No Smokes, No Guns...

Beer is next folks.

I was an avid follower of The Winston Cup.  It became increasingly difficult to watch the races when it became The Sprint Cup and the rules changed, and changed and changed...

I didn't care that a tobacco company sponsored the races.

NHRA about died when Winston was forced out.  It became almost impossible to find the damned races on the TV.

NASCAR is much the same deal.  What channel is it on?  What DAY is it on?

Pretty soon I stopped bothering to try finding the race.

That was when I stopped being a fan.

The tracks have been taking seating out for the past few years to make the remaining stands appear full to the cameras.  Attendance is down.

For years they've been chasing "fans" who will tune in or go to a race for the novelty, but aren't the sort of folks who become vested in attendance or viewing.

FFS!  I used Penzoil in my car for years because Eddie Hill was sponsored by them.  I'm willing to support the sponsors of the teams I like.

I don't particularly care for Budweiser, but I'd buy a 12 pack occasionally to toss a bone at Jr.

But now...

I stopped caring a long time ago.

It's the increasing catering to a market that isn't going to support the sport until it's dead.

A death it deserves.

Guess What Doesn't Fit The Hole

I test fit the puller against the hole in the pilot bearing.

It doesn't go in.

That's a problem.

I am inching ever closer to getting a dowel and grease.  I am not happy about that, it's a pain in the ass way to do this.

UPDATE:  I goofed around with the puller and the new bearing and figured out how to get both jaws through the hole.  DUR moment.

I, For One, Am Shocked

The Army lowered standards to allow females to pass Ranger training.

It's one thing to allow women to make the attempt using the same standards as have existed for a long time.

It's quite another to change the standard for the women to keep them from failing.

After a certain date, the Ranger tab is meaningless.

I suspect that they will have an increasingly difficult time attracting the kind of people you WANT to be a Ranger in the future if heads don't roll so hard they bounce.

GURPS vs Reality

In-Range has been comparing the battle rifles.



The have three targets at 10? yards.  1 shot into target A, 2 shots into target B, 3 shots into target C; magazine is empty, reload; 4 shots into target B, 5 shots into target A.

At timestamp 17:09 there's the table showing the results.

If you can read these weapons' tables, you'll see that there's not that much difference between all the guns.

10 yards is -4 to hit.  The fastest this can be run in GURPS, without special talents and techniques, is 1 turn for each target for the first three targets, 3 turns for the reload and 2 turns each for the last two targets.

10 seconds.  The M4 they used as a baseline does it in 10.48 seconds.

But watching the video, there's some stuff going on that deserves mention.

Several shooters are taking more than one second on the third target.  With a Rcl of 3 you need to make your roll by 6 to get all three rounds on target, but only make it by 3 to get two.  Two rounds then one round gives a lot better odds of making that shot.  The Rcl 2 of the M4 and AK74 mean you only have to make it by 4 to get all three on target.

Everyone appears to be making the hits, so a skill of at least 15 is at work.  Nobody appears to be taking the time to get the Acc bonus.

The reload time of (3) for all of these guns appears to be just wrong.  They state that the difference in time between the M4 and the AK74 was the magazine change time.  The AR has an excellent magazine well for dropping the old and inserting the new and the AK doesn't lock open.

They showed fumbles with reloading the FAL and the G3.  With the G3 obviously needing an extra second, or more, of ready action to work the charging handle because it doesn't lock open when empty.

I could see changing the reload time on a rock-n-lock magazine to (4) if it locks open and (5) if it doesn't.  Then adding a "bad magazine well" penalty of an additional turn as well, but allowing for someone who takes the time to become intimately familiar "buy" that penalty off; because I've experienced being unable to get the magazine into my FAL until I practiced a LOT with it.  Willard even gives me shit about it when I've let this skill lapse.

I also noticed that nobody seemed aware of the bolt release on the FAL.  That would have sped things up a bit too.

Outside Looking In

Dorian has shifted enough that where I live is outside the cone of probability.

While it could shift back, that's increasingly unlikely.

Harvey reports that the stores and gas stations are still swamped with people buying their preps.

It's like they didn't even check the latest reports before continuing to panic.

Wrong Thread Sir

JT, in an ongoing series of generosity, stopped by to loan me his slide hammer.

How can you tell it's my project?

The threads on the puller don't match his hammer.

SIGH.

AutoZone likely has the matching hammer, because that's where I got the puller.

I'm just so entirely unmotivated today.

My Cooked Clutch

I cannot blame anyone but myself.

I bought the car new, I'm the one who broke it in and have done all but (maybe) 25 miles on the odometer.

I think the problem was two-fold.

First, this was my first manual in over ten years.  I had to relearn how to drive one.

Second, the underpowered cars I was accustomed to, and where I learned to drive stick, probably taught me some bad habits.

I've noticed that, over the years, my shifting had gotten smoother and I was anticipating the correct gear for my speed better...

Alas, I fear the damage was done early on and nothing about glazing the clutch gets better with more driving it.

Live and learn.

At least I am spared the lecture from the mechanic, while I'm forking over $3,500, about how I baked the thing.

One thing about fixing what you broke yourself is you get to be as recriminating as you'd like while spinning the wrenches.

