Everyone go buy 100 rounds.

UPDATE: 350 rounds just purchased online. I don’t know if that counts or not, but I’m also planning to stop and pick up another 100 at my local shop on the way home.

The Firearm Blog discusses this new round in Hornady’s Dangerous Game Series that will soon be available:

The round is basically a necked up .375 Ruger and offers performance comparable to the classic .416 Rigby in a standard length cartridge. The Ruger M77 Hawkeye bolt action will be available chambered in this cartridge.

From Hornady, who developed the cartridge with Ruger and will offer the finished product beginning next year:

The beltless design of the cartridge case provides smooth, flawless function which is very important for a dangerous game cartridge. And, the standard length action provides less chance of “short stroking” the bolt when things get hairy.

416 Ruger ammunition will be available in two offerings: a 400 grain DGX™ (Dangerous Game eXpanding), and a 400 grain DGS™ (Dangerous Game Solid). Both feature a copper clad steel jacket with a high antimony lead alloy core.

Rummell on the .25 Police Issue

Downrange Radio talks black rifles.

He touches on ARs as defensive weapons, something I recently wrote an article on which was unfortunately scrapped. Bane recommends low penetration ammo for defensive use like the Hornady TAP.

He said they did some penetration tests using standard 55gr ball ammo on house walls and was surprised at how quickly it destabilized and that it did not “shoot through the house.” I find this a bit surprising, but my wife won’t let me test it on our house.

Murdoc’s pretty sure he’s going to pick up an additional AR here soon. Plus maybe a couple of extra lower receivers.

Go listen to the podcast if you get a chance.

Making the Best of the M9

The M9, 9mm Beretta. Civilian-wise we call it the 92F or 92FS, et al. Some guys love it, some hate it. There are civilian cops that swear by it, which baffles me personally, but guns are like boots and beer. Everyone has a favorite, usually held with a devoted certainty that says anyone that prefers a different model is a dumbass. you know what I’m talking about. 1911 guys (of any breed) make fun of Glock guys, who shake their heads at Sig guys, who just can’t understand the S&W guys.

For myself, I prefer the M9 as a boat anchor if a Ruger isn’t available but that’s just me.

One thing brought up in the post is that many people issued M9s just don’t have enough proficiency to use them effectively. Shooting a handgun is a lot different than shooting a rifle, and situations that call for handgun use are usually at close range and in circumstances very unforgiving of error.

FWIW, I decided to go with a .40 for my primary handgun over a 9mm.

And here’s an interesting comment on the post:

FWIW, if you can’t get range time there’s a dry fire drill that can help with drawing, sighting and trigger control, particularly with double action triggers. Put a snap cap in the chamber, turn on a TV set, and practice head shots.

Apart from interview or news shows, the camera cuts to and away talking heads so quickly that it takes a little skill to acquire a target. And, a camera’s depth of field/view renders targets at roughly the POV you’d have at combat ranges — not too close, not too far.

I learned this from a Ranger buddy, back in the 80s. It works, believe it or not.

You just don’t want to let the neighbors see you doing it. Or your kids, wife, or girlfriend.

It’s a little hard to explain why you’re watching GILLIGAN’S ISLAND, busting caps at Mr. Howell.

From NSSF:

Data released by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) reported 973,003 checks in September 2008. This figure is a 2.96% increase from the 944,889 reported in September 2007. Adjusted state figures show background checks up 0.82%. Year-to-date reveals a total of 8,472,683 background checks reported by NICS. Background checks are a key economic indicator of firearms industry sales.

Also: Gun Sales Steady Despite Economy

Regardless of these continuing trends, I think it’s clear that gun sales will probably slump a bit for a while here. Though ammo purchases for guns already owned may surge depending upon the election results next month.

ATK and FN Herstal SA Announce Cooperative Agreements

A number of deals, including

ATK has also been tasked through the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Detachment to develop 5.56mm and 7.62mm ammunition for U.S. Special Operations for use with rifle platforms to include the SCAR system developed by FN.

ATK and FNH USA, LLC have also entered into a distribution agreement covering FN’s 5.7 x 28 mm SS 197 commercial ammunition for the U.S. market.

