Range Day

Today we took some time out with Range Partner to sling some lead downrange. It was the first time M and Range Partner had met and the first time M has gone shooting with me (and as far as I know, only the second time she has ever shot handguns).

Along for the ride was Grand-Dad's High Standard, both the Glocks and the Sig. Range Partner brought a Glock of his own at my request, a Glock 21 with a .22 caliber conversion kit. Younger Son also came along, but he and Range Partner took turns with a .357 Taurus snubbie that Range Partner brought along.

After a review of the Four Rules (the first time M had ever heard them, so we went over them pretty extensively) and some basic instruction on grip, sights, stance and operation (I was ever grateful for the instruction I received at Tigerswan because all I did was review with her what I remembered from learning there) we loaded up and started putting rounds downrange.

First up was the 9mm Glock 19, followed by the Glock 21 with the .22 conversion kit installed. I wish I could say these were my targets...but no. Two fliers, one .22 and one 9mm, in the eight ring and the rest in the black, with two of the .22 and one 9mm solidly in the X.

Next up was the .45 Sig. She wasn't sure if she really wanted to shoot it, but she at least wanted to try it out. Four rounds went into the Sig, and when the smoke cleared two of them were in the eight ring and two in the ten. Next up she wanted to try the Glock 21 in Gods Own Caliber. So, off came the .22 conversion and on went the .45 slide and magazine, five rounds in the magazine...and as you can plainly see, two in the nine, two in the ten and one in the X.

Not bad shooting...for a guuuuurl.

Yeah. Not bad shooting for anyone, and when you consider this was her second time at the gun range to shoot handguns (and since the first time was a "here, point this that way and pull the trigger" you may as well say it was her first time) you could say that was pretty excellent shooting. Hell, she out-shot me, and I couldn't be prouder.

I really wish I could send her to one of Kathy Jackson's classes to learn how to shoot properly, but I will certainly find some instruction for her somewhere. I was OK with showing her the basics, but I'm not an instructor and everyone can do with some instruction. (Speaking of which Sean...isn't it about time for another Tigerswan class?)

There just might have to be a Glock 21 in her future as well.

Why Why Why

As is my wont, now that I actually own a Sig P220 I'm doing a bit of research on it. So why would I do my research afterwards instead of before? That's one of life's little mysteries, isn't it. At any rate, I've lost track of the number of "ur gun sux get m&p with apex trigger" comments.

My question has to do with the latter part of that comment...the part about "with apex trigger".

I don't own an M&P, and in fact I haven't ever shot one, but from everything I've heard they are good guns. I just don't see the point of buying one that I have to modify right out of the box to make it acceptable. What's so great about a gun you have to immediately modify in order to make it worth a damn?

The same question applies to Ruger 10/22 fans, by the way.

Happy Day

Payday, and now that the bills are all settled and the dust has cleared I'm broke again.

For various definitions of broke, I guess...I'm doing pretty well, all things considered; the cars all have gas, my pantry is well stocked, my utilities are still on and the bank isn't throwing me out of my house. I just don't have as much free cash as I'd like to have.

It's all my own damn fault, though.

The book came in Tuesday and I haven't had a chance to read any of it since I've been working. I plan on rectifying that situation this weekend. The Sig was acquired a couple of hours ago on the side of the road in a deal which I'm sure would have appeared very suspicious if the seller had not been in a blue and white Charger. I only say this to make the anti-gunners cringe.

I admit I really didn't need the Sig, but it was literally an offer that I could not refuse. It was a duty weapon for a local PD; when they traded weapons out one of the neighboring city policemen bought it, about the same time his baby girl was born, and then realized he could only afford one. He sold it to me, with the three magazines, at his cost, which was a very attractive price to say the least. Let's just say I paid more for each of the Glocks than I did for the Sig and leave it at that.

It's a P220 chambered in God's Own Caliber, no rails as you can see, so it's a base model not the P220R. It does, however, have the night sights installed so that's nice. The outside of the barrel shows some signs of wear but the rifling is nice and crisp, and the best thing about it is, since it's DA/SA, I can put a snap cap in it and dry-fire to my heart's content without having to stop and reset the trigger. I've slacked off on my dry-firing just because the Glock has to have its trigger reset between pulls and it broke my concentration to have to do that. Now that excuse is gone.

It's a bit bigger than the Glocks, but not really as much as I had feared. It's longer of course, but the biggest difference in the way it feels is in the shape of the grip. The Glocks seem to have a more pronounced bulge further up the grip at the back than the Sig does, the 36 has a bigger bulge than the 19. The grip really isn't that much longer than the G-19, and the G-36 is actually a bit longer with the extended magazine installed.

I can actually wrap my hands around the Sig better than I can either of the Glocks, and the Sig has an 8 round magazine instead of the 6+1 of the G-36, so now I can carry 25 rounds (3x8 plus one in the pipe) instead of 22 (3x7+1). I don't know if those extra 3 rounds will ever make a difference...I hope to never have to find out...but I guess it's better to have them than not.

One thing the Sig is not, is combat Tupperware. The frame is aluminum instead of polymer, I don't know how much difference that is going to make in recoil but I do know that the magazines are easier to eject from the Sig than they are for the G-36 (but about the same for the G-19). I still have to hold the muzzle with my left hand so I can turn my right hand enough to hit the magazine release, but I don't have to pull the heel of my hand away from the magazine to let it fall.

I had a tough time finding a holster locally for the Sig, it looks like I'll have to order online to get another one for it. For now I'm using a Bianchi Minimalist, I'd like to have more coverage on the trigger but that's about the only thing I could find right away to fit it. I'll probably opt for a custom holster for it, I hear tell of a few places where I might could have one made.

I do like the way this Sig fits my hand, and I can't wait to see how it shoots.

UPDATE: Bonus! The Sig fits the Galco Tuck n' Go that I have, but not the Stow n' Go. Kind of odd since both of them were purchased for the same gun (the Glock 36, although the G-19 fits both of them as well). It's a little tight but it works pretty well. That means now I have a holster I can remove when I need to, it covers the trigger better, and it rides a little lower as well which means it's more comfortable to carry. I haven't been using the Tuck n' Go lately so it looks like it belongs to the Sig now.