I Fucking Hate Liars

Remember this post?

Finally got the package today.

Parcel select ground is not priority mail.

Cultrag lies.  Do not do business with them.

40 Years

Forty years ago today, the most powerful man in the world was laid low by a moist leporid.

Poop

The tool I bought/rented from Autozone to remove the pilot bearing is merely an attachment for a slide hammer.

I don't have a slide hammer.

Dangit.

Only One Part Left To Remove

The roller pilot bushing is all that remains to be removed.

Here's the surfaces which have been squeezing the clutch disc...

There's still a bunch of friction material left on the clutch disc.  I'm not going to reuse it, mind you, but it appears to have had lots of life left.

News From The Lucky Coast

Both the Euro and GFS models pretty much agree that Dorian is going to skip North once it hits Florida's spine; sparing the Gulfcoast from most of the wind.

Fingers crossed!

I Will Beat You Like The Red Headed Step-Child You Are!

Got the bell housing off!

I had to drop the front sway bar to get access to the front bolts of the engine cradle.  Then had to raise the engine a bit to get one bolt.

Anybody know what all this writing is?

I notice that the yellow springs have a mark on the body of the pressure plate and a tab the same color.  The tabs have moved about 1/4" from that mark.  I don't know how much wear that corresponds to.

No signs of leakage from the slave or rear main.

JT brought over his scissor jacks instead of the $50 a pop bottle jacks neither of us has.

Proof of JT:

I feel ever so much better now that this part of the tear down is done.

Resentment And Gratitude

First off, I am getting sick of buying tools for this job that I've never needed before and will, more than likely never need or use again.

I hate that.

Second, I am getting sick of the one step forward two steps back nature of how this car is put together.  Oh, you wanted to get at that screw?  Remove the entire (name of giant assembly)... but first! remove two more giant assemblies to get that one out.

While I'm happy that I'm saving like $2,200 in labor, it's cost me two weeks of time.

While tools pay for themselves, that's only true if you get a second use from them.

Third:  JT is a fucking SAINT and his voice of reason and assistance is saving both my sanity, car and the garage.  I think if I was truly on my own with this I'd be up on arson charges.

Took A Stress Day

My plate is full and it's not getting cleared.

Waiting on a part.

Figuring out how I wanna lift the car.

Waiting on a helper for when I lift it.

Watching Dorian.

And the lawn needs mowed.

If You Want Excuses

Then Cultrag Performance is the company you want to buy from on ebay!

Notice the guaranteed delivery date.

When it didn't show up yesterday, I asked them, "Well... your listing says, "Guaranteed delivery Mon, Aug 26".  The tracking says it may or may not actually be at the post office in Lenhartsville, PA.  The mail just arrived here, and no shifter.  How do you intend to resolve this?"

They replied, "Good morning, We do not offer guaranteed shipping through usps as it is not a guaranteed service.? That is some ebay thing where they give you a coupon or something, it has nothing to do with us?"

Except, they're the one who set up the sale on Ebay and selected the guaranteed delivery date option THEN decided to use USPS as their shipper.  In fact their ad still shows a guarantee!

It does have something to do with you Cultrag.

Especially since their current ad for the part includes a guaranteed shipping time!

Procrastinating Or Giving Up

There's a strong temptation to just put the driveline back in and put off the clutch for a later day...

It's a stupid temptation to avoid struggling with two or three screws.

Also, to every automotive show and magazine who did a video on how to do a clutch swap:

You did it on a C5, not a C6; you simply decided it was similar enough and marked the vid C5/C6.

Well, Skippy, the bell housing on the C6 has to come off where the C5 just needs the inspection cover removed.

That's enough of a difference that a "this is how we got to all 8 bolts" would be very helpful to us C6 owners.

The service manual's "lower the engine cradle 25mm or about an inch" doesn't really inspire optimism.  Though I am willing to give it a shot.

That'd require a second jack and resetting the car on all four jack points so the cradle can come down.

It'd be a huge bother and definitely need a second person.

A couple of write ups don't mention lowering the engine, and do mention it being a pain from the wiring harness blocking the topmost screw.

Just Can't Face It

Assessed the bolt locations of the bell housing earlier.

Two of them look like a real pain, so I'm procrastinating.

Reference

On occasion I use the line, "I, alone, and with only one spur..."

It's from Mage: The Hero Discovered by Matt Wagner.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mage_(comics)

On Unions

This is related to my battle with The Precious...

Everything on the car is clearly meant to be easily assembled.

Getting it apart?

Not so easy.

Why might this be?

Union labor.

WHAT? you ask?

Say you're GM and the UAW goes on strike for a 20% raise.  While they're striking you're not manufacturing.  No building the cars, no cars to sell.

So you agree to give them their raise and now you've got to figure out how to get, at least, 20% more productivity out of them to make it worth paying them 20% more.

So you hire engineers, whom you will reward with layoffs when the unions notice you haven't been funding the pension plan fully, to design parts which require very little time to assemble.

These parts you have made off-shore, where there aren't unions but there are skilled craftsmen to to the tedious subassemblies.

So you end up with a car that snaps together and can use just about anyone who can remember to breathe and can stand unassisted for a whole shift.

