We also took some practice up at the rifle range with Mr. Larsen and his buddy Al. I shot my .22 pump action for a while at 100 yards. Then I shot Mr. Larsen's buffalo gun, a gift from Craig. You chamber single rounds with this gun and pull the rear trigger to set the front hair trigger, and then let go with it. The gun had so much kick that although I had it pulled tightly to my shoulder, the gun kicked back in my face and the sight hit me right between the eyes. (Ouch.)
A bit later, I shot about 30 rounds with Craig's M-14. The gun is really easy to shoot and is dead accurate. Someone had placed a plastic top to a spackle bucket out on a sand cliff at about 125 yards out. I shot the spackle top about 25 times, moving it up the cliff inch by inch with the impact of the shots. It's a terrific gun to shoot.
Posted by THespos at September 13, 2004 09:41 AM
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Tom, Good to see that you are doing well. I stumbled upon your site while googling ATV trespass issues.
I'm a WV landowner, and my 98 acre spread (posted 'no trespassing' signs, 3-strand barbed wire fence, etc.) isn't exactly overrun with 'em, I've certainly had my fair share of, shall we say, "interesting" encounters with trespassing redneck yob types... I've found that when these guys are detained by a pissed off landowner with an AR-15 and a cell phone who doesn't hesitate to call the Sheriff's office, word tends to get around to the 'undesirables' that they'd better stay off Mr. N's property...
Yes, I had a Sprint contract as well...ugh. 2 years of shite customer service, borderline fraudulent business practices, and all the other fun stuff that made the day the contract ended (no small feat, as I'm sure you're aware) a banner day indeed. I'm happy to say that I've a 1 year contract with T-Mobile, and my wife and I couldn't be more pleased with the service -- not to mention the vastly improved coverage! No more being trapped in the purgatory of piss-poor cell phone service. Sprint deserves to die the slow, painful death that all shitty companies that sell shitty products should receive in the marketplace... and the fact that they, through their newly acquired victims Nextel are spending a fortune sponsoring Nascar's top racing series only strikes me as sheer marketing madness. Even I understand the simple axiom that shouting louder about a shite product...doesn't make said shite product any better!
I am glad to see that living in the People's Republic of New York hasn't kept you from enjoying the responsibe use of firearms. I too, enjoy blasting many, many clay pigeons into tiny, tiny bits -- I either use my Browning autoloader or (when I'm feeling 'old school') my 1952 Winchester Model 12 (aah, pump action goodness)! I read with interest about your trip to the range a while back, especially your experience with your friend's Ruger. It is, however a Mini-14. The M-14 is a descendant of the the WWII-era M1 Garand, chambered for the NATO 7.62x51 round, equivalent to the .308 Winchester cartridge. A Ruger Mini-14 (I have one as well, and it is quite fun -- great for sending coyotes to the Great Den in the Sky) is a semi-auto chambered for the 5.56x45 cartridge (.223 Remington). An M-14 is also a highly restricted item requiring BATFE approval to own (that is, if NY allows private ownership of 'machine guns', which I don't believe it does), as it is a select-fire (safe, semi, full auto selector switch) weapon that costs about 1/2 the price of a new Corvette (!). The civilian-legal version, sold by Springfield Armory, is designated as the M1A and is also semi-auto, and costs about $1200 for the 'standard' version. *Pendantic mode off*
I do like your website -- your rants, e.g. politics, marketing (insomuch as I understand it -- the wife's the MBA, not I!) seem to be spot on, and written with the wit that I remember well from those W&L daze...
With Warmest Regards,
Jason K. Nowlin
W&L class of '95
Marshall U. class of '04
Indeed, it is a Mini-14. Good call. And good to hear from you.
Posted by: Tom Hespos at July 10, 2006 04:06 PM
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