We’ve been covering the Palm Pistol since the asthma inhaler-a-like firearm hit the net in July 2010. To say that inventor Matthew Carmel was unhappy with TTAG readers’ lack of enthusiasm for the concept would be like saying I was disappointed Barbara Palvin failed to make the scene at the latest Victoria’s Secret fashion show. Since then (the Palm Pistol’s introduction) Carmel’s been struggling to get his baby off the ground. I received an email blast update today, posted after the jump. If persistence is the key to success, four years on, Carmel’s bound to prove the Armed Intelligentsia wrong. At least in theory . . .

Dear Potential Palm Pistol Customer:

Further progress has been made since our May 2014 update. The current part count, exclusive of optional accessories, stands at 69 custom machined parts; and stock pins, screws and springs. A total of 43 out of the 69 are on hand in finished production quantities. A finish coating design change was made. Now, only the barrel, frame and receiver will be Cerakoted in Shimmer Gold (H-153Q). The other externally visible metals parts will be nickel plated stainless. We have baselined the receiver, latch, frame, trigger bars and safety bars and are waiting on delivery of these parts. The longest lead time and outstanding parts remaining are those that will be plastic injection molded. These will be baselined shortly so that tooling production can be started.

We current are testing different barrel rifling twist rates at various lengths to determine the optimum combination for maximum muzzle velocity and minimized keyholing while keeping the barrel as short as possible. The ejector rod throw length was increased to make extraction of spent casings easier by allowing finger nail access behind the rim.

We have succeeded in sourcing all parts production with US domestic companies. Raw materials are either domestically produced or from a DFARS complaint country. Attorney review opined this meets the FTC “all or substantially all” definition of “Made in the US” claims.

We have updated the Palm Pistol (www.palmpistol.com) and Constitution Arms websites (www.constitutionarms.com). The latter includes a shop for T-shirts and hoodies with our logo. We also had a slight QC issue with one vendor who made the sear. Rather than scrap these, they were Sterling Silver plated and made into necklace pendants. These might make a nice holiday gift for that special someone : )

A Palm Pistol Facebook page has been created at www.facebook.com/palmpistol. A photo of some of the fabricated parts has been posted. Our plan is to provide future updates, perhaps more frequently as interesting news develops, via this method rather than sending out blast opt-in emails. Those who wish to continue receiving updates should visit the Facebook website and “like” us.

Have a happy holiday season.

Matt Carmel, President
Constitution Arms
mcarmel@constitutionarms.com

When we asked for a model to review, we got the following email this afternoon from Matt Carmel:

I won’t have production units until next year. Since I want to avoid any controversy about testing non-production models and accusations of bait and switch, this will have to wait. Also, I am only producing 500 standard units and 20 special editions (gold plated, hand engraved, custom presentation box, etc.) so I am not going to have any extras. If the first run sells out, I will have a second larger production run.

The post Palm Pistol Soldiers On appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

Accuse us of favoritism all you want, but our fingers were nowhere near the scale on this one. With just over 20% of the vote, SIG SAUER’s P320 has been duly elected as our reader’s favorite new handgun of 2014. The striker fired offering from SIG SAUER features a unique chassis system that allows just about every feature of the gun to be changed out and customized, and all of the replacement kits can be sent straight to your door including new grips. Plus, the steeper grip angle and typical SIG SAUER craftsmanship make it a pleasure to shoot.

For those interested in such things, the full results for this year’s awards can be found here. Keep in mind that respondents were given the option to vote or skip each section individually, and items which were not released (or announced, or started production, or were “new” in any way) for 2014 have been removed from the top of the list. As you can see, with the P320, it wasn’t even close — people seem to really like it, getting nearly three times as many votes as the GLOCK 42. And 10 times as many votes as the Remington R51. No matter how much money Remington and GLOCK pumped into their marketing campaigns, SIG SAUER beat out the competition with a solid product.

TTAG Readers’ Choice Awards methodology

The poll was conducted using a custom polling application which presented each respondent with a list of options for each category. Respondents could either select from the list, choose not to respond, or add an additional option at the bottom. Any added items would be displayed to all subsequent respondents (any item worthy of “Item of the Year” would, in theory, be added fairly quickly by respondents). Items which were not relevant (outside the time frame or irrelevant responses, like “my homemade ammo” for best ammo of the year) were periodically removed, and all associated votes for that item in that category were eliminated as well. Respondents were discouraged from voting multiple times by having their IP address recorded and banned from making subsequent responses. The polling period lasted 7 full days and elicited 1,104 responses.

The post TTAG 2014 Reader’s Choice Award, Best New Handgun: SIG SAUER P320 appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

There’s something Fishy about this video, which shows how Ruger assembles their righteous GP100 revolver. I’ll leave it to you to figure it out. Meanwhile, one of the main reasons we like Ruger’s more expensive products (as well as FNH-USA’s not-so-terribly-pricey-anymore pistols): the people who make them take pride in what they do. When it comes to manufacturing quality guns, there’s no substitute for employing well-trained, well-paid, highly-motivated, closely-supervised factory workers. At the same time . . .

you want a firearm from a company that operates on one simple principle: if a gun doesn’t meet spec, if it doesn’t function exactly as it should, it doesn’t go down the line, or out the door. As for companies that don’t, well, the R51 died for that sin. So now you know.

