Not My Victrola

Here is an old favorite of mine, performed by Al Jolson on the first video, and Marion Harris on the second. I've read a lot about Al Jolson, and he suffered horribly from stage fright in his younger days. Someone advised him to "black up" and he found that the layer of makeup was a shield that protected him from embarrassment in front of an audience. You still see that mechanism in our modern world if you look for it. Preachers need their pulpit, politicians can't talk without a podium; some also need a few more accessories like teleprompters or they are totally lost. Me, I do best when I have a chainsaw to hide behind, even though my audience is only theoretical, behind a camera on a tripod. Anyhow, if you hear someone complaining about blackface makeup on performers 90 to 100 years ago, ask them if they have the guts to perform in a theater, with no microphone, and sing clear to the people in the back row. The burnt cork was a crutch, and a method, more than anything folks want to make of it today.

Weekend Steam: Stack Talk At Pinckneyville

Gun Blogger Rendezvous Is Just One Week Away!

You will have the time of your life at the Rendezvous, meeting the folks you visit on the blogs, shooting four days in a row, eating great meals, and helping to raise funds to help wounded service personnel.  Good things happen in Reno, and you will have fond memories of the Rondy for the rest of your life.

You will get to meet Steel Challenge champions Mike Galion (Mr. Completely) and Molly Smith, the Smith and Wesson Team shooter who keeps winning Rugers at Reno.  For Heaven's sake, go to Reno, buy a bunch of raffle tickets  for Project Valour-IT, and win the Ruger this year.  The folks at Smith and Wesson will never survive the embarrassment if she wins the .357 Ruger Blackhawk on the prize table this year.  CLICK HERE to register from the Rendezvous website, and pack your bags for Reno!

You Planted 'em; You Prune 'em!

"Emergency! Emergency!  Those trees you put in the cemetery are brushing the cars!", or words to that effect.  No good deed goes unpunished, and we were only too glad to spend an evening pruning trees to make the cemetery at Dahlgren look a bit better.  We know a lot of folks who are resting here.

The branches really were brushing cars that came in the main driveway, and we were lucky that the kids who mow the grass didn't take matters into their own hands.  They can mow now without having their hats knocked off.

We took off four pickup loads of branches in short order.  It doesn't seem possible, but I see a lot of sawlogs on my day-to-day travels that I saw go into the ground as one-year seedlings.

You Call It!

A:  Ramshackle
B: Airish
C: Threadbare
D: Hardly Able

This one has been in my sights for many years, and as I came up on it this time, a quick check of the rear-view mirror was clear!  I hit the shoulder and got my shot. 

September Mr. Completely e-Postal Contest!

SHADE TREE MECHANIC STEEL CHALLENGE!

We're putting up the Mr. Completely's September contest, The Shade Tree Mechanic Steel Challenge, a few days early so you all can have the opportunity to shoot Carteach's August contest and the September contest in one range trip.  The rules for this contest are very simple, and it should be fun for old and new shooters alike, so take a new shooter to the range when you go.

Set up your target at 25' to 30', load six rounds, and shoot from top to bottom on both stacks.  Repeat, for a total of twelve rounds.  Hits on  the dark bands put plenty of English on the oil filters, taking them off the stack cleanly, without disturbing the filter below, so those hits are worth two ( 2 ) points.  Hits in the lighter area of the filters are worth one ( 1 ) point.

CLICK HERE, or on the picture for the link to the pdf in Google Docs, set your preferences to Draft, and Black Ink Only to stretch your ink supply, and print out a stack so the whole family can shoot.  Scan your best targets, and send them to truebluetravelinman (  at ) gmail ( dot ) com by October 6.   We will compile the scores in a table as they come in, so the scores will be posted early in the week of October 7, 2013.

Update: Enter your name, firearm (including caliber), and sights, and I will sort it out into classes for you!  

The inspiration for this target:

August e-Postal Deadline Coming Up!

August 31 is coming up at the end of the week, so you need to get out and shoot your target for the Mr. Completely e-Postal contest by Saturday evening.  This target is more special than you can know.  Mrs. True Blue Sam's mother, Pat, suffered a bad stroke a year ago, and has made great progress.  Her left hand is still weak, her left eye doesn't really see well, and she doesn't have the strength to stand and hold a pistol at arm's length, but recovery is all about adapting, so that is what we did.  This was the first time Pat had ever shot a pistol, but with a little coaching she was able to put most of her shots into the circles by shooting off a sand bag.

