Enfield Help?

So after cleaning with oil soap and one application of Lin-Speed (boiled linseed oil and a little solvent), I'm at a loss here. 

I'm not happy with the look so far. 

Should I strip and start over? Leave alone and put back together? I need your help!

A gentle tune

A short lived band with but three albums in two years. The band formed in 1966. The members were Neil Young, Stephen Stills, Richie Furay and Jim Messina.

I leave you with this gentle tune tonight. 

Tonight's Entertainment

So I have watched a lot of the parody's of the Hitler rant on You Tube. I actually ran into this one this week as a newly minted iPhone person. 





I decided to get this in context.  A truck of happiness just delivered this. Its a little after 8pm here.  I comment to the driver that he is working a little late.  He comments that "I work for idiots".  I beg to differ Sir, considering the USPS is defaulting on another oh, 5.6 BILLION! 


What did I get? This.

I think I will rattle the house now.  Review later!

Hey, NRA!

You are getting on my nerves.  Caller ID is showing that you are on average calling my landline (thankfully) about four times a day. I bit about 10 minutes ago and answered the phone.  With all of the infrastructure at your disposal could you at least get the pronunciation of my last name right?  Or at least know that I attended my Friends of the NRA Dinner last month, I'm a Certified Instructor, Life Member, anything?

Scare tactics really don't work on me much.  In fact the hyperbole does more to make me less likely to be whipping out the credit card.   

Keep it up and will divert more money to the Second Amendment Foundation.  At least I can open the mail at my leisure and not worry about the phone ringing off the hook. 

Just Sayin'

Hugs and Kisses, 

Not Mr. Eds. You figure it out.The last Mr. Ed I observed was a horse. Of course.

The After After Action Report!

MsgtB pretty well sums it up!  Glad to have met him and his wife! Honored to be on the line shooting with them too. Smart, wicked sense of humor, what's not to like? Uh, adaptability too.  I did not warn him of the fact that most burrows have at least one, possibly two emergency exits! 

Go check his Blog out. You will not be disappointed.

Fun with fiber

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

Enfield Update

So after last nights cleaning of the wood Murphy provided I get to it. All of it fits without modifications. There are some differences though:

Murphy's stuff is on the left of each specimen.  The rear handguard that came with the rifle has metal on it to protect the rear sight. No such thing on the handguard on the left. The buttplates are totally different. No big deal. Its not like I am going to throw the old wood in the fireplace. So for now another round of Murphy oil soap!

Sporting Wood

Or not. Remember the Sporterized Enfield #1Mk3 in caliber .303? One of my objectives for going to WV was to pick up some correct wood for it. Murphy's Law hooked me up!

Can anyone tell me what the markings are calibrated for on the rear sight?

Yards, meters, furlongs per fortnight? 


So first things first. I don't know if the wood is going to fit without modifications but I know to do this right off the bat. If you are going to have some Murphy wood around use this on it first. 

 













Besides, you don't know where it has been =). I was told that among the Bubbed Enfields this was not that bad. I am going to get it back into original trim. 

It shot so I know that at least! 

The wood has had its first bath and will probably need another tomorrow. I would much rather go this route and see what I get and maybe put some Lin-Speed on it when I am done than going more invasive.








  .

The Blogshoot

What a great time!  It was good to see old friends again and meet new ones for the first time. First an observation though. This was my third foray into West Virginia. I seem to note one other reoccurring theme besides the shooty goodness. Remember this post from last years trip? Well on Friday night some of us wander out for some food. We end up here:

The Tap House. We go to the patio and as we are finishing our meal the band starts to set up.  I am over in the area where the band is setting up in the "smoking pit". An attractive lady totally rocking the grey streak in her hair asks me if I like Bluegrass. Shes the lead singer. I tell her I do, but flat footing on concrete instead of a wooden floor with sawdust would be in bad form. 




That gets a *blink* *blink* from her. I don't think she was expecting that response. I spent several nights here back in my youth. 

Anywho, here is a snippet of the band in action.




Pretty good really! During the opening banter with the band she asks the question again if everyone likes Bluegrass. Murphy asks if I have a lighter and I give it to him. He lights it, sticks it up in the air and shouts "Freebird"! That man is incorrigible =). 

Ok, back to business. The next day I show up at 340 Defense. Nice facility and they were fantastic. As soon as I get to the pistol range a gent I met last year immediately calls out. "Kelly, you bring that M&P you had last year?" I tell him I did. He says a lady would like to compare mine with the Apex trigger to her new one. I hand the gent the pistol and a loaded mag. He disappears to go to the line. That is what amazes me about these things. I hand one of my guns to guy I met one time a year ago and think nothing of it. This is an amazing group of people! I meet the lady and tell her about the mod. She is happy. 

I meet The Shekel and that link will take you to his report of the event. A truly class act that, uh, has an Uzi!

OldNFO whips out the usual bag of toys. Anyone that tells you the big problem coming up for them is that they have to be in two different parts of the world at the same time qualifies as the most interesting man in the world to me. I actually shot a Colt revolver of his that did not fire as soon as I looked at it! His report is here. A nice guy!

