Why Can’t I Have One? The .25 Rimfire.
It’s no news to anyone that has been reading my articles that there are a few now-obsolete guns and cartridges I’d like to see make a comeback. One of those is the now-defunct .25 rimfires, which I would favor as a small-game round. Here’s why.
Snowshoe Hare, the makings for a good stew.
Stuff for Small Game
Small game hunting for the pot is something of a specialty unto itself. While most mentions of small game bring about a vision of fine shotguns, pointing dogs and fine-feathered birds flushing, there are also the furred critters: Rabbits, hares, squirrels, marmots, and so on. The currently accepted rifle/handgun round for such game is the .22 long rifle, but there are issues with that fine old round; most of the current standard velocity offerings are target/plinking loads, and the dedicated small-game loadings tend towards high velocities and soft, quick-expanding bullets that can destroy a lot of edible meat. The .22LR is also a bit on the anemic side for bigger critters like snowshoe hares, jackrabbits, marmots, raccoons and so on.
There is also the .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire (WMR) but while that round delivers decisive kills on those bigger animals, it has the same issue as the .22LR with velocity and bullet expansion, only rather more so, making it problematic as an all-round small game cartridge for everything from gray squirrels to raccoons.
I’ve rifles in both rounds, and have used handguns for both, although these days I do not own a sidearm in .22WMR. Both are good rounds, of course. Both have their limits in small-game hunting.
Gray Squirrel. Ditto.
In my youth in Allamakee County, I spent an inordinate amount of time in the fall hunting squirrels, both the gray squirrels that lived in the tall timber on the hilltops and the bigger fox squirrels that tended to stay down in the creek-side bottomlands. Squirrels are tough little critters but not particularly sizable, although corn-fed Midwestern fox squirrels can grow surprisingly large. I hunted them with a .22LR rifle, usually using CCI high-velocity hollow-points. Headshots are preferred for this kind of hunting, but a squirrel’s head is a tough target; the lethal area is about the size of a big acorn, and it’s constantly moving. Unless shooting at a stationary animal at short range, body shots are frequently necessary. And the .22LR high-velocity hollow points can mess up a lot of a squirrel’s edible meat if you clip a limb, where most of the meat is.
At about age 14 I picked up a Marlin bolt gun in .22WMR, which delivered more authoritative kills on the big woodchucks that frequented our hills, did even more damage to smaller squirrels and cottontails.
I didn’t really realize it at that time, but what I needed was a good all-around rimfire cartridge that could fulfill all my small-game needs. In the past, there was such an all-around rimfire round; it fired a slightly larger-caliber bullet than the .22 rimfires at a moderate velocity, delivering quick, clean kills on larger game while not destroying a lot of edible meat. That round was the .25 Stevens rimfire.
A Bit of History
In 1900, the J. Stevens Arms and Tool Company in partnership with Peters Cartridge Company brought out the Stevens Crack Shot #15 single shot rifle in a new round, the .25 Stevens rimfire.
The .25 Stevens round.
The new round was an effective one for its time, with the smokeless-powder loadings firing a 65-grain bullet at about 1,200 fps, packing considerably more punch than the .22LR. The line of Stevens single-shots, including the well-known Favorite, were neat little rifles, light, handy and accurate. They were favored by small game hunters, farmers, homesteaders, and trappers across North America. Shortly after the introduction of the .25, the Stevens Buckhorn bolt-action repeater and the Stevens-Lord single-shot pistol was also offered in .25 Stevens, although few other arms were chambered for the round.
The .25 wasn’t perfect. It had a somewhat lower velocity than the .22 LR and therefore a higher trajectory, but that was of little import to most of its users, as most shots on small game were at short ranges. Inside of fifty yards the trajectory issue mattered little, while the quick kills afforded by the flat-nosed or hollow-point versions of the .25 were favored.
In 1902. Stevens and Peters doubled down by bringing out the .25 Stevens Short, which could be safely fired in the regular .25 Stevens rifle, much as the .22 Short can be fired in a suitable .22 LR piece. It’s a bit hard to see the reason for the shortened round, other than if offered the same quiet short-range advantage of the .22 Short but with a heavier bullet.
