The Mare’s Leg and The King of Cool
Our modern love of superheroes isn’t much different than the cowboys of the 1950s and 60s. They are everywhere you look. In the 1950s and 60s, the large and small screens were dominated by westerns, and the genre has remained somewhat popular over the years. In the late 1950s, everyone seemed to have a western show, and producers were looking for a way to distinguish one from the other. Have Gun Will Travel had a custom Colt Calvary, The Riflemen had a custom Winchester rifle, and Wyatt Earp carried a massive Buntline special. Josh Randall carried a Mare’s Leg.
The Mare’s Leg was a custom short rifle made from a Winchester Model 1892. The original models chambered the .44-40 round, although McQueen carried .45-70 rounds in his cartridge belt. The barrels were shortened to 9 inches, and the stock was nearly removed. This created the first Mare’s Leg.
To this day, you can buy your own Mare’s Leg in various calibers from various companies. The term has become a catch-all for these shortened lever guns.
The Mare’s Leg – Dead Or Alive
McQueen played Josh Randall, a bounty hunter who traveled the west seeking to collect the hides of criminals. Along the way, he often proved wanted men innocent, helped find missing people, and once even saved Santa Claus. The show was your typical heroic western. A stranger rides into town runs into a problem and solves it.
He rode a feisty horse named Ringo, and for many of my youthful years, I watched Randall across the west. My dad is a huge western fan, and a lot of my time in front of the TV involved TV land and old westerns. That likely influenced my taste in firearms. The episodes often featured his Mare’s Leg, holstered to his thigh.
His was cool as a cucumber. Although he rarely aimed, he often landed his shots where he needed to. In one of the first episodes, if not the first, he uses the Mare’s Leg as a baton to beat a man into submission before being sucker-punched himself. It was a fun show, and I have fond memories of it and the Mare’s Leg.
In Real Life
As mentioned, the Mare’s Leg was a shortened Winchester 1892 in .44-40. However, that wasn’t all. McQueen had his own input on the gun. He requested a duck-billed hammer and a larger lever loop. This required a redesign of the holster but likely made the weapon faster to cock. The weapon didn’t have sights, but McQueen didn’t need sights.
Three different guns were made for the show. Two of the three had octagonal barrels, and you can notice the change as you watch the show. Sometimes it changes from scene to scene.
The Mare’s Leg was built by Kenny Von Dutch Hwoard, an artist and gunsmith. If the name sounds familiar, it’s the same Von Dutch that inspired the clothing line and the famed trucker hats of the early 2000s. No one consulted with the ATF on this conversion, and the program was fined 1,100 dollars. In 2023 that’s a little over 11,000 dollars.
Beyond Dead or Alive
The Mare’s Leg has been an underrated part of pop culture guns. The gun has shown up in numerous films, tv shows, and even video games in the years following its creation. Most companies who make lever guns will typically make at least one Mare’s Leg. It’s a neat gun and one that has a special place in pop culture. Plus, all my homies annoy the ATF.
Pistol Brace Boost After Ruling
https://thereload.com/federal-judge-expands-block-on-biden-ghost-gun-ban/
Defense Distributed joins a short list of companies exempted from the Biden administration’s ATF rule banning the sale or transfer of homemade gun parts. Despite a move to block the rule on 2A grounds having previously been denied, Judge O’Connor agreed that the ATF overstepped its authority under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). With the upcoming fight over the new pistol brace ban, this and another defeat over the Trump administration’s bumpstock ban —also on APA grounds– on the same grounds paints a positive picture.
It’s true that these victories don’t directly impact the pistol brace ban, or the court cases moving forward against it. What they do, however, is establish precedent and bolster the case against all recent ATF rulings as damaging to both commercial and public interests. This is important as each favorable decision wrung out of State and Federal courts strengthens each case if/when they make it to SCOTUS.
With the now two favorable rulings both citing the APA, and the pistol brace lawsuit doing the same we are hopeful that the brace ban will face a similar conclusion in the near future. Anything is possible and there have been some less positive cases, but winning is winning, and it sets the stage for more.
Massad Ayoob Group MAG-40 Course Review: Part 2 The Classroom
*Secondary Disclaimer* There’s a lot of proprietary information covered in this class that’s not to be shared with the general public. That’s why one of the requirements of attendance is either a criminal background check or current Carry License. Due to that, there may be some gaps or ambiguity in the overall review. Trust me when I say that the 2 days of classroom are reason enough to attend the course. The range portion is there so that, should he need to, Mas can testify to your proficiency with a firearm, not just that you had the academic knowledge about use of force.
