< Previous88SHOOTING T O LIVE Fig. 22b.—Cut-down Rovolvor . WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKMISCELLANEOUS 89 important aid to a quick di-aw. Though the fore going maj' appear to the uninitiated as unduly meticulous, if not altogether too " finicky," it is only in this way that you will be able to get the utmost out of the pistol of yorrr choice. That, we presume, is your object, and that to attam it j'ou Avill be prepared to go to the necessary trouble and expense. Supposing now that you have obtained a good holster, do not put it away and forget it. Mere possession is not sufficient. The best holster ever made will not make you any quicker on the di-aAV TOthout practice, and plenty of it. Nothing can excel " dry " practice in front of a mirror, and a friend ■with a stop-watch can often help j-ou materially. Though it is a safe general rule to seek the assist ance of a manufacturer of repute, we should be the first to admit that there are plenty of other ingenious people capable of thhikmg out, designing and even making extremely effective holsters for themselves. One of the fastest holsters we have ever seen was designed and made by an amateur for use when on motor-cycle patrol. Fashioned from a cut-down service holster and fastened on -with pieces of string, the finished product was not a thuig of beauty, but it was 100 per cent, practical. It hmig slightly below his belt in the centre of-his body and enabled him to drop his hand a few inches from the handle bar of the cycle on to the butt of the gun with complete certainty and lightning speeed. Moreover, the holster held the gun securely even when riding WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK90SHOOTING T O LIVE over very rough ground. Here is a case of a man who not only had sufficient ingenuity to make a holster which exactly met his particular requirements, but sufficient apphcation to perfect himself in its use by assiduous " diy " practice. Another instance of ingenuity on the part of an amateur, though it relates more nearly to a " gadget " than a holster, was furnished by a doctor whom one of the authors met in San Diego. This device was intended to cope with a " hold-up " when driving his motor-car. A slight flick of his hands and the next instant the doctor was grasping a pair of •38 revolvers, aU ready for instant action. The observer's impression was. that the guns appeared from nowhere, and far too quickly to enable one to get any idea how it was done. Had the doctor been actually held up at the moment, it is more than likely that his assailant would have been completely beaten by the utter unexpectedness of the thing. We should not attempt to describe the device even if we could. It is sufficient to say that it was the result of many weeks of planning, adjustment and "dry" practice, all of which the doctor found to he " well worth the trouble, and great fun besides." On the same day, the author referred to was privileged to watch the Martin Brothers at quick-draw work with their famous front-draw holsters, one strapped down on each thigh, and he left firmly convinced that San Diego would he a very good town for bad men to keep away from. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKMISCELLANEOUS 91 C a e e o f P i s t o l s a n d M e t h o d o f C l e a n i n g 111 one respect the pistol resembles the automobile engine or other piece of machinery in that it should be " run-m " and subsequently " tuned-up " to remove any small defects and asperities. This applies with greater force to automatics, and m their case the " running-in " process may well consist of fifty rounds of rapid fire. If all bearing-parts are then smoothed up by an armourer who knows his busmess, the pistols will not only be pleasanter to shoot with but will last much longer. Where a number of men are engaged m cleaning their pistols at the same time, care must be taken that all parts which have been dismounted are reassembled on the right pistols. To this end, it is of great advantage if such parts are all stamped plainly with the numbers borne by the respective pistols to which they belong. This also ensures that pistols are correctly reassembled by the armourers after a general overhaul. Cleaning in these days is a simple matter. Provide yourself with a celluloid-covered cleaning rod, the tip threaded to receive any. of the following im plements—a brass wire brush, a slotted jag, and a bristle brush. Provide yourself also mth an aqueous solvent (of the nature of " Chloroil " or Young's •303 Cleaner), some flannelette patches and a tube of gun grease. If the pistol permits of it, dismantle it, to facilitate WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK92SHOOTING T O LIVE the cleaning of the barrel. Attach the brass wire brush to the rod, dip it into the solvent, and run it through the barrel several times to loosen the fouling, and more particularly, if your ammunition has the older type of primer, to remove the j)otassium chloride which in that case will have been deposited. Then, using the slotted jag, run through several patches soaked with the solvent, finishing -with one or two dry patches. The last dry patch should bear no traces of fouling. Finish with an application of the gun grease on the bristle brush. There should be no more grease than is necessary to coat the inside of the