I am off today spending time with my family; enjoy yours. You can read more about the origins of the holiday here. Back tomorrow with a podcast.
Who knew an artichoke had such a beautiful flower?
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September 2, 2022 Atlas Shrugged 1:9
I don’t want to come off sexist, but I will say it anyway. There are some elements of this book that read like a romance novel. It could be that this becomes important later, but it does seem a little dramatic and over the top. This chapter gets into that aspect quite deeply. That is all I am going to say about that.
It is human nature to feel vindicated having success when there were so many doubters. Dabny and Henry are riding high and begin having an affair and end up going go on vacation to Wisconsin. Meanwhile, Jim is low and I don’t think that he really knows why. I think that it is because situations are not really going his way and he knows that he is wrong. These are not really what I want to go into this week.
The real money in this chapter is a conversation between Mr. Mowen on Amalgamated Switch and Signal Company and an unnamed worker. Mr Mowen observed Quinn Ball Bearing Co. moving to Colorado from his office. There is some discussion of the Equalization of Opportunity bill and how they don’t agree with it and then there is this quote.
“I don’t see it. It is a backward, primitive, unenlightened place. They don’t even have a modern government. It’s the worst government in any state. The laziest. It does nothing – except keeping law courts and a police department. It doesn’t do anything for the people. It doesn’t help anybody. I don’t see why all of the best companies want to run there.” – Unnamed worker.
And there is your economics lesson for all time. Money goes where it is treated well. And where the money goes, so do the jobs and consequently so does the wealth. Have you ever observed an un-incorporated area growing rapidly? Who moves there and why is this happening? It is the upwardly mobile moving to a lower cost area. Housing costs and taxes drive the migration.
By the same token, so does industry. I did a job in China back in 2009. This was making epoxy resins for carbon fiber layups (primarily building aerospace parts). The plant operators were Chemical Engineers with Master’s degrees and English almost as good as mine. The company was paying them about $20,000/year. Part of the reason this was being done in China is because the US equivalent would be paying operators $50,000/yr plus benefits, so say $75,000.
Of course not everything is perfect. For instance, a local pipe fitter was hired for the installation. When they finished, all of the piping sloped backward. This caused problems with the line contamination and dosing. So, the pipefitters had to redo the entire installation. That being said, it still cost less than doing it right in the first place.
Businesses are not stupid. If an advantage can be obtained by shifting operations for a better long term outlook then they will do so. It is the same reason the “Anti-Inflation Act of 2022” is going to fail. The government is pretending that putting price controls on pharmaceuticals is somehow going to reduce inflation. How will these companies respond? Move operations to a cheaper location i.e. China, distribute costs to non-listed products or cease production all together. I ask you, is this win-win or even lose-win?
In a free market, if consumers can’t afford an item, then it doesn’t get purchased. When something doesn’t get purchased, it eventually doesn’t get made. If I was pricing something, I would try to keep it at a razors edge of profit and market toleration of cost. Let us not fool ourselves, we do not have a free market. It is highly likely that the drug companies were in on the creation of the list of drugs where these price controls are instituted in the first place. For all I know, the maximum allowed price may be above the current cost and this could all be a sham.
End Your Programming Routine: The quote by the unknown worker resonates something that is so fundamentally wrong with today’s society. The greater society believes the government needs to do something about gun violence, climate change, social justice, inflation or Covid, None of these things drove the Pilgrims to come to America. None of those things are even thought of in the Constitution. My point being, we the people have absolved our self-responsibility and now believe it is the job of the government. Now, if we just elect the right people…
September 1, 2022, ‘Tacticool’ Thursday
So I found more stuff to test, what are you going to do about it? As I pull my son’s Crossman 760 off of the wall, I saw my Daisy 840 looking all lonely. This was my one and only air rifle until about five years ago.
This was the quintessential air rifle of a country boy. My brother and I had the same model. Many a time, a rope was tied across the barrel and the grip and then off on our bikes or trekking through the fields. Our favorite thing to do was take old catalogs and setup on the deck. We would shoot the catalog for half an hour and then leaf through to laugh at what we had hit on the inside pages. We shot things that we were not supposed to but I think that was a rite of passage and made me the rifle shooter I am today.
