Legislating gun shows out of existence...

 I like to attend gun shows...I like the atmosphere, the variety of guns, ammo, memorabilia, accessories and other items I see...I like talking to the people I meet there, many of whom I've known for decades and not all by name...Some I meet and exchange ideas with whom I may never see again...I usually carry a gun with me to these events, sometimes more than one...I like to trade and otherwise acquire guns for my personal collection...This year I added several guns to my household property, while at the same time divesting myself of other personally owned items, including firearms...I like to alter the content of my gun collection by trading because it keeps me sharp concerning the relative values of firearms...Sometimes I buy outright, other times I'll sell one or more of my guns to finance the acquisition of others...The variety of the guns which hold my interest is what keeps me involved in this activity...

Upgrading the content of my meagre collection is the intent of my participation in this hobby, just as it is with collectors of other types of items...I should interject another thought at this point, I don't really consider myself a collector, rather an accumulator as I increase my knowledge in a specialized field of firearms, namely revolvers, and specifically Smith & Wesson revolvers of the 20th Century...I accumulate some of my gains in personal property through mainstream venues such as licensed gun stores and pawn shops where I've uncovered some real gems, in addition to some real clunkers...Even the clunkers have their value as they can be stripped of their more valuable parts and accessories, while trading away the remains to someone who needs the parts...In my eye there are no unloved firearms, only those which need to be relocated to a more appreciative owner...

It is well known that not everyone shares my enthusiasm for guns, as headlines are made everyday concerning those who feel it necessary to strip me and all other Americans of our constitutionally guaranteed right to do as we please as long as we don't harm others...Many of these rabble rousers are actually well-intentioned but misguided fools who simply have not thought the subject through to a logical conclusion...These can at times be convinced of the error of their ways of thinking, but the most dangerous ones are those who use the subject of gun ownership and use as a springboard to personal power, and control over wealth...Politicians, both those who are elected to office and those who prefer to own and direct the officeholders, are the true dangers to our always fragile republic...Many of these power-seekers choose to fulfill their lust for control through the fear generated by a public which feels helpless against criminals and the insane who are merely bent on death and mayhem in their frustration over their unsatisfactory lives...

The power hungry who in their insatiable greed for more and more control over the lives of others know that they cannot achieve ultimate power as long as an armed populace exists to stand in their way...Therefore they have learned that they must disarm those who would stand in their path by either convincing them they are safer disarmed, or to forcibly disarm them through legislation which makes it ever more inconvenient to hold ownership of firearms as personal property...This has been done incrementally at all levels of government as the power brokers continue to find elected officeholders who are willing to accept support in election campaigns at the expense of debt which can only be repaid with legislation which serves to increase the power of those supporters...The latest in those incremental steps takes place in a few days in Texas...

On January 1, 2021, enforcement begins of an interpretation of Rule §3.316 of Subchapter O of Chapter 3 of Part 1 of Title 34 of the Texas Administrative Code...This bloated title will begin to affect gun shows in Texas through the enforcement of sales tax collection on the occasional sellers of private property...For those unaware of the people who populate gun shows, sales occur not only with licensed firearms dealers who already collect sales tax on purchases, but also collectors who sell and trade from their own collections of privately owned firearms and other items...It will make these private individuals responsible for collecting a sales tax from purchasers of their collectibles and disbursing it to the various taxing entities, both state and local, who greedily present their outstretched palms...The money thereby collected will be used to finance yet another layer of government which must be added to ensure this new source of public income will be drained of its potential...These newly appointed public servants will of course be dedicated to wringing every possible penny from these previously private sellers, making sure that their careers stay intact...

The effects on the gun shows will be multi-layered...The pushback from participating vendors who have never seen their activities taxed will be immediate and vigorous...Taxing authorities will choose some of the more entrenched vendors for exemplary punishment when they resist becoming tax collectors for the state...Attendees such as myself will resist becoming the unwilling financiers of this new layer of government, and sales will fall...Eventually as vendors and attendees drop out, the promoters of the shows will see their own incomes drop to the point where they must fold their tents and close...This has the effect of reducing the circulation of available cash leading to yet more unemployment and recession...As gun shows begin to be reduced in number, the newly appointed tax code enforcers will begin to use their interpretive powers as it applies to the law to visit their presence on those vendors at flea markets, seasonal festivals, Girl Scout cookie sales, church rummage sales, private garage sales and those who advertise their personal belongings for sale on CraigsList...No rock will remain unturned as the tax code enforcers justify their own existence...

