^^i just had the guns stashed in various spots around the house. looking back, that was pretty dumb for the amount of money i had tied up in them, but i'm renting a house and i'm pretty sure i'll be moving an hour or two away this coming summer, so i didn't really want to deal with moving a 1250 lb safe. they had never had issues with break-ins where i stay and my landlord's elderly mother can see my house from hers and is usually an excellent watchdog. i liked my chances, but it bit me.

of course now i've got a big ass Drake safe custom made here in Roxboro. i do have to buy back the guns from the insurance company.

11/30/2011 11:30:45 AM

do you have their brochure or any info on the models they offer?

11/30/2011 2:07:58 PM

yes, i do have the brochure (with some numbers i jotted down on it ). PM me your address and i'll mail it to you. i could fax it to you if you have a fax number.

i'll go ahead and warn you that they are quite pricey (yet still reasonable imo), but there's really no comparison to any of the other big Residential Security Container companies. He uses 1/4" steel all the way around. the others use heavy gauge sheet metal on all sides with 1/4" only on the door. a grinder w/ a cutoff wheel will get you into any of them relatively quickly and he's got a Heritage safe in his shop that some theives cut into that proves it. if you're seriously considering a Drake, it's worth the ride to Roxboro to check him out. you can order one of the standard layouts from the brochure or he'll custom make whatever you can imagine. you can even get a small document safe built inside of the gunsafe for double the fire protection. i got lucky and the day i went by to look he had exactly what i wanted in a color i liked ready to go for display at the gun show in raleigh. one of them never made it to the gun show

[Edited on November 30, 2011 at 2:46 PM. Reason : ]

11/30/2011 2:46:01 PM

Glad you got your guns back man. Congrats!

11/30/2011 3:07:35 PM

welp...I really want a short (not snub) barrel .44, but the model 29 is the only one i'd really be interested in carrying and they're just damn expensive.

I'm thinking about picking up an automatic in the meantime, either in a compact .40 or .357 sig. I'm definitely leaning toward the latter, and I'd love to check out a USP compact in .357. Thought?

11/30/2011 10:13:41 PM

1) Obtain Gen 3 Glock 27
2) Join the Glock crew
3) ...
4) Profit!



If you need help deciding, you are more than welcome to shoot mine anytime paerabol



[Edited on December 1, 2011 at 12:02 AM. Reason : .]

12/1/2011 12:02:08 AM

^Glock

12/1/2011 7:43:35 AM

^,^^ Glock

12/1/2011 8:09:49 AM

Quote :

"USP compact in .357. Thought?"

The USP is an excellent quality gun, but IMO the compacts are difficult to shoot. It's just something about that gun that doesn't fit me right compared to the full size.
Many people like the ergonomics of the Glocks more than the USP. Glocks are cheap too.
Try out both before you decide. Throw in the S&W M&P and compact polymer CZs too.

After years of shooting and reading I think the 357 Sig isn't the best choice. It's definitely good; any cartridge that will consistently put a hole through someone is good. But, I think 9mm or 40 S&W are better.
The 357 Sig tried to duplicate the 357 Mag. It comes close in velocity but 357mag bullets have larger meplats that an auto can't handle and you can't get as heavy a bullet in the Sig as you can the 357 mag...so, the two definitely aren't equal.
In the 357 Sig you basically get a really hot 9mm at the expense of a lot more recoil, muzzle blast, and lower capacity. If a 9mm can have just as good penetration and expansion as a 357Sig then why would you want your gun to be more difficult to shoot and have two fewer rounds?
Some argue the higher energy of a 357Sig transfers to more damage to the target, but we're talking about pistol rounds here. You don't get enough of an energy dump benefit until you start talking about rifles or real magnum handguns.

The 40 S&W is a good choice. You have the recoil of the 357 but you're shooting a heavier bullet. Heavier bullets are more forgiving by nature because their terminal performance is more consistent.

I'm still a big 9mm fan though. It's a lot cheaper to shoot, ammo is plentiful in a lot of different loadings, and it's easy to shoot. I can handle big cartridges just fine; I own a 480 Ruger, but the fact is any shooter can get on target faster with less recoil. I'd rather pump out 4 well placed 9mms in a second than 3 well placed 40s.

That's all my opinion. You wouldn't be doing wrong by getting a 357 Sig, I just don't think it's the best when you factor everything in.
Speaking of factors...the biggest one is the platform. If there was a model I shot well and really liked I'd buy it in any of the popular calibers if money was an issue and I got a deal on it. You usually don't run into those situations with most guns though.

12/1/2011 10:39:58 AM

I'm considering selling off my h&k p2000sk in .357 sig. It's pretty rare apparently.

12/1/2011 4:46:26 PM

i've had a few folks asking about Drake Safes. they don't have a website, but there are a lot of pics on their facebook page here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Drake-Safe-Co/148476681871314

i went ahead and took pics of the brochure he gave me. if you've got questions about his stuff, i'll try to answer them, but you can always call the shop number on the brochure and he'll be more than happy to answer them too. if you're serious about getting a quality safe, i would highly suggest you go by his shop. it's about an hour from raleigh and he'll show you all about them. he usually brings several safes to gunshows in raleigh, wilmington, greensboro, maybe some others, so you could catch him there too.

