Cowboy Buck's Review on Dam Road Gun Shop

COWBOY BUCK DAM ROAD GUN SHOP REVIEW

DAM ROAD GUN SHOP REVIEW

The best gun shop in Wisconsin is tucked away out in the country not far from the small town of Delavan, Wi. Delavan is the picture of small town America, a picturesque little town with awesome family owned restaurants and other business'. The kind of places where you can get to know the owners and staff, eat a meal that you actually get full on, see families and groups of friends visiting. It reminds me of a northern Wisconsin town or what my home town used to be. 

Just a few miles out of town is Dam Road Gun Shop. The first time I went there I thought it was to small too have much, but then I stepped inside and was shocked by all the shooting, hunting, reloading equipment and more that I saw. Most of all, I saw a lot of guns and I don't mean the usual overstock of the moments "In Gun" that bring out everyone that wants to be with the in crowd. What I mean is that I saw a very wide variety of guns, from antiques and really good used guns to the most expensive Sig Sauers and everything in between.

Please don't let the small building fool you, there are over 5,000 guns on the property. If you don't see what you want, ask, because chances are they have it and Mike Palenski (the owner) will know just where it is. Also, ammo like crazy, even during the ammo shortage. If your a newbie and wouldn't know a musket from an AK, just ask, Mike and and his son Tom or other staff members like Dale and Steve, they will be happy to explain and answer any question. They DON'T talk down to you like your an idiot (we've all been in to many gun shops like that), but Dam Road isn't that way. They have spent many an hour explaining scopes, black powder guns and numerous other things with me.

 Remington 700 CDL Classic Deluxe 30-06 Rifle 

A Beautiful Leather and Deer Hair Rifle Strap

for my Remington 700 CDL Classic Deluxe 30-06

both bought at Dam Road Gun Shop

They even carry a very wide array of SASS, Cowboy Action Shooting and Re-enactment Guns and ammo. Mike is into SASS shooting. There is a very impressive selection of hunting rifles, scopes, ammo and gear. I just got a beautiful Remington 700 CDL Classic Deluxe 30-06 Lefty with Leupold scope and a beautiful leather sling for this up-coming deer season as well as ammo.

This is a collage of my deer hunting set up, 

everything in the photo, except the Buck Knife, 

came from Dam Road Gun Shop

It is all very cool for a gun shop to have such a wide selection of firearms, but as we all know that doesn't do much good if the prices are too high for you to buy them. That is not the case at Dam Road though. Mike's prices are not only below the MSRP, but well below any gun shop I've ever been in. I've bought many guns from them and not one time did I ever feel I paid too much. As a matter of fact, I always feel that I have gotten a great price. I've never dickered over a price, 1- because they are fair prices and 2- because I know that if there is anything wrong with the gun, Mike will make it right. 

One incident with Dam Road that I will never forget was the time I had decided to buy a Smith and Wesson 500 Magnum, so I started reading everything I could find about the gun as I usually do before buying any gun. As I was studying, I had decided on the 4 inch barrel version and saw on the Smith & Wesson website that a Special Limited Big Rock Edition with a grizzly bear head on the frame and bear paws on the cylinder. When I saw that revolver, I knew I had to have it, so I started checking around the web only to find out that the big wheel gun was out of stock everywhere. I called S&W and they didn't know when or if Big Rock would be ordering anymore to be made or not. Frustrated, I started calling a ton of big time gun shops, but no luck. Keep in mind that I had never asked Dam Road about any limited edition firearms up to this point. After deciding that the bear edition wasn't to be had, I called Tom, Mike's son, and asked if they had any 4 inch barrel 500 Mags in stock and he said they did, so I headed on up. When I get there Tom opens the bright green case and lo and behold there sits my new Smith & Wesson 500 Magnum Big Rock Grizzly Edition. I smiled so big that Tom asked me what was up. So I told him the story and he started laughing. Needless to say, I was happier than a coon in a campground.

The 500 Mag on the counter Dam Road

Smith & Wesson 500 Magnum

Big Rock Grizzly Edition

Another example is when I decided I wanted to buy a 1911, I researched and decided that I wanted a Remington 1911 R1. I called Mike and he said he had a Commemorative Edition brand new. I was really surprised that he had one. 

