Best Gun Laws by State... Versus Crime.

Recently I stumbled upon an article by Guns&Ammo detailing the best and worst ranking states for gun owners. This article ranked states according to many different criteria, including:
right to carry,
restrictions on semi-auto firearms,
NFA weapons,
Castle Doctrine,
and other Misc. items that they go into further detail on. I have heard many, many different "facts" from both sides of the gun rights debate regarding the amount of crime a state has, versus the legality of firearms. Neither side has ever shown me a modicum of evidence for the garbage they spew out of their mouths with regards to this subject... (ahem-TYT and FOX news)  Being a skeptic, and a scientist, I decided the only logical thing to do would be to conduct my own research and compile it for all of you readers, gun toting or gun hating, and supply you with the sources I used. So, along with gunsandammo.com, I also used actual FBI crime reports for the year 2013. You can find that here. I decided to use the violent crime data per 100,000 of each state assuming this would give me the most accurate representation.

As I was compiling all of my data into excel, I was quite surprised at some of the data. Here is a bar graph that I have created.

Click to Expand

As you can see, the Y-axis represents the number corresponding to violent crime in the state per 100,000 residents, per year. The Little red bars you see are simply the states rank, and to further help with visuals, as well as, simplicity, the states are listed from best gun laws, to worst. While graphing I was slightly confused. I was certain that better gun laws would mean lower violent crime rates. I then put the graph into scatter plot form to try and gain insight with the help of a trend line.

Click to Expand

This, as you may have guessed, is the exact same graph as we had previously, except this time it is put into scatter plot form, and a trend line is given. A trend line is sort of the average of all the data points. It gives a visual representation of the points versus one another. The trend line increases as the the states are ranked less and less friendly towards firearms. This seems to mean that, overall, there is more violent crime as you go towards the states with the most gun control. I am here to tell you that the graph is most likely this way due to the huge stray point that is Washington D.C.. If this point wasn't so completely out of whack with everything else, I imagine the trend line would jet across that graph in a near perfect horizontal fashion.

In conclusion, according to my research at least, it seems that neither the gun loathers, nor us gun lovers are correct with regards to this issue. All I did was graph the amount of violent crime per state, per 100,000 residents, per year, with the data of most gun friendly states. That is all this shows. It seems to prove there is no direct correlation to speak of. There are a few factors you could look at that may yield better results... such as; concealed carry permit holders versus violent crime. We all know that just because a state has good gun laws, it doesn't mean that everyone is exercising their right to carry and protect themselves. I would imagine that the factor that plays into crime rates the most would be population and poverty level.

If you like this posting feel free to navigate to my other gun postings using the archive feature up below my picture and description. Also, share on Facebook, Twitter, or anywhere else using the buttons to the right, or the link in the navigation bar. I would appreciate any and all feedback as a comment below. If you have any ideas for future posts please let me know. Keep on the lookout for my review on the Yugo NPAP Ak47, the Henry Golden Boy .22LR, the Bear Creek Arsenal AR-15, the Heritage Rough Rider in .22LR and .22 Magnum, and many others to come.

Why YOU Should Stop the .223/5.56 Panic Buying Right NOW.

www.calguns.net
1000 rounds of M855 - 3/3/2015

Ask yourself a question..

Did you go out and purchase 1000+ rounds of .223/5.56 this past week? Have you been constantly lurking Slickguns and Wikiarms to snatch up all of the ammo deals? If yes is the answer to either of these questions then YOU ARE PART OF THE PROBLEM.

Okay... if you are one of these people you are probably asking yourself what the problem is. You might even be thinking that everyone who isn't out buying all of the ammo they can is an idiot because 'they are going to ban all of the .223/5.56 ammunition.'

First of all...