The post Ruger GP100: How It’s Made appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

Do you own a GLOCK? A 1911? Well if you do, MechTech Systems of Kalispell, Montana has a C.C.U. for you. That’s Carbine Conversion Unit and it does just that — converts your pistol into a carbine with an ATF-legal 16″ barrel, a stock, and rail space for optics and accessories. It isn’t a firearm, which means it can ship right to your door, all without changing the Federal classification of your handgun. Sounds great on paper, but does it actually work? . . .

Spoiler alert: Yes, it works. Wonderfully. Quality, accuracy, reliability…all awesome. You’ll still find a full review below, but the dozen-word version is that any GLOCK or 1911 owner should have at least one MechTech CCU in their stable.

CLICK ANY PHOTO TO EXPAND

How It Works

MechTech’s CCU is a new “upper” for your pistol. In the case of GLOCK, this means small frame (9mm, .40 S&W, .357 Sig, or .45 GAP) or large frame (10mm or .45 ACP) — click here for the list of compatible frames. Perhaps the coolest benefit here is that the small or large GLOCK frames are identical regardless of caliber, so you can get a CCU in any or all calibers that match your frame. In my case, I chose to use my G20SF and MechTech was kind enough to loan me both a 10mm and a .45 ACP CCU. The 1911 offers quite a lot of same-frame caliber swapping ability as well, so your .45 may work with a 1911 CCU in 9mm, .38 Super, .40 S&W, 10mm, .45 ACP, or .460 Rowland.

Field strip that GLOCK or 1911 and the frame is ready to install. In the case of a GLOCK, you’ll need to pop the MechTech Feed Ramp onto the locking block.

During assembly it’s held in place by a small magnet, and once the frame and CCU are joined it’s physically pinned in by the CCU’s barrel.

Lock the CCU’s bolt back by pushing the charging knob into the cutouts in the channel:

Line up the slide rails with the notches in the CCU’s body:

Finally, push the frame forwards until it slightly compresses the rubber bump stop at front and the factory locking tabs click up into place, locking the frame to the CCU in a very factory GLOCK-like manner.

Et voila, you have a carbine!

Functionally, the MechTech CCU is a straight blowback-operated unit like nearly all pistol caliber carbines. It utilizes a heavy bolt to slightly retard and to control rearward movement, and it also has a nice, thick, rubber recoil/bolt stop at the rear.

Extractor, ejector, and firing pin are all contained in the CCU, of course.

Legality

In this case it is legal to convert your pistol into a rifle configuration and then back into a pistol configuration. The BATFE ruled:

Held further, a firearm, as defined by 26 U.S.C. 5845(a)(3) and (a)(4), is not made
when a pistol is attached to a part or parts designed to convert the pistol into a rifle with a
barrel of 16 inches or more in length, and the parts are later unassembled in a configuration
not regulated under the NFA (e.g., as a pistol).

While it’s specifically illegal to turn a rifle into a pistol, in the case of the CCU the “firearm” part of the system is a pistol and was manufactured as a pistol. Connecting it to the CCU isn’t altering the design of the pistol itself at all, it’s only temporarily switching to rifle configuration via an attachment. No permanent change or redesign is made. ATF ruling is here and further explanation is on MechTech’s forum here.

Build

As near as I can tell, the body of the MechTech CCU is a powder-coated piece of conduit or other pipe. It’s basically what I was expecting of the entire build of this thing, but all of the interior components pleasantly surprised me with materials quality and machining quality above and beyond what I thought I’d find.

Most of the components that are machined by MechTech and added inside of that pipe body are made of stainless steel, including the heavy-profile, button-rifled barrel, the entire insert that includes the breech area, the bolt, etc. The machining is really top notch, and I’ve done a disservice to MechTech by taking my photos after shooting and dirtying up the CCUs.

I was truly very pleased and a bit surprised to see and feel the quality going on inside of the CCU here.

The barrel alone looks like something that would cost a healthy portion of the CCU’s entire MSRP were it an aftermarket AR-15 upgrade part.

Customize This

As you can see in the lead photos, there are different stocks and different rails on each of my CCUs. One has a flash hider and one does not. MechTech offers a whole bunch of custom configuration options and accessories that can be added to the base model CCU. Primarily, you’ll want to choose your accessory rail configuration and your butt stock. Although I really dig the telescoping wire stock with nice rubber butt pad that’s on my 10mm CCU, the option to order it with an M4 buffer tube adapter probably wins out as it opens up near-infinite options for any stock that fits an AR-15.

I do like the “Mini Rail Kit” that’s on the 10mm one, as it provides a full-length top rail with a comfortable grip on bottom plus some short rail sections out front, while weighing less than the “Quad Rail” on the .45 ACP example. When I order up my own, I may go for the standard config (6″ rail section above the action) plus the “Mini Quad” out front to leave my options open but further reduce weight.

