LearnAboutGuns.com

As the NRA reports, Massachusetts fourth-grader Bradley Geslak was suspended from Toy Town Elementary School for bringing a Memorial Day souvenir to school. Read the rest of this article »

As the SAF Reports, the Brady Campaign is attempting to block the confirmation of federal judges who support the individual right of Americans to keep and bear arms. Read the rest of this article »

Different shotgun activities require different barrel lengths. This article addresses the recommended barrel lengths for various purposes, and the pros and cons of these barrel lengths. Read the rest of this article »

I have noticed that there is insidious anti-gun indoctrination experienced by many people, and that it happens from an early age.  I believe this to be a serious problem, not just for the future of the 2nd Amendment, but for society’s ability to solve its social problems, such as violence.  I’ve seen this anti gun indoctrination from first and experience, through the attitudes of many otherwise reasonable people, and from the news.  Allow me to elaborate: Read the rest of this article »

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is proposing several anti-gun rights laws as the answer to gang violence. These laws won’t affect gang members, who are already willing to break the laws against selling drugs, committing murder, and being felons who unlawfully possess guns. Read the rest of this article »

Joining the NRA is a great way to help protect our 2nd amendment right to keep and bear arms. Normally, a 1 year membership is $35, but you can join here for $25 – That is a $10 discount. Read the rest of this article »

The Springfield 1911 is a semiautomatic pistol that has achieved near legendary status in the eyes of many people. This is due in no small part to its design and reliability. Although I prefer modern polymer framed pistols such as the Springfield XD, I also appreciate the Springfield 1911. My review of the 1911 is below. Read the rest of this article »

The governor of Arizona, Janet Napolitano, vetoed Arizona House Bill 2629, which would have allowed citizens to defensively display a firearm when confronted by a criminal. Read the rest of this article »

Toronto, Canada Mayor David Miller is is considering a ban upon the manufacture, distribution, assembly, warehousing and discharge of guns. This would shut down Toronto’s gun training centers, gun ranges, gun stores, and gun manufacturing. Read the rest of this article »

Gun control laws, especially the bans on so called “assault weapons“, tend to be highly technical in nature.  Such laws include arbitrary limitations on the length of barrels, the number of round a magazine can store, cosmetic features of the gun, etc.  This leaves the average law abiding citizen unaware that they might be violating the law, until they are  arrested.  Worse yet, some laws are rather vague, leaving even the most diligent and well educated citizen unable to determine if they are in violation.  Given the severe penalties in place for having a handgun magazine that holds one round to many, or a rifle barrel that is a half an inch too short, these laws are some of the most unjust currently on the books.  Below are some examples: Read the rest of this article »

The NK Beverage Pit and its employees have been victims of armed robbery before. Last year, Karla Vigil was working alone one morning when she was robbed at gunpoint. This time, the would be robber wasn’t so lucky.

Read the rest of this article »

In what is a departure from tradition, almost 20 Indian women in a rural village area have been granted gun permits in order to keep the numerous armed robbers at bay. Read the rest of this article »

In response to my articles on selecting a gun for home defense, taking a friend shooting for the first time, and facts about recoil, I have been asked how one can get used to the recoil generated by more powerful guns. Getting used to recoil is not too challenging, as this article explains. Read the rest of this article »

As CBS 11 reports, a Dallas home owner caught a burglar in his home.  When he confronted the burglar, the burglar charged at him and threw a backpack. Read the rest of this article »

The Remington 11-87 is a gas operated, semi-automatic (autoloading) shotgun. I own an 11-87, and decided to write a review, which is shown below. Read the rest of this article »

As the Times Online reports, there were two teenagers shoot in London today, despite the near total ban on guns of any type that the UK government has forced upon its law abiding citizens. Read the rest of this article »

Personal responsibility seems to be something that our society is lacking these days, especially insofar as guns are concerned.  Rather than blaming negligent adults who didn’t store their gun in a safe and responsible manner when a small child shoots his or her self, we blame guns.  Rather than blaming the adults who did not follow the basics of gun safety and unintentionally shoot themselves, guns are the scapegoat.  Instead of blaming criminals, we pass gun control laws that the criminals will just ignore, just as they ignore the laws against robbery, murder, and rape.  This is ineffective, leads to wrongful violations of the rights of law abiding citizens, and teaches our children the wrong message.  Allow me to explain: Read the rest of this article »

