Another Day.....Another.....

Colt Historian has Passed Away

2012-03-02T15:41:00.000-08:00

Kathleen J. (Guinan) Hoyt has passed away. I met her at a Colt Convention several years ago. She was friendly as much as she was knowledgeable and really seemed to enjoy being there and meeting collectors.

Link to Colt Press Release.

Post for Firearms Instructors

2012-03-01T18:12:00.002-08:00

I enjoy going to classes. Even basic new shooter ones. I look forward to attending two to possibly six classes this year. If I show up in your class remember my motto: qui docet, discet. From the Latin it is translated as "who teaches, learns."

If this attitude is not instilled in you as instructor I may have reservations about you as one. I taught for over a decade at the local Community College, pedestrian classes covering basic networking, security and Web Design. I learned something from every class. The interaction of student and instructor can be profound.

I have learned more about the delivery of instruction concerning the art and science of running a firearm from teaching than almost any class I have been in. This is not to dismiss my training and not meant to disparage any instructors I have had to date. I have learned much from them. I hope I learn more from others.

If you start teaching me "big boy rules" and totally ripping apart my gun handling techniques without telling me why in a logical manner we will not get along.

This Instructor told me. He is an excellent Instructor.

No Free Ice Cream....

2012-03-01T15:07:00.000-08:00

I'm eating the Ice cream. I saw one of these today:

And it went sorta like this:

See ya later.

But Ma, it followed me home!

2012-02-25T20:09:00.000-08:00

I have some reservations about this one. It may be because I see many new shooters with it. They uniformly do not have fun shooting it. It is NOT a good Revolver to learn with, and I see many walk away after shooting it once:

This is a Smith and Wesson Model 638 Airweight chambered in .38 special. Five shot DA revolver.

It will do what is required of it. For the novice however I would stay away from it to learn the fundamentals of Handgun operation. I shot it today and it is not fun, but it IS functional.

Or maybe I am still old school.

I do love my Colt Detective Special!

The Colt 32-20!

2012-02-24T20:05:00.001-08:00

Thanks to all that stopped by today. Many have wanted a bit more about the little Colt. Ok. (Click to enlarge pics!)

.32-20 WCF (Winchester Center Fire)

Brigid speaks of weapons of beauty and character. There are safe queens here. Never shot, pristine, "NIB". They have a place of course. I will speak more about this later, and not only about guns.

Here is one:

Here is the Colt Historian Letter for the Police Positive:

So I have been at the gun thing for a time, the Blog is new to me. The thing that gets me about the weapons of character vs. safe queens is this. How did this Revolver get here? Was it ever fired in anger? Put small game on the table? What stories does it have? Sadly it cannot talk.

Thanks again for all that stopped by today!

UPDATE! Blogaversary!

2012-02-23T19:43:00.001-08:00

That did not take long! The Revolver is a Colt .32/20 Police Positive. Shipped 5/15/1911 from the factory.
This little Blog just turned two today!

What a wonderful trip so far! To those I have met in person to those that have e-mailed and called, thank you! I hope to meet more of you as time goes on.

To those that have simply read and/or commented, thanks!

I cannot say enough about how this medium has opened many avenues to someone sitting in a small rural town. I feel the cold and beauty of Alaska, the precision of North's photos and his words.

I feel the talent of Brigid in both words and pictures. I also count her as a Blogmother. She kept me going here.

The queen of snark also was a quick arrival here. To Tam I must also say thanks to keeping me going here.

To my friend over at Lagniappeslair have no fear (or ok maybe some) I will be back for you to school me on the M-1 Carbine.

For my favorite lurker, Thanks! You know what I mean.

Bersa Thunder Help?

2012-02-21T15:15:00.000-08:00

The Bersa Thunder .380 has become a weak low pressure front. Why? The disconnect/drawbar spring broke. Get a new one all day long for a buck fifty. That is not the problem. The spring is staked into the pistol. The broken remains look like this:

You can see where it was staked into the pistol.
So how to I remove the remnants of the old one and get the new one to keep from wandering around?

New one looks like this.

See that hook on the right side? That goes into the lower preventing me from trying to simply pull whats left out.

Help?

I'm Back!

2012-02-19T18:03:00.002-08:00

Just barely though. Both Basic Pistol and CCH classes were at capacity this weekend.

Oh yeah this:

The infamous Ruger MkIII. I took care of it but now I have a Bersa Thunder .380 on the bench that appears to have a magazine disconnect safety problem.

Sigh....

I will return!

Well It Looks Like CMP Likes Me!

2012-02-17T19:25:00.000-08:00

Guess they don't know me well enough!

"We have received and verified your recent order. Your order will now advance to our sales area and from there to our shipping area. Please note, that unless otherwise listed, our order to ship time is at least 30 to 60 days. You will receive other emails as the order progresses.

Thank you for your order and support of our program.

CMP Customer Service"

One service grade Springfield M-1 on the way!

Story of My Life... and A Idea!

2012-02-15T15:09:00.001-08:00

Well without the gunplay, or girl, but you get the idea!

While looking at this guy's channel I noted a tutorial on how he does the effects. It's right here:

So guess what? How can I introduce the concept of slide action and some recoil to new shooters without going live fire? Ta DA! Airsoft gas blowback 1911 is on the way for this weekend! As it shoots 6mm plastic pellets, I might be able to get one of these in the muzzle and practice rapid fire with the laser target!

Oh, I taught basic video software stuff at the Community College. I know this software somewhat! I will worry about that stuff later.

Its Sorta Like a Heli-coil?

2012-02-13T16:05:00.000-08:00

But its for the head! The sad thing is this should not have happened. My parents and I have spent a great deal of money and I considerable time to try to keep all my teeth in my head. I am sure I paid for at least two semesters of college tuition for my old Dentist's children.

I coughed up a crown this weekend. No big deal, but yeah it was this time. It appears there is very little left to attach a new crown to.

Options? Root canal and hope there is enough tooth to attach a new crown to. To me dicey at best and if it fails you have sunk 1K plus into the effort and THEN do this:

I'm going for the latter but this is ADA tooth number 2. Upper right rear molar. This might impede my efforts at Appleseed coming up in a month or so.

So it appears that I am going to get my head drilled and tapped!

My home town is giving me the sads.

2012-02-12T17:03:00.000-08:00

Back in the day you could go to Whitaker Park and get a tour of a cigarette manufacturing plant. You could at the end of the tour get a free pack of smokes, bumper sticker, and a pen.

In fact, if you were a newbie employee, RJR handed you one of these maps to get around (click to enlarge).

That WAS downtown Winston-Salem.

Then if you were really hard up, you could go to the south end of town, get a tour of the Jos. Schlitz Brewing Company plant and grab a beer in the "brown bottle" room at the end of the tour.