The Stevens Crackshot.
The .25 Stevens didn’t last long. It never achieved a great sales record, being rapidly eclipsed by the .22LR and later, the more powerful .22 Winchester Rimfire (WRF) (Note – not the same thing as the .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire, introduced in 1960.) Sales of the .25 languished, and by 1942, Stevens and Peters quietly dropped both of the .25-caliber rounds, over the vocal protests of an Idaho gunslinger and writer named Elmer Keith, who had been advocating the rimfire .25 as a revolver round.
But the story of the .25 as a small-game round wasn’t over.
Alternatives
There is a centerfire cartridge, historically chambered in both rifles and handguns, that shares many of the attributes of the .25 rimfires: The same .25-caliber diameter but firing a slightly heavier bullet at slightly higher velocities, capable of quick, clean kills on bigger animals while not being overly destructive on smaller critters like cottontails or mountain grouse. That round would be the .25 Winchester Centerfire (WCF) better known as the .25-20 Winchester.
The popular small-game loading of the .25-20 launches a 60-grain bullet at a brisk 2,100 fps, and even the heavier 86-grain factory loads leave the muzzle at over 1,800 fps. This is a tough little round for critters up to coyote-size.
The .25WCF pre-dates the .25 rimfire, having been introduced by Winchester in the famous Browning-designed Model 92 rifle in 1895.
.25WCF Cartridges
There are some advantages in a centerfire round like the .25-20.
First, the .25WCF was only offered in manually operated pieces: Single-shots and lever guns, for the most part, as well as revolvers. This is an advantage for the sportsman because it allows for the use of a wide range of loads. While semi-autos can frequently be fussy about the bullet weights and range of velocities in their loadings, lever or bolt guns and revolvers are much less so, allowing the sportsman to “load down” something like a .25-20 to duplicate the .25 Stevens ballistics for use on small animals and birds while retaining the use of more powerful loads in the event you need to take down a fox, raccoon, jackrabbit or coyote.
Second, the .25WCF is still commercially loaded today, although loads are limited to one, a Remington load firing an 86-grain Core-Lokt soft-point bullet. But dies are available, as are cases and primers, and a variety of bullets, making the .25-20 possibly more versatile than it was in those long-ago days of its introduction.
But the age and near-obsolescence of the .25-20 makes it problematic for shooters on a budget. Realizing the full versatility of a .25-caliber small-game round requires handloading, which in turn requires a significant investment in press, dies, and so forth; also, the older guns available for the .25-20, like the aforementioned (and excellent) 1892 Winchester may not be up to the pressures that one could obtain with modern powders even in the diminutive .25-20 case.
There is another alternative: The .22 Hornet, which is derived from the older .22WCF case. Developed and introduced to the commercial market in 1930, the old Hornet has plenty of history and remains a fine cartridge for varmints out to about the hundred and fifty-yard mark. .22 Hornet rifles are still available today, as is a somewhat more diverse variety of factory loads. But the Hornet factory loads tend to go the same was as .22LR loads: Velocity and fast expansion.
I have a .22 Hornet, a slick little Ruger #3 falling-block single-shot wearing a Nikon scope. I bought it as a fall turkey rifle, and it has served admirably in that function, but I have loaded a bunch of ammo with cast lead 45-grain bullets which punch a hole without expanding. This makes shot placement critical, and honestly, I’d rather have just the little bit extra bullet diameter to make a slightly bigger hole, but I suspect most of that advantage lies in my own perception. The fact is that the .22 Hornet, like the .25-20, is an excellent medium-game round for animals up to coyote-size at ranges of a hundred and fifty yards or less.
But like the .25-20, to achieve that full versatility on medium and small game, handloading is still required. Current factory loads won’t handle everything that this round can do.
Why Not?
I think there would be a market for a quarter inch rimfire cartridge today.