Unfortunately, MechTech does not offer barrel threading (muzzle devices from them are pressed on). Too many size and pitch possibilities to tool up to accommodate, basically. I do wish they’d consider threading for the three most popular pistol sizes, though: 1/2×28, 16×1 LH, and 0.578×28. This would cover most or all of the calibers that can be shot through the CCU, and definitely covers the two subsonic calibers (9×19 and .45 ACP). Purchasers would pay for this service. I know I would. Many do it later, of course, and simply take their CCUs to a local gunsmith or machine shop.

Disassembly

So there’s really no “field stripping” of the CCU. For the most part, you’re expected to clean what you can access with the bolt forwards and/or locked to the rear. This does give you the ability to clean the barrel and clean and lube most of the moving parts and friction surfaces. As it’s a straight blowback action, it doesn’t really require the level of cleaning that most firearms with locking mechanisms are going to need.

That said, it would be nice if a simple field strip were possible. When you decide you want to take the parts out, you have to truly disassemble the CCU and it isn’t quick or something you could do “in the field” without tools and some time.

Accuracy

Although all CCUs in all calibers receive 1:16″ twist rifling, I found accuracy to be exemplary in both the slow-moving .45 ACP and screamingly velocious 10mm (more on 10mm velocity out of a 16″ bbl soon). Where I set up in the woods I was only able to stretch out to 50 yards, but I hit my FBI Q target, which was at a 45* oblique angle and therefore even smaller than its full 12″ width, with boring ease and regularity from standing.

On a sandbag rest at the indoor range, 5-shot groups from the .45 ACP at 25 yards looked like this:

I did not officially accuracy test the 10mm CCU, but thought it was shooting just a tad tighter based on my time in the woods. The one 5-shot group I managed to put on paper was ruined by a shooter-induced flyer:

10mm from a 16.25″ Barrel

Thanks to one trip to the woods without a 9-volt battery for the chronograph, two with lousy weather — skies so dark my chronograph wouldn’t read — plus one failed attempt to get chronograph readings under the fluorescent lights at the indoor range, and then the pending arrival (and then arrival) of the wife’s and my second little girl when the weather finally took a turn for sunny skies, I was totally unable to get chronograph readings for over a month. This simply would not do, as I know 10mm gains substantial velocity out of a longer barrel and I just had to quantify that for myself and for y’all.

In a moment of brilliance (I have low standards for myself), I hit up ShootingTheBull410, who arguably has the very best ballistics testing channel on YouTube. Of course he’d like to borrow the 10mm CCU for some ballistics testing! With MechTech’s blessing, I shipped it off to STB410 along with a sampling of ammo and my G20 “upper” so he could get factory velocity readings with the use of his G21 frame. Keep an eye on TTAG here and on STB’s channel in the future if you’re as excited to see gel block testing of 10mm through the MechTech CCU as I am. For the time being, here’s what STB saw for velocity gains:

Factory Barrel (4.6″ bbl) Averages:

Buffalo Bore 180 grn JHP: 1,292 fps — 667 ft-lbs
Underwood 220 grn Hard Cast Lead (my woods carry load): 1,134 fps — 628 ft-lbs
DoubleTap 165 grn Bonded JHP: 1,301 fps — 620 ft-lbs

MechTech Upper (16.25″ bbl) Averages:

Buffalo Bore 180 grn JHP: 1,603 fps — 1,026.8 ft-lbs
Underwood 220 grn HCLFP: 1,359 fps — 902 ft-lbs
DoubleTap 165 grn JHP: 1,630 fps — 973.2 ft-lbs
Bonus: .40 S&W Liberty “HALO Point” (now “Civil Defense”) 60 grn HP: 2,569 fps — 879 ft-lbs

Average velocity increase (not including the Liberty load) was 288.3 fps and the average kinetic energy increase was a whopping 329 ft-lbs (51.54% increase). Probably time to go hog hunting.

On The Range

MechTech’s CCU is a joy to shoot. It’s everything you’d want from a pistol caliber carbine, if a touch on the heavy side — balanced towards the muzzle end. Recoil is very tame and ergonomics are pretty solid. The pistol locks in securely and the whole assembled unit feels like it was designed this way rather than assembled out of two halves from two companies.

Feeding from the magazine is perfect. Walking the bolt forwards as slowly as possible results in rounds stripped out of the mag and aimed just right so they slide into the chamber and up the bolt face with a bare minimum of resistance — better than in most pistols. Firing and ejection was also flawless, with perfectly-dented primers and consistent ejection across the board. I suffered zero stoppages of any sort in either caliber, which included shooting in heavy rain on one trip and in below-freezing temps on another.

A straight blowback action wouldn’t typically be recommended for high-pressure calibers, but all of my 10mm brass looked flawless, to include a couple of mags worth of two different Underwood loads and one mag of Buffalo Bore hollow points. In fact, the brass looked much better than when shot through the factory GLOCK barrel. No GLOCK “smile” at all, thanks to better chamber support. It seems that the bolt is definitely heavy enough to allow pressures to drop before the case backs out of the chamber.

