JAB

  No.  All that is 'clear' about a target of a skeleton wearing a turban is that it is a target of a skeleton wearing a turban.  There are also targets depicting 'assailants' wearing ski masks - I don't see people whose faces get cold easily getting all butt hurt over them.  There are targets depicting assailants wearing unbuttoned flannel shirts over a t-shirt but you don't hear guys (like me) who sometimes dress that way complaining.   Heck, Walmart sells a multi-pack of zombie targets which contain, among others, targets of a zombie clown.  I haven't heard anything about Bozo or Ronald McDonald campaigning to get those pulled from shelves.  I've seen targets depicting a zombie in a butcher's apron hefting a big cleaver but I don't think the meat cutter unions have been whining about those.

I was recently a passenger in a car that was pulled over.  I was not the driver.  The reason the officer pulled us over was because the car's license plate had just expired.  Officer was courteous and friendly, simply made the driver aware and we all went on our way.   I was carrying my J-frame OWB under a cover garment.  As a passenger, I had no direct interaction with the LEO - he didn't even speak to me (no reason he should.)  He never saw my firearm and  I made the decision not to inform him - simply kept my hands in my lap and made no sudden moves.  Further, the driver (who also has an HCP) had her pistol in the glove compartment.  She didn't inform him, either (although she keeps her HCP behind her license and made no effort to conceal the HCP from him when she handed him her license.)   As I said, the officer checked her license and let her go after making her aware of the expired license plate.  To my knowledge, he never knew that there were two firearms in the vehicle - the subject never came up, the sky didn't fall and no one was shot or even yanked out of the car and put face down on the pavement.   Last April, I was involved in an accident that was not my fault.  The 'at fault' party ran a red light.  I was carrying but removed my firearm from my belt and left it in my vehicle (I never really left the vicinity of my vehicle.)  When the officer who wrote up the report came to take my statement, I never mentioned the firearm in my vehicle.  Again, I saw no reason to do so, the subject never came up and the interaction went without a hitch.   I used to think that I would inform no matter what but those, two interactions have made me reconsider that stance.  If I am driving and have the firearm on me then there is a good chance I would inform - but maybe not.  Of course, if for some reason I need to move around rather than sitting still with my hands in plain sight then I will inform because I wouldn't want any misunderstanding.  Otherwise, the way I see it, the cop doesn't give up his gun for my comfort so I see no reason to create a situation where he might take my gun for his comfort.  Honestly, I don't know him any more than he knows me and there are plenty of cops who commit crimes - simply having a badge doesn't make him 'above suspicion' in my eyes any more than having an HCP makes me 'above suspicion' in his.  Beyond that, a LEO is a civilian just like me and I feel no more a 'duty' to inform him that I have a gun than I feel to inform anyone else that I might speak to while carrying.  I truly think we need to stop this notion that LEO are some kind of 'special' class of citizen or that they should have rights or privileges which we wouldn't extend to any other civilian.

One thing I hate about Knoxville is all the 'city ordinance' crap.  Sure, I know a lot of cities have ordinances, etc. but Knoxville seems to have an inordinate number.  Heck, I was once told by a Knoxville City LEO that I needed to remove the clear, plastic cover from my license plate because Knoxville has an ordinance preventing them due to their red light cameras.  Hell, I don't live in Knoxville or even in Knox county and was just passing through the edge of the Knoxville city limits at the time.  The LEO was nice enough but it kind of chaps my butt that Knoxville thinks its city ordinances should apply to everyone who lives in East Tennessee - kind of like New York City ruining the entire state.   Anyhow, back on topic, the way I operate is that if there isn't a clear, legal posting or if I am not entering a location that I know to be off limits (such as a US post office, etc.) then I proceed with the assumption (yeah, I know the old adage but whatever) that I am legal to carry.  In the absence of metal detectors and with good concealment, I feel okay with that course of action.   I don't want to knowingly break the law - and I know that ignorance of the law isn't a defense - but as every little city, town and berg in the dang state has its own set of rules and laws in addition to the already convoluted state laws, there is no way for anyone to keep up with all of them.  To me, then, the best that anyone can do is obey the laws that they know exist and behave in such a manner as to avoid the need to be questioned about others.  To me, in reality, the only other option would be to simply quit carrying, at all, and I am not willing to do that.

