. Marines practice pistol marksmanship skills
with unloaded M9 pistols on the flight deck of the
Parkerized, has a manganese or zinc phosphate finish which gives it tooth to hold oil USS Carter Hall, July 24, 2013. U.S. Marine
Corps photo by Cpl. Michael S. Lockett.
or grease and provides rust prevention and
is more anti-corrosive than the polished civilian finish. There is no difference in the
magazine capacity, unless you live in a state that has limited mag capabilities, or the
ammo. There is the fact if you’re a civilian, you’re either buying or reloading your
own, however.
There is a difference in the handling: we are confident you don’t let anywhere near
the number of people use your firearm and run thousands of rounds of ammo
through it as say the MCRD (Marine Corps Recruit Depot) in San Diego or Parris
Island does in a year.
The Marines requirement for cleaning is CLP-mil spec cleaner, lubricant,
protectant. They also have a different regimen for cleaning than most of us, and
how that might occur would make a few people shudder. We hear stories . . .
Let’s check out the difference in training: A Marine assigned to carry an M9 up until
the present trained through eleven phases of the Entry Level Pistol (ELP) program,
with officers continuing through phase 19. In late March 2013, the Marines
implemented the Combat Pistol Program (CPP) which will be the standard by the
end of 2014, and has already begun to take the place of the ELP. Quantico has
begun hosting a series of Train the Trainer programs to cover the fleet.
28
Boiled down, this CPP program focuses on teaching basic engagement techniques
and adds speed to the mix. The training is a combination of lecture, dry fire and
live fire with the time to fire at targets counted in seconds rather than minutes.
Threat assessment and weapon function is of utmost importance in a defensive firing
situation, and these skills are now emphasized. While accuracy was stressed in the
ELP, training has improved to take into account that you have to be accurate while
under stress. The target is also different. Rather than a bullseye, a human torso
shape is used.
What about the AR-15 and the M4 carbine?
Let’s cut this down to the real difference: a civilian AR-15 does not have what they
call a “fun switch,” meaning you cannot fire 3 round bursts. The military rifles used
to have a selector switch that allowed them to shoot full auto. Eventually, this was
deemed to waste a lot of ammo so the choice is safety, one trigger pull, one round, or
three rounds on the semi-auto burst mode.
There are so many variants, we could not begin to outline them in this short article.
Basically, the outward appearance is the same but the inside of the civilian AR-15 is
milled so it cannot accept an aftermarket part to make it run full auto. Check out
the National Shooting Sport Foundations Fact Card following this article for a great
explanation.
Bottom Line:
The difference between most civilian and military firearms users is training and the
physical shape and endurance level of the person. What the Marines have going for
them is an enforced PT and training program. Many of us might have designs on getting in better shape, having more upper body strength, and getting out to the range
on a regular basis but it is all too easy to have good intentions while rooted to the
couch. The Marines are much more disciplined in taking part in weight bearing, aerobic, and fill-in-the-blank exercise than the average civilian. Let’s just say this: One
of the initial strength tests you need to pass in order to even begin recruit training is
a minimum requirement of 44 crunches in two minutes. I rest my case, your Honor.
As far as training, there are numerous defensive pistol training courses available. If
you have a pistol for defensive purposes, or concealed carry we cannot stress enough
the need to invest in training. It opens your eyes to the many possibilities you might
encounter, and there is no reason you cannot practice with the same determination.
USS Bonhomme Richard, At sea A Marine with the Maritime Raid
Force, 31st Marine Expeditionary
Unit, fires an M110 Semi-Automatic Sniper System rifle through a
freeing port (a hole to allow water
runoff) at a target from the stern
of the ship here, March 6. The
snipers of the 31st MEU’s Amphibious and Force Reconnaissance Platoons conducted
marksmanship training to keep
their skills sharp for any contingency operation that they may be
called upon to execute. Photo by
Sgt. Jonathan G. Wright.
29
Marines from Camp Pendleton, as part of the Weapons and Tactical Instructors Course, participated in an
airlift of two M777 Howitzers near Marine Corps Air Station Yuma, AZ last April 5th. "My Marines are out
here to get the best of what WTI has to offer," said Sgt. Steven Thouchalanh, "and to be sure that their
everyday training is being used to the fullest." Photo By: LCpl. Uriel Avendano
The one we attended a couple months back was excellent—it was 2 days and was
rigorous. Some of the people who have attended that course are special forces,
SWAT, and other military and law enforcement people.