But there will be joy in the encampments of the power brokers as their control over people and the available wealth slowly increases at the expense of rapidly depleting democracy and freedom...The only question remaining is that of who will be left at the top when there is no longer a bottom...

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Keeping It Safe...

This article was inspired by the questions from a young lady friend who is thinking ahead to her first gun safe purchase...

I've only owned National Security safes personally...That company was acquired by Liberty Safe some years ago...When I had my first FFL, I eventually bought two more National Security safes besides my original to hold everything...When I entered business as Shooter's Station, I put two of those safes into inventory, but kept the original which I still have...After buying the third safe I remembered the advice my first service manager gave me as a new auto mechanic when I was thinking about my first roll-around tool box...He said, "Try to imagine which tool box will hold all the tools you ever expect to buy in your lifetime, then buy one twice as large and it may last you five years before you have to buy a bigger one"...And he was right...The same principle applies to gun safes...

If I was buying a new one today it would be a Liberty...I think they have the best product as well as the best customer service...Liberty also still sells the National Security brand for those who don't mind paying more...You'll also find out while shopping that there are "gun safes" and there are "gun lockers" as I call them...A gun "safe" will have rounded corners which indicates 100% seam welded construction...Gun "lockers" have square corners and are spot welded which can be cracked open like a walnut shell by any experienced thief with a 12 pound sledge hammer and a prybar...I prefer safes with Sargent & Greenleaf locks (either dial or electronic), any other brand is second rate...You also want the locking mechanism to have thick bolts driven from all four sides of the door edge (mine has 16 1" steel bolts), and a glass relocking system which prevents the safe from being opened even if a thief has cut away the complete outer lock mechanism...

Ask about the thickness of the steel used in all six sides of the safe...On mine they used 1/4" steel on both the inner and outer walls on five sides (some safes don't have an inner wall), and my door is one inch thick with alternating steel and copper plates which makes cutting torches useless...Weight is a big factor also when a safe is fire-lined...Mine has thick fire-liner between inner and outer walls, and this is where a lot of the weight comes from...The fire-liner rating is important, the higher the better and the more chance that whatever is inside will survive a house fire...Remember that you can protect not only your guns, but also any important papers, old photographs, jewelry, watches, etc...And the additional weight can discourage thieves from trying to move the entire safe...At Shooter's Station we had an additional safe (besides the walk-in vault we built) that was truly old-school - it was double walled with the cavities filled with three inches of concrete for fire liner...It weighed 3500 pounds and was installed with a fork lift during the construction...It's still there today...One of the photos in my article on the store's construction in my photo blog has a partial view of it...

When you choose where to place your safe, try to pick an inner wall if possible...Thieves have been known to steal a tow truck, tear down an outer wall, chain onto a safe and pull it out of the house to another location where they can cut into with a carbide saw...Mine is in an inner closet, under a load-bearing beam, where it would be very inconvenient for a thief to even bring in industrial cutting equipment to access it...It's best to have the people you buy it from to install it because they have special equipment and methods to move it in and out without damaging the floors or walls, even climbing stairs...It's well worth the delivery/setup fee...They can also bolt it to even a concrete floor with lag bolts...The best place I know to buy a safe locally is Lone Star Gun Safe on FM 1960 in Houston...If the same people who own it now are the same who founded it, they are great to work with...Another great place to do business for safes, guns and other items is CC Plus on Hwy. 105 in Conroe...

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Living with it...

These following thoughts were spurred by the words written to me by a friend who visited blame for destruction and theft of private property on a group of people not because of the choices they made, but because of an accident of birth...No other identification of this friend will be made here...

I kid and poke fun at a lot of people and ideologues when they involve the choices people make which govern their lives...In my mind, people choose which gender attracts them sexually; they choose whether and which religion to follow; they even choose how to vote for government leadership, and they choose what to ingest in their bodies regardless of the consequences...The paths they follow as results of those choices are of their own volition, and they have the further choice of reversing course and renouncing the choices which harm themselves and others...

Two things I choose not to use for scorn or the purpose of humiliation are race and physical abnormalities...Neither were asked for, yet the consequences of both are something each individual is left to deal with over the course of a lifetime...None of us chose to be born of a particular skin color nor of the ability to move about under our own power, and yet we did choose to live and vote responsibly accepting the results of our choices, to earn our own living without harming others and to allow others the same opportunities...Or not...When the choice is made to take what seems to be an easier path to happiness, however temporary, then we must accept the consequences without falling back on the empty defense of being guiltless because of being born with less-than-popular physical characteristics...