Much to the dismay of the TTAG hall monitors and other safety 1st, 2nd, and 3rd types, I’m one of those guys who shoots tons of .40 S&W through a completely factory GLOCK 20. If anyone cares to know why I believe it to be safe — safer, even, than shooting 10mm through a 10mm GLOCK or .40 through a .40 — I’ll create a separate article on the topic. If you would, please save your derisive comments or friendly debate or questions on the subject for that article (just let me know here if that’s of interest or you can e-mail me at GunsAndGearEJ20 [ at) gmail if you want to see it but don’t want to derail the comments here away from the CCU itself). Anyway… after inspection I chose to run some .40 S&W through the 10mm CCU and it functioned completely flawlessly and the brass looked perfect. Once again, it looked better than .40 S&W brass fired through a GLOCK (whether through a .40 barrel or a 10mm barrel) due to the improved chamber support.

Conclusion

The appeal of owning a carbine and a pistol that not only shoot the same caliber but accept the same magazines has always been strong for me. I love the idea of a “bug out bag” outfitted ‘thusly.’ MechTech’s CCU really takes that one step further by providing a carbine that isn’t even a firearm, which means it ships right to your door with no FFL and it’s particularly sleek since it has no firing control, frame, or grip components. The ability to use one frame to shoot a handful of calibers is another nice bonus.

It’s mighty potent and accurate in 10mm, but I’m not going to hunt with it so when I go to purchase one of these for myself I’m going to stick with a subsonic caliber for shooting suppressed. As I don’t own a .45 can, it’ll be 9mm. I may pick up a double-stack 9mm 1911 for the job. As durable and versatile as a GLOCK is, I think I want this bad boy for a 1911 due to the quality of the trigger pull and the option for a manual safety. With all of this taken into account, a double-stack 1911 is likely my ideal setup. That said, I don’t own a small frame GLOCK at the moment and if I already had one that would likely change the math.

Every GLOCK or 1911 owner should have a MechTech CCU to go with it. Simple as that. It’s a disservice to yourself not to.

Specifications: MechTech CCU

Caliber: Many available
Capacity: Same as your pistol can accept
Barrel length: 16.25″
Overall length: Varies from under 24″ to over 33″ depending on stock choice and adjustment setting
Weight: 5.3 lbs in lightest, “basic” configuration
MSRP: $399.95 in “basic” configuration plus any additional accessories

Ratings (Out of Five Stars): 

Accuracy: * * * * 
It’s no bench rest rifle but for a relatively inexpensive carbine conversion adapter, it’s really excellent.

Ergonomics: * * * * 
Your pistol has some bearing here. The GLOCK part still feels like a GLOCK. Otherwise, the frame-to-CCU interface, angle, and location feel just right. Everything else feels like it should, and the option to use any AR-15 butt stock really opens things up for ergonomics. I’m taking off one star just because it’s a bit nose heavy.

Reliability: * * * * *
Flawless for me, and the straight blowback action should run just about anything without stopping.

Customize This: * * * * *
Tons of factory options for rail configurations, accessories, butt stocks, and more. With the AR-15 buffer tube adapter, the sky’s the limit there. You’ll have to get it threaded for muzzle attachments after you receive it, though.

Overall: * * * * *
Awesome. The versatility and quality you get starting at $399.95 is worth every penny.

The post Gear/Gun Review: MechTech C.C.U. (Carbine Conversion Unit) appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

TTAG never holds posts for more than a day; even the “evergreens.” Not so fool.com. Writer Rich Smith’s post on the competition for the Army’s new sidearm sat on the sidelines for almost a week, during which time TTAG’s post on the Army’s decision to punt Beretta from the competition to replace the Beretta 92 appeared. His prose may be delayed by bureaucracy but he’s no fool, our Rich. Smith sees Smith & Wesson’s November hook-up with General Dynamics as part of a clever strategy to win the Army’s handgun contract . . .

General Dynamics is more than just a gunmaker. (It’s a tank maker, and a maker of nuclear submarines, and of surface warships, too). General D is also a major manufacturer of ammunition for the military, supplying hundreds of millions of rounds of small-caliber (and large-caliber) ammunition annually. According to General Dynamics’ most recent 10-K filing with the SEC, munitions and armaments contributed $1.8 billion in revenues to the company’s $6.1 billion Combat Systems business (data from S&P Capital IQ).

As such, the company is almost uniquely situated to cater to the Pentagon’s preference for a new caliber of ammunition more effective than the M882 9mm standard (.357 SIG, .40 S&W, and .45 ACP rounds are rumored to be under consideration), perhaps specially designed to work well in a new pistol from Smith & Wesson. Or, an alliance between the two companies might be able to offer the Pentagon a “deal” on the up-front cost of handguns, hoping to make it up later on selling the Pentagon bullets. Because as any gun owner can tell you, over the lifetime of a gun, you spend a lot more on the bullets than on the gun itself. (We call this the razor-and-blade business model.)

Meanwhile, the “discussion” on the appropriate caliber for the next gen military sidearm rages on. The comments underneath Rich’s post are rich with high caliber kvetching.

Not to poke that bear (much), but I reckon that “buy American” has political power and the military has an uncanny ability to pick the worst of all mil-spec options. I’m betting Smith gets the gig (over GLOCK and FNH-USA and the rest) with .40 S&W becoming the caliber of choice. You?

