The observatory at the end of the universe

If the world ended, and I was sitting on the edge of it, would I be howling at the moon? Apparently.

As is a tradition of mine going back several years, I do an annual moonlight/sunrise (bicycle) ride up Mnt. Hamilton, the goal being to be up there in time for sunrise. Mnt. Hamilton is the tallest peak in the Bay Area with the famous Lick Observatory at the top. The ride up isn't strenuous; about 4000' of climbing in about 20 miles. It's the getting up at 2am to be up there for sunrise that's getting harder to do as I age.

This year I did it with by good buddy D, and his two neighbours P and J. Though the 26th of August is close to a full moon, it wasn't perfect. Unfortunately, Sunday morning is the only day I can do it. The moon set at 4am rather than being overhead or mostly-overhead for most of the time, so bike lights were needed.

The valley was overcast when we left, but it was a low fog that hovered at around 1000'. Once we climbed through it, the air temperature rose to a very mild and pleasant 70F and stayed that way for most of the ride. I say "most" because if you're familiar with route (HWY 130) you'll know about the infamous dip around the CDF fire station, where the temperature drops a good 20F due to the relative location of the fire station. Brrrr .....

Despite the lack of an overhead moon, there was sufficient light to enable me to ride without lights, allowing my eyes to adjust to small changes in light intensity. I counted about a half-a-dozen shooting stars, which appeared to be moving really slowly and brightly, leaving long-lasting trails in their paths. And apparently human eye visual acuity is directly proportional to available oxygen. Stars appeared bright enough while riding in the dark, but when I stopped and stood still for a while, the "lights really came on", almost as if someone cranked up the stellar brightness knob.

There was a storm over the Central Valley, so the rising sun was obscured by clouds. The sun rose red and the cloud edges were burning golden.


We reached the top about 45 minutes before sunrise.


The valley was completely obscured, except for the peaks of well known landmarks. That's Loma Prieta just over my right shoulder.


And when the sun rose, Mnt. Hamilton cast a shadow over the valley below.


I blew a rear tire on the way down. According to J "It's because you were hotdogging, going too fast, jig-zagging between the Bot's Dots and leaning your bike over so much". :-) He lent me his CO2 inflater. Rather than spending 10 minutes fucking around with a manual pump, the whole operation took about 3 minutes. I'm a CO2 convert.

Attribution: All pictures courtesy of J and P. Thank you very much!

Global Warming heretic

Yes, I'm a global warming denier, and hence a heretic to the church of the Great Al Gore and the faith of the Cataclysmic Global Warming.

Ever found yourself talking with someone who claims that global warming is a scientific fact? If so, ask them the following list of questions and then sit back watching the fuses blow.

1. When you claim that there is consensus among scientists, can you please list me the names, affiliations and funding sources of said scientists? How about just the top 6? How about just ONE?
2. When you claim that average global temperatures are rising, can you list the sources of your claims, because I doubt you took measurements yourself? Can you list the locations of the temperature sensors? Do you realize that if these sensors are located in urban areas, that urbanization (and not "global warming") may be the cause of higher temperature readings?
3. When you claim that CO2 concentrations in the atmosphere are the cause of global warming, please take a moment to clarify, at least in your own mind, the difference between CORRELATION and CAUSE AND EFFECT.
   
4. When you claim that polar bear deaths and glacier melting is proof positive of the dire consequences of global warming, please take a moment to ponder whether the plural of ANECDOTE is really DATA. [Hint: It isn't]
5. When you claim that climate models predict temperature increases in correlation with rising concentrations of CO2 in the atmosphere, please tell me WHICH model(s) you are referring to and note that there is more than one, none of them agree, they vary wildly in temperature increase predictions (by orders of magnitude), and NOT ONE of them could predict the weather 7 days ago, if I fed it the weather data from the last year.
6. When you claim that observed weather extremes (e.g. hurricanes, snow storms, floods, etc) are proof positive of global warming, please explain to me the process(es) that causes a snow storm in Johannesburg South Africa (first in 21 years) when the global temperatures are INCREASING?
   

