Author Archives: Commander Zero

The shopping continues

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Not much change going on here. I’m still working my way down the Preponomicon, bringing up the various levels of items that I want to keep onhand at all times. Most of which are food. Because I’m doing more food shopping these days I am more observant of conditions at various retail food outlets. Local grocery stores, for example, are pretty much back to pre-panic stock levels. Walmart, though, surprises me and seems to continuously look like a going-out-of-business sale in their food departments. Oh, fresh vegetables and meats are there, but the boxed/jarred/canned products are hit-n-miss. I would have thought that with WalMarts tremendous logistics capacity they would have no trouble keeping things on the shelf. But, someone pointed out to me that it is quite possible that WalMart is allocating things to larger, more hard-hit markets. Four of the five pallets of pasta destined for Montana may have been rerouted to Denver…or Sacramento..or Chicago. I can see that…seems reasonable.

So I hit two or three other supermarkets to round out the holes in my list. Honestly, I enjoy walking up and down the aisles. I almost never fail to discover products I didn’t know existed. You know, when I first started getting serious about keeping food on hand there were not a lot of options. Nowadays there are tons of ‘retort pouch’-ed products and shelf-stable foods that were only a dream two decades ago.

The more astute and label-checking of you will notice that virtually all of those foods have something in common: salt and fat. It seems like every online discussion of long-term food gets someone chiming in with “Thats way too much sodium!”. May be. But, in the post-apocalypse world you’re gonna be sweating a lot and replacing that salt will be a big deal. (See the middle third of ‘Alas Babylon’.) But , most importantly, it beats starving. You have high blood pressure and are therefore avoiding salt? Ok. I’ll bet that alot of people who have high blood pressure are going to have lower blood pressure after the weight loss and exercise that comes with living through an apocalypse. Not all, but I bet most.

So, I’ve got an updated version of the Preponomicon sitting in my phone and I wander the aisles, like Diogenes with his lamp, looking for an honest bargain. At the moment, all I’m after is to get everything on my list into the green.

And, as I keep telling you guys, the little TEOTWAWKI events will far outnumber the large ones. Job loss, medical emergency, etc, etc, will occur far more frequently than nuclear wars and asteroid collisions. Heck, some of you guys right now are experiencing job loss or reduced hours due to the Current Situation. Which is proving to be more useful…the money in the back or the M855 in the basement? Obviously, we want both but practically we should probably concentrate on the former harder than the latter.

But, as the kids say, you do you and I’ll do me. For me, I’ve already got gobs of guns, ammo, fuel, and that sort of thing on hand. Right now my focus is on the day-to-day stuff and getting cash (or cash-like instruments) tucked away.

Wardrobe malfunction

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Apparently a large part of my summer ensemble can now be interpreted as making a political statement that is unpopular in some quarters….

Men wearing Hawaiian shirts and carrying guns add a volatile new element to protests

Wondering why so many heavily armed white guys are rocking hibiscus print?

I like Hawaiin shirts for three reasons:

  • Shock value – the ugly the better. I like stuff where people look at it and go “I can’t believe youre wearing that”
  • Utlity – Awesome for covering a holster in summer carry
  • Comfort – When its hot out, these things are darn comfy

Favorite? Hilo Hatties. Someone introduced me to these years ago and I like ’em alot.

Harder homes and gardens

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I’ve always liked the idea of a little cabin that, while looking rather unassuming and generic, is actually made of a highly resilient material like concrete. I’ve always been fascinated with this product made here in Montana. But, sometimes, for non-residential uses such as secure storage, you don’t really need a nice appearance. And while I have seen plenty of thick-walled concrete structures, the roof is always the weak spot. It seems like you never see a non-flat concrete roof. So, I was surprised to see this in my travels today:

Its a concrete building, about the size of a small cabin, that is used by a local utility for some purpose. But what catches my attention is that the roof is a big slab of concrete. Many concrete structures don’t have concrete roofs…making the roof the weak spot. This baby, however, is delightfully 100% concrete. Forest fires are no problem around this thing.

