Leaderboard

Hey guys. I got some good news to report - I'm officially a college graduate as of yesterday.   I took my leave from the Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Athens yesterday, with my Machinist I diploma in hand. After 20 months of turning handles within the walls of Machine Tool Technology, I am now certified.   It's a pretty proud moment for everyone around me, and myself as well. When I started the course in January 2013, I never thought I would even make it this far; but I have, in what seems like a few days' time in retrospect, 20 months has cruised on by.   But it paid off. I graduated with honors (my grade average has never been below 97; for the past year it has been 100 across the board) and perfect attendance for all 20 months.   It was a pretty emotional event, in a way, last night. The yearly ceremony was held at Athens Middle School. It was tough to go through, knowing that I had to move on from several very close friends and co-students, as well as my instructor; but through the magic of email and transportation, it is not good-bye so much as, until next time.   Now I await my next move - getting into a good job. I already have a good lead; I hope it leads to something great. I want to become a top-class machinist, and a hard-working American's American like the great folks here on TGO.   Anyway, hey, thanks for hearing my spiel, fellas.

You guys were RIGHT and I am a dumb arse!  No one at the church knew anything if my wife's surgery. I called the church today and the pastor is coming by this afternoon. He is going to get a volunteer to come by and stay with her while I work. Talk about foot prints in the sand! I want to thank you guys for your replies and prayers.

With the opening of a new BPS here in Bristol, one of my son's friends applied for and was offered a position.  The last day of training, they were reviewing store policies, and the new employees were advised that they cannot store an otherwise legally-owned firearm in their vehicle while parked at the BPS - to do so will be grounds for immediate dismissal.  He questioned his understanding of the policy, and was told that he did understand it correctly - and that this was BPS's corporate policy.  He politely handed his "uniforms" back to the manager and told them that he would not be taking the position.   Hopefully, the Cabela's that is building a store just 6 miles up the road will have a bit more common sense.

  Try a different tour guide and you'll hear that the locals did it because Yankee tourists kept getting their heads stuck in them.  :)

Did you notify anyone at the church of your wife's condition. Sometimes we take it for granted that they know of our problems. You may want to give them a call. Just saying

I believe the problem is associated the use of 125gr bullets. I have heard of this load is also notorious for flame cutting on the top strap on some revolvers as well. I have shot MANY rounds of 125gr and not experienced this in my Rugers, but this was before I heard of the issue. In the Smith gun it was believed the cracking was caused by the thinned forcing cone. Example below take notice of the flat on the bottom. If you want an explanation of why this is thought to be happening. See post #6 in the link below. I'd copy it, but want the author to get credit for it. http://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=455649

*You're My GT score was a hell of a lot higher than 110. I wasn't a grunt for a lack of options. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What am I preparing for?     The Defender's Creed John Farnam I accept and understand that human predators exist. Criminal or terrorist, they take advantage of our civilized society to prey upon the weak. They represent evil and must be confronted and defeated. I believe that self-defense is a moral imperative, and that illegitimate force and illegal violence must be met with righteous indignation and superior violence. I will not rely on others for the security of myself, my family and my community. I proudly proclaim that I run with a like-minded pack. I do not amble through life with the mind-numbed herd. I will train with my chosen weapons, maintain them and carry them in a condition of readiness at all times. I will be mentally prepared and physically equipped to effectively respond to an attack or emergency. I will constantly test myself against realistic standards to discover my strengths and weaknesses. I will turn weakness into strength. I will seek to learn new skills and techniques, and then teach what I have learned to other members of the pack. Be it with firearm or blade, empty hand or blunt object, I will hit my enemies hard, fast and true. I will live a quiet and unobtrusive life, but I will develop and retain the capacity for swift and decisive violence. I recognize that I am the modern equivalent of the traditional Minuteman, and that I may be called to service at any time against heavily armed enemies. I will respond effectively. I accept that I am a pariah among some of my countrymen, and a quaint anachronism to others. I will not hold their ignorance against them. I will win, or die trying. I swear this creed before God, my family and my fellow citizens.

