GlockSpock

So, I noticed that Canon has released a newer version of the "Nifty Fifty" at $125. This one has an STM motor and a metal mount, Optics are claimed to be the same as the previous versions. Since I have a void in the 50mm range right now, I will probably buy this one once it comes out and I've been able to reed a few reviews. The STM motor is primarily made to be quiter for video work. I think theoretically it may be a bit faster than than the 50mm 1.8 II autofocus. The STM motor also allows manual focus overide. One of the features about the lens I am most excited about is probably that it has a closer minimum focusing distance (14" vs 17.72" on the 50mm 1.8 II). This isn't much (about 21% improvement I suppose). Since my next purchase wants to be a 100mm 2.8 Macro, perhaps this 50mm STM will fulfill my closeup itch until I find $550 sitting somewhere. Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 STM Lens But, I was honestly hoping that 50mm 1.8 II's would be popping up on sale for $50 new. I haven't seen those anywhere. EDIT: Yep, I eventually sold my 50mm 1.4 USM. I did love the output of that lens, but I got tired of worrying about it eventually breaking. It was Micro USM instead of Ring USM, which I don't fully understand the pros and cons of but I understand the Micro USM was "Baby USM". I replaced it with the 85mm 1.8 lens, which I love very much and is very well built. Not trying to convince everyone to shed their 50mm 1.4's because they are going to break, but after reading so many reviews of people claiming that theirs broke the exact same way and even reading a thread about exactly how it breaks made me decide to sell it when it was still working instead of worrying about it breaking. I technically sold it for ~ +- $10 of what I paid for it originally due to the lens going up in price since I bought it. WooHoo! http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3123026

  No, but you could claim it really, really hurt your eyes and made you feel really uncomfortable for a while. Sounds lawsuit worthy, right?   Also, since it made you tear up in front of your other biker buddies that is probably $500,000 worth of emotional scarring right there.

Black smoke don't mean it's broke! (Referring to the truck, not the brain). Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  Well, sad as it may be that is a "good thing" in a sense.

Fox News is reporting an active shooter in a Pennsylvania mall.

  Well, it is an older model. I'd honestly say anything over about $50 or maybe up to $75 would be more than fair to the seller, debatably fair to the buyer.   It will take better pictures than most "Point-and-Shoot" cameras and a decent entry into the world of DSLR's. It will probably be like a bug that causes you to want to upgrade.   Personally I'd suggest a T3i or so if you can afford it, but that would probably be $250 to $350 used range.

Today is the day that the Mexican ship "Mayonnaise" was sunk. Star Wars day was yesterday. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Among the items listed are body armor, ammunition magazines, a Bushmaster Blue Fire M9 and Bushmaster Blue Fire M-16 A4. ?? Does "Blue Fire" mean it is a trainer? Bushmaster doesn't make M9's and I assume a select fire M4 would probably be at the top of the list of his troubles. EDIT: I see... Like This: http://www.meggitttrainingsystems.com/commercial-ranges/commercial-simulation-equipment/bluefire-weapons.aspx Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well, I doubt I will ever wear out even the filter media, but I would like to have a few extra ceramic filters themselves on hand because they are ~$150 each and should store indefinetely I would think. It isn't so much as to whether I would like the Sawyer Mini, it is more as to whether I would trust it. I've always filled up a couple of bladders and carried water with me whenever hiking or whatnot. Honestly, the idea of drinking water from the source (river/stream/lake/etc) is a bit unnerving, even with a $300 filtering system. The Katadyn seems as if it will get everything but viruses and of course chemical contamenents. Drinking from a source such as the Hiwassee or Ocoee, specifically in the Polk County area, I would imagine that chemical and viral contamination would be virtually nonexistant. Guess I'll do a bit more reading on such things and then just give it a try next time I go hiking.

I saw the Sawyer mini on the market before I placed my order. I wished and hoped it was a grear product but had my concerns about a $20 purchase that claimed such a long usage life. I had found a few mixed reviews and figured I'd go with something tried and true (in my opinion). Wouldn't mind having one in-line for a bladder as stated.

Also, interested in opinions of the Katadyn Pocket vs. the Big Berkley Water Filters that are mentioned so often on here.