In 2011 Remington started making 1911 pistols again, they made them during World War 1, along with Singer Sewing Machine Company, Remington Rand Typewriter Company among others. The 1911 was a Colt pistol, but due to the amount needed during WW1 and WW2, Colt couldn't meet the demands by themselves. Therefore Colt sub-contracted 1911 pistol production to other companies to help Colt supply the United States Military with the side arm. During the two World Wars roughly 1,968,533 1911 Pistols were produced by Colt, Remington and other United States Companies. A staggering amount. No wonder Colt didn't have the facilities to produce them all.

Remington hadn't made a 1911 model pistol since WW1, but in 2011 on the 100th birthday of John Browning's greatest invention, Remington announced that they were going to start making them in several different models, two of which would be Commemorative Editions. There is the edition like mine with special engraving, Commemorative 1911 - 2011 engraving, match grade barrel, special grips, Special 1911 utility tool, Certificate of Authenticity and more. All contained in a Special Limited Edition Package. The other was basically the same, but with real gold inlays.

Both of these Commemorative Editions were believed to be completely sold out years ago. However this summer, 2014, Mike still had a new, unused, unopened one. So I jumped at the opportunity and asked Mike if he would hold it for me, which he did, and I told him I would be right up to buy it. I was and still am, one very happy man. The Remington 1911 R1 is the best, most accurate pistol I have ever shot or owned.

REMINGTON 1911 R1 CENTENNIAL .45 ACP

The best and most accurate pistol I have ever shot.

They also offer gunsmith services and Mike does a great job. I had him work on a 1959-1960 J.C. Higgens Model 101-540 12 gauge, side by side, double barrel shotgun sold by Sears, Roebuck and Company at their stores. (Just like the one my Grampa owned, I've even nicknamed that cherished gun Grampa) Mike did an awesome job for a very inexpensive price. Scope mounting, bore sighting are also available.

My Grampa shotgon is my 1959-1960 J.C. Higgens Sears, Robuck and Co. Model 101-5401 12 gauge, 

Double Barrel, Side by Side Shotgun

( These were a Stevens Model 311 made by Stevens Firearm Co. for Sears )

In closing Dam Road Gun Shop is one of those American places where you can go to shot the bull with the guys, swap stories or information. All the while shopping, confident that your getting good prices on quality firearms, ammo and equipment. Along with advice or guidance that you can count on.

I am changing my rating system to 1 to 7 shells, 7 being the being the best.

I am giving Dam Road Gun Shop a 7 Shell Rating

         

Review of the Henry Repeating Rifle .44 Magnum Big Boy

Henry Repeating Arms Co.

Henry Lever Action .44 Magnum/ .44 Special Rifle

HENRY REPEATING RIFLE - .44 MAGNUM/.44 SPECIAL LEVER ACTION RIFLE

"The rifle that won The Civil War and The Wild WEST"

            

HENRY REPEATING ARMS, .44 MAGNUM, .44 SPECIAL LEVER ACTION RIFLE

In 1860, Benjamin Tyler Henry invented the Henry Repeating Rifle for The New Haven Arms Company, later to become The Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The Henry Rifle was the first truly dependable lever action repeating rifle and could hold 16 rounds of sixteen rounds of .44 caliber rim-fire ammunition cartridges that could be fired at 28 rounds per minute. That rate of fire was astonishing in 1860, when most soldiers were shooting black powder musket, which had to be reloaded after each shot. Reloading a musket is a slow process, with most solders only being able able to fire 3 rounds per minute.

Benjamin Tyler Henry

An antique Henry Rifle advertisement

The above information, tells of how revolutionary The Henry was in it's day. With this new gun, B.T. Henry went to president Abraham Lincoln with one of his rifles, and presented him with a gold plated Henry rifle, that now is in The Smithsonian Institute. Lincoln loved the rifle, being an accomplished shooter, really admired the rifle. Lincoln wanted to order many of the Henry rifles for the Union troops, but do to interference from the men in charge of equipment for the Union Army. (Yes, the was a lot of the political red tape then too). Abe was only able to order 3,140 of the rifles.