Worse case scenario, it won't be a handgun I'm carrying.

I am bacon powered also!   :rofl:

Let me say this, if I was going to teach any person how to shoot a fully automatic I would do it in steps.   1.  Basic Range safety.  Master it. 2.  Understanding of the gun, all control points. 3.  Finally loading the first round.  Yes 1 round. 4.  Fire 1 round. repeat 3 and 4 several times over. 5 Load 2 rounds, 6. fire 2 rounds repeat several times.   Then so on to burst of 3 rounds.   then based on that, might move up, but this would not be in one day.

This should not have happened. 

I get too many feather puffs with the el cheapos. Last year I ran the AA Heavy Targets the first part of season and killed a high percentage of birds. I ran out and switched to low brass cheapos and got too many fly offs. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Just like automotive painting, its all about the preparation.  Having the right tool helps.  I've probably over 3k in tools and equipment to get started.  It is applied with HPLV spray gun and oven cured.  

The Lebanon Gun Shop on Hartman Drive has a gunsmith on site. I've never employed him for any work, but have spoken with him, and he seems like a nice guy.

Gas is cheaper than bacon. Bacon tastes better than gas.

Congrats!   Here's a question that will enter your mind once you start working...   Are all machine shop owners assholes, or are all assholes machine shop owners?    :lol:     Stay diligent to keep your skills fresh.  Modern CNC equipment can quickly turn a machinist into a machine operator. 

Nice work !

I really like that with the pachmayer furniture. Looks great.

Beautiful, slim, well made, but a .380 when you could have a 9mm, and it has a horrendous double action trigger pull.  I've had several, even had one worked on to ease the DA pull and still decided it wasn't worth it.   IF I have to pocket carry I carry the DB9 that I got my wife to carry.  Apparrently we got the only one that actually works, at least from forum posts.  I don't shoot reloads in it at all, mostly round nose hollow points and have had zero problems.   Cherokee Slim

IF this happened it likely would be like the Streetsweeper and USAS12 when they were moved to NFA in the 1990s......you register it tax free. Tax gets paid if you ever sell it just like current NFA stuff.    As to whether this is even a real possibility? Who knows. I just see where this could be the next "boogeyman" that the anti gun folk go after if there is a high profile shooting involving one and I don't know that there would be enough support on our side to keep it from getting sacrificed in the name of avoiding other restrictions.....if all 100 million gunowners would just say "NO"....then nothing restrictive legislation wise would happen...ever.....but we all know that ALL 100 million gunowners are not in agreement...

Don't go on a Monday.  I drove about 30  miles out of the way to eat there yesterday.  I was told they were not open to the public as they were reserved for a group later that evening. :ugh:   I ate lunch there on my way out of Knoxville on that trip and have been back several times since.  It's worth a drive a few miles out of the way to eat there.

Well sure, them southerners will get their heads stuck in the darnest places. :rofl:

