Zombie Survival Sheet 5.0

I don't know where this sheet came from, or what it's for, other than just for fun.  

My answer/response is 100% authentic with the exception aircraft carrier, Terminator & Hillary Clinton.  I'm just sorry I couldn't also fit my 870 tactical shotgun in it.... then again, I probably don't want to carry two long guns & another set of ammunition.  :p

Last Zombie Flick I Saw: Scouts Guide to the Zombie Apocalypse

I remembered reading about this film looong time ago.  Title got my attention, but I forgot all about it.  Then recently, I read, or heard something about it, so I got a Blu-ray copy from Netflix.  

First thing I saw was the title screen, same pic as the above poster.  I was bracing for another bad zombie movie.  Instead, what I got was poor man's Zombieland(classic):

Don't let the trailer fool you, gags are funny in context & story is well crafted.  It's rare for me to laugh at jokes in films, let alone zombie flicks, but this one had me laughing in more than couple scenes. Characters are likable, and that pretty much makes any movie at least watchable.

I even watched the "making of" feature on the disc. That would only mean that this movie earned the grade "A".  :D

Diversify, Diversify...

Initially, I put together this "gun" blog to record & share my experience after my H&K USP handgun blew up in my hands(I suspect overcharged ammo).  I've done very little with the blog since, because I really don't shoot a whole lot.

Over the weekend, I saw a zombie movie called "Scouts Guide to Zombie Apocalypse".  It was a decent zombie flick, which in itself says a lot right there, but it was also put together really well, and a super hilarious one. 

That's when it hit me.  Guns & zombies/hand-in-hand!  lol

Dawn of the Dead (2004)

New page design, new name, welcome to the guns, zombies & whatever blog.  Likely to feature more zombies than guns.  :D

FAILED: I Tried Rapid Firing my .308 Rifle

I tried rapid firing my Bushmaster MOE .308 rifle, this summer.  I had never rapid fired a rifle before, let alone a .308.  It was fun.....

Don't laugh(too hard).  I was told later that I gotta lean into it little bit.  I don't weigh a whole lot, so that's my excuse.  lol

Part 4 of 4 When the Gun Explodes In Your Hands: The Conclusion

So in the end, I was receiving a brand new Heckler & Koch USP for the one that blew up in my hands.  To compensate for the FFL fees + the couple boxes of ammo I sent back for testing, ammo company sent me many boxes of .45ACP my way.  Street value for the ammo provided to me I think doubled, or tripled of what I had spent in fees & ammo returned to them, so I was pleasantly surprised by that & thanked the gentleman from the manufacturer who had handled my case & helped me through the whole process.  

Way the ammo manufacturer handled the whole process, I didn't see a single flaw in it.  Not even once, anything they did or ask got me frustrated.  They were total pro.  I have gained much respect for this company & it is frustrating that I can't give them props in fear that by naming the company, it would actually reflect negatively on them.

Kind of funny, kind of ironic.  Just few weeks before the accident, I had watched this youtube video of ZQI ammo(note: this is not the brand of ammo that blew up).  

I've been buying bunch of these, as they are just under $10 a box at Walmart for the 7.62x51mm I shoot.  It's a cool video & I recommend you check it out yourself.  When I watched it, I thought to myself, "All that ammo..... How could they possible run a effective quality control?  Impossible!".  Just about a month later, my gun went kaboom.

All I can do is look on the bright side.  All my fingers are intact, and no notable injuries.  Received replacement handgun & compensated for all expenses, even got a additional mag for free when I got the new gun(USP mags are expensive!!).  Ammo company, while they did not admit fault, they did step up to make it right & without a single hesitation.  

As for Heckler & Koch, while they showed very little interest in what happened, at least they were communicating & after doing much research online, the rumor about how the USPs are designed to blow up in the way they keep the injuries minimum seems to be true.  Most suffer injuries to their hands, but all the cases I saw, none of them lost fingers, or suffer major injury.  Some burnt their hands, or got cut up little bit, but I think the main thing in such accident is that hands & fingers stay intact & they did.

Finally, I hope this post helps those who may go through similar unfortunate incidents.  Please feel free to contact me for any advice, or questions you may have.  Thank you for reading & happy shooting!  :)

Part 3 of 4 When the Gun Explodes In Your Hands: Contact with HK & the Ammunition Manufacturer

In Part Two, I established how I had come to believe that it was overcharged ammo that blew up the gun.  It was now time to contact the ammunition maker.  I also ended up contacting Heckler & Koch, but I was convinced it was the ammo, so the point was really just to get the second opinion from them.