Governor Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas announced her refusal to sign Kansas House Bill 2359 into law.  This bill would strengthen the right of the citizens to keep and bear arms for self defense. Read the rest of this article »

The Streamlight TLR-2 is a combination tactical light and laser, which mounts on the accessory rails of handguns, shotguns, and rifles. My review of this well built tactical accessory is below: Read the rest of this article »

The Sun Times reports that rural Indian villagers burned hundreds of toy guns in protest of the civil unrest and militant groups that have killed over 5,000 people in the last decade.  The violence perpetrated by these militants and criminals is tragic, but blaming guns is irrational, pointless, and won’t solve the Indian’s problem with violence. Read the rest of this article »

As the Daily Herald reports, well funded anti-gun groups in Illinois are trying fear tactics to retaliate against a state law maker who didn’t jump on their anti-gun bandwagon. Read the rest of this article »

I’ve previously mentioned the recent handgun crimes in Oak Park, Illinois, which is a suburb of Chicago that has a handgun ban (which the criminals ignore).  Most of these recent crimes have only involved robbery at gunpoint, and pistol whipping.  Today, a man stopped for a traffic light at the intersection of Austin and Roosevelt in Oak Park was shot, after exchanging unknown words with the gunman.  The man was listed in serious condition as of Thursday evening.  The Tribune has the full story. Read the rest of this article »

I have previously discussed how the bans on so called “assault weapons” only ban cosmetic and safety features of guns that are not true military style guns anyway, while not reducing crime or even being rationally related to crime.  Now I’ll address the fact that criminals simply don’t tend to use these so called “assault weapons”, which makes banning them even more pointless. Read the rest of this article »

Chicago Alderman Richard Mell owns a variety of shotguns, rifles, and pistols, but forgot to re-register them, which makes the handguns permanently illegal and unregisterable under Chicago law.  Since he wants to keep his handguns, he is proposing a 1 month registration amnesty period.  The catch?  It would only apply to people who happened to have failed to re-register in the same time frame as him.  Chicago’s Mayor Daley endorses this plan, which is designed to benefit an influential alderman, while the vast majority of Chicago’s law abiding citizens will be left without the ability to keep a handgun to defend themselves. Read the rest of this article »

Few topics are as hotly debated as the question of “which caliber”. This article addresses my thoughts on the topic for semi-automatic (autoloading) pistols, intended for self defense use. Read the rest of this article »

As was reported a while ago, Citibank is continuing to discriminate against law abiding firearms dealers.  Citi has a policy of “not maintaining accounts for businesses that deal in weapons”, even when the transactions are completely above the board and lawful. Read the rest of this article »

As mentioned last week, robbers in Oak Park were ignoring the handgun ban.  This has continued for yet another week, with a robber pistol whipping a man as he was robbed, as the Wednesday Journal reported. Read the rest of this article »

The Arizona Republic reports that Arizona Senate Bill 1214, which would have allowed law abiding college and university students to carry a concealed firearm for their protection, has been killed in the state senate. Read the rest of this article »

As KCCI Channel 8 reported, James Spiers, a Pizza Hut driver who had a concealed handgun permit, lawfully carried his concealed weapon while making a delivery.  The driver was attacked by an armed criminal and fired his gun in self defense, saving his life and injuring the robber (who is now in jail).  Pizza hut first suspended, then fired this law abiding citizen who used his lawfully carried gun to defend himself.  Why?  Because Pizza Hut has a policy against allowing its employees to lawfully defend themselves. Read the rest of this article »

Recently, I have heard politicians talking about what they consider to be “reasonable restrictions” on gun rights. These restrictions are often anything but reasonable, so I thought it would be a good exercise to compare what society would be like if we treated other fundamental rights the same way that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution’s right to keep and bear arms is treated Read the rest of this article »

