Weak Point In A Ruger Single Action?

This may be it. The little round rod you see is the Hammer Plunger. It has a spring behind it in the hammer, and a relieved area on the side so it remains captured by the little pin you see in the hammer. This plunger pushes forward on the backside of the Cylinder Latch when you draw the hammer back, which lowers the front end of the latch, allowing the cylinder to turn. The Plunger is pushed upward into the hammer as the hammer drops, and then it pops back to the limit of the relieved area against the little pin when it is at rest.  The plunger broke on a Single Six I had in the mid-1970's, and I saw this repeated on a friend's Single Six a year or two later. It was easy to replace by using a drill bit shank cut to length, and then filing the side where the pin rides.

If this breaks in your revolver you cannot operate the action normally. The cylinder latch is not moved when you try to cock the gun, and it is jammed up as the hand tries to rotate the cylinder. I think you could make the gun work by opening the gate, rotating the cylinder so it is unlatched, closing the gate, and then cocking the hammer. The important thing for you to do if this happens is to turn the gun upside down and catch the bottom of the Hammer Plunger. You will need it when you make your new piece so you can make the length right. I haven't had this problem again for over forty years, but I sure have not forgotten it. A prudent person would probably order a few of these plungers just in case one is needed.

The Importance Of Branch Angles

"See Good Trees" is my motto when doing improvement work in timber. Look for the good ones and get rid of trees competing with them. For timber growers, a good tree has a straight stem, good natural pruning, a wide healthy crown, and no forks or tight branch angles with included bark. This red maple demonstrates the danger of forks and tight branch angles. Trees like this one tend to be damaged by wind and ice.

Do we need to get rid of this tree now? We can utilize it for firewood, but currently we are covered up in dead ash trees, and those need to be harvested before we go after a live tree. Is it interfering with a good crop tree? If not, just leave it for the time being.  Rot is going to work its way down the stem, but there will still be a good log for ten or fifteen years. You can also leave a tree like this to serve as a wildlife tree. That break will work as a good nesting site, and possibly a den. 

 

Here's a bad fork with included bark and rot progressing.

Another bad fork with hidden bark included, but sound on top.

This one is a sound fork with both wood and bark where they should be. A fork is the top end of merchantability for sawtimber. You need a minimum of 8' 6" for a hardwood log to be merchantable. If a tree forks below that it will never go to the sawmill. 

This is a good branch angle with the limb going back all the way to the pith. The tighter the branching angle, the more likely bark will be trapped between the limb and the stem.

Dolly Parton: Hard Candy Christmas

My Favorite Llama

If you travel I-64 through Southern Illinois you might be lucky enough to see this llama along the way. It is at a llama farm, but this one is a statue made of steel. Many years ago it was in the news because it had been stolen. It is an odd thing to steal, and I don't know how anyone could ever display it or fence the ill-gotten gains, because it is unique.

 One day I was looking at timber in the next county over and was walking down that track you see. It is an unused oilfield road, and comes off a dirt road that is difficult to drive in dry weather. Off to one side I saw an animal head. When you see deer while woods-walking you don't stop or turn your head. Make eye contact and the animal will bolt, but a solid sideways glance showed that this was no deer. It was a welded up, all-steel llama! This was before I had a smart phone, so I finished looking at the timber and got back to the office, where I called the neighboring sheriff. "Are you still looking for a llama?" "You Found The LLAMA?" A backhoe operator was called and a local game warden went out to collect it and make an official report, and it went home to its place by I-64. I look at it every time I drive by. 

Real Life Lessons To Avoid Impact Injuries

Open face falling and bore cutting applied through the five step plan will go far to protect you from injuries and death. Learn proper cutting methods from trainers like Tim Ard, and you will avoid the drama of ambulances, helicopters, and emergency rooms. Tim Ard's YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ForestApps

Tim Ard's Struck-By video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uB-iBn5grCk

Took A Little Hike Today,

...and found no trespassers! They were probably in a turkey coma this morning. I did find a shed antler from last winter, and that was a nice surprise. Mama Deer and her two babies spent some time in the yard today and hardly noticed me when I was out in the driveway.

