rodan

Out with the old... In with the new... Motor and trans back in the car...

Spent the weekend at Inde Motorsports Ranch with the Porsche Club... It's kinda fun to get a point by from a GT3...

Spent the weekend at Inde Motorsports Ranch in southern AZ with the Porsche Club.... Wifey driving: Me driving: I only drove the car a couple of sessions, here's video from one session on Sunday:

Picked up a 6sp trans for the NA, from England, no less... Shipped to my door for less than anything I could find in the US on eBay or locally on CL. Better ratios should help around the track while the car is still n/a, and it's stronger for when I get around to boost.

Monthly bump... We're signed up for a two-day PCA event in November... PCA rules require HNRS if you have 5/6pt. harnesses, so I ordered up a couple. In order to see traffic with the resultant restriction on head movement, I mounted a wideview mirror in the NA. Otherwise, I ran through my pre-event inspection, and the car is ready to rock. I had some spare time on my hands, so I decided to do custom paint jobs on our helmets. My wife and I are both Star Wars fans, so I went to a galaxy far, far away for inspiration... Bonus points if you can ID the characters that inspired them.

Are you talking antiques, reproductions, or just lever guns in general?

Time for another update.... Our run of bad luck in getting the Camaro to the track continued in September, with me dealing with a leg injury (IT band and Patellofemoral Pain) that caused me to cancel our event at Willow Springs. I knew I wasn't going to be up for an 8 hour tow there, two days climbing in/out of the Miata and in/out of the camper then an 8 hour tow home. And I was right... Things started looking better towards the end of the month, so I signed up for a track day at Wild Horse Pass East course in Phoenix, and we finally got the Camaro on the track Saturday! I'm still not at the point where I want to be climbing in/out of the Miata, so we decided a simple one-car trackday was in order and just took the Camaro. We pitted next to another ZL1, and there were a total of 8(!) ZL1s in attendance. The ZL1 worked great out on the track, and was surprisingly easy to drive for a 4000lb car with 650hp! I even went out for a session with all the nannies off, and it didn't try to kill me. My wife finally got to drive it on track, and she got a new track under her belt. I had run there before (a lot), but never in a car.

Time for another thread bump... So, our Willow Springs trip ended up cancelled... I injured my leg in early September... docs originally thought IT band, but it looks like there's some nerve problems, becuase they can't find anything structural. Anyway, I could barely walk the week before our track weekend, so I cancelled while we could still get most of our money back. It's been a frustrating year. Missed an event in January because our truck got hit, had to cancel another because the Camaro got hit, and now this one. So, we're signed up for a local track day next weekend. We're just going to take the Camaro to keep things simple. I really need to get that car on the track! I'm moving around better, though I still have pain in my leg. A local one-day event should be doable. Today, I got the NA unloaded from the trailer. Also unloaded most of the stuff that was going to Willow Springs before we had to cancel. Pulled the Conti ECS tires off the NB, and swapped on its winter shoes... Put that set on the NA... The Rivals that were on the NA are in the garage. I don't expect freezing temps for a few more weeks, but it's getting down into the 40s so I might as well get ahead of the curve. Over the summer, I extended a shared fence with the neighbor, so we now have a 6' fence all the way around the yard. I then put up a cheapo Harbor Freight 10x20 canopy... The NA is moved in under the shelter for now. It may spend the winter there... not sure yet. If I end up liking the setup, I may end up doing some kind of pavers and a more permanent 'carport'. We may be doing a PCA event with both cars in November... working on the logistics for that...

What's the '1911'?

Time for a thread bump... The 2 1/2" Python my LGS had from the above post was gone by the end of the day... sold for $2700 to the first guy they called after showing it to me. I had already talked myself out of it. I did pick up another S&W... Performance Center K-Comp I really like this thing. Aside from the fact that 3" K frames are just the perfect size, it's got a great action, and the comp works... it's more comfortable to shoot with full house .357 loads (125gr @ 1450) than the 4" 586. Carry load will be a Buffalo Bore 140gr (@1250) solid copper HP... shoots like a .38+p, but still has some wallop.

Long time with no updates... I had originally intended to cage the car this summer, but that just didn't happen so not much went on with it. My wife and I are getting ready to return to AROSC's driver school at Willow Springs in a few weeks. The Miata was mostly prepped, but since I didn't get around to building a cage, I didn't get to the fire suppression system, either. I decided to add a fire extinguisher, something I should have done a long time ago. Today I fabbed up a quick mount that bolts under the seat bracket bolts. As long as I undo my shoulder harness, I can reach it from the driver's seat. The extinguisher is Purple K... I plan to use aqueous foam when I upgrade to a real fire suppression system.

