Choices, Choices . . .

Choices, Choices . . .

OK, now that the Mustang is sold and I have some cash in hand, I can get a pretty serious piece of ordnance.

For me, that means a 7.62x51 gas gun.

As I mentioned previously, I was giving serious consideration to a Fulton Armory Peerless M14, but delivery on those is running 12-18 months. Through my previously mentioned awesome readers, I found out about Ted Brown Rifles and LRB Arms forged M14 receivers.

I contacted Ted and told him what I wanted. He replied that it would run about $3,800 and six months.

Hmm . . .

Punt?

So I thought about something not quite so. . . precise. A DSA SA58 seems like a good idea. But what model, and what options?

Start with the Bull Barrel model, add a muzzle brake (yes, even though I hate muzzle brakes, it's semi-auto and I want fast follow-up capability), go for the Extreme Duty scope mount, Match trigger option, pan & tilt bipod, replace the buttstock with the Precision version, get ten extra Steyr 20-round magazines, and have everything finished in Desert MirageFlage DuraCoat:

$3,300 and about five months.

Both options still need optics. The M14 would get a NightForce 5.5-20X50. The SA58 would get an ACOG 6X TA648-308.

The M14 should be capable of hitting clay pigeons reliably at 500 meters. The SA58 should be capable of reliably keeping a magazine on a silhouette at 600 meters. The M14 cost more, and doesn't include 10 magazines. (M1A/M14 magazines are about $35-40 each.)

I can't afford (nor do I want) both.

Any comments or suggestions (well, most comments or suggestions, anyway) would be appreciated.

UPDATE: I just ordered 11 20-round magazines from 44mag.com, and I have an email in to Ted Brown.

Thanks, y'all. An M14 it is.

I Have the Best Readers

I Have the Best Readers

Man, the comment threads recently have been full of WIN! Y'all are impressive.

I just wanted to make that generally known.

As an aside, it looks like blogging is going to be taking a back seat to work soon. Starting Monday I will be working four 12-hour shifts (M-Th) and then 10 hours on Friday, not including the four hour drive home (returning on Sunday to start over.) At the present time, that schedule will run for two weeks, then I'll spend a week back in Tucson, and then back to the jobsite for two more weeks (with weekends at home unless the job demands that I stay over the weekend.)

This is supposed to go on until the project is finished, and completion is scheduled in early December.

Like I believe that.

Needless to say, blogging will be light.

. ". . a pork conveyor for incumbent congressweasels."

The Quote of the Day from the inimitable Tam. Here's the full flavor:

"But Tam," you say "We've already mapped the moon! We're playing with R/C model cars on Mars!"

Yes, but after we mapped the moon and hit a few golf balls around up there, we just turned our back on the whole thing. Scrapped our huge boosters. Used an outdated, overengineered flying garbage truck as a make-work program for NASA and a pork conveyor for incumbent congressweasels. Got in the way of private progress with government interference that would have strapped airbags on the Wright Flyer and prevented them from flying at Kitty Hawk lest they wound some rare sand flea.

Read the Whole Thing.

The Obama Youth Vote

The Obama Youth Vote

Rachel Lucas discusses her Freshman Chemistry classmates in a long and heartfelt rant.

These are the people who will vote for Obama because they believe in entitlement.

As Rachel says:

In case I wasn’t clear enough, my “issue” with these kids is that they expect the help and that they don’t believe they could do anything without it. That is not a good thing. If your parents put you through college, and you did well and you appreciated it, GOOD. I am 100% happy for you and think it’s fabulous, and I’d do the same thing for my kids if I had them, as long as they held up their end of the bargain.

The point is that these kids I’m talking about DON’T hold up their end of any sort of reasonable bargain. They get 49’s on their tests because they only studied for 4 hours. They bitch about driving a Civic instead of an Accord. They complain about their parents’ rules while they suckle the teat all the way up to age 25.

And once of the parent's teat, it's not a long jump to Uncle Sugar's.

Well, the Mustang is Gone . . .

Well, the Mustang is Gone . . .

I sold her. The check cleared yesterday, so the buyer picked her up tonight.






Ah, well. As I said before, having is sometimes not so pleasing a thing, after all, as wanting.

