The M14 rifle holds a significant place in the history of American military firearms, serving as a bridge between the battle rifles of World War II and the US’ military’s modern assault rifles. Developed in the post-World War II era, the M14 was the standard-issue rifle for the U.S. military during the early stages of the Vietnam War. Despite its relatively short service life (though it has soldiered on in niche roles), the M14 is like that crazy ex-girlfriend that somehow keeps coming back when you least expect it. This year marks the M14’s 72nd birthday and the 52nd anniversary of its civilian variant, the M1A produced by Springfield Armory. And with the recent new that the CMP would be making surplus M14s available, I thought this would be a good time to look back at the history and development of one of my favorite battle rifles of all time.
Photo Of The Day: Dual-wielding isn't just for action movies anymore. Savior Equipment's new SUP28 case insert manages to accomplish what seemed geometrically impossible: fitting two complete Genesis Arms Gen-12 systems into a single Pelican 1650 , creating the kind of redundant firepower that would make any tactical team smile.
“In the beginning, there was the Winchester Model 12, and it was very good.” Not quite—Winchester’s Model 12 was not the first pump-action shotgun ever made; they had their own series of pump guns before the Model 12, including the popular Model 1897, and the competition had ‘em too. But when T.C. Johnson devised the Model 12 (based on John Browning’s previous work with the Model 1893 and Model 1897), this quickly became the most-respected pump-action shotgun in the world. The Model 12 held this position for fifty years.
Springfield Armory's Kuna is a 9mm roller-delayed PDW design, now paired with an integrated Tri-Lug suppressor-mounting system, allowing compatible suppressors to be installed and removed without tools, using a push-and-twist connection. I don’t have a Kuna, but I have the tri-lug system on a few similar guns and it works great.
Staccato has expanded its lifetime warranty program, shifting coverage from the original owner to the pistol itself. Now every Staccato-built 2011 platform handgun carries warranty protection for its operational life, regardless of how many owners it has had or where it was purchased.
Savage Arms has revamped its Ultralite series with four new models engineered around carbon fiber barrel technology, the updated AccuFit V2 adjustment system, and modular components tailored for specific hunting applications. All four rifles incorporate Savage's lightweight construction philosophy while maintaining the platform's 110 action fundamentals.
You knock down spiderweb one day. The next day, they are back.
We built this shop during the winter of 2017-18 and put down gravel during that winter. That has been eight years. Around here, crushed limestone is the preferred driveway material The limestone dust packs well between the stones and makes a firm driveway that needs very little maintenance.
That is Belle's parking spot, immediately adjacent to the main entrance door. I wanted to get this done before the winter rains set in. My gal is a diehard country girl but at this stage of her life objects to walking through mud.
Welcome back to Front Line Friday. This week is a gear week, and the topic is building a cold weather patrol layer system that keeps you functional across a twelve-hour shift instead of just warm for the first hour. Front Line Friday is brought to you by Dead Air Silencers , whose support keeps this column going every week.
We were all saddened to learn of the unexpected death of one of the most universally loved and admired Americans in history, Dolly Parton. When was the last time a celebrity died and no one had a bad word to say about them? She was the personification of kindness, of niceness, and of generosity. Not […]
BoatUS and NWSA present Karen Prioleau with the 2026 Leadership in Women's Sailing Award.
Quote of the Day In 1948, a 32-year-old at Bell Labs published a paper nobody fully understood. Engineers found it too mathematical. Mathematicians found it too engineering-focused. One prominent mathematician reviewed it negatively. That paper – “A Mathematical Theory of …
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I've mentioned in the past the growing selection of “almost empty” bottles of whiskey taking space on my shelves. Most often it's a single pour, or less, that for some reason just wasn't finished when the bottle was last opened. These remnants tend to get passed over when I'm selecting something to enjoy with a long evening smoke as I generally don't like to switch pours mid-smoke. I've never been interested in creating an infinity bottle. So, what’s a whiskey drinker to do?
One answer came recently on a weeknight when I was sitting down with a
Black Label Trading Company 2026 Bishops Blend Robusto. The small 5 × 48 stick seemed like the perfect opportunity to finish the lone pour left in my bottle of
Barrell Craft Spirits Vantage Bourbon. Not only was the cigar size a match, the bourbon and cigar pairing I knew would be fitting. In fact it's the same combination I
enjoyed back in July, 2023.
