26 July 2010 - Hogjaw, Area 51, Road Runners Internationale, and former black projects

And then I remembered all the space I have on the walls of my cubicle at work   Yep, I’ve got just about all my patches up on the walls at work

Some of these patches are rather rare.  For example, you can only get one of those CIA patches from the CIA gift shop.  Thankfully, I’m an associate member of the Road Runners Internationale and the CIA is rather close to our group due to the history of the Road Runners’ projects like the U-2 and A-12.  The CIA is so kind as to bring their gift shop to our reunions which means I get to shop where very few can

The rest of the patches on this wall have something to do with the CIA, the Road Runners, or black projects in Nevada.  Take the 547th Intelligence Squadron patch – these are the men and women who exploit foreign technology that’s been “acquired” by various means.  The Road Runner feature prominently – check out their website for some really interesting Cold War secrets   And there’s a couple of special, very limited edition Area 51 patches as well

26 July 2010 - Jimmy Buffett, NASA, Cape Hatteras, and the USAF represented here

It’s not just Road Runners and CIA that I’ve got on display.  There’s plenty of NASA and USAF patches here, too.  I may have to pick up a few more when I get the chance to fill in the wall a bit more   Still, there’s the stickers Kath sent me along with a couple of Raptor patches & T-Bird patches which I think all works well together.

Let’s not forget that I’m still a Parrothead and you’re probably going to find some Jimmy Buffett items around

26 July 2010 - Thanks for the OBX stickers, Kath

Gotta love the bumper stickers   “The Weather is Here” is a favorite of many Buffett fans while I’d love to see someone in office who actually has a clue as well.  I don’t agree with Jimmy’s politics for the most part, but he seems to understand what the average Joe is going through – he’s been broke and sleeping on a friend’s couch with only a bicycle for transportation before.  And of course, you’ve gotta love the OBX sticker and the Cape Hatteras lighthouse postcard

26 July 2010 - Road Runners Internationale - In God We Trust - All Others We Monitor

Ah, the good ol’ Road Runners 8)  This is key tag is pretty appropriate when you consider that they were responsible for the U-2, A-12, SR-71, M-21, and D-21   If you don’t know what those were or are, just put ‘em into a Google search and you’ll find out

26 July 2010 - Who here can pick out the most black projects and symbols in this patch?

I paid quite a bit more for this patch than I normally would for most.  It’s a very limited edition and very cool – if you know your Groom Lake history   I’ll tell you that the bird down on the bottom is for the Road Runners and the silver plane at the top is for the U-2, but each of the symbols on the patch refers to a program or group that’s been declassified.  How many can you understand?  I’m only missing a couple

Anywho, that’s about it for now.  Have a great day

15 May 2010 - Lunch time at the Nevada Shooters shoot and clean-up

15 May 2010 - It's not all snakes and scorpions and machine guns in the desert

15 May 2010 - We shoot Nazi zombies

15 May 2010 - The old highway AKA Las Vegas Blvd. South heading north into town

About yesterday – it was a truly great time 8)  Once again Infinite Arms brought an awesome selection of machine guns, short barreled shotguns, short barreled rifles, suppressors, exploding targets, and a few other things California would likely frown upon   What’s kind of funny is that the rest of the people out there had a collection that consisted of many of those same things   I brought the PSL, Maverick 88 shotgun, Ruger 10/22, Marlin Model 60, CZ 50, Heritage Rough Rider, and PF-9.  I just didn’t want to bring everything   Quite a few of the others out there took me up on the offer to shoot my guns and reciprocated with offers to shoot theirs.  Life was GOOD

I’d be remiss if I forgot about Mark and James showing up   They’re a couple of co-workers who also happen to have been bitten by the gun bug lately.  James just got a Savage .22 bolt action rifle and Mark got a similar gun made by CZ that’s a beautiful example of engineering and craftsmanship 8)  Both of ‘em tried out most of the guns I brought and had a good time, but Mark was the one who really surprised me.  First off, Mark isn’t the tallest person around, nor is he heavy or very heavily built which is part of the reason I was so surprised when he said that it wasn’t all that bad when he touched off a 3″ magnum 00 buckshot round from my 12 gauge.  The other thing that surprised me a bit is that he absolutely couldn’t get enough of my little Heritage Rough Rider .22 single action revolver.  I’m glad they made it out and look forward to going shooting with them again in the near future

