Weapons of War
by Robert Effler
These days one hears news commentators and liberal politicians talking about "weapons of war." Apparently a "weapon of war" is a type of gun that has no "sporting purpose" and that a civilian has no business owning. Hmmm? Let's look into that.
Among the most popular sporting rifles in the U.S. is the model 700 Remington, a four-shot, bolt-action rifle. (The shooter has to rotate a bolt handle 90 degrees counter-clockwise, pull it back about four inches, shove it back forward, and then turn the handle 90 degrees clockwise between each shot.) There have been millions sold to sportsmen, mostly for hunting. If, however, you replace the shiny finish with a dull one and the pretty walnut stock with a synthetic one, you have a U.S. Army M24 sniper rifle or a U.S. Marine Corps M40 sniper rifle. It's a "weapon of war." A Remington Model 700 was the weapon used by Charles Whitman, the Dallas Tower shooter.
I've been in very few farmhouses in which one couldn’t find a "pump" (slide action) shotgun leaning in a corner to use to clear the varmints out of the henhouse or bag the occasional rabbit. It's an extremely common type of sporting gun. This type of gun was issued to U.S. troops in WW1 for a "trench gun." They have been a part of the U.S. Military inventory ever since. (It's also the type of gun used in the recent "Navy Yard" massacre.) It's a "weapon of war."
Another classic sporting rifle is the M70 Winchester, another bolt-action. They’ve been around since 1936. Jack O'Conner, a famous outdoor writer, called it "The Rifleman's Rifle." A simple cursory examination will reveal that it's merely a simplification of the Mauser M98, arguably the greatest bolt-action military rifle ever built, used by armies all over the world. It's extremely popular among sportsmen "in the know." It's a "weapon of war."
Go to almost any type of handgun competition event in this country and you'll see that the M1911-type pistol is virtually ubiquitous. It was, of course, designed by John Browning for the U.S. military that used it as its primary issue side-arm from 1911 until 1985. They are everywhere and were actually sold by the U.S. government to civilians through the CMP (Civilian Marksmanship Program.) They're everywhere. It's a "weapon of war."
Undoubtedly among the most popular civilian revolvers on earth are any of the many versions of the Smith and Wesson "K" frame. This gun began around the turn of the 20th century as the S&W Military and Police revolver. They were issued to U.S. troops as the "Victory" model. It's a "weapon of war."
The single-action revolver (aka Peacemaker) has always been a staple of western movies and TV programs. You'll see them all over the place in several very popular "retro" versions of handgun competition events, such as those sponsored by the "Single Action Shooting Society." Single-actions are also very commonly used for hunting both small and big game. These guns began as the 1873 Colt cavalry revolver, designed for the U.S. military. It's a "weapon of war."
Easily the most popular caliber of rifle used for hunting in this country is the 30-06. I have a book written by an ophthalmologist who used a single 30-06 caliber rifle to take every recognized species of big game on the North American continent. 30-06 rifles can be found all over the world. It was originally developed for the U.S. 1903 Springfield rifle and was subsequently chambered in the 1917 and 1919 machine guns, the U.S. M1 Garand semi-auto military rifle, and the BAR squad automatic weapon. It was our standard military cartridge from WW1 all the way through Korea. It's a "weapon of war."
Beginning in the 1930s, the U.S. government sold thousands of military weapons, 1903 Springfields, M1 Garands (semi-auto military rifles), 30 U.S. M1 carbines (30 shot, military, semi-auto rifles with detachable magazines) and M1911 military pistols through the Civilian Marksmanship Program. They had the idea that the U.S. would be stronger if the average citizen could shoot well. The government sold us "weapons of war."
. . . and oh the infamous AR-15. Although not ever really a military weapon, it was the design basis for the M16 and M4 military rifles. AR-type rifles are becoming very popular among modern less-traditional hunters who aren't concerned about cosmetics. (They're not especially pretty.) There are all sorts of AR-based rifles now marketed specifically to the hunting and competition shooting community. They aren't military weapons, but they look like "weapons of war."
Among the most iconic types of gun on earth is the Winchester lever-action rifle. Introduced by Winchester as the Henry repeater in 1860, it was subsequently improved in 1866, 1873, 1876, 1886, 1892, 1894 and 1895. You can't watch any Western movie without seeing "cowboys" cranking rounds into their Winchesters to repel rustlers or Indians. It's difficult to visit any deer-hunting camp in this country without seeing one. Just before WWI, the Russian government bought 300,000 Model 1895s for issue to their military. It's a "weapon of war."
An extremely popular handgun for use in home-defense is the Beretta P92F 9mm pistol. I have several friends and relatives who own one. If you change the finish from shiny to dull, it becomes a U.S. military M9, the official side-arm of U.S. armed forces that replaced the M1911. It's a "weapon of war."
H/T Eric Szeman — Wednesday, 23 August 2023 at 3:35 PM MST
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