Emul8

LOL -- see I knew I would forget something...I have a solar/dynamo radio too...it's near the duffle bag as well! Thanks fritz for the reminder of the radio...staying informed is particularly important in the event of something catastrophic!

swamp thing -- What I have in my BOB is essentially what you listed...I currently live in California, in the high desert...if I am not concerned with earthquakes, I am concerned with wildfires. My personal BOB has a very spare set of essentials, I have a 3600 calorie food bar, some Aqua Blox, a survival knife, a custom first aid kit that I made up of things that I KNOW I may have to use, including some basic medications such as antibiotics and pain relievers. I have this really great item that is made by Coleman, it's a 3-in-1 blanket, it can be folded into a cushion, it could be a blanket or a poncho...I guess in a pinch, it could be thrown over a rope as a shelter too. My next addition to the BOB is going to be a simple, large-ish nylon tarp, as it can be used as shelter, and it packs down small. I currently keep a .22 pistol and ammo in the bag as well. An LED flashlight, and some small incidentals that don't take up too much space...including a whole roll of toilet paper, taken off the roll and flattened. This is the bag that I will take with me on ANY trip of any distance, and that I keep near an exit of my home. My suggestions for additional items for anyone's BOB is a good pair of shoes/boots...broken in and useful in the event that you end up walking anywhere, or for a length of time. Some plastic bags in the event you have to make a solar still for water. Keep at least a dynamo, or one of those shakeable flashlights in the bag just in case you forget to check/change the batteries in your usual flashlight. As a next step up, or, if I find that I have more time to prepare for an exodus, I have a freezer full of MREs, and sealed gallon bottles of water as well as a sleeping bag, an actual tent, some small homemade cook stoves and fuel and Lexan cutlery for two people. These items are all located in or near a duffle bag that I have in my garage, and it would take mere seconds for me to collect the items...plus, my other BOB fits in the duffle bag with the extra room to spare. I am considering switching to dehydrated foods along with the MREs just as a weight saving measure. With my expanded equipment, I am considering tossing in an M44 carbine or an SKS and a few boxes of ammo. I have pack-lists made for my bags, and I do try to check them every few months to be sure that the batteries are OK, the meds haven't deteriorated significantly and that everything is up to snuff. I am sure that I am missing some things and have put in things I will never need, but at least I am trying to keep on top of the essentials. I also keep two things in mind when I am packing my BOB(s), I keep it as simple as I can, and I try to make everything in my bags serve at least a double purpose...you know, like using an SKS for a hammer...LOL! Just kidding!

There's supposed to be good dove hunting out near the Imperial valley of CA, but I know nothing of dove hunting...I haven't tried it. From what I understand, it's pretty tough to get those little suckers! What I like about dove season opening is exactly what Horsefly said...making it through another summer and knowing that other hunting seasons are coming up. Even though I don't currently hunt much, I do like hearing of the successes of other hunters...so I look forward to the seasons as well!

I have a Romanian Mosin-Nagant M44 that, when acquired, appeared to be unfired and was in excellent condition, except for the stock. That heavy lacquer or varnish, whatever it was was chunked off all over the stock, or was triple-thick in other places, so I decided to get it all off and refinish the stock more suitably. Now, mind you, the wood of the stock was hardly anything wonderful to begin with...there was no beautiful graining or quality, but that poor little carbine just looked pathetic in a chipped-up stock. The method I used to strip the stock was very time-consuming and labor-intensive...I scraped the original finish off with a dull single-edged razor blade in one of those scraper tools. In the recesses of the forend I used a brass utility brush to carefully remove the finish that the blade couldn't get. Now, I did it this way because I was a complete newbie to the art of stock (re)finishing, so I had the time/inclination to ease my way through the process. The hardest part of scraping off a finish is trying to determine where to start in case you get heavy-handed with the scraper and mar the wood...I was fortunate in that I didn't do any damage. But, once the finish coat is "broken" by the scraper, it seems to flake off pretty easily. The best part is that the stock was somewhat burnished by my fairly gentle touch with the scraper, and there wasn't any oil in the wood that I could find, but I did scrub the stock down with a solution of Purple Power, got some "whiskers", and smoothed those away with fine sandpaper to get a good, clean surface for a little custom stain and a few coats of Tru-Oil. The gun has been out on quite a few range trips in a variety of temperatures, though none remotely around freezing. The finish has held up spectacularly, much better than I deserve with my slip-shod approach. If I get a chance I will try to get some pictures of it and post them.