Firehand Has a Question

Firehand Has a Question

Why do so many damn near crawl before politicians?

Excerpt:

From what I’ve read, it really started in the 1930’s, the habit of deference to our employees. I mean the politicians, of course. The ‘Most Exclusive Club’ members of the Senate, and the Representatives in the House. Have you ever listened to the way these clowns address each other? "The Honorable Gentleman/Gentlewoman from", "My Esteemed Colleague" and so on. Which, if that garbage stayed in the chambers, I wouldn’t mind so much; if you want to vocally kiss the ass of people who despise you, in some cases hate and want to destroy you, go ahead. It’s the ass-kissing they get in public that ticks me off.

That's how it starts. It only gets better from there. Go read.

Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day

If journalism still existed, I'd still be doing it in television, likely. - AM 790 KNST morning show host Jim Parisi via email

I emailed Jim Parisi this morning with a link to Orson Scott Card's angry rant at journalists because he had interviewed Card once before, and one of the topics Jim discusses on the show fairly regularly is media bias. He has had a long career in journalism as a reporter and a news director in television and radio, so he's seen it. He ended up doing the morning news here in Tucson because his wife is a native Tucsonan, but Jim is originally from New Hampshire and has directly covered the New Hampshire primaries on more than one occasion. He spent some extended time in Bill and Hillary's presence when they were campaigning there. I can't find it now, but he did a scathing monologue one day on how he personally liked Bill, but found Hillary to be loathsome, and how that discovery finally turned him away from being a Democrat.

A couple of years ago the morning show guy quit (or was fired) and he was put in the morning show seat with basically no warning - newsman to talk-show host in ten seconds flat.

His show is now #1 in the Arbitron ratings for AM stations here in Tucson. Jim is, if you say nothing else about him, fair - giving each side a voice, and smacking them down when they deserve it. He's also got a twisted sense of humor, and that helps.

I've quoted Jim before here.

Coincidence? I Think NOT!

Today Joe Biden once again made headline news by opening his mouth:

Sen. Joe Biden, D-Del., on Sunday guaranteed that if elected, Sen. Barack Obama., D-Ill., will be tested by an international crisis within his first six months in power and he will need supporters to stand by him as he makes tough, and possibly unpopular, decisions.

"Mark my words," the Democratic vice presidential nominee warned at the second of his two Seattle fundraisers Sunday. "It will not be six months before the world tests Barack Obama like they did John Kennedy. The world is looking. We're about to elect a brilliant 47-year-old senator president of the United States of America. Remember I said it standing here if you don't remember anything else I said. Watch, we're gonna have an international crisis, a generated crisis, to test the mettle of this guy."

"I can give you at least four or five scenarios from where it might originate," Biden said to Emerald City supporters, mentioning the Middle East and Russia as possibilities. "And he's gonna need help. And the kind of help he's gonna need is, he's gonna need you - not financially to help him - we're gonna need you to use your influence, your influence within the community, to stand with him. Because it's not gonna be apparent initially, it's not gonna be apparent that we're right."

As Spock would say, "Fascinating."

Now, what other news was released today that has mostly flown under the American news media's radar?

MoD releases UFO sighting files

Details of UFO sightings around the UK, including a number in Northern Ireland, have been released by the Ministry of Defence.

A total of 19 files covering sightings between 1986 and 1992 have been made available online.

Iran with nuclear weapons? Oh, please. Russia invading another ex-sattelite? Whoopde-do! Al Qaeda pulling off another major strike in the U.S? Yeah, like that's going to happen.

No, it's all blindingly apparent to me now.

This election is a test. If we puny, warlike humans can overcome our bigotry and elect Obama our President, then the Space Aliens will know that we're civilized enough to reveal themselves to us! Yes, Obama isn't a "lightworker," he's one of THEM sent here to TEST US!

Hey, it makes as much sense as anything that comes out of Biden's mouth.

Laura Washington is Back

Laura Washington is Back

And Nicki Fellenzer doesn't hold back in giving her what-for. Rated PG-13!

". . . the only prescription is some Tolkien."

". . . the only prescription is some Tolkien."

