Still might not save them.

Depends entirely if Colt delivers enough weapons up to code, I believe.

Feel like FN's gonna dominate that contract.

They likely will. They are already licensed manufactures of the M-16 and M-4 to begin with and to the best of my knowledge FN USA has not had any notable issues in delivering.

I posted the same link, here's a blog post that deconstructs it:

In The '90s, Colt had the "assualt weapons ban", a lawyer on their board who was an "FOB" (friend of Bill) and they were the Army's sole source of M-4 carbines.

Presidents changed, contracts and exclusive rights ended and the AWB sunset...

Well, despite Colt and Colt Defense becoming one, several record gun buying runs and having 'THE firearms brand, they went bankrupt.

Is the contract a second chance? Or a drunk propping himself up at a party before faceplanting on the floor?

edited 29th Sep '15 1:03:35 AM by TairaMai

Probably that second thing. They haven't introduced a new design in 30+ years.

CM 901?

I thought they only made like 3 of those and the only thing that ever showed interest in it was Call of Duty?

The Other Wiki says that the Malaysians brought it.

Aren't they also the idiots that bought the XM8 though?

That's not exactly a mark of assurance.

edited 29th Sep '15 11:26:19 AM by LeGarcon

No, that was HK. HK got the Army to look at the HK 416, XM-8 and the M320. Only the M320 got to line units.

Colt had a CEO who was a "former" Marine, whine about the Army buying a "German made weapon" when the Army testes the HK 416 (mostly it was the Asymmetric Warfare Group and Special Forces and the AWG was made to turn their HK 416's in).

Colt probly cheered when the XM-8 went tango uniform, because the M320 was just an accessory.

The CM 901 was a (GASP!) new idea from Colt: a lower receiver that could take any upper, from .22lr all the way to 7.62 (and even beyond). But it was like Blackberry and Nokia's Windows phone...

...people already had the guns they wanted, the idea was sound but there was no civlian market for it. The US Army was going to the the M-4 blueprints like it had for the M-16.

So the Army, once again rigged the test in favor of the rifle it wanted instead of the rifle that could win. The M-4 was the "winner", knocking out the HK 416, FN SCAR and Colt's CM 901.

History repeats, once as tragedy, again as farce.

edited 29th Sep '15 10:16:27 PM by TairaMai

Shooters Exo-skeleton equipment

edited 29th Sep '15 11:07:03 PM by TuefelHundenIV

Excuse me, I'm Malay... but yes. Pretty sure on that one. Man, it's awesome at work when I tell people that Colt's bankrupt, and no one fucking knows it.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-34428410

This just came in from Oregon.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/oregon-college-shooting-neil-macdonald-gun-culture-1.3255060

May be a bit biased for those pro-gun Americans, coming from a Canadian journalist assigned to America.

Despite what some in the media seem to believe, nothing can stop someone who has no mental health treatment, arrests or convictions on record from buying or owning a gun. Just like someone without a DUI can get ripping drunk and crash their car.

It never stops with "mild restrictions", it's always more and more laws and the bitter seething hatred of gun owners.

A fair portion of that hatred is well deserved.

When people are being killed recklessly and in droves we need to examine the culture that is allowing it and remedy that. Legislation can be part of the solution.

But if the first thing out of the mouth of a gun owner is "Fuck you! My rights!", yeah. You are being an asshole worthy of being hated.

As a gun owner myself I hate them.

I hate the dangerous people who rather open carry an assault rifle to get a gallon of milk instead of engaging in productive dialogue. I hate people who would rather fantasize about killing someone coming to steal their television than try to understand why people have been drawn to theft. I hate people who prioritize their right to carry a deadly weapon over the good of the community and culture as a whole.

Sad part? We don't have to get rid of private gun ownership in order to address these problems.

But if the loud assholes keep being the only ones talking, it will lead to that route and we only have ourselves to blame.

This is especially funny because I keep noticing that, as we've discussed before, gun laws in some states seem to be more relaxed now than they were, say, twenty or thirty years ago, though it obviously varies drastically by state. This is most noticeable in the South and the Northwest US, where laws on concealed carry permits and transportation of firearms appear to have been made less restrictive. Southern places like Arkansas, Georgia and Mississippi are no-brainers, but it's a mixed bag elsewhere. Vermont's gun laws are exceptionally loose while Connecticut's and Colorado's gun laws have tightened up for reasonsI need not explain.