But that comes at a price.

Simplifying the assembly means that it can likely be automated.  Go ahead and strike.

00011010001 is a machine.  It doesn't get pissed off.  It doesn't get happy, it doesn't get sad, it doesn't laugh at your jokes.  It just runs programs.  It can’t be bargained with. It can’t be reasoned with. It doesn’t feel pity, or remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, it just runs programs.

Alone

I, alone, and with just one spur...

More than one write up thought to mention to make sure the return of the jet-hose terminated in the cup at the bottom of the pump housing.

I was pretty sure I had not.

So I dropped the tank again.

Did it in record time.  51 minutes from start to finish!  I barely even cussed!

Sure enough, I'd had it outside dumping into the tank itself.

I'm not sure it would have done any harm out there, but...

The Tank Is In

Driver's side tank is returned to its comfy abode in the fender.

The tank-crossover pipe put up one hell of a fight that turned out to be me missing something minor.

There's a snap connector for the evap system that can fall down on top of the tank connector and keep the collar lock from getting all the way flush.

We taped the offending line up out of the way and got it to where we could turn the collar and lock it down.

What we were worried was happening was I'd gotten one or more of the FOUR o-rings in the wrong order or something.

For the record:  Install them in this order.  Dark green, yellow, small black plastic retainer.  The large black plastic retainer goes on the snout of the crossover and seats when the collar locks.

Pic from this thread https://www.corvetteforum.com/how-tos/a/c6-c7-corvette-how-to-replace-the-fuel-filter-368703

In over 20 videos of someone doing this job not one person has recorded doing it where you can see what's going on.

I am not a videographer.

I am worried about things that I cannot readily check.

Is the jet line from the passenger side to the driver's side going where it's supposed to?  You can't really see what your doing when routing this.

The Tank Is Out

It was completely full of gas, thank goodness JT was here to help.

We transferred the gas to Harvey's car.

Slimy varnish coated tank flange...  Evidence of fuel pooling in the support tray.

Crack in the exit elbow.

This is the absolute worst fuel pump swap I've ever had to deal with.

First, the opening is exactly the same diameter as the pump.

No allowance for flexing at all, which meant that we had to literally destroy the assembly to get the damn thing out of the tank.  There's a cup encompassing the bottom of the assembly which is held by three tabs and clips.  These tabs tend to catch on the tank opening and unclip.  This makes the assembly the wrong shape to get out the hole.  This came up later with the NEW pump too.

The siphon line that runs from the drivers side tank (this tank) to the passenger side tank has to be removed from the pump assembly while you've got it about half-way out.

The siphon line is what runs the venturi pump on the passenger tank.  Pressurized gas is run from the line that attaches to a fitting on the pump over to the passenger side.  The other line just dumps back into the driver's side tank from the effects of the venturi pump.

These lines need to be attached to the pump assembly when you have it about halfway back into the tank.  Remember those tabs?  While maneuvering the assembly around to get the lines attached they tend to disconnect.  UGH.  Luckily, you can get them snapped back on by dropping the lines and shoving the assembly down to the bottom of the tank.

Oh, to get the lines up to their locations on the pump assembly?  You need to attach a wire or something to fish them up into the open center of the assembly and do a LOT of fiddling around to get them lined up and connected.

All of this without tangling them up in the wire for the level sender.

This is a stupid design.  The engineer who designed this should be forced to do R&R's of their design in Hell.

But we have the tank back together and we should be able to get it back in the car tomorrow.

Thanks to GM putting a priority on assembly, most of the frustrations from today should be simply clicking things together.

It's Out!

What's the hardest part of getting this done?

The fucking parking brake cables!

They have a clip system that requires it to be compressed 360˚ around the clip, but only gives access to like 48˚.  So you end up taking the cables off at the calipers instead of the body.

Stupid design decision.  AGAIN.

I am so sick of modern cars.

I am seriously wondering if I can sell the Vette for something like a 72 Chevelle or Nova and swapping in an LS3.  Ditching all of the design decisions which center around ease of assembly at the factory has a great deal of appeal.

It's Beer! Hurray BEER!!

2017 Hunahpu's from Cigar City.

Innocence Lost

Reading Mr Garabaldi.

To everyone who tells me it doesn't matter when I get pedantic about a word here and phrase there:

When you let someone else define the words, you lose the ability to say what you mean.

We're rapidly moving to a point where there's going to be no way to innocently express many things.

There will be no way to express pride about being an American because "nationalist" will mean racism.

There will be no way to be white because to be so is to be forever tainted by people whom you've never met because they have been dead for over 100 years.  Likewise, the people they wronged have been dead just as long.

It's guilt transmitted by conditions beyond the control of the person being shamed.

I am an American by happenstance of birth.

I am white by happenstance of birth.

I am guilty of being a racist, not through action or inaction, but because I was born as I am.

I hate to break it to the people selling this shit, but that's racist.  Actual, bonafide racism.  I know who the bigots are in this conversation, and it's not me.

Always remember:

If you cannot say what you mean.  You cannot mean what you say.

Getting There

Get rear of car about 6" higher.  That means getting some scrap 6x6.