Beyond Civilians:
Here’s some of the Marine firepower available for which there is no civilian
counterpart. Advantage Marines. Take this lightweight 777 howitzer . . . 9,000
pounds lighter than a predecessor. It is the long range support for our Marine
Infantry troops, and can be moved into place by Chinook or Osprey.
Here are a couple of its features identified on Marines.com, just to give it a bit of
perspective: attached to a 7-ton truck, it can be dropped, loaded and ready to fire in
under 3 minutes. It can effectively place fire at 18.6 miles out.
And for these, my friends, you will have to double time it down to the local
recruiting station to enlist because there's just no chance you’ll get the opportunity
to shoot this in real life. You might want to start in on those crunches and get up to
speed first . . . OORAH!
The M777 in action.
Marines with Lima Battery,
3rd Battalion, 11th Marine
Regiment, fire M777A2
Lightweight Howitzers aboard
Marine Corps Air Ground
Combat Center Twentynine
Palms, Calif., Dec. 11, 2012,
during Exercise Steel Knight.
Photo by
Lance Cpl Jason Morrison
30
AR-15 Facts from NSSF
The National Shooting Sports Foundation has Pocket
Fact Cards that are available on their website at
www.nssf.org, and which they have graciously allowed us
to reprint. These are things all sportsmen should know.
The modern sporting rifle, based on the AR-15 platform, is widely
misunderstood. The National Shooting Sports Foundation asks you to be
an informed gun owner and to use the following facts to correct
misconceptions about these rifles. Remember, if AR-15 style modern
sporting rifles are
banned, your favorite
traditional looking
hunting or target
shooting semi-automatic
firearm could be
banned,
too.
Part of the job
of sportsmen is
educating
people who get
their information
from less than
credible sources on
the subject. It is
beneficial to have the
facts at hand,
so we want to bring
your attention to these
fact cards available on
the NSSF website.
www.nssf.org
31
Athena Lee is among the top female shooters in the world.
Given enough time and ammo, she'd be among the top shooters, period. Photo: P. Erhardt
According to Wikipedia Pallas Athena is "the goddess of wisdom, courage,
inspiration, civilization, law and justice, just warfare, mathematics, strength,
strategy, the arts, crafts, and skill."
According to the shooters that know her, and as evidenced by the numerous
trophies she's won, Athena Lee is the goddess of "speed, open division pistols,
humor, definitely strength, the cooking arts, bacon, and, of course, shooting."
Born and raised in the southern part of the Philippines, Athena Lee may not be as
well known as some other women shooters, though not for a lack of accomplishments - because Athena's are many. Just like with most top women shooters their
notoriety, or lack thereof, is due to the shooting sports' general lack of skill in
promoting its champions. So you're excused for not knowing much or anything
about her. But, Athena Lee is one champion you really should know.
She is either something of a shooting prodigy or simply incapable of comprehending
what can't be done. In December of 1991, while attending a Steel Challenge match
with her father, Athena got bored and asked to try shooting for the first time.
Taking her father's single-stack 38 Super open pistol she took on Smoke & Hope
and basically swept the stage . . . then (accidentally) the crowd as she turned to
proclaim how easy it was. Two weeks later, after lots of practice, and probably no
shortage of firearms handling safety instruction, Athena competed in her first Steel
Challenge competition, finishing second high lady. Not bad for a 13-year-old girl
just two weeks into her shooting career.
Five years into her shooting career and she'd place 13th in the IPSC World Shoot.
Eight years into her career and Athena's individual world championship win would
lead the Filipino women to a Team Gold medal, marking the first time the
Philippines defeated the U.S. women at the World Shoot.
32
Getting from 'I'm bored, can I shoot?' to winning a world title eight years later
doesn't happen without coaching, and that job fell to Athena's father, Nelson Lee.
