Wednesday, August 12, 2015

More Gun Stuff

First, a contest for a training course at Gunsite, with airfare and lodging.

Second, when did the term for "handgun" or "pistol" (or any other firearm) become "platform": As in "the 1911 platform" or "the Glock platform"? Every time I read a reference to that, I am in danger of needing to see an ophthalmologist to correct excessive eyeroll.

Third, all of the cool kids are shooting their "platforms"* for 2,000 rounds before cleaning them. What's the point, really? Because if you were a real "operator",** you'd clean your weapons soon after the fight's done. Why would you want to go into the next day with a dirty, unmaintained weapon? Professionals take care of their tools, because they make a living with them and may have to depend on them to survive.

It's a great excuse to go to the range and burn through ammunition. Nothing wrong with that. But that's all it is.
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* Do you now see how inane that sounds?
** Another stupid term.

5 comments:

  1. Well, at the risk of a.)being a pedant and b.)defending the indefensible, when there are no-gunsmith drop-in/bolt-on aftermarket parts for a given design, that design can fairly be described as a 'platform'. It may be overused and cliched, but I don't think we have a better term.

    My dad wouldn't even let us EAT until we cleaned the guns. You did it AS SOON AS YOU GOT HOME. As you say, even if you don't absolutely need to, why wouldn't you?

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  2. I suspect "platform" comes from the military nomenclature of ships and planes and helicopters being 'weapons platforms.' You attach different weapons to these platforms.

    But now, when you already have a gun, you aren't automatically feared and respected, you must call your gun something more military-sounding.

    So think of a gun as being something you can mount guns on. And please send me a picture of that.

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  3. Funny how no one ever says "I'm going out to shoot my Enfield platform".

    I guess that when a firearm has reached it's evolutionary peak, it can't logically be a platform because there's nothing else to do to it, but if it still needs work or modification to make it perfect, then it's just a platform.

    But calling their firearms "platforms" and describing themselves as "operators" makes even fat never-served-in-the-military types feel cool, I guess. If Donald Trump had a gun, I suspect that he'd use those words. A lot.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I blew up a friendship, years ago, when I commented on said friend's blog, after an entry that heavily featured the word "operators", that real operators ran punch-presses and connected telephone calls.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I was a operator at one time, heavy equipment.

    ReplyDelete

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