Disconnect clutch master from slave.
Disconnect all three harnesses from the transmission.
Disconnect both transmission cooler lines.
Disconnect rear brakes.  I just discovered that I don't have metric line wrenches.  1524 update: Done!
Remove upper rear shock mounting screws.
Remover rear upper a-arm bolts.
Remove torque tube to bellhousing bolts.  1524 update: Done!
Disconnect parking brake.
Disconnect body to cradle ground strap(s).  1524 update: Done!

Included With Amazon Prime

Willard and I recalled a TV show yesterday.

Crime Story.

You can watch it on Amazon Prime for no additional cost.

It's wonderful Michael Mann stylized cop show, plus Dennis Farina (RIP) is rarely a bad thing.

Keep On Lifting Me

Yellow jack-stand at previous lift.  Black jack-stand at new lift.  Thanks for the loaners, JT!

This took a ton longer than it was supposed because I had to wrestle an 8' section of 6x6 into The 'Nox, then unload it, then cut it into the sizes I need.

It's currently 89˚F, 67% humidity for a RealFeel® of 101˚F.

I'm gonna take me a break.

Yeah, incentives are important. I learned that in rehab.

Tomorrow's punch list:

Get rear of car about 6" higher.  That means getting some scrap 6x6.

Disconnect clutch master from slave.
Disconnect all three harnesses from the transmission.
Disconnect both transmission cooler lines.
Disconnect rear brakes.
Remove upper rear shock mounting screws.
Remover rear upper a-arm bolts.
Remove torque tube to bellhousing bolts.

That should have me ready for JT to come over and drop this thing out of the way!

Today I gathered parts.

I now own a creeper.  I can't believe how many years I've been wrenching without one.

Oh, and I managed to get the lawn mowed and the door to the shed fixed!

Aghast

You know a part is expensive when the price manages to shock the parts counter guy at the stealership.

$23 per exhaust gaskets that go between the manifold and the cats.

No Two Alike

The only thing they all have in common is being centerfire and lever action.

They don't all share magazine configuration.

They don't have a common cartridge.

They all three lock differently.

The oldest designed is the newest made.  Despite the nearly five decade span from the oldest gun to the newest gun, the designs aren't even 30 years apart.

The oldest design is the 1873, which dates from 1999.
Next oldest is the 30AS... sort of.  The 30 is derivative of the 336 which dates from 1936, but it is derived from the 1893.  Mine was made in 1985.
The "newest" design, dating from 1899, is the Savage 99EG, made in 1951.

The '73 locks with a toggle joint, the Marlin with a rising block the Savage with a tilting bolt.

Madness!

And variety.

Some Good News For A Change

Good Guy with gun returns fire and kills domestic abuse suspect.

He was carrying while mowing his own lawn.

It never happens when you expect trouble.

Being Frugal

My shifter is going to fail soon.

The rear bushing has lost its seal.

The boot is disintegrating.

The replacement has turned out to be something of a quest.

I found two part numbers that seem to correspond to my car.

25827727 and 24279574.

Depending on what site you go you will find that either number is correct or incorrect.

SIGH

So I went to the stealership and asked them to look it up, they use my VIN to get a match.

25827727 is correct.  It's the part that my car came with.  It has been discontinued.

24279574 is also correct!  It's the latest version of the shifter.

Now the fun really begins.

Searching for the first part number got me a hit on ebay for the second part number.  It says that it fits 2005 to 2019; that's both C6 and C7.  I notice that the seller is a dealer I've bought parts from before; so I go to their site.

24279574 is listed as fitting just 2014-2018 there (C7).

Even MORE fun!  The prices are different.  Buying from ebay is $169.99 with free shipping.  Buying direct from them is $181.41 plus $12.04 shipping.

You might ask, "why not aftermarket?"

Hinson ($329.00) Hurst ($281.64) and B&M ($288.30) both have replacements for the shift lever, this addresses the failing boot.  They do not address the failing rear bushing.

MGW ($369.00) addresses both the rear bushing and the failing boot.

All the choices let me keep my spiffy white shift-ball.

The thing is, I'm not unhappy with the stock shifter.  They really did make it light-years better than the 2007 and earlier versions.  And it's $200 cheaper than the aftermarket that addresses the same problems.

PB Blaster FTMFW!

The PB Blaster broke up whatever was causing it to stick just enough to get a little bit of a wiggle on the pipes and that let them walk off the muffler pipes.  This is with me laying flat under the car with the front end of the x-pipe supported on my toe-tips and pushing on the flanges for the cats.

Now to get the tunnel plate out...

Stymied

Got the X-pipe separated from the cats at the front end.

Loosened the clamps to the mufflers at the back end.

Yup.  Them things is stuck.

I can't get enough wiggle on them by my lonesome to get them to start walking off.

It's little things like this which are the most frustrating.

I've soaked the joint with PB Blaster in the hopes that it will work its magic and loosen them.

Fly Be Free!

Every step is a step closer.

She's in the air!

Exhaust bolts are soaking up some PB Blaster to prevent stud breakage like when I had to do the starter.  That sucked!

It Has Begun

Got the center console out.

Shifter removed.

It's toasty in the garage, so this is getting done in small steps.

