airedale

As someone that has been running a forum for 20 years I do not believe that to be true, there are many subjects that require more than a few sentences to explain. You must have a problem when it comes to reading a book LOL! My suggestion to you is if a post is too long just do not read it. Al

The Democratic party's platform is against just about every single thing my lifestyle consists of, for me it is a party of death by a thousand cuts. Start with the premise of this message forum which discusses and promotes the outdoor sports, hunting, fishing, trapping, shooting etc. Lets start with the anti gunners, the list is so long that I will just post the link. http://www.2acheck.com/the-boycott-list/nras-list-of-antis/ Now for the animal rights-anti hunting-fishing-trapping crowd, again a link to the top of the crop but there are many others. https://www.grandviewoutdoors.com/lifestyle/10-anti-hunting-organization Bottom line is these groups are against just about everything this board stands for and if they could snap their fingers and end it all they would! Of course the above is just the tip of the iceberg, if you belong to the NRA, believe in traditional marriage and are against abortion and illegal immigration, our Democratic Governor makes it plain you are not welcome here in NY State. How about the green new deal? I breed and raise a few beef cattle, they have to go because they fart too much greenhouse gas! No fossil fuels please, get rid of your chainsaws, mowers, tractor, motorcycles, truck and car. I partially heat with wood and coal, not allowed just put more clothes on! I have wasted enough of the board's bandwidth posting this stuff but the list of their "want to" bans is endless. I am not against any changes that are for the good so long as there is a viable cost effective solution in place to replace something bad first. Common denominator here is this is all Democrat platform proposals and like I said for me it is death by a thousand cuts, no way in Hell am I voting for any of them. I thank the Lord every day to have been allowed to have been born to live in this time period because the future for my lifestyle is looking pretty bleak. Al

For me this was a pretty interesting book.

I am not a fan of rubber boots, for me they are heavy and lack support, I only wear them in extremely wet conditions as in Coon hunting around and in swamps. In moderately wet conditions I like the compromise in Bean's Maine hunting boots, rubber bottoms and full lace up leather tops. For a lot of walking nothing beats upland bird hunting boots with enough room for a good thick pair of wool socks, those of good quality are lightweight and are so very comfortable with a lot of support and warm enough for the majority of hunting I do. I like those made from Kangaroo leather best, "Bean's", "Woods N Stream" and "Cabelas" produce some good ones. I also have a heavier pair of Redheads made of leather and ballistic nylon that are pretty good. They are worth the xtra care required with leather treatments like "Obenaufs" or "Snow Seal" to keep them pretty much waterproof and the leather supple for many years and miles of rough use. Al

I use a Bohning one arrow at a time fletching tool, nothing fancy but it works well. Good rainy day project. Al

Was involved with Coonhounds for many years, English Coonhounds were my breed of choice and I had some pretty good ones back in the day. Just a pleasure hunter for the most part but I did hit the competition circuit a bit just to see how well my dogs would fare against the hotshots, we did not do too bad. Some old photos of pups I bred raised and trained below and one of the "storm and strife" with a nice Redtick male. Al

The Redline Airedales are a genetic throwback to the very early Airedales when many had a short smooth coat and the breed itself had a loose standard. 50 years ago they were almost bred out of existence by the show crowd who apparently favor longer coats but in recent years they have been showing up in litters from the old hunting lines. They are still somewhat rare and a very small percentage of the Airedale breed. I for one am glad to see a few of them still around and hope there always will be. Al

Here is a 3D target that will make a range a bit different, not cheap though. Won't lose any arrows with this one.

Absolutely none of them! Joe Manchin was once a possibility but he has shown almost all the time to vote against the constituents that he represents, Gutless! Al

I have been using an Assault Air bike for the last five years, it is an upgraded version of the old Schwinn Airdyne. They use a fan for resistance and it does a good job of exercising the whole body not just the legs like a stationary bike and I guarantee it will wear you out if you want it to. I do 30 minutes of varying speeds on it every day, and while it does not have a fancy screen and ride programs like some of those high end stationary bikes I have it sitting in my living room in front of the big screen TV which makes my rides more enjoyable. It keeps my 71 year old carcass in relatively decent shape. Al

Speaking of Lions one of the boys on the Airedale board from Wyoming treed a nice one a couple of days ago. A few years ago there was a fellow not far from me that had a trail cam photo of what looked to be a Lion. Al

I started out with a Pact Chrono about thirty years ago and it has worked fine for me, may be a little outdated because it is a corded type which has an advantage if a stray shot occurs hitting the equipment, all that will have to be replaced is the sky screen and not the whole unit. The sky screens are mounted on a rail that is placed on a tripod and the cords are plugged into the actual chrono away from the sky screens. Pact is still producing a similar model today which I am sure is updated from my old model, below is a photo of the current Pact. I also have a newer Pro Chrono digital, I have not used it a whole lot yet but it has been working good so far. I just got the digital link accessory that pairs up wireless with a smart phone, tablet or computer and will display the data on screen. I have not used this accessory yet so how well it works is still up in the air. All and all the pro chrono is easier and quicker to set up that the Pact. Below is a photo of someone who was not careful with shot placement and drilled his chrono ruining it.

