East_TN_Patriot

OK... I looked over all 11 pages of this alleged secret document. I see nothing in it discussing how FEMA will designate the American people as "enemies" or "wage war" on the American people. In fact, I see nothing even close to that in the document. I am as skeptical of government power as the next guy, but as is the case with any other grand conspiracy theory regarding the federal government, this would require literally thousands of US government personnel and military members, most of whom are just ordinary folks like you and me, to go along with the program and harm their fellow man just because the government tells them to and to keep these devious plans a secret from everyone. The US government couldn't keep a lowly Private in the US Army to keep documents related to our wars in the Middle East quiet, much less keep thousands of civilian government officials in FEMA to keep their mouths shut. Let's be realistic here.

Yes, I worked with a semi-retired knife maker who worked for Buck for several years and then went independent. He's made more blades than any living knife maker as far as anyone knows. He now runs the Kelgin Knife Maker's Co-op in Sevierville, TN. I have made many bandsaw blades, forged blades from horseshoes and railroad spikes, and have a general knowledge of how to make them from other materials such as old files and scrap steel. I worked with them for about a year before grad school got in the way. To cut the material, we always used a metal cutting bandsaw. You typically can't use a regular bandsaw because they don't have the torque and run too fast. You can also cut the metal with a torch or a cutoff wheel, but that's not as easy. You don't necessarily need to soften the steel first, and for bandsaw blades, you really don't want to since the steel is typically the proper hardness already. If you do soften the steel, it does make it a lot easier to work with. Many knife makers use a large bench grinder with abrasive belts for grinding metal. Regular aluminum oxide belts don't hold up to this sort of heavy duty work. You can also simply file the blade profile with a good file, but it is a lot of hard work. My advice is to take a look at the lessons sold by the co-op and/or take a look at a book called "Wayne Goddard's $50 Knife Shop."

I had a similar experience once. I've also had TSA treat me like a potential terrorist when flying out of Panama City, Florida even though I was a cop there at the time and had my credentials with me. I declared my pistol at the ticket counter, showed that it was locked in a hard sided case, they made me separate the ammo from the pistol, unload the mag, and put the rounds in a separate container. When I took it to the TSA folks for screening, I told them that there was a firearm in my luggage and the guy said he needed to make sure it was unloaded. I opened the bag and started to unlock the gun case. The TSA agent screamed "Do not touch that weapon! Get your hands up and step back immediately!". He then tried to grill me on why I needed to check a firearm and I reminded him again I was a LEO. He made some BS comment about why it was unnecessary for me to need a firearm. My point is to be prepared for anything when you try to check your firearm. To be on the safe side, I unload the firearm, put a cable lock through it, put the ammo in a separate container, keep all mags unloaded, and lock the whole mess in a hard side case with a heavy padlock.

Pardon my ignorance, but what does it mean to do a "conversion" on a Saiga? Caliber conversion?

Based on the way I am reading the website, the directory isn't a comprehensive list of gun-free establshments, but is only a list of places. Under each it says "stance on guns" and most say "not yet contacted."

I am with you. I used to love Beck, but in the months before he left Fox, he got screwy. The final straw after he left Fox was when he started talking about Biblical prophecy and how we are approaching the "end of days" and need to prepare for Armageddon. Although I do agree with him on many issues, I certainly don't consider him a good source of info any longer. That said, I would support Ron Paul over Newt any day. As far as Santorum, he's far too much of a social conservative for my liking. There are many problems more urgent and detrimental to our society than worrying about who wants to have sex or marry who.

One issue that folks fail to pay attention to in this debate is the problem of "states' rights" vs. "constitutional rights." On this issue and others similar to this one (gay marriage immediately comes to mind), people pick and choose the facts that they find most convenient to their argument. As we know, the 2nd Amendment of the US Constitution says that "the right to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed." The "full faith and credit" clause of the US Constitution also states that "Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State," which has been applied to drivers' licenses and marriages. The 14th Amendment guarantees that all of the rights protected within the US Constitution apply at the state level as well, which is not how the original document was written. With all of these points within the US Constitution, one can make a valid argument that the State of New York should recognize the carry permits issued in other states, just as they would a DL or marriage. However, the "full faith and credit clause" has not been interpreted as a requirement to force states to overturn their own state laws in favor of another state's law, which would apply in the case of carry permits. Further, those who argue that the federal government has lawful authority to force states to recognize carry permits from other states is opening a door that they probably don't want to step through. Let's take the issue of gay marriage for instance. Using the same argument as those who support the federal reciprocity statute, the federal government would also have the authority to force states like Tennessee to recognize the marriages of same-sex couples conducted in states like New York. One will then argue that marriage isn't a constitutional right. That is technically true. No marriage, whether same-sex or heterosexual, is a constitutional right by the letter of the document. However, the "equal protection clause" of the 14th Amendment of the US Constitution states: In other words, as soon as the state recognizes any form of legal union between consenting adults, they must afford the same legal rights to anyone who chooses to take advantage of that special legal status. The Supreme Court has already applied this to sex discrimination cases, and it is likely one could make an argument that this also applies to same-sex marriage. I make this point because many people who support the use of federal authority to force states to recognize carry permits will then argue that the federal government doesn't have the authority to interfere with the states' right to prohibit same-sex marriage. We can't have it both ways.

