Ruger's Auction To Benefit The Youth Shooting Sports Alliance

Take a DEEP breath before you check out this auction; and you will have to put on your big-boy pants before you up the bid.  This Ruger No. 1 Varminter is attracting collectors with deep pockets, leaving us little people in the dust.  But, it's still worth a look.  100% of the proceeds of this auction will go to benefit the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance, and the hammer falls mid-day, Wednesday, December 17, 2014.

$4530.00

A Little Visit With The Mailbox Engine

We all piled in the family car today and visited our friend Gary Bahre at his engine shed so we could see first-hand his progress on the 8 HP Bessemer.  We shot several pics, and just a little video.  The cylinder  is out for surgery, and it now has a sleeve installed.  The intake and exhaust ports have to be cut, and the rings have to be fitted, then it will come back to Gary.  He has his parts assembled to build a new rod, and that will be happening soon.  Stay Tuned!  It will run again!

Tuesday Turbo Boost

Heavy Duty!

 Back To The Old Grind!

Not My Victrola: Third Sunday of Advent

Weekend Steam: Let's Hop Across To The Isle Of Man!

November e-Postal Scores Are Up At Danno's Blog!

Danno, the November  host for the Mr. Completely e-Postal contest has posted the scores, and my Mrs. is one of the big winners!  Danno and his son still need to shoot their targets, so he is extending the contest until we restart the Postals next spring.  Click Here to see the scores, and if you haven't entered, Click Here to print your target and read the rules. 

Crankin' It Up With Our Old Buddy Brat

Hoodoo Man is a great dance record from May, 1924.  Brat has been in the doldrums of late, and hasn't danced for us in many weeks.  This record got his attention and he marched back and forth half a dozen times.  The record ended, and I discovered that I hadn't pushed the Record button.  Oh Well.  I changed the needle and cranked up again, and the second time I played this record he acted like the Looney Tunes Singing Frog.  Trust me, he liked this one, and you will, too.

The Skies Of 1914

We grew up with images and stories of Great War dogfights and fighter pilots, but in 1914 the airplane was still in its infancy. The Germans flew the Taube until 1916, mostly for reconnaissance missions.  It used wing warping rather than hinged control surfaces, but it had a 6 cylinder, 120 HP Mercedes up front.  Its maximum speed was only 62.5 mph, and of course it did not have an electric starter like this reproduction airplane has.

I was first exposed to the Taube in an old Geographic magazine from the Great War era, and it is a picture that sticks in your mind with its bird-like wings. Robert Service even mentioned it in the afterword to his book Rhymes Of A Red Cross Man.

Once more within the sky's deep sapphire hollow
I sight a swimming Taube, a fairy thing;
I watch the angry shell flame flash and follow
In feather puffs that flick a tilted wing;
And then it fades, with shrapnel mirror's flashing;
The flashes bloom to blossoms lily gold;
The batteries are rancorously crashing,
And life is just as full as it can hold.

Ruger's Auction To Benefit The Youth Shooting Sports Alliance

This week's Ruger is a spiffy Stainless SP101® in.38 Special that would go great in your waistband, or in someone's Christmas stocking.  The price isn't going too wild, so CLICK OVER to Ruger's Gunbroker page and have a look.

100% of the proceeds of this auction will go to benefit the Youth Shooting Sports Alliance.  The hammer falls mid-day, Wednesday, December 10, 2014.

$855!!! This gun is still in Ruger's catalog, and the suggested retail price is $659, so you could probably buy one of these new for under $600, plus sales tax.  The purchaser of this auction item also has to pay the Pittman-Robertson tax, which is based on the distributor price when the gun was built. Well, People's Good.