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  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted July 27, 2009

So, just what is the .357 Magnum like in a confined space?

A number of years back my wife and I served as coordinators for the defensive pistol matches at our gun club. Our matches were somewhat similar to IDPA, but without the endless rules to make everything “fair.” We enjoyed a large following of regular participants who were very involved and loved to build sets for stages. (Some […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted July 23, 2009

A violent reaction: despite what some might say, violence is a valid and necessary tool.

I kept tabs on the concealed carry reciprocity bill that failed to clear the Senate this week, and the debates brought to mind comments I heard years ago regarding concealed carry proponents: “intelligent people have no need for violence.” “We need to reduce the violence in this world, not increase it.” This reveals a fundamental […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted July 20, 2009

A crowning achievement: how the muzzle crown affects accuracy.

Occasionally someone will ask me if the muzzle crown is all that important. In the past I’d probably say something like “only if you want the bullet to go where you’re aiming!”, but I’m trying to reduce my percentage of flippant answers. Today I’d put it more lawyer-like: “it depends…” The crown is the edge […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted June 29, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Everything has a purpose in the hands of Ed Harris. Even the .32 ACP.

Many of you are familiar with Ed Harris, firearms engineer and ballistic experimenter. One of Ed’s passions is the hunting of small game – squirrels, rabbits, etc. – and the guns that facilitate that activity. (Before we go any further, it seems that a lot of folks today don’t have any experience with serious small […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted June 22, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

On dry firing: is it good for your gun? That depends.

One of the great advantages of the double action revolver is that the mechanism makes dry firing easy. Unlike the majority of autoloaders, you don’t have to break your grip to operate the slide or recock the hammer; just maintain your grip and pull the trigger, over and over. As a result, I suspect most […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted May 27, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

On loading density: what happens when there’s more air space in the case?

I hope everyone had a good Memorial Day weekend! The weather here in Oregon was wonderful (for a change) and I made the most of the sunshine and warm temperatures. In fact, I found it hard to come back to work! I’ve received several emails in the last few months with a common complaint: unburned […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted May 20, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Gas piston rifles are all the rage. What value are they, anyhow?

Last week’s arrival of Ruger’s SR-556 rifle has a certain segment of the shooting community swooning with delight. I’m not at all certain the hoopla is justified. There are those with the opinion that a gas piston system has merits over the direct gas impingement operation used in the standard M-16/AR-15 family of rifles. There […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted May 13, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Use-of-Force Myths: how many of these do you believe?

The archives over at Force Science News continue to fascinate. Issue #68 deals with several myths about the use of deadly force, myths that a large percentage of the population (regardless of their level of firearms knowledge) believe. The whole article is interesting, but it’s the first myth – that of the Demonstrative Bullet – […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted May 6, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Gun-free school zones: the research (as usual) is on our side.

David Kopel at the Independence Institute has a new research paper forthcoming in the Connecticut Law Review. Titled “Pretend ‘Gun-Free’ School Zones: A Deadly Legal Fiction”, it deals with the subject of concealed firearms carry on school campuses. From the abstract: Most states issue permits to carry a concealed handgun for lawful protection to an […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted May 4, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Can you make good lethal force decisions – and would your peers agree?

The March issue of Force Science News contained a very interesting article about how police and private citizens differ in their views of “justified” shootings. While some may see the article as having application to law enforcement only, they would be wrong – it is well worth reading because it deals with differences in perception […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted April 27, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

A book you need: Meditations On Violence by Rory Miller.

Gila Hayes over at the Armed Citizens’ Legal Defense Network recently reviewed a book that I had to buy: “Meditations on Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training & Real World Violence” by Rory Miller. Miller’s treatise is about violent criminal behavior – how it happens, why it happens, and what does and doesn’t work […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted April 13, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Feedback from the Stopping Power series.

I continue to get email from last year’s “Self defense, stopping power, and caliber” series. It remains the second-most visited page on the site, behind only my article on lubrication, and appears to be well received by the majority of readers. Thank you! As you might imagine, such popularity generates feedback, and some questions pop […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted April 8, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Be honest with yourself: how good are you on demand?

In college I minored in music performance. Being just out of high school (read: thoroughly stupid) I thought I was a hot musician, harboring dreams of becoming a professional trumpet player. Like so many other aspiring performers I really had no idea what the world of a professional musician actually entailed, but I was absolutely […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted April 1, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Progressive presses and their powder measures.

