zen_grasshopper

As I was going to load up some .45 today, I figured I should snap some pics as it has been awhile and my old pictures are gone. The reloading bench Most of my handguns and long guns, I need a safe. The rest are either at work or upstairs in my office. Work bench. Two small filing cabinets and a old metal door. Makes a good bench, and is perfect for cleaning, smithing or making things out of Kydex. I am a bit of a brass whore Still have a bunch I need to sort. I love it when the local SWAT team doesn't pickup their brass all winter, as soon as the snow melts I am picking up brass. Jon

Yup, cheap one from Radio Shack. Used the standard pointy tip. They are ugly aren't they. It's why I didn't care about taking a soldering iron to the gun. Jon

This is what I did to my Glock 17 which is my teaching, training and fun gun. I used it in Production class before I stippled and I will use it again next year if the the proposed rules are placed into effect. Until then, I shoot it in Limited, and take the minor scoring hit. My hands are oily so the factory grip sucks and I wore out grip tape so fast that I had to replace it weekly. This may not be pretty, but it feels close to 25 lpi checkering on a metal gun. Jon

The barrel came today via UPS. KKM did what I figured they would do and they machined the dimension shown in red. It started at .590" and is now .574" so when the barrel links down it is not hitting the locking block. The line in blue is where they removed the metal. Sorry for the poor graphics. I can't be positive but I believe this is the barrel that I sent them. They basically made it look brand new, the inside was even cleaned. Service was excellent, I highly recommend KKM. Kevin stated that he had only seen this once before, but still had no problems fixing my barrel and making me a very satisfied customer. Thanks, Jon

I hope everyone realizes that I am not bad mouthing KKM. My other Glocks are going to get KKM barrels also. Main reason for the post was to see if anyone had seen it before and if it had caused any longevity problems. If I would have gotten Flex's post first I probably would not have bothered Kevin with it and just continued to shoot it! KKM's customer service has been great, much better then some I have dealt with in the firearms industry. Kevin, I finally got the barrel shipped yesterday via USPS. Thanks, Jon

This is the response that I got from KKM, so I will be sending my barrel back. "Jonathan, Could you please send the barrel back to me. I will fix this for you. Glock frames are not all the same. I have seen this on only one other gun. I will have your barrel here for one day only. Kevin" Quick response via email, Kudos to Kevin. Jon

I haven't contacted them yet, I wanted to see if anyone else had seen this before I bothered them. As I said the barrel has been reliable and shoots well so far. I will email them about it now, and see what they say. Thanks, Jon

I purchased a KKM semi-drop in barrel for my 2 pin Glock 17 just before my last match. I shot the match and then I stayed after and did some practicing, so I have approximately 300 to 400 rounds through the barrel. The barrel did not appear to have any problems with fit when I put it in. Throughout the match and practice it shot beautifully. After I finished my practice session, I was messing around with the gun and instead of racking it like I normally do, I rode the slide down gently. The slide stopped about a 1/2" from battery, while shooting the gun I did not notice any problems. I disassembled the gun and I noticed that the under side of the barrel had peened enough that it was binding the slide a bit. Peening doesn't bother me on the Glock slides as I know that it happens and my G17's slide has quite a bit of peening, but it stopped like it was supposed to. I have shot a lot of Glocks and this is the first time I have noticed peening on a barrel to this extent. I have seen it on factory barrels, but it barely made a dent in the metal. I used my caliper on my factory barrel and measured from the tip of my bottom lug up to where the barrel beds down into the locking block and found that the factory barrel is .200" and the KKM is .230". Here is a picture illustrating what I mean. Basically when the barrel is linking down, it is going .030" farther then the factory barrel. No peening on the factory barrel. Here are some pictures of the peening. The pictures are not the greatest, and the peening doesn't look that bad as I have already filed it back to flush on the sides. The barrel shoots, and I am not really that worried about it, and I know that it is a drop in barrel so the tolerances have to be at a certain point to allow the barrel to fit all Glocks. I guess I just want to know if anyone else has seen this before, or is this excessive? I realize that the peening will eventually stop just like the slide. Could the extra .030" on link down apply more pressure to my locking block and barrel and possibly break my barrel or locking block? Jon

Thanks for the replies. I tried using the lead data from the Hodgdon manual, I started at minimum of 3.6grs and loaded 20 rounds. I worked up to 4.0grs, in .1gr increments, 20 rounds each. I didn't test for accuracy just for function. The barrel ended up being substantially leaded after the first 20 rounds of 3.6grs. I cleaned and then tried the next 20 and had the same problem. I made sure that I had plenty of bell on the case and only crimped enough to remove the bell, so I don't believe that I cut into the coating. In the end I decided that there was just a bit too much leading with the factory barrel and I ordered an after market barrel from Brownells. Hopefully this will cut back on the leading a bit. I will get it figured it out. Thanks. Jon