The post Smith & Wesson Using Razor Blade Strategy to Win Army Contract? appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

John M. Browning designed the .380 cartridge. To quote Michael Caine, not a lot of people know that. Browning’s Scott Grange (above) touts this fact as he promotes his employer’s new JMB design-based .380-caliber 1911. Apparently, the company’s .22-caliber 1911 was a huge hit; fans clamored for a centerfire version. Et voila! The Right 380. The new gun’s an 85 percent version of a full-size 1911 sporting both an ambidextrous frame-mounted safety (the Left 380?) and a grip safety. The Right 380’s extra weight, low bore axis and “crisp light trigger” should continue the 1911’s rep as the best gun to shoot someone with – and one of the worst not shoot someone with. What with the safety, I reckon expert/committed-to-train shooters need apply. Just sayin’. X-ray video of the new gun after the jump . . .

The post New From Browning: Browning 1911-380, The Right 380 appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

“A Brooklyn man who claimed the police manufactured gun-possession charges against him had his case dismissed on Thursday, amid two investigations into the practices of a group of police officers in the 67th Precinct in East Flatbush,” nytimes.com reports. “The officers claimed that they got a tip from a confidential informer that Mr. Herring had a gun. Prosecutors had been instructed to bring the informer to court on Thursday; the defense had challenged whether that informer even existed. At the hearing, prosecutors offered no evidence or mention of that informer.” A red herring for Herring? Only it’s not so funny, especially when we learn that . . .

In researching the case, a lawyer for Mr. Herring, Debora Silberman of Brooklyn Defender Services, found others that mirrored it, involving the same group of police officers. In the other cases, defendants also said the guns were planted, with the police saying that officers saw the suspects storing the guns in plastic bags or handkerchiefs . . .

One man, Eugene Moore, could not afford bail. He spent a year in jail until a hearing in which a judge said he did not find the testimony from a detective, Gregory Jean-Baptiste, “to be credible” and dismissed and sealed the case. Another man, John Hooper, also spent almost a year in jail after his arrest. After a hearing in which a justice said he found it “incredible that they thought it was a gun,” speaking of the officers, prosecutors offered Mr. Hooper time served and he accepted.

Do I need to say it? I’m not against cops. I’m against bad cops. And cops that enable bad cops. (“Representatives for their unions said the officers had taken more than 300 guns off the streets.“) Does anyone seriously believe that the Brooklyn officers involved in all these cases were operating without the knowledge and approval of their superiors? Question: why aren’t the officers named in the Times’ report?

Equally, I oppose bad laws. Americans should be able to exercise their natural, civil and Constitutional right to keep and bear arms without infringement.

When the State of New York can incarcerate a citizen for carrying a gun – and nothing else – they’re pissing on the rights protected by the Constitution, to which the officers swear an oath. Is it any surprise that the agents in charge of enforcing those laws go rogue? Not to me it isn’t. You?

The post Brooklyn Cops Planting Guns. Allegedly. appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

On Friday, just before the end of the work day, the ATF released a bombshell of a declaration. In their opinion the previous letters claiming SB Tactical’s stabilizing arm brace is perfectly legal were actually completely wrong, and they decided to completely reverse their decision and make the misuse of the item illegal. It’s a landmark change, since this concept (that the use of an object determines what it is rather than its intrinsic qualities) has never been applied to firearms ever in the history of the world. It would seem to some like this is the end of the line barring some legal challenge after an arrest, but there is one last card up SB Tactical’s sleeve: Declaratory Relief.

The concept is pretty straightforward. There’s a provision in U.S. law that allows for a company to bend the ear of a judge and force the government agency to reverse their decision, and it has actually been used successfully as recently as 2014. First, here are the relevant bits of law (teased out of the court documents):

28 U.S.C. § 2201(a) provides in pertinent part “In a case of actual controversy within its jurisdiction, […] any court of the United States, upon the filing of an appropriate pleading, may declare the rights and other legal relations of any interested party seeking such declaration, whether or not further relief is or could be sought. Any such declaration shall have the force and effect of a final judgment or decree and shall be reviewable as such.”

5 U.S.C. § 702 provides that “[a] person suffering legal wrong because of agency action, or adversely affected or aggrieved by agency action within the meaning of a relevant statute, is entitled to judicial review thereof.”

5 U.S.C. § 704 provides in pertinent part that “final agency action for which there is no other adequate remedy in a court are subject to judicial review.”

5 U.S.C. § 551(13) provides that “‘agency action’ includes the whole or a part of an agency rule, order, license, sanction, relief, or the equivalent or denial thereof, or failure to act . . . .”

5 U.S.C. § 551(4) defines a “rule” as “the whole or a part of an agency statement of general or particular applicability and future effect designed to implement, interpret, or prescribe law or policy .

In short, in a situation where an autonomous government agency declares their opinion on the interpretation of a Federal law, anyone who is harmed by that declaration can seek declaratory relief from the court system. It’s a handy tool to keep people like the ATF from arbitrarily and capriciously declaring muzzle brakes as silencers (which SIG SAUER is currently fighting) or pistol braces as stocks.

