A single lawful person with the will and the means to open fire would have stopped the UK pogroms in seconds. Mobs seldom loiter once repeating firearms are heard nearby…casualties among the rioters would have been instructive to their cohorts but probably not even necessary for ending the fiery mayhem.

As reality stands, the British Government insists that their subjects only go through the motions of self-defense without actual effect. That sounds like a very unhealthy fetish the UK Home Office enjoys at the expense of lives, health and property of others. In the US, rioters would probably fare better against police who just might use less lethal munitions than against regular citizens who would use conventional bullets. And a small loss would it be should the fans of arson, battery and assault come to grief at the hands of their intended victims.

Went to On Target (turn off speakers before clicking — loud sound effects on that site) range today. Shot indoors for the first time in a year and it was a nice experience. Friendly and helpful staff, good ventilation and lighting.

I finally shot the vz61 pistol and vz58 rifle that Czechpoint provided this summer, ran 200+ rounds through Boberg XR9-S, sighted in Anderson rifle and tried a variety of ammunition through JARD .22 upper. Full report with photos tomorrow, some observations for now.

With rimfire, ammunition quality matters. JARD upper was unimpressive with bulk ammo. Eley Sport halved the group size. CCI Stingers halved it again.

XR9-S is almost boring to shoot. It functions 100%, doesn’t kick much even with +P+ ammunition and basically shoots to the limit of the shooter’s ability. The gun isn’t a variable, the shooter’s concentration is.

vz61 was surprise of the day. It has a light trigger, decent sights, no felt recoil and 100% reliability with ball and JHP. I shot over 200 rounds through it and wished I’d brought more with me. 75m and 150m sight markings on it are truly optimistic, but it was quite credible at 25.

Almost forgot: I zeroed a Bersa Thunder 9 with Viridian C5L laser and tried a variety of ammo through Keltec PF9 with Twisted Industries .22 upper and CTC laser. The two laser-equipped guns were real crowd-pleasers: I ended up lending both to people who were shooting on other lanes. At the indoor range, even with good ventilation, the red and green traces were extremely visible and helped fine-tune trigger control.

Went to the range with friends today. Tried their guns and let them try mine. Fond out, for example, that .223 soft points don’t feed well from GI magazines but work just fine from PMags.

(Firing on clays set up on a berm)

Tom has been shooting since age 3. He shoots his father’s AK, so vz58 to him was just a weird AK. Which is neat, because the gun itself and the magazine are so much lighter, I had expected a more energetic kick. Turns out the amount of recoil is similar, but the loud mechanical noise of the AK bolt carrier which I find annoying is gone. From the proportions of Tom to his Walther P22, you can see that he isn’t a big kid. Short vz58 stock fits him pretty well. V-notch sight was pretty hard to see at dusk — the fiber-optic replacement was waiting for me at the door upon my return from the range. At least I will have it for the next time.

As dusk approached, we set up a bag in front of a backstop and Tom ran a magazine through the XR9S at 20 yards. The pistol was loaded with short range tracers, but Tom couldn’t observe them as the gun in recoil blocked his view briefly. From the sidelines, I could see some tracers hitting and some missing. The final score: four hits, three near misses. That’s at twenty yards in low light with a gun he’d never fired before. Doesn’t look like the recoil bothered him much, either.

I used to view vz58 as a quaint design roughly analogous to AK47, but uglier. I’ve since become a fan: the rifle is shorter than an M1 carbine and no heavier, while shooting a more potent round with mild recoil. It’s yet another excellent “girlfriend gun” for those who are considering a present for petite lovers or spouses.

Rifle | pistol | holster

From Czechpoint photo shoot. In this instance, I’d worry more about the Gorgon stare and less about the minor firearm factors…

The rifle is from Czechpoint.

And a sweet 58, too.

Opponents of firearms for effective self-defense tell others to run away from danger, to learn martial arts, or to “give the bad guy what he wants”. Not everyone can follow that advice…in fact, almost no one can. Least of all, the kind of people who are visibly vulnerable already, such as pregnant women or the elderly.

Cute and defenseless? Not so fast!

Ashley is a beautiful woman. She is currently three weeks away from delivering a child and one of the most fit looking expecting mothers I’ve seen. However fit and athletic she is, has little capability for hand-to-hand combat. It’s difficult to fight while carrying a heavy, fragile load within your own body.

Why might a woman like her have to fight? Pregnant women are easy prey for both human criminals and animal predators, especially dogs. They can’t fight effectively, nor can they flee quickly. Look up news headlines in your area and you will see examples of both kinds of attacks. Some women also face a threat from the future father who is not happy about having to support an unwanted child.

What factors mitigate the risks? Not starting trouble, avoiding known dangerous locations, having a spouse or another capable person available as a bodyguard. Knowledge of martial arts helps mostly through improved coordination for avoiding damage from accidental falls, blocking minor threats. Ashley gained only 15 pounds at three weeks from delivery. Another friend nearly doubled her body weight from 96 to 180, becoming bedridden the last couple of months of the pregnancy. Even though she had considerable martial arts skills, her personal safety depended mostly on her husband and on her own ability with pistol.