Now? Is this what has become of my home town? All you can do about an indoor range is to complain about the billboards? Really? It is a nice range and I am a member only because the backstop can handle rifle calibers. My home range cannot.

They do good work there. Sad that the message of safe gun handling and training was summarily ignored for this made up controversy.

Sigh.... Perhaps you can't go home again.

From The Bench...

2012-02-11T20:45:00.000-08:00

I wandered to the range today and I was happy to see many former students there shooting! One former CCH student was there with her retired LEO husband. They were very proud to show off the new Bersa and her M&P. Yeah!

So the husband gives me this and tells that this was his backup/off duty gun back in the day.

He reports that it is not firing all the time, light primer strikes.

This is a Smith and Wesson Model 36-1: The Chiefs Special. Chambered for .38 Special with a 3" barrel. This one was made in 1981.

Working the action revealed that #1 it sounded like a gravel truck and #2 the reset was "crap". So off with the side plate and discover nothing is readily observed to be amiss except for a large amount of sludge laying about. I take the thing apart and clean and lube. The hammer block appears to have been the problem. She is sounding and feeling much better now and I will test tomorrow!

The 36 has a storied history. Serial # 337 went to J. Edgar Hoover engraved with his name. Serial # 38185 was attributed to actor Jack Webb with a nickel cylinder and rosewood grips on 6/4/1954. It sold at auction in 2000 for 6K!

Here she is ready for testing tomorrow:

I am old school and would prefer the checkered wood grips, but ok! I will let you know how it goes!

A Note from the USPS

2012-02-10T15:39:00.000-08:00

No really. An actual note:

My carrier is a contract Rural Carrier, so perhaps she takes it more seriously than the uniformed "real" USPS people. She will even text me to let me know she has a 47 pound box of bullets for me so I can meet her at lunch to get them out of her car.

For the envelope contents, rattle is OK!

Not the distinctive "PING" these clips usually make but close enough to make me smile on the way back to work today.

I think my mail carrier is keeping an eye on me. This week in addition to the Midway master catalog, I got a letter from the S&W Historian and this just today:

Gun parts catalog, SAF letter, and some lingerie catalog it seems.

As for the clips? I have some studying to do. I could always make the pilgrimage up to Lagniappe's Lair and get up to speed I am certain, but for now this will do for starters:

One is hopefully on the way!

The Humble .22

2012-02-08T17:58:00.000-08:00

NFO started it today with a post concerning training guns. I observed the comment thread and thought about it. Here are my thoughts on his post. I may be kicking over a hornets nest, but hey, it's my blog, your mileage may vary.

You know the drill, click to enbiggen the pics.

On any given month I teach at least 30 new shooters. I mean NEW. Never touched one, never shot one. So what do you think I am going to hand them after four hours in the classroom, this?

Uh, no. It will more likely be this:

Or maybe even this:

The S&W Model 34-1 Kit Gun revolver in .22LR or the Colt 1911 in the same. I also use a Ruger MKIII.

Why? Less recoil to be sure and minimal muzzle flash as well.

NFO showed his first rifle and I have to say that for many of us, the .22 caliber firearm was a right of passage to adulthood. Here is my first rifle:

Winchester Model 290 in .22 S, L, LR. Mine, like NFO's is about wore out. It still has a place in the safe though.

My first pistol? Guess what. A .22LR.

A Colt Woodsman.

So now you may be thinking "OK old dude, you have old stuff, you know them and you shoot them. Big deal."

Well it is a big deal. Some comment on "train with what you carry." I agree to a point. Believe it or not, some that take the Concealed Carry class can't throw 400 rounds down range every month in a defensive caliber. The humble .22 brings home the same lessons I consider paramount and is cheaper to do as well. I would rather have a newly minted CCH holder at the range with a .22 at least once a month instead of them qualifying for the certificate and never firing ANYTHING again. Believe it or not some do.

Sight picture, sight alignment, and most importantly to me trigger control are the keys to getting that first accurate shot off. For those that lament the lack of recoil in a "non defensive caliber" for fast multiple shots, I disagree. The .22 will force you to reacquire the sights and reassess the threat before taking the next shot, just like the .44 Magnum. If you have any weakness in your grip, it will become obvious as well.

As to defensive justified use of deadly force incidents, stance, breath control, and other factors for being a good target shooter go out the window. I don't worry about them so much. I am really worried about safe presentation from concealment and time to first (ACCURATE) hit with all due speed. Remember rule 4, be sure of your target. In a self defense incident I throw a corollary out of this rule. "What is the penalty for a miss?" I would rather have complete mastery of presentation and first shot placement with any Firearm before I go any further in my training. Hey, a .35 diameter hole in the right place may make the whole second shot thing go away. It might not, but why not try to make that first one really count before doing the Ted Nugent "Double Tap"?

All of this can be practiced with a .22 caliber of your carry Handgun or rifle.

Here is a M-4 in .22 caliber:

Guess what? Every thing works the same on this .22 as it does on the other one.

Let's face it. I have read many words here on the Interwebz about almost every Firearm related topic you could think of. Some pearls of wisdom, much background noise.

I tell my students there is a 99.9 percent chance they will never have to present from concealment. If however they fall into the .1 percent, mistakes made then are usually severe and permanent. Placed in that context I believe the training guns have a prominent place.

Ok, I will get off the soap box now!

Thanks!

2012-02-07T15:14:00.000-08:00

Over at "By Other Means", the proprietor saw fit to award me with this:

Odysseus runs a great Blog that is eclectic and entertaining.

These are the rules, as copied from his site.

1. Copy and paste the award on our blog.

2. Link back to the blogger who gave us the award

3. Pick our five favorite blogs with less than 200 followers, and leave a comment on their blog to let them know they have received the award.

4. Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs.

So here they are. I will keep it to five, but anything on my Blogroll gets my attention.

Anna's Clue Tank- A wonderful blog and Anna is a keeper! Her topics include "art, politics, war, technology and whatever else strikes her fancy".

Barrel Smoke- A everyday read! Guns!

Bells A Ringing- Mostly Guns and shooting but some random entertaining stuff too!

Way Up North- The Rev. Paul comments on life in the great white north and offers up some occasional spiritual guidance. I call him Shepard and the flock he has here must be keeping him busy!

We the People- A one stop shop for just about everything!

Thanks again, and I have noted that some in my Blogroll have apparently drifted off into the sunset. I will try to update!

A public service announcement..

2012-02-06T18:18:00.000-08:00

Much has been said about this ad from last night.