I scorn those who wreck their own lives and the lives of others with drugs, crime and violence...I do not scorn them because they are not of the same race as I am since an accident of birth did not cause their actions; their own choices did that...I am not angry at my friend, merely disappointed...We also have the choice of recognizing our own errors and correcting the course of our lives...It's now been more than 50 years since I described anyone using the epithet now known as the "n-word"...It was slapped out of me by a friend who heard me use it to describe our mutual friend...I've always been grateful for the accidental timing which allowed that slapping to occur by someone who had my best interests in mind, and not someone who might have carried those actions further...

There is such a thing as slapping some sense into a person...

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Letting It Go...

 I've heard it said by people much smarter than I'll ever be that none of us on Earth ever truly own anything, that we are merely custodians and stewards of what possessions cross our paths as we mark our time in this life...The kings and queens of ancient Egypt thought they owned it all, even the human beings that were kept alive to serve them...They imagined that if their wealth and their staffs of servants could be buried with them, they would always be in possession of their accumulations...But their bodies were scarcely cold and tucked away in their pyramid tombs before the ghouls ransacked many of their gravesites and carried off their precious wealth only to become yet again the temporary possession of fools who thought their property to be sacrosanct...Those few whose tombs escaped plunder were only later opened by archeologists who removed their contents and even their bodies for display in museums...When those museums are buried in the dust of collective ages to become the foundations of a thousand succeeding civilizations, those ancient rulers will be no closer to ownership of the baubles and trinkets they coveted in life than they were when they could still draw a breath...

No matter our status nor position as we work our way toward the end of our allotted times here, the objects we have claimed during our years are no more ours to keep than the diamonds buried under miles of rock on distant planets...Even our own bodies which have been our only true homes since birth will be taken away from us eventually by the ravages of time...When we leave to find our next place in God's plan, nothing will remain of us or what we possessed but whatever memories we have bestowed in the minds of those who knew us...And even that will fade to nothingness with the passage of generations...

What then of the physical possessions that mean something to each of us beyond their monetary value...Each of us has and still do have in our possession certain objects which retain for us a value higher than its market worth...When we are no longer in possession of even the life we were granted at birth, and even our souls are returned to He who created them and granted us temporary stewardship, those objects we coveted in life become the possessions of others who may or may not understand the value we placed on them...Not sharing a common history with us, the new stewards may merely exchange our trinkets for new trinkets which they now covet...

In the past year or so, I began to think of the things I possess, and to ponder over the value of what little earthly belongings I have gathered in a lifetime...That which I can still lay my hands on is hard earned, and in some cases fought over to retain...But I know in the end it will all remain behind me to belong to others, however temporarily...My closest family consists of only my two nephews, my late brother's sons, who have grown to manhood and both lead their own lives with their own values...I'm proud to leave whatever I possess to them as I move on at some point, but since their values and their experiences differ from mine, certain earthly items of mine will carry no more value to them, than the money they can be sold for...There are two items of mine which, although they carry a high monetary value in any case, they have a different value while they are in my stewardship...While I still have control over these items, I have decided to transfer ownership to others, to whom I believe they will not only retain my value, but will add their own value...Both of these new custodians are friends, one recent and the other of many decades...

The first item is a wristwatch, an Omega Speedmaster Professional which I bought new at a Canadian Air Force Base in what was then still called West Germany...Details in my memory have faded in the intervening 52 years, but to the best of my knowledge it was Zweibrücken Air Base where at that time an air show was being held, the first I had ever attended...I cannot recall exactly what led to my enamorment with the Omega Speedy Pro, but it may have been an article on personal timepieces in the pages of Playboy magazine, which at that time and place was required reading for any GI stationed anywhere in the world...I can only recall being influenced by many recommendations concerning fashion and accoutrements considered to be the proper choice of discerning gentlemen of the era...Whatever the source of the spark, it lit a flame in my heart to own a Speedy Pro, but the local Base Exchange not only didn't stock it, but had no idea when or if they could obtain one...

