I've Got Gas!

These prices are nuts! 

OK... recently I was thinking about not having posted to this weblog in a while. I just haven't had anything worth commenting about. This morning, gas prices went up from yesterday's prices by 25 cents or more per gallon. I decided to share my feeling of shock. The highest price I saw today was $3.56 per gallon (super unleaded). I am sure the same station was selling gas for 60 cents less per gallon the day before.

No true economic force works that fast. These changes are purely emotional and not based, in a strict sense, on the theory of "supply and demand" that we heard so much about in high school. Sure, the refineries damaged by hurricane Katrina in the Gulf Coast area are causing a fuel shortage scare, but come on! Aren't we smart enough to see past this? I could see a gas station owner jacking up prices when it cost him A LOT MORE to fill up his underground tank and was therefore forced to pass it on to consumers. Luckily, I gassed up earlier in the week. These increased gas prices haven't affected me yet because my tank is full. Why then are they affecting my local gas stations? Just like myself, I am sure he didn't buy any fuel since yesterday. If it's not costing me any more to drive my car than it did yesterday, then why is it costing him more to pump gas than it did yesterday?

What worries me is that we have crossed the $3.00 line. If people get used to seeing that big number 3 up on the price signs, they may forget that anything over $2.50 seemed outrageous to them at the start of the summer. If the government taps the reserves, will prices drop drastically the next day? I think not. The reason that will be given is that it takes time for the increased production to affect the market.

So let's recap... negative things have immediate effects on economics but positive things "take time" to result in economic improvement. Got it?

My FAL in the grass sporting a new Belgian style handguard (refinished since the photo to remove the white swirlies) and a real magazine. 

FAL Range Report

So I finally made it to the range to fire the newest addition to my firearms collection, my DS Arms FAL rifle. This is their STG58 model, a copy of the Austrian version of Fabrique Nationale's Light Automatic Rifle (Fusil Automatique Leger). It fires the 7.62mm X 51mm NATO cartridge (nearly identical to .308 Winchester). For more info on my rifle, scroll down to look at one my previous post or click here. The following range report will span three separate visits to two different ranges.

My first trip out to test the rifle was at a range very close to me. I was mainly interested in function checking the rifle. All I wanted to know was... will it work? At this particular range, they have a "5 rounds in the magazine" limit, though you can bring and load up as many mags as you want. Another requirement there was that you have to fire rifles from a seated position. I generally like to fire from a standing position. Once in a while, if I get tired, I'll take a break and fire seated for a bit. To me, it isn't very practical to shoot from a seated position (with a rest) unless you are trying to adjust a rifle's sights. Last time I checked, soldiers didn't set up a shooing table, stool and rest when they found themself in the midst of a battle. This business of slings, gloves, spotting scopes, rifle scopes, special "blinder" glasses, custom barrels, expensive match cartridges, etc. is a little too much for me. Don't get me wrong, a friend of mine fires an AR competitively in 600 yd. matches with all this gear and I applaud him for it. It's just not for me. That said, I did try the bipod out, using it for most of the time I was there. What a hypocrite I am. Well, maybe not. The Austrian STG58 was issued in the field with a bipod as standard equipment as far as I know... a soldier "in the field" would have that option. I am very much a "stock" shooter. I don't need a bunch of gadgets hanging off my guns or in my range bag. The farthest I'd go as far as customization is adding night sights to a pistol.

Back to the range report... I chose to shoot at a point where the target was 50 yards away. I was using an 8 inch diameter red target. I fired aligning my front sight with the center of the target. The cartridges fired, the action cycled, the brass ejected, mags fed well. Yup, the rifle functioned just fine. I found that all my shots were waaaay high though. I'm talkin' six to eight inches high at 50 yards. The rear sight was set at the 200 yard notch when the rifle shipped... guess they weren't kidding. Having no tools with me to adjust either sight, I accounted for the height by aiming below the red circle. This method of estimation has too much room for error and variation, especially where the vertical axis is concerned, as you are not keying off of anything real and basically pointing the rifle at an imaginary point "off the paper". After a little practice, I managed about a 3.5 inch group whose center was was two inches above and two left of center. "That's fine for now," I thought, "I'll adjust the sights later." Just wanted to make sure the DSA build was functional. Accuracy will come later.

