brickhistory

Highly recommend you stay on the Virginia side of the river. When traffic sh1ts the bed, as it did regularly, the bridges became the natural chokepoints and alternatives are nil. Your requirements were the holy grail of "short commute and affordable." It's DC. The two are just about incompatible. I lived out near IAD, the new Air & Space Museum, and the NRO. Nice area, not cheap, but not oh my god (recalibrating for DC area), and the schools were good. Unable on the home schooling thing. The drive was long, but express buses, the VRE (a train), and slugging were decent. 45-60 minutes door to door. Best of luck. Unasked for advice: Don't concealed carry in DC. They are not tolerant or forgiving. Of course, that's where you have the most need to carry as well.

Well, there is that danger of not making that last surfacing thing. I am unaware of any such risk with ICBM duty. I surfaced successfully around 240 times from beneath North Dakota. And the fact that it takes a couple of years and a mega-buttload of money to train a nuke submariner.

Smith & Wesson M&P9c I picked one up about six months ago. I've put probably 500 rounds through it. It has yet to fail. I still just don't like it. Got a good deal on a hardly used M&P9c. MA & CA compliant meaning the magazines were only 10 rounders and not the 12'ers that are also available. This one does not have an external safety. I got it because of the price and thinking it might be my replacement for when I finally get around to sending my XDs into Springfield for the recall. It is surprising to me to see how much difference the width to this - 1.18" vs. the .9" of the XDs, but it actually is noticeable in an IWB. I also thought it might be a good upgrade for my wife after she carrys her S&W Model 642 for a while and wants something else. One of the two main things I do not like about it is the length of the back of the grip. It's just a tad too short to be comfortable for me. Yes, I am aware of the adapters that let me use a full size magazine but I might as well carry my full size M&P in that case. The other thing I don't like is the trigger on this which is very different than that of the full size. Not how it works - I had an APEX trigger job done on it and that is much better than factory original - but the actual trigger itself. The long, thin piece of plastic/polymer feels like I'm pulling a cat fang and the angle is awkward to me. The good thing about this pistol is the reliability as noted above. It has yet to fail no matter the type of ammo - bulk cheap stuff or Corbon SD rounds. So I wouldn't be leery of carrying this and I use it for the concealed pistol on the main floor. As quickly as the market is moving, the M&P series is getting long in the tooth now, but it still gets the job done with a minimum of fuss and confusion. But I just am not that into this one. M&P9c specifications: Weight: 21.7 oz (unloaded) Length: 6.7" Height: 4.3" Width: 1.18" Barrel Length: 3.5" 3.5″

And that's two more guys who are off the schedule, so those remaining can pull more alerts, leading to more dissatisfaction, leading to more stupdity/mistakes/etc. Sigh... Still betting the current Administration says "shut 'em down" to "save" money and to cut the nukes to way below START. As he said he wanted to do.

Blonde from first video: "I used all the loads..." 'Murica!

"American Hustle" was well done. No, it is not an action flick, and sh1t doesn't blow up every 2-3 minutes. Great acting, good story, spot-on depiction of the butt-ugly 1970s. Lots of, to me, unexpected stars in it playing bit roles. My understanding is the lead, Christian Bale, packed on 40lbs to play the pudgy main character. And not in a good way.

Logged much time in the Air Force? Such has always been the case. If you sacrifice for them, you are a team player. To expect the reverse is selfish and stupid on your part. Let's see what glorious examples I can recall: 1. 1992 force reduction 2. mid-late 1990s Feet on the ramp - don't sign up for the extended bonus, don't fly. Literally. 2. The last VSP shall I go on? Blg Blue absolutely, positively doesn't give one rat's ass about you or any other individual. It will simply say "Next!" edited due to double post.

Winner of most obvious advice of the year.

I did and it looked just fine. I've never shot one. This Airweight was what my Mrs. wanted, so I wasn't going to argue with her. Introducing "lasers" and the like would've made her eyes glaze over. She wanted light, basic, and reliable. The 642 met all those needs. No doubt the Bodyguard would have as well, just not what she picked.

