LET'S NOT look at hand-loading your own ammunition

[CTSquirrel]

[Blitzkin]

never shot a real gun in my life

read the whole thing

i wonder why we are so fascinated with weapons in general...
humans..

[Juwayyid]

Well, I know I will get slammed for this, but I am against the whole right to bear arms.  What is the use for a gun like that?  Guns are way out of control and much too powerful to be at the hands of any individual.  We just had another school shooting last week.

I for one am not fascinated, but shocked that anyone is fascinated in such a thing.  The first thing I though when I saw these pictures were, find a way to melt this thing down and get rid of it.  "momma said the pistol is the devil's right had!"

I blame video games.  Guns do kill people.

[bren4q]

Video games have only been around for little over 30 years. Guns have been pervasive in the States since... I dunno, the 1800s?

I too am kinda fascinated by guns, always have been since a young age. Movies and TV were the biggest influences. Games didnt have realistic guns back then. My fascination is in the destructive power, usually of inanimate objects and cars. Not keen on shooting animals (or people for that matter  ). I went clay pigeon shooting and enjoyed it immensely.

Video games aren't the problem. Its legality and accessibility. If its easy to get, people are gonna get em. Ireland is probably one of the strictest countries in the world on guns. Even the police here don't carry guns unless they are part of some armed response team. As a result of guns being so damn rare, gun crime is low in comparison to most other countries. The most common type of gun used in crimes is sawn-off shotguns, since criminals can steal them from farmers. But even farmers have to go to a lot of trouble to legally buy an ol' double-barrel.

I can understand having a negative opinion of them if all you hear is about crimes and people you know or living near you getting hurt or killed. That would certainly put a different view on them. But for me, I just think of Hannibal from the A-Team leaning out the back of BA's van spraying bullets around the place, with a cigar in his mouth and a big grin on his face. Hundreds of shots in every episode, and not one person ever killed. Perfect.

[Juwayyid]

Ah yes, a perfect situation in a perfect world.  But in reality such an event would be dastardly. 

And I know games arn't the source of all violence pertaining to guns.  In fact, I'd like to retain that statement.  There are many more factors, such as movies and acessability, but I cant George I left this one major one out.

RAP music

In today's day of age, all rap sings about are guns and money, not being afraid to shoot.  Quoting my rap loving coworker, "a real man would pull the trigger," which is most likely a quote from some rap.  I'd say crimes with guns involved is due to this sorry excuse for music.

Guns for recreational pleasure I still have Kidd emotions about too.  Not because the guns may get stolen, but because there can be safer weapons (safer WEAPONS?!?!) to do the same job, pellet or be be guns.

The US should deffinately consider the regulations and restriction laws that the Irish follow then.  People always give the excuse that guns provide safety.  Maybe In the 1800s it was a good defense against invading armies or slave rebellion, but at that time there were no efficient forms of commnication, so if an event was happening, nobody would know.  We are not that clueless anymore.

I really don't know anything about guns, but the gun in the picture looks like some heavy duty war army gun, one that doesn't have use in a household.

[Glenn]

Squirrels with guns? O.o

[Butlerbandit]

I suppose your opinion of guns really stems from the way in which they affect you most; someone living in an urban area with a lot of gun related crime would most likely see guns as more of a criminal implement than a civil tool. For someone who lives in a more or less rural area, such as myself, firearms have a much different purpose. Hunting has always been an important part of the culture of my particular region, and even in today's world of mass produced foodstuffs, it is still seen in a very practical light. Overpopulation of game animals can cause significant problems for certain crops, as well as exponentially increase the amount of car accidents caused by deer (more common than you might think). Besides that, venison is delicious, and a whole deer's worth of meat can last quite a while.
As far as gun control is concerned, I think a reasonable compromise would be stricter control of handguns. Hunting with handguns is not particularly common, and in many states it is illegal to hunt with semi-automatic handguns. As far as I'm aware, gun related crimes are usually perpetrated with semi-auto handguns, due largely to their effectiveness and ease of concealment. Quite frankly, I think it would be unreasonable to ban most types of rifles, due to the fact that they can be fairly unwieldy in many modern crimes (kinda hard to rob a convenience store when your rifle can't fit between the shelves). From my own experiences, I can confidently say that rifles and shotguns seem to have found a nice niche in civilian recreation. A number of the schools in our area even have school sponsored rifle teams (and we have never had any issues of a criminal nature stemming from them).
I'm not exactly a right-wing NRA member with an arsenal in my basement. I own a short hunting rifle, and my family owns a few others, all of them safely secured in a gunsafe. I'm not exactly a dead-eye, hit-a-bullseye-from-a-mile-away sniper. But I can hit a deer across a field, and that's all I've ever really needed to hit. I guess it all just kinda depends on your point of view.