I am planning to add a mount to add an optic to my Springfield M1A. I can't decide whether to go with the Sadlak scope mount or the Ultimak Scout Mount. Anyone have any experience with either? Either way, I want to be able to use my irons if I choose to, which is why I am looking at these. The Sadlak mount has a channel that allows the use of iron sights and the Ultimak Scout Mount is so low that it doesn't block the iron sights. I do know that the scout mounts require long eye relief scopes, so that is one of the reasons I am hesitating to go that route. Anyone have some advice?

Yes, I have a LaserMax Micro on my PPS and like it alot. I also have a couple of other demo units they have sent to me for holster making and they appear to be as good as any other laser out there. Their customer service appears to be excellent as well.

I prefer a Smith & Wesson 642, but of the two you mentioned, I would personally go with the LCR. I had a CW40 and didn't really care for it. Nothing wrong with pistol as far as function, but it just didn't suit me. It just seemed kind of cheap and unimpressive.

I prefer Maker's Mark 46, regular Maker's, or Woodford Reserve bourbon.

I'm with you. I can't justify spending that kind of scratch on a pump gun and if Kel Tec's history holds true for this release, there will likely be a recall of some sort. As much as I like Kel Tec firearms, I can't recall any of their releases that wasn't plagued with problems until the bugs had been worked out through some redesigned parts.

I have owned a variety of Kel Tec firearms over the years including the Sub2K. They are some of the best guns for the money out there. Are they flawless? Of course not. Even a $2000 custom 1911 can give you problems. I recently sold my Sub2K, miss having one around, and plan on getting another sometime in the near future. You can't beat them for what they are and Kel Tec's customer service tends to be excellent.

It's my thread and that's not a hijack in my book (pardon the pun). I am glad to have other people share their sources of information.

Oh, that's no problem. Here is an informational video on how to deal with this problem: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0kXS37clsZw

And it's done by the Mormons. Who'd have thunk it? We spend billions of dollars every year on the DHS and it's a freaking church that puts out a free preparedness manual. Go figure. But is anyone actually surprised?

Here is a link I just ran across for a FREE electronic PDF survival manual. Believe it or not, it was published by the Mormons, hence the name "LDS Preparedness Manual." Although I haven't had a chance to sit down and read through it yet, just skimming the contents it appears to be a good source of information for people (it also helps explain why Glenn Beck is so big on preparedness since he is a Mormon - I really couldn't figure out why he was so big on canning food and the like). In any case, it's FREE, so it won't cost you anything to look at it even if it sucks. http://survivalcache.com/gear/survival-manual-lds-preparedness-manual/

I think people are missing the point of the OP's original question. If the infrastructure collapses, there will not be any sort of viable sewage treatment available so the toilet will be useless. No amount of filling the tank with creek water and flushing will solve this (unless you are on a septic and even then, you'll have to figure out how to keep it maintained). If it's bad, the last thing you'll want to do is waste any water at all on dealing with your body waste. Your camping porta-john won't hold up forever and you will run out of liners eventually plus there won't be a WalMart to grab more. I interpreted the question as one of a more long-term scenario. Even in the short-term, toting around bags of waste and figuring out what to do with it will get to be a pain in short order. It seems that the question is one of short-term vs. long-term and how bad the critical infrastructure in society has collapsed. I think for long-term needs, the outhouse is the best option if you have a place to put it. I try to consider how our ancestors dealt with these problems and that's the route they chose. It's simple, doesn't require any other action than to keep the building up, and does the job. Convenience is secondary in a SHTF situation, but it's always a nice thing. My suspicion is that in a real SHTF scenario, the conveniences people will really be focused on will be related to shelter, warmth, food storage and prep, and water. I know that taking a convenient and comfy dump will be lower on my list of concerns.

I've asked Santa for a Glock 17. I'm pretty sure that Santa is bringing me socks or something like that instead.

I've been on a waiting list to get my Seecamp engraved by Michael Gouse and it's been about a year and I am still waiting for the word to send my pistol in for work. My sense is that most decent engravers have a wait comparable to that.

As a former LEO, my standard response to this sort of question is to say no more than absolutely necessary to explain that you acted in self-defense and then politely say that you don't want to make any further statements until you have contacted an attorney. A simple statement of "The badguy approached me, displayed the intent to use force against me, I was in fear for my safety, and I acted in self-defense" with the pertinent details included to make your point. If you are clearly in the right, that statement should be sufficient for the time since it is likely that the scene will also provide clues to what actually happened. Beyond that, I would not be too eager to make a statement without an attorney.

I used some glow paint like that. It's good for what it is. It must be laid on fairly thick to get the best results. I much prefer some tritium sights, but not all guns have them available.

Be forewarned, if you don't like mildly crude humor, this won't be funny:

A 17 year old girl was stopped by TSA because she had an embossed western-style gun design sewn on her purse. They threatened to charge her with a federal crime of trying to carry a "replica firearm" onto the aircraft. How friggin' idiotic is that??? Teen stopped at airport for design on purse | News - Home

I have a Primary Arms Micro Dot and I have been very happy with it. Can't beat it for less than $200 including the riser mount.