Sportsman's Warehouse

Last week, Sportsman's Warehouse filed for chapter 11 bankruptcy. Apparently the chain is yet another victim of a shrinking consumerism-based economy. Judging merely by the scarcity of reloading components on the shelves of the Colorado Springs store, I am not surprised. The scarcity makes me believe they should be called Sportsman's Wherehouse.

I first became aware of Sportsman's Warehouse after I stumbled upon one in Denver about five years ago. The store had a fantastic selection of shooting goods, as well as many other things outdoors related. When Colorado Springs finally got a store, I looked forward to it with anticipation and, for a while, I was not disappointed. But after a couple of years, some cracks started to show. Reloading supplies began to be stocked with increasing irregularity and spots on the shelves for the more popular items would stay bare for weeks on end, and this was long before the current buy-it-all-now-'cause-they're-gonna-ban/hyper-tax-it ammo hysteria.

I'm not sure who was handling the supply logistics for the store/chain, but their incompetency during the good times was painfully evident. As everyone with even a cursory understanding of how to run a business knows, keeping a ready and steady supply on hand of products, especially popular ones, is crucial to the bottom line and to the long-time survival of the concern.

Maybe this bankruptcy reorganization will help SW get its act together and, once the ammo hysteria dies down a bit and ammo makers can catch up on backorders, become a successful retailer. But the pessimist in me says that is unlikely, particularly if some changes are not made in upper management and the usual way of doing business.

There, see how easy that fix was? I'll tell you, the problem with the world is that it doesn't have me to run it. For example, I can fix the US economy with just the few following words: STOP SPENDING MORE THAN YOU MAKE, AND ALWAYS VOTE FOR LIBERTY FIRST (making the huge assumption that you have a clue what liberty is), NOT A PARTY, MORONS! (Actually, there's a bit more to it than that, but those are the roots of most of the problem.)

Take care.
DAL357

Range report

Yesterday, I made my more-or-less monthly 40-mile-each-way sojourn to the range for some R&R. This time, I dragged the chronograph along to clock a new load I bought for my S&W Model 642, the slickest little carry revolver ever devised. Earlier in the week, I had purchased a box of Federal .38 Spl. +P 158 gr. LSWCHP ammunition, the so-called "FBI load," and I was anxious to see how it performed in the little snubby. (Of course, the 642 wasn't the only gun I took, but more on that later.)

I've usually carried and fired loads with lighter bullets in the 642, namely 110 gr. and 125 gr. But, although I've known about the FBI load and its real-world efficacy for years, I've never tried it. That changed yesterday. The good news is also the bad news in that it is at least, or seems to be, a notch above, in terms of power, rounds with lighter-weight bullets. The good news part explains itself; the bad news part is that it also ups the recoil a good bit. Not to unmanageable levels, mind you, but it is pronounced, and it makes this round a load best practiced with in 5-10 round sessions.

Other than that, it performed beautifully. Hitting accurately at 9 yards (offhand) and clocking at an average of 805 fps, which I thought was pretty good considering the 1 7/8" barrel it went through. The velocity, by the way, was not much below the other load I chrono'd, the Speer Gold Dot .38 Spl. +P 125 gr. JHP. The Speer load, for the one round I was able to measure (my chronograph was acting funny at that point) went 828 fps. Granted, that's not an average, but it's probably in the ballpark of where that load generally shoots. With a less than 30 fps. difference, I believe I'll begin carrying the FBI load; I just feel more confident with that heavier bullet. One other downside to the FBI load I just thought of, and it's a minor one, is that it leaded the heck out of my barrel, but a little elbow grease, Rem-Oil, and Chore-Boy copper wool will take care of that.

The S&W Model 19 I own shot my softball .38 Spl. reloads (3.0 grs. Clays, 154 gr. LRNFP, WSP) with typical aplomb. It really loves that load and puts it on target almost in spite of me. The fact that it's such a mild-mannered load probably doesn't hurt either, coupled with a trigger that's the best on any gun I've ever fired. I recently had some custom gun stocks (aka, incorrectly, as grips) made for the gun from Herrett's Stocks, Inc. that fit me like a glove and make the gun feel like an extension of my hand, which is as it should be since I sent them an outline of my hand and they fitted the stocks perfectly to suit me.

I also put 50 rounds through the S&W Model 617 10-shot .22 LR revolver. This gun is always fun to shoot, mainly because it's accurate and non-taxing regarding recoil. In the past, I've put over 450 rounds through it in a day without tiring. (The only reason I stopped was because I ran out of ammo.) I bought the gun new and I've since put over 6700 rounds through it (I actually keep count) and I hope to put several times more than that through it before I pass it on to my son.

Finally, I toted along the quintessential working man's semi-auto centerfire "battle" carbine, the SKS. I put only 20 rounds through this gun, but that was enough to remind me of how infinitely practical both the gun and the 7.62x39mm round are. The gun is as tough as a tank and, though it does not possess tack-driving accuracy by any means, its accuracy is acceptable. Plus, although prices have gone up since I bought mine, they are still a great bargain.

After the firearms shooting was done, I promptly made my way over to the bow range where I quickly discovered I had left my bowstringer at home. DRATS! It wasn't a total loss, however, as I was able to string the low-poundage recurve I had via the step-through method and use that for practice. The other bow, though, was too expensive to try that method with (if you mess it up, it can ruin your bow) and I left it alone. I only got serious about archery this summer and it is a close second to firearms shooting in terms of enjoyment. One area where it exceeds firearms is in its simplicity. I'm sure I will vacillate between the two sports in the future, but I can't see forsaking one for the other. They are both such fun.

Take care.
DAL357

Lee and me

Three cheers for Lee's Liquid Alox! If you are a reloader, you've likely at least heard about this concoction, if not used it yourself. LLA is a bullet lubricant that helps keep lead smearing out of a firearm's barrel when using lead bullets driven at sane velocities. Since I've only used it for lead bullets pushed to moderate speeds (approx. 750-850 fps) in the .38 Spl. cartridge, that's all I can authoritatively comment on. Prior to using LLA, I would routinely have to scrub lead--lots of lead--out of the barrels of my revolvers after firing them. The lead bullets I used were commercially manufactured and had hard lube in their lube rings, but that lube might as well have not been there for all the good it did.

Somewhere along the line, I got the idea to use LLA on my bullets to supplement the lousy lube that already came on the bullets. Since that time, I've had absolutely zero leading problems. As an added bonus, LLA couldn't be simpler to use: just take an old plastic container, place a couple of handfuls of lead bullets inside, shoot a squirt or two of LLA on the bullets, and swirl the container until they're all coated, which doesn't take long. Then, put the bullets on a piece of wax paper and let them dry overnight. After that, they're ready to load. Simple, eh?

I have heard that LLA has its limitations, mainly when bullets get much beyond about 1200 fps. Past that speed, leading can/will occur. But, since I don't plan to shoot lead bullets at that speed (that's what jacketed bullets are for), LLA suits my purposes just fine.

One other use I've read about for Lee Liquid Alox is as a rust preventative. Although I haven't used it for that purpose, I can see how it would work well in that role, and not just for guns. Anything metal that you might want to put into long-term storage could well benefit from a coating of LLA. Of course, you'll have to clean it off once the item is taken from storage, and that will take a little work since LLA dries somewhat hard, but the item should be in fine, rust-free shape afterwards.

If you haven't tried LLA, do yourself a favor and get a bottle. It's relatively cheap, about five bucks for a 4-oz. bottle, and it lasts a long time. I've coated about 1500 bullets so far and less than half of the bottle is gone.

Take care.
DAL357