Clemson -- Thanks for the update...it's good to know that IO is doing what they advertise...and in your case, maybe more! Laminated stocks on your carbines? For $59.00? Dang, I may have to break down and order some! I would think that 1943 dates on a Mosin-Nagant M44 would be a bit rarer than 1944 and later dates, as the carbines went into full production in 1944. I believe that Southern Ohio Gun sells some 1943 dated M44s, but as they were early production, they command a higher price. However, I am far from an expert on these things, so I could just be babbling around this. LOL! At any rate, I am glad that you got a couple of M44s that appeal to you, and I wish you great shooting!

Well, speaking as a woman who has been on both sides of the management fence I will say that I agree somewhat with MorgansBoss in that I would far rather manage 100 men than 10 women, and if I were to be "in the ranks" with them, I would prefer the same arrangement. Women are just too cut-throat and bitchy for me. A MAJORITY of the women I have worked with do take things way too personally and will come gunnin' for you if they feel that they have been wronged. I know this because I am a woman and I have gone gunnin' for a manager when I actually WAS wronged, and I managed to right the situation. But mine was valid, unlike many incidents that I have witnessed involving women. I remember marvelling at the men I worked with in an industrial setting around 10 years ago, some of them would nearly come to blows over one thing or another, but at the end of the day, they were on speaking terms and would often go out for a beer together. Women, once a "sister" does her wrong, are like elephants...we NEVER forget, and we usually don't forgive either. So, as long-winded as this is, what I really mean to say is that I wish you the very best of luck FC, you have a tough job ahead of you...and while I am sure that if you were still in a military setting with these women, you wouldn't even have to question whether you could make headway, I hope that your caring and your dedication will serve as an example for these women to shut the hell up and strive for a greater good!

I am not going to be memorialized because I am afraid that there'd be folks lined up to desecrate my grave if I were interred...I am kind of an ornery broad! LOL! In a departure from my faith, I have chosen to be cremated and my ashes scattered wherever my family chooses. I was considering having my ashes pressed into one of those "LifeGems" for my sister, since she's all about jewelry and stuff like that...but I wouldn't be a natural diamond so she'd probably just "lose" me somewhere, or drop me down the sink or toilet. However, in keeping with this thread, I will simply say that if I were to have a headstone it would say the following: Born: Yes Died: Yes

Condoleeza Rice has essentially said that the situation in the southern U. S. right now is so bad that our nation can't really afford to reject the aid being offered by other nations currently. The last I heard we only outright rejected an offer by the Russian government to send a search and rescue team...I don't know why that was, maybe we're holding out for the cash? Israel has offered to send medical personnel and teachers. That's an excellent trade for the 2.2 billion dollars in aid that they get from us every year. Forgive me, swamprat for my cynicism...but it's not really a joke. I did find it pretty heartening to see the number of nations willing to offer aid to the U. S., and at the same time, I keep looking for the ulterior motives.... I mean, the United Arab Emirates? Saudi Arabia has also said that it is going to push oil production in order to help alleviate fuel shortages in the U. S. -- but at roughly $70.00 per barrel of crude, just who exactly is REALLY going to benefit?