12/1/2011 9:42:26 PM

^ Thank you for sharing. I will be getting a safe soon. What's the heat/fire rating on them?



[Edited on December 1, 2011 at 9:56 PM. Reason : .]

12/1/2011 9:48:58 PM

i found out the hard way you better go ahead and get one. i thought i'd be ok putting it off a couple years until i was settled down more permanently. i'd strongly encourage you to give Drake a good look before you purchase. those $500 deals are tempting, but they really don't compare.

he does not specify a UL rating b/c it's just a racket to get you to pay for the testing and it's just too much for an operation like his. however, they have the same wallboard material that all of them have. he's had a few safes in fires and the very worst was in a house that burned completely down to the ground. documents and cash were fine with just a smoke smell. the only damage to the guns was warping of the plastic stocks.



[Edited on December 1, 2011 at 10:03 PM. Reason : in a fire that bad, you would've had the same results from any of the cheap RSCs]

12/1/2011 9:58:29 PM

^ $500? The closet safe was listed for $700. The regular safe starts at $1,300. I'd like to stick a safe in a closet so it's not out in the open should someone break into the house. Also, I'd like to be able to store a few rifle, a few pistols, ammo, and important documents (titles to cars, receipts of major purchases, pictures of the house and contents, etc...) I don't forsee needing to store TOO many firearms. I have 2 rifles, 2 shotguns, and 2 pistols ATM, and at most I may get 2 or 3 more long guns and 2 more pistols.

You have a valid point about the UL rating and I concur.



[Edited on December 2, 2011 at 1:14 AM. Reason : .]

12/2/2011 1:05:36 AM

Quote :

"I'm thinking about picking up an automatic in the meantime, either in a compact .40 or .357 sig. I'm definitely leaning toward the latter, and I'd love to check out a USP compact in .357. Thought?"

You're considering carrying a .44 revolver, but if you were going semi-auto only a .40 or .357sig? Does not compute...


























10mm Glock 29 or bust.

12/2/2011 3:41:29 AM

the $500 deals i was referring to are the cheap safes you find at places like Sam's Club, Tractor Supply, a lot of gun shops, etc.

if you're sure that's all the guns you'll ever accumulate, then his DS-18 model will be a good choice. go ahead and get the "U" model so you have an extra shelf for ammo, pistols, papers, etc. get the guns w/ side shelves. if you run out of long gun space, you can always get him to re-do the interior to all gun for you for pretty cheap. a co-worker of mine has a DS-18U in a closet and it works good for him.

to me, it'd be worth the extra $400 to move up to the 36-U and get a safe big enough to undoubtedly last my entire life.



[Edited on December 2, 2011 at 6:59 AM. Reason : dfas]

12/2/2011 6:50:46 AM

I get what you are saying now... lol. I'd never consider a $500 safe from wally world...

12/2/2011 4:06:18 PM

got my lower assembled tonight. still trying to decide on an upper. i really want an 18" barrel, but they're aren't many choices. looking at RRA's predator pursuit and coyote carbine uppers. both come in 16" and 20". any suggestions?

also, what mags are good and what mags should i stay away from? i want 10 rounders.

12/2/2011 10:54:05 PM

I've had a RRA 20" LAR w/free float rail etc at one point in time. Where my standard 16" M&P can do under 1" (closer to 1/2" ) 3 shot groups, it can only do them in slow fire. The RRA would do 1" or under groups, no matter how fast you shot. Great upper, fantastic fit/finish as well.

12/2/2011 10:56:41 PM

24k Gold or Titanium Gold?

24k


Titanium Gold


[Edited on December 3, 2011 at 2:05 AM. Reason : .]

12/3/2011 2:05:37 AM

Quote :

"also, what mags are good and what mags should i stay away from? i want 10 rounders."

Why only 10rnds? They make 20 and 30 round P-Mags which are kind of the standard

12/3/2011 1:36:34 PM

i don't want a magazine sticking way down and hanging on shit when i'm hunting. if i can't kill it with 10 rounds, then i need to go practice some more. rifle's mainly for hunting, but i may get a 30 rd mag for plinking.

[Edited on December 3, 2011 at 4:20 PM. Reason : also trying to keep it light, so 10 rds will help keep the weight a little lower]

12/3/2011 4:18:55 PM

That is a 20rnd P-Mag above, a 10rnd mag would be about flush with the mag well - like the photo below. They are mostly sold to CA residents who can't have anything larger than a 10rnd mag

12/3/2011 4:57:50 PM

ok, so i'll go with p-mag if i want 20 rds.

who makes a good 10 rd mag?

12/3/2011 5:30:22 PM

what's the point of this ranger floorplate thing?

12/3/2011 6:37:55 PM

^^P-mag
^easier to pull short mag out

[Edited on December 3, 2011 at 6:48 PM. Reason : .]

12/3/2011 6:48:00 PM

i can't find a 10 rd p-mag, just 20s that have been limited to 10. got a link to some?

here's my lower. RRA 2 stage trigger.



