Category: All About Guns
Cop Talk Colt
Colt 1877 DA was a favorite of Hardin’s by the time of his death. It ain’t about the guns, it’s about timeless human dynamics.
We can’t expect to defeat enemies we don’t understand. It’s why LAPD’s officer survival guru Rich Wemmer interviewed cop-killers in prison, and why Dennis Anderson and Charles Remberg did the same for their Calibre Press Street Survival book and seminars.
There’s little new in the concept, and an often ignored source of research are incidents from relatively long ago. In his letters and particularly his autobiography, John Wesley Hardin bragged about how he killed policemen in the third quarter of the 19th Century. The cunning ploys he used remain lethally dangerous to cops today.
In his own words, Hardin — a racist anti-authoritarian who hated African-Americans and lawmen with equal venom — detailed how he murdered black Texas State Police officer Green Perrymore in September, 1871. Hardin wrote the arresting officer had him at gunpoint when “He said, ‘Give me those pistols.’ I said ‘All right,’ and handed him the pistols, handle foremost. One of the pistols turned a somerset in my hand and went off … and (sent) him sprawling on the floor with a bullet through his head, quivering in blood.”
cop talk book
The Last Gunfighter is the most useful Hardin biography Mas has found.
Hidden Second Weapons
With 41 dead men attributed to his tally, the one murder for which Hardin was convicted and served hard time was the death of Deputy Charles Webb in 1874. Hardin wrote, “… I told him my pistol was behind the bar and threw open my coat to show him. But he did not know I had a good one under my vest.” That was the one he used very shortly thereafter to shoot the deputy in the brain. Hardin was arrested for it years later — leading to the following.
Hardin bragged he had killed multiple officers with their own guns he grabbed when he caught them off guard. But at least one lawman was savvy enough to see that coming and save his own life, and that of his brother officer.
It happened in 1877. Texas Rangers had arrested Hardin on a train in Pensacola, Florida for the murder of Deputy Webb. The lawmen had killed Hardin’s accomplice, Jim Mann, and pistol-whipped Hardin into submission in the course of that arrest.
Captain John Armstrong and Special Detective Jack Armstrong were transporting the handcuffed Hardin to jail and trial. Like so many psychopaths, Hardin used his charming personality to lull his intended victims off guard. Here, in a letter to his wife, Hardin explained how he planned to escape:
“Jack and Armstrong were now getting intimate with me, and when dinner came I suggested the necessity of removing my cuffs and they agreed to do so. Armstrong unlocked the jewelry and started to turn around, exposing his six-shooter to me, when Jack jerked him around and pulled his pistol at the same time. ‘Look out,’ he said, ‘John will kill us and escape.’ Of course, I laughed at him and ridiculed the idea.
It was really the very chance I was looking for, but Jack had taken the play away just before it got ripe. I intended to jerk Armstrong’s pistol, kill Jack Duncan or make him throw up his hands. I could have made him unlock my shackles, or get the key away from his dead body and do it myself. I could then have easily made my escape. That time never came again.”
cop hardin
Hardin: This cop-killer wrote an autobiography, The Life of John Wesley Hardin. It’s harder to defeat enemies you don’t understand.
Constant Vigilance
As we look sadly upon such recent events as the murder of Wyandotte County, Kansas Deputies Patrick Rohrer and Theresa King in June, 2018, slain when a suspect they were transporting gained control of a police weapon, we are reminded this sort of thing is a continuing concern. Security holsters and weapon retention training have improved the situation, but constant vigilance and keeping our guard up remain keys to survival.
The Letters of John Wesley Hardin by Roy and Jo Ann Stamps, The Last Gunfighter: John Wesley Hardin by Richard Marohn, and The Life of John Wesley Hardin Written By Himself are all compelling resources, available through Amazon or your local library. They remind us homicidal gunmen aren’t about AR15’s or modern trends. They’re about timeless human dynamics, and the more we know about how these events have happened in the past, the better we can prepare to keep them from recurring in the future.