Aside from all that fun, we also had one helluva pot luck barbecue   A couple of people brought grills, Adam and a couple other members cooked the burgers, hot dogs, and sausages, and we all chipped in with other things like water, sodas, chips, plates, and plastic utensils.  I’d call it a great success

We didn’t just shoot off our guns, make lots of noise, and eat good food this trip.  We also hauled away a considerable amount of trash as well   One of the things we like to do whenever possible is to leave the place cleaner than we found it.  Hey, we live here and we don’t like trashy desert

15 May 2010 - Dinner at Mr. Lucky's

15 May 2010 - Santana memorabilia at the Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas

15 May 2010 - Santana memorabilia at the Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas

After shooting I went home, got out of my smelly and dirty clothes, took a shower, and headed down to the Hard Rock and Mr. Lucky’s 24/7 once I was feeling somewhat civilized again.  Korey wasn’t there, but dinner’s always good at Mr. Lucky’s and it’s fun to look at all the memorabilia

15 May 2010 - Mandalay Bay, Luxor, Excalibur, MGM Grand, and New York, New York

One of the things I keep thinking about when I’m in a place like the Hard Rock or when I’m out shooting in the desert is just how many people pay thousands of dollars for the chance to do what I do and see what I see on any given evening or weekend.  So many of the locals avoid the Strip because it’s crowded and a hassle to get around.  They don’t go out in the desert much because it gets windy or it gets hot.  I’m sorry, but I don’t see things that way.  Carpe Diem and Carpe Noctem while you’re at it is what I say

15 May 2010 - Panorama - Our shooting spot seen from a short distance away

15 May 2010 - Panorama - The fabulous Las Vegas Strip at night as seen from the Hard Rock Hotel

I also thought y’all might like a couple of panoramas while I was at it   Make sure to click ‘em for full size – they’re both pretty darn big

Finally, as I’ve promised I have some video   Yep, that’s yours truly and a couple of friends with some full auto awesomeness out in the Nevada desert   Big thanks go out to Infinite Arms for bringing out most of those goodies (especially the Uzi as I’d always wanted to shoot one of those) as well as the very generous member of Nevada Shooters who let me fire his Browning 1919A4 8)  Of course, we can’t leave out all the rest of the people who brought and cooked the food, helped clean up, and hung out making the day one of the most enjoyable I’ve had in a very long time

That’s it for this post – y’all have a good night and I’ll catch ya a bit later

For those who don’t know what I’m talking about, here’s a picture I found on Wikipedia:

Infantryman in 1942 with an M1 Garand at Fort Knox, KY - Image from Wikipedia

The M1 Garand is a gas operated, semi-automatic, clip fed rifle from WWII.  Actually, it was adopted in 1936 and represented the first semi-automatic rifle ever to be designated as the standard issue rifle in any military.

Being gas operated means that some of the gas from the burning gunpowder is bled from the barrel as the bullet passes and is used to cycle the action via a piston in a gas tube under the barrel.  Semi-automatic means that it’s not a machine gun – you only fire one round per pull of the trigger.  The Garand doesn’t use detachable magazines like an AK-47 or AR-15.  Instead it has a fixed magazine and the rounds are loaded in a metal clip that holds eight when full.  As the bolt cycles when the last round of a clip is fired, the action locks open and simultaneously ejects the empty clip.  All you have to do then is to press a new clip into the magazine and you’re ready to go with eight more rounds.

So-called “assault rifles” in civilian form really don’t trip my fun meter all that much anymore.  Yes, my AK is fun to shoot and I know AR-15s are light and accurate, but they’re not quite the real thing – they’re semi-auto only unlike the originals.  AK-47s and M-16s were meant to be full auto.  I probably shouldn’t have fired Adam’s full-auto AK-47 as I’m now spoiled.  The entire reason these rifles were created was for a soldier to have increased firepower as provided by automatic fire, but with lighter and more controllable recoil.  They also wanted the rounds to be smaller and lighter so that more rounds could be carried.  None of this matters in semi-auto only rifles.