One thing about getting the console out was being able to replace the falling apart cup holder door.

Weight And Cost Per Shot

50gr .25 NAA ball ammo is 0.014 lb. and $1.01 per shot.

Please amend your ammo tables accordingly.

Teeny Bottlenecked Rare

.25 NAA between .357 SIG and .25 ACP.

Isn't it CUTE?

It's a lot of effort to get two extra points of damage over the .25 ACP round, but quite a bit more range.

1d pi- 90/950 for .25 ACP vs. 1d+2 pi- 140/1,600 for .25 NAA.

What Do We Want

I am discovering while trying to write a piece on "What Do We Want The Police To Be" that much of what I dislike about cops is shared with many other public employees.

There's always a union.

That union is always active at the centers of government.

They nearly always advocate for more money, more benefits, lower accountability to the communities and having to do less of what the community expects them to do.

Quite often they stand opposed to initiatives we non-union, non-public employee folks are trying to get passed in our own interest.

I worry about hearing another argument from these groups which boils down to, "it will make our jobs harder," out of fear of an aneurysm.

Nailing down the pay and benefits is like hanging a picture frame made of jello.

Starting salary of $41k sounds low until you factor in the 100% covered medical and no employee contribution pension plan.  That medical plan is a benefit that has a value, and it's large.

It's also nearly impossible to get quantified honestly because the people selling it obfuscate like they're playing Vampire the Masquerade.

I am frustrated.

I know, but am having trouble communicating, what I want teachers and cops to be.

I know what we have is not, on the whole, what I want.

I am aware that hardly a single person benefiting from being a public employee seems to be aware that their benefits packages are lavishly generous.

If you're 60ish, have never worked outside the public sector, are collecting two (or more!) retirement checks and are complaining about paying more in taxes than most people get in salary before taxes, health and retirement get taken out: you are not equipped to understand what I am saying.

Perhaps we would be a bit less bitter if the services rendered showed an improvement in kind with the increases in costs.

Dear Mayor Of Philadelphia

You need gun control to keep guns out of the hands of felons?

Uh...

You've had the felon who shot up your officers in custody several times and you didn't charge him.

This is a classic example of the trite phrase, "We don't need gun-control, we need criminal control."

If you'd charged, tried and convicted this guy even once on the arm long list of things you dropped the charges for, he'd have been in jail and not selling drugs out of a house in Philly.

I haven't seen this level of ignore the criminal since Parkland.

Good/Bad News

The ebola outbreak is of a great deal of concern.

The lifesaving treatment appears to just save your life, it doesn't (at this time appear to) save you from the aftermath any survivor suffers.

That's the bad news.

The vaccine they're experimenting with appears to actually work.  There's some caveats but it does work on two strains, that should provide the groundwork for other strains as well.

This NY(S)Times article from a while back kind of explains why a vaccine took so long.

The crux of the long delay in making a vaccine seems to boil down to, "It's happening a long way from here to people we don't know or care about."

Now that it's looking to be increasingly likely that it can happen here and to someone we know and care about... suddenly there's money for research and results have been happening.

That's actually good news.

Fingers crossed.

Aesop has a LOT more on the topic, and it's not a fun, optimistic, sunny read.

I'm the sunny optimist here.

This Is Your Fault Chuck

I hope you're proud of yourself, Senator Schumer.

AR500 has their Tetsudo Gen 2 with two Level III plates on sale for 41% off.

In 12 weeks or so, a coyote brown model will show up here for me to check out, wear a couple of times and toss in the gun closet.  It will go nicely with the PASGT vest in there.

I'll be buying some pouches and possibly configure it to replace the 5.11 Tactical Purse for hurricane looter prevention.

I didn't even want one until Chuck suggested that "advanced" body armor be banned.

Matching

I'm just delighted that I finally have a long gun and a pistol in the same caliber.

In centerfire anyway...  For my rimfire combination see here.

Coincidentally, in addition to them both being in .45 Colt, they're also both "1873's"!

Big And Little

Finally got a belt for my EMF New Dakota (Peacemaker clone).

I ordered a new holster too, but I think it suits Harvey's Pietta Outlaw Legacy better.

The .357 belt and the holster I am using were originally bought for a Ruger New Model Blackhawk, long since traded away.

Fundamental Misunderstanding

I've read much of what the founders wrote about what they were thinking when they founded our republic.

One thing is clear.

When they refer to something as a right it is something that exists independently from a government.  Rights are inherent.  Imbued upon us by our creator as it were.

It's also clear that such things were never meant to be subjected to a vote.

This also ties into why our government is a republic not a democracy.

They knew, too well, that democracies tear themselves apart.

So do republics, but they're more resilient.

So, news organizations with your polls saying that a large majority of people support infringing on a right:  So what?

Rights aren't subject to votes.

Since liberals be lovin' that free speech, you might notice that some pretty foul things are protected speech.  You work around the filth.

Guns are the same thing.  The secret the press is keeping is that gun deaths are down in the murder side of the ledger, suicide is still pretty constant.  Despite the spectacle of mass shootings, it's still safer this year than last.

Never mind that there are a lot more guns and gun owners now than in the late 80's when crime was much higher.

Price Too Low To...

