This video titled “New Energy” is one of the most powerful, beautiful, and explanatory pieces of work I have seen representing women who celebrate the 2nd Amendment. I am a female gun enthusiast, and see myself in this video. This is who I am. This is who most gun owners are. If you have not yet seen it, take a few minutes and share it with some one who is not too sure – maybe it will help them understand.
There is nothing like having a space set aside in your home just to take care of firearms. Everything from storing, cleaning, maintaining, repairing, changing sights and definitely reloading ammunition! If you have a gun, you must keep it clean and occasionally perform maintenance on it. If you have several different guns and practice various shooting sports from hunting to competitions, then you will find yourself frequently replacing scopes, sights, building up new loads, changing stocks, etc. The changes one makes to their firearms and the care of these critical tools becomes a very personal endeavor. Even if you do not have a space now, the time will come when you will realize that you NEED a space to properly care for your firearms.
Let me tell you about a gun-room one of my friends built-in their new home for their firearms. The home they purchased was in a nice upper middle class suburban neighborhood, the type with manicured lawns, friendly neighbors, kids riding bikes and people walking dogs. The basement was mostly finished, except for the room where the water heater and furnace was located. This room is about 17′x 7′ rectangle.
To start out, they finished the walls, hung drywall, painted, and covered the cement floor in epoxy coating. All along the longest wall, they framed out a workbench, added supports for a shelf below the bench and an overhead shelf.
Along the wall with the furnace and the water heater they made a shorter bench, this would eventually become the reloading station. They framed out an upper and lower shelf for the reloading bench as well. One of the most versatile organizational materials for a workshop of any kind is a pegboard back splash. You will see in the photo below, they framed the wall for pegboard.
No workspace is complete without good lighting and accessible power:
Once the room was finished, I helped them move into the space. I thought moving a kitchen was bad, but moving a room like this is a serious undertaking!
The finished room stocked and ready for almost anything!
The water heater was in the corner of one long wall, but they finished the rest of that wall with a short workbench. This bench would become the reloading bench. The entire length of opposite wall is one very long work bench. This bench is set up on one end with a vise and other tools for working on firearms. The other end is set up with all the chemicals, implements, and tools required for cleaning various types of firearms. My favorite part is the ammunition reloading station on the left hand side of the view, and the Dillon Square B press on the right side of the photo below.
This room did take some carpentry skill, and about a weeks worth of time and effort – but, when you have a room like this in your home, you are ready for just about anything! Have you designed the perfect gun-room? Give us ideas of how YOU would make the perfect gun-room!
The President and CEO of Colt’s Manufacturing Co., Dennis Veilleux, published the following OP-ED in a Connecticut News Paper this week: As a leader of a Connecticut manufacturing business who answers to owners, I can tell you the one question I am asked regularly, “Why does it make sense to stay or grow here?” For 175 years, Hartford and Connecticut have been our home. The genius and vision of Samuel Colt built a core of manufacturing excellence that helped make Hartford one of the nation’s wealthiest cities and ignited the industrial revolution in the Connecticut River Valley. Amazingly, that heritage continues with a substantial firearms industry and a critical mass of skilled craftsman and machining expertise for aerospace and other precision industries that are the envy of the country. But this tremendous economic advantage is in grave danger. What’s most astounding is our advantage is not being taken away — it’s being given away.
Colt, for example, manufactures the AR-15 platform rifles in a military version and a very different commercial version. Colt has manufactured the commercial semi-automatic version of the AR (one shot for each trigger pull) since 1963. The AR-15 has evolved into the modern sporting rifle. It is owned and used responsibly by millions of Americans for hunting, target shooting and home defense. This product is the backbone of our business and is very important to us and our customers.
Now Gov. Dannel P. Malloy says that with or without bipartisan consensus, he intends to ban this rifle. But a ban of the most popular semiautomatic rifle in the United States for what are essentially cosmetic reasons would make no one safer and punish a vital Connecticut industry.
Changes are needed to make our communities safer, and there are things we can all agree on to meet this goal. We should focus on keeping firearms out of the wrong hands.
We must strengthen what we know works such as strictly enforcing penalties for those who purchase or possess an illegal firearm. We can build on the existing National Instant Background Checks to bring all appropriate mental health and other records, such as restraining orders, into the system.
We can educate gun owners and enforce laws on the safe storage of firearms in the home (Imagine if the firearms criminally and insanely misused in Newtown had been stored securely.) I have two young children and like so many in our state, I identify with, but can only imagine, the searing pain of those parents who lost children in Newtown. If I thought a ban would make the state and especially its children safer, I could not write these words.
