Security supervisor
Trainee
Saturday, June 18, 2005
Forging tools
The big ones in this case. Since I now have a camera I thought I'd post shots of some of my tools.
First is the forge
Steel frame, the main body is an old cast-iron sink; I cut a hole near one end and set in a brake drum as a firepot.
There's a hole cut at each end of the body so long pieces can be put in. Below is an angle of steel pipe with a squirrel-cage fan for the blower. Speed is controlled by a ceiling fan control; it works well. Below the forge is a: a bucket full of I don't remember(need to clean that out), b: water bucket for cooling hot things, and c: that yellow thing is an old air tank with one end cut off; for quenching things like double-edged blades I fill it with oil and use it. Please ignore the mess around it.
Next is the anvil
This one weighs 110 lbs. The piece sitting on top is a cutting saddle; a piece of mild steel bent to fit over(so it won't fall off), it's for chisel work such as cutting/splitting stock so you don't ding up the anvil face or your chisels. Sitting on a stump, which is on bricks to keep it off the ground when not in use. There's a small bench vise bolted to the stump, which has been hugely handy over time. A good anvil will have a hardened face, and if you're looking at one and you're not sure the easiest test is this: take a hammer, a small one will do, hold it about 6-8" above the face, and drop it. No, don't turn loose of the handle. If the face is hardened, the hammer will dance nicely, bouncing a few times; if it goes 'clunk' and sits there, don't buy it. You can't go by the sound, as I've seen fine anvils that rang like a bell(this one does) and others that just give a metallic 'thunk', so look for the bounce.
And for God's sake, don't just beat on the anvil without something to cushion it, like the piece you're forging. You'll have two pieces of hardened steel banging into each other, and bad things can happen, especially around the edge; hard strikes there with nothing to cushion them can chip and crack the edge of the face. And if you find a good one and the edges are sharp, I would suggest you get a belt sander and round them off. Doesn't have to be much, and it'll keep you from dinging the hammer face, as well as reducing the chance of knocking off chips. This one has a curve of between 1/4" up near the horn, getting smaller as you move toward the heel, and it took a while to grind it on.
In the future I'll post some pictures of various tools used on/with the above.
First is the forge
Steel frame, the main body is an old cast-iron sink; I cut a hole near one end and set in a brake drum as a firepot.
There's a hole cut at each end of the body so long pieces can be put in. Below is an angle of steel pipe with a squirrel-cage fan for the blower. Speed is controlled by a ceiling fan control; it works well. Below the forge is a: a bucket full of I don't remember(need to clean that out), b: water bucket for cooling hot things, and c: that yellow thing is an old air tank with one end cut off; for quenching things like double-edged blades I fill it with oil and use it. Please ignore the mess around it.
Next is the anvil
This one weighs 110 lbs. The piece sitting on top is a cutting saddle; a piece of mild steel bent to fit over(so it won't fall off), it's for chisel work such as cutting/splitting stock so you don't ding up the anvil face or your chisels. Sitting on a stump, which is on bricks to keep it off the ground when not in use. There's a small bench vise bolted to the stump, which has been hugely handy over time. A good anvil will have a hardened face, and if you're looking at one and you're not sure the easiest test is this: take a hammer, a small one will do, hold it about 6-8" above the face, and drop it. No, don't turn loose of the handle. If the face is hardened, the hammer will dance nicely, bouncing a few times; if it goes 'clunk' and sits there, don't buy it. You can't go by the sound, as I've seen fine anvils that rang like a bell(this one does) and others that just give a metallic 'thunk', so look for the bounce.
And for God's sake, don't just beat on the anvil without something to cushion it, like the piece you're forging. You'll have two pieces of hardened steel banging into each other, and bad things can happen, especially around the edge; hard strikes there with nothing to cushion them can chip and crack the edge of the face. And if you find a good one and the edges are sharp, I would suggest you get a belt sander and round them off. Doesn't have to be much, and it'll keep you from dinging the hammer face, as well as reducing the chance of knocking off chips. This one has a curve of between 1/4" up near the horn, getting smaller as you move toward the heel, and it took a while to grind it on.
In the future I'll post some pictures of various tools used on/with the above.
Why I don't make it to the range enough
I mentioned yesterday that I'd planned to go to the range and shoot for Og's postal match, but had dinner with my son instead. So maybe tomorrow...
Tomorrow comes. Get off work, get home, play with dogs a bit.
Notice that the grass in the front and back needs mowing(apparently the rain had fertilizer mixed in).
Start mower, cut front.
Start on back, run out of gas.
Get gas.
Mow back, clean up.
Feed dogs.
Realize I'm hungry, eat.
It's now too late to shoot. Ok, maybe tomorrow...
I MEAN it this time, I should be able to work it and I'd like to get in on the match.
Tomorrow comes. Get off work, get home, play with dogs a bit.
Notice that the grass in the front and back needs mowing(apparently the rain had fertilizer mixed in).
Start mower, cut front.
Start on back, run out of gas.
Get gas.
Mow back, clean up.
Feed dogs.
Realize I'm hungry, eat.
It's now too late to shoot. Ok, maybe tomorrow...
I MEAN it this time, I should be able to work it and I'd like to get in on the match.
Friday, June 17, 2005
No postal match today
I was going to hit the range this evening and shoot the .22 portion of Og's match tonight, but had the chance to have dinner with my son, so guess which I did?
There's a place that calls itself Johnny Carrino's Country Italian, and we went there. Right now I'm so full it's terrible.
The afternoon went to pruning trees in the back. No storm damage, just some long branches that needed it, and I finally figured out how to reach them without them falling on my head when they cut through. You hear a section thump into the ground and leave a depression, you don't want the depression in any of your body parts. It was about 85 today, and the humidity after last nights' storms was trying to match it, so it was fairly bloody uncomfortable. But a shower and dinner took care of that.
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to digest.
By the way, I tried to order a Duracoat kit today, but every time I tried to check out, it popped up with 'there is nothing in your cart'. Stupid system.