President Abraham Lincoln's Henry Rifle

The original Henry rifles shot the Henry Cartridge, the first fully contained copper or brass cartridge. They were .44 caliber and completely self contained, one piece cartridges, making them way easier to load than a cap & ball gun. Plus they were water proof, so people didn't have to worry about keeping black powder dry.

                               

A .44 Henry Cartridge found on a Civil War battle site.

The only problem with the original Henry was that there was no wood under the barrel, so when the barrel got hot, the men would have to let it cool. The advantages so far outweighed the that one disadvantage though, that when The Union soldiers would reenlist, a lot of them would spend their reenlistment bonus on buying a Henry rifle and ammo for it. That purchase gave them 28 shots a minute as apposed to 3 with a musket, therefore giving them a better chance of getting back home alive and well.

The Henry Repeating Rifle was not the only repeating rifle at the time though. There was also the Spencer Repeating Rifle, which was also invented in 1860. The Spencer held seven rounds in a tube in the buttstock, it shot fast, but had to be reloaded more often because of only holding seven rounds per tube. The Henry's tube, which was mounted under the barrel held 15 rounds, therefore it didn't need to be reloaded as often.

The Spencer held a .56 caliber bullet, but had terrible ballistics. The Henry having a .44 Caliber, which is a pistol caliber, had more power per shot, however didn't shoot as far as the Spencer.

Spencer Repeating Rifle

                                                           Spencer Repeating Rifle diagram

When the Confederate soldiers first encountered both rifles, they were stunned. Many Rebs thought that the amount and speed of ammo being shot meant they were up against a troop of soldiers, when in truth it may have just been a few scouts or snipers. The Confederates did get their hands on some of the rifles from fallen Union soldiers, they went on to call The Henry Rifle, " That darn Yankee rifle that they load on Sunday and shoot all week." People have said that The Henry was the first Military Assault Rifle.

Reports of The Henry Rifle have been well documented in Civil War history. The 71st Infantry of Illinois was the most known and maybe only whole troop to carry Henry Rifles. An account of that came from Major William Ludlow’s account of the Battle of Allatoona Pass. “What saved us that day was the fact that we had a number of Henry rifles” wrote Major Ludlow. “This company of 16 shooters sprang to the parapet and poured out such a multiplied, rapid and deadly fire, that no men could stand in front of it and no serious effort was made thereafter to take the fort by assault.”

71st Infantry Illinois with their Henry Rifles

When the Reb's did get ahold of a Henry or Spencer, it didn't do them much good once the ammo with it was gone, because both the rifles were made in and for the North. That meant that after the Confederate soldiers shot up that ammo, they couldn't get any more.

Both companies ended up being bought by Winchester shortly after the Civil War. The Spencer stopped being made, but The Henry was given a side loading port a fore end stock and became the Winchester 1866. Ammo for the Spencer was made into the early 1900's, but ammo for The Henry was made until The Great Depression hit America.

The Henry Repeating Lever Action Rifle wasn't made in America again until The Henry Repeating Arms Co. opened in 1996, They now have two plants, one in Bayonne, New Jersey and one in Rice lake, Wisconsin. The new version of The Henry is true to it's Civil War namesake, except it has an improved closed loading tube, wood fore end and, since the original 44 Henry ammo isn't made anymore, it comes in a wide variety of caliber options. The closest and most powerful being the .44 Magnum / .44 Special Big Boy Version. The Big Boy in .45 long Colt is also very popular among Cowboy and Single Action Shooters.

The most commonly seen Henry is The Golden Boy, which is a .22 caliber version. Henry a present has roughly 17 rifles available plus a lot of special limited edition rifles commemorating Abe Lincoln, The Boy Scouts, one for all the US Military branches and many more.

I bought my Henry Lever Action Big Boy in .44 Magnum, which will also shoot .44 Special, after wanting one for a very long time. It is after all, a real Cowboy Rifle. Holding it at gun shop was great, holding and firing it after I bought my own was awesome.

The first thing that I noticed and have a lot of people agree with, is that The Henry is a beautiful piece of gun art. You won't find burrs or blemishes, scrapes or scratches on a newly unboxed Henry. The machining, polishing, blueing and woodworking are incredible. The brass receiver, barrel lop and butt-end are stunningly beautiful and shined to a mirror finish. The wood is American Walnut. All of the fits, joints and finishes are great. Pictures of the Henry really don't do it justice, you have to see and hold a Henry to really appreciate it. The next fun step is shooting it. 

