Turned out to be a really nice day outside. I hit the gun show this morning and it was actually pleasant. The crowds were gone. I looked around at a leisurely rate as opposed to being shoved through the line. I headed out to the FFL dealer afterwards to pick up the Uberti I purchased yesterday. I bumped into one of the guys from work picking up a gun he bought yesterday from Whitaker's. He lives out  in the sticks where he can shoot right off of his porch. Must be nice. The new pistol is 45LC.  I don't see any wear marks to show that it has been fired at all. It shoots nice, but it seems picky on cartridge lip thickness. Some cartridges seemed to make the cylinder drag slightly. I am going to have to run a reamer through all the primer pockets on the .45 LC from now on. I don't understand why the primers give me grief on the .45's, yet the .38's work flawlessly. The .38 revolver has more slop in it between cylinder and bullet than the .45 does, which does not help matters any. I will reload some during the week where the primer pockets are reamed out to see how they work in the revolver.

Spring spot shoots at the club start up next Sunday already. If the hours at work stay down, I should be able to get my work hours in early as I did last year. It is a pleasant way to get the hours in. Usually setting and pulling targets for several hours. Usually get there early and hit the range prior to the shoot. It is a great time. Got to know a lot of the guys that work the shoot last year, so the time goes by very well. Free soup, coffee and beer for a bonus. Early shoots, the soup and coffee are great hand warmers. This year, I don't see cold being an issue. Have to take my cordless drill out to the club during the week. The backer boards are pretty well shot through. They usually have sheets there ready to put up, but having a drill and screwdriver bit help expedite matters.

Crowded

Got up and hit the gun show this morning. I can't get over how crowded the shows are getting again. Haven't seen them this crowded since Nobama was elected. It was packed. They have a lot of new vendors there. It use to be a show that I hit if I had time. Now, with the new vendors, it is almost as good as the armory show. I saw most of it. I got tired of the crowd and gave up. May hit it again tomorrow if it isn't crowded. I wanted to pick up a couple mags for the M1A and look through the new booths. I saw some interesting books and various other items I was interested in, but when the crowd is pushing and you can't see or search, it is time to leave. One guy brought his twins, in their stroller, and was going down the isle and stopping, bringing the entire isle to a halt. They need a no stroller rule for fools that don't have enough sense not to bring a stroller as wide as the isle to the gun show.

Pick up my Uberti open top tomorrow afternoon. I'll pack the truck in the morning, hit the gun show, hit the FFL dealer and pick up the pistol, then it is off to the club. It is suppose to be in the 50's and sunny. Hope to shoot the M1A and the new .22. After that, try out the .45 open top at cowboy town. May see if the skeet area is open and try out the new shot gun. Did some errands out of the way today. Picked up a pair of slip on steel toe safety shoes. The work boots are killing me by the end of the day. Everyone swears by the safety tennis shoes, but they had a nice set of steel toe loafers that are extremely comfortable and have the no slip soles.

Went back to the butcher today and stocked up a little on some meat. Their prices are better than the grocery store and the quality is alot better as well. Made some ribs and au gratin for dinner. Throw in a little cinnamon apple sauce and some cheesy broccoli, and it was time for a nap. Chilled out for a little while in the afternoon. I picked up a dvd of the best of the Johny Cash show. I remember watching it when I was a little kid. His show had a lot of various musical talent that was just getting started back in the day. Brought back a lot of memories. It had Hank Jr when he was just a kid singing his dad's songs. Bob Dylan,CCR, Waylon Jennings, and many more. Waylon was still clean cut and in a suit.

Sunny weekend

Suppose to be a sunny (but cooler) weekend. Still haven't decided on Indy or the gun club. I hit Whitaker's gun store after work. Their web site showed a 45LC Uberti open top navy revolver. It was used but looks like new at half the price. I can't get it until Sunday. Silly gun laws. I can walk in to a Kentucky gun store and purchase  a shotgun, assault rifle or a Barret 50 BMG(which they have several ready to go) , and walk with it. But, a handgun has to be sent to an FFL dealer on the Indiana side. I really hope one day they can fix it so you can pick up same day. Fortunately, the FFL they deal with comes in on Saturday, picks up all guns sold to Hoosiers during week, and they are available Sunday from 1-4 in the afternoon. I am really happy with my .38 open top, and now I will have one chambered the same as my rifle. It will be nice for the reloads that have a slightly high primer as well. I wouldn't want to feed any bullets with high primers in my lever gun, but if they are almost flush, they will be fine in the revolver. Don't have a problem on the .38's, but for some reason, I occasionally get a few rounds where primer doesn't fully seat on the .45LC's. I wandered around the store until they closed. It is always fun and lots to look at.

