I’ve been busy so far getting ready for the big neighborhood yard sale which happens tomorrow.  We don’t have much of anything really good like guns and fishing gear, but we do have some outdoor stuff and a bit of everything…somebody will find something they want.

Anyway, today is the first day of summer.  The longest day of the year, some say, but then we all know there are only 24 hours in any one day, so what is meant by that is that it’s the day with the most daylight time.  We will be able to still see outside without a flashlight until after 10 p.m.

Well our buddies over at the National Geographic Office decided they needed to take a picture of the sun at 10 a.m. every day from the same spot and see what the sun looked like when all those pictures were put together into one.  Go to this link and see what it looks like…really cool to me.

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/12/photogalleries/101228-sun-end-year-analemmas-solstice-eclipse-pictures/

Bears Butt

June 21, 2013

We just received another recall notice on our 2003 Pontiac Vibe…As you recall, we had one not long ago that involved a shorting out of a circuit that could cause the airbags to deploy without notice.  Luckily for us it did not happen before we could get our friend Crock to fix it at Axtell Chevrolet in Logan.  Life has been good up until todays mail was opened.

Sherry read the recall notice and said “It’s the same old one”…and tossed the paper to me.

I read it and it’s different.  Still involving the air bags, but only on the passenger side and only if we get into a crash powerful enough to cause the airbag to deploy.

This recall says that my “vehicle is equipped with a front passenger airbag inflator which could have been assembled with improperly manufactured propellant wafers.  Improperly manufactured propellant wafers could cause the inflator to rupture and the front passenger airbag to deploy abnormally in the event of a crash, increasing the risk of injury to the occupant”.

So, if I get into a crash the airbag could be deployed with such a violent explosion (the one that fills it with air) to actually cause the airbag to blow up…like a balloon when it pops…which then would cause my passenger to essentially not have an airbag in their face, or worse yet, to get the full blast right in their face.

What are my alternatives?  Not drive.  Be dang careful when I do drive.  And always be on constant alert for “the other guy”.  At least this recall give me a chance at driving without a sudden and violent burst of an airbag in my face without warning.  If I do get into a crash at least I can reasonably hope my car had a “properly manufactured propellant wafer installed”.

Oh, and it says they don’t have the parts available to fix the problem.

Bears Butt

June 20, 2013

A lot of you are bow and arrow shooters and I need to get this word out as quickly as I can so that you can safely shoot your arrows and not worry about injury to yourself or a friend.

Recall Date: June 19, 2013
Recall Number: 13-220

Axis Arrows Recalled by Easton Due to Injury Hazard

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Consumers should stop using this product unless otherwise instructed. It is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.

Recall Summary

Name of Product: Easton Axis arrows

Hazard: The arrows can break when fired and hit unintended targets, including the user and bystanders.

Remedy: Replace

Consumer Contact:  Easton Technical Products; toll-free at (888) 380-6234 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET Monday through Friday or online at www.eastonarchery.com and click on Axis Recall for more information or go to www.axisrecall.com.

Recall Details

Units: 20,700 in the United States and 1,800 in Canada

Description: This recall involves Easton Axis arrows in four different sizes and batch numbers, including size 300 with batch number 13169686, size 340 with batch number 13170143, size 400 with batch number 13170142 and size 500 with batch number 13169487. The carbon composite arrows are used for hunting and target archery. They are black with green and gray-colored graphics. Axis, Focused Energy, Easton, the size number and the batch number are printed on the arrows.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported

Remedy: Consumers should stop using the recalled arrows immediately and contact Easton to receive free replacement arrows.

Sold at: Archery specialty stores and Academy Sports, Bass Pro, Cabela’s, Gander Mountain and Scheels stores nationwide from February 2013 through May 2013 for about $154 per dozen.

Manufacturer: Easton Technical Products Inc., of Salt Lake City, Utah

Manufactured in: United States

Photos available at http://www.cpsc.gov/en/Recalls/2013/Axis-Arrows-Recalled-by-Easton/
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Bears Butt

June 20, 2013

Black Arrow News:

Just got word he is being released from the hospital this afternoon!  This is super good news and I hope the change to home boosts his efforts to get well!

Bears Butt

June 19, 2013

POOPIE!  I just talked with Karen and the doctors want to see him eat solid foods better than he has been before they release him.  So the plan is to let him go tomorrow (Thursday)…at least it’s talk in the right direction!  Going Home!

Bears Butt

Update

I have been shooting almost all my life and over the past 10 years or more have noticed a very big problem with my hearing.  I also have a bad time with wax building up in my ears…I went to the doctor once and he dug out what he called “It looks like a boy”!  Of course he was joking, but the wax blob he pulled out was huge!  No wonder I couldn’t hear out of that ear.  I went to the doctor about a year ago with the same non hearing ear and he flushed it out with a high pressure washer and told me to take an aspirin and don’t bother coming back..(joking)…I could hear very well after that “soaking”.