And since the "believers" and global hand-wringers are hellbent on destroying western civilization as we know if ("We consume 50% of world's resources", "We produce most of the worlds CO2 emissions") just so we can be just like the rest of the 3rd world, I think I have the right to demand actual linear (that whole cause and effect thing, again) proof before I'll even listen to their demands that we change our ways. So a few more questions to ponder, and demand answers to:

1. Is the average global temperature actually rising or falling? Proof please.
2. If yes, then is the rise directly caused by human activity or by some other processes we haven't even considered or don't completely understand? Which activity? Why?
   
3. If yes, then is it actually a bad thing? The last "heating" was correlated with the Renaissance in Europe which I can't say was such a bad thing. Proof please, and don't use anecdotes.
4. If yes, is there anything humans can do to reverse the effects of said process?
   

And since governments seem on the verge of declaring CO2 to be a "pollutant":

1. Please compare the specific heat (yes, the thermodynamics definition which means the capacity to absorb heat) of H2O with that of CO2. You'll find that the former's is 4 times the latter's.
2. Please compare the percentage constituents (say by volume) of various gasses making up the atmosphere, and then ponder why if H2O makes up far more of the atmosphere than CO2 that the effect of CO2 is so much greater than that of H2O?
3. And, finally, describe the process by which CO2 results in global warming, when H2O results in stabilization of temperatures -- it's that whole heating, rising into the upper atmosphere where it condenses and either reflects UV or precipitates into rain resulting in cooling, etc. thing.
   

And finally, the apparent coup-de-grace from the "believers" when they have exhausted all arguments, goes something like this:

"OK, I agree we don't have proof but let's assume that global temperatures are rising, the increase is caused by human activity, that we can reverse it, and that if we don't act now cataclysm will result with the end-of-mankind-as-we-know-it just around the corner. Don't you think it behooves us to do something now, just as an insurance policy, or a hedge?"

OK, I'll play that game. My answer would be the following:

"Do you believe in Jesus Christ as your personal saviour? No? Why not? I know we have no proof of the existence of God, but assuming He-who-goes-by-the-name-of-I exists and only believers will be saved, don't you think you should accept Christ as your personal saviour just as an insurance policy, or a hedge?"

"What?"

"No? Then why should I buy into your fucking faith?"

Dangers of squib loads, part 2

In this post we examined 45ACP squibs. Here we examine powder-less squibs in 9mm Luger and 357 Magnum. The goal of the experiment is determine whether the squib is merely annoying or dangerous. By definition, if the squib allows unobstructed chambering of another round, in a semi-auto, or rotation of the cylinder, in a revolver, it's a dangerous squib; it allows the firing of another round right behind the squib if one is not paying attention.

For the 9mm, I constructed a powder-less round from a Winchester 124gr FMJ bullet and a CCI 500 (small pistol) primer. It was then fired in a CZ-75B.

The bullet lodged just inside the lands, so another round could not be chambered behind the squib.


For the 357 Magnum, I constructed a powder-less round from a Remington125gr JHP-GS bullet and a CCI 550 (small magnum pistol) primer. It was then fired in a S&W 686.

The bullet lodged well into the forcing cone, WAY past the cylinder gap, thus allowing rotation of of the cylinder. NOT GOOD!!!

The lusting is over and the deed is done—Glock 21 range report

Took my Glock 21 to the range today. I’d installed a Wolff guide rod and 17lb Wolff spring.

Let’s just say it was anticlimactic. I was expecting fireworks and the earth to move, and instead all I got was 100% reliability and excellent accuracy. I was shooting standard 230gr RN jacketted loads (around 830fps), unsupported, one- and two-handed at a target 15yds away. This target was shot two-handed,

and this target was shot one-handed (strong hand).

What I LOVE about the pistol:

• The weight is great
• The balance is great, not muzzle heavy
• It’s very pointable and the sights (white outlined rectangle for the rear, white dot for the front) are awesome for flash shooting- “FRONT SIGHT!!! FRONT SIGHT!”
• The ergonomics of the grip are perfect for me, i.e. big, bear pawns for hands.