Recognizing that his daughter had both the skill and the competitive drive to be a
shooter, Athena's father focused on developing her shooting talents. It wasn't long
before she was very competitive and winning High Lady titles. And it wasn't long
after that Athena was winning matches outright, which, in a culture infused with
deep-seeded male pride that comes from 300 years of Spanish colonial rule,
let's just say she wasn't always popular.
To keep pushing Athena's development as a shooter, her father took to coaching a
young male shooter his daughter could train and compete against, always forcing her
to shoot at a higher level. This explains why if you were to ask Athena about winning not just the women's title but the entire match, the response you'd get is that,
given the time to train and the ammo, she doesn't doubt that she could win the
overall title.
As Athena improved she rose up through the ranks and in 1996 competed in her
first IPSC World Shoot. Held in Brazil, Athena would finish 13th among the
women, putting her well on her way down the path of becoming the top female
shooter in the Philippines.
At the 1999 World Shoot, hosted by the Philippines, Athena led her teammates to
victory and the beginning of the high water mark in the history of women's practical
shooting in the Philippines (which lasted through the 2002 World Shoot). Athena
took the individual gold, but more importantly for national pride purposes her team
won the gold over the nearly always dominant U.S. shooters.
Despite the importance of
Athena's and the team's win in
1999, her shooting career in the
Philippines began to wind down as
total gun bans were enacted with
each election and - as with most
things - politics within the
shooting community reared its
ugly head.
Though she is best known as an open division
shooter, Athena is transitioning to iron sights with
an eye towards additional titles and other shooting
disciplines. Photo: P. Erhardt
Even though she won the title of
the world's top female shooter,
Athena was required to qualify to
make the 2002 team to defend her own title. The issue wasn't having to qualify,
which she was fine with. The issue was that this was a new procedure and was not
required of the top women in previous years. The new policy, which required her to
compete in a handful of top matches and finish within 90% of the top male shooter,
gave Athena the distinct impression that she was not wanted on the team and it
almost drove her out of shooting altogether.
However, Athena persisted and was on her way to meeting the newly instituted
qualifying requirement when the powers-that-be called and informed her that she
was now guaranteed a slot on the basis of being the defending world champion.
33
While all this drama was playing out
Athena began looking at the U.S. as
a possible new home. In 2001 she
spent a year in America living with
J.J. Racaza and his family. Which of
course gave her the opportunity to
train with J.J. under the tutelage of
J.J.'s father.
It was also in 2001 that Athena
picked up her long-time sponsor
Johnny Lim and became part of the
legendary Team Limcat. Lim, who
operates out of Reno, Nevada, is the
gunsmithing patron saint to many of
the top Filipino shooters. Go to any
When it comes to competition Athena is all go,
major match in America and you are
no stop and pushing harder in order to win
comes naturally. Photo: P. Erhardt
likely to find an entire squad of
Filipino shooters sporting Limcat pistols and outfitted in Team Limcat jerseys.
Johnny Lim's support and generosity has played a major role in Athena's career and
she, like other Team Limcat members, speaks of Johnny with great fondness the likes
of which other sponsors can only dream of from their shooters.
During 2001 Athena did make time to return to the Philippines and pick up the
High Lady title at the national championship where she not only finished within
the required 90% of the overall winner but 7th overall . . . thank you very much.
But her time in America only strengthened her resolve to leave the political drama
back home and the 2002 IPSC World Shoot marked the final time Athena Lee
would shoot as a representative of the Philippines.
In her last IPSC World Shoot appearance as a representative of the Philippines in
September of 2002, Athena Lee was well positioned to win, going into South Africa
as the current defending world champion and her country's 2001 Women's National
Champion.
However, Athena found herself in a tough battle with teammate Kaye Cabalatungan. Not realizing exactly where she stood in the match, Athena began to push
harder and harder which resulted in her giving up more points and ultimately finishing second, just 11 points behind Cabalatungan.
Despite the loss, Athena's finish helped her and Kaye deliver a one-two punch for
the Philippines and the women's team won their second consecutive open division
team gold.
Next issue in part two Athena Lee joins the U.S. shooters and
collects even more titles.
Reprinted courtesy of Paul Erhardt from his column
“Between the Berms:” in The Shooting Wire
http://www.shootingwire.com/features/227728
34
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35
Article and photos by Lenée Landis
An extravaganza of firearms and
accoutrement! Case E in the Petersen Gallery.