Smith & Wesson Model 642 Airweight note: note my photo/not my gun (sorry for the adertising link displayed) Finally got my wife to finish up her CCW paperwork and get that taken care of. The final product of that process was taking her to the range this morning to fire her new S&W Model 642 Airweight complete with the pink after-market Hogue grip like this one pictured. First the specs: .38 special +P five round revolver Barrel - 1.875 inches Overall length - 6.31 inches Weight - 15 oz (unloaded) Double action only Second the ammo used on a standard B27 target at 3 yards/9 feet: 50 rounds of Blazer Brass 125gr. FMJ 20 rounds of Buffalo Bore 125 gr JHP, low velocity, low flash The range used was intentionally kept close because that is what this revolver is for; close-in, bad guy about to grab you, stick it in his belly and pull action. The sights are a fixed blade front sight with a grooved upper portion of the frame serving as the rear sights. In short, they suck. But, again, this is a close-in, point it gun, not a competition piece. My wife, to her credit, was pretty good. Retired USAF REMF, she had shot the M9 3-4 times in her career and a Walther P22 .22LR with me a few more times. But she's got good eye-hand coordination and she put everything inside the 8 ring today. Her complaint was how heavy the trigger pull was/is which I concur with, but again, it serves the purpose of you won't accidentally pull this trigger. You have to seriously mean it. She wanted her first carry weapon to be hammerless/smooth so that snagging on anything would be minimimzed. This S&W fits the bill for that as well. It is damn light and damned easy to carry concealed even with swapping the tiny factory-original two-finger grip for the three-finger Hogue grip. So for concealiability and reliability, I score it very high. But it is a punishing MF'er to shoot. Her enthusiasm light flickered off after the first 5 rounds. At only 15 oz (that's less than 1 lb for the fellow Poli Sci majors), there is nothing to absorb the recoil except one's hand. After 20 rounds of the Blazer ammo and five of the Buffalo Bore, I really had to cajole her to at least shoot the rest of the actual carry Buffalo Bore ammo. I guilted her by saying "you wanted to carry, you should at least be familar with how the SHTF ammo is going to feel." But having shot the remaining 30 rounds of practice ammo and five of the self-defense rounds, I was pretty much done with it as well. It is not fun to shoot. I couldn't imagine loading up +P in this thing for any range time. And to contemplate the ultra-lightweight .357s and .44s out there, well, ouch is all I can say. And I like .44s but they need to have some weight to 'em. But for the daily carry, this is a pretty good starter piece. Reliability of a revolver, extreme light weight for daily carry, with a long history for a proven round, I am comfortable with her carrying this. Haven't convinced her, yet, to carry on body; she is going with a purse holster option, but it's a start. And she has promised that she'd go to the range with me at least once a month to fire a box of practice stuff through the little S&W. Maybe, like my XDS which was a tough little f'er to shoot for long at first, it will get easier with practice. Now, it's easy to put 200-300 rounds at a time down the XDS's stubby barrel. Maybe this thing will be the same. If not, it's a start and I hope to put her into a semi-auto 9mm in the not too distant future.

"The World's End" Meh... Same guys from Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. Kind of a rehash of the former along with some life changes you from a beer-swilling teen-ager to a middle-aged man lessons. Maybe a Netflix or other rental, but not full movie price. Some moments, but not enough.

Yep. Better'n 1,000 rounds through mine. Confident enough to keep it my EDC. May/may not get around to this 'maybe' issue. Thanks for the update.

WHY is that our problem?

To change the line a little bit: "Da good Lord says you'll be fine, but I'm fooked..." My XDS is in the heart of their recall range. Not amused.

RAF Museum - not the Duxford site, which is further away - is geographically small but packed with good stuff - particularly actual WWII stuff - captured Luftwaffe aircraft, etc. Imperial War Museum is overwhelming. The Tower of London. A double-decker bus tour - takes 1/2 day, goes by a lot of stuff, lets you pick what to follow-up on. Damned expensive place, however.