There's a place that calls itself Johnny Carrino's Country Italian, and we went there. Right now I'm so full it's terrible.
The afternoon went to pruning trees in the back. No storm damage, just some long branches that needed it, and I finally figured out how to reach them without them falling on my head when they cut through. You hear a section thump into the ground and leave a depression, you don't want the depression in any of your body parts. It was about 85 today, and the humidity after last nights' storms was trying to match it, so it was fairly bloody uncomfortable. But a shower and dinner took care of that.
Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to digest.
By the way, I tried to order a Duracoat kit today, but every time I tried to check out, it popped up with 'there is nothing in your cart'. Stupid system.
"This further report just in; we're STILL not dead"
Yesterday evening a line of storms formed in CO and western KS and started moving southeast. Serious storms, no doubt; there were some areas long the frontal boundary that got gusts as high as 90mph. Please note: SOME AREAS got gusts that strong. Most of the areas the boundary moved through got anywhere from 30-60mph gusts, many lower than that. And yes, moderate to heavy rain moved along behind the line(my rain guage showed a shade over 2" this morning). But overall, just another summer storm night with some severe weather.
But for a while during the evening/night, you'd have thought the world was going to blow away. I realize the weather weenies want to make sure people know there's severe weather coming, but overdoing it doesn't help.
Oh well, it was a good rain. Though right now it's humid enough to grow moss on a fence post.
But for a while during the evening/night, you'd have thought the world was going to blow away. I realize the weather weenies want to make sure people know there's severe weather coming, but overdoing it doesn't help.
Oh well, it was a good rain. Though right now it's humid enough to grow moss on a fence post.
Nice idea!
Gullyborg reports on a proposed constitutional amendment of brevity and a good idea; that representation in the House would be decided according to the number of citazens in the state, not the total population.
The more I think about it, the more I like it. Since illegal aliens aren't supposed to be voting, why should they be counted in deciding the number of House seats?
Sounds good to me.
The more I think about it, the more I like it. Since illegal aliens aren't supposed to be voting, why should they be counted in deciding the number of House seats?
Sounds good to me.
Thursday, June 16, 2005
Now that I can shoot better pictures,
Here is, first, the Self-Propelled Ferret Toy, also known as a teacup Chihuahua
And for Cowboy Blob, here's the third ferret of the bunch. For once Vashka woke up while I was over there, and is modeled here by my daughter. Who also held the little beast above reasonably still for his portrait.
Let's see, over there are three ferrets, three dogs, a rat, a rabbit and a turtle. Talk about a friggin' zoo...
And for Cowboy Blob, here's the third ferret of the bunch. For once Vashka woke up while I was over there, and is modeled here by my daughter. Who also held the little beast above reasonably still for his portrait.
Let's see, over there are three ferrets, three dogs, a rat, a rabbit and a turtle. Talk about a friggin' zoo...
Whoa, it works! Thank you Mr. Completely!
Thanks to good information given, I can now perform the highly technical function of posting multiple pictures at one time, so this will be a redo of the range report the other day.
This morning I said to hell with everything and went to the range. It was supposed to be partly cloudy and hot; it stayed overcast and cool with light winds the whole time I was out. With occasional rumbles of thunder and a few spits of rain; overall a great day for shooting. I took four rifles, one for fun, two for sighting in, and one for ammo testing.
One sighter was a Savage Scout Rifle. If you're not familiar with it, when the Scout Rifle concept was first getting a lot of attention Savage took their short action, gave it a 20" barrel, synthetic stock, forward scope base and a ghost ring rear sight with a front bead. It came in both .308 and .223 as I recall; mine's a .308, and came with three sling studs and a Ching sling. I bought it used a few years ago, and found a used Burris 3x scope for it. Overall it's a great rifle. The action is slick, the trigger is light and clean and it has quite acceptable accuracy with a variety of ammo. In this case I had found some Federal 168gr. Gold Medal Match ammo on sale a while back and got a box to try out. It consistently gave 1.25" groups out of this rifle today, quite acceptable. I've got some handloads that are about that tight, I may try some messing with the load/bullet and see what happens.
The only thing I'd change on this rifle is the front sight is a bead, and I'd make it a post. Otherwise? It doesn't have a fold-down bipod built into the forend, and it won't hold a spare mag in the butt like the Steyr; it also cost roughly $1200 less than the Steyr and from what I've heard gives equal levels of accuracy. I'm told Savage stopped making them for a while, but now they're available through the Custom Shop, so if you're looking for a rifle like this you might check it out.
The fun was a Mosin Nagant 91/30; a few months ago I made a new front sight pin so it would hit in the vicinity of the bull at 100 yards instead of a foot over. With Czech silvertip ball(7.62x45R) this thing will hold groups of 2-3" as long as I do my part. Not bad for an old veteran; it's marked as made in 1940, so as Kim says it's a commie rifle, but it may well have killed Nazi bastards so it balances out. I tried a few shots with the bayonet fixed, and that moved the groups about four inches down and three to the left. I take the bayonet as evidence that the Russians had some odd ideas and the Commies were just as bad; give someone a rifle with a 29.5" barrel, then give them a long damn bayonet and tell them to keep it fixed all the time. Jeez.
One of the sighting-in was a 1935 Turkish Mauser. Unlike most military bolt rifles, instead of shooting high this one shot way low, so I had to file and try on the front sight to get it on target. It finally got so short that I just raised the rear to the 200m mark to finish it off. Shoots fine otherwise. This one was fired with Turkish 8x57mm ammo(okay, 7.92x57 if you want to be picky), which throws a 150 grain bullet at about 2800fps. Hot stuff.