Here is the rough translation of what the young lady said:

What are you looking at? Uh!?
What are you looking at?! (slap)
Are you undressing me with your eyes?
Poor guy…you can’t help it?
Is your heart beating? Is your head spinning?
Do you feel lost thinking that I could be yours forever?

Aside from the fact that this company now owns Chrysler I can say that I fully approve of taxpayer dollars to get a glimpse of Catrinel Menghia

I also must point out that she is Romanian, not Italian. If you ever run across any Italian machinery, I suggest running it full out as soon as you can and see what breaks. I have a LOT of experience on Italian machinery. Not so much with Italian women or those to pretend to be.

How Much?!?!?

2012-02-06T15:28:00.000-08:00

So today during lunch I amble off to the mall. I go to the department store that was founded here to get some cologne. First problem, they doubled the size of it and I am now making laps trying to find "men's fragrances". I found it and grabbed what I was looking for.

So here comes the stylishly dressed "sales associate" to help. I told her I found what I needed and we went to a register. 55 BUCKS? AMERICAN? Really? What the hell is this 1.7 ounces of stuff made out of? Unicorn sweat? I know its hard nowadays to capture one with the whole virgin thing needed to do so but really?

I better really smell great with this stuff on, velvet ropes should part and champagne fall from the sky when I break this out!

My sales associate however brightened up and exclaimed: "There is a gift with purchase!" Whoo Hooo! My lucky day as she was pretty enough.... Oh no wait. My bad. Here is the gift:

Oh yippee! A crap canvas bag (might be useful for the small stuff at the range), and some other stuff.

Considering I normally smell like this stuff, perhaps I should stay out of the department stores?

Dryfire Tools!

2012-02-05T17:07:00.000-08:00

Over at Tango Juliet (he just won a Blog award too), he talks about Dryfire and its role as a training tool. I agree with his statements. He mentions the Laserlyte gismo as a tool to enhance the experience. I have used them for some time during training. I have used the muzzle loaded devices in the past:

They are OK for what they are, but they have some issues. If you get this one, it uses an expanding rubber insert to attach to the barrel. The extension of the overall length of the handgun may make your holster inoperative.

The other really big thing is the fact that if it has batteries in it, the unit is "on". All the time. You must remove the batteries when you are done.

Another important consideration is the fact that you could inadvertently load a live round in the chamber with this device.

Remember the 4 rules and examine your surroundings.

This looks ok for what it is:

Take a look on the other side of this door however:

I'm sure my neighbor would not want a hole in his house or him anymore than I want one in mine! NO LIVE AMMO ANYWHERE NEAR THE AREA!

As TJ says there are many mats or other bullet stopping devices cheap enough and readily available.

Another way to train with a laser is to use a pistol equipped with a targeting laser.

Here is a 1911 with a Crimson Trace Laser on it.

Yeah, too much coffee today, but you can see many of the more common errors with trigger control with a handgun so equipped. That was a three inch target at 22 feet. I was not able to practice my presentation from holster as the camera tripod was in the way.

The more common mistakes I see with lasers and dryfire are these:

Not maintaining a proper sight picture: Most people will lower the handgun to make sure they see the laser at distance. OK, but remember that the laser is a device that can fail. To me doing the same thing every time is paramount to running a handgun successfully. If you can't see the red dot, you are now more behind the curve as you must raise the gun to gain proper sight alignment.

Chasing the laser: Many will chase the red dot on target to get it "just so". You don't have that time.

Not practicing in context: Practice proper presentation from concealment. Got external safeties? Manipulate them! BOTH ways! Deactivate to get the shot and reactivate to holster!

This is also a great time for the malfunction drill. Click, no bang after the shot. Do your drill! I leave it to you to decide on the tap rack or variations of that. I have been taught several different ones for semi autos. If you decide to do the malfunction drill, simply take the follower and spring out of a magazine to prevent the pistol going to slide lock.

So here is the new caliber specific device for dryfire:

Here is what it looks like:

I like it as I can leave the batteries in it and it is machined to prevent extraction and more importantly prevents loading a live round if it is in the chamber.

On the back of the unit it receives the firing pin impact to activate. Then you get momentary laser "firing" for feedback.

The last thing? Coupled with the matching target you get this:

So when you get done, you can see where you were hitting:

Hitting the "display" target on the left will show you where you were hitting. The "reset" on the right will clear your string of fire and both targets add a degree of marksmanship to running one of these.

The only thing I would ask for? A remote timer to give me a beep and then tell me time to first hit.

FTC stuff: I payed for everything here!

Random thoughts.. Brought to you by Kindle

2012-02-04T19:00:00.000-08:00

So the Kindle is a blessing and a curse. I am jumping between books, something I rarely did with dead tree media. One is from a former president of the company I worked for, one is the history of the Glock, another is a classic by Jeff Cooper, and one is by Mas Ayoob.

"You are no more armed because you are wearing a pistol than you are a musician because you own a guitar." - Jeff Cooper. How true. So many think they can sit through the class, take the written test, shoot 40 rounds and call it a done deal. Sorry, it does not work like that. A pistol on one's person is not a talisman that wards off evil in and of itself.

Situational awareness DOES have a plus: " ...when you're actively looking for thorns in the bush, you can't help but smell the roses". -Mas Ayoob

I'm not ADD, but this Kindle thing might make me qualify!

Update! From The Bench...

2012-02-02T19:13:00.000-08:00

From ~~Russia, Germany,~~ uh, Alexandria VA with love?

So I go to the range today to make sure the Walther works. Guess what? It does! It does take some getting used to. According to ZZ Top, every girl's crazy about a sharp dressed man. Does the Walther help?

Oh, the dinner jacket and tie are not props. I can rock it if needed!

Lets set the mood shall we?

Ok, that's out of the way. Here is a Walther PPK/s in 9mm Kurz (.380 Automatic for those of us on the other side of the pond).

This is a Interarms made in the US pistol. I would rate it at 97% condition. I was asked to clean and assess. Here is where Jedi mind tricks start.

I cleaned after a minor field stripping. Then tested with dummy rounds. The rounds would extract from the chamber but not eject from the pistol. Here is where I made my mistake. I was not familiar enough with the tool to understand that according to many that is normal. So I do this:

Everything gets a bath! I ordered a new extractor and all of the stuff that comes with that. It will not be here before I need to get this back to the owner. I will test tomorrow with original parts.

Handguns all work on the same basic principal, but the minor details in the execution still bedevil me. I will have the springs and parts in stock now as I think this Pistol will run fine tomorrow.

Another lesson learned!

Bodyguard Update!

2012-01-31T17:19:00.000-08:00

Remember this? I sent the second version of the Smith and Wesson Bodyguard laser that failed back to the home land. After oh, about 2+ months, this arrived today via USPS:

So the second replacement came in the baggie on the far left, this one came in the spiffy foam container. Pay no attention to the bolt or magazine on the far right. They will be back later as the bench again seems to be backing up!