My use? If I had a place out in the sticks, I’d love to have a place like this as my ‘shed’ where I’d keep my goodies. Trick it out with a more reinfoced entryway (or, better, a hidden tunnel access) and I’d feel pretty happy knowing my stuff was secure.

For a more stylish look, theyre doing amazing things with concrete panles and pouring these days. This one is one of my favorites.

But, for now, I’d settle for a nice chunk of middle of nowhere with a nice concrete building on it like the one shown above. Gotta keep playing that Powerball.

 

Is the rooftop speaking Korean yet?

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2020 is really turning out to be something, isn’t it? Who knew?

I’m still trying to keep my focus and work my way down the list of things I want to make sure I have plenty of on-hand. Interestingly, one of the things I keep on hand is a pretty decent supply of rubber buckshot and rubber slugs.

Watching the various riots is proving interesting. No one seems to be wanting to go full Rodney King Riots… I see lotsa crowds waving celphones but very few molotov cocktails, and I see lotsa cops with pepperball guns and very few people actually shooting real bullets. It’s like neither side wants to really commit.

Oh sure, there are exceptions…but broadly speaking it looks like the looters are doing just enough to avoid getting shot and the cops are throwing around just enough weight to avoid using real ammo.

For me, this is all pointless. I live in a place that is rather…mmmm….homogenous. And that tends to trend toward less crime and violence. There’ll be some college kids who think they’re “allies” or somesuch and may wave some banners or something….but a half dozen guys in black bandanas breaking windows? Someone asked me if it was time to tuck a carbine behind the drivers seat ‘just in case’. My opinion was ‘no’. Just do like you normally do and carry a pistol and, for here, you’re probably just fine.

However, if I lived somewhere else where this sorta stuff was happening….totally different story.

Interesting times

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I don’t remember ordering up a burgeoning race war.

I’m not going to say that I’m not a conspiracy guy, but I don’t think I’m a tinfoil hat wearer either. But, when someone says “oh, thats just crazy talk…you know how those people are” I get curious and want to examine things for myself. :::shrug::: I’m a very inquisitive person.

The prevailing conspiracy theories out there are that, since this is an election year, there needs to be a significant amount of sturm and drang to sink any hope of the President getting re-elected. Does that mean that I think ‘They’ created a virus and released it to sink an election? Does that mean I think they got a buncha cops to kill a black guy on camera? No, I don’t. But what I do think is that there are factions that “don’t let a crisis go to waste” and, perhaps, exploit these events more than they normally would have if someone else were President.

I’ll bet this is the sort of thing that comes in threes…. there’s some other crisis out there, I’m sure, just waiting to get tagged as We Warned You That He Would Cause This. China? Earthquake? Mass Shooting? Your guess is as good as mine. We shall see.

Link – Savage Mk II 20-rd mags

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Years ago I bought a Savage MkII as a suppressor host for my Silencerco Sparrow. And…awesome .22. But the stock was crap so I spent the cash and got a Boyds Tacticool which made this thing into a wonderful little varmint killer / sentry remover. Thing is, the gun uses a 5-round detachable mag, which is fine. And Savage makes a 10-round magazine which is also a good idea. But….why not something with a little more capacity. You know, for those times where theres a lot of somethings needing to be quietly introduced to a hollowpoint. The free market provides – Savage MK II 20rd magazine.

Figured I’ll get a couple and try them out.

By the by, I cannot say enough nice things about that Savage MkII FV-SR. I like it so much that I might have to pick up a TRR-SR. But, realistically, for logistics, I’d be better off with the Ruger Precision in .22 LR.

Mags will be here in a week. I’ll let you know how they go.

Adventures in self control

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Went to Murdoch’s the other day to pick up a 16-gallon ‘blue barrel’ for rice storage and as I walked down the aisle I beheld….this:

I know it doesn’t seem like I have good impulse control, but I actually impressed myself by not just buying the bloody thing right then and there. BUT….I had a long, long talk with myself basically talking myself in and out of whether I should buy it. Fact is, it ain’t cheap at around $2800~. But I can freeze dry my favorite foods that may be unobtainable elsewhere and get myself a nice stash of FD meats without paying the crazy prices that they normally command. I actually should fab up a spreadsheet to calculate just how many pounds of chicken and beef I’d have to FD before the thing hits the break even point.

