I recently had the opportunity to work on a Remington 870 that was having some feeding problems. As I began dissasembly of the gun the magazine cap flew off as I unscrewed it. Along with the cap came the green magazine plug for hunting. Thankfully I still have both of my eyes!

The customer was reporting cycling issues with the gun, and it became evident why. The magazine cap had been placed over top of the magazine plug, which was on top of the spring retainer. The plug should go under the retainer or else you will have the spring compressed by several inches making cycling problematic.

When I explained this to the customer, he said Remington had shipped the gun that way. This is the second time that a Remington 870 has come to the shop this way. I’m not sure how it ends up like this (customer or factory), but if you are experiencing cycling problems, look at the magazine spring setup.

There are many reasons to consider buying one of the Ruger single actions. They are rock solid, can handle higher loads, competitively priced, and with a little work can be turned into a fantastic shooter. One of the things that I like to add on all the Ruger single actions is the Power Custom Free Spin Pawl. This part allows the cylinder to move in either direction when the loading gate is open.

When the loading gate is closed the pawl functions just like a the factory part to lift the cylinder ratchets which turns the cylinder. When the gate is opened, the pawl is disengaged to allow the cylinder to rotate freely in either direction. This make loading the cylinder much easier because you don’t have to cycle through the cylinder completely if you miss a chamber.

Power Custom sells the Free Spin Pawl for $39.99. If you have ever been inside of your Ruger Single Action you can handle the installation. The part usually requires some fitting that can be done with a belt sander and trial fitting until it works. The downside to this process is that putting the gun back together several times can be an exercise in patience.

Power Custom sends directions with the Free Spin Pawl, but oddly enough the directions were printed so small you would need a magnifying glass to read them. A detailed description of this process is found in Jerry Kuhnhausen’s Ruger Single Action book, available from Brownells for $34.95. The pictures are well done, and the manual will help you with other projects you may want to take on with your Ruger.

We offer this service as part of our Ruger SA builds or individually on your gun.  If you have been considering an action job anyway, this is the perfect time to have both done while we are already inside the gun.

I recently received several products from Wild Things Tactical (wildthingsgear.com) to review out of their Soft Shell line of clothing. Before receiving the samples, I had only heard of Wild Things from my outdoor adventure experience. I was unaware that they have been providing tactical clothing built to customer spec for many years.

After wearing the samples I spoke with Brian Foley, the product manager for Wild Things, about the Soft Shell and Lightweight Soft Shell lines that they have out. For those of you not familiar with soft shell, it is a very interesting garment. Soft shell provides full range of motion, breathability and stretch for the user. While not waterproof, they describe the garment as being double water repellent. I have worn the soft shell jackets in rain. As long as you are not being hammered by a downpour for hours it seems to bead the water on the surface.

Wild Things soft shell is like a second skin. It is quieter than gortex and insulates much better. As you war it, the body heat you put off with activity actually pushes the moisture away. This becomes great for operators. The garments are designed to be outerwear for those on the move, and body armor can be worn over the top of the garment.

Wild Things Tactical has specifically designed and manufactured technical garments for the military and most of the alphabet agencies. Additionally all of there products are 100% domestic. To that end they carry a certified certificate of compliance. Right now 9 out of 10 products being shipped by them go out with the multi-cam pattern. This was first adopted for Operation Enduring Freedom. I have a pair of the multi-cam pants and they are extremely well done. The process for multi-cam is a 7 step process of dying the fabric to make it look that good.

The price for the Soft Shell Jacket is $399 comes in black, brown and multi-cam. The Lightweight version is $299. The lightweight version has been my favorite so far given the mild climate I live in. Many people have asked me about the price point because it is so steep. Go back to the fact that these products are made in America and given so much detail and it explains it. However, in the spring of 2012, Wild Things will begin offering consumer line that will be very competitively priced.

Products in the new line will include a lightweight soft shell system, a hybrid combat shirt made to go under body armor produced under the Smith & Wesson M&P label, a CCW soft shell, and a new lightweight wind system. They are calling this a lifestyle line indicating its price point and intended market. It looks like Gall’s will be carrying the line for those of you who might.

I would encourage those of you who make a living outside to check out this line of clothing. It definitely fills the void in many areas in regards to blocking wind and rain. With several weights available, it is easy to find the product that will work well with your environment. As they continue to expand into the consumer market, their visibility will grow as the products become more and more affordable.

If you are familiar with the three types of misfires then you know what you should do.  This gentleman was obviously unaware, and it almost cost him his noggin.  Never, ever, ever, look down the business end of a firearm when any ammo is in the vicinity.  This video shows what could happen.

Improvisation is important for us as shooters.  Its all too easy to make excuses for our poor shooting, poor gear, poor sights.  This guy used what he had available.  Thanks to Steve for sending this to me.

The door at Mossy Creek has been a revolving door of late.  It seems that more and more of you are sending in revolvers for trigger jobs and customizations  We finish them and send them out only to have more come into the shop.  There are the usual Ruger SP101′s, J-Frames and Ruger Blackhawks, and Taurus revolvers that keep rolling through.  As we got to thinking about this, it reminded us of how a business is started with certain plans and intents, but ultimately the work chooses you.

When I started MCC in 2005 I never thought about working on revolvers.  It wasn’t that I didn’t appreciate them, I actually carried one as a backup/off-duty weapon.  I just never thought about modifying them.   After all the only people that have revolvers are old dudes, right?  Not at all.  I have found that there is a culture of revolver fans who appreciate the old wheel gun for what it is truly worth, but I simply wanted to help cops, 3 gun competitors and people who liked Glocks as much as I did.