The NRA National Firearms Museum in Virginia hosts an incredible display of fine
and historic firearms. Here are some photos from Case E inside the Robert E.
Petersen Gallery. We were enamored with the unusual and the historic located in
this one gallery alone. You walk away with the feeling you have peered into history,
and want to know more so we checked out a bit of the background of some of these
items.
The first impression upon walking into this gallery, is a feeling of gratitude. How
fortunate we are that Robert Petersen and his wife donated this vast collection of
firearms which make up a 2,000 square foot gallery named for him. This man did
many, many things but is probably most famous for publishing 32 magazines,
including Guns and Ammo and Hot Rod. He had an eye for the extraordinary.
To share these unique firearms with all of us was a generous gift, as without it, they
could have been stashed away only to be seen by a collector and his friends. As it
turns out, it seems Mr. Petersen is a friend to all of us.
_____________
#18 A harmonica pistol . . .
what’s not to love? Clearly,
there has always been a desire for high cap magazines.
A French inventor J. Jarre
held a patent for these, and
his 2 sons designed a
variation with barrels.
36
#18 - Euro 10 shot harmonica pistol, 9mm, ca 1850-1870
Years before, Jonathan Browning (John Moses Browning’s father) built
underhammer harmonica rifles. It operates by the harmonica shaped “slide” which is
loaded in the breech. The slide actually opens up and has ten chambers which is
where the “ammo” is loaded, in this case pinfire cartridges. Seems a bit cumbersome
and awkward to carry, not sure how
accurate sighting it in would be, but
you definitely know what it is when
you see one.
_____________
#1 Again, a mystical invention in
another century, the Sundial signal
gun, which prompts the question,
Why? From THE BOOK OF
SUN-DIALS, compiled by Mrs. Alfred
Gatty, published in 1872:
We may here remark that at Paris, and we believe
#1 - Sundial signal gun, .30 cal, circa 1850
also at Edinburgh and elsewhere, the hour of noon was
at one time proclaimed by a cannon, which was fired by the rays of the sun being
concentrated on a magnifying glass so placed as to ignite the powder in the
touch-hole when the sun reached its meridian height.
And then, we wonder, why did the practice stop? We couldn’t find reasons for why it
started or stopped, but learned a noon gun is still fired once a day in Hong Kong in
Causeway Bay next to the Excelsior Hotel. According to discoverhongkong.com:
Owned by multinational company Jardine Matheson, the Noon Day Gun,
made famous in the Noel Coward song Mad Dogs and Englishmen, is fired off by a
Jardine employee at noon every day. The gun is located on the waterfront in Causeway
Bay, where Jardine used to have warehouses, known in these parts as godowns.
The one-gun salute tradition is said to have started when a Royal Naval Officer
who was new to Hong Kong became annoyed at the tendency of Jardine employees to
fire off a gunshot when the head of the company sailed into port – gun salutes being
reserved for military commanders only. As punishment, Jardine was required to fire a
one-shot salute every day at
noon, for perpetuity.The
company has kept to the deal and
the Noon Day Gun has become a
local tradition and attraction for
visitors. Noel Coward even
dropped by to fire it off once.
_____________
#23 Eprouvette is a French
word, of course, which almost
sounds like “`ey, prove it.”
Back in the day, black powder
came in four granulations and
of course you needed to use the proper
one for the firearm you used, be it
#23 - percussion eprouvette, ca 1870. Belgian used to test
strength of gunpowder. #22 on the right is a metal
flintlock knife pistol.
37
flintlock or cannon. However, like current day drug dealers, there was an element
that might cut the powder which could result in a very bad outcome for the shooter.
Powder could be of varying degrees of quality so the burn rate and velocity of the
projectile needed to be tested.
In reading about eprouvettes, we found the book Philosophical Transactions
by Benjamin Thompson Esq, FRS published January 1, 1781: New Experiments
upon Gun-Powder, with Occasional Observations and Practical Inferences; To
Which are Added, an Account of a New Method of Determining the Velocities of
All Kinds of Military Projectiles, and the Description of a Very Accurate
Eprouvette for Gun-Powder. (Warning, the text reads with all the Ss as Fs.)
This is an eye opener into the industry of 130 some years ago and tells the methods,
detailed measurements, and includes tables of experiments. One method that didn’t
work involved shooting fire instead of bullets, which he confessed turned out to be a
total failure.
_____________
#6 Apparently the
Deleaxhe Apache pistol
was an early concealed
carry model! It is said the
French criminal gang
known as Les Apaches were
#6 - Deleaxhe Apache pistol, 7mm cal, ca 1870-1890
fond of this weapon hence the name.
The brass knuckles actually fold down and become the grip. It has a pinfire action
and a “bayonet” a little over an inch in length. Sighting in the barrel just seems like
it would be a bit unwieldy.
_____________
#27 Miquelets were
unconventional soldiers, mainly
from Catalonia, who fought in a
number of Spanish revolts.
Webster also defines the word
as bandit, some apparently
engaging in criminal activity of
the day.
#27-Spanish miquelet pocket
pistol, .60 cal, ca 1750
An early revolt in 1640 called the Reapers’ War was recounted in a song that
became the source of their national anthem. The Free Company of Volunteers of
Catalonia were Miquelets, and came as soldiers to the
west coast of America and British Colombia
to serve New Spain’s interests around 1767.
Catalonian born Gaspar de Portola, of the
Spanish Army, was named Governor of Las
Californias in 1768. Did he carry one of
these? It is also a term used for a particular
type of Spanish flintlock or snaplock.
38
The patilla is the classic Spanish miquelet gun lock.
Photo courtesy Dana Williams.
#11 The name Elgin
derived from the fact it was
made from George Elgins’
patent. Only 150 pistols
were made. These
smoothbore octagonal barrel
pistol/Bowie type knife combinations were #11 - Elgin Cutlass pistol, .41 cal, ca 1840-1860
ordered by the US Navy for what came to be known as the Wilkes South Seas
Exploring Expedition which was a scientific mission that gave us much.
According to navalhistory.org, the original ships
Vincennes, Peacock, Porpoise and the Relief set
out to map out what existed and what didn’t in
the Southern Ocean, resulting in the discovery
that Antarctica was a continent. During the four
year voyage, while mapping the Fiji Islands,
Captain Wilkes nephew, Midshipman Wilkes
Henry and a lieutenant were killed by natives on
Malolo. Rock Island Auctions had an Elgin
Cutlass piece a few years ago, noting the incident, and said on July 24, 1840 Midshipman
Henry was using a cutlass covering the retreat of
a landing party when he was killed. Delving into
this part of history, it is easy to picture one of
these in the hands of a 20 years younger Wilkes.
Portrait of Rear Admiral Charles Wilkes,
Your thoughts wander back to the time when
officer of the Federal Navy
ca 1860-1865
someone wouldn’t think of leaving home without
Library of Congress
their flintlock knife pistol, or perhaps an ivory
stocked version. Where did these come from? Who carried these?
#20 - Ivory stocked Flintlock
Pistol, .40 cal, ca 1800-1830.
Cudgel grip with deep carvings of
Swiss & templar knight symbols
#12 - Flintlock knife pistol
Keep in mind this is one
case in one gallery; this
gallery alone has 16 cases
which display everything
from a roomful of
Gatlings, to a Lancaster 4
barrel shotgun, to firearms
owned by John F.
Kennedy, Annie Oakley and Hermann Goering, to a Rodda exhibition piece with
fully rifled Damascus barrels and gold plated furniture. After you get through the
Robert Petersen Gallery, you have 15 more to go. Enjoy!
39
Article and photos by Lenée Landis
We can’t tell you how good Elizabeth “Plinky” Toepperwein
(aka Topperwein) was—we leave it to Annie Oakley, 22 years her senior.
Annie Oakley told her, “Mrs. Top, you’re the greatest shot I’ve ever seen.”
Adolph “Ad” Toepperwein held incredible shooting records. Together, Ad
and Plinky toured on the shooting circuit in the early 1900s and continued
for the next 40 years. They were the Fabulous Toepperweins, exhibition
shooters for the Winchester Repeating Arms Company.