There were several 4" Pythons at the local show in the $2000-2200 asking range. One local gunshop took in a really nice 2 1/2" Python this morning... I've been sitting here for an hour scheming a way to buy it. They got one ~ 2 years ago that I probably could have bought for $1900. I'm still kicking myself.

For Korth money, you could buy a 686CS and a nice Python and have a shooter and a safe queen...

I always liked those as well... basically the same as the 586 I just bought, but in stainless. Here's a 3" 686 CS on gunbroker... https://www.gunbroker.com/item/827822920 You're right, stupid money... but most S&Ws are these days!

And since we were talking RDS for handguns the other day, here's my M&P Pro CORE. Holosun, Dawson sights, and Storm Lake barrel for when my Form 4s come back...

Yeah, no kidding... very much a WTF!! moment.

Not a total loss however... I went back today, and sold another S&W revolver at a profit, and found a unicorn: S&W 586 round butt from a special run in the late 1980s. A friend had one of these back when, and I could never talk him into selling it. They made a little under 2000 of them, but this was the first one I've ever seen for sale. Appears unfired, except for factory testing, and with the original box and accessories.

Local Gun Show this weekend... had an interesting experience... I'm always on the hunt for S&W revolvers, and the subject of interest for this outing was a Model 19 with a 2 1/2" bbl. I was happy enough to find one, and after a little negotiation, paid a fair price for a decent example. You'll note the grips are off in the photo... that's because I took them off as soon as I got home to check the serial # with the local PD. I didn't have a screwdriver with me to do it at the show. It was a non-FFL seller, so no paper required at the point of sale. Lo and behold, when I get the grips off, I find the serial number has been filed off!! I called up the local PD, and had an officer meet me back at the show, and we had a little chat with the seller... who claimed total ignorance, of course! TLDR, I got my money back, and the gun got seized. No charges on the seller at this point, but the PD is looking into things. Almost 40 years of buying/selling/trading guns... first time this has happened! What really pissed me off is it was the ONLY 2 1/2" Model 19 S&W there...

Finally got the camber plates installed in the Camaro. Next up was alignment, which went fine, but I have to rant a bit about GM and their engineering decisisons... <rant on> So, GM in their questionable wisdom decided to use TTY (torque to yield) fasteners for the rear camber and toe adjustment bolts. I wasn't certain of this, but after doing a bit of research and confirming it, I ordered the proper bolts. Then I had to put the alignment back because it took longer than expected to get them in. First, why in the HELL would you use a one-time fastener on something that adjusts alignment! Second, if you choose to do something that stupid, the dealer should effing keep the bolts in stock! So, I get to the shop, and the tech gets it up and after a while he comes into the waiting room to talk. Now, this is a good tech, and he's done alignments for me for years. He tells me that there's no way to change the rear camber bolt without removing the springs... well that makes sense, as the control arm is under spring pressure... again WHY would you use a single-use fastener in this location!!?? After some discussion, we elect to leave the original bolts in-place for now. So, TLDR... if you follow the book, an alignment on a 6th gen Camaro will cost you $500-600 including new TTY bolts and the labor to basically disassemble the entire rear suspension to install them. WTF?? <rant off> Good news is I was able to hit the alignment numbers I was looking for, and the car drives great. I'm trying to determine if I'm going to replace those bolts next time... at least I have them in stock. Oh, and the Camaro hit 10k the other day... Also did an oil/filter change while the car was up for the camber plates. I think it's all ready for our track outing coming up in September.

Since we're on the subject of safes... if you have one, post up what it is, and what you like/don't like about it.

Better than nothin'... I have one, and though I have no illusions about how easy it is to get into, it will probably stop the typical dipshit doper opportunist burglar. My problem is it's now overflowing... and this time I'm going to buy a 'real' safe. Just trying to figure out where to put it.

I'm about 2 months out from 15 years...

They are Endomag conversions. So far, I have no real complaints. 100% on function so far, though I only have ~100 rounds through it. Installing the Endomag guts into the PMags is about as easy as it gets. I like having the same profile for the 9mm mags as all my other mags. Same pouches, same feel, etc. One minor complaint is that with the ejector being part of the magazine, you have to be careful clearing the gun if you didn't empty the mag. When you pull the mag, the ejector goes with it, so running the action won't, by itself, clear the loaded round... it stays on the bolt and goes back in the chamber unless you knock it out with a finger. I could see a negligent discharge happening if the shooter isn't diligent with their clearing practices.

AR9 pistol, updated with a longer flash can, and Midwest Industries forend (the stock forend was too small to clear the suppressor I ordered). Also added a Magpul K2 grip and angled foregrip, and stenciled the 9mm mags so they're easily identified.

From one refugee to another, you're going to love living in America. I fled CA 25 years ago, and have never regretted the decision. Not for a second.