Answer the phone?

CDNN fired off an email telling me they have the commercial version of the M17 at a price "Too low to print - call".

So I called.

15 rings later...  I disconnected.

SIG's got some serious minimum advertised price rules!

I got curious because there's a guy trying to sell his on Arfcom.

He says he put 50 rounds through it.

The P320-M17 is so sweet, he fired one box and is done with it.

I am wondering if the too low to answer the phone price is lower than the 50-shot-on-the-clock used gun.

Then I wonder why I'm curious.

I've no nostalgia for this gun.

Busy C&R Day

Ditched the worst of the Mosins.  Going to a youth instructor who's going to go Bubba on it.

Mailed in my renewal.

Mailed my letter to the CLEO telling them about my renewal.

Fun times!

MIL Update

The doc believes it was a reaction to Cipro that caused the seizures.

It's a rare, but known, reaction especially with the elderly and diabetic.

She's both.

Thank You

I want to take a moment to thank the American tax payer and voter for the, thus far, adequate care I've been getting from the VA.

I know there's some who'd say I'd earned it, but it seems wrong to not thank the folks who're making it possible.

So, THANK YOU, American Tax Payers!

More Detail On That Ebola Treatment

How it works.

I fervently hope that they manage to eradicate this disease and idiots don't manage to bring it back decades later.

I've Said It Before

Conceptually there's really no difference between these rifles.

Both were successful attempts to get more bullets down range in less time.

Just like a megaphone and a radio are conceptually similar.

Just like a newspaper and the internet are alike.

It's just technology advancing.

I don't fear the advance of technology.

Clutching Flies

The flywheel arrived!

Just in case you didn't know how this all works.

The flywheel bolts to the rear end of the crank-shaft and spins with the engine.

The clutch disk attaches to the transmission's input shaft via splines in the center.

The pressure plate, cover and diaphragm bolt to the flywheel and spin with the engine.

What happens...

When you lift your foot off the clutch the springy fingers of the diaphragm press the pressure plate against the clutch disc and squish it against the flywheel.  It's kind of like brakes in reverse.  The friction material on the disc skids against the pressure plate and flywheel and that spins up the transmission.

SIMPLE!

Mother In Law Update

She's awake and very tired.

[Crossing fingers] the seizure might have been from a combination of the three antibiotics they have her on.

Doc has changed that to a single antibiotic that's different from the three she used to be on.

Doc gave us the disheartening news that sometimes people go into the hostpital for something and just die from something else completely unrelated and baffling.

Be Careful What You Wish For

Senate Dems demand that The Supreme Court "heal itself".

"The Supreme Court is not well. And the people know it, perhaps the Court can heal itself before the public demands it be 'restructured in order to reduce the influence of politics.'"
--Democrat Senators Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, Richard Durbin, D-Ill., and Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y.

How I have longed for a Supreme Court free of the influence of politics.

Justices who read what The Constitution says and makes rulings regardless of the political fallout from those rulings?

Sign me up!

But the "honorable" senators from the blue states might not like that much.

I'd not be very far out on a limb to suggest that 80% of what our government does is not authorized by The Constitution.

Since it's an approaching ruling on the draconic gun laws of New Fucking York Spit City that appears to have triggered this threat:  The idea of an apolitical Court taking "shall not be infringed" seriously and in the spirit of the day it was written appeals to me a lot.

Bring it, Dems!

Oh, Roe v Wade is going to be re-ruled by such and apolitical court too.  Nobody is going to like how that shakes out if you look hard at what Government is allowed to do Constitutionally.

That Can't Be Good

The Lovely Harvey is up north meeting with doctors and helping her Pa prepare for moving to sunny Florida.

My Mother in Law is in a long-term care facility because she broke her knee and shoulder in June.

The shoulder has knit and she was poised to begin physical therapy.

But...

The liquid nutrient stuff she's been drinking to get more calcium to the bones has made her very ill.

Ill, but coping.

Today Harvey and Bubba got a call from the facility, "better get over here."

Bubba had had breakfast with MIL this morning and she'd complained of a headache and not sleeping well.

Apparently she's had a seizure and is presently unresponsive.

Fingers crossed.

Prayers solicited.

Faster Please

New treatment for ebola is "more effective" than previous treatments.

That's good news!

Now if we could just get the primitive savages to take the vaccines and the treatments before they spread the disease and cause an epidemic.

Oh, and see if you can get the people in the Congo and nearby parts of Africa to take it too.

Progress On Other Fronts

This is the blade activation program running on a test stand.

No sound, gyro or motion sensor yet, but coming right along!

Dammit Chuck!

I'm fixing my car and can't buy advanced armor right now!

Progressive!

Parts are starting to arrive from disparate locales.

The factory clutch holds 500 horses.  I don't make that many, so there wasn't much reason to spend 4-5 times as much for 50 to 100 more holding power.  Though I was sorely tempted to get a twin-disc clutch from Monster Clutches just because they're Hulk green!  But $1,800 v $300...

Compromise

You want universal background checks and red flag laws?

I want three things in return.