I went to the range and shot 44 Magnum and 44 Special ammo I've also shot new and reloaded ammo and it cycles through my Henry perfectly. I did fire one once that didn't eject well when shot at a very fast rate of speed, but I have shot 7 or 8 of them and only seen that one have that trouble. It isn't anything I would worry about. The lever action cocking, ejecting and reloading the chamber are smoother than butter. The Henry is a heavy gun which helps with the .44 Magnum recoil. The kick is no more than any quality deer rifle. There is no need for a rubber butt plate.

The semi-buckhorn sights are easy to use and were very accurate right our of the box. The octagon barrel is awesome and helps keep the barrel cool. The loading tube is simple to use, just depress and turn the cap, pull out the spring fed magazine, insert the ammo, re-insert the (inner tube and cap) magazine, turn to lock it into place and your ready to go. And the shooting is FUN.

The Henry makes me feel nostalgic, like I should be a Texas Ranger with Gus McCrae and Capt. Call in Lonesome Dove fighting bandits or Comanche's. That is another thing about the Henry, it is mentioned as a main rifle in many Western novels and movies. Some are Lonesome Dove, True Grit, Django Unchaned, Cowboys and Aliens, Silverado among many more. How can any Western movie or novel lover not get excited by reading (epic novel) or seeing (movie or TV series) Call and Gus carrying those beatiful Henry rifles. With description like " The roar of Call's big Henry" or watching Robert Duvall using his horse as  a breast works and fighting those Kiowa's and buffalo hunters to save Laurena.

The cost of a Henry Big Boy in the big bore calibers is very reasonable at $750 or $450 for the Henry Golden Boy in .22 caliber. The special edition rifles such as the Lincoln Edition or Deluxe models are more, but they are collectors items and are still not excessively priced. 

Plus your getting a 100 % American made rifle. The president and owner of Henry rifles Anthony Imperato is a company owner that can be really be reached. I have never tried, but I have heard and read of many who have. He can be reached and (I've heard you get a response from the president himself at;

 http://www.henryrifles.com/contact-henry-repeating/contact-anthony-imperato/

Henry just announced that they will be making an exact reproduction of the original Henry rifle in America for the first time in roughly 150 years.

Also Henry announced that the Wisconsin plant will begin making 30-30 & 45-70 rifles and they are now shipping to gun shops.

Other great things about the Henry are;

1- You can send in your very own rifle and have the brass receiver engraved.

2- All Henry Lever Action Rifles come with the normal lever size, but for $50 you order a large loop lever.

3- All Henry Lever Action Rifles can be used by right or left handed shooters. I am left eye dominant, so I shoot rifles left handed. It comes in handy when I don't have to worry about finding a left handed rifle.

I am going to end this review a bit differently, usually I give a star rating and explanation with each subject. I have however went into greater detail on this review, so I am going to give the Henry 5 star rating.

***** Stars perfect rating for my Henry Lever Action .44 Magnum/.44 Special by Henry Repeating Arms

This particular blog is not a gun review, but on gun law, gun violence and freedom facts. PLEASE READ.

Facts on gun crime and law abiding citizens Constitutional Rights.

The great gun debate seems to be everywhere these days with the liberal left wing and our government using grandstanding and manipulating facts to try to get what they want - a gun free America.

The facts are that are Founding Fathers of this great nation never intended America to be a gun free country. If that where true The Second Amendment would never have been written. it reads; Amendment II -
A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.

That amendment has no cracks, holes, loopholes or misunderstandings. It is as airtight as the Constitution, The Holy Bible and right to life itself. However, many people from our current president to completely uneducated people and many types of people in between consistently try to make loopholes or say it is old fashioned, outdated or unreasonable. But let me ask you this, without armed citizens, would America ever been more than a collection of colonies still being abused by a tyrannical king? Would the African Americans ever been freed? The answer to both of these questions is a resounding NO. In both The Revolutionary War and The Civil War, Militias formed in individual States and later being formed into an army, The American Army or Colonists in The Revolutionary War and later in The Civil War, were formed by citizens just like you and me bringing THEIR OWN PERSONAL GUNS to fight tyranny and oppression as their Patriotic duty.