The specific case referenced for this information is Innovator Enterprises Inc v B. Todd Jones (then director of the ATF). In that case, Innovator Enterprises produced a modified version of Noveske’s Flaming Pig flash suppressor to include a muzzle brake on the inside, but without sealed blast chambers. The ATF took one look at the design and declared it a silencer, much like how they took one look at SIG SAUER’s MPX muzzle brake and similarly declared it a silencer. The judge saw through the ATF’s BS and ruled that their finding was both arbitrary and capricious, invalidating the declaration and making the unholy confabulation once again legal without a tax stamp.

It is entirely possible that we are about to see a similar smackdown take place from SB Tactical. Since the logic used by the ATF is both arbitrary and capricious (their ruling is only for this one device, so using two hands to shoot a handgun would not make that object then an NFA regulated AOW despite the same logic leading to that conclusion, and the flip-floppy nature of their statements) SB Tactical has a good shot at making the ATF eat their words and allowing people to continue to use their firearms however they see fit.

The post Next Step in ATF Pistol Arm Brace Decision: Declaratory Relief appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

SHOT Show is going to delay my writing of the Dan Wesson 715 revolver review. As there was a decent amount of interest in Dan Wesson’s return to the wheel gun game here in the comments under a few CZ-related articles, in addition to Chris Dumm’s proverbial shot over CZ’s bow nearly a year ago, I figured this might be a good time for this video.

The post Coming Soon: Dan Wesson 715 Review appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

Aside from pointing out the fact that firearm designs are patented, words fail me. So here’s the inside dope from pcdcarry.com:

Perceived Carry Decoys is a veteran owned entity that offers the worlds first and only way to exercise your 2nd amendment right, without the stigma or concerns associated with owning a gun.  PCD understands that not everyone is comfortable with owning an actual firearm. But why should those feelings affect your personal safety? Now they no longer have to . . .

With the launch of Perceived Carry Decoys, you may now give off the appearance that you are toting serious heat, while in actuality you have nothing more than a one piece device attached to your hip that is as harmless as a cell phone.

You no longer have to worry about young children finding a loaded weapon. This all-in-one piece construction does not come apart. At a fraction of the price of a real firearm, you too may enjoy the benefits of carrying a weapon, without having to shell out hundreds(sometimes $1000’s) of dollars for something that statistics show probably will not and/or should not be used.

A PCD device is meant to be a means of crime deterrent, rather than a means of self defense. After all, who’s going to run up on a person with a gun?

While these are not actual firearms, their extreme resemblance to real guns tucked neatly in a holster may be enough to give you the jump on anyone who may wish to do you or your family harm.

The whole purpose of open carry is to give off the “don’t mess with me” persona. The whole purpose of Perceived Carry Decoys is to give off the appearance that you too are ready for anyone, anywhere.

No waiting for background checks, no fees for classes, permits, or ammunition, protect yours today!

Disclaimer: Perceived Carry Devices are not intended to be used in emergencies. If you find yourself in a life threatening situation, first seek safety, then dial 911 as you should when carrying a real firearm.

[h/t Dean Weingarten via ammoland.com]

The post What Could Possibly Go Wrong: Perceived Carry Decoys Edition appeared first on The Truth About Guns.

Last we heard from Caracal, their U.S. website had been hijacked and no one was answering the phone. We pronounced TOD and, finally, moved on. And yet there it was: Caracal’s bay at the 2015 SHOT Show media day. I can’t evoke the feeling of seeing the Caracal F on a table without asking a simple question: have you ever had sex with your ex? It’s a really bad idea, a ticket back on the crazy train. Even so . . . other than that, I say nothing. Except for this . . .

Caracal’s US jefe says the UAE-owned enterprise is now going to assemble their 18-round model F somewhere in Treasure Valley, Idaho. Not Alabama, as previously reported. And not the new F. The old F with a second pin in the trigger’s fulcrum to make it drop safe. And no Quick Sights. (If you don’t know, don’t ask. You’ll just want them. And you may never have them.)

Jeffrey W. Spalding says his employers will be selling the new old F “sometime in Q2″ for around $500. My nemesis – the Compact 9C – will arrive “sometime thereafter.” Meanwhile, they’re flogging $600 CC10 pistol-caliber carbine. Or are they?

The U.S. website is back, albeit “under development.” And there is no fool like an old fool.

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Last year, the R51 was quite possibly the biggest flop of the entire show. Brought out to much fanfare and marketing buzz, the final production guns turned out to be an unmitigated disaster. It was so bad that they stopped production halfway through the year and scrubbed all mention of the gun from their websites. This year the R51 is back, and the Remington guys say that they’ve made use of the hiatus while they move factories to re-engineer the gun using the feedback they’ve received to make it into the gun they wish they launched on day one. Included in those changes…

The magazine base plate is no longer flush with the bottom of the grip, instead it sits slightly “proud” protruding from the gun to ease insertion. The extractor has been improved to ensure better and more reliable extraction. The breech block has been plated in nickel boron to make the action smoother. The Pedersen action has been worked to improve the way the slide feels as it cycles. They’ve added a tactile reset to the trigger (or, rather, will be adding — the display models at the show were still the old trigger). And those are just the big bullet points of the changes.

Its definitely not a minor overhaul, and I’m very curious to see if the changes have fixed the gun. It sounds like they have fixed every major complaint I voiced in my review of the R51, and I’d love to give it another try. Too bad Remington hasn’t been answering our emails since the review posted.