Keltec PF9 in a Comp-tac paddle holster is light and easy to carry.

Some people say that a pregnant person shouldn’t shoot because noise and lead exposure would harm the child. Compared to falling prey to a dog or getting beaten or gang-raped, the damage from almost non-existent exposure to lead is negligible. Lead-free primers and fully jacketed or lead-free bullets are available, but even with the most conventional cartridges, the exposure from firing several rounds in a defensive situation is close to zero. Likewise with the noise: the amniotic fluid around the fetus attenuates noise very effectively, which is why many ear muffs are filled with liquid. The theoretical problems aren’t significant, while the security provided by being able to stop determined threats is worth having.

The weight of the pistol seems like a problem at first glance, but is it really? Ashley, one of the most efficient pregnant women I’ve seen, is carrying about 15 pounds extra, the equivalent of over half a dozen loaded full-size .45 pistols. One more compact handgun weighing a pound would hardly be noticed, provided a good holster is used. If the waistband doesn’t support a holster or the belly makes such carry uncomfortable, shoulder rigs are always an option. They add the advantage of easier draw when seated.  In short, if there’s a will to go armed for self-defense, there’s a way to wear the weapon comfortably.

Those who oppose armed self-defense won’t be happy. Even though pregnant women are almost unknown to become violent criminals, the prohibitionists are against anyone other than the special people — the high-ranking politicians — having the benefit of effective protection. But they shouldn’t dictate how the rest of us take care of our own lives.

vz58 is light, powerful, yet can be handles and fired with one hand if necessary.

While carrying a sidearms while pregnant isn’t a problem, getting trained is much better done in advance. If you plan on having kids, learn how to defend yourself and the child ahead of the actual pregnancy. Handguns work great for wearing full-time, at home long guns are substantially more effective in stopping intruders. Again, the much-maligned intermediate power defensive carbines (called “assault rifles” by our enemies) are a good choice: they have adequate performance without excessive weight or recoil, can be operated with one hand in a pinch.

Writer Julia Chochrane wrote about her experience with self-defense while pregnant:

I’m 5’2″ and after taking martial arts for 3 years (after being raped, as a way of preventing it happening again) I learned that a 5’2″ female martial artist is no match for a 6’2″ male martial artist, and other assorted real limitations of martial arts. So I got a gun and learned to shoot and got my concealed carry permit. And was damned glad to have that gun when a thug tried to follow me up the stairs into my apartment one afternoon when, due to a holiday, I was home early and the place was otherwise deserted. I didn’t have to actually draw on him, confronting him verbally got him to go away, but I was 7 months pregnant and it was a very near thing and as a result of my “delicate condition” martial arts wouldn’t have done me a damned bit of good.

I have no idea if I’d have been less confident in confronting him if I hadn’t known I had a gun concealed but in easy reach for a fast draw if needed. I’m “attracted to guns” because for a little tiny woman like me, my having a gun can mean the difference between my being raped and murdered, or my surviving an attack unscathed to go home to my family that night. Living through a rape was bad enough the first time. I don’t intend to let it happen again.

Gun control is advanced mainly by those who are rapists at heart. They want to force their will upon other people. That conforming to their dictates makes the rest of us more vulnerable to other forms of molestation, including sexual, not only doesn’t bother them, it’s the intended effect. Gun control is advanced by predators who do not care who is hurt by their restrictions or how much government force they have to use to enforce those restrictions. And if you think I am exaggerating, look at how much less time a convicted rapist would serve in New York City compared to a person who merely owns and peaceably carries a sidearm for self-defense there.

While 7.62×39 version is cute, tiny and pretty punchy, the .223 is more of an all-around fighting rifle. Using the same barrel blank as the 7.62, the 5.56mm version is more accurate, heats up slower and has less recoil. In fact, with the loud but effective muzzle brake, recoil is closer to a semi-auto 22wmr than to other centerfire rifles. I haven’t scopes this one yet (that would require a stock with a riser), but even irons provide less than 3MOA vs. 5MOA of the 7.62 variant (again, with iron sights). In the near future, I will have to compare the efficiency of the AR15 magazines vs. using the original rock and lock mags without the adapter.

When I first got vz58 in .223, it arrived with an effective but loud muzzle brake. I deemed it unnecessary and wanted to replace it with a flash hider. Fortunately,  at least four different options are readily available.

I got two of them, a very small and light variant (above) and a larger, more effective Phanton (below).

What impressed me about these wasn’t just the good quality machining but also the ease with which I was able to swap them. Press a detent pin, spin off the muzzle device, replace with another, release pin.

Simple, effective, toll-less, provides indexing. No crush washers needed. Why aren’t more rifle designs using this method?

Both vz58 and “Pure Estrogen” AR15 are light, short and have good triggers. Neither has much kick. On the other hand, the last couple of women I encountered favored M1A, SKS and FS2000…so much for trying pick shoes, handbags and rifles for other people!

If you like vz58 rifles, this tshirt is for you:

Get it from Czechpoint.