The last was the Martini 12/15 I bought a couple of years ago. After the results I got with the Model 12 I bought a couple of months ago, I wanted to try this one at 100 yards, so I took some Federal Lightning, Eley Sport, PMC Match Pistol, Federal Gold Medal Target and CCI Green Tag. The model 12 liked the Federal Lightning and Eley Sport above all; this one got the best results with the Lightning and the PMC Match Pistol, both giving 1.25 and 1.5" groups at 100 yards. It didn't like the Eley, it went into 3-4" groups. I'm still amazed at the results I get from the Lightning; it's the most inexpensive .22 ammo I know of, and shoots the best, or equal to any match ammo, in ALL my rifles of any ammo I've tried so far. Amazed, but happy.
If you're interested in things rimfire, one site you might check out is Rimfire Central; it's only about rimfire firearms, with sections on different brands and different ammo. This is where I got the idea to try the Match Pistol ammo, one guy mentioned that his rifle liked it above all else. Lots of good information on guns, ammo and modifications/accessories.
The one bad thing about the Nagant and Mauser is the ball ammo I used is corrosive primed, so as humid as it is they had to be cleaned today. If you're not familiar with this, the priming isn't actually corrosive, but when the stuff burns it leaves behind traces of chemical salts, and salts attract moisture, so... It's actually not that bad to clean; I picked up a couple of cans of GI bore cleaner at a show, this stuff was intended for corrosive priming cleaning, so it will flush out the salts that other cleaners won't. Then I hit the barrel/bolt face with either Sweet's or Corrosion-X; usually Sweet's since it contains ammonia, which also cuts any traces of salts left as well as cleaning any jacket fouling, then the CLP to protect the metal.
As an experiment one time I tried using Sweet's only; the ammo was listed as 'slightly corrosive', so I cleaned the bore and gas system with it, then dried it out and hit it with CLP. I watched it very closely for a few days, and no rust. I still use the GI stuff on the other surplus ammo first, just to be on the safe side.
Now, if you're interested in checking out the way the rest of that day went, you can read it here. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a lot of crap to put away; besides the general mess I got two deliveries from UPS this afternoon, and I've got books to look over and ammo to put away. 'Bye now.
This morning I said to hell with everything and went to the range. It was supposed to be partly cloudy and hot; it stayed overcast and cool with light winds the whole time I was out. With occasional rumbles of thunder and a few spits of rain; overall a great day for shooting. I took four rifles, one for fun, two for sighting in, and one for ammo testing.
One sighter was a Savage Scout Rifle. If you're not familiar with it, when the Scout Rifle concept was first getting a lot of attention Savage took their short action, gave it a 20" barrel, synthetic stock, forward scope base and a ghost ring rear sight with a front bead. It came in both .308 and .223 as I recall; mine's a .308, and came with three sling studs and a Ching sling. I bought it used a few years ago, and found a used Burris 3x scope for it. Overall it's a great rifle. The action is slick, the trigger is light and clean and it has quite acceptable accuracy with a variety of ammo. In this case I had found some Federal 168gr. Gold Medal Match ammo on sale a while back and got a box to try out. It consistently gave 1.25" groups out of this rifle today, quite acceptable. I've got some handloads that are about that tight, I may try some messing with the load/bullet and see what happens.
The only thing I'd change on this rifle is the front sight is a bead, and I'd make it a post. Otherwise? It doesn't have a fold-down bipod built into the forend, and it won't hold a spare mag in the butt like the Steyr; it also cost roughly $1200 less than the Steyr and from what I've heard gives equal levels of accuracy. I'm told Savage stopped making them for a while, but now they're available through the Custom Shop, so if you're looking for a rifle like this you might check it out.
The fun was a Mosin Nagant 91/30; a few months ago I made a new front sight pin so it would hit in the vicinity of the bull at 100 yards instead of a foot over. With Czech silvertip ball(7.62x45R) this thing will hold groups of 2-3" as long as I do my part. Not bad for an old veteran; it's marked as made in 1940, so as Kim says it's a commie rifle, but it may well have killed Nazi bastards so it balances out. I tried a few shots with the bayonet fixed, and that moved the groups about four inches down and three to the left. I take the bayonet as evidence that the Russians had some odd ideas and the Commies were just as bad; give someone a rifle with a 29.5" barrel, then give them a long damn bayonet and tell them to keep it fixed all the time. Jeez.
One of the sighting-in was a 1935 Turkish Mauser. Unlike most military bolt rifles, instead of shooting high this one shot way low, so I had to file and try on the front sight to get it on target. It finally got so short that I just raised the rear to the 200m mark to finish it off. Shoots fine otherwise. This one was fired with Turkish 8x57mm ammo(okay, 7.92x57 if you want to be picky), which throws a 150 grain bullet at about 2800fps. Hot stuff.
The last was the Martini 12/15 I bought a couple of years ago. After the results I got with the Model 12 I bought a couple of months ago, I wanted to try this one at 100 yards, so I took some Federal Lightning, Eley Sport, PMC Match Pistol, Federal Gold Medal Target and CCI Green Tag. The model 12 liked the Federal Lightning and Eley Sport above all; this one got the best results with the Lightning and the PMC Match Pistol, both giving 1.25 and 1.5" groups at 100 yards. It didn't like the Eley, it went into 3-4" groups. I'm still amazed at the results I get from the Lightning; it's the most inexpensive .22 ammo I know of, and shoots the best, or equal to any match ammo, in ALL my rifles of any ammo I've tried so far. Amazed, but happy.
If you're interested in things rimfire, one site you might check out is Rimfire Central; it's only about rimfire firearms, with sections on different brands and different ammo. This is where I got the idea to try the Match Pistol ammo, one guy mentioned that his rifle liked it above all else. Lots of good information on guns, ammo and modifications/accessories.
The one bad thing about the Nagant and Mauser is the ball ammo I used is corrosive primed, so as humid as it is they had to be cleaned today. If you're not familiar with this, the priming isn't actually corrosive, but when the stuff burns it leaves behind traces of chemical salts, and salts attract moisture, so... It's actually not that bad to clean; I picked up a couple of cans of GI bore cleaner at a show, this stuff was intended for corrosive priming cleaning, so it will flush out the salts that other cleaners won't. Then I hit the barrel/bolt face with either Sweet's or Corrosion-X; usually Sweet's since it contains ammonia, which also cuts any traces of salts left as well as cleaning any jacket fouling, then the CLP to protect the metal.