Later, yes the Union and Confederate armies supplied some of them with guns, however the original firearms were owned and brought from the soldiers homes. These guns were also what they hunted and protected their families with, then their country. Even after The Civil War had been gong on for years, soldiers used their own money to buy better guns such as The Henry Repeating Rifle and The Colt Dragoon and Navy models to better defend their lives and win the war to free the slaves and keep this great country whole. Why did they need to buy these guns with their personal funds? Because the government would not provide them with them. Given my own research on history, it was not President Lincoln who would not provide these guns, nor was it lack of funds to pay for them, it was the bureaucratic red tape tying Mr. Lincolns hands that stopped our men from getting the war changing repeating cartridge guns that eventually helped win the war.

The 1860 Henry Repeating Rifle

it held 10 round of 

water proof cartridges.

The Henry Rifle also had a sight to help a soldier shoot at different ranges.

When the Confederate soldiers saw this rifle, they called it " That D-mn Yankee rifle that they load on Sunday and shoot all week."

Other founding father quotes about Americans needing to be armed; 

" A free people ought to be armed " - George Washington

"A strong body makes the mind strong. As to the species of exercises, I advise the gun. While this gives moderate exercise to the body, it gives boldness, enterprise and independence to the mind. Games played with the ball, and others of that nature, are too violent for the body and stamp no character on the mind. Let your gun therefore be your constant companion of your walks." - Thomas Jefferson

"The Constitution of most of our states (and of the United States) assert that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by themselves; that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed."

- Thomas Jefferson

These quotes are from some of the most respected men in history. Without them, their would be no U.S.A., or freedom or choice in government. Firearms wouldn't even be an option. We would either be ruled by the British still or the nazi's, Russia or some other tyrant.

One of the arguments that anti gun people try to say is that if you take away guns, you take away gun related crime. This is totally untrue. Most guns used in crime are bought illegally. The guns were stolen or bought and sold from one criminal to another. In the case of fully automatic guns, they are bought from criminal gun runners. 

To get a fully automatic gun, such as a machine gun or Uzi, a law abiding citizen has to go through a long application process and have a really good reason for wanting to own one. A special tax stamp is needed and the persons record has to be almost flawlessly clear. Even then, most are denied and most that are approved have to have the weapon fixed so that they are made either not fire at all or at least are reduced semi automatic.

The fact of the matter is that anyone with a criminal background cannot ever own a fully automatic weapon legally and rightfully so. In Wisconsin, if a person has been convicted of any violent crime, felony, domestic dispute which involved violence, or anyone on parole or probation cannot own a gun and that is also rightfully so. When a person consciencely makes a decision to become a criminal and is convicted by a jury, those lose certain rights. Gun ownership being one of them and rightfully so. No one wants to arm a criminal. That would be insane.

The other side, the law abiding citizens being stopped from owning or carrying guns for protection, be it at home, open carry or concealed carry is also insane.

Let's face it, when a law abiding citizen is stopped from owning a gun, criminal have the advantage. An advantage that they enjoy and exploit. Because the criminals now have an easy target to rob, assault, rape or kill with little resistance since the criminal is illegally armed and the law abiding citizen can't use equal force.

The state of Illinois, and especially the city of Chicago has some of the most restrictive gun laws in America. However, that gun control isn't working in the year 2012 alone there were 3,873 violent gun crimes which include Homicide, shootings and assaults committed by law breaking criminals. That doesn't even include the rapes, gun threats or robberies. 

The saddest part about those statistics in Chicago is that compared to the Afghanistan war, there have been 2196 American deaths in 14 years OF WAR. there obviously is no gun control given to American soldiers during a war. That means that your chances of being killed, wounded or assaulted by a gun criminal in Chicago in one year are higher than if you were in the military engaged in war in 14 years. The law abiding citizen changes of living 14 years at war are better than surviving 1 year in Chicago. Given in Chicago you may survive the shooting, assault, etc. , but most of that is probably because there is better and faster medical care available.

That should tell any reasonably intelligent person that gun control and/or disarming citizens DOESN'T WORK. Those statics are staggering. 