As the Associated Press reports, two men engaged in a parking lot Taser duel.  The dispute began after a car was booted, and both men fired their Tasers at each other.  Neither required medical attention, but one was arrested due to the incident. Read the rest of this article »

Shooting is a great sport for everyone.  I say that not just because it is fun, but because it does not have to have the same physical requirements as many other sports.  This allows a lot of people to participate and excel at shooting, even if they could not do the same in other sports.  Shooting is also great for the most physically fit among us, who are seeking a new challenge. Read the rest of this article »

The Springfield XD is currently my favorite pistol, so I though I would write a review of it. Read the rest of this article »

In the US and the UK, there are attempts by anti gun groups to make the ownership of guns seen as taboo, from both a legal and moral perspective. These attempts at eliminating “gun culture” are doomed to backfire, as history and human nature teach use. Allow me to explain: Read the rest of this article »

The Courant reports that Hartford, CT is facing a wave of violent crime, similar to that which Chicago has recently experienced.  But unlike Chicago, Hartford is taking steps that will actually reduce crime, rather than just calling for more ineffective gun control laws and giving the police machine guns: Read the rest of this article »

The Associated Press reports that the Houston police department allowed convicted criminals into their evidence rooms, which contained guns.  I say “contained” in the past tense, because over an undisclosed period of time, more than 30 guns were stolen. Read the rest of this article »

As CBS News reports, Chicago high school students are collecting signatures in order to petition additional ineffective gun control laws.  Specifically, they are petitioning for the ban on standard capacity magazines that that Illinois legislature is considering. Read the rest of this article »

As stated in my biographical and demographical information, I am an African American male, in my mid twenties.  Because of this, some of my friends have questioned whether it is wise of me to go to gun stores and ranges.  These friends were concerned that, due to my race, I would face discrimination or violence in these gun-related locations.  Since I have heard so many people voice this concern to to me, I thought I would describe my experiences as a black man who frequents 4 Chicago area gun stores and shooting ranges: Read the rest of this article »

I’ve noticed that many people who aren’t familiar with guns tend to fear them.  I’m not referring to the fear of a criminal pointing a gun at them, but rather a fear of owing a gun themselves.  Recently I asked coworkers and other people who have such a fear of guns why guns scare them. This article lists the answers I’ve been given, along with solutions for such irrational fears of guns. Read the rest of this article »

Pump action shotguns and rifles are well suited to home defense, due to their reliability. An added benefit of pump action is that it makes storing the firearm in a relatively safe yet ready to use fashion easier. While this practice is likely obvious to those experienced with pump action firearms, it may not be as obvious for those more familiar with other action types, or those new to firearms. This article describes how to store a pump action firearm in a safe yet ready to use manner. Read the rest of this article »

The Remington 7600 is a pump action rifle, available in a variety of calibers. Its action is similar to that of the Remington 870 series shotgun, making this rifle easy to transition to for those familiar with pump action shotguns. The pump action nature of this rifle also exempts it from some of the more stringent gun bans, which is (sadly) something that must be considered by some law abiding gun owners these days. My review of the Remington 7600 is below. Read the rest of this article »

The Curry County Reporter, which is located in Oregon, reports that a man from Bookins, OR drew his gun in self defense and successfully stopped his attackers without firing a shot Read the rest of this article »

As the Sun Times reports, another weekend of violence in Chicago has begun.  On Friday night alone, 10 people were shot with by criminals with handguns, despite Chicago’s longstanding handgun ban.  Read the rest of this article »

Porting, which refers to the addition of holes near the end of a shotgun’s barrel, can be a good addition to your home defense or sporting shotgun.  There are some drawbacks as well, and this article addresses both. Read the rest of this article »

FN Herstal makes a variety of tactical shotguns which are designed for the rigors of police use, but are available to ordinary citizens. These shotguns are durable, reliable, and highly recommended by this author. My review of the FN Herstal pump action tactical police shotgun is below: Read the rest of this article »

Violent crime in Chicago is up 6 percent in the first four months of  2008, compared to the first 4 months in 2007, as the Chicago Tribune reports.  Murder is also up by 9%: Read the rest of this article »

