Turkey shoot

I helped my dad with the turkey shoot that his church puts on every year. Between measuring targets, I looked over and saw my dad coaching one of my nieces on what to do. I was lucky enough to get a picture of it.

Pipes (update)

For some reason, the picture didn't upload in the original post...

Pipes

For those that don't know me in meatspace, I smoke a pipe. I generally smoke about 4-5 times a day, and it was originally to wean myself off cigars, which I used to wean myself off cigarettes. I know, I know, it's bad for me, but smoking a small bowl of pipe tobacco 4-5 times daily is a lot better than smoking a pack and a half of Camels, I'd bet. It's a vice I can't shake, and I've come to terms with that. Also, pipe tobacco runs me about $10/week, as opposed to $50/week when I was smoking cigarettes. That helps.

Anyway, I have some nice pipes, but I generally use a Dr. Grabow 'Duke' as an everyday pipe. I take care of it, and change it's filter and clean it about once a day. Problem is, I generally get about 6 months from a pipe before it's no longer useable. Sometimes the bit cracks (twice, now), but most often the metal collar that holds the filter and connects the stem to the bowl gives way. It slides out of the stem, and becomes lodged in the bowl. I've had this happen a half-dozen times. Twice, I've gone back to the place I bought it from, and they've replaced the pipe for me.

This time, though, the bowl cracked. Now, yes, I'm a daily smoker, so I put more miles on a pipe than a typical user, but, hell, these Grabows are plagued with problems. Is it too much to expect 2 years from a $30 pipe? Now, I like the way Grabow pipes smoke, and I like a changeable filter system, and I LOVE the 'Duke' pipe grabow makes. It's a straight stem with a small bowl that smokes for 15-20 minutes. In function, it's the perfect pipe for me. I just wish they'd hold up longer.

(Non) Update

Hello, there, loyal readers. Yep, I've fallen off the face of the earth. Nope, it's not permanent. It's been crazy busy around here, but just daily life stuff. Couple that with a wicked head/chest cold, and I just haven't had much gumption for blogging (or even doing blog-worthy stuff...) the cold is on it's way out, and hopefully life will slow down a bit soon, so hopefully more bloggy goodness will be headed your way soon.

Later!

(Not So) Pocket Knife

My oldest brother has had this pocket knife for years. It's badged Smith and Wesson, and its an assisted open knife with a pocket clip. Problem is, he says when he carries it in his pocket, sometimes the blade opens up. Last time this happened, he sliced his pinkie open pretty good while getting something from his pocket. So... he carries it in a belt sheath. Further problem: the sheath it came with is a one-size-fits-none nylon number that flops around. It doesn't hold the knife that well, and the Velcro is starting to wear out.

So he asked me to make him a sheath. He wanted a simple leather sheath the fit the knife snugly and had a sturdy belt loop. So I made him one. Of course, I had to imbellish just a little bit, so I added a stitch-line reminiscent of a fleur-de-lis. Also, I like having a lanyard on a pocketknife that allows one. I tend to make them with complicated knots for several reasons: they look nice, they help you find them if they fall on the ground, and it puts a substantial amount of cordage in your pocket. You never know when having some rope handy will save your ass. His pocketknife now has about 7 feet of tarred Marline on it, in a pretty package that is just over 4 inches long. He may decide he doesn't like it, and can take it off, but I couldn't give it back without adding a bit of pretty, potentially ass-saving decoration.

Hope he likes it.

Comments

Wilson asks in comments about the picture of my brother shooting through a wall in my post titled 'Saturday Shoot'. It was a stage where when you got to that wall, you shot through a window. Inside were 4 'shoot' targets and 1 'no shoot' targets. The problem was, they were arranged in such a way that you literally had to stick your gun through the 'window' to engage one of the targets.

Also, Wilson asks in another post about horse racing if we won. Well, we didn't bet anything, but we had a great time, drank .75 cent miller ponies, ate well, watched some horses run, and spent the evening as a family... so yeah, I guess I did win!

Thanks for the comments, Wilson.

Horse Races

It was fun.

Saturday Shoot

My brother and dad have become involved in a shooting club, Cenla Sport Shooters. They invited me along this weekend, and we did some shooting.

I had a lot of fun, but I'm not sure what to make of it. It seems like your time is more important than accuracy, and the way they handle some things seem tactically unsafe... however, this is a game, not a training class, and it WAS a lot of fun.

By the last stage, I decided 'to hell' with the time, and just tried to make clean shots. I still managed to run the course in under a minute, and got all 28 rounds in the highest score ring.

I think if I end up going back, I'm just gonna worry about clean shooting, and ignore the time factor.

Mother-In-Law's Heater

Remember a while back I talked about my wife's mom becoming interested in self defense and concealed carry? Well, her husband has apparently been silently looking for the gun she wanted, a Ruger LCR in .38 special, with Crimson Trace lasergrips. He found one, with a DeSantis holster, for around 3 bills...

Not only is it a great gift for his wife, but he got a screamin' deal, too!

Bobbing the Hammer on a J-Frame

My wife has been telling me recently that she would like to get the hammer bobbed on her Smith and Wesson model 60. She said that the appendix holster I made for her a few months ago is wonderful, but the hammer keeps poking her, and over the course of a few hours, it gets very uncomfortable. Well, we took her 60 to my father's for Sunday lunch, and after consulting dad's S&W manual, I started disassembling the gun, and got the hammer out. Now, my natural talents only extend a bit into metalwork, but my brother was there, and he's a whiz at all things metal. I explained what I wanted, and he got to work.

First, he cut off the majority of the spur with a cut-off wheel. Next, he used a flat-bastard file, and removed a lot more metal. He then went to needle files. After that, he used a bit of coarse emery cloth, then switched to a stone bit in a drill. Finally, he used a buffing wheel with valve-grinding compound.

I got the little j-frame all put back together, and we shot a few rounds through it. Everything functions like it should, and my wife's carry piece is exactly what she wants. I even learned a bit about gunsmithing along the way. Ya know, this project went easier than I expected, and I'm immensely pleased with the result.