Time and kid’s ownership was not good to these things. My brother’s broke where the grip was attached to the action turning it into a stockless rifle. Mine, the spot welds broke on the rear sight leaving it more of a guess than an actual rifle. I was able to super glue it for a couple years but that has long since fallen apart and now lost forever. The forearm is also split where the two plastic halves are joined together. So far, it is still usable.
I first realized that it was time for an upgrade when I had a family of racoons living under our kitchen about five years ago. We were eating dinner on our deck and it was in the tree right next to us. I shot it to try and chase it away. When the BB hit it in the chest, the animal brushed the spot where it was hit and slowly climbed out of the tree and sauntered away. I realized that this was not going to work in a pest elimination capacity. That is when I bought the Crossman Legacy 1000.
The Daisy 840 was a single pump BB/pellet rifle. I did some research on this rifle to see if I could learn anything about it. Apparently, it was made between 1978-1986. It advertised 300 fps. My brother’s came with a scope which was broken within a six months, mine did not. I tested it to see how it was going to compare the the 760 and at first, I was only going to use BBs since the magazine was full. I quickly found out that this thing shot all over the place and my trap was not holding BB’s (when it hit where I was aiming).
| 840 BB | 840 pellet | 760 | 1000 | Optimus | |
| 1 | 263 | 180 | 579 | 775 | 944 |
| 2 | 307 | 248 | 544 | 781 | 942 |
| 3 | 285 | 239 | 540 | 779 | 968 |
| 4 | 282 | 265 | 542 | 781 | 936 |
| 5 | 264 | 257 | 549 | 771 | 938 |
| 6 | 200 | 248 | 541 | 772 | 965 |
| 7 | 180 | 223 | 529 | 774 | 940 |
| 8 | 242 | 223 | 539 | 773 | 906 |
| 9 | 189 | 263 | 552 | 777 | 964 |
| 10 | 132 | 230 | 554 | 777 | 953 |
| 234 +/- 169 | 238 +/- 76 | 547 +/-40 | 776 +/-11 | 946 +/- 55 |
All values were measured at the muzzle and each rifle was pumped to the maximum (1 or 10 pumps) using the Crossman 7.4 grain wadcutter pellet. This was an attempt to compare the maximum performance across the spectrum. The thing that struck me was the inconsistency of the the 840.
Before I get too down on the 840, it needs to be said that this rifle is almost 40 years old and hasn’t been well treated. I am considering trying to do some minor seal maintenance by adding some lubricating oil. There has literally nothing ever done in that manner to the rifle.
Despite that, I was a little shocked when I missed the target multiple times standing five feet away. In all of this testing, this is the only occasion where this has occurred. The difference between BBs and pellets is that only pellets are stabilized (and therefore accurate). But, I was capable of hitting targets fifty feet away in one shot as a youth with a BB. My operating assumption is that the wildly varying velocity is causing the accuracy problems, so we will see.
I also had to double cock the action each time I shot a pellet. I am not sure what that problem is. I didn’t seem to have that problem with BB’s and I don’t understand what the different types of ammunition would have to do with the problem. That is a wait and see problem.
End Your Programming Routine: If my relubrication efforts fail, it may be time to end the run of the Daisy 840. There are no serviceable parts, it is missing a rear sight and I can’t trust the accuracy or performance. A single pump is pretty nice for shooting a lot, even if it is not the most powerful tool. But, if you cant keep the shots within the backstop, it is not safe.
August 31, 2022 – Shop Siding, Before and After
It is a good thing that I am done because summer is almost over. I ended up finding more rot in the facias and I debated leaving it. Ultimately, I decided that I had everything setup and I was in the mode, so I ended up spending a full day taking care of the unexpected damage. But, it is done.
As I like to do, I thought that I would provide some project accounting. What did this project really cost?
| Hardware | $111 |
| Paint | $45 |
| Siding | $555 |
| Lumber | $34 |
| $746 |
I did spend more than this, but they were unrelated costs to the project. They were expenses for my home and apartment that I picked up because I was already at the store. It is possible to argue that I may not spent the money if I wasn’t already purchasing project supplies.
