In honor of John Steinbeck’s Travels with Charley: In Search of America, I am keeping my eyes open for clues about America’s gun cultures as Sandy and I travel from our home in North Carolina to Yellowstone National Park and back. My inaugural post on this series can be found here.

Continuing my belated final posts from this past summer’s Travels with Sandy in Search of America’s Gun Cultures, a brief observation from Dickinson, North Dakota on Day 22 after we wrapped up at Theodore Roosevelt National Park.

We needed to get our travel trailer cleaned up, so headed to a local home, farm, and outdoor store called Runnings for supplies. I had never heard of this upper midwest-based chain, but they operate 57 stores in 8 states.

I was interested to see right as we walked in what the Manager’s Special was that week: 22LR ammo. Unfortunately, the entire supply was sold out. But the fact that ammunition is so normal as to be a Manager’s Special is noteworthy. I, at least, was surprised to see it.

Those who are deep into defensive gun culture will also find some humor in the other Manager’s Special advertised alongside the 22LR ammo: wasp spray.

Read more about this on Annette Evans’ “On Her Own Life” blog and Kevin Creighton’s School of Guns.

I was too busy looking for cleaning supplies to walk the entire (huge) store, but 35 Runnings stores also sell firearms. I wouldn’t be surprised if the Dickinson, North Dakota Runnings sold guns since over half of households in the state own guns, one of the highest percentages in the country.

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Tomorrow, in connection with my Light Over Heat YouTube channel, I will discuss this year’s field trip at greater length.

Today, I am seeking a modest amount of financial support for the field trip. Last year Lucky Gunner ammo donated 200 rounds of each of the three calibers the students shot. This year I did not have an opportunity to solicit donations in advance of the field trip, so I have created a “goal” on my Buy Me a Coffee page if you would like to contribute to my range expense fund. Or you can contribute through PayPal using the “donate” link below.

Including ammunition, hearing and eye protection, bench rest bags, a training consultation, and other supplies, I am at least $500 into this field trip. Anything contributed over this amount I will put toward next year’s (anticipated) class field trip.

Thank you for your support of my work.

They basically do what many individual shooters do in their garages, basements, and workshops, but on a much, much, much larger scale.

Not a large enough scale, however, as they are currently sold out of all 9mm and 45 ACP pistol and 223 and 300 Blackout rifle rounds. Of course, no scale is large enough as even the largest ammunition manufacturers are struggling to keep pace with demand.

Founded in 2013 in response to the post-Sandy Hook, Obama administration fueled ammo shortage, Minuteman is currently experiencing deja vu all over again. But even before the recent surge in demand for ammo, business was good. Since my visit they moved to a new location in High Point, NC, which I haven’t seen given COVID.

Because the pandemic had not yet kicked in when I visited, I was able to buy 500 rounds of 9mm (125 gr TPJTC) remanufactured training rounds off the shelf. I have had the opportunity to shoot both that and the factory new ammo (9mm 125 gr TPJTC) with no problems running my Glock 48.

I am fortunate not to be in a position where I have to run around chasing ammo (yet!), since Minuteman Munitions sells out of their ammo within hours of posting their availability (they do not take pre-orders but you can sign up for email alerts or follow them on Facebook and Instagram for notices).

Hopefully some day I will be able to buy more of their pistol (and rifle) cartridges at their normal reasonable prices and without panic. Until then, the memories of my visit to Minuteman Munitions will have to sustain me.

This is made plain in examining ammo sales in the recent coronavirus pandemic buying spree. Ammo.com has been publishing some helpful information in this regard. The most popular caliber by sales volume is 9mm in each of the 10 highest sales volume states.

The popularity of 223 ammo shown in this table also highlights that the official long-gun of Gun Culture 2.0 is the AR-platform.

The highest sales volume states are not surprising, except perhaps Illinois. What I find interesting is the extremely high % increases in sales in states like Texas and Florida and Arizona which presumably have very high baselines to start.

In terms of percentage increase (not considering sales volume), we see a lot of action in Vermont and Delaware, two of the least populous states. Of course, the same is true of North and South Dakota, but perhaps the residents of those states have already stockpiled ammo.

