1740 West La Veta Ave, Orange, CA 92868
Wild Bunch Shooting in Austria, Tommy Guns & May 30 Auction Catalog Update
Estimated reading time: 3 min
The final segment of the March 8 broadcast opens with a letter from an Austrian friend of the show, a fellow Wild Bunch competitor preparing for the Austrian championship in Graz, who mentions a side match where participants will be using Thompson submachine guns in place of rifles. The crew compares that to the California regulatory landscape around pistol grip restrictions and automatic weapons, and reflects on why so many California gun owners feel the urgency around the June primary. The segment closes with a catalog update on the May 30 auction, now over 400 lots and building, and a teaser that Leon Kaplan — the retired AM radio host known to longtime listeners as Leon the Motorman — will be returning to co-host a Motor Slingers episode by the end of the month.
Wild Bunch in Graz: A Letter from Austria
One of the crew read aloud a note that arrived from an Austrian friend of the show, a Wild Bunch competitor who had shot alongside the Gunslinger crew at a world championship match the previous year. The letter described the familiar post-match routine: finally getting around to cleaning firearms that had been sitting dirty since the last stage, with the observation that after the match is before the match. The writer was already preparing for the Austrian Wild Bunch championship, scheduled for the following Saturday in Graz, and mentioned a side match called the Untouchables in which competitors would be substituting a Thompson submachine gun for the standard rifle stage.
Wild Bunch shooting is a practical shooting discipline governed by the Single Action Shooting Society that uses period-correct firearms from roughly the era of the 1911 pistol: a single-action revolver, a lever-action rifle, a period shotgun, and a semi-automatic pistol. The Untouchables side match swaps the rifle for a Thompson, which in a European competition context is a straightforward equipment substitution. In California, as the crew noted immediately, it is a different conversation entirely.
Tommy Guns, Pistol Grip Fins & California Firearms Law
Running a Thompson submachine gun in a California competition is not a simple matter. Fully automatic firearms require federal registration under the National Firearms Act and are subject to California’s additional restrictions on assault weapons, which include prohibitions on forward pistol grips and requirements that any pistol grip configuration either be removed or equipped with a fin device intended to prevent the shooter’s thumb from wrapping around the grip. The crew’s view of these restrictions is well established: the fin grip in particular is widely regarded in the shooting community as a cosmetic compliance measure that does not meaningfully affect how a firearm handles in practice.
The conversation touched on the California primary and the candidate the crew has been supporting throughout the broadcast season, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who is running for governor on a platform that includes defunding the California Department of Justice’s enforcement apparatus as a mechanism for unwinding firearm regulations the crew considers unenforceable and counterproductive. The crew’s position is that the most direct path to regulatory change in California runs through the ballot box in June and November, and that low turnout among firearms owners is the primary obstacle.
May 30 Auction Catalog Update: Over 400 Lots and Climbing
The show closed with an update on the May 30 auction at the Highway 39 Event Center in Anaheim. The catalog is currently being built and has passed 400 lots with the crew estimating it is roughly halfway complete, which puts the final count on track for the 800-lot range discussed in earlier segments. The online catalog is expected to go live around April 30, approximately 30 days before the sale, consistent with Gunslinger’s standard practice. Bidding will be available in person at Highway 39, by phone, by sealed bid, and online through HiBid and Proxibid. The crew noted that calls are already coming in asking about catalog availability, which speaks to how much interest has been generated by the WWII and cowboy action previews from earlier in the broadcast. Doors open at 9am for registration, with the hammer dropping at 10am PT.
Motor Slingers Returns: Leon Kaplan Coming Back to the Show
The broadcast ended with word that Leon Kaplan, the retired AM radio host known to longtime listeners as Leon the Motorman, will be returning to co-host an upcoming episode. When Leon joins the show, the weekly broadcast rebrands for the week as Motor Slingers, a format that blends the usual firearms and auction conversation with Leon’s decades of expertise in automobiles, aviation, trains, and transportation generally. The crew indicated the Motor Slingers episode is expected by the end of March or mid-April. Longtime fans of the show will remember Leon’s previous visits as some of the most wide-ranging broadcasts in the catalog, and his return will mark another chapter in a friendship between the Gunslinger crew and one of Southern California’s most recognizable radio voices.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Wild Bunch shooting and how does it differ from standard cowboy action?
Wild Bunch shooting is a practical shooting discipline governed by the Single Action Shooting Society that uses firearms from roughly the era of the 1911 semi-automatic pistol, placing it slightly later than traditional cowboy action shooting. A standard Wild Bunch stage requires a 1911-pattern semi-automatic pistol, a lever-action rifle, a period-correct shotgun, and in some configurations a single-action revolver. The discipline follows SASS safety and scoring rules but uses a distinct equipment list and stage designs that reflect the transitional period between the Old West and the early twentieth century.
Can you shoot a Thompson submachine gun in California?
Registered pre-1986 fully automatic firearms are legal to own in California with proper federal NFA registration and BATFE paperwork, but they are subject to the state’s assault weapon regulations in addition to federal requirements. California prohibits forward pistol grips on rifles and restricts pistol grip configurations to those using a fin device that prevents thumb wrap. A Thompson in its standard configuration would require modification to comply with state law. In practice, fully automatic Thompsons are extremely rare, expensive, and tightly regulated at both the federal and state level.
What is the California pistol grip fin requirement?
California’s assault weapon regulations restrict the configuration of pistol grips on rifles and shotguns. A compliant featureless rifle can retain a traditional pistol grip only if a fin device is attached that prevents the shooter’s thumb from wrapping around the grip. The intent is to prevent the firearm from meeting the legal definition of an assault weapon under state law. The shooting community widely regards these devices as a cosmetic compliance measure with no meaningful effect on how a firearm functions.
When will the Gunslinger Auctions May 30 catalog be available online?
The May 30 auction catalog is expected to go live around April 30, approximately 30 days before the sale. As of the March 8 broadcast the catalog was over 400 lots and roughly halfway complete, putting the final count on track for approximately 800 lots. The catalog will be available to browse and bid on through HiBid and Proxibid. In-person inspection of lots is available at the Gunslinger Auctions Orange location in the weeks leading up to the sale.
What is Motor Slingers and who is Leon Kaplan?
Motor Slingers is the name the Gunslinger Syndicated Radio Show adopts when Leon Kaplan joins as a guest co-host. Leon Kaplan, known on air as Leon the Motorman, is a retired Southern California AM radio personality with deep expertise in automobiles, aviation, and transportation. His visits to the show blend the regular firearms and auction content with wide-ranging conversation about cars, planes, and trains drawn from decades behind the microphone. Motor Slingers episodes are a recurring fan favorite in the show’s catalog.
Sources, Credibility, and Continuing the Conversation
The recommendations and observations herein rest on decades of hands-on experience: restorations, hunts, auctioneering, and studio conversation. Practical advice leans best when tempered by cautious humility – test gear, vet sellers, and keep learning from trusted elders in the trade.