These are just a few of the reasons I’m feeling the itch to buy a Garand.  The Garand is chambered in 30-06 and has all the power that round is known for.  It’s got some serious history and I can get an honest to God surplus M1 Garand rifle for myself that’s unchanged from what it was when it defended Freedom in WWII, Korea, and even into Vietnam.  It’s the real deal   There’s a whole lot more good info over at The Box O’ Truth

But now I have a conundrum.  I talked with Adam at Infinite Arms yesterday after work about selling the AK-47 and he seems to think it’s worth somewhere between $500 and $550.  I can put $200 towards another rifle on top of that which would get me into a Garand at $700 to $750.  That much money would get me a Garand from the Civilian Marksmanship Program 8)  From the CMP website:

The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) is a national organization dedicated to training and educating U. S. citizens in responsible uses of firearms and airguns through gun safety training, marksmanship training and competitions. The CMP is a federally chartered 501 (c) (3) corporation that places its highest priority on serving youth through gun safety and marksmanship activities that encourage personal growth and build life skills. Links on this page will lead you to more detailed information about the CMP and its programs.

CMP history goes back to late 19th century efforts by U.S. military and political leaders to strengthen our country’s national defense capabilities by improving the rifle marksmanship skills of members of the Armed Forces. The CMP traces its direct lineage to 1903 when Congress and President Theodore Roosevelt established the National Board for the Promotion of Rifle Practice (NBPRP) and the National Matches. From then until 1996, first the Department of War and later the Department of the Army managed the program that became known as the “civilian marksmanship program.” During this period, program objectives shifted from military marksmanship to training civilians who might serve in the military to developing youth through marksmanship training. In 1996, Congress acted again to establish the Corporation for the Promotion of Rifle Practice and Firearm Safety that now governs the CMP.

There are several different grades of Garands offered by the CMP.  I’m not interested in the Rack Grade or Field Grade – I want a shooter out of the box.  That leaves a couple of possibilities.  The lowest grade I’m considering is the Service Grade which would only set me back $595.

From CMP:

SERVICE GRADE: (Good to Very Good)
Service Grade Rifles show less wear and better appearance than Field or Rack Grades. Good to very good condition. Rifle wear will be exhibited by worn and mixed colors of the parkerized finish. There may be some minor pitting on the metal parts. Wood will be either Walnut, Birch, Beech or other variety and will be basically sound but may have minor hairline cracks, dings, scratches and gouges. Wood may not match in color or type of wood. Wood may be of new production on Service Grade Garands. Bores will be generally good with only minor imperfections. The barrel crown may be nicked, but the muzzle will gauge less than 3 and the throat erosion will gauge less than 5.

Manufacturer selection only guarantees the receiver was produced by the manufacturer listed. The barrel and the other parts may have been produced by other manufacturers.

But there’s another option as well.  I could sell my K-31.  I figure I could get somewhere between $200 and $300 for it which would put me at somewhere between $700 and $800 before adding $200 of my money into the mix which would put me at between $900 and $1000 total.

Don’t get me wrong – I still love my K-31.  It’s a gorgeous military rifle, it’s a wonderful piece of machinery, and it’s great to shoot.  The problem is that it’s also rather expensive to shoot.  The only ammo I can get locally is about $1.00 per round.  I could get ammo elsewhere and have it shipped, but then I’d have to worry about paying shipping and being there to sign for it.  I could also reload for it, but that would mean trying to find primers at the very least.  I’d rather buy ammo if I can.

Speaking of ammo, I’ve also looked into the cost of shooting a Garand.  CMP also happens to sell ammo for them

From CMP:

4C3006X216-192P – M2 Ball, .30-06, Greek HXP (Pyrkal) manufacture. Packaged in 8 rd enbloc clips, 6 clips per bandoleer, 4 bandoleers per spam can. 192 rds in a spam can. Boxer primed, non-corrosive. Headstamp varies HXP62-HXP80. THIS AMMO ATTRACTS A MAGNET. Weight is 15 lbs per can. $96.00 per can plus S&H. S&H $8.95 per can – to Alaska & Hawaii – $14.95 per can.