A story I saw today in the New York Times got me to thinking about Walmart, alcohol, tobacco, and firearms, though.

As noted on my other (gun curious) blog, one of the experts quoted in this article is Dr. Michael Siegel of the Boston University School of Public Health. This is notable because in addition to firearms, Siegel also studies tobacco control and alcohol misuse.

Alcohol, tobacco, and firearms.

Walmart’s decision to stop selling .223 and 5.56 and “handgun” ammo, but not (to my knowledge) any tobacco products or alcohol, begs the question of the relative harm of these three commodities. Of course, relative risk of death is something I have addressed previously on this blog.

According to the NIH National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, alcohol is the third leading cause of preventable death in the United States. It is widely and easily available, including at Walmart.

The leading cause of preventable death? Tobacco, also widely and easily available, including at Walmart.

Not part of the ATF triad, but what about diet-related killers like heart disease and diabetes thanks to all the terrible foods that Walmart happily sells?

If Walmart was really so concerned about people’s health and well-being, it should set its sights on the things that are most likely to kill us before irrationally acting to “do something” just for the sake of doing something.

My interest in reading the book is what it may teach us about civilian defensive firearms. This begins a series of companion posts that offer my thoughts on the similarities.

PART 1 OF 3

BALANCING COMPETING FEATURES

According to Ford, military weapon engineers try to “draw connections between the characteristics of a firearm and soldier performance so that choices can be made to balance competing features such as weapon reliability, weight, ergonomics, ammunition-consumption and training.” This is not a “purely technical exercise” (p. 26).

We find similar tradeoffs in the selection of guns for concealed carry. As I argued in a paper I presented at Amherst college in March 2017 (now published in a recently released book on The Lives of Guns), a larger gun can be more lethal because it holds more rounds of ammunition in a larger caliber, has a longer barrel and sight radius (for accuracy), and is heavier to absorb recoil (to get back on target more quickly). But such a gun can be harder to carry concealed than a smaller gun.

Clint Smith, founder and director of the gun training center Thunder Ranch, famously declared that “carrying a gun is not supposed to be comfortable; it’s supposed to be comforting.” But countless Americans who are permitted to carry a handgun in public do not do so because they cannot comfortably fit the gun into their everyday lives. How to reconcile the competing demands of carry a sufficiently lethal weapon in public concealed, safely, and comfortably is not a purely technical exercise either.

BALLISTIC SCIENCE AND LETHALITY

One might think that the “science of ballistics” would help resolve some of the conflicts between competing features of military weapons (and, by extension, concealed carry weapons). Such thinking would be wrong. In 1942, Solly Zuckerman “would revolutionize the science of killing and in his own words create ‘the new subject of wound ballistics’” (p. 75). But by 1946, Zuckerman was forced to concede that “it may not be a ‘purely mathematical problem.’” (p. 87).

Lethality is not an absolute, mathematical calculation but a probabilistic one. Years after Zuckerman, Swiss ballistician Dr. Beat Kneubuehl distinguished between a weapon’s effects and effectiveness. The effect of a shot is unique: “For instance, an airgun pellet with a muzzle velocity of 7 joules that penetrates the spine and damages the spinal cord has a much greater effect than a 44 Rem Mag. Hollow-top with an energy of 1500 joules that grazes the upper arm. This means that statements like ‘A hollow-point bullet has a greater effect than a full metal jacket bullet’ are meaningless” (p. 95). Rather, “The effect of a bullet depends on a wide variety of factors that extend well beyond its physical or design characteristics. In the first place, to be highly effective a bullet needs to strike a certain part of the body.” This depends on, among other things, “the skill at arms of the shooter.” Thus, “The effect of a bullet can only be established . . . after each round has been fired” (p. 95). In the end, the effectiveness of a caliber is not independent of its use.

This suggests putting an end to the incessant debates about “stopping power,” 9 vs. .45, “subcaliber” or mouse guns, etc. But it won’t.

Nonetheless, we should pay more attention to complex rather than simple calculations of lethality based on ballistics.