I only went through about 60 rounds of the South African 1970s surplus ammo I had bought. It seemed to work fine. Sure... it isn't match ammo, but I am not a match shooter. While I was cleaning up, I managed to find one of my spent brass shells. Most of them landed about 15 feet away at 2 o'clock. Hopefully I didn't upset the other shooters. Anyway, the mouth of this case was very dented from being flipped into the receiver during extraction. This made me realize I had completely ignored adjusting the gas system. No wonder the brass was going so far; this thing was operating too hot! It was set "mid-way" on the dial at 3.5. I made a mental note to open up the exaust port next time I fired it.

I cleaned the rifle that night and noticed it wasn't really all that dirty after the 60 rounds. I got the gas rod and plug pretty clean and shiny (used a small dab of Flitz). The bore took a bit of work to get clean, much longer than my pistols, but eventually cleaned up okay. I probably could have spent less time cleaning it, but I'm a neat freak. The slight wear I obseverd on the rifle's internal parkerized parts gave me some helpful hints on what areas needed lube. I had previously lubed up the FAL before my first firing session after a series of educated guesses on where lube belonged based on the way the parts moved in relation to each other. I wasn't far off regarding where lube needed to be.

Fast forward one week and I am back at the range again. This time I'm with my Dad (he brought his M1 Garand) and we're at a range 45 minutes away with less restrictions. I could shoot standing up there! I adjusted the gas system. The hold open was engaging up to a setting of 6.5 but seemed to reliably feed at 6. The rifle is set at 5.5 now and it's happy. The brass ejects at half the distance it did before and lands consistently.

Next was the sight adjustment. We got stuck at a 100 yard shooting point and we could barely see where I was hitting even with binoculars. The sun was behind the targets and they were all in shadow which didn't help. The targets were about 6 feet lower than our shooring position, adding to the problems. I had to start aiming at objects placed out on the sand/dirt backstop at 150 yards and even then I only managed to adjust my horizontal axis. The rear sight requires a screw driver to adjust, so that was no problem. However, I still don't have a front sight adjustment tool. Couldn't get the tip of a bullet in there either like they show in the manual.

The rifle consistently hit spackle bucket lids out at 200 yards shooting offhand from standing. This is the distance I suspect the sights are set for. I tried some "rapid" fire which, at this range is limited to about 1 round per second. I was amazed at how quickly you can get the FAL back on target. This thing pops up and a bit right when I fire it (no sling), but comes back pretty easy. I'm about 5' 8" and weigh about 150 lbs. and this thing is no problem for me recoil wise.

The 11 pound rifle did start to get heavy after a few hours. A bad wobble developed when trying to aim due to some muscle fatigue. Sure I can get something lighter like an AR, but I am working hard at convincing myself that I am not into them. I am putting off firing my friend's because I might love it. This will help me hold on to my money and prevent the addition of another bullet caliber into my collection. Also, ARs are just too common at the range. My FAL falls between the M1 guys and the AR guys historically speaking. I've never even seen anyone with an FAL out here on Long Island... but I know you guys exsist!

3rd range trip... I wound up at the same 50 yd. shooting point as the 1st trip. I thought my front sight post would need to be raised to bring my shots down a bit. Still no front sight tool, so I set up two targets on top of each other and aimed at the base of the lower target (4 inches below that target's X) figuring I'd impact somewhere on the top target. Low and behold, my shot landed level with the center, but far right on the bottom target. I found the sweet spot I guess and I think I was positioning my head a bit differently in relation to the sights. If I lolli-popped the base of the target on the top of the front sight post, I could hit where I wanted... i.e. near the center. I worked on my horizontal sight adjustment and finally managed to pull off what you see in the target below. Hey it's not the best for only 50 yards, but I'll take it being that I am not used to this rifle yet, had no scope or sling. I was firing seated with a little help from the bipod though.

So what did I learn?

- The FAL is a very robust weapon platform and not obsolete by any means.
- The FAL is simple to operate and reliable.
- It is big and heavy, but that seems to help lessen the recoil to a very manageable level.
- I really like the idea behind the adjustable gas system.
- This thing likes to eat! I put about 120 rounds through it in one sitting (2nd trip) and it wanted more.
- South African surplus 7.62mm X 51mm is just fine for me. I'll get more soon.
- The attached bipod comes in handy and is worth the extra weight.
- I am glad I bought it, glad I went with DSA, and glad I got the STG58 rather than the SA58.

