I got a VP9 from Palmetto. Damn nice pistol.

Of course, speaking of guns that haven't come out yet, have a look a this bad boy.

https://assets.shootingillustrated.c...preset=article

The Hudson H9, the darling of this year's Shot Show. They say it's like a 1911 and a Glock had a baby. Comes out in September with a suggested price of around $1,200 IIRC.

Should be as impossible to get as those Kel-Tec shotguns once were, but I must admit, I'm intrigued. If nothing else, holy ****, just look at it.

:drool:

I used to have an HK USP 40, and I liked it a lot. Sold it to get an STI Spartan, which I later sold to get the Sig C3.

I'm with ya. These guys are running around with Glocks and Sigs, and that's fine, but sooner or later we end up at the range and their groupings are no better than mine, they suffer more jams, and I'm putting Prvi and Wolf rounds through mine. So it's all good, we have a good time and I have enough cash left for beers.

Well, I am having to buy .243 for the son's rifle, so that ain't cheap... But Bwana's helped a lot with sites that keep that manageable..

With the exception of the AK and the M1A, we reload everything else that we shoot. My gun snob friend has a top notch Dillon press, and by contributing some raw materials and grunt work I can basically get all the ammo I need. That's a sweet deal.

I am unfamiliar with .243.

I'm about ready to go the reload route. I might asks the snobs and split the costs. .243 is a nice starting round for a kid. But it's not common enough to keep prices low.

I just had a regular old .22 when I was a kid.

We bought a .22 from a man at scouts and that's what he cut his teeth on and plinking; then he was ready for something that he can deer hunt with. I got the .243 through the neighbors association with Hunting for Heroes, so it was a good call, a good cause, and it has been a great platform for that next step.

The added bonus....there have been a number of physics and math lessons that I've been able to apply to the process, so that's cool. Like SCUBA tables, he's seeing math in action, and learning things beyond the math while we're at it. And now he's able to sight it in pretty well in 2-3 rounds if I jack the scope at somewhere around 1 MOA off. It keeps things fun and, because he knows he's got to pretty-much figure the problem in that first round, it's really getting him to take his time and breath well from the first shot.

Just looked up the .243 - damn, those are serious rounds.

243 is a fun round to start reloading...quite a few bullets to work through from basic soft point hunting rounds to solids, long range, and target quality. You dont break the bank on powder either.

It really is sweet, it's just pricey. A 80 grain round works well for varmints, and 100 grain can do the job on a deer. But $.65 a round means each shot needs to be taken seriously. Not to mention $.65 means I really need to consider reloading. Lord knows .223 might have been smarter in a lot of ways.

Yeah, I'd say so. But you're committed now.

I will warn you, though, setting up the reloading process is a big, big initial expense and a huge pain in the ass. Very sharp learning curve, too. My friend had the benefit of having our gunsmith buddy helping him set it up and he's smart as hell on top of it, and it still took him a couple of years to get it right.

That's my fear. I don't want being cheap to lead to a bad outcome. Here's what I was looking at, but just never did.

https://www.amazon.com/RCBS-Chucker-...ding+equipment

I've kept most of the .243 brass, so I was hoping that all I'd need is primers, lead, that kit, a .243 holder, a .243 die, a tumbler, and some tumbler media. Should be less that $400. With what I'm paying now, even if it's not fast, it should pay for itself inside of a year (easily).

Within the past year, I jumped into reloading.

It was not as hard as I expected. YouTube is your friend.

Went with a progressive press: Hornady L&L AP. $389 from Midsouth Shooters WITH 500 bullets FREE from Hornady...a ~$100 value for .30 150 gr. So my effective cost was ~$290.

Many people say "Start with a single press; then upgrade to a progressive 5 stage press". Why? Dumb to spend $$$ on something you will outgrow. I started with one station, learned that, then added additional stations as my expertise grew.

You can find good deals on armslist.com from individuals...but you have to know what you are buying and current street prices.

Have fun!!

My buddy's press is a five-stage Dillon with all the bells and whistles. He's upgraded it to the point that it's computerized and fully automated. It can be twitchy, but when it works right it turns out a shit ton of ammo in a very short amount of time.

That's the only one I have any experience with, and mostly, he's Frankenstein and I'm Igor.