Not a cool kid, but still....

adopt your own virtual pet!

First noticed at Weerd's site.

On paper, at least

Range time with the M44.

This is at 50 yards, S&B 180 grain, with the sight picture at full 6 o'clock hold.

Same target, same ammo, center hold, 2 more rounds.

6.8 SPC, 90 grain Speer TNT, 30 grains H322, CCI450 primer, Hornaday brass. 100 yards. I'm going to make more like these. Of course, this was the first group of the day I shot.

9 shots of the surplus 7.62x54R. 100 yards. All were on paper. Why not 10? Because I forgot one on the bench! (Same target as the 6.8) 6 o'clock hold.

I shot the 10th round, then more 6.8- upper left and left center aim points, different load . Also some Hornaday 75 grain steel match through the 11.5. After that, I loaded the M44 to capacity twice and blasted away.

5 more 7.62 shots fired mag dump style (as fast as I can run the bolt) 50 yards. P.O.A. centered. Sighted in some steel match on this target, then shot 25 rounds at the four outer targets, alternating each shot to a corner

 31 7.62 holes on the targets. 31 7.62 rounds fired today. Okay, that is not MOA accuracy. Yep, its more a pattern than a group. But compared to Monday's berm fest, this is better than I expected.

The front sight on the m44 looks like someone drifted it to the right at some point in the past. Might need to go a little more right  (F.O.R.S.) to at least line up the pattern on the center of the target. Seems to be 2-3" right at 50,  6" right at 100 yards. (Slow fire, anyway)
Cleaned the rifle's bore with windex, then hot waterwashed it out at home, then Hoppes patches, brush, then oily patches.

Here is ze list list

What exactly does a gun offender list do?
Optimally, he said, the registry would change the mind-set among some that gun crime is acceptable. “That’s the mentality,” Howard said. “It’s a lot of handgun violence out there. . . . If we could drive those numbers down, that would be a win-win for the community.”

Shouldn't the punishment for the original crime be the deterrent? The gun is just the tool. Of course evil profiling will rear its head too. Plus, apparently non gun crime is cool with them and not deserving of a public warning.

TL;DR version: if you can't trust someone in society, do not keep releasing them.
H/t uncle

Under the handguard

Grew some nasty rusty patches. These actually look worse than they are, but are not encouraging by any means. Again, this is a rifle my brother bought to be a wall hanger at best. Going to get some ammonia/ Windex and swing by the range tomorrow to see how it does with the surplus stuff.

I also 'floated' the barrel in the stock. Anything has to be better than floating on the cosmoline/rust mixture it had before.

More Mosin Nagant stuff

Stopped by Rhine Group to buy some mil-surplus 7.62x54R, and when I told them it was for an M44, Tom almost tripped over himself going to get something from the back room. He came back with a 1955 Polish M44- it looks like it has never been out of the original cosmoline since leaving the factory. The bluing is perfect, the bore is shiny (other than the slime), the bolt is smooth- no catching, and the cosmoline is still grease, not dried at all. I asked how much, he shot me a price then laughed- that one he is keeping. Dang, because the price he shot me was too low to resist.....

Cosmoline removal for dummies

2 1000 watt halogen lamps do the trick so far. Yes, I cleaned the barrel and chamber before shooting. At least, I think I did. I'm amazed at the load of crap in the stock. It just weeps out.

Mosin-Nagant 14, me, um, 3

Borrowed my brother's M44 today, cleaned the grease out of it and shot it. With and without the bayonet extended. The big holes on the target are the only ones I hit at 100 yards. I don't know if it was me or the gun, but I could not hit squat with that thing.* 4 were standing, I think they hit cardboard- they did hit the backstop ;) There is a fair pattern (not shown) to the right about 12" and up 12". I ran ten through it, got bored, then remembered I had some new handloads to try. It was a cast iron bear to hold steady the rest of the day.


The .223 holes are 22.1 grains of H322 with CCI 450's and 55 grain V-Max. In my 16"- no pressure signs on those or the 23 grain loads. And some are Tula- they ran fine today in the 16" barrel, plus some sat in the sun to "help" the pressure level.


*I shot 6 or 7 with the bayonet extended and got a spread from right to left of damn near 2'. I don't think a single non-bayonet shot hit the target. Which is consistent with what I have read today- fix the bayonet, and shoot. I was using S&B 180 grain, as there was no Tula 148 grain at Sportsman's on Sunday. Something is bent in the front sight on this gun anyway- maybe I'll take some pics soon. Or I just suck at shooting.....