It seems like the trend in rimfire loads now, including the .22LR as well as the various .17 rimfires and the .22 WMR, is aimed at two very different targets: Uber-velocity rounds with explosive expansion, or dedicated target loads with solid bullets.
’92 WInchester
I’d love to see a larger-bore rimfire round firing a heavier bullet at moderate velocities, offered in revolvers and perhaps a good rimfire bolt gun like the Ruger 77-22 rimfire rifle. This would be near-ideal small-game gun, for the sportsman or the landowner/farmer, capable of clean kills on animal up to the size of a raccoon or fox without being overly destructive on a rabbit or squirrel.
My ideal small-to-medium game rimfire rifle would take this form: A lever or bolt-action repeater, chambered for a .25 rimfire cartridge tossing a 60 to 75-grain bullet at about 1,200 to 1,400 fps, easy to do with today’s powders. The gun should have good open sights, preferable an aperture rear and hooded front, and be able to easily mount a low-powered, wide-angle scope. The bullet should be a jacketed flat point for edible small game, with a hollow-point option for game like raccoons, foxes, or coyotes. One could also have a “short” version of the cartridge for close-range work on smaller critters, or when noise is an issue.
So why can’t I have one? Well, the nation’s gunmakers and cartridge companies are notorious for one thing: They don’t listen to me. And that, sadly, is just something I’m going to have to learn to live with. In the meantime, I’ll keep my eyes open for a good original Winchester 92 in .25-20, which is likely to set me back a tidy few shekels; but I expect it will be worth it.
I saw a beast with ten horns and seven heads rising out of the blackness of the sea. On its horns hung ten crowns, and on its heads were inscribed blasphemous names. 2 This beast was like a leopard, its feet were like the claws of a bear, and its mouth was like the jaws of a lion. The dragon bestowed it with his power and his throne and his great authority.
That beast was me. For I was first.
Okay. That was pretty funny, Broche. I had a good laugh.
Is that stevens the big brother of my baby rolling block?
.22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire (WMR) is also extremely loud
I can’t help but wonder about a very heavy (60+ grn.) WMR going out at 1100fps or so…
Well, the nation’s gunmakers and cartridge companies are notorious for one thing: They don’t listen to me.
Dammit.
Right?
How about a very fast .22 centerfire, such as .22-250? Just spitballing here, but I’m imagining with FMJ it would go straight through small game at close range, leaving a 1/4″ hole. People splattering prairie dogs are usually shooting at a distance.
May as well just use .223 hardball.
What about a centerfire pistol round like the 5.7 or .22 TCM?
wasnt meant as a reply.
Probably work fine – kind of expensive which is contraindicated for cheapskates like me.
.22 tcm is pretty cheap. Lowestammo.com has 100 rounds of 40 grain JHPs for 27 bucks.
I love kicking this stuff around, but I’m super practical, especially about sourcing and quality. I shot bushels of 22 as a kid and in college, but I will admit that I’m not current on what’s available and why things have changed over the last 40 years.
I did get lost a bit in the meat argument. I don’t know why CCI Mini Mag in the solid point isn’t everyone’s answer for the smallest game and hollow points for tougher critters: you punch clean through one to preserve meat, and you deliver foot-pounds and shred blood vessels if the pelt isn’t important for the other.
I was thinking the same thing about some the zippy solid .22lr rounds l have stored up.
Hmmm..I’m going to have to look at my 22 boxes now. Mostly just plinking and killing smaller varmints. Like a mole that surfaced and didn’t want the doggie to mess with.
I used MiniMag for killing ‘flicker-tails’ (Prairie Dog) with my Uncle and cousins and there was no question about lethality. I recall grazing one and opening him up like a canoe.
He made a racket, but didn’t last very long.
Well, my honest answer would be “because I love oddball old stuff and I want a .25 Stevens.”
#MeToo
everyone experiments somewhere
I recently inherited some Savage Sporters and Winchester 92s in 25-20 and 32-20. I am looking forward to days off and good weather to co-exist, and taking them to the range. Before I take them out on a boating excursion, of course.