I wish that I had kept better track of my actual hours. I should know that I am going to write about it by now. I am just going to have to make an guess at this point.
| Siding | Demo | 12 |
| Siding | Sheathing/underlayment | 10 |
| Siding | Painting | 26 |
| Siding | Installation | 12 |
| Siding | Finish | 5 |
| Siding | Materials Purchase | 15 |
| Siding Subtotal | 80 hrs | |
| Facia | All work | 20 |
| Total | 100 hrs |
My biggest labor expense was in painting. I did paint everything by hand and every exposed surface got a primer coat and two topcoats before installation with touch-up afterward. Had I installed everything then shot it with a sprayer, I am sure that I would have driven that cost down to 8 hours. I also feel like some of my trips for materials were wasteful. I had to replace the Hardi boards that broke as I was unloading and I made one trip to purchase a 15 degree finish nailer plus caulk (more on that some other day).
I am giving myself a raise on this project because of inflation. If I estimate my rate at $35/hour then my labor is $3500 and my overall cost is $4246. A smart contractor is going to add some contingency to the job, like 20%. I would estimate the overall value of the project to be $5000.
End Your Programming Routine: The project actually totaled more time than I expected. It was the painting phase that seemed to really drag on. Of course, most weekends I spent some time but not really sun up to sun down or even a straight eight hour day. The truth is, I didn’t really feel like I needed to work that way. But now, I need to move onto other things while the weather is still good. It feels good to finish however.
August 30, 2022 – Rodeo Season is Winding Down
I don’t think that I have ever talked about Rodeo before. Before I get started, I don’t want to leave the impression that I am some kind of poser. I have never attempted to ride bulls or broncos and I don’t know how to rope or steel wrestle. Despite that, I do have respect for the people that do this.
The origins of American rodeo come from cowboys and working the ranches. But, the truth is is goes way back to Rome. This is the modern day form of animals and humans in the colosseum together. American rodeo has it’s set of events but there are other countries that have theirs. Ours tend to focus on buckles and prize money while others bring a focus on horsemanship with fancy stepping horses marching in unison.
This particular rodeo we went to was called a rough stock rodeo. This means that it was an abbreviated event. A full rodeo would include steer wresting, calf and team roping which the winners are based on the quickest time to complete the events. A rough stock rodeo is the bull and bronco riding (for some reason this one also has barrel racing as well).
The object to riding an animal is to hang on for eight seconds. If that happens, then the two are scored up to 50 points for the animal and 50 points for the rider. The nastier the animal is with bucking and twisting, the higher the score. For the rider, spurring front to back and keeping one hand in the air lead to points deductions for technique. With that, the best score wins. This means that there is some luck in this as well as skill.
When I was a youth, the Fourth of July was unofficially called Cowboy Christmas because there were so many concurrent rodeos happening. In my area, there were three big ones which would draw bigger names because the could compete in all three and therefore enhancing chances with a bigger payday.
Most venues are outside making summer the primary season for rodeo. The biggest one to my knowledge is the Calgary Stampede which runs for two weeks in September. That is one that I would like to see. The official commencement of the year is the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas in February. That is an organization like the PGA that requires membership and has it’s own rules for participation and qualification.
The one that we attended was at the Oregon State Fair. We specifically went to the fair to watch the rodeo and the concert by Ned LeDoux afterward. We are planning to go back to see anything else at the fair since this took our entire evening. It is pretty common to see food, games and a carnival atmosphere associated with rodeos. It is an entire entertainment experience, not just a spectator event.
With TV series like Heartland and Yellowstone, I think that there is a resurgence or new awareness of rodeo. This is one of those pursuits that can be very dangerous. And you don’t see old rodeo cowboys. It is just too physically damaging to ride bulls and horses for long. Actually, I think the roping sports tend to be older guys because it takes a lot more skill to do it and it is not nearly as physically damaging.