Target from 3rd range trip with FAL. Distance is 50 yards firing seated with iron sights and a little bipod help. Sharpie included for scale. 

My new rifle... an STG58 FAL 

My DS Arms STG58 FAL

I have recently purchased another firearm... an STG58. This is the Austrian version of the Light Automatic Rifle known as the FAL (Fusil Automatique Leger). This rifle was developed in Belgium by Fabrique Nationale and, in its various iterations, has served as the main battle rifle for over 90 countries. It has been put to use by Britain, Canada, South Africa, Portugal, Australia, West Germany, Turkey, Brazil and Israel to name a few. This rifle was almost adopted by the USA to replace the M1 Garand. It did well in the trials, but the M14 (a rifle based on the M1) was adopted instead.

It is a very robust piece of hardware, built to withstand a variety of harsh battlefield conditions. It fires the 7.62mm X 51mm NATO (.308 Winchester) rifle round. A double stacked 20 round magazine is standard, although 30 round, 10 round (shown in the photo above) and 5 round magazines are available. The action is known as a "tilting breechblock" and operates by way of a gas piston driven by gas pressure tapped off from the barrel. The amount of gas that enters this system is easily adjustable by way of a gas regulator "dial" located near the front sight. This is a key feature of the rifle, allowing for efficient recoil management as you can set it to push the piston just hard enough to cycle the weapon, minimizing wear on the weapon and lessening the recoil experienced by the shooter. The system also provides a way to adjust the rifle's performance for a variety of ammo and levels of weapon cleanliness.

I have liked FALs for long time. I remember being much younger and watching war movies with my Dad. Once in a while, an FAL would pop-up on the screen. The aggressive look of the weapon always prompted me to ask, "Hey... what kind of rifle is that?" I had always envisioned a "real rifle" as part of my firearms collection. I am not too crazy about the AR-15, though I may own one some day for historical reasons. They do have their place, but I wanted something that fired a bigger round than a .223 (5.56mm X 45mm NATO). A .30 cal was better in my mind. No AK or SKS for me though. The only other rifle that impresses me (other than the FAL) is the Hechler Koch G3/91 style rifles. Seeing an ad for a JLD Enterprises PTR-91 got me started on the road to buying an FAL. In researching that rifle, I came to the conclusion that the FAL was the better choice. That's fine, since I had been a fan of the FAL before I even knew what an HK was.

I finally decided to go with a DS Arms built STG58. The company builds this rifle from used surplus military parts and adds in their own receiver and some other new parts to comply with the US import regulations. Like many gun laws, these regulations were/are a total farce and have led to a number of perfectly legal workarounds so people like me can own these semi-auto rifles. I was a bit nervous about spending $900 on a rifle equipped with military surplus parts, but the next rifle in their lineup, the SA58, was $1400! I could not justify spending an extra $500 for a new barrel and a few more new parts. The majority of the SA58 is made up of the same quality (military surplus) parts that you'd find in an STG58 anyway. Metal is metal... who cares if someone carried a hunk of metal around before I did.

Some stuff about this rifle... It is semi-automatic obviously. It is finished in a rough dark grey-olive colored phosphate finish. The stock and pistol grip are a shiny black polymer. The foregrip is an Austrian style made of pebbly textured black polymer, not metal like the original. You burn your hands less with plastic. I will replace this with a Belgian style fiberglass reinforced polymer handguard because I like the look of that one better. The rifle also has a folding bi-pod that's pretty neat. The front sight is adjustable for "elevation" and the rear peep sight can be moved along a ramp into different notches that correspond with different distances. The rear sight can also be adjusted left or right to change horizontal point of impact (windage). There is a carry handle integral to the Type I receiver. It shipped with a 10 round magazine, though all FAL mags are "pre-ban" because just about all FAL mags you can find were manufactured way before 1994. I guess DSA was playing it safe as New York is one of the least gun-friendly states (lucky me). Oh yeah, I also had to buy a gun lock in order to leave the store with the rifle. I guess I can add that to my collection of locks. The rifle also came with a US made fully legal Austrian style long muzzle break (not a flash diverter). This has been silver soldered onto the threaded barrel.

