Saturday, January 29, 2011

Discussion on Firearms, machinists, and the law abiding.

Ok Ok, maybe NOT the law abiding but the first parts are in order for this discussion.
There was a post not to long ago by another blogger directing people to an E-book on how to build a fully automatic sub-gun. I freely admit that I downloaded it; more for curiosities sake than actual useful information. There may be a time when the knowledge could come in handy, now is not that time.

To be honest, I really dislike full auto firearms. I see them as a flagrant waste of ammo. Having been in the military, I do understand that there is a time and place for such instruments of destruction: on a personal note, I would rather a good semi-auto or bolt action(in that order) far before I would choose something that dumps massive amounts of lead downstream. Maybe its that whole "one shot, one kill" that was drilled into my head while on Parris Island. (more than likely.) The only time I really see a good use of full auto is against equipment, like aircraft or whatnot. Especially when you are in said aircraft and are trying to shoot down the other before he does you. Using tracers makes it easier to 're-group' your shots when you are in that situation. BUT, in a field role, a machine gun really is only good in a defensive position. Somewhere that can have storage for the massive amounts of ammo that beast is going to eat and where you aren't going to need to worry about 'humping it all'.


As an aspiring machinist, I have thought about how I would build a rifle. I am still thinking about it. I have several books on the subject, have read all of them, and go back through them on occasion "just to freshen up" the old file catalog in my head. One thing I won't do is offer one for sale if, let me stress that part again, IF, I build one. The one that has been in my head lately is more of a whim than anything right now. We have a host of Feral cats that are running loose in the area and they have been the focus of my thoughts on this. Yes, I can bust out my Marlin 60 for them but that seems like overkill. (and for those that think its cruel, TO BAD, I have tried to live capture them, take them to the pound, etc, but they end up in the chambers there. Either way, they are not going to live: I would rather end it quickly. And I like cats so it isn't a meanness thing either) I have a .22 air rifle that I use to teach the kids how to handle and shoot: I could use that. But I am thinking something of a little bolt action .22 that shoots CB's that I can do something with.

No matter, I may never get around to it. These are just thoughts in my head on a slow blogging day.

5 comments:

Mayberry said...

You got the tools, I say go for it. I'd love to be able to do that myself...

Ryan said...

"a machine gun really is only good in a defensive position" I couldn't disagree more strongly. Machine guns are very useful for ambushes as well as the offensive in general. They are the most significant and casualty producing weapon readily available to dismounted fighters.

Ken said...

...select fire weapons excel at suppression as well,as noted i see benefits of them in an offensive ambush situation too...having said that,i'm of the school that is to have a purpose for every round discharged,and to fire and move,fixed positions are easily(?) defeated(find'em,fix'em,finish'em kinda mantra)...anyway,don't let anyone but you make up yer mind,as to actually building one from scratch,hell i wish i had that capability...

Diogenes said...

Ryan, We could argue it all day long. I will let it rest that we disagree though.

Ken, good points, the fact that they eat up so much ammo is the serious downside I look at. As for building one, not anytime soon and most definitely not until certain laws are no longer in place(whether through legislation or systemic failure, don't care)

John B said...

Shotgun fills the same tactical niche as subgun, and I've seen a guy fire a whole magazine and miss the target. Missing a man sized target on the range at 30 yards is bad, what if this clown were trying to protect his wife and 4 daughters. I told him to unload -both ways- that tax burden, and get a 12 gauge.

Then practice like your life depends on it! It Does!