Yes, the ATF did propose a ban on M855, but did you catch the keyword there? Proposed! Nothing is banned yet people! But the ban was proposed only for those lovely green tips everyone is talking about. So, why are you buying up all of the other ammunition? If you think that the government is going to ban all forms of .223/5.56 then you are incredibly mistaken. Ammunition prices are skyrocketing and the gougers have reared their ugly faces on GunBroker and Armslist. I am more than convinced that half of the ammo hoarders are buying up only to resell at double, the already doubled, prices. These people can buy all of the M855 they want, but please leave us rational shooters out of it. The reason that this ammunition was even popular is because it is (was) relatively cheap, brass cased ammunition to shoot. It is accurate too! Other than that, it isn't any big thing. If you watch any ballistics testing on it you will see that the terminal ballistics on it are lousy due to the fact that it will pass directly through soft tissue. This is why the military doesn't even use it anymore. After those prices were up and the ammo was sold out, XM193 ammo felt the cold grubby hands of the masses. The price rose on that until they were out of stock everywhere. Next up was the steel cased stuff. I guarantee people who completely hated steel cased ammo now have thousands of rounds sitting in their houses. Even worse! People are, for some reason, taking this as an opportunity to panic buy 7.62x39 as well. That round has absolutely nothing to do with this ban!

Let me teach you some basic economics...

Supply and demand is a cold hard fact of life. It is the backbone of market economy and very important for everyone to learn and understand. You remember .22LR ammunition? Well, some of you may not since it is still very difficult to find, but panic buying contributed to this situation with .22. If you don't stop buying up all of the .223/5.56 it is going to happen again.

Above is a general supply and demand graph. Notice the supply curve, the demand curve, the price as the Y axis, and the quantity as the X axis. When all is well the equilibrium is located in a stable area that corresponds to a price consumers are willing to pay, and the quantity needed to satisfy the people. When panic buying starts, the demand is increased causing a rightward shift of the demand curve. As you can picture, this causes the equilibrium to rise higher up resulting in an increased price, as well as; an increase in the quantity needed. Ammunition manufacturers can only make so much ammo per year. Although this number is huge, it can quickly be depleted by a hungry American public. Especially with a craze like this. Watching Sportsman's Guide today I noticed that they had 900 available shipments of 500 pack Wolf .223. That is 450,000 rounds. Within 10-15 minutes this quantity was converted to 0. That is insanity! Eventually, if the buyers keep buying the over priced product, the quantity needed will be greater than the manufacturers can supply and then we have a .22LR situation all over again. 

More about the ban...

If you are worried about the ban, and bringing up the ban of imported 5.45x39 ammunition as an example, you need to realize that these are two totally different animals. 5.45x39 was easily banned from import because nobody did anything about it. It is not a very popular round by the American public. Also, they banned the Russian steel core ammunition they said they would, but we can still easily get non steel core ammunition, such as Red Army Standard and Tula. Yes the price increased a bit, but it is still accessible for anyone wanting it. That would be the worst case scenario in this instance too. Yes, they could try and ban other forms of .223/5.56 in the future, but they would have an even harder time with it, and there is no evidence that this is their immediate motive. 

The ATF is accepting comments and opinions on the ban, and I am sure that they are being bombarded with hundreds of thousands of letters and calls. This is quite different than the previous ban. The NRA and the American people are raged up about this, as we should be, and we still have power. We still have rights. Not everyone in government positions are for this ban either. Obama and the ATF don't have the power alone to ban green tips. This is the reason there are three branches of government, to provide power checks to the others. Last I heard, Congress and most republican lawmakers are not too keen on this idea, as with most of Obama's decisions... because they don't really like him too much.

I still haven't mentioned that the original ban on AP ammo was for pistol cartridges... specifically, cartridges made originally for a pistol... which rifle rounds are not. Besides, these are not even defined as AP rounds by the military, or by federal law. To be defined as such a bullet must have a solid metal core of steel, tungsten, or similar metals. These green tips are steel tipped, not cored.  Also, sporting rounds are exempt. This ammo is one of the most popular sporting rounds available.

In conclusion, 

I will be genuinely surprised if this ammo is banned. Even if it is, you will still be able to buy up all the non green tip ammo you want. So please, let us stop panic buying to prevent another .22LR situation. Go to the store, buy a few boxes to shoot and a few to stock, and please leave some for the rest of the shoppers. Also, write the ATF if you have not already. If it is banned you will have no right to complain if you have not stated your opinion.

Share this everywhere you can (by clicking the share buttons to the right) to prevent the disappearance of this wonderful round off the shelves of stores. If not for that reason, then do it to stop the price gougers. Also, navigate through my other blogs (to the right) as I will be updating all the time with gun reviews and rants such as this.