I will see what I feel like in the morning. May go to Indy for the motorcycle show, or hit the gun show at the 4H and then the club. I have a few guns I want to try out as well as play at cowboy town for a while. My buddy that was going to go to the Indy show with me decided to buy his new Harley Wide Glide tomorrow. He and the wife are going to go pick it up. Still can't talk him into selling me his soft tail. His wife likes it and won't let him part with it. He had it when they were dating. He does have an old sportster he is trying to sell, but I would rather have something with a little cushion.

Look at the lines......

I headed over to a take out joint yesterday on the way home. I usually cook, but once in a while, it's nice to pick something up. I had to swerve around a traffic backup. That is very unusual around here. I got in the other lane and find the jam is a line. It is a line of cars waiting to fill up at the gas station that hadn't raised it's price yet. Gas made a big jump yesterday.I haven't seen people line up for gas in quite some time. I am curious where the press is. Back up a few years and the press would be screaming and blaming Bush. They would be standing in front of gas stations talking to the people as they fueled up. Have to wait and see how people react as the prices head up more as the weather warms up. Be nice to see Obama in the hot seat at election time. If only the press would step up and hold him to the flames like they did the previous administration every time gas fluctuated.

On the plus side, it hit 68 degrees today. 68 degrees in February.... Go global warming. Suppose to cool off a little tomorrow and for the weekend, but no rain. Haven't decided whether to go to the range Saturday, or to Indy for the motorcycle show at the fairgrounds. They have a gun show at the local 4 H which I can hit Sunday. One more day....

Pictures of the P14

Here is a picture of the Enfield Pattern 14 Edystone rifle I picked up at this mornings auction. It has some dings and wear, but is intact and matching. At first, I thought that the stock had been modified as it has some flat spots on the left side. After doing some research, I found that the flats are the design of the Edystone P14s as well as no finger grooves. The brass tag on the butt is missing and plugged which is common on them. It does have the front volley dial plate intact including the stud the pointer bolts to and it is not ground flush.

I found a source for the pointer as well as a replacement for the rear volley peep site. Enfield had them removed at the arsenal during WW1 when they finally realized volley fire is a thing of the past. I just thought it would add to the authenticity of it's original manufacture. The one web site even offers the original rear volley peeps where you can specify manufacturer so you get the right letter. So the gun will still be all matching.

 The number 4 Mark 1 is in decent shape. I picked it up really cheap and it is nicer than the one I have. I will trade my other one in at the next gun show that has something of interest. It came with the tag where it was inspected and test fired. Really wanted the Krag, but the P14 made up for it's loss and at a real reasonable price. Have to keep an eye on their web site for future auctions. The auction house is a couple miles down the road. They have estate, antique, gun and real estate auctions. I was looking at some items coming up in an estate auction they have in the near future. They have some nice antique furniture. Nice way to spend the morning.

Auction day

Hit the auction this morning when it opened. The Krag was one of the first items. It was only me bidding against one other guy. If I had not been there, the guy would have walked with it for $300 out the door. I may have lost, but he got it at $950. It was in really nice shape, but I wasn't willing to go that high. I did get my P14 that I have been watching for. Out the door for $300. It's not a show winner, but for a hundred year old gun, she looks good. It is all matching and they are hard to come by.Wood is in decent shape as well as the bore. I picked up another #4 Enfield really cheap. It is in good shape, so I will sell my other one at one of the gun shows. I picked a bad time to pick up a burger. They had a K31 up for auction that was in nice shape. I have one so I wasn't looking. I would have bid had I known it would go for $175 out the door. Hunting rifles and shotguns go quicker than military down in this area. I also missed out on a coach gun. It was an American made with the exposed hammers. Really nice looking gun, but I was set on the Krag. Had I known how high it would go, I would have grabbed the coach gun.

 At home for a little while, then it is off to the Ducks Unlimited Raffle. I have been to a couple of the Friends of the NRA raffles, but this will be the first Ducks Unlimited.Usually bump in to people from work and the club at these events. Want to get there a little early to look around. I will definitely hit more of the gun auctions in the future. The auction house is close to my house and there are some outstanding deals to be had.

I don't have to work this weekend,,,,,YEAH

Work went from dead to overwhelming in a day. We have been doing maintenance and cross training since it has been so dead at work. Now all the plants have their 2012 budgets and the work is pouring in. I actually prefer the work load to be on the heavy side. It makes the day go by and you actually feel you achieved something come the end of the day. Management is being stingy with the over time, sooo, I actually get the weekend off. I better enjoy it though as I believe the hours are going to go from forty hour weeks to sixty plus. Overtime doesn't bother me though. Extra money in the bank is always good.