So, for now the Mk.1 Mod III laser will be put into service. I noted that several have posted on the Interwebz about the buttons for activation not working. I find it interesting that S&W has sent the buttons (small gray things) with both replacement lasers. I must say that they send the batteries, the Allen wrench, and buttons every time.

So testing coming up! I don't really need the laser, but I am of the thought that I paid for it. If you have a Bodyguard, work the thing!

Some have posted about the lack of the .380 cartridge in a personal defense incident. I have to say that this would beat a stiff word and a rolled up Newspaper! It is all about tradeoffs. I would much rather have a 1911 or my M&P with me, but sometimes that is not practical. The .380 loaded with personal defense rounds and with the requisite mindset I feel would do well, and better than nothing at all.

Plastics......

2012-01-27T19:50:00.000-08:00

Well, several people kicked my muse in the rear this week but I don't have time to properly post on them. It will take a great deal of thought to give the discussion the time it deserves. That, plus my limited skill in this medium only adds to the discomfort. Lets start here:

So I modified the M&P with a Lightguard. No holster after that. In one day I had this:

Cost? Cleaning a shotgun. For my friend that does this I am thankful. So does getting a holster made of plastic in one day make it better than several weeks in the queue for a custom made leather one at significantly greater cost? For now the answer is: "it depends". Does my friends skill with plastic rival those with skill in leather? I don't know. I don't make holsters. I can't at this time discount either. Having a holster for my carry gun almost immediately is a big deal though.

I love leather holsters on old school stuff.

So as I continue this journey and reevaluate my relationships with Firearms in holsters I carry, the short answer right now is I don't know.

Gotta go, road trip tomorrow! Shoot stuff!

Many have posted on it....

2012-01-26T17:10:00.000-08:00

The USS Laffey DD-724 is home. I look forward to seeing her again. I was not able to get down there. Here is the E-mail from the President of the USS Laffey Association:

ALL HANDS:

THE LAFFEY IS HOME.

I was called to do a 0630 "live" news interview on channel 4. When I parked my car at Pats Point channel 2 news grabbed me for an interview. It was great, even before the sun came up.

The sun DID come up and it was a beautiful, clear day.

It was a very emotional time, watching her from the flight deck of the Yorktown. She was out in the channel and looking good and it brought tears to everyone's eyes.

As she was passing under the bow of the Yorktown I called Joe Folino....it was 0530 in California......and we cried

together. It was a beautiful thing.

They finally got her docked about 0900. The old girl took to her new home and looked very proud to be "FRONT AND CENTER" on display on the main pier. She is the first ship you see in front of the Yorktown.

The news media was all over the flight deck interviewing various shipmates. Associated Press, Channel 2 news Charleston, Channesl 4 and 5 Charleston, The Patch of Mt. Pleasant, Mount Peasant Magazine, and many other independents.

Lee Hunt was our only WWII vet here. He stayed on the pier to watch the arrival and was interviewed after the ship was tied up.

Mac Burdette supplied us with little air horns and a champagne toast. Everyone tooted the horns and toasted the arrival from the flight deck of the Yorktown.

Check out Yahoo news, USA Today website and the news stations in Charleston's websites for the videos and still pix of the move.

Everyone in town has been so excited about this move. We were congratulated everywhere we went.

Did I say that it was a beautiful thing???

I want to thank Mac Burdette, Bob Howard and the entire staff at Patriots Point for saving the "SHIP THAT WOULD NOT DIE" One More Time!!!

Be proud to be a Laffey Sailor today.

We are all heading home tomorrow.

We are emotionally drained and have to go to bed....it 10 PM........what a wild bunch.

Love you all.

Sonny

Show us your Benches!

2012-01-24T17:09:00.000-08:00

Over at God, Gals, Guns, Grub, he was kind enough to show off his gun room and benches. I must say his setup is very impressive. He asked for fellow Bloggers to do the same.Here is my rather pedestrian gun room (click to well, you know):

I really can't handle anything other than basic disassemble and clean here. I can reload however. If I need anything else done I show up at one of my machine shops I have strategically placed around my fair town, LOL!

The thread however brought me the sadz. For now the bench looks like this:

Empty and devoid of life. After having several storied and interesting Firearms here lately, I feel sad.

Oh wait. I did find this:

A Hopkins and Allen top break .32 Safety Police revolver and the barrel ring from the Glenfield 75 just got back from glass beading. I have not decided to just paint the barrel ring or try the cold bluing stuff out.

Oh yeah I do need to give this the once over:

Remington Model 742 in .243 caliber. Suddenly I don't feel so sad!

I'm Waiting on the Tactical Cup Holder Now!

2012-01-23T16:58:00.000-08:00

Tam posted about the Crimson Trace Lightguard for the "9mm bullet hose". So I thought I would try one out. Her link to Amazon showed the unit on a training gun. I thought I would need to fix that:

As she points out that immediately makes these useless.

First step, get the guy I gave that Remington 1900 shotgun back to yesterday to make me another Kydex holster. He will.

For the Lightguard? Looks like this:

That will work! It is not a Surefire flashlight but will light it up! So now I am waiting on the tactical cup holder and GPS nav unit to hang off of this thing. Curse you Tam!

UPDATE! Remington Arms 1900

2012-01-22T00:47:00.000-08:00

Guess what? For the first time in God knows when, this shotgun made some noise today!

I view many posts from Bloggers about how we as legal responsible gun owners are "winning". To be true hearts and minds are paramount. On the other side I present another reason we are winning.

Remember this? (Click to enbiggen any photo)

I did some digging. This is a Remington Model 1900 Shotgun. Based on my Google-Fu, this particular boomstick was made from 1906 to 1910. Unfortunately my reference manuals here and more Google-Fu gave very little more information about this shotgun.

Without a schematic and a gun that does not even show up in the Standard Catalog of Firearms, I chose a minimal cleaning and function check. This shotgun is based on the Model 1894, just made a bit cheaper.

So first get the crap out of the barrels. Here is what I got:

The action side did not look any better:

The forearm? Pretty much the same:

So here is the forearm action soaking in "something" after cleaning:

Gentle cleaning is rewarded with this:

A long time was spent on the barrels. For some reason the left side one was more uh, dinged up than the right. No matter, they both cleaned up well:

The forearm action? Cleaned up well:

So the wood got some oil soap and lemon oil. The function check? Looked like this with dummy rounds:

That looks great! So later today we shall see how she works.

For now? For this 100 year old gun? Where is it? Standing guard. Right here:

Imagine how many pistols, rifles, and shotguns are languishing around in basements, attics, back closets, under beds and even forgotten by owners. With even a little care these firearms will function.