  Tandy in Knoxville has some free basic leather tooling classes.  They cover stamping, carving and dying/coloring.  I went to the stamping and carving one in the series but was sick the morning they had the dying/coloring one.  I think the biggest challenge for me on the carving is finding just the right angle for holding the knife to make the right kind (thickness, etc.) of cut.  Really, I just need to practice but always seem to end up doing something else.  I also probably need a couple more stamps (veiners and bevelers, maybe some pebble/texture stampers) to do it right.   They offer the series every month or two, I think, so I might end up taking at least the carving one, again.

I went through a few cartridge razors, including the Mach 3, and got tired of the expense.  Just as an experiment, I decided to break out an old safety razor I had that belonged to someone a couple of generations back in the family.  This one has numbers up to 9 around the neck - it is adjustable (but I usually just keep it on '9'.)  To my surprise, not only are the blades cheaper (I get them at Wally World for about $2.XX for ten blades) but they actually give me a better shave.  As a bonus, they don't irritate my skin the way the Mach 3 or other, multi-blade cartridge razors sometimes did.   Eventually, I stopped using canned shaving cream, too.  I now use a shaving mug with shaving soap in it, a brush and that safety razor and am pretty pleased.  I generally place a hot, wet washcloth over my face for a few seconds before soaping up and find that improves the shave even more.  I don't always shave my whole face - I generally keep some type of beard at least in the Winter months - but I at least keep my neck shaved and often keep my beard 'shaped up'.

  I thought the 'pre-1986 exemption' applied only to parks, not to buildings.  I don't see anything about such an exemption in the verbage of 39-17-1359 but maybe I am overlooking it.

I am pretty sure I am the one who took that picture.  That was three or four years back, though, so the posting might have been changed/updated by now.  I don't really have many reasons to go there so I don't think I've set foot in the place since the day I took that picture.   It is possible that I carried in there that day because, when the door is open (as in someone entering right in front of you - as was the case when I went in) the posting is pretty much invisible even without the 'Caution Automatic Door' sticker obscuring part of it.  I honestly didn't even really see the almost-invisible verbage until I was leaving.  Even with the door closed, it isn't necessarily immediately noticeable.  Add in the fact that the posting does not appear to comply with the letter of the law and, well, let's just say that if I was carrying that day I wasn't too worried about it.  Hypothetically, if I was carrying that day it was well concealed.

  Nah.  Besides, I'd say that any guy who is secure enough in his manhood to carry a holster with a big, ol' rose on it is probably not going to hesitate to use the gun, if necessary.   I wish I were that good at carving leather.  My mom likes things with roses on them.  Her P32 is even a special edition called a 'Lady .32' that has roses engraved on top of the slide.  One day, when I am better at leather carving, I want to make her a holster for it with a rose like the one on your pocket holster carved onto it.

  Yeah, he'll probably make some reference that defeating her was a lot easier than when he personally and single-handedly took down Osama bin Laden.

Looks good. One suggestion, though, that you might want to try on future pocket holsters: you may want to leave the rough side out and the smooth side in. With the smooth side out, the holster is more likely to come out of your pocket with the gun while the 'rough' side out helps it stay put better. At this point, I have only made a few holsters. One of the first holsters I made, a few years back, was a leather pocket holster for my P3AT. I sewed it smooth side out and it would just slide out of my pocket with the pistol on the draw. I ended up sewing a band of rough-side out leather around the outside and that worked pretty well but added bulk. Eventually, I cut the stitching and re-sewed the holster with the rough side out and found that it worked much better. This is what it looked like with the leather band sewn around it. Yeah, the stitching was crappy looking - like I said, it was one of the frst two holsters I made. Apparently I don't have a picture of it with the rough side out.

  On one hand, perhaps you make a good point.  On the other hand, keep in mind that even our Founding Fathers, the people who were originally responsible for creating this country, eventually decided that the time for working within the system was past and the time for using force had come.   I am not necessarily saying that such a time has come, for us, but the whole reason that we have a Second Amendment is because the framers of our Constitution realized that it was possible, even likely, that such a time would come.  The Second Amendment was never about hunting, home defense or owning a rifle for target shooting.  The Second Amendment was about the people having the weapons necessary to 'outgun' the government if it came down to it.  To deny the possibility that we or future generations might be in a position where such a proposition becomes reality is to deny the need for the Second Amendment in the first place.  Just a thought.