End Your Programming Routine: I like putting on my boots and hat to go out and watch the rodeo with my wife or family. Stick and ball athletes may be strong or fast but cowboys are tough. The whole process requires desire. The desire to travel and live on the road, the desire for a chance to complete for mostly peanuts as wages, the desire to be the best at a life threatening pursuit. It is a culture and a lifestyle that I enjoy participating.
August 29, 2022 – Back To School… Drama
My kids are a little over a week away from starting school again. You can listen about the drama that I am talking about. I was going to use this slot to tear a new one into the school system but as I was writing the outline, I thought that I could turn that around into something more constructive. So, that is what I did.
End Your Programming Routine: I think sometimes that if we don’t think critically about a situation, we can forget our power and role in the situation. Change your mindset so that it is not what the world is doing to you but how you respond to the world. That is mastery of yourself.
August 26, 2022 – Atlas Shrugged 1:8
This book is rapidly earning a spot on the reading list. I suppose you could say that I enjoy a story with a bunch of subversive subplots going on. I also appreciate a long and intricate story. If a book is going to be short like Animal Farm, it very well better get to the point and quickly. Animal Farm is going on the review list too, I have a couple others ahead of it first.
There is a lot going on in this chapter that is relevant to the current story lines in the plot. In fact, it is probably an end to the most controversial issues to date. I didn’t recognize that there were a lot of new concepts however. I am not sure where things are going from this chapter other than there is sure to be more interaction between Frank D’aconia, Jim Taggert, Dabny Taggert and Henry Reardon.
In the first, third of the chapter, we have the Equalization of Opportunity bill in action. Reardon ends up selling his different business interests to individual industrialists. Some of them are consolidating operations and others seem to be friends. It is clear that many industrialist are not happy with the status quo, but we get a glimpse into Reardon’s character. He will fight for his business in management and the marketplace but not in the political arena.
In the second, third we have more doubt on the John Galt Line. Dabny holds a press conference, concerning the near completion of the line. We have the same battle lines with the media saying it is going to be a disaster and the normal folks betting on success. The third, third of this chapter had the first run on the John Galt line. Of course it was successful, what did you think was going to happen?
So, lets talk about the media and misdirection or agenda pushing. Did anyone hear about the Inflation Reduction Act 2022? If you see the title, you would think that this is an attempt to actually reduce inflation. Despite the fact that the government is claiming there is no recession and inflation is minimal, why would we need to reduce inflation?
You can follow the link above to see what is actually in the bill (on a summary level). But, if you ignore the actual details and just look at the cost summary, you will see that this is touted as a deficit reduction. How is this actually done? Primarily there are some rebates that are terminated and taxes are raised on corporations.
Let us look into the bill for a minute. The ‘benefits’ of the bill are targeted toward climate change and health care rebates and changes. Now, if we take the name of the bill at it’s face value, how in the world are these things related to inflation reduction? I really don’t have the time and/or space to discuss how inflation works. But, simplifying inflation for a quick bite: inflation is driven by the federal reserve (non-governmental entity of member banks) increasing the money supply and this is done through fractional reserve banking. I hate to break this to you readers, but inflation is actually desired by the government because this is how the federal debt is financed. Older (more valuable) debt is payed with less valuable money.
Circling back to the media now. We have the useful idiots parroting all the great inflation reduction that we are going to see just like the media is publishing false information sourced by the State Science Institute in Atlas Shrugged . We are going to do that by raising taxes on the rich and giving money to people to buy electric cars, all the while the national debt is reduced. Huh, I can’t make the connection.
End Your Programming Routine: Pick your issue here. Trump has nuclear secrets at his home, the election was stolen, there is no inflation, stay home and save lives, two weeks to flatten the curve, get your vaccination to do your part… lies. I don’t like to talk about politics this definitively but if you are wrapped up in the BS that is being fed, then you are a drone. The government is going to do what they are going to do. We the people need to focus on things that matter to us. The political circus is still happening every day, don’t go.
August 25, 2022 – ‘Tacticool’ Thursday
Bonus! I know that I said only one more in this line but I wanted to know something else while I started testing. My son has a Crossman 760 that I was curious how it compared to what I was doing.