The Early Years
Born Elizabeth Servaty in 1882 in Connecticut, she met her husband to be,
Adolph “Ad” Toepperwein, while working in an ammo factory in 1901. They
were married in 1903 and embarked on a fabulous life, doing what they
loved together, until her death in San Antonio, TX (his hometown) in 1945.
Elizabeth had never shot a gun but wanted to learn as she didn’t want to
stay home while he traveled for exhibitions. Ad introduced her to shooting
and never looked back. She would come to be known as Plinky after she hit
a tin can target and called out “I plinked it!” She said it again and again,
maybe in glee as most of us remember when we first learned to shoot.
As a young man, Adolph “Ad” Toepperwein, taught himself to shoot like
Doc Carver, a record holding exciting shooter in that day. Ad began doing
shooting exhibitions around San Antonio. He was a cartoonist for the local
paper as well, and his artistic talent later came to light in his shooting and
differentiated him from other shooting acts as he would shoot the shape of
an Indian head by well placed bullet holes into the target. People loved
them and came to see him shoot. He became part of a vaudeville act and
continued his trick shooting and bullet painting until Winchester noticed
his feats and offered him a job probably because he had expressed they
made his favorite ammo.
He arrived at Winchester Repeating Arms in January 1901. He originally
was responsible for exhibitions of the product, but unfortunately not
shooting exhibitions. At one point, he had to babysit the exhibition for six
months and did not get to shoot at all.
This was hard on the man who had given shooting performances three
times a day, every day but Sunday as it was illegal to shoot on that
40
day. He persisted
and eventually was
allowed to show
Winchester’s products the way he best
could present them—
by shooting.
Within a week of first firing
a gun, Plinky was better than
most of us will ever be. It is safe to
say we will never see another
shooter like Plinky —in these days,
you’d likely be arrested on a felony
charge within the hour. But these were
the day of the Wild West shows. A few
weeks after her husband began to
teach her, she was shooting one inch
pieces of chalk from between his
fingers and splitting playing cards.
Do we really need to say DO NOT TRY ANY OF THIS??
DON’T. She shot buttons off his
vest, cigarettes from his lips,
coins out of the air.
Ad continued to encourage
different aspects of her
shooting, claiming she had a
rock steady hand when it came
to offhand shooting. She became
proficient with pistol, rifle and
shotgun. Six months after she
first took a shot, she was part of
the Winchester team as an exhibition shooter.
At the St. Louis World Fair in
1904, Plinky shot 967 out of
1000 clay targets and set a
record—in an hour and a half.
Trapshooting was her favorite,
(and she would be inducted into
the Trapshooting Hall of Fame
in 1969.) She broke 100 targets
out of 100 with her Winchester
97, and was the first woman to do
that. She would do this over
Photo courtesy George Grantham Bain Collection, Bain News Service, Library of Congress, circa 1910-1915
200 times. She held the World Endurance Record in trap, breaking 1952
targets out of 2,000 in 5 hours and 20 minutes.
In 1906, she showed up in line at Sea Girt for the NRA military shoot—
no fanfare as there is today. To their credit, they registered her and she
competed with hundreds of men, the first woman to qualify as a marksman
with a military rifle.
She had many
dimensions—according to
Dick Baldwin, whose
columns appeared in Trap
and Field Magazine, was
Museum Director, and
wrote books such as the
Fabulous Topperweins and
The Road to Yesterday, and
to whom we are indebted
for his ability to capture
their spirit and detail
their adventures—she
was a great cook, had
occasion to sing and was
told by John Phillips
Sousa she could sing with
him if she gave up her
day job. She embroidered
a huge linen tablecloth on
which the pattern had the
names of the cities they
traveled to, drawn out by
the artistic Ad. She also
shot a rat in the hotel room
where they stayed when
the clerk refused to move
them.
Case 45 display
dedicated to the
Topperweins at the
NRA Museum in
Fairfax, VA.
Adolph and Elizabeth
'Plinky' Toepperwein,
Winchester
Repeating Arms
exhibition shooters.