Day 3: The introduction covered the information that would be discussed, how we should handle that information, and certain steps we should take to document our knowledge moving forward. We covered some of the basics, like what is entailed in Jury Selection, some basic legal concepts like what circumstances justify use of deadly force, different levels of homicide (murder, manslaughter, justifiable, etc), as well as a more in-depth look at Cooper’s color code. We also discussed different standards of proof, and the different legal applications of each. We went over the fact that a claim of self defense constituted an “affirmative defense”, and what that entails.
Day 4: The day did start out with some discussion on equipment. There are prudent things that a defensive gun carrier should consider before purchasing/augmenting their firearm. We reviewed things like trigger mods, safeties, etc. We also reviewed studies in human reaction time, including the Tueller drill. There was some review of common “Defensive Myths”. You know, the dumb shit you hear tossed around at gun stores, gun shows, and on different internet forums. Throughout the course, there were a lot of helpful tips on how to prep your life for certain events.
One of the biggest segments was focused in the different physical/emotional reactions after the shooting. We talked about the psychological and societal impacts. The idea behind this is to ensure the students are aware of what to expect. That way a) they are less scared by the unknown of what to expect and b) are able to critically think and develop their support plans ahead of time. There was some discussion of attorney selection, as well as the potential value of being a member to a program like US Law Shield/ Armed Citizen Legal Defense Network/ etc.
We also discussed the how and why of ammunition selection. Not so much from the ballistic performance, but also how it can potentially play into your defense. They eschewed the mixing of ammunition. The discussion segued into combative anatomy, and the 3 major target areas, and which is appropriate under what circumstances. There was also a discussion on rendering aide, and under what circumstances it would be (im)prudent. As previously mentioned, there was a lot of proprietary information, that was to be expressly contained within the scope of the class, and only shared with those directly vetted by the alumni. What I can comfortably say is that this section was built around how to avoid getting shot by other good guys, how to communicate with all parties involved, and how to keep from turning a righteous shooting into an inadvertent homicide charge. The irony is that the most valuable segment of the course is the one I have to write the least about. There were lots of legal cases provided throughout as case studies of the different principles covered.
Marlin’s Hammer Fired Pump
Repeating shotguns became an important part of the firearms scene beginning with the Winchester 1897. With its reliable trombone action and exposed hammer the ’97 is still in service with many shooters. While the open bolt rotary magazine Roper and various odd ball shotguns were developed the Winchester proved to be a reliable and useful shotgun. Marlin and Winchester butted heads over lever action rifles and are still worthy competitors. Marlin introduced a pump action shotgun similar to the Winchester 1897. While never as popular as the Winchester the Marlin was a robust and reliable shotgun. All Marlin shotguns were take down models. The original 1898 Marlin was followed by other models ending with the Model 24 to the best of my knowledge. The Marlin doesn’t command a lot of money yet it is a pretty cool piece with plenty of history behind it.
While there were some military models manufactured the majority of Marlin shotguns featured 26 to 32 inch barrels. While offered in 12 gauge there is a rare 16 gauge model. Depending on the exact model and its period manufacture the shotgun may feature a semi pistol grip or a straight grip. The shotgun was manufactured in several variants. Among these was the lighter model 19. Some featured a glare fighting matte finish on the receiver. I don’t like to comment on problems with which I have no personal experience but it seems that early Marlin shotguns suffered from something called ‘false battery’ and may have fired when not fully locked. The shotgun was further developed into one of the very few drop safe shotguns of the era. Even today few shotguns are drop safe if dropped from sufficient height. This is an advantage of the type. The shotgun bolt was locked on firing and merely operating the bolt and dropping the hammer, does not unlock the bolt. The Marlin features an inertial block. The bolt is locked closed but unlocked by the jar of firing the shotgun. In order to unlock the bolt without firing a push button is located to the right side of the bolt.
The shotgun is smooth and reliable in a well maintained example. It is interesting that while the Marlin has good safety features the type has been banned from Cowboy Action Shooting due to safety concerns. This bears some explanation. Many early Marlin shotguns were chambered for 2.5 inch shells. Later models chambered 2.75 ( 2 ¾ inch) shells. The problem is that a 2.75 inch shell will jam into the chamber and fire. If the load is strong enough damage or even a burst shell is the result. While the Marlin 1898 shotguns are strong variants God help the person firing a high brass shell in a 2.5 inch chamber! Later shotguns are fine with the longer shell- and 2.5 inch shells are available. Just the same this requires more preparation than simply grabbing a Winchester 1897 clone and ripping off a few shells.