These monthly contests are good practice for all, and are also a great way to show new shooters  how to have a good time.  Click HERE, or use the link on the left side of this page to download your target and join in the fun.

Ruger's Auction To Benefit the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance

Ruger's auction this week offers you a chance to own a real piece of history that will be good for the gun safe, the range, or the trail. This Mk I Standard Pistol was built in 1982, and is one of the last Mk I's made before production of the Mk II began.  In case you are unfamiliar with the differences in these pistols, the Mk I was built from 1949 to 1982  The magazine release is on the heel of the grip.  The Mk II also has the magazine release on the heel, but it has cut-outs on the rear of the receiver that make grasping the ears on the bolt a bit easier.  The Mk III pistols have the magazine release on the left side of the grip, and a magazine safety was added.

You would be hard pressed to find another new Mk I on the market, and folks that have one tend to hang onto them, so figure out your limit, and go bid if you want this gun.

Remember the Ruger 10/22 Race Rifle that was on the block a few weeks back?  One of our blog followers bid and won this fine collectible shooter, and it exceeded expectations; in fact, he says he "Stole It!"  It is apparently a unique gun assembled at the Ruger factory, and never listed in the catalog. 

You can join in the fun simply by creating a GunBroker account, and placing a bid when you see a Ruger firearm that you would like to own. The Mk I pistol this week presents a rare opportunity that you would be unlikely to see if you simply visit a gun shop once in a while, and next week there is another rare firearm ready to whet your appetite.

Tuesday Turbo Boost: John McCuen and Earl Scruggs

It's been almost forty years since I acquired this record. It's still a thrill.

Never Quite Ready For It

Back To The Old Grind!

IHC Titan 6 HP Ticks Along At Pinckneyville

Gary has done a fine job on this engine. It literally was a basket case when he got it.

Sunday Afternoon Bonus

Not My Victrola

VictrolaMan gives us a good look at a very special Victrola, and plays a copy of the Tiger Rag, by the Original Dixieland Jazz Band. I have a hunch that he doesn't let a cat march back and forth on this machine.

Weekend Steam: Big Big Boy News

 Watch these old 16 mm clips of engines from 2:15 to 5:30 for some great vintage UP Big Boy action...and watch Union Pacific's exciting announcement, heralded by UP Engine 844.

 Check out the news on UP's webpage, Here and Here.

Gun Blogger Rendezvous Schedule: FOUR! Count 'em, FOUR Range Days!!!!

Mr. Completely has posted the updated schedule for activities at the Rendezvous, and in addition to the three range days at the Washoe County range, attendees will also be going to the Roop County Shooters' Range at Fernley for an afternoon of cowboy action shooting.  That makes FOUR days of shooting activities, all for the bargain basement price of $30 registration fee.  Go to Mr. C's Rendezvous page and register online if you haven't already done so.  This will be the best Rendezvous yet!  You will have the time of your life shooting and visiting with the bloggers you visit online every day; you will form lifelong friendships, and some fantastic raffle prizes may follow you home.

Here is a quick draw lesson by Quick Cal a few years back.




And here is a new video by Quick Cal himself with some of the details of Cowboy Fast Draw.

A Bit More Collis Engine

In this video, Gary has the carburetor full, and has primed the cylinder in preparation to starting.  The magneto has an impulse, so he gives the engine an easy pull-through, just like you would do starting an old John Deere tractor.

No Truer Friend

Lucy

Oct. 1996 - Aug. 20, 2013

  Shed a tear for Lucy and her human.  Lucy was part of our blog family.

Today's Bonus

Wayne County, Illinois oilwell chugging along.  Boy was this thing loud!  Put in your ear buds and crank up the volume until it hurts. I was out doing recons and found this Fairbanks 346 (Cubic Inches) banging away. The camera was handy, so I shot some vid for you. The camera can't capture the thump of the exhaust on one of these engines. Your ears will hurt if you stand close. The smell is something you should experience, too. Burn a saucer of powdered sulfur next to a pile of dog doo and you will be pretty close. Note that this engine has two intake valves. I should have noticed that detail years ago, but this is the first time I caught it.

Junk Is Getting Younger Every Day

How To Pack For The Gun Blogger Rendezvous

 This is a re-post from two years ago for folks who are thinking of going to the Rendezvous.  It's still timely.  Sign up and go to Reno! You will have the time of your life!