The year was 1968 and I knew I would not be making the US Air Force my career, but also knew this would be my one chance to see as much of Europe as possible...Together with three friends in my squadron, we pooled our two Volkswagens and as much camping gear as we could beg or borrow for a 20 day tour of Europe, culminating in attending the Gran Prix of Monaco held in the streets of Monte Carlo...[Note: the photo link just provided includes several photos of a very young Truckman wearing this particular watch]...I wrote to my parents telling them of our itinerary, and to my delighted surprise they sent me a check for $300.00 so I wouldn't have to take the trip of a lifetime on the cheap...Before we were to embark our VW's to conquer a small chunk of Europe, we had a chance to attend the airshow the Canadians were hosting, and while there we visited their Base Exchange to gather a few supplies for the journey...Naturally I cruised by their jewelry department, and lo and behold, there sat a brand new Omega Speedmaster Professional under glass...Having my trip money in my pocket and knowing this might be my only chance ever to own this fine wristwatch, I asked the price...

At this time the watch had not been announced as the choice of NASA for issuance to all astronauts, including those who would be chosen to wear theirs on the surface of the moon the following year...But it was still a hefty price tag even before it became famous...I was able to obtain mine on the spot for the princely sum of 95 US dollars...The remainder of what was in my travel fund found good use as we were able to check into the local hotels every few days, with genuine beds and actual hot showers...I was also able to take advantage of local bargains in quality goods such as leather items in Florence Italy, and hand-blown glass in Venice...When I got back to base, I applied for, and was granted a $300.00 loan from the on-base American Express office which I sent home in the form of a money order...Prompt repayment to American Express also helped with building my credit rating...

My Speedy is what became known as a pre-moon watch since it does not have the (to me) gaudy NASA inscription on the back, but it does have the then new smoother more accurate movement and I have worn it proudly for 52 years...It has endured two divorces, an accidental dunking in a lake when I fell overboard (after which I sent it off for its first overhaul) and even though I shouldn't have, I wore it many times while working at various jobs...In recent years I had it overhauled yet again by a local watchmaker with many years of working on high-end watches as I was told...

Since then it gains about a minute every three or so days, and possibly due to my habit of working while wearing it, the chronometer knobs have both become detached, one of which I was able to recover...It needs another overhaul, and whatever the cost of that might be, it is well worth it to retain its value...But even then its true value to me is beyond whatever it might bring on the open market when left up to my nephews if it came into their possession...At this writing new Speedy Pros are listed at about $6500.00 while pre-moon watches in primo condition sell for considerably more when they can be found for sale...But I agonized over the watch's history being lost and forgotten if my nephews just cashed it in and it wound up on a new wrist...

Recently when my trusted friend of more than 30 years and I were off to yet another gun show, we took one of his fellow workers and friend with us who is also a firearm enthusiast...While talking he recognized and asked about the watch on my wrist...After several conversations it turned out the Speedy Pro is his dream watch, something he has admired for many years...I saw an opportunity here to continue the history of my watch in a new tradition which will see it passed down to one of his sons or grandsons...Being a young family man with the usual obligations, he could not justify draining their savings for either a new or used Speedy, but after talking it over with his wife it was concluded that he could fulfill his dream if he could use some cash and a trade for guns already in his possession...We established a fair price, and came to an agreement to trade for cash plus guns...I will continue to trade up in my own gun collection, and have some cash to put away in savings...This also alleviates the burden on my nephews whom I'm sure would find themselves at a disadvantage when it came to the responsibility of liquidating my assets...When the time comes for my new young friend to pass along the Speedy, which I'm guessing may occur some 50 more years down the line, it will be 100 years old, and he will know its entire history from its date of original new purchase...

This takes a huge worry off my shoulders as I can concentrate on other events as time creeps up on me from behind...But there are still a few items which have some history for me, and I think I can rest easier knowing how they will be treated when they leave my grasp...I have a particular pistol which has not only commercial and intrinsic value, but even greater value as a memory prop for those who know its history...The gun in question is a Colt Gold Cup National Match chambered in .45ACP...I bought it for cash from a man I had dealt with before, but also had a reputation as one who is not always trustworthy...But I ran the gun's serial number through several databases purporting to contain complete lists of of stolen and missing firearms (NCIC is unavailable to me)...The number consistently returned as clean...