I got these statistics for Chicago from 91.5 Wbez's website, the link is http://www.wbez.org/news/data-behind-chicagos-gun-crimes-108092

I got those Afganistan War info from Wikipedia, the link being http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Forces_casualties_in_the_war_in_Afghanistan

Any simple Google search can provide the info with little effort.

I am fortunate enough to live in Wisconsin, a very gun friendly state. Where Open Carry, Concealed Carry and Home Defense are all legal. Wisconsin is a big hunting and shooting state, we rank  number 26 in studies for gun friendliness. Which is nice, but could be better.

The thing that strikes me as funny is that the law makers and politicians come to Wisconsin or other gun friendly stars when they want to hunt. Also, even though the politicians of Illinois made it illegal for concealed carry among citizens, they made it legal for themselves to conceal carry, a bit of hypocrisy there I'd say. This year, 2014, Illinois passed a law approving concealed carry for citizens, but only after an intensive training coarse, however even people having met the requirements, are not receiving licenses. What else can you expect from a state where many of the politicians end up behind bars?

I have been mostly concentrating a lot on Illinois, since they are the harshest gun law State. But then Connecticut tried one the most absurd laws probably in U.S. history. Earlier this year they demanded that by law all owners of certain types of rifles, mainly the AR15, which happens to be one of the most popular guns in America. This came because AR15's look like a military or assault rifle, but the truth is most AR15's are nothing more than .22 caliber rifles just made to look tough. A .22 caliber is what most kids learn to shoot with, excepting maybe a BB or pellet gun, since it isn't very powerful. However, Connecticut has made it a felony if the rifles aren't registered. 300,000 citizens are refusing to register since that law is unconstitutional. Connecticut is then only left with one choice, which is threatening, and that is to kick in doors in the middle of the night and raid houses with NO WARRANT. That is also unconstitutional. Isn't that one of the many reasons we fought the British for our independence?  Doesn't that sound like nazi Germany, Communist Russia, Communist China or Mussolini's Italy? The theory being, disarm the citizens and the government has complete control through fear.

I studied on this some and the state of Connecticut has 55 million dollars that they allot for prisons in a years budget. If the where to arrest the 300,000 citizens that are refusing to register their guns, Connecticut would have to spend roughly 600 million dollars a year to House all the wrongfully arrested so called felons. There is no way they could afford that. Which tells me, this wasn't well thought out and the politicians must have thought that people were going to just blindly give up their Constitutional rights.

Politician's and some police men act like when we use our Constitutional rights, they are doing us a favor or giving the people a gift by not arresting them. Our rights by the Constitution or the Bill of Rights, be it the Second Amendment or any other right are not gifts, THEY ARE INALIENABLE RIGHTS, FOUGHT AND DIED FOR BY AMERICANS FOR AMERICANS. We, the law abiding citizens, are the people giving them the gift of having a government job, we are the bosses, not the other way around.

Thomas Jefferson said, "The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government." 

I am going to close with the report below because I think it says a lot. There are still those in law enforcement who will stand for the Rights of the citizens that they work for.



Some lawmen are still or maybe starting to see it this way. 250 law enforcement officers in Connecticut have written a letter saying they refuse to uphold this law because it is UnConstitutional. Here is part of the report.

It is estimated that over 300,000 gun owners have practiced civil disobedience in refusing to register and give up the newly forbidden items. Only roughly 50,000 citizens in the state have complied.

But now these courageous citizens have key support in high places. With at least 250 law enforcement officers joining them in disobeying an unconstitutional law, the gun owners have a new weapon in their arsenal -- the support of hundreds of police officers.

Hardy reported that with the lack of support of police, Connecticut faces massive civilian resistance, with police officers refusing to enforce a law that to most citizens crosses a line that is unacceptable in a free society.

If such a thing can happen in a deeply blue state in New England, what would law enforcement encounter if they attempted such an ill-fated attack on Constitutionally-protected rights in Texas, Wyoming, South Carolina, Utah, or Kentucky?

This is something that the political powers that be in government and law enforcement -- and in the Courts -- should think long and hard about before acting in such a knee-jerk fashion as Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, and Massachusetts have done.

The link is, http://www.examiner.com/article/conn-police-refuse-to-enforce-new-gun-laws