It's time to make plans for the guns you are taking with you to Reno, and if you don't have experience traveling by air with firearms, you need to do your research.  Firearms can travel with you in your checked baggage, and they will be inspected by both the airline personnel and the TSA.  Your guns must be packed in a hard sided case that locks, and only you can have the combination or keys to the locks.  Your carry on bags cannot have any firearms, parts (such as magazines), or ammo.  Ammunition has to go in your checked bags, and it must be in suitable packaging.  You must declare your firearms when you arrive at the baggage check in counter, and please practice ahead of time saying that you "Have firearms to declare in your checked bags."  Do not be cavalier or try to be funny by being less than businesslike.  The person checking you in may not be familiar with the process, so study the TSA rules and the airline rules before you go.  You probably will find that  the person(s) checking you in are friendly, interested in your guns, and want to converse about them.  If you have to take your guns out of the case for the checkers, be extra careful about muzzle control.  Be obsessive about checking and rechecking that your guns and magazines are unloaded before you go to the airport with your bags.  Ammunition can be packed in the same container with firearms according the the TSA website, but my preference is to have more separation, and to pack ammo in the suitcase.  Suitcases without firearms may be locked only with the TSA locks, and you should expect to have your suitcase inspected by TSA after it leaves your side.  The airlines have a weight limit on the amount of ammo you can carry, so use a good scale and consider carefully how much of each caliber you will need at the range.

The Ruger hard sided cases you see above needed only to have two holes drilled in them so they could be padlocked.  These are a good option if you are bringing only one or two handguns, and they will fit into your suitcase.

 Pelican advertises this as a two pistol  case, but we have found that it can easily transport four.  Each pistol goes into its own homemade denim gun rug, then they are packed into the Pelican, which is secured with two padlocks.  This rig has to go as a separate checked bag, and it will survive all manner of traveling mishaps in baggage handling.  Powder, percussion caps, and primers cannot be taken with you, so if you plan to bring a muzzleloader to the Rendezvous, you will have to pick up your supplies at Reno.

Study these links for more instructions: TSA; Traveling With Special Items,  TSA; Prohibited Items,  Airline Transportation; NRA.

Call the airline you are traveling on if you have any questions, or aren't 100% sure that you are doing everything correctly.  The check in counter is not the place to discover problems, but the entire process is not difficult if you do your research and pack properly.

If He'd Only Had A Cat

Poor old Harry Houdini; he spent a lot of time and effort exposing bogus seance artists who claimed to be able to communicate with those who have passed on. He would have had all the answers to his questions if he had only had a cat that loved him.

Scooter has been gone for many years, picked off by a coyote, but while he was alive, I discovered that he was a telepathic cat, even though I was slow to figure it out. That ability saved his life, twice that I know of. Brat is another cat that can put thoughts into your head, and it seems that he can tell what I'm thinking, too.  How does he know when it's time to wind up the phonograph?

I shot this little video of Nellie in her last few days.  I checked on her every morning and evening, helping her eat and drink, then arranging her on her bed so she would be comfortable.  The last visit, I knew she would be gone in the morning.  She just ate a few bites, and couldn't hold up her head.  Her breathing was shallow, but she still purred when I told her good night.  Ten o'clock that night, I was getting a drink of water in the kitchen and felt a cat rub my leg.  I looked down and no cat was there.  I told Susan that Nellie was gone, and she was.  Love can reach across a great divide.  Jack stuck with me as I buried her. 

Ruger's Auction To Benefit Youth Shooting Sports Alliance

Oh Boy, this is a special one!  This .357 Blackhawk was test fired at the Ruger Factory in June, 1973.  It is one of the very first New Model Ruger single action revolvers, and it has been waiting for you in Ruger's vault for almost forty years.  Ruger's description tells us that it was shipped to S. S. Kresge and returned.  Click Over to Ruger's GunBroker page to read the entire description, and place your bid by mid-day Wednesday of this week.   The bid as I post this is right at the current suggested retail price for a new blue Blackhawk, but the collector value makes it worth something more.  It's for a good cause, so bid until it feels good, and you will be OK whether it sits in your safe or rides on your hip.

Tuesday Turbo

Ragtime Annie calls for a double.

Register Now For Gun Blogger Rendezvous, September 5-8, 2013!

Register at gunbloggers.blogspot.com. 

It's Here Again...

Back To The Old Grind!

Not My Victrola Weekend Bonus

EMG Colonel is posting records like crazy since he acquired an entire collection recently. Here is Rudy Vallee performing the St. Louis Blues.

Collis Engine! A Real Oddity!