UPDATE:

Many of you may have heard that the ATF has already banned M855 ammunition on the down low without anyone knowing about it. Here is a statement from their website claiming that this is a publishing error, and that no decisions have been officially made yet.

ATF- Publishing Error

Also, many politicians have gone so far as to propose legislation to dissolve the ATF altogether.

Dissolving the ATF

Two Year Review - The Bersa Thunder .380

Two Year Review of the Bersa Thunder .380.

The Bersa Thunder .380 is a wonderful medium-small sized pistol with a very low price point (300-350). It is a popular choice for concealed carriers, those who tend to be recoil sensitive, anybody who loves the .380 round, and people who just wants a reliable and attractive hand gun.



A little History

The Bersa brand was founded in the 1950's by three Italian immigrants in Argentina. All three were mechanical engineers, and one had previously worked for Beretta. After quite a few spirited tries, they finally came up with the thunder line of pistols that share their looks with the Walther PPK. The Bersa pistols were so reliable and popular that they won the contract to supply the standard sidearm of the Argentina Military and Police.



Physical Attributes

The Bersa Thunder .380 comes in a variety of finishes, such as; duo tone, which is a matte black slide on a nickle frame or the other way around.  Nickle finish is a satin nickle slide on nickle frame... or black frame. All black is also available, or the two limited edition finishes... black with nickle accents, and black with gold accents... what I have. The firearm is also available in a combat version, with green rubber grips and combat sights, or a plus version with a double stack magazine.

The gun is beautiful right out of the box and arrived very quickly with no scuffs or scratches. Coming in at 6.6 inches total length with a 3.5 inch barrel, 4.7 inches tall, and 1.3 inches at its thickest--which is on the grip where you see the thumb arc-- this definitely isn't a pocket carry pistol. It also weighs about 18 ounces due to its all metal construction. The standard capacity is 7+1, adding to that weight, but I find that it is virtually unnoticeable when tucked into my Alien Gear holster. I also greatly prefer the solid feel of an all metal gun. The sights are your standard 3-dot with a larger front dot and adjustable rear windage. The trigger is around the ten pound mark during the double action pull with a very light four-ish pound single action. The trigger is nice and wide with light grooves on it. My only qualms with the Bersa are the checkered polymer hand guards that tend to come loose without some loctite, and the magazine drop safety. The grips feel fine in the hand, but just come off as a little cheap. I am also not too keen on the thumb safety, but it is also a decocker... which is very convenient. Another great little feature is the total gun lock accessed by a small key included with the firearm. You can see it in the above picture. If it is twisted, the trigger is void and the slide cannot be racked. This feature is great for storage or safety around children.



Disassembly

To disassemble this pistol all you must do is hold the gun in your right hand and press the right side lever. With the lever pressed down you pull the slide back and then up. Let the slide ride forward and it should come right off the front of the barrel. You can then remove the recoil spring. The recoil spring must be put on with the smaller side over the barrel. The differences in size is not visible to the eye. The barrel is fixed which helps accuracy, along with the Bersa's polygonal rifling. (A feature usually reserved for higher priced rifles).

If you feel the need you can unscrew the small screws on each side of the grips to remove those too. This makes it relatively easy to clean the magazine well... which does get dirty in my experience. This is a good opportunity to throw some blue loctite on the screws. Reassembly is the exact opposite, just be mindful of the spring orientation and hold the lever down.



Shooting and Reliability

I am nearing the 1000 round mark on this pistol and there is no noticeable wear or performance loss. I broke the pistol in with 200 rounds of Winchester white box flat nose. I must admit that I had two failures to feed with the first ever magazine I ran through. After the break in period I have mainly used Tula or Monarch steel cased ammo. I believe I have had two failures to eject using Tula... but I contribute that to the ammunition.

My carry ammunition is Underwood Golden Sabre +P Hollowpoint. I have had two magazines through just to test that it works, and it ran flawlessly. The normal ammo recoil is negligible due to the small round and the weight of the firearm. The Underwood, on the other hand, produces a noticeably more powerful kick. The recoil actually causes the dovetail to dig into my hand and sort of rubs the skin away after only seven rounds.
The gun will likely shoot more accurately than you. The larger front dot on the sights seems like a good idea, but in practice it is sort of annoying. I often found myself shooting a bit high because the front dot is so much larger than the back two. When the top blades are aligned the front dot has about a fifth of it, or more, cut off.
I find it fun to try and do long distance shooting with little pistols. But, with self defense style ranges I tend to shoot one inch or less out to seven meters and 1.5-3 inch groups out to fifteen meters. I am sure that you could do better. It doesn't matter though because that is plenty good for any gun, or shooter, in these situations. Besides, in a self defense shooting you wont be able to focus and take time to place your shots. I have no pictures of my recent range trips, but I will update next time I go.