Jingle Bell Rock, Bobby Helms

Deer Season Report

 Our friends, Dusty and George have spent a bunch of time this Fall in our timber bow hunting, and this weekend, firearm hunting. Saturday was windy and the deer stayed out of sight until dusk, when they came out in bunches. Sunday morning was calm and at 6:45 we heard Dusty shoot. He got a very nice buck through the heart. Dusty lost sight of the deer and came in so it would lie down. When we went out again to look for it, it had gone about 75 yards before going down. 

Ten days ago, George bagged a good buck with a crossbow and we retrieved it with the tractor.

A few days after that buck, George got another one! Dusty came to help him retrieve this one, and he had a meaningful deer blessing before they loaded it. "Thank God it died by the road!"  I gotta say that I am impressed by the hunting skill of our friends! This photo is by Dusty.

Firearm Deer Season Starts Friday, November 18

...and I am hoping we don't hear cannonades in the morning. Sometimes it sounds like a war firing up on the first day. It will be cold in the morning with a NW wind, so hunters will have to climb down early and retreat to their 4WD pickups and coffee bottles. I wish young bucks like these two were safe, but many hunters will shoot any deer with antlers. These two crossed our driveway during the morning, Thursday, November 17.

 

A Brief Reading From Ernie Pyle

  I always like to pull Ernie Pyle from the bookshelf on Veterans' Day and reflect a bit on the experiences of World War II vets. Here is a brief excerpt from Ernie's time at Anzio. It's not the stuff of movies or war novels, but it's real. From Hospital Ship in Brave Men, (At Anzio) "Once out there we had to lie off and wait for an hour or so while other LCTs finished unloading their wounded. As we lay at anchor, the officer in charge decided to transfer the walking wounded off another LCT onto ours. So it drew alongside, threw a line, and the two ships came against each other. The slightly wounded and sick men jumped across whenever the ships hit together. 

A heavy swell was running and the ships would draw a few feet apart and then come together with a terrific bang. It was punishing to the wounded men. I stood among them, and every time we hit they would shut their eyes and clench their teeth. 

One man, nearly covered with a cast, looked at me pleadingly and said, "Don't those blankety-blank so and sos know there are men here who are badly hurt?"

Occasionally shells screamed across the town and exploded in the water in our vicinity. The wounded men didn't cringe or pay any attention to this near danger, but the pounding of the ships together made them wild."

Firewood From Our Dead Ash Trees

 After thinking on this a while, I think Susan and I planted these trees between 1995 and 2000. We are going to toss a bunch of walnuts in here and hope that the squirrels plant them for us.

Bradford Pears Have Got To Go!

The Bradford pears have been here for a bit more than 35 years, and it is time for them to go. We started today, taking off limbs that throw off the balance or tangle with a neighboring tree. Stand back a bit and be ready to step back when out-of-balance stems pop as this one does. They move fast!

Dance Macabre, Saint Saens, Arrangement by Liszt, Played by Horowitz

Is That A Good Luck Charm In Your Pocket?

or a disaster waiting to happen?  Is your .380 going to throw lead when you need it to do so, or is it going to choke on pocket lint?  We had company over the weekend, and I asked the husband if he had cleaned and lubed his pocket pistol lately.  Nope!  I said, "Give it to me and I will take care of it for you."  I guessed it would be worthy of photos and I was not disappointed.  Lint on the trigger, lint stuck to the side of the magazine and inside, too.

The barrel was fuzzy.  It definitely needed to be disassembled.

The slide catch and the hammer were both loaded up with lint, and also the mag well.

The underside of the slide was also covered in lint and a bit of powder residue.  So, we know this pistol has been fired and put back in its holster dirty after the last range trip.  I cleaned up all the dirt and lint and then lubed the little LCP II properly, even using my special blend of grease on the rails so the lube doesn't run away.

Our carry guns are not magical talismans.  They are tools and you should attend to them on a regular basis.  Guns have reciprocating and revolving parts that need to be oiled or greased to run properly, in spite of the torture tests that gunwriters love to do.  Pockets, pocket holsters, and lint all wick away oil.  The gun you lubed two months ago is probably dry by now.  The need to clean and lube is double for little pocket guns like the LCP and LCP II.  They are light, and require a firm grip to operate properly.  If you do not keep them in top operating condition, they are likely to fail you when you need them most.  You also need to practice with these little guys regularly, and make sure your grip is up to snuff so you can empty entire magazines without getting stovepipes.

