Not My Victrola: Go To The Range For The e-Postal Contest

Mr. Completely is hosting the first month of his 2013 e-Postal contests, and if you aren't packin' your pistols for the range, you need a little inspiration.  It's been a long winter, without many opportunities to go shooting outdoors, and we are all getting a bit anxious at the True Blue Sam compound to get out and bust some caps.  Have a listen to this old Jimmy Rodgers song, and then CLICK HERE to go to Mr. C's blog for the target and the rules.

Weekend Steam: Accessorize Your Threshing Rig

Click To Enlarge

More steam engine goodies from the American Thresherman Magazine, 1924.

Crankin' It Up: Another Levee Tune

Brat helps out again while we play another of our seven inch disks. I couldn't find Climax records on 78Discography, but another site says that this record is from 1901 or 1902.

'Nuff Already

They're calling for 60° Saturday. Next week we will be complaining about the ticks.

Pine Pain

Here is a common problem if you have to cut pines in a stand of trees. Pines are taller and thinner than hardwoods, and they are not as heavy, so they have more of a tendency to hang in the branches of the trees around them when you are dropping them. This tree was dead, and the only direction to drop it wasn't open; it was only less blocked than any other direction. The first wedging started it over, and it promptly stopped when it was snagged at about sixty feet up. I cut a shim out of the face cut wood and had a second go with a wedge, and pushed it a bit further, then made a thicker pine shim, and pushed it further still, but it still wouldn't drop. The second shim crumbled under the pressure, so I cut a thick shim from a honeylocust that I had just dropped and wedged for a third time. That one pushed the top through the overhead crowns and the pine broke through and crashed. If you have to drop trees during your woodcutting activities, you need to practice cutting tapered shims before you have to use them. Shim grain should stand in the same direction as the tree you are pushing over, and you can cut your shims out of nearby stumps so the wood holds still for you. I like to do a bore cut on the stump, angling the bar upward to create a bit of taper, then cut downward to make the sides; then punch down at the inner end to turn it loose. Keep the good ones you create in your woodcutting kit; you never know when you will need it again.

Historic Moment At The Engine Shed

Susan and I were invited to an exclusive affair at a classified location over the weekend, and we were thrilled to be part of an historic crank-up event. The engine you see the guys fussing over was an incomplete pile of parts just one year ago. Several parts were cast and machined, a magneto had to be purchased, and there has been plenty of cleaning, fitting and assembling. This 6 HP IHC Titan came from Floyd County in Eastern Kentucky, where it was used to power a stone bur mill. Every neighborhood in the hills had a mill where the locals could have corn ground for bread, and for mash to make moonshine. This video is a collaboration. I shot some of it, Susan did, too, and Gary, the engine owner and restorer shot the final part from 2:10 on, where the engine is finally coaxed into firing for the first time in sixty or seventy years.

Ruger's Auction To Benefit Honored American Veterans

Ruger's writeup on GunBroker.com:  "Up for auction this week is a limited production distributor exclusive. The catalog number is 10/22-22, and the serial number is 252-89723. The rollmark date is August 24, 2001. This is a variation of the Deluxe Sporter Model which first appeared in the 1966 Ruger® firearms price sheets. This version of the 10/22® Deluxe Sport Rifle has a solid birch sporter stock without checkering on the forend and pistol grip areas. It is equipped with sling swivels and a black rubber buttpad with the Ruger eagle logo embossed in it. “MODEL 10/22 RIFLE – .22 LR CALIBER” is stamped on the left-side of the receiver along with the Ruger eagle logo. Other features include: a blued 22 inch barrel; folding-leaf rear sight (adjustable for windage and elevation); and gold bead front sight. The frame is drilled and tapped for scope mounts. Also included in this auction is an original instruction manual, yellow cable lock, and a 10-round rotary magazine. It will be shipped in the 50th Anniversary Ruger rifle box it had been stored in. The rifle is being sold “as is.” The purchaser assumes all liability for its safe and proper ownership, storage, use, and resale. It is a part of the Ruger factory collection in Southport, Connecticut and a Certificate of Authenticity will be mailed to the winner of the auction. Note: the winner of this auction will be responsible for paying the Federal Excise Tax."

 100% of the proceeds will go to Honored American Veterans Afield. Click Here to go to the GunBroker page.  This fine .22 rifle will sell mid-day, Wednesday, March 6, 2013.

Feeling A Bit Rough Out Here

 Back To The Old Grind!

Not My Victrola

The winter won't quit this year, and we have had little snow showers going on for the last several days.  We need something peppy and happy to beat back the cabin fever and winter doldrums.






Where'd You Get Those Eyes? (1926) by Ted Lewis and his band; posted by EdmundusRex.

Weekend Steam: A Frick...

A popular term lately has been making me think of Pennsylvania-manufactured steam engines.  We watch the Gold Rush show and they are always talking about Frickin' This and Frickin' That; the Swamp People are always talking about Frickin' alligators, and over on Curmudgeonly, Rodger was even talking about A-frican Elephant.  Well, here is the real deal, from the April 1924 American Thresherman magazine.  It's a Frick 'n Thresher.