But…I already have a pretty healthy (so to speak) stash of freeze drieds. Sure, more would be nice and being able to get exactly the foods I want has a pretty nice attraction as well. And I suppose I could get a couple of the LMI to come in on it with the expectation we could all take turns using it. But..but….expensive. Although people pay more money for far stupider items….jet skis, expensive living room chairs, Manolo Blahniks, etc.

To my way of thinking its the same financial equivalent as:

  • 4 mid-tier ARs
  • 5 Glocks
  • 1.5~ oz. of gold
  • 150 oz. of silver (hey its a 100:1 ratio)
  • 1/3 of a decent used pickup
  • 13k 9mm ball ammo

What I really need is a friend who has one of these things. 80/20 ….. get 80% of the usage for 20% of the cost.

But, dang, it would be kinda fun to see what does and does not come out well.

Marlin surgery

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Pistol caliber carbines (PCCs) are all the rage today. Why not? Yes, you lose ballistics performance but you gain streamlined logistics. Anyway, let’s recall that the original idea behind PCC’s was not to have a carbine that took the same mags as your Glock. No, the original idea was to have a carbine that took the same ammo as your Colt revolver. The genesis of the PCC goes back to the Colt Single Action and the iconic Win. ’73. A fella with a saddlebag full of .44-40 ammo could keep his rifle, pistol, and himself fed. Leverguns: the OG PCC.

I have a lovely Marlin 1894 in .357 and it’s a perfect companion to my GP-100’s. But…I wanted a little more horsepower. Time for a .44 Mag. And then I came across a nice Marlin in .44 Mag but it had one glaring little problem:

This … abberation… has no place on a rifle as otherwise magnificent as this old-style Marlin

A crossbolt safety on a hammered lever-action rifle is an affront to Crom, nature, and pre-litigious society. If you run around in the woods with a cocked hammer on your levergun you are, sir, a fool. It is no less and no more work to cock the hammer when ready to fire than it is to push an ugly, obtrusive crossbolt safety. This is why Marlins (and Winchesters) without the crossbolt safety bring more money than those that have them. So, you have an otherwise excellent, high-quality, Marlin rifle but it has the absurd crossbolt safety. Do you live with it? Slap an itty bitty o-ring on the ‘FIRE’ side of it to prevent accidentally setting it to SAFE? Or….do you….remove it.

Duh and/or hello…..you remove the worthless thing.

Several outfits offer replacement ‘plugs’ to get that stupid safety outta there. I went with this one which was suggested to me by fellow blogger Ryan. (How ya doin’, buddy!) It arrived today. Time for gun surgery.

First, know your enemy:

Know your exploded diagram as you know yourself and in a thousand disassemblies you will never be left with ‘extra’ parts. In this case, that v-groove is what keeps you from pushing the crossbolt completely through and out the other side of the receiver. There is a set screw, spring, and ball bearing that keeps it in place. Let’s get the stock off and find that set screw.

I think I can guess where to start looking. Under whatever crap that yellow stuff is, there lies our starting point. Let’s clean that crap out with a dental pick and get rolling.

Alright…back that thing out and be careful not to lose it. It’s tiny. There’s also a ball and spring in there. Get those too and don’t lose ’em. Once it’s out, push the crossbolt out the ‘SAFE’ side of the receiver (right side). You’ll be left a with a glaringly large hole in the side of your beautiful Marlin.

Take your replacement crossbolt and slide it in. You need to line up the little dent for the detent on the crossbolt with the hole for the set screw. Easiest way? Get crossbolt in place, look down set screwhole with bright flashlight, rotate crossbolt until detent lines up with hole. Firmly hold crossbolt in place and replace set screw tightly. Put stock back on gun and bask in the beauty:

And there you go. Not as pretty as if it had never had the stupid crossbolt safety, but miles better than still having it.

Hey, if you find this imformative or useful howabout kicking back a little something to yours truly?