As an experiment one time I tried using Sweet's only; the ammo was listed as 'slightly corrosive', so I cleaned the bore and gas system with it, then dried it out and hit it with CLP. I watched it very closely for a few days, and no rust. I still use the GI stuff on the other surplus ammo first, just to be on the safe side.
Now, if you're interested in checking out the way the rest of that day went, you can read it here. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a lot of crap to put away; besides the general mess I got two deliveries from UPS this afternoon, and I've got books to look over and ammo to put away. 'Bye now.
Wednesday, June 15, 2005
It's been a day
One other thing I did yesterday was get a new battery for the bike. This meant getting home, putting the acid in the cells, and sticking it on a charger for, in this case, eight hours. But it needed to be done. The directions with this one said to stick in on for a minimum of four hours, and would probably take about ten; since I found I no longer have a battery tester, and I finally had to go to bed, it stayed on for 8.5. That seems to have done the job.
I now have a camera! A friend of mine who works at a camera store in TX knew a guy who bought this one, used it for about a month, then decided he wanted the newer model now out, so My Friend got me a really good deal on it. As the first post with it, I give you my new dirk:
At least it will be when it's done. The blade has been finished for a long time, but between time, work, weather and laziness I hadn't done more. So yesterday I finally had time and overcame my intertia long enough to make and fit the guard, pommel and grip, then rough-sand it. I need to make a proper pommel nut(right now it's a 3/16" hex nut), finish sand the grip and fitting edges, then polish the faces. When that's done, I'll use some epoxy to put it all together.
The blade is 13" from guard to point, 17.75" overall, and 1 5/8" at the widest. The blade was tested when finished, so once I make the sheath I'll have something a bit more period for medieval/renaissance stuff.
This morning I said to hell with everything and went to the range. It was supposed to be partly cloudy and hot; it stayed overcast and cool with light winds the whole time I was out. With occasional rumbles of thunder and a few spits of rain; overall a great day for shooting. I took four rifles, one for fun, two for sighting in, and one for ammo testing. The fun was a Mosin Nagant 91/30; a few months ago I made a new front sight pin so it would hit in the vicinity of the bull at 100 yards instead of a foot over. With Czech silvertip ball this thing will hold groups of 2-3" as long as I do my part. Not bad for an old veteran; it's marked as made in 1940, so as Kim says it's a commie rifle, but it may well have killed Nazi bastards so it balances out. I tried a few shots with the bayonet fixed, and that moved the groups about four inches down and three to the left. I take the bayonet as evidence that the Russians had some odd ideas and the Commies were just as bad; give someone a rifle with a 29.5" barrel, then give them a long damn bayonet and tell them to keep it fixed all the time. Jeez.
One of the sighting-in was a 1935 Turkish Mauser. Unlike most military bolt rifles, instead of shooting high this one shot way low, so I had to file and try on the front sight to get it on target. It finally got so short that I just raised the rear to the 200m mark to finish it off. Shoots fine otherwise.
Second sighter was a Savage Scout Rifle. If you're not familiar with it, when the Scout Rifle concept was first getting a lot of attention Savage took their short action, gave it a 20" barrel, synthetic stock, forward scope base and a ghost ring rear sight with a front bead. It came in both .308 and .223 as I recall; mine's a .308, and came with three sling studs and a Ching sling. I bought it used a few years ago, and found a used Burris 3x scope for it. Overall it's a great rifle. The action is slick, the trigger is light and clean and it has quite acceptable accuracy with a variety of ammo. In this case I had found some Federal 168gr. Gold Medal Match ammo on sale a while back and got a box to try out. It consistently gave 1.25" groups out of this rifle today, quite acceptable. I've got some handloads that are about that tight, I may try some messing with the load/bullet and see what happens.
The only thing I'd change on this rifle is the front sight is a bead, and I'd make it a post. Otherwise? It doesn't have a fold-down bipod built into the forend, and it won't hold a spare mag in the butt like the Steyr; it also cost roughly $1200 less than the Steyr and from what I've heard gives equal levels of accuracy. I'm told Savage stopped making them for a while, but now they're available through the Custom Shop, so if you're looking for a rifle like this you might check it out.
The last was the Martini 12/15 I bought a couple of years ago. After the results I got with the Model 12 I bought a couple of months ago, I wanted to try this one at 100 yards, so I took some Federal Lightning, Eley Sport, PMC Match Pistol, Federal Gold Medal Target and CCI Green Tag. The model 12 liked the Federal Lightning and Eley Sport above all; this one got the best results with the Lightning and the PMC Match Pistol, both giving 1.25 and 1.5" groups at 100 yards. It didn't like the Eley, it went into 3-4" groups. I'm still amazed at the results I get from the Lightning; it's the most inexpensive .22 ammo I know of, and shoots the best in ALL my rifles of any ammo I've tried so far. Amazed, but happy.
If you're interested in things rimfire, one site you might check out is Rimfire Central; it's only about rimfire firearms, with sections on different brands and different ammo. This is where I got the idea to try the Match Pistol ammo, one guy mentioned that his rifle liked it above all else. Lots of good information on guns, ammo and modifications/accessories.
The one bad thing about the Nagant and Mauser is the ball ammo I used is corrosive primed, so as humid as it is they had to be cleaned today. If you're not familiar with this, the priming isn't actually corrosive, but when the stuff burns it leaves behind traces of chemical salts, and salts attract moisture, so... It's actually not that bad to clean; I picked up a couple of cans of GI bore cleaner at a show, this stuff was intended for corrosive priming cleaning, so it will flush out the salts that other cleaners won't. Then I hit the barrel/bolt face with either Sweet's or Corrosion-X; usually Sweet's since it contains ammonia, which also cuts any traces of salts left as well as cleaning any jacket fouling, then the CLP to protect the metal.
