Fire

What would you do if you had a fire, and lost EVERYTHING? What would I do? First, it’d be a crying shame in the gun department. But it’d be a crying shame in the EVERYTHING department. I hope is NEVER happens. I don’t think, when all else is settled I’d need to re-get some guns.

Replacing everything, one for one, now that I know what I know… I wouldn’t do that. I’d take the time to simplify the inventory. I’d feel bad about losing heirloom stuff, but that’s the thing with heirlooms: once gone, they are GONE. Nothing will replace THAT particular Springfield ’03, so… There wouldn’t be one in the gun safe after disaster. Grandpa’s shotgun and Great Grandma’s squirrel gun, too.

So, what do I re-acquire immediately, and what do I save for later, and what do I omit entirely?

Well, you start with the 4 gun system. A .22, a shotgun, a major caliber pistol, and a major caliber rifle. Easy. Some .22 and perhaps the pump .22 rifle. A 1911, perhaps with a .22 conversion kit, the Remington 1100 12 gauge or an 870 Pump, and I’d get another M1A.

Now you need a spare. Well, I’d take this opportunity to get a 10/22, and then I’d be set there. I’d get a Moon Clip revolver like the 1917 S&W model 22 or the stainless S&W model 625, just for ammo commonality to cover the spare pistol stuff, a double barrel shotgun in 12 gauge, and maybe I’d finally get a bolt action rifle for the spare major caliber rifle.

Then I’d stop. No, really. Ok, throw in that SIG P229 I like for an odd gun out. But after that, seriously. No more. I’d be pretty bummed about the hobby for a while after losing everything. That’s 8.5 or 9.5. (counting the conversion kit for the 1911 as .5, hell might as well get the conversion for the SIG, too… so tops is 10.) It’s just about the 4-gun system and the spare, and it’s 4 common ammo types.

I sure would miss the Garand. Probably the most. And that would be because I couldn’t justify the replacement. It quickly became a sentimental favorite, even though I have no personal history with it, prior.

So here is the question for YOU gentle readers (all both of you). If you lost everything, what would YOU do different? What is your "get soonest after made insurance check is cashed" list? Or would you just spend a lot of time trying to re-create exactly as before, before you felt better.

Oooo, did I just start a Meme? Yes. Yes I did! Post a comment or post on yer own blog.

Stuff I would want if I were Right Handed

Stuff I would want if I were Right Handed.

Oh life would be SO much easier. At least I am left eyed dominant as well as being left handed. If I was mixed eye/hand I’d probably be dead my now. Killed by an accidental self-inflicted left-handed scissor wound.

Anyway. The Garand brass, and other brass, wouldn’t hit me in the head.

Well, I’d certainly use the Springfield ’03 I own more

I’d get some of those Czar/Commie bolt guns, too. They are cheap to buy and cheap to shoot and will scratch that recoil-loving itch a lot of gunnies get.

I’d be LESS likely to get a Swiss K31, oddly enough. Those are nice rifles with a straight pull-back style bolt. It’d be probably easier to use for a lefty, so there is less incentive for me to get it if I was always a righty. Why get a K31, when there are so many bolt action available that I could use?

Ooooo…. LOTS of Lee-Enfields. I’d want one type for .303, a 1917 version that shot .30-06, and I’d even take a .308 if I found one in decent shape, or for next to nothing.

And I’d have a bolt action hunting rifle by now for sure.

Taurus

Taurus has a lesser reputation. I sort of agree. If you are going to pop down $500 for a revolver, you might as well come up with a couple hundred more and get a Smith and Wesson. Smith and Wesson doesn't have the volume of anecdotes of "then I had to send it back to the factory because it came out of the box broken." Plus I don’t like the 2-dot sight system Taurus uses.

But they DO make a .45 ACP 'Colt 1917' style revolver, and that is on my tertiary list. (I saw it on NRAhab) By being on the tertiary list it is obviously not a type that I must have or would use primarily. For a backup gun, maybe a little economy is in order.

So I am entertaining the possibility of the Taurus for a .45 ACP revolver and will adjust the Master List accordingly.

Here's a picture of the Colt original 1917 model:

And the Taurus version. Dunno about that silly porting, but it's not on the snub versions of same. And they don't make them anymore, so I'd have to buy it used. Boo.

All is not lost if Taurus versions are scarce in the used market. I saw 3 various 1917 models in the case at Bass Pro, so the model isn't going away.

S&W model 625

Now I'm thinking. And that's always dangerous.

Keeping in line with my desire to simplify ammo inventory by restricting the number of caliber types my guns will fire, I can't go out and buy a .44 Magnum. Or a .32. Or .45 Colt. It doesn't fit in with the other calibers. Getting a .380 pistol was an anomaly, and I don't keep more than a couple boxes of ammo for it on hand.

And I want a revolver to play with.

I HAVE a .357... And I HAVE a lot of .45ACP ammo...

Oooo, there is an option there!

The S&W Model 25 or 625, or even an old Colt 1917.

In WWI, the Army's sidearm was a 1911 .45 ACP, but production couldn't keep up with the massive influx of new dog faces. As a stopgap, the War Department looked for alternatives, and the solution they and the gun manufacturers arrived at was to make revolvers that could be cranked out on under utilized wheel gun fabrication machinery but that ALSO fired the same rimless .45 ACP cartidge. Revolvers like rimmed cartidges to better hold the round in the cylinder, but if you make a little metal clip that holds the groove of 3 or 6 .45 ACP cartridge you can make it all work. This is what the .45 rounds clip into:

Now thanks to WWI, and this moon clip invention, I can get a new revolver that shoots the ammo I already carry.

That full size moonclip sort of acts like a speed loader, too. I am pretty sure the current speed record for those "quick draw" competitions is held by a guy that used moon clips. Jerry Miculek, I believe? 12 rounds in less than 3 seconds? I can do that. I just don't want to...

Oh you said seconds. I thought you said minutes.

Anyway, the firearms.

I wouldn't be too picky. All the following statements are my personal conventional wisdom (in other words, there is a good chance I am talking out my butt.) The S&W 625 is the model currently in production, and you MAY still be able top get a Model 25. The difference is, the 625 is stainless steel and the 25 is blued steel. The Colt 1917 (the year they needed/developed all these stopgap handguns marks the model number.) are around. There is even a nice example at my gun dealer, blued, in great shape. But they aren't current production. Smith and Wesson ALSO had a model # 1917 that is pretty much the same thing.

Now this gun is neat and all, and I added it to the Master List but only on the Tertiary section. I have a good revolver in the S&W 686, and another one as backup isn't as pressing a priority. And though I really like the old pre-WWII styling, and wouldn't pass one up if the right one presented itself when I actually raised the list priority on the gun, I bet one won't present itself at that time in the future. It is most likely I'll get a S&W 625 because of availabilyt if/when I do. But a nice vintage version would be the ideal, the 625 would be the realistic choice. Perhaps I'll just hold out.

When in good shape, the vintage Colt 1917 have pretty, smooth, walnut grips, and if I had to choose I'd go for that version over all the others. Here more info abou the 1917 from a couple of fans, and here is a pic:

And here is the S&W modern version, with all the modern amenities: