I have returned!

Welcome back. It has been a while.

I was herding my sheep, and telling silly hipsters that they have so very much wrong about firearms.

A popular misconception is that simply having one puts you one step away from being a mass murderer.

Good to see you again 'Masher. And the others too.

I'm sad to say that without the watchful eye of you guys to keep me in line, I've fallen into some dark areas during the absence.

That's a sad thing to hear.

I hope that those dark places did not involve selling your guns and donating the proceeds to Bloomberg.

Fortunately it wasn't quite that dark. But I haven't bought any new guns in a long time. In the post Sandy Hook era when ammo was tight, my interest dried up due to market constraints.

No my own dark places involved certainly practices that I never expected. Without you guys around certain habits that some would consider more feminine in nature started to assert themselves thanks to the absence of testosterone. Certain cartoons were also involved...

I support the first amendment as well as the second.

Actually, while we're talking about freedoms, I like numbers three through ten as well, and I have a certain fondness for the fourteenth.

Of course, nothing against emancipation and the termination of prohibition either.

But I digress! I have nothing against femininity either. In fact, it has its charms. And cartoons? First amendment, they get a free pass from me.

Welcome back, Becks!
Here's a new cartoon in your honor:
From Tundracomics http://tundracomics.com/tundraarchive.html

Mark :lol:

It's good seeing you too Mark. But sadly those aren't the kind of cartoons I found myself getting involved in. I found myself mixed up in something marketed to appeal to girls. And when you've gone a good portion of your life focused on what many consider masculine fields, it's a sudden culture clash.

I have two conflicting responses.

First: Excellent. Women are over 50% of the population, and the dictates of capitalism and free enterprise tell me there's nothing wrong with trying to take the majority's money, or at least their attention span.

This is still approximately a capitalist country, right?

Second: I'm happy to help you swing the pendulum back in a more androgen-rich direction. How about taking part in shooting sports?

Although I'm not sure that's all that androgen-rich any more. I see more and more women at shooting competitions, and I'm happy to see them there.

applesmasher said:

I have two conflicting responses.

First: Excellent. Women are over 50% of the population, and the dictates of capitalism and free enterprise tell me there's nothing wrong with trying to take the majority's money, or at least their attention span.

This is still approximately a capitalist country, right?

Click to expand...

That's a good question, and I'm really not sure anymore.

Second: I'm happy to help you swing the pendulum back in a more androgen-rich direction. How about taking part in shooting sports?

Although I'm not sure that's all that androgen-rich any more. I see more and more women at shooting competitions, and I'm happy to see them there.

Click to expand...

I'm afraid that's something I can't really get involved in. Money's tight anymore, and good ammo is hard to find. I can't even remember the last time I actually bought any ammo.

Becks said:

I'm afraid that's something I can't really get involved in. Money's tight anymore, and good ammo is hard to find. I can't even remember the last time I actually bought any ammo.

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Then I'm sorry I'm not anywhere near you. I'd be glad to spot you some ammunition if you're in my neck of the woods. And if you come to the soggy, dark corner of the country where I live, I'll take you shooting too. I save money by reloading, so it would be no big hardship.

Well there's a decent abundance of most calibers here again. Picking up some .223, 7.62 and 9mm isn't all that hard right now. But finding .22 rimfire is a lot harder than finding a unicorn right now. And that lack of availability has gotten be a bit despondent about stocking up on other calibers.

I heard that the manufacturers get higher prices for rimfire on the east coast, so they're shipping it all there and leaving us poor folks west of Ol' Man River to beg for 22lr on street corners.

Hmm. Not a bad idea.

WILL SHOOT VARMINTS FOR 22WMR

I suspect that might get me arrested in Portland.

applesmasher said:

I heard that the manufacturers get higher prices for rimfire on the east coast, so they're shipping it all there and leaving us poor folks west of Ol' Man River to beg for 22lr on street corners.

Hmm. Not a bad idea.

WILL SHOOT VARMINTS FOR 22WMR

I suspect that might get me arrested in Portland.

Click to expand...

There's always a rumor going on...

It's sad when 9mm and .223 rounds, even the brass cased cartridges, are easier to get than .22 rimfire.

Welcome back, Becks! Good to see ya. .22 is still hard to find around here too, which feels like crazytown compared to a few years back. Been seriously considering getting something in a 9mm for the cheap plinking, at least comparatively.

Have you thought at all about reloading? I didn't think I had anywhere near enough space in my little apartment, but with some help from folks here and a couple of locals I've got a nice little hand-press rig that works wonders in lower volumes. Love it. Might be worth a look if you find components are more available to you locally than manufactured ammo, anyway.

I've given much thought to reloading. But there's a lot involved, and it's kind of daunting right now. Plus I don't get out to shoot like I want to for various reasons, so I'd be having a lot of untested ammo sitting around, that may or may not work properly.

If you ever feel the urge, Becks, I would be happy to help you get started. It won't be a fancy powerdriven rig which will churn out thousands of bullets in an evening, but you can start cheap and functional with minimum drama.

Also, I would suggest seeing if there's a local league in some shooting sport. If I remember correctly, you're in the Great Plains, which means there might be. It's not as if you'd have to go crawling and begging to Bloomberg for permission.

Actually, that would be a bad idea anyway. I bet he gets off on that sort of thing. And then says "NO!" just to see your face.

But seriously, I've found that most local shooting leagues, like bullseye pistol and bowling pins, are great places to meet some nice people.