In fact the revolver process started with a Glock.  A great customer from GA, called after he received his Glock from us to see if we could do something for a Ruger SP101.  He emailed everything  he wanted and asked us to give it a shot because he knew us and our reputation for turnaround time (still at about 2 weeks after the last 6 years).  I liked what he asked for and posted a few pictures.

This picture changed who we were and what we do today.  At that time, Glocks, Remingtons and AR-15′s dominated our books.  Today we probably spend 75% of our time on revolvers.  Who could have predicted that it would turn out that way?

I have thought about this a lot this fall and I have come to a few conclusions as to why this happened.  1.  Not many people advertise that they work on revolvers.  It seems it is a lost art.  Perhaps it is not slick enough.  2.  Every factory trigger job can be improved.  We recently received a Taurus for a trigger job that seemed to stack as the trigger was pulled.  After a few minutes the error was determined to be a burr that had been overlooked at the factory.  Polishing, tuning and custom springs had gun 100% better.  3.  There are tons of people who like us love revolvers.  My personal collection continues to grow.  Each one brings a new and exciting challenge.  4.  Faster turnaround than some of other gunsmiths.  Who wants to wait a year or even 3 months?

As we start our 7th year, we have to say we are grateful.  Gunsmithing provides an outlet for a passion.  It is so much fun to get to meet people from all over the country who share that passion.  Instantly there is a connection.  Thanks for being a part of what we do whether you are a customer or simply a reader.  For now we will continue to send those revolvers out the revolving door.

We recently updated our MCC Release info in the store to include the following:  The MCC Extended Glock release will not fit any Gen 4 models or the Gen 3 36.  They are completely different.  This is one area that Glock changed when they went from Gen 3 to 4.  We are sorry if this causes any confusion.  Please keep this in mind if you are thinking about ordering them.

I am often asked my opinion on the best revolver available today.  Certainly we have in many ways seen the peak of the great revolvers in one sense because we have ushered in the semi-auto age.  However, in recent years many companies have begun to market new and improved revolvers.  Smith & Wesson has even begun selling blued revolvers again!!

With polymer choices, .410′s from Smith and Taurus, and the alloy guns made for concealed carry, it is certainly a cool time to be interested in revolvers.  The options are endless.  If you haven’t been shooting revolvers, I want to encourage you to get one and have a great time learning to shoot the old fashioned way.

Before the explanation, a word should be given about caliber.  The great caliber debate may never be settled.  I am not a ballistician.  I am a gunsmith.  To speak with authority on this issue would not be my place.  I will however offer two pieces of advice.  1.  Shoot something you can control in the small revolvers.  If you can’t shoot a box of .357 magnum without hurting, don’t do it.  I like the small revolvers chambered in .38 special.  2.  In larger revolvers, I like the .357 magnum.  It is adequate for all manner of applications.  Advice given.

To understand the which company produces the best revolvers we must look at what I believe is the deciding factor; cost.  Each company, Ruger, Smith, Taurus, Charter, has some fixed cost for materials.  Metal is metal.  It cost what it cost depending on the markets.  Machining is machining.  It cost what it cost.  Labor is not labor, and I don’t just mean foreign job wages or American job wages.

When you look at a Smith, Ruger, Charter, and Taurus revolver in .38 special a few things come out.  Smith and Ruger generally spend more making the revolver look better cosmetically.  Smith’s blueing is better than Taurus’ blueing to me.  It is more pleasing to the eye.  Taurus looks better than Charter.  But that is not where the quality is really at.

If you look inside the revolvers the Smiths and Rugers will be cleaner cut and finished.  In other words the work that goes into final fit and finish is noticeably different.  This is where money can be saved. Removing machine marks.  Polishing surfaces.  Making sure angles are true.

A good example:  Charter uses a cheaper spring system for their trigger return spring.  It takes less to do this, but it also makes it a gun that we simply won’t work on for trigger jobs.  There is nothing that can be done.  This doesn’t diminish there functional capacity for anyone who wants to buy one.  But you are not buying a Smith, Ruger or Taurus. In one way this should make total sense.  The person buying a $250 revolver probably doesn’t want to drop $100 on a trigger job.  No problem here.  Functionality wins.

If you are buying a revolver I would first look at the Smith and the Ruger.  Then would be a Taurus.  Certainly the Taurus Judge deserves a look.  They pioneered a great one with the Judge.

Deciding between Smith and Ruger is a matter of preference.  Smith makes the greatest small revolvers for concealed carry.  It is hard to beat a J-Frame.  I love them.  I also love the older Smith full sized revolvers.  Having said that, Ruger makes tanks.  The SP101 is my favorite small revolver because I can actually shoot it in 357 magnum comfortably at the range.  They build work horse revolvers that are hard to beat.

Confused?  Just tell the wife you need to buy one of each for testing and evaluation.  Works around here!

Humidity is crazy right now in Nashville.  It is making life “thick” for us.  I wanted to remind all of you to take care of your firearms, reloading equipment etc.  It is very easy to wipe a metal surface down with some light oil and it will go a long way towards keeping your gear good.

I say this to remind me as well, because I had a J-Frame I neglected about 4 years ago when we moved to Nashville, and it looks like cancer took it.  The gun is still serviceable, but it makes me sick to look at it.  It is the only gun that I have with a deformity.  I keep it because it is sentimental for LE days.  Cancer and all it is still special to me.

Just got done putting some rifle sights on an 870.  This is a sweet setup for those of you wanting to take your home defense/competition shotgun to a new level.  Pictures to follow.

When will summer end?  Burning up in Nashville right now.  Hard to get in the shop when you are sweating!!