Gary Bahre keeps fixing up challenging restoration projects. Folks would walk over to his trailer to watch the 6 HP Titan, and then they would notice the Collis, with its radiator in the flywheel. It got lots of looks, and lots of questions. It was built to serve as power for a binder, to take a big load off of the team of horses pulling the binder. I bet that it wasn't a big success, judging mainly from the way it shakes the trailer. The radiator wants to leak, and if the farmer didn't pay close attention, the Collis would overheat. It's neat, it's rare, and Gary's is the only one that I have ever seen running.

This Blog....

...is not for sale.  Look around at other blogs and you will see that bloggers are being offered the opportunity to turn over posting, make money from advertising, or even sell their blog to another party.  I received that letter, too.  True Blue Sam (the Blog) was started as a recreational blog to post my old record collection, and it has grown to do more, because you can't just post an old record every day.  My wife and I enjoy being part of the gun blogging community, but we are not recognized as a gun blog because ( I think.) we don't have shooting posts as a very high percentage of our posts.  We also enjoy flowers, pets, old machines, forestry, chainsaws, medical things that offer a level of entertainment, old cars, family, vacations, and...etc.  If we turned over the editorial control of this blog, it would cease to exist as we enjoy it, and we like it the way it is.  The Blog, TrueBlueSam.blogspot.com, is going to stay with us until we tire of posting.  We appreciate every hit we see on Statcounter and plan to go on for the foreseeable future.  We offer many thanks to the regulars who click in, and we are fascinated by the hits we see from searches; primarily from brown recluse spider bites.  Keep a snake bite kit handy for those.  Apply within minutes or suffer horrible consequences.

Sam is not my name.  I am David. True Blue Sam the Traveling Man is an old record  by Frank Crumit.  This blog is the best blog with a theme song.  It  is not for sale.

Not My Victrola; a bit early, But What The Heck!

This song kept coming up on the car stereo today as I ran errands, so I found it on YouTube and didn't wait for Sunday.  The American Quartet, with Billy Murray.  You can't miss him.

Weekend Steam: American Thresherman Show, This Weekend!!!!!

Pinckneyville!!!!!!! BE THERE!!!!!!!!!!!! The show started Thursday and goes through Sunday.

The Goldenrod Is...

...Blooming Once Again.  Yes, it's time to haul out one of my annual favorites, because the goldenrod really is blooming once again.  The bees love it, and they put away lots of strong, dark honey from goldenrod that will keep them through the winter.  I tried making tea from goldenrod flowers once, and it will just about close your throat permanently, but I still love to admire it every fall.

 Ironweed adds some variety to the fall color display.

It's Glorious!

We'll do a new record on Friday if Brat is in the mood.

Putt-Putt-Putt-Putt-Putt......

 Fairmont section car engines are a familiar friend if you grew up in the '50's and '60's.  Kids would head to the tracks when they heard the familiar putt-putt sound of the two stroke engine, and it was a thrill when the operator opened up the throttle after passing an intersection. It is not the same listening to a Fairmont run at an engine show, with no load and without the wheels singing on the rails.

The track inspector or section crew rode the platform in the center, and tools, spikes, bolts, or maybe even a new tie rode under their feet.  The faithful little cars could also pull a trailer, when multiple ties or a section of rail was needed.  The handles were pulled out and used to lift the car when it was taken on and off the rails.

A condenser sat atop the radiator.

The transmission is a flat belt drive, very much like the transmission in a sawmill's headworks.  It was simple and dependable.  The cars that came along in the 1970's had an Onan opposed engine with a real stickshift transmission.

Collectors like these noisy little artifacts, and there are several places around the country where clubs can run them on rusty old rails for a few hours of fun and glory.

Take A Break...

...and enjoy the flowers tonight.

In Half An Hour You Will Be A Better Shooter!

Watch Mr. Miculek, listen well, and I guarantee that you will shoot better the next time you go to the range. More of Jerry Miculek's videos can be watched on his YouTube channel.

Tuesday Turbo Boost

Pinckneyville! Coming Up Thursday, August 15-18!

 It's time for the American Thresherman annual show,  beginning August 15,2013.  Pack your bags, grab the family, and load the car!

You will see old gas engines, old tractors, steam engines, sawmilling, and threshing.  There will be a tractor pull, and antique cars, too.  We are looking forward to seeing the latest restorations by Gary Bahre.  He has a couple of engines running now that are guaranteed to turn the other collectors a pretty shade of green.

CLICK HERE to see the flyer for this year's show.   Here are a couple of videos from last year. 

