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Special Newsletter This is a special edition newsletter. The need for it was prompted by a couple of important events that effect the club. I’ll also take this opportunity to correct some problems which occurred in the printing of the January newsletter where a few of the columns were cut off before the text was supposed to finish. The full text of last issue’s Cowboy Humor appears in it’s entirety on page 4. Sorry about that... Most importantly, the special story on the 2nd page of last issue within the Secretary’s column, written by one of our members about his friend Tibor Rubin receiving the Congressional Medal of Honor and attending the ceremony in Washington DC, was told by: Bud Collette. 5th R.C.T. Korean War (20-year Member of Arizona Arms Association) Our Upcoming Summer Shows: July 8-9 Wickenburg July 15-16 Tucson July 29-30 Flagstaff August 19-20 Mesa Our next general membership meeting will be held February 4th at our Tucson Pima Co. show. All members are invited to attend. Important Message from Our Treasurer The year has ended and we made some changes that helped us maintain our strength in the gun show market. Our Collector show proved to be what a lot of our members were looking for instead of just a gun show. We have our dates in place for 2006 and our calendar will reflect some changes. We have moved the Flagstaff show to July 29 & 30. This is more in line with the shows done prior to the last 3 years. The crowds were larger at that time of year because of the heat in the Valley and so many things to do in Flagstaff, so this will be a good thing. We were able to book Rodeway Inn (Tucson) again on July 15 & 16. We had a very successful show there last year and looking forward to doing the same this year so this will be a good thing. My main purpose in writing our members is to inform you of the situation in Mesa. I went to the City of Mesa two weeks ago to book our dates for 2007. Our goal was to book Collector shows for spring & fall and as usual our August regular summer show. I was informed Leigh Wilcox from Ter-Mark had requested and they gave to him exclusive rights to 60 days between shows. This would leave us with only the August date. I wrote Leigh a rather strong letter on behalf of the Club and this was his explanation. Peggy: Thanks for the note. As you know Gun Show dates have changed with new promoters and added dates all over Arizona. The Convention Center offered Ter-Mark the dates, and protection as a proactive move to insure a profitable Gun Show to continue at The Convention Center. I'm sure you can see as a business person that change is inevitable and by limiting the number of shows in a building is beneficial for the dealers and will increase the crowd so that profit will improve for all. The Convention Center does not make their money on how many people come through the door, the show promoter does. He did book an extra show in May of this year and he does do the majority of shows (at this location). I am opposed to the City giving Leigh the option without a word to us. The majority of table renters at Leigh's shows are members of Arizona Arms. I am opposed to him forgetting what he said when he came to Arizona in 2001. He said “I want to join your Club and always work with its members and that will bring me success”. Well, my fellow members, we have helped to make him successful and he does not need us any more. He wants all of the pie and it is not for the dealers, it is for the promoter. I have another meeting with the City of Mesa after our February show to protest their actions. I believe they will have to let us continue with our previous years schedules. I need your input, so if you would write or email me, I will have some ammunition when I go for my meeting. Peggy
This Day In
History
January 4 1847 Colt sells his first revolvers to the U.S. government.