When I first got it in the early 90's, it had already been refinished as blued, and some of the lettering had been lost in the process...It shot well in my amateur hands, but I knew it could be improved...I showed it to a friend, Art Collins, who was not only a chief of police at the time but also one of the most knowledgeable people I have ever known on the subject of firearms and shooting in general...Gold Cups are known to have excellent triggers out of the box, but Art cleaned up the action a bit for me, and the shot groups tightened...Later I decided I wanted night sights in place of the repulsive tall Millet target sights which would not even allow the pistol to fit a standard holster...Art sourced some adjustable Meprolight Tru Dot sights for me and installed them...In doing so he had to overcome the double staking on the front sight to correctly install the new ones...Being the consummate master gunsmith he was, it was performed without complaint and he merely passed the information along matter of factly...In the intervening 20 or so years following, the sights have lost most of their original glow, and to my knowledge Meprolight no longer offers this sight in inventory...However the slide could always be sent to Meprolight, or another source such as Miniature Machine Company (MMC) of Ft. Worth, either of which can drill the dead globes out and replace with fresh ones...

At a later point I decided I wanted to refinish the gun again because I did not like the blued finish; it did not match Colt bluing and to my eyes, just didn't look right...In talking it over with Art, I decided on hard chrome which is an industrial finish just about impervious to wear or weather...The hard chrome pieces I had already seen elsewhere never came out as shiny and reflective as traditional triple chrome plating, but Art called a contact he knew at Checkmate Refinishing in Florida (no longer in business today)...He was told they were very familiar with hard chrome and could make it look as shiny as a '58 Cadillac bumper if I wanted...

Before sending the gun off, I also wanted a few changes to the gun...Art ordered a BarSto barrel and bushing, new steel magazine release, Ed Brown single-side thumb safety and wide grip safety...He ordered all new springs and new firing pin at the same time...When they arrived, he fitted each new part to the gun, which in the hands of a master craftsman like him, means that each part of the gun was perfectly mated to the pieces it came in contact with...He took it to the range and shot it, then being satisfied with its performance, he again disassembled it down to the last pin and spring...The parts which were to be hard chrome plated were boxed and shipped to Checkmate...When they came back the job had been done exactly as he specified: flats polished to a mirror finish and rounds chromed in matte...

Plating adds a few microns to the dimensions of each part that is plated, and Art again hand fitted each of the parts on reassembly to a perfect mating...At this time he also hand fitted the slide to the frame, allowing for the new thickness on the parts, and fitted the barrel and bushing for a positive no-movement alignment...After shooting the gun to verify function and accuracy, Art cleaned and returned the gun to me...What, the reader may wonder, was the cost of performing this miracle of new accuracy and dependability?...Art charged me his cost on the plating and the parts used...For his expert labor and hours of painstaking, tedious work he wouldn't take a penny...We had always done each other favors, also watching each other's merchandise and money when we set up together at gun shows, with me selling guns and Art selling his custom loaded ammunition...To my knowledge, neither of us ever made a nickel off each other in our years of friendship...

Sadly Art died from his recurring bouts with cancer in 2009...His funeral was one of the most heavily attended I have ever witnessed with well wishers and mourners packing the overflowing chapel...The stories and accolades heaped on him from those who knew him both personally and professionally went on for hours...I have fond memories of my friend, and of everything he taught me about shooting, firearms, ammunition, history and most importantly - character...Today those memories and the Colt Gold Cup he built for me are all I have left of those days...My recent thinking about my watch also led to thoughts of this gun, and the few other earthly possessions I treasure...Again referring to my well-meaning but inexperienced nephews, they both know what to do with any money I leave them, and will invest it carefully...But the Gold Cup has a history which would be lost on them...It's just another of my guns, and would likely be sold or traded for far less than its value...

To that end I decided the best thing to do would be to turn over custodianship to my friend who has attended so many gun shows with me, and who also worked for Art Collins as a policeman for many years, rising to the rank of Lieutenant under Art's leadership...He is several years younger than I am, and will likely be around long after I am gone...He is also the most trusted of my small circle of friends, and will treat the gun as it should be, shooting it and carrying it on duty...He has been my friend as long as I have owned this gun, and I can think of no better steward for it and the memories it inspired than him...He was even present when I bought the giraffe bone grips that now reside on the gun...As he pointed out to me, he has excellent taste in grips...

At some point both these men will reach my point in life where they wonder what will become of the objects that have stirred their memories and marked their time on our planet...I trust that both will make suitable plans to pass on the custodial duties of a few shiny objects and the history connected to them...

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Kind of a sad day...

