steve1

The following is a story about B.J. Worth. I hope I have all the facts straight because I'm telling it second hand. This is the story told to me by Bob Smith. When I started jumping B.J. was one of my instructors. He wasn't always famous. At one time he was a college student like the rest of us in Missoula, Montana. Bob Smith was a tad older. He was a college professor, jumper, and one of our main pilots. All students started out doing static line back then. Our club jumped a Cessna 180. At any rate this story begins with B.J. jumpmastering a student while kneeling next to the door, with the plane on jump run. The door was open, and the student was getting ready to climb out. Bob was flying. About then B.J.'s chest mounted reserve popped open. Luckily the pilot chute stayed in the plane. Bob saw what happened and he frantically tried to shut the door. B.J. was trying to grab arm-loads of nylon. In the midst of all this shouting, swearing, and slamming of doors the airplane was starting to exert G-forces on everyone inside, because noone was flying. The big-eyed student sat waiting patiently, wondering what all the excitement was about. Luckily noone died that day. Bob said that B.J. had nightmares for days after that. If B.J. reads this, maybe he can add to the story. I hope I didn't butcher it too bad.

You'll never quit worrying about your kids. Life truly changes when you become a parent. My oldest daughter is approaching thirty. I worry about her every day. My Mom is approaching 85. She worries about me, all the time. Your mother is probably smiling because she knows what you feel....And the truth is, I wouldn't trade being a parent for anything.

I'm an old school backpacker. Never used an internal frame pack, but I do have years and years of backpacking experience, including military time. Comfort is very important. You don't want a pack that is going to rub you raw or cause your body to ache. I like an external frame for packing meat. I've packed everything from elk and bear to caribou. Sometimes over a hundred lbs. at a time. For that you need a heavy frame with a good hip belt and shoulder pads. For a weekend trip you might choose something else to pack your gear in. I used to use the same frame for everything. Forty years ago I found what works for me, and haven't changed much since. Technology has made a lot of changes since then. It sounds to me that an internal frame may suit your needs well....

Suicide kills thousands of people every year. For young people it is the biggest killer next to accidents. You can't really understand depression unless you have been there. It's something that reaches the deepest depths of your soul and doesn't leave. It's interesting how many skydiver have come forth and said that they are suffering from one form of depression or another. Maybe I'm off on this, but I believe the adrenaline sports have large numbers of depressed people who participate. It's a way of escaping the boredom and pain of depression. Adrenaline is very adictive and can take the place of the numbness of depression. I too suffer from depression. Right now I'm trying to cope with it with exercise. I hope to get back in the air when the weather improves. Exercise doesn't work as well as medication, but it does help. I think it may have saved my life when I was younger. For many people something as simple as exercise is not enough. There are a lot of different ant-depressant medications out there. Most have sided affects that may be hard to live with. Welbrutan may have the least, but it may not work very well for many people. The SSRI medications can cause sexual problems in both men and women. This percentage is much higher than thought earlier. Then there are bi-polar medications. Some have down right scary side affects. Most of my relatives are alcoholics. That is how they cope. Depression is not something you just get over. It doesn't mean you are weak, if you have depression. I wish society would lose that idea. March is the worst month for suicide according to statistics. Be observant. Most people who commit suicide show signs. You may be able to convince someone to get the help they need. Be a good listener. Most suicidal people need someone to listen. They don't need a truck load of advice. There was a skydiver from California who was on this site nearly everyday. He left behind two little girls when he committed suicide. It's easy to judge, and say he did the wrong thing. I just wish he could have gotten help in time. Maybe it wouldn't have happened.....

That Kimber pistol sounds like a dandy. Is that the same company that makes Kimber custom rifles? Thanks all for your input. I didn't realize there were so many pistol shooters on here who really know their stuff....

I know very little about unjacketed lead bullets. The guy who sold them to me said they would not foul the barrel much at all as long as I used light loads...

Good choice for plinking is FMJ 9mm ........................................................................ Jean, That is usually what I use for practice. I recently bought some unjacketed 9mm cast bullets for reloading, and practice. They were really cheap. I've heard that they can foul your barrel bad, if you load them too hot. So, I've been reluctant to shoot many of them.

I've used the same RCBS (Junior) press since I was a kid. Let me see, that's been almost a hundred years now.