New for 2009: R-15 chambered in 30 Remington AR

A couple more points that I’ve seen questioned or that I thought were interesting about this new round and the rifle designed around it:

• The 30 Remington AR version of the R-15 will be built by DPMS (which is, of course, now part of the Remington family)
• The camo scheme on the rifle is Realtree AP HD camo, different than other R-15s. (Compare the pic above to the one of the standard R-15
• The barrel is 22″ long and fluted in front of the gas block
• Single stage trigger
• The bolt head is based on a .308 bolt head. They tried widening a .223 bolt head but it was just too thin.
• The magazine will be a 4-round single stack
• Though not available initially, 30 RAR upper receivers “will be made available.”
• 123 grain FMJ uses same bullet as the 7.62×39

Remington refers to the 30 Remington AR as a “big game” round. For clarity, the goal was to achieve “Deadly Deer Hunting Capability out to 350 yards.” This isn’t for elk at long ranges and probably isn’t for your next safari in Africa.

Some have wondered about the military potential of this round. I don’t think it really offers much that isn’t available already. Of course, some will argue the same thing about deer hunting.

Given that Remington is sticking with a 4-round single stack mag and that neither Bushmaster or DPMS unveiled a new tactical rifle chambered for the 30 RAR today, I think it’s safe to say that you 6.8 SPC and 6.5 Grendel fans don’t have to worry about another round trying to steal some of your loyal middle-range proponents.

For some ballistics numbers and more, see John Snow here and here. One thing he points out that I was unaware of is that the ballistics numbers were measured using a 24″ barrel. Since the 30 RAR R-15 is going to come with a 22″ barrel, there will be a slight (but noticeable) drop in velocity.

Learned about a lot of new stuff today at the Remington New Products Seminar here at Buck Ridge Plantation near Orangeburg, SC. I’ll be going over a lot of them in the coming days, but the biggest news fit to print from day 1 was probably the new 30 Remington AR cartridge developed for a new model of the R-15 rifle.

The focus was to develop a new cartridge capable of .308 performance from AR15 length magazines in a Remington R-15 rifle. They looked at the 6.8 SPC, the 22-250 Remington, and the 450 Bushmaster as starting points, and ended up with a squat cartridge that fits in modified 450 Bushmaster mags. The R-15 has only been available in .223 or .204 Ruger until now.

Remington R-15 Rifle

The round will be available in AccuTip Boat Tail, Core-Lokt Pointed Soft Point, and UMC Full Metal Jacket. The two hunting rounds will be 125 grain bullets while the FMJ will be 123 grains.

.223 and 30 Remington AR

I had been hoping to shoot a little of this today at the range, but no ammo was available for us. Bummer.

No doubt there are going to be a lot of opinions about yet another AR round.

One thing I’ve heard brought up a number of times already is the cartridge’s name. Some have taken to calling it the 30 RAR, one of them John Snow over at The Gun Shots.

I will have more on this in the coming days.

UPDATE: The Firearm Blog has some more, too.

UPDATE 2: More info and a picture of the new 30 RAR R-15.

Yesterday I noted an NRA-ILA post about a potential ban on lead ammunition in Washington state. Here is part of what the NRA-ILA said:

The lead ammunition you use for hunting as well as target and competitive shooting will be banned from purchase, use and ownership in the state of Washington if the state’s Department of Ecology has its way.

Tonight I got a comment from Kathy Davis, who turns out to be the media contact for the Washington Dept. of Ecology’s Lead Chemical Action Plan:

Ecology’s plan does NOT recommend any new ban on lead ammunition. The agency wants to reduce lead in the environment to protect the health of people, and wildlife. The plan proposes working with hunters and shooters on a voluntary, educational program to promote the use of non-toxic alternatives to lead. Read the lead plan and our fact sheet about how the plan address ammunition on Ecology’s webpage.

And checking out the summary on the official Dept. of Ecology site seems to bear this out. Here are some excerpts:

The CAP does not include any recommendations to ban or regulate lead in any type of ammunition beyond current law. This includes all shotgun, rifle and handgun loads. Currently, lead shot is banned for hunting all waterfowl, coot, snipe, and in specific hunting areas (see below)…

The CAP is not a law or a regulation. It suggests ways for reducing sources of a specific toxic chemical, in this case lead. The draft Lead CAP calls for the use of non-toxic alternatives to lead ammunition wherever possible…

Non-toxic alternatives to lead ammunition are now available in most places. Ecology favors a voluntary, educational approach to promoting their use.

I remain skeptical of the end goal of at least some of those backing this plan, but it does seem plain, at least from this version, that the proposal does not call for any additional bans on lead ammo.

If anyone has more detailed knowledge about this issue, I’d love to hear from you.