What data is everyone loading the Precision "Black" Bullets to, lead or jacketed? I will be loading the 125gr. 9mm for Production class, and they will be used in a factory Glock 17. I have Titegroup, Unique and Win 231 on hand and would like to use the Titegroup as it is the lowest cost of the powders listed. Hodgdon's loading data lists lead 125gr bullets starting at 3.6grs with a max of 4.0grs, and the jacketed starting load at 4.0grs and a max load of 4.4grs. I realize that I should work up the load from 3.6grs and up the load and test until I find the most accurate load and that the manual is just a good starting point. But I would like to start with a load that will at least cycle the gun. I don't want to have to go back a pull 40 to 50 test rounds, and since I don't make squat for money, I would have to pull those rounds. Thanks, Jon

Mine has held up great. I have gone to the range with it at least once every 2 weeks (if not more), several training courses (one class it got rained on all day), it has been thrown in the back of the pickup and every time I usually have it packed full. Other than the dirt, the only real sign of wear is the small melted area when the muzzle of my AR got a bit too close to the bag when using the bag as a rest. I can't complain about the bag, especially since I didn't have to pay for it Jon

They are Simonich Gunner grips, that are now being made by Strider Knives. Brownells has them, but are currently out of stock. You can buy them online from many other places, just Google it. If you can't find any places just shoot me a PM. Jon

I bought from Wal-Mart, "Super Tech Extreme Pressure Multi-duty Complex Hi-Temp grease". Big can, low cost. Use it on all of my guns including my AR and my duty weapon. I thin it a bit with FP-10, works well. Jon

It's been posted before, but what the heck. Jon

Using my duty rig, which is a Kimber Custom Classic, a Safariland 6285 and Black Hills 230gr FMJ. I can run 2 seconds easy. With the same weapon and ammo and the holster changing to a Kytac SooperHooper usually 1.85 seconds. Jon

Golf Joke A father, son and grandson went to the country club for their weekly round of golf. Just as they reached the first tee, a beautiful young blonde woman carrying her bag of clubs approached them. She explained that the member who brought her to the club for a round of golf had an emergency that called him away and asked the trio whether she can join them. Naturally, the guys all agreed. Smiling, the blonde thanked them and said, "Look, fellows, I work in a topless bar as a dancer, so nothing shocks me anymore. If any of you want to smoke cigars, have a beer, bet, swear or tell off-color stories or do anything that you normally do when playing a round together, go ahead. But I enjoy playing golf, consider myself pretty good at it, so don't try to coach me on how to play my shots." With that, the guys agreed to relax and invited her to drive first. All eyes were fastened on her shapely behind as she bent to place her ball on the tee. She then took her driver and hit the ball 270 yards down the middle, right in front of the green. The father's mouth was agape. "That was beautiful," he said. The blonde put her driver away and said, "I really didn't get into it and I have faded it a little." After the three guys hit their drives and their second shots, the blonde took out a nine iron and lofted the ball within five feet of the hole. (She was closest to the pin.) The son said, "Damn, lady, you played that perfectly." The blonde frowned and said, "It was a little weak. I've left a tricky little putt," before tapping in the five-footer for a birdie. Having the honors, she drove first on the second hole and knocked the hell out of the ball, and it landed nearly 300 yards away, smack in the middle of the fairway. For the rest of the round the statuesque blonde continued to amaze the guys, quietly and methodically shooting for par or less on every hole. When they arrived at the 18th green, the blonde was three under par and has a very nasty 12-foot putt on an undulating green for a par. She turned to the three guys and said, "I really want to thank you all for not acting like a bunch of chauvinists and telling me what club to use or how to play a shot, but I need this putt for a 69 and I'd really like to break 70 on this course. If any one of you can tell me how to make par on this hole, I'll take him back to my apartment, pour some 25-year old Royal Salute Scotch in him, fix him dinner and then show him a good time the rest of the night." The yuppie son jumped at the thought. He strolled across the green, carefully eying the line of the putt and finally said, "Honey, aim about 6 inches to the right of the hole and hit it firm. It will get over that little hump and break right into the cup." The father knelt down and sighted the putt using his putter as a plumb. Don't listen to the kid, darlin', you want to hit it softly 10 inches to the right and run it left down that little hogback, so it falls into the cup." The old gray haired grandfather walked up to the blonde's ball, picked it up and handed it to her and said, "That's a gimme, sweetheart. Your car or mine?" AGE AND TREACHERY WILL TRIUMPH OVER YOUTH AND SKILL EVERYTIME!!! Jon

Take a piece of masking tape and wrap it around the spring so the ends are stuck together then mark the weight with a marker. Then when you need it, rip off the masking tape and use it. Masking tape leaves no mess, and for a roll of masking tape and marker you are out 2 to 3 bucks. Jon

Since they would not allow us caffiene in Basic Training, I was going through some serious withdrawls. During our FTX they gave us MRE's and we were supposed to throw our packets of Folder's Choice instant coffee in the trash. Instead I put it in my pocket and at about 0230 hours when I was about ready to fall asleep in my foxhole, I opened the packet and poured it in my mouth and started chewing. Talk about some bad coffee! About the only thing that I can stand from Starbucks is a double espresso. My wife on the other hand loves the foo-foo drinks that don't even taste like coffee. I keep my own coffee maker in my desk at work, because the communal coffee maker is disgusting. Jon