For M2 and other Texicans... https://www.youtube.com/embed/Vt7FDTpzGvo?rel=0

"Or" I can just wait until she wants to get something else. Win/win.

Surprises or Wonders Never Cease... About a month ago, my wife surprised the absolute sh1t out of me by saying she wanted to get her CCW. This is after some years of practically calling me paranoid or a freudian gun nut for carrying, collecting, and shooting. So, who am I to argue? Set her up with a state-mandated CCW class which she took today. From what she described it was very much like the lowest-common denominator class that I took with another place when I got mine in Nebraska last year. Academics, test, basic qual on the range (essentially able to pull the trigger and make a hole appear on the paper target...) But, to add to this turn of events was her choice of handguns. We went shooting/shopping/trying different ones on Friday. From .22LR, .380, 9mm, we went through numerous guns trying to find what she liked and would actually shoot and carry. Naturally, my challenge was/is to not overwhelm with advice or even talking (since I'm only the husband), but eventually she came to the realization of a snub-nosed revolver due to ease of manual of arms. She did listen when I encouraged something larger than the .22 which she liked because of the no recoil. Being retired USAF, she had shot the Beretta M9 but hated it. Too big/heavy, too intimidating in the mass class that Big Blue runs, etc, etc, etc. And she went with a .38 special. I am not unhappy. So, I will be welcoming a S&W Model 642 Airweight into the family by next weekend after doing the on-line purchase and FFL transfer dance. Range report to follow.

The guy was asked his personal opinion on a new, still controversial subject that affects both straights and gays. He was sacked because his commander didn't like that opinion. Not, based upon the article, on how well he did or did not do the job, but for having a different private opinion. Nice diversion of the argument, but I am sticking to the topic at hand, a differing private opinion. And, by the way, as a commander, you don't get to "fire" your first sergeant based upon your perception. You have to prove, via documentation and formal proceedings, on why you want to replace your first sergeant. Command by personal whim. I think there have been a few threads on that. And I pity the future of the USAF because I see it is strong with you...

Gotta love the "support mind, body, and soul" mantra for gay rights and marriages within the USAF being displayed. Ok, the rules now are it's all good and everyone's equal. Right, play by those rules or get out. Fair enough. But enthusiastically support, even in your private opinions, something you find objectionable? Being a professional is not good enough in that you carry out those rules despite any private thoughts on the matter? Did and would you make the same argument when gays were getting kicked out for being gay and the 1st Sgt was involved in that process and may have thought differently, i.e., "I don't agree with the 'no gays' rules, but I have to do my job." It appears that only one view is permissable, let alone acceptable now. 'Tolerance,' indeed. Off to 're-education' camp for you. Also regarding the "cheerleader" first sergeant theme: True, that individual is supposed to help sell the commander's, and Big Blue's, policies and rules to the troops (BTW, not just the enlisted). But he or she is also supposed to be the voice of the troops back to the commander: "Hey, boss, got a minute? Lemme close the door..." Sad what you think of them and sadder still if that is all you've experienced.

Yep. Not saying it's wrong, just drastically different than what we do at present and dudes should think about it carefully. As well as pointing out that hobbit's OP was valid, IMO.

Foul. This did happen previously during hobbit's and my time which doesn't precede you all that much. Wonderboys in an Administration hit on this idea, thinking it and they are the sh1t for thinking it up. Then it blows up in their, well actually the nation's face when dudes punch because the ring at the end isn't brass, but peanut butter. Not to mention that the promotion rate, and, most likely, PCS rate will slow down dramatically. Look at the RAF for examples of such or Guard/Reserve units. Wanna be a captain for 12 years? A major for 10 or more? That is the inevitable result since the officer caps will remain in place.