Over the past few years that I have been participating in online communities that focus on guns, the only business that I have heard people speak of with almost universal disdain is InterOrdnance. Mostly it seems to be cases of what can only be described as false advertising...Mosin "sniper" rifles that weren't; formerly C&R rifles with modifications that remove them from C&R status still being sold as C&R; grading problems overall. Though, I can say that there are a few people out there who must be satisfied with IO's service and/or products as IO is still in business even though they have had some close calls with regard to legal matters, IIRC. As far as the advice around Aztec goes, it's true that if you can get ahold of John there, he will do well by you. But you'd better hurry, as there is some suggestion that once Aztec's current stock of Mosin-Nagants is gone, they won't be restocking...I think that they are just going to be moving on to something else. The good news is, I have yet to hear of a single person who has been dissatisfied with a purchase from Aztec. Here's the link, in case you haven't made it to the site yet: Aztec International Good luck!

Oooooo! Ghost Dog, you just became my very own personal hero! I worship the keyboard you type at! LOL! Thanks for the link, buddy...I will be checking that out ASAP!

I just filled up today, a Toyota 4 Runner, $40.00 -- and that was with a quarter tank left -- it will last me approximately 8 days. The 4 Runner is paid off, so that's not a problem. Comparatively, I feel pretty fortunate...it could be a whole lot worse! I have a big Ford Bronco that is awaiting a little restoration work...but that thing is such a gas guzzler, I will be waiting to get that project going for a while!

Yuck...I didn't know that the velvet on a deer's antlers was full of blood! I mean, it sound completely sensible now (how else are antlers supposed to grow?), but I never thought about it before. Like any tissue that involves a high concentration of blood, there isn't really an easy way of preserving it though...blood starts to decompose very, very rapidly once it is no longer circulating...as you found out from the way the antlers began stinking. That's a trip though.... You learn something new everyday!

Doble Troble -- I would like to be able to take credit for the term "percussive maintenance", but I am sure that I ripped it off somewhere! It's a nice term though...one can sneak it into a conversation and it sounds very officious...it isn't until days later that others realize what you've said. LOL!

Where I am in the high desert region of southern California, the gasoline prices at my local Chevron station are, in acsending order: $2.85 $2.95 $3.05 At this point in my life, I am thankful that I don't commute to L. A. like so many other people who reside in this region...but I will be happiest when I no longer have to live in CA at all. The gasoline prices some of you folks are speaking of sound totally cheap to me...how sad is that?

Add me to the mix of people wishing your son and his wife the best in this situation with Katrina, Horsefly. Maybe it's just the depth of coverage with Katrina, but it sure seems that this hurricane has done more damage than many of it's ilk...it's heartbreaking to watch the news and see the devastation...feeling powerless at this point to do anything but pray. But I guess that's something for the moment. Please, Horsefly, keep us informed!

Horsefly -- Nah, I gave up being a vegetarian after I won the bet with my sister! $300.00 to the winner, and we went a whole year...then, after I won she told me that she had lost the bet after 3 months, she just didn't inform me at the time! She's still sneaky that way! LOL! Being from Oklahoma, I am very familiar with Wolf Brand chili...I grew up on the stuff. Once, when I went back to OK a few years ago, I brought 10 cans of it back in my luggage! My Dad never did care for Wolf Brand, but I never saw him turn down a hot dog slathered with it! Now that I think about it, in the past few trips to OK over the last couple of years, I have forgotten to pick up a few cans to bring back...and I have been driving back there...it's not like I couldn't pick up a case or 12! LOL! Obviously, they don't have Wolf Brand chili here in CA. I used to make chili at home, but as the flavor distinction wasn't significant enough for me to develop a recipe or variation of my own, I found that the time versus reward ratio wasn't favoring me, so I learned to REALLY enjoy canned chili! However, I don't eat much chili anymore...probably because I don't like the generically-bland tasting chili on the market nowadays. What I really used to like was the chili my Mother favored...I don't know what the brand was, but she used to get it frozen in these little trays. The stuff, when cooked was just LOADED with red grease.... It was probably taken off the market under the auspices of "truth in advertising" so that that particular chili would have to say "Heart Attack in a Tray"! But MAN, was that chili good on hot dogs! I used to like chili with cheese in it, but I can't do that anymore. nor can I eat the jalapeños wrapped in bacon...though, I do REALLY like jalapeño poppers! Ghost Dog -- I think I have run down the types of chili that I like...but your reference to chili that tastes like the metal of the can struck me as SO true in some cases...it's pretty awful that way, isn't it? What's your favorite recipe for homemade chili? If I could find a good, easy one, I would try it at home again...in the winter anyway...there's no way I am going to try it here in the desert right now! LOL!