Availability is slated for Q2/Q3 2015, as soon as the new plant in Huntsville opens its doors. Existing R51 owners who sent their guns in for repair are either being offered an accessory package with a new R51 (when available) or a new R5 handgun right now in exchange for their gun, which seems somewhat fair. Better if they got a handgun that worked in the first place, though.

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New to the market from Canik is the single action version of its TP9, called the TP9SA and imported into the US by Century Arms. An MSRP of about $399 gets you two, 18-round magazines and all of the other kit seen above. I got a little trigger time on it at the SHOT Show range day, and I must say . . .

I was impressed. It was accurate, soft-shooting, ergonomic, and the trigger was truly excellent. Right up there in the realm of the VP9 and PPQ. It ran smoothly and reliably for me despite being good and dirty. Of course, I only put two mags through it. Hopefully a full TTAG review will come later, but I have high hopes. Particularly at this price with some premium features and an excellent trigger, it should be a market success.

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I rolled into Las Vegas two days early because the distributor in my truck started acting up and cut my coyote hunting trip short.  So while I was here, I decided to check out a few of the local gun shops in town. One of the stores I visited was the Gun Garage. Looking at their display case, one item really caught my eye: an Arsenal RS-1 GRAD-style .22 Short 6 shot revolver . . .

Gun Garage has a knowledgeable staff, and a decent collection of rifles, pistols, and tactical accessories for sale, as well. Perhaps the biggest draw for tourists, however, is its very nice (clean, modern, well lit etc.) indoor range and rental guns, which include a good selection of pistols and full-auto SMGs and assault rifles. They even had a shuttle to ferry customers to and from the Strip.  But I didn’t try out the range, because we will be firing tons of guns at Media Range Day using “OPM,” so I will save my $$$ for other Vegas attractions!

In any event, I couldn’t resist sharing photos of this neat little contraption. Although arguably novel and impractical, this is the type of James Bond gadgetry I love. A buddy of mine has a Zippo lighter that fires a .22 short, but this thing is even cooler: A knife that fires 6 shots of .22 short!

In the photo below, you can see the 6-chamber cylinder and the other internals.

The business end has a small sharp spike, which is intended to remind the shooter to keep his or her fingers away from the muzzle:

Here you can see the trigger in its firing position. Pushing the trigger down (i.e. towards the knife handle) fires the revolver.

Before you ask, yes, this is an NFA item. It’s classified as an “Any other weapon” (“AOL”), which is a catch-all category defined as “any weapon or device capable of being concealed on the person from which a shot can be discharged through the energy of an explosive,” other than a handgun with a rifled barrel. Examples of AOWs include homemade improvised guns (aka: “zip guns”), disguised firearms (wallet guns, cane guns, knife guns, pen guns, etc), as well as any pistol that has a second vertical pistol grip intended for two handed firing.  An AOW requires a $5 BATF stamp (as opposed to the $200 stamp required for machine guns and short barreled rifles).

The price of admission, however, not cheap. $2,300.00 (plus the BATFE paperwork, and tax) takes her home. Apparently, Arsenal only made a very limited run of these gizmos, so they are pretty rare. I’ve never seen one before, but a quick “google” search pulled up some past samples for sale, and they all hovered in this ball park (2K) price range.

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Last year GLOCK went small with the GLOCK 42. This year GLOCK turned 180 degrees in the other direction by releasing the largest piece of Perfection to date: the Gen 4 G10 in 10mm.  This hand cannon will undoubtedly be well-received by both GLOCK desciples and hunters alike.  I’m thinking this pistol will be good medicine for whitetails and feral hogs . . .

Jeremy did a video walk-through of this optics ready, 6″ bbl beast with a GLOCK rep:

GLOCK’s two press releases for the Gen 4 G40 and MOS system state:

The New GLOCK G40 Gen4 in MOS Configuration 10mm Pistol 

Introducing the biggest and most powerful GLOCK to date! The G40 Gen4 in the MOS Configuration is chambered in 10mm and combines a full 6-inch barrel for an improved velocity with a magazine capacity of 15 rounds. The 6-inch barrel provides maximum velocity and increased terminal ballistics. 

The G40 Gen4 in MOS configuration is a powerful yet easily carried pistol; perfect for the outdoorsperson, hunter and sport shooter. It is designed to give the handgun hunter the ultimate choice in semi-automatic gaming pistols. The 10mm cartridge is on par with the .41 Magnum and has proven to be more than capable of taking down game such as Whitetail Deer, Russian Boar and even Feral Hogs. 

The 10mm round offers higher velocity for greater penetration. The elongated slide increases accuracy as the site radius is increased to a full 8-inches! It also ensures that the felt recoil is thus reduced. 

The G40 Gen4 is configured in MOS (Modular Optic System), making it one of the most versatile GLOCKs in the line. The MOS is a specialized platform for mounting accessory optics to the slide of the pistol. The MOS gives the shooter the ability to mount the most popular reflex sights available on the market today. Reflex sight advantages include, faster target acquisition and enhanced long-range accuracy. Beginning in January 2015, the configured MOS versions will also be available for the G34 Gen4, the G35 Gen4, and the G41 Gen4.

If you are a 10mm enthusiast, this is the pistol you have been waiting for.