Many thanks to our esteemed host Murphy. His report is here and thanks for his work in setting all of this up.


Me, well I did get to stretch some stuff out. 

 















Remember that lens on a scope from last week?  It belongs to the rifle on the right. A Winchester Model 670A with a Weaver scope in 30-06. It is sweetness and light!

Oh, afterward MSgt B said something about getting a beer. I get a phone call from him and he waves off saying once he and the mrs get back into air conditioning they are through. I tell him I'm on the North side of the hotel smoking and I have a 12 pack. He comes and the mrs joins us. That was a good time! Nice people!

Hi Home, I'm Honey!

Or something like that. A great time and I can say it was worth the trip. Fantastic Blogshoot! 

Gotta go unpack. 

 






More later....

 

I think I have figured out why I stick with Handguns.

So my long gun game sucks. I hope to get over that this weekend. I assemble things to pack. 

This is not counting the two ammo boxes already in the car, nor clothing and uh, other stuff. I'm trying to get all of this in a Mustang. I don't have one of these of which I ran into several of last year at the Blogshoot. 






I don't have a magical rear hatch that dispenses really awesome firearms. I have to work on it! 

See everyone Saturday! 

One thing about it though.....

If this is the first thing you do in the morning, the rest of the day can only get better! Behold the repair of the thing that wrecked my trip to Culpeper. 

 It's the one with all the files sticking out of it.

Waiting on pain meds to kick in!
 

So.. I decide to whip this out Saturday!

First things first. This rifle has not been shot in over 3 decades. It shows. 

I guarantee one thing. If you were to lick this Weaver scope lens you would probably have a nicotine overdose and fall out on the floor. 

The scope belongs to this rifle:

I will not disclose all tonight. You need a reason to come back later right? 

I can make the scope all better. 

As far as the rifle goes, a quick barrel and bolt cleaning and lube. I know I will have to perform full ministrations on it when I get back from the weekend!

A Phone Call and Other Stuff

So, I am talking to Murphy's Law last night. He asks me how much 9mm ammo I am bringing. I tell him pretty much this much.

350 rounds. He suggests I bring more for whatever notorious purposes await. Ok, compliance is not a problem.

Blue boxes are 9, but maybe some more just in case?

 
 












Whatever Murphy has up his sleeve I think I can handle it! 
 
Ok, the other stuff. I have a long hallway in stately manor. 

The lighting was less than serviceable. I threw a fixture up that uses GU 10 50W halogen bulbs. I like the arrangement, but the halogen bulbs actually made me feel like I was under a heat lamp at Arby's or something. In fact, the heat peeled the finish off of several of the fixtures resulting in metallic snow in the hall.

I stuck one of these LED GU 10 35W bulbs in last night. 

 












The LED bulb is on the right. Much longer than the halogen but works in the fixture. Supposedly able to dim it too.

So far so good! 

I get to put light on the I love me walls. 

 

Murphy is Asking Once Again!

You coming to the Blogshoot this weekend?  I'm going and I look forward to seeing you there. Its for a good cause, the Wounded Warrior Project. I had a blast last year and got to meet some really nice folks. Oh, and shoot some really cool stuff! That's a bonus! 

I am bringing Old NFO's favorite Handgun, the M&P =)! 

 



















I noted last year that my long gun game was lacking. I hope not this year. Charline will be attending. 

The M1 Garand on the top. I might also whip out a thing or two that has not been fired in a long time.  In fact I have never shot them. Both rifles belong to Mr. Curmudgeon and even he has not fired one of these rifles. The other one he says its been 30 years or so. I think he just gives them to me so I will clean them and hand them back. =) 

 

I look forward to seeing you this Saturday!  
  

Calling the Retrotechnologist! Help!

So winter is coming. I need some help on some projects. I call upon the seriously wicked smart RobertaX to help me stay busy this winter. I have this old radio. Oh and this one too. Oh wait, a another one. I want to jack an iPod into into a transmitter so the radios can receive the broadcast. I want to build the transmitter. It must be tubes.  Oh, I have one of these too. It is in pretty rough shape, but the cabinet is sweetness and light! 

Atwater Kent Model 55. So to be compatible across all platforms I need an AM transmitter. I also need help with the Bakelite buttons and bezel around them on the Firestone. I have the bezel that is broken and some of the push buttons. 

Help! My soldering iron is feeling neglected these days! 

Off Body Carry and any Ladies Out Here?

So one of the things I found most interesting during my abbreviated time with Kathy Jackson in her class was the holster presentation. Holy crap! The holsters and weapon retention systems were passed around the room like popcorn. OWB, IWB, belly band, ankle, pocket, SOB, etc... 

There were also some unconventional holsters that left me stunned. "Hey big boy is that a M&P 9C in your pocket or are you glad to see me?". Heh. She did point out that particular rig might have a use for a woman wearing a skirt. 

