It's suppose to be a bit warmer here the next couple days with temps reaching the 50's. I think most everyone is ready for Spring these days and get rid of all the sickness and cold.  Speaking of cold, we're just a few weeks away from the big Frostbite event at Kansas Rocks which is going to be a lot of fun.  I haven't been off the pavement since the Black Hills so I am itching to go. 

I'm still wanting to change my front bumper but am undecided on which one I really want.  I have looked at Poison Spyder and DV8 and am leaning toward those at the moment.  Once I decide on a bumper, I will get a new winch as well and Jodi will get my current setup.  That will leave her just needing a couple lights for her bumper. 

Speaking of lights, I don't want a standard light bar but this unit from KC Hilites has me intrigued.  I wonder how much wind noise this one produces, if any?

Another weekend goes whizzing by way too fast but at least it was a fairly productive one.  After a dinner get together on Friday night with other Jeepers, we got up early the next morning to head to Topeka.  We did a quick meetup to form a small caravan before heading West for the day.  When we arrived at the shop around 9am, we were one of the first there so we wound up bringing Jodi's Jeep in right away to get on the lift and install the sway bar disconnects.  Removal of the stock links was easy but we ran into an issue right away when installing the new setup.  The holes in the brackets attached to the axles were too small for the new hardware.  If we were doing this in my garage, it would be a trip to Harbor Freight or something to get a die grinder and a bit to enlarge the hole as there wasn't room to use the drill I had brought.  But since were were in a repair/fab shop, the owner had what we needed and I had the holes the right size in a matter of a few minutes.  The install went perfect after that and Jodi can now disconnect her sway bar to get out on the trails.

Our next project was the Yeti XD track bar install on my Jeep and after removing the Metalcloak one, we did some measuring to get the new Yeti the right length.  Once in place, we torqued it down to spec and we were finished with work that required the shop lift.

Attendance by 10:30am was pretty strong as the shop was full of people and Jeeps.  All 4 lifts were in use, 3 being used to install lift kits, including my friend Jonny who chose a Metalcloak lift.  Others were doing maintenance or smaller work on their Jeeps.

Next up for us was the installation of Jodi's "SPOD".  We had help with that and it only took about 45 minutes start to finish. Now she needs to get some lights and a winch to hook up to it.  It was lunch time so we headed down the road to grab lunch with friends.

 When we returned, a nearby dealership had brought a 2018 JLU Rubicon by to show off to the crowd.  There are things that I like and things that I don't like about it.  I think the interior refinements are some of the best features.  That said, I wouldn't update mine just to get one and I'm glad I have my model.  The diesel would be worth entertaining though.

We got back to work and I had a car audio guy help me figure out my rear view camera that wasn't working as it should.  It would only work if I went into the Rock Cam app first, which was a pain.  We wound up wiring it to a SPOD switch so I can just turn it off an on whenever I choose.

While there, many of us drooled over the custom LJ project that was in the works.  This thing is going to be awesome when finished, featuring one ton axles, 40's, 6.2 liter engine, Atlas transfer case, custom 3 link/4 link suspension, Posion Spyder cage and more.  Knowing all that I know today, I would just do a build like this versus get a new rig and dump tens of thousands into it.  This custom LJ will be about $60K when done, including the cost of the vehicle.

We wound up leaving the shop about 5pm, which was a full day of fun.  On the way home, my traction control light came on and it was then that I noticed that the steering wheel was not centered.  Sunday morning I got up and adjusted that back to center and had to drive it a bit to get the light to go off.  After that, I installed my Tuffy underseat security drawer.  That only took about a half hour to my surprise.  There is plenty of room for my Glock, extra magazines and more.  I still need to line it with some non-skid material.

We have two sales sessions tonight for model team members and another one in a couple weeks.  Jodi will be coming to St. Louis for a week to stay with her mom and help her out as she is having her other knee replaced, now that the first has had a year to heal up.  Leaving me a lone for a week is not a good idea and she knows that so I will not be fully responsible for what might take place during her absence. 

We will be heading out early tomorrow morning as we head to Topeka for the Wrench-a-thon.  It should be a fun day of lift kits, wiring and maintenance for members of the club.  We are pretty much set to go except my Tuffy underseat storage drawer didn't arrive yesterday as scheduled.  Hopefully it comes today.

Our former intern dropped in for a photo shoot recently and we got some great shots.  She can't take a bad picture.

We got some range time in yesterday and went through a few hundred rounds of .22LR in the new Rugers.  Jodi keep improving each time out.  I have her shooting at 3-4 yards working on her groupings and she now puts at least half of her shots into the center ring.

I shot my new Ruger Mark IV Hunter and it took a bit to get use to the sights.  Not sure I like the red front sight very much.  I may go to an optic or a scope of some sort.  It performed flawlessly though and after a mag or two, I was able to get some real tight groups at 5-10 yards.  I shot a few mags through my Glock 19 and I was very happy with those results. 

