Oscar Mossberg

Oscar Mossberg [center]

Oscar F. Mossberg was born in Sweden and came to the United States in 1886 and soon after his arrival he became an employee of the Iver Johnson Corporation in the bicycle manufacturing plant, owned by Norwegian-born Iver Johnson. His interests, however, were more in tune with the firearm part of the plant and his Hammer the Hammer he invented made Iver Johnson famous.

After about one year, Mossberg left Iver Johnson for a job as Superintendent of the Shattuck Arms Company that made palm pistols, revolvers, and shotguns.

In 1900, Mossberg joined Steven Arms Corporation, where he stayed for 14 years.

Marlin-Rockwell Light Machine Gun

In 1914, he joined the Marlin-Rockwell Corporation, a new manufacturer that produced light machine guns. He stayed until the company went bankrupt in 1919. That year he started a partnership with his two sons, Iver and Harold.

Mossberg was the first to produce an affordable rifle, first to offer a complete rifle with a telescopic rifle in one package, first to offer a rifle with necessary accessories like sling, swivels, peep sights, telescopic sight, etc.; first to drop the military finger grooved firearm style; first to produce a spotting scope with stand; and first to produce a range-finding telescopic sight.

In 1937, Oscar Mossberg died, but his sons continued their father's tradition and philosophy to offer reasonably priced yet quality firearms and accessories. [See O.F. Mossberg & Sons]

Mossberg firearms made Monte Carlo-style stocks the norm in the industry, as well as molded trigger housings that were spring-loaded with quick-release swivels and the first 3.5-inch barrel for his 12-gauge shotgun. Mossberg shotguns gained worldwide notoriety with guns like the Mossberg 935 Magnum, 835 Ulti-Mag, and the Mossberg 500 & 590 home defense and security weapons for military, law enforcement and personal protection.

It is the oldest family-owned firearms manufacture in the United States and the Mossberg pump-action shotgun is sold worldwide.

Obama Promised a "Transparent" Government ...

More than one year later - still no answers and no accountability - Hillary Clinton walks free with overtures of running for president in 2016.

Two Vietnam MIAs Return Home and Kerry Signs UN Anti-Gun Treaty

Major James Sizemore

The bodies of two MIA Vietnam Air Force aviators were finally recovered and returned home for burial at Arlington National Cemetery this week. Major James Sizemore and his navigator Major Howard Andre were buried side by side just as they flew their missions.

The Air Force had to decline the customary flyover to honor these fallen men due to limited flying hours and budget constraints; which is parade of the Obama charade, like closing White House tours, to counter the sequester of Congress.

Major Howard Andre

However, the fallen aviators got a flyover thanks to volunteer pilots of the Warrior Flight Team who provided a flyover with a Douglas A26 Invader, the type of aircraft Sizemore and Andre were flying when they were shot down 44 years ago. The Invader was joined off its wings by two P51 Mustangs. 

Of course, the Washington Post blames Congress for lack of the customary flyover. 

Flyover for Maj. Howard Andre, Jr. and Maj. James E. Sizemore

Oliver F. Winchester

Oliver Fisher Winchester was born on November 30^th, 1810 and died December 11^th, 1880. His surname became famous in the world of firearms when he manufactured and marketed the Winchester repeating rifle, a re-design from the Volcanic rifle that had not marketed so well years earlier.

Winchester began as a clothing manufacturer in New York City and New Haven, Connecticut and during that time he discovered that the Smith & Wesson firearms company was failing financially. A savvy businessman, Winchester put capital together and with other stockholders acquired the S&W division of the Volcanic Repeating Arms Company in 1850. Winchester was the principle stockholder and relocated the company to New Haven, changing its name to the New Haven Arms Company.

Christopher Miner Spencer

Christopher Miner Spencer was an American inventor [ June 20, 1833 – January 14, 1922 ] from Manchester, Connecticut, who invented the Spencer Repeating Rifle that was introduced in the Civil War used by the Union cavalry. He was also the inventor of a steam-powered vehicle called a horseless carriage, a silk winding machine, the first fully automatic turret lathe and 38 other inventions.

The Spencer rifle was developed in 1859, but was not used by Union soldiers until 1863 after Christopher Spencer walked into the White House carrying one of his rifles and some cartridges. Security was not at a high level because he walked past the sentries and into President Lincoln's office. 

Firearm Tips: Rust Prevention

Firearms stored in a gun safe or safe room or even a wood display cabinet can be subject to moisture primarily caused by humidity and sometimes condensation if the temperature fluctuates greatly.

