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by Jim Wilson

by Jim Wilson Before starting an article, experienced writers first decide who their audience is. If I were writing this piece for a print magazine I would probably spend a good deal of time explaining why lever-action rifles are worth considering for personal defense. And then I would spend a good deal of time telling about all of the various makes and models that are available to today’s shooters. With this group, all of that would be a waste of time. A lot of you own lever guns and quite a few of you have spent as many years using one as I have. So what follows are some of the things I have learned about using lever actions for personal defense. And I expect that a lot of you will share your own tips and techniques in the comments section. We’ll have a sharing session and it will turn out to be a win-win experience.

by Shane Jahn The guys at Dodson Guns in Alpine, Texas are aware of my wheelgun affliction, especially when it comes to Ruger single actions. Occasionally they will notify me when a used hogleg wearing the famed Phoenix bird brand shows up. One such phone call came from Jim Crouch when he initiated a short conversation concerning a Ruger Blackhawk in 44 Special—a prospective seller had dropped it off in an effort to cull his gun herd. It had been worked over by a gunsmith in Houston, but Jim didn’t recall the name, and he didn’t have the gun in front of him when he called me. Immediately my gun gears started turning. Alan Harton resides somewhere amongst the bustling Bayou City. Could it be a Harton gun?

by Jim Wilson Lon Parker was an Arizona cowboy. His extended family settled and ranched in southern Arizona near Nogales. In fact, nearby Parker Canyon is named for the family. And, like a lot of the Parkers, Lon served in law enforcement. He was a deputy sheriff for a time and also a Nogales, Arizona, policeman. But, in 1924, the Border Patrol was established and Parker, like many others, was drawn to this better paying federal job. A Border Patrolman’s salary was about the same as that of the Texas Ranger captain. And, although the Border Patrol has established a fine reputation, it really got off to a rocky start. Keep in mind that National Prohibition had become the law in 1919 and our southern border was rife with booze smugglers from Mexico who were not the least bit reluctant to shoot it out with American officers.

by Shane Jahn "I missed him but he cut down on me and hit a rock right by me, stinging my face with fine gravel. I said 'Good God, I've got to shoot,' and I went down on the sights."   —Captain W.L. Wright The Volstead Act was passed in 1919 with a 68 percent supermajority in the House of Representatives and 78 percent support by the Senate. The organized opposition of the importation, production, sale, and transportation of alcohol was seen as a way of curbing alcoholism, domestic violence, and wait for it…saloon-based political corruption. I’m sure we all agree that combating alcoholism and domestic violence were noble endeavors. They say rates of infant mortality, liver cirrhosis, and alcoholic psychosis declined during the Prohibition Era. I’ve not yet found statistics on a drop in political corruption.

by Jim Wilson I hope that I’m not revealing a fatal character flaw when I tell you that I just never cared much for the Colt AR15. I’d spent a lot of years shooting rifles before I ever fired my first AR15. To be honest, they just didn’t look to me like real rifles and they damn sure didn’t feel like real rifles either. Oh, I could hit stationary targets well enough but I never could get the hang of snap shooting at a moving target. Pretty quickly, I realized that this was one backward lawman who needed something else. My old friend Dan Westbrook had been in the Texas Rangers in the 1940s. Dan relied on a really slick Trapper’s Model 92 Winchester in .38/40...to match the Colt single action that he carried. I thought about that, but didn’t know where to find a Winchester 92, nor did I, at that time, know of anyone who could convert it to a more modern caliber...say .357 or .44 Mag.

by Terry Nelson Terry Nelson is a native and resident of the beautiful state of New Mexico. He worked in law enforcement for over 30 years, serving as a police officer, deputy sheriff and state game warden. Today you will find him providing training in security/law enforcement venues, hunting or guiding hunters and writing tales about all the above. Terry and I were both friends of the late Charlie Pirtle and we really only knew of one another from Charlie's telling about the other for years. Our trails crossed last fall at a writer's event, and we've done a pretty good job at keeping in contact since then. Terry has some good hunting and law enforcement tales. This is one we think y'all will enjoy! —Shane Jahn I suppose that most hunters dream of travel to Africa. I’m guessing that many reading this post have been at least once in their life. If not, you should. My first trip to the Dark Continent was 40 years ago. Hard to believe, really. I always dreamed of Africa with its great diversity and numbers of wildlife since I was a boy. So, in 1985 I boarded a plane from El Paso, Texas to Lusaka, the capital of Zambia. The chain of events by which I traveled across the big water, and events once there, is the real story.