The 760 is to prototypical first air rifle. It is affordable and ubiquitous. Most people I knew had one growing up. It can fire BBs or pellets and pumps from 1 to 10 pumps for variable power. Think of it as a value proposition, it is the most bang for the buck.
As all youth’s air rifles do, this particular one has a history. My wife and son bought it at an auction for the private school my kids were attending years ago. They paid probably double what it was worth but they won. My son was very excited at the time. However, it has mostly sat in the corner since the initial outing at the range. Here is the data that I found.
| 760 | 1000 | |
| 1 | 579 | 775 |
| 2 | 544 | 781 |
| 3 | 540 | 779 |
| 4 | 542 | 781 |
| 5 | 549 | 771 |
| 6 | 541 | 772 |
| 7 | 529 | 774 |
| 8 | 539 | 773 |
| 9 | 552 | 777 |
| 10 | 554 | 777 |
| Average | 546 +/- 40 | 776 +/-11 |
I was surprised to see that the 760 is significantly less powerful than the 1000. This was a new pellet, the Crossman 7.4 grain wadcutter, ten pumps each measuring the muzzle velocity. The data for the 1000 is part of the new data set I am doing in my number of pumps vs. velocity analysis coming next week.
The boxes are long gone. I really don’t know what the published velocity is supposed to be. According to today’s literature the velocity is 350-700 fps for the 760 and 750-1000 fps for the 1000. Those numbers are going to be subject to the weight of the pellet as you have seen from my previous data.
I actually have one more BB gun to look at which I will do in a couple weeks. I haven’t done any testing with BBs but since I was checking the catalog of performance, I was curious. I will talk all about that then.
End Your Programming Routine: I have to say, the 760 is much easier to pump than the 1000. I have a feeling that the longer forearm on the 1000 is an indicator that the air chamber is bigger, hence how to get more velocity. I am much preferring my break barrel spring air rifle to pumping 10 times to get similar velocity. But, for a kid this is a fantasy come true.
August 24, 2022 – Review: Porter-Cable FR350B
It’s been a long time since I did a proper review. Part of what holds me back is I want to get some use out of something before I give it a one day run and then write about it. For example, I have gotten enough use with my Crossman Optimus that I should be able to speak with some authority on that product. Ideally, I would also like some experience with multiple models as well so the review is not in a vacuum.
Before we get completely immersed in this review, I wanted to talk a little bit about the Porter-Cable brand. It wasn’t that long ago that Porter Cable was a premium brand. In 2004 Delta Machinery was acquired by Black & Decker (parent company of DeWalt as well) and it seems like it has been relegated to to value brand. For instance, the FR350B was about 50% cheaper than the comparable DeWalt nailer.
Truth be told, I really wanted to buy a 15 degree siding nailer but I simply couldn’t justify the $350-400 price tag for my one wall project. I probably should have bought it 2 years ago when I did my remodel job. At that time, I justified that I didn’t need to spend any additional money. When I did my office project, I decided to splurge and buy a framing nailer. I no longer needed to prove anything to anyone after my apartment remodel.
What I realized was that instead of buying a siding nailer, I could do the job with the framing nailer I already owned. There are shorter, thinner, ring shank and galvanized nails that would work just fine. My only real gripe is the plastic collation remains visible after driving the nail. Lap siding is covered by the overlapping the above course. For my project, I picked and scraped the worst offenders on the T1-11 but this would never do in a pay for, job situation. And that really has noting to do with the nailer itself.
This particular nailer is a 21 degree nailer which can shoot between 2 and 3 1/2 inch nails. It would appear that there are other nailers on the market that have a more severe angle (that is the angle of the magazine to the tool) which in theory allows more access in difficult or tighter situations. I think that the 21 degree angle is the most common. It comes with the hose connection already made and a rafter hook attached.