As an experiment one time I tried using Sweet's only; the ammo was listed as 'slightly corrosive', so I cleaned the bore and gas system with it, then dried it out and hit it with CLP. I watched it very closely for a few days, and no rust. I still use the GI stuff on the other surplus ammo first, just to be on the safe side.
Oh, the day's not over yet. After cleaning those two, I went out and cut a hole in the end of a drain channel on my carport, and took off the covers I'd put on two others a few months ago, and cleaned out the nests the birds had built in them. Damned sparrows squeezed through openings barely big enough for them with nest materials and raised their broods; now that they're gone, so are the nests. I've got to find a way to block all the spaces so I don't have to do this again next year.
And 2/3 of the way through that, FedEx arrived with my camera, the first result of which is above. I've got to find out how to post more than one picture at a time now.
I think I'll imbibe in a taste of something and crash early tonight. I'm tired.
I now have a camera! A friend of mine who works at a camera store in TX knew a guy who bought this one, used it for about a month, then decided he wanted the newer model now out, so My Friend got me a really good deal on it. As the first post with it, I give you my new dirk:
At least it will be when it's done. The blade has been finished for a long time, but between time, work, weather and laziness I hadn't done more. So yesterday I finally had time and overcame my intertia long enough to make and fit the guard, pommel and grip, then rough-sand it. I need to make a proper pommel nut(right now it's a 3/16" hex nut), finish sand the grip and fitting edges, then polish the faces. When that's done, I'll use some epoxy to put it all together.
The blade is 13" from guard to point, 17.75" overall, and 1 5/8" at the widest. The blade was tested when finished, so once I make the sheath I'll have something a bit more period for medieval/renaissance stuff.
This morning I said to hell with everything and went to the range. It was supposed to be partly cloudy and hot; it stayed overcast and cool with light winds the whole time I was out. With occasional rumbles of thunder and a few spits of rain; overall a great day for shooting. I took four rifles, one for fun, two for sighting in, and one for ammo testing. The fun was a Mosin Nagant 91/30; a few months ago I made a new front sight pin so it would hit in the vicinity of the bull at 100 yards instead of a foot over. With Czech silvertip ball this thing will hold groups of 2-3" as long as I do my part. Not bad for an old veteran; it's marked as made in 1940, so as Kim says it's a commie rifle, but it may well have killed Nazi bastards so it balances out. I tried a few shots with the bayonet fixed, and that moved the groups about four inches down and three to the left. I take the bayonet as evidence that the Russians had some odd ideas and the Commies were just as bad; give someone a rifle with a 29.5" barrel, then give them a long damn bayonet and tell them to keep it fixed all the time. Jeez.
One of the sighting-in was a 1935 Turkish Mauser. Unlike most military bolt rifles, instead of shooting high this one shot way low, so I had to file and try on the front sight to get it on target. It finally got so short that I just raised the rear to the 200m mark to finish it off. Shoots fine otherwise.
Second sighter was a Savage Scout Rifle. If you're not familiar with it, when the Scout Rifle concept was first getting a lot of attention Savage took their short action, gave it a 20" barrel, synthetic stock, forward scope base and a ghost ring rear sight with a front bead. It came in both .308 and .223 as I recall; mine's a .308, and came with three sling studs and a Ching sling. I bought it used a few years ago, and found a used Burris 3x scope for it. Overall it's a great rifle. The action is slick, the trigger is light and clean and it has quite acceptable accuracy with a variety of ammo. In this case I had found some Federal 168gr. Gold Medal Match ammo on sale a while back and got a box to try out. It consistently gave 1.25" groups out of this rifle today, quite acceptable. I've got some handloads that are about that tight, I may try some messing with the load/bullet and see what happens.
The only thing I'd change on this rifle is the front sight is a bead, and I'd make it a post. Otherwise? It doesn't have a fold-down bipod built into the forend, and it won't hold a spare mag in the butt like the Steyr; it also cost roughly $1200 less than the Steyr and from what I've heard gives equal levels of accuracy. I'm told Savage stopped making them for a while, but now they're available through the Custom Shop, so if you're looking for a rifle like this you might check it out.
The last was the Martini 12/15 I bought a couple of years ago. After the results I got with the Model 12 I bought a couple of months ago, I wanted to try this one at 100 yards, so I took some Federal Lightning, Eley Sport, PMC Match Pistol, Federal Gold Medal Target and CCI Green Tag. The model 12 liked the Federal Lightning and Eley Sport above all; this one got the best results with the Lightning and the PMC Match Pistol, both giving 1.25 and 1.5" groups at 100 yards. It didn't like the Eley, it went into 3-4" groups. I'm still amazed at the results I get from the Lightning; it's the most inexpensive .22 ammo I know of, and shoots the best in ALL my rifles of any ammo I've tried so far. Amazed, but happy.
If you're interested in things rimfire, one site you might check out is Rimfire Central; it's only about rimfire firearms, with sections on different brands and different ammo. This is where I got the idea to try the Match Pistol ammo, one guy mentioned that his rifle liked it above all else. Lots of good information on guns, ammo and modifications/accessories.
The one bad thing about the Nagant and Mauser is the ball ammo I used is corrosive primed, so as humid as it is they had to be cleaned today. If you're not familiar with this, the priming isn't actually corrosive, but when the stuff burns it leaves behind traces of chemical salts, and salts attract moisture, so... It's actually not that bad to clean; I picked up a couple of cans of GI bore cleaner at a show, this stuff was intended for corrosive priming cleaning, so it will flush out the salts that other cleaners won't. Then I hit the barrel/bolt face with either Sweet's or Corrosion-X; usually Sweet's since it contains ammonia, which also cuts any traces of salts left as well as cleaning any jacket fouling, then the CLP to protect the metal.
As an experiment one time I tried using Sweet's only; the ammo was listed as 'slightly corrosive', so I cleaned the bore and gas system with it, then dried it out and hit it with CLP. I watched it very closely for a few days, and no rust. I still use the GI stuff on the other surplus ammo first, just to be on the safe side.