Today is Ladies Night at Frontier Justice so we will be going over after I get off work to shoot for free.  I will be taking my new Ruger Mark IV Hunter with me and I have Jodi's Mark IV outfitted with a compensator and a Halo charging ring.  I added some Loctite on the red dot mounting screws to keep them secure as last time they were loosening up from the recoil.

We are just a few days away from the Wrench-a-thon at 4X4 Land.  Jodi will get her SPOD and quick disconnects installed and I will be doing my Yeti XD track bar.  I may install a Tuffy underseat security drawer too.

Jodi and I spent the weekend recovering from our illnesses. She didn't seem to get as bad as I did but we both felt like we were in a fog for the majority of it.  I got some extra sleep in yesterday before getting up and trying to be productive.  After noting it was almost 60 degrees, I decided to get out the power washer and give the Jeeps both a bath since they were covered in winter grime.  I posted a pic of my efforts to Facebook which then prompted a friend to drop by who was in the area.  We had a good length visit, discussing our Colorado trip and more.

We were fortunate to find a chalet at the resort on another rental website.  It is actually nicer than the one we were hoping to get and we now have it reserved for our trip.  The girls will appreciate that it has two bathrooms instead of one.

Our Wrench-a-thon is this coming weekend and we are prepared to get some work done on both Jeeps. 

Fun times at our house right now as I came down sick this week, missing a couple days of work.  Naturally, Jodi has it now.  Looks like the next few days are going to be totally unproductive and miserable around here.  We were suppose to go out to dinner with friends tonight but that won't be happening. 

On Saturday morning, we had a great get together for breakfast at Cracker Barrel with 20+ people from our Jeep groups.  It was a cold morning but the food and conversation was great and we all enjoyed hanging out for a while before many of us headed off to the gun show.  The show was busy but not as packed as it has been in past years when there was more urgency and desire to stock up or purchase a particular firearm because of the political climate.

The plan was to only buy a firearm if we found something reasonably close to what it would cost to obtain online.  We wound up finding a dealer that had quite a few Ruger Mark IV's and Jodi found a 22/45 Lite in a color she liked.  After a discount for cash, we wound up paying about $20 more than online (due to the sales tax) to obtain it right there.  The NICS check on her went quickly and we were off and moving again in about 15 minutes.  She now owns this:

We found a Vortex Venom red dot optic at a dealer about 10 minutes later and cash again got us a good deal, paying less for it than available online.  We finished off the show by me getting a really nice leather belt that will provide a lot of support for my Crossbreed Supertuck holster I carry my Glock 19 in. Also, I picked up some magloaders I am really impressed with.  For pistols, 9mm to 45, this one works great : http://www.maglula.com/product/uplula-9mm-to-45acp/   My new Springfield XDM 45 has 13 round magazines but the springs in them are so stiff that I could only hand load 12 rounds in them.  This mag loader makes it easy to load all 13.  My Glock mags can be hard to load as well but I was able to load 5 mags plus my 33 round mag in just seconds.  Talk about a thumb saver!
They also make this loader for 5.56/.223 which I also purchased.  http://www.maglula.com/product/ar15-m4-pmag-range-benchloader-5-56-223/

Later in the day, Jodi and I went to the range to try out her new Ruger.  I had mounted the optic prior to leaving and once at the range, I ran the first mag through it dialing the red dot in.  With Jodi being left eye dominant, her sight picture is different than mine.  While I was putting the round sin the bullseye or close, she was all low and right.  I adjust the sight to fit her sight picture and by the end of the session, she was putting about half of each mag in or right around the bullseye at 5 yards.  She will need to keep shooting a lot to get more consistent.  I didn;t shoot very much as I was trying to help get her sighted in but did get some rounds off from the XDM, a 1911 and a Walther PPQ M2. 

The next morning, I ordered a Ruger Mark IV Hunter.  Jodi will be able to shoot it as well but I go it so I can shoot more without spending a lot on ammo.  I have thousands of rounds of .22 and it is far cheaper than .45, which is my favorite round to shoot.  This is the model I ordered and it should be here this week.  I ordered it from Grabagun as they had it for about $160 less than most shops around here, plus no tax!

Sunday was spent working mostly on business related things and we were able to accomplish quite a bit.  Things always don't go smoothly when it comes to the both of us working together on marketing materials and design, especially since neither one of us are experts at it but we wound up coming up with some nice stuff I think.

Monday morning, I took the Taurus to get an oil change and tire rotation before we headed to our former photo lab to review some test prints they ran for us in an effort to earn our business back.  I didn't see enough to make me consider that so we are likely done with them. We really like some products we found at another lab and will be making a full conversion to them.