6.8: Speer 90 grain TNT 30.2 grains H322, CCI 250's. 100 yards.

More of the same. I did yank the flyer on the top left target.










The bottom right target was factory Hornady 110 grain BTHP. I was getting sloppy by then.So I shot 4 more rounds through the Mosin, now I'm a lefty for the rest of the day.

6.8 at 50 and more

Morning range time:

Finally the damn scope doesn't move. Handloads. 110 grain Hornaday BTHP 27.2 grains H322. 6 shot group. CCI 450 primers.

Speer 90 grain TNT over 29.2 grains H322, CCI 250 primers.

Sight in target- a mix of factory S&B, and 110 grain Hornaday reloads.

Some Hornaday 75 grain Steel Match through the 11.5. With a 1 in 9 twist barrel, I am surprised that it groups at all. 10 shots.
I also got the 11.5 to run on handloads. 23 grains H322, magnum primers. That is over the maximum amount per some reloading guides by using the magnum primers.No bulges on the primer.

The new lower works fine. Yay.

So that is what skittles and iced tea are for.

Getting high when mixed with cough syrup. I've never heard of 'lean' before. In Iowa we're still focusing on the dumbshits smoking socks incense and offing themselves. Next time I hear "Skittles and iced tea" I guess "Lean, Yo!" is the proper answer.

Sure this will count as a gun death

But some people need put down. Holy crap! Eating sumdoods face!!!!

App test

Failing 1 2 3
Be nice if the first post actually published instead of  the app crashing.





Sorry, issues with the Android Blogger App. Can't edit at all with the browsers on my phone. Stupid App loves to insert wacky HTML into the posts if edited too much; so screwy that it screws up the layout of the blog and I have to manually reedit each post to clean them up on a real PC.

Heh, might get some Mosin-Nagant action...

Last time at the range the guy next to me had a Mosin-Nagant. I only noticed it after the damn thing about knocked me off the bench I was sitting on when he fired it. Between than and the Squirrel Report last night discussing using the monster in a dream to defend yourself, I decided I need to get some trigger time. Well, I never knew my brother had the M44 variant. Or that it is stored at my dad's house. Using a family member's rifle is only slightly cheaper than buying one outright. (still have to buy the ammo, anyway)

The guys at Rhine Group exchanged the AR-10 bolt catch for the proper AR-15 catch. I told them I wanted it away from me before I built an AR-10 around it.....

Lower problems

Finally got the lower I ordered online from my FFL. Ran into a small problem- my Armalite LPK came with a bolt catch for an AR-10. Whoops. Looks like another couple of days before I get to use the darn thing. The hammer is of a different casting than the first LPK, the trigger feels a little mushier.

Ran into Sportsman's with my 4 year old for some bullets and primers. He immediately noticed the ZombieMAX bullets.
"What are those, Daddy?"
"Those are ZombieMAX bullets"
"Are they for zombies? How did they do that?"
"Someone at Hornday has too much time on their hands, son...."
Cue laughing from the counter guy............

They actually aren't priced too bad as bullets- the loaded stuff is spendy.

More reloading results

I shot up all of the reloads that I made last night. As I am not shooting tomorrow (have I mentioned the Ankeny Ikes is on my way home from work?) I devoted some of tonight to case prep.

Out of the tumbler to be sorted

In the foreground is what I've accomplished tonight. The 6.8 cases are sized, sorted, trimmed and ready to prime. The 223 is sized, sorted, and the primer cups are clean. Just need to check case length and chamfer the case mouths. .380/9mm holders are handy for the 223, and 40 S&W/.45 auto work great for the 6.8 SPC. In the background is what I readied last Sunday.

I still haven't gotten a load in the 11.5 that will lock back the bolt on the last shot. But, 21.5 grains of H322 does run it reliably, and 22.1 grains works even better. All 70 rounds of the (good) factory ammo I shot today ran just fine. The Tula would not even run the bolt. And the 6.8 loosened up the mount on the Burris PEPR to the point that the scope moved. I'd hoped with more screws than The Green Mile that it would hold steady. Bring on the 242 Locktite.....

I knew it!!!

I called this last week, but not on my blog. Some jackass on Gawker is actually saying George Zimmerman is some kind of crazy ninja that was using his face to beat Treyvon's hands bloody. Link here. Some stupid people out there. I haven't read the original yet to see if it is tongue in cheek or not. I'm guessing not.