Exhibition shooting had its
heyday in the first half of
the 20th century. They
traveled from town to town
by train and shot in all kinds of weather and persisted even in pain. Plinky
made one of her records shooting with a bloody hand because the bandage
impeded her style. Ad was in excruciating pain when he set a record
shooting at 72,500 two and a half inch wood blocks, missing nine. This took
place over the course of 68½ hours over 10 days. He could have probably
kept going if spirit was the only consideration. He used up all the ammo in
the city of San Antonio.
The Topperweins were talented and independent. I wish I could have
seen them at work.
42
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43
By: Robert Dunn
ROSSI
Rossi is a Brazilian firearms manufacturer founded by Amadeo Rossi in 1889
and operating today. You've got to be doing something right for a company to
survive for that long and still be run by the same family! Rossi firearms used
to be distributed by Interarms in Alexandria, Virginia, until 1997, when
BrazTech International L.C. was created to be the North American importer of
Rossi firearms. During this same time period, the manufacturing conglomerate,
Forjas Taurus purchased the equipment and the rights to manufacture Rossi
handguns. The Rossi handguns manufactured by Taurus are built in the
industrial city of São Leopoldo, Brazil. The "classic rifles" made by Rossi are
also manufactured in Brazil.
Rossi revolver
Until recently, the only Rossi firearm I had ever shot was
one of their old revolvers, as that was what my brother had
around for a little home defense gun. Whenever I go to Atlanta
we usually bring the Rossi revolver to the range with us. I enjoy
shooting the .38 Special cartridge from a snub nosed gun, as do my nephews!
Circuit Judge .45 Long Colt/.410 GA,
18.5" barrel, tactical black synthetic stock
Taurus had great success with their Judge revolver, so it
makes sense that Rossi came out with the Circuit Judge rifle. This single
action/double action firearm, like the Judge revolver, can fire .45 Colt
Ammunition and both 3-inch magnum and 2.5-inch .410 shotgun cartridges.
44 The Circuit Judge is available in various calibers and stock configurations.
The Rossi product line includes many different lever action rifles, revolvers
and various single shot pistols, rifles and shotguns. The "W" is quite an
interesting single shot firearm that can be configured to fire 23 different
calibers by simply changing barrels! Rossi's interchangeable barrel system can
allow you to use one "W" stock to hunt all year around. You can turn the gun
into a muzzle loader, a shotgun, a rifle, or even a .22 Rimfire! There are no
tools needed to change barrels with their innovative one screw system. The
scope base and hammer extension allow you to easily mount and use a scope.
The gun utilizes a transfer bar, a manual safety, as well as the Taurus Security
System to make this a fun and safe gun to shoot.
The innovative "W" allows you to hunt
with one gun all season.
Another really cool gun is the Ranch Hand! If you have ever seen
Steve McQueen's "Mares Leg" rifle he uses in the television series, “Wanted
Dead or Alive,” well, the Rossi Ranch Hand is a spitting image of that gun.
The Ranch Hand
The gun was also
referred to as the Winchester Randall or
the Randall Special, as Josh Randall was
the name of Steve McQueen's character
in the show. The Ranch Hand is a
handy lever action firearm that resembles a cut down Winchester Model 92.
You might be thinking, "Heck, I could take a Model 92 and just cut the barrel
and stock down myself" and indeed you could if you like calling a Federal
Penitentiary home! Before you go chopping away at your Model 92, you
should tighten things up with BATFE and seek their guidance on how to
properly register this type of "project gun."
To me it would be much easier to buy a brand new Rossi "handgun" called
the Ranch Hand! The gun has a six shot tube magazine, it weighs four pounds
and has a 12 inch barrel. It is available in the following pistol calibers:
.38 Special/.357 Magnum, .44 magnum and .45 Colt. These guns can be
ordered with standard or oversized loop levers and blued or case colored
receivers. I would really like to own one of these portable guns myself.
Rossi has a lot to offer to the
shooter/hunter. I had a chance to visit their
booth a few times at the SHOT Show and
they are passionate about their firearms. To
read, order or download the Rossi Full Line
Catalog, visit their website at
www.rossiusa.com
Robert Dunn is an American Gunsmithing
Institute Graduate, AGI Video Producer and
Gun Club of America Silver Member
45
The Official History of Smith & Wesson
S&W Historian Roy Jinks knows more about the history of
Smith & Wesson than anyone alive. He is a treasure trove of
really interesting facts and stories about both the founders of
this American Firearms icon and their key employees. How
particular guns were made, why particular guns were made,
and whose ideas they were - all of this company folklore just
rolls off the top of his head. Roy shares his extensive collection of rare S&W pistols, photos and documents and takes us
on a private guided tour of the S&W Factory Museum. You
will see Daniel Wesson’s original office - just as he left it!
