We've been getting lots of traffic lately regarding Burris' new XTS-135 and 235 Xtreme Tactical Speeddots. The Speeddots seem to be well built, and although they're pretty new offerings, the initial responses by users are positive. The most common question about the new red dots is the mounting height of the scope on flattop rifles. Lower rings are preferred for most bolt action rifles, but the black guns have to have sights from an inch to an inch and a half high so your eye is comfortably positioned above the stock. Too low and you can't get your face down low enough to see, and too high and your cheek isn't even on the stock. A great choice for a ring for this application is the Burris Xtreme Tactical ring #420167. It's just high enough for a good cheek weld, and very solidly mounted with a hex nut. It also uses six screws to clamp your scope. We'll be selling a lot of these.

The front sight post on an AR-15 type flattop is invisible for all practical purposes when looking through a scope. No need to have a flip-up or removable front to use magnification. With lower powered scopes you may see a shadow, and with higher powered scopes your clarity and resolution is a bit degraded, but for scope testing or informal plinking you don't need to be overly concerned. If you want to swap for a flip-up, consider the Troy Industries sights. Rears are available also.

My friend and veterinarian Chuck told me he's going on a pronghorn hunt this fall and asked me for advice. Chuck hunts lots of waterfowl and doesn't have any experience with rifles or big game hunting to speak of. His dad's hand-me-down Remington 700 is decades old and probably has under a box of 30-06 cartridges through it. The gun is in great condition and is ready to go as-is, but me being me needed to modify it a bit. It's in a bunch of pieces in my gun room at the moment. Iron sights are not needed. Lose 'em. Bore needs to be lapped and muzzle recrowned for the hell of it. Install new Leupold Dual Dovetail bases. The rings will be lapped and will hold a new Leupold 3.5-10x40 VX-III. Butler Creek caps. Uncle Mike's buttstock shell carrier and Quick Carry sling. New foam for his Pelican 1750 gun case. I gave him some instruction in my basement range with a Beeman air rifle, put together a care package with the gun and pellets and sent him on his way to practice. There's no substitute for trigger time, and a quality spring piston airgun is the best way to get it besides going to a range with recoil and ammo money. More to come.

Dusted off a Fobus paddle holster and a Glock 22 with Trijicon sights yesterday for an NRA Action Pistol match. This was the first time I shot Action Pistol instead of IPSC. The course was as follows: 6 at 7 yards, reload and 6 in a total of 20 seconds. 6 at 15, reload and 6 in 25 seconds. 6 at 25 yards, reload and 6 in 35 seconds. 6 at 50 yards, reload and 6 in two minutes. You must draw from the holster for the first three stages and shoot standing. The fourth stage you may go prone after drawing. I cleaned the first string with 11xs and a 10, but went down from there. One of my strengths in IPSC is my speed, which is not taken into account in Action Pistol. Nor is caliber or physical prowess. Fun nevertheless. My equipment was perfect, although the day dawned cold and rainy. Next match I'll shoot two times, one with a wheelgun and one with a custom 1911. My scores should improve. Check out your local clubs for matches. You don't have to be a good shooter or have a fancy gun or equipment. You just have to listen to directions and be safe. Even when I don't shoot very well I still have a lot of fun, and you shoot for a purpose, unlike most plinking.

I am not a techno-geek. My computer ignorance is matched by very few. I shudder at the prospect of reprogramming my VCR or following computer menus. My unenlightenedment is similar regarding astronomy. I know what the moon and the big dipper are and that’s about it.

Charged by my boss to test the new Meade My Sky, I unwillingly took it home as asked. I left for home a bit early because it was for work, not fun.

After kissing my dog and petting my wife, I fixed a drink and settled into a comfortable folding chair in my garage. Both garage doors were open, and I was inside far enough for protection from the drenching thunderstorm outside.

No manual in the box. Great. Cheap looking egg carton type cardboard holding the unit in the box. The unit is shaped like a pistol with a protrusion on the bottom to hold the batteries similar to a cordless drill, and on top of the unit were rudimentary front and rear sights.

I pressed what was obviously the power button on the side of the unit, and the viewing screen lit up. I stuck the ear jack in and put the buds in my ear and listened to a narrator welcoming me and thanking me for buying the unit. The narrator was pleasant, professional, and easy to understand. He spent a couple minutes explaining the basic controls in such an easy to understand fashion that I was no longer intimidated, and in fact was now eager to continue. Hitting the “next” button, the My Sky gave me a quick preview of what is possible with the unit, and I was hooked.

One of the menu choices is the Skymap option, and along with it you can choose “Tonight’s Best Tour.” “Tonight’s Best Tour” will take you to the most interesting objects in the sky for your time, date, and location. During this menu choice an arrow appears in the LCD screen. Move the My Sky in the direction of the arrow. When you get close, the arrow becomes smaller. Closer, and the arrow turns into a crosshair, and the crosshair blinks when you are centered on the object. The My Sky will then audibly identify the object. So cool.

I went out in the storm for the My Sky to acquire satellites, but it was unable to do so. My limited testing was done. I had to return the unit the next day, but not before I told My Shirley what an exiting product this was and that I couldn’t wait to continue my testing and that she needed to buy me one. If my continued testing goes as planned, I will recommend the My Sky to everyone, especially with kids. It’s so easy to use, anyone can do it, even a techno-challenged person like me. I’ve always wanted to know what a few of the regular night lights were, either stars or planets. With the descriptions given to me by My Sky, now I’ll know.

Curious and without first-hand experience tracking blood with anything other than white light, I conducted an experiment to see if colored lamps would help. I used a new Energizer Hard Case Tactical LED Infrared Night Vision flashlight for my testing. Certain manufacturers have been touting blue lamps, or a combination of blue and red lamps for trailing blood. I started the experiment by draining the blood off a three pound package of ground beef into one of two cognac glasses, being careful not to sip from the wrong one. I let it sit until room temperature and poured some out onto different materials in the woods in back of my house. It was a pitch black evening. Rocks, trees, grasses, dirt, leaves and twigs all were saturated with the warm blood. I could tell no difference in visibility of the liquid between the red, blue, or combination of the two colored lamps. The blood was visibly darker than the objects it was on, but I would certainly not be able to tell where it was if I wasn't aware exactly where I put it. So the limited test I performed told me that white light and hands and knees when necessary are still the way to go. I will continue with my testing.