My buddy at work told me of a huge gun auction near my house tomorrow. I went to their website and they have a few guns I would really like. They have a P14 that is showing at a really low price at present.It appears in excellent shape and I have been looking for one that is intact. The last gun show I went to had two, but the stocks had been repaired and they were rough overall. They also have a krag and a m1 carbine I want to bid on. They have a couple nice Garands there. I don't want or need another, but I will tell the engineer at work as he is looking for one. Should be a nice way to spend the day.

If I do have next weekend off, I may hit the Indy fairground as a buddy at work told me next weekend is the annual motorcycle show. A couple of the guys from work are making noises about heading there as well. Keep toying with the idea of getting one again, but the way people drive makes me nervous on four wheels much less two. I did enjoy riding many years ago, but lost my bike in a garage fire and then my son was born. Kind of put an end to that for a long while. May take the motorcycle training course they have near my house so I can ride one again and see if I still feel comfortable on one again. Tried horseback riding last year when the kid was down visiting, and my back and hip would not allow me to participate. Have to see if a motorcycle bothers it or not. I still enjoy looking at them at the shows, same as I enjoy the car shows. I would really love to put togeather an old triumph chopper. I always loved the way the triumphs looked, and the triumph choppers were my favorites.

Butcher worked out well

Cooked up the steak for dinner yesterday. There was a noticeable difference in quality compared to the grocer. I have tried different cuts from the grocer, and have not been happy with any. Steak turned out extra good as I used one of Brigid's recipes off of her blog (home on the range via side bar). She has a recipe for a good rub for the steak and by following her cooking directions, you keep the moisture in the meat. She has a lot of good recipes (as well as great articles) on the site. She could make a great cookbook. I have some sausage I picked up from the same butcher. I will try it in some jambalaya for dinner. Once I have some room in freezer, I will stock up from there. They have some good package deals. It is still cold out, but I plan on hitting the club to try out the new plinker. The range should be frozen enough to walk on now, so I may be able to try the M1A while there as well.

One of my buddies from work dropped by yesterday to check out the dillon press. He is using the same type Lee turret press I had before the dillon. I think he may be adding  a dillon to his wish list. His kid is going through some hard times and moved back home. So his reloading room turned in to  a bedroom. I told him he could bring his supplies over and use my press. It is even set up for the caliber and bullet that he is loading. Might have to adjust the powder bar depending on his powder preference.

Pleasant morning

Headed to the new butcher this morning and hit the local gun shop on the way. He had a decent price on an economical shot gun. It is the Stoeger condor competition with adjustable comb, includes six chokes, and a vented barrel.  It isn't the prettiest gun. No fancy engraving, no gold inlays, but it should do well with skeet at the club and also double for a hunting gun. They also had a nice little plinker. I keep looking at conversion kits for my Smith and Wesson 1911, but for about the same price as a kit, I purchased GSG-1911. Not bad for $300 new. They had it in three flavors. Wood grip (mine), rubber grip, and tactical. The tactical had a rail and came with a fake silencer on it. Looks and feels good. Figure it will be a cheap plinker at the range and cheaper to shoot than the .45 while still being able to practice with a 1911 frame. Checked out their bow selection while I was there. They have an area outside the store where you can try out the bows. I need to do research and try out some of my friends bows before I even think about getting one. Best part of the gun purchase, used part of tax return. It is as if the Obama administration bought me a couple guns : )  That in it self gives me a warm feeling. Have to take pics of the store one of these days to post. It looks like a log cabin in and out. Has a porch with rocking chair placed for people to sit. As I stated, they have an area off porch to try out bows. The owners wife did the decor and did a nice job. It is decorated with deer heads, and rustic cabin decor. The owner and wife bring their daughter in usually. When I bought my .17 hmr last year and used them for an FFL, she was a baby napping in her stroller. Now she is a toddler wandering around the shop. The facility is very nice and family owned and operated. They were selling a lot of guns in the little time I was there. They have a full time gunsmith on duty as well. It is a pleasure dealing with them.

After the gun store, I headed a couple blocks over to the butcher my buddy at work told me about. It is a huge butcher shop. They have and enormous selection of meats, cheeses, wines, beers seasonings, soups, and various other foods. I picked up some sausage and some steaks. When I have more room in the freezer, I will definitely head back to stock up. Their prices are better than the grocers and the selection is a lot better. The girl scouts strategically placed their table of cookies right by the register. So as I write this, I am munching on fudge coated girl scout cookies while spike stares at me waiting for crumbs to fall. Saving the chocolate covered peanut butter ones for later. Gave spike a couple chew treats to keep him occupied for a while. The snow is gone. They have been talking snow all week. We didn't get enough to cover the grass. Just a dusting that was gone by this morning all together. Not suppose to get anymore. May head to the range tomorrow to try out some of the reloads and do a little plinking with the new toy.

