Carlos

I think that the answer is this: "Saigas are in fact unimportable with pistol grips, folding stocks, flash hiders, etc, so 922r absolutely applies. 922r, however, DOES NOT apply to any current Benelli product. All Benelli shotguns, even the discontinued M1 and M3, exist in the US without ever having been denied a Form 6 Import Permit in any configuration submitted or sold by Benelli. Benelli shotguns have come in with pistol grips, extended mag tubes and in the case of the M1014, collapsible stocks, all permitted for civilian sale." Sooooo, I must first "make" my Siaga into a USA made gun. How? Majority US made parts. Every pistol grip AK-47 has enough USA made parts that it IS a USA-Made gun. My siaga has US butt stock, pistol from and all interals made in USA. Just like my USA made AR-15 Rifle, I can do as much to my SIaga as I can to John Kerry's Remington 1187 gift shotgun from the last election. Ban that! Thanks for the info. Very insightful.

Getting a little off topic here, but: John wrote: "I have a bunch of JP stuff, won't catch me with an HK until they donate something to a prize table. Ditto for Colt.There's nothing wrong with a company focusing on Mil/LE sales to the exclusion of marketing to peons who buy guns one at a time. There's also nothing wrong with the peons showing some support for companies that aren't too big for their britches." The more I think about what John wrote, the more I AGREE. If we want payback from the industry, let's make sure we are offering them something in return. Such as? Such as loyalty. On another post, I discovered that Kimber has snubbed both USPSA and IDPA requests for prize support. Don't want to run afoul of forum rules, but I would rather spend my money on a quality gun from a USPSA Gold Sponsor like STI or SV (besides, their 1911s are better anyway). I also appreciate DPMS sponsoring a whole 3 gun match. Ever see any sort of HK rifle at a 3 gun? (I mean a real HK, not a CETME or US clone). Sell me a US made G36 or an upper for 416 and sponsor a match and I might change my tune. Until then, JP & DPMS can count on my business. How about you? Regards, D.C. Johnson (moderator - feel free to split this off into another thread if appropriate)

What about Vang comp? Anyone have a link?

Have not owned a DPMS so can't comment on quality. HOWEVER, supporting our type of competition goes a long way in my book & I do recall seeing the DPMS sponsored 3 gun featured in Front Sight. DPMS has stepped up when we have needed them. Good choice.

There are reliability advantages here since the piston keeps the soot/hot gas out at the gas block instead of dumping it in the carrier and receiver (Garand, M1A and AK do it the same way). Other advantages? -longlife, super hard hammer forged HK barrel. THese things last. -buffer/spring designed to minimize "bounce" What about "secondary vibrations" and accuracy? Look at the Armalite web site; the bullet is out of the barrel before the piston moves at all on a: M1A, Garand, AK or the new AR/HK416. This thing would be JUST as accurate as any traditional gas operated AR.

Rock River. Excellent quality every time.

Unlikely to be sold to ordinary folks like us (civilians). A few slipped out & that will be the end of it according to ar15.com Too bad too. Mags are out there; I bough 2 at $50 a pop. They work.

Not to start too large a debate, but I am in the market for mags for the new blaster; I am considering: -Wilson 47Ds or -Chip McCormick Power Mags The tripp "cobra mag" is not in the budget. What do you suggest? What 8 rounder works for you? THanks, D.C. Johnson BTW No 10 rounder in the new S.S. division. Read the rules: www.uspsa.com

Agree. Have not run into that headstamp or ammo. Since I understand that reloading is not allowed in Israel, I take it we are speaking about factory ammo and not reloaded 9mm cases. As for the "L" preceding the 18 and the "A1", I have only seen that stamp on UK or Commonwealth country ammo (I believe the Hirtenberger L7A1 9mm was produced for Brittish use). I suspect that your ammo may have been intended for use by either England, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, or a host of former members of the United Kingdom that still follow UK military protocol. UPDATE: Looks like its IMI. I searched & found a post by someone from Israel using the handle: "M5Instructor" who wrote on another forum: "In addition to the "L7A1" marking, I have an IMI round marked "L18A1" sitting in front of me." Odd, since I know Israel Military Industries uses headstamp such as "TZZ" and US aid ammo is marked WCC (winchester) - so it appears Israel does not always follow the Brit "L" designation for ammo; of course I am aware of Israel/Brittish history.