Smug Media is Smug

Last month CBS NewsOpinion produced a piece about the neutered AR15's the incompetent fascists running California have shoved down the throats of residents there. Now they are crowing that they managed to get one of the ruling elite out there to introduce a law banning bullet buttons. Hooray for them- they win the Reichstag is Burning award for the year so far. (yes, it is early, and will be reawarded to Zero at least 3 times by Nov 6)

 Knowing California and the gun friendly Democratic Party* this will pass and be signed in 2 weeks. Also why Iowa needs a RKBA amendment- even as Democrats tell you they have to respect the Constitution, seconds later they will say they can do what they want because we have no such provision in our state.


*LOL LOL LOL.
I love when anyone actually tries to say with a straight face Democrats love gun rights, then vote 95% lockstep AGAINST any gun rights proposal. We are lucky in Iowa on Shall Issue, Nutsack II was desperate to keep his job in '10 (didn't work)

Handloads go bang

Instead of kaboom! The 6.8's I loaded with the large rifle primers were weak- the bolt would not hold open. In the small rifle primer cases I used CCI 450's, they all worked fine- 10 of those bringing the 6.8 total to 15 reloads- 5 each of S&B, Barrett, and Hornaday brass.

I also spend Sunday working up .223 reloads. I used Federal small rifle primers and 21.1 grains of H322. 55 grain Hornaday V-Max.Loaded to 2.257-2.260". Yeah, they felt like 22 lr in the 11.5- they barely ran the bolt. They were worse than the Tula rounds. At the end I ran some factory 5.56 S&B through it, and it ran fine (lost one case :( I need to find my brass catcher) Guess my next load can either use a little more powder or a meaner primer. I also prepped over 200 .223 cases so I have a bunch ready to put primers in and reload.

Added:

Thanks to my friend Ace for letting me borrow his tumbler. (or am I going to buy it?) Hell, I'm still using his media that has been sitting in it for at least 10 years.

Don't let 6.8 sit in a steel 20 rd Bushmaster .223 mag for two days- the mag will swell and not fit worth a damn. (5 rounds only) The 5 in a 30 round P-Mag didn't swell it at all

One way to spend Saturday night

Five sucessful rounds, one damn it!
H332, 27.2 grains. S&B brass, win lrg rifle primers, 110 Hornaday bthp. 2.26 oal +/- .002. Crimp on shoulder. Will fit in a 20 round pmag (5 max).
The S&B brass needed trimmed after resizing. I also decapped and sized Hornaday and Barrett brass tonight. The Hornady needed some trimming, the Barrett none, unless it had a damaged mouth from the extraction issues I had the first time out.



FCC- I'm paying for all this stuff myself, go away.


Disclaimer- I take no responsibility for the use of this load in your rifle. Go buy a reloading book and read it yourself. For all I know, this will blow up in my face tomorrow....

Cool bonus

Or read the kit contents. My Lee dies came with a shell holder.

Aw, Chris Matthews sucks at Jeopardy

Guess must be the only way to describe some of ol' Tingles responses, too. He really must have selective hearing.  At a bare minimum you would think he would be an expert on all things Moscow related.

This is awesome

Not that I watch Top Gear too often. (Total lie)

(Totally stolen from Borepatch)

But it is my first new desktop background in over a year. Here is a  link to one of my favorite clips from the show. I can't stop laughing every time I watch it.

I would not want this guy as my co-pilot

Even less JD than before

I've lost 20 lbs - from 253 to 233. Gunbelt is getting kinda loose w/o a holster attached....

Can't bring myself to download this

It is a cap and trade tax simulation program from the EPA.  I'm double triple quadruple wary of downloading .exe's from unreliable sources. I'd say the big government fetishists at the EPA qualify as unreliable to me. Probably installs software on your PC nagging you to turn in off (worse than what it came with, anyway).  I would love to see how fast I could crash the economy, but I'm guessing the sim auto-corrects with rainbows and unicorns or something else.

German Police shoot to miss

Apparently they fire a ton of warning shots. Yeah, that's what I call misses too. Apparently they don't have to worry about stray rounds.*

No, actually I was at MS-NBC for the stimulating intellectual..... Sorry, can't say that with a straight face either. What a bunch of pie in the sky whiners. If I read "Faux News" or "Teh NRA is ebil" one more time today, I think I'll puke. Love that some pro-freedom comments actually bring up the true crime numbers. The point is made that being a victim of a crime is more likely in Germany, not just the random stat of gun death.

