Pony Pimpin'

The Unsinkable Joie Brown, whom I may have mentioned before as the official artist for Unknown Ponies: the Failure is Awesome RPG, is setting up a table at the Alternative Press Expo in San Francisco this weekend (October 13-14).

"Why are you bringing this up?", I hear you ask. The answer is simple:

Do I have your attention now?  Excellent.

Ms. Unsinkable can be found atthe  AAU Children's Book Club table, #134.  She is selling the set of Seven Pony Pins -- that's the Mane Six plus Derpy, thank you very much -- for a mere $10.

But that's not all! She is also selling other buttons:

Pokemon!

Ponythulhu!

Cosplaying Corgis!

And whatever else she manages to create in time for APE.  $10 gets you any 7 pins you desire (not just the pony pins). If you want more than 7 pins, I'm sure something can be worked out.

If you can't make it to APE, that's also fine: Miss Joie de Vivre also has a PayPal account. Send your payment to brown.joie@gmail.com and she will mail them to you.  Again, any 7 pins for $10.

Want to see a larger version of those pins? Want free wallpaper of all seven ponies? Check out her DeviantArt profile. 

Derpy photobomb!

Want t-shirts?  Well, there's a bit of a problem with that, as MLP tees might draw down the Unblinking Eye of Hasbro Legal Counsel. However, would you like a nice Ponythulhu: Friendship is Madness tee?  Buy one of these and you can offend not one, but TWO fandoms!

Also drawn by Joie, these shirts are available here for $20  (sort "Lowest to highest" to get  to the tees).  And if you really like tee shirts, this link gives you a 25% off discount on any order of $75 or more!

In conclusion, I leave you with two amusing and amazingly-animated pony videos. 

The first, Dork, is a sophisticated yet minimalist... something. I'm not quite sure what it is, frankly. It seems like it would work best as a video ad for the show itself:  

Without their manes, tails, eyes, etc. to identify them, each of the mane six are built on the same stock model. So how are they so vividly, unmistakbly unique in all our minds?

The second, Ponies Royale, is by the same animator and is a full-length video in the style of James Bond opening sequences... except with ponies.  It's the mash-up that had to happen!

In conclusion:  Ponies are awesome and you should buy stuff. 

That is all.

A quick shout-out for fellow music nerds

Today, in the kitchen of Chateau Palette:

Me:  What's for lunch?
Her: Chicken piccata.
Me:  (singing) Chicken piccata... piccata mundi....
Her: (baffled look)

What's sad is that she should already know this, because she's practicing a version of Agnus Dei in choir. 

If you don't get the joke, go here. 

Monday Gunday: Sub-2000 Forend Rails

This is a review of the Aluminum Forend Rails for the Kel-Tec Sub-2000.

Obligatory FTC disclaimer: Kel-Tec gave me these rails for free because I am awesome. They aren't paying me for this review (as you will see in a moment).

I've been itching to get my hands on these pretties for a while because I am a compulsive accessorizer and I love putting doodads on my guns. However, there's been a problem with that goal:   They are nearly always out of stock.

Fast forward a year, and suddenly I am a reviewer of propane and propane-related accesories firearms, accessories, and survival gear. I can now request these things for review!

Two weeks ago, my wish was granted (click through for before and after shots) and now I will give a review.


Installation
I have to be honest here, folks:  The instructions suck.  They are a poor-resolution copy (of a copy of a copy, it looks like) which makes reading them difficult. The pictures are muddy and the text is confusing at times (Example:  if the parts are numbered in the illustration, then refer to them by number rather than by name in the instructions), which means that installation is not what I would consider to be user-friendly.

I was originally going to have my mother install this product, but when I saw what I was dealing with I figured (rightly, as it turned out) that she would be unable to install this herself.  Fortunately for me, I have put together enough models and toys that I am able to figure out what goes where just from looking at the picture.

The second problem is that near the end of the installation, I was told to level the top rail before tightening it to the barrel and installing the bottom rail. Why is this a problem? Two reasons:

1. There is no mention of requiring a level in the "Tools Needed", which is a big omission;
2. The entire assembly free-floats. I'm no engineer, but I would think that it makes more sense to create the rail-shroud with a tongue that locks into a groove on the Sub-2000. This wouldn't make things perfectly level, mind you, but it would certainly speed things along in the same way that a laser boresight helps you get to zero faster. 

So the instructions fail. On the good side, however:

1. The kit came with all the parts I needed, including an Allen wrench of the proper size;
2. Once I figured out what was going on, I was able to put the forend on without muss and fuss (well, there was a bit of fussing during the leveling portion);
3. They even included