Let's Hope He Listened To Jeff

Virginia,
United StatesComcast Cable (xx.xxx.x.xxx) [Label IP Address]

 True Blue Sam the Travelin' Man: Jeff Quinn Reviews The Ruger 77/357 Rifle!

 www.google.com — ruger 77/357 rifle for grizzly bear hunting #3

 

The .357 cartridge is not a wise choice for grizzlies, whether in a pistol or a rifle.  If you are contemplating one of these fine little Ruger bolt actions, you need to recognize the limitations.  Out of a rifle, the .357 has less power than a 30-30, which is a mighty fine deer cartridge, and a pretty good black bear cartridge.  The 30-30 has killed grizzlies, but if you do a little research you will find that the .30-06 is the minimum recommended for the big bears.  

 

Go revisit Jeff Quinn's review if you have one of these rifles on your wish list.  It is a good close-range deer rifle, and can be loaded down for popping squirrels and rabbits, but big bears need bigger medicine.

Ready Or Not

Back To The Old Grind!

Fun With The Mk III

Not My Victrola

Pianosyncrazy with his 1925 Stroud Duo-Art Player.

Weekend Steam

Kitten engine, theshing at Boonville, Indiana at the 50th anniversary show, July, 2013.

Hey Kids!...

....How many pieces of junk can you count in the landscape?

 And more is waiting in reserve!

Another angle.

Brat and I will crank up the Brunswick on Friday.  Stay Tuned.

Surprised?

Well, you shouldn't be.  The surprise lilies around the old homesite have been popping up every summer for over 100 years.  Cora would have planted these sometime after she and Green Berry bought the farm in 1903.  These flowers are always a joy to see every summer.  You can just barely see a pecan tree behind the chainlink on the left side of the photo. It is well over two feet in diameter, and was a nut poked into the ground in 1945.  The pin oak you see on the right side of the photo is also well over two feet in diameter, and I remember it in 1975 when it was just 1 1/2" in diameter.  Jack is Head of Ranch Security since HeyJoe died last year.  Jack was two years old when he bounced into his compound in '08.  He's smart, brave, and can sleep peacefully with cats walking all over him.

De-Escalate The Situation?

One of Bloomberg's mouthpieces tells us that you should run, fight with your fists, or de-escalate the situation if someone is attacking you with an ax, because it would be wrong to shoot someone if they don't have a gun.  Nettie would argue that, if she could.  Her husband didn't even spend the rest of his life in jail for this axe murder at Gladstone, Illinois.  

The day we were married, the Mrs. told me never to hit her.  I told her that I would never do that, and she said, "If you ever hit me, I'll shoot you."  I bet her daddy told her to say that, but I never questioned her sincerity, and I wish more people could have her attitude and fortitude. 

When someone threatens to hurt you, you might die.  Plan ahead, and act to save your life.

Ruger's Auction To Benefit Youth Shooting Sports Alliance

Ruger's auction this week is an extremely rare 10/22 built as a race gun at the factory.  Ruger's Description:  "We have for auction a 10/22® “Ruger Race Rifle” with a unique serial number, RRR-01192. This rifle was most likely a distributor special as this model did not appear in the Ruger firearms catalogs or price sheets. The rollmark date for this 10/22 is April 20, 2005. The rifle features a brown laminate thumbhole stock with a barracuda-style forend and a black rubber buttpad. Other features include a “Ruger Race Rifle” grip cap, a 20” hammer-forged, target-crowned blued barrel and target trigger. Included in this auction is a 10-round magazine, Picatinny-style scope base, and an appropriate locking device."

This fine rifle sells mid-day, Wednesday, August 7, 2013.  CLICK HERE to visit Ruger's GunBroker page to place your bid.  100% of the proceeds from this auction will go to the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance.

Tuesday Turbo Boost

Ahead Of Its Time

Metropolitans never gained the popularity of VW's, but they were pretty common fifty years ago, and you still run across one every so often. This one was at the Boonville steam and gas engine show. The bad thing about these is the unit body. If they rust out, you don't have much to work with.

The interior looks really good, but that speedometer seems a bit hopeful for the little four-banger. Metropolitans have been popular in movies; not quite as much as Model T's were during the silent era, but pretty close. Do a search for movies with Nash Metropolitans, and you will at least be surprised, if not amazed. I remember seeing a movie on TV when I was a kid, that was located in Berlin, and involved some kind of business with Coca Cola. There was a really wild chase scene through Berlin with one of these, and I remember an East German border guard being handed a bottle of Coke, knocking the top off, and drinking from the broken-topped bottle. The music behind the scene was the Sabre Dance, but darned if I can remember the name of the movie. It was funny then, but I was around ten years old.

