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Discussion starter · #321 ·
Decided that the next song I’m going to try to learn for the musical targets is the can-can. It’s faster & has quicker movements than the songs I’ve done previously but has right at 50 notes, so could be done with a drum magazine without needing reloads.

Another roller coaster ride of a week for my wife. Her youngest sister died of the same cancer my wife has, and the funeral was Saturday in Houston. My wife was down there all week; I drove down Friday & came back Sunday. We didn’t expect the sister to go as fast as she did, as her cancer was found at Stage 3 less than three years ago, where my wife’s was already at Stage 4 when we found it more than four years ago. But the sister’s was just more aggressive & spread to her brain faster than my wife’s has. In the last ~4½ years, my wife has found out she has inoperable, terminal cancer, has taken a small chemo dose every 12 hours for over four years now, lost her father, lost her only uncle on that side of the family, lost our home builder, been hospitalized twice for a month or so, and now lost her sister. The last time she went to the hospital, I had to use our tractor to pull the ambulance up an ice-covered hill with her in the back. Getting tired of this crap, but at the same time am grateful to have had the extra time; more than the doctors sad we could expect.
 
John sincere thoughts and prayers for Her, You and all family members through those ordeals.
There's the cliche comment about celebrities passing on in Threes but not much said about family, friends and loved ones passing on in half a dozen fairly close together.☹
 
I wouldn't wish those experiences on anyone; my heart goes out to your family. I shot a local 2 gun match on Saturday and was not impressed with my overall standing, 7th out of 9. I'm still trying different locations for ammo to find which is the most efficient for reloading. I've been unhappy with the cheap Tasco Red Dot on the shotgun which I find it rides too high for me. Early this morning I hit the indoor range with my M1 Carbine and the Beretta 1301 and pulled the Burris Fast Fire 3 from the carbine and mounted it on the Beretta. After 20 rds of slugs I was sold and went out to the sales counter where I picked up a second Burris Fast Fire 3 for it. My next shotgun 2 gun match is 15 October.
 
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Discussion starter · #324 ·
Sorry for being such a Debbie Downer sometimes. Sometimes it just piles up and I vent some. But we're both truly grateful for the additional time we've had together. Per the original diagnosis, she shouldn't have survived 2021, and we're nearly to 2023. That's a bonus no matter how you look at it.

Now... got to get busy learning the Can-Can on the xylophone...
 
Well, I may have mentioned it I don't recall but I finally found my RCBS Hand Priming Tool and I'm back in business. Doing a little at a time today as I accomplish other tasks but I should have close to 1,000 cases primed when done if I count my meager amount of loaded ammo; so far.
Anyways when that bunch of brass is all ready to go I'll be ready moving on to prime and load a few .300BO test rounds in what I call an intermediate weight of 150grs. Probably 5 rounds each of flat base and boat tail bullets at starting loads.
I also bought a new priming ram assembly for the press of mine. It finally wore out after 40 years of use. I was almost tempted to see if "ordering" one straight from RCBS would just get me one for free but .... come on man.🤣
Really feel odd because my hand priming tool is not all original parts wise except for the main body. And everytime I asked about buying a part all they've asked for is the part # and my address. Would not bill me or even give the current cost.
Maybe it's me becoming an RCBS fanboy but I generally use their equipment for my standard reloading. Although Hornady is a close rubber up with some of their dues and the case trimmer I converted to a power one. The fact that it uses standard shell holders like most presses was a factor in choosing it.
 
Annual Gun Show in town today, I was one of the first 200 to line up at the door 30 minutes before it started. Disappointing, there were several thousand magnum large rifle primers available on one table, no one else had any primers at all. I picked up a 1 lb container of IMR 4227 and 2 books on the M1 Carbine, that's all. On the drive home, at a stop light I pulled up next to a close shooting buddy and signaled for him to pull over. We BS'd for a couple of minutes and he pulled a can of Qty 1,200 x 200 grain .45 LSWC bullets from his back seat. Didn't expect that! Payment for a bucket of 680 CMJ 10mm bullets that I gave him earlier this week.

Went home an hit the reloading bench, yesterday I primed 750 .44 mag cases, so I managed to stuff 500 of them before I called it a day. Oh ya the wife is at one of the 3 year old grandsons birthday today so I was able to hit A&W and grab a burger, onion rings and French fries without getting the "stink" eye. Great day overall.
 
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Discussion starter · #329 ·
This past week, I re-terminated the 240v 30a generator cable to the correct connector for the bigger generator. It previously had the connector for the small generator (which we had before the bigger one), and using the big one required an adapter cable. Now it’s wired the opposite, which is more logical and streamlined; needing an adapter cable only if falling back to the smaller generator. The smaller 4000W Honda generator is definitely better made than the bigger 9500W Westinghouse, but the Westinghouse has both gasoline and propane capability, is as good as most generators, and a Honda that size is just way too expensive for our purposes. Test-ran both of them for a half-hour or so, and for the first time actually topped off the storm cellar batteries via the generator instead of charging with grid power. After shutting them down, stored the smaller generator in a storage room near where the big generator is cable-locked to the house footings, so it’ll be easy to roll out there if needed. Also put all the generator-related accessories like adapter cables, heavy 240v extension cord, 240-to-120 converters, oil funnel, etc, in a closed storage tub left on top of the smaller generator.