 The New GLOCK MOS (Modular Optic System) Configuration

GLOCK engineers have developed the GLOCK Modular Optic System (MOS) to simplify mounting of popular optical sights without costly custom machining of the pistol’s slide. The GLOCK MOS allows the shooter to mount the sight of their choice, easily and quickly using only a few tools.  The versatility of the system makes changing optics easy.  The shooter is not locked into one optic since switching from one sight to another is as simple as removing the old sight, removing and reinstalling the correct adapter plate, then mounting the new sight. The MOS is offered with five different plate options to comply with the specifications of some of the most trusted optic manufacturers in the industry.

The advantages of optical sights mounted using the MOS are increased speed of target acquisition and target transition for faster times in competition, and improved accuracy at both long and short range. Optical sights are popular in competitive shooting and are becoming increasingly popular for concealed carry, home defense and target shooters.

GLOCK now offers four of the most popular pistols configured in MOS (Modular Optic System). The models that may be ordered in the MOS configuration are the G34 Gen4 (9×19 mm), G35 Gen4 (.40 S&W), G40 Gen4 (.45 ACP), and the new G40 Gen4 (10 mm). Specifications of these models do not vary from their respective Gen4 configurations.

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Angus Hobdell of CZ Custom was kind enough to give us a tour of many of their 2015 offerings, some of which are available directly through the CZ-USA distribution network.… Continue Reading

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New for 2015 and in stark contrast to some other companies, Taurus gives you wings. Well, they’ve given the TCP wings. For those with diminished finger, grip, or arm strength and/or limited dexterity, it can be quite difficult to rack and manipulate the slide on a semi-automatic pistol. Folding wings on the TCP allow for an AR-15 charging handle-like grasp or for pushing against a solid object (or your belt, pocket, etc) to very easily and confidently rack the slide. The Model 85 revolver now has a convertible hammer. And the View has 100% less View. Photos and details follow. . .

In the video above, a Taurus factory rep gives us the highlights on these new features.

With a quarter turn, the hammer spur can be removed from the hammer. Off for sleek concealed carry, on for single action shooting at the range. It clicks in there solidly so I think there’s some sort of detent or spring system holding it in place.

Grab the Taurus by the horns.

Wings folded

Above you see the Curve’s “Bore-axis sighting system for instinctual shooting.”

Calling the Curve a TCP in a new suit isn’t actually much of a stretch. It’s mostly the same internally and functionally, even down to the magazine body, internal hammer, and really smooth and quite light trigger. It will be available with and without the integrated light and laser.

That’s the View. Only not. Gone is the Lexan sideplate, and in its place is a decidedly opaque piece of metal. Robert from Taurus called it the “Non-View” but I’m thinking that’s a working title. Still, a hand hammerer by any other name would smart as sweet. The grip reminds me a bit of a chicken drumstick, so I’m going to suggest Taurus names it the “Thunder Chicken.”

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Heizer, the same people who brought you such firearms as the pocket sized .410 shotgun and now the pocket sized 5.56 handgun, are bringing to market a 45ACP semi-auto handgun. The concept is that the handgun is no thicker than the existing line of guns, but it is a lot more massive. I had a chance to handle a pre-production model at SHOT Show and talk to the guys behind the concept, and they seemed convinced that it was a winner.

The gun comes with two magazines, either a flush-fit 5 round magazine or an extended 7 round magazine. The action is a straight blowback design, using a fixed barrel and a frankly massive slide. While the slide is massive, the springs inside are actually not that strong and it makes the gun pretty easy to rack — something those without massive muscles might appreciate. There’s a plan to ahve a frame mounted safety of some sort, but the pre-production model they had on hand didn’t have a fully finished safety.

The aesthetics and the weight, however, make the gun anything but a beautiful swan. Heizer hasn’t done the math yet, but they anticipate that the gun will run somewhere in the $700 range. I’m not convinced that the market is crying out for the gun, but I’ve been wrong before.

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Crimson Trace is best known for their eponymous red lasers, but they have been steadily branching out into green lasers as well. The power hungry and clunky green diodes have been a problem, but it looks like CT has finally made it economically viable to put green lasers into the same packages as the existing red lasers. The one I’m most excited about is the Rail Master, a standalone laser device that slots onto any available rail. Also in the works are green lasergrips for a bunch more guns, including . . .

The Bersa Thunder. Apparently there’s a huge demand for lasergrips for the Bersa Thunder, as there’s also a large number of people carrying the gun for personal protection. Not necessarily my cup of tea, but nice to see that CT is responding to public demand.

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Primary Weapons Systems has released a replacement slide — the EDS or Enhanced Duty Slide — for Gens 1-3 GLOCK 17 and 19 pistols. Swapping this slide onto your gun is supposed to improve the trigger pull to a crisp, consistent, 4 lb. break. Sure enough, PWS’s factory-fresh demo GLOCK felt just like a normal GLOCK. Ten seconds later we’d swapped the slide and the trigger pull was excellent. I was shocked just how crisp it was with almost no creep at all and a very nice break. The slide also brings front cocking serrations, great looks, and DLC coating to the table. More details and photos follow. . .

CLICK TO ENLARGE

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