I would really like to get a revolver in 32-20. They are still surprisingly affordable. Im not entirely sure what, if anything, is out there as far as 25-20 revolvers.
My dad gave me my grandfather’s 25-20 with an old octagonal barrel that he used for deer hunting. I keep meaning to take it to the range to try it out.
Another satisfying Annamakee County article, Animal. In days of yore some of the locals used 25-20s for deer hunting. It wasn’t legal at the time but what else is new. I don’t know a single person that hunts squirrels now. As a kid I kept the Fourscores in meat one winter, snowshoes abounded and I was adept with both snares and a .22. Something has happened, I never see snowshoes anymore, not even a track. Logging has pretty much disappeared and replanting is mostly red pine these days. Grey squirrels are far more plentiful but teenagers seem to be into video and telephones and less out side.
As a younger man I lusted for a 220 Swift but eventually discovered a Weatherby and reloading. Thanks for the article, maybe I need a 25 rimfire, too.
OT: Re models
Now that I live in a hurricane prone area, I follow cyclocane.com. The first storm of the year is going on now. I like looking at the spaghetti models. These have much more science behind them than the pandemic projection models and they are still all over the place. Look at the current ones for Tropical Storm Arthur.
You can ignore the dumbest one – there is one that is a straight line projection based on current direction. But even that one doesn’t look at dumb as some of the models look (although which extreme is more right is hard to say).
Also, that site has a fun bug. When a projection passes over the prime meridian from west to east, it steps over it the wrong way, ie, all the way around the world.
According to our models, exactly the thing we’ve always been trying to do is the best course of action. You can’t argue with science.
These models?
Generally, when I think of models, it’s not those two.
For the purposes you’re talking about, there are a significant amount of air guns that will meet that purpose.
They have big-bore rifles that shoot .35 and ,45 cal rounds that can be used for coyote as well.
I have a .177 Benjamin that they claim will take out a racoon at 40 yds and a squirrel at 60. I’ve never tested those claims, but does seem possible.
Shooting it is a lot like .22 short without the noise.
Big bore airguns are just tre cool.
This guy makes some amazing shots with an airgun
https://www.youtube.com/user/EdgunUSA
The thing is, meat hunting small game is just a niche pastime these urbanized days. Plenty of people still will put away a freezer full of venison, but eating squirrel or rabbit? Not so much.
There are still some folks running trap lines out in the boondocks, but for that you’re shooting your game in the head from six inches away. A subsonic .22 is perfect for that role.
Sorry to go OT, but i just saw a clip from Obamas Commencment speech, where he talked about how the coronavirus crisis showed how many people “in charge” don’t know what they are doing and aren’t even “pretending to be in charge”. Fuck you man. Being a politiican does not make you everyones mother/father/boss/slaveowner.
Well maybe it does, but it shouldn’t.
He also said that big, broad consensus on the ends, and that everyone is just dividing you over the means. Because Means are just little details, as long as we get do the glorious end that we want.
I wish my governor and mayor would stop “not even pretending to be charge!” The mayor just told which side of the aisle to walk down at the grocery store.
OFFS
No shit! They literally transformed them into a life sized board game. They forced them to put decals on the ground denoting where to stand, which way to walk, where to wait in line, etc. And, you must wear a mask of the store will get charged with a misdemeanor and they made them put plexiglass barriers between the cashiers and the public. They are not even pretending to be in charge! That’s just the supermarket, the micro managing goes everywhere else as well.
So Obama is libertarian now? People in charge have been fucking up since Priam. He finally noticed and is sorry he was ever purporting to be in charge? Good on him! For totally doing that.
No, no, no. That dastardly devil Trump, who stole the election that Obama said was unstealable, with the wink-and-nudge help of a massive Russian disinformation campaign that Obama was unable to do anything about despite having lots of resources to dedicate to spying on Trump, has shown no leadership skills whatsover, unlike his biracial (but black when it counts) holiness who led from behind, and the civil service is at loggerheads to do anything at all despite being staffed by almost exactly the same people as when he was in charge. We would not be in this predicament if we had elected her holy drunkenness, who totally did not run a rogue IT shop while serving as Secretary of State to evade reporting requirements, and whose myriad foreign policy accomplishments cannot be understated, just don’t ask any foreigners about it, who would have had the prescient foresight to get the media to say whatever she wanted them to say and maintain appearances instead of portraying modern American government as the highly dysfunctional mess it actually is.