4C3006X211-240P – M2 Ball, .30-06, Greek HXP (Pyrkal) manufacture. Packaged 20 rds per box, 12 boxes per spam can – 240 rounds. Boxer primed, non-corrosive. Headstamp varies HXP62-HXP80. THIS AMMO ATTRACTS A MAGNET. Weight is 21 lbs per can. $120.00 per can plus S&H – S&H $15.95 per can – to Alaska & Hawaii – $25.95 per can.

NLU 444H3006 – Loaded specifically for use in M1 Garands, 1903 Springfield rifles.

Hornady match rifle ammunition is loaded with the most accurate, consistent match bullets in the world: Hornady’s sophisticated boattail hollow point match bullets and technologically advanced A-Max Match bullets, specially selected cases, and then final hand inspected to assure quality.

The Hornady stuff is pricey at $250 per 200 rounds, but when accuracy really matters (like in a competition), it’s not all that bad.

Keeping with the idea of doing this to get a Garand, I’d have a few options. I could get a Correct Grade rifle for $950…

CORRECT GRADE: (Very Good to Excellent)
Correct Grade Rifles are similar to the Service Grade (above), but will show less wear and use. Correct Grade rifles will have all correct parts for the date of manufacture with 80% or better overall original metal finish. The stock and handguards will be of walnut and correct for the rifle but will have some dings, dents, scratches and marring of the wood finish. Stocks will have the appropriate original inspector’s cartouche. The rifle bore will be very good with no significant defects and with a throat erosion of less than 4 and a muzzle wear of 2 or less. Very good to excellent condition. Limited quantities are occasionally available. Prices start at $950.

But then there’s also the Service Grade Springfield Special for $895…

M1 Garand, Service Grade Springfield Special.
allow 60 days for delivery.
SA collector grade metal in excellent almost new condition. Walnut stocks and handguards and associated hardware are new manufacture. NOT original SA manufacture.

And last, but not least, there’s also the M1 Garand, Springfield Special for $995

CMP Special M1 Garand

CMP SPECIAL: (Excellent)
CMP’s new grade of M1 Garand. This rifle consists of a new production stock and handguard set with CMP cartouche, a new production barrel and new web sling. Receiver and most other parts are refinished USGI, but some parts may be new manufacture. See item for details.

M1 Garand Springfield Armory receiver. New production stock and handguard set with CMP cartouche, a new production barrel and new web sling. Receiver and most other parts are refinished USGI, but some parts may be new manufacture.

Believe me, I’ve checked the pricing and it would cost about the same and probably more to get a less expensive Garand and add a new barrel and stock.  The CMP Special is a good compromise for what I want as it’s still a genuine U.S. military surplus rifle with the original receiver, metal, trigger, and other parts, but the new barrel and stock mean it’s going to be a darn good shooter, too

So there’s the conundrum – Do I sell just the AK-47 or do I sell the K-31 as well?  Do I get a Service Grade rifle, or one of the nicer ones like the CMP Special?  Such a tough decision…

So what do y’all think?  I’m really leaning towards selling the AK-47 and the K-31, buying a Service Grade, and spending quite a bit on ammo, but there’s still that CMP Special calling to me   Please leave any suggestions you might have in the comments, OK ?

Have a great day

15 January 2010 - Weather report: 62 degrees, light wind, clear skies

15 January 2010 - Something you won't see in SoCal - undeveloped land

The first couple of pics today are just basically local shots as I was out and about during my 30 minute lunch.  No, nothing special, but they’re a view most people won’t ever see of Las Vegas

15 January 2010 - Citadel Gun and Safe - Great deals on ammo

15 January 2010 - Citadel Gun and Safe - Lots of good stuff!

After work, I headed on over to Citadel Gun and Safe for some ammo and other supplies.  I’ll bet everyone here is just floored that I might be found in such an establishment   Well, I’m planning on heading over to the shooting park this weekend (likely tomorrow) for some fun with firearms and I’ve been sadly neglecting my AK-47 and I’ve decided it’s time to get it properly sighted in for later use.  Citadel probably has the best deals on 7.62×39 ammo for my AK-47 that I know of in this town which is why I made the trip.  I’m now the proud owner of another 60 rounds of ammo for my wonderful AK-47   I also know for a fact that they carry just about everything that Otis makes for gun cleaning, so I made sure to pick up some of their specialized patches while I was there

