All posts by MadOgre

Weapons

Remington’s Versa Max

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I am a huge Remington 870 fan/fanatic.  I will not apologize for that.  Most of my shotguns are 870 Tacticals in some form or another.  It’s a weapon that goes from concept to finished product execution, very well.  No, it’s not perfect.  But it’s very good.  Almost excellent in fact.

Yet take that same gun and simply make it Semi-Auto… as in the 1100… and the gun somehow loses something.  The 1187 is a bit better… but still.  It’s just not right.  When we have other Automatics out on the market, the Self-Loading Remingtons just fall short.  I don’t know anyone who actually has a Benelli Super Black Eagle II and says “Naw, I like my 1100 better.”  That guy is just not there… or he is being dishonest with himself.

Now let’s look at Remington’s latest and greatest… the Versa Max.  It’s a good shotgun.  It’s gas system is fairly clever.  At if it had come out 10 years ago, it would have been crowned Best in Class.   Unfortunately Benelli came out with their Vinci and Super Vinci, and Browning has their Maxus.  Compared to the Maxus, the Versa Max is like a 73 year old Jane Fonda.  Appealing to a few, but well past it’s prime for someone who just isn’t that popular or worthy of praise.  Okay, that’s harsh.  But true.  The Versa Max feels too heavy.  It also feels slow.  And the stock?  I tell you what, I’d rather have an 1187 than a Versa Max just because of the stock.  It looks and feels cheap.  Yet the Versa Max isn’t a cheap gun.  It’s priced in league with the Maxus, which cycles fast, handles fast, and feels good in the hand.  You would have to be a complete nutter, or an ex-pro-footballer with a sponsorship to handle a Browning Maxus and say “No, I’d rather have that brand new 10 year old Remington gun.”  Seriously, unless you are Remington Freak… and every gun company has their bevets… just buy the 1100 and you’ll not miss a thing and pay only half the price for an overweight semi-auto 12 gauge.

Uncategorized

Star Trek > Star Wars

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Netflix has the original series (with updated special effects) on streaming… I’ve watched about a dozen episodes.  Now, I’ve always been on the Star Wars side of the issue.  But after suffering a 20 year wait only for George Lucas to give me Jar-Jar Binks… I have come to reconsider both Sci-Fi universes and I have a new conclusion.

Star Trek is Cooler than Star Wars.

Continue reading Star Trek > Star Wars →

Uncategorized

The most dangerous road in Utah

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Congratulations to UDOT for creating the most dangerous road that I have ever ridden on.  Highway 40, going through Strawberry.  A few weeks ago I rode through and watched a couple on a motorcycle go down.  That was due to the uneven layering of the road surface, and they way that UDOT directed traffic through it.  Now the road is finished.  And UDOT managed to create a surface that is not just slick, but also collects water and doesn’t allow it to run off.  Sunday I rode through during a thunderstorm.  It was absolutely scary. But I made it. I posted this on Facebook:

The hariest part of the ride was going past Strawberry with it’s newly refinished surface. Water doesn’t run off there. It collects. So to avoid hydroplaning, I threaded my tires in the track of a truck in front of me that was doing 75-80 MPH and I was going through where his tires splashed the water out, before the water came back in… if you know what I mean. It was either that, or go 40 MPH and risk getting run off the road. So it was dicey.

Another rider didn’t make it.

I point my finger at UDOT for totally crap engineering of the road.

Crusader, Military, Uncategorized

Care Package for the Troops

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Crusader Weaponry is putting together a care package for some troops. This time around, the package is going to some Air Force EOD Techs. Specifically to our good friend “Nightcrawler” and his compadres.
The Air Force is pulling more than their share of the EOD work load. From the casualties being sustained, it’s one of the most dangerous occupations in the military right now. They need some gear and supplies.  Crusader will be donating a bunch of Slipstream, which is being used in weapons and robots over there right now.  But the other gear is stuff we don’t have.