OT: Vermont gym opening up is ordered to close
A judge on Friday granted the state a temporary restraining order against a Rutland-area gym owner who opened his fitness centers to the public despite Gov. Phil Scott’s executive order.
The judge’s ruling bars the gym from “operating in-person, indoor operations” until the state allows it.
Earlier Friday, Attorney General T.J. Donovan filed a civil lawsuit against Club Fitness of Vermont and owner Sean Manovill. It is the first lawsuit in Vermont to enforce Scott’s “Stay Home, Stay Safe” order in response to the coronavirus pandemic, according to Donovan’s office.
“I’m disappointed we have to go to court to seek compliance with the Governor’s lawful executive order,” Donovan said in a news release. “The vast majority of Vermonters have done the right thing. It’s not fair to them or other businesses to let Mr. Manovill openly violate the order.”
GoFundMe for the gym.
It’s not just happening in Vermont: NJ gym opens in defiance of governor’s lockdown: ‘We will not stand down’.
I did receive e-mails from the spin studio I went to over the winter, they’re offering to allow people to continue the freeze on their accounts, and are working on scheduling classes now.
I saw some news about the NJ gym. I like that the cops did nothing.
No word from my gym yet, though I’ve heard talk that other gyms in NH are planning to reopen on the 1st.
indoor operations
I assume he immediately moved a bunch of equipment out to the parking lot.
Something something can’t have these guns
Fuck off. Just because some people can bear this without destroying themselves does not make it “the right thing”. If everyone was being as financially ruined because of these orders as small business owners are, you would see the widespread flaunting of the rules, and Judges would be talking about how tyrannical it is.
Newsom says first responders would be first ones laid off if states don’t get federal assistance http://hill.cm/BeOugWH
IowaHawk: Hello 911, I’d like to report a hostage situation
It’s always the Washington Monument strategy.
Seems like you could give them limited funds contingent upon them being used for first responders only.
Money is fungible. I’d tell him to pound sand.
Call his bluff and let him answer to his voters.
^^^^ This. He is trying to hold his people hostage by making it everyone elses fault that he will choose to fire the essential workers first. Tell him to fuck off, we don’t care if he screws up his own state.
^^THIS.
This is why politicians oppose priority based budgeting.
If you have to put a priority on things, then you can’t play these games, not without pissing off lots of people.
How stupid is it for him to blatantly threaten to punish the sainted (in the eyes of the public) “first responders” if he doesn’t get his bailout?
What an amateur. You don’t say that. Instead, you publish a new “emergency budget” with cuts to meet the “current crisis”. The cuts just happen to be all frontline first responders.
How many of them are his to lay off, anyway? Highway Patrol? Most cops and firefighters are municipal. Ambulances and EMTs are a mix of private and municipal.
Meanwhile… Governor Newsom Announces $125 Million in Assistance to Illegal Aliens
No, it’s the real first responders and heroes of this crisis: state public health department, Cal OSHA, employment department, and so on. Don’t you even Covid, bro?
Can you even lay off volunteers? I mean, you can kick them out, but it’s not like you can not pay them the salary they’re already not getting paid.
A lot of volunteer first responders get some nice fringe benefits like pensions and insurance if they stay long enough.
They know how to waste some money decking out equipment with polished aluminum tread plate and the like also.
So, first responders are not actually essential? Good to know.
Interesting article. Thanks Animal.
I wasn’t aware of the 25 caliber before.
RIP Eddie Haskell.
https://variety.com/2020/tv/news/ken-osmond-dead-leave-it-to-beaver-eddie-haskell-dies-actor-1234609639/
Even as an old guy there was no mistaking him for someone else. RIP.