Rachel Lucas waxes philosophical on the election by quoting Tolkien.

Damned good post, Rachel. Damned good.

Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day

I continue to be amused at those who can simultaneously hold the contradictory idea that Sarah Palin has insufficient experience to be president while Barack Obama somehow does. - geekWithA.45 in a comment to We're Supposed to be Surprised?

That's cuz she's not Transformative y'know.

Well, it Qualifies as "Sports" I Guess. . .

Well, it Qualifies as "Sports" I Guess. . .

Instapundit points to Amazon's 50% off sale on "sports and outdoor equipment" today. Lots of running shoes, flashlights, binoculars, etc.

However on page 32, Item 765 seems. . . out of place, somehow.


(Click for item page.)
Seems a bit chilly for "outdoor apparel."

Glenn emails:

I always thought of that as an outdoor sport . . . .

Now I know more about Glenn & Helen than perhaps I wanted to . . . . ;-)

We're Supposed to be Surprised?

We're Supposed to be Surprised?

So Colin Powell has endorsed Barack Transformational Figure Obama.

And this surprised. . . who?

Though I'm sure Markadelphia will be transported with joy by the news.

Update: Yup.

Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day

OBAMA RAISED $150 million last month. No word on how much came from Mickey Mouse. Or "Doodad Pro." - Instapundit

Could Somebody Please Explain to Me. . .

Could Somebody Please Explain to Me. . .

In honor of the collapsing economy, I went out last night and bought a new big-screen TV. Well, to be more accurate, I placed an order for one on-line and then went to the local store and picked up my order. Because I bought it on-line, the vendor offered - "free" - a portable DVD player; just put it in the electronic "shopping cart" and it's added to the total order at no charge. OK, I'm never one to turn down an offer like that.

The little DVD player is this one, a Phillips 8.5" LCD that has an iPod dock. (I guess this means that the iPod is officially the de-facto standard for portable personal entertainment.) OK, so it's very cool. The entire unit is a bit smaller than a spiral-bound standard 8.5x11" notebook, it comes with a plug-in charger, a cigarette-lighter (excuse me, power point) 12V charger, and an A/V cable that will let you plug the display into anything with RCA audio/video jacks.

What I don't understand is why does this thing have a remote control?

YOU HAVE TO HOLD IT IN YOUR FREAKING HANDS TO USE IT.

Of course, the remote has a lot more buttons on it that the base unit. It would have been too difficult, I suppose, to put all those controls on the base unit instead of on the remote control that will get lost about a week after you take the thing out of the box.

I'm waiting for a wristwatch with a remote control, so you can set the time and date on your Timex without actually having to touch the thing that's secured to your WRIST.

Range Report: the Para Gun Blog .45

Range Report: the Para Gun Blog .45

I went to today's Tucson Action Shooter's Club steel match, and got to shoot the Gun Blog .45 for real. I put a couple of magazines through it in Reno, but it was freaking COLD and I was having fun shooting other people's guns, so I didn't give it a workout.

I did today.

My last TASC outing left me in last place shooting my Kimber Classic Stainless, but that was because only the fast shooters showed up for that one. I guess I missed the memo. Today everybody showed up, so I was firmly in the (lower) middle of the pack again.

The only bobble I had was on the very first target of the match for me. I'm so used to the trigger pull of the Kimber that when the buzzer sounded, I drew, aimed, squeezed the trigger. . . and nothing happened.

Because I'd drawn the hammer back to full-cock, but not through to sear release, while thinking "why didn't it go 'BANG!'?"

Oops! (Or more appropriately: D'OH!)

Oh, yeah. Weapon familiarization!

There was no more of that for the rest of the match. The gun ran flawlessly. The fiber optic front sight is VERY easy to acquire, the gun fed and functioned perfectly using CCI Blazer aluminum case hardball ammo, there were zero magazine issues (even after they were dropped repeatedly in the dirt) and the Blackhawk SERPA holster worked as advertised. (And I didn't give myself a wedgie even once.)

The pistol is great! I just need a lot of practice.

If you check the scores, you'll see I came in eighth out of twelve on the individual stages, but dead last (by a far-away and distant margin) in the team stages.

Not my fault I swear!

