peejman

    I agree with all your points.  The 2lb trigger seems a bit extreme for a "battle rifle" but I'm sure its nice.  While cocking the bolt in mine takes some effort, it runs really smooth.  Seems like making it really light would somehow take away the authenticity.  It's a mosin, you're supposed to have to beat on it, that's part of the fun.  Maybe I'm just weird.  To each his own. 

    Yes.  2lb will make a pretty big boom.  Four 1/2 lb shots might be more fun. 

More or less what Jonin said. While those rifles look really nice, I liken it to polishing a turd. Which isn't to say that mosins are turds (I love mine) just that he did a lot of work making them pretty but they'll still shoot 2-3 MOA just like any other mosin.

  Agreed.  I think it should be required training every time you renew your permit.

I haven't shot much of it, but the only problem I've ever had with S&B was hard primers in some 9mm. They all went bang, but several took 2 hits.

Sweet!

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/net/cb/2-pk-of-concealed-carry-badges.aspx?a=777436 Yes, really.

    Blasphemy!!!!   :)

    Typical residential wood (sub)floor construction is rated for 50 lb/sqft static load.  There's criteria for things like "indention resistance" and "spring back" that you can find for various floor coverings (laminate, vinyl, tile, etc.).  I assumed the safe had 4 relatively small feet that would sink in quite readily.  If that's not the case, it's easy enough to do the math and figure out the contact area.  However, based on 24" x 40" and 700 lbs, even if the whole bottom of the safe sits flat on the floor, it still exceeds the floor's load rating by about 2x.            Yes, bolting it down over a floating floor is a bad idea.  The floor has to be able to expand/contract with temperature.  My house has floating laminate and it moves up to 1/2" across a 30 ft span winter to summer.  Hence overlap requirements for the toe molding (and the toe molding is nailed to the baseboard, not the floor).  I'd hope that sitting on a bearing plate wouldn't "pin down" the floor and still allow it to move as needed.  Otherwise, the garage is still an option.  I'd put a piece of wood under it with a vapor barrier between the wood and concrete. 

    My wife loves to bake bread, that's why she wants it.  That and outdoor wood-fired ovens are just plain cool.    That article really glosses over the details around all the metal work involved in making it look like the pictures.  It's far from trivial, unless you've got lots of experience in metal fabrication and access to the proper tools.             I'd love to have an Egg, but just can't get past the sticker shock.  They're probably worth it, but I could buy a nice AK or Garand for that... ;)

Cheesecloth in the arts/crafts section?  No wonder I can't find it.   The smoker you linked above is exactly what I have.  I'd like a bigger/nicer one, but the little cheapy works fine.  I'm sure I'll upgrade when it finally rusts out, but I've had it for about 12 years and it's still in good shape.  I use charcoal for heat and just put the woods chunks on the coals for smoke.   I also have a gas grill that I use quite frequently.  Charcoal or wood definitely taste better, but the convienence of gas is hard to beat.  I've been thinking of building some sort of fire pit in my back yard that I could cook over.  If at some point I'm feeling really ambitious, I'd really like to build something like this...  http://www.motherearthnews.com/diy/build-an-all-in-one-outdoor-oven-stove-grill-and-smoker.aspx#axzz2RU2fbrpD

    You'll need a fairly large bearing plate between the safe and the floor to distribute the load.  The feet will crush the floor otherwise.  3 ft square is the minimum I'd recommend, 4 ft square would be better.  I'd use 3/4" plywood or MDF board. 

    Not surprising.  :shake:

    I hadn't thought of using cheese.... dang it!  You're making me hungry again!  :yum:   I use the same cheap Brinkmann smoker.  With a few simple modifications, it works quite well.  I drilled some 1/4" holes in the bottom of the charcoal pan and used a piece of expanded metal as a grate.  I found that during longer sessions (8+ hrs), the charcoal pan would fill up with ash and choke out the coals.  The holes allow the ash to fall out of the bottom (requires a little shaking) and the grate helps keep the coals up out of the ash.    I also use large chunks of wood (baseball/softball sized).  The bagged chips burn up in minutes.  Dad is a wood turner, so I get all kinds of stuff to use (hickory, maple, ash, apple, pecan, cherry, ...).  My favorite so far is pecan simply because it soaks up water quite well and smokes for a long time without burning up.  I can't really tell a difference in the flavor between different woods.    I typically use a mix of cheap beer, water, and occasionally apple juice if we have enough to spare in the "water" pan.    Where do you guys get cheesecloth?  I'd like to try using it but can't find it anywhere.  :shrug:

What they said.  There's several here who appreciate a nice milsurp.    Selling out of state isn't a big deal.  If the buyer's FFL will accept from an individual, you just ship it to the FFL and they handle it.  Otherwise, your FFL ships it to the buyer's FFL. 