The LA Times reports on John McCain, the presumptive 2008 Republican Presidential Candidate, and his attempts at gaining the trust (and votes) of NRA members Read the rest of this article »

The Ruger 10/22 is a great gun for target practice. It is inexpensive but of high quality, and the ammunition it fires, .22 long rifle (.22LR), is just a few cents per cartridge. My review of the Ruger 10/22 is below. Read the rest of this article »

Anti gun special interest groups are trying to use the recent gang violence in Chicago to justify the recently proposed draconian gun control laws.  The problem with this whole premise is simple: Read the rest of this article »

The Crimson Trace LaserGrip is a great addition to any pistol or revolver (and is actually available for a staggeringly high number of handguns). Although my favorite laser sight system is the LaserMax, the Crimson Trace LaserGrip is a solid product, and the price savings over the LaserMax make it a great choice. My review of the LaserGrips is below. Read the rest of this article »

Gun Owners of America has posted a must read, in-depth review of the gun positions for each of the main 2008 presidential candidates.  This report looks at the candidates voting record, rather than the pandering they do during election season. Read the rest of this article »

Oak Park, Illinois’ local newspaper reports that the series of armed robberies which hit Oak Park is continuing.  This is despite Oak Park’s longstanding handgun ban.  I suppose the armed robbers are unaware of the handgun ban, since the $1,000 fine for violating the handgun ban would clearly deter someone bent on armed robbery.  Or perhaps the criminals will continue to commit crimes despite the handgun ban, which only leaves the law abiding citizens unable to defend themselves? Read the rest of this article »

SB-1007, the ban on standard capacity magazines that is being considered in Illinois, is both unenforceable and unworkable, as the ISRA reports: Read the rest of this article »

SB-1007, which is being considered in Illinois, would ban a variety of gun that have been around since the 1800’s – hardly the guns which criminals prefer or would even be caught dead with. Read the rest of this article »

Every time I read about an “accidental” shooting in the news, I want to write a letter to the editor to point out their error. The fact is that when someone is unintentionally shot, it was not an “accidental” shooting. Instead, it was either a negligent or reckless shooting. Allow me to explain: Read the rest of this article »

LaserMax makes a laser sight system for most pistols. What is different about LaserMax is where the laser is located, and I have found this difference to be a great thing. Below is my review of the LaserMax weapon sight system. Read the rest of this article »

You can do your part to support gun rights by looking up and contacting your elected officials to let them know that you support gun rights and oppose gun control.  The form at the bottom of this page will allow you to lookup the contact information for your elected officials, and a sample letter is shown below. Read the rest of this article »

I purchased a Remington 870 XCS Marine Magnum about a year ago, and have put about 3,000 shells through it so far. It has been broken down and cleaned about 30 times. Pictures of my Remington 870 XCS Marine Magnum can be seen here. I thought I would write a review of this shotgun, which is my favorite shotgun so far. Read the rest of this article »

The New York Times reported that in a staggering number of cases, the generally pro-police trial judges in New York are throwing out gun possession charges.  This is not because of a new found love for guns, but because of the police officer’s unconstitutional and wrongful searches of random individuals in public: Read the rest of this article »

There are a lot of misperceptions, bias, and misinformation out there about guns.  This can make even reasonable and intelligent people, who don’t have first hand experience with guns, believe that guns are somehow evil or are the cause of crime.   One great way to dispel these myths and let your anti-gun friends decide for themselves is to take them to shooting range.  My girlfriend and I recently did that just that, with a co-worker of mine and his wife.  Below are suggestions I have on how to make such an outing to the shooting range a success, along with our experience. Read the rest of this article »

For a home defense or self defense handgun, simplicity and reliability are paramount. That said, there are several accessories which can provide the law abiding citizen with an advantage in a home defense situation, without adversely effecting the simplicity and reliability of the handgun. Read the rest of this article »

As I mentioned previously, a ban on standard capacity magazines is being considered.  The anti gun groups that incorrectly call such ban “reasonable restrictions” are now actively spreading misinformation, in a last ditch attempt at influencing the Illinois state legislature. Read the rest of this article »