To tell the truth, I’ve only ever shot that rifle at paper once.  The problems have been cost and range.  The cost is because of the price of the cheap ammo like Wolf and Silver Bear vs. something like Winchester.  I can’t shoot the cheap stuff indoors because it’s steel jacketed and the range owners can’t tell if it’s steel core which would go through their backstop.  Winchester (range safe) runs about $15 for 20 rounds while Wolf and Silver Bear are going for about $6.50 for the same number of rounds.  The other problem is that the farthest I can shoot it indoors is about 35 yards if I’m lucky.  This is a rifle.  It’s not the most accurate bullet launcher ever devised by any means, but I want to go to at least 50 yards if not 100 or more.  The shooting park will let me sight it in correctly and will therefore allow me to set stuff up even better in the desert

Speaking to the pics above, the first is self explanatory, but the second is Citadel’s rifle and pistol section.  I can’t get all the guns in one pic, even with a panorama, but you get the point, right ?  Click that panorama for full size if you like hardware like I do

15 January 2010 - If you were wondering, this is on my Christmas list

Do you have someone in your life who’s just incredibly difficult to buy for?  Do they seem to have everything?  Well, look no further when their birthday or Christmas rolls around.  Just buy ‘em a three person dune buggy with a pair of machineguns and rocket launchers

I told the guys at Citadel that I’d love to borrow this nice little means of conveyance for a day so I could drive it up and down the border with California   Just remember, if you’re trying to figure out what to get me for Christmas…

15 January 2010 - Kel-Tec - Tough choices!!!

One thing I made sure to check while I was at Citadel was their selection of concealed carry guns.  The gun on the left is a Kel-Tec P-11 and that’s a P-3AT on the right.  The P-11 carries more rounds as it has a double stack magazine, but the P-3AT (along with the PF-9 which is about the same size) is much more concealable and weighs much less, even when it’s empty.  Even though it’s slightly heavier and larger than the other option, I’m seriously considering that P-11.

15 January 2010 - Gotta love Las Vegas at night 8)

This is the view you see when you exit Citadel.  Yes, I love my adopted hometown

15 January 2010 - One cool Savannah monitor lizard

My last stop tonight was over at Exotic Pets for some Ziva food.  The cool lizard you see is a Savannah monitor and is one of the most chilled out, tame reptiles I’ve ever seen.  Savannah monitors eat mice, large insects, and prepared commercial diets.  They do need some specialized care items and I really don’t want the expense, but I wouldn’t mind having one of these guys

So, yeah, it was a pretty good day   Here’s hoping y’all have a great weekend

I figured I’d take a couple of pictures with my newest equipment – the three megapixel camera in my LG enV3 camera – and use those for today’s pics 8)  No, it’s not as good as my Nikon or my Canon, but it’s a camera phone and I’d say a pretty good one at that

1 January 2010 - Raw image from the LG enV3 in subdued daylight

1 January 2010 - Rotated and cropped image from the LG enV3 in subdued daylight

Most of the pics you see on this site have been rotated to straighten them up and then cropped to look normal.  I wanted to show the before and after, especially with this camera.  When you crop a picture, you’re just looking at a smaller portion of the overall image so little imperfections and grain become more apparent.  When you’re looking at an image that’s only three megapixels instead of ten, that grain is going to be more evident.  The first picture here shows the image as it came out of the camera so you can see what it can do in this lighting while the second shows what it looks like with just a little tweaking.  Overall, I’m pretty impressed

On a side note, I have to say that Sonic has a really good breakfast burrito

1 January 2010 - Raw image from the LG enV3 at night

You may have noticed by now that I do a fair amount of photography at night.  Not only is it one of my favorite times, but it’s just when I have time available in the winter.  It’s also a bit challenging due to the limitations imposed by low light levels and the ability of film and sensor chips to deal with that lack of illumination.  Add in the factor of longer exposures (more likelihood of blur due to camera shake) and a more open aperture (less depth of field) and it gets a bit trickier.  This shot was fairly well lit, so the enV3 did a decent job even hand held.

I’ll still keep my Nikon at hand for much of the time I’m out of the house, but I’m really beginning to like my new phone for lots of reasons that have nothing to do with phone calls or text messaging

Have a great day and a happy new year, everyone