Ian S

Alright, for anyone wondering about mail-in process times now... I received a reply last Thursday, so that was 8 weeks mailbox to mailbox. However, the response was that I had omitted evidence of training in my application and that I should provide it within 30 days. I called Friday morning and explained that I did include a copy of the front and back of my IDPA card with classifier results entered and signed by the match director as well as a copy of the match results and asked what additional information would be required. They took my information and moved it up for a Supervisor to review. I received a pretty fast call back and they let me know that they do accept the information I gave, that my license has been approved based on the original information and my license will be printed and sent in the next couple weeks. So, If anyone else considers using evidence of competition as a basis for proof of competency, it is acceptable and my bump in the road probably won't happen to future applicants, but a quick call to some very helpful people in Florida will be all you need. And Gun for Hire was a quick, easy and professional way to take care of notarizing and fingerprinting. Thanks guys.

As for the missing sear spring... It wouldn't have been under tension when the pin dropped out. It may just be hanging around inside the frame still.

You should be able to do it. The volquartsen trigger is a drop in replacement. No fitting required and directions and tips for setting the adjustment screws are widely available. It is not something you'd need a smith for. It's really a great, relatively easy DIY project.

If you've completely lost the spring, order a new one. But take some time to look for it first, it may still be where it landed. Then there is at least one detailed take down video on the web. Brownell's was what I used. Search for "MK III trigger job" videos. The takedown and reassembly is all you really need. It really isn't hard if you have something to walk you through it. This is a great time to fully clean it, especially the hard to reach and impossible areas that you've never seen before like around the trigger plunger and under the disconnector. So take it as a blessing in disguise.

Wow, that was fast! Still waiting here after using the mail-in process...

Even for the typical transfer fees and NICS fee, I'd have no complaint. Sounds better than the current system.

So if you want something, you either go to a dealer and buy it whenever you want, or you find a private seller and then go apply for a permit, wait 6 to 8 months in some cases, and then get to buy used? I guess everything will start moving through dealers.

There was a bill introduced in 2009 to eliminate fingerprinting and to use only the NICS check to determine approval for FPIDs and P2Ps, http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2012/Bills/A3000/2695_I1.HTM Additionally, that bill reduces the approval requirement to 10 days from the current 30. That hasn't gone anywhere and is still listed in this legislative session. But, what you're hearing is the news on page 4 of the May/June issue of ANJRPC's News & Briefs. They are working on a bill to eliminate permits for purchases that go through an FFL that would use the NICS. The bill has been drafted and they are waiting for a bill number to be assigned. The form of registry would still be filled out at the time of purchase. This kinda leaves face to face private sales unaddressed and you'd think the older bill would have a better shot at paying if they don't address private sales.

Usually at work it's someone that came over to borrow my leatherman that asks "why do you have a knife?" I think the obvious answer to them is "you're using it, why don't you have one?"

Comparing prices on sites like Bud's is one way to go, but the way you buy, the Standard Catalog of Firearms: the collector's price and reference guide, http://www.amazon.com/2012-Standard-Catalog-Firearms-Collectors/dp/1440216886/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1340368609&sr=8-2&keywords=Firearm+values, or the Blue Book of Gun Values, http://www.amazon.com/Blue-Book-Gun-Values-Fjestad/dp/1936120208/ref=pd_sim_b_1, might be a decent investment. I saw the catalog at Barnes and Noble last weekend on the Father's Day gift idea table.

The "Hunterdon County Democrat" is the name of the local paper.

As a heads up, the match director for the Old Bridge IDPA mentioned in this month's results email: "Keep an eye on the OBDOGS.com web site. I may have to cancel the match for July unless I can get someone to run it... Start working on your 3 gun skills for august." So the Old Bridge IDPS July schedule is up in the air just now.

Yep, Lunker meant for a lefty. Too little finger for a righty will push to the left. This chart is for a righty. Mirrored vertically for a lefty (so put the diagnosis opposite left to right)...

SCFGPA IDPA is indoors which leads to an explanation that they do not use a 180 degree rule. You must stay aimed at the backstop at all times, which is much tighter than the 180. There is usually an exaggerated show of keeping the gun pointed in a safe direction, especially when moving sideways. DQ'd didn't mean banned for life, right? Live, learn, stay safe... It's about time you got back on the horse.