What AUTOMATIC pistol do you have now? reply]........................................................ It's a 9 mm., Smith and Wesson, with a single stack magazine. I should dig it out and get the model number off of it. It is a good shooter. I've shot targets and metal sillouettes with it, a fair amount. Fun to shoot. Since I'm no pistol expert, I thought I'd throw out some more dumb questions. I assume that most law enforcement people have a bullet in the chamber, when they are on duty. With a pistol like mine, I assume the first round is usually fired like a double action revolver. There is a long pull with a lot of tension on the trigger. I'm wondering how to fire that first round accurately. This seems difficult with a trigger pull like that. I've learned to quickly squeeze about 3/4 of the tension, and then carefully squeeze the last bit of trigger tension to fire. I'd like to take a course on this, or join a club. I'll bet there is plenty a person can learn. I'm also wondering, do most automatic pistols have quite a bit of slack in their trigger . Even when my pistol is cocked, there is a bunch of slack in the trigger before it engages anything. Do I need a trigger job? I'm also wondering if anyone out there reloads much for their automatic pistol. I've got some dies for my 357 revover, 9mm auto, and my daughter's 38 special. I am worried about feeding problems in an automatic. So, far my reloads seem to work okay. I plan to use reload ammo for practice and keep my high quality factory ammo (hollow pts.) for home. For hard to find ammo, reloading is an option. A can of powder goes a long way when you are loading for a pistol. The only trouble is that it is very time comsuming when you shoot that same ammo up, so fast. It might make more sense to just buy cheap ammo that is on sale. Even that may be hard to find these days. Does anyone know any tricks for speeding up that reloading time. I've never used a spray lube for my brass. That would speed things up. I've heard they also make some resizing dies that don't take any lube at all. That too could help save time. I also need to start using my powder measure more. I use a trickler to get my rifle ammo exact. With a pistol this may not be important. You wouldn't believe the time I waste trying to get precision rifle ammo for my rifles. I need to learn to speed things up on my reload pistol ammo....

Thanks all....I'm learning a lot....

I guess I'm not too familiar with the 380 round. It must be new. Is it more or less a shortened 9mm cartridge??? If it is, I'd think it might be short on velocity. Let me know if I am wrong here. Even a 9mm has a really short case when compared to even a 38 special. I know that shooting through walls can be a problem. I want enough stopping power though, so I don't think I'd pick a cartridge smaller than 9mm. I know about nothing about the 380 cartridge when it comes right down to it. I'm just thinking about powder capacity in an even shorter case than the 9mm. It just seems like a 380 might not have enough umph behind that bullet to get the job done. Let's say you had a big fat burglar in your house wearing a leather jacket. Would the 380 penetrate that jacket, and some bone, to reach the vitals? If a bad guy is hiding behind a wall or table, having a little extra penetration might be a plus. I read somewhere that even a windshield can deflect a 9mm. I really do appreciate all the info. on this. It seems like the more I learn, the more questions I have. I do have a short barrelled 12 guage pump shotgun loaded with buckshot. I agree they are deadly.

Since I don't know a whole lot about pistols, I thought I'd throw out some questions. I'm thinking about buying another automatic pistol for home defense and possible concealed carry. I've got a 9mm Smith & Wesson with a single stack magazine. It only holds about eight in the magazine. I like the feel of it. It shoots well out to a reasonable range. The trigger has a lot of slop in it though. Maybe that can be reworked. I need to check into that. I wouldn't mind having more magazine capacity, and possibly a larger caliber. I don't have a huge hand. I guess I should look some pistols over and see how they feel. My brother uses a 10 MM Glock for law enforcement work. I guess they are super reliable. I didn't like the looks or feel of it at first, but maybe it would be fine once I got used to it. There must be a reason so many people buy Glocks. I didn't want to mortgage my house to buy another pistol. I know there are some really nice custom weapons out there. Do you think they are worth the extra price? Lot's of people like 45's. I'm not sure I want the extra recoil and noise. 9mm's are easy to shoot, but they may lack stopping power. What do you think? At any rate, I'd appreciate your advice on this.

The umbrella ones I remember, were O.D. and smaller than the one pictured. They were used for a while in 75 or so. I hope my memory isn't slipping too much....

When I worked construction I worked with a guy who was an old para-trooper. He said he had one nasty fall. He figured his PLF training is what allowed him to walk away from that. The army really drilled PLF's into your head. We did them every day for three weeks. I don't know how anyone can learn a PLF with only an hours practice. I think that was one reason our jump club had so many injuries in the 70's. There just wasn't enough PLF practice. It wasn't unusual for a small skydiving class to have at least one broken leg or ankle....

The army used those for a while. At least Special Forces did on static line jumps. You were trained to hand deploy your reserve even though there was that screwy looking pilot chute in it (on a low speed malfunction). I assume it's no longer in service. It had four arms on it, kind of like an umbrella....

I started jumping a para-commander in 73. We graduated from 28 foot 7-TU to para-commanders. Heavier students might start with a T-10. I think they may have been 9-T-U's. Lot's of first jump students were getting hurt landing under the 28 foot canopies. If you knew how to do a decent PLF, they usually landed okay. That is if you were young and tough. I knew one older guy who shattered his leg on his first jump under a 28 ft. round. He was off work for a couple months because of that. He was ancient....around 45.....if I remember right. Then there was Hod Sanders. He made over a !,000 jumps on the same 28 ft. round. You had to be tough to do something like that. His canopy was covered with duck tape, to cover all the holes and burns. B.J. Worth told Hod that he had to get a new canopy, or he was off the team (Mirror Image). It was taking Hod too long to get back to the D.Z. on practice jumps. Most everyone had at least 35 jumps on a standard round before going to a para-commander (Back in 73). Everyone I knew had training in cutting away by the time they went to a para-commander. I didn't know anyone who jumped that canopy without a pilot chute in their reserve....

