Pencil Update

I'm sure everyone is wondering what has happened in the mechanical pencil saga over the past year or so, so I've decided to begin writing here again.

So anyway, I've been using the updated quicker clicker for over a year now. I've gotten used to the grip, although after about eight months it begins to stretch out and deform. Hard to say if it's better now than it was new, but I'm not going to buy a second one just to compare. If anyone would like to volunteer to send me one because you are dying to find out, feel free to contact me.

In other news, I have a new baby as of 7/14/09, Adrian Michael, who is purely by coincidence both the cutest and most well tempered baby in the history of the world. I have nearly completed my academic planning process which now has me getting my BSEE in 2011 and my MBA in 2012. Hopefully I will then be employable.

Hmmm, what else? Oh yeah, I had to put a new water pump in my car. It took about 30 minutes. I guess that's about it.

Succession planning for a pencil.

I've recently been struggling very hard to keep my mechanical pencil operational, and it's got me thinking about our attachments to inanimate objects.

This pencil has been with me for about twelve years. Not bad for the $2.99 I probably spent on it at the college book store. It is the first, and last to date, refillable mechanical pencil I've ever bought and used. It's a transparent blue Pentel PD345, the line known as the "quicker clicker." I couldn't even estimate the number of sticks of 0.5mm I've put through this thing, not to mention the eraser refills. 

Business classes, drafting classes, engineering curriculum, love letters, business propositions, even through my military service - this pencil has been my trusty companion. Always ready to jot a note or derive a formula. 

I must now start thinking about what will happen when this pencil is no longer with me. It just doesn't click like it used to. The plastic parts have worn, and the spring is not quite as responsive as it once was. Sometimes the tip pops out when you try to advance the lead and I know it doesn't mean to, but, it frustrates me. I love my pencil. I swear I won't abandon it while it still has the ability to write. It's just so hard to think about what must come next.

Succession planning is difficult for many reasons. We don't want to admit that things have to change. We feel like we are betraying those who have dedicated so much by discussing who could be their equal, or their better. Is this pencil more than a compilation of plastic and metal, an arrangement of molecules into a functioning entity? No. It's a damn pencil, but that doesn't stop me from feeling attached to it. Maybe I would feel better if I told myself it was going to a better place.

The John Q. Smith Memorial 1991 Dodge Caravan

When a loved one passes, there is a great desire to tell the world how much they meant to you. I don't know if this is to justify our own grief, or just an honest desire to honor them. Regardless, consecrating your POS car in their name is probably not the greatest way to show how much they meant to you.

You see, when you use the phrase "In loving memory of" you are referring to something which is in their loving memory. Often this phrase will refer to a gathering of people in the loving memory of one who has passed, but it can also refer to the object it is inscribed on. This is why we see grave stones that say "In loving memory," the stone itself is a monument to the person! This is why they are called monuments, and why people want them to be nice.

Now, if you can extend this reasoning just briefly, you might realize why putting "In loving memory of" on a car is a really bad idea 99% of the time. Now, if you built a sweet hotrod and put "In loving memory of (your relative who loved sweet hotrods)" on it, that's actually really cool. The car itself is a monument to the person and is a fitting tribute. The other day I noticed a real piecer on the highway; a rusty, smoking, clunking old minivan that you could just imagine smelled very poorly. On the back it said "In loving memory of so and so." The John Q. Smith Memorial piece of shit mobile. And what happens when it's time to junk the thing? Are you just going to have your loved ones (albeit crappy) monument hauled away for the $100 in steel scrap?

I'm going to go ahead and plea with the public to stop this awful practice of dedicating our POS rides to the dead. If all you have is $20 to make a tribute to them, donate it to a charity in their name. Something. Please.

Best $70 bucks you can bolt on to your Mosin Nagant - Lessons Learned Files

I am not a gun smith, a professional sharp shooter, or a subsistence hunter. I am a plinker. Being prior service I am naturally drawn to military hardware (as though I need an excuse) so when I decided to get a civilian plinker I went with a common entry level weapon: The Mosin Nagant. Specifically, a 1934 Soviet M91/30 (Thanks for the find, Brian!). Here I show you how I increased my satisfaction with this weapon significantly with a couple bolt on mods.

I found this weapon to be an exceptionally straight shooter and enjoyed great success, and a very sore shoulder, at the local 50 yard plinking pit. One weekend I went out of town for a conference and brought along the Mosin to go shooting with a friend who was also attending and knew of a great rifle range in the area. After attempting to shoot pop cans at 100 yards with iron sites (approx 50% success) I decided it was time for a scope.