I generally only ankle carry when it's that or not carry, at all.  I tried a small revolver in an Uncle Mike's ankle holster and it wasn't comfortable, wouldn't stay put, etc.  For me, the best ankle carry is my P3AT in a velcro closed, elastic rig I got at one of the gun shows at Chilhowee Park - think something like a 'belly band' but sized for the lower leg/ankle.   Speaking of belly bands:   My work is 'work casual' (I wear mostly polo type shirts and Docker type pants) and I can't carry at work, anyway (not just employer rules but, because I work at a private college, state law.)  Therefore, I don't find myself needing to carry in thin dress slacks, etc. all that often.  Now, I can't stand true IWB carry but on those occasions when I need to wear thin, dress slacks I have found that I can comfortably carry the P3AT in a belly band worn low so that the grips sit just above my waistline.  Worn that way, I can tuck my shirt in and the little pistol just plain disappears.

[quote=STAHDKnoxville]I know that the response I usually get when I send an email or letter is "most businesses around me are posted" so if we can get more off the doors they can't give that excuse anymore.[/quote]   Strange.  I'm not questioning that you actually get that response nor that there are businesses which are posted but I have to wonder where in Knoxville those businesses are located.  Not counting the malls and at least some of the movie theaters, I can count on one hand the number of places in Knoxville that I have actually seen posted - and most of those are corporate chains (Carraba's - which is not a 'legal' posting and, at least at one time, Outback.)  In fact, right off the only 'independent' places I can think of that are posted are the Prince Deli & Sports Bar and Ray's ESG - both of which are as much 'bars' as they are 'restaurants'.  I can't think of any independent 'non-bar' restaurants or other businesses in Knoxville that I have seen posted.  Of course I certainly haven't been to all of them - and must say good for you for working to get this, particular one changed.

  I was looking for either a .357 or .44 lever rifle not too long ago.  I ended up getting a used Marlin (older gun with microgroove rifling) in .44 because that was the first one I found when I was in a position to get it.  I was kind of leaning toward the .357 (but they are about as plentiful as hen's teeth around here - especially on the used market) so I did a lot of 'research' and had decided that, if I had a choice, I wanted the 16 inch barrel if I went with a .357.  Partly, that was because I like the way they feel but partly it was because of the .357 test results at Ballistics by the Inch.  Their results indicate that, with factory ammuntion, 16 inches of tube seems to be the 'sweet spot' - velocity starts going down after that (this interested me because that pretty much means 'loaded for handguns' because, while I have a reloading setup, I had no desire to load differently for the rifle than for my revolver.)

My dehydrator is just a small unit and I have mostly used it for chili peppers.  I have done fresh peppers but my favorite, when I have a good crop, is to smoke them first (which starts the dehydrating process) then dry them in the dehydrator.   I have dried apples by laying them out in the sun in a single layer on an old screen door laid across a couple of saw horses.  We covered them with some tobacco cloth a friend of mine had but any thin, breathable fabric would work.  Heck, my great-grandmother used to dry apples by spreading dish towels in back window of her car then spreading the peeled, cored and cut apples out on them.  She'd leave her windows down just a little and the apples would dry pretty quickly.  The side effect was that her car smelled like dried apples pretty much year round, even when she didn't have any drying.   I recently got a used food vacuum sealer at an estate sale but am not sure I have really figured it out, yet.  I'd like to dry a pretty good batch of the kind of vegetables I'd want in a soup/stew and then vacuum seal them already mixed together, maybe even with a sealed packet of chicken or beef bullion sealed in with them.  I haven't gotten that far, yet though.    Out of curiosity, for you guys who make jerky, how long will it usually keep?  I have made home-made jerky, before, but it was mostly just because I like jerky so it didn't stay around very long before I ate it.  If drying it for storage - say, maybe, to mix with a pack of the aforementioned dehydrated vegetables to create a stew - how long would beef jerky keep, do you think?

