Bullets, Gunsmoke & Coffee

I met my new friend Jennifer at the Wet Bunny Range for a few hours of sending bullets, large and small, downrange. It was nice to have a shooting buddy for a change, and she's delightful company.

Jennifer making holes in paper

I had spent the summer working on my rifle skills, at the expense of pistol practice, and it showed. The ammo I purchased last week seemed to be reloads, and they were definitely hotter than your UMC hardball ... and a bit smoky, too.

Me playing with Jennifer's revolver

Since I hadn't practiced for awhile, my first several magazines' worth was a bit of spray & pray. My initial groups were about 5" (at 10 yards). Like I said, it wasn't good at all. The quality of the handloads was uneven, and some produced quite a bit more recoil than others. Nevertheless, I had the groups down to 3" after a bit of concentration. Okay, some were 3.5". When I muttered about not being any good today, Jennifer was kind enough to say, "But he's still dead."

Have I mentioned I like her? She's very polite, you see.

Part of the view from the entrance at Borders

Afterward, we stopped at Borders* for coffee & had a nice chat about all matters great & trivial, and then wound up at Sportsman's Warehouse, looking over black powder supplies. She expressed interest in the possibility of building a long-rifle (flintlock, of course) from a kit. Since that's something I've done, she also made me promise to help with hers. Sounds like fun.

So it was a good day, with good company. We decided it was the first monthly meeting of the Alaska-Bloggers-Who-Sometimes-Write-About-Guns-and-Who-Have-Friends-and-Acquaintances-in-the-South-and-Midwest. Or something like that.**


*While taking this picture outside of Borders, a guy walked up & asked if I am "one of those Google guys." He thought the panoramic views of the Chugach Mountains would make a great feature. He's right.

**Okay, the name needs a lot of work. We're new at this, 'kay?