Part of the reason I own a Mosin is because it is a relatively inexpensive weapon to purchase. I realize that for some of you the basic mods I've made to mine might represent doubling your investment in your 7.62x54r, but I promise it will also double your enjoyment.



MOD 1: Butt Stock Pad

This takes about $10-15 and two minutes with a flat head screwdriver. It also saves your shoulder, and allows you to waste way more money on ammo per trip to the range. Easy find on the inter-nets. 

MOD 2: Cheapo-Scope and Scout Mount

Now I know they say a good scope is worth it, and I don't doubt them, but I also can't afford one. The scout mount is a weaver type rail that replaces your rear sight and, like the butt pad, is a completely reversible modification. Easy though it is, there are some steps you can take to ensure success. I learned the hard way so you could learn the easy way. Isn't language great?

Step one: Buy the thing. I bought a scope/mount/rings combo on an online auction site for about $40 + $10 shipping. The important thing to remember when putting a scope on a Mosin scout mount is that you need about 10" of eye relief! Most scopes give you about three inches, which will not work in this configuration.

Step two: Buy new hardware. The scout mounts are cheap, and the hardware that comes with them is junk. Any self respecting hardware store should be able to hook you up with stainless steel replacements for the included metric hardware, just bring it in with you to be sure it matches. You will need (2) M4 cap screws for the sides, (3) M5 leveling set screws, and (3) M4 set screws to lock the leveling screws. Match lengths to what you get with the mount. I promise you that if you spend $50 on this setup and skip the extra $7 for new stainless hardware you will be disappointed. Also, don't forget to get some thread lock while you are at the hardware store. You will need it.



Step three: Disassemble your rear sight. This may vary according to your specific rifle. Some of you may have screws, whereas I had to tap out a pin. Once the screws/pin are/is removed, the site and leaf spring simply fall off the weapon. KEEP THEM.

Step four: Get ready. Pull the bolt out to make your weapon easier to handle. Remove the barrel bands and take off the top of the wooden hand guard so that the actual barrel is exposed. I then used a small padded clamp and some crap lying around on my desk to get the rifle in a nice level position. Level it by the barrel and nothing else. Get as close as you can but remember, this isn't rocket science, and your scope will have some adjustment.

Step five: Install mount. Note: You'll want to keep a rag handy to deal with any renegade thread lock. Take all of the hardware out of the mount and place the mount into the rear sight cavity. Get the holes lined up for the side screws, then go ahead and put the side screws in dry. Now put that level on the mount and get it where it needs to be (um, that would be level). My mount was a tight enough fit that once it was in position it didn’t go anywhere when you let go. Now remove your level and your side screws. Place a small drop of thread lock on each side screw and re-insert. Remember: You are putting a stainless steel screw into a machined aluminum hole - do not over-torque, snug is enough. You should have at least ten minutes working time with your thread lock so don't get nervous and rush it. 



One at a time put a little thread lock on each of your leveling screws and gently thread them in until they just barely make contact. Then front to back put a light torque on them and re-check your level. It is easy to get the back to come up a bit, but not the front. If you are good and level, snug them a bit to put a little tension in the mount and re-check your level again. Once you are confident that you are level and your screws are snug so there is a little tension in the mount, put in your final set screws. I found it easiest to put them on the tool, then add the thread lock and put them in. Best thing to do now is set it aside for 24 hours or so to let the thread lock cure.

Step six: Mount the scope. I would go ahead and put one ring on somewhere you like it, probably the back one between the eye piece and the adjustment knobs, but leave it loose. Now set the other ring under the scope, and get them both lined up with grooves in the weaver mount. Once the scope is mounted loosely, ensure it is in the proper orientation (if the "up/down" adjust isn't on top it wont really be adjusting "up" and "down," same thing for "left/right") and tighten one of the rings onto the scope. There will be a little play foreword and back within the grooves. By pushing the rings together or pulling them apart, you will eliminate the play of the scope and make it less likely to come out of adjustment. Now tighten down the hand screws on the bottom to secure the rings to the mount. Finally, tighten your second ring to the scope itself.



Next step: Buy some bullets and some zeroing targets and hit the range! Next time I'm near a long range, I plan to try the 200 and 300 yard positions on for size.

Happy plinking!