The fact is bans don’t work. We tried to ban alcohol nearly 100 years ago, which just drove a regulated activity underground.
I know one thing that the governor’s proposed ban will do: It will irreparably damage — if not destroy — the brand of any Connecticut firearms manufacturer.
Our customers are unusually brand-loyal. In many cases, they personally identify with the firearm brand they choose. Although our Connecticut heritage has historically enhanced our brand, that will change overnight if we ban the modern sporting rifle.
I will be asked why we should continue to manufacture in a state where the governor would make ownership of our product a felony. I will be asked these questions and, unlike in the past, there will be few good answers. ~Dennis Veilleux (Colt mfg. CEO)
As a result Colt, as well as other Connecticut manufacturers such as Mossberg and Stag Arms will see immediate erosion in brand strength and market share as customers migrate to manufacturers in more supportive states. This will have consequences for dozens of Connecticut companies and thousands of workers. Connecticut will have put its firearms manufacturing industry in jeopardy: one that contributes $1.7 billion annually to the state’s economy. Like every other precision manufacturer in Connecticut, Colt is constantly approached by other states to relocate, but our roots here are deep. Colt is and always has been an integral part of a state characterized by hard work, perseverance and ingenuity.
I know, however, that someday soon, I will again be asked why we fight to keep well-paying manufacturing jobs in Connecticut. I will be asked why we should continue to manufacture in a state where the governor would make ownership of our product a felony.
I will be asked these questions and, unlike in the past, there will be few good answers.
Read the story here.
Tonight on LaRue Tactical’s Facebook page, Mark Larue posted his new policy regarding the way his company will deal with new State gun control laws and providing arms to Law Enforcement and other state agencies. Basically, he is going to only provide LEO up and to the same capability that would be afforded a civilian. This will allow him to avoid potential lawsuits that could arise due to a misunderstanding in new State gun laws. If a citizen only needs 7 rounds in New York state, why does a Policeman need more? If a citizen in California cannot have a detachable magazine, why would LEO? Hmmmm…..
Mark LaRue, if all sporting goods companies and firearm dealers had the same backbone as you do – we would not be sliding down this slippery gun control slope right now. Thank you and good luck to you and your company!
NEWS RELEASE:
02/08/2013 LEANDER, TX.Updated Policy for State and Local Agency Law Enforcement Sales:
Due to the recent and numerous new Anti-gun/Anti-2nd Amendment laws passed and/or pending across our country, LaRue Tactical has been forced to reconsider how we provide products to state and local agencies.
Effective today, in an effort to see that no legal mistakes are made by LaRue Tactical and/or its employees, we will apply all current State and Local Laws (as applied to civilians) to state and local law enforcement / government agencies. In other words, LaRue Tactical will limit all sales to what law-abiding citizens residing in their districts can purchase or possess.
State and local laws have always been a serious focus of this firm, and we are now dovetailing that focus with the constitutional rights of the residents covered in their different areas by the old and new regulations.
We realize this effort will have an impact on this firm’s sales – and have decided the lost sales are less danger to this firm than potential lawsuits from erroneous shipments generated by something as simple as human error.
Thanks in advance for your understanding.
Mark LaRue
** This policy does not apply to Military / Federal Agencies**
I just read on Fox News that there are four US Senators who are trying to strike a “compromise” on gun control. The private discussions involve:
The deal, given a good chance by several participants and lobbyists, could add formidable political momentum to one of the key elements of President Obama’s gun control plan. Currently, background checks are required only for sales by the nation’s 55,000 federally licensed gun dealers, but not for gun shows, person-to-person sales or other private transactions.
The senators’ talks have included discussions about ways to encourage states to make more mental health records available to the national system and the types of transactions that might be exempted from background checks, such as sales among relatives or to those who have permits to carry concealed weapons, said people who spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to describe the negotiations publicly. Read more Here.
California Senate Democrats have unveiled ten legislative actions to curb gun violence in California designed to close loopholes in the existing regulations, keep the circulation of firearms and ammunition out of the hands of dangerous persons, and strengthen education relating to firearms and gun ownership.
Here are the 10 actions in the package gun control Bills unveiled today in California.
I read this in the Denver Post tonight: National Rifle Association President David Keene called Colorado’s backlogged system for gun background checks an unreasonable burden on a citizen’s right to bear arms and addressed the matter with Gov. John Hickenlooper when the two met privately Thursday.
