Attraction of Black Guns

[ppine]

I have been around guns my whole life. We did a lot of target shooting as kids, joined a rifle team at 10, hunted deer since the third grade, etc. like a lot of people. Later I hunted elk, antelope and bear. My experience is with sporting arms used for hunting, target shooting, and defense.

Many people I think of as orderly and mentally fit, have a strong preference for military arms designed to kill humans. Except for home defense I can not understand this notion. Maybe some people have only had exposure to guns when they were in the military learning to become trained killers. Please explain this phenomenon.

 

[Lamebeaver]

Some people will say it's some soft of phallic thing.

Others (usually the ones who have them) will say that they appreciate the precision and complexity.

Then there's the "just in case" arguement.

My personal theory is that we get to "play army" just like when we were little boys. If you could buy a tank at Walmart for $500. Who would have one? (raises hand).

 

[catspa]

"military arms designed to kill humans"

This is misleading, unless you're talking about full-auto battle rifles. Otherwise, the semi-auto AR15 or FAL functions exactly like the Remington 742 or Ruger 44 carbine, and more importantly is used overwhelmingly for paper punching or plinking (not killing humans).

Historically, every kind of firearm (and other weapons as well) has been used for warfare when it was the leading technology of the day.

Are you making a distinction between scary-looking ugly rifles and pretty wood and shiny blued-steel rifles, and attributing "evil" to the former because of their looks? Would you prefer humans be killed with pretty rifles? What?

Parker

 

[wvbreamfisherman]

Remember that the SMLE .303 was a "battle rifle" in it's day. Used to such great effect in the beginning of WWI that the Germans facing the "Old Comtemptibles" of the British army thought they were facing machine guns.

The M-1 Garand was also the rather "ultimate" battle rifle of it's day, and spawned a host of semi-auto sporting rifles.

I'm personally not a fan of the current "black rifle" fad, but I can see the advantages of this design. Straight-line recoil, relatively light and handy, with good balance, they make good (although not particularly handsome IMHO) sporting arms, not greatly different (other than appearance) from numerous other rfiles, such as the aforementioned Remington 742, Ruger .44 carbine, and the venerable Browning BAR.

Personally I prefer the more classic look in my sporting weapons, but don't see anything particularly sinister in the current fascination with AK-47 and AR-15 styles.

Just my $0.02

Oh yeah- and put me on the waiting list for a $500 tank when and if it becomes available!

 

[CozInCowtown]

Can someone please explain the differance between a "Black gun" and any other firearm?

 

[Pathfinder1]

Hi...


Of the many guns I've owned in the past, one of my favorites was a Military surplus M1 30 caliber carbine, which fired a pistol-sized shell as fast as you could pull the trigger, and I generally had a 20-round magazine in it. And no, I never needed to fire off twenty rounds at a time unless I was target shooting.

I've done LOTS of target practice with it, and successfully hunted both big game and varments (the four legged kind).

I bought it for $20.00 (hear that, Oldsarge...!!) with my own money when I was a young teenager. Today, if one could be found, it would cost many hundreds of dollars.

I never considered that rifle or any other gun that I've owned as anything more than a tool to assist in my enjoyment of the outdoors. It put meat on the table, reduced the number of woodchuck den holes in pastures where cattle and horses might step in and break a leg. It was a tool, no different than the vehicle(s) I've owned.

Like my vehicle(s), it always was safely stored when not in use, and safely used when it was not stored.

 

[catspa]

20 bucks, geez.

I inherited mine when my dad died. But it's not really a black gun, it's kinda greenish-gray parkerized and a fairly nice walnut stock. It's ballistically similar to the .357 pistol cartridge, and as you mention quite useful on the farm or ranch.

Parker

 

[Lorax]

I have three AR style rifles. I love the platform. (It's like Barbie for guys) and my one built for long range precision is a joy to shoot. Super accurate, cheap to reload and nice mild recoil for the whole family.

 

[oldsarge]

Can someone please explain the differance between a "Black gun" and any other firearm?