One of the first things a new handloader is going to notice is the differences in the data of loading manuals, that is why one of the rules of thumb when it comes to powder charging is to begin on the low end of the scale and incrementally work your way up looking for signs of excessive pressure at all times. I have old manuals from the fifties and sixties that list much hotter loads than what one would see in the newer manuals, back then a lot of folks loaded by feel and pressure signs, they had no way of knowing actual pressures. Today with liability issues and bullet manufacturers having access to accurate equipment to measure pressure I have noticed much more conservative loading data in the newer manuals. There are many more powder choices today also. I have around 20 different manuals from different time periods and while the loads may be close component wise none are listing data exactly the same. It is all about the many many slight variables, the firearm, the chamber dimensions, cases from different manufacturers, different style bullets and weights, barrels, rifling, throat, primers and powder. Most manuals cover and explain these aspects to some degree, read and understand your manuals carefully and stay close to their load parameters and all should go well. Also a good chronograph can be purchased today very reasonable and it goes a long way in telling the truth showing what kind of performance your handloads actually have. Al

If you are patient you can find some pretty nice Thompson Center items on ebay either a complete rifle or build one out of new parts or like new parts I put together a beautiful 45 cal Hawken a few years ago by purchasing a used stock which I refinished and put new furniture on and then found a brand new Green Mountain direct fit stainless barrel in 45 cal. She shoots like a dream. A word about Traditions, I bought the 32 cal Crockett Squirrel rifle a couple of years ago and the fit and finish is outstanding, I am more than happy with it and it shoots very well too. Al

Had some fun a few years ago on this particular day with my Airedale "TJ"

Just seems like these cruise ship are in the news constantly for all the wrong reasons, probably the percentages are low that these mishaps occur but it does turn me off personally plus I get sea sick. If I had the time and money the Trans Canada railway roundtrip across country from Toronto to Vancouver sounds like it is a real winner for scenery and wildlife, it would be something I would enjoy. Al

I have had several of my hunting dogs contract Lyme, the first symptoms are lethargy, limping and pain in the front shoulder joints. Having had Lyme myself I know there is not many things in this world that can make you feel as lousy health wise. Seems it is becoming more and more prevalent in recent times, I never remember seeing a tick when I was a kid. Amoxicillin for 30 days will usually clear it up with marked improvement showing within a couple of days of the first doses. Al

Something was going on with that hog for sure, that kind of behavior is totally out of the ordinary. A check for rabies would be in order for starters. Al

Been riding all my adult life, don't put on the miles like I used to. Today I lean toward older classic bikes that I like to tinker with. The top three in this list are gone, the bottom four I still have and ride a bit. Al Chronologically in order of acquisition. 1970 Honda CB 750 1978 HD Electra Glide 2003 Honda Valkyrie 1987 Honda CMX 450 1974 Honda CB 450 1974 BMW R 90/6 Airhead 1974 Honda CL 200 Scrambler

I picked up one of these Ponchos and gave it some use this fall and have been pleased with it's effectiveness in providing pretty good concealment at a moments notice for not a lot of money. I do a lot of still hunting and moving around from spot to spot, I like the very light weight and compact size, it can be folded into for easy carrying package and put into a pack or game bag, also for being easy to put on over any outdoor-hunting clothing I may be wearing when I get to my hunting ground. Been using it mostly for Squirrel hunting and have called a couple of Foxes in close and have had several Deer pass by without detection, so far so good. I think it would be a winner for Waterfowl, Crows, and Turkey too. Al

The Llewellyns are great bird dogs, my all time favorite outdoor TV show was Dez Young's "Hunting with Hank' and "Upland Days with Dash" on the old Outdoor Life channel. Two beautiful Llewellyns, I liked it so much I purchased the whole series of both shows on DVD. The field English Setters like the Llewellyns are much different that the AKC show types, much smaller and a lot less hair. I have owned and hunted with a couple of Grouse Ridge setters and they are great bird dogs. Below is my first one named "Stickers" after a friend and I got home from a Pheasant hunt. Stickers had birds on the brain and he is zeroed in on a Finch eating out of a bird feeder.

Here is a vintage one of me about 50 years ago in Newfoundland