This weapon disassembles super easy. On this style of FAL, there is a take-down lever oriented vertically near the stock attachment point under the rear sight assembly. Push this lever, and the gun breaks open on a hinge very similar to the way some shotgun open for loading. You can then pull out the bolt carrier and bolt assembly by way of an attached rod referred to as the "rat tail". Once this is out, you can slide out the top dust cover. The bolt comes out of the bolt carrier easily and you can remove the firing pin without any special tools. Just ahead of the gas adjustment dial is the gas plug knob which, when rotated 3/4 of a turn, will allow access to the gas piston and piston spring. Once removed you can get into the channel that the piston rides in and clean it. I've read quite strict advice that no lubrication of any type should enter the gas chamber as it may dangerously increase the pressures there. Some people suggest very slight coatings of lube to keep the parts from rusting in storage. On my initial inspection disassembly, I compromised and wiped down the piston rod with Flitz metal polish which removes oxidation on metal and leaves a light coating of oxidation inhibitor. The abrasiveness of Flitz is negligible in my opinion.

So there it is, my first real rifle. I can't wait to fire this thing! I will post a range report when I finally go. Check out the photos below.

Side view of the DS Arms STG58 

The business end of an STG58 FAL 

Left side of the rifle showing charging handle, magazine, bolt hold open lever, safety lever and disassembly lever 

Front sight, gas plug and adjustment dial, handguard and bipod attachment 

Austrian style (US made) long muzzle brake 

The cover of Dream Theater's latest release, Octavarium 

Dream Theater's 8th Album... Octavarium

Dream Theater is one of my favorite bands and they've just released their 8th studio album called Octavarium. This is a "local" band in a way as most of the members are from Long Island. They play progressive metal, a style of music that is a cut above other forms of metal in my opinion. Typically, progressive metal bands feature virtuoso players who are incredibly knowledgeable about music theory and song writing. Their sound and musical arrangements are usually very complex and they can pull off the sound quite well on stage. Usually, prog bands sound just like their albums while playing live, unless they choose to embellish or stylize their songs. Synthesizers are usually part of the mix in prog bands.

This band is home to one of my favorite drummers - a man who can give Neil Peart of Rush a run for his money. His name is Mike Portnoy and he's from Long Beach, Long Island. The band's guitarist, John Petrucci, is another one of my favorite musicians and hails from King's Park, Long Island.

Unfortunately, I am not too excited about this release. I don't know... they just seem to be coasting a bit now. I may need to give it several listens to get into it though. All I know is I didn't listen to it on the way to work the morning after I bought it. I've always liked Dream Theater for the Music, not really the vocals. It seems that the vocals and keyboard are given the more control of the songs on this album. They may be trying something different... or I am just mistaken. Overall, I'm just not really impressed with this album when compared to other things they've done. Don't get me wrong... these guys are more impressive on a bad day than any act you hear on the radio. They just seem to be putting out stuff recently that is not on par with their earlier stuff as far as complexity and high-level playing. It's just unimpressive as far as the Dream Theater music scale is concerned... they have set the bar pretty high for themselves though.

My feelings on this release are especially disappointing seeing as I have pretty much written off the music of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani, two of my favorite virtuoso guitarists. They seem to have fallen victim to the "just lay down a rhythm track and jam over it" approach to song writing. I expect better from them. I was hoping this Dream Theater album would restore my faith in my musical heroes.

Anyway, the album art is pretty cool and features symbolic imagery focusing on the number 5 (number of band members) and 8 (8th album... Octivarium... you get it). Back to the music now... I think most of it will grow on me... but several of the songs will leave me saying, "What's up with this?" for a while. Let's go song by song:

Track 01 - Root of all Evil: This song is one of the cooler songs on the album. It contains some riffs from their previous release, Train of Thought and follows the aggressive feel of that album. I wouldn't be surprised if this is a leftover from the time when they were writing/recording Train of Thought. I like listening to it... it has a good groove. The guitar solo is a little low in the mix... the keyboard solo is stressed more. There's a cool moment of keyboard interaction in there for a few seconds. 4 of 5