Smith & Wesson Model 439 not my photo If a M1911 and a Browning Hi-power had a baby, it would be something like this. First, the history via some google-fu: S&W developed the Model 39 in the early 1950s to compete for a US Army effort to replace the 1911 (when has that ever happened and how many times?). Specifically, Big Green was looking for a double-action 9mm to be a NATO standardizing weapon and round as well as taking advantage of the double-action of the German P-38 of WWII fame. S&W came up with the Model 39 and then the competition was cancelled. So they went to the civilian market where it did ok. Incidentally, the Vietnam-era SEALs used the Model 39, including a silenced .22 version called the "Hush Puppy" for silencing the biological ADT alarms of the VC of the day. Fast forward to the 1970s and the second generation, the Model 439 came out. It fixed some of the issues with the original Model 39 - weak extractor mainly. The Model 439 was the first semi-auto to be adopted by a major police force - Illinois State Police - which began the switch from .38 revolvers to today's semi-auto armed police forces. So with that background, here is my report on this new-to-me Model 439. This is a Colt Commander-sized semi-auto. It has a better hand feel than even a 1911 (which is the best, IMO) with curved mainspring housing filling up the center of the palm. The fixed front sight is large, but has no definition for my old eyes, so I had a red insert put in. The large rear sights are adjustable. Capacity is 8 + 1 of 9mm. Controls are 1911/most semi's standard. Recoil is soaked up by the steel slide and aluminum frame. This is not a light-weight gun. But the nose didn't rise very much and follow-up shots were easy and quick to do. I put 200 rounds of 124 gr. FMJ through it yesterday. Zero malfunctions of any sort and it hit where aimed from 25 yards down to 3. The double action is heavy but not as bad as, say, a Walther PPK/S. But you aren't going to accidentally fire this thing when the hammer is down. You will have to mean it to pull the trigger in double-action. In single action, there was a little play before the trigger took up tension, but the break was clean and precise. Could be because this is a used gun. (After buying, I took to a gunsmith for a full R&R since I didn't know the full history of it before I bought it.) A trigger job could be on the horizon to lose the slight play. The slide-mounted decocker/safety is on both sides and easily reached/manipulated. I like this gun. I could easily see it being a carry piece especially for those that like 1911's for such. And, for me, carrying it with one in the chamber, but the hammer down would be more instinctive than the 1911 condition one cocked/locked. No insult intended for those that do, just that I haven't trained for such. My thought pattern is that if I need to draw, I need to fire. And my lizard brain is likely to be the only one working at that moment, so adding a step of 'safety off' is one I will screw up. Obviously, training and practice could overcome this. But since I don't carry a 1911, I don't need to. But I digress. Breaking it down to clean it shows the old-school of it as well. Kinda 1911-like here too. Push and remove the slide-lock pin, slide off, mainspring/guide rod off (and it's a looooong spring), barrel bushing off, barrel out, and there you have it. I like old-school steel and wood guns. But technology has passed them by in a lot of ways. For less weight, I can carry more ammo in a modern polymer 9mm. I can also carry smaller, more concealable pistols. But in the day, or if this was all I had, I would have no problem carrying this one. It is flat like a 1911, points well, and operates in a standard fashion. It also would make a good night table house gun. Pros: Feels good Low recoil Shoots well Looks good Cons: Heavy compared to modern counterparts Complicated engineering compared to modern counterparts Limited magazine capacity I like this pistol enough to where it made the display gun cabinet. Just a classic, classy looking pistol

"Night Fighter" by C.F. Rawnsley and Bob Wright. Rawnsley was the R/O, radio (for radar) observer (nav) to John Cunningham, a high scoring RAF night fighter ace in WWII, later test pilot for de Havilland. Often spoke to SOS and ACSC classes before he died. Fantastic description of how being a pioneering WSO/nav worked as well as bringing radar into aerial warfighting. Have read these so many times through the years. And he writes in a (Brit) crew dog sort of way that keeps the reader interested in what could be a boring radar 101 briefing, as well as excellent combat narrative. Started me on my illogical fascination on the topic.

"We were Crewdogs" I-V "Riding Rockets" mainly about his time as a Shuttle mission crew, but some about his RF-4C backseat time "MAGNUM! The Wild Weasels in Desert Storm" has stories from both front and back seaters - note: I wrote this so mods can delete if too self-promoting There are more; will edit/add as I remember them