Category Archives: Miscellaneous

And here is the “catch all” category for stuff that doesn’t have its own.

George W. Sears – Nessmuk Online Learning

by Woodsbum

George W. Sears is better known through his pen name of Nessmuk. Many of his teachings in woods skills have become the cornerstone for today’s bushcrafting movement. It is truly amazing to see how he was able to build an entire camp out of the most basic and simple hand tools.

What I have done is linked to his book here. Even though it is a bit of a read, especially when he starts discussing his favorite equipment, but the camp techniques are those that really should be evaluated and scrutinized. He talks about fire lays, his preferred tent, how to fish, cooking over open flame, and just basics that every outdoors person should know. You don’t have to do it his way, but knowing what many consider “foundations” of camping is a great way to make your preferred method that much better. Many people, for instance, do not use reflectors for their camp fire to radiate the heat back toward your shelter. This is ok to do in many situations, but it helps SO much when you are in colder climates or camping with only a tarp.

Take a look and see what does or does not apply to your particular style camping. I will bet that many of his techniques will have its roots in what he did 100 years go. Just remember to take what you can use and then process the rest as a foundation for further learning.

Happy camping!!!!!

Oregon Out Of State Concealed Weapons Permit

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by Woodsbum

This is a little off topic in some regards, but after some scouring of the Internet I found that there is a distinct lack of information about which counties will sign off on an Oregon out of state concealed weapons permits. Most counties, especially in and around Portland, will not process them. According to Oregon law out of state residents are able to procure permits, but you have to find a sheriff office that will process it.

For what it is worth, there are several counties that do process them in southern, eastern, and around Corvallis. Unfortunately, this is a bit of a drive and a pain in the rear end since you have to be present during the application process for fingerprinting. This is when I stumbled upon Columbia County with the main offices in St. Helens. Apparently they not only process out of state permits, but they even show up at places like the Puyallup Fair to process applications. It also happens to be only a short drive (30 miles) from Portland.

There are a few things to note about Oregon’s concealed weapons application process. Not only do you have to show up in person, but you also need the following:

The actual application. You can get that here.
2 letters of reference. The forms are here.
Compelling reason form. The template letter is available here.
Some sort of training. You can attend several different types to include online training, but if you were in the military and received pistol qualifications that are on your DD214 this qualifies. If you do the online course there is an additional form you have to fill out when you get to the sheriff’s office.
Be a resident of either California, Idaho, Nevada or Washington. They will only issue non resident CHL permits for residents of those states.
A copy of your current concealed weapons permit from whatever state issued it. For example, a Washington or Idaho concealed weapons permit.
$75 for the application per a phone conversation with their office staff. I also have seen where there is an additional $10 administrative fee, but I am not sure if the $75 includes that. Depending on the website, the total cost is either $85 or $75. Either way it is around $100 when you factor in fuel costs, so sell that to the wife if you have to budget.
Call the office and find out when the next available appointment is for processing applications. Their number is 503-366-4651. Normally applications are accepted and processed on the last Saturday of every month. Again, I would call to confirm because their website has not been updated.

Having dealt with many government organizations over the years, I went ahead and made copies of everything and put it all into a nice folder for ease of processing. The office will probably want to see the originals, but having the copies already made for them will hopefully help out the whole application process. I suggest anyone dealing with a government organization do the same and be completely prepared for any contingency. They are doing me this favor so I will make them have to work as little as possible……

I will be off to submit my application this Saturday. According to online accounts, it takes this office about 7-14 days for you to receive your actual permit. This is even better than many Washington departments, but again I have no hands on experience about this as of yet. I will after this weekend and will update this post as to how long it takes for mine.

I am really excited to finally get this process completed and procure my OR permit. It will make it SO much easier while traveling. If you find any more counties in Oregon (around Portland especially) that will process permits for out of state residents, please hit us up and we will include them here.

Ka-Bar TDI Knife Review

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by GunGuy

I’ve owned a large Ka-Bar TDI knife for over 5 years. It’s really easy to carry the knife in a discreet manner as a backup or primary every day carry (EDC). I carry the knife on my support or strong side depending on the circumstances and clothing. Those who have a few extra lbs around the middle will find that it digs into their side when carrying it inside the waist band (IWB). I found this out the hard way as my weight fluctuated over the years. Clipped on the outside of the belt there is no issue.

The knifes sole purpose is to be an emergency last ditch self defense knife. It comes sharp from the factory but I touched it up with a leather strop to make it razor sharp. This knife doesn’t get used for anything that will dull the blade.

