Brian, let me fill you in on some statistical facts from the FBI:

Every State that has enacted a 'concealed carry' law has seen an immediate drop in violent crime rates.

The State of Oregon has NEVER had an unjustified shooting since enacting this law by a licenced resident.

Never.

http://www.gunowners.org/fs0101.htm

The greatest fear of a criminal is that his potential or intended victim may be armed and willing to defend himself/herself.

I don't see how the content of conversation in this topic is scary or twisted in any way. Please don't turn this topic in that direction.

Just keep in mind what Australia learned. If you disarm the population, only the criminals have guns.

And what was the first thing the ****'* did when they gained power in Germany? Disarm the population.

The lowest violent crime rate in the world? The one and only nation that requires it'* young men to be part of the military reserves AND keep their weapon and ammunition in the house ready for action at all times.

Let'* not turn this into a political debate. The topic Author didn't intend that. So let'* stay on topic, shall we?

Brian, ever hurt yourself with a saw or hammer? How about a knife? Nobody on this planet can claim no to those questions.

I was in the military and worked with Law Enforcement for years. What are your qualifications? You should purge all steak knives from your house. They are just as deadly, and cause more accidents per year than firearms.

Get back on topic or stay out of it. If you can't contribute and stay on topic, don't try.

What kinda stats is that? Of course knifes, hammers,saws have more accidents per year but look at how many homes they are in. I bet if you compared the ratio of accidents against the # of owners then it would even out. Thats the nature of "Accidents"

Other than that I do agree with many things said here, and even some things implied Like If you have a gun get the best training you can. I'm sure the last thing anyone wants is to really kill someone or ,even worse, loose a child due to an 'accident'.

Let'* all go back and make sure we're on the right track out of respect to the topic Author. He posted his interests and beliefs. Post based on that. Not on your own beliefs. This is his topic.

Stats? More doctors kill people through negligence and malpractice in the US every year than guns. We should ban Doctors.

It doesn't really matter what type of weapon it is. If firearms weren't ever invented, people would kill each other with baseball bats instead. It'* PEOPLE. Not the hardware they choose to use. It'* human nature.

So we get back on topic without political debate......

Well Sandness,
if you ever had to pull that out on me, it'd sure scare the crap out of me.

Post how you did at the range whenver you get to it.

How would i go about buying a pistol? Do I need to apply for a license than go to the gun store or do I fill it out there. I dont live in a high crime area but if the world ever goes crazy I would like to know I can protect myself somewhat.

Guns are just as dangerous as knifes or scissors in uneducated hands.

That will depend on your state. I found that here in Iowa, you need to apply for a permit to own a handgun from the sheriff'* office. Then there is a 3 day waiting period before you get the permit. After that, the permit is good for 1yr to take to a dealer to purchase a handgun. It must be renewed every year for a small fee for as long as you wish to own a handgun. Also, I believe you will have to fill out a federal background check at the place of purchase as well, but that only takes 10 mins.

popatim: That was what I originally thought when I was shopping around. Staring down an AK might call for a change of shorts. Plus the sound from chambering a round could have the same psychological effect as pumping a 12ga.

willwren: Thanks for getting this train back on the rails. I would love to see some pics of your custom job. I drove down to Omaha to get some ammo from Cabelas and scoped out their handguns. Much more selection, plus a decent assortment of preowned. Most reasonable deal looked like a .45 Taurus for around $360 http://www.taurususa.com/products/pr...ategory=Pistol
. A couple guys there played Taurus as p.o.*. Are they that bad? Of course, when they're trying to push some high dollar Kimber 1911'*, I suppose it may be like getting a Deville or Cavalier- bad by comparison, just not on the same level though.

I've never seen a bad Taurus. They're good quality handguns. They even make a BETTER version of the Beretta than Beretta makes themselves.

I bought a Colt 1991A1 Compact model (same size as the officer'*) for $409 new (about 10 years ago) and invested about 3-400 into it, turning it into a copy of this:

http://www.wilsoncombat.com/p_cqb_compact.asp

Almost all internal and external parts are from WC. I did all the custom work including hand-fitting the beavertail safety, machining the slide for the reverse plug and full-length guide rod, opening the ejection port, full custom trigger job including sear, hammer, and trigger, and on and on. Extended slide release, extended mag release, ambidextrous safety, high-ride beavertail grip safety, WC checkered mainspring housing, hand-stippled front-strap, bevelled mag well, and on and on and on. I built a $2k pistol that shoots like a dream for under $1k. Even the finish. I found the same armor-tuff finish (under a different name) in the Brownell'* catalog and had my frame and slide bead-blasted, then applied a sprayon bakeon moly-teflon coating that has lasted for 10 years in a leather holster. When this was new, and I got comfortable with it, I found I could still pull the trigger faster than it could cycle. Most are like that. Now that it'* worked over and re-sprung, I can double-tap two shots into a paper plate at 25'. My holster is this one:
http://www.holsters.org/covert_28-holster.htm And I've since made a couple beautiful hand-formed copies for 2 other handguns of mine.

I prefer the single-stack non-composite for several reasons. I can custom machine any part if it became 'unavailable, it'* thin and easier to conceal. I'm 5-9 or so, 150 lbs, but I can conceal a .45 in a high-ride hip holster and nobody knows I have it.

I'll get to the pics shortly. During my adult life (with children) I have been in situations where I'm glad I had something. I do have a concealed permit. Have for years. I've had to draw a weapon once, (gang-banger pulled a knife on me in a drive-thru because he didn't like my bone-stock Z71 headlights on my non-lifted truck shining in his lowrider'* back window....he tip-toed back to his car when he saw my .44 magnum sitting in my lap in the truck) my wife (now ex) once (at a remote campsite in northern CA when I was helping a 4-year old Kim go potty), and both of us were carrying concealed one other time when we almost had to (stupid gang-banger wannabe'* decidided to turn a mall into a local battlefield and all 4 of us happened to be in the middle of it in the main mall area by pure chance). I've never had to pull the trigger in defense. I keep it locked up at all times in a safe. My kids each own firearms of their own and for that reason have no natural curiosity that gets so many kids in trouble. Guns aren't fascinating to them. They know the danger and have been participating (yes, my girls) in shooting sports we me and their grandfather and uncle for years.

The grips are not stained. That'* the natural color of Ebony. I made them custom for the size/shap of my hand and my natural shooting grip. I actually have 3 or 4 sets I've made over the years:

DSC04338.jpg

DSC04339.jpg



DSC04341.jpg

For those that are curious about the fact that it'* chambered, cocked, and locked, keep in mind that John Browning was a very smart character. In order for a government-model .45 to fire, you have to have a full grip of the beavertail, depressing it fully, release the manual safety, and be actually pulling the trigger. If you neglect any one of those three, it won't fire. The initial movement of the trigger un-blocks the firing pin as the final safety.