So, convinced myself to finally buy one of these. Katadyn Pocket It should be here soon. I have never owned a device like this but figured I would pick on up. Goes down to .2 micron and is silver impregnated. That means it should get everything but some of the smaller viruses. Biggest benifit of spending $290? 20 year warranty and up to 13,000 gallons dependent upon water quality. Of course, you can also use UV light to kill off viruses/bacteria. Guess what the sun emmits! My research though has shown in the United States viruses aren't typically something you have to worry about being waterborne currently. I bought this to mainly mess around with to gain experience in that sort of thing. Plan on taking it hiking, etc. Also, will be nice not to have to worry about carrying so much water if I am planning around being near water to begin with. All my research shows that Katadyn is built very nice. Yes, the ceramic filter inside is breakable but it should generally hold up for a very long time if you take care of it. You can go cheap on something like this, Katadyn even makes a "Hiker" that is I think $60. The catch? It is only rated for I think 200 gallons. You can buy replacement ceramic catridges for the Katadyn Pocket for about $150. $150 per 13,000 gallons is about a penny per gallon. You can buy optional activated charcoal filter attatchments that are good for around 200 or so gallons. They would be good for filtering taste/chemicals from the water. I may buy one for hiking but wouldn't plan on long term using them. That brings up one thing I'd like to discuss here; without having activated charcoal, you pretty much leave whatever chemicals that exist in the water in the water. Now, hopefully in back country mountain streams this won't be an issue, but I am interested in seeing what others have thought about. Eventually I'd like to tie some rain barrels together for catching rainwater for gardening and stuff. They would also serve as a backup water source for times such as what happened in Toledo last year. When chemicals in water become a concern, what are your thoughts in dealing with them? Activated charcoal in mass quanties? Distilling the water? Avoid the contamination and seek elsewhere? Something else?

Yep...ants here too. We typically use Borax to make super cheap ant bait:   http://www.instructables.com/id/Kill-household-ants---Super-cheaply/   For a few hours...you will see A LOT of ants running to and from the bait. Later, you won't see any. We usually have to do this several times a summer. We've had good success with it.

  They would but all of the V-MADS are en route to Texas for Jade Helm.  :rofl:

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Been a very long time since I have watched a baseball game, but I am thinking this might be one I try to find some video of after the fact. Thanks and very interesting! Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Not into photography, but what he can do is setup an IR mobile autonomous quadrocopter and have it follow you around. If anything, human or animal, gets within your zone, it will it will start a looped recording on the suspects Miranda rights while at the same time moving between you and the suspect while slowly moving towards the suspect with it's 10,000 rpm spinning steel props. Of course, he can also duct-tape extra magazines and a BUG to the quadrocopter. You never know when you are going to be rushed by hordes of tangos so it is literally impossible to carry too much ammo. Since it is at night, you probably should have him rig you up a second quadrocopter without Ir cam, etc and use it just for additional ammo. I think he calls that setup "The Flying Mulesack". Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  That's good...but this is better!   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ij4w7ChpuaM

Hahaha. Ok sure, I'll agree partially. The flashlight in the eye thing and the crawling inside of containers did get me a bit. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

For anyone that lets Jar Jar annoy you, I would like to see how you justify Yoda in The Empire Strikes Back. Shining a flashlight in his eye, crawling in and out of containers, and licking Luke's food. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I haven't really looked to much into Jade Helm, but with asking locals to report anything suspicious and seemingly trying to blend in to a more urban environment, makes you wonder about certain specific unstable Slavic regions we may have in our sights. Just me pondering, and I am just assuming that this is more urban training than desert training. I could be wrong even on that. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  Yeah, I guess you are right. My first handgun I ever purchased was a Springfield 1911 GI for $400. Came with factory barrel as well as a .400 Corbon barrel. Sold the barrel and a few .400 Corbon rounds for $100. It was neat but too expensive for my tastes. Never compared .400 Corbon to 10mm, but it seems you are right.

Ever seen a .400 Corbon? http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/.400_Corbon Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Ended up just winning an apparent like new ST-E2 on Ebay for...$75.01. I sniped the auction within the last 10 seconds or so and $75.01 was my high bid. I just had a feeling that someone else would bid $75.00. I guess I was right:) I feel that is a pretty fair price considering that a lot go for $100 or so. Hope it is like new and works well. This was my first Ebay bid win in a long time. Typically I have just been buying new via Amazon/Adorama/etc, but I couldn't pay new price for this seeing as how much it sells for. This seemed the perfect Ebay item to bid on. It was thrilling and I remember how easy it is to get "hooked".