The Taiwan made Ka-Bar TDI ships with a kydex sheath, and includes two straps with velcro and button snaps that make it compatible with Molle webbing and belt carry. I added the Ka-Bar TDI belt clip to give me some versatility while carrying IWM or OWB. The belt clip is personal preference and is not a requirement for carrying it effectively. For the price of $45 for the knife and $10 for the belt clip it’s a good deal and it’s worth the money.

Vortex Viper PST 4-16×50 Review

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I have a Vortex Viper Pst 4-16×50 scope mounted on a Remington 700 SPS Tactical chambered in .308. I purchased the scope for $900 and the fit and finish of the scope is near perfect. Vortex is possibly one of the best values in mid-high range scopes. The equivalent Leupold would be another $300 and a Nightforce even more than that. More than anything else in the gun world, when it comes to optics you generally get what you pay for. This is where Vortex has really carved out its niche. It has become known for making very good quality scopes with very good glass at a very good price point.

The Vortex Viper PST line offers illuminated reticles on all models. What makes this scope so good is the magnification range is about perfect all around. With 4-16 magnification you can shoot from 100 to 1000 yards very well. The Mil scope adjustments are an improvement over the standard MOA adjustments of most American scopes. This allows your adjustments to match the reticle in your optic. If you range a target and need to make a 1 Mil adjustment you put ten clicks onto your optic and are good to go. With a traditional MOA optic with a mil based reticle you need to convert Mils to MOA and then dial the adjustment. Its just an unnecessary step and the reason military scopes now are adjusted in 1/10 mils instead of the traditional 1/4 or 1/2 MOA adjustments.

The first focal plane insures that your reticle is accurate at any magnification. With a second focal plane optic the reticle is only ‘correct’ at one setting, usually at the highest magnification. So 1 Mil would equal 1 Mil only at 16x magnification. At 8 magnification it should equal 1/2 Mil. Another step you can avoid with the FFP optic in which the reticle is correct throughout the entire magnification range. Vortex also offers fantastic customer service and one of the best warranties in the business. I’ve seldom needed to take advantage of it but any time I have contacted them the interaction has been fantastic. I can strongly recommend this scope for the serious hunter, long range shooter or tactical shooter.

One note, if you are going to install the shims for the zero stop feature, be sure to not scissor the shims as they go in. If you do the zero stop will vary quite a bit. It’s not that big a deal but I have read where people are complaining about this.

Vortex Strikefire 2 Review

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by Woodsbum

I picked up a Vortex Strikefire 2 for $180 and my initial impression is that it is a quality site that is robust. The Vortex Strkefire 2, which is modeled after the Aimpoint Pro, has a red and green 4 MOA dot, night vision brightness settings, 30mm one piece tube, a co-witness cantilever mount, is waterproof, and has flip up scope covers. Vortex has made some improvements over the original Strikeforce by moving the controls to the front of the site preventing accidental activation, improving the lens caps so they do not easily pop open, and an auto power shutdown after 6 hours to prevent the batteries from draining.

Comparing the Vortex Strikefire 2 with my Aimpoint Pro side by side I found that there isn’t that much difference in between the two at shorter distances. Using both sights mounted on a Sig Sauer M400 I had similiar results out to 200 yds. At 300 yds plus is when the 4 moa dot on the Strikefire 2 was at a disadvantage and I started losing my rounds on the paper targets. Adding the Vortex VMX-3T flip mount magnifier would have probably helped out a great deal. After the trip to the range I knew my limitations with the sight.

All things considered the Strikefire 2 is a very good site for the money and is a low cost alternative to the Aimpoint Pro as the price difference between the two is about $240. With the additional savings you can get a Vortex VMX-3T flip mount magnifier for a $160 and increase your optics range. If you want a competitor that can hold it’s own and stand up right along side those military grade optics for a cheaper price, Vortex is your best bet.

Strikefire 2 on a KSG

UPDATED AFTER MULTIPLE FIELD TIME
I now have decided that the Strikefire 2 is my “go to” red dot optic. At this time I have these optics on 3 different firearms and every one is truly awesome. One of the best features of this optic is the red/green dot option. While shooting in daylight, around all the trees, I have found that the red is really the right color to use. When it gets a bit darker or if you are around anything other than tree leaves the green is your best bet. Then again, you must take into account that I am color blind to some degree.

Strikefire 2 on an AR15