Sadly I will return this shottie to its owner.

Any advice?

2012-01-20T16:21:00.000-08:00

So I am really trying to get the ~~Glenfield Model 75 C~~ Marlin 60 off of my bench. This is my rifle, given to me for the work I did on the other 60. My problem is this. The magazine tube ring that attaches the tube to the rifle was loose. I attributed that to the fact that the dovetail looked pretty beat up. I bought a new one and it arrived today.

New one on the left, old one on the right. That ring is supposed to go here:

So I have heard several methods to fix this. The rifle is a beater cosmetically, but I would like to keep it around. The options I have been told about are:

Use a punch to rough up the surface of the magazine ring on the bottom where it meets the barrel.

Use a punch to beat the dovetail ON the barrel to hold the ring in place after it is installed.

Use epoxy on the barrel to raise the base of the dovetail.

Use a brass shim to go the same as the epoxy.

Any help out there? I don't know how to proceed. I think any of the above would work.

The Bench is Backing up!

2012-01-18T17:15:00.000-08:00

The Glenfield Model 75C has some problems. This rifle is pretty much the same as the Marlin 60 that ran through here recently. The magazine tube ring is toast. There are several other small issues with it as well. I know I can buy new parts such as the bolt and trigger assembly but I prefer to put original parts back into service if I can. Plus I think I have spent more time here now than it is worth. No matter.

Pretty good pitting and this is after minustrations with steel wool and other magic chemicals. Over several days. This is as good as its going to get.

So this shows up. A Remington double barrel shottie. I don't even know anything about it (yet).

Wait, I take that back. I do know something about this Shotgun! Either something lived in it or someone used it as a spittoon!

Sigh....

Oh, the Marlin 60? Ran great! Yeah me! And more importantly I was honored to give that rifle to its owner.

We are winning! Oh, I'm back too.

2012-01-16T18:11:00.000-08:00

Sorry for my absence. I hope to get around and comment and view Blogs as soon as I can.

First congratulations to my twenty-one students (tied the record for this class for attendance) on Saturday. Basic Pistol. Most have never fired a Firearm before:

They had plenty after classroom and live fire exercises! Some that know me ask why I do this. I don't need to.

To me it is very simple. My Father and Grandfathers gave me this gift so many years ago. What was once considered a right of passage is sadly fading now. They taught me. I remember running around mountains with them with a Winchester rifle slung on my back. The soft words "see it, shoot it" at distance with a rifle so long ago, the quick vermin shot with a Colt Woodsman pistol as well.

I have a "III" after my name. Unless there is a bright star in the east and camel crap in my front yard anytime soon means I am the last of this line, this heritage passed down from the generations.

I am trying to pay it forward. Perhaps some student will remember the echos of my Father and Grandfathers later. This is why I do this.

Ok, let me get this straight.

2012-01-13T21:04:00.000-08:00

So ELO (sorta) had a reunion concert in 2001. Well no, not really. I observed enough on youtube to get the DVD only because it was recorded in 5.1 Dolby and DTS. So tonight I fire it up. Had a serious flashback to oh, 1978 or so. Why? Well Jeff was sporting the same fro and sunglasses from a live tour in *cough* 1978. There were some differences though.

Who is the female background singer?

And who are these cello players?

Certainly not this one.

As to the female backup singer? Rosie Vela. Talented and linked to Jeff Lynne. So why is a dude sporting the same look from '78 hooked up with someone like this? Oh, yeah, I forgot. Rock star.

So the intro works liked this. Same opening song from '78:

I am underwhelmed. If you want to run the wayback machine better, choose the Eagles "Hell freezes over" DVD. It was mixed much better. Or perhaps it is my Stereo. It could be a contestant for Retro Sundays!

So for now, new shooter class tomorrow, and this!

Same song, different verse! Glenfield model 75 in much worse shape than the Marlin 60.

Yes the steel wool has come out for this one. More later!

Sigh....

2012-01-12T19:29:00.000-08:00

So over at NC Gun Blog Sean points out an Appleseed event. Really close by. On the weekend no less. So now I am left with a problem. My long gun game is non existent in any real definition. For the .22LR first day? No problem. Colt (Walther) M-4. For the next day it gets interesting. Old .243 Winchester? Old .30-06? Go get a Colt 6940 AR? Sigh....

If you come I look forward to seeing you!

From The Bench...

2012-01-10T17:48:00.000-08:00

A Marlin Model 60! I don't know why my friend asks me to do this, he is just as competent is these matters if not more than I. This rifle many held in youth and the first they fired. Produced since 1960 and still made today. It does not have the plethora of aftermarket accessories such as for the Ruger 10/22. This however should not dissuade one from looking at an inexpensive .22LR rifle.

Since virtually every part is still readily available for it except for the barrel and stock this would be an excellent used purchase in my opinion.

This rifle represents my friends sad pilgrimage to his Grandfather's house in TN after he passed away recently. According to my friend his Grandfather was a gunsmith and this rifle along with others sat in a non-climate controlled safe for at least 25+ years.

Looks like someone wanted the scope:

So we get to it:

Everything dry as a bone. SO... you know what's coming next for the action parts, right?

A bath!

Meanwhile the stock gets some TLC. A bath with wood oil soap and several applications of lemon oil over several days. It came out better than I expected.

.

Oh, look a squirrel!

The bolt assembly after polishing:

I am ready for reassembly but the recoil spring guide rod was discovered to be bent upon removal. I ordered a new one and recoil spring as well. With luck my friend will get to fire his Grandfather's rifle this weekend. I will of course ask to shoot it after he does!

I will let you know how it turns out and if I mentioned any products here, I paid for them so the FTC can go away!

Light a Candle

2012-01-08T15:42:00.000-08:00

So the Brady Campaign thinks that by lighting a candle today "gun violence" will be brought to the forefront of issues. Weer'd suggested another idea. Here is my late contribution, and I would have forgotten except for Brigid's excellent post today.

Here is my contribution:

As far as lighting a candle to stop violence goes, I thought long and hard about the picture you see. Over 125 years of evolution of a tool, one that allows the weak to stand against a predator. There is a reason for this. I encounter victims of violence that have had their lives shattered by two legged predators that have no regard for the law and view others as prey.

Ask one of my students in my Concealed Carry Handgun class if lighting a candle would have stopped a predator from beating her all day. I think it would have been just as effective as the restraining order issued against him. I think her response is much more appropriate now.

Many gave their lives to defend our way of life. How sad to think many now are of the opinion that lighting a candle will do anything to ward off evil.

Gun Sales Up?