Conclusion

I have shot many a pistol in my day, and this is my favorite to shoot and to look at. We can argue all day about the .380 ACP round, but in my opinion this is the best .380 to own. The only real downfall is how large it is as most people get a .380 to pocket carry. If this is your only concern you can buy the CC model which is smaller and rounded out. It even holds one more round! It is reliable, accurate, and feels natural in the hand. It is the best pistol for the price on the market and if you can snag a special edition, take advantage.

Best Non-AR15 .223/5.56 Rifles.

It is hard to be one of the few that just don't genuinely like, or trust, the AR-15 rifle. You walk into any given gun shop and they seem to have more AR-15 options than anything else. You hear all of these fan boys spouting on about how they can survive a nuclear bomb... It is worse than Glock fan boys. Chances are, if you don't like the AR then you probably do like the AK... but what if you want a versatile arsenal including .223/5.56? Well, good news is that you have some very cool options!

Ruger Mini 14

Ruger Mini 14 Ranch Rifle
www.ruger.com 2/22/15

The Ruger Mini 14 has been around for quite some time. This fairly short rifle is meant to look and operate like a small M14... hence the name. It even operates on a similar locking mechanism and self cleaning, fixed piston gas system. It is available in many different forms and seems to be a mild platform for customization, if that is your cup of tea. The rifle weighs a bit over 6 lbs and has a total length of just over 37 inches. With it's 10, 20, or 30 round magazines... this is a good, reliable rifle and is a good alternative to the AR platform. Not to mention... it has been featured in the A-Team.



Golani Galil Sporter

Golani Galil Sporter
Slickguns.com 2/22/15

If you want a cool attention getter at the range which will stand out a bit more than the Mini 14... this is the weapon for you! This is a rifle that was designed in the late 60's. Its operation is based heavily on the AK system which makes it very reliable. No matter the model you choose, you are looking at over 8 lbs of gun. These are also typically hard to find these days. If one does pop up, you'll be kicking yourself if you don't grab it while you can.



Century Arms C93

Century Arms C93
Guns.com 2/22/15

Yet another gun for you attention seekers. This is the C93. It is essentially a clone of the early HK93 but lacks the quality and hefty price tag. 40 round magazines are the standard on this bad boy meaning you will be reloading less often than most other rifles. It takes original HK magazines... if you want to pay the price. There are also many companies that make a good quality magazine for the C93. This is a roller lock system exactly like the system used in CETME rifles and PTR-91's. This usually means pretty reliable functioning (with the correct rollers and bolt gap), but be prepared to have some messed up brass. The rear sight is an interesting diopter type which rotates to calibrate distance. With different stock sets available this is another great alternative to the AR-15 platform.



Saiga .223

Saiga 223 Sporter
Slickguns.com 2/22/15

The Saiga .223 was thought up by Kalashnikov himself, as you can probably tell. It is a rifle that was designed for those who wanted the reliability of the AK platform... but without the military styling. You can definitely find parts and gadgets to customize these, and a lot of people convert these into the military AK style. This was done to save money, but these days they cost just the same. It is easy to use, a bit lighter than a few of the other rifles on here at 7.9lbs, but the looks are definitely not for everyone.



Steyr AUG

Steyr Aug
Slickguns.com 2/22/15

From the country that gave us the Glock comes, quite possibly, the coolest rifle ever. The AUG is a thing of beauty. This is a bullpup styled rifle that operates on the conventional gas piston and was thought up in the 1960's. AUG means, in english, "Universal Army Rifle." This is a great rifle for almost any use. It has a more than decent effective range, it weighs less than 8lbs, and it is short and versatile allowing it to be easily maneuvered around the inside of a building.




Thank you for reading my list of the best Non-AR15 rifles. If you enjoy this, you may enjoy my YouTube channel dealing with motorcycles. Feel free to check it out and subscribe.
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