A Prayer Poem For The Feast

It's the evening of the Feast of St. Matthias and all's quiet here at the Compound, apart from the sharp click of magazines going into their wells, rifle bolts being worked and pistol slides racking in the action. And the sound of sirens filling the air as the local PD heads West over the railway tracks to take down a meth lab under the light of a silver moon.

As you reflect on this comforting scene of rural Texan tranquility, here's something to steer the mind towards holier things. It's from the Eastern Breviary.

O apostle Mathias! thou didst complete the sacred college, from which Judas had fallen; and by the power of the Holy Ghost, thou didst put to flight the darkness of idolatry by the admirable lightnings of thy wise words. Do thou now beseech the Lord that he grant peace and much mercy to our souls.

He that is the true Vine sent thee, a fruitful branch, bearing the grapes that give out the wine of salvation. When they drank it that before were slaves to ignorance, they turned from the drunkenness of error.

Being made, O glorious Mathias, the chariot of God's word, thou didst break for ever the wheels of error, and the chariots of iniquity. By the divine power, thou didst defeat the idolaters, and destroy the pillars and the temples; but thou didst build up to the Trinity other temples, which echoed with these words All ye people, praise Christ above all for ever!

The drunkenness of error. I'd say there's a surfeit of that, right about now.

Your Old Friend,

LSP 

Pumpkin Shoot.

Exhausted by the seriousness of First Things, I headed off to the range with some rifles, a pistol and some pumpkins. Nothing complicated; set up the pumpkins and shoot them with the guns. That was my plan.

And that's what I did. I was going to name the pumpkins, Old Tory, Little Lib, Rural Dean, etc. very funny. But I didn't.

I just shot them with an AR 15, a .45, a .22 and a 30-06.

The 06, an old Remington 700 ADL, dealt out furious damage, blasting great chunks out of the hapless Halloween ornaments and I was pleased to see my scope was pretty much dead on. The other guns worked fine too, but for sheer drop the pumpkin down power the 30-06 was a stand-out winner.

So I learned something today. If you go up against pumpkins, take a 30-06 to the fight. You'll win.

Shoot straight,

LSP

Slumberjack Rifle Case

Being a cheapskate, I hadn't bought a new case for my Remington 700, so it's a very good thing that my old pal, the Suburban Bushwacker, persuaded the folks at Slumberjack (SJK) to send me their Rifle Hauler Mat (RHM) to review.

Where's That Rifle Case?!?

Slumberjack makes outdoor gear and now, as we approach the anniversary of World War I, they've teamed up with Kryptek to produce Tactical Hunting Gear. Kryptek make cutting-edge camo solutions and the RHM is faced with the Kryptek Highlander pattern. Women like Kryptek Highlander and who can blame them, it's pretty cool.

A Typical Kryptek Woman, Out Hunting

So what's the RHM like? It's appx. 43" long and 11" wide, comfortably padded, with an internal pocket that could hold a small prayer book, a little Reliquary and a miniature Altar Stone, or whatever. It's held together by adjustable, sturdy, nylon webbing and it's camouflaged in Highlander, by Kryptek. This makes it well-nigh invisible.

Maybe an AR 10 Would Fit Better In Here

Do I like it? Sure, a lot. Can I find it if I put it down somewhere? Definitely, provided I put a GPS tracker on it. Is it well made? Well enough. Does it have a shoulder strap? No, it doesn't. Does it have external pockets or pouches? It does not. 

Friendly Old LSP

Does it fit the Remington 700? Oh yes. Would you recommend it to a friend? To a friend who likes Kryptek Highlander camo, yes I would. Is it tactical? I won't answer that question. 

Slumberjack

The Slumberjack RHM costs $84.95; it's a decent case for the money and I'm glad I have one. Thanks, SBW and SJK, for sorting me out. Should you get one? For sure, if you like Kryptek.

LSP

Confirmed!