Are you tired of ugly, dull edges? Or maybe you're sick of going to the gun shows with a sack full of knives to be sharpened at $5 or more dollars a piece. Maybe you just wanna be the envy of your friends with mirror polished, straight razor sharp, hair popping edges? I'm gonna show you how to take a mediocre edge to mirror polished and hair popping in just a few min. for about $20 worth of material. The first thing you need to do is run to walmart and pick up a few things. You will need: 220 grit sand paper (optional) 400 grit sand paper 600 or 800 grit sand paper Mothers aluminum polish Mouse pad Super glue Cedar clothes hangers Rubber bands My total on this was $20.73 at Walmart. You can do it cheaper if you have some or all of this stuff in the shop. So gather your materials The first step is to super glue the mouse pad to the cedar coat hanger board, material side down, rubber side up. Any good flat board of appropriate size will work. Then trim to size. Now add your 220/400 grit sand paper and secure with rubber bands. It is easier if you trim it to fit, but you don't have too. Use 220 if you are reprofiling a very bad edge, or 400 if the edge is already in decent shape. These are the edges we are starting with. The bowie is already belt sanded to 320 grit. The case is my work knife and hasn't been sharpened in 2 months Now, with a draw stroke motion, drag the knife edge across the sand paper. You will need to find what angle and pressure works for you. I use a low angle and moderate pressure for mine. I draw mine 45 strokes per side. This gives me a count so my edge stays even. You can color the edge with a sharpie to make sure you hit the whole edge when you first start to help you find your perfect angle and pressure. Added by Broomhead BTW, if you use wet/dry sand paper, add some type of oil to it, I use 3-in-1. It'll create a slurry which will, A. Keep the paper from clogging up so fast by floating the metal shavings, B. Increase the effectiveness of your work by reusing the released grit, C. Make your strokes smoother for fewer errant scratch marks before continuing on to the next higher grit, and D. Keep your blade oiled. When the oil starts to get too thick, wipe the blade and add a little more oil. If the paper seems to stop cutting, replace it and add more oil. I doubt you'll need to do either for a knife or two, but you might need to if you're doing a lot.<br /><br />Also, gently wipe your blade with a paper towel, shop rag, etc, before moving onto the next higher grit so you won't scratch your nicely sanded blade halfway through that higher grit and have to redo your hard work. Next swap out for the 600 or 800 grit sand paper and do the same thing. A 600 will have a more aggressive bite while 800 will make a cleaner slice. Another 45 strokes and you should have a sharp workable edge. But its still not to the standards we are looking for. My phone died so I dont have pictures of this edge. Now if you are like me, you may not have an appropriate piece of leather. If you do, use that for the next step. If not, use the box your sand paper came in. Trim it to fit the mouse board and mount it with the rubber bands undied/un colored side up. Add a finger full of the mothers in streaks. Now strop with light to moderate pressure. I use 30 strokes per side. This will make a mirror polished hair popping edge. Now test out your edge and enjoy the results. I hope you have all enjoyed and learned something from this little tidbit of info. If you have any questions feel free to ask. I would love to see some comments if this has helped you out, and I'll be happy to try out and add any suggestions you might have to the write up.

Waste of good bacon IMO.

Screw that, like Ugly said its great land. Why can't they all just move to France or whatever is my question.

Nice find. I picked one up from AIM when they had a batch of C&R eligible High Power pistols recently. It's not WWII era like the one you picked up, but I think I'll keep it. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

I'll bring you some 124 gr ammo!!!

That had to be an old law, I was stationed there in 94 and had to wait 10 days to pick up my newly aquired 10/22. That state will suck unless they have a full scale interstate revolution. Too bad, it is some prime real estate.

Even though I'm pretty big guy and wear cargoes with roomy pockets most all the time, anything bigger and/or heavier than my Kahr PM9 with extra mag is just too much for pocket. This with 13 rounds of 124 gr rounds weighs 1lb 10 oz., 4.75 x 6" total outside dimensions. - OS

People in the modern church are paradoxically - more connected, but more isolated. Not because of the church, but because of post-modern lifestyles - transportation, Internet, Facebook, Cell Phones, etc.     Earlier churches were a closer knit community, due to necessity (barn raising, neighborhood schools, crop planting & harvesting, etc).    The function of the elders/deacon was originally focused on elderly widows.  The community took care of the rest of the needs.   What is missing from the equation is the "community" aspect.  Sunday Schools took that role for ages, but now is diminishing.    If you run the number on our church (6000 attendance per week), expecting the staff to attend to all the needs is futile.    Running the numbers from a practical standpoint -   40 staffers * 3600 seconds * 8 hours = 192 seconds a day, per member.  That is 3.2 minutes for *everything* involved in operating our church.   In fact, it is so overwhelming, that we say "Hope you get a small grouper, because if you see a pastor, you probably are on your death-bed"   Some churches, like ours -  rely on "small groups", and it comes back down to communications & participation (otherwise out of sight, out of mind).   It's not that they don't care, it's logistics and being aware.   I hope that it gets better for you and your wife.  Reach out and let the laypersons know of your trials.  You may be pleasantly surprised at their response.

