Welcome to M14 National Monument, please keep your head down and stay with the group.  We wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to you while you visit Organ Pipe National Monument, where the border is more secure than ever.

Liz Goodwin recently wrote about her visit to Organ Pipe National Monument.  About 69% of the park has been closed since 2002, when Park Ranger Kris Eggle was murdered by drug runners.

As Ms. Goodwin notes, things have improved at the park.  Since 2009, you can take a van tour to the springs in the park, but you’ll be escorted by Park Rangers protected with bullet proof vests and armed with M14 Battle Rifles.   Oh yeah, there will be more officers in the hills keeping watch for cartel members that may ruin your day.  Due to increased law enforcement presence, on March 1st, 2012, around 46% of the monument will be open to visitors.  Let that sink in.  You can’t visit 54% of your national monument because, it’s just too dangerous.

The danger to visitors in Organ Pipe National Monument is even higher than Saguaro National Monument and Coronado National Memorial.   The Mexican drug trade to the United States is at least $39 billion per year, and the thousands of weapons trafficked South by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives remains unquantified.  We need to evaluate the loss of access to parts of the U.S. and the increase in wealth of certain political elites who fight to make more of our borderland “protected environmental areas”.   Certainly, gun control wasn’t the only motivation for the criminal Operation Fast and Furious.

For some perspective, the DMZ between North and South Korea is a safer place to visit.  Just remember when Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano and President Obama claim that “border security is better than ever“,  it all depends on what the meaning of the word “is” actually is.

If you think the porous border isn’t a serious issue, just remember, when you eat a cheap burger, admire your inexpensively manicured lawn, or snort a line of cheap cocaine, there is a enormous price paid by some Americans (and Mexicans) for that little luxury you enjoy, while you smugly pine that you are looking out for those less fortunate than you.

Happy 100th Birthday, Arizona!

Both Robert and I are second-generation natives, and to say we love Arizona would be a huge understatement. Despite what the pants-peeing media would like you to believe, this state is populated with some of the kindest and most generous people I have ever met.  The rugged individualism and independent spirit that Arizonans have held on to for a century have allowed us to remain a (relatively) free state.  We are passionate about our freedoms and liberties and we’re willing to go to the mat to protect them.

If you don’t like the sound of that and you’re looking for a place to hang your hat, please continue traveling West until you hit California.  Unlike Arizona, they’ll be more than happy to tell you how to eat, sleep and live.

It’s that time again – the new season of Top Shot begins on Tuesday the 14th (10/9c), and the History Channel’s Top Shot Season 4 webpage has given out a few clues on what’s in store for the first episode:

Season Four begins with the biggest twist in Top Shot history: two competitors are sent packing immediately after a surprise shoot-off in the opening minutes of the first episode. Later, two shooters get a taste of WWII combat as they fire an M1 Carbine from a motorcycle sidecar and attempt to stay in the game.

This year, I don’t have a favorite going in, but I would like to see Michelle Viscusi do well, and not just because she’s a lady (though I freely admit that is a factor).  She’s practically a neighbor (she lives in the next city over) and competes at my home range, Rio Salado Sportsman’s Club.

Good luck to all of the competitors, and may the best PERSON win!

It’s time for the special election primary race for those seeking to win Representative Gabby Giffords’ recently vacated seat.  The Republican special election primary is set for April 17, 2012, and the special election is scheduled for June 12.  The Republican race for the seat is heating up now that several candidates have announced their campaigns.

The choices so far in the Republican Primary are:

• Arizona State Senator Frank Antenori was the first to declare his candidacy for the seat.  Senator Antenori is an Army Special Forces Veteran who co-authored the book, Roughneck Nine-One: The extraordinary Story of a Special Forces A-Team at War, about his experiences at the Battle at Debecka Pass in Iraq.  His record on gun rights is great.  Antenori’s experience as a legislator, his A+ AzCDL rating in 2010, and proven voting record give him a distinct advantage in the race.

• Jesse Kelly will run again for the AZ Congressional District 8 seat.  In 2010, Kelly was narrowly defeated in the race with Ms. Giffords.   He served in the Marines for four years.  After the tragic Tucson shooting at the Gifford’s event, Kelly was vilified by Democrats for his prior campaign events where supporters could shoot M16s with him.  I’ll take that as a sign of his pro-gun credentials.

• Martha McSally announced her intention to run for the vacant seat yesterday.  Ms. McSally is the first woman to fly an Air Force fighter in combat.  She is a Distinguished Graduate of the United States Air Force Academy, has a Masters Degree in Public Policy from the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard, and retired from the Air Force as a colonel in 2010.  She has also served as a national security adviser to Senator Jon Kyl.  At this time, her website does not list her positions on current issues.

So far, the only candidate to come forward for the Democrat primary is Giffords’ aide Ron Barber.