[Edited on December 3, 2011 at 6:54 PM. Reason : adsf]

12/3/2011 6:50:03 PM

http://midwestpx.com/index.php?cPath=15_69

He modifies the pmags to 5, 10, or 15 as ordered.
The owner of that company is on one ogbthengun forums i frequent.

12/4/2011 8:59:15 AM

excellent. thanks man.

got any advice on a hunting upper that won't be too heavy?

12/4/2011 9:01:30 AM

how come the wood on new winchesters, even the $1000+ stuff out of japan, looks like complete shit.

how come top-of-the-line winchesters come from japan anyway?

jesus.

12/4/2011 4:54:50 PM

nothing wrong with japanese stuff. china, on the other hand...

wood stocks just aren't what they used to be. you can still get nice wood, but you pay for it. check out Kimber and CZ for beautiful wood.

[Edited on December 4, 2011 at 6:38 PM. Reason : i mean, i try to buy american when i can, but japanese made rifles, scopes, etc aren't bad.]

12/4/2011 6:37:29 PM

Anyone have experience with Geissele triggers? Trying to decide between the Super Dynamic Combat (SD-C) and the Super Semi-Automatic (SSA).

12/4/2011 6:58:24 PM

Made "Rifleman" at the appleseed competition today using a Marlin 795 w/tech sights.

221 pts the first time. 222pts on the second try.

In the spring, I'm going to see if I can qualify with my Mosin Nagant.

12/4/2011 7:21:47 PM

just seems like there's something wrong with taking a foreign rifle to an Appleseed shoot

12/4/2011 7:29:14 PM

oh and fuck marlin.

every new rifle ive held felt like complete shit- the wood on the winchesters i previously complained about looks marvelous compared to these. especially the laminates-

thank god my lever 30-30 is a pre-safety model.

love CZ- wish i saw more of their stuff around local shops and shows. hopefully someday i will own a safari magnum and be able to shoot it competently.

12/4/2011 8:12:37 PM

cerberus capital management fucks up everything it touches

12/4/2011 8:35:15 PM

Can you guys recommend a good casing tumbler and tumbler medium?

I don't want to pay too much (more than $100) for it.

12/4/2011 11:34:49 PM

get whatever flavor of the Berry's Mfg, Cabela's, Frankford Arsenal is the cheapest. it's all the same machine.

walnut shell or corncob for media. both work fine. don't spend extra for the "treated" stuff. just drizzle in a little NuFinish car wax every once in a while.

[Edited on December 5, 2011 at 12:14 AM. Reason : media is cheapest at the gun show if you can wait.]

12/5/2011 12:12:04 AM

Crushed walnut at the pet store in the reptile section is the cheapest. It obviously won't be treated but you can buy the tumbler polish or like NRR says, use car wax. I've used car wax and plastic polish; they all work fine. Just don't use anything real abrasive or if you do then run the brass through plain media for a minute to clean the polish off. Walnut cleans better than corn cob but corn cob polishes better. There's really no need to make it shiny unless you just like it. Btw, don't use the corn cob from the pet store. The pieces are too big. I spent over an hour picking corn cob out of 308 cases when I was new to the process.

[Edited on December 5, 2011 at 9:50 AM. Reason : Oh yeah, I have a Frankfurt Arsenal and it works fine and was one of the cheapest ]

12/5/2011 9:48:59 AM

thanks.

sorry to sneak, but I'm not getting it for cleaning casings.

I just bought a whole slew of old double edge safety razors and they will need cleaning and I know casing tumblers are the best at doing one part of the cleaning (the other being a goo ultrasonic sink)

12/5/2011 1:40:43 PM

i use the harbor freight ultrasonic cleaner on my cases and it works good. the high dollar Lyman ultrasonic cleaner is a rebranded identical unit.

the ultrasonic cleans the primer pockets and inside the cases better than the tumbler. after they dry, i tumble for the shine.

12/5/2011 2:51:12 PM

I'm surprised there hasn't been any more mention of HB650 being put into effect on the 1st.

12/6/2011 10:48:03 AM

^I almost forgot about that. I went to the bank yesterday. I should've cc'ed just for the hell of it haha.

12/6/2011 10:57:23 AM

^make sure your bank isn't posted.

I need to find some contacts at SECU to mail/email still.

12/6/2011 11:03:07 AM

I spent a few minutes through the changes to the law but couldn't find what specific section says that you can carry in a bank now. Anybody know right off what wording to look for?

12/6/2011 11:42:53 AM

14-415 is the section where they removed banks.

14-51 and 14-415 are the other sections that had changes made.


We also no longer have to show the old video anymore. After 16 years of use, they decided it was outdated.

12/6/2011 12:36:33 PM

noooo I feel like that video was a rite of passage

12/6/2011 12:46:14 PM

So what do you do instead of the video? (I would still show it for the sake of nostalgia)

12/6/2011 1:01:17 PM

^^^ That's what I was looking for. Thanks!
http://www.ncga.state.nc.us/Sessions/2011/Bills/House/PDF/H650v6.pdf

12/6/2011 1:28:45 PM

The video contents will now be shown to classes via overhead protectors and transparencies.

12/6/2011 1:32:40 PM