Peglegjoe
Professional
So, Thursday was my birthday. Woo. Hoo. I hate birthdays, I hate the pomp, I hate the cheesy cards...I hate how big the numbers are getting. Far as I'm concerned...it's a Thursday.
I get home from work and check the mail. Hm. Freedom Mortgage? I sold that house in June...WTF? Open it up...and apparently they had mis-calculated my escrow account at closing. By $1,008.59.
It was a check, not a bill.
OK...maybe birthdays aren't so hateful...
So, I have been hankering for a 1911 for a bit. I figured I'd head to the LGS and see what they have in stock - last visit they had a nice EMP4 as well as an RO Elite. Told a friend of mine I was going to go and she practically faxed herself to my door, she got to my house so fast! (she likes the gun store!)
They had...about 25 handguns in stock. Period. Had quite a few wheel guns (including a sexy King Cobra), but zero 1911s. Oh well, I'll browse the cases anywa....huh, waitaminute....that's a....
The "compact" case had, right there on the top shelf...an FDE Hellcat. Non-optic...but I'm not a red-dot guy anyway so that doesn't bother me.
I'd heard the guy telling other customers that "nope, everything we have is on display", and "we got our largest shipment yesterday in months - five guns"... but when he walked over I had to comment "so, I've heard you talking to others... I guess I don't have to ask if you have this in black?" He said this is the second Hellcat they've gotten. Ever. I asked if I could have a look at it, he handed it to me, and I reminded myself how good it felt in my hands. They had a rental Hellcat about a year ago and I ran 50 or so rounds through it. VERY similar to my XDs. Which, a year ago, was a reason for me NOT to buy it - it wasn't different enough for me to justify spending the money simply for a capacity difference.
Then...COVID hit.
And riots.
And everything else that's turned 2020 into a caricature of a normal year.
And with RBG passing the other day...and "THE" election coming up...and God only knows what will follow November 4...capacity is a bit more of a focus for me now. I still waffled a little bit, but my friend cleared the fog for me - she said "dumbass...it's HERE. When are they going to have another one?" She's shot my XDs and loves it compared to her XD-M Elite (which is a little large for her hands), and was wide-eyed about the capacity of the Hellcat in the same size package as my XDs. She's already planned a trip to my house next week to help me break it in!
Told the guy "box it up". He asked for my drivers license and my HQL (I live in Maryland; we have to have a Handgun Qualification License in order to purchase a handgun).
Um.
I have my DL...and I have my carry permit, will that work? My HQL is at home in the safe.
"Nope. Won't cut it. And I can't hold guns for customers."
Grrrr......
He looks at my W&C...does the mental math of 'he's got a carry permit so he must have the HQL'...and asks "how far away do you live?" "30 min up, 30 min back".
Snatches the Hellcat, heads towards the back and says over his shoulder "drive fast".
So...I did. I was back at the counter in 64 minutes. Pretty damned good considering all the left-lane squatters and yard sales!
For those who are wondering, SA DOES make a "compliant" mag for the Hellcat (the People's Republik of Maryland has a super-awesome 10-round mag limit). The mag in the gun on display was a 10-round factory mag. There are only 10 sight holes drilled in the mag (11, actually, since the top row is a single, each lower pair ends in an odd number) - the bottom row simply isn't drilled, nor stamped "12" and "13". It's there...just doesn't have witness holes drilled in it. It's blank. In a week, I'll have it home to check and see how they did it.
But the mag does exist, from the factory, for anyone else living in a state saddled with stupid capacity laws.
Total package included the gun; two mags (display plus one spare); a cardboard box; an owners pamphlet; a trigger/bore lock; and a small black nylon storage bag (with a made in china tag on it - seriously, Springfield???). Once I have it home to register, I'll have to see if SA is offering any gear-up stuff these days.
I wasn't necessarily looking for FDE, but...like she said - it's HERE. And, since it was 'free' money....
Happy Birthday, to ME
I get home from work and check the mail. Hm. Freedom Mortgage? I sold that house in June...WTF? Open it up...and apparently they had mis-calculated my escrow account at closing. By $1,008.59.
It was a check, not a bill.
OK...maybe birthdays aren't so hateful...
So, I have been hankering for a 1911 for a bit. I figured I'd head to the LGS and see what they have in stock - last visit they had a nice EMP4 as well as an RO Elite. Told a friend of mine I was going to go and she practically faxed herself to my door, she got to my house so fast! (she likes the gun store!)
They had...about 25 handguns in stock. Period. Had quite a few wheel guns (including a sexy King Cobra), but zero 1911s. Oh well, I'll browse the cases anywa....huh, waitaminute....that's a....
The "compact" case had, right there on the top shelf...an FDE Hellcat. Non-optic...but I'm not a red-dot guy anyway so that doesn't bother me.
I'd heard the guy telling other customers that "nope, everything we have is on display", and "we got our largest shipment yesterday in months - five guns"... but when he walked over I had to comment "so, I've heard you talking to others... I guess I don't have to ask if you have this in black?" He said this is the second Hellcat they've gotten. Ever. I asked if I could have a look at it, he handed it to me, and I reminded myself how good it felt in my hands. They had a rental Hellcat about a year ago and I ran 50 or so rounds through it. VERY similar to my XDs. Which, a year ago, was a reason for me NOT to buy it - it wasn't different enough for me to justify spending the money simply for a capacity difference.
Then...COVID hit.
And riots.
And everything else that's turned 2020 into a caricature of a normal year.
And with RBG passing the other day...and "THE" election coming up...and God only knows what will follow November 4...capacity is a bit more of a focus for me now. I still waffled a little bit, but my friend cleared the fog for me - she said "dumbass...it's HERE. When are they going to have another one?" She's shot my XDs and loves it compared to her XD-M Elite (which is a little large for her hands), and was wide-eyed about the capacity of the Hellcat in the same size package as my XDs. She's already planned a trip to my house next week to help me break it in!
Told the guy "box it up". He asked for my drivers license and my HQL (I live in Maryland; we have to have a Handgun Qualification License in order to purchase a handgun).
Um.
I have my DL...and I have my carry permit, will that work? My HQL is at home in the safe.
"Nope. Won't cut it. And I can't hold guns for customers."
Grrrr......
He looks at my W&C...does the mental math of 'he's got a carry permit so he must have the HQL'...and asks "how far away do you live?" "30 min up, 30 min back".
Snatches the Hellcat, heads towards the back and says over his shoulder "drive fast".
So...I did. I was back at the counter in 64 minutes. Pretty damned good considering all the left-lane squatters and yard sales!
For those who are wondering, SA DOES make a "compliant" mag for the Hellcat (the People's Republik of Maryland has a super-awesome 10-round mag limit). The mag in the gun on display was a 10-round factory mag. There are only 10 sight holes drilled in the mag (11, actually, since the top row is a single, each lower pair ends in an odd number) - the bottom row simply isn't drilled, nor stamped "12" and "13". It's there...just doesn't have witness holes drilled in it. It's blank. In a week, I'll have it home to check and see how they did it.
But the mag does exist, from the factory, for anyone else living in a state saddled with stupid capacity laws.Total package included the gun; two mags (display plus one spare); a cardboard box; an owners pamphlet; a trigger/bore lock; and a small black nylon storage bag (with a made in china tag on it - seriously, Springfield???). Once I have it home to register, I'll have to see if SA is offering any gear-up stuff these days.
I wasn't necessarily looking for FDE, but...like she said - it's HERE. And, since it was 'free' money....
Happy Birthday, to ME