By Fermin Garza Below my eloquently written primer you will find Fermin Garza's introductory email to Matt Covert. Matt wears many hats, two of which are editor and mastermind behind all the digital happenings that make Gun Tales what it is. Without Matt, Jim and I would be posting screenshots of articles written on our Big Chief tablets. Fermin, and he pronounces it “Furmen,” is a driven man. He was a Texas lawman for over 31 years. Proof he is brave, extremely reliable, and too lazy for real work. After retiring, Fermin took to machining some of the best revolver sights known to handgunners. They are bold and robust. I’m convinced he designed them in his own image. That “drive” I mentioned keeps him busy turning out his fine sighting apparatuses. His talents don’t end there. Fermin has a world of knowledge of all facets of the revolver, and firearms in general, under that size 8 5/8 hat he wears. His enthusiasm for building revolver sights, correcting cylinder throats to proper dimensions, and his lengthy dissertation of the desired “Lube Star” keep him out of the bars (some of the time) and entertained in his shop. When he has a free minute, he competes in salsa competitions. I’m referring to the dance, not the kind that goes with chips. When he’s not doing that, he has been busy penning some excellent articles for us. If you already know Fermin Garza, you are aware he can tell quite an entertaining story. He’s going to share some of those tales down the road, as soon as his attorney makes sure the statute of limitations has expired on his antics. —Shane Jahn

by Jim Wilson The first law enforcement agency that I went to work for required us to buy our own guns and specified that they should be double-action revolvers capable of chambering the .38 Special cartridge. I started out with a first-model Colt Trooper but quickly made a change. You see, I had already discovered Bill Jordan and his great book, “No Second Place Winner.” At that point in my life I didn’t know anything about gunfighting but something told me that Mr. Jordan did. If the Smith & Wesson Model 19 was his choice I figured it might be a good choice for me, too. Consequently, as soon as I got a couple of paychecks under my belt I sprang for a Model 19, 4-inch, blued. As I recall, that set me back $87.00. Along about that time, I also ordered a Jordan Trooper holster and belt from Don Hume Leather Company. In truth, I didn’t know what I didn’t know; I just gambled that this guy Jordan knew what he was talking about. My gamble paid off.

by Shane Jahn Hunt long enough, and you’re eventually going to mess up. If you’ve never lost an animal, count your blessings and you might want to go out and buy a lottery ticket because you are extremely fortunate and very lucky. You are also probably one day closer to having an agonizing day in the field! As I approach 40 years of hunting I must admit I’ve experienced some mishaps along the way. What follows are a few that stand out. By sharing these episodes, I hope to accomplish two things.

by Chauncey Wesner It has often been said by many experts that the diminutive Sparrowhawk is only capable of taking on prey no larger than the common field mouse. But let it be known that the field of ornithology is filled with cheats, scallywags, swindlers, and liars. A more dishonest profession likely does not exist. Furthermore, I would surmise that ornithologists and attorneys likely attend the same family reunions. But what is all this talk of birds? This is a gun rag, ain’t it?! Well friends, allow me to introduce you to a bird so rare that most people have likely never seen one, a creature nearly as scarce as the Lord God Bird, the U.S.F.A. Sparrowhawk.

by Shane Jahn The scorching sun hung high above the Chihuahuan Desert as the lawman carefully made his way up a steep limestone escarpment, mindful not to drive the arched spears of Lechuguilla into his shins as he secured footing to make the next push upward. A fall among the boulders below would be much more painful, if not life-altering. Faint scuffs on the slick rock convinced him that the men he was after had scaled the looming cliffside. Forcing his way up the side of a huge boulder, he paused for a minute to catch his breath while closely examining the bluff’s edge. Tiny twigs of a lesser, woody bush showed fresh breaks at their tips, and a rock the size of a walnut had clearly been unearthed from its resting place along the silted fracture of the rock shelf. The color of the fine soil was dark, and had not yet been bleached by the intense sunlight. Now, he knew he was on their trail…