Grandma's Pistol (Part 2)

Thanks so much to everyone who sent notes here and on Facebook.  I've had fun learning about this little pistol.

To summarize what I've learned.  This basic style is referred to as a velodog pistol.  The name is a combination of the words velocipede (old term for bicycle) and dog.  They were used to scare off dogs that tried to chase and attack bicyclists.  They were designed to fit comfortably in a gentleman's pocket while riding a bike, thus the folding trigger and enclosed hammer.

However, a true velodog revolver had an elongated cylinder, chambered for 5.5mm center fire rounds.  My grandmother's gun does not have this elongation.  thus it is more likely a later revolver in the same style, but intended for personal defense, not dogs.

Auguste Francotte was based in Liege, and produced firearms beginning in 1810 and was most active in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The company produced no less that 150 revolver styles by the end of the 1800s.

Click to see full size. 

Thanks again to all those who helped in my hunting.  It's been a fun adventure!

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• Grandma's Pistol

Grandma's Pistol

Hello world.  Long time no see.  The good news is my PhD should be complete within a month (knock on wood).  For the past 6 months I haven't really had a spare moment.  But now I have a quandry for the masses out there that know so much more than I.

My husband and I are down to visit family for the holidays and were talking firearms and such, as you do.  This afternoon, grandma brought down this little guy for us to check out.  It was brought back from Belgium by my grandfather after WWII.  She doesn't remember ever firing it.  She much prefers her .22

I'm hoping y'all can help us ID this little guy.  It's simply gorgeous!

No serial number we could find.  The markings say A. Francotte a Liege.  Which matches with origins in Belgium, but my googling is finding my mostly long guns and a few larger revolvers by Francotte.  Heck, I'm not even finding dates they manufactured.  Definite search failure for me.

So, can anyone tell us more about this little gun?  It's about 3.5 inches long, folding trigger, pearl grips...  I'll let you see the rest in the pictures.  Not the best, but it gives the basics.  I can take more or different pictures if they would be helpful.

  

Shooting the AR

So, did I mention that this was my first time shooting an AR?  Really, it was my first time shooting a rifle larger than a .22

A tiny difference.   (Pic stolen from "The Firearm Blog")

Yah...

Did I also mention that the WMA range only has 100 yard targets?

Right, so, now that we are on the same page, you'll understand my excitement that I hit the target!  Three times even!  Out of the 15 rounds that I shot.

Why you ask did I stop at 15 rounds?  Well, you see, I'm not a big, strong, meaty guy.  I'm a little, bony girl.  This rifle has no recoil pad.  15 rounds was all my little shoulder could handle!

We will definitely be purchasing a recoil pad in the near future.  Debating between one to put on the rifle itself or the spiffy under-shirt girly ones.  Anyone have an opinion? 

Husband shot rather more than I.  But then the main reason we went was to make sure there were no problems and to check the zero on it.  He also hit the target rather more than I did...after adjusting the sights.  He did miss completely with the first full magazine.

What?  I can't use his as a tool and then take advantage of his work on getting the sights just so?

All in all, it was fun.  I want to do it again.  But maybe I can also try it at say...50 yards? 

Also, not to self, need better binoculars for 100yards...that's a long walk to learn that there are no holes in the paper. 

Trying to Understand

So, Ive been catching up on reading blogs and articles that I missed in my month of crazy.  Part of that for me is reading the opinions on both sides of the firearm rights issues.  I was taught very early (thanks Mom and Dad!) that to have a worthwhile and intelligent conversation or discussion, you have to try to understand where the other person is coming from, why they believe what they believe.
To that end, Joan over at CommonGunSense Blog* wrote a post that I finally couldn't resist commenting on because it seems to counter her frequent statements that she doesn't want to ban guns, just have 'common sence' laws in place.  I want to try to understand how these views and other statements aren't contradictory for her.   

I am not trying to start anything, I'm not trying to be antagonistic or inflammatory.  I really do what to understand why and what she believes is the solution to end all 'gun violence'**.

Here is my comment to Joan, we'll see if it gets posted.

 "I am trying to understand you viewpoint.  To that end, could you please clarify for me a couple points?

1) You state that "Law abiding gun owners are law abiding until they are not...These are people who are NOT prohibited purchasers and can buy guns legally from FFLs."  Do you then believe that no one should have guns on the basis that they might become violent in a stressful or anger-inducing situation? 