I've always had my private collection of guns which I kept separate from my FFL inventory...When the time came to finance my last divorce (and I do mean last), I sold off many of my military and custom made firearms, reluctantly I might add...But I suppose that's what they were for, financing unexpected expenses even though it really hurt me to part with many of them...I still had a few left when the dust settled, and in the 12 years since I only bought one, a Kimber Ultra Tactical which I alternate with my old Gold Cup for carry...Recently in going through my safe I got to thinking how many of my remaining collection have not seen daylight in so long, and some I haven't shot in who knows how long...

In thinking about where these guns will go after I'm gone, I know my only two heirs, my nephews, will eventually sell or trade them for something else as they are gun users, not collectors...So this summer I made the painful decision to start testing the market on guns I love, but will never shoot again...The one that caused me the most angst was the S&W M37 (3" barrel, polished blue, square butt) in the original box with all papers, that I had given to my Dad for Christmas in the 80's...It was the only handgun he ever owned, even though when he served in the Army in WWII, he qualified as expert with both rifle and pistol...Given its pristine condition, and the rising market among panic-stricken buyers, I knew I could get a good price for it...

I had been attending gun shows again this year after several years of inactivity, so I started carrying this one around just to see what offers I might get...Everyone oohed and ahhed over it, and I got many offers from dealers who naturally offered far less than I knew it was worth...But at the third show to which I took it, a small out of town show, I talked to an individual who wanted a small revolver for personal protection...I showed him what I had and told him my price (about 3X the original retail price I paid) and after getting approval from his knowledgeable friend, he started counting out $100 bills...Since he met my price without quibbling, I gave him a leather holster I had bought for it, and sold him a full box of ammo at a bargain price compared to what I saw elsewhere...I know the law, and I made sure he had a valid Texas ID before the transaction...

It pained me to have it leave my possession, but it was the icebreaker I needed, and I do not regret it...Since then I started carrying a few guns to other shows, and found I enjoyed the dealings with others as much as seeing the guns and watching the people, many of whom I've known and dealt with for decades...I even bought another revolver, a Colt Detective Special 3rd model, which I found at a reasonable price...I started carrying my unfired S&W M686-3 (round butt, 2 1/2" barrel, Goncalo Alves grips), and my IMI Timberwolf rifle (.357 Mag, hard chrome finish) which I had owned for 25 years, but hadn't shot in 15...I didn't really care whether either sold so I decided on prices which more than tripled my money on the Smith, and would bring me about 8X what I paid for the rifle...Apparently I should have been a little bolder in pricing because as soon as I entered the local Conroe show, the very first dealer I passed wanted to see the revolver...I told him my price, and I was surprised that he counter-offered at $50 less than I quoted...I told him no to which he said, "OK, I'll pay it," and started counting out $100 bills...So we were both happy, although I could have held out for a little more happiness on my end, but I never renege on a deal...

The Timberwolf was a different story...I already knew how rare the rifle is on the market, since they shoot so well, and those who were lucky enough to buy one when they were still available new don't want to sell it...I found only older sales on the various internet auctions, and no current offerings...I also knew that the factory hard chrome finish plus the low 4 digit serial number and it being an original Action Arms import made it even more scarce...What surprised me was how few people knew what it was, even among dealers...Since it is a pump action, most assumed it was a .410 shotgun instead of a heavy barreled rifle...Some thought it was a .22, others that it might be a cheaper Rossi or Taurus import...Almost all were shocked at the price I quoted, thinking I was way overpricing it...I did get an offer last week of $1000 cash from a buyer in the gun show parking lot as I was leaving...I gently turned him down and left...I went to another out-of-town show yesterday talking to plenty of lookers, even selling another of my S&W handguns at my asking price...I finally talked to a dealer who had never heard of the Timberwolf, but he had a love for the unusual, and made me a cash offer which was considerably above what others wanted to pay...

I told him I'd think about it and maybe come back...I knew that gleam in his eye having seen it many times in others, and truth be known even in my own reflection...On my way out the door I stopped again to talk to him letting him handle the rifle and work the action while I told him the story of what I knew of both the manufacturer and the importer...As I made ready to leave and reached for the gun, he made another offer which was very close to my asking price...Having been a dealer myself, I knew he couldn't stand having to pay asking price unless it was too good to turn down, so I nodded my head and let him have a small victory as he counted out a stack of $100's...We parted with a handshake, both of us happy...

