{"id":5751,"date":"2010-05-03T14:56:44","date_gmt":"2010-05-03T18:56:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/?p=5751"},"modified":"2010-05-03T14:56:44","modified_gmt":"2010-05-03T18:56:44","slug":"babys-first-bath","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/?p=5751","title":{"rendered":"Baby’s First Bath"},"content":{"rendered":"

I’ll Have the Bollinger<\/em><\/p>\n

I just cleaned the LR-308.<\/p>\n

I am not sure what to make of the experience.<\/p>\n

On the one hand, the fit and finish, in and of themselves, made the experience a joy. My Smith & Wesson pistols are about as cute as the LR-308, but my other guns seem pretty clunky in comparison. The LR-308 fits together perfectly and has no flaws I can spot with the naked eye. Cleaning it is like giving a massage to a supermodel. Except that I will never know what it’s like to give a massage to a supermodel.<\/p>\n

The design is impressive, too. This is my first AR-type rifle, so I’ve never taken one apart before. I love the way it comes apart without fuss. You never have to reach for a hammer, the way you might have to when stripping an Eastern-bloc rifle. The pins are tight, but the tightest one will come out if you shove it with a hex wrench. The main pins come out without tools of any kind.<\/p>\n

Still, while the gun seems finely made, I am a little distressed by the knowledge required to lubricate it and put it back together. Lubricate this lightly. Lubricate that heavily. Make sure this part is turned this way when you put the gun together, because if it’s not, the gun will explode.<\/p>\n

I am positive I remember the cam pin thing in the bolt going in at an angle 90\u00b0 different from the angle at which I left it after reassembly, but I must be wrong. Hope nothing blows up. <\/p>\n

With an AK, you can push and beat on things and make it go together in a hurry, while wearing mittens. To put the AR together, you really should have a quiet study, a big table, a nice lamp, a martini, and a good classical piano CD. I have to wonder how many soldiers have been shot while trying to put an M16 together quickly.<\/p>\n

The AR seems like the kind of semi-auto James Bond would use. The AK is more for shrieking imbeciles eager to kill random infidels with as little training as possible.<\/p>\n

I also cleaned the Vz 58, which took like 25% as long.<\/p>\n

I need a trigger for the LR-308. Jim from Smoke on the Water suggests a McCormick trigger, about which I know nothing. He says it comes in double-stage and single-stange, curved or flat.<\/p>\n

Great. Four options to think about. I don’t know why anyone would want a straight trigger. Seems like it would not hold onto the finger very well.<\/p>\n

The Vz 58’s trigger is unbelievable, and as far as I can tell, it’s single-stage. I love it. I am inclined, on that basis, to go with something similar for the LR-308. But ten minutes after I install it, I know someone will email me and explain that I should have gotten double-stage.<\/p>\n

I wonder what the Vz 58 would do, scoped. It’s not supposed to be all that accurate, but with a trigger like that, you can’t help but wonder. Scope mounts for this gun are pretty weird because of the way it ejects.<\/p>\n

I’m pretty disappointed in my Boresnake. I ran it through the LR-308 before using patches, and I still got lots of blue when I started cleaning the gun conventionally. Lots of black, too. When I use the Boresnake on pistols, it leaves a mirror-polished surface in three swipes. But maybe that’s an illusion. Maybe I’m just polishing the copper residue.<\/p>\n

I have realized I know nothing about cleaning guns. I thought the way to do it (pre-Boresnake) was to start with Hoppe’s and a wire brush, but the product directions I read today suggest a brush is only needed for a filthy, neglected gun. Does this mean a brush is too rough to use every time? I have also been informed that solvent eats brushes with copper in them.<\/p>\n

It’s hard for me to believe that running a patch through a barrel one time does anything, but that’s what the literature seems to suggest. Use patch after patch, on a jag, and don’t change directions. I must have put 15 patches through the LR-308. Oddly, the Vz 58, after a hundred rounds of Wolf, was extremely clean except for the gas tube.<\/p>\n

I don’t see why jags would work any better than a loopy thing (pardon the technical jargon). The loopy things I have are equipped with thick portions that would seem to do exactly what a jag does.<\/p>\n

After I cleaned the Vz 58, I stuck it in the 35″ Bulldog bag I got from Classic Arms. I’m impressed. Very compact and easy to carry. I doubt the curved magazines will fit in the little outside pockets, but I haven’t checked. I can wrap them and put them in with the gun.<\/p>\n

I still need a bag for the LR-308. It’s weird that DPMS sells sightless rifles in cases that won’t accommodate a scope, but that’s how it is. I guess I’m expected to buy some kind of mount that detaches when I go home.<\/p>\n

The Radway ammunition I bought is attracting criticism RE accuracy. I’m wondering: should I go ahead and start reloading? I have a bunch of cases now, but it looks like this stuff is not reloadable without a lot of misery. Should I expect to be able to create sub-MOA ammunition with my limited skill set and microscopic attention span? I dunno.<\/p>\n

Of course, the up side of the ammo criticism is that it implies that I’m not a terrible rifle shot. If the ammunition is quirky, maybe I’m not so bad. I do okay with the .17 HMR.<\/p>\n

I’m going to get an elbow pad and something to go between me and the butt of the gun, so I can shoot more without getting sore. I still love the truck stop floor mats, though. What a bargain. And they keep your guns off the scratchy range benches.<\/p>\n

I’m glad I got the LR-308. Now all I need is an AR15 in one of the Grendel-y calibers, and I’ll be ready for long days of zombie-shootin’ and Sicilian pizza, out on the front porch.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I’ll Have the Bollinger I just cleaned the LR-308. I am not sure what to make of the experience. On the one hand, the fit and finish, in and of themselves, made the experience a joy. My Smith & Wesson pistols are about as cute as the LR-308, but my other guns seem pretty clunky […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5751","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-guns-hunting-fishing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5751","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5751"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5751\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5751"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5751"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/toolsofrenewal.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5751"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}