Range time with PC Charger and an upgrade for the Roof Koreans

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Took the little Ruger PC Charger out for a spin yesterday. Holy Drokk, it is fun!

But, we ain’t here for fun, son….we’re here to gear up against the unknown future. So..how’d it shoot in regard to that? Let’s review….

I only put fifty rounds of S&B 115 FMJ though it, using ETS happysticks, but of that fifty I had 0 malfs. Everything fed, fired, and flew just fine. I had  low hopes for the red dot Bushnell because, honestly, I’ve never really thought of myself as a red dot kinda guy and have no experience with them. As it turns out, it performed quite well. Got it sighted in and was ringing the 6″ plate at 50 yards with regularity.

The SB ‘brace’ (aluminum model) worked fine. One of the gun review sites had problems with theirs on the Ruger saying that the direct blowback caused a rear-and-downward recoil impulse that would unlock the folding mechanism on the brace. Not a problem for me since I prefer my stocks to fold to the right, so I had mounted the brace bracket upsidedown and reattached the arm. As a result, any rear-and-downward motion actually locks the thing up more. No problem.

Whats the purpose of this thing? For me, its pretty simple. When I roll into the office and tuck my Bag O’ Tricks under the desk I want to have a compact little ‘carbine’ with mag commonality with my Glock pistol for those days when things have gone so far sideways that just a pistol might not be enough to keep things calm. LA Riot type stuff.

So, thus far, with a very limited amount of range time, I rather like this thing. I need to dump a few hundred more rounds through it but so far I like it and I like the possibilities it opens up for me in terms of a handy little PDW-style gun that can travel quite well. It’s an absolute shame that Ruger was hamstrung for so many years by Billy Ruger and his Fuddness. Ruger clearly has some talented engineers and idea guys over there and the results of them getting let off the leash once in a while have been rather cool.

Speaking of LA Riots, we all know, love, and respect the Roof Koreans, right? Well, in (S.) Korea they take it to a whole new level:

Roof Korea is best Korea

Housecleaning

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I often joke than when I die, the garage sale will truly be epic. Might also be historical too since some stuff has been in storage for over 2o years. Since I have some time on my hands these days, I’m cleaning up a few things and laying eyes on things I have not seen in a very, very long time.

Freeze drieds from pre-Y2k, old flashlights, rain ponchos, MRE entrees, etc. There’s quite a bit of stuff. And, surprisingly, some did not hold up as well as I would have expected. Case in point – sometime in the wee hours of the new millennia CostCo had a close out on Baygen windup flashlights. They were, as I recall, $20. I think I bought about six or eight. I pulled one out of the box and kept it handy in the bunker for when the power goes out and I need something to find my other gear with. Out of curiosity, I pulled the others out of their boxes and tried them out. None of them worked. Not a one. Perhaps almost 20 years of inactivity deteriorated the internal capacitors or something. But…not a single one worked. Instead, they’ve been taking up space for the last two decades. Obviously, this was before I had adopted the protocol of ‘function test everything before you put it away for the Deep Sleep’. Lesson learned. Interestingly, the one that I took out of the box and use from time to time still works. So, wither that was the one winner in the bunch or the inactivity of the others proved to be detrimental. Regardless, the lesson is the same: test before rest.

Everything else seems to have held up fine. Ammo still works, flashlights work when you put new batteries in them, etc, etc. But its interesting to see how the technology has changed….krypton bulbs replaced by LED, electronics being smaller and more full-featured, that sort of thing.

Its some of that older, more dated stuff that should probably be upgraded. My older MagLites, for example, should be swapped out for LED. Older MRE entrees swapped out for newer. ALICE gear upgraded to MOLLE, etc.

Also, according to the last inspection dates I noted on the boxes, it’s past time to inspect the #10 cans in storage for damage. I’m 99.9% confident everything is fine, but why take chances? Plus, during the course of things I may find other issues that I hadn’t thought about.

So…off to the basement to deep-deg through layers of time like some sort of prepper archaeologist. It’s like a cross between Indiana Jones and Burt Gummer.