I've been working my way through The Modern Day Gunslinger  by Mann & Grossman.  So far it's nothing really earth shattering, but it is fairly well written and covers a lot of different things. 

    Smoked bologna is delicious and super easy.  Here's what I normally do...     Get a whole bologna.  The local Food City has them in two sizes... 3lb & 5lb (I think).  I've only done the smaller one simply because its easier to fit on my smoker.    Core it.  I made a coring tool out of a 16" long piece of 1.5" dia stainless pipe I pulled out of the scrap bin at work.  A few minutes with a dremel to sharpen one end and it works like a charm.  1. Push the pipe length wise through the bologna.  2. Use a long spoon to push the core out of the center of the pipe. 3. Cut about 2" off both ends of the core and set aside. 4. Chop up the rest of the core and mix it with your seasoning of choice.  I've done dry rubs and wet seasoning and prefer the wet as it seems to help keep a little moisture inside. 5. Put one of the cut ends back in the bologna and use a few toothpicks* to hold it in place. 6. Stuff the seasoned mix back in. Expect some mashing to make it all fit. 7. Seal it up with the other cut end retain with toothpicks*. 8. Throw it on the smoker for about 4 hours.  I just leave it there until everything else is done (which with pork loins, turkey breasts, and chickens, is about 4 hrs on my smoker).    edit... If you want the outside to look all pretty, rotate it once or twice while it's cooking.  It doesn't seem to affect the taste or "smoke ring" but the outside will be dark on one side and not so dark on the other if you don't rotate it.  I've seen pictures where people put some shallow cuts in the outside.  It looks neat, but I'd be afraid of it drying out.    *When its done and you're anxious to try it, don't forget about the toothpicks!!  They hurt when you grab the bologna and jam one into your hand.  AMHIK. 

    This.   "Polymer" is a generic term that includes thousands of different kinds of plastics and their temperature characteristics can vary widely.  I believe most gun frames are "fiber reinforced" polymers which means they've usually got some sort of fiberglass mixed in with the plastic to make it stronger and more dimensionally stable.      As for the OP's statement about boiling the polymer at 150-190 deg...  it's entirely possibly (even likely) that there's polymers out there that boil at a lower temperature than water.  ;)   Though I doubt they're used for making gun parts.

I've carried a Leatherman Blast for years and it's been great. I told my wife I wanted the smallest one she could find that had both pliers and scissors. The scissors are really handy. I've broken the tip off the file using it as a pry bar and I've bent and filed back to shape the small flat-head screwdriver several times. My wife also had one of these that suffered the same fate. Damn thieves.

  There's another way to eat a pork bbq sandwich???     I've been hoping to fire my smoker up in the near term.  Maybe this weekend, though the weather forecast isn't real good at the moment.  My plans include a pork loin, a whole chicken, a turkey breast, and either a beef shoulder roast, a bologna, or some ribs.   I was hungry before I read this, now I'm freakin' starving.  Thanks for that.

Given that it heats the water (and hence the parts) to about 150 F, the parts will flash dry pretty quickly.  A little compressed air to get the bulk water off and they'll be dry before they're cool.  A shot of contact (circuit board) cleaner drives the water out of tight spaces quite readily.    If using a toaster oven, I wouldn't go any higher than 150 F on painted parts.  Bare metal can go much higher... 400 F, though they'll be dry before they ever get that hot.  If you've got fancy coatings (cerakote, duracoat, etc.) look up the properties of the coating to find the max temp. 

Hang in there.  Sounds like you've got a good attitude, and that's the most important thing. 

Sweet!  :rock:

If you see me running, try to keep up. :)

That was an unbelievable explosion.  The 20 yr anniversary of the Branch Davidian mess is Friday.  Coincidence?  :tinfoil: