Oh, damnit.

I don't need this.

But I REALLY, REALLY want it.

In .44Mag.  Or .300BLK.

Goofy Gun disease is striking again

Nope, have not even gotten my latest build to the range, and the next aquisition is starting to form.


Ans yes: it's an oddball, goofy gun.

A bolt gun in .223, that takes AR-15 Magazines, and is made by a shotgun company.  Seems oddball enough!
The Mossberg MVP Predator:

 Link

I could come up with a B.S. 'reason' for the gun.  Something like 'coyote hunting', 'having a starter centerfire rifle for the kid', 'cheap centerfire plinker,' etc... but I'll just come out and admit it.  It's a goofy gun, and I want it.

Now I just have to come up with the cash.

Did I ever mention I have bad luck?

Oh, I think I may have mentioned it before.

I have had more of it going on in regards to the AR pistol project.  Nothing as dramatic as a train getting derailed like with the AK, but just loads of fun anyway.

More details after I get home and actually SEE if there is a package waiting for me.

Gun Porn- Trainwreck

OK, so I have all the parts now.... I think.

Some Assembly Required

After the main part of this build got lost in a Wizard of Oz moment, we now seem to be back on track.  All the parts are here, I THINK I have all the tools, and hopefully there will be some free time to tinker in the garage over the next week or so.

What I have here is a Centerfire Systems AK Pistol Parts Kit, a NoDakSpud receiver, and some miscelanious parts from AK Builder.  Not shown is me with a blank look on my face- thinking I have gotten in over my head.

Receiver, trunion, bolt carrier, and... um, do-hickey.

An Artist's rendering of the alleged firearm

I have been researching the crap out of this online, and I'll start the build off soon and post progress as I go.  Anyone that has practical experience building an AK from a bare receiver, your input would be greatly appreciated.

Bad luck- I haz it

Have I  ever mentioned that I have bad luck, particularly with guns?

I think I may just have mentioned it before.

So, a few days ago, I got the wild hair to build an AK pistol.  Mostly because I could not find one for sale for a reasonable price.  So, I bought a parts kit, got some tools, almost bought a receiver flat, bending die, and shop press... but just went ahead and ordered a NoDakSpud receiver and had it shipped to my FFL.

In the meantime, I should have seen it coming.  Things were going too smoothly.

Then the first thing happens.  A box of parts shows up covered in BBQ sauce.

Well, the receiver is supposed to show up today, so last night I track the package.

This is your luck on 'That Guy'... Any questions?

I track it again this morning, and it says the same thing AGAIN.
I google news about anything happening in Peru, IL and find that there is a minor flood in the area.  That can't be it, so I email NoDakSpud, and find out that UPS had a freaking train derail near Chicago, and my AK receiver was in the middle of it.

Just to add insult to injury, I look for the train wreck on the news.  Just to see if it was something like a bridge collapse, hit a truck, anything like that.  Nope.  It was a freak gust of wind.

Well, I now have a name for my AK Pistol:
TRAINWRECK

Smoked pizza and extraordinary wine

I swear, I'll get some gun content on here sometime soon. It's getting so that everything is food related.

Yesterday was a special occasion, so we took full advantage of the gorgeous weather and cooked
some incredible pizza. We fired up the wood fired pizza oven

So... we meet again.

We cooked up some more of That Wife's favorite- Pizza de Parma, made a couple of standards, and That Kid actually displayed some killer pizzamaking skills.  He is three years old, and already can lay down sauce, put on pepperoni, and sprinkle cheese better than most of the people I worked with a Little Ceasar's when I was 16 years old.

The Father in Law had me make up an Italian sausage, black olive, and mozzarella pie.  At this point, we had loaded a smoker box into the oven.  Smoking pizza is something we have experimented with a little.  This one did not get much smoke, just a light perfume.  We corked a wine that we had been cellaring for a while, and it is amazing how well a 2007 Cab pairs with home made pizza.

...urp...

I made up the next pizza with tomato sauce, a few left over slices of the Italian sausage, a full layer of prosciutto, black olives, and a whole bunch of fresh mozzarella.  By now, the smoke was really rolling in the oven.

in the back by the convection fan is the smoke box.

You can see how much smoke the cheese took in.

Wow.  this was amazing.  The mozzarella took in a huge amount of smoke, but the salty prosciutto cut right through and make it just wonderful.   The remainder of the wine went so beautifully with this it was hard to describe.  

Smoke is one of my favorite seasonings, and this was a perfect showcase for it.  I just wish I had some for lunch.

Charter has 'released' the CARR- now called the Pit Bull

More info:
The Firearms Blog
Gun Nuts Media

Charter 'announced the CARR 'Charter Arms Rimless Revolver' almost 3 years ago, and after pushing the release date on it 2-3 times, they finally just stopped talking about it. It seemed to be vapor-ware.

Yesterday, out of nowhere, press releases hit a bunch of the blogs. While I did not get one (even after all the love I have shown Charter... sniff...), I am happy to hear that they have released the CARR for sale!

Oddly enough, they released it in the one chambering I'm pretty 'meh' about. It's in .40S&W and on the larger Bull Dog frame. If it was the small 'Off Duty' frame in 9mm, I would have one on order this afternoon. If it was on the Bulldog frame and in .45ACP, I would be driving to Southport, CT and banging on the door of the factory Monday morning. It's pretty cool to have a .40S&W revolver on the market, but for some reason- I just really don't care to own one.

Also, it's not called the CARR anymore. It's now called the Pitt Bull. So I guess that means this revolver will up and maul the crap out of you with no warning one day. I wonder what they will call the .45 version when it comes out? The Bull Mastiff? Maybe they should call the 9mm the "Rat Terrier".

I hope a bunch of you get out there and buy a boatload of them so that they get the 9mm and .45 versions out SOON.

Today is a big day.

I'm ordering a thousand dollar pistol.

Just over halfway through the year, and I am going to get the "1911 for 2011". An STI Ranger II in 9mm.

Click for bigger

I have had approval for several days to get this, but there has been a mental stumbling block on getting it. Just hard to wrap my mind around buying a pistol that costs more than 90% of the cars I have ever owned.

My whole reason for getting the STI, and not get a "Mil-Spec" or classically configured 1911 is to show the advancements made in 100 years- and I HAVE a classic config 1911. Plus, this frame/ barrel size will allow me to use the same gear as my Kimber, and 9mm will be lower cost blasting ammo.

The only reason I am getting a single stack instead of an STI 2011 is that spare mags for the 2011 guns are like $70 each!

Expect updates as this progresses.