I had mentioned a while back ( here and here ) that I was having some trouble with MKE metal MP5 mags in my MP5k clone. I diagnosed it as some sort of issue with the magazine catch. Plastic mags worked fine, but the metal mags just would not seat and lock in the gun. I tried the mags in my other MP5 copies and they worked fine. No doubt, the problem was this particular gun.

I contacted Bill Springfield, whom I have used for at least eight or nine guns by now, and he said he could fix the issue. So, I sent the gun off to him and received it back about a week and a half later. All my mags seat and lock just fine. I asked him what the problem was. Apparently the catch that engages in the magazine notch of the mag was just slightly (he said .5 mm) off spec. I can’t imagine that half a millimeter makes a difference on anything, but, whatever, all I care about is that the gun does what it’s supposed to.

This is the second time I’ve had to send an MP5 clone to him. Both were PTR’s that exhibited magazine lock/release issues. On one gun, the magazine release lever wouldn’t budge. And on the other gun the mags wouldn’t lock. In both cases, Mr Springfield fixed the issue and got the gun back to me quickly.

While I am a bit disappointed with PTR’s QC, I can unreservedly recommend Mr Springfield for the work that I had performed. I can’t say anything about the other services he performs on other guns. But…for putting paddle mag releases on G3 clones, and for diagnosing and solving magazine seat/lock issue, I recommend him.

Now, you may ask why I didn’t send the guns to PTR for warranty work. Easy reason – my experience with returning guns is that a) they often take forever to get returned and b) too often the problem is never fixed to my satisfaction. To me, it was worth the $60 I paid to get my gun back to me in a hurry and to know the job was done right. YMMV.

Now, don’t think I’m dumping on PTR. The MP5 is a relatively new offering from them so maybe theyre still cutting their teeth. I own eight of their HK91 copies and havent had a problem with any of them…but then again they have had a longer history making those than they have making MP5’s. I have high hopes for the .5.56 gun they are working on but I have no intention of being an early adopter. Let someone else find the land mines.

Anyway, for the work I’ve had done by Mr Springfield, I am quite pleased and wouldnt hesitate to use his services again.

Took the 10mm ( aka Best Millimeter) out for a spin this weekend. I was curious to see how it shot with the .40 barrel in it vs. the 10mm barrel. The difference in point of impact was negligible which makes me think that there is some merit to the notion that most factory 10mm isn’t  different, in terms of exterior ballistics, from factory .40 S&W ammo. So..I’ll order up a shiny new set of Redding reloading dies and start loading my own 10mm.

As for the gun itself, I had swapped out the factory sights for a set of quality night sights. In addition to that, I think I might actually go down the rabbit hole of finding a better trigger. Although this gun is specifically for shooting things at a range that is close enough to let you find your target using the Braille system, I’d still like to be able to have a trigger that doesn’t work against me.

And, I hate to sound like a wuss, but that stippling on the Gen4 frames isn’t terribly comfortable under recoil. But, as I said earlier, this is a gun for emergency use so I think that when I do have to shoot it I will have bigger (and furrier) things to worry about than a little abrasion.

Regardless, its always nice to get to spend some time at the range. I’ve a pile of guns here that need to go out and have me do some work on them…maybe with there being a tad more daylight after I get off work these days I can finally get on top of that. It’d be rather embarrassing to go through the apocalypse with a gun that I cant hit anything with because I was too busy to go to the range and sight the bloody thing in.

Further proof that Bill Ruger is, in fact, still dead:

I suppose this was to be expected. Samson got into bed with Ruger to make these stocks, and for Ruger it’s a no-brainer to let Samson handle that end of the supply chain. Its my understanding the current crop of Mini-14’s are much more accurate than the minute-of-bad-guy accuracy that the originals offered. In a world of mid-tier $700 AR’s that deliver better ergos, modularity, and logistics, why would you spend (dealer price) $1230 for something thats gonna take special mags and be a pain to mount optics?

But…I’ll get one just because. I’m actually starting to amass an interesting array of non-AR .223 guns…. Mini-14, JAKL, BRN-180…..as soon as PTR gets that new roller-delayed .223 out, I’ll definitely be on the line for that one.

It’s nice to see that with Billy Ruger gone Ruger has finally been what it could have been all along…a responsive, market-driven, innovative gun business. With Billy R. outta the way we got Ruger AR’s, 1911’s, PCC’s, PDW wanna-be’s, takedown guns, and 30-rd mags. I used to have a negative opinion of Ruger, but since they changed directions I have been quite impressed with them. And, just from a survivalists standpoint, they make the guns I’d want to carry in the zombie apocalypse…rugged, durable, and nigh-unbreakable.