Leaving my home would be my last resort in a bad situation.  Bugging in sounds a lot better, to me.  Therefore I haven't given a lot of thought/preparation to bugging out.  However, I did have a couple of thoughts on your quandry.   Just curious but why are you thinking that your only choices are to travel by highway or hoof it cross country?  Why not combine the two, if necessary?  I mean, most interstates and major highways have some sort of 'right of way' alongside them.  By walking along that right of way, or close to it, you'd still be able to use the road to guide your way, you'd be able to take advantage of ground that is likely more level/cleared than the surrounding countryside and you would mostly avoid traipsing across someone else's private property.  Heck, for that matter on much of the interstate you could walk right down the median.  The downside to that, of course, would be that you'd still probably have to interact with all the other folks who had gotten stuck in the traffic jam and, ultimately, keep a group of them from following you to your bug out location.   Another thought might be to try, ahead of time (like now) to identify secondary roads and 'back' roads that will get you to your destination.  If such a route exists, I would think it would be less likely to become clogged with traffic.  If the way does become clogged, though, you still have the option of walking along the side of the road - again letting you take advantage of more leveled/cleared ground while avoiding private property.  Stray dogs, etc. might be a little more of a concern along such a route but that shouldn't be too bad, at least at first.  There would probably be fewer two-legged strays.

  For the record I don't even own an AR 15, although I believe that people who want them should be able to own them.  Also, I realize this is drifting away from the topic a bit.  However, there is an inconsistency in the anti-gun mindset that I just must point out (there are more than one but this one is apropos to the high-cap mag argument):   One of the arguments that I have seen in favor of limiting magazine capacity is that if the shooter has to interrupt his shooting spree to reload more often it could give someone the chance to tackle him while he is reloading.  This despite the fact that someone who is even remotely familiar with the weapon can drop the empty mag and insert a new one in just a couple of seconds.  However, many of those same folks would argue that an armed citizen would, in most cases, have no ability or opportunity to use a legally carried firearm to stop such an incident.   So, apparently these folks believe it is more likely that a completely unprepared bystander will suddenly develop super powers such as supernatural speed and agility to be able to rush, tackle and take down a deranged shooter in less than three seconds than that an armed individual who has practiced with his firearm could shoot the SOB from a few yards away.  That honestly makes no sense, whatsoever.   Yes, I remember that the shooter at the Unitarian Church a few years back was stopped when bystanders tackled/piled on him when his gun ran dry.  However, IIRC he was using a tube-fed shotgun, not a magazine fed firearm that could be reloaded almost instantly even if the mag held only ten rounds.

Some of the shots I have seen him pull off on various televisions shows were amazing.  Heck, it ain't being cocky if you can back it up - and he could.

Clicking the link brings up a screen to log in to Facebook.  I don't belong to FB and have no intentions of joining.  Give us the high points?

  One other thing to keep in mind is that trigger finger placement makes a difference.  It is a matter of leverage.  I know someone who couldn't pull the DA trigger on a revolver she had.  Problem was, she also had difficulty operating the slide on most semiautos even after trying all the various, alternate methods recommended for such situations.  Upon observing her with the revolver, I noticed that she was placing the middle joint of her trigger finger on the trigger.  That was causing a lack of leverage and making it difficult for her to pull the trigger - and nigh impossible to do so with any speed, reliability or while maintaining aim.  I got her to place the ball of the first joint, right next to the joint, itself on the trigger and she could then pull the trigger reliably.  She ended up taking and passing her HCP test with that very revolver.   BTW, she later found that she could easily operate the slide on a Kel Tec P32 - a semiauto with a 'revolver-like' DAO trigger.  She also found that she could fire the little semiauto fairly rapidly with good accuracy.  That is now her carry gun.

Another thing to keep in mind is that, as with small, DAO semiautos, the 'stiff' trigger pull is sometimes considered a safety feature.  People often simply drop small revolvers into a pocket without using a pocket holster (something I would not do but some do) so a stiff trigger can help prevent A.D.s and N.D.s.   The trigger on my DAO S&W 642 .38 +P revolver (purchased new) is a bit 'stiff', as well even after having been shot a bit.  Honestly, as long as I can pull the trigger effectively I don't worry too much about it being 'stiff'.  Yes, it sometimes throws my POI off a little relative to POA at ten yards out but for self defense, I don't imagine I'll be making shots at much over seven or maybe ten yards - and probably less than that - so it really shouldn't make much difference in the desired effect.  Of course, that doesn't make it a whole lot of fun as a paper puncher/plinker but there are other guns for that. 

