Towns with Gun Names

 By Bobby Thurman 

Most states have names that come from native American or Spanish settler names. I was born and raised in Oregon, most of Oregon cities are named for other American cities in the East. For instance, we have a Portland, Dallas, Springfield, Arlington, Milwaukee, Detroit, Florence, Glendale, Jacksonville and Lake Oswego.

Below I have assembled a list of city/town names that are related to the gun World.

Colt's Neck, New Jersey: This township in central New Jersey is not named for Samuel Colt, it was originally called "Coltsneek" which I have read is a native American word.

Coltsville, Connecticut: This area along the Connecticut River in Hartford, was named for Samuel Colt as it encompasses his factory and home.

Colt, Arkansas: This small town in eastern Arkansas was not named after Sam Colt, but rather a railroad contractor

Cut and Shoot, Texas: A small city outside of Houston, it was named for a statement made by a small boy during a church argument?? No one remembers for sure what the argument was about, but they remembered the statement and named the town for it.

Earp, California: This unincorporated town across the Colorado river from Parker, Arizona was actually named after Wyatt Earp, he and his wife had a house nearby and when he died in 1929 the area was renamed after him.

Gun Barrel City, Texas: Sitting on the banks of the Cedar Creek Reservoir in northeast Texas, Gun Barrel City got its name from a road known as Gun Barrel Lane, a road which was said to be frequented by a depression era gangsters including Bonnie & Clyde.

Gunlock, Utah: This unincorporated area 15 miles from St. George was named for its first settler, William "Gunlock Will" Hamblin. He got the name as he was an amateur gunsmith and was good at repairing the locks of early flint lock rifles.

Gunsight, Texas: Now a ghost town, the former boom town is located due west of Fort Worth, it was named for the Gunsight mountains, which have a notch resembling a gunsight.

Guntown, Mississippi: A small town north of Tupelo, Mississippi, it was named after James G. Gunn who moved there in exile during the Revolutionary War. I guess lost one of the n's at some point.

Pistol River, Oregon: A small, unincorporated town on the southern Oregon coast, it was named for an incident during the Rogue River Wars in which militiaman James Mace lost a pistol in the river.

Point Blank, Texas: This town in east Texas (due north of Houston) was named blanc point by a French woman working as a governess for a local family, the word means white dot, white spot or white point in French, the town's name was later changed to the English version.

Remington, Virginia: a tiny, and I mean tiny town in Virginia, no one really knows who the town was named after, legend is that it was named after a conductor of the railroad that the town owed its existence too, probably not named after the New York gun making family.

Rifle, Colorado: Rifle Colorado was named for the Rifle creek that runs through it, the creek was named by early settlers when a rifle was found on its bank.

Two Guns, Arizona: Sitting 25 miles west of Winslow, it was originally named Canyon Lodge, it was renamed when the railroad came through. It was basically a railroad stop, that morphed into a tourist trap when Route 66 was built. Interstate 40 bypassed the town, and it is now just a mark on a map.

Whitneyville, Connecticut: An area in town of Hamden, Connecticut, it was named after the gun maker and inventor of the Cotton Gin Eli Whitney Jr.

Whitneyville, Maine: Named after Col. Joseph Whitney, who may have been related to gun maker Eli Whitney.

Winchester, Virginia: Not named after Oliver Winchester, the gun maker nor his company, it was named after Winchester, England.

Winchester Wisconsin: Not named after Oliver Winchester, the gun maker nor his company, it was named after Winchester, England.

Winchester, New Hampshire: Not named after Oliver Winchester, the gun maker nor his company, it was named after Charles Paulet (Powlett) the 8th Marques of Winchester (in England)

Winchester, Oregon: Not named after Oliver Winchester, the gun maker nor his company, this unincorporated area along the southern Oregon coast was named after two brothers (named Winchester) who assisted with the exploring expedition which mapped the area in 1850.

Winchester, Texas: This Texas prairie town, 25 miles from La Grange, was named in 1866 for the Winchester rifle model of 1866.

Winchester, Massachusetts: Not named after Oliver Winchester, the gun maker nor his company, it was named after Col. William P. Winchester, a wealthy businessman and member of the First Corps of Cadets.

About the Author:

Bobby Thurman grew up in the wilds of southern Oregon and has been around guns all his life, a navy veteran and SEALs applicant, he has participated in IDPA and other handgun competitions. His latest endeavor is to hit a human sized target at one mile with his Savage rifle in .338 Lapua.

Of Magazines, Folding Stocks and Bill Ruger

 It is National Buy A Gun Day again.....

Every April 15th, Americans use their tax refund to buy something, make that something a gun....

Let's just say, Bill Ruger was a dichotomy. He was a brilliant gun maker and businessman, but he didn't understand or perhaps comprehend what the anti-gun leftists wanted.

In 1989 he came out in support of magazine capacity limits, even going on mainstream media stating: "I never meant for simple civilians to have my 20 or 30 round magazines or my folding stock, and I see nothing wrong with waiting periods".

In addition, Ruger stated that:"no honest man needs more than 10 rounds in a gun". 

I don't think that Bill understood that the antigun leftists didn't want a magazine capacity limit or an assault weapons ban, what they sought (and still seek) is control, they want total control and must seize private weapons in order to get that.

Some say he supported the limits because it would hurt his competitors more than him, although plausible, I am not sure that is true. 

While I don't want to put words into Bill's mouth, but if you look at his choice of words we may discover something else: elitism. He used the phrase "simple civilians" as if Joe the plumber's rights are not as important as say a politician or wealthy business owner. Regular people don't use that phrase and "no honest man"?? WTF, how is it honorable to die when you didn't have enough rounds to dispatch the hoard coming after your family?

