User:Euromutt

For some stupid reason not readily apparent to me, in my early teens I became interested in whether the firearms depicted in movies, TV shows, graphic novels and indeed text novels were historically accurate; not only whether a certain weapon might conceivably show up in a particular setting, but whether it was likely that it would. It is highly likely Ian Fleming's fixation with Lugers played a part, because they seemed to crop up in excessive numbers. Be that as it may, that interest led to an interest in firearms in general, which was fed by performing conscripted military service in the Royal Netherlands Army, which is where I first handled and fired a variety of actual firearms.

About ten years ago, I emigrated from the Netherlands to the United States, and upon gaining U.S. citizenship, indulged my newly won right to keep and bear arms, amassing a collection of five handguns and five long guns (so far). Handling, shooting and cleaning them has given me a better appreciation of the engineering involved in their functioning.