The other problem is probably the more serious. Remember the false lockup? While cured in later models the push type plunger is problematical if you are not very careful. As it turns out those speed chucking the Marlin in competition sometimes hit the button while handling the Marlin. As a result the Marlin might fire while out of battery and apparently has done so on occasion. So we have the unfortunate situation of a quality shotgun with excellent safety features being banned from competition. Just the same this is a reasonable thing to do. I don’t think I am taking my life in my hands firing the old Marlin or I would not fire it. Just the same be certain to check out the shotgun for haze cracks and be very cautious in firing the shotgun- and especially determine the proper chambering. Even those chambered in 2.75 inch were intended for early shells with a different style of roll crimp.
The example illustrated is a trade gun. This is a gun made by one manufacturer and labeled for a chain store. There were many Western Auto shotguns and J C Higgins manufactured by American makers and re-labeled. Today the same circumstance exist with millions of Turkish shotguns relabeled. As an example you pay quite a bit more for a Mossberg, Weatherby, or Winchester marked Turkish gun- may as well save a hundred bucks or so and purchase a Turkish gun at Cheaperthandirt.com! Just saying- makes sense to me. The trade name of the Marlin in this case is REVONOC by Hibbard Spencer & Bartlett. I am pretty certain the shotgun was manufactured about 1906. No way to be certain. Factory records were lost. Many records of older makers were lost during World War Two. They were donated in paper drives. Floods and fires took a toll. Just the same the Marlin types have little collector value. Most seem to have seen much use in the hunting field. The 12 gauge model shown shows even consistent wear rather than eccentric wear. Considering the age the shotgun has been well taken care of. Have I fired it? Sure, after a careful safety inspection. I would be very hesitant to fire an earlier version without the bolt lock plunger. But then I am no expert or even intimately familiar with this type of shotgun. I would recommend locking the shotgun in a fixture for the first shot if you must fire this type of shotgun. I did so with an old T shirt wrapped around the bolt to detect gas leak. Works for me and I have fired the shotgun with standard birdshot. This shotgun has the special order straight stock we would call a skeet stock these days. This shotgun points and handles well. It was in the game field at some point as when I first purchased the shotgun it had a plug in the receiver limiting capacity to two shells per state law. I haven’t removed the plug, no point, I may take it bird hunting for the fun of it.
The Marlin hammer guns are an interesting bunch. I enjoy owning mine and occasionally handling the piece and wondering what hunts it was in on the past one hundred twenty years. They remain affordable and make a good conversation piece. But don’t put it on the front lines!
California Handgun Roster Gets Some Welcome News – It’s Unconstitutional
California has been strangling their handgun roster into obsolescence for a decade. The mythical wonder technology known as ‘microstamping’ being added to California law has resulted in a 10 year gap in technological and safety advancement between handguns available for sale in California and those available to the rest of the nation.
U.S. District Court Judge Cormac Carney, sitting in Santa Ana, wrote Monday that California’s requirements for new handguns are unconstitutional and cannot be enforced. Because of these restrictions, Carney wrote, no new models of semi-automatic handguns have been approved for sale since 2013 and Californians are forced to buy older and potentially less safe models. – AP Report
While California’s AG will never admit to it, the goal of this was to slowly choke handgun sales out of the state entirely in a bid to ‘make the state safer’ in some nebulous way. They will then blame surrounding states, full of older Americans and higher suicide rates, for the ‘gun death’ rates in California.
Judge Carney issued a preliminary injunction to take effect in two weeks (in force on April 3rd), meaning the state would have to stop enforcing the law. The delay gives the state Department of Justice time to appeal.
What an appeal will look like, we don’t know. Bonta, the windbag that California uses as alleged Attorney General, had this to say,
“The fact of the matter is, California’s gun safety laws save lives, and California’s Unsafe Handgun Act is no exception. We will continue to lead efforts to advance and defend California’s gun safety laws. As we move forward to determine next steps in this case, Californians should know that this injunction has not gone into effect and that California’s important gun safety requirements related to the Unsafe Handgun Act remain in effect.”
Sure Rob, that’s why California is one of the leading states for mass shooting and school shootings, and why Texas, the next largest state and with drastically more permissive gun laws, several large urban locations just like California, and many other comparable points like proximity to Mexico, is rather comparative in firearm violence rates. Your awesome gun laws.