"2. Smooth is fast 3. Plan your runs" -agree. As far as "plan your turns" that is a good analogy. In racing, a fast turn is planned out during practice useing "markers" for braking, turn-in points, etc. ALso, during practice, the racer seeks out the "fast line" through a turn. a walk-through is nothing more than one or several "practice laps" on an unfamiliar race track. The top shooters will plan out their path through a COF based on the fast line and pick out exact foot positions; just as there are many way to shoot a COF, there are many ways to ride a race bike through a turn. Mark - what year was that again? Gawd - must have been 1995 or so.

How about a future World Shoot in the Mayan Riviera? Maybe just outside Playa Del Carmen w/ access to some of the best beaches and scuba anywhere.

I tried that Unique stuff and it was the filthiest, dirtyiest, smokiest powder ever. I do not know how they get away with calling it "smokeless". Plus it smelled bad. I will never ever let that stuff anywhere near any gun I own ever again. I think there are more modern powders that perform better for less money.

I love the Mayan riviera; on account of a hurricane there during a vacation, I went scuba diving in fresh-water caves called Cenotes (I am not cave-certified but in Mexico, they do not consider it a cave if it has 2 entrances). Scarred the livin daylights outta me! (and if you have never had your livin daylights scarred out, well, take my word for it, this was way scary!). That part of Mexico is something very special.

I'll be shooting this thing; just so long as I am able to "git er done!" in time to participate in the new Division. As for the rest of the rig, I ordered a Blade Tech brand Kydex holster that is convertable to a dropped, off-set holster with hardware. I opted for Blade Tech's dual magazine carriers as well (good choice?). Hope the rig arrives soon. Here is a LINK to the build report here on be.com or cut & paste in this URL: http://www.brianenos.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=26647 Regards, D.C. Johnson

You read my mind. Baltimore brewing company once made the BEST & only micro brew doppelboch I have run accross. Count me in along w/ invitees from "the 6-way race to A class" & Team Shooters Paradise GSSF I & II !! I think we might just have to find a place to sleep it off in Baltimore that night.

This is in the mix of photos at the link below: Here is the link to the full set of pictures: http://www.cetmerifles.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4421

"we are also celebrating his 10th wedding anniversary. His wife is 64 - the same age as David's Dad!" She is 26 years his younger?!?! Cradle robber!!!! Seriously though, I think that there are plenty of appropriate gifts; I have been to Israel twice and in both Tel Aviv and the capital, Jerusalem, there are many stores that specialize in Judaica, often run by Orthodox jews. Being gentiles, we were a bit timid at first to browse these stores but in every single case, we were welcomed in and encouraged to browse, ask questions, etc. As for appropriate gifts, I think a Shabbat plate would be appropriate. It is a great Jewish tradition, especially in Israel, that every eve of the Sabath (Friday night) families gather for a Shabbat or "Shabbat dinner"; special serving plates, usually painted with a blessing in Hebrew, are usually used. Such a plate (unless its silver) could break on the return trip though. Another option would be a silver Kiddush cup or wine cup; used on the Shabbat as well as the high holidays. Two other suitable gifts would be a Shofar (horn of a goat blown on certian holidays/ocassions) or anything with a Hamsa - the "evil eye" that looks like a hand with an eye in the center - this is considered a good luck charm in Israel and it adorns most Israeli homes. I loved my time visiting the Jewish state & felt extremely comfortable there; it was one of the few countries I have visited that made me feel as if I could live there (though I'll likely live out my days right here in the US). Regards, D.C. Johnson ps - I grew up in several predominently Jewish areas and graduated from American University (which has a large percentage of Jewish students) - all this got me invited to many great Jewish celebrations like Bar/bat mitsva, weddings, Shabbats, Saders - and some not-so-great ones like bris.

Spaten-Munich is one of my all-time favorites. I have rarely met a doppelboch I did not like. The season of Oktoberfest approaches.