Last night, one of our Jeep groups had their monthly meetup at a bar and grill a few miles from our house so we took both Jeeps over.  We wound up having about 15 Jeeps I think on a very cold night, so it was a good turnout considering.  The food was real good and the conversation even better.  We wound up staying until nearly 10pm after arriving at 6pm.   We have good peeps.  

  

 





 

We got a wintery mix yesterday here in KC and it created some minor havoc on the roadways.  Jodi was able to get Gia to the groomer before it hit and I drove her to get her when she was done after I got off work.  I followed that activity with a nap.

I'm looking forward to three days off with the holiday and have made some plans for part of it.  Tomorrow morning is the gun show and we are going with at least 20 people from our Jeep club.  I won't buy any firearms unless there are some great deals that match online sales but I may pick up some accessories, magazines, etc...

I need to order some sway bar quick disconnects for Jodi's Jeep as apparently the girls are going to go wheeling this Spring.  We have quite a few girls who wheel their Jeeps.  It will be fun to watch her on the trails.  She won't do anything extreme I'm sure but I think she'll have fun once she gets comfortable.  We will install her "SPOD" and the disconnects at the upcoming Wrench-a-thon.

We had a good time at the range last night with friends.  Jodi didn't care much for the 9mm so it was back to the SR22, which she shot quite well.  We looked at the Ruger Mark IV .22's while there and I think she is going to get the Mark IV Lite.  We will add a red dot optic on it for her and that will be her range pistol.  I may get the Ruger Mark IV Hunter or the Competiton model, then she can shoot both.

I tried out the Sprignfield XDM 45 for the first time and I have to say it shoots like all of the other XDM's I have shot, awesome.  I shoot 45's so much better than 9mm's for some reason.  The yellow target is one 13 round magazine from the XDM at 7 yards.  I got in a little hurry and had a couple miss right but was pretty solid overall.

I then got out my 1911 and put the blue target at 10 yards.  Two magazines to center mass and then one magazine quicker to the head.  Pretty happy with the results.  Have been working on my trigger squeeze a lot and it makes a big difference.

The range was followed by dinner at Texas Roadhouse.  We had some fun conversation, our waiter was entertaining and the food was pretty good.  We now are looking forward to the gun show on Saturday morning.

After work yesterday, Jodi and I went to pick up Angus from being groomed and then went to the dealership to get my Jeep.  It's ready to go another 5000 miles and the recall has been taken care of.  The service manager gave me a nice MOPAR calendar featuring off road vehicles and it has the new JL on the front.  He didn't know when they would be getting their first one in but I expect the first arrivals are already spoken for.

After dinner, JD, Megan and Jayson came by for a short visit.  Jayson has so much energy, he spent the whole time running around the house and acting silly for us.  I happened to be in the middle of cleaning my Glock 19 and it was disassembled on the kitchen table.  He thought it was the coolest thing and it gave us a chance to talk about firearm safety with him.  He asked if he could come back over later and help me clean my guns!

I'm looking forward to our range time this evening and dinner with friends.  I spent a good deal of time getting the firearms I'm taking ready.  Jodi will have her Ruger SR22 and the new Walther PPQ to shoot and i am taking my 1911 and my new Springfield XDM 45 to try out.   I loaded up about 15 magazines so we don't have to reload too much when there which will give us more shooting time.

The chalet we hope to rent in Colorado is really nice.  It backs to the river, has a fire ring out back, two bedrooms, a covered porch and more.  We are going to share it with another couple if it's available the week we need it.  See it here:  http://www.tigerrunresort.com/vacation-rental-home.asp?PageDataID=129279

On Wednesday, Jodi and I and another couple are going to the shooting range followed by dinner.  I'm looking forward to shooting the new Springfield XDM .45 and seeing how Jodi shoots the Walther 9mm.  I think she will do better than she does with the Ruger SR22 after the first few rounds, getting accustomed to the recoil.  

We dropped my Jeep off at the dealership last night for the recall and an oil change and rotation.  I talked to the service manager for a bit who happens to be a big Jeep guy,  He goes to Moab every year and has a coilover rig with 40's.  He is getting ready to install a 5.7 liter Hemi in it after his Moab trip this Spring.  He always takes good care of us when we come in.  AFter chatting with him awhile, we went in to the dealership and said hello to our salesperson we bought Jodi's Jeep from.  We also looked over the Jeep Grand Cherokee Track Hawk that was on the showroom floor.  $90k and faster than a Hellcat.  I also liked the Hemi Challenger.  Jodi said no.  