The current race would allow the winner to serve in the seat through the rest of this year.  The winner will need to simultaneously run in the Fall general election, but in the newly redrawn Congressional District 2 to keep the seat.   The Republican contenders should make this race very interesting to watch.

My muse told me to get off my lazy butt, so it’s time to share my 1911 project gun.

My project is a .45 ACP 1911 with a chrome Colt Series 80 slide, a Caspian frame, a 1990s vintage Aimpoint, Colt grips, and a 20 plus pound recoil spring.  The recoil and main springs are so stiff that the former owner converted remnants of a Chevy gas pedal into a slide racker, just to be able to chamber a round.  Each time I refer to this little beast as a Frankengun, I could swear it snipes back at me, “it’s pronounced Fron-kon-gunn.”

After SHOT Show 2011, Mz. VRWC decided she absolutely needed a 9mm Rock Island Armory 1911 Tactical so she could continue shooting USPSA matches while her Production class gun went in for a doctor visit.  Suddenly, I feared that I would need to learn a lot more about working on guns derived from John Moses Browning’s most famous design.

A nearby gun store in Mesa just happened to have a 9mm RIA in stock, as well as a rough, vintage looking, 1911 race gun.  I don’t think I actually said, “hold my beer and watch this” out loud, but somewhere inside, a voice did say, “you can learn all about making a 1911 run with that one”.  The Frankengun just kept staring at me with that sad mournful look that usually haunts people in pet stores and animal shelters.

After trading the store (that I borrowed the photo from) a few dollars and the Taurus Judge previously won at a Friends of NRA dinner, Mz. VRWC had a budget 1911 for Single Stack competition and I had a “new” used gun.  More precisely, I had a new project.

When this project is finished, I should have a fun .45 for shooting steel, or a pile of scrap metal.   Follow along as I go through the gun in the coming weeks and see what’s inside Frankengun.

It’s become a tradition for the cast members of Top Shot to meet up for a casual reunion during SHOT Show, and with three seasons under their belt and one on the way, this year’s event was bigger than ever.  So big, that it was pretty much impossible to get a complete group shot of all but a few of the cast of characters, but as you can see from the photos, everyone involved had a great time.  In addition to just about all of the cast members from season 1 though 3, the contestants from season 4 were also in attendance.  You will be able to watch them get their game on in just over a week, as Top Shot Season 4 premiers February 14th at 10/9 central.

Thanks to Crimson Trace and Top Shot Season 1 winner and Media Relations Manager for Crimson Trace, Iain Harrison,  for hosting this unique event.  I think you’re gonna need a bigger boat next year.

One of the hottest guns on the floor at SHOT Show 2012 was the Sig Sauer P938,  a brand new pistol modeled after Sig’s wildly popular P238, but chambered in 9mm.

Designed for the concealed carry market, the P938 is very similar to the P238.  So similar, in fact, it’s difficult to tell the difference between the two at first glance (click on image above). It’s only about a quarter of an inch longer than the P238, so it retains it’s ease of concealment, and as you can see from the image of the two backstraps, the only noticeable difference in this area is the more aggressive checkering (to assist with recoil control of the larger caliber).  If you’ve been considering purchasing the P238, but have hesitated because you would like to carry something more powerful than the .380 ACP, the Sig P938 may fit your needs perfectly.

I haven’t had a chance to shoot the P938 (yet),  but I was able to get my hands on it during SHOT Show.  The ambidextrous safety was stiff enough that I wouldn’t worry about it disengaging accidentally while carrying, but I was able to thumb it on and off without a great deal of effort (which is not the case with many of the pocket pistols I’ve tried).  The trigger broke cleanly, and while listed on the Sig Sauer website as a 5lb pull, it felt just a bit heavier to me.  I didn’t notice a difference in the grip between the P938 and the P238, and despite feeling slightly awkward to hold (like any other pocket pistol), it didn’t feel like it was going to fall out of my hand.  When the extended seven round magazine was inserted (sold separately, it ships with a six round mag), I found that the extended mag made it more comfortable to grip the P938.

Sig Sauer is planning on initially offering the P938  in four different flavors – Blackwood (MSRP $809), Equinox (MSRP $823), Rosewood (MSRP $795), and my favorite, Extreme (Shown at left, MSRP – $823).  The Extreme includes all the bells and whistles of the other models, including SIGLITE Night Sights, and features Hogue G-10 Extreme Grips.  Not only are they super cool looking, they provide a solid, aggressive grip without being ouchy or pinchy (to put it in technical terms).

Using the street price vs. MSRP of the P238 as a measure, you can expect the P938 to sell for around $100 less than MSRP.  While this places the P938 at the upper end of pricing for pocket pistols, keep in mind that you are getting an all-metal, mini 1911 with night sights.  I’m looking forward to making one of these go bang, and when I do, I’ll be sure to tell you all about it.