Make sure an know your application so that you can also get appropriate nails at the same time because those are not included. Manufacturers have come up with a color coded tag to match the proper nails to the nailer. In this case, mine has a maroon 21 degree tag on it that matches the label on the box of nails. The other way to match nails to the nailer is buy the same brand nails/nailer. This is not a guarantee but it is a way but it is much more likely.
| Score | Pros | Cons | |
| Value | 3 | -50% less than competitors -Nails cost significantly less $40/1000 or roughly $2/lb vs. $6/lb loose -Comes without a specific case (to me that is a plus) | -Still Paid $180, that buys a lot of nails -In my frequency of projects, an unnecessary luxury |
| Quality | 3 | -Operated on two projects without misfire | -The way the air port ejects exhaust is often in the face. It is adjustable however it seems to be frequently in the wrong location -Mechanism seems bulkier than others I have handled -When nail magazine gets to about 5-7 remaining, needs to be reloaded to operate |
| Performance | 5 | -Much easier to work alone -Significantly faster than hand nailing -Can make nailing in tight or difficult positions possible | -Easier to make compounding mistakes -More difficult to tell if you missed the framing |
It is not fair to review on speculation. However, I have gotten lots of comments on my nailer rebuild video that newer Porter-Cable nail guns will not last. I don’t know if that is true or not, but there has to be some kind of compromise for the price. I guess time will tell.
There are cheaper tools out there particularly online and at a national tool store we all know. To me, this was the lowest price point I was willing to go. I am a big believer in you get what you pay for. Often times, inexpensive items do the job for a while, but the value is in the durability like softer alloys, inferior batteries, no serviceable parts, etc.
End Your Programming Routine: The truth is, I really didn’t need this tool at the time I bought it and I didn’t need it here either. But, I have done this work several times and trying to do it by yourself is difficult. To top it off, it seems like some brands of nails don’t have as much integrity. With one brand of nail, I was bending and pulling 2 nails for every one that I got in. Also, hand nailing into Hardi siding is doubly difficult. I am positive that I will have other projects that I will use this for. However, sometimes the setup is not worth the effort, so keeping a hammer around and knowing how to use it can be a better and easier strategy.
August 23, 2022 – Self Reliance Magazine
Let the cheapness flow. Last Tuesday, I wrote about Backwoods Home Magazine, today I am reviewing the companion publication. The story as I understand it was that the kids of the publisher started this magazine. I am presuming the strategy was to leverage the name of Backwoods Home to kickstart this one.
My interpretation of the mission statement is similar content, less controversial. Of course, less controversial is subjective. What is missing is content on firearms and politics. My one look at Backwoods Home, I saw some of those two but really very little; I would say two columns. Nevertheless, as promised it is not here.
Below is a look of the contents of Self-Reliance Magazine.
- Tips on watering your Garden
- The front porch concert
- From tree to table: Harvesting black walnuts
- The jitter free cafe (coffee substitutes)
- How to build a bee house
- 11 building mistakes
- Protecting canning jars during an earthquake
- Natural Goat Horns
- Homeschool vs. online school
- Blueberries for all of us
- Sew a ram apron
- A primer on zippers
- Grain Sack Totes
- The complicated world of corn
- Foraging farther off the grid
- Making crock pot yogurt
- Healthy, heart smart Greek cuisine
- Six soulful smoothies
In many ways, I felt like I was reading an extension to Backwoods Home. Most of the subject matter was the same and even authors/columnist cross back and forth. I felt like Self-Reliance had additional food and crafts to make up for the content the parent publication has. It is probably subconscious because I knew this before I started but I felt like the the overall tone was subdued compared to Backwoods Home.
From this, I am interested in trying to make yogurt, I thought that there was some good advice to secure canning jars and the Ram apron was an eye opener. This is a device to prevent the ram from breading when it is the time of year. The zipper article offered some tips on mending and it confirmed some things that I thought I knew.
Maybe I shouldn’t admit this either but I have my eyes open for picking up a second hand sewing machine because it is so much easier and better than sewing by hand. I have sewed a number of patches on my kids Boy Scout Uniforms and it takes a long time. Ideally, they would show some initiative and do this themselves but I could see some value in mending myself.
End Your Programming Routine: I am strongly considering subscribing. If I do, there is a deal to get both in the same transaction which is what I will do. That being said, if I only could pick one it would be Backwoods Home over Self-Reliance. It just felt more like me. There are several publications that are pretty similar as well like Grit and Mother Earth News come to mind. The extra spicy Backwoods Home is a differentiator.
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