This week I wrote a lovely essay about the soul-less wretches who set out with the goal of obtaining work in government. It started out with a short review of the movie Casino Jack where Kevin Spacey brilliantly depicts the life and downfall of one time lobbyist Jack Abramoff. I artfully describe how the job of lobbyist is pretty much exclusively a job for lawyers because all they do is find legal ways to funnel what amounts to bribe money to our elected officials. My description made it clear that the one bipartisan thing still done in Washington is stealing from the private sector, and that the people on the right and left were all despicable, soulless, dark hearted MoFo’s engaged in the practice.
I then went on to relate the story of a friend of mine who had recent occasion to deal with the market regulators. I describe how the regulator staff were really just losers who couldn’t make it in the private sector, and were devoted to using their role as market overseers to do all they can to get their vengeance on a system they think failed to see them in their proper superior role. Their sense of entitlement and superiority absent any evidence to support it was breathtaking.
I related my friends feeble attempts at using logic and reason to mitigate their arrogance and how the regulators were not only impervious to it, but stood in open defiance of it; all but plainly stating that to them, the truth of the matter at hand was whatever they damned well say it is. They saw themselves as the ultimate iron fisted tool of political correctness that would make the round peg of the finance industry fit into the square hole of government even if they had to irreparably smash the round peg to make it fit.
And finally I relayed my friend’s abject horror at how such truly despicable individuals with such base and evil motivations could fit in so well in government, and how it’s changed his view of the world forever. It was a tragic tale, with a sad ending, that was told with vigor and enthusiasm. The story contained elements of irony, insight, and even had a joke or two. But regrettably, you’ll never get a chance to read any of it.
I’m no journalist, so I make no pretense at some ‘right to protect sources’. But when I showed the finished essay to my buddy he said that he was afraid that it described too much detail of what was actually said by the regulator. He felt that it might expose him to some liability, and out of deference to him - exclusively because he’s my friend, I decided not to publish the piece. Many people dislike me for a variety of perfectly valid reasons that I will usually cop to if challenged. But I will always have the back of my friends.
So since we can’t talk about any of that, let’s talk about guns instead.
Seal a pipe at one end, drill a small hole in it for a fuse, and that can qualify as a firearm in some respects. Make it a small pipe and it can qualify as a handgun. But to regulate that like they do other hand guns wouldn’t be just ridiculous – it would be impossible.
Between here and there are some things we would still call firearms, but most legal systems do not. For instance, say that you were to get your hands on an antique firearm from the old west. If it was one where the ammunition was no longer made and you can prove that it was made prior to the legal cutoff, then it would NOT be considered a firearm by the federal government, and would therefore not be subject to the government’s highly restrictive laws. It would still be subject to state law of course. But so long as state law is adhered to it can be bought and sold without any federal restriction.
The number of cartridges that have been retired from that age are surprisingly numerous. The most common for pistols of that era are the .32RF, the .30RF, the .38RF, and a few others. These are rimfire cartridges (hence the RF) which makes them similar to your little 22 squirrel gun, but in a slightly larger bore. These were relatively under-powered cartridges with anemic ballistics that couldn’t possibly stand up to today’s modern designs in either power or cost. But the punch line is that it’s fairly easy to get your hands on an antique pistol (often a revolver) that meets those specifications. And when you do, it’s usually somewhere in size and power between a full sized pistol, and a tiny derringer.
Now I’ll tell you another secret. For most of those cartridge sizes, you can still get ammunition. Some ammunition companies have made ‘special runs’ of small batches for those cartridge sizes, and there are other ‘custom ammo’ manufacturers that will make you a batch to spec. It’s expensive – very expensive relative to a box of 9mm Luger. But if you’re willing to pay up to $200 for a box of 50, they can be had.
So if you live in a state where there are limited restrictions on antique firearms, and you found one of these older revolvers in good shape at a gun show, you could theoretically buy it and walk out the door without any of the legal song and dance that comes with ordinary firearms purchases. Regrettably, NJ isn’t one of those states. In New Jersey not only is an antique firearm still considered a firearm, but so too is a BB gun, and an airsoft pistol (which in other states is known by the much more accurate description – “a toy”). So even though I’ll still have to jump through all the hoops that the government makes us firearm fans jump through, I've decided that I still want one.
I’ve been re-watching "Deadwood", the fictionalized series from HBO about the black hills boom town where Wild Bill Hickock met his demise. It’s a really great series that was cut short because of TV economics. The show was supposed to be re-cut for regular TV ala the Sopranos, which would greatly increase the overall revenue for the show. But by the time they got done removing all the swearing, nudity, violence and sexual references, there was only about 8 minutes of video left. (At one point I thought the name of one of the main characters: Al Swearengen was a cutesy play on words as Al "Swear - Engine", so named for his manner of speech.)
Anyway - the favorite firearm of many of the characters is a small single action ‘pocket pistol’ with no trigger guard. These ‘spur trigger’ weapons weren’t much for power, but at close range they managed to do enough damage to slow things down. I’ve identified both a Smith And Wesson model 1 ½, and a Remington Smoot being used in the series. And given their continued availability, I think I can find either of those in a .32RF. So I’m going to gun show in Valley Forge tomorrow to begin my search.
As I said a few weeks back, I’ll be bringing along some RFNJ swag to give away. Not the coffee cup above, that was a gift from the Mrs. and I have only 1. But I’ll have a bunch of T-shirts in my bag in a mix of sizes. I’ll be there when they open the doors at 9:00AM and will probably be hanging around for 2 or 3 hours. If you can find me while I’m there (I won’t be hiding), I’ll give you a T-shirt. I’m six foot one, about 185 lbs., and will be wearing tan cargo pants, and a grey T-shirt with the RFNJ logo, and carrying a blue backpack.
Here is a link to the Valley Forge gun show. You can find directions there. If the only thing you know of these events is what you read in the papers, it should be an eye opening experience to attend one. I hope to see you there.
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