I'm very sorry to hear about your friend. I've been around or had friends involved in some bad accidents and one acquaintance that had a promising future cut short needlessly. News articles never, ever get it right. If you know the name, chances are there's an incident report in the Incidents forum on dropzone.com. The parachute didn't open is very rare and usually someone jumping without an emergency automatic activation device installed and a complete loss of altitude awareness, such as a seizure or heartattack. A deployment malfunction is more normally that the main opened as a ball of crap. That can be fixed with procedures jumpers train and train again for. Even if you don't find your friend, browsing the dropzone forum will give you a good idea of the common and extraordinary incidents. It's not a safe sport, no matter what someone might try to say. There is a very real element of danger from equipment failure, operator error, other jumpers, weather, etc. Anyone making the decision should understand the danger and fully balance the pros and cons. Skydivers make every effort to mitigate the danger with redundant equipment, constant emergency procedure training and constant awareness. My mal was completely my fault from becoming complacent, but training kicked in when I needed it and overall, my years of jumping were alot of fun.

There's always more to the story than that. With around 650 jumps, I had one mal that I had to cut away and landed fine under my reserve and continued happily jumping for 150 more. Most incidents now occur with a pilot making a bad decision under a perfectly good canopy. Still, you can do everything right and still die. Such is life.

Doh...

Now I'm confused Bob. I thought DA/SA was ESP since SSP is "double action, double action only or safe action" and ESP doesn't explicitly note action type except for mods excluding it from SSP. Is "double action" supposed to read as DA/SA?

Not to go off topic, but, when did the hammer drop?

The second Sunday is around the corner! Who's up for some outdoor IDPA at Old Bridge? I thought the classifier last month ran great and I love running pistol in the open air so I've ben looking forward to this next one.

Wow, big difference over here. He's always been one of the coolest guys there for me. But, my experience there has been ok or very good.

A better analogy is that they're like the NRA. USPA does do a lot of lobby work to keep the government from over regulating the sport. Play by their rules and everyone can enjoy the sport. Act like a fool and jeopardize the safety of other jumpers and people and property on the ground and it jeopardizes the sport for the whole community if the FAA feels the sport community is not safe.

It's not a government mandated license. Most commercial dropzones in the US and most skydivers in the US are members of the USPA. The USPA issues standards for safety and instruction curriculum and members agree to abide by those standard. Some dropzones might not require it or if you have a friend with a plane, it is possible to jump legally without a license, but if you want to do it more than once, you should be competent with the equipment, emergency procedures and control. An "A License", issued by USPA, has a minimum jump number and proficiency requirements for control in freefall and under canopy and emergency procedures. As a student learns, the requirements are signed off in their log by an instructor or coach. When they've shown they are competent, the A license allows them to travel to other dropzones and show that they are competent to jump without an instructor and with other skydivers. Advanced licenses, B-D, or minimum suggested logged jumps allow participation in beach jumps, night jumps and other specialized disciplines including wingsuits and boards. If it doesn't appeal to you, that's fine, it's not for everyone. There's no room for peer pressure in skydiving, you only jump for yourself. Skydivers jump for a number of reasons. Adrenaline, freedom, camaraderie and adventure. It is all about human flight and self reliance. If you've ever stood on a bridge and jumped into water, you know the urge to jump. If you ever wanted to make that freefall last for longer and still land safely, you know the urge to skydive. If you've ever held your hand out the car window while driving down the highway and you felt the wind move your hand up and down as you change the angle of your palm, you know how to control your body against the 120+ mph wind of freefall. At 10,000 feet, height doesn't even factor in the equation, your mind can't comprehend the distance. When you jump, as IrishPete'swife said, the momentum carries you forward, and the 80 knot headwind is so near your terminal velocity, you're not so much dropping as sliding down the hill, from horizontal motion to your vertical freefall. Once you're out the door, you can move forward and back, left, right, increase speed, decrease speed, flip, roll or whatever you like just by changing how the wind hits your body, or your control surfaces in human flight. And under canopy, you're the pilot and can be as exciting or serene as you like. Gliding along with friends, chasing hawks over the treetops or aggressively swooping a landing. It's freedom that few people ever experience.

This is why nobody lets you rub their wood.

About 10 to jump solo on student status. 25 to get the license and jump with friends.