It's just a nickname for military styled weapons, most now a days are subdued black for tactical reasons. You can take a nice sporting rifle, have it subdued, throw on a wild looking folding type stock and all of a sudden it's what some would call an assault rifle. Some good points have been brought up here about weapons designed for killing people only. True, any fully automatic weapon is designed solely for that, but as far as anything else is concerned, an assault styled platform is designed for combat applications. This being a weapon having to withstand the rigors of combat, being able to be serviced easily in the field for just a few reasons. Personally I like military styled weapons, maybe it's because of the whole lets play army thing as I was growing up or just that I'd like to have a reliable firearm that's easy to maintain.

 

[Lamebeaver]

Can someone please explain the differance between a "Black gun" and any other firearm?

Black guns

Not black guns

 

[Pathfinder1]

non-black guns

Hi...


According to Google, two New Jersey hunters were shot while pheasant hunting. They were shot AGAIN while reporting the incident to the authorities...!!

The injuries were reported as "minor".

Something fishy here?

 

[CozInCowtown]

......Many people I think of as orderly and mentally fit, have a strong preference for military arms designed to kill humans. Except for home defense I can not understand this notion. Maybe some people have only had exposure to guns when they were in the military learning to become trained killers. Please explain this phenomenon.

The differance is ignorance.
There is nothing differant between an AR-15 and a Browning BAR except possibly caliber.
Both are semi-automatic rifles. One is black and the other is wood furniture. Actually the Browning does come in black synthetic furniture and Century Arms makes wood for the AR.
The same can be said of sniper rifles and deer rifles, absolutely the same gun just somebody decided one is evil and the other is less evil.
This person is ignorant of firearms but because one is scary looking it is obviously evil and designed to kill people.
I build AR 15s on occasion from raw castings (called 80% castings) for my personal use and can assure you they are no differant than any other firearm.
If we painted them all pink would that make them any less threatening to you sensibilities??
JMO,
DC

 

[Lamebeaver]

OK, THIS is scary!

 

[3ofusnow]

I have three AR style rifles. I love the platform. (It's like Barbie for guys) and my one built for long range precision is a joy to shoot. Super accurate, cheap to reload and nice mild recoil for the whole family.

It's Barbie for girls too , and can I come be a member of your family? I really want an AR this year. Maybe when the taxes come back. The pink gun is awesome for the range, but it might stand out a bit in the woods.

 

[Grandpa]

My granddaughter has a pink rifle too, only it is a single shot .22. But then she is only 7 yrs old.

 

[catspa]

I like the pink gun (and the pretty girl holding it). I'd take her out shooting, provide her ammo, and offer her my jacket to stay warm in.

She can shoot the centers out of my targets any day (but I still prefer a bolt gun, just 'cause I grew up on one...).

Parker

 

[Lorax]

For me, there is no such thing as an "assault rifle". A handgrip and folding stock does not make a gun more lethal, as a matter of fact, the same gas system used to activate the action to cycle the next round in a semi automatic duck hunting shotgun that was handed down from your grandfather is the same system in these so called "assault rifles".
The term is used to demonize and push the agenda of the anti-gun crowd.

I always find it amazing at how many people I meet at the range give me strange looks as they are banging out rounds on their bolt actions, levers or their pump rifles. Curiosity gets the best of them and we start talking. I invite them to sit at the bench and give them a try. It changes the way they are told to think about them. Especially the accuracy you can get out of them.

 

[wvbreamfisherman]

I certainly don't have any problem with the AR type rifle. I'm not real fond of the Buck Rogers look, preferring the more classis styles, but I recognize the advantage to the straight-line stock which puts the recoils directly on the long axis of the weapon.

The platform is also quite amenable to modification and accesorization.

As with any automatic, it's always a good idea not to set up at the range on the ejection port side of someone's piece!

 

[catspa]

...ejection port side...

I don't know about all semi-autos, but some (notably the FAL) can be adjusted to fire in a manual mode, similar to a bolt action. Being raised up on a bolt gun, and thinking about shooting as putting one shot exactly where you want it, I find that feature appealing. A semi-auto will also let you waste lots of ammo pretty quickly, if the shooter is so inclined.

That said, I'm in favor of armed Americans. It doesn't matter to me what they're armed with, as long as they use it responsibly.

Parker

 

[ppine]

Thanks for the explanations. I get the fact that many guns are similar except for the paint, stock, platform. etc. What I don't get is why many of my friends in my social group care about black guns to the exclusion of everything else. Are they mercenaries in their dreams? Am I Charlie Russell with Jake Hoover and a pack string?