I am told that the new PPQ has a Tenifer treated slide. Interesting, no? I thought I would look them up.

I am unfamiliar with the new Walther PPQ. I do know that it is the successor to the P99 and I know there were a lot of fans who swore by the P99. However, I did have the opportunity to shoot a P99 previously. Personally, I didn't see anything remarkable about it, although I didn't find anything wrong with it either. I am told that I would have preferred the later P99QA.

However, in my unscientific initial preview of the PPQ, I am astounded by the physical length and positioning of the slide lock/release! (click on the pic to see a larger version)

Holy cow that is long!!! And it is presumably on both sides. And wow, does it have enough slide serrations?

Some folks don't like the big square trigger guard, but I do. Definitely would work with gloved hands. Anyway, I know these are aesthetics and personal preference, but I thought I would share in case you hadn't seen one, or noticed the super-long slide lock.

We received a warning from work that tomorrow (9/17) is supposed to be a "Day of Rage." A day propagated by social networking where anarchist groups are supposed to cause mayhem, violence, and shut down Facebook (how are they going to post updates of the their actions?) Actually, I am ok with the Facebook thing. LOL

However, on a more serious note I live in the Seattle Metro area and for some reason Seattle likes to riot. Remember the WTO? Any excuse for civil disorder. I don't know that anything will happen tomorrow however my coworker just 5 days ago awoke to see 3 cars in his neighborhood in Seattle (Beacon Hill - a nice area) on fire!

In this KOMO News clip you can actually see his car!!  There is only one car in between his and the charred remains of another.

The reason for this fire attack? UNKNOWN. That's right - sadly, random violence. And what about tomorrow? I told him that he should think about parking elsewhere tonight.

As we prepare for a "Day of Rage" where self-proclaimed anarchist groups threaten violence and in a City known for it, who knows what will happen. But, I am proud to live in a country which has a Constitution - a 2nd Amendment - and the right and means to protect my family.

We have seen much violence in other countries recently and they are not so lucky.

Pics from the linked article:

Something to think about....

Today's downtime was brought to you by screwing with PHP settings on a Windows Host.  It's fixed, we are have switched over to a Linux host.

Sorry about that...

Previously, I had posted the information that I received personally from HEFUSA about Melonite vs Tenifer (LINK).

This is often a hot topic and I recently have seen claims that Glock is no longer Tenifer hardening their Gen4 slides, that the slides are made in the U.S. and it is illegal to Tenifer them, etc. etc.

Well, according to my conversation with Glock yesterday Gen4 slides (as well as the entire pistol) are indeed made in AUSTRIA and are assembled here in the U.S..

The slides and barrels are still Tenifer treated. The "top coat" however as most people have noticed has changed. Glock calls it their "matte" finish instead of the Gen3 "glossy." Yes, it is more silverish than the previous deep black. I didn't ask why or for details. The coating has nothing to do with Tenifer. Now back to my story...

Arguments about Tenifer/Melonite/etc. such as this one on XDTALK always seem to boil down to a lot of  "I heard..." and "I read..." or "I know because Gaston told my uncle's friend's coworker..." and NOT a lot of fact or verifiable informtion.

I post this thread because it contains all that conjecture but also because it contains some new information and new conjecture! I warn you, it is not until about page 6.

So, I found that HEF India offers Tenifer AND Melonite as finishing options! This kind of conflicts with what HEF USA told me - that Melonite is exclusive to the U.S.

We know that Tenifer is used in other industries (there is a link in that thread to some BMW parts literature that references it). So, what I suspect (here is where I cannot provide any proof) is that the name Tenifer is licensed to GLOCK exclusively in the firearms industry and Melonite to everyone else. Remember, Glock entered into this agreement with Durferrit, who owns the trademarks to both Tenifer and Melonite, back in the 80's (if not earlier). No one in the firearms industry did anything remotely similar.

I have requested some additional information from HEF India to clarify if there is a difference. In converse, I have also requested some information on Springfield's XD to see if they are Melonite'd here or in Croatia since HEFUSA said Melonite is exclusive to the U.S.. This may be of limited value though since the pistols are for the U.S. market and for a U.S. company. Oh, I also asked if they could/would/will offer Melonite on 1911's for those curious (I am).

