so i field stripped my new (to me) s&w 3913ls this morning for a cleaning. i went a little further and took off the grip, as the gun was well oiled, and some oil was seeping around the grip edges. i had to refer back to my previous s&w 5906 grip post to remember how to remove the 3913 grip. they’re the same platform for the most part.

the gun is tight, and shows very little wear. i found a 5/1/2008 date in the owner’s manual, along with the serial number and “sportsman’s warehouse” written by hand, apparently indicating when and where it was originally purchased. i thought they stopped making these a few years earlier, but the factory spent casing confirms it is 2008 production.

it was tight going back together as well – the firing pin safety lever, which is the third of three “levers” the slide has to clear for it to fully move rearward, didn’t seem to want to go down enough to clear the slide. a google search revealed i’m not the only one who experienced this, and a little more downward pressure on it, and backward pressure on the slide solved the problem.

oddly enough, after reassembly, the recoil spring guide rod was sticking out. apparently, according to the manual, i hadn’t centered it in the slide properly. it seems a little more finicky than my 5906, though that’s probably due to the smaller size, and again, newness. everything works great now, and i’m looking forward to a trip back to the range.

i picked up a smith & wesson 3913 lady smith yesterday afternoon while i was at the range. it’s a used model in excellent condition, at a very fair price with 2 magazines. i couldn’t resist. i’ll clean it up and head back to the range for a range report.

at first i thought the headline fox shoots man was some kind of furry revenge or disgruntled lovers spat. but no, it’s true.

they sent me a gold card

i was reading the most recent post on questioning transphobia about angel johnson, and her horrible experience with home invasion. i have to imagine that one of the last things you want to be looking at when you open your front door is a gun barrel.

perhaps i’m paranoid. but i never answer the door if i’m not expecting anyone, especially on the first knock. if the caller is persistent, i may look through the peep hole. or steal a glance through a window. depending on my perception of the threat, i may eventually answer the door. but never without being armed.

i don’t live in the best section of town, as evidenced by the frequency of swat teams in my neighborhood. some may call me paranoid. i like to think i’m prepared.