The Bishops Blend (And yes, there is no apostrophe.) has been a highly anticipated annual release from Black Label Trading Company since 2016. The 2026 edition marks the 10th anniversary of the blend, which warranted a tweak to the original.
This release sports a double-wrapper, combining the usual Ecuadorian Maduro with a Connecticut Broadleaf for a barber-pole effect. The binder is Ecuador Habano, with Nicaragua, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania Broadleaf completing the filler blend. As usual the cap is pointed and the foot is closed.
The 2026 version did not disappoint. From the start, the familiar black coffee, dark chocolate, leather, pepper, and an underlying sweetness provided a full flavored treat. In all honesty, I couldn't say definitively that this year's release was substantially changed, although I did get the impression of an enhanced, and lingering, dark sweetness in the finish.
Vantage is a blend of bourbons aged in Mizunara, French, and toasted American oak casks. This bottle is marked at 114.62 proof though I've read the proof can vary between batches.
The high proof bourbon is remarkably easy to sip. Stone fruit and espresso predominate, joined with vanilla, cinnamon, and maple sweetness. The finish brings a bit of spice along with a buttery, crème brûlée-like character
The Barrell Craft Spirits Vantage Bourbon proved, still, to be a fine complement to the Bishops Blend. Vantage’s caramel and vanilla rounded the darker cigar’s dark chocolate and maduro sweetness. The bourbon’s higher proof stands up well to the cigar's bolder espresso and chocolate notes.
Nursing the remaining pour gave me just enough bourbon to accompany the roughly 60-minute smoke. The long, lingering finish of the Vantage bourbon allowed for slow sipping while still enjoying the flavorful pairing.
The Bishops Blend has long been a favorite smoke. I try to grab some each year when they come out, and still have examples from several past years on hand. While they do tend to lose a bit of their bold edge with time, I find they retain much of the full-bodied coffee, espresso, and pepper notes which is a testament to the blend.
Sometimes an almost-empty bottle isn’t a problem — it just needs the right cigar.
Cheers!
Knowledge to make your life better. If you have some free time, check out some of these links this weekend. Choosing Defensive Shotgun Ammunition Justin provides an informative wake up call for those of you who think birdshot is the best home defense load. The article doesn’t mention it, but the recommended Federal FliteControl […]
An older guy in WalMart found $30 on the floor and kept it. Apparently in a city where 5 officers have been fired for misuse of Flock cameras and 23 homicides, finding him was deemed a good use of police resources. They put this guy into the same category as finding the perps of aggravated […]
When I was a kid, I kept asking my father the same stupid question: ‘Daddy, what is the best gun ever?’ He kept patiently explaining that it depends on the mission and circumstances. I understood that, but deep down, the question always remained with me.
Soldiers with the 554th Military Police Company conduct range training and qualification on the M26 Modular Accessory Shotgun System at Panzer Range Complex in Böblingen. The M26 MASS, a 12-gauge manually operated shotgun, mounts directly under the M4 carbine or fires as a standalone weapon.
@ooana – Ooana Trien at X put up a couple of really excellent posts. If you’ve read TSM much at all, you know that if someone says something better than I can, I let them – with attribution. So, with no further ado: I always understood why the Second Amendment was constitutionally protected. What I…
Continue reading What She Said. →
Welcome back to another edition of Concealed Carry Corner . Last week, we took a look at some of the keys to successfully carrying a concealed handgun. If you happened to miss that article, be sure to click the link here to check it out. This week, I want to look at why certain individuals, especially people who are just starting to get into guns, always seem to think larger calibers, while a smaller-framed smaller caliber pistols with higher capacity can be superior carry guns. It's the argument of capacity versus firepower, but I have seen some incredibly interesting choices lately rather than the more common 9mm carry guns. Let's take a closer look at why bigger isn't always better.
Amazon has a tremendous number of FREE ebooks on their website. You can find thousands of free kindle books on Amazon’s site every day. These books can be downloaded to a Kindle reader or a free App on your phone or personal computer. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can download a free […]
Beretta's APX A1 family just got faster. The company has introduced the APX A1 Ported , a variant built around a precision ported barrel and slide system designed to manage recoil impulse and get the gun back on target quicker for follow-up shots. It's a straightforward addition to an already-proven platform, and it arrives configured for shooters who want the optics-ready slide without sacrificing the tactile feedback of an iron-sight setup.
