Could You Make This Shot.....With A Pistol?

September is winding down and next Wednesday night is the deadline to submit your targets for Mr. Completely's contest. If you haven't shot your entry yet, CLICK HERE, or on the squirrel in the left sidebar to go to the rules and to download your target. This month you get to use an improvised rest to shoot your target, and compare how well you shoot offhand to how well you can shoot when you steady your arms. Pistol contestants will shoot two targets, one at 25 feet offhand, and one at 50 feet with an improvised rest. You may also enter in the Rifle Category by shooting one target at 25 yards with an improvised rest for your rifle.

Print out a stack of targets and take some friends with you. Do you know a youngster who would like to shoot? Take him/her to the range and turn a shooting lesson into an adventure. Set aside some time this weekend; you know you need the practice, and it's fun.

No squirrels were harmed in the making of this target.

UPDATE!!!!! The contest is extended through the first weekend of October! Get Out And Shoot!

Bring A Sharp Saw

This young silver maple has a couple of problems. At about four feet from the ground it forks into three stems, which are not growing together, but are pushing on each other as they grow.
At some time in the future this tree will fail, and one or more of the tops will come down. The fork problem can easily be fixed if some judicious pruning is done before the tree grows any larger. Two of these stems need to come off, and it would be nice if they had come off a couple years ago.

The other problem is the house that is only about forty feet away. Silver maples have very weak wood, are relatively short-lived, and they like to grow about ninety feet tall, then fall apart. I advise homeowners to not plant a silver maple within 100 feet of their house in order to prevent big removal expenses in the future.

The homeowner in this case needs to decide whether to fix the tree or remove it entirely and replace it with a more durable, long-lived shade tree. I may check back in a few months and see if the homeowner was able to make a decision.

Model Engines On Display At Pinckneyville

On of the fascinating displays you will see at most engine shows is the "Model Maker." Bob Suhre, of Collinsville had some drop-dead-gorgeous models he was running for the gratification of show attendees this year. His lovely and patient wife can be seen in the first shot of the red V-8. I had a nice visit with her; I never could get a turn to speak with Bob.

Ruger Keeps Making News!

Ruger has been rolling out new models regularly of late, with the target Mini-14, a pocket auto (LCP), and a partly polymer snubby .38 (LCR) coming to mind. Recently they announced their version of an AR, which is featured in the new American Rifleman. This morning I see on the Firearm Blog that their old reliable 10-22 has been reformatted into a black rifle. Click over there to read all about it, but be warned that a case of gun-itch may attack you.

Today's Wedgie

We got an order in from Bailey'sLogging Supply today. We find that we use wedges not just for cutting trees, but in fitting new parts into the old barn. They are very handy persuaders.

Diversity!

This is a sight that will gladden the heart of any shooter/gun lover. It is a shooting bench at the Washoe Shooting Range during the Gun Blogger Rendezvous IV, arranged by Gun Blogger Extraordinaire, Mr. Completely. This collection has single action revolvers in .22 LR and .22 Mag, .45 ACP and .45Colt, .44Magnum, a single shot TC Contender in .222 Remington, plus semi-autos in .22, .380 ACP, and .45 ACP!

This photo is from The Packing Rat's blog, where you can see photos from all four days of the GBR IV (Click on 'Readthe Rest of This Entry' on the posts for 'GBR Days 1-4' on The Packing Rat's blog), which raised $8243.80 to benefit wounded service men and women. It is a great annual event, and a great bunch of people who go to GBR. Visit the Mr. Completely, The Packing Rat, Anthroblogogy, Ride Fast and Shoot Straight, Traction Control, Say Uncle, and Snowflakes to learn more! These sites and other gun bloggers are all listed in left column.

Not My Victrola

"At The Jazz Band Ball" was just posted by bsgs98 (I got the second play!), and it's a great tune to help you shake a leg and get out the door on Monday morning. There is a great slide show with it, so take a few minutes to watch.

Ready Or Not, Here Comes Monday!

Back To The Old Grind!

Weekends Here Are Very Predictable

Fall is approaching and we are pushing ahead so we can have siding in place on the barn before the weather turns awful. We had this timber in place this evening, and will have it fastened and tied in tomorrow. We worked a new floor joist in under the front of the oat bin, so things are really falling into place now. I should get some new bracing in tomorrow, and soon we will be putting up boards to nail our siding on. You don't have to be crazy to work here, but it doesn't hurt.

Weekend Steam

The "Marshall Corliss" used to pump water for the city of Marshalltown, Iowa. Midwest Old Threshers acquired this beauty in the late Sixties, and it is the largest steam engine in the machinery building at Mt. Pleasant. Taking pictures is usually difficult because of the crowds moving through the displays, but EJ and I got lucky this year and were able to take lots of photos and video just before the engine was shut down for the night.

The valve gear is what makes this a Corliss. The valves rotate rather than slide as in a conventional steam engine, and the quick cutoff of the intake valves is the throttling mechanism. EJ may do a post about this valve gear some day and fill in all of the necessary technical details.