Just in case you haven't read it, Grant Cunningham's article on lubrication is linked:   Here.  Be serious about your ability to defend yourself.  Criminals think about their work all the time.  We should do the same for our safety.

Lovely Little Grinder For Your Coffee!

 

                                                               Back To The Old Grind!

Weekend Steam II: Huber Steam Roller!

 This Huber steam roller has been sitting idle for many years, but Andy Glines and friends got to work on it and have it running for the Fall show at Boonville, Indiana. The operators all agreed that this engine is hard to fire. The boiler is the same diameter as Andy's Huber traction engine, but is a bit longer. Andy's engine is easy to fire, but the roller takes forever to get steam up. Tending your fire on a return flue is harder than a locomotive boiler, but there is plenty of experience in these guys. It's a puzzle, but I bet they figure it out. 

Weekend Steam (And Gas): Boonville, Indiana Engine Show Is This Weekend!

Boonville's October show is a three day event, October 14-16.    There will be steamers, gas engines, tractors, and a great flea market.  Put it on your calendar!




Directions: Thresherman’s Park, 2-1/2 miles north of Boonville on W. New Harmony Road, 1/4 mile off Hwy. 61.

Click on the Google Earth Photo to enlarge.

Sadness Leaks Through Tear-Stained Cheeks, Rest In Peace, Little Ozzie

 Ozzie came to us a little over three years ago. His owner was a Schipperke breeder who developed health problems and had to move to an assisted living home. Her dogs were taken in by Midwest Schipperke Rescue friends, and Ozzie came to us to foster. He was a stud dog, and had a nice kennel. He adapted quickly to life in our home, and mixing with our dogs, and he had a sweet personality. Midwest placed him with a lady in St. Louis and they hit it off immediately.

Ozzie had a bed in every room, but preferred sleeping with his new owner. He had three wonderful years as a beloved house pet, but became ill recently. An ultrasound last week showed that he had liver cancer, and this morning he died. We are heartbroken for him, his owner, and the breeder who surrendered him for his retirement years. 

Water Powered Workshop

The water wheel sings a lovely song as it turns, and it powers wood working equipment in the cabin. One of the fascinating displays at the Western Minnesota Threshers Reunion at Rollag, Minnesota.

Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch!

 Great interview with a great instructor! Many good takeaways in this video. "I buy my wife guns as good as mine, or better than mine, 'cause she may be the one that saves my life." 

Tractor Driving Mixed Up With Suicide!

 The tag says Improved, but I don't know exactly what it was they improved. Not the muffler, for sure. This nasty two stroke tractor will bust your eardrums.  Not the murder part; this tractor still has that! Listen to the owner tell about it. Lug it down with a heavy load and the motor will reverse, cause the tractor to back up, and the driver is crushed between the tractor and the load. Sounds like a good one for static display!

McCormick Corn Sheller, Letz Feed Grinder

 The Western Minnesota Steam Threshers Show has more exhibitors than you can shake a stick at! You will wear out your feet in a few days and you will not see it all, so plan another trip. In this brief video you will see ear corn being run through a McCormick sheller, then the shelled corn is dumped into a Letz feed grinder. It makes for happy pigs and chickens. 

                                      Back To The Old Grind!

Historic Plowing Record!

 Kory Anderson's big Case 150 has successfully plowed with 50 bottoms in the ground! The steamer barely broke a sweat!

Weekend Steam II: Advance Rumely On The Sawmill!

This Advance Rumely provides some great stack talk for us to enjoy as the sawyer pulls through some big cottonwood logs. The edger provides some good sound effects, too! Rollag, Minnesota, September 4, 2022.

Kerosene Annie!

 This unique Oil Pull prototype is one of the reasons I went to Rollag for Labor Day Weekend.

This post from WDAY tells you all about it! CLICK HERE.

Hornet Emergency!

 We had a hornet emergency. We had to set up a dog pen under the back porch, and hornets had built a nest a few feet away. No time to be nice, or wait for winter, those critters had to be dealt with before they attacked a dog, or Susan or myself. You do what you gotta do.

