site banner
PaperclipPerfector  3mo ago (text post)   3207 thread views

Friday Fun Thread for June 7, 2024

Be advised: this thread is not for serious in-depth discussion of weighty topics (we have a link for that), this thread is not for anything Culture War related. This thread is for Fun. You got jokes? Share 'em. You got silly questions? Ask 'em.

3
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

If you don't already have one, CMP Garand, yesterday. Sometimes they have carbines, and you need one of those too.

Other than that, if you're into turn of the century bolt-actions, I'd suggest a P17 Enfield (so you can still get ammunition for it), a Lebel/Berthier (if you feel like hunting down 8 Lebel) or MAS-36 (components for 7.5 French are a lot more available), a K31, a Carcano (they go on sale every President's Day but you need the right .268 projectiles or you'll need a second shooter- get one of the 17.7" barrel ones or even one in 7.35 though ammunition for that is even rarer), a Type 38 Arisaka (but if you get a long Carcano get a Type 44 instead), a K98, and a Mosin. That should cover all of the great powers (cheating a bit with England, but the P17 is just a P14 in a better cartridge anyway; if you need to fill that niche and already have a P17, get a No. 1, as the No. 4 is just a P17 with a 10 round mag and in a worse caliber- conversely, if you already have an '03 Springfield, then you'll want a P14 or No. 4) and also give you some variety in the collection.

For non-US semi-autos, I'd suggest a PPS-43 (or an SKS), an AG-42, and a MAS-49 (yeah, I know, but they would have fielded it if MAS wasn't busy- if that doesn't count, then SVT-40).

After that, as far as I know you're into the 2000+ dollar range with everything else that's interesting (i.e. the German semi-autos, RSC1917, etc.) so at that point it's just going to come down to what you like shooting more at the time. But 2000 dollars could buy a lot of great power pistols, and the order you should collect those is Steyr-Hahn 1912 (or Frommer-Stop), M1935 (A or S), Webley, M1917 (S&W or Colt, pick the one you don't already own), TT-33, Nambu, P38 (mainly because the Beretta 92 is the exact same gun). C96es fetch a really high price so they also don't make this list and you probably have a 1911 already anyway.

I’ve got a handsome (but postwar) Garand and a misbehaving carbine. Love them to death.

My Lee-Enfield is already a No. 4, I’m afraid. PPU makes .303 ammo at tolerable prices, so…I’ll manage. If I ever see a P14/P17 around, I’ll be very tempted.

And you’re of course correct about the 1911. I hadn’t even considered the other mentioned pistols. This will keep me busy for a while.

…are you serious about the President’s Day thing? That’s the kind of humor I can get behind.

Yeah, they did it.

I tried to go for "pistols that are still relatively unique in the grand scheme of things"; the Steyr-Hahn is clip-fed (and the "ejects all the rounds into your face if you press the 'slide release'" one), M1935s (well, one of them, can't remember which) are stupidly-accurate proto-P210s in a caliber that you can actually get/make now, the Webleys are top-break revolvers, the M1917s shoot .45ACP from moon clips, the Tokarev is a Colt 1903 firing lighter projectiles at ~1500 FPS, and Nambus are... uh, pretty weird. It's unfortunate that the weird German designs are as expensive as they are, because the P38 is pedestrian by comparison even though it is the successor to the C96 with that locking block design.

Come to think of it, does the No. 4 still do the thing the No. 1s do where you can slingshot the safety off when the rifle's cocked? I've never seen anyone ever talk about either rifle having that function (which to my knowledge no other rifle does).

Yup, it’s got the cool little lever safety by your thumb. I’m told you can break something in the firing group if you engage it after the bolt has been removed. Maybe that’s why it didn’t catch on?

CMP garands are still available? I thought the whole thing was pretty much done after the Obama regime made a point of not cooperating with them any more.
Didn't they destroy M1s rather than give them to the CMP? There was a huge lawsuit over it.

Yes, they're still available.

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats