peejman

I seriously doubt it. They've likely got a lot more guns than you. I went to school in a downtown area. It was widely know that you didn't stop for red lights late a night in some areas, especially if people were out roaming around. We always treated them like a stop sign.... pause... look both ways... keep on moving.

I knew there were some real gardeners here.... I typically use pine straw as mulch on my garden. Seems to help keep any veggies that touch the ground from rotting so fast. Earlier this year, I sent soil samples from my garden area and flowerbeds at home to the UT AG extension for testing (http://soilplantandpest.utk.edu/soil/index.htm). Their analysis didn't really surprise me, but did provide some direction. I've heard about the beer trick for slugs. I haven't seen any around so far. *knock on wood* Front tine tillers suck and beat you to death. Rear tines are soooo much easier. You should be able to rent one at your local equipment rental or co-op for something like $40/day. Way cheaper than owning one when you use it twice a year. I love blueberries, but apparently I'm incapable of growing them. We had some huge blueberry bushes where I grew up and my parents still have some. I've tried a couple times but they never do anything. The soil analysis told me I need to add sulfur to increase the acidity.

I planted 3 Better Boy, one Roma, and one Cherry tomato plants. I've also got okra, cucumbers, green beans, snap peas, broccoli, and spinach. We had some of the spinach with dinner last night, first harvest of the season. It was a tad bitter, but I think we let the leaves get too big before picking them. I may plant some peppers and such in the flowerbeds around the house.

Getting them started hasn't been a problem, keeping them alive is. They'll grow up to full height, make a few little green tomatoes, then wilt and die. In the past I've had 3-5 plants and always lose at least one this way. Since the garden at work is on company property, I can't use chemicals. I dug the holes about 3x bigger than they needed to be and filled them back up with mushroom compost. They made it through the weekend, so I'm hopeful.

A place to discuss what you grow, how you grow it, and what you do with it. I'm thinking mostly veggies, but this can include most anything. I am an amateur gardener. I have a very small garden at home (3x10') and have grown the usual veggies. This year, my employer decided to let those interested plant a garden in the unused lot behind the building. Not knowing if anything will grow there, I've planted the easy stuff (tomatoes, cucumbers, okra...) and I'm trying broccoli, spinach , and peas at home. I also did lettuce, but only got 2 tiny seedlings that didn't last a week. Too hot I think. I'd like to try watermelon and cantaloupe. One problem area I've had for several years is what I believe to be tomato blight. My plants grow fine and just when they're starting to make small tomatoes, they wilt and die. Anyone got suggestions on how to prevent that? I've never really done much in the way of storing extra produce, I usually just give it away. I've read that some veggies can be blanched and frozen (green beans, peas, okra..). I've got a vacuum sealer, so I'm gonna give that a try this year. My wife expressed some interest in canning. I helped my parents can stuff when I was a kid, but haven't done it in at least 20 years. I've got two hungry boys to feed so I hope to save all I can. On this topic, my 4 yr old and I built a compost barrel over the weekend. I did the requisite googling and decided on the elevated X-brace design ,mostly because it looked easy to build and use. The whole thing cost me about $30. I got the plastic 55 gal barrel free from work. We use various chemicals and I managed to snag an empty one that didn't have anything particularly nasty in it. I did rinse it out very thoroughly. I used two 8' and one 10' 2x4 (treated) for the frame and the axle is 2" PVC. It took me and my helper about 3 hours.

Is that area part of the "conditioned" space? Is it insulated? I'd be quite concerned with temp changes and moisture. That said, Dad built a hidden "safe" into a dead space within the walls his house. He made built-in set of shallow shelves with hidden hinges. The whole shelf swings out to access the space. It fits flush with the walls and is effectively invisible unless someone decided to tug on the trim.

Depends on your intent for the gun. Chrome lining helps reduce bore wear and resists corrosion. Some claim non chrome lined barrels are more accurate.

Amen to that. If you can't shoot 'em, what's the point? It's a battle rifle fer cryin' out loud.

I'd be afraid it would snag on something and get jerked out of the holster. Seems like it would have to be relatively long and would likely get in the way or get tangled should an abnormal situation arise.

My K31 still has the name & address of the Swiss citizen to which it was originally issued under the butt plate. A friend has a couple old Egyptian AK's with tally marks and "trench art" in the stocks. He's also got an FAL with the rack number still painted on the stock. I know I'm weird, but I think that stuff is neat.

My guess is they've been burned by A/C system problems. Uninformed people come in and say "my A/C system doesn't work". They find one bad part and replace it. A couple months later, that person comes back with the same complaint... "You didn't fix it... " They find a different problem, but the customer doesn't know/care... Given the interaction between all the components in the A/C system, sounds like they want to replace to most of the stuff in it to cover their arse. I'd get another opinion or just DIY.

I don't get to shoot my rifles much either, but I keep 'em anyway. I just think old battle rifles are neat. "O' the stories they must have....".

I have P3AT and have shot a friend's LCP. I'll agree that it's less than a .38 airweight, though I think a lot of that is due to the significant muzzle blast from the revolver. I'd say the recoil is comparable to a mid-sized, polymer 9mm. Somewhere between my PT145 and a G19. I have a Hogue Handall Jr. grip on my P3AT. Big improvement on comfort and recoil. And yes, it can be invisible.

You made that for the guy over-night? Wow!

Milsurps are where it's at. I have a meager collection and a long list of stuff to add. As for the 1903 and Garand (own neither... they're on the list), there's literally more info than you can read available. Here's a good place to start... http://www.odcmp.com/Sales/m1garand.htm

Cool stuff. I'd love to add one of those to my collection.

With no ports on the top, I suspect that would be minimal. With a .223/5.56 AR where recoil is minimal, I'd think muzzle rise would be about the only functional reason to install a brake. Unless you just like making noise, which is fine too.

Congrats! Hope everyone is still doing well.

Ding! Ding! Ding! I have a range bag with all the usual goodies. I haul the ammo in an ammo can. With the bag over one shoulder and the ammo can in the other hand, the load is heavy but reasonably balanced. Putting a 20lb hunk of ammo in a box that's already somewhat awkward to carry just makes it worse. Also consider how often you head home from the range with zero ammo left. If you're really shooting up that much ammo, are you actually working on a skill with it, or mindlessly perforating paper? I quit taking so much ammo to (help) force me to practice important things. That and it's expensive...

Depends on your definition of affordable. This is a coworker's wife, they used to live in OK as well... http://www.stormsheltersoftennessee.com/ They're not what I'd consider inexpensive, but they're well constructed. I doubt you could DIY something similar for much less $.

I'll agree on mag holders, especially holders for little mags (P3AT). They're either big and bulky, expensive, or both.

Given the option, I'll take gas heat every time. This area is right on the edge of where heat pumps are effective in the winter. You won't find them much further north. The heat pump + gas logs is a good option. A dual-fuel heat pump is also available. It runs as a heat pump until temp drops below a set point, when it switches to gas. Setting the air handler (fan) to "on" to keep the air moving in the house will make the unit more efficient. The power consumed by running the fan 24/7 is more than offset by the reduced "on time" of the heat/AC. Get a programmable thermostat that automatically adjusts the temp through the day. They can also limit the number of cycles per hour which helps the unit live longer.

I imagine it's likely under way already, but congrats and hope all goes well.

Where will this be? I did notice that this... http://www.udcjeffersondavischapter900.com/resources/THE%20BATTLE%20FOR%20THE%20RAILS.docx says this...