barrel with a very light film and neither breech nor muzzle should be choked or clogged up. If care is exercised in these respects, the pistol may be fii-ed subsequently without having to wipe the barrel out first. Whenever the design of the pistol permits it, always clean the barrel from the breech end. All the foregoing remarks apply to barrels of automatic pistols and barrels and cylinders of revolvers. Incidentally, nickel fouling due to jacketed bullets does not appear to exist. If it does, it is so shght a s t o b e o f n o a c c o u n t . The major part of the task is now finished. For the rest, wipe over with a slightly greasy rag all other m e ta l p ar t s , pay ing pa r t ic ular a t t e n t io n to th e breech face, and in the case of revolvers to the other parts where fouling is apt to collect. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKMISCELLANEOUS 93 If the pistol is to be put away for any length of time, Avipe dry and clean all metal parts other than the barrel (which has been attended to already), apply a film of gun grease (most easily done with the bristle brush) and wrap in greaseproof paper, making sure that you do not leave finger-marks on the metal. A pistol treated in this mamier and put awaj^ in its box or case, if you have one, may be stored for a long time Avithout attention. Never store in a holster; the leather is susceptible to damp and vull cause rusting of all metal in contact with it. We do not favour the use of oil. If it is too thin it is not a good preservative, and if it is too thick it is liable to become gummy, to the detriment of movmg parts. Almost invariably, too, its use is overdone, with the result that the pistol overflows with oil which cannot aU be removed before firing. Firing, and more particularly rapid firing, is apt to cause the user to be bespattered with this excess of oil. It is neither useful nor pleasant and is best avoided altogether. Lubrication of such moving parts as can be seen is just as well accomplished by use of the gun grease, applied sparingly Avith the bristle brush. The grease does not melt, dry off or spatter. Lubrication of locks, etc., should be a ipatter for the armourer. Locks do not need much lubrication in any case, and are only liable to be gummed up from the usual practise of squirting oil into the interior of the mechanism through every available aperture. WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKAPPENDIX AMMUNITION " Revolving Credit " System, referred to on p. 60. The unit quantities given in Table I are approxi mately those which have been found to answer our oivn purposes, but can be varied, of course, to suit different needs or the requirements of larger or smaller numbers of men. For greater simphcity. Table I is assumed to provide for a force of 1000 men. Ta b l e I Requirements over Twelve Months To b o c a r r i e d i n d a i l y u s e b y e a c h R o u n d s m a n , 1 2 r o u n d s . . . x 1 0 0 0 = 1 2 , 0 0 0 Practice and training, 36 rounds per m a n X 1 0 0 0 = 3 6 , 0 0 0 In reserve, 30 rounds per man . x 1000 = 30,000 78,000 An initial purchase is made of the total quantity indicated by Table I as required over a period of twelve months and, for added clarity, we shall assume that it is on hand at the end of December. 91 WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKAPPENDIX 95 Ta b l e I I Disposal of Initial Purchase 1st January— Place to reserve Issue for daily use Kounds 30,000 12,000 12,000Issue for training and practice 1st May— Withdraw 12,000 issued 1st Januarj'- (for daily issue) and use for training and practice. Replace for daily use, by fro.sh issue of . . . • • 12,000 1st September— Withdraw 12,000 issued 1st May (for daily use) and use for training and practice. Replace for daily use, by fresh issue of . 12,000 In twelve months, therefore, 36,000 rounds have been actually expended in training and practice. Meanwhile, a second but smaller pirrchase has been made and is on hand at the end of December, twelve months after the first purchase arrived, so that the stock of ammunition is as shown in the next table. Ta b l e I I I Stock at end of First Tiuelve Months Rounds 78,000 In reserve . . . . . In daily use (issued 1st September) Amoimt of second purchase . . 3 0 , 0 0 0 . 1 2 , 0 0 0 . 3 6 , 0 0 0 78,000 WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK96SHOOTING T O LIVE We commence the second year with a stock of the same quantity as that Avith which we hegan originallj' and so are able to repeat exactly the processes of the first year. There is one difference to be noted, however. The second purchase is not drawn on until the first is exhausted. Thus on 1st January of the second year, 12,000 rounds, issued for daily use at the beginning of the proceeding September, are withdra-ivn and issued for training and practice, their place being taken by 12,000 from reserve. The May issue, 12,000, and half the September issue, 6000, com pletely exhausted the 30,000 originally placed to reserve. Our two basic conditions are therefore fulfilled, i.e.: No ammunition in daily use longer than four months. No ammunition in stock longer than two j^ears. As long as the programme is adhered to, the processes outlined are merely a matter of repetition year after year. L WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UK; WWW.RIFLEMAN.ORG.UKNext >