Guns ownership and sporting use is a special hobby like no other.  And I’m not only speaking about the unique fun and physics that go along with responsible firearms use -  Whether you are interested in hunting, target practice, or collecting, firearms as a hobby require something that almost no other hobby requires: Read the rest of this article »

I recently read an excellent letter to editor of the Tifton Gazette by a gentleman by the name of Keith Perry.  Mr. Perry addresses Read the rest of this article »

Although this site is dedicated to firearms, I thought I would post an effectiveness comparison of the various self defense tools.  These are guns, Tasers, pepper spray, and edges/blunt objects. Read the rest of this article »

For a defensive shotgun, simplicity and reliability are paramount. That said, there are several shotgun accessories which can provide the law abiding citizen with an advantage in a home defense situation, without adversely effecting the simplicity and reliability of the shotgun. Read the rest of this article »

Lawfully purchasing a gun online requires only a little bit more work than purchasing most other items online, and this extra effort can be worth the price savings.  Other times, the exact firearm that the buyer wants might not be available locally, especially when the gun in question is no longer in production, or is a high demand item that is in short supply.  This article describes the relatively simple process of legally purchasing a gun online. Read the rest of this article »

In response to the shootings of over 30 people in a 48 hour period, Chicago’s Mayor Daley will arm the police with M4 Carbines.  These machine guns’ rate of fire is upwards of 700 round per minute in 3 round bursts. Read the rest of this article »

As I mentioned previously, I received an email from a reader of this site, discussing the Taurus Judge. The Taurus Judge is a unique revolver which can fire either a .45 Long Colt cartridge, or a .410 shotgun shell. I have handled the Taurus Judge, and it seems to be a well constructed revolver. I won’t go into a full review of it, since my main focus is its ability to fire .410 shotgun shells in addition to the .45 Long Colt rounds. Read the rest of this article »

I received an email from a reader of this site, telling me about the Taurus Judge, which is a revolver that can fire either the .45 Long Colt, or a .410 shotgun shell (often loaded with birdshot).  By chance I happen to have handled a Taurus Judge right before I read that email.  Below is is the email I received, along with my thoughts on the use of birdshot for home and automotive defense. Read the rest of this article »

In the wake of the tragic NIU Shooting, the Illinois Legislature has passed legislation which would allow campus police to carry firearms. Read the rest of this article »

The Illinois state legislature is currently considering a ban on standard capacity (> 10 rounds) magazines. The highest penalty carried for violations would be Read the rest of this article »

Recently I have read articles produced by anti-gun groups which painted the picture of an America without guns. These articles argue that if we were to ban guns tomorrow, that the country would be a better place. I’ll leave aside the fact that firearm ownership is a right protected by the 2nd amendment, and address the substantive argument: Such anti-gun propaganda fails to take into account practical considerations, as well as human nature. Rather than reducing crime, such a ban on firearms would leave criminals with a monopoly on guns, and law abiding citizens would have their own monopoly on defenselessness. Read the rest of this article »

Below is a how to guide on breaking down, cleaning, and reassembling a Remington 870, complete with pictures of each step. The shotgun pictured is a Remington 870 XCS Marine Magnum, but the steps will be the same for any of the Remington 870 family. The steps for other shotguns are similar as well. Read the rest of this article »

Gun rights are important for self defense, defense of our loved ones, and defense of our country. They also help protect our other civil rights (and in another way than you are probably thinking). Read the rest of this article »

Guns provide a special type of security that cannot be equaled by police protection. This is true even for people who live in relatively safe, affluent areas, and enjoy the services of a well funded and professional police department. Allow me to explain why. Read the rest of this article »

I’ve noticed that some people tend to buy into the propaganda released by the anti-gun groups or those who just seem to not know any better, and believe that gun owners are uneducated and violence prone. This is plainly untrue, so I thought I would give some of my biographical and demographical information: Read the rest of this article »

I’ve noticed a good deal of casual bias against guns and gun owners in blogs, even on those that are unrelated to the discussion of gun ownership rights. This bias seems to take the form of an assumption that a person carrying a gun will open fire at the drop of a hat, and/or that gun owners are less intelligent. I saw a prime example of this yesterday: Read the rest of this article »