Vortex Optics has added a green dot variant to its Venom Enclosed Micro platform, recognizing that shooter preference for reticle color varies across lighting conditions and individual visual acuity. The new Venom Enclosed Micro Green Dot maintains the core specifications and design of the existing Venom line while offering a different reticle color option at the same entry price point.
The six handgun loads currently cataloged include four 9mm choices: 115- and 124-grain round-nose FMJ, plus 115- and 147-grain flat-nose FMJ. A 180-grain .40 S&W flat-nose load and 230-grain .45 ACP round-nose load round out the live listings. All come in 50-round boxes. Winchester says it uses high-sensitivity primers for tuned competition pistols.
We closed on Caldwell house.
Widener's has an interesting discussion of how prices for guns and ammo have changed since 1986. Guns have roughly followed inflation. Ammunition has often not risen as fast:
The Biggest Surprise: 9mm Got Much Cheaper
In 1986, a box of 9mm cost $22.50, or about $0.45 per round.
In 2026, it averages $10.00 per box, or $0.20 per round.
Even without adjusting for inflation, that’s a dramatic decrease. When adjusted for inflation, 9mm is significantly cheaper today than it was in the 1980s.
vs. Now.What's really bad is finding an old ad from the 1960's, prior to 1968, of all the stuff you could buy simply by writing a letter and sending a check to the distributors. Oh, wow, the stuff...
The Dyrt, the app to get the best campsites, has announced the 2026 Best Places to Camp With Kids Presented by Kelty.
Quote of the Day Cooling-off periods infringe on the Second Amendment by preventing the lawful acquisition of firearms. Cooling off periods do not fit into any historically grounded exceptions to the right to keep and bear arms, and burden conduct …
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Russell Phagan has never met a shooting sport rule he didn't want to push. From building out the Brutality match series with InRangeTV, to founding FAST (Firearms Action Shooting Trials) as its own standalone series, to his day job as VP at KE Arms, he's spent two decades finding the edge of what a "practical" gun match can look like — and now he's found a new one. FAST's newest division is Auto-Rifle : full-auto and forced-reset-trigger rifles, competing on the same stages as everyone else, for the first time in a mainstream two-gun series. The division debuts at FAST-ID in Parma, Idaho, this October, presented by X-Tech Tactical, with Red Right Hand sponsoring a dedicated Auto-Rifle stage where every competitor — regardless of division — gets to run a belt-fed gun. Russell returns to break down why FAST is willing to build rules around FRTs when most series won't. I’ll be there, so hope to see some of you out there at the match!
On Saturday, August 15, 2026, at about 1:30 a.m. on the Virginia State University campus, shooting broke out. Five people were wounded, one of them a 20-year-old student at the university. Camron Rarris, 19, was found hours later and was charged with four counts of malicious wounding. The Virginia State student was treated and released with non-life threatening injuries. A 21-year-old man remains in critical condition, according to foxnews.com. Police are seeking others to determine if some people fired back in defense of self and others. A 23-year-old man, a 17-year-old teenager and a 19-year-old woman had non-life threatening injuries. The crimes appear to have had little to do with the school except for the location.
Virginia State University is located about 25 miles south of Richmond and has close to six thousand students. It is an historically black university. The cause of the shooting is not yet known.
Sandy Hook Promise, a non-profit with a mandate to reduce school violence, referenced the Virginia State incident and posted this on X:
Gun violence is an ever-growing public health epidemic that demands our attention now.
"Gun violence" is a political term designed to associate guns with social problems. The term conflates suicides, murders, justified homicides, and firearm accidents as all part of the problem, and thus, defines the "problem" as "guns". Suicides and homicides have different causes and solutions. The number of guns in a community is not correlated with the number of suicides or homicides. Fatal accidents with guns have been dropping for over a hundred years and are at an all time low, in spite of firearms ownership being at an all time high.
In 2025, and it appears likely in 2026, the murder rate in the USA was and will be at an all time low.
At the Sandy Hook Promise non-profit website, there are several policies the organization supports which work to help keep children safe in their schools. The have programs to reduce violence in schools. They have programs to aid in preventing suicide. Those programs appear to be helpful and probably are helpful.