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After the Remington bankruptcy, Bushmaster Firearms was purchased by Franklin Armory (Crotalus Holdings LLC) and moved to Nevada. They are now located in Carson City.
Yesterday, I received an email from Lee Felch who is the Director of Marketing for Bushmaster. He said given the close history between Bushmaster and Windham Weaponry that the company was reaching out with condolences on the closure and possible job offers.
It is good to see other companies in the firearms industry reaching out to the Windham Weaponry employees. Furthermore, Bushmaster is not wasting any time in seeking those employees with critical skills to its own success. I’m not sure how many will trade the Sebago Lake region of Maine for the high desert of Carson City but a job is a job.
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THE FUNDAMENTALS OF GUN SAFETY
We’ve had a few gun articles here on ROK and, while I intend for more, it’s time to talk some firearms safety. Operating a firearm can and should be an enjoyable experience and, while it should be detrimental to your target, be that a piece of paper, reactive target, game animal, or even another person in a self defense scenario, you should strive to make sure you and those with you aren’t injured.
The primary movers in the world of US organized shooting are the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) and they both have their safety rules with some overlap. The NRA’s Three Rules are universally recognized and are a good start to the discussion.
The Three Rules
1. Always Keep The Muzzle In A Safe Direction
Downrange would be to our right, presumably.
This rule is the primary rule of gun safety; if it is never pointed at anyone, it can’t hit them, no matter if all other rules are broken. If you’re on a gun range, a safe direction is downrange, and either up, or down, or both, depending on the range’s rules. If you’re carrying a rifle or a pistol around, it’s the same; down or up.
When I travel, I like to point the gun away from me in the car, and I sit it down facing away from me in the hotel. You shouldn’t walk in front of a gun you are not sure is unloaded when it’s lying there, and you definitely should never wave the muzzle around, causing it to point at people. When done in a wide arc, it’s called “sweeping” and is very poor form that will get you asked to go home.
It’s a seriously important rule that is number one in the NRA and CMP books. This is an inversion of the second of the classic 4 Laws of Gun Safety that says “never point the gun at something you are not willing to destroy.”
2. Always Keep Your Finger Off The Trigger Until Ready To Shoot
This is rule two for the NRA, three for the CMP, and four for the Classic Laws. Ever see the video of someone re-holstering a Glock with their finger in the trigger guard, or carrying it Mexican-carry and grabbing at it if it gets loose a la Plaxico Burress? They shoot themselves, and, if anything is more embarrassing than someone else shooting you, it’s shooting yourself.
No holster, safety off, finger on trigger; this guy could seriously earn himself a second ass crack here.
When handling a gun, you should never have your finger inside the trigger guard unless you mean to be firing, or possibly firing, immediately. If you’re building your firing position and getting your natural point of aim on the firing line, have your finger on the trigger. If you’re going to dry fire a gun, check that it is clear, double check it is in a safe direction, then apply your finger to the trigger. If you’re holding someone at gunpoint, keep the gun on him, put your finger on the trigger, and watch his hands for sudden movements.
Good trigger awareness on a 3″ 1911.
The rest of the time, keep your booger hook off the bang switch, and this goes double for any photography of you with weapons. As an aside, in today’s day and age, I don’t recommend being in photos, especially on social media, with guns, due to PC cultures and SJWs.
3. Always Keep The Gun Unloaded Until Ready To Use
This is rule 3 for the NRA, and an inversion of the first of the Classic Laws “the gun is always loaded.” An unloaded gun is a safe gun, because all that will happen with an accidental firing is a dry-fire, instead of a discharge.
Obviously, leave your home protection and carry guns loaded, and load when appropriate while hunting and at the range, but, otherwise, treat the gun with the same respect due a loaded gun.
Rifles on a firing line. Unloaded, bolts locked back, chamber flags in, safeties on, pointed downrange.
Other Rules And Guidelines
- Be sure of your target and what is behind it. This is the third of the Classic Laws.