Since this happened on a weekend, I went to the ammo makers website & wrote them a message explaining what I believed happened, I was okay & that I requested they replace my pistol.  Since becoming an adult, one of the things I learned early on was to try to be calm & polite dealing with any customer relation issue.  Sometimes you have to be stern, but never get excited.  Very fortunately, I never had the need.  Representative was very experienced, professional & polite.  Funnily, we never spoke on the phone.  All communication was done by email.

It started with the numerous photo I took of the gun.  Then it was requested that I shipped the remaining ammo + the slide to them for testing & inspection.  I received an call-tag + simple hazmat label via email.  I did not need the FFL for shipping the slide.

During this time, I had contacted HK & while they were very prompt with the response, they maintained that the catastrophic failure was caused by the ammunition & I should contact the manufacturer, and that most of the time, they will pay for repairs.  That was pretty much the extent of my communication with the Heckler & Koch.

After couple of weeks, I was informed by the ammo maker that they succeeded in removing the shell casing stuck inside the battery, and confirmed their head stamp.  They had also said that the test results of the remaining ammo returned by me did not show any anomalies, but that they were authorizing to have my pistol replaced, as soon as I sent back the rest of the gun(the frame).

The exchange would require an FFL this time, as they are sending me a complete handgun for my frame, which is also considered an firearm.  I had guessed that this will take maybe couple of weeks.  I believe it actually took about a month.  However, entire time, the rep had kept in touch to keep me updated.

The whole process went completely smooth, thanks not just to the ammunition maker, but also the FFL I had picked out online due to the excellent review & affordable rates.  This was my first time dealing with Tigard Pawn 4 More, but I couldn't say enough nice thing about their operation.  Fast, friendly, professional & very low FFL fee.  I highly recommend them to anyone who lives or work near Tigard(OR) area.

I say they were affordable, but I was reimbursed, not just for the gun, but also for the ammo & the FFL fees.

Conclusion in Part Four.

Part 2 of 4 When the Gun Explodes In Your Hands: Examination - Investigation

Part Two:

As I mentioned in Part I, my friend picked up all the pieces of the gun off the ground for me, and man, he did a great job.  I think it was next day I put this jigsaw puzzle together & it was pretty complete.

I look at this photo & I can't help but be so grateful how my 5.11 gloves protected me.  It was the older Tac A gloves of the one I linked, and I was so impressed, I replaced that pair with another 5.11:  Station Grip Glove.  I've read stories online from the people who went similar accidents without gloves.  Burns & serious cuts from the shrapnel.  Scary.

Anyway, the above shots are kinda neat & impressive, but two pieces of evidence that got my initial attention were these:

I figured right away that the shell with bullet pushed in didn't really suggest what caused the accident, but it was the next shell to be chambered when the gun failed.  I first begun my research online, read couple of posts on forums about similar accidents, and I also ran into this video.

This gentleman had a USP that exploded in similar way to mine.  He was very generous with his time offering me inputs & advice.  I also chatted with  my pals on online community GTPlanet.  By this time, I suspected excessive charge in the ammo.  The case is visibly blown out at the back.  Chamber has expanded to the point that chamber/barrel is jammed stuck inside the slide.

I work for large company, and while we are in automotive, I know many people who have vast experiences with firearms there.  One of the coworkers there referred me to a gunsmith at a local shop called Buster Beaver(Wilsonville, Oregon).  Shop also happened to be owned by the former V.P. of the company I worked for, and they offered to look at the gun for me, so I headed out there.

I get there, and the shop was very impressive(they also cerakote), but people were really friendly, which made me less nervous.  lol   I think we first examined the barrel?  No bulging, no evidence of a squib load.

 One thing they really looked at was the unsupported chamber.   They asked if the gun had any work done.  I had purchased the pistol used, but everything looked stock, so I told them I had no reason to suspect that it had any work done.  In fact, I have the brand new USP now, and one that blew up was in identical condition as this new, unfired USP.  

They could not find one, but they were really hoping to find another USP for side-by-side comparison to see had anyone tampered with the chamber & ramp.  The concern was the gap left by chamber, which visibly exposed the brass case stuck inside the chamber.   After receiving the new USP, I took some photos, so we do have the luxury of inspecting this gap side-by-side:

As you can see, there was nothing wrong with the gun.  Amount of gap that existed in my old & new USP are same size. At this point, I was convinced that the excessive charge blew up this gun.  Perhaps the case just cracked, failed & that blew up the lower half of the gun?  I did consider that possibility, but since the explosion either expanded, or welded the chamber jammed stuck inside the slide in firing position, I was certain that charge must have been excessive.  Of course, I'm not a engineer, gunsmith, so in the end, it is just my unqualified opinion.  ;)