Well, what do you know?! They made these with a hybrid option!

Grinding News Pet Owners Can Use Any Day Of The Week

Back To The Old Grind!

Don't Be Like That. Learn To Crank It Right Before You Get Hurt.

We watched these fellows at the summer Boonville show, and we walked away hoping that the engine would start without hurting someone. Tractor magnetos have an impulse, which fires the plug after top dead center when you are cranking, (antique cars have a manual advance/retard lever) but if the impulse doesn't work right, the engine can fire before top dead center and pull your face down into the radiator, or jerk the crank out of your hand, spin around, and break you wrist. Keep your fingers and thumb on the same side of the crank; pull the crank from the bottom of its swing to the top (called a Quarter Turn; 1/4 of the combustion cycle), and stand so your arm will escape the arc of the crank if it jerks loose and spins around. I have been lucky and never had my arm broken when an engine kicked back, and that crank really gets your attention when it spins around like a helicopter. If the engine kicks when you are pushing down on the crank; well, it's going to hurt. Have fun, but remember Safety First.

Don't Shoot, Just Whisper

I parked on the shoulder at the end of the gated driveway.  The gate had a 'Beware of  Dog' sign, so I called the house to ask about the dog before I got out of the truck.  The lady said, "Just talk to them.", so I got out and talked to the dogs.  No problem.  These are Pit/Lab mix, and they were just tickled to death to have a visitor who wanted to talk to them and rub their ears.  I have had close encounters with strange dogs for most of my working years, and I have not been bitten yet.  I have only had one dog who wanted to bite me, and she had puppies on the porch.  I exited stage left and made a safe getaway.  The biggest pet problem I have when calling on landowners is turning down all the cats that want to go home with me.

Part of the weekly news cycle in recent years is family pets being killed by police who are making contact with householders and their families.  Sometimes it's done by cops performing mundane activities like writing  parking tickets; sometimes it's done during a SWAT raid when all the cops are gussied up in protective suits  that would turn most dog bites.  Bloggers complain about these regular abuses of deadly force, but the MSMs don't care, and the trend continues.  It is clearly a cultural problem going on in police leadership all over the country, and I think it began decades ago with the federalization of local and county police departments. Cops have obviously been desensitized to killing our four footed companions; that had to come about through personnel management policies and training. A recent confirmation to that is the discovery of shooting range targets with children and pregnant women.  The targets are being used by DHS to end hesitation in shooting "non-traditional threats."  Given the success that training has had in convincing cops that it is OK to kill family pets, we should be nipping these new training scenarios in the bud, and then rolling back the trend of cops killing dogs.

Not My Victrola: The Way You Should Hear It

Uncle Charlie and His Dog Teddy was recorded several years before the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band did this song, and the song's not complete without hearing Teddy.

Weekend Steam: Boonville, Indiana

The Mr. Completely August e-Postal Match Is Up At Carteach0!

Carteach0 is hosting the August contest, and it appears to be as simple, yet challenging, as the July target.   Click Here to read the rules and to download your target.  Carteach would like to have your scores in by the end of August. 

July e-Postal Scores Are Up At Billll's Idle Mind

The July scores are up over at Billll's Idle Mind (Click); this was Billll's first time hosting Mr. C's monthly shooting match, and it was a good contest.  It was also a first for me, because I finally managed to make all the points on one of my targets (It was close, though).  Good thing for me that Mr. C didn't get one in, because he would have figured a way to make 25 points.

Really big news; my little brother Chester the jeweler has entered his first match, and he did pretty well.  He takes after our mother (Bea) and he shoots a .45.  I see that Danno and his son both shot the match with a Single-Six, a favorite of mine.  I have been neglecting my Single-Six of late because of cataracts.  I shoot much better sighting through glass nowadays, and have been letting the iron-sighted guns rest.  My eyes aren't bad enough for surgery yet, but it is a frustration.  Danno, if you haven't installed a lighter trigger return spring on that Single-Six, unhook one side of the factory spring before your next range session.  Jeff Quinn at GunBlast.com calls it a Poor-Boy Trigger Job, and it will put your trigger pull between 2 and 3 pounds.

The August contest will be up shortly over at Carteach0.http://carteach0.blogspot.com/

Many Thanks, Billll, for hosting a great match!