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March 7th, 2005 Online Quizzes - I scored 100% Beginner, 93% Intermediate, 87% Advanced, and 72% Expert on the Commonly Confused Words Test. Of course, its not nearly as cool as the Ferris Bueller Test (81%). Fedora Tip to JG.com. Tucson, The World's Most Random City - So I go out for a walk Friday at lunch. As I'm walking along I hear an odd noise, as if someone has crossed a propeller plane with a jet. That's not so unusual, as the C-130 sounds like that and flies in and out of Davis-Monthan AFB daily. But it wasn't the sound of a C-130. Intrigued, I looked up. Lo and behold, a P-51 was flying in formation with an F-15. Well that's odd, I thought to myself. I watched them putter along, the F-15 obviously taking it easy so the little Mustang could keep up. After they were out of sight I walked on. Then the sound came again, but different in pitch. Another jet-prop pair, but this was a P-38 and an A-10! This was the first time I have ever seen a Lightning in the sky. Things were very strange indeed. After they were gone, a pair of F-15s came along. Now, one Eagle in the Tucson skies is fairly unusual, since DMAFB doesn't have any F-15 units. But three? And escorting a P-51? With a P-38 in the air too? What the heck? I walked on to the bookstore, feeling specially treated to a display of Air Force history. After browsing a bit, I left and headed back to the office. But the show wasn't over yet. I saw off in the distance four planes, and I could tell they weren't Eagles, Falcons, or Warthogs. Three were Mustangs, and one was a F-86 SabreJet! This was a plane from the Korean War. My grandfather, after his time in WW2, stayed in the Reserves for a bit and became qualified on the F-86. It was quite a treat to see both his planes in the air within an hour. Finally, after the Mustangs & SabreJet turned for their final approach, the Eagle-Mustang pair flew by once more, with the throttles open wider. They were lower, so I got a better look at them. I couldn't make out the tail letters on the Eagle, but the Mustang was decked out in invasion stripes and had a blue engine cowl. All in all, it was quite a display, but I still can't figure out why. The DM air show isn't for another month, so unless they were flying into the Pima Air & Space Museum (just south of the Air Force Base), I can't figure out what is going on, though they were out again over the weekend - A P-51 & a P-38 were in formation over the northwest side of town. Commie Lots of talk is bouncing around the Blogosphere about how the car couldn't look like that if it had been shot a few hundred times. LGF claimed that, then researched it and issued a correction before AP even noticed something was wrong. That's called responsible journalism, and its something the Big Media can afford to re-learn. This lesson shows one thing more than almost anything else. First reports from the field are almost always wrong in every respect. Trust what comes out after the heat of battle, not what is reported during. In this case, wait for the autopsy for the Italian soldier, the Army report, and the report from the driver. Don't trust an single word from the Communist reporter who has a vested interest in seeing the US Military discredited and exiled from Iraq. Fun Guns - Smith & Wesson has a neat little .22lr pistol, the 22a.
10 rounds in the magazine, 1 in the chamber, 5.5 inch steel barrel, aluminum frame, etc. etc. etc. Round about $300, but used prices vary. I picked one up for about $200 a few years ago, and its a really good plinker pistol. Jennifer loves it, and can hit consistently with it, despite being a little barrel-heavy. There's a rail on the top, which makes for easy attachment of any Weaver-style scope. I suppose that would be a bit superfluous for target shooting, though small game hunters would find that beneficial. Spare mags are an exorbitant $22-$25, though you could probably find one cheaper on eBay. Sights are fixed front and adjustable rear, both anodized black, like the rest of the gun. I picked up some white and day-glo orange paint at the model shop to make them more visible - white in front, orange in rear. It helps tremendously, though they have to be repainted every once in a while. The controls are standard for a single-action semi-auto pistol. Slide release and safety are on the shooters left, easily accessed by right-handers. Those in their right minds (lefties) will appreciate the mag release, located on the front of the grip. The slide release & safety are somewhat easily actuated by the left hand thumb, if you don't mind the awkward feel of having the thumb on the left side with your other fingers (finger off the trigger, of course). Disassembly is a bit troublesome. After unloading the slide is cocked back, the button on the frame in front of the trigger guard is depressed, then the barrel is lifted off. The button can catch sometimes, which makes for difficult removals. The slide is supposed to come off easily, but it can fly off if you don't have a good hold of it, as can the recoil spring contained within. Cleaning is a bit troublesome too, as there is a small tab at the back of the rail that gets in the way of the cleaning rod when cleaning from the breach. Its not too bad, though, and the weapon is cleaned fairly easily and thoroughly. All in all its a good plinker pistol, if a bit expensive. It's a good complement to a .22lr rifle, and is accurate enough for hunting if you need or want. At $12 per 500 rounds you can afford to feed it daily, if you have the time. |
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This site is copyright 2001-2005 by Matthew Maynard. All rights reserved. All your trademarks, copyrights, insignia, and other distinguishing characteristics are belong to you. Sharks in suits make for good joke material. Don't leave a mess on your way out. Links to external websites are valid at the time of article authoring and may decay as time goes by. But we'll always have Paris. The opinions on this site are those of their author and do not represent anyone else's views. That is, unless and until you agree with them, at which point they become yours as well. Opinions expressed in the comments belong to the comment poster and may be edited for content. Play nice with others, since you want them to play nice with you. |
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