*Yes, they have different doctrine and rules of engagement. Some may even stem from not trying to appear to fascist for some reason or another.

Shoulder working

I hope. Last night I helped with t-ball practice. The shoulder hurts no worse than the rest of me:(  The bad news- apparently having dad out there makes my son not want to play.

Also, sent my check in to join the Ikes range by Elkhart.  Now I just need more ammo. Time to start getting reloading equipment.....

Hemi waterpump

Back in 08 there was a flash flood and one of our guys drove through it with our shop truck. This is the result. Another guy at work tore the engine down, cleaned the slop out, stuffed a new piston and rod in, new bearings, ran it a year and sold it. Ran fine, even plowed snow. Moral of the story: your air intake is lower than you think, unlike the linked story who knows his personal truck well.

Fugly Gun Pr0n

Stopped by my LGS see if my lower was in yet- negative. Started talking to them again about the RRA tactical "carry" handle. The short story, they wanted it out of the shop, and I got it for about 1/2 the price listed on RRA's website. Everything opinion I've read about it is that the sight is too weird to be mall ninja, which is fine by me. Hell, nothing else on the gun is tacticool. I haven't even installed the sling swivel yet. Or wiped down the lube I douched onto the bolt from the last range outing.

UR not doing it right

Talked to the counter guy at Sportsmans who bought a 6.8 upper from the same place I did. He also has extraction problems. We tore down a Windham Weaponry bolt right there to show him where to put the o-ring.The Windham has an o-ring on the extractor from the factory. Said he would try it on his 6.8. The Windham's blotface was covered in brass- way more that I've seen on mine even after a range trip.

Also doing it wrong

My 6.8 has no range time in this configuration, with my old Simmons Aetec in a Burris PEPR and a new mag to test run. This lower does have a two-stage trigger in it. Also, it weighs damn near 10 pounds empty. Feels more like a battle axe than a rifle. :)

I should have gone.....

Eric Larson is doing some kind of speaking tour or Q&A in Des Moines tonight. It is about his new book, In the Garden of Beasts. My wife and MIL are going, I decided to bow out as our son has T-ball practice tonight. I enjoyed Larson's book The Devil in the White City. Just haven't had a chance to read the new one, and it is right in my wheelhouse, too. Oh, well. Not that my shoulder is in good enough shape to help the coaches at t-ball.  But it was good enough to run the new AR :)

Goodies arrived!

Enough of them, anyway. Had the parts at 9 am. Put the upper together, and swung by Rhine Group. Paid them to check the headspace, just in case- even though with a new bolt and barrel, I should be good to go per every internet expert. Well, I'd prefer to have it checked for my own piece of mind. Checked fine. Drooled over the RRA tactical sight they had in stock (it looks way cool in person, plus I like carry handles), but stuck with the Magpul BUIS for now.

The Aero lower is not here yet, so I used the Armalite lower I previously built- this was to be the lower for this upper anyway. Just needs the black carbine stock installed. And possibly a taller front sight assembly. I wasn't sighting it in- it was on paper, with the groups centered on where I aimed offhand. I ran around 150 rounds through it. It hates Tula- half the time it Failed To Feed or wouldn't lock back on the last round, like they were weak. The lower worked fine with the 6.8. But my 16" Armalite also FTF with Tula today. With Remington, S&B, Hunting Shack, and PMC 55 grain, it ran fine. Also worked fine with the 22 LR conversion- had a few jams, just like with the 16" rifle. I need the proper 22lr charging handle to prevent the bullets tips from jamming between the bolt and charging handle.

It is a chrome lined, 1/9 twist DPMS H-Bar profile. The M4 ramps match the SOTA upper fine. I shot it enough that the hand guards were getting very warm to the touch. When shooting the 22lr kit, I dumped the first mag way too fast and pissed off the RO for once. Guess I need to stick to the steel for that....

Why an 11.5 with a pinned 5.5 flash hider? Short answer- why not? Everyone took one look at it and moved further away from me....... It was fun to shoot.

Bullet button

This is the only bullet button needed in a free state:

Anything else is a sham intended to kill the user of the rifle in the case that it needs to be reloaded. Period. End of story. No further discussion needed or desired.