Track 02 - The Answer Lies Within: This is a ballad that reminds me of some parts of Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence. Mostly piano, background guitar and even some orchestral stringed instruments. Not to sound harsh, but I usually skip this one. 1 of 5

Track 03 - These Walls: I like this one. The heavy parts sound a lot like the style of Linkin Park. No rap, scratching records, or monotone screaming blonde haired dude though (good thing). There's a 6/8 - 5/8 time thing going on in this one. The drums during the quiet vocal parts feature a lot of cymbal and hi-hat work by Portnoy making the section a lot more interesting. This song is more radio friendly than most of their stuff. Maybe I'll actually hear it on the radio some time soon? 4 of 5

Track 04 - I Walk Beside You: This is one of those encouraging feel-good ballads that belongs on a movie soundtrack. It's pretty quiet in the verse. Portnoy fills this in nicely with some cool drumming. It's okay I guess, but a little too "Wind Beneath My Wings" for me. Some sections remind me of Rush's Presto album for some reason. 3 of 5

Track 05 - Panic Attack: This song is a 5/8 time metal monster. It's kind of odd, but it reminds me of a song my friend Walter wrote for acoustic guitar. They ripped off my boy's riff! I always think of that when I hear this song. There's some good keyboard - guitar stuff in here and some nicely fitting Petrucci finger acrobatics. The occasional high pitched vocals in this one that don't seem to fit. I really like this one in spite of that though. Good solid Dream Theater head banging song. 5 of 5

Track 06 - Never Enough: This song is kind of weird, but I like it somehow. It's hard to describe this one, it seems to mix musical styles. This one is very "progressive" in my opinion... just... different. It has a lot of cool parts that I like to hear. The changes are arranged very well and everything fits. The drums are really cool in this one. I like this one too. 5 of 5

Track 07 - Sacrificed Sons: This song is the albums political activist song. Because of that it's along the lines of "The Great Debate" and "In The Name of God" and deals with terrorism. It's a little eerie sounding and there's an odd time jam in the middle that's cool I guess. 3 of 5

Track 08 - Octivarium: This song is the epic of the album, clocking in at 24 minutes. It has a very Pink Floyd-ish beginning that lasts nearly 4 minutes before heavy guitars kick in. They are then replaced by an acoustic guitar and a flute section. Then the vocals come in. Awesome drums, subdued guitars and piano This song also reminds me of parts of Six Degrees. This song is kind of slow, but I can foresee it growing on me. It has a lot of cool things going on musically. I like the keyboard solo. I'd have to say that this is classic prog. It may not be my favorite as far as their epics go, but I have to give them credit for it. It is has some cool ideas. Cool guitar-keyboard interaction. 5 of 5

In writing this review, I listened to the each song very carefully while typing my thoughts. It's better than I gave it credit for when I started this according to my number ratings. On my initial listen I was disappointed, but this album may grow on me. Still, I don't find myself saying, "Man, I want to hear (insert any song here)." There's some things I don't like about it, but overall I guess the DT guys can be proud of themselves. It's not good for bands to keep doing the same thing all the time I guess. You can read some other reviews of the CD here.

I've just found out that John Petrucci's solo album, Suspended Animation, has been released I am looking forward to hearing that. I have heard most of the songs on it performed live during the G3 Tour he was a part of. This was over 3 years ago and he announced at the show that these songs would be featured on his new solo album. I've been waiting for a long time John! That's okay... Eric Johnson made me wait a long time for his "new" album too. It comes out Tuesday and I can't wait.

All right... all right! I'll give Octavarium another chance!

Episode III movie poster 

Star Wars: Episode III review

DON'T READ ANY FURTHER IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE FILM...SPOILERS TO FOLLOW!

So I went to see Episode III of Star Wars, the last film in the "prequel" Trilogy series. In short, it was better than Phantom Menace (Episode I) and Attack of the Clones (Episode II), but nowhere near as good as the original trilogy. Sure the special effects are better, but the story and the acting in the modern Star Wars films leave a lot to be desired. Perhaps it is because the original trilogy holds such a special place in my heart from having watched it so many times growing up. I just can't get into the new films as much.