[Skittlez]

I for one am not fascinated, but shocked that anyone is fascinated in such a thing.

I have an interest and slight fascination with guns only for the sheer force and mechanism involved in a gun. I find it fascinating how guns work, and on a level, I find it a mechanical work of art, like a clock. I have never liked the concept of shooting animals, and as a result, I prefer getting my meat pre-murdered at my local super market, rather than buying an 800$ gun to shoot a 20$ fowl. But I do really want to try going clay pigeon shooting as I heard it's oodles of fun, both times, ironically, from people living in Ireland.

I blame video games.

I hate this argument, it's used by almost every single anti-gun, anti-video game, and anti-fun proponent. People that play video games are perfectly aware of the difference between guns in a video game, and guns in real life. There is absolutely no convulsive evidence that says playing violent video games will lead people to become serial killers.

I really don't know anything about guns, but the gun in the picture looks like some heavy duty war army gun, one that doesn't have use in a household.

It's got tons of uses! You can grind coffee with the butt stock just like in the good 'ole civil war. You can tenderize meat, flatten out finicky textbook pages, use it for pest control, or even for enemas. Wave it around wildly to get the kids to behave, or use it to reach toilet paper if it's too far away. A gun like that has endless uses!

[Kidd2000]

I believe (correct me if wrong) that most states only allow semi auto rifles. I love rifles and handguns. Like what bren said, its the destructive power. But "guns" arnt really the main cause for violence. Say that you completely take out every "gun" ever in the world. People will still do crimes with like swords. It can be efficient to kill a person with one, but its not the reason. I found tht most people whom are liberal want stricter regulations and vis versa for the conservative. But I lean on the liberal side yet support the 2nd amendment. The policies for the republicans are just a no for me.

   I really am fascinated about CTS's post. Who knew he loads ammo?! Amazing! Do you do that for recreation or is it a job? I would enjoy have that job!   

  In soviet russia, you have the right to arm bears.

  What wierd is that my dad has a shotgun that he hasnt registered.....im being counter productive here arnt I?

[thealex447]

I think its fine to own guns, but only for hunting. You dont need a glock or an AK to go hunting. Hunting rifles/shotguns with hunting ammunition should be the only legal firearms. Everything else is dangerous and increases the severity of violence when it breaks out.

Also about loading ammo, would you say it is actually worth it to hand load? Are hand loaded bullets more reliable than store bought? Is store bought ammunition that much more expensive that makes this process worthwhile? Or is this process much easier and quicker than it looks?

There is absolutely no convulsive evidence that says playing violent video games will lead people to become serial killers.

The serial killer triangle, according to my chemistry teacher, is: Wetting the bed at a late age, likes to play with fire, and likes to torture small animals.

[Juwayyid]

Ok, I said i take back the video game thing.  That whole video game thing is more about desensitizing, not crime. 

And it is very true that the power and mechanics within a gun are fascinating, but I was really talking about the purpose of guns.  Protection in killing.  I am also fascinated at many other simple things, like how a car works, or how a camera and Television work, and most fascinating of all, the human body.  There is so much to fascinate in this world, but a foolish, senseless individual can take all that away with one pull of the trigger of just this one little fascination. 

[CTSquirrel]

This topic was intended to be a technical discussion, but I see that it has been quickly devolving into a political and philosophical debate, of which I have zero interest in continuing. This is a gaming forum, and my opinion is that politics should stay out of gaming as they lead to heated debates based upon differences on personal beliefs and philosophies with no positive outcome. I'd rather avoid all that since we all still have to work together (on good and friendly terms) on this server(s). There are other forums and places to debate, I just don't think this is the place for it.

The OP has been updated to a more PC and acceptable image, and I'll refrain from adding any further here to prevent any more derailment.

[bren4q]

That's a shame, I was looking forward to the follow-up pics of putting them to use on the firing range. I think the political/moral comments by people have been noted and have a pin in them now. I hope you reconsider and put the original content back up.

[Jahona]

The reason you hand load ammunition Alex is that in the long run it's cheaper than buying from the store.  It doesn't really have anything to do with reliability.

[Glenn]

Nice pic, CTS