The upshot of all this is that I find myself enjoying another aspect of life again, dealing with firearms for and from my collection, and interacting with other people of the same mind...Having left the business side of the firearms industry I can once again buy, sell and trade with my own collection already knowing the laws that govern me, and the unwritten laws which some understand, and others don't...I don't intentionally insult anyone's intelligence, I don't cheat others and I won't let others cheat me...Life is fun again even if it saddens me somewhat to think of parting with a few treasures, some of of which even carry memories of my childhood...But at the same time I know I'm creating new memories not only for myself, but others as well...

This morning I dug into the back of my safe and pulled out the Remington M514 which my Dad bought in the mid 1950's to teach my brother and I how to safely handle guns and shoot...To my knowledge, it's the only firearm he ever bought...I had thoroughly cleaned it years ago when it went into my safe...It's in pristine condition along with the Remington cleaning kit Dad bought at the same time...It hasn't been shot in probably 60 years, and I know I'll never shoot it again, so I don't really mind finding another father soon who wants his kids to know the safe way to shoot and handle firearms...I know I'll never lose the memory of a WWII veteran teaching his hard-learned expert marksmanship lessons to two wide-eyed young lads in an open field with a dirt backstop many decades ago...

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Recovery Under Less Than Ideal Conditions...

We're all familiar with the role aircraft carriers play in today's Navy, and we've all seen movies of the incredible action they see in combat...The scenes we're used to ordinarily take place in daylight with relatively clear weather, otherwise the movie wouldn't make much sense...In real life flight missions can and do occur in any kind of weather, at any time of the day...And although becoming airborne in those conditions may be somewhat routine, think about what happens post-sortie when it's time to recover these valuable aircraft and their priceless cargo, the trained and seemingly fearless aircrews...One of my regular sources for informative reading, The Warzone, had this article posted today in my regular newsfeed...It's not a short read at all, but worth the time spent, and its author, LCmdr. Joe Ruzicka, is as knowledgeable on this subject as anyone...

My imagination boggles when I think of the level of concentration displayed by not only the pilot of the aircraft approaching its moving target, but all the others who work in step with others to bring their multi-million dollar rides down to rest at precisely the right moment and position on their never motionless multi-billion dollar floating airfield...The pilot must not only keep his or her aircraft steady at a prescribed rate of descent and decreasing speed, but must remain alert for signals from the ship's traffic controllers who have the final say in whether the recovery is a go, or whether to abort and circle around for another attempt...In the case of the F/A-18 fighter, its driver must also remember that his ride was designed to fly at supersonic speeds, and doesn't necessarily perform at its best at carrier approach speeds, usually 150-165 mph...He must also bear in mind that the goal line is also moving forward against the prevailing wind at a speed of 40-50 mph...

If the traffic controller onboard the carrier does not feel the aircraft can make a safe landing (considered by most to be a controlled crash at best), the pilot is waved off for another attempt...In this case the pilot must remember that he is seldom alone in the air, and while circling for another try at recovery, the air is already crowded by those others who flew with him in his mission, and that they are awaiting their chance to be back aboard their home...In addition, flying at their own predetermined altitudes and tracks, are the aircrews of the unarmed EA-18G Growler versions of their own fighter, equipped for electronic warfare, and probably a Northrop Grumman E-2 Hawkeye which was launched from the same carrier to maintain its AWACS function, as well as at least one F/A-18 which was launched unarmed but carrying three fully loaded external fuel tanks prepared to act as a flying gas station when a landing must be aborted by an aircraft with not enough fuel for another attempt...Another possibility for airborne interference could be a rescue helicopter prepared to recover an aircrew forced to eject before a successful recovery...

The foregoing scenario would be enough to induce the early onset of old age in the more timid souls who remain earthbound for their existence, but is routine business for the professionals of the US Navy...Now imagine the same scene taking place in darkness, during a thunderstorm and possibly in the vicinity of an active enemy force...The same goal is there for the incoming aircrew, possibly bringing in a stricken or damaged aircraft hoping for a chance to land, be debriefed over coffee, sleep and repeat the same job a few hours later...This is compounded by the necessity to bring home all those support aircraft still in the sky after the last of the combat crews come in, all this in day or night, in any kind of weather, and in the presence of those ships surrounding the aircraft carrier, the cruisers and destroyers which make up its protective screen, any one of which could be mistaken in poor visibility for the targeted mother ship...At the same moment a combat air patrol (CAP) must maintain its launch and recovery schedule in its own mission to defend the ships under it...