Unfortunately, Sandy Hook Promise is actively working to:
Sandy Hook Promise Action Fund is working to expand background checks on all firearm sales, pass temporary transfer orders, create secure storage laws, limit high-capacity magazines, and institute high-capacity magazine limits.
There is little reason to believe these policies would actually reduce active school shootings. There is no consideration of the costs of such policies or the reasons such policies are becoming more and more difficult to implement. Instead the site promotes highly controversial statements such as:
Background checks rarely provide false-positive results.
The FBI makes the claim, but John Lott presents plenty of evidence the claim is not correct, that a large number of false positives are created, and the false positive have large racial biases. There is little, if any evidence more background checks would reduce the murder rate or the number of active mass murders. A bill has passed the House, and is pending before the Senate, to force the FBI to share NICS demographic data with the Congress. Currently, the FBI refuses to do so.
Sandy Hook Promise promotes what they call "Temporary Transfer Orders", which appear to be "red flag" laws designed to allow courts to take people's guns without due process. As the statement at Sandy Hook Promise claims these orders respect due process, it is difficult to see exactly what they are promoting. All states currently have processes to place people under care if a court has evidence they pose a threat to themselves or others. Those processes do not focus on firearms. They focus on the individuals and the potential threat they may pose. It is unclear exactly what Sandy Hook Promise is promoting with this policy.
Sandy Hook Promise also opposes some weapons modifications. Auto sears are already heavily regulated and almost impossible to legally obtain. "Glock switches" are a type of auto sear. Bump Stocks are almost never used in crime. Forced-reset triggers are almost never used in crime. The premise used to oppose these modifications is that more shots fired mean more innocents hurt. The example given is Sandy Hook. None of these devices were used at Sandy Hook. These devices make some incidents less dangerous by making the firearms hard to control and aim, thus reducing casualties.
Analysis: Why does an organization such as Sandy Hook Promise promote such dubious policies? The leaders may not even be aware there are arguments against such policies. They may not know there are strong legal, moral, and Constitutional reasons to oppose such policies. As the organization gets is name and its foundation from a mass murder at a school, it is very difficult for them to carefully consider such foundational questions. If they question the premises in support of more gun control, they question the foundation of their reason for existence.
Fortunately, Sandy Hook Promise appears to be spending more energy on positive programs to help students, and less on dubious political issues involving firearms. May they continue to put more resources into productive policies and programs, and less into dubious gun control efforts.
©2026 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.
Gun Watch
Firearm Enforcement Officer Jeffrey R. Bodell scheduled for another trial.
My post Relationship Tragedies Created by Social Expectations resulted in many comments that were not easily answered in a few sentences so created this blog post. Rolf asks: Clarifying questions:To the best of your knowledge, what sort of women in …
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Seattle’s socialist mayor may be subject to a recall: Two people in Seattle have filed a recall charge against Mayor Katie Wilson, alleging she has “neglected her legal duty to maintain public safety and peace.” The recall comes amid a slew …
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After a hiatus of many years, Colt is making optics again. They have already won some Canadian military contracts and shortly thereafter brought out a range of scopes for the consumer market. The VMR 3-18x44 is the intermediate member of that family, and over the last few months I've been trying it out. Let's see how it fared.
TFB did some testing of Swedish precision at the heart of Stockholm's newest premier shooting center. Scandinavia Sport Shooting Center sits centrally in Stockholm, with dynamic rifle and pistol ranges, along with shooting cinemas equipped with interactive HD video scenarios, making it a pretty ideal and exciting venue for evaluating four distinct configurations of the Steen Defense platform.
Most weeks that I show up on Wheelgun Wednesday, I am hauling something actually old off the shelf and telling you about it. Today is a little different. The revolver on my bench got built recently; it is just wearing 1875's clothes. Uberti sent me their "Frank" out of the Outlaws and Lawmen line, which is their version of the Remington Model 1875 that Frank James handed over when he surrendered in 1882. Let's dive right into it!
Sometime about the middle of May, we had to buy a new fridge for the house. Belle went online to the Lowe's site and picked out a fridge. A nice Frigidaire on sale. Had it delivered. The fellow who delivered it and set it up was a nice fellow, very professional, did a great job setting it up, connecting the ice maker and walking me through the process.
Couple of days ago, the fridge threw a code on the door panel, telling me that it needs an air filter.