Well, one day off of work and back at it for another week.  At least a 3 day weekend lies ahead with the MLK holiday next Monday.  I have to take my Jeep to the dealer this evening for a recall appointment.  If I'm not mistaken, this is the second recall I've had on the impact sensor.  I looked it up online and they have detailed instructions on what the tech is suppose to do to resolve the problem.  It involves taking the grille off, headlights out, etc...  They will be re-routing the sensor and the wiring as apparently in some instances, the airbags will not deploy in a front end collision.

Since I purchased a Ruger Precision Rifle a while back, I was considering trading or selling off my Remington 700.  I decided to put it on Midwest Gun Trader on Saturday and by Sunday morning, I had worked out a reasonable trade.  In return for the 700, I got a like new Walther PPQ M2 with 6 magazines and an IWB holster.  I figured it might be a nice gun for Jodi to shoot as the Walther has a more comfortable grip than many firearms and 9mm is a good caliber for women.  I hope to go shoot this week with her.  We are still looking at a Ruger Mark IV for her as well.  Another firearm I'm looking for is a Taurus Raging Hornet.  It shoots 22 Hornet ammo, which goes about 3100 feet per second.  It has a 10 inch barrel and is quite the beast.  It's no longer in production and pretty desirable so I don;t know if I'll run across one or not, especially at a reasonable price. I'll be looking for one at the gun show this weekend.

I had my weekend events mixed up thinking the Wrench-a-thon was next weekend but it's actually the last weekend of the month.  Next weekend is the big gun show at KCI.  I decided to make it an event for our Jeep club and as of this writing, we now have 12 Jeeps going to breakfast that morning and then to the gun show afterward.  It'll be a great opportunity for Jodi to get more guns in her hands to determine the best one for her. 

Yesterday, I ordered Jodi the knockoff SPOD off Amazon and with the same day delivery, it was on our porch by 7pm.  Pretty incredible when you think about it.  All of our friends have been going with this model as it's only $180 instead of nearly $500.  We will install it at the Wrench-a-thon.

 

I can't remember the last time I called in to work and missed a day but it happened yesterday.  On Tuesday, I did something to my back while at work and it progressively got worse the rest of the day.  I didn't feel anything happen, just started bothering me.  Yesterday morning, I could barely get out of bed and walking was a challenge, so I called in.  I was pretty uncomfortable most of the morning so I decided to go lay in bed and watch TV for a while.  After an hour or so, I got out of bed, expecting to be in discomfort still but it was 80% improved.  As the day went on, I got better and by evening, I had still had soreness but was still feeling pretty good.  I had a good night of sleep last night and seem to be about 80-85% this morning.  Must be muscular.

There have been a number of good deals on firearms of late and on Tuesday, Grabagun had a Springfield Armory XDm .45 ACP with threaded barrel at an attractive price so one is finding a  new home in my safe.  I'm a fan of FDE so this one was kind of a no brainer for me.  I like the FDE with black slide as my Glock is the same configuration.  I shoot my friends 9mm XDm very well and I hope I do the same with my new acquisition.  One day, I may add a suppressor.

Grabagun also has a couple of the Ruger Mark IV .22's on sale.  Neither of them are the Lite model I am looking at for Jodi but one is the target model and I was tempted to get it.  I think I'll hold out a bit longer and see if they put the Lite model on sale soon. 

I'm looking into joining the Glock Sport Shooting Foundation and start doing some competitive shooting.  They have events across the nation, with three being in the region, including one in Sparta.  It's family focused and most competitions are for stock Glock's but they do have an unlimited class.  When you join, ($35), you get one Blue Label Glock per year, which is LEO pricing.  You save about $100 on each gun so the membership is well worth it.  You also have access to a Glock armorer at the events and they clean, inspect and replace parts for free.

Our Wrench-a-thon is coming up next weekend and I'm looking forward to getting my new Steer Smarts adjustable track bar installed and a couple other minor things done.  My Jeep goes to the dealer for the impact sensor recall next Tuesday and I'll get my free Jeep Wave oil change and tire rotation while there.   

A new year has dawned and it's back to work after a nice break.  We enjoyed having Kyle and his girlfriend in town the last few days as we celebrated his birthday and Jodi and I's 25th anniversary.  We all went to the shooting range on Kyle's birthday and had a good time.  I wound up going through 150 rounds of .45 and shot about 50 rounds of 9mm.  Jodi shot 100 rounds of .22 and I'm looking at getting her a target .22 with an optic on it so she can have something a bit more accurate.  The Tuger SR22 is fun but as small as it is, you're not going to punch the same hole on a target at 7 yards.  We went to Cabela's and the Ruger Mark IV Lite 22/45 is a candidate for her.

I'm looking at getting a high end 1911 for my collection.  I will likely never spend the money on a Wilson Combat but maybe a Sig Sauer that has been customized a bit would satisfy me.  I just can't bring myself to spend $3K on a handgun.

Jodi got me some Jeep related shirts for Christmas.  I like this one a lot.