I thought the very same.
RE: The Late P Brooks and selling books.
Unless they are antique or nice leather bound books they won’t bring a lot. Our local library won’t even take books. You can throw modern paperbacks in the dumpster.
If you have the former, take them to an auctioneer that does online sales like myself or Sloopy and it saves you the hassle of dealing with the payments and people. Books are easy to photograph and you might even be able to work a deal where you can do some or all of the photos and descriptions yourself for a good commission rate. I would do that for you, but logistics is probably an issue.
Well, what counts as “a lot” is pretty variable. I tend to clear between $15 and $55 per book. They tend to be ‘specialty topics’, often of somewhat limited availability, but not always. Clearing out my Randiana has fallen in that range, for example.
Worth the trouble? Depends on how busy you are. I’m retired and packing then running the books to the post office takes 30-40 minutes, mostly depending on how busy the PO is.
You are correct. I was going to mention specialty topics but I got tired of typing, and from what I’ve seen the more peculiar or odd the topic the better.
Nice article Animal. Seem like the gun makers are introducing all sorts of new cartridges, because they can sell new guns. So maybe your dream of a 25 rimfire will happen some day.
I doubt a new rimfire would be developed. I think the tooling for a rimfire not based on the .22lr would be too costly.
One of the newer .17 cal rimfires is from a necked down .27 cal nailgun case, so something like might work.
Wonder if you could make a straight walled .27 rimfire from that case.
Thanks, Camping. I’m in the early stages. I need to go through them. Most of them have been in boxes since I moved up here. For all I know the mice have shredded them for nest material (I doubt it).
A not-insignificant number should be “worth owning” to somebody. They’re more for owning than reading. Last time I checked, the first editions were worth in the hundreds, but the bottom may have dropped out of the market since then. Definitely a lot of books which must be traded on the “antiquarian” market.
I’d consider a company like this if I were you: https://historical.ha.com/rare-books/
They likely have a buyer following that are looking for the type of books you have.
Camping knows more about it than I do but this website MIGHT be of some use: https://www.abebooks.com/?cm_sp=TopNav-_-Home-_-Logo
I wouldn’t use their sellers tab, but you might be able to find some (relatively) local people you can contact.
Unfortunately you can’t use .22lr on public land in Illinois…so the bunnies and squirrels I shoot with a shotty(12 gauge bird shot 8 I think), when on private land i’ve used the .22lr a lot and never had a problem dropping small game. That said, I know quite a few dbags that use a .22lr for poaching deer at night(I’m no snitch but if I was ever asked about said idiots I would spill the beans).
Unfortunately you can’t use .22lr on public land in Illinois
Why the hell not?
Take a guess.
Still bitter about Lincoln being assassinated with a .22? / may be based off bad facts.
BFYTW
The reason being that a .22lr bullet can travel over a mile. Which is crap, at a mile out it would be so slow that it would be hard to scratch the skin.
In the meantime, I’ll keep my eyes open for a good original Winchester 92 in .25-20, which is likely to set me back a tidy few shekels; but I expect it will be worth it.
Animal, this rifle is up for sale at Amoskeag Auction’s next hybrid auction. It looks like it has seem some use.
Well, now, isn’t that interesting.
I hadn’t seen that auction site before, but I have it bookmarked now.
That auction site is why DEG still doesn’t have his TR-6.
Tundra speaks the truth.
I think the Amoskeag folks are good and like dealing with them. Thanks to Clown Prince Sununu’s panic and Lil Rona (*) the viewing room is closed so I can’t run to Manchester and take a look any pieces.
(*) In this case I’m fine with blaming both. Most of Amoskeag’s bidders are older and in at-risk demographics.
Was thinking about the lockdowners and how often they potray the lockdowns as “well you’re just missing out on a few fun things, and it could save lives. Going to the beach for fun and risking lives is so selfish”. Wonder how they would react to demands to shutdown Netflix, since it could save lives of people killed during filming of their specials. Amazon too. People die in those warehouses, so shutting it down is justified. If you want cheap goods delivered, you are just asking for other people to sacrifice their lives for your meager benefit.