On both stages there was a 4" wide by 24" tall plate set at about 25 yards that my teammate simply could not hit.

As in, it took him three magazines before he finally managed to put a round on target. He ran dry on the last stage, so I ended up handing him a spare magazine so he could finish.

Oh well. There's always next month. And I'll be using the Para again. I can't wait for next year's night matches, where I'll be able to use the Crimson Trace Laser Grips!

Quote of the Day

If you do not tell the truth about the Democrats -- including Barack Obama -- and do so with the same energy you would use if the miscreants were Republicans -- then you are not journalists by any standard.

You're just the public relations machine of the Democratic Party, and it's time you were all fired and real journalists brought in, so that we can actually have a daily newspaper in our city.

- Orson Scott Card, Would the Last Honest Reporter Please Turn On the Lights?Thanks to Unix-Jedi for the pointer. And, as Unix points out, Card is a Democrat.

Edited to add, from Instapundit:

Charges of ACORN-like registration fraud on behalf of the GOP, too. I almost hope we'll see more of this, as it's the only way to get the press to pay serious attention to the issue . . . .

(My emphasis.)

The examples of the media being, as Card puts it, "the public relations machine of the Democratic Party" are nearly endless.

Apparently I'm Pretty Far to the Right. . .

Apparently I'm Pretty Far to the Right. . .

Because I agree with this cartoon 100%:


Stolen from Mostly Cajun, and read what he has to say, too.

The cartoon is from RedPlanetCartoons.com, where I also found this one I agree with 100%:

Local College Student Defensive Gun Use

Local College Student Defensive Gun Use

Cops: 2 killings look like self-defense
UA student grabs his handgun, shoots intruders and calls police

By Alexis Huicochea

Tucson, Arizona | Published: 10.17.2008

Evidence in the fatal shooting of two intruders by a University of Arizona student appears to be consistent with his account that he was defending himself, police said.

The 23-year-old student shot and killed Shontel R. Early, 30, and Wesley O. Fenstermacher, 29, after the two men barged into his home early Thursday morning, said Sgt. Fabian Pacheco, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.

At least one of the intruders had a gun. The incident occurred shortly after 12:30 a.m., Pacheco said.

The police spokesman gave this account:

The student was home alone in a guest house in the 800 block of East Adams Street, near North Euclid Avenue and East Speedway.

There was a knock at the door, and one of the men asked for someone who did not live there.

The student looked past the man he was speaking with and saw another man, who had his face covered and had a gun.

The student retreated into his home and grabbed his own handgun, but the men made their way in.

The student fired, then called police to report the shooting. When officers arrived, they found the two men dead inside just past the doorway.

The student was questioned and is cooperating with police. His name was not released.

There is no indication that the student is or has been involved in any criminal activity, police said.

Pacheco could not say what the men were looking for or if they had possibly intended to go to a different house.

The case will be presented to the Pima County Attorney's Office for a determination on whether the shootings were justified, Pacheco said.

And, of course, there's the handwringing by the neighbors:

Neighbors were alarmed by the events.

Ali Adelmann, a UA sophomore, just moved into the neighborhood this semester. "It really worries me," the Phoenix resident said. "All we can do is keep our doors and windows locked."

And buy a gun and learn how to use it.

Worked for the victim here, didn't it?

Jenny Wise also moved into the neighborhood in August. The 19-year-old sophomore said she wasn't home at the time of the shootings. She had gone to a party, and when she arrived home around 2 a.m. she found her street taped off and flooded with police.

"It's really the scariest thing," Wise said.

"I've lived a sheltered life. This seems like a nice little neighborhood. I don't know what I would've done if two guys tried to get into my house," Wise said.

Well, Jenny, you're too young to purchase a handgun for yourself, but you can receive one as a gift from a family member. Short of that, I recommend a shotgun. And some training.

And so much for the argument that college students aren't responsible enough to possess firearms! But he still can't possess or carry on campus.

Here are (apparently) mugshots of the two deceased (which suggests, and rather strongly, that these two had previous rap sheets, don't it?):

Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day

(The media has) done more investigations into Joe the Plumber in 24 hours than they've done on Barack Obama in two years . . . . - Instapundit.