California has had their cards called once again on another of their attempts to ban firearm ownership through sideways measures and it will be interesting to see what actual facts they can bring to court in the two week period to give them any hope of continuing their grift.
If the injunction stands and lands than starting in early April, up to date handgun models can be sold in California as the roster will be held unenforceable.
Mounting a Red Dot on the SIG P320-XTEN 10mm Pistol
The Pistol Out of the Box
The XTEN is cut for a Romeo2 or Trijicon RMR. This is great as these are two very widely used footprints. However, and SIG even states this in the box, there is a spacer plate needed when mounting an optic. When purchasing and receiving the SIG P320-XTEN there are no options for a plate to come with the pistol as SIG does not offer a plate. Therefore this is on you in finding the correct plate for your optic choice. Remember, this is a Legion slide, and a filler plate is needed.
Why a Filler Plate?
Using the Holosun 508T as reference, it is possible to direct mount this optic to the slide however, there is a huuuuuugeee gap in the front of it. This means that every time the pistol is shot and recoil is pushed through the gun the only thing that is harboring that recoil are the screws on the optic. More space, means more room for that optic to move, more chances for the screws to be sheared undur recoil and you to have an even bigger problem. Sheared screws are not easy to remove from a slide and you risk damaging your slide. Therefore, a spacer plate is needed to fill that gap.
The Plate Options
In short, there aren’t many. In your venture of finding the plate you are going to want to search something along the lines of “P320 X5 Legion optic plate”. This will pop up a whole two options. I’ll list them below. If you find another option, let us know in the comments. Note: There have been a few different cuts on the legion slides so ensure that you found the correct plate for the correctly drilled holes.
Forward Controls Design (Holosun specific optics aren’t specified to work but should due to this being an RMR plate. I haven’t myself tried this plate on the gun) Also, the dovetail on this sight is made for Glock sights, not SIG.
Always read the fine print when it comes to optic mounting..
Ben Stoegers pro shop has a good amount of options as far as if you want one with iron sights already thrown onto the plate.
Going back, I do wish I searched harder and found and purchased a Springer Precision plate or the Forward Controls Design plate as the CHPWS plate just doesn’t cut it for me. It is very thin and there is still a gap on the slide cut. Meaning no tight fit to accept the recoil of a 10mm. The Springer Precision plate looks beefier as does the Forward Controls plate considering it is made from steel and not aluminum.
How to Mount Optic
After finding the correct plate there will probably be a couple of sets of screws in front of you. These could be the screws from the company who sent you the plate or the screws that came with the optic itself. No matter, the proper length of screw needs to be used. If they aren’t, a malfunction can be caused or the optic can be loose.
To find the right size of screws..
- Count the threads: Ensure that there are enough threads coming through the optic to mate with the slide. 4 threads is good.
- Ensure the screws are flush: When tightening down the optic, ensure that the screws are flush on the top of the optic. if they aren’t there is a large chance that the optic isn’t totally tightened down.
- Check the extractor: Dependent on the gun, the screw holes can be directly above the extractor. If you are using too long of screws these screws can interfere with the operation of the extractor. After tightening down the optic take your finger or a punch and move the extractor to ensure that it isn’t impeded.
- Look for light under the Optic: If you see light under the optic it may not be totally tightened down to the slide.
Now, the threadlocker. Some use Vibratite, some use the blue Loctite 242. If using Vibratite, let the Vibratite dry before installing the screws. If using other threadlocker ensure that you don’t put too much on. A dab is fine. Threadlocker will now cause the torque to be heavier so when tightening the screws don’t overtighten. There should be an in-lb torque limit listed on the directions that came with the plate.
After installing, don’t forget to witness mark. The screws moving and those witness marks no longer being in line will be the first tell that the optic is loosening.
Iron Sights
The P320-XTEN does not come with tall enough iron sights to be used when an optic is mounted. After mounting a dot, or even before if you’re more prepared than I, be sure to find “suppressor high sights” or “cowitness sights”. Personally, the blacked out rear sights with a fiber optic red/green front work well in not giving my brain too much to focus on. An example being this Sight Set, for Sig P320/M17, Co-witness Black Rear and Fiber Optic Front, by Dawson Precision.
Don’t forget, SIG sights are different and install differently than normal Glock dovetail sights so be sure that you have the correct sight pusher.