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My neighbor texted a little bit ago that a Bald Eagle was in his tree. I grabbed the 600mm zoom and got some cool shots!

I shot this the other day out of my window. I kind of screwed up because I had the shutter speed set high and it was getting dark. I had my auto ISO on so it took this at 12800 ISO(which is beyond pushing it IMO) this is from my 20 MP crop sensor d500. So it has a lot of noise but for viewing on a phone or the web I think it is acceptable.

Started early April under an LED light indoors, that's basically 40 day head start. Most plants produce in 60 days. They exploded over the past week and half outside. I had Greenbeans before I even transplanted, and both zucchini plants were flowering. The fact I put them in sizable pots under light gets me an extra harvest In the season. My next house will have a dedicated greenhouse, or at east a spot for one. Right now I'm on a hill with garden boxes. Gardening is a relaxing activity for me.

Haven't been on here in a while so wasn't really aware of the whole SBF thing. Saw Howell Gun Works post the Mod Mat SBF on Facebook and said oooo that's cool and pulled the trigger. Taking to the range tomorrow to sight in as I just got it kitted out the way I want it. Ended up swapping out a ton of parts and now that I've read through the thread I think I will start another sbf build, either a KAC or HK 416 clone. Swapped sba3 for sba4, stock trigger for G SSA-E, ch for a raptor, fh for a surefire fh that accepts a warden. Slapped on a eotech exps3-0, dbal a2, sf m600df, rail scales, qd sling mount, src3, and a ms4 sling (getting swapped for a slingster or vtac). She got a little heavy kitted out at 8.6lb loaded but it balances pretty well due to the short barrel. Will see how it shoots tomorrow.

Why dont you try to convince Murphy that you "firmly believe" that you can mitigate it? When that doesnt work you can vote for him again.

Nice photos. Whenever I see a bald eagle and have access to my supertelephotos, the damn things are a half mile away. Pretty sure they know when I don't have a real camera with me, that is the only times theyll ever get within 200ft of me. I wanna go out and find some bald eagles, but gotta find where they are. I'd like some closeups for once. One of the shotgun shoots, a bald eagle did a flyby down the side of the clearing. Glad to see there are plenty of Canon shooters here. I used to work at a camera store full of Nikon shooters, I was the one voice of reason.

Nope! Too modest. Fantastic shots!

Yikes! Well, you obviously get what you pay for. My compliments for also knowing how to use it properly. When I buy another 7,500 rounds of 9mm (at pre-COVID prices) I'll think of your lens! Seriously, nice shots. Enjoy and be proud.

I wish I could take pictures like that!

I mistakenly posted this as a reply to the Geissele thread, not a stand alone post. TargetSportsUSA has all Speer Gold Dot Law Enforcement 50 rd boxes / 1000 rd cases only at half price, which works out to .40/rounds. "While supplies last." Sale ends Saturday. And for you to confirm the sale is still active, I need to add this: Everytime there's a sale like this at TSUSA you don't see the discount until it's in the cart. The discount did not show up on the product home page. The email I got specified .40/round, if the product is in stock. Tonight I didn't add to cart etc. to check this. But anyone interested in the product should do that. The discount will appear as a credit at checkout. You would see this BEFORE you place the order. Just verify your order total = .40/round. Plus tax. Let me know if anyone does this. That's the way it's worked on all the sales I exercised. In the Geissele thread @Krdshrk noted he didn't see the discount. I assume he was on the product page.

Years ago, i was up along the Hudson with serious birders, and the tip to spotting the sometimes mile+ away birds was looking for white dots in trees along the river. Admittedly, with decent optics. But yeah, always an impressive sight, no matter the distance. When I have gone out looking for bald eagles, i typically carried a 400 2.8L IS and 2x teleconverter or 300-800 5.6 EX on my primary body, and 300 2.8L or 70-200 2.8L IS on my second body for birds in flight. Was not uncommon to have as much as 32 pounds of camera gear on me. All to ensure not a single eagle will be within 1000 ft from me.

I was working at the DC fire academy a few years back and I saw one flying above the training grounds. The staff I was working with pointed out one to me flying above. I remember being surprised at how big, white, and bald their heads were. Their features were very pronounced even from a good distance. Majestic creatures they are....

Does anyone have a traffic report from Stafford Forge this week? It is about a 30 minute drive for me to get there. As I round that last turn on the dirt road, my heart always drops when there are a ton of cars parked there. When I make that turn and I see ZERO cars, I let out a YESSSSSS! I tend to go on too cold/too hot days just so I can shoot alone. It's not that I don't like people, I just like having the range to myself to shoot as I want in solitude.