“If I were a Colorado resident, and told I had to wait an undetermined period of time to buy a gun, I would go to court,” Keene told The Denver Post Thursday before the meeting.
The checks, which federal law says should take 
no longer than three business days, have taken as long as nine days to begin processing since the mid-December shooting in Connecticut and the wait continues to average about seven days in the queue.
The Colorado Bureau of Investigation is facing questions over its inability to meet the three-day federal gun background check mandate — told The Post on Tuesday it would have the state’s Attorney General review its policy for processing the checks. Read more here.
The above video is an interview that Denver Post Editor, Greg Moore conducted with David Keene tonight.
When you go to the range, do you and your friends “play games” that are target practice disguised as fun? I would love to hear what you do and how it keeps you going to the range!
I read the following at NPR tonight:
The traditional American shooting range is extending its range. In Summerville, S.C., for example, the ATP Gunshop & Range stages community-minded blood drives and Toys for Tots collections. Twice a week there are ladies’ nights, where women can learn to fire pistols and receive free T-shirts.
The Freestate Gun Range in Middle River, Md., has staged competitive, poker-style target games and zombie shoots. The Family Shooting Center in Aurora, Colo., showcases gourmet elk and pheasant bratwursts. The Governors Gun Club under construction in Powder Springs, Ga., will feature a members’ lounge and bar.
“Warm up this winter at an indoor shooting range,” trumpets the National Shooting Sports Foundation, the trade association of the firearms industry. “You can teach family and friends to shoot, or you can sign them up for a class. What better way to spend a Saturday or Sunday afternoon than enjoying quality time together doing an activity you enjoy?”
Games! Specials! Online coupons! Sign up for teams! Fun for the whole family! Are shooting ranges the new bowling alleys in America? Read more here.
Senator Ted Cruz from Texas
I wanted to share my favorite speech from today’s Senate Judiciary Committee on the issue of “preventing gun violence”. Senator Cruz gave a straight forward, extremely reasonable presentation that makes it very clear why banning AR-15s and other modern rifles is simply a gesture, and yet will not prevent the next mass shooting.
Click to read the entire letter in .pdf format
Today in an open letter to the CEO of Remington Arms, Mr. George Kollitides, South Carolina Representative Jeff Duncan began openly courting Remington for a move down to South Carolina.
Following is a Press Release Jeff Duncan’s Website:
Washington, DC—South Carolina Congressman Jeff Duncan encouraged George Kollitides, the CEO of the parent company for Remington Arms, to consider relocating the company’s New York production facilities to South Carolina in light of New York’s recent decision to adopt the most restrictive gun policies in the country.
In the letter, Congressman Duncan highlights South Carolina’s stellar business climate, pointing out the fact that companies like Boeing, BMW, Michelin, Amazon, Bridgestone, and ZF have all invested heavily and created jobs in the Palmetto State. “But beyond our sterling business environment lie the reasons that sparked this letter – reasons you know better than anyone,” Duncan wrote.
“The enemies of freedom are waging an all-out assault on the Second Amendment to the Constitution which we have sworn to protect and defend. At a time when our government is consistently thwarting the ability of individuals to own businesses, voluntarily trade goods and services, and grow our economy, South Carolina is committed to writing a different story. We believe in the right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Our state welcomes any individual or business who believes the same.”
“It would be an honor to welcome you and America’s oldest gunmaker to the Palmetto state,” wrote Duncan.
In addition to the letter to Mr. Kollitides, Congressman Duncan sent another letter to South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley encouraging her to target other companies in the firearms industry to relocate their operations to South Carolina from other states who hold a hostile view of the Second Amendment.
“In South Carolina, we believe in the right to keep and bear arms,” Duncan wrote the Governor. “We need to encourage other businesses who share those beliefs to relocate to the Palmetto State.”
America’s Oldest Gunmaker
Once the New York Assembly passed the sweeping new gun laws, I thought about companies like Remington, and wondered if they would consider relocating to a more gun friendly state. According to the history of their company on their own website, Remington moved its operations from Ilion Gulch to a site close to the newly constructed Erie Canal in 1828. The original site is still part of the current footprint of the company, nearly 200 years later. The tradition and the relationships in this region must run deep – how horrible it would be for such a fine company to relocate due to manufactured legislation.
States like New York and California are going to pass enough laws that one day they have nothing but takers within their borders. As a burgeoning entrepreneur, I cannot understand why a company would choose to build companies, or maintain their companies in some of these states. It will be interesting to see what comes of this letter, I doubt that Remington will move. Still, states like South Carolina that are open and welcoming to businesses are going to win in the end.