- Use an empty chamber indicator. This is the CMP Rule 2, and means to use a chamber flag on an open action to show it’s locked open when not being fired on a firing line.
- Use hearing and eye protection. Good plugs, or muffs (or even both) and safety glasses or side shields on eye glasses are always recommended. Obviously, in case of hostile action, you may not have time.
- Know how to operate the gun. Read the damn manual, and make sure it is in a functional condition that is safe to use, as in not filthy or dirty.
- Use the correct ammo. Use ammo that is the correct caliber or type for the gun, and that isn’t too powerful. Use commercial ammo, unless they’re your reloads and you know what you’re doing (or reloads from someone you trust that knows what they’re doing).
- Don’t drink or use drugs prior to shooting. Put this up with “driving or operating heavy machinery.”
- Store guns safely and securely. Unloaded, clean, and locked up.
- Use a good holster that covers the trigger and the safety (if applicable.) Remember Stranahan’s first law of concealed carry.
- Don’t shoot something that will ricochet the round back at you. Steel targets that can’t swing will do this. Be sure to be at minimum safe range for steel, as well, which is usually 25 yards for pistol and 100 yards for rifles.
Etiquette
I’ll cover a few common places and scenarios of gun use here for your reference.
Gun Ranges
Everything is copacetic except the guy behind the camera is downrange on a hot range.
Best thing to do is read the rules of the range (they should be posted) and follow them. Do all the above rules, and observe the hot-cold nature of the firing line. Typically, a firing line is “hot” and you can handle, load, and shoot your guns downrange at your target, but not GO downrange. The opposite state is “cold” and the guns are rendered safe and are not handled during this time (some ranges vary a bit on the degree of what is handling). You can go post your targets during this time.
The polite thing to do is show up, wait till people are done with shooting their strings, and inquire if you might go downrange. Get agreement from all, and declare it cold and go. Once everyone is back, you can go hot, usually by saying “Going hot!” or something similar. The range is then hot until declared cold, and you don’t have to yell “going hot!” before each mag like some idiots. Also, “fire in the hole!” means you’re throwing a grenade, not opening fire, so don’t yell that either. Hell, I need a “how to use a gun range article” to go into this further, stay tuned.
Some pistol ranges have target runners, and you always stay behind the line. These ranges are always “hot.”
Indoor range with firing line rail and target runner systems.
Gun Shows And Stores
Don’t sweep people. Seriously, that’s the number one thing by far. Keep your finger away from the trigger and trigger guard. Ask to handle guns if you want to pick one up, and ask before you rack it, and especially before you dry fire it.
Some guns can be damaged by manually lowering the hammer, like a 1911 pistol, if you don’t know what you’re doing, so if you’re not sure what to do, just ask the guy. No one minds ignorance; people mind you doing the wrong thing when you assumed you knew what you were doing and didn’t.
If she’s not sweeping someone, I’d be surprised, and that pump 12 would put her on her can anyway.
Hunting
It’s generally a good idea to not have a round in the chamber during periods of complex movement, like getting into and out of a tree stand, even though the commonly available ladder stands and climbers of today are much easier than the “climb a bunch of railroad spikes and sit on a 2×6 in the fork of an oak” stands of yesteryear. Sometimes it’s even better to lift the rifle up after you on a rope, then lower it down when done as opposed to slung over your back, depending on your age, agility, and the tree stand in question.
In a vehicle, it’s usually a good idea to completely unload if you’re going to be casing the gun. If you’re riding shotgun (which is where the term comes from), and driving around looking for game, keep the gun ready, pointed at the floorboard, and you can make the call between an empty chamber, or chambered with the safety on, depending on your needs. Don’t roll up to the local McDonald’s like that after the hunt, however.
Conclusion
Gun safety can be summed up with: Don’t be an idiot, and don’t be a clown. Most unintentional gun injuries occur when someone is forgetful, acting deliberately casual to look cool, or showing off. If you want to show off, hit the bull’s-eye and don’t say much, as that will be enough in itself.
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