Oh, the day's not over yet. After cleaning those two, I went out and cut a hole in the end of a drain channel on my carport, and took off the covers I'd put on two others a few months ago, and cleaned out the nests the birds had built in them. Damned sparrows squeezed through openings barely big enough for them with nest materials and raised their broods; now that they're gone, so are the nests. I've got to find a way to block all the spaces so I don't have to do this again next year.
And 2/3 of the way through that, FedEx arrived with my camera, the first result of which is above. I've got to find out how to post more than one picture at a time now.
I think I'll imbibe in a taste of something and crash early tonight. I'm tired.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Parts
Bike parts this time. I ordered new friction plates and springs for the Vulcan today, after they get in I'll drain the oil, change the filter, redo the clutch and put it all back together. Sometime after that I'll get new radiator hoses and replace them & change out the coolant.
Reason for all this is two. Just on general principles it's got enough miles that the clutch needs doing, and it's time for the radiator. Second is that if things work out, in August I'll be going to Sturgis for the bike rally. It'll be the first time I've been there. I figure about 2-3 weeks ahead I'll put the bike into a local shop called Performance Bike- they do good work- and say "Check everything"; it's about 1100 miles each way according to the map, and I'd rather find any problems- potential or current- here, instead of somewhere on an empty stretch of highway in Nebraska.
Actually, I'm split about destination. I may go to Sturgis, or I may just pick a direction and take off. I've got a friend who'll take care of the house and critters, so that's not a problem, so I may just wander for a week or so. And if I do that, I may flip a coin to choose a direction. No reservations needed either way, so no rush on deciding. This would be the first real vacation I've taken in a long time, and I'm looking forward to it. I always try to get some time so I can go to the Wanamacher Arms Show in Tulsa in October, but that's not the same.
I do need to check states to make sure which ones recognize an OK concealed carry permit; I damn sure don't want to travel without it.
Sturgis or wherever? Decisions, decisions...
Reason for all this is two. Just on general principles it's got enough miles that the clutch needs doing, and it's time for the radiator. Second is that if things work out, in August I'll be going to Sturgis for the bike rally. It'll be the first time I've been there. I figure about 2-3 weeks ahead I'll put the bike into a local shop called Performance Bike- they do good work- and say "Check everything"; it's about 1100 miles each way according to the map, and I'd rather find any problems- potential or current- here, instead of somewhere on an empty stretch of highway in Nebraska.
Actually, I'm split about destination. I may go to Sturgis, or I may just pick a direction and take off. I've got a friend who'll take care of the house and critters, so that's not a problem, so I may just wander for a week or so. And if I do that, I may flip a coin to choose a direction. No reservations needed either way, so no rush on deciding. This would be the first real vacation I've taken in a long time, and I'm looking forward to it. I always try to get some time so I can go to the Wanamacher Arms Show in Tulsa in October, but that's not the same.
I do need to check states to make sure which ones recognize an OK concealed carry permit; I damn sure don't want to travel without it.
Sturgis or wherever? Decisions, decisions...
Monday, June 13, 2005
It has come to my attention
as I sit here with a bit of Cask & Cream on ice, that I haven't said anything political in a while.
Howard Dean is either a serious nutjob, or a serious enemy of much I hold dear. I'd prefer the former; that so many voters would knowingly vote for someone who is the latter dismays and scares the hell out of me.
Hillary Clinton is power hungry enough to become a nun if she thought it would put her in the Oval Office, and she is a serious enemy of much I hold dear.
Amnesty International has either sold out to left-wing assholes for money(read 'donations'), or has become such a left-wing asshole group that it would say the crap it has because they actually believe it, or think it will advance their agenda; in either case they're knowingly lieing, and should be seen as the foul bastards they are.
Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein are the wicked socialist witches of the west, and we can hope that Dorothy is being picked up somewhere in Kansas by that tornado.
There are a bunch of people at Democratic Underground who truly are traitors to this country.
And there are a bunch of politicians and 'protesters' who should have their patriotism questioned, because they don't have any. Not to THIS country, anyway.
Fidel Castro is a murdering communist dictator, and as the saying goes, ANY day he dies will be a national holiday.
And the fact that the Democratic Party will revere and raise money for that sorry bastard Robert Byrd(Kleagle-WV) instead of condemning him and telling him to go away, tells me all I need to know about the upper levels of that bunch.
I think that covers it nicely for now. Good evening, and I'm going to top off my glass.
Howard Dean is either a serious nutjob, or a serious enemy of much I hold dear. I'd prefer the former; that so many voters would knowingly vote for someone who is the latter dismays and scares the hell out of me.
Hillary Clinton is power hungry enough to become a nun if she thought it would put her in the Oval Office, and she is a serious enemy of much I hold dear.
Amnesty International has either sold out to left-wing assholes for money(read 'donations'), or has become such a left-wing asshole group that it would say the crap it has because they actually believe it, or think it will advance their agenda; in either case they're knowingly lieing, and should be seen as the foul bastards they are.
Nancy Pelosi, Barbara Boxer and Diane Feinstein are the wicked socialist witches of the west, and we can hope that Dorothy is being picked up somewhere in Kansas by that tornado.
There are a bunch of people at Democratic Underground who truly are traitors to this country.
And there are a bunch of politicians and 'protesters' who should have their patriotism questioned, because they don't have any. Not to THIS country, anyway.
Fidel Castro is a murdering communist dictator, and as the saying goes, ANY day he dies will be a national holiday.
And the fact that the Democratic Party will revere and raise money for that sorry bastard Robert Byrd(Kleagle-WV) instead of condemning him and telling him to go away, tells me all I need to know about the upper levels of that bunch.
I think that covers it nicely for now. Good evening, and I'm going to top off my glass.
The price of ammunition
I've been doing some digging around on .22 ammo, primarily the high-grade match stuff, checking prices and reviews.
