Unlicensed Dremel
Moderator
But, in any event, back to pumps generally.
I'm sure most everyone knows this, but in addition to pump centerfires being perhaps under-appreciated / under-utilized in the self-defense arena, as we talked about, I think they're also under-utilized in the rimfire arena (which of course is hunting & varmint control primarily - but also even self-defense).
Simply because if there's a rimfire dud (fairly common, relative to centerfires), just cycle it, which you cannot do on a semi-auto (well, actually you can do that on a semi-auto but not nearly as fast). Semis can be extremely reliable with centerfire ammo, but they're only as reliable as the weakest link, which is definitely the ammo, in the case of rimfire. But with a pump, you have nearly the speed of a semi-auto with much faster malf. clearing than a semi. Still, the need for speed is rare in rimfire hunting & rimfire pest control scenarios, but I suppose it could happen here and there - espec. pest control uses.
I might argue that pumps are the best "fit" when utilized in these areas, roughly in order of best uses:
1. Centerfire, self-defense use
2. Rimfire, all uses (primarily pest control, but perhaps even self-defense). And in fact, a pretty good argument can be made that if you could only have ONE rimfire, it should be a pump. But to me, the downside is hard to clean, relative to a turnbolt.
3. Centerfire, hunting large game
I have said that for the extremely-recoil-sensitive person, a .22 magnum rimfire rifle is probably the best self-defense longgun, but given the relative unreliability of rimfire ignition, this should take one of two forms:
--Rossi Circuit Judge .22 WMR
--Pump of some kind .22 WMR
In either case, you don't even have to *think* at all about HOW to clear a malf. in order to keep shooting if there's a dud, let alone actually having to clear the malf. You simply do the same thing you were going to do anyway - keep right on going (in the case of the revolver rifle, just keep on pulling the DA trigger; in the case of the pump, keep cycling and pulling trigger, dud or no dud).
Bottom line, I find it hard to believe that pumps aren't still more popular *generally*, especially in rimfires, but not all that hard to believe they've fallen out of favor in the large game hunting arena (at least here where semis are legal, as our Aussie friend pointed out is not always the case).
I'm sure most everyone knows this, but in addition to pump centerfires being perhaps under-appreciated / under-utilized in the self-defense arena, as we talked about, I think they're also under-utilized in the rimfire arena (which of course is hunting & varmint control primarily - but also even self-defense).
Simply because if there's a rimfire dud (fairly common, relative to centerfires), just cycle it, which you cannot do on a semi-auto (well, actually you can do that on a semi-auto but not nearly as fast). Semis can be extremely reliable with centerfire ammo, but they're only as reliable as the weakest link, which is definitely the ammo, in the case of rimfire. But with a pump, you have nearly the speed of a semi-auto with much faster malf. clearing than a semi. Still, the need for speed is rare in rimfire hunting & rimfire pest control scenarios, but I suppose it could happen here and there - espec. pest control uses.
I might argue that pumps are the best "fit" when utilized in these areas, roughly in order of best uses:
1. Centerfire, self-defense use
2. Rimfire, all uses (primarily pest control, but perhaps even self-defense). And in fact, a pretty good argument can be made that if you could only have ONE rimfire, it should be a pump. But to me, the downside is hard to clean, relative to a turnbolt.
3. Centerfire, hunting large game
I have said that for the extremely-recoil-sensitive person, a .22 magnum rimfire rifle is probably the best self-defense longgun, but given the relative unreliability of rimfire ignition, this should take one of two forms:
--Rossi Circuit Judge .22 WMR
--Pump of some kind .22 WMR
In either case, you don't even have to *think* at all about HOW to clear a malf. in order to keep shooting if there's a dud, let alone actually having to clear the malf. You simply do the same thing you were going to do anyway - keep right on going (in the case of the revolver rifle, just keep on pulling the DA trigger; in the case of the pump, keep cycling and pulling trigger, dud or no dud).
Bottom line, I find it hard to believe that pumps aren't still more popular *generally*, especially in rimfires, but not all that hard to believe they've fallen out of favor in the large game hunting arena (at least here where semis are legal, as our Aussie friend pointed out is not always the case).
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