Tony, I loaned a reserve to an inexperienced jumper to use back in about 73. I think it had a pilot chute in it if I remember right. This guy didn't know how to cut away. The only training he had was to pull his reserve if he had a malfunction. He went into a severe spin right out of the Cessna. He openned in a spin, and sure enough he had a streamer. So, he pulled this reserve without cutting away. It burned several holes in it as it rubbed against the lines of the streamering main chute. He landed okay even though there were holes in the 24 foot canopy......

The Randy Weaver story was a prime example of the BATF doing their thing....

Sorry, but to me, this is a cop out. Admit you have a problem and need help, but don't ever think you're powerless. No one is truly powerless unless they give up. ..................................................................... I don't think many people truly understand what it is like to be in the grips of addiction. I'm not sure I know either, because I've never been there. I have seen my brother suffer and die from alcoholism. If he could have pulled himself up by his boot straps, and beat alcoholism, he would have. Some people don't have the will left to do that. They may not have boot straps to pull themselves up with. Admitting you are powerless may be a big step toward getting help, because you can't do it alone....

It seemed like the best accuracy competitors landed down wind with their para-commanders. I didn't know beans about accuracy. Most of us did RW and that was about it. I do remember trying to shoot accuracy a few times, with limited knowledge, and my MK 1 paracommander. I figured if the pros shot accuracy down wind, I could do the same thing. Every time I tried it, I missed the entire pea pit. Crashed and burned. I'd limp off and try to pretend it didn't hurt. Then there were those times when I'd try a radical turn at the last second, and again slam into the ground, outside the peas. I finally gave up on accuracy. It was just to rough!....

That's probably very true, Dave. I've fired hundreds and maybe even thousands of rounds through an M-16 and have never once had one jam, or fail to feed properly. I've never used the forward assist on one either....

The serenity prayer and AA make perfect sense to me. I am also an Athiest. I have a lot of faith that god doesn't exist. Spirituality is more than a belief in a magical being. It is a belief that there is something out there that is greater than yourself, and that you are a part of all that. Many people are very spiritual yet they don't believe in god. Maybe AA needs to reword some it's stuff. There are a lot of different 12 step programs out there. Many of them treat issues other than addiction. I really believe that AA has a lot to offer. There are probably millions of people out there who will say the same thing. You don't have to be a bible thumper to attend....

.................................................................... I'm having a hard time remembering all the history on the development of the M-16. So, I hate to start blabbing my mouth too much. If a remember right the AR-15 was called just that, and was used in the early days of Vietnam along with the M-14. Yes, it did fire full auto. Vietnam was a muddy dirty place They were having trouble getting the bolt to close fully to chamber a round. They made some modifications including a forward assist on the side to help chamber a round if needed. Was that the new M-16?....I can't recall. There were several other versions prior to the AR-15 that the military experimented with. All were gas operated, had a pistol grip, and they looked very much like an AR-15. I can't recall all their names. I'll bet someone out there can give a more accurate account of all this. I am pulling all this off the top of my head and some of it could be inaccurate. This is what I was told in weapons training at Bragg, in the early 70's. I know many people didn't like the M-16 in Vietnam. Some people in elite units even used an AK-47. It had greater nock-down power and it was less prone to jam. It wasn't nearly as accurate as an M-16, but for jungle warfare the AK-47 was a formidable weapon. Barry Saddler preferred this weapon over the M-16. One nice thing about an M-16 is that you can carry hundreds of rounds of ammo without weighing yourself down. Ounces can add up to a lot if you are carrying everything on your back. An M-16 is very accurate. Mild recoil is another plus. A 22 caliber, full metal jacket bullet, doesn't rip a very big hole though. Stopping power was sometimes an issue....

Joe, I read most of that journal. It sounds like many M-16 parts may be illegal in an AR-15. I've never looked into buying an AR. I might be letting a lot of ignorance show by asking some stupid questions, but here goes.... It sounds like M-16's are illegal in most states, yet AR-15's are okay to own. Aren't they both more or less the same weapon? I know the M-16 is an improved version of the AR. The AR was used in the military first, then along came the M-16. Why is an M-16 more dangerous than an AR-15 (as long as both are converted to fire only semi-automatic)? They seem very similiar to me. Why aren't both of them legal to own. I'll bet there is some political B.S. behind this to help people sleep more soundly at night....

John, It has been a lot of years since working on an AR or M-16. I'm about positive though, that the automatic sear was held in place there. That pin held it in place. The pin went through both sides of your receiver. The automatic sear was a c shaped piece of metal. The selector switch held it in the proper position for "rock and roll". That's grunt talk for full auto