Before Colt began mass-producing his popular revolvers in 1847, handguns had not played a significant role in the history of either the American West or the nation as a whole. Expensive and inaccurate, short-barreled handguns were impractical for the majority of Americans, though a handful of elite still insisted on using dueling pistols to solve disputes in highly formalized combat. When choosing a practical weapon for self-defense and close-quarter fighting, most Americans preferred knives, and western pioneers especially favored the deadly and versatile Bowie knife. That began to change when Samuel Colt patented his percussion-repeating revolver in 1836. The heart of Colt's invention was a mechanism that combined a single rifled barrel with a revolving chamber that held five or six shots. When the weapon was cocked for firing, the chamber revolved automatically to bring the next shot into line with the barrel. Though still far less accurate than a well-made hunting rifle, the Colt revolver could be aimed with reasonable precision at a short distance (30 to 40 yards in the hands of an expert), because the interior bore was "rifled"--cut with a series of grooves spiraling down its length. The spiral grooves caused the slug to spin rapidly as it left the barrel, giving it gyroscopic stability. The five or six-shoot capacity also made accuracy less important, since a missed shot could quickly be followed with others. Yet most cowboys, gamblers, and gunslingers could never have afforded such a revolver if not for the de facto subsidy the federal government provided to Colt by purchasing his revolvers in such great quantities. After the first batch of revolvers proved popular with soldiers, the federal government became one of Colt's biggest customers, providing him with the much-needed capital to improve his production facilities. With the help of Eli Whitney and other inventors, Colt developed a system of mass production and interchangeable parts for his pistols that greatly lowered their cost. Though never cheap, by the early 1850s, Colt revolvers were inexpensive enough to be a favorite with Americans headed westward during the California Gold Rush. Between 1850 and 1860, Colt sold 170,000 of his "pocket" revolvers and 98,000 "belt" revolvers, mostly to civilians looking for a powerful and effective means of self-defense in the Wild West. |
Open Letter to the Membership I would like to start by thanking Peggy for all her efforts with the advertising of the Collector Show, and Cindy for her organizational help. Mark Stewart deserves thanks for his incredible assistance, and the entire board of AAA for backing a Collector Show. Unlike most gun shows, the AAA Collector Show was literally free of complaints by those that set up and the guests. No one felt that the club had let them down. The difference is fundamental because a Collector Show is by and for collectors. Gun shows in general have become less gun shows and more general sporting goods shows, (I use that term loosely) but the truth of the matter is that what an average guest finds at a gun show today could be bought at most gun stores, Wal-Mart, or in a Cabella’s store or catalog. I mention Cabella’s because the new ‘Destination Superstore’ in Glendale should open this summer and if you have never been in one, well you have a treat in store. No charge for parking, no admission, and on promotion days free hot dogs and drinks and entertainment for you and the kids. Back to gun shows, at the average gun show 75-80% of the vendors can make a phone call on Monday and restock. What that vendor wants in a gun show is gate numbers. They are retailers without store fronts. The difference between collector show and gun show should be obvious, and keeping in mind how many shows are put on in Arizona and how many real retail outlets sell the same goods, is it any wonder attendance numbers at shows are dropping? Wait until Cabella’s opens and you can get that holster any time you want it, not just on Saturday or Sunday after paying admission. AAA is a club and answers to membership on the direction the club is heading and the competition and conflict of interests should be on club member’s minds. Several members are gun show promoters in competition with AAA and many vendors have joined the club for the benefit of reduced table rates at AAA shows, but their interests in general are not in line with the clubs. AAA brought a Collector Show to Arizona in November and those that attended were thrilled to see 10 historical displays and a show devoid of readily restocked ‘Show Items’. The table holders were delighted with the show and the collectors and guests got to see history - and in many cases to add to their collections. AAA is trying to buck the trend and return to what the membership in general are, COLLECTORS! Ter-Mark in particular is trying to cut AAA off at the knees by locking the club out of show dates in Mesa. Club members please, don’t set-up or attend Ter-Marks shows and give some thought to other promoter’s ethics and act accordingly. Bill Rudich Show Director
BEING CREATIVE WITH TROUBLESOME KIN You are working on your
family genealogy and for sake of example, let's say that your
great-great uncle, Remus Starr, a fellow lacking in character, was
hanged for horse stealing and train robbery in Montana in
1889.
In closing.....
Our members are provided with a legitimate forum, established by the Charter of the organization in which a member in good standing may air disagreements or opinions and where he or she may express his/her ideas and views and will be heard. Inevitably, an occasional a member will take an opposing action to try to divide, discredit the club or reduce its effectiveness. Often they are ignorant of the rules and customs of the club, by-laws and procedure. Most organizations take such actions seriously and so do we. Our by-laws provide in Article II Section 2: “memberships may be terminated, or renewal of membership denied, for bringing discredit to the organization as determined by the Board of Directors or by failing to comply with these Articles…” Members who pass along disparaging comments or lies to discredit the club are in violation of our policy. As a group we expect that members not engage in conduct that may prejudice the standing and reputation of the club or harm the integrity of our organization or take action to reduce its effectiveness. Let us remember that communication and cooperation help make a club successful.
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Samuel Colt rescues the future of his
faltering gun company by winning a contract to provide the U.S.
government with 1,000 of his .44 caliber
revolvers.
Cowboy 
The Arizona Arms Association is a
membership-based organization - and realizes its activities through
support and active participation of its members.