Tater Harvest

 We dug the last of the potatoes, and now we have a total of three bushels from our little patch, all put away in the basement. Today I raked off all the vegetation, tilled it, and Susan sowed turnip seeds. Our rattlesnake pole beans are done. They all went down quickly, evidently with a mosaic virus. Susan is busy making tomato juice and salsa. The peppers are really coming on now. The varmint is still eating tomatoes every night. I should go out with a light before bed...but do not want to meet a skunk.

Carnage In The Tomato Patch!

We have critters! We have seen a rabbit in the garden, but some little Baggins is eating tomatoes more than a foot off the ground, so we think the culprit is a squirrel. We have a lot of 'maters coming on, so we are OK, but we hope the rest of the family doesn't show up.

 In other garden news, our Rattlesnake beans are done for. They have what appears to be a mosaic virus, and they all died over a few days, in spite of rain and watering.  Aphids, leafhoppers, and stinkbugs all have piercing/sucking mouthparts, so it could be any or all of those pests. 

Susan's Tater Patch

 Susan keeps telling me that nobody is going to watch fifteen minutes of digging potatoes, and I keep telling her that it isn't like paint drying... I don't expect a whole lot of views, but I think you will enjoy seeing the taters come out of the ground. It's like Christmas, or an Easter egg hunt to us.

Forty-Seven Is Bacon!

 Special Day, July 13!

Susan's Staples Are Out!

 She has been cleared to drive again, just two weeks after the revision surgery on the right hip. Here is the quick rundown of her hip surgeries. The left hip was replaced on May 2, and she went home the next day, had her staples out at two weeks, and had an easy recovery, going to physical therapy twice a week. June 15 was the date of her right hip replacement, and again, she went home the next day. It did not feel as good as the left hip did after surgery. It just seemed off a bit to her, but there were no problems she could point to. On June 26 the right hip dislocated. She dropped and had terrible pain. We got her to an emergency room, and after some extremely painful manipulations they got her hip back in the socket, but she could not move her leg, and the pain was unbearable. She was transported back to Sara Bush Lincoln hospital at Mattoon where she was operated on Monday, June 27. The liner (cup, or socket) placed in her pelvis had rotated, and that caused the ball to pop loose. The surgical team removed the liner, reamed the pocket in her pelvis a bit larger, and replaced the liner, using a screw to insure that it would not move. Recovery has been slower this time, with more pain than the first time, but she is doing well. 

Susan does not like to look at the X-rays, but they are sure worth looking at. The first one is the dislocated hip, the next one is after the ball was manipulated back in place, and you can see that the liner is rotated out of place. The third picture is the repaired hip, with the screw visible. If I ever have this type of surgery, I will ask for a screw to anchor it!

Junior, July 7, 2022

 Junior came to us in December 2015. He had been abandoned by his family, and was in an animal shelter in Peoria, and was ten years old. He was a sweet, good natured dog, and he was a perfect gentleman as a house dog. When he needed out, he would go to the door and tell you telepathically that he needed out. We rarely heard his voice. We found that if he had the chance, he would run. He even tried a getaway after he went blind. That is not unusual for  a Schipperke. Junior had become deaf and blind, and I carried him in and out for a long time, but he still enjoyed being around the other dogs and he had a healthy appetite. A couple of strokes crippled him in the last week, and we could tell he was hurting, so we made the final trip to the vet with him. The video was shot the first day he was with us.

Right Back On The Street

 This is small town Fairfield, Iowa, home invasion, assault on the homeowner to rob him accomplices still at large, and he is bonded out to rob again. How is the homeowner going to be safe? Will this perp show up for his court appearance? Why should he? He's a free man now, and he can hop over to Illinois and continue to live a life of crime. Click the mug shot for the news story on KCII. 

Picking Up The Slack

 Susan has been supervising me as I fill jars and operate the canner. Yesterday I did green beans, and today I finished 15 pints of kraut. One lid blew or it would have been 16. I think we have 6 or 8 more pints of kraut to put up tomorrow morning, and then I must pick beans!

Garden Payoff, Then Trouble!

