The Nation's Gun Show - April 11-13

I had a 3-day pass to said event and arrived Friday before opening to stand in line for 45 minutes with my friend Jeff.

There was a huge and intimidating display by "Class 3 Only" from Roanoke of their machineguns. They had everything from a tiny .22 machine pistol up to a really stunning "Ma Deuce" 50-caliber machinegun on a tripod. There were over a dozen Thompsons, a dozen Uzis, an H&K MP5, and three or four BARs (jeez, those things are big!). Prices ranged from $3,000 to $40,000.

I saw a few Colt 1903 pocket pistols and a few Sauer 38h handguns, but none that whispered in my ear. The only modern gun that I was really interested in was a Tanfoglio/EAA Witness in 38-super. Ironically they had Witnesses in every caliber EXCEPT that! So after window shopping for two days I bought the 10-mm version. It was $370 plus $5 for the NICS check, so a decent deal. It came with one 14-rd mag, and I picked up two more from another vendor.

There were some pretty shotguns, including some Parkers and Foxes, but you have to be an expert in those things to get a good deal, and I'm out of my Shotgun Period.

I DID get a few non-gun items, like a Pelican waterproof box for my Blackberry. But the coolest thing I got was a three-box pack of phosphorous-tipped matches, the white-tipped kind that you can strike with your thumbnail, remember? Anybody old enough to remember Warren Beatty in "Bonny and Clyde" with a kitchen match between his teeth? Started a fad in my junior high school.