DVD#2154 $59.95 plus s/h
Brass Member Price: $53.95 • GCA Silver Member Price: $47.96
Long Range Shooting Course teaches
you how to consistently hit targets
from 200-800 yards!
Long range shooting expert Darrell Holland takes you through
a course of instruction guaranteed to improve your long range
shooting skills. The initial discussion focuses on the rifle,
ballistics, cartridges and bullets. Judging range and equipment
calibration are covered, along with a selection of optics and
range finders. Shooting techniques are covered from the point of both a hunter and a
tactical shooter. We are so sure you will benefit from this course that if you use the
methods in this course and don’t significantly improve your ability to shoot
at long ranges, we will give you a FULL Refund - no questions asked.
1 Year
Satisfaction
104 min. DVD#3224 $39.95 plus s/h
GUARANTEE
GCA Brass Price: $35.96 • GCA Silver Member Price: $31.96
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AGI DVD
Discover the secrets of repairing, modifying and
customizing your firearms quickly and easily . . .
Practical Gunsmithing Course
You get everything
shown here!
This course teaches you the insider secrets of master
gunsmiths and quickly teaches you the shortcuts, tips
and tricks used by the pros! If you are not ready yet
to invest in the complete AGI Professional
Gunsmithing Course but want to continue to build
your gunsmithing skills and be able to do dozens of
different repairs, then the Practical Gunsmithing
Course is the perfect “next step” for you! It is not a requirement in the State of California to
obtain a Gunsmithing Certificate to practice gunsmithing; however, possessing Gunsmithing
Certification will demonstrate a proven level of competence. A Federal Firearms License and
State Licenses are required to operate a gunsmithing business.
Certification not available to residents of Oklahoma.
Regular Price: $597.00 • GCA Brass Price: $537.00
GCA Silver Member Price: $477.00
Receive a
personalized
certificate!
46
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BEYOND EXPERT
TRIPLING MILITARY
SHOOTING SKILLS
by: JOHN BUOL
Rumpf # B-7624 PAPERBACK
List Price: $18.00
GCA Member Price: $12.60 S/H $5
In this book, three-time All-Army Champion,
distinguished marksman with both rifle and pistol,
and small-arms instructor Sergeant First Class John
M. Buol, Jr. proves that with thoughtful practice
even a shooter—military or civilian—qualifying as
"expert" can develop a threefold increase in shooting skill. The training is
simple, requiring a minimum outlay of equipment, expense, and time, but the
results are staggering. Not hyperbole or a careless boast, these methods will
teach you how to precisely measure marksmanship ability and develop a
300 percent jump in skill. 154 Pages PB
LONG RANGE
PRECISION RIFLE
by: ANTHONY CIRINCIONE
Rumpf # B-7611 PAPERBACK
List Price: $20.00
GCA Member Price: $14.00 S/H $5
A U.S. Army sniper, and avid precision rifle and
long-range rifle shooter, competitor, and
enthusiast, Cirincione has 26 months' worth of
combat deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan,
and has trained multiple groups of squaddesignated marksmen for his battalion. In this
book, he lays out an easily understood method for getting the most out of
whatever rifle you are using. After discussing rifle, ammunition, and optic
selection, he reveals his tried-and-true methods of gathering and recording
data. He takes you step-by-step through the process of discovering how to
make your rifle perform at its peak with every shot. In this book you will also
learn how to adjust for environmental factors and obstructions that lie between
you and your target, and discover why hand loading and building your own
precision cartridges is an extra step well worth taking. 156 Pages PB
To order these great books call GCA at 1-800-797-0867 and ask for Stacy.
GCA Members receive 30% OFF select books!
If you have a request for a book you would like to see in the firearms or outdoor field
of interest, let me know. Email me at: [email protected]
47
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