Great Pics!!

I've not heard news of indoor ranges reopening, but the North Jersey Clay Target Club in Fairfield reopened today for members. They're not yet reopening to the general public--I suspect they want to see how well they can handle the crowds and social distancing requirements with a smaller group first.

The owners of the gym are suing the state of NJ in federal court. https://6abc.com/business/owners-of-south-jersey-gym-that-reopened-early-sue-state/6216972/

The pedophile and the sex predator will never vote anything but pelosi's direction. 2 sheep. That's Cory on top...

Please don't punt again, take a fucking case already.

I like my Black Rapid slings. I have the double, but I've split it and use it as two singles. I did a hike with that big lens(4.25lb) on the crop and the 2.8 lens(2lb) plus the weight of the bodies on the two slings. I was fine for the first 4 or 5 miles...got to be a drag after that. Couldn't wait(weight!) to stuff 'em back in the car. I've never been much more than a landscape and wildlife photographer. My portraits stink! I do fancy myself a bit of a videographer but I'm always looking for new stuff to shoot. The bummer is for everyday use, my Galaxy S9 takes great photos. So great that I can't be bothered to get the good camera unless it _really_ needs it. I will also say I've been using my 80D for Zoom meetings. Everyone comments "wow, you've got the best picture, what phone are you using?" *sigh*

Just like the IRS agents aren't liable for the advice they give out and you call them.

Thank you! I have a lot of money tied up in Camera gear and it's nice when it pays off once in a while The 360 camera is a Xiaomi Mi-Sphere and they are under $200 these days. I paid a bit more. The software kinda sucks, but it works. I've been toying with getting a Ricoh Z1 and I would have already if they were in stock. Those take exceptional pictures, but the video isn't as good because it doesn't stablize like the Mi-Sphere does. I have a Mavic too. If you dig around in my Youtube channel, there are some pretty good drone movies I had a Canon L 100-400 I had bought used but at the time I had a really cheapy rebel XT(dating myself) and I couldn't take a picture worth a damn with it so I sold it and bought a T2i. The T2i was a great camera, still is in fact, my Niece has it. I bought the 80d and the 6d a few years back and they both are fine. I'd like to get the HIgh-end mirrorless now but I want to wait to pull the trigger until they come down in price.

BTW, the list of .80/round is not inflated. Gold Dot and HST have listed at that price for at least the last year.

Malsua, Nice bald eagle pics. What an opportunity and the eagle waited for you to get there in time! Also watched your video and found it to be very touching. The 360 spin effect is amazing, never saw that before. I myself have been a Canon shooter my whole life(no offense to Nikon). Currently use a 7D and last Xmas got a great deal on an R full frame from B&H. My longest lens is a 400 f5.6 L prime. Also acquired a DJI Mavic drone a few years ago. Whenever I fly it, I feel like I am a bird in the sky carrying a camera.

$432.19 / 1000 = .43/round delivered. I'm not sure I understand your post. Did you buy it? I'm on their mailing list. They've sent emails for all the HST and Gold Dot 50% off sales. Worked every time.

Did you happen to see who they quoted first? Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga. Mr. "Guam is gonna tip over."

Excellent photographs!!!

Sweet pictures! The longest lens I have is a 300mm f/2.8. On a crop sensor it gives me an effective range of 450 but that extra reach for birds & wildlife is almost essential!

Awesome. I get too see bald eagles all summer they nest near us and they like the trout in the lake when stocked.

The light is a viparspecra 600, I think it runs at 300watts though. It's covers a 4x4 area pretty well when plants are small. I use a Vivosun tent off amazon, it doubles as a spray painting and cerakote booth. Both items store easily too when not in use.

FYI, my dad used to make his tomato cages the same way as this guy! - Concrete reinforcing wire wrapped into a cylinder shape. They worked great, were inexpensive, and were in use for many years. Damn! You're harvesting already? You got quite the head start.

I will probably be picking green beans this weekend and maybe even a zucchini. Cucumbers are coming in now, might have a few in a couple weeks to pull. Already grabbed some fresh basil. Everything else is still maturing.

I have had mine for a little over a year. I have around 1000 ounds through mine. I like it alot. Ihavent had an issues with mine at all. My trigger was close to that of a P320 I had , soI didnt have any issues in that regard.

Beautiful pictures. According to NJDFW there is a nesting pair in the area of Wayawanda

I'm tired of having to load multiple cases into my truck when I go to the range. If I can fit two rifles and 2-3 handguns in this it'll be a win. I go the 42" one in black. My longest AR is in a 40" hard case right now so it'll be fine. I wanted as small as possible.