 Susan's onions were mostly done because of the dry weather we've had, so we popped them out of the ground Saturday evening, and had them spread out to dry the next morning. Sunday morning we had 2.6 inches of rain, so we will have beans. Shortly afterward, Susan was standing still when her right hip dislocated and she fell. She will be back in surgery today (Monday) to put the parts back in place. The garden will have to take care of itself for a few days while I tend to Susan.   UPDATE: Susan had surgery Monday afternoon and the liner (socket) had moved. They put in a new one and have it anchored. We don't know if it moved and she fell, or if she fell and it moved, but she is on the road to recovery again and should be able to walk again soon.  Life turns on a dime. Keep your house in order and always be ready to handle an emergency!  

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Glorious Rain!

 We were getting concerned. No rain on the second crop beans, no rain on the corn, and no rain on the garden, but help arrived early this morning. We are now up to 2.3 inches with thunder grumbling around us.

One Week After Susan's Second Hip Replacement

 I might have to hobble her to hold her back....

She has her feet up tonight and is keeping that leg iced, but the progress is amazing!

Always Be Aware And Ready

 This is a routine traffic stop recently in Naperville, Illinois. A seventeen year old kid was stopped for blowing a stop sign, and then he had an expired insurance card, so the stop dragged on. A heinous perpetrator rolls up and changes the game, attacking the policeman with a hatchet. That happens beginning at about the 12:30 mark. The cop was on it. If you have ever shot a raccoon with a small caliber rifle you will recognize death throes. A surprise comes at about 15:30, after the dying quiver is done, when a responding officer with his gun trained on the now very still offender commands, "Roll over on your stomach!" Well, that didn't happen. I bet the kid in the car never runs a stop sign again in his life. This all went down right next to the poor guy.   Click Here to see the video. It cannot be embedded, so you have to go to YouTube. Look Quick, it probably will be taken down soon. Needless to say, you may not want to watch, but you should if you care about self defense skills.

Here's A Wedging Trick That Can Get You Out Of A Jam

 Have you ever had a tree sit back on the stump so you can't insert a wedge? It has happened to me a few times, and here is the trick to get you out of this jam. After you get it lifted a bit, you can put wedges in your kerf and put that tree on the ground.

Cold War Hero Captain Morris H. Reed

Fifty eight years ago while the Cold War was hotter than most people realize, one of our heroes lost his life on a training flight over Scotland.  The missions the Air Force warriors practiced would have surely been suicide missions had they ever actually flown them, because they couldn't outrun the heat from the thermonuclear bombs they would be delivering.  They will tell you that it didn't matter, because if they did fly these missions, there wouldn't have been anything to come back to.  It was deadly serious business, and Captain Reed was one who gave his life to keep us safe.  Click Here to visit see photos of the crash site in Scotland.  Say a prayer for his family this Memorial Day, and to give thanks for men like Captain Reed.

I Don't Like Spiders And Snakes: Re-Post From TrueBlueSam Blog, 2011

Susan was sorting through some things in the garage Sunday, and was bitten by a brown recluse spider.  I keep snake bite kits handy in my man-purse, and put a suction cup on her hand right away, within minutes of the bite.  We use these things frequently for insect stings, and they pull wasp and bee venom out effectively if we can apply a suction cup right away.  This was the first time we used one on a spider bite.

I pulled it off after a few minutes to have a look, and we were astounded at the amount of blood that had come out.  Evidently, brown recluse venom has anti-coagulant properties.  We put the suction cup on again, and pulled less blood out on the second go.  The third time pulled very little.  The patient has no redness or swelling, only a tiny scab at the bite site. 

If you read about the Cutter kits on the Internet you will find that medical folks despise them, and say they do more harm than good.   I have never been snakebit, and I can sure understand the harm that can come from using one of these kits instead of seeking prompt medical attention, but I also appreciate the way they work for me on bee stings, and insect bites.  Now we know the little suckers are good for spider bites, too.

How Many Perps Must Wiggle The Bolt...

...Until It Falls Out Of The Wall? I bet he wishes now that his lucky number hadn't come up.

The Illinois State Police video can't be embedded, so the first slide is a link to the video, and I have posted screen shots of important moments. Note the time in the lower left of the screen shots. Not much happens until 3:30, then things happen rapidly. Stay alert. The officers walked by the perp while he was engaged in escaping and did not realize what they were seeing.