Ryder's new dog

Welcome Bogey to the family.  Do you think Ryder is excited to have a new playmate.  Bogey is a Labradoodle and will keep the Puritz family busy for a while.  What a cutie.

Cedarville-Surprise Valley

I thought I would share an article in Enjoy Magazine that Michele came across this morning.   What I found interesting was the paragraph: "The Chamber of Commerce’s largest and most successful event is its annual squirrel hunt, where shooters are invited to help farmers rid their fields of crop-destroying and plague-carrying rodents."   The Surprise Valley was our destination last week but we didn't make it when we were sidetracked by a farmer in need of help near Alturas.  We are making plans to participate in the Annual Squirrel Roundup next year.  Click on this link to read the article on Cedarville.   Also check out the video of a Golden Eagle picking up a dead squirrel. 

                                      

Squirrels 101

Rob, Terry and I ventured to Adin last week to try out the new 17 HMRs and found the weather to be a little nasty.  We chased ground squirrels for a couple of days  but the wind blew like crazy and on Friday we were blessed with a couple of inches of snow.   We parked Rob's 34 ft. fifth wheel trailer down a dirt road behind the ranchers home next to the river.  With a couple of inches of snow we made the decision to leave the trailer and come home with our tails tucked between our legs.  Having lost the first round to the squirrel gods we were determined to return and even the score.  On Wednesday we returned to retrieve the trailer and kick a little squirrel butt and we did just that.  We eradicated our fair share of little rodents and scared the living you know what out of the rest.  The three of us shot about 800 rounds on Thursday and did our share of saving the hay industry and stimulating the ammo industry.  Check out the video below if you don't mind the graphic nature of rodent control.  I mounted the video camera to the top of the scope on my rifle.  Most of the shooting was between 80 and 230 yards.  I also have footage of a Golden Eagle swooping down and picking up a dead squirrel and I will try to edit that tape and post it in the near future.  Hope you can enjoy the video, not recommended for the faint at heart. 

Minute of angle?

Ok, I took the day off from making sawdust and sighted in my new Savage Model 93 .17 HMR.  Talk about a flat shootin, accurate and I must say very fun big boy toy, well this is it.  This gun takes plunking to a new level.  For those of you that are not familiar with the term "minute of angle", this gun is the definition.   A minute of arc, arcminute, or MOA is a unit of angular measurement, equal to one sixtieth (1/60) of one degree.  Since one degree is defined as one three hundred sixtieth (1/360) of a circle, 1 minute of arc is 1/21,600 of the amount of arc in a closed circle. In simple words a MOA is one inch at 100 yards and in shooting MOA accuracy is what all shooters strive to achieve.  Savage claims that the Model 93 is capable of shooting MOA right out of the box with factory ammo and after today I certainly believe it.  I can't claim that I achieved that feat today because the place we were shooting today only allowed a maximum range of 82 yards.  The wind was blowing out of the north at 10MPH so we chose a place down by the river which was shielded from the wind.  The bullet of the .17 HMR weighs 17 grains as compared to 150 grains bullets that are typical of hunting rifles such as the 30-06.  At 17 grains traveling at 2550 fps, wind is a big factor in the accuracy department.  I first sighted in at 25 yards.  I was able to group five shots at about 5/8” and then we moved back to 82 yards.  Next time we go out I will be taking a new bench and a set of digital calipers.  You might think that I am going a little overboard (I’m sure Michele does), but I have been shooting for 53 years and I have never had a rifle that I could shoot MOA at 100 yards.  Having cataracts for 50+ years might have something to do with it, but I’m not using that excuse.  Check out the photos and you can see that we shot several groups under one inch at 82 yards.  My next post should have better and more accurate proof of MOA.  All I can say is:  “Watch out ground squirrels”  

This is my first group at 82 yards.

About 1" at 82 yards.

Looks like 5/8"

A group shot at 25 yards, about 1/2 inch

Prototype of a new portable shooting bench

Cabinet update

USPS just delivered my 4000 grit pads yesterday so I will be able to finish the TV credenza this week.  While waiting I started two media centers and I'm almost ready to spray lacquer.  I finished Olivia's candle box and I anxious to give it to her this weekend. 

 

Almost Done

Just thought I would update everyone on my progress with my latest project.  The TV Credenza is almost finished.  I am waiting for the lacquer to cure so I can hand rub the finish to a glossy deep shine.  On Tuesday I will start the process and be done in a couple of days.  I couldn't wait, so I installed the doors, glass, speaker cloth and shelves so I could take some photos. 

This is a Flipworks Media storage tray.

The shelves are solid wood with ventilation slots

This photo doesn't represent the correct color of the cabinet.  The top photo is real close to the actual color of the wood.  The back of the credenza has three doors so you can easily access the backs of the components.

The cabinet will also have casters so you can pull it way from the wall to open the back doors.

Notice the ventilation ports across the top of the face frame.  This allows heat to escape keeping the components cool.  A fan can be added to assist air flow.

This one of a kind piece of furniture will be finished and ready for delivery next weekend. Delivery can be arranged if interested.

The King

Geeez The King has been too busy lately for fun hobby stuff.

Well, old Pops has been busy in the shop working on the TV Credenza and just hasn't had time to do any fun hobby stuff lately.  I stopped at the Bend launch ramp today and threw a few sticks for Sam.  The river is really low but is still a little murky for fishing.  A couple of more days and the Steelhead better take cover because I'm getting shop fever and ready to wet a fly.  

I'm almost done with the credenza and as soon as the finish cures I can rub it out and install all the hardware.   I plan on loading it in the trailer and showing it off to a few interior decorators in Redding and Chico.  Maybe I can find one of the 1% that rolled their fortune into gold last year before the tumble.   I'll post some photos when I get it put together.  If my name was Sam Maloof I would price it at $8000 but old Pops will probably price it at $1800.  This project has taught me a lot about finishing and hopefully it will payoff.  It is really cool when you can close your eyes and run your hand across the top and actually think you are feeling a glass top.  The process starts by gluing up five boards on edge and then scraping and sanding with 100 grit sandpaper to remove the glue squeeze out.  Next I took the top down to a local cabinet shop and paid them $25 to send it through their $15,000 wide belt sander, 80 grit and then 150 grit.  It comes out of the wide belt sander totally flat.  I took it back to the shop and raised the grain and sanded it to 180 grit.  I was going to dye (stain) with medium Mission brown dye but after many test runs I decided that leaving the wood natural showed the grain the best.  Next came about ten coats of vinyl catalyzed lacquer.   After the finish cures for about four days the hand rubbing starts.  Hand rubbing is basically wet sanding the finish with progressively smaller grit until the surface is polished to a deep shine.  You use mineral oil or soapy water as a lubricant and start sanding with 320 grit.  When looking at the top at an angle you can still see dust dimples and imperfections so the process starts again as you work the top over with 400, 600, 800, 1200, 1500 and finally 2000 grit.  It's a good thing I have already had carpel tunnel surgery.  2000 grit will give a glass smooth finish that looks about a foot deep.  When this project is finished I will post it on another website showing all the methods and techniques that went into this high end piece of furniture.  As a comparison most furniture has one seal coat and two or three coats of lacquer.  I can't wait to finish this one.  

The photo above was taken at Skyler's birthday party.  Thanks for the fun time Skyler.