Airsoft Stuff

Well, I'm down to three AEGs and two GBBs now.

Marui M4A1 Revisions
This started shortly after I decided to get rid of the CA33 and G3SG1. I got a G&G GR16A3 Carbine front end to replace the stock Marui front end. I have a Guarder M16A2 Metal Body kit coming in from AEX, hopefully, it will arrive before Friday so I will have the gun up and running for Saturday's Nostromo III.



I will end up with a Colt M-16A2 Carbine. The wiring will run back to the stock so I can use a large battery. I am keeping the LE-style collapsible stock to keep it compact.

I also plan to build a custom M4 Command as a possible replacement for my MP5SD6 as I can then maintain one set of magazines. Currently, I am running a loadout of 16x MAG brand Midcaps. Initial field testing was favorable - no misfeeds or jams.

G3SG1 Revisions
I am not sure if I want to keep the SG1. If I do, I will be tossing a metal body onto it and using it to build a DMR. I have carried an SG1 before and it was great, but it is alot of rifle. More likely, I will put together a full sized M16A4 as the DMR to allow me continued use of my M16 mags.

I had some offers on the SG1, but none of them ever turned out. Airsoft buyers can be flaky. I'll give them another week to decide what they're doing and then put it up elsewhere.

Gear Revisions
My BHI Commando Harness works out well. I currently have capacity for 8 mags via 2 double M4 Mag pouches. The two large utility pouches have room for an added 8 mags each. This rig could hol a total of 24x Midcaps giving me 2400 rounds. In the field, that loadout will go down to 10 mags. I don't need more than 500 rounds in a game and I rarely shoot that many.

I do plan to pick up some additional parts for my rig. I need a hydration carrier and system. The carrier is going to cost about $25, while the system itself would likely be another $20. I also need a holster for my glock, a ASP pouch for my baton, a single mag pouch for my Multiplier, and a drop bag for empty mags. If I could find the SMG pouch for my MP5 mags, I'd toss that in. I am also going to put my Kabar somewhere onto this rig. The gear is not too heavy in the field and If I can find a lighter uniform, it would be comfortable to carry.

Uniform Revisions
I am planning to take my woodland Jacket in for mod work. The jacket is going to get a RAID mod job. I'm also going to have patches added to it. Unfortunately, I doubt the job will be done by Nostromo 3, so this may have to wait until next month.

Birthday and Anniversary Weekend

This week was busy at home. Last weekend, I celebrated my birthday with my wife. This week, we celebrated Jake's 12th birthday at BWW. Then Sunday, we celebrated the Parker's 50th Wedding Anniversary. It was a busy weekend.

Wisconsin Airsoft Association and the Airsoft Education Course
Saturday, members of the WAA AEC Committee and potential trainers came out to train for the WAA's AEC course. Marines Sgt. Schultz and Corporal Peck, among others, came out to spearhead a training program for new airsofters to allow them to play at area games.

I am a member of the WAA and would have liked to come out for this as I would like to be an AEC trainer. Unfortunately, I had a previous engagement I could not break. Apparently, the training day went off as planned and afterwards, people stayed for some CQB at the "Trailer of Doom." Now that they are AEC trained, the Marines can continue with their training program with WAA's Official Blessing.

Weekend Catering Service
Kris and I spent the weekend preparing for the Anniversary on Sunday. Kris prepared veggie trays, chips and dips, and about 5-6 dozen deviled eggs. Harold and Janet helped out by helping to top the eggs and baking some bar cookies.

The party hosted about 50-60 people and the Eggs were a huge hit. We were left with about 2 - 3 dozen. They were very tasty and Kris and I ate a few ourselves for dinner Sunday night.

The party had mostly finger foods and desserts: BBQ Meatl balls and Smokies; Deviled Eggs, carrots, radishes, and celery sticks; Homemade Chex Mix; Potato Chips; French Onion Dip; Sour Cream Raisin Bars; Mixed nut and Caramel bars; Ham tortilla wraps; various crackers; Mint Brownies; Peanut Butter topped Brownies; and a crap load of cake. Our beverage selections were coke, coke zero, sprite, water, and beer.

Jacob's Birthday
Jacob Celebrated his 12th birthday on the 18th. He mostly got sports gear for baseball and hockey. I bought him 2 GI Joe Dragonhawks off eBay. I also took him to Pizza Hutt for salad and bread sticks.

