Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

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SteveHGraham
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Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by SteveHGraham »

I've been at the farm 5 weeks, but I didn't get to shoot until today. I was always busy moving trees, coping with hurricane-related problems at our South Florida properties, or dealing with my dad's problems. Today I decided to drop everything and get out there. I put up a Caldwell Orange Peel target (mounted on the frame of the real estate sign the realtor failed to come and get) and I planted it on the handy berm the seller left us.

Man, it's great, not having to go to a range and deal with dangerous noobs, repeat safety courses, and supercilious people in camo and tactical gear, who can't actually shoot. I just hopped in the golf cart, putted over to the pasture, and fired away.

Rapid fire? No problem. Silhouette targets? No problem. Targets with Kim Jong-Un's picture on them? No problem. We don't need no stinking rules.

I learned that policing .38 Super brass is impossible in a pasture. I need to build a little shed with a roof and bench. It would contain the brass, keep the sun off me, and provide a place to rest my beer. If I keep it under a thousand pounds, I should be able to move it around with the tractor.
Every hard-fried egg began life sunny-side up.
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BadDog
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by BadDog »

Congrats, wish I could still do that.

But I just had to look up 38 Super. I had heard of it, vaguely aware of it, but wondered at the reason anyone would actually shoot such an odd harder to find round. Interesting read here.

Nice round, but I'm going to stick with my current setup using only 4 different ammo chambers to cover all the bases I care about. Each is selected based on being readily available, and relatively cheap, while still being considered at or near the top of their class (trade-offs considered).
Russ
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GlennW
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by GlennW »

Lay down a cheap tarp from Harbor Freight to catch the brass.
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
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GlennW
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by GlennW »

SteveHGraham wrote: Man, it's great, not having to go to a range and deal with dangerous noobs, repeat safety courses, and supercilious people in camo and tactical gear, who can't actually shoot. I just hopped in the golf cart, putted over to the pasture, and fired away..
I thought Miami WAS an outdoor range!
Glenn

Operating machines is perfectly safe......until you forget how dangerous it really is!
John Hasler
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by John Hasler »

SteveHGraham wrote:
Man, it's great, not having to go to a range and deal with ... supercilious people in camo and tactical gear, who can't actually shoot.

I'm not much of a shooter, but I figure guys in camo and tactical gear at a range are playing adult dress-up and one should try not to snicker at them.

Congratulations at finally being able to enjoy your new place.
Jawn
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by Jawn »

That's the best way to shoot and I wish I was still a bit more rural so I could do the same. No hourly range fees to worry about, no trying to haul everything you need all at once (need more ammo? run back in the house and grab it!).
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SteveHGraham
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by SteveHGraham »

I bought a 1911 in .38 Super because it was pretty. I planned to shoot .45 ACP, but I was low on loaded rounds. In other words, I had a ton of primers, slugs, and shells, but not all that many were assembled.

I followed up by taping my old Coral Gables driver's license over the target and perforating it with a Savage .17 HMR with a Burris Fullfield II. That felt nice.

It turns out the steering wheel of a golf cart is a very poor shooting rest.
Every hard-fried egg began life sunny-side up.
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SteveHGraham
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by SteveHGraham »

Incidentally, the .38 Super was the FN Five-seven of its day. John Dillinger owned one that was converted to full auto, and Frank Hamer, the FBI agent who took down Bonnie and Clyde, supposedly chose the .38 Super because it defeated the bulletproof vests of his era and did a good job of penetrating car doors.
Every hard-fried egg began life sunny-side up.
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SteveHGraham
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by SteveHGraham »

GlennW wrote:I thought Miami WAS an outdoor range!
That was 30 years ago. These days you can go to the mall and not hear any automatic fire, and when you drive down Krome Avenue at night and see four Hefty bags by the road, there's a good chance they don't contain a disassembled Colombian.
Every hard-fried egg began life sunny-side up.
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warmstrong1955
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by warmstrong1955 »

Once again....WELCOME!...to rural America!

:)
Today's solutions are tomorrow's problems.
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SteveHGraham
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by SteveHGraham »

But wait! There's more!

Today my gas pole saw arrived. I have a lot of overhead stuff to cut, and I also have things I don't want to be close to when they part, so a pole saw was a must. I have been dying to get my hands on this thing.

Today I worked on the nastiest oak on my farm. I will guess it used to be 70 feet tall, and it's around two feet thick. It fell so major branches were stuck on two other trees. One is bent back, just waiting to be released so it can kill me.

I fired the pole saw up and cleared away almost everything but the major branches, and I even managed to cut a main branch which was scaring the bejeezus out of me. I don't know what to do with the rest of the tree, but if I can't figure it out, at least I will have reduced the tree service bill dramatically. These characters quoted a friend of mine $3500 to remove a tree that threatens the trailer she and her three young sons live in.

Her family could have it done, but they preferred to spend the money protecting a barn full of worthless rescue animals, such as two former meat rabbits.

I feel like I'm getting a handle on tree cutting. I got myself a couple of plastic wedges, a hard hat, a Fiskars hatchet, two pry bars, and some Danner work boots with nonmetallic toes. I also have a 30-foot, heavy-duty tow strap for the tractor. Assuming I don't die, I will prevail.
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Every hard-fried egg began life sunny-side up.
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ctwo
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Re: Finally Got to Shoot on my Own Land

Post by ctwo »

Can't even fire a slingshot around here... stupid crazy it was once illegal to have a BB gun in your trunk
Standards are so important that everyone must have their own...
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