peejman

Remember that EVERYTHING is negotiable. Don't just look at the rate. Points (if any), closing costs (by line item), rate, etc. Play the banks/brokers off one another to get the best deal. If possible, having at least a 20% down payment can make the process go a little smoother. Unless you're very comfortable and knowledgeable regarding home construction, I do recommend a certified home inspector. I don't know of anyone in your area, but surely someone here does. Be there for the inspection, follow the inspector around, and ask lots of questions. If you're interested, I have a couple spreadsheets I created when we were home shopping. One for comparing mortgage offers, and a simple checklist to go through while looking at a house.

Surely there's a competent smith that can take care of you. As mentioned, shotgun shells are easy to reload.

I'd probably keep the rifles simply to avoid the hassle of sending them back. But I still think that's a shady practice at best. There's LOTS of other folks making AR's to choose from.

Looks like they already are...

Again, if he paid when he ordered I would consider the receipt a legally binding contract. I'd definitely call the BBB. So you order a 30 rd mag and they ship you a 20rd because they ran out of 30's and the buyer has no recourse? That's bs.

When did you pay? When you ordered or when it shipped? If they changed your order after you paid without notice, that sounds illegal. Worth a call to the BBB at least. I'll mark them off the list of places to shop.

A wall hanger ain't all bad, especially when it's a family heirloom. Dad has his grandfather's double barrel shotgun. It's got damascus barrels and was made in England sometime around 1880. Definitely a wall hanger, definitely cool.

Right. N2 (or Argon) would be better, but CO2 is stable (at normal temps) and wouldn't break down. I have a guess.... if you put the dry ice in a vertical tube, let it completely sublimate and push the air out, then let it sit until the condensation evaporates, it might work. Since the CO2 is heavier than air, it shouldn't leak out or otherwise be motivated to be displaced by air. This would be best done in the desert or winter when the humidity is lowest.

A local metal supply place should have some 0.5" plate and be able to water/laser/torch cut some pieces for you.

Nothing. You're sucking the air out of the bag. If there's significant air volume in the case, you could generate enough differential pressure to push on the bullet, but I doubt it'd be enough to matter. edit... I'm a nerd and did the math.... For a typical .300" -ish diameter bullet. If you could pull a "perfect" vacuum (physically not possible) and generated a 14.7 psi differential pressure, you'd net 1 lb of force pushing the bullet out of the case. If you've got a .45, that goes to 2.3lbs. Further proof that .45 is better than 9mm. You'd have to hold the tube vertically for that to work. The sublimation of the dry ice will displace the air through the nearest exit. If that exit happens to be adjacent to the dry ice, it'll leak out and the air will stay. If you hold the tube vertically and drop the dry ice in, it should push the lighter air molecules up and out of the tube. However, condensation is a significant concern at -110 deg F.

There's a tried and true method for long term storage of guns that many have come to love/hate. Cosmoline. I'd do the well sealed PVC tube and goop everything up with cosmoline or other heavy grease. Then I'd vacuum seal them and stick them in the tube. Bury the tube more than 12" deep.

I'd be curious as to the exact details of what they do and why they need to do it. Does it need to be re-chambered simply because they don't have the stuff to deal with the other shell sizes, or is there some real functional reason why?

Right. Looks like a 21st century version of the segmented bamboo pole I had as a kid. Looks way simpler than traditional fly fishing.

Welcome!

Visit a local range with rentals. Try out a bunch and see what you like.

According to Crayola, it'll start to run at about 130 deg F. That's pretty dang hot. It won't burn you immediately, but it'd certainly get your attention. http://www2.crayola.com/canwehelp/contact/faq_view.cfm?id=444

Cool. I love how they've gotten the staff guys involved in these competitions. It's fun to watch "mere mortals" run the stages. Gives me even more appreciation for just how good the pros really are.

Heh... that's only a little worse than the normal lunch rush at that one. It's always swamped. I hope they publish a single day sales figure.

The 1903's bolt is very similar to the 98 Mauser design. While doing some reading about a related problem, I found this which touches on the problem you're having. I don't think there's a problem with the trigger/sear engagement, it's just the safety/cocking piece in the bolt are worn. Bear in mind, I'm no expert. Scroll about 3/4 down the page... http://www.surplusrifleforum.com/viewtopic.php?f=119&t=26426

Get some luminescent white paint and paint the sights (such as they are). A friend painted the tip of the front sight and the face of the rear sight on his LCP and it makes them really "pop" to your eye a whole lot more. I need to do that to my P3AT. But at the same time, like most others have said... it's a "get off me" gun, most likely to be used within arms length. Practice one-handed point shooting and shooting from retention at 3-5 yds more than the classic two handed 15 yd stuff.

Cool. The shape of blade looks a little unusual. Is that by design or...?

What prag said. I have a food saver too. It's great, but you will have a small percentage of bags that won't seal properly. It may not be obvious at first, but after a few weeks in the freezer, you'll notice the bags has lost it's compression. A few things I've learned with my food saver... moisture is the enemy. If you're trying to seal up anything with significant moisture content, it's best to freeze it before vacuum sealing. The pump will suck the moisture out of the food and interfere with the heat sealing. Be meticulous about keeping the open end of the bag clean before sealing. Make the bags at least twice as big as you think they need to be. Seal them with the textured side of the bag up. I don't know why, but we've had much less problems with poor seals that way. If you're a mechanical/wrenching type... the sealer is also very handy for packaging small parts. Bearings, seals, o-rings, and any other items that need to be kept clean.

Neato.

A very hot wood fire will work if you have the patience to leave it in the coals long enough. The iron needs to be at least 1500 deg. A very hot fire will be more than 2000 deg. A hand held torch won't work as it can't heat the whole piece evenly. Quenching is usually done in a bucket of water or oil. http://www.beautifuliron.com/usingthe.htm