The Satuit Nimrod

News Around The Club

The Annual Meeting and Election of Officers was held on Monday, September 21st. As the slate of officers ran unopposed, the chairman of the Nominating Committee cast the one vote necessary to elect the slate. The committee chairmen gave their annual reports on what they achieved in the previous 12 months and their plans for the current fiscal year. 

About 350 members have renewed, with a number of them paying a $25 Late Fee. If you have not renewed by the end of October, you will have to rejoin the club by paying the $150 Dues plus the $50 Initiation Fee. Pistol range access of those members in arrears has been turned off.  

We change the locks annually at the start of our fiscal year.  New keys are available during club activities; skeet, trap, etc. They are also available Mon-Sat, 3:30 to 4:30 time frame when the Coffee Club meets to drink coffee and solve the problems of the world. 

NO ON 9 lawn signs are available in the clubhouse. Chapter 135 is the onerous anti-gun legislation that was put in place in 2024. Question 9 on the ballot either keeps or repeals Chapter 135. Beware, the wording of Question 9 is convoluted, in true MA fashion,  and designed to make you think a YES vote will repeal Chapter 135. Vote NO on Question 9 at the November 3, 2026 statewide ballot.

Pumpkin Drop

Our annual pumpkin drop will be held on Saturday, October 24th at 2:00pm. The Pumpkin Drop is for club members and their children only — emphasis on the children. The public is not invited. Strict safety protocols will be in place with children not allowed to proceed to the impact zone until the pumpkins have hit the ground — then it will be a free-for-all.

Skeet and Trap

Skeet  shoots on Sunday from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm and Wednesdays from 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm.
Trap shoots on Tuesdays from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm and Saturdays from 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.

Trap has had a few hiccoughs of late due to inclement weather flooding the trap house causing electrical problems. We happy to announce that Trap is up and running again.

Pistol

The Pistol Committee will hold a "William Tell" Pistol Match on Saturday, October 24th starting at 10:00 am. There are three stages to this match with two divisions in which you can shoot: Centerfire and Rimfire.

The first stage is "Texas Star" where you knock plates off a spinning target. Course of Fire is 10 rounds at 10 yards. Knock the five plates off the Texas Star with 10 shots. Five points for each plate hit plus two points for each round not used.

The second stage is "Swing Them Plates" where you move the plates on a Dueling Tree from one side to the other. Course of Fire is 10 rounds at 10 yards. All plates start off on the left side. Move the plates to the right side. Plates that bounce back do not count and must be re-shot. Five points for each plate moved plus two points for each round not used.

The third stage is "Knock The Apple Off Little Walter Tell’s Head". Course of Fire is 5 Rounds at 10 Yards.  Knock the apple off Little Walter Tell’s head without hurting him. Hitting the apple scores 25 points plus two points for each round not used. A hit anywhere on the head or body of the target is an automatic kill. Stop shooting and hang your head in shame.

If you are unfamiliar with Switzerland's most famous character who never was, click this link:  William Tell?

If you set up a steel plate on a stand down range, you must return both the the shooting shed when you are finished. Failure to do so will result in the plates and stands being removed from use. Thank you for your attention to this matter. 

Cowboy Action Shooting

The Gunnysackers have been busy in September competing in two State Championship matches:

Maine State Championship

Ron Rice 1st in category

Phil Lennon 1st in category

Sue Lennon 1st in category

Jean Alexander 2nd in category

New York State Championship

Ron Rice 1st in category

Sue Lennon 1st in category

Jean Alexander 1st in category

Now the Group is at the National Championship in Oklahoma from October 6th thru 10th.

Stay tuned for the results.

Safety Course

The monthly Safety Course is given on the first Wednesday and Thursday of the month. The next course will be given on November 4th and 5th. Register here.

Range Orientation Class

The next Range Orientation Class will be given on Sunday, October 11th at 9:00 am. This class is mandatory before you can access the pistol range. Register here.

Quotes of the Month

"A free people ought not only be armed and disciplined, but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which would include their own government."

~ George Washington

"You can have all the gun control laws in the country, but if you don't enforce them, people are going to find a way to protect themselves. We need to recognize that bad people are doing bad things with these weapons. It's not the law-abiding citizens, it's not the person who uses it as a hobby."

~ Michael Steele — Politician, Attorney, and Political Commentator

"A man with a briefcase can steal millions more than any man with a gun ."

 ~ Don Henley — Musician

Commerce Dept. Explains Why Unconstitutional Microstamping is Also Ineffective

This article appeared on August 31, 2026 in NRA-ILA.

On August 12, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) sent a letter to U.S. House Committee on Science, Space and Technology Chairman Brian Babin (R-Texas) reiterating what gun rights supporters have long understood – that firearm microstamping is a flawed and ineffective policy.

The purported theory behind “microstamping” is that firearms could be equipped with a firing pin or other internal firearm part that could imprint unique microscopic identification marks (alphanumeric characters) onto ammunition cartridge cases when the gun is fired. Each firearm and its corresponding markings would be entered into a computerized database accessible to law enforcement before leaving the factory. According to microstamping proponents, when police recover a spent ammunition case from a crime scene they could then examine the markings on the case and use that information to identify the firearm used in the incident, as well as its owner. Gun control advocates seek to mandate that whatever firearms they aren’t insisting be banned at the moment be equipped with this technology.

Understanding gun control advocates’ civilian disarmament agenda, gun rights supporters are aware that this “theory” is merely another means of imposing prohibitive costs and other prior restraints on exercising Second Amendment rights.

Any debate over the efficacy of firearm microstamping technology should be moot on constitutional grounds.

In District of Columbia v. Heller (2008), the U.S. Supreme Court made clear that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to keep and bear arms “‘in common use at the time’ for lawful purposes.” As none of the hundreds of millions of firearms Americans own and use for self-defense, hunting, target shooting, and other lawful purposes utilize this technology, the right to acquire, keep, and bear firearms without microstamping components is protected by the Second Amendment.

Moreover, in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen (2022) the Court’s held that for a firearm regulation to pass constitutional muster it must fit within the text, history, and tradition of the Second Amendment right. The opinion stated,

[w]hen the Second Amendment’s plain text covers an individual’s conduct, the Constitution presumptively protects that conduct. The government must then justify its regulation by demonstrating that it is consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. Only then may a court conclude that the individual’s conduct falls outside the Second Amendment’s “unqualified command.”

It should be obvious to all that there is not, and could not be, a historic tradition of requiring the manufacturing and sale of firearms that impart distinguishing alpha numeric characters onto ammunition casings, with the government keeping a database by which to track such firearm ammunition casing characters to individual firearms.

Still, the Court’s clear commands haven’t stopped anti-gun lawmakers. California, New Jersey, and New York all have laws requiring microstamping in some form upon determination that the technology is viable or available.

Further, directly athwart the Court’s emphasis on “historical tradition,” microstamping proponents have stressed the gun control scheme’s “innovative” quality.

In a February 28, 2024, press release announcing his finding that microstamping technology was viable, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin declared, “This technology gives law enforcement an innovative tool.” Another official from the attorney general’s office was quoted in the release as stating, “Attorney General Platkin has made this work a priority, and he recognizes that solving such a far-reaching problem requires bold steps and innovation.” A 2022 press release from gun control group Brady (formerly Handgun Control, Inc.) quoted Platkin referencing, “innovative policies and legislation like microstamping.”

On their websites, gun control groups Giffords and Everytown have described microstamping as “an innovative technology.” Addressing microstamping mandates, Everytown noted, “the California and New York laws are innovative.” In 2020 Brady President Kris Brown said, “microstamping is another such innovative policy that other states should take up.”

The NIST examined microstamping as a policy matter. In drafting the letter, NIST inspected the literature on microstamping to provide “a comprehensive summary of the best available evidence in the field.”

The letter explained that whether microstamping technology can reliably operate as intended has not been proven. NIST noted that “researchers found that legibility is inconsistent and that transfer rates vary by firearm and ammunition type.”

The letter also explained,

The Association of Firearm and Tool Mark Examiners (AFTE) and the New York State (NYS) Firearm Technical Working Group (TWG) note that firing pins naturally wear over time. Furthermore, firearms produce residues such as propellant (gunpowder) and primer particles that can accumulate in the microscopic engravings, potentially obscuring the code.

…

Studies showed that firing pin motion, such as repeated strikes and drag, during discharge, can significantly impact the readability of microstamps.

…

Forensic science organizations and industry groups have voiced concerns about the technology’s inconsistent performance across different firearms and ammunition.

Then there is the most obvious flaw in the microstamping gun control scheme - circumvention.

The letter noted,

The technology is highly susceptible to deliberate circumvention. Microstamps on firing pins can be defaced or obliterated with basic household tools such as a sharpening stone, hammer, or small file. The research demonstrated that the firearm remained fully operational after removing the microstamp. Furthermore, because firing pins are replaceable parts, a user could easily swap a microstamped pin for an unmarked aftermarket version. It is important to note that replacing a firing pin can be part of routine maintenance or accommodate an owner’s preference. No realistic mitigation strategy currently exists to address these modifications, and critics argue this vulnerability undermines the technology’s effectiveness as a crime-solving tool.

Addressing the research on how criminals obtain firearms, NIST explained,

Further concerns point to government research that shows that “criminals do not typically obtain firearms through retail sources, opting instead to acquire firearms through theft, ‘Off the street/underground market,’ or ‘from a family member or friend, or as a gift’”. Therefore, efforts to trace back to the original purchaser may not lead directly to the perpetrator, limiting their investigative value.

Microstamping requirements are bad law, and as the NIST made clear in their letter, also flawed policy.

Club Calendar

ANNUAL MEETING & ELECTION OF OFFICERS

Monday, September 21st – 8:00 pm

MONTHLY MEETING

Tuesday, October 5th– 8:00 pm

SKEET

Sundays: 10:00 am – 2:00 pm.
Wednesdays: 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm.

TRAP

Tuesdays: 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm

Saturdays: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm.

PISTOL
Lucky Bullseye Pistol Match, Saturday, September 19th, 10:00 am.

COWBOY
Cowboy Action Match, Saturday September 26th, 9:00 am.

SAFETY COURSE

Wednesday, October 2nd –7:00 pm & Thursday, October 3rd  – 7:00 pm. Register here.

RANGE ORIENTATION CLASS
Sunday, October 4th – 9:00 am Register here.