I am a deacon at my church.  I am one of the ones that takes care of about 12 families.  The biggest problem I know of, I don't know what has happened.  Usually by the time I am informed so and so is sick and is in hospital, they are already released.  Not knowing your situation, but I say did someone know at the church, and I mean ether the pastor, deacon or one of the elders?  If not, then the right people probably did not know. 

He needs to call the Lt. Gov., that was not his legislative intent, remember.  He should have taken the job, that then when they fired him, got Ron to stand up for him...

  Why? I somehow thought Jackson got whacked many years ago. I haven't heard of anyone going to Jackson in forever. That's why I asked if you were serious. Fort Polk (little Vietnam), Fort McClellan, Fort Benning and Fort Bragg holds a special place in my heart.   Thank You for your service Fitty%!   Dave

  Was that a.... BURN! ;)

It has fed everything just fine, LSWCs,Jacketed and Plated. Not one problem. I like this gun, it is big and runs like a champ.

I'm more worried about ball cancer than I am about meeting AQ outside of their stomping grounds. Of course they'll try to attack us again and probably succeed to some degree, but the chances of being a direct victim or being in a position to intervene is about as likely as Jennifer Anniston showing up at my door to service me and make a sammich. Not saying that I don't fantasize about that happening, and keep hope alive that it does, I'm just realistic about the odds. I carry because it is my duty to protect my family, and a firearm is more effective than a broadsword, although not nearly as fashionable. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

YES, they make a short barreled weapon legal without the $200 stamp. It allows you to cross state lines(without permission), have a loaded "gun" in your vehicle, and if so inclined open/concealed carried. And, it is decently comfortable.

The impact of IED/VBIED blast is what I am afraid may happen on our own soil. I think there is a very slim chance of terrorist being able to carry out another hijacked airplane event. I guarantee you that they are here and that they are planning.

I'm not trying to put anyone out of business or judge anyone who still shops there. I just choose not to spend MY money at any place that chooses to screw over their customers at the drop of the hat. Think of it as a positive. I guarantee you will never have to compete with me to purchase an item at Dick's or CTD.

I've used both of those methods as well. Then I had a wood dowel split and I then had a bullet AND a wood dowel stuck in the bore. So I don't use wood any more.

I vote Hornady dies. 1. They come with the best lock rings. 2. Seating die has the bullet guide which helps make sure the bullet is straight, and does a great job helping to avoid pinched fingers! 3. They now have a taper crimp option instead of the roll crimp - just bought .45ACP dies a few weeks back, has an adjustment for seating depth and crimp and very simple to set up. That being said, half of my dies are RCBS. Only Lee dies I own are an universal decapper and two bullet sizing dies.

Sometimes open carry is good but in most cases I do not want others to know I carry.

Nothing. You were not threatened with serious bodily harm or death, and you had no cause to believe that anyone else had either, so it sounds like you did the right thing. Theft of retail merchandise or cash is not worth escalating into a physical confrontation, struggle, or gun fight in which life may be lost, especially if it's not your own. Be hyper aware of your extended surroundings. When something doesn't seem right, immediately leave the area or prepare for the worst. Only draw your gun if you are at imminent risk of serious bodily harm or death, in which case you should be prepared to shoot as soon as the gun is on target. When the potential threat is gone, report any possible crimes or suspicious activities then go on your way.

Why would you get flamed for a well thought out post such as this? :up:

I think carrying either way should be up to the individual.....not the government. That being said I prefer not  to broadcast to the entire world that I'm armed. Like so many other things in life I feel it's nobody's business.

I used to carry IWB but the water kept dripping, now it's OWB only. Super Soaker Gen III are easier to conceal now :rofl:

Yeah, I see no advantage over a pocket .380. And a distinct capacity disadvantage.

[quote name="joe45" post="1158667" timestamp="1402698517"]OK got it. Let the games begin ;)[/quote] I went ahead and gave you five to start with. Looks like TrickyNicky sucks because someone offset my 5 star with 1 star. I'm off to ruin Oh Shoot's rating. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

For that price hopefully it can feed ammo backwards like other HKs.