2012-01-07T15:42:00.000-08:00

They might just be! I have TWO basic Pistol classes this month!

Need to check the laundry:

Sorry, gotta run. I need to clean my Glock!

I'm told its dishwasher safe, but I am not taking any chances!

Go Here!

2012-01-06T23:08:00.000-08:00

Another person has decided to be responsible for their personal safety. I applaud this and recommend you give her all the support and guidance she may ask for in this space.

The fact she called out the contest offered by a girl and her gun and noted the gifts offered by the community here is profound.

Go stop by and say "Hello" to Anne! I am glad she is here and I know my followers will welcome her.

Colt .22 Peacemaker Update

2012-01-06T18:04:00.000-08:00

In a previous post I commented on my efforts with a little Colt .22 Peacemaker. I HAD to go shoot it today as soon as I got out of work. How is it? Well it seems that once you figure it out life is good.

It took some rounds to warm up to the pistol, but its a great one! Sadly I will return to its owner after another light cleaning.

So the question for tonight for all my long gun friends is this. I need to step up my game in this area. A friend recommended this:
Colt LE6940 Review What say you? Any comments welcome!

Paperwork! Bah!

2012-01-05T18:12:00.000-08:00

I detest paperwork as a rule. I do however make exceptions:

Lets see what we have here! This kind of paperwork I don't mind at all! (Well except for the yardstick I can't find after taking the pictures for the Historians, but I don't think I ate it and the cleaning person came last week, so its all on me to find it!)

Giveaway!

2012-01-04T15:11:00.000-08:00

Over at A Girl and Her Gun, a fantastic giveaway is afoot! From her Blog:

"The prize:

I will pay $300 towards any reputable beginning self defense shooting course in the United States.

Who Can Enter:

Any female who is interested in taking the next step in learning how to defend herself in the event that she may need to. I would really prefer it be a new shooter that hasn't had any formal training to this point.

How To Enter:

Leave a comment specifically saying you would like to enter or email me at agirlandhergun@gmail.com subject Give-A-Way.

This will run from January 3, 2012- February 3, 2012 at midnight and must be redeemed by September 2012.

Well done young lady!

I am passionate about bringing new people on board. The BIG SMILE is always worth it!

In a Rut?

2012-01-02T15:27:00.000-08:00

In my last post, Tango Juliet remarked I was in a S&W rut. I beg to differ sir!

This afternoon an automobile approached stately manor. As soon as the wheels hit my driveway, my property values went up 20%, the children within a three block radius all became well above average, velvet ropes parted, champagne fell from the sky...etc.

Why? Because according to my friend: "Drop in grip safety my A$$!"

A Kimber 1911 something. Got it back together and as soon as he left, everything went back to normal.

Well except for this little project.

A little Colt Scout variant. She sounded like a gravel truck. So first the usual minimally invasive stuff. Let it soak in some CLP overnight.

.

That was less than satisfactory. So on to the next step.

After looking at everything I decided it needed a bath.

Then a soaking!

Now? Well take a look:

Function check was great! And you don't see stuff like this anymore:

Take a look at the snap cap.

Can't wait to shoot this Revolver this weekend!

Range Report!

2012-01-01T15:09:00.000-08:00

So today I take this stuff to the range:

Top to bottom the S&W Model 28-2, The Browning BDA-380 and the S&W M&P. The Highway Patrolman was a big hit! Ran some Speer .38 SPL +P's through it. The Action was "as smooth as a mouse's ear". The Browning is as good shooting as it is looking.

The Highway Patrolman left its mark on the triangle, the Browning on the #2 target. Both are fun to shoot and created much conversation today at the range. I was asked "How many guns do you have?" I said "right now, three".

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T20:21:00.000-08:00

As I look back on the past year I can only say that I am stunned at the response I have had here. I have met many fellow bloggers both in real space and by phone. I am simply amazed at this.

I live in a small town and social interactions are limited in this physical space. They are surely not so in this Blog space. I am truly thankful for this outlet and humbled that anyone would stop by here to check on my pedestrian activities.

So for all my friends, if I have not met you yet in person yet I look forward to it this coming year.

Several Bloggers were instrumental in keeping me here. I was freaked out starting out almost two years ago. I must say that I count Brigid as one.

After casually watching Dick Clark's show tonight I was approaching my "get off my lawn" stance. So I thought I would throw this link up for my blog mother. +1 for the bib overalls and again for the perfect words I think to describe my friend.

Happy New Year everyone!

As for tomorrow? Well, none of this is going to shoot itself!

Range is open tomorrow! I felt bad in WV as everyone is all about running the long gun. I think I comported myself well when asked to shoot one, but I am after everything is said a pistol person. It is what I teach and shoot most.

Stupid Kindle Tricks

2011-12-30T15:09:00.000-08:00

Besides all the blather about it not being an iPad (well duh), I have found several useful tasks for it. See all this?

Instruction manuals for oh, about everything. If it is on line I get the PDF file, if not, I scan it into a PDF and throw it up to the Amazon Cloud. Another bonus is if you get a manual like the ones that came with my camera that are printed on proprietary disintegrating rice paper making them virtually useless, you can transform them to this:

Being able to take to your workspace helps and the bigger print and no bookmarks are just more perks!

So for the first time the camera was converted from a PhD (Push here Dummy) camera and after some experimentation:

I was able to make the camera do what I wanted it to do:

(Teaser for upcoming review post)

They also have VNC clients for the Android platform. I guess I need to unlock the thing. That would make work a bit easier!

Changes in North Carolina CCH Law

2011-12-29T13:25:00.000-08:00

Here is the PDF from the NCDOJ outlining changes to NC Statutes Effective December 1st of this year as they pertain to CCH (click to enlarge).

Smith and Wesson Highway Patrolman

2011-12-28T17:45:00.000-08:00

Otherwise known as the Model 28-2.

Shhhh.... She's soaking in it!

Break Free that is! Will reassemble and go shoot this weekend with a full write up as well. Waiting on the Standard Catalog of S&W too for reference. Heaven forbid I get anything wrong about this gun! Tam would be all over me if I did that!

She's not real pretty, but in good shape (uh, the pistol, not Tam. I assume she is all sweetness and light)!

US Navy Speak....

2011-12-28T15:07:00.000-08:00

"The free flow of goods and services through the Strait of Hormuz is vital to regional and global prosperity," said a spokeswoman for the US Navy's Bahrain-based Fifth Fleet. "Anyone who threatens to disrupt freedom of navigation in an international strait is clearly outside the community of nations; any disruption will not be tolerated."

Translation? "Come get some!"

Record Gun Sales

2011-12-28T05:22:00.000-08:00

For the past two months in a row! CNN article:"

Two days before Christmas, NICS ran 102,222 background checks, which was the second-busiest day in history. The one-day record was set this year on Black Friday, the big shopping day following Thanksgiving, with 129,166 searches.