LOL, Doble Troble...I use "percussive maintenance" techniques whenever and wherever I can! I have a satellite receiver that seems to have some trouble warming up or something...it distorts the images on the television until I walk by and give it a little smack...then it's fine. If my laptop computer makes a funny sound, a harsh tap on it seems to set things aright again (though, currently, my laptop is in the shop...unrelated to my maintenance -- I hope!). I am almost 42 years old and I only know black and white T. V. from my less fortunate friends and neighbors, my Dad, who was a true-blue technophile got us one of those big ol' Quasar 25 inch console color T. V.s back in the '60s...we never had a bit of trouble from that thing, and it was on constantly...switched between all three channels! LOL! Meanwhile, my huge ol' 56 inch RCA rear projection T. V. that I had for less than 4 years died just before the warranty ran out.... Maybe it's not just what was broadcast in black and white...maybe it was the sets themselves?!

Yeah, it's interesting...not something that I would do to my own beloved Garands, but there must have been a reason that the Nigerians felt that they had to modify the Garands in this way. Unique almost doesn't cover it!

I like peppers, sweet, hot...you name it, I like them...well, except habaneros because I have this strange idea that I need the skin on my tongue. But just because I enjoy the occasional pepper, doesn't mean that I want them in everything, or that I have to prove something to someone by munching them down like candy. I like my peppers to be an enhancement to my food, not to dominate it. Many of my hard-core friends seem to think that they are better in my view because they will practically eat fresh peppers on their cornflakes, but I just find them amusing when they act like that...and until they can eat a habanero without screaming, they ain't poo! I don't like my chili to be too heavily peppered either...I like the flavors of the meat and the spices. If someone is putting in a whole bushel of hot peppers just to weed out the wusses and milk-drinkers, I wouldn't have a thing to do with their chili...they are probably just trying to cover up something lacking in their composition anyway. To be honest, I still like my chili to come from a can...as tacky as that may be. I don't ask anyone else to eat the stuff, but don't rip on me for my enjoyment of it!

FC -- I know how you feel...sort of. When I was first undergoing training in my crime lab job, I had to go obtain some fingerprints from a difficult case. That same morning there were autopsies of three murder victims that I had to view and I also had to print one of the victims. The very first autopsy that I would ever see in my life was performed on a 3 year old murder victim, killed by her own father. Autopsies in general aren't very pleasant to observe in real life...the sights are bad enough for some people, but it's usually the smells that can really make the whole experience downright nasty. Couple all of that with the startling reality of seeing a tiny child's body on the table, the victim of a heinous act perpetrated on her by her own father, and it's no wonder that I struggled not to cry. But that wasn't the worst part...if you can imagine. The victim that I had to obtain fingerprints on, was a 27 year old woman who was 7 months pregnant with a boy. When the woman was autopsied, the fetus was removed, and as a matter of study, my trainer and I were required to observe the fingerprints of the fetus. I remember every detail of that whole experience, though it occurred just over 9 years ago, but what I remember most was how my trainer's hands were shaking as we leaned over that tiny little boy and looked at his hands, gently unfolding his fingers to check the friction ridge detail. By that time, both my trainer and I were on the verge of tears, and it was all we could do to note our observations and get the hell out of the morgue. All the rest of that day I kept feeling like I could still smell the woman's autopsy, it was creepy and even though I would blow my nose repeatedly to rid myself of the scents from the morgue, it stayed with me. When I got home that evening, I found out why...apparently, when I was printing the woman, there was some blood seepage from one of her defense wounds, I didn't notice it at the time, but as I was maneuvering to fingerprint her, some of her blood got under my watchband, so I was in fact smelling her blood all day. Well, of course, I could scrub the blood away, and be rid of the scent forever, but the images from that time are still vivid, and they have stayed with me, and what I saw that day changed my view on capital punishment irrevocably. So, sort of like you, I saw a lesson in what I had to do...the thing is, we don't need those lessons...I am not a murderer or a drug user, and I am venturing a guess that most of here aren't...lol. It is a terrible thing to be left with the fallout from the horrendous acts of soulless people.