Whenever someone throws out that BS argument that the 2A was intended to protect muskets, I respond, "Yeah, and freedom of the press protects only things produced on a hand-set printing press. It doesn't protect anything on television, the radio, the internet or otherwise electronically produced nor does it protect newspaper articles that are typed up on computers and printed via automated printing. All this must be true because obviously the Founding Fathers weren't intelligent enough to have the foresight to know that technology would change."

[quote name='TMF' timestamp='1354888583' post='856389'] I don't know if there is just a sudden rash of these things or the media is just hot on reporting them now, but we had one of these in Clarksville a couple weeks ago where an officer shot a dog that was chained up in the owner's yard. The owner didn't even know there was an officer on her property. She just heard a gunshot, went outside and saw her dead dog on the chain still. No explanation was given to her then and I haven't seen CPD give an explanation in the paper yet. WTF? [/quote] Someone comes on my property and shoots my dog I'm thinking I'd be feeling like I had a reasonable belief that I was in danger of death or serious, bodily injury regardless of what kind of outfit the dog killer was wearing. I mean, what reason would I have to believe that the psycho was going to stop with my dog?

[quote name='Lester Weevils' timestamp='1354825322' post='855997'] Jab, this is meant as a compliment-- If you are walking down a dark alley and muggers approach from the opposite direction, the muggers will move to the opposite sidewalk to stay out of your way! [/quote] Thanks - I do take that as a compliment. [quote name='graycrait' timestamp='1354798143' post='855796'] [url="http://www.doubletapammo.com/php/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=21_27&products_id=152&osCsid=gvhegmu8omqapmpgeo3meln780"]http://www.doubletap...apmpgeo3meln780[/url] those rounds should be amusing through your hogleg [/quote] I have some of the Buffalo Bore 180 grain flat nosed hard cast that I load in the Taurus when I carry it in the 'woods gun' role. They are supposed to be standard pressure rounds but I think they still 'buck' a little harder than most. Not too bad, though. [quote name='Lester Weevils' timestamp='1354818277' post='855939'] Dang! Maybe that is the ammo for guys who wish they'd bought a .44 mag instead of .357 mag! [/quote] Heh, in my case I also have a .44 Magnum but carrying a 7.5 inch barreled Super Blackhawk while wading the river might get a little interesting. Of course, I figure the need to defend against a black bear is pretty remote (but not entirely out of the question - see the sign in the pic below) and those 180 grain rounds should do pretty well against any other aggressive critter, four legged or two. [IMG]http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p116/JBFordowner/IMG00806-20110625-1818.jpg[/IMG]

Very nice wheelgun. I have an older, four inch Taurus 66 (from the late '80s - back when they were still six shooters, not seven.) I modified a large belt pack (fanny pack) that I got at Gander Mountain to carry it. This, particular pouch has a 'hidden' compartment in the back that is held closed by a couple of snaps and velcro. I attached a cheap, nylon holster inside that hidden compartment to carry the .357 when I want it hidden, like when I am trout fishing, camping and so on. Recently, though, I picked up a really inexpensive chest pack at Academy to hold it when I decide to wade the river looking for trout. It is a pouch designed for carrying things in just such a situation so it shouldn't look out of place. For just carrying on my hip, I have a cheapo FOBUS paddle holster. I don't generally carry the .357 'in public' all that often so the ability to be super concealed isn't that big a deal - although I will post a couple of pics below where I was demonstrating concealing it just for the heck of it and to answer a question by a fellah on another forum. I am planning to make a homeade pancake/blt slide type leather holster for it, though. When I do, I will probably make something very like the Simply Rugged Sourdough Pancake holster. I will want something that holds the revolver relatively high on my belt with a slight forward cant. I will also probably try to come up with something that puts leather between my side and the hammer spur. They don't call it a 'spur' for nothing. Here is a pic from a few years back of me in an ugly, Hawaiian shirt (I actually like ugly Hawaiian shirts - and while some might say I have a 'gut', I consider it a concealment aid.) [img]http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p116/JBFordowner/Concealment/Image1.jpg[/img] And this is a pic of what I had on me in the above picture: [img]http://i126.photobucket.com/albums/p116/JBFordowner/Concealment/Image5.jpg[/img]