Start with banning swimming pools because a couple thousand people a year drown in them, and they are just for fun, recreational.
Interesting stuff, thanks.
The .25ACP* is more pathetic than anemic (65 ft-lb muzzle). Too bad a wildcatter couldn’t stretch that cartridge into something more useful. Centerfire rather than rimfire.
*In the early books James Bond used a Beretta .25. In FRwL he “upgraded” to a .32.
I was thinking about the 25ACP as a base instead of rimfire.
I still want a repro Colt 1903.
Thanks, Camping. I’ll look into that auctioneer.
I’m back after and incredibly busy week at work. Thanks for this!
I’ve been eyeing up something in small caliber besides 22LR.
.17 hmr is a lot of fun.
Thanks, I’ll add that to the list!
Was thinking about the lockdowners and how often they potray the lockdowns as “well you’re just missing out on a few fun things, and it could save lives. Going to the beach for fun and risking lives is so selfish”. Wonder how they would react to demands to shutdown Netflix, since it could save lives of people killed during filming of their specials. Amazon too. People die in those warehouses, so shutting it down is justified. If you want cheap goods delivered, you are just asking for other people to sacrifice their lives for your meager benefit.</em?
Why aren't advertising agencies "nonessential"? I'm sick to death of plague related ads. I feel ridiculous yelling at my teevee, but I can't seem to help it.
HEY!!! I needed some new underwear, damnit.
I’ve got some used underwear I could sell you….
It probably won’t fit Sean.
Good article, Animal.
So the Glorious Four Phase Plane of the Enlightened People’s Republic of Massachusetts has been published. It is every bit the shit show one would expect.
Some observations. My dogs can’t go to the groomer together. I have to wait out in the car and the groomer gets one, then the other. No dogs are allowed in the waiting kennels. They can’t use my leash. The groomer has to provide me with a leash which I then put on the dog. Then, after they’re done, they take the leash back.
Dogs are also to be socially distanced when walking.
My Jiu Jitsu school cannot open until Phase 3. No idea when that is…. Probably another two months. Which means that it’s almost certain that there will be no school to return to. The owner is not a wealthy man; it’s a labor of love for him.
My wife still is prohibited from getting manicures and pedicures.
The restrictions on using our office are so asinine that my boss announced that we’re working from home till further notice; It’s not like they’re going to replace 5,000 cubicles to raise the walls 1.5 feet.
I actually voted for the current governor when he first ran for the governorship. I violated my principles of not participating in the farces called elections because it was very important to me that Martha Coakley’s political career be completely flushed down the toilet. You might recall that she tried to keep an innocent husband and wife in jail – knowingly – for the sole purpose of furthering her political career. To this day she still maintains that they were nasty child abusers who are a threat to the general public.
So we got Charlie Baker… who is trying to imprison nearly half of the innocent people living in the state.
I’ve learned my lesson. I should have stayed home.
I have a .22 mag that I bought on a whim, found online for $100 when I was looking for a .22Hornet. Marlin 783, bolt action tube fed. Love that rifle, but it is more for the 50-100 yard range, as opposed to .22lr. If I was going to use it for any closer work (ha! can’t walk too well anymore so that is out) I would get a Paco Acu’rzr. Less work than handloading, but allows you to get a flat tip on the bullet. I do have a .32-20 but too heavy for small game work. Both are poachers rounds.
Our County reopened today, I went by Lowes to pickup some landscaping supplies earlier today. Lowes was crowed, maskateers were out in force, 60% – 70% of people were complying by an my unofficial eyeball count. Heading to the bowling alley to throw a few frames at 3:30. Had to call them first – they want people to make reservations. They didn’t mention anything about having to wear a mask.
Nice article! I didn’t know such a caliber existed, ever. Very informative and it looks like it good be a good shooter for a plinker/small game type. Thanks! OH, Gender Traitor has a pair of .25 ACP earrings, but those are another animal entirely, some say better left as jewelry.