Great shots

Nice. Let us know what you think of it

It's mostly the lens. Sigma 150-600MM. But it's also knowing to use a single point of focus, getting the aperture right, holding steady or finding a brace. I shot this on my crop sensor camera which causes an effective 1.6 zoom. In effect(600mm x 1.6), it's a 960mm focal length so it's about 28X zoom. There are better lenses but this was one was about $1200 when I bought it. A really good Canon "L" lens with this level of focal length is double or triple that. It's still a pretty good lens all the way out at 600mm.

Saturday, weather permitting

It's about time. Let's light this candle. Godspeed, Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken. (space geeks of a certain age will get the two references from the Mercury program)

Correct! Note - it does not say “Ham” anywhere on there. It says Taylor PORK ROLL

Tony Altieri is a good guy from way back, I wouldn't worry too much. With the Nazi NJ government oppression right now it may take a little time for things to get settled.

One of the easiest ways to enhance both the function and/or the aesthetics of your handgun is with custom grips. The beauty is that it is easily reversible or changeable if, down the road, your tastes change. I have been working through my S&W revolvers and either changing to the Smith smooth target offerings, or custom offerings. Smooth S&W grips are usually goncalo alves, but rosewood and even maple have also been used. Here's an example of smooth grips (these are presentation grips - meaning they are relieved on the R/S to show a custom roll mark on the side plate... They made them in configurations for the various frame sizes and grip frames. Here is a set of what are called "banana" grips (for obvious reasons). They are shown on a Model of 1953 22/32 Kit Gun... And then there are the all-out custom grips. I've installed elk stag grips on a number of my guns. Ken Driskill is the maker and he does terrific work at more than reasonable prices. However, you can't place an order with Ken. This is a hobby for him and he makes what he wants, when he wants, so it's a matter of being in the right place at the right time to get a set of his grips. He advertises them for sale on the S&W forum and also on Gun Broker (GB ID = bigmtnman). Here's a set of Ken's stag grips on my model 25-14... As far as custom grips in wood, there are three makers who are the pre-eminent craftsmen of S&W grips. They are Craig Spegel, John Culina and Keith Brown. Craig Spegel makes boot grips, however he also makes an extended version of his boot grip, which, in essence, are full size grips. Craig is 63 and currently has a two year waiting list for revolver grips. I was fortunate to purchase a gun that turned out to have Spegel grips on it - unbeknownst to the seller (a large gun store in the Pacific NW). These are ebony boot grips on a model 25-3. If they look familiar, Craig did the design of the Uncle Mike's rubber boot grips... The Culinas, John and Jennifer, make grips in the style of the stock S&W grips, but better shaped, better quality and some beautiful woods. Here are two examples of John's work. The first is a Target grip and the second is a Combat grip (both on models 24-3). Both are made with "bubble" maple - a variety of birdseye in which the "eyes" look three-dimensional (very hard to capture that effect in a picture)... And last, but certainly not least, is Keith Brown. Keith also has a two year backlog and is not accepting new orders at this time. He is a master at both the carving of the grips and the checkering. He may be best known for his Roper style grips with Roper's iconic ribbon checkering pattern. I just got these today (there are some available through brokers or private parties) - I will say that I have paid less for some Smiths in my collection than I paid for these grips, but I so love the Roper pattern that I just had to have the best. I passed bidding on a scarce Model 28 so that I could buy these grips... There are lots of commercial manufacturers also. Some of the best known are Hogue, Altamont, Eagle, Badger, Pachmayr, Nills, KSD and others. The truly custom makers are dwindling. Ahrends and Herretts are both out of business, hopefully others will pick-up the mantle. Adios, Pizza Bob

Not really. Past 50 yards, #4 birdshot (for example) would spread and pepper other people's targets. I know I read that damned rule somewhere, just not on the R-14 site.

Viruses need hosts. More people congregating means more hosts for the viruses meaning greater spread of the virus. If the virus has no new host to move to, it dies. The science is simple. The question is, can Murphy prove certain businesses have no way to mitigate that? Because I firmly believe that I can go to an indoor shooting range, not physically interact with anyone, and sanitize my station after I pack up. That would be mitigated. In fact, I'd say that's safer than any kind of business that involves currency transactions where people are passing money or credit cards between people. I get in, no one touches my rifle and ammo but me, no sharing of the virus.

Launch is scrubbed for today due to weather.