A Coupla Items

I have been working on this post since Friday afternoon, but have been interrupted by emergency calls and a busy schedule all today. I just restarted writing and plugging in photos at 9:15 PM this evening.

Loading ammo

I am in the process of loading some .357 Magnum target ammo that runs just under 1100 fps. I use either Federal or Remington brass. My recipe is Berry's 158 grain copper plated flat point bullets, 9.3 grains of Hogdgon HS-6 powder (.66 on the Lee Disk Powder Measure), and Winchester Magnum Small Pistol primers. Since these are for my six-guns or my Marlin 1894CB lever gun, I am not as picky with my brass as I am for my semi-autos. With semi-autos, conventional reloading wisdom is to separate brass by manufacturer for better consistency of the action, which at the level I shoot at is more about satisfying my OCD than anything else. Thursday night I did a run of 100 rounds of .357 Magnum. I plan on doing another 100 rounds when I have another block of uninterrupted time.

I run a Lee PRO-1000 3-die progressive press for my handgun ammo. When I finished for the night, I removed the primer tray and cleared the chute, then removed and emptied the powder hopper. I keep the press dust and dirt free by covering it with a dreaded (and banned in Kommiecticut) plastic shopping bag.

The press in full operation from a recent load of .45 ACP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lee Pro-1000 cleared after use

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Covered with a verbotten plastic shopping bag. REUSE!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lee makes changing caliber easy by offering turret plates that lock into place, allowing the dies to stay seated and adjusted. All of my handgun dies are permanently mounted on turret plates. This one that I am currently using is for both .38 Special and .357 Magnum. The dies simply get backed out two full turns to accommodate the longer .357 Magnum rounds. I then fine tune the bullet seating die and measure with a caliper for an over all length (OAL) of 1.585". When I set up the press for a new caliber, I run several "dummy" test rounds with bullets but no powder or primers and measure the OAL. The bullets are then taken apart with a kinetic bullet puller and the components reused. I mark this particular turret with some gray electrical tape and a Sharpie for how it was last setup and used.

Close up of turret plate with mounted dies

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The top of the press where the turret goes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Locked in place and ready for loading

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The other thing that needs to be changed for caliber is either just the shell plate or the whole shell plate carrier. I have two shell plate carriers; one is setup for large pistol primers, the one pictured below is set for small pistol primers. The shell plate needs to be changed to accommodate the particular caliber. The #1 shell plate in place is for .38 Special/.357 Magnum.

Small primer shell plate carrier installed on the press

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The large primer shell plate carrier. #2 plate for .45 ACP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you look closely at the #2 shell plate, you will see dimples all over it. That was caused by the moron that originally owned my press slapping the operating lever up and down, which throws off the rotational timing of the shell plate. Movement of the operating lever is supposed to be smooth up and down. Those dimples were caused by the primer decapping pin slamming into the surface of the plate. It should never make such contact, but come down over one of the three holes in the shell plate where a shell would be sitting.

My current plan is to load 200 rounds of 9mm after I complete the .357 Magnum. Once I get another 100 round ammo box I can load an additional 100 rounds of .38 Special. Right now I would have no place to put them.

 

My sportsman's club 

I have been a probationary member since December 2020. Probationary status is reviewed annually with the probie standing up in front of the membership to talk about their activities and work for the club. Then other members have the opportunity to get up and speak about the member if they have something to say. The member is excused from the room and a secret paper ballot is held whether to allow the probation to continue. In January, the membership voted unanimously to renew my membership status for being an active member in good standing. At our recent February monthly meeting, the three probationary members that were ahead of me got moved up by membership vote to full regular membership, leaving me the most senior probie next in line.

I found out Thursday that another regular member slot has opened up. When I asked the membership chairman about it, he confirmed that fact and said he would be presenting me to the Executive Committee for preliminary approval at their February meeting. The following week at the March monthly meeting, I will be presented to the membership as a candidate to become a regular member. I refer to it like the Mafia, becoming a "made" guy because that's what it feels like. After becoming a regular member, I plan on becoming an official committee member for both the Range and Kitchen Committees.

 

Kommiecticut DOT train and bus commercials

I wish there were videos to plug in here but there aren't yet. Searches came up blank for those commercials. I'll do my best to describe them.

In the past week or so, I have been seeing commercials on TV and hearing them on local radio for riding the trains and buses instead of driving your own car. In the spots, they "interview" riders (that are obviously actors) about why they ride mass transit. They babble about all kinds of reasons; read a book, listen to music on headphones while watching the scenery go by (really?), watch a movie, catch up on their latest streaming series, save the planet (HA!), etc. Everything except being aware of your surroundings and situationally aware. In another life when I worked in technology, I would have to go Boston quite often. 

MBTA full map of Boston Lines

 

Most of the time I did not need my company vehicle full of tools and materials, just a small tool bag and my laptop. On those trips, I would park at the "T" Riverside Station in West Newton, MA and take the Green Line "D Train" into the city. From Park Street Station I could switch train lines to anywhere else in the city I needed to go. I was always armed with a tactical folder and stood in the stations or outdoor platforms with my back to the wall, giving me a 180 degree view of the platform. On the train I would position myself to watch the car entry doors for who got on, the ability for a quick exit, as well as the ends of the car for people moving between cars. I never slept or occupied myself with anything other than observing my surroundings. Everyone around me would be totally oblivious to everything around them. Think Col. Cooper's "Condition White." More than once, I bailed off the train at a stop because of who or what got on, and just got on the next train by in a couple of minutes. I remember riding the train a couple of times when they were crowded, and being the only person aboard not being a mesmerized zombie. I thought how easy it would be to walk down the center aisle with an ice pick in each hand and simply and silently kill an entire train car of people.