Category Archives: self-defense

Protect yourself. Protect your hearing.

Posted on July 25, 2013 by Oleg Volk

For a professional musician like Lauren, firing an unsuppressed  rifle can be a career-ending event. Rifle reports are all too close to concussion grenade (flashbang) noise levels. Taking them down by 28-40dB makes a big difference. So does wearing plugs … Continue reading →

Posted in rifle, self-defense, sound suppressor, weapon | Tagged , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Appleseed

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Knowing and understanding the past is the first step to securing the future. Project Appleseed helps us understand how America came to be as a free country. They teach the basics of marksmanship, too.

Posted in civil rights, rifle, rkba, self-defense, training | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Smoking hot

Posted on July 21, 2013 by Oleg Volk

1928 Auto Ordnance Thompson.

Posted in self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Sometimes, mobility isn’t an option

Posted on July 19, 2013 by Oleg Volk

If you have to defend a fixed position — such as a home in the path of a rioting mob — having 150 rounds on tap can be very comforting. Armatac drums actually work very reliably and the supporting forearm … Continue reading →

Posted in rifle, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , | 15 Comments

Let me play you the song of my people

Posted on July 15, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Lauren is a professional classical musician. She plays a two hundred year old fiddle. She is very good. While she’s a trained martial artist, she’d rather not fight with bare hands. An injury would damage or end her career. Fortunately, … Continue reading →

Posted in interesting people, self-defense, shotgun, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 14 Comments

Guns aren’t the solution…except when they are.

Posted on July 6, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Opponents of firearms for effective self-defense tell others to run away from danger, to learn martial arts, or to “give the bad guy what he wants”. Not everyone can follow that advice…in fact, almost no one can. Least of all, … Continue reading →

Posted in ammunition, interesting people, pistol, rifle, rkba, self-defense, training, weapon | Tagged , , , , , , | 38 Comments

Crowdsourced shotgun

Posted on July 5, 2013 by Oleg Volk

A friend recently gave me an 870 shotgun. It lacked only a few important details, like the barrel or the intact buttstock. Fortunately, 870 is like an AR15 in terms of parts availability. A few days later, another friend took … Continue reading →

Posted in interesting people, self-defense, shotgun, weapon | Tagged , , , | 17 Comments

They grow up so fast

Posted on July 1, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Years ago, I took photos of Michael Williamson‘s daughter, the actress Morrigan Sanders. In the time that passed, her AR gained better iron sights and a 1.5×24 ACOG in place of the EOTech, but stayed pretty much the same otherwise. … Continue reading →

Posted in interesting people, rifle, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments

If you shoot 357Mag for effect, get a Coonan

Posted on July 1, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Full-power 357Mag recoil in revolvers is usually quite substantial. I tend to shoot 38Spl in mine unless carrying them, which I do very seldom. The Coonan, on the other hand, gives some muzzle flip but very minimal felt recoil. Shooting … Continue reading →

Posted in pistol, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , , | 13 Comments

Shot placement and caliber matter. Color, not so much.

Posted on June 27, 2013 by Oleg Volk

The revolver shown actually works very well.

Posted in interesting people, pistol, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , , , , | 18 Comments

“You and what army?”

Posted on June 25, 2013 by Oleg Volk
Posted in interesting people, pistol, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Addressing a common misconception

Posted on June 6, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Joe Huffman’s blog tracks examples of what he calls Markley’s Law, the tendency of anti-freedom people to equate gun ownership with penis envy. Dismissing this affectation would be the simplest course of action, but the delusion seems common enough to … Continue reading →

Posted in pistol, rifle, rkba, self-defense, weapon | 10 Comments

Personal Defense Weapon

Posted on June 1, 2013 by Oleg Volk

BT9 is basically a 9mm pistol with a shoulder stock to aid in accurate shooting. In semi-auto form, it works well to 200m, especially with an optic like the Trijicon Reflex 2 shown. Nearly no felt recoil. A great defensive … Continue reading →

Posted in rifle, rkba, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , | 12 Comments

Recent fun and games.

Posted on May 25, 2013 by Oleg Volk

Both days featured sunshine, rain, snow and hail mixed up randomly. Alain Baeriswyl is an exceptionally good coach. Both the shooting course and the Minuteman training were informative, challenging, fun and lend themselves to further practice of the skills taught. … Continue reading →

Posted in author, pistol, rifle, rkba, self-defense, training | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

Lasers for Ruger LCP

Posted on April 12, 2013 by Oleg Volk

I happened to have two examples of LCP-compatible lasers on hand. Pistols with fixed sights of indifferent visibility definitely benefit from lasers for low-light use. I have seen more than one person go from 8 inch scatter to a tight … Continue reading →

Posted in pistol, self-defense | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Banning crossbows

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Oleg Volk

In Medieval Europe, several countries banned crossbows and arbalests for civilian use. The reason was transparent: protecting the monopoly of armored knights and soldiers on effective violence. Crossbows were far easier to learn than longbows and quite effective against armor … Continue reading →

Posted in ammunition, rifle, rkba, self-defense, weapon | 25 Comments

No such thing for the antis as “safe enough gun”

Posted on April 11, 2013 by Oleg Volk

The technology behind this carbine is 1860s. The design is 1870s. This one is in .44Mag, but they are also available in .45Colt — again, 1870s technology that can work even with black powder and cast lead bullets. As we … Continue reading →

Posted in civil rights, rifle, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

“Fight like a real man”

Posted on April 10, 2013 by Oleg Volk
Posted in holster, interesting people, pistol, self-defense, weapon | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

They won’t ban your single-shot .22, right?

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Oleg Volk

.22 rifles are, by definition, rifled. In quite a few countries, that’s subject to a higher level of restriction than smoothbores. 22LR round is fixed ammunition, and that is also more restricted compared to loosely loaded black powder guns. The … Continue reading →

Posted in ammunition, civil rights, rifle, rkba, self-defense, sound suppressor, weapon | Tagged , | 9 Comments

It fits anywhere.

Posted on April 9, 2013 by Oleg Volk

The reason so many news accounts of self-defense mention pocket-sized pistols is their convenience. A .45 would be better than a .380 but the latter gets carried more, especially by people who don’t dress around the gun. A picket holster … Continue reading →

Posted in interesting people, pistol, self-defense | Tagged , , | 2 Comments