TGO David

Welcome.

Saw a bit about this covered over on a political blog. Worth reading. Dragged Into Politics Blog Archive Gun War Heating Up (They even caught wind of our server problems a few weeks ago and did a small story on that as well)

I've learned two important lessons today and completely own up to my n00b status when it comes to this stuff. #1. It's better to make sure that your brass is really sorted out before you tumble it #2. 40SW fits inside a 45ACP casing pretty easy. It comes apart a lot less easy after it's been tumbled together with media! So I ordered this to make my life a little easier next time. Plus it will double as a convenient media-sifter to get rid of the stuff that the Auto-Flo feature on the tumbler doesn't. MidwayUSA - Shell Sorter Brass Sorter 9mm Luger, 40 Smith & Wesson, 45 ACP 3 Bowl Set

Yeah, I've got a workbench that I made about 9 years similar to the reloading bench and it has held up to all kinds of abuse including a heavy bench vise that was subject to a lot of beatings. The only part that ever gave was the counter material when a hammer was swung and missed whatever car part was clamped into the vice. I suspect this reloading bench will do just fine.

I obtained a copy of the P90X program last week and am probably going to start it this next Monday. There was a point in my life when I was in really good shape. That point was about 15 years ago. I fully expect this program to kick my ass and make me regret every Hostess cupcake enjoyed since then. @Poak -- What are you using for your pullups? Pullup bar or resistance bands? When I was thinking about going into the military those 15 years ago, one of the things the recruiting center really worked me to death on was pullups. I'm almost overjoyed at the idea of going down that road (re: pullups) again.

Ok, here are some photos. The bench was built using 2x4 lumber with a 3/4" plywood deck and a laminate counter top with back splash. It's anchored to the studs in the wall behind using 3.5" lag screws and is rock solid. I constructed it so that I could retain the open storage area beneath the bench. This was critical as I was giving up valuable floor-space in the garage just to build this thing. As it sits, I can move anything / everything out from under the bench in just a few seconds if I want to. Above the bench I installed adjustable shelving using the same 3/4" plywood that I built the bench deck out of. This is my Lyman Turbo 2500 tumbler setup. I ordered the tumbler with the Auto-Flo feature that is supposed to negate the need for a media separator. I'm not convinced. Perhaps if you load less than the specified amount of brass per caliber the Auto-Flo feature will work better. I still think that a dedicated bingo-basket style separator is going to be necessary, especially with small-mouthed cartridges. Also you can see the timer switch that I built for this. I wanted a way to be able to run the tumbler for hours unattended so I picked up a 12hr Intermatic count-down timer and wired it up using a junction box, 16ga exterior grade service wire and some plug ends. It works perfectly and I can set it to operate from anywhere between 2hrs and 12hrs with a turn of the dial. Finally, here's another shot of the tumbler. The one thing I wanted to note here is the bungie strap that I am using to keep it from walking around while it's running. When it is crammed full of media and the maximum capacity of brass, it stays put. However if you run with a smaller load of brass or are using the Auto-Flo feature to drain the media, it walks like crazy. My solution was to screw two eye bolts into the wall behind where I set the tumbler and then loop a loose bungie strap around it. The strap typically hangs loose like it is in this picture (the tumbler was even running when I took this shot) but if the tumbler tries to walk away, the strap provides just enough gentle resistance to keep it from wandering off the edge of the bench. Hopefully I'll be ordering the Dillon press sometime in the next week or two. I've still got a lot of brass to clean so I'm really in no rush, and I want to make sure that I'm really ordering exactly what I need. Thanks for looking.

No gun store will take back a fired weapon to my knowledge. All of them rely on the manufacturer to honor warranty claims. Edit... Apparently some shops will! Read below.

Expedited warranty return on new-production firearms?

Congratulations! One of our moderators here (Musicman) pointed out a license plate today that said "Marriage is not a word. It's a sentence."

We'll kick off at 11am.

Thanks guys. But back to DRM's comments... I did not mean to imply that he didn't care about TGO because I honestly believe that a person who doesn't visit very frequently probably does not perceive the same enjoyment and/or value as someone who visits more often. Someone in that position should in no way feel compelled to donate to the site. There are forums that I visit infrequently also and I don't necessarily support them. There are also several that I do visit very frequently and they do get my support. So it all works out in the wash.

So I built the bench this Saturday and my Lyman Turbo 2500 with Auto-Flo material separator arrived this afternoon via UPS. I have it set up in on one side of the bench right now tumbling a batch of .45ACP brass in some walnut and corncob media. Musicman (James) pointed me toward using the crushed materials sold as birdcage liner at Wal-Mart and pet stores, with a tablespoon of cheap car wax added in to help minimized dusting. So I picked up some of that this weekend also and was prepared for the Brown Truck's arrival. I'll let this stuff tumble for the next 5 hours then check on it and see how it's doing. Chances are I'll just plug the tumbler into a programmable timer so that I can set it to run for hours unattended and not worry about needlessly burning electricity (or the tumbler motor). Pics in a little while. I really didn't stop to take photos earlier despite the fact that I know I should have to appease the Internet Gods.

Or you could look at it as $20/35 to help support the site. But if you're not on here much, I suppose that part doesn't really matter to you either.

Smith & Wesson is producing a Pro Series 9mm 1911 now also. Product: Model SW1911 9mm - Pro Series Buds Gun Shop last listed it at $1150-ish.

The TGO portion of the day will officially end around 2pm but I'm sure people will still be drifting in and out. I'd like for as many of the participants as possible to be there at the start of the day so that we can have a quick pow-wow regarding the new range policies, collect the $5.00 for visitors and get down to some shooting. Someone asked about long-term range memberships. YES, the landowner charges $40 for a year's membership. You can inquire about that with him at his house up on the hill next to the range.

Credit Card processing costs around $30/month no matter if we use it or not. Then you lose about 3% of the transaction proceeds to the credit card processor. I've looked into it and right now it's just not feasible for us to do this since we already operate on a very tight budget. You can pay through Paypal without having an account with them you know.

Posted Locations should work fine for this. I've started looking at better software for this purpose anyway. The current database system is sort of clunky.

I've owned a P2000 with the DA/SA and hated it also.

The adjunct instructor bit was just part of the whole copy n' paste.

Yeah.

The edit feature has been fixed.

I'll check into it. And Triple, I don't know WTF your problem is but the "What a surprise" comment wasn't called for. If you have a problem, PM me and we'll sort it out.

As I've said elsewhere, the LEM trigger is what keeps me from having an HK in my arsenal. I really want to like them. I just can't get past the funky trigger.

I really wanted to like my P2000 but I couldn't get used to the LEM or the standard DA/SA trigger. I'm sure it's just a personal preference thing but it was a deal breaker for me.

I hadn't had my coffee yet.