About the Story:

Episode III's story line was the best of the prequel trilogy. This may be because it focuses on a serious and someone dark theme - the transformation of Anakin Skywalker into Darth Vader. I did like how the plot evolved causing Anakin to question his Jedi masters when they put him in certain positions he felt to be unethical. Anakin became confused about whom he should trust and the motivations of the Jedi council. Upon learning the identity of the elusive Sith lord (Palpatine), he attempted to do the right thing by turning him in, but his Jedi training would not allow him to accept the execution of Emporer Palpatine by Mace Windu. After all, Palpatine had become very friendly with Anikin.

Through most of the film Palpatine had been egging Anakin on to disobey the Jedi council. It was no secret that Anikin was dissatisfied with his mentoring. This was a major theme during Episode II. In that film, he expressed on numerous occasions that he felt he was being held back. True, his abilities were great and his skills strong. What he was lacking was the emotional stability to progress any further toward the title of Jedi Master. Anakin refused to see this and instead took the attitude that his mentors were jealous of his exeptional skills. Palpatine agreed with Anakin, telling the young Jedi what he wanted to hear and pretending to befriend him. Obviously this was all manipulation. The secret emotional attachment of Anakin to Senator Amidala was another strong factor causing Anakin's emotions to get the better of him. His premonitions of her death created much fear in him. He could not resist the idea that learning the secrets of the Dark Side of the Force may be able to prevent her death.

There were other sub-plots as well. The capture of General Grievous, the politics in the senate and the continuation of the clone wars. These were all secondary though.


Special Effects:

The special effects in this movie were out of hand. Every shot in this film had some kind of CGI something going on in the background or the foreground. Look out the window behind the dialoguing characters and you'll see a highway in the sky full of spaceship traffic. Maybe there are computer generated robots or aliens in the room talking with the characters. There was always something going on. These CGI guys are really starting to show off now with all this grutuitous stuff.

The battle scenes were unreal. Whether in space or on some planet somewhere, there was just waaaaay to much to focus on. This movie must be watched several times just to grasp the awesome computer graphics. And then there are the lightsaber battles. They are much more exciting than those in the original trilogy, but suffer a little from Matrix-ism. That's okay I guess... these are Jedi masters. Nobody needs to tell Obi-Wan that "there is no spoon" if you know what I mean.

The sounds were really cool as well. I consider sounds to be special effects... they're just auditory rather than visual. Sounds are a very important part of making the unreal that much more believable. Many of the sounds in sci-fi films like Star Wars a are not things you have ever heard, but they follow the rules of sound that we are used to. All except that "no sound in space" rule. That one has gone out the window long ago as far as sci-fi space movies are concerned.


What I didn't Like:

Well, there was some goofiness in this movie. I have to admit that the comic relief was less corny than in Episode I or II. They still managed to throw in a Tarzan vocal coming out of a wookie swinging on a vine. Then there was that iguana thing that Obi-Wan rode on. That was pretty dumb. Then there was Natalie Portman's dialogue. I think she has the potential to be a great actress, but these love story lines they give her make me sigh and shake my head in disapproval. At least the Han Solo - Princess Leia thing worked. What was up with General Greivous' wheezing and why were his innards so unprotected?

I also had a problem with they way they felt the need to tie EVERYTHING together. It was just too neat. Why did Yoda have to know Chewbacca? I don't even really know the neighbors at the end of my block. Why did Obi-Wan have to be the reason for Darth Vader becoming "more machine than he is man" as explained in A New Hope (Episode IV)? Why did something have to cause the emporer to be come all wrinkly and pale and why was he so goofy and Mad-Hatter like when he entered Dark Side mode? The other thing I noticed is that they use any excuse to show off some new location. A lava planet, a forest planet, a planet that looks like a refrigerator case in a florist shop. True this was done in the original movies, but it just seemed more like a "look what we can make on a computer" type of thing. The Darth Vader "Nooooooooo!" thing was just stupid and he looked like Frankenstein's monster at one point.


What I Did Like:

As I said before, the special effects (though sometimes a bit overboard) were cool as were the sounds. This movie had a better story. I liked the serious and somewhat dark nature of this film. I liked the young Jedi in training that tried to protect senator Organa. I liked Greivous' four lightsabers at once fighting technique. Yoda was awesome... you know what I mean if you've seen the movie. The vehicles were really cool and started to evolve into the Empirial look we are used to seeing in the first group of films. The blockade runner made an appearance, albeit slightly modernized. They should have done this with all the "new" Star Wars films... slightly modify the old look instead of making the stuff from the prequel look more technologically advanced than the stuff in the original trilogy.