She also brought out an array of bra attachable holsters. Me back in the day tried to detach bras, not attach more stuff to them. She showed the pluses and minuses involved in each method of carry. I have my box of holster fail, this brought me up to another level when it comes to teaching Women in concealed carry classes. As my classes continue to be mostly Women, I needed this information. I work really hard to not be the "Here little lady, this revolver is what you need". I hate that. 

Kathy makes the case for off body carry in limited circumstances. I get that. She also points out the shortcomings of it. I concur with her assessments.  So I wander off and get one of these things, it arrived today. 

A Maxpedition jumbo LEO messenger bag. First, to me it screams "GUN". Second, I have no idea now how to make this thing work. 

Off body carry to me was simple in the day. My Curmudgeon presented me with this some time ago. 

He carried it. It is an El Paso Saddlery and Leather "Shaving bag" back when they cared about products and customers.

Here is another shot of the other side with this old little kit in the side pouch:

 






 


Guess what. One of these was inside it during his travels. 

 
















This rig I think would be even better now with a Colt Defender or New Agent! That would keep the spirit and memory alive to me and be a bit more manageable than the full steel Colt Commander.

I need a purse holster rig for show and tell during class. I really don't want to pay full retail for one. If any Ladies out there have an old one I will pay for it. Shoot me an email if you do!

AAR- The Cornered Cat

A abbreviated report however. A Girl and Her Gun hosts a two day class with Kathy Jackson. Kathy is well known to me because of three things, her book, Website, and being the Editor of the USCCA magazine. I actually had a letter published in that periodical.

So, I head north to Culpeper VA. I felt really safe in that town this weekend as Kathy and Todd Green were running classes on both ends of this town! 

The first day was covering the basics again. You cannot do that enough in my opinion. I was looking forward to the next day. As someone said to me before: "If you want to hear God laugh, tell him your plans". 

Well the day before I head out I go to the Dentist to tell him about a toothache.  A quick X-ray and ta da!  An abscess on my upper left rear molar (for those playing the home version of the game American Dental Association coding tooth #15).  I guarantee that if I am found by some CSI people I will be readily identifiable. "As you can see here, this person has spent a great deal of time at the Dentist. I suspect he funded at least three of their children's tuition in college."

So a quick Pulpal Debridement, a few prescriptions and I am on my way. The first day of the class? No big deal. Sunday however showed the folly of my ways. I am allergic to grass. I spent all day Saturday running around on it. I had also started the mega dose of Penicillin VK with the attendant uh, gastronomical issues. So my load out looked sorta like this. 

Sunday broke. I left the Hydrocodone at the house. I felt like warmed over death. It would not benefit me nor my fellow students if I showed up feeling like I did. I missed out on the second day of class, seeing my friend Murphy's Law, and spending more time with A Girl and Her gun.

I feel bad about this. I know that the warning on the bottle of the pain med says not to operate heavy machinery.

These are not heavy machines in the classical sense. Yet they are just that. 

 














These Pistols are what I brought to class. I hate I did not get to stretch them out.

Test post from iPhone

So I download the app. Take a picture. The class this weekend advises to bring food. Ok I think I have lunch covered.



I will spare you the cans of deviled ham and Vienna sausages.

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Packing!

So for some reason I am headed North again for a Handgun class. Preliminary packing has started. I needed to find my concealment garment. Found it!

The best comment on the shirt from last year?

"Dude, I know I said go with a loud shirt, but that one? It looks like Georgia O'Keeffe threw up on it."

LOL! 

Seriously Dude?!?!

I have a long time friend. He used to be my next door neighbor in a previous life. Intelligent, wicked sense of humor, and uh, somewhat off the reservation at times. 

When I lived next door he would occasionally drop by. Most times he would ask if I had something or other he could borrow. Not a cup of sugar, but more along the lines of: "You have a 30 watt soldering iron, a 10K audio potentiometer, a VARIAC, a pair of hemostats, a gallon of gasoline and a keyhole saw I could borrow"?

Sorta like that. So I moved and he and his wife are still in the same house that is very close by. His fondness for the offbeat continues to amaze me. He over the years has become a close friend.

I am on the way home tonight from visiting Mr. and Mrs. Curmugeon. I get a phone call from my friend asking if I have any optics laying around. 

I get worried. This guy whipped this out previously. 

Yep, an AMT Hardballer .45 ACP. Wait, it gets better. He also whips this thing out. 

 











I think there is a Ruger MkIII here, its hard to say. 

So, I tell him I have one of these laying around. 

He wheels over to stately manor and promptly bolts it on this:

Uh, I would have never thought of using the AMT frame with a Kimber .22 conversion kit, much less finding a left side grip replacement to allow mounting optics on a pistol. 

Disclaimer! I had NOTHING to do with this except having the optic on hand. 

So I can't decide if my friend is the King of the Island of Misfit Toys or Dr. Frankenstein. If he is the Dr. I fear that the brain acquired was from someone named "Abby something". +1 If you get the reference from a movie!  

I have personal instruction tomorrow at the range with a Female student that wants to really figure out how to run a Glock 9 and a .410 pump shotgun. I think he will be there with this! I need a disguise.