Until his death Sturm, Ruger & Co. did not sell magazines for the Mini-14, Mini-30 or 10/22 that were greater than 10 rounds to us "simple civilians". This, of course opened the door for aftermarket companies to produce magazines for those platforms, few of which actually performed as expected.

They also did not sell the folding stocks for the Mini platform rifles to the general public, only law enforcement and military customers were allowed these options.

All of that changed when Bill Ruger passed away on July 6th, 2002.

In September of 2009 Ruger introduced a "Tacticool" version of the 10/22 dubbed the SR22. It used an aluminum chassis that allowed the use of AR stocks, grips and floating handguards. Read more about the SR22 here.

That same year Ruger began selling 20 and 30 round Mini-14 & Mini-30 magazines to the general public. For several years the magazines retained the stamp that read "law enforcement and military use only".

Then in 2011 Ruger finally began offering a factory 25 round magazine for the 10/22

In 2019 Ruger introduced a new stock for their updated PC Carbine (re-introduced two years prior), this one came with a pistol grip.

Buyers can now have the option of a pistol grip, folding stock and a take down option.

Then in 2020 Ruger, working with Samson, brought back the factory folding stock for the Mini-14, dubbed the "A-TM" stock (they couldn't freely use the term "A-Team").

In short order they had them available for blued models and some for the 10/22, called the "B-TM" stock.

Now here we are in 2026 and Ruger is offering factory Short Barreled Rifles, 4 different models, two 10/22s, one PC Carbine and one American Rifle (bolt action).

While I am glad that Bill Ruger lived and started the great company that he did, but I am also glad that Bill is no longer running the show. 

I think many of us have learned that no amount of capitulation to the left, no amount of compromise will ever be enough. It seems ridiculous to even consider surrendering your rights to people who want to put their boots on your neck.

We saw their true nature during COVID, when the left wanted us to be fired, banned from society and put in concentration camps for not getting an experimental vaccine.

Marlin Model 60 rebuild part 2

 If you missed part 1, click here

The parts gun I purchased were from a mid-80's gun that included the Last Shot Hold Open (LSHO). I decided to use the action from this rifle (1981 vintage) on another project (soon to be posted) this is possible because the actions were close enough in vintage (1981 vs 1985 or so). The method of attaching the action is different, but to convert the older style using plastic "chicago style" bolts to the newer style, you just find the appropriate size roll pin for the front and the factory split plastic pin for the rear

The old method, on the 1981 rifle

and the same receiver with the 1985 vintage action

I did this for two reasons, one was that the parts gun came with the LSHO and I didn't have another stock that had the provisions for it.

The second reason is that I needed to use the 1981 action on the 1974 receiver which was going into an older walnut stock that lacked the LSHO provision. See the picture below, the botton stock is an early style (pre-'77) the middle one is from the 1981 vintage, and the top stock is the 1985 vintage rifle.

I took the 1985 action and gave it a quick once over with some Hoppes #9, it was surprisingly clean.

After attaching the action to the receiver, I dug up the newer style trigger guards that I had. I used the one on the bottom as it fit the stock better.

If you didn't know the first step is to attach the trigger guard to the stock using the short screw and a T-nut

Next install the rear trigger guard and the front take down screw, don't tighten either one until both are started. I happened to a have a factory take down screw that I rebuled a while back and the trigger guard screws are the ones I sell on ebay.

The rifle is now complete and ready for test firing

Marlin Model 60 rebuild part 1

Happy April Fools Day, no jokes here, but if you are interested in some April Foolery, click here.

I bought this 1981 vintage Marlin Model 60 in a lot that included a Smith & Wesson Model 29 and a Remington 11-48 shotgun. I paid $1000 for all three and since the Model 29 came with the presentation case and was in pristine condition, I figured the Model 60 and 11-48 shotgun were basically free.

In 1981 the model 60 still had the 22" barrel, 18 round magazine and updated feed throat, but had not yet received the last shot hold open, which arrived in 1984. 

Here is what it looked like when I got it. It had a cheap low power, small reticle scope, which I removed and saved for another project.

The wrist of the stock was cracked and glued back together.

The trigger guard (aluminum) had been broken off around the rear bolt for some reason, perhaps part of the stock breakage or repair?

There were some small rust spots here and there

I cleaned them up with some oil and 0000 steel wool

While cleaning the gun I found a brass brush in the barrel.....

After cleaning and buffing out the small rusty spots, the finish looked pretty good, all it really needed was a replacement stock. I have another Model 60 project on my bench and had bought a parts lot for that project that included a stock:

The stock had plenty of dings and dents, it also had a superficial crack on the butt, it is probably from being dry (improper storage).

1st step is to remove the old "Mar-shield" finish. I use Citristrip, one heavy coat, then let it sit for an hour.

then scrape away as much as you can, the more finish you remove, the less sandpaper you will use

Then I use Acetone and a paper towel to remove the stripper and remaining finish

Then I start sanding with 100 grit, remember to use a block, sand with the grain and watch the contours, you want to keep the flat stuff flat and the round stuff round.

Next, I fit the butt plat to the stock with the belt sander, I use a gentle touch, taking just enough material.

Then I begin sanding the entire stock, starting with 100 grit working our way up to 320 grit

then I fill the crack with some glue and a little bit of sanding dust

Next I get out the hobby iron and attempt to steam out some of the dents.

then we go ahead and raise the grain, the dye I will be using is alcohol based, but it can still cause the grain to raise. After it dries, I knock down any high fibers with 400 grit sandpaper

I have used Feibing's leather dye in the past, it gives you a nice tobacco brown color with a hint of red.

make sure to use gloves, this stuff will stain your skin. I rub on one coat and let it dry

Then I apply the first coat of Tru-Oil

I let each coat dry for 24 hours before applying the next coat, I did three coats on this stock.