Good news!

In the same article a bit of delusion as well: "The research we've seen indicates fewer and fewer people are owning more and more guns," said Caroline Brewer of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. "All the trends indicate the number of Americans who own guns has declined."

Uh, right.

Music Meme Redemption!

2011-12-27T18:42:00.000-08:00

Well I hope anyway! From the iPod to this:

Anybody know how to play a pump organ? Its been restored and ready to go I am told. All I can do is to play "When the Saints go Marching in" one handed on it.

I would pay real money for someone to give it a workout!

Music Meme

2011-12-27T17:39:00.000-08:00

Tam started it and I must say I don't jack the iPod into the car much. Without further disclamers here is what is reported for my top 15 on that media:

You will have to ask what the records were for line in tracks. I promise they are different! They were imported from 45RPM records.

Retro Tuesday- Smart Phone

2011-12-27T15:06:00.000-08:00

Version 1.0-

Comes with two apps:

1. Listening

2. Talking

This is what happens.....

2011-12-27T09:07:00.000-08:00

As soon as Gecko45 takes the day off, this happens. Where's food court team six when ya need em?

Mall of America ramps up security after massive fight

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T15:27:00.000-08:00

I again wish all a Merry Christmas and best wishes for a Happy and Prosperous New Year.

Before I ramble on about my events today, others that are of the cloth have remarked on the import of this Holiday much better than I. Rev. Paul and Bayou Renaissance Man do it with style and passion. God Bless them!

"And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes, and laid him in a manger; because there was no room for them in the inn." Luke 2:7

It was great to see friends and family. I am now back at stately manor awaiting local friends. I seem to be a pressure relief valve for others.

First this (click to,well, you know)!

The tech gap here is wide! A 1955 Lionel boxed train set. More on it later. You just don't see that much anymore! On top of that a Kindle Fire.

So I go to see my Curmudgeon yesterday. He and his wife had a traditional Holiday meal prepared. Ham, pinto beans, mashed potatoes, greens (with BACON!), deviled eggs, candied yams, corn bread, and other stuff! Some made it back here for some wonderful leftovers!

Before we got to that though, Curmudgeon wanted to check the operational status of these:

Top to bottom: Smith and Wesson Model 28-2 in .357 Magnum, Colt Peacemaker in .22LR and .22WMC, and Browning BDA-380.

So we went to shoot yesterday. The S&W lives up to the press. Wonderful pistol! The Colt is just as wonderful, just needs some TLC. The Browning? Great!

So after returning the Winchester Model 100 to my friend he determines that it was good enough to hand me this for the same treatment. It has to be good because it was wrapped in this, right?

I was not disappointed. A Remington Woodsmaster Model 742 in .243 cal.

Bonus points for the Weaver scope mounting rings with a K-Mart scope!

For my friend that lives far away a gift:

I think a former NRA youth rifle competitor will like that.

Have a great evening!

For my Curmudgeon, I gave the Firefly DVD's. He is a Browncoat, he just does not know it yet, LOL!

If Ma is not happy, nobody is!

2011-12-23T18:44:00.002-08:00

I talked to my parents tonight for last minute preparations for Christmas. My Mother asked if I had the train that "Santa Claus" brought me was running. I told her, "What, you mean the train y'all got me in the hobby shop under Thalhimers Department store?" I was rebuffed. "No it was Santa Claus". She asked if it still smoked and made noise. I assured her it did.

A "uncataloged" set. A mutt of the breed if you will amongst collectors of Lionel trains. The owner of the shop appears to have scrounged up some spare cars, a much derided "Scout" engine and tender. It is all O-27 scale. The smallest transformer that was on the books. A battery powered whistle control.

The train survived my parents moving and sat in the garage there for many years. This train will never hold the attention of collectors.

For me however it is priceless. After cleaning and repair of some minor stuff that really was not needed it now rides around here this Christmas and holds a place of honor in my living room the rest of the year.

I know how much it must have cost then. Especially for a painter and mill worker. Lionel was never cheap on any level. I am proud to have this here.

And once again I feel the wonder of the season and the love that parents have.

I will post on how you can do this under your tree soon.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve.....1968

2011-12-23T11:49:00.000-08:00

From NASA: "Apollo 8, the first manned mission to the Moon, entered lunar orbit on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1968. That evening, the astronauts; Commander Frank Borman, Command Module Pilot Jim Lovell, and Lunar Module Pilot William Anders did a live television broadcast from lunar orbit, in which they showed pictures of the Earth and Moon seen from Apollo 8. Lovell said, "The vast loneliness is awe-inspiring and it makes you realize just what you have back there on Earth." They ended the broadcast with the crew taking turns reading from the book of Genesis."

For everyone that comes here by I wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas.

Lowe's stands by decision to pull ads from TV show | CharlotteObserver.com & The Charlotte Observer Newspaper

2011-12-22T19:27:00.000-08:00

So now this. I now refrain from commenting on politics here but Lowe's is based in my home state.

Good on Lowe's.

Lowe's stands by decision to pull ads from TV show | CharlotteObserver.com & The Charlotte Observer Newspaper

Good. How dare Congress critters try to dictate to private companies how to conduct business. If you don't like the decisions Lowe's made, don't go there.

How did we get to this state? What the hell happened?

Vote them all out!

I went Christmas shopping today:

Christmas Tree.. Train... Stuff....

2011-12-21T17:54:00.000-08:00

So I have laid the track and am awaiting the new sound car from ebayness to replace my fried one. I took the time to at least put out the Ford Dealership:

Time is short this year. I do not have time to dress things as well as I should, but you get the idea.

Full video as soon as I have the new sound car!

I will also put a post out on what to do if you want to put a Lionel under the tree next year. First step though is to go get one if you can in a yard sale. Barring that, I will give tips on what to look for on a new one.

Whew! Almost done!

2011-12-20T16:36:00.000-08:00

Remember this thing from last week? The PLC that had to go?

45er called it a "hot mess". Yeah it was. Behold the after pictures:

It ran on time Monday. Small issues and working on points for style now. I am fortunate to have really talented technicians. They make me look good!

HA! Gun Song!

2011-12-20T15:13:00.000-08:00

Odysseus over at By Other Means has a link to a funny song. Go look. Me, I do have preferences, but as he says over there, whatever works for you is fine by me. Reminds me of auto mechanic humor when I am in these spots. Mechanic pushing a car into a stall: "Well, at least its not mine"!

For one moment......

2011-12-19T18:27:00.000-08:00

So a busy weekend. Congratulations to my eight concealed carry students on Sunday and to my three new shooters on Saturday!