Today I was looking at my emails and I’m on a mailing list for sports related discounts from highly reputable companies…maybe these items are seconds, but so what, if the price is right…right?  Check out the Camofire.com website sometime.

The item of the day that caught my eye this morning was the Walkers Game Ear Alpha Power Ear Muffs…Knowing nothing about them, I went to my world wide.  Well the power ear muffs are definitely something a shooter should look into for hearing protection,  they are designed to boost your hearing ability by 5 times but more importantly, they block out the noise caused by a sudden blast, like a shotgun or rifle going off.  Good stuff right there to help protect your hearing.

But the reason I’m writing about all of this is not what I found in the shooting sports arena, but more importantly for us hard of hearing people that are all over the world.  I have not investigated into a hearing aid for myself.  I watched my aging mother go through trials and tribulations trying to get fitted for hearing aids only to see them sitting on the counter not being used.  She spent thousands of dollars on those things and didn’t use them.

One of my older brothers now wears hearing aids and boy howdy did he ever need them…HUH?…and…SAY IT AGAIN!…was his favorite words…now he just turns off the unit when he doesn’t want to hear what you are saying.  But the best is, when he has it on, he just carries on a normal conversation and HUH and SAY IT AGAIN are not usually in that conversation.

I also have another good friend who wears a hearing aid and I won’t mention his name on here because I’m not sure he knows I know about it…His is a very discreetly hidden one and I must say it is one of the smallest and well hidden I’ve ever seen.

So, here I go investigating those hearing enhancing and noise muffling ear muffs and I come across other hearing devises made for the outdoor enthusiasts.  Since going turkey hunting a few weeks ago and having the Weasel tell me about sounds he is hearing and I never heard them, I have been thinking about something to assist me while hunting.  Of course affordability is always a concern with me and CHEAP fits my bill usually, but then quality is something to consider as well.  If I was to pick up something to help me hear those tip toe sounds in the woods I would insist on a high quality devise.  Looking on the internet is pretty much free and so here I went looking at the different ones.

I came across one called the “Walkers Game Ear Elite Digital HD Pro 2 Beige Assisted Listening Device”…a very long name for a game hearing devise, with no real way to make an acronym out of that made any sense………. (WGEEDHDP2BALD).  I got to reading about them and their sales writeup is very impressive…many settings for increased and decreased volumn…reduced wind noise…little to no “white noise” (whatever that is)…and an all around good devise for a medium price tag ($150 or so).  This little guy fits around the outside of the ear and the ear bud sticks into your ear channel to help you hear.  One size fits all.  It appears to be quite small and in the pictures of people wearing them they look comfortable and probably wouldn’t fall out.

So, I saw on one site where there were a ton of reviews and the average review rating was 4 out of 5…I clicked on there to read some of the reviews and what I found was amazing to me…Almost every review was from people with hearing issues buying them for every day use…not hearing the tippy toes noises out in the woods.  These people are city folks and country folks who just want to hear what is being said to them…one lady even put the review on because it was saving her marriage, buy her husband not having to have the TV up so loud.  Almost every review said that they had gone to a hearing doctor and spent thousands of dollars on expensive testing and hearing aids, revisiting and being counseled on “getting used to the extra noise” they were hearing etc. etc. but the main complaint was the cost…upwards of $8,000 in one case…and on top of that having to buy insurance to protect against losing the hearing aid.

When you look at doctors visits and spending that kind of cash for hearing aids, it sure makes spending $150 on one and getting the job done without all the extra problems associated with doctor visits and all the BS that goes with that.

Hey boys can’t you guys come up with $75 each to cover the expense of one of these for the old man?  Huh?  What did you say?  I can’t hear you!

Bears Butt

June 10, 2013

I just remembered to call Cover Up Embroidery about the possibility of them providing me with a hat for the 4th of July blackpowder shoot!  This year to win the hat you are going to have to be an excellent shot or dang lucky!

When I called them, Kim answered the phone and it’s always a pleasure to talk to her…so upbeat and happy…heck all of the owners and/or employees are that way.  A great bunch to work with.

They have been creating the shirts, hats, bags and other things for the Willow Creek Free Trappers for over 20 years now and they do an excellent job.  When there is a “normal” order for our shirts it gets really complicated, what with colors, sizes, styles, big logo on the front, small logo on the front, big logo on the back, no logo, pockets on the t shirts, sleeveless or with sleeves…it goes on and on and on.  But somehow they figure it all out and have been excellent in providing just what was ordered.

So, when I asked if they would provide a hat for this years 4th of July shoot…the answer was a joyful…”Sure!”…Thank you guys very much!  Some lucky person is going to win that hat.  Is that going to be you?  If it is, you had best be filing down your sights and getting your powder charge measured to the “nth degree”, because the shoot is not going to be easy!  Think small!  I mean, almost not even visible small!

Bears Butt

June 17, 2013

I just got a call from the Weasel…we are in for the Utah antlerless elk drawing.  Both of us have 3 points and that should just about guarantee us a tag!

Go baby Go!

Bears Butt

June 14, 2013