Petite vz. 58 Bridges The Gap Between Submachine Gun And Rifle

From Czechpoint photo shoot. In this instance, I’d worry more about the Gorgon stare and less about the minor firearm factors…

The rifle is from Czechpoint.

And a sweet 58, too.

Opponents of firearms for effective self-defense tell others to run away from danger, to learn martial arts, or to “give the bad guy what he wants”. Not everyone can follow that advice…in fact, almost no one can. Least of all, the kind of people who are visibly vulnerable already, such as pregnant women or the elderly.

Cute and defenseless? Not so fast!

Ashley is a beautiful woman. She is currently three weeks away from delivering a child and one of the most fit looking expecting mothers I’ve seen. However fit and athletic she is, has little capability for hand-to-hand combat. It’s difficult to fight while carrying a heavy, fragile load within your own body.

Why might a woman like her have to fight? Pregnant women are easy prey for both human criminals and animal predators, especially dogs. They can’t fight effectively, nor can they flee quickly. Look up news headlines in your area and you will see examples of both kinds of attacks. Some women also face a threat from the future father who is not happy about having to support an unwanted child.

What factors mitigate the risks? Not starting trouble, avoiding known dangerous locations, having a spouse or another capable person available as a bodyguard. Knowledge of martial arts helps mostly through improved coordination for avoiding damage from accidental falls, blocking minor threats. Ashley gained only 15 pounds at three weeks from delivery. Another friend nearly doubled her body weight from 96 to 180, becoming bedridden the last couple of months of the pregnancy. Even though she had considerable martial arts skills, her personal safety depended mostly on her husband and on her own ability with pistol.

Keltec PF9 in a Comp-tac paddle holster is light and easy to carry.

Some people say that a pregnant person shouldn’t shoot because noise and lead exposure would harm the child. Compared to falling prey to a dog or getting beaten or gang-raped, the damage from almost non-existent exposure to lead is negligible. Lead-free primers and fully jacketed or lead-free bullets are available, but even with the most conventional cartridges, the exposure from firing several rounds in a defensive situation is close to zero. Likewise with the noise: the amniotic fluid around the fetus attenuates noise very effectively, which is why many ear muffs are filled with liquid. The theoretical problems aren’t significant, while the security provided by being able to stop determined threats is worth having.

The weight of the pistol seems like a problem at first glance, but is it really? Ashley, one of the most efficient pregnant women I’ve seen, is carrying about 15 pounds extra, the equivalent of over half a dozen loaded full-size .45 pistols. One more compact handgun weighing a pound would hardly be noticed, provided a good holster is used. If the waistband doesn’t support a holster or the belly makes such carry uncomfortable, shoulder rigs are always an option. They add the advantage of easier draw when seated.  In short, if there’s a will to go armed for self-defense, there’s a way to wear the weapon comfortably.

Those who oppose armed self-defense won’t be happy. Even though pregnant women are almost unknown to become violent criminals, the prohibitionists are against anyone other than the special people — the high-ranking politicians — having the benefit of effective protection. But they shouldn’t dictate how the rest of us take care of our own lives.

vz58 is light, powerful, yet can be handles and fired with one hand if necessary.

While carrying a sidearms while pregnant isn’t a problem, getting trained is much better done in advance. If you plan on having kids, learn how to defend yourself and the child ahead of the actual pregnancy. Handguns work great for wearing full-time, at home long guns are substantially more effective in stopping intruders. Again, the much-maligned intermediate power defensive carbines (called “assault rifles” by our enemies) are a good choice: they have adequate performance without excessive weight or recoil, can be operated with one hand in a pinch.

Writer Julia Chochrane wrote about her experience with self-defense while pregnant:

I’m 5’2″ and after taking martial arts for 3 years (after being raped, as a way of preventing it happening again) I learned that a 5’2″ female martial artist is no match for a 6’2″ male martial artist, and other assorted real limitations of martial arts. So I got a gun and learned to shoot and got my concealed carry permit. And was damned glad to have that gun when a thug tried to follow me up the stairs into my apartment one afternoon when, due to a holiday, I was home early and the place was otherwise deserted. I didn’t have to actually draw on him, confronting him verbally got him to go away, but I was 7 months pregnant and it was a very near thing and as a result of my “delicate condition” martial arts wouldn’t have done me a damned bit of good.

I have no idea if I’d have been less confident in confronting him if I hadn’t known I had a gun concealed but in easy reach for a fast draw if needed. I’m “attracted to guns” because for a little tiny woman like me, my having a gun can mean the difference between my being raped and murdered, or my surviving an attack unscathed to go home to my family that night. Living through a rape was bad enough the first time. I don’t intend to let it happen again.

Gun control is advanced mainly by those who are rapists at heart. They want to force their will upon other people. That conforming to their dictates makes the rest of us more vulnerable to other forms of molestation, including sexual, not only doesn’t bother them, it’s the intended effect. Gun control is advanced by predators who do not care who is hurt by their restrictions or how much government force they have to use to enforce those restrictions. And if you think I am exaggerating, look at how much less time a convicted rapist would serve in New York City compared to a person who merely owns and peaceably carries a sidearm for self-defense there.