Recoil

down range

At RECOIL, we tend to stay out of politics as much as possible. Like Mencken, we’re of the opinion that every decent man is ashamed of the government he lives under, and that a good politician is every bit as unthinkable as an honest burglar. Unfortunately, politicians don’t have any reservations about trampling our fundamental human rights and inserting themselves into our chosen livelihood and lifestyle — were they to simply leave us the hell alone, life would be better for all concerned. Every four years, we get the opportunity to participate in an advance auction for stolen goods, where the political parties lay out their plans to bribe us with our own money. It’s worth paying close attention to this, as although politicians’ promises are worth roughly the same as…

incoming

01 COLUMBIA RIVER KNIFE & TOOL JENNY WREN COMPACT MSRP: $135 URL: crkt.com RMJ Tactical makes some of the best tomahawks on the planet … which is why you’ll have to pay a pretty penny for them. Makes sense. So how can you get one without having to fork over five C-notes — short of, you know, robbing someone? Check out the Jenny Wren Compact from CRKT. It’s a faithful production version of RMJ’s Jenny Wren Spike, just an inch or so shorter at 10 inches — and about $330 cheaper. Of course, the materials used aren’t super steels, but the balance, threeedge head, and overall design are very similar. It’s a short ’hawk with a lot of bite, making it ideal for a basecamp, a bug-out rig, or a range bag without breaking…

illinois state military museum

The British Museum in London is home to the Rosetta Stone, while the Mona Lisa hangs on the walls of the Louvre in Paris, but on the outskirts of Springfield, Illinois, is an object that might almost seem at home in TV’s The Simpsons’ hometown of Springfield, State Unknown. It’s an object that was actually fictionalized in another animated TV series, King of the Hill. It’s the prosthetic cork leg worn by Antonio de Padua María Severino López de Santa Anna y Pérez de Lebrón — more commonly known as Santa Anna, the Mexican politician and general who fought to defend royalists in New Spain and later for Mexican independence, before fighting against Texas Revolutionaries and then the French and finally the United States. During the brief Pastry War with France in…

surplus spending

Even if you consider yourself a paragon of fiscal responsibility and level-headed decision-making, you’ve probably made at least a few impulse buys throughout your life. These might’ve been inexpensive items, such as a candy bar from the grocery store checkout line, or more substantial expenditures, such as a new gun you just couldn’t resist. For Jason Squires, a spontaneous purchase led to a sudden feeling of buyer’s remorse and an especially awkward conversation with his wife. “I said, ‘I think I purchased a 1991 M998 HMMWV.’ She thought I had a stroke.” Squires, who you may recognize from his written contributions to RECOIL and its sister publications, is a lawyer by trade. Several years ago, he was speaking with a close friend who was going through law school, and who had…

knives of the firearms manufacturers

Guns and knives seem to go hand in hand, or one in each hand, if you prefer. Both can be viewed as tools as easily as they can be viewed as weapons. A hunter needs a good skinning or caping knife as much as an infantry man needs a good field knife in addition to their rifles. Most of us can’t imagine leaving the house without a sharp blade in the pocket, and let’s face it, you’re more likely to use your pocketknife daily than your carry gun. Some firearms manufacturers got hip to this connection and collaborated on efficient knife designs that represent their brands well. Others just had their name laser engraved on a piece of metal as they would any other tchotchke to use as a giveaway item…

hacksaw special

The build for this issue is all about small. And if something wasn’t small enough, we followed the best traditions of the Wile E. Coyote School of Gunsmithing and busted out the hacksaw and Dremel. The center of this story revolves around an 8.5-inch Rainier Arms Ultramatch Mod2 barrel chambered in .223 Wylde. Most everything about this barrel is built to Rainier specs: Starting with a Melonited 416 stainless barrel with a 1:7.5 twist barrel, a TiN barrel extension is added, and the barrel is atypically contoured and profiled. Instead of a standard 0.750, skinny 0.625, fatty 0.875, or 0.936-inch gas block seat, Rainier Arms determined 0.800 inch was ideal for their purposes. Therefore, a Rainier Arms gas block must be used, which they’ll happily bundle for you. Unfortunately, we didn’t…