A common complaint with progressive presses is the throwing of inconsistent powder charges. Most people immediately blame the equipment, but some times it’s actually operator error. We first need to admit that there are certain incompatibilities with regard to some measures and some powders (Dillon’s difficulty with metering flake or extruded powder, for instance, is […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted March 9, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Coffee and miracle lubricants: what’s the connection? Marketing.

Coffee is one of those vices in which I do not indulge. Not from any religious objection, mind you – it’s just that I can’t stand the taste of the stuff. I admit to loving the smell of brewing java, but coffee is one of those things that smells a whole lot better than it […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted March 8, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Facing my demons: how I cured an event-induced flinch.

I used to love shooting steel. The plates dropping, the loud “clang” from a Steel Challenge target – no matter what the venue, reactive metal targets are just addicting. This addiction, I discovered, can be broken – even if you don’t want to! A number of years back I was shooting a Steel Challenge-type match. […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted February 25, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Risk assessment, or lack thereof: why aren’t you carrying?

I meet many people who possess concealed handgun licenses, but don’t carry on a regular basis – let alone every day. The explanation is usually something along the lines of “I carry when I’m in a bad area” or “if I’m going into a situation where I’m more likely to need it, I’ll take my […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted February 18, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Is that gun loaded? Why are you checking to see if it is?

In the comments to last week’s post regarding safety rules, someone asked why checking the condition of a firearm is never listed in any rules. It seems logical enough – why not check the condition of a gun when you pick it up? I’d like you to think about that for a minute – really […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted February 16, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

Living with your choices: not all guns are equal, and your safety might depend on being honest about that.

One-liners, sound bites, and witty retorts are often used to convince others to unthinkingly follow a certain path or belief. When the subject matter is of little import, they are simply amusing. When subjects turn more serious, they impede the flow of vital information necessary to make good decisions. Such is the latest, a hearty retort […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted January 28, 2009
  • In Ed Harris

A perception issue: are revolvers really the best thing for beginners?

A recent SHOT show write-up, regarding the new Ruger LCR revolver, contained the (sadly common) comment that the gun would be perfect for “non-dedicated personnel.” I hereby give public notice that I am officially tired of reading excrement like that. The snub-nosed, double-action revolver is the easiest gun in the world to shoot, but It […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted October 15, 2008
  • In Ed Harris

Accuracy testing .22 Long Rifle ammunition: finding a load your rifle likes isn’t easy!

As I’ve mentioned from time to time, shooting .22LR “seriously” can be a frustrating experience. It is almost expected that two identical rifles will have very different ammo preferences – and, unlike centerfire cartridges, the differences are often astounding. For instance, I have one rifle that shoots its favorite load into an average 5-shot group […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted October 13, 2008
  • In Ed Harris

Lessons on AR-15 accessories that you only learn from watching lots of students.

This past weekend marked the last rifle class my friend Georges Rahbani is teaching for the year. As I often do, I assisted him with his class and, as often happens, we came away with what some  people consider unusual opinions about rifles and gear validated and vindicated. Georges has a funny saying: “thou shalt not hang sh*t on […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted October 6, 2008
  • In Ed Harris

Systems analysis and the sighting-in of firearms: you need to know why you’re doing something before you can do it correctly.

This weekend was the opening of general deer season here in Oregon. I could tell it was opening weekend because our normally deserted gravel road, which leads into the mountains, has been turned into Interstate 5 for deer hunters! The parade of all the hopeful woodsmen (and perhaps not a few woodswomen) going after Bambi […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted September 10, 2008
  • In Ed Harris

Some more primer talk: what about magnum primers?

A question appeared in the comments to my last primer article. The commenter asked about magnum primers and their effect on the load. First things first: I’ll limit my comments to Winchester Small Pistol Magnum primers, as those are what I have experience with. (Winchester uses the same Large Pistol primer for both regular and […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted August 27, 2008
  • In Ed Harris

Is there really a difference in primers? You might be surprised.

I’m not sure what’s up with Winchester these days. No one seems to have Winchester primers in stock, either walk-in or online, and backorders aren’t being taken. On the other hand, CCI primers are (at least in my area) available in quantity. Odd. (Something else odd: I rarely see Remington primers around here, and it’s […]
  • By Grant Cunningham
  • Posted August 20, 2008
  • In Ed Harris

Guns are not magic wands, and yours won’t always scare the bad guy off.

There is a perception amongst a large percentage of the gun-toting public that guns are magic wands: one shot and the bad guy flies backward, landing in an unconscious heap at the bottom of a wall or tree. Think I’m exaggerating? Spend a few minutes at a gun counter sometime. Random samples would tend to […]