What? An air filter? Seriously? So, we went to Amazon and ordered some air filters. They will be in tomorrow. Today, I came in and it is throwing another code. It wants a water filter. Hence, we have ordered some water filters.
My old fridge stood there for almost 20 years and when Lowes hauled it off it had the same filter in it that the manufacturer had installed.
It is a nice fridge, but it is needy.
Deputies
immediately detained Strickland, but Cook said White ran into a home in
the nearby neighborhood through a detached garage near Meadow Drive and
Grafton Drive.
The homeowner and his wife were inside the home at the time. Cook said the homeowner shot White in the leg.
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Tim Curry died yesterday (8-25-26) also at age 80, like Dolly. Best known for playing Frank-N-Furter in the Rocky Horror Picture Show, he also had some great roles in movies like Clue, Legend, and The Three Musketeers. He also scared the crap out of an entire generation with his version of Pennywise in It. ETA: […]
EAA Corp. and Girsan Firearms have released the Witness2311 XXX Series, a pair of compact double-stack 1911s designed for everyday carry. According to the company, the design reduces the footprint of the double-stack 1911 platform without sacrificing capacity or performance. Both models are chambered in 9mm with 16+1 capacity, with magazines developed in collaboration with Check-Mate, a 3.4-inch barrel, and a reduced grip module that EAA states is approximately 25 percent smaller than previous versions.
Vortex is expanding reticle choices for its Razor HD Gen III 6-36x56 FFP riflescope, adding a VMR-5 option alongside the existing EBR-7D. The move targets precision rifle shooters, particularly those running PRS stages where seeing impact and executing fast follow-up corrections directly affects match outcomes. When a shot timer is running and a range officer is watching, visibility of impact becomes as critical as the shot itself.
It's hot outside. Belle is puttering in the kitchen. Lunch will soon be upon us. Just another Wednesday in the piney woods of central Louisiana.
I'm being worthless today. As is my right as an old retired curmudgeon. I will haul off some trash later, but that is about the extent of my ambition today. As I scroll through my news feeds I note that it is all Dolly, all the time. That is to be expected, I guess.
The tropics are quiet, almost spooky quiet. Looking at the list of names for the 2026 Atlantic hurricane season, I note that the name Dolly is on the list. Strange coincidence.
Today, Wednesday, Aug. 26, marks the 52nd anniversary of the launch of the Second Amendment Foundation (SAF), which ever since has been leading the charge in defending, securing and restoring the constitutional rights of Americans. Founded on this date in 1974 by Alan Gottlieb, who now serves as the organization’s Executive Vice President, SAF remains […]
The post Second Amendment Foundation Marks 52 Years Defending 2A appeared first on Liberty Park Press.
WOOX has introduced the Vigilante Beavertail Grip, a handcrafted AR-platform grip combining premium walnut with an integrated polymer beavertail. The grip is handcrafted in Italy from American Claro walnut and features laser-engraved grip texture. The beavertail extension is engineered from high-strength technopolymer and provides an integrated reinforced design for control, stability, and comfort. The grip maintains an ambidextrous, symmetrical design compatible with AR-15, AR-10, M4, and M16 platforms.
NEW from Osight comes the SE MOS! The first closed emitter red dot that mounts directly to the Glock MOS!
Previously, when using the Starlink up at the Beta Site I have either used a small battery backup brick, or I’ve used an adaptor that lets me use my Milwaukee M18 batteries that power my tools. But, both of those …
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German Precision Optics has released the GPO Setback 3" Cantilever Extension Mount , a one-piece aluminum base designed to move riflescopes rearward up to 3 inches to address eye relief constraints on compact tactical optics. The mount is precision-machined from aircraft-grade aluminum and features four hardened steel Allen-head cross-bolts for attachment to Picatinny rails.
Quote of the Day Genome language models operate in a broadly similar way to large language models (LLMs) except that they predict genetic code instead of written text, having been trained on the genomes of other viruses and bacteria, as …
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We're sure you'll love dipping into fall flavors with this featured recipe from Peak to Plate for Maple and Herb Roasted Delicata Squash.
Maori haka, done properly, are pretty frickin’ awesome. The one below ain’t it. And if it was anyone but AWFLs doing it, it would be deemed to be cultural appropriation. Proper haka, to the best of my understanding, require fire and heart and bravery. Those women have none of those. But I’m sure they think […]