2) If as you have stated previously, you do not wish to ban firearms all together, what are the common sense laws you wish to have in place that would prevent otherwise law-abiding gun owners from becoming criminals in the situations you mentioned? "

Well, my comment did get posted and this was the response:

"My views are contained in my blog posts and don't need to be further explained. I have done so many times on this blog. "

I understand not wanting to repeat oneself a million times.  But I have read many (admittedly not all) of the post on the blog.  I still don't feel that I understand the answers to the questions I posed.  Never have I seen what laws Joan feels should be enacted, nor do I understand how she can argue that gun owners are law abiding until they are not (fair statement really), but then not explain how to prevent them from crossing that line?  Or at least prevent them from having guns available when they do.

I guess I am doomed to fog in this.  I tried to be nice and ask so that I could understand and maybe find some common ground.  I guess I am just a "idiot gun owner" since I needed clarification.

---------
*Oy what a title.  It seems to be designed to provide the message that anyone who disagrees with her is lacking in common sense.  Considering how often she sprinkles in comments about gun owners intelligence and gullibility, I suppose that's the point.


**I really do hate this term.  Why not just refer to shootings?  Why does it have to be 'acts of gun violence'?

Grip Frustration

I love our Glock 21, it's my go-to gun at the range right now until I get my very own.  I only have one frustration with it, and that is my tiny hands don't fit.

I try very hard to have a correct grip, filling the gap, thumbs forward, pressing into my left hand, all that.  But I can't do it all at once!

If I fill the gap on the grip with my left hand then I can't reach very far around the front with my fingers, making the push-pull action difficult. This makes my aim a bit more unsteady and almost forces my to be a bit weaker through my elbow and wrist to avoid pushing 'through' my left hand.

 If I wrap my left hand fingers around the front, then I don't fully "fill the gap." (More than shows in the pic) But this make the recoil rather difficult to manage since the backwards stability is gone.

So, my question for those of you out there more experienced that I is threefold:
Which is better?  What do I give up?  How do you deal with a grip larger than your hands?

The big questions: WHY?

Why do I want my own handgun?  We have two in the house that I am perfectly capable of shooting accurately, even if I don't 'love' them.

Short answer, I just do.  Long answer, well...

1) I enjoy shooting for sport.  I like shooting skeet and clays with a shot gun and have found that target shooting with a pistol is also quite enjoyable.  It's a new skill that takes time to master, and I like mastering skills.  Especially practical ones.  Skills are easier to master if you have equipment that is yours; suitable, and comfortable for you.

2) My husband shoots.  We like doing things together (novel I know!).  I can't continue to shoot his guns all the time if we shoot together.  Plus, I feel more invested in our time together if something is mine and not just hanging with him while he shoots.

3) Safety.  This one gets raised eyebrows on occasion.  Not a lot among our close friends, but they tend to think the same way.  If I have a gun that's mine, I can carry it with me.  I'm not often in scary places, but who knows where life will take me.  Better to be prepared with the skill, knowledge, and equipment before I actually need it.

This is where the debate arises for many people.  "Why/where would you need a handgun?"  "The police are there to protect you if needed."  "Would you really shoot someone and if not, why carry?"

All of these are things I've heard and they are valid questions.  I could answer them with my opinions, but being a scientist, I'm going to take the time to research some of the fact, figures, etc behind the issues and report back to you all here.  Consider this fair warning of numbers and statistics to come!

What questions have you run into when people learn you own/carry guns?  How do you answer them?

Jeopardy! Answers

Answers, questions -- same thing in Jeopardy, right?

Jeopardy!

I'm watching Jeopardy tonight, and Alex introduced the first round categories, one of which is Handguns.  After which he says 'ooh' before moving onto naming the next category.  This surprised me. I don't watch Jeopardy often, but I don't think I remember him editorializing like this before.  My question is why?  It can't be that he thinks the category will be difficult, that's the point of the show.  So then, is it because handguns are "scary"?  The contestants managed to answer all except the $1000 clue correctly.  I guess they are comfortable with handguns, at least in knowledge. 

Can you get them all right?  I'll post the correct responses tomorrow.

$200 - "Head to the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum to see this woman's pair of gold-plated six shooters"

$400 -"'Weekend' slang name for a cheap & easily obtained handgun"

$600 -"The Handgun Violence Prevention Act was named for this former press secretary"

$800 - "Weighing about 5 lbs., 1847's "Walker" model was the heaviest handgun ever made by this company"

$1000 - "This Olympic event utilizes both a pistol & a sword, but not at the same time"

Quick Question

So, my plan is to post about what I'm learning and trying and doing.  But for those of you following along are there any topics you'd like to see covered in particular?  I'm happy to dive in and do the leg-work as it were to try to answer questions.