Its only been in the last few years I’ve been able to buy the guns I’ve always wanted. The catalyst was after finally sucking it up and getting my degree, I started making okay money. I have an advantage in that I don’t have any debt..no mortgage, no car payments, no nothin’. As a result, whatever I do make, I wind up keeping a large chunk of. This means that what might be considered ‘just enough to get by’ for some folks is ‘plenty’ for me….although more is always better.

One of the things I’d been wanting for a while was a Glock 10mm as a belt gun for when I was out in the boonies. And, I got one. I threw some quality night sights on it, bought a half dozen mags, a lovely flap holster, and thats pretty much all I really need to do. Except…10mm ain’t cheap. Nor plentiful. But what is cheap(er) and plentiful is .40 S&W. Turns out the folks at Lone Wolf Distributors make a .40 S&W barrel for the Glock 40. I suppose I might have to change the recoil spring out but given how factory 10mm is watered down to almost .40 levels, I’ll bet all I need is the barrel change.

This’ll be a somewhat more affordable way to practice since I have gobs of .40 S&W ammo laying around from the local PD. And, I suppose, from a preparedness standpoint it’s a good idea to have a couple Glocks laying around in .40 since there still seems to be a ton of badges out there still using the .40 S&W.

Personally, I plan on picking up some 200 gr. bullets and loading them up more to what the 10mm was designed for. If modern 10mm loads are loaded down to hot .40 S&W levels, why wouldn’t I just get a .40 S&W instead? Nope…this’ll be a bit of a project for the reloading bench. If I have to ruin a bruin then I want as much metal going downrange as possible.

It’s nice that I finally have the career path that lets me afford stuff like this. I just wish I had more time available to take advantage of the new toys. But, I guess thats the trade off…time vs money.

For you dinosaurs who have been waiting for Ruger to come out with a .45 AARP carbine, your time is now.

I am utterly fascinated that they did this in their somewhat lackluster LC Carbine pattern. You would think the PC Carbine platform would have been the first choice. I’m guessing it’s because the frame sizes were not compatible…the 9/40 versions of the PC Carbine/Charger were probably too small for the .45 (and I bet 10mm) cartridges.

Making it take .45 Glock magazines is just a good idea. Making it take a proprietary magazine of some kind would have opened another avenue for all sorts of headaches. Better to let someone else spend all the money on magazine development and production.

Other than some oddball guns made by small AR manufacturers, and the AutoOrdnance guns, there havent been any .45 ACP carbines from a major US manufacturer since the Marlin Camp Carbines from 30 years ago. (Those Marlins were great guns, by the way…but, oy, they beat their stocks up somethin’ fierce.)

Since .45 ACP is natively subsonic, I’d expect that alot of guys with .45 suppressors are gonna be really excited by this.

It’s the dang near last day of the year. I thought I was done buying guns for 2023. Done, I tell you!

And then I get the text message from a gunstore  buddy: “You might wanna come by”

Well, poop….this is not gonna be cheap. Let’s open the chute and ride this thing:

Beretta Cougar in .40. Nothing special there. And a Colt Series 80 Combat Commander that someone put some work into. Check out that squared triggerguard. Red Ramp front and an ancient MMC rear sight. Extendo beavertail and aftermarket trigger. Other internals seemed factory. Needs a cleaning badly, has some minor freckling.

“But..but…Zero, you said three guns. Where’s the third?”

Ah, the third one. The third one, me boyo, is the whole reason I bought this package. The third one scratches a 30-year-old itch. Notice that the two guns above are sitting on a wooden presentation box. Whats in the box? Why…the stuff that dreams are made of:

That, mi amigos y amigas, is a Smith and Wesson Model 27 with a factory five-inch barrel.

:::mic drop:::

Back in the mid-90’s I had a lovely 5″ Model 27 and in a college kid cash crunch I pawned it for $150 and never got it back. There are two guns I have bitterly regretted selling in my life…My HK93A3 (bought for $600 in 1986!) and that Model 27. And now, I have another.

But, my tastes have changed a bit since then. While I love S&W revolvers, I keep a practical eye on things like durability and reliability…which means a 5″ GP-100 would be a better choice than this 5″ M27. But nostalgia. And it does no harm to have a few safe queens.

That M27 was the reason I bought the other two guns. The Cougar is nigh-impossible to sell. Since Stoeger made their version no one wants the oddball Beretta. The Colt will probably go out the door too….I’m not a 1911 guy. But that Smith….hmmmmm.