Did some mods to a shotgun that I’m planning to give one of my sons.

Also modified the mounting base for the .45Colt loading press. The way inline fabrication makes their quick mounts, on the inexpensive Lee 1000 presses I use, the ejected primers will build up between the press and the mounting plate, so the simple solution is making a small ~5/8” hole so they can drop free into a small plastic tub underneath. I’ve been shooting .45 colt from ammo on hand, but am going to soon need to load up some more, so decided to go ahead and get that press ready.
 
Got most of the brass I intended to prime done, finally.
Approximately 600 .45ACP cases and close to 100 .300BO cases. The later for initial reloading experiments. I don't have any standard small rifle primers all I have are the #41 so I'll start with the lowest recommended amount and see what happens
 
Discussion starter · #331 ·
Is the #41 a magnum? I know it's meant for 'mil-spec' applications, but not sure if that means it has any other peculiarities other than a harder cup..?
 
Got back from visiting my Daughter in South Carolina and I can understand her love for living on the ocean. Really beautiful and the weather this time of year was perfect. Not so much in the months May through September. Hot, humid, and BUGS! Anyway. ate a lot of sea food and ate at a "Gourmet" restaurant which you can keep as far as I'm concerned. Flying was OK, but TSA IS a hassle. but something we have to live with. Very cool watching the Dolphins teaching their young how to fish. They have a Coyote problem with neighbors losing two small Dog's and a Cat while we were there. It's a gated community and I noticed no one was shy about "arming up". All the houses in the area are raised on 16 to 20 foot pillars so they give the impression of being much bigger than the actual living space. Real estate is way out of my price range, but taxes on houses/land are lower than mine! The stairs are a killer!
Water Plant Property Natural landscape Lake
Water Property Plant Building Tree
Brown Font Wood Paper product Paper
Water Boat Sky Vehicle Cloud
Fixture Composite material Building material Building Event
Plant Building Fixture House Land lot
Stairs Wood Fixture Rectangle Plant
Plant Tree Motor vehicle Terrestrial plant Font
 
Sorry for being such a Debbie Downer sometimes. Sometimes it just piles up and I vent some. But we're both truly grateful for the additional time we've had together. Per the original diagnosis, she shouldn't have survived 2021, and we're nearly to 2023. That's a bonus no matter how you look at it.

Now... got to get busy learning the Can-Can on the xylophone...
I don't know you that well, other than on here. Just know you guys are in our prayers.
 
Discussion starter · #335 · (Edited)
...and I can understand her love for living on the ocean.
Major +1 on that. Even though I lived near the gulf in Houston from 1982 to 1993, I never spent time at Galveston beach back then; frankly because Galveston's beach is awful. Grey/green water, muddy/sticky 'sand', just all around bad. I'd spent a bunch of time in lakes & ponds growing up in michigan, but never a good, large beach; and certainly never the ocean. First time I was ever in a decent ocean-water area was mexico, snorkeling on our 16th anniversary in 2002; and I absolutely fell in love with the ocean. I know people who don't care at all for the ocean or beaches & such, but for me personally it's the best aspect of the planet that I've encountered so far.

{edited because I apparently can't count. 2002 was our 16th anniversary, not our 20th}
 
Been running errands today. Got some more .45XTPs at Bass-Pro/Cabela's after dropping off two boxes of other stuff at a friend's house on the way.
Then back south to TSC Tractor Supply.. because the fun never ends and need to repair the locks on my truck box. Not to keen on doing the padlock and hasp things...yet.
So complete lock and handle assembly. Plus of course since I can't find the rivet gun around here to save my life....besides I don't think it'll take the larger rivets anyhow...... haven't needed it in ages. So got a bit better one. And a fairly big box of rivets. Now I'll probably find the other one..🤪
 
Discussion starter · #340 ·
...Now I'll probably find the other one..🤪
Isn’t that always the way?

Extremely busy week this week, but it seems like they all are nowadays. Finished one of our larger projects of the year at work this past week. Spent Thursday helping our son move which was a major ordeal. He was moving from Missouri to Oklahoma; so we left Arkansas at 4 a.m., drove to Saint Robert Missouri, helped him finish loading up the U-Haul truck, and then drove to their new place in Oklahoma. After unloading the truck at the new place, headed back to Arkansas and got home just a little before midnight. Friday was spent catching up from being gone on Thursday, and Saturday was a memorial service here in Arkansas for my wife’s sister who died four or five weeks ago in Texas.

Naturally, when our youngest son was leaving the memorial service to come back to our house here he encountered a stray cat along the way. That boy’s been something of a cat whisperer his whole life - I’ve literally been in parking lots with him and seen random cats come up to him out of the blue. This one looks a whole lot like someone dumped it off a week or two ago; it’s very skinny but really wants to be around people. Of course my wife fell in love with it, and things that make her smile are the defining line between good and evil in our world right now; so looks like we may have a third cat at our place.

Cat Felidae Wood Carnivore Small to medium-sized cats



Next week looks less crazy. Should be just a regular work week and then a family reunion Saturday for one side of my wife’s family. And of course my wife has already planned a veterinarian visit for the new cat just to get it checked out. There’s a gun show next Saturday about an hour from us and I was hoping to take the spare M1 carbine and sell it there, but may or may not get a chance with the family reunion the same day.
 
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