Parts still not in, though I did borrow a .699 Brown barrel bushing & was loose as all get out. The indise of this slide is looking like approx. .7045" & will certainly need an oversize bushing; this slide is right on the edge of being unserviceable (part of the fun is getting this collection parts to not only work, but hopefully work well). Without more parts to fit, I kept machining the parts I have; I had planned to flat top this slide from the start. Flat topping takes a little bit of weight out of the slide & is alloed in the new single stack rules. It also provides a flat sighting plane (even though you do not see it looking over sights) that will be non-reflective on this gun. Due to the finish I am planning, there is no need to serrate the surface. First step is to level the slide perfectly to the head of the mill; to do this I use a dial test indicator which is a precision measuring device w/ about 40 thousandths of travel & a stylus that travels on jewels like a watch. The slide is moved back & forth under the indicator & adjusted until there is no movement on the dial: The GI front sight is still there in the photo & was easier to just mill it out of the way. The tool I used is one of my favorites; it is a facing end mill with replaceable inserts; these happen to be carbide inserts that cost between $5 to $10 each. Fortunately, they have 4 usuable sides. However, since I borrod this from an friend & the cutting surface was free of nicks or chips, I decided not to switch to a fresh cutting surface. That was a mistake as it left a far more rough surface than usual; the inserts were dull. Here is the tool actually spinning though it looks still: With a tool this large, the mill speed must be set very slow. To give you an idea of how slow, when it is cutting, its about the speed of the slow cyclic rate of the Browning .50 cal machine guns our brave troops are using in the fighting in Afganistan and Iraq; imagine the sounds from TV: chunk-chunk-chunk (etc). I took .005" per pass with this tool once I reached the top of the slide. I usually take off about .040" (8 passes) but for this project I only took .030 as I am not out for a super competitive "trick" gun in a class that is supposed to be a level playing field. Truth is, it was more for aesthetic reasons. Because it came out more rough than anticipated, it required quite a bit of smoothing out using fine sand paper attached to a glass plate (perfectly flat - or close enough to flat). Here is a picture of the gun to date with a few parts hung on it as it takes shape: Also slightly visible is the $10 Mag well thanks to the 1911forum.com and the $14 gunshow hammer that will be a project in itself to make work. More work to follow. Regards, D.C. Johnson

Talk about an OLD one still going around! - I have a reloading manual from the early '70s and it dispells the MYTH about steel .45 ACP cases breaking 1911 extractors. There is NO proof. - but wait a minute, Russia was our enemy in 1970 and there was no such thing as Wolf in the USA so - what steel cases? US MILITARY steel .45 cases. I have a few & the Manual states they can be reloaded (i've done it w/ Wolf but not really recommended). Where does the extractor myth come from? The era before 1970. Urbanti - it is technically reloadable & I have done it many times; what I found was: 1) cases started to split after only 3 reloadings w/ Clays & a major 200 TMJ load 2) I tried to salvage a Wolf case that had been slightly stepped on & was out of round; the sharp corner on that case caught on my Lee sizing die & cracked a big chip out of it, ruining the die (I was out almost $10!!!!). If you reload Wolf, make sure the cases are round to begin with.

"therein lies one answer. (.40)." NOW we are talking! Great news that its a .40; when can we expect these for general use & any idea how much $$$? Perhaps we should also start an "Available Caspian 140mm base plate" list for manufacturers/suppliers? Regards, D.C. Johnson PS - As for allegedly modified steel frame, I ask you this: how does the gun in the picture differ from all the 85 Combat II's you have examined? (kinda tall order since there are NO known examples in the USA). You mean to say you made an unsupported judgement on the gun never having examined an 85 Combat II before? You put your judgement over that of the Arbitration Committee who actually HAVE seen 85 Combat IIs before? Hey, people believe in crop circles, bigfoot & nessie; you are free to believe whatever you want.

What caliber? I only care about .40. Price? Availability? ETA?

"(Some do anyway with the codes on their tracking stickers, the bastards.) " -care to name names? I have miles saved up on several airlines so I have a choice of carriers. Also, they recently arrested & are convicting a baggage handler from Reagan Airport (previously "national") who was going through baggage & stealing; no idea if a single item was ever recovered. I'd prefer to use a carrier that follows the law & does not mark the outside of baggage - with orange tags or with codes.

I have a Mk I (-the Super X-2 Practical comes in 2 versions: Mk I and Mk II) mine was bought in 2001 and it is a Mk I. I locked back the bolt & left it that way for a month when new. Smokeshawn wrote: "It won't reliably shoot Win Ranger Low Recoil slugs, " Mine jammed at the 3 gun the other night on those SAME slugs; Rnager Low Recoil (stovepipe). It previously jammed on Winchester full power 1 Oz slugs; 2 & 2/3". Apparently, the Winchester X2 is not very compatible with Winchester brand ammunition. I also use the Schoenbeck German made slugs (sold under the Wolf name but certainly NOT russian made). In skeet shooting w/ Winchester shotshells, I have also gotten light strikes and for that reason I am useing Federal brand bird shot for 3 gun exclusively. Also, the manual I got with my Mk I stated that the chokes are "Invector Plus" I assure you, this gun is NOT threaded for Invector plus!!!! Mine is threaded for the regular Browning Invector chokes. D.C. Johnson By the way, Mark I's sold in 2001 do NOT come with 2 pistons. You get a free red case and a Winchester leather jacket, but no extra piston.

Besides the LOW pricing, you might consider buying it in lots of 50,000 to 1/2 million rounds at a time.