I once wrote about how picky some firearms can be about what they digest, .22's included. For every brand out there, from low-end to high, there are those who swear by it for their firearm, or swear at it. I wrote here about the results I got with Federal and Eley ammo in a Martini target rifle. I had some $3 and $4/box match ammo, and these two outshot them all. The Eley isn't match-grade, it's called 'Sport', and it's Eley primed and assembled in Mexico; the Federal is their baseline ammo. I can find the Federal around here for $.69/box, and the box of Eley I bought at a gun show cost $2.25; I recently found a place called Champion Shooters Supply that carries the Eley Sport for $1.30/box(yes, I ordered some). In this rifle I can't find any reason to buy the higher dollar stuff, but out of curiosity I went searching.
Damn! The top-grade Eley, Lapua and RWS match stuff is $10 and $11/box. SK Match and Wolf Match Gold are just under $10/box, and it goes down from there to the lowly stuff that goes from the aforementioned $1.30 to $3 and $4.
It is a fact that one thing you pay extra for in this stuff in consistency, each round in a box, and in the same manufacturing lot, being as close to identical as possible. This, by the way, is why you read the recommendation that if you find some your rifle/pistol really likes, you should buy all you can find of the same lot; the next lot may not be quite the same. And in some types of match shooting it may be worth every penny if that stuff is what your firearm gives the best result with; 'best result' meaning the closest to one-hole groups possible, every time.
That being said, the question you run in to is 'for my shooting is it necessary/worth it?'. From what I've read some silhouette shooters will choose an ammo that may not have the tightest grouping but has a bit more power, the better to knock the little steel animals over with, for instance. And some small-game hunters will pay more for a box or two of high-grade stuff because it makes it a bit easier to head-shoot the squirrel or rabbit. But for most purposes?
One lesson I tried to teach the kids was that if you actually get better results- a better meal, a better tool, whatever- for the money, then don't be afraid to spend more, and ammo definately counts. But if you can get the same or nearly identical results from less expensive stuff, then don't be worried about a fancy name. Yeah, I'm cheap in some ways. I stopped buying Levi's when the price went up and I could get Rustlers for ten bucks(I later found out about Levi's supporting various GFW groups, so that was a twofer); that name on the pants wasn't worth the extra money. Same holds for ammo, if I can get the results I want from inexpensive stuff, I'm not going to lay out dollars extra for a name on the box. If you've got kids, you know what that's worth; two kids at the range can go through a brick in a remarkably short time.
So try out various brands and types, including some of the more expensive stuff, and if your particular firearm likes one better, don't be worried about buying some of the high-dollar stuff when the result will be worth it. But you don't always need match-grade to get match-grade results.
Note: some of the really serious match competitors will only buy the match-grade their rifle likes, and then they do the rim-measuring, cartridge weighing routine. For them it's worth it, but it ain't to me.
I once wrote about how picky some firearms can be about what they digest, .22's included. For every brand out there, from low-end to high, there are those who swear by it for their firearm, or swear at it. I wrote here about the results I got with Federal and Eley ammo in a Martini target rifle. I had some $3 and $4/box match ammo, and these two outshot them all. The Eley isn't match-grade, it's called 'Sport', and it's Eley primed and assembled in Mexico; the Federal is their baseline ammo. I can find the Federal around here for $.69/box, and the box of Eley I bought at a gun show cost $2.25; I recently found a place called Champion Shooters Supply that carries the Eley Sport for $1.30/box(yes, I ordered some). In this rifle I can't find any reason to buy the higher dollar stuff, but out of curiosity I went searching.
Damn! The top-grade Eley, Lapua and RWS match stuff is $10 and $11/box. SK Match and Wolf Match Gold are just under $10/box, and it goes down from there to the lowly stuff that goes from the aforementioned $1.30 to $3 and $4.
It is a fact that one thing you pay extra for in this stuff in consistency, each round in a box, and in the same manufacturing lot, being as close to identical as possible. This, by the way, is why you read the recommendation that if you find some your rifle/pistol really likes, you should buy all you can find of the same lot; the next lot may not be quite the same. And in some types of match shooting it may be worth every penny if that stuff is what your firearm gives the best result with; 'best result' meaning the closest to one-hole groups possible, every time.
That being said, the question you run in to is 'for my shooting is it necessary/worth it?'. From what I've read some silhouette shooters will choose an ammo that may not have the tightest grouping but has a bit more power, the better to knock the little steel animals over with, for instance. And some small-game hunters will pay more for a box or two of high-grade stuff because it makes it a bit easier to head-shoot the squirrel or rabbit. But for most purposes?
One lesson I tried to teach the kids was that if you actually get better results- a better meal, a better tool, whatever- for the money, then don't be afraid to spend more, and ammo definately counts. But if you can get the same or nearly identical results from less expensive stuff, then don't be worried about a fancy name. Yeah, I'm cheap in some ways. I stopped buying Levi's when the price went up and I could get Rustlers for ten bucks(I later found out about Levi's supporting various GFW groups, so that was a twofer); that name on the pants wasn't worth the extra money. Same holds for ammo, if I can get the results I want from inexpensive stuff, I'm not going to lay out dollars extra for a name on the box. If you've got kids, you know what that's worth; two kids at the range can go through a brick in a remarkably short time.
So try out various brands and types, including some of the more expensive stuff, and if your particular firearm likes one better, don't be worried about buying some of the high-dollar stuff when the result will be worth it. But you don't always need match-grade to get match-grade results.
Note: some of the really serious match competitors will only buy the match-grade their rifle likes, and then they do the rim-measuring, cartridge weighing routine. For them it's worth it, but it ain't to me.
Another good place to check out
The Ministry of Minor Perfidy, another gunny blogger from the People's Republic of MA. Hadn't seen him before, but thanks to the Carnival of Cordite and a comment here, I went there and checked him out.
You know, we get a few more like him and mASSBACKWARDS in place, and maybe...
You know, we get a few more like him and mASSBACKWARDS in place, and maybe...
Sunday, June 12, 2005
This just in, everybody didn't die! Film at 10!