Afterwards, we went to Kmart to look for a game we had both played at Pizza Hutt called Crazy Taxi. The game is pretty cut and dry - pick up fares and drop them off. The quicker the more cash you get. You also get bonuses for careful and safe driving. Wow! We didn't find it and I ended up tracking it down on eBay.

Guitar
I did want to buy something, so I bought myself a Guitar. They had a nice large guitar for sale for $50. I had been eyeballin' it drop from $139 until it reached $75 the last time I had been there with Jake. I told him if it dropped down to $50, I would buy one.

I am getting my calluses back by playing D - D/G chords. They also help speed up my fingering. It's been about 6 months since I have even played a guitar and its slowly coming back to me. I've really been achin' to get back into music for the last two years, but haven't been able to afford it until now.

It is a nice blond Spruce top with red spruce sides. I would have like to find nylon strings, but the steel strings will do for now. I bought a spare set just in case. Jacob wants to bring his back so I can teach him to play. I told him I don't know much, but I could at least teach him chords.

Birthday Weekend

Alot of crap in the news this week. Between work and home, I'm really tired. Not much on the home front.

Don Imus
I think this entire thing is just ridiculous. I have never cared for his show but would occasionally watch it as I wake up in the morning because its one of the only things on at this time of the morning that doesn't piss me off, despite the fact I think Imus is a frickin' moron. Here's what bothers me about this:

(1) Imus was insulting the entire basketball team, not the entire country. Yeah, maybe it was offensive, but his words were directed at them, not the entire black community. Why doesn't the black community get that "up in arms" about violence and put that much effort into resolving it? Instead, just because a radio jock makes a comment about a basketball team that does include some black players, everyone is making a huge deal about it.

(2) Why is Al Sharpton and Jessie Jackson making such a big deal out of showing how much they abhor such horribly racists comments, insisting that - blah, blah, blah. They're both politicians. I'm sure, in their lifetime, they have accomplished alot of good. But they often stick their foot in their mouths and are just as capable of making mistakes.

(3) Why is what Imus said so horrible when Howard Stern made far worse comments in a history of radio broadcasting?

I think its a crock. I feel sorry for Imus being used like this. He made a mistake and said something stupid. But you'd think he then went on to paint swastikas on their lockers and then murdered them in their sleep. Why should he get fired over this and not the other crap on his show.

Work
It was busy on and off this last week. We'd have some small rushes followed by almost nothing. We got in our new equipment and the guys made a trip over the weekend to install some of it. I also did some internal work on some of the machines to tweak them out until we could get them replaced. They need RAM, but that may be a while. Until then, all of the machines in question have been switched to Windows 2000 Compatibility mode.

Home
I spent much of this last week at Jason and Judy's working on guns. Jacob has been acting horribly and I'm tired of listening to it. I try to find some kind of work to do to keep me away from it. I'm also looking at a part time job, maybe 6-9pm, M-F to keep me busy and bring some extra income in.

April Already!

I've been really busy with work and several other projects in the last few weeks, that has kept me away from the blog.

End of Snow
Well, the snow finally melted and we began getting some spring weather. We got some rain and sleet out of it and last week, we even got a little snow. Unfortunately for parts of Minnesota, they got several inches of snow. Spring is trying to sneak past us by tossing some fall and winter weather our way. Easter Synday was a mix of cool and warm weather.

Work
It has been really busy in the last few weeks at work. The Tech guys started making changes we need to bring on the new wireless services. Unfortunately, they came with some major and minor equipment failures that had to be fixed on the fly. These changes also mess with the mail system which a few of our customers had to tell us about. Not sure when everything is going to be squared away.

Then last week, some towns north of here got hit by a big storm that knocked out electric, phones, and obviously, internet. While phone service was still out, we got some nasty calls from people on their cell phones who couldn't get online. When asked if they were able to dial on their regular phone, they said, no its dead. People can be so incredibly stupid sometimes.

I took in a few lite repairs and made a little cash. I also made a truck call to one of our DSL customers who refused to bring their DSL modem in to be checked out. It turned out to be on their own network, which we don't even support. Still, it was nice to go out and visit places around town.

Airsoft Season Coming Up
Jason and Judy are scrambling to get their field ready for the 2007 Airsoft Season. I've made a few trips out to Fairchild with them to help out. The Airsoft Expo in Madiso was a complete success and I look forward to next year, which is already in planning stages now. I am getting rid of two guns and focussing on working with the remaining two. I also have a few piece of gear to pick up.

I would love to stay a flap, but I'm really tired and can't think of much else to say. I'll get back to this next weekend.