Panola Regional Weekend, 2014.

Team day on Friday The 80-shot Regional on Saturday and a rifle LEG Match and a Pistol LEG Match on Sunday.  David and Ken made the plan, did the paperwork and crunched the numbers.

John Ilzhoefer.

Lauren Lecren

Roger Lankford.

Emily Hogg.

Davis.

First relay firing offhand in the Regional Match on Saturday.

Rol Coggins firing his bolt gun.

Daniel.

David.

Buddy.

Randy, Highpower Rifle Champion and Distinguished Rifle.

Jerry Illiff.

Roger Lankford during the Regional Match.

Jerry Illiff and Emily Hogg.

Dan Pate firing during the Regional.

Tom Ayers.

David Keys.

Roger Lankford.

Darren Chapman.

Rol Coggins.

Dan Pate at 600.

Dave Wilson.

Ken Gaby, Phillis Wilson, Dave Wilson crunching the numbers.

Zeke and Jeff.

Winning four-man team.

First, Second, and Third Regional medalists.

Kyle firing in Pistol Leg.

Sjane Hefner.

Dan and Roger, the newest Distinguished Riflemen.

20 Distinguished Rifles in a row.

John Zubach.

Team Day.

Panola Pits during first relay of the Leg Match on Sunday.

John Ilzhoefer firing in the LEG match.

Clay Hefner and Clay Hefner.

Roger Lankford, Distinguished Rifleman.

Mitch Hogg getting points during the LEG Match.

Clay and Shane Hefner.

Ben Sepaugh.

Randy Schiebel.

Cousin Wallace makes corn.

Wallace runs the smelter:

Yesterday I rigged up the ole turkey fryer and set about to smelt a buncha reclaimed bullets. Worked very well. Had an old cast iron cornbread mold I used as an "ingot" mold. Spent 3.5 hours and ended up with 170.5 pounds! I'm thinking most of this is pure/soft lead from swaged and jacketed bullets. Still have about 75 more pounds to go. Not only are the "ingots" easier to deal with, I got most of the dirt & impurities out along with getting the lead out of the jacketed bullets. It only takes a couple of 230gr FMJ .45's to make an ounce of lead...adds up pretty quick. The dirt & jackets float to the top where they are easily skimmed off, leaving cleaned lead. 

 I've separated the "cast" lead bullets and will do them later since they should be suitable for casting just as they are without having to alloy them with anything. I'll probably flux these after they are melted so I don't loose the tin/antimony. The cleaner ones can just be added directly to the pot during casting, as can wheel weights. Wheel weight hardness is just about right for casting the .45 target bullets running 800fps or less...no leading at all and accuracy is top-notch.

I know it's lotsa trouble but, there's a good feeling knowing I'm just a bit closer to being "independent" and self-sufficient. What ya'll say? 

Daily Deercam

Cam back to intermittent checking and running.  Ice storm brought down another round of treetops and branches so some hacking and sawing in store.  Need to go over the creek and bring back the deer decoy and pull that cam for the year.

Cardinal.

Saw a couple of these guys during daylight hours just down the creek off the bridge.

Rabbit in ice.

Coyote.

During the rain.

Texas A&M Story of human history.

  And: two.

Comings and goings at the deercam.

Just then normal traffic.

Does herded up and moving in the daytime.

Pigs around as usual.

Br'er Possum.

Coons climbing tree.

Swamp Rabbit.

Little pig herd.

Lucy and I serving lunch.

Mostly I am bulking up the squirrels and raccoons.  Saw the does in the daylight yesterday.  I'm making frequent checks down the trail with a rifle but the last two little pigs I shot were the last ones.  Great time in the bottom.

Buried Spitfire story surfaces again.

Let's see one.  This story has been going on for a while.  It's been a story, a hoax, now back to story.  Update.

It had to happen, sooner or later....

What caliber for Bigfoot?

Well...the Second Miracle of 2014.

  My step-dad had a pistol I don't remember ever seeing before.  It's an old Smith and Wesson 38/44 HD in nickel with pearl grips.  He bought it and carried it in a brief career as an LEO near Corpus Christi during the late 40s or early 50s.  He decided to give it to me, and he and mom decided to turn custody of Dad's 1940-41 pre-K-22 over as well.

Gorgeous gun, like most old S&Ws.  Going to have to shoot it.  Was loaded with wadcutters.  I'm sure it fires and functions.  Quite a functional artifact to have in hand!

Update:  Shoots right to the tip of the front sight blade.

The First Miracle of 2014

  Over to mom and step-dads for a glass of champagne New Years Eve.  I was requested to put a little clean-up on his house gun.  It lived in the top of the hall closet.  Had to get a stepstool to get up there, rummage around and then lo and behold there appeared a stainless, 2 1/2 inch barrel S&W Model 66-1.  With box.  Has a few marks but hardly fired.  Of course, that's just a pistol...not a miracle.  The miracle was a S&W pre-K-22 with stag grips that my dad bought used in the late 50s or early 60s laying beside it.  I felt like Howard Carter staring into the tomb of Tutankhamun.  I see wonderful things.

  It is such a legendary family gun, being the only pistol in the family for a long time, three sons, lots of hunting and shooting, then to disappear.  Pretty amazing to actually hold it in my hands.  I'd actually finally bought the exact gun to replace it.  Real stag grips.  It was understood to have been lost long ago.  I hadn't seen it since the  before the Bi-Cenntenial.  1976.  Maybe 1972.

  Katie and I are de-cluttering our life and practicing the art of non-attachment, since we've uh... learned, but very nice to see it again in the world.

  Got them both cleaned up and ready to return.  

  The first miracle of 2013.