It never fails. Strong storms coming in? "HIGH WINDS! HAIL! TORRENTIAL RAINS! BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES!!!" It's like the crap on the news every time a big tropical storm or hurricane moves toward the coast, except it's only local news, not national, telling you to be sure your will is made out.
This evening in central OK we had some strong winds come through, a few areas getting gusts as high as 80mph but the worst everywhere else in the 50's. And it rained pretty heavy as the first line came through, and has rained light to moderate in waves since. Not a damn thing we haven't seen before, but from the way the weather weenies kept coming on, you'd think the world was about to end.
You folks on the coast? I'm not sure how you get through hurricane season without hanging one or two of the most annoying of them.
This evening in central OK we had some strong winds come through, a few areas getting gusts as high as 80mph but the worst everywhere else in the 50's. And it rained pretty heavy as the first line came through, and has rained light to moderate in waves since. Not a damn thing we haven't seen before, but from the way the weather weenies kept coming on, you'd think the world was about to end.
You folks on the coast? I'm not sure how you get through hurricane season without hanging one or two of the most annoying of them.
What makes up 'pretty'?
Or 'Beautiful', or whatever?
Definately it's in the eye of the beholder, so I'm not talking about a 'universal ideal', or some crap like that. I mean the things that make someone fit that description to you?
Long hair, short hair, tall or short, fair- or dark-skinned, slim or full-bodied? Full lips or slim, big boobs or small or in between, larger round or small tight butt?
And all the various combinations that can definately add up to be greater than the sum of the perts(excuse me, 'parts'. Well, some of it COULD be 'perts', couldn't it? Be quiet).
Got to thinking about this last night, partly just in wonder at some of the loveliness out there. I was out taking care of some things and saw a lady. Now, if you broke it down to individual features, it would be something like this:
Light brown hair, straight, about shoulder blade length.
Light tan skin tone.
Lips a little fuller than slim
Couldn't see eye color.
Medium boobs and butt.
Nice waist.
Slim legs.
Put that way, doesn't seem like much. Put all together, she was gorgeous.
Lady I know is a belly dancer in her spare time. By the 'fashionable' standards, she's a loss; face a bit too full, boobs & butt too big, she actually has a bit of a belly, legs not long enough. Despite not being of 'fashionable' appearance, she's a knockout, sexy as hell.
Once knew a lady who was lean, almost to the point of being skinny. But it was her natural build and she looked good that way.
Another was plump/not a few pounds overweight, actually plump/, and you didn't care. From her curly red hair to her pretty feet, she was very fine to see.
Lady I used to know was at first glance what might be called 'pretty' to be polite. But to actually meet her, talk with her, was a wonderful thing, her spirit and the way she moved put everything together into a package that was a marvel.
And I've known women who could not fit into a category of 'pretty' or 'lovely', but they were the definition of 'cute'. And cute can be seriously hot, too.
I came to the conclusion a long time ago that boobs who tried to define what features someone had to have to be 'beautiful' were idiots. All too often nowadays they tend to think that someone who looks like she was just rescued from a concentration camp is the ideal, whereas I see someone like that I have an urge to feed them before they fall over.
There's beauty of all sizes/shapes/colors out there. I have no idea how some of it fits together and works, but I'm glad it's there.
Definately it's in the eye of the beholder, so I'm not talking about a 'universal ideal', or some crap like that. I mean the things that make someone fit that description to you?
Long hair, short hair, tall or short, fair- or dark-skinned, slim or full-bodied? Full lips or slim, big boobs or small or in between, larger round or small tight butt?
And all the various combinations that can definately add up to be greater than the sum of the perts(excuse me, 'parts'. Well, some of it COULD be 'perts', couldn't it? Be quiet).
Got to thinking about this last night, partly just in wonder at some of the loveliness out there. I was out taking care of some things and saw a lady. Now, if you broke it down to individual features, it would be something like this:
Light brown hair, straight, about shoulder blade length.
Light tan skin tone.
Lips a little fuller than slim
Couldn't see eye color.
Medium boobs and butt.
Nice waist.
Slim legs.
Put that way, doesn't seem like much. Put all together, she was gorgeous.
Lady I know is a belly dancer in her spare time. By the 'fashionable' standards, she's a loss; face a bit too full, boobs & butt too big, she actually has a bit of a belly, legs not long enough. Despite not being of 'fashionable' appearance, she's a knockout, sexy as hell.
Once knew a lady who was lean, almost to the point of being skinny. But it was her natural build and she looked good that way.
Another was plump/not a few pounds overweight, actually plump/, and you didn't care. From her curly red hair to her pretty feet, she was very fine to see.
Lady I used to know was at first glance what might be called 'pretty' to be polite. But to actually meet her, talk with her, was a wonderful thing, her spirit and the way she moved put everything together into a package that was a marvel.
And I've known women who could not fit into a category of 'pretty' or 'lovely', but they were the definition of 'cute'. And cute can be seriously hot, too.
I came to the conclusion a long time ago that boobs who tried to define what features someone had to have to be 'beautiful' were idiots. All too often nowadays they tend to think that someone who looks like she was just rescued from a concentration camp is the ideal, whereas I see someone like that I have an urge to feed them before they fall over.
There's beauty of all sizes/shapes/colors out there. I have no idea how some of it fits together and works, but I'm glad it's there.
Speaking of sci-fi coming to life
David Drake has written a number of short stories and novels where video/sound recorders are mounted on troops' helmets. Now read this over at Strategy Page on how we're partly/mostly there.
Drake also pointed out this has good/bad sides; it can capture details for later study and intelligence use, and it can provide even greater opportunities for Monday-morning quarterbacking.
As it's been said, the genie is out of the bottle, so the question is how we'll deal with it.
Drake also pointed out this has good/bad sides; it can capture details for later study and intelligence use, and it can provide even greater opportunities for Monday-morning quarterbacking.
As it's been said, the genie is out of the bottle, so the question is how we'll deal with it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)