1. Since this is Federal, that means I should be able to buy a gun in any state, regardless of my residency.

2.  Conceal carry reciprocity for every state and territory.

3.  Making a false report to get someone red flagged, malicious or not, is a felony and punishable for 20 year mandatory.  Tied into this, while the person who gets flagged might not get to know who dropped a dime on them, no anonymous tips will be given any credibility.  The cops get to know who is making the report or it's no report.

WE'RE Russia?

WE'RE?????!!??

No, Dancing Monkeys, it's not we.

Yes, it is the sort of thing we expected from Soviet Russia, but my side of the aisle didn't want to see him dead.  My side wanted to see him give up everything he knew and those people go to jail.

We wanted him to live to a ripe old age in jail.

But you want to make Russia comparisons?

It's not my team that embraces the attitudes and tactics of Bolshevism.

Though it is kind of nice to see some rich people who're not relieved he's dead.

Wanna Kneel? Walk Home!

I was sick of professional athletes long before they got political.

Now we have athletes on the US Fencing team making political statements on our dime?

Fuck you Race Imboden!

If I was your coach I'd have taken your boarding pass after you checked your bags and reported you to airport security.  If I was a real prick, I'd have snagged your passport too.

Don't want to be on the team?  Fine.  The tickets home are for the team, and you don't seem to like home much anyway; so have fun in Peru!

Here's a handy list of people whom might just be able to reprimand him.  Let them know what you think of the USA's representative making personal statements on our time.

Überpost?

I just realized that I'm actually running down the rabbit hole of an überpost.

Oh Lord.  Save me.

Cross referencing and making sure I have my facts straight.

Every statement is needing supporting materials.

Damn.

What's The Use

I just spent some time dotting the 'i's' and crossing the 't's' for a rant.

Got to the end and realized something; everyone who will understand what I had to say already does and everyone who won't understand never will.

Please note that I didn't use "can't understand"...

Then Why Use A Rifle Round

From the previous post, you might wonder why your character would want one of the rifle caliber lever guns when the damages are so very similar.

Range.

.357 Magnum from a 16" or 20" barrel gets 560/3,400.
.38 Special from a 16" or 20" barrel gets 280/2,300.
.44 Magnum from a 16" barrel gets 410/2,800.
.44 Special from a 16" barrel gets 200/1,900.
.45 Colt from a 20" barrel gets 320/2,500.

.30-30 from a 16" or 20" barrel gets 700/3,000
.300 Savage from a 24" barrel gets 850/4,100.
.308 Winchester from a 24" barrel gets 1,000/4,200.
.45-70 from an 18.5" barrel gets 400/2,600.

On the other hand you get more shots with the pistol rounds.

10+1 shots with the 20" barrels, 8+1 with the 16" barrels.

The rifle caliber guns mostly get five shots.  6+1 for the 20" .30-30 but just 4+1 for the .45-70.

The Wimpiest Lever Gun

All damage to the torso with ball ammo.

The Lovely Harvey's 20" Model 92 in .357 Magnum does 4d+2 pi, 3d-1 pi with .38 Special.

6 to 26 damage with an average of 16 with the magnums; 2-17, average 9 with .38.

Willard's 16" Model 92 in .44 Magnum does 4d+1 pi+, 3d+1 pi+ with .44 Special.

7 to 37 damage, average 22 with Magnum; 6 to 28, average 16 with Special.

My 20" Model 73 in .45 Colt does 3d pi+.

4 to 27 damage with an average of 15.

Of course, these are all pistol caliber guns.

A 20" .30-30 like a Marlin 336 or Winchester 94 does 5d+1 pi.

6 to 31 with an average of 18.

24" of Savage 99 in .300 Savage does 6d+2 pi.

8 to 38, average 23.

A Marlin 1895M, like what was stolen from Technomad, does 4d+1 pi+.

7 to 37; average 23.  Yes, .44 Magnum is pushing the same energy as .45-70.

A Browning BLR does 7d pi.

7 to 42 points of damage with an average hit of 24.

Unsupported

Intellectually, I know this isn't a problem.

Viscerally it freaks me out to see the rim outside the bolt head (red anodized snap cap shown) like this.

WHAT THE DUCK!

So, out of pure nostalgia I bough the complete DVD collection of Baa Baa Black Sheep.

One of the joys of the show is the parade of period aircraft.

In the second episode, Best Three out of Five they use a Grumman J2F Duck to mount a commando raid.

While they're getting ready to load up I can see what looks like an honest to God tail-hook on the Duck.

So, I looked it up.

The J2F is carrier capable.

Truly a plane that can land anywhere.

Wasn't I Just Talking About This

Poland welcomes the idea of moving US troops out of Germany to Poland.

It sucks to be pulling your weight and watching deadbeats mooch.

They should file paperwork to kick Germany out of NATO.

Prolly find a technicality that Germany was never a member and since West Germany no longer exists...

Fit

Comparing Harvey's .357 Mag EMF Hartford '92 clone with my .45 Colt Uberti '73 clone.

They both have 20" barrels.  The '73 has a bit more pull and lot more drop.  The '73 is a lot longer.

The '92 is so trim and svelte it just doesn't feel right to me.  It's possible that it's the extra mass from the hex-barrel that makes it feel good to me.

The action on the '73 is a lot longer, but the cartridge elevator working is pleasing to the ear.  That little snick-clink is so darn cool.