This movie is fun to watch; I've seen it twice so far. It is definately on my "DVDs to buy" list.

Springfield's venerable classic, the M1 Garand and the modern HK MP5 

Fun day out at the range.

Recently I had a really fun day at the range. My Dad and I went to the Calverton rifle-pistol range out on Eastern Long Island. I hadn't been to this outdoor range in about 10 years or so. Since then, they have made it look a little nicer than I remember. We went on a weekday so it wasn't so packed... the shooters "ran the range" as there was no dedicated Range Officer.

I fired my 92FS and did poorly for some reason. I don't know what it is about that pistol, but I just can't use it nearly as well as the 1911. All that means is that I have to shoot it lots more (smiles). I left the 1911 at home that day but I brought the CX4 Storm. I'll say it again... that thing is ACCURATE. I had to shoot some stuff out at about 75 feet to make it fun. I was shooting a soda bottle someone left out at the far end of the handgun backstop. I even managed to tag it while it was tumbing through the air from a previous shot.

I guy from a few stalls over came and asked if he could try my Storm. He said he was thinking about buying one. I let him try it and he liked it. Then he offered to let me try his Bobcat, a clone of the HK MP5. I had been eyeing that thing since he got to the range and accepted his offer. The MP5 shoots 9mm pistol rounds and can be seen in movies like Lethal Weapon and any thing else where there are SWAT teams or Navy S.E.A.L.s fighting close quarters battles and shorty AR-15s / M16s are not suitable. Anyway, he had a bunch of stuff on this thing. He had some kind of long barrel and shroud, a vertical fore-grip, a light with pressure switch, an a $350 Trijicon ACOG reflex sight. The dot sight worked pretty well... but $350! I fired it well, but it had more recoil than I expected from 9mm rounds and felt like its internals were rattling around. Maybe all the attachments were vibrating or something. I also didn't like the vertical foregrip. It felt very foreign and tended to unbalance me a little. Still, it was a lot of fun. I wouldn't drop $1400 on that pistol caliber carbine though. Besides, I like my $700 Storm better.

The real fun was getting to shoot my Dad's M1 Garand. This rifle was used in WWII and the Korean War by American armed forces. It is a classic. It fires the Springfield 30.06 rifle round. My Dad had not taken it out in a while, but wanted me to try it as I was planning on purchasing a .30 caliber rifle (this one) and he wanted to see what I thought about a high power rifle round. You know what I thought? I loved it! It was a lot of fun to fire something out at a target 600 ft away and hit it. Actually, I was not shooting paper targets, but some leftover stuff people had placed out on the berm to shoot at. Using the iron peep sight setup I did pretty well. We had some problems with the cycling of the action. It wouldn't travel rearward far enough to eject a spent case, so i had to cycle it by hand. Seems the gas tube port was fouled. Nothing a little cleaning won't fix.

So I had a great day and am looking forward to the arrival of my DS Arms STG58 which I have since ordered. It is the Austrian version of the Belgian FN-FAL chambered in 7.62 x 51 NATO (or .308 Winchester, depending on what you'd like to call it). Yup... only 6-8 more weeks before I get it. I can make it... I can make it.

Beretta's CX4 Storm pistol caliber carbine 

My Beretta CX4 Storm

"Man that thing looks weird... I'd never want something like that!" That was my reaction upon seeing Beretta's pistol caliber carbine named the CX4 Storm. Geez, the name was even corny! After seeing the Beretta Neos a while back, a ray gun looking .22 cal pistol, I thought "here we go again." Actually the Storm looked less like a sci-fi space gun and more like something that should be on a rifle rack in Tim Burton's version of the Bat mobile. All black plastic and swoopy lines. You can thank the designers over at Giugiaro Design in Italy for the look of both the CX4 and the Neos. Yup... definitely too silly looking for me to take seriously enough to consider buying. The Beretta 92FS I own is great, but this Storm is a little too weird... right?

