Congrats – You Bought a Gun

On August 30, 2012 By Tom LindsayIn Planning2 Comments

DISCLAIMER: I am not an attorney. Nothing in this post is to be construed as legal advice. As always, you should do your own research, and consult an attorney experienced in firearms matters if you have any questions or concerns.

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When you’ve owned guns for any length of time, you will eventually buy or sell one as a private sale, not through a gun store or other Federal Firearms License holder. I’ve done both, and I thought I would share what I’ve done to document the transaction.

There’s a great post over on Urban Armed that gives a link to bills of sale for private sales of guns. Go take a look, and download a copy for your own use.

(At this point, re-read the Disclaimer above.)

BILLS OF SALE

Every time I transfer a gun to or from someone in a private transaction, I document it with a bill of sale. Even though I live in a state that doesn’t require registration or similar reporting of gun transfers, this will protect me in several ways.

First, should the gun ever be lost or stolen, I will have proof that I owned it, for a police report and insurance claim.

Second, I retain bills of sale for guns I no longer own, forever, so I can prove what happened to them.

In the case of a gift, I still prepare a bill of sale, and write “for just consideration” for the price.

When I buy a gun from someone in a private sale, I bring my own bill of sale, in case the seller doesn’t have one.

When I sell a gun, I prepare two copies of the bill of sale. I also make a photocopy of the buyer’s driver’s licence and Georgia Weapons Licence, as applicable. I won’t sell a gun to someone who doesn’t have a GWL, or who isn’t a family member whose background is well known to me. It’s my way of knowing they are not prohibited from owning a gun.

When I borrow a gun to take to the range, I execute a bill of sale, just like a gift. There are lots of reasons for this – traffic stop, accident, civil emergency, theft, fire – and I need to have proof that I had the gun in my possession. This is the only time I destroy a bill of sale, after I return a gun I borrowed.

INVENTORY

I keep an inventory of the guns I own. I use an Excel spreadsheet, but a printed notebook or piece of paper would work just as well. I keep my inventory backed up on a flash drive, as well as with my normal home computer backup files.

This inventory includes gun make, model, caliber, and serial number, as well as details about when and where I bought it. Using a spreadsheet lets me sort the inventory however I choose.

BACKUP

I keep backups of everything. The original bills of sale are kept in a bag* in my fire safe. PDF copies of the bills of sale are on my flash drive, along with my inventory. That way, if I ever have to evacuate our home, I grab the bag out of the fire safe, and go.

So, Dear Reader, what am I leaving out? What are some best practices I should consider?

* The bag in the safe also contains important family documents like social security cards, home ownership documents, car titles, our marriage certificate, our baptismal certificates, and school records.

Liberty Reborn

On August 27, 2012 By Tom LindsayIn Glock, Gunsmithing, Liberty3 Comments

Besides beefing up the frame with a third pin, when Glock introduced their 3rd generation pistols, (the Gen3), they made an attempt to add finger grooves on the grip. This wasn’t the normal flowing finger grooves of a Smith & Wesson grip, these were raised notches with a rough grip surface in between.

On the full size guns (G17, G20, G21, G22, etc.) these grooves seemed to line up okay with my fingers. But, for some reason, Glock decided that whoever bought the smaller midsize and compact framed pistols must have smaller hands, so the finger grooves were made closer together.

Ever since I got my Glock 19, Liberty, I’ve lived with this design oversight, but, truth be told, it made my hands hurt after shooting a few magazines through it. After a while, I decided to slip a rubber Hogue grip over the G19 finger grooves, and that gave a little relief, but it didn’t solve the problem.

Some people suggested removing the finger grooves, but I was reluctant to deface the G19 frame that much, in the even that I decided to sell it some time. But, I also reasoned that someone who was buying it might actually appreciate a gun that fit their hand.

So, without much further ado, I decided to use a sanding drum on my Dremel tool to zip those finger grooves down flush. I hand finished the job with some 300 grit paper, and smoothed it all with some Armor-All. I then slipped on the old Hogue grip, to index my fingers like they are on my G17, Bruce.

The verdict? I just wish I hadn’t waited so long.

The project in pictures:

G19 Before 1 — Before – finger grooves intact

After – grooves all ground off

The final product, with Hogue grip installed

G19 After — Before – finger grooves intact

After – grooves all ground off

The final product, with Hogue grip installed

Puddle Dogs

On August 16, 2012 By Tom LindsayIn Uncategorized2 Comments

A day wasted on Twitter.

Walt as Mr. White. Of course.

Ron as Mr. Orange.

Linoge as Mr. Brown.

Miguel as Mr. Fuchsia. Not Mr. Pink or Mr. Flamingo. Or, as he said. “PURPle but not a puuurple.”

I have an idea who the two guys are walking behind us, but I’d rather not say.

Safety Rules In Depth – Rule 3

On August 16, 2012 By Tom LindsayIn Safety, Training

Jack — Is that what how they taught you?

RULE 3 – Keep your finger OFF the trigger until your sights are on the target.

This would seem as straightforward a gun rule as one could imagine. Since the way to make a gun fire is to pull the trigger, if you don’t want to shoot something, don’t touch the trigger.

Sadly, even a casual search of news reports and videos on Youtube show this to be the most violated safety rule of all.*

“But Rooster,” you say, “we see it all the time. What about when someone drops a gun, and it goes off?” After all, in movies or on TV, if you drop a gun, it goes off. If you drop a machine gun, it fires until the ~~clip~~ magazine is exhausted.

Every.

Time.

Fortunately, that image is a load of steaming dung, straight from my old horse Bo.

The design of modern guns has advanced to the point where the only way to get them to fire is to pull the trigger. They won’t fire if you drop them, or hit them, or kick them. They don’t “go off.”

Yes, you will read in news reports that a dropped gun fired – Google it yourself – but when you read those reports, you find one of two things present. First, the gun involved is some kind of older gun, like a derringer or Colt SAA. Yes, older guns like the Colt Single Action Army will fire if the hammer is struck from the outside. Even some older 1911’s will fire, unless the firing pin has been replaced with a lighter version.

The second possibility is the person involved is lying or has no idea what they are talking about. That”s because the trigger was pulled. Period.

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It follows then that the way to prevent guns from firing except when you want them to fire is not to pull the trigger. For the shooter, this means keeping your finger off the trigger until you are sure the gun is pointed at what you wish to shoot.

Now, since positive reinforcement is much better at altering behavior than negative reinforcement, let’s turn that around.

RULE 3 – When the gun is aimed at the intended target, then it’s safe to put your finger on the trigger.

Until then, put your finger on the frame alongside the trigger. For instance, find a spot like the front of the trigger guard, or the slide lock, as a tactile reference, like this:

Fill Yer Hands with Glocks — Rule 3 – using the trigger guard or slide stop as tactile references

Or, you can find other tactile references. Then, train yourself to use them.

What about resting your finger lightly on the trigger, like Jack Bauer, until you’re ready to shoot?

Sadly, when we humans are startled, we experience a flinch reflex, and we will pull the trigger. And the gun will fire. (And we will tell the newspaper reporter “The gun just went off.” And they will know we are lying. And they will print it any way.)

So, train yourself to keep your finger off the trigger, and index your finger somewhere else. And practice it.

And, for heaven’s sake, ignore the people in the movies or on TV.

* tied with Rule 1 and Rule 2.