Confirmand

One of the many benefits of living in LSPland is that you can give, and get, Confirmation instruction at the range. It's one of Lent's more pleasant duties and it gave me the chance to shoot a Tikka T3, chambered for .270. I liked it, but thought my Remington 700 had a bit more substance -- it's a bit heavier, for a start; I managed to shoot better with the 700, considerably so. Still, that was probably my fault, not the Tikka's.

Senator Yee

In other news, a member of the congregation, who'd just defended her dissertation on the political philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas, disagreed with me when I suggested our Ruling Elites were somehow "corrupt." I didn't press the point, but I will leave you with California State Senator Leland Yee, who has been indicted for gun-running and corruption.

Shrimp Boy

According to Reuters, Yee was arrested along with Raymond "Shrimp Boy" Chow, a prominent figure in California's criminal underground. Yee is the third California State Senator to face criminal charges this year. He is an enthusiastic supporter of gun control.

I wish that that was all. But it isn't.

God bless,

LSP

Alright There

So what's been going on in LSPland? Lent, obviously. Also some shooting and some not very successful small game hunting, but hey, it's good to get out in the field.

And some riding. About time too! 

I've been offered a Foundation Quarterhorse gelding and have a good mind to take it on, but first things first, let's meet the creature.

Have a blessed Lent,

LSP

Shoot the 700!

1970s Remington 700 ADL, 30-06

The question everyone's asking is, "How does your Remington 700 shoot, LSP?" I went down to my friend's range to find out. Would this '70s gun, complete with its old Redfield Lo-Pro scope, work, I asked myself. To be honest, I wasn't expecting the scope to be up to much after 30+ years of use, but I needn't have worried. Both scope and rifle performed flawlessly, with the former dialing in easily enough.

Nice One

I shot around 50 rounds, with the best shots falling nicely in the X Ring at 100 yards. So what's the verdict?

The Remington 700 ADL, at least in its early '70s incarnation, seems to be a handy, good looking rifle. I especially liked the action, which was fast and smooth, and I liked the feel of the gun, it felt right at the shoulder and came quickly to target. The Lo-Pro isn't bad either, and I'd be interested to see how well its Accu-Trac rangefinder/BDC functions on shots out past 200 yards. But that's for the future. 

X Ring Tomfoolery at 100 yards

In the meanwhile: Is it accurate? Accurate as you like and then some. Does it have power? Yes. Mighty 30-06 power. Would you recommend it to a friend? I most definitely would. Does your shoulder hurt? Yes it does. Maybe I will get a decelerator pad. Has the Remington 700 inspired you to take up distance shooting and hunt more? For sure. I see a lot of game stocking the freezer of the compound in the near future.

So well done, Remington, for producing a fine rifle. The old 700 ADL is a proper little blaster; get one if you can find a decent deal.

Cheers,

LSP

New Gun, Remington 700

Remington 700 ADL with Redfield Lo-Pro Scope

I was after a new rifle, something chambered in .308 or .30-06, that wasn't black plastic. Don't get me wrong, I'm sure that the new budget Rugers, Savages, and everything else, are great value for money. I'm sure they shoot much better than I do, but I wanted wood and steel. I think it looks better.

With that in mind, I'd nearly settled on getting a Ruger 77 Hawkeye standard, despite the $800+ price tag, when all of a sudden I see a promising firearm out of the corner my eye as I was browsing the pawn shops. It was a '70s vintage Remington 700 ADL, .30-06, all for the price of a plastic gun. The bore was good, the bluing fine, it had iron sights, and the stock was in decent order. As a bonus, the rifle came with an old Redfield Lo-Pro Accu-Trac scope. Apparently these scopes, with their built-in rangefinder/ballistic compensator, were USMC issue in Vietnam.

Next step? Take the rifle out and shoot it; I'm hoping the scope still works but if not I might mount a Leupold Rifleman, or something similar.

Shoot straight,

LSP