So one day I am at my local range and I see a guy come in with a soft case that obviously had some type of pistol caliber carbine in it... no high power rifles allowed at this indoor range. Maybe it's a Kel-Tec Sub 2000 or a Hi-Point carbine? Then the thought of that weird Beretta carbine popped into my head, but I pretended not to be interested. After all, that gun just looks weird. Well pretty soon I noticed some Beretta 92 magazines getting unpacked out of the guy's range bag and he had no pistols for them to go in. That could only mean one thing - he definately had a Storm in that case.

I went back to shooting my 1911 and could hear that Storm firing two stalls away. I started to get curious and found myself standing behind the guy while he was shooting. I noticed ne had a red dot sight on it and was working on getting it zeroed. I tried to be subtle though and ran back to my stall whenever he picked up the screwdriver to adjust the red dot. Didn't want to get caught looking at something I was telling myself I would never want.

I packed up my stuff and as I was getting ready to leave he saw me looking over. He gave me a big grin, cocked his head to the side and said, "Wanna try it." I said nah, I was just checking it out. He then said, "Yeah... everyone always looks at this... c'mon." He quickly showed me the controls, loaded 5 rounds in a mag and handed the carbine over. I then proceeded to send all 5 rounds fired into the center of the target a the end of the range. I thanked him very much and offered him the use of my Kimber Custom TLE II (a 1911 style pistol in .45 caliber), but he said he has a 45 already. I left the range with a grin thinking, "how could I have looked down on that Beretta carbine without trying it?" I was hooked now, I had to have one. It was comfortable, accurate and easy to use.

I started researching the Storm online, reading the positive reviews and nodding "yes" in agreement. I decided I would buy one with my 2004 tax refund from Uncle Sam. I started having second thoughts about it though. I could get a pistol caliber carbine for much less. The Storm cost about the same as a handgun... and I'd be getting a whole rifle. Plus it was a Beretta and I already had plenty of compatible 92FS magazines and 9mm ammo around. Sure it would cost some bucks, but I already knew I would like it. I decided to go through with it, but didn't make it to tax time. I bought one for myself in March of 2005 and I am happy I did. There was a little hassle with the gun store under charging me by $100 and then asking me to come back and pay the difference. I am also still having some static with them related to an incorrect magazine included with the Storm when I bought it. Hopefully it will work out though. The CX4 Storm also came in a hard case with a cleaning kit, sight adjustment tool and a single side rail (in addition to the integral slide-out front rail).

Anyway, the carbine is great. My first target with a brand new rifle yielded a single ragged hole (OK... there were a few fliers, but not many). I duplicated this performance at the range's distance limit of 50 feet. I was very satisfied. Not much kick at all out of this thing, follow up shots are quick and it is ACCURATE. No need for a red dot. The iron (plastic) sights work great and are a long and short range peep sight setup that is fully adjustable.

Ammo went quick that day. I started loading up my pre-ban mags with 10 rounds at a time instead of 15 just to pace myself. I was having too much fun! Not one malfunction and I couldn't miss with the thing. My Father and Brother have tried the Stom and they both like it... the three of us have slightly different tastes in firearms, but all agree that the Storm is "a good one."

Disassembly for maintaining the Storm is super-easy... no tools required. Pull the mag out, cock the hammer back (be sure it's unloaded and leave it cocked back), push out the center retaining pin, pull the two halves apart, pull the bolt all the way to the rear, remove the cocking handle, and slide out the bolt assembly. That took about 4 times longer to type than it does to actually disassemble. Looking at it in pieces, you'll notice that the Storm is mostly plastic... I say polymer... makes me feel better about it. The bolt slide rails, the trigger, the HAMMER and the outer shell are all polymer. On each part of the rifle, there is some metal with the serial number engraved (lower half, upper half, rail attachement area, barrel, and bolt assembly).

The cheesy plastic cleaning rod included with the Storm works okay, but it is almost the exact diameter of the chamber. I've found I can't use a lot of patch when cleaning with it. Hoppes No. 9, a brush and patches for the barrel, CLP to clean the bolt assembly, a little grease on the rails, STP's Son of a Gun or Armorall for keeping the plastic outer shell looking nice.

So the gun I said I'd never own is now part of my collection and I do not regret it at all!

Gordon Freeman and his babe.