To combat humidity and compensation there are dehumidifiers on the market to solve this problem and prevent surface rust of firearms from occurring. Never store your firearms in cloth or leather gun cases or even leather holsters. Moisture can be retained and create an environment that invites rusting.

There is an electric dehumidifier by Browning [see Amazon advertisement below] which works quite well, about a foot long to be hung vertically at the front of one of the walls of your gun safe. The heat will prevent condensation and only uses about 18 watts of power or less. The best model is with tubes that are 1/2” in diameter.

In a safe room, a small fan installed with keep air circulating and helps to prevent condensation.

When you are out hunting, protect your firearm stock with Carnuba wax, wiped thinly over metal parts as well as the rubbed into the stock. Cleaning and lubricating your firearm with Break-Free CLR is also a plus. When I was jungle training in Panama, the arms room had no windows or circulation; so we coated Break-Free heavily on our M16s and by morning there was a film of rust formed under the coating of oil! However, wiping our firearms of all that extra oil removed the rust because it was prevented from adhering by the Break-Free. Expensive in comparison to other firearm oils, it is by far the best – used by US armed forces since it came out in the middle 1980s. It replaced the WW2 gun oil that was used until that time.

So, whenever you return from the range or out in the field, always take time to wipe your firearms with Break Free. Your firearms will be happier.

If you must store your firearm for long periods, the American Gunsmith Institute suggests to use Vacuum Food Storage Bags (sealed) after giving it a wipe of Break Free. A test revealed that compared to putting a firearm in a waterproof container, the vacuum sealed plastic prevented corrosion by 100%.

Firearm owners and collectors usually spend a good deal of money on their firearms – so take care of them!

H.R. 2910: Gun Violence Prevention and Reduction Act of 2013

Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) is an odd-looking fellow who, as with other congressional morons on both sides of the political aisle, believe that the United States Congress can legislate climate and weather fluctuations that has been occurring on planet Earth for millenniums. In a statement, an example of Waxman's mindset, made on September 17^th, Waxman stated:

We spend billions of dollars to respond to each disaster and rebuild in the aftermath. Unfortunately many members of Congress continue to deny that climate change is happening.

Waxman does not realize that it is not the part of climate and weather fluctuation that people are denying, it is that there is something that can be done about it other than prepare and adapt. The air is cleaner that it was ten years ago and climate changes/fluctuations are not the result of man-made activities. The same ideological nonsense is applied to gun control, which is not really a mindset to control guns but the people.

Aaron Alexis: The Case of Prevention Not Undertaken

FBI Wanted Photo

Once again another tragedy occurs involving multiple victims this time at a Washington Navy Yard where twelve people were murdered by a deranged shooter, Aaron Alexis, age 34 of Fort Worth, Texas who was a civilian military contractor and who received a general discharge from the Navy Reserve in 2011 after a shooting incident in his home. He was previously arrested in Seattle in 2004 for shooting out the tires of a vehicle.

Once again, the anti-gun folks raised an outcry that this could have been abated if Congress had passed the gun ban law proposed by Senator Dianne Feinstein and her cohorts in Washington. The weapons used by Alexis was a shotgun, handgun, and not an AR-15 as originally reported by the inaccurate media.

H.R. 2247: Saving the M1 Garand Rifle

H.R. 2247, Collectible Firearms Protection Act was created because of the recent Obama move against firearms by not allowing M1 Garand and M1911 firearms to be imported. These historical firearms are favorite of gun collectors and the M1 is a favorite at competition events.

This action will also hurt the Civilian Marksmanship Program. Those operating the ATF are stating that these imported firearms from countries who are phasing them out for more modern firearms is a safety measure.

Surplus firearms create a more affordable market. Collecting surplus and old military weapons is an American tradition. 


Obama has done it again - using executive orders to further his anti-Second Amendment agenda.

Call your representatives and senators in Congress and get this bill passed. Especially in the Senate. Election 2014 is just around the corner, so remember how poorly [or how well] your congressional members have acted during their last term. Clean out Congress of Progressives and RINOs and get constitutionists back into Washington.

Further Reading:

ATF: Surplus Korean Firearms Imports

Obama's Latest Executive Orders

Breaking In a New Firearm or Barrel

You've just bought your new firearm and head out to the range to use it. As in too many cases, the firearm is fired at the range and back home it is cleaned as usual.

Many firearm owners do not realize that a firearm, as a finely tuned automobile engine, has a break-in period, something important but too often overlooked.

I will go over the basics and then present a four-part video where an expert gunsmith demonstrates proper procedure of breaking in a new firearm [barrel], as well as good cleaning practices and tips …