What I don't much care for:

• The sharp edges of the mag. release cut into the meat of the thumb of my left (supporting) hand. It’s nice to have an extended mag. release, but does it have to be so friggen sharp?
• Takedown is not great. Those little tiny serrated tabs on either side of the frame that have to be pushed down are difficult to activate. Not sure I could take down a Glock under pressure, if my fingers were covered in sweat or blood and my life depended on it.
• Without a butt-plug, the hole in the butt makes the gun look .... unfinished. Get a butt-plug.

I fired about 60 rounds (yes, barely broke a sweat) and didn’t experience a single failure. Mind you, they were my handloads so I’d have been surprised if I had experienced a FTE or a FTF.

The heavy trigger took a little getting used to as all my 1911s have 2lb triggers, or lighter, but for a combat trigger it’s not bad. There’s a fair amount of take up, but the trigger is smooth and even.

Is it my favorite 45 pistol? Don’t know, but I don’t hate it.

The dangers of squib loads

What's a squib load you ask? It's when, instead of a bang following the squeezing of a trigger, one hears nothing or a pop. Typically, the situation is associated with a barrel obstruction in that the bullet of the round just "fired" hasn't cleared the barrel and is now obstructing it instead. The danger of the situation is that someone who isn't paying attention will simply eject the just "fired" case, chamber another round and squeeze the trigger again. Kaboom!

The most common manifestation of a squib is a round constructed without a powder charge; primed case, bullet, but no powder. Apparently, the pressure developed by a fired primer in the small space of a pistol calibre cartridge is sufficient to drive the bullet partway down the bore. The question I always had: will the bullet be driven far enough down the bore to allow the unobstructed chambering of another round in the chamber? Here we find out.

For this experiment, I built a powderless 45 ACP squib using a Remington 185gr JHP bullet and fired it in a model 21 Glock. Note, that this should not shed poor light on Glocks. This was an INTENTIONAL squib. After chambering and firing the squib, I disassembled the weapon and looked into the bore. Sure enough, the bullet was stuck slightly ahead of the chamber.



How far in is the bullet? To answer this question, we use some high tech measuring equipment; a chopstick, a black, felt-tipped marker and a measuring tape.

We first insert the fired case into the chamber, and ascertain where the base of the case sits with respect to the barrel.


We then remove the case, stick the chopstick into the breech-end of the barrel as far as it will go (until it touches the barrel obstruction) and mark the chopstick at the point where the base of the case would be.


Finally, we remove the chopstick and place it on a tabletop alongside the tape measure. We now remove the bullet obstructing the barrel by placing a wood dowel into the muzzle end of the barrel and then gently tap the dowel into the barrel until the obstructed bullet pops out the breech end of the barrel. We then line up the case alongside the chopstick so that the base of the case is flush with the black mark on the chopstick, and the end of the chopstick is flush with the base of the bullet. Tada! We have a measure of how far the bullet traveled down the bore before it stuck.


By my measure, the bullet was forced down the barrel a good half-an-inch past the case mouth ... JUST ON PRIMER PRESSURE ALONE. That's certainly enough to allow an unobstructed chambering of another round behind it, potentially leading to a dangerous kaboom for one who is not paying attention.

You have been educated ... and warned. Be safe and remember: the only safety you can rely one is the one between your ears.

Handloading for defensive loads for the 45 ACP

In this post, I talked about handloading for 185gr +P 45 ACP loads. In this post, we talk about pushing the envelope a little. As a disclaimer, if you repeat the experiments performed here you will most certainly exceed SAAMI pressures, thus voiding manufacturers' warranties. You have been warned.

So, just how fast can one push a Remington 185gr Golden Sabre bullet out of a 1911, before overpressure signs show up? First, let me be clear about what I mean by "overpressure signs".

1. Signs of stretching near the base of the case, usually seen as shiny spots,
2. Bulges near the base of the case,
3. Flattened primers

The following picture clearly demonstrates an example of flattened primers. Note, in this case it's not the edges of the primer that are "flattened" into the primer pocket of the case (as is typically the case when talking about overpressure), but the firing-pin-strike dimple is flattened back out.