There's A Difference

There's a world of difference between something being legal and something being smart.

It's also possible to be entirely within your rights and obeying the law to the letter and still be doing something suspicious.

Showing up at a Wal Mart in a plate carrier carrying an AR slung to your chest is a prime example of doing something stupid and suspicious while also being within your rights and the law (at least in Missouri).

I say this as someone who fervently advocates for open carry here in Florida.

Lemme try another analogy.

Take a bottle of Coke and put it into one of those paper bags you get from the liquor store.

Go someplace where drinking in public is frowned on and drink your Coke.

You're going to get hassled even though there's nothing illegal about drinking a bottle of cola from a paper bag.

If someone has been throwing bottles of piss at passerby, and concealing the contents in paper bags, and you show up to make a point that drinking Coke isn't illegal...  You're going to get more than just hassled most likely.

Stressing, with every interaction, that our moron in Missouri had not broken any laws and had a right to be armed openly just ignores that right after two prominent mass shootings by people dressed just like him:  He looked just like someone getting ready to commit mass murder.

All we have at present is Moron's word he wasn't going to do more than carry there.

Mighty Fine Work

Epstein managed to hang himself while on suicide watch.

I am impressed by the vigilance of the staff at the jail.

I am suspicious that he could.

It's like one or more of the guards got a huge bribe to not watch for a few moments.

Chilling Effect

I think we're poised to explore new legal territory.

With doxxing being a thing and protesters showing a propensity towards violence we're seeing a chilling effect on making political contributions and speech.

Making contributions to a candidate is protected political speech.

Owning firearms is supposedly a protected right, but red-flag laws are serving as a damper on speech out of fear that the doxxers will report one to the cops with a made-up threat.

It will be interesting to see how the courts shake out and protect our rights, or not.

Extra Barrel

The 20" barrel on the Win '73 lets the round develop a bit more velocity than in a revolver.

The 4-3/4" barrel on the EMF New Dakota gets 2d+1 pi+, 120/1,300 range.

The 20" barrel on the Uberti Model 1873 gets 3d pi+, 320/,2500 range.

That's an average, raw, damage change from 8 to 10, which is 12 and 15 respectively in a torso hit.

The .44-40 versions of these guns get similar changes to damage and range; in GURPS terms, .44-40 and .45 Colt are identical.

Undervalued And I Am Weak

Uberti clone of a Win '73.  .45 Colt, 20" octagonal barrel.

1999 made from the date code.  It was on consignment and priced to sell.

Just need a holster for the revolver, horse and tack and I am off to the range!

.25 NAA

Remember this adorable little thing?

North American Arms finally convinced someone to load a batch!

A buck a round shipped.

Ugh.

At least I will have some!

I Have A Question

Only Guns and Money has been reinstated.

"Upon further review we have determined that your blog was mistakenly marked as a TOS violator by our automated system and, as such, we have reinstated your blog."

Why is the terms of service system automated?

I have a theory, but it kind of needs some tinfoil headgear to make complete sense.

Is The Fix In?

Cocaine Mitch is talking about everything being on the table, including an AWB.

Trump is promising that the NRA's position will be respected.

I've a bad feeling about this.

Tree Fiddy Seeben

The Lovely Harvey's .357 "cowboy" guns.  In quotes because she's of Blackfoot descent and she insists they are really "and Indian" guns.

The Native Americans got custody of the "and" in the settlement agreement.

Why Not An 1873?

I've long wanted a cowboy type lever gun.  In .45 Colt, which they were not chambered for back when.

I've gravitated to the odd and strange like Spencers and Colt-Burgess'.

What's common is repops of Winchester '92's.

Today I saw me an Uberti clone of a Winchester '73.  In .45 Colt.

Does it get more iconic Cowboy than that?

Well... except for the chambering.

KISS ME!

So...

I'm reading about and watching videos about pulling this gorram fuel tank.

Over and over they talk about how hard it is to get at things because the transmission and driveline are in the way.

It occurs to me:  What if the driveline was out of the way?

Turns out the gas tanks practically fall out once the rear cradle, trans and rear are dropped...

...like when you're doing the clutch.

Guess what this job just expanded into doing?

I can talk myself into anything if you give me enough time.

I Think I Am Done

Go to take The Boy to school this morning and The Precious smells strongly of gas.

This turns out to be a common problem with the C6.

To the point that if it was less than 10 years old or fewer than 120k miles there's a recall.

What happens is there's a 90˚ elbow on the top of the tank where the fuel line exits.  It develops a small crack and sprays 60 psi gas up there.  There's some suspicion that the problem is from ethanol because it really took off in 2008 when the ethanol mandate hit.  Have you punched a corn farmer today?

This elbow is actually part of the fuel-pump/level sender assembly.  So instead of a $3 pipe fitting, I need a $250 fuel pump.

Getting the tank dropped is nightmarish, because there's really two tanks and the crossover is difficult to access.

This is the last straw, I think.

I'm fed up with the car and the constant fights with poor design decisions.

Ready For Electronics

Darth The Lovely Harvey's saber now has its switch box.

We await Marv's electronics and blade design to get to playing around!