If you want to contribute, contact Joe at CrusasaderWeaponry.   Or you can just send some money via PayPal.  crusaderarmory@live.com

 

Crusader, Weapons

Crusader Sterling with Optics Mount

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This is one of our Crusader Sterling Carbines. Mine, actually. Caliber is 9mm. This is a semi auto version of the classic Sterling SMG used by Brit Commandos in hostile actions after WWII. The Crusader version has perminant lubrication treatment, and is built with careful parts selection and refitting and finishing of those parts, making these the smoothest Sterlings I’ve ever handled.
We have an Optics Mount now, standard Picatinny, to mount pretty much any optic you want. In this video is a Bushnell Trophy T that we just put on there for testing. It’s a more solid mounting than what is typically put on a .300 RUM hunting rifle, so it’s going to stand up to pretty much anything a 9mm Buzz Gun can dish out. These mounts will be available with futur Sterling orders as a cost added option, or as a stand alone product to order.
This unit, being a prototype, is left in the raw and unfinished. Standard orders will ship flat black. If you order yours with a Sterling finished in another color, it will be duracoated or cerakoted in that color.
The shot group at the end of the clip shows a 25 yard group with bulk reloaded ammo.
For more information contact Joe via the web form at CrusaderWeaponry.com
WeTheArmed.com

Crusader, Uncategorized

WeTheArmed Gathering

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I’ll update this with more information when I get back home. Let’s just say that if you didn’t make it out to this… you missed a very good time. Photos, Vid Clips, and the Run Down will come.
Tsunami for a Sushi Feast, Shooting, Los Hermonos for some Mexican food, shooting, beer-brats cooked by T-Man himself… and Jessi’s optic mount for the Sterling worked FLAWLESSLY. To those that made it down – I had an amazing time that I’ll never forget and I thank each and every one of you guys for being there.

The Starship from Arizona arrived!

I arrived in Casa La Sting in SLC Friday afternoon. Rode the Magna from Ogre Ranch with the Sterling riding in the saddle bag, sticking out and gathering some attention from a Deputy, but he didn’t pull me over. Just went eyes wide. When I came into the Wasatch Front, I went through Provo Canyon… had a great run… so I ran it again.  Awesome. Provo Canyon on a bike is better than in a Sports Car. Just saying. The Arizona Contingent arrived in “The Starship”, Terry’s slick Chevy truck. Which cruised at about 90MPH most of the way. It earned the title Starship with that cruise!

That night we all went to a joint called “Tsunami”.  We feasted on Sushi till everyone was stuffed to the gills.  I’ve never stuffed myself on Sushi like this before.  If you go there, the Executive Suite and the Sunshine rolls are my favorites.

We had a full range.

The Provo Range is a nice place, I have to admit.  It’s up on the side of the mountain and is just beautiful.    We had a good turnout.  Putting faces to names was great.  We’ve got some amazing members of WeTheArmed.com.  Special thanks to Norseman for putting this together.  This was his idea and he’s a Range Officer at the Provo Range…. Norse was the consumate RO this day.  He watched everyone like a hawk and we had no problems through both range sessions.

Steve trying out the optic mounted Sterling

Terry lent me the use of his Bushnell Trophy T red dot optic.  Jesse fabricated the mounting system and with Terry’s optic, we were able to test out the concept.  It worked.  In fact, it worked much better than I had anticipated.

The Sterling's accuracy is shocking.

That’s a 15 round group at about 25 yards.  Oh, and I shot this group left handed.   Yeah.  My right eye isn’t all that great anymore, and I’ve been doing a lot better left handed.

After the first range session, we went to Los Hermonos for lunch.  Mexican food and shooting just goes together.  We stopped by Gunnies in Orem for some more ammunition and went back to the range.   Norseman is a big time revolver guy… and I made sure he had all the time he wanted with the little North American Arms Range top-break.   I almost had him trading me one of his Siaga 12’s for it!  But Norse doesn’t part with his guns, so as much as he wanted it… he made no deal.  Oh well.  I’d have had a hell of a time getting an S-12 home!

After the shooting in the afternoon, we went to Steve’s place and Terry gave us all a lesson in grilling Brats and how to boil those brats properly in beer with peppers and onions.    The food was delicious.  I had a Food Coma going on, I ate so much this weekend.  During the evening’s munching, Marshal Dodge broke out this video on his smart phone – the “I just effing shot myself – the musical.”  I linked it below.  When he showed this vid – we were dying from laughter.  Good food, friends, and laughter… this is what it’s all about.   Unfortunately that bloody musing was stuck in our heads… thanks to Marshal’s lovely wife who reminded us of it every time we seemed to have forgotten it.   Evil.

Special thanks to Steve for letting The AZ Crew and I crash at his place.  Even more thanks to his lovely bride for not just putting up with us, but for being the best Hostess in the world.