Statement of Edward W. Stack, Chairman & CEO Dick’s Sporting Goods:

“We hope others join us in this effort to let our kids know that their pleas are being taken seriously. Some will say these steps can’t guarantee tragedies like Parkland will never happen again. They may be correct – but if common sense reform is enacted and even one life is saved, it will have been worth it.

We deeply believe that this country’s most precious gift is our children. They are our future. We must keep them safe.”

In this statement, Stack not only said, “We will no longer sell assault-style rifles, also referred to as modern sporting rifles. We had already removed them from all DICK’S stores after the Sandy Hook massacre, but we will now remove them from sale at all 35 Field & Stream stores.” He also wrote, “At the same time, we implore our elected officials to enact common sense gun reform and pass the following regulations,” one of them being “ban assault-style firearms.”

I wonder what those who flock to Dick’s and Field & Stream stores to support Stack’s taking the moral high ground will think if they see where Stack’s bottom line actually is. Consider not only that BOTH Dick’s and Field & Stream stores continue to sell ammunition for assault-style rifles, THEY SELL FIELD & STREAM BRANDED ammunition for assault-style rifles.

If your tastes run to the AK-47 platform rather than the AR-15, you can opt for the 7.62×39 cartridge with its comparatively large (122 grain) and slow (2,330 feet per second) bullet.

In his statement, Stack not only went after assault rifles, he also declared, “We will no longer sell high capacity magazines,” and further called for the government to “Ban high capacity magazines.”

Perhaps he means AFTER Field & Stream stores sell out of all of the many, many, many semi-auto handguns they stock which have magazines holding 11+ rounds. So many choices just in the Glock case. G17 (17 rounds), G19 (15 rounds), G19X (17 rounds), and G34 (17 rounds). Not to mention all the high capacity semi-auto pistols by Beretta, Heckler & Koch, Ruger, Smith & Wesson, Sig Sauer, and Springfield Armory in the other cases.

Considering that many times more Americans are killed and injured by people wielding handguns than assault rifles, perhaps Stack ought to rethink his stores’ complicity in this bloodshed instead of profiting off of it by selling handgun ammo by the truckload.

Stack is also good with selling SNIPER RIFLES to the American public.

How ironic that Field & Stream stores sell t-shirts for Daniel Defense, but not their main product.

And if Stack succeeds in getting a government ban on assault rifles, will Field & Stream stores have a run on their Under Armour “Molon Labe” shirts?

Too rich.

Posted without further comment.

I received as much feedback about the “Radically Invasive Projectile” technology as I did about its advisability. Imagine my surprise, then, when reading a story about the role of trauma medicine in reducing the homicide rate in Chicago to find a reference to “R.I.P.” ammo.

The story largely concerned the importance of individuals getting appropriate medical care soon after being shot. An anonymous official from the Chicago Fire Department went so far as to say, “Everyone knows it’s the fire department that saves lives in Chicago, not the police.”

But in addition to time, the story continues, “the men and women trying to save Chicago’s shooting victims are racing another enemy: the growing lethality of modern weaponry.”

Dr. Ponni Arunkumar is Cook County’s chief medical examiner:

Arunkumar also cites the destructive nature of so-called R.I.P bullets (for “radically invasive projectile”), a type of hollow-point round designed to fragment inside a person’s body, in order to cause maximum trauma. Their manufacturer markets them as “the last bullet you’ll ever need.”

When shooting victims in Chicago started turning up with these wounds, “we didn’t know what we were dealing with,” said Arunkumar. “We had to look it up. Then we looked up the casing and the kind of projectiles and how they produce injury.” What they found was frightening. “Once it impacts the soft tissue, it fragments and goes in different directions. One surgeon described it to me as like little paper clips.”

I had always heard that criminals in inner-cities actually suffer from a shortage of ammunition. So it is interesting to learn that a bullet I have only ever seen one person own, and have never heard a gun trainer recommend, has actually made it to the streets of Chicago.