Yeah, a bicycle was just the best! I made my share of them out of spare parts and never had a single problem with them. I would jump them over hills, crash them into creeks, ride halfway across Oklahoma City (and that's a ride, OKC is the 4th largest city in area in the U. S.!) and like roscoedoh said, we'd lash all sorts of supplies for our daily outings to our main transportation...it was as close to total independence as we could get as kids.... Plus, I was able to ride to the local TG&Y to get clackers, cap guns and Whee-los! LOL!

Yeah, I like Ermey...he and his wife reside just down the road a bit from here where I live... he plays golf at the course a couple of blocks from me and I see him shopping and driving around here pretty frequently. He's a nice guy. You might want to forgive him his "transgression" of making "Saving Silverman" and kissing Jack Black, karlunity...money does strange things to people. Ermey himself made a lot of fun of "Saving Silverman" when he was being interviewed about it. Let's remember what Ermey does on behalf of our troops currently serving in Iraq...he goes on trips over there and visits with them, raising morale. He stays involved in USMC projects such as toy drives and he solicits donations for the group "care packages" sent to military personnel. He's a famous face, and a strong advocate for the Marine Corps, and can do in a single appearance somewhere what a whole platoon of Marines can't do...he makes the connection between our military and our civilians, and keeps it in our faces so that we don't start thinking that things are all sweetness and light! Plus, Ermey has done many roles that, in my opinion, redeem his role in "Saving Silverman", his role as the police chief in "Seven", his role as the judge in "Murder in the First", and of course, his defining moment in Kubrick's "Full Metal Jacket". Naturally, there are some bad choices intermingled in even his good roles, but that's true for virtually every actor...and while Ermey is a Marine, he's also an actor...I think he loves both. Just my opinion.

I'll second Eldora's comments...for self defense ammo, ALWAYS use factory loaded stuff! I know that I do in my home defense weapons, and I will when I can carry! Thanks for the reminder, Eldora!

Hey, what about Clackers? Those acrylic balls on string that were 'clacked' together both below and above the hand? That's a toy that got banned in the early '70s because the balls would shatter and cause eye injuries. That was one VIOLENT toy! My sister used to get the balls going real good and then she would "unleash" them on me...usually bipping me in the head. One could use them in a similar fashion to the way that gauchos used bolas as well...it was great for children that were running, not so great for kids on bicycles! LOL! Then, there's lawn darts.... I got hit with one of those in the thigh when I was playing "Chicken" with some friends. I didn't chicken out...but I had to get a tetanus shot!

Apparently, according to the website I am linking here, the Whee-lo (sorry, I misplaced the hyphen in my previous posts) was invented in 1953. That predates me by 10 years, but yeah, I am sure that those of us in our 40s would be more familiar with it. Maybe some of you guys will recognize it once you see it here: Whee-lo! There are actual Whee-los at the site that FC has linked to at the head of this thread, well, they are out of stock currently...they cost $5.99, and have features like speed control now! And, they are blister-packed, not in boxes like they were when we were children...ah, progress! FC mentioned Sears and Wards catalogs...I used to look at them too, wishing, wishing, wishing for a 1911 style BB gun, or a Crosman air rifle...I don't really remember the real firearms offered by the catalog companies...but that may be because a real firearm was out of the question for me as a kid. I was usually pushing it wanting an air pistol!