A little preparation is in order before one attempts to experiment with super-pressure handloads in a handgun not set up for shooting such loads. For this experiment I used a, already, customized Norinco 1911A1. I had previously fitted a match Les Baer barrel and King bushing, shaped the frame to accept a Ed Brown extended beavertail, and added a combat hammer, and lightweight trigger and sear combo. The gun is shown in the following picture.

Under no circumstances should the barrel and slide unlock/separate before the bullet has left the muzzle of the gun. If separation occurs prematurely, chamber pressures have not dropped to safe levels, resulting in a potentially dangerous situation for the shooter. By the law of conservation of momentum (MV of bullet = MV of slide/barrel combo) as soon as the bullet starts moving up the barrel, the barrel/slide combo starts to move backward. Factory recoil springs are chosen so that premature unlocking doesn't occur for FACTORY LOADS no stiffer than +P. Chosen weights are typically between 16 and 18 lbs assuming one shoots loads no stiffer than +P, meaning 230gr bullets traveling under 900fps or 185gr bullets traveling under 1050fps.

If one wants to shoot stiffer loads, a stiffer recoil spring is needed to retard the unlocking of the slide/barrel further. I chose a 26lb spring from Wolff. Another trick I employed to further retard unlocking is to replace the factory (rounded) firing pin stop with a squared off firing pin stop, like the one obtainable from EGW. Some fitting is required since the EGW part is build oversized. To understand why a squared off stop retards unlocking compared to a rounded one, one needs to visualize a rock-on-a-string being spun around. If the radius of the rock's flight path is large, less force is required to keep the rock spinning at a given speed. If the radius of the rock's flight path is small, more force is required to keep the rock spinning at a given speed; force is proportional to angular acceleration. A rounded stop (large radius) implies a smaller acceleration of the hammer and thus less forward force is exerted on the slide. A squared off stop (small radius) implies a greater acceleration of the hammer and thus more forward force is exerted on the slide. More forward force on the slide means less backward acceleration of the slide and more time spent in the locked state.

For the load workup, I used CCI 300 (Large Pistol) primers in Winchester 45 ACP cases, Power Pistol powder and Remington 185gr hollow-point Golden Sabre bullets seated to a depth of 1.230". I varied the powder weight from 8.2grs to 10.8grs. The following graph shows the powder weight vs. velocity curve.


At 10.8grs of Power Pistol, the velocity was 1279.4+-16.8fps. However, flattened primers were observed as showed in the picture at the top of this post. At 10.5grs of Power Pistol, the velocity was1248.4+-13.2fps and no overpressure signs were observed.

I think we have a winner. Roughly 1250fps on a 185gr HP bullet.

Forgive me father for I have sinned. I’m having lustful thoughts

... about the new (used) mod. 21 Glock I brought home tonight. I’ve always been a disciple of St. Browning, but I now find myself looking lustfully at the ergonomics of the Glock, fondling the Glock, and lusting for a rangetrip with the Glock. Please father. What am I to do?

On my list of "nevers" had been the Glock. I once rented a Glock 19 (in 9mm) and hated it. But when I tried a model 21 (in 45 ACP) I changed my mind. Something about the ergonomics of the thing really clicked with me.

The local gun-pusher had a used model 21 on the shelf, so naturally I looked at it and it followed me home.

Some comparison pics. First, side-by-side with an XD-45 tactical,

and a side-by-side with a 1911A1.

Why the ergonomics of the model 21 work me, can be seen in the following picture. Though the stock thickness of the 1911, the XD-45 and the G-21 is about the same, the length of the G-21 is a bit longer than either the 1911 or the XD-45, and I have gorilla paws.

The front-strap finger grooves don't hurt either.

And a few more for the simple pleasure of viewing gun porn.



With a Scherer butt-plug already installed, and Wolff guide rod and beefier recoil springs on order, I'm off to burn offerings at the altar of St. Browning, and beg for forgiveness for my heresy.