But to those engaged in the business of defending our nation, it's all just another day on the job, and that job is being performed around the clock in all the world's oceans where somewhere you can be assured, conditions are dark and stormy...But these people, from aircrews, to commanders, to deck crews and all those in support of the mission, are all continuously trained to perform their jobs proficiently...Millions of defense dollars are spent constantly in that training...The knowledge that was imparted during that training was paid for at an even greater cost...It may be embedded in textbooks and software now, but it was bought and paid for by those who first lived it in battle, some who came home to talk of it, and some who couldn't because their actions were only witnessed by others at the time of their deaths...

Much of this subject was learned the hard way during the Battle of the Philippine Sea, 6/19-20/1944, sometimes referred to as the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot...It was a resounding victory by US forces against the Japanese Imperial Navy, but also came at a terrible cost in lives...The Marianas Islands were secured for Allied forces during that battle, and paid for with the lives of at least 109 Americans who could not celebrate their own victory...But it might not have even happened if not for the uneasy decision made by Adm. Mark Mitscher to strike the newly discovered JIN carrier force knowing that a night recovery by the striking air groups would become likely...As the returning aircraft approached, Mitscher also made the unprecedented decision to illuminate his carriers for the recovery as night landings at sea were never an event trained for by his aircrews...The success of this battle was the beginning in a new era of naval training...A more detailed contemporary telling of this decisive battle can be found in Volume VIII of Samuel Morison's monumental History of US Naval Operations In WWII...

We're coming up on Memorial Day as I compose this, and it is appropriate to think of all the brave souls who launched from their floating homes, never to return to it, and those who gave life and limb to teach what today's aviators take as common knowledge in their everyday actions...

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Welcome to Hell, Ira...

The sulfur ridden fumes of the bottom and hottest level of Hell reeked with even greater intensity on April 3, 2020, when the foul stench spread from the soul of Ira Einhorn as it was thrown on the flames to writhe in agony for eternity...For those who may not remember, and certainly weren't as closely connected to the facts as this writer, some of my earlier words concerning the misdeeds of this miscreant should be read as a reminder of how low a human being can sink...Today is Earth Day, an invented holiday which was once claimed as the creation of Einhorn as he basked in the warmth of the adoration heaped on him by the drug-addled and gullible hippies of the day, as well as his powerful and wealthy backers who expected more of a return for their investment than they ever received...For several years I have used Earth Day as a reminder to check the welfare of the despicable cretin who took the life of my friend, Holly Maddux...

Today I learned that I had finally lived long enough to know that Ira Einhorn has belatedly received the punishment he earned from the murder of my friend 43 years ago...He is dead, and I rejoice in his death, the story of which was buried along with many other newsworthy items by the worldwide attention focused on the Covid19 pandemic...In looking for news coverage of the long awaited termination of this wasted excuse for a life, I found many articles including this interview ten years ago which seemed remarkable in that Einhorn held no recognition that his crimes should be subject to prosecution...Ignoring all the evidence that he murdered my friend and classmate, then slept with her decomposing body only a few feet away for nearly two years, he said to the arresting officer when confronted with the sight of Holly's broken, crumpled body, "Well, you found what you found"...

At no time in the intervening years, which grew into decades as he was arrested, arraigned then skipped out on the bail posted by his wealthy and influential backers and entered a life as an international fugitive, did he ever exhibit any remorse, or even acknowledge his guilt...He even managed to beguile another woman, who bears a striking resemblance to Holly, both in ethereal beauty and sheer intelligence...He managed to marry this woman who, whether she knew of his crimes or not, supported him when he was in hiding, and did not waver in her loyalty even as he was taken into a reluctant custody by the cringing French who finally ran out of excuses for harboring the criminal...Some of that woman's story can be found here...I should warn my readers that this link contains photos of Holly's remains as they were found in Einhorn's Philadelphia apartment, and these are not for those of weak heart, nor queasy stomach...Be advised...

I can only say at this point I am glad to put to rest the knowledge that Einhorn fouled our atmosphere with his fetid breath for this long...But I am even more happy to return my thoughts of Holly to those memories of her as head cheerleader of our high school, the holder of a black belt in jiu jitsu, an accomplished dancer, salutatorian of our graduating class and most importantly, my friend...

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