While thinking about how best to approach this huge issue within the limits of my time, money, and intelligence, I was greatly helped by Paul Carlson of the Safety Solutions Academy podcast. Carlson compared “gun evolution” to the aging process (Episode 417, 5 January 2017, “The Smith & Wesson M&P M2.0 and Gun Evolution”). Because aging is very gradual — it happens every day, in fact! — we often don’t see the changes in ourselves or those around us. But if we look at a photo of ourselves or our kids from 10 or 20 years ago, the changes are abundantly clear.

Carlson argues the same is true of gun evolution. Lots of small, incremental changes take place all the time so we don’t often recognize how much change that adds up to over time.

This inspired me to look not at recent changes in handguns, but to jump into my biblio-time machine and go back a few decades to see what the state of self-defense handguns was prior to the “shall issue” concealed carry revolution of the mid-1980s. I pulled two books by Massad Ayoob off my shelf. His justly famous In the Gravest Extreme: The Role of the Firearms in Personal Protection (1980) and his less well-known but more comprehensive The Truth About Self-Protection (1983).

In the earlier book (Chapter 13: Choosing a Gun for Defense), Ayoob advises:

“…the snub-nose is the best all-around choice for a number of reasons. It is compact enough to be carried when bigger, easier-to-shoot weapons would be left at home. Also, it is small enough to be transferred to the pocket, where it may be held in discreet readiness. True, a full frame 4 inch barrel revolver is easier to shoot well, but the difference is not greatly significant at the point-blank ranges where most civilian shoot-outs occur” (p. 95)

His top choice was the Colt’s Detective Special, followed by the Smith & Wesson Chief’s Special followed by the Smith & Wesson Bodyguard (all .38 Special).

He also mentions service-size revolvers (4″ barrels). “Awkward to carry,” he observes, “they are easier for a novice to shoot accurately” (p. 96). A definite trade-off.

Service automatics, according to Ayoob, offer some advantages over the revolver:

“With greater firepower and ease of shooting, these guns are excellent combat tools in the hands of one who keeps them clean and feeds them the right ammunition. As a combat weapon, the automatic’s firepower – 8 to 14 shots – and easy, rapid reloading make it superior to the revolver.”

And they are “only slightly bulkier than the snub-nosed .38’s” (pp. 97-98).

Among these he recommends the Colt 1911 in .45 and the Browning Hi-Power in 9mm. The Smith & Wesson Model 39, according to Ayoob, only reliably fed full-jacketed bullets, not hollow points, and the light frame made for greater recoil.

The Truth About Self-Protection replicates much of Ayoob’s views from the earlier book. For the expert, he favors the autoloading pistol; for the novice, the snub-nosed revolver:

“For the person just getting into guns, the double-action revolver is the obvious choice. It offers safety and reliability a dimension beyond the over-the-counter automatic pistols, and the five or six .38 or .357 rounds they hold will be all you’ll need in most personal or home defense situations” (p. 354).

But Ayoob does include some new thoughts three years later. Most notably,the third generation of the Smith & Wesson 9mm auto-loader has “greater durability and reliability” than previous versions and is more highly recommended, even if the 1911 remains the “ultimate gunfighting pistol” for experts (p. 357).

Certainly the snub-nose revolver is not as widely embraced today as it was in 1980. In addition, missing from these snapshots from three decades ago compared to today are: (1) the ability of quality auto-loading pistols today to cycle hollow point ammunition (and the corresponding mass production of those cartridges), and (2) small single-stack 9mm pistols for concealed carry. Two aspects of contemporary gun and ammo technology that we take for granted today.

One thing that hasn’t changed is Ayoob’s overall orientation to armed citizenship. What he says in both these books is very close to what he teaches in his MAG-40 class today:

“Buy the best gun you can afford: Your life may literally depend on it one day. But remember, the gun you buy is only the fourth consideration when preparing to defend your life against armed criminal assault. Most important is mental awareness and preparedness; the second consideration is a knowledge of tactics that will allow you to evade and defeat armed attack; the third consideration is skill with the safety equipment (in this case, your ability to shoot well under stress), and only after all that has been achieved does it matter whether you’re carrying a Harrington & Richardson .22, or a Smith & Wesson .44 Magnum” (p. 359).

In other words: Software > Hardware.