Last night I had a friend over. She and I go back some time. She needed help in transferring her data to a new laptop. She is a road warrior because of her profession. It is an honor that she trusts me implicitly with her data.

She knew that I would have been at it all day teaching, she also was at it all day to travel to her annual sales meetings starting today.

She was waiting on me in my driveway yesterday. She texted me and asked if she could take me out to Supper, I deferred. After a day of teaching, I just wanted to get home. She brought a full spread of Outback take out. We had Supper and conversed. For one brief moment this house was a home, filled with laughter, stories of times past and things done and said back then. Those stories have much import simply because she was more than a friend way back then.

We both excuse the exuberance of youth for those stories simply because we did some remarkable things back in the day:

So for her, this:

The 80's called......

2011-12-15T18:41:00.000-08:00

Not this 80's; sigh....

This 80's:

They called, they want thier Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) back. Reliance Electric Remote I/O drop that runs a small process.

One of the things I found refreshing about this little Blog thing is that very few ask about the "day job". In fact only Old NFO and Murphy's Law have asked, but only in person.

Here is a sample of what I do during the day. In the picture above is a part of a PLC commissioned somewhere around 1993. It still works great after serving for 24/7 all this time, but when you have to get spare parts off of Ebay and running the programming software under a Virtual Machine in a Windows 2K box running Fedora it might be time to do something.

I was asked to create a task list for this project. To me its simple: Step 1: take old stuff out. Step 2: put new stuff in.

Step 1:

New standalone PLC installed in the top of the backplane, now all that is left is to convert the old wiring to new, program the PLC and operator workstation, test and have ready to go by Monday at 5AM.

It looks like this:

Lead Tech calling out the old Octal based wire numbers to me, I look up on the left side documents, find new wiring numbers from the right document and print the new wire label for him. After he terminates, I cross off both as complete. We still have a lot to do.

I also have Basic Pistol class this Saturday and CCH Sunday. This should be an interesting weekend! So, if the posting and commenting is light, please understand!

So if you came here and viewed this, here is some holiday cheer in my style:

The Mustang fender emblems are special, but the one from a 1964 and a half is really the one of honor. It is the driver side original. NFO asked me what Mustang I am working on now. Sadly, no time right now for it but it is next. Brigid had a wonderful post up that combined several things that I love too, but again, time is short right now.

I hope to be back soon!

Almost there!

2011-12-13T18:53:00.000-08:00

So I get the tree up and lay some track. I try the Engine out first and life is good. Then off to find the Railsounds car for testing. NOT so good. Lionel made these for a couple of years in the mid 90's. They add a great deal of realism and just well, fun to a old train.

It is not responding to whistle or bell commands. Sigh. I disconnected the original whistle in the tender when I got the railsounds car. So I guess its time to hook it back up!

But for an hour at least, I was once again on the floor, playing with a train. Now time to go. Big project at work starts tomorrow. Wish me luck or I will be spending a lot of time there!

Oh Christmas Tree.....Oh Crap!!!

2011-12-12T21:02:00.000-08:00

Back in the day it was simple. Go cut a tree down, drag it into the house and light with non CPSC approved stuff. Or if you took they easy way out you could simply put up the Aluminum tree.

But oh no! Not now! My friends passed an artificial tree to me this weekend. With integral lights. Time is short and so I fell for it. I only needed this to get everything running:

That is wrong! At least I did not have to whip out this!

So after throwing every ornament I own on the tree it still looks sorta uh, sad. Well it does work now and to me the tree is simply an excuse to whip this stuff out:

The track will be running this first under the tree:

A forty plus year old Lionel train. Ground effects will be more impressive than the tree this year!

Oh, side note. The new Hallmark Star Trek tree ornaments that are battery powered suck. The old school ones plugged into the lights on the tree, these have you load a kabillion watch batteries into them.

Model 100 Update!

2011-12-11T16:04:00.000-08:00

So for the first time in over 40 years easy, some parts of this rifle are seeing the light of day again.

A testament to the designers and fabricators of that era. So for tonight, a soaking in breakfree. And now a question for you. There was a recall in 1990 for the firing pin. So send this one off or stuff it back in?

More later! I have a Christmas tree to put up!

Curmudgeon update! Winchester Model 100

2011-12-10T19:43:00.000-08:00

So in a previous post I mentioned that I acquired a Winchester model 94 in .30-.30. I told my friend that someone remarked when I whipped it out that it was an "obsolete cartridge". He immediately asked if I invited them down range while I shot an "obsolete cartridge" at them. God, I love this guy! I say no, I don't know if they were complementing me on having a old gun or just being a jerk.

Anyway, I did tell him that after the last Blogshoot that my long gun game was lacking. So, after some muttering as he disappears for a bit he brings this out (you know the drill to embiggen):

Winchester .243 Model 100. He says many groundhogs and deer fell to it if you did your part. He says several friends that are no longer here enjoyed this rifle as well. I don't doubt that at all. He says it has not been fired in many years and now it is on my bench for some long overdue care.

Weaver 8X scope.

I don't think you get stocks like this anymore!

A beautiful Rifle and one that my friend said to take and shoot next time. I am honored and will.

Anyone have any advise on cleaning the optics? Totally out of my league on that!

,

Safe lighting experiment

2011-12-09T17:59:00.000-08:00

So my curmudgeon at large wants to put some lights in his safe. I understand. I don't have any yet simply because after perusing the Interwebs, its all overpriced and requires another hole in the safe for the 110 VAC power cord. That's assuming you have an outlet close by and if power is available. Also if the power is out you are in the dark. Another hole in the safe is another downside.

If you do bolt one to the floor and wall (you should), use the really expensive fire stop caulk around the holes! If you do not you have just thrown your fancy UL or other certifying fire rating out the window.

So I thought I would see what these would do:

Designed for under cabinet use, these are powered by three AA batteries each and are motion activated with an auto shutoff feature. They come with a magnet with a 3M adhesive on one side. The idea is that you use the adhesive side for under the counter to attach the magnet to the counter. Then the mounting plate with the magnet. Once the mounting plate is in place you twist the actual light onto it allowing for battery replacement in the future.

So intital testing was less than satisfactory:

The light is on the hinge side of the door. A very spotlight effect, not one we are going for. So time to hack the light!

Top you can see the magnet. On the left you can see the focusing lens I removed from the LED. Let's try again:

Much better!

Depending on the interior surfaces of the safe instead of the included magnet you could use Velcro to attach to interior carpet or double sided tape.

After the removal of the lens I think this is a fine alternative to overpriced stuff marketed to safe owners.

This ends the redneck engineering lesson!

FTC disclamer. I paid for everything here. So there.