Oooo, came home last Friday to a package from the magical big brown truck of wonder.
First, the grips. It's the Secret Service brand of Eagle grips for my J-Frame.
What I had was the standard full size rubber grips the gun came with. They are nice, as they cover the metal back strap and give a place for every finger and a relatively cushiony. These new grips are cocobolo, don't support the pinky, and may HURT when firing .357. So why get them? It makes the pistol more compact and fit in my pocket better. I SO wanted the smooth ebony grips, but I was worried they'd be too slippy. Even the Saucy Trollop swapped out her new smooth birch-laminate-that-look-like-cocobolo grips for something with some texture for better grippage.
I think I'd prefer walnut grips. Air dried of course, and not steamed at all. (Steaming is done, so I'm told, to walnut to get some of the darker heartwood in the center to spread it's color out to the sapwood a bit. It make even the heartwood look a little washed out, but you get more boardfeet per log that way.) I'd also like the more subdued old style checkering. If you've seen a decently preserved pre-war revolver you know what I'm talking about. Of course the 70 years of patina adds a bit to the effect... But I couldn't find any walnut grips out there that I liked. Cocobolo with modern checkering isn't exactly a BAD aesthetic, by any means.
The proof will be in the pudding, as I will test out this new grips this coming range session with quite a few full power .357. Just to see how much it hurts. If at all.
Now on to the brushes:
I've been curious about these tornado brushes and wanted to test them out. And I just happened to think about them when making the sling purchase at Brownells, so I figured what the heck. They weren't too expensive. I think all gunnies are also looking for better ways to clean their boomsticks. I am certainly one. Because the edge of the brush bristles isn't ends but loops, maybe there do a different type of job. Might not gather as much patch lint either. Again, proof=pudding.
And finally, the Magpul MS2 sling:
I've been working on a rifle sling blog post for 2 years now. I'm old fashioned and know how to use the M1917 mil sling on the Garand and M1A. Appleseed would be proud of me. But it's hard to carry a rifle, except at sling arms, with the old style. Shoot, the Garand and M1A is not set up to be carried with a modern sling, either.
As you can see from the picture, it is set up for single point sling work. If you release the rifle and go to a pistol the rifle will flop around pointing straight down. But their is that one clip near the end that can be detached to make it a 2 point sling. And I was hoping that loop at the top of the picture was a way to properly attach it to your support arm while shooting. It isn't. It's just there for quick adjustment in sling length. Ah well. It's still fine for 'hasty sling'. (At 19:15 of this) but a hair different going from sling-ready to shoulder. I got a lot more study to do to make the newfangled as natural as the old style.
What did he bring? Grips from Eagle for my snubbie, cleaning brushes in a novel configuration I wanted to try out, and new modern sling for my rifle.
It felt like Christmas.
It felt like Christmas.
First, the grips. It's the Secret Service brand of Eagle grips for my J-Frame.
What I had was the standard full size rubber grips the gun came with. They are nice, as they cover the metal back strap and give a place for every finger and a relatively cushiony. These new grips are cocobolo, don't support the pinky, and may HURT when firing .357. So why get them? It makes the pistol more compact and fit in my pocket better. I SO wanted the smooth ebony grips, but I was worried they'd be too slippy. Even the Saucy Trollop swapped out her new smooth birch-laminate-that-look-like-cocobolo grips for something with some texture for better grippage.
I think I'd prefer walnut grips. Air dried of course, and not steamed at all. (Steaming is done, so I'm told, to walnut to get some of the darker heartwood in the center to spread it's color out to the sapwood a bit. It make even the heartwood look a little washed out, but you get more boardfeet per log that way.) I'd also like the more subdued old style checkering. If you've seen a decently preserved pre-war revolver you know what I'm talking about. Of course the 70 years of patina adds a bit to the effect... But I couldn't find any walnut grips out there that I liked. Cocobolo with modern checkering isn't exactly a BAD aesthetic, by any means.
The proof will be in the pudding, as I will test out this new grips this coming range session with quite a few full power .357. Just to see how much it hurts. If at all.
Now on to the brushes:
I've been curious about these tornado brushes and wanted to test them out. And I just happened to think about them when making the sling purchase at Brownells, so I figured what the heck. They weren't too expensive. I think all gunnies are also looking for better ways to clean their boomsticks. I am certainly one. Because the edge of the brush bristles isn't ends but loops, maybe there do a different type of job. Might not gather as much patch lint either. Again, proof=pudding.
And finally, the Magpul MS2 sling:
I've been working on a rifle sling blog post for 2 years now. I'm old fashioned and know how to use the M1917 mil sling on the Garand and M1A. Appleseed would be proud of me. But it's hard to carry a rifle, except at sling arms, with the old style. Shoot, the Garand and M1A is not set up to be carried with a modern sling, either.As you can see from the picture, it is set up for single point sling work. If you release the rifle and go to a pistol the rifle will flop around pointing straight down. But their is that one clip near the end that can be detached to make it a 2 point sling. And I was hoping that loop at the top of the picture was a way to properly attach it to your support arm while shooting. It isn't. It's just there for quick adjustment in sling length. Ah well. It's still fine for 'hasty sling'. (At 19:15 of this) but a hair different going from sling-ready to shoulder. I got a lot more study to do to make the newfangled as natural as the old style.
4 comments:
Waiting for the reports :-)
Funny you should mention Appleseed in the post. I attended a shoot over the April 17 / 18 weekend, and I was the only one using a 1917 sling. I had just gotten it because I thought it was what was supposed to be used and taught at Appleseed, but the Appleseed "Team" had NO idea how to set one up, or use it. They are all using the one sold on the Appleseed Forum webstore. Fortuneately I figured it out on my own (kinda), but was frustrated that they had no knowledge of the sling.
Well THAT is disappoint, Vinosaur. Glad you figured it out. Did you watch the Garand video? Did you do it right?
I did watch the video, and mostly got it right. I wasn't hooking the rear frogs directly back onto the sling so they wouldn't slip off of the rear sling attachment, but otherwise, I got it pretty well accomplished. I don't want to bash the program because I sincerely believe in the cause and know it is an excellent experience for most, but all and all it was for me a disappointing experience. I did learn a lot, and love hearing the history told aloud (always been a fan of audio books and radio stories). Thanks for your wonderful Blog.
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