On a less controversial note, I'd like to soup up the Kimber a bit more when I get the money for it. Upgrades will likely include wooden grip furniture, Heinie night sights and an ambidextrous thumb safety. I mention the wooden grip furniture because the rubber side grips have been known to snag a bit more during unholstering. It's nothing urgent, just a tinkering project I have in mind. Really, it doesn't need any modifications, as it shoots just fine.

edited 4th Oct '15 9:05:30 AM by Aprilla

The only thing I have to add on the gun politics: ~10% of the owners are >90% of the problems. Most shooting clubs and hunting groups never do the "take the loaded AR-15 to the Wal-Mart" stupidity that seems to grab news footage and facebook posts. Most NRA members are local, heck I had a friend in highschool who worked out in a "NRA: because it's our right" shirt her club gave her. This was in The '90s, the early nineties. It wasn't a political statement, she lost some weight and the shirt was her fav workout shirt since it now was a little roomy.

As for tricking out a kimber, Aprilla, what do you want to do and how much money are you willing to part with?

A little tinkering? You heard the joke about boats?

A boat is a hole in the water the boater throws money into.

The same can go for gun, cars, computers, hobbies....

edited 4th Oct '15 10:40:08 AM by TairaMai

Here's an idea how about we spend some money on increasing the police presence around schools?

.45 Kimber geared for .45 +P+ with match barrels :P

More cops around schools are nice but the causes of these shootings are very much cultural.

The shooter in this most recent one was one of those Red Pill types with a lot of IRA and Neo Nazi shit lying around.

The sooner we nip those cultural memes in the bud the sooner these shootings stop happening.

Also yes to the wooden Kimber furniture. Wooden furniture is always good.

edited 4th Oct '15 11:34:24 AM by LeGarcon

The Micarta/G10 grip material is good, too. That's what Smith and Wesson uses from the factory for a lot of their pistols.

I have a tight budget rule when it comes firearms mods just as I do with cars. Your weapon should perform well out of the box just like your performance vehicle should handle well from the lot ^note  Even if you buy used like I have to, it needs to handle well enough to not need anything more than basic TLC unless you're into project builds. . None of the upgrades I want are strictly necessary, so it's no rush. My modification wishlist doesn't exceed $300, which is in the neighborhood of a car payment or student loan payment.

As a comparison, LS1 engine swaps in RX-8s are cool, but the money I'd be spending to do the swap could be better put to use on a used C5 Corvette or paying off my bank note. Likewise, I don't see the point in spending anything above $500 on a Kimber when I can get a new or barely used Springfield, Walther or Smith and Wesson for that same amount.

As a side note, that's why I highly recommend the Springfield XDM 9mm. It's practically a competition-grade pistol out of the box, it won't kill your bank account, it has a high magazine capacity and it's very user-friendly.

edited 4th Oct '15 12:19:02 PM by Aprilla

To be fair with the Kimber you're paying the 1911 tax and for the prestige of owning the same gun that LAPD SWAT uses.

Okay thats cool.

But in the meantime...

I don't like Kimber because I don't like the idea of paying $1,500 and only getting one magazine.

edited 4th Oct '15 12:25:18 PM by Canid117

True, but I didn't even buy my Kimber Custom I. It was given to me. I don't think I'd ever really go out of my way to buy one with my current income standards. I obviously think they're good guns, but they're too pricey for a discount hobbyist like me. Right now, a Kimber Custom I (the predecessor to the Custom II) runs for about 700-800 dollars. You can find a more practical and generally better pistol for less money.

Our local pawn shop typically has good deals on both new and used firearms. The owner deals in Kimber pistols and they're his preferred CC weapon. He let me take a look at one from his personal inventory, and it's definitely a high-quality weapon with hefty aftermarket work done to it, but he admits that he has a personal affection for that brand much in the way a lot of Harley people still love their bikes even though they'll admit that Kawasaki and Honda make generally better bikes.

edited 4th Oct '15 12:45:43 PM by Aprilla