And so, the great Melonite/Tenifer debate(s) continue!

details....

http://www.teamglock.com/customer-service/recoil-spring-exchange

I have researched the P6 feed ramp issue and found the following post on SIGforum ...
"Dear Mr. xxxxxxx,

We checked our drawings and found out that we change the angle of the barrel ramp on the 14th of June 1989 from 52 degrees to 54 degrees.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen,
With best regards,

Ralf Vanicek
Produktmanager SIG SAUER

J.P. Sauer & Sohn GmbH
gegr. 1751
Sauerstrasse 2-6
D 24340 Eckernförde"

I get asked frequently by coworkers about putting together an AR15 and/or modifying them. I like AR's a LOT because there is a plethora of parts and the design is completely modular.

Putting together one is fairly simple if you have the right tools, harder if you don't (ask me how I know! LOL). Some things are not obvious if you haven't done or seen it before. There are a LOT of resources available on the internet to help guide you though. At some point I will put together what I used. There are a couple of really good documents/links that explained most of it. Those pins take more force than implied - especially when putting them into a tightly spec'd lower like the Mega.

I have put together a few and found a pics from the builds. Notice that I did not have the correct tools at the time and used a lot of wood and masking tape. I do not recommend this method. Anyway, these are mainly from putting together a couple of 6.8 SPC's.

Anyway, here are the pics from my coppermine.fortreg.com.

Forgot to post, I got my Maxpedition Universal Holster and it works great with my Versipak Fat Boy. However, it is a no go with the 5.11 Vest.

The Vest has a couple of narrow strips of velcro on each side. Weird. I searched my stuff for the kit that came with the 5.11 holster and double mag pouch. I found a very thin (flimsy) square panel of material. Ok, that work to attach to the strips in the Vest. I tried to attach my new holster to it, no go -- the weight of any of my pistols causes the square to severely slouch. Not secure at all. In my "kit" I found another square of material that is very stiff, that attaches to the other square, but unfortunately is the wrong velcro side for my new holster to attach.

If I can find a square panel of velcro (don't know what else to call it) that has each type on each side, it might work but seems like more fuss than it is worth.

The holster however does work great in the Versipak to secure small pistols. In fact, my Glock 27 and S&W M&P 9c fits great no resizing or moving required.

I just got back to WA after a 13hr car drive. As soon as we hit the OR side of the ORCA border my triple-locked pistol case (seriously, three separately keyed padlocks) came out of the trunk, unlocked and my Glock 27 rejoined with the mags, which had been  locked separately in the glove box.

My ankle holster (although Renegade is an excellent one) wasn't going to work. From my previous post about the drive down a 12 hour ride was just uncomfortable. I was also in 100degree weather and in shorts.

The MaxpeditionVersipack bag would have worked (from an older previous post on a drive to Oregon), but I wanted to try something different and little more accessible. Oh, I may have forgot to mention, you need the Maxpedition "universal holster" if you are going to put such a small pistol in it. It is a $10 option.

Instead, I had grabbed my Glock Sport holster. It was about $10 (probably a few bucks more now since I bought mine back sometime in the 90's) but is basically an open bottom plastic holster molded for Glocks. Incidentally, it fits just about everything I have ever put in it. No, it is not a combat grade, multi-level rententon holster but it works. Especially with a short barrel and short gripped pistol like the Glock 27.

I like to wear OWB at about the 3:30 to 4:00 position. But when driving I slide it to my side. With such a small pistol there is no discomfort. 13 hours later, my back didn't hurt!!

Now, I don't know how well it would have worked (comfort-wise) with a bigger pistol. I normally would have brought a bigger pistol but I didn't want to bring a normal capacity magazine (greater than 10) into CA. I figured if I was going with a 9 shot pistol I might as well bring something small and lightweight.

So, more expensive holsters are nice but there is something to be said for an inexpensive holster that works. It's especially nice when it works for something such as a 13 hour drive and you don't have to buy something expensive (like a shoulder rig I have been meaning to order for months).