You tell your boss, I don't care what you schedule me, but I have to have my match dates off. You work everynight before the match until 0400 hours, so you keep your gear in your car change after work, drive the hour and a half to the range, and sleep in your car until someone comes to open the gate at 0800, then help set up instead of sleep. When you talk in your sleep, you call out, "Come here TRS, come here.", just like you are calling a dog. And when your wife asks you the next morning what a TRS is, you reply, "A Les Baer Thunder Ranch Special.", like she is supposed to know what you are talking about. When you have shot more rounds by the age of 26, then all the other members of the police department you work for... combined. You became a cop, because you get to carry your gun all day and nobody complains. (Not the only reason but a big part of it.) You stay with the LE agency that you work for, even though you could make much better money at other agencies, because they let you carry a 1911. When you go on vacation, you go to matches, and your wife goes shopping and sees the local attractions. Jon

Just a shot in the dark, but I am guessing Operation Iraqi Freedom. Jon

Law Enforcement range. Fixed target stands on the north end, with a 25 yard line and a 50 yard line. With stakes in the ground to mark the 3, 5, 7, 10, and 15. So I built my own stands and barricades for more variety. Just have to load up the F150 and go shoot. I have a key and go about once a week, can do pretty much what I want. Good thing to be the instructor for the department. This is the range I shoot rifle and shoot matches at. It is in Sioux Falls, and is about an hour drive. Images taken from Google Maps. It's not for commercial use so it's okay. (I think) Jon

Mr and Mrs Smith: ----------------------- Jane Smith: Wait, why do I get the girl gun? John Smith: What? Are you kidding me? -------------------------------------------------------------- Eddie: This broad is not your wife, she's the enemy. John Smith: She tried to kill me. Eddie: They all try to kill you. Slowly, painfully, cripplingly, and then wham. They hurt you. How you going to handle it? John Smith: [grabs assault rifle] I'm going to borrow this. Eddie: I like where your head's at, man. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Serenity: ------------ Jayne Cobb: We're gonna explode? I don't wanna explode! Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: Jayne, how many weapons you plan on bringing? You only got the two arms. Jayne Cobb: I just get excitable as to choice- like to have my options open. Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: I don't plan on any shooting taking place during this job. Jayne Cobb: Well, what you plan and what takes place ain't ever exactly been similar. Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: No grenades. [Jayne groans] Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: No grenades! Zoë: We gonna crash again? Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: Go talk to your husband. Is the mule prepped? Zoë: Good to go sir. Just loading her up. Are those grenades? Jayne Cobb: Cap'n doesn't want them. Zoë: We're robbing the place, we're not occupying it. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (There more to this one, but it's my favorite part of the quote.) Jayne Cobb: Hell, I'll kill a man in a fair fight... or if I think he's gonna start a fair fight, or if he bothers me, or if there's a woman, or if I'm gettin' paid - mostly only when I'm gettin' paid. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Zoë: How much ammo we got left? Jayne Cobb: Three full mags, and my swinging cod! ---------------------------------------------------------------- Spaceballs -------------- Princess Vespa: I ain't shooting this thing, I hate guns. [her hair gets singed by a laser] Princess Vespa: My hair, he shot my hair. Son of a bitch! [begins blasting] --------------------------------------------------------------------- Jesse Stone: Night Passage (made for TV movie, staring Tom Selleck) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (While at the range with another officer) "You wanna try that with your finger off the trigger? ------------------------------------------------------------- "Don't shoot and stand still, shoot and move." --------------------------------------------------------- "To win the fight, front sight." ------------------------------------- Thats it for now. Jon

CED 8000 CEDHK Webpage

Thanks for the measurements. I have a drop ceiling in that room, but if I remove the tile above the press I have some duct work that is right there and won't give me any added height. So I am going to have to lower my bench and possibly move my press. I'll figure it out, I rebuild the darn house if I have to. My buddy wants to pay for half of the casefeeder so he can come use my press. Problem is, I don't think he would ever leave. Jon

I was thinking of buying a 550 casefeeder, but I have a bit of a dilemma, a low ceiling! From all the pictures that I have seen of the casefeeder setup, it would be too tall for my room. I don't have another room that I could use, and I really don't want to have to change my bench to sit down and reload. I prefer to stand. My bench is about 37 inches from the ground, and I have a strong mount which makes the handle of the press at approximately 52.5 inches from the ground. This is almost the right height for me, but truth be told I would prefer it a couple of inches higher. (I'm 6'4" and the handle is at about the same height as the bottom of my ribcage.) From the top of my powder measure it is 14.75 inches to the ceiling. From the back of the 550 where the casefeeder bolts on it is just shy of 35 inches to the ceiling. Could someone please measure from the top of their powder measure to the top of the casefeeder, and from the base of the 550 to the top of the casefeeder? Thanks. Jon