Time to relax

Weekend is finally here. One of the guys at work told me about a decent butcher shop in the neighborhood. I use to live half a block from a butcher when I lived up north. I really miss that. My favorite from there were the pierogis. They were made there and a really nice variety.. Butcher down here is just past the Right to Bear Arms gun and bow store, so I will stop in and see what they have on special. Would like to get into bow shooting. Finally got a little white stuff falling from the sky. Just a dusting on the grass. Hopefully be gone by the time the sun comes up. This is my kind of winter. Wouldn't break my heart if I never saw snow again. Some of the kids at work keep hoping and praying for snow.They have the toys to play with in it. We are almost half way through February and I haven't had to break out the shovel yet. I should dig it out of the shed just so I know where it is in case I need it this year.  Got about half my .45 colt loading done yesterday after work. Will try to finish it in the morning. Hope to convert to .38 by lunch time tomorrow. Suppose to be cold all weekend, so reloading sounds like a good use of time. Pop a roast in the slow cooker with some veggies and let it stew all day. Maybe make some cornbread or corn muffins to go with it.

Packages at the door

That was some very quick shipping. I had two packages of bullets sitting on my stoop when I got home. I am still amazed that there are still trusting people out there. I ordered them Tuesday and put the check in the mailbox. Most people wait until a check clears to ship (myself included). It is nice to see there are still people that trust in others in the world. The product looks great. He even shipped me some sample bullets (.38 RNFP) to try out. They are different than the RNFP's I usually get in that caliber as they have a slight ledge on them. I want to see if they feed in my lever gun ok before ordering 1000 of them. His prices are extremely reasonable. I will print out a order form and take it to the club so members can order from him. It will help the supplier out as well as save the cowboy shooters alot of money. Suppose to be cold and slight possibility of snow, so it sounds like perfect reload weather. I want to hit it hard. Hope to load all the .45 colt brass, several hundred rounds of .38, 100 .357 magnum and hopefully set up the .45 acp and get some ran off to try out during the week. Guy at the gunstore I buy my powder and most supplies from recommended running off a small batch and making sure they feed smoothly and that it cycles well. He says sometimes you have to adjust the charge to make sure it ejects properly. This will be the first reload for a rimless round.

Stocking up

Found an online source for lead bullets that come out to about .13 a piece. Way cheaper than I can get them in the store, and it is the same alloy mix. Ordered 4000 of them in three calibers. Should be set for quite some time. I also picked up the conversion kit to run .45 acp in the dillon. I will now be able to load lead rounds for the 1911 to use at cowboy town. Nice to find trusting people in this day and age. I placed the order for the bullets on line. The guy doesn't do credit cards. When I placed the order through the site, he e-mailed back that the order would ship the next day. He isn't even waiting for the check. You don't get that too often any more. Be nice if they arrive by the weekend. Suppose to be cold this weekend, so it is perfect weather for reloading.

I picked up a die plate for the dillon to run 30-06 as well. I have had the dies for some time and have lots of brass saved up. Usually shoot the surplus ammo in the garrand. Would like to try some custom reloads to see how she shoots. Have to do some digging and see what bullets work best. Figure I can use the die plate for 30-06, 308, and 30-40 krag. I don't plan on doing frequent runs on them, so no sense buying separate plates for all of them. The pistol calibers I use enough of, it is smarter to leave them set in their own plates ready to install quickly. Probably set up on .303 brit as well at some point. One of the guys at work gave me some ammo to use in my enfields. He sold his and had no use for it any more.

 Just need to survive two more days at work. It has been soooo slow, the days drag. It is just a temporary lag. When the work hits, we will be buried alive again. Beginning of year usually has a dead spot in the work flow, but this is the longest one we have had. It has given me time to catch up on neglected maintenance issues. Also able to do some cross training on the machines which will help out when things get busy again.

Gun show day

It was a pleasant day. First thing in the morning, I headed to the gun show at the armory. They had some good deals going on. It was one of the smaller ones they have had in a while, but the crowd was HUGE. Parking lot was full. I managed to get a few hundred rounds of .45 colt brass and a few plastic cases to hold the ammo when loaded. Bumped into a few vendors I  usually deal with. The reloader did not bring any lead bullets this time around, so I will have to order some through the net. I picked up some .45 acp brass on the cheap as well. Went over to the rifle case table and picked up a couple long /scoped rifle cases. They are American made and not badly priced.

Next stop, Booneville gunshow. It is a little hole in the wall 4h center in the sticks. It is really small, but generally has some really interesting stuff, as well as some good grub. Had a tenderloin sandwich for lunch and it was excellent. Bumped into the guy in charge of the cowboy shoots at the club and talked to him for a while. He usually has a table at all the gunshows. He has one at both of the gun shows this weekend. His buddy is handling the one at the armory. He does some really nice leather work. He had a couple of nice revolvers for sale as well. He referred me to a couple places on the web for lead bullets for a really reasonable price. I picked up a heavy duty hard double rifle case for sixty bucks. I saw a colt single action out there I may go back for. They had several tables of old military memorabilia as well.

Heading back from there, I dropped off at Buck and Jakes outfitters. It is a decent little gun and archery store. I bought my safe there a few years back. Prices have really gone up. They had a really small safe of the same make I bought for the same price I paid a few years ago. Mine is easily three times the size. I picked up a Lyman reload manual while I was there and checked out their reloading gear. Didn't have any luck finding a scope mount for the M1A. The guy that has the M1A and Garrand stuff wasn't there this show. Maybe next show. A couple more weeks and the local 4H will have their gunshow. May have luck there on the mount. Probably spend tomorrow reloading .45 colt so I can set back up and load some more .38 as I have gone through a lot of it already. The weather has been too nice to stay in. Want to run off some .357 as well. It is nice temperature wise, but very wet. May shoot cowboy town tomorrow, but I am sure the rifle range is way too wet to mess with.

Still enjoying the warmth

Actually worked a forty hour week this week. It's February, in the 60's, and I actually get off in the early afternoon all week and am able to enjoy the weather. Took the Vette out to blow the cobwebs out of it and wash off some of the dust. Suppose to get a little rain over the weekend, but still plan on hitting the range. I have yet to shoot the M1A and plan on it this weekend. They have three gun shows going on this weekend as well, so hopefully I can get more brass for the .45 colt and get a set of dies for .45 acp so I can load lead ammo for the 1911 .  Should be a pleasant and busy weekend. One of the shows is at the armory and I am hoping the guy is there that sells garrand and m1a items. He had a few different scope mounts for the M1A's. He usually has garrand ammo at a reasonable price along with military memorabilia. Reloader there has bullets at a really decent price as well. Going to hit the one out in Booneville as well. Usually bump in to some of the guys from work at that one.

Still in the 60's

Go global warming. It was still 63 when I got off work. Yeaaaah. Came home and cleaned up, then off to the club for some more fun. It is suppose to be in the upper 50's and lower  60's through Saturday. Trying to take advantage of it while it lasts. Today is the club meet \ gun raffle. I dropped my tickets off , shot at cowboy town and got out of there. It is the one meeting everyone shows up at in hopes of winning a gun. Winner need not be present, so I vacated. There are so many people at that meeting, they set up folding chairs and you have to hold your plate in your lap as there is no room to put the tables up. Way too crowded for my liking.

Engineer from work came over yesterday and I demonstrated what all is involved in reloading. I walked him through setting up the dillon and ran off a few rounds. I am letting him have an old single stage Lee loader I had so he can see if he likes it or not. Set him up with an autoprimer , some shell plates , reloading guides, funnel and some miscellaneous items. Gave him the rundown on setting it up and ripped him a copy of a reloading video I have that is pretty good. He brought me some ammo for my Garrand and some .303 for my enfields.

His brother is going to be a member of the club next month. He is the one who had the little kid that liked my Garrand and loves military rifles. Told him to let me know next time they are out there and I will bring some more out for him to see. Kid really likes enfields and I have several I can take out to show him. Figure I can take the sks out as well. He will get a kick out of  the bayonet. I always have my single action revolvers with me, and I let them shoot the little .22 revolver at the cowboy town. They had a blast. They were begging their dad to join the club. A couple more guys at work were brought in last month and this month.

Another guy from work is buying my old Lee turret press, so I am getting rid of some of the old stuff I no longer use and introducing a few of the kids at work to reloading. It is enjoyable and saves a lot of money.One of my buddies from work is suppose to drop by so he can reload some .45 colt for his rifle. His kid lost his job and moved back home, so my buddy lost his reloading room. I am still set up on .45 colt, so it shouldn't take long to reload the brass he has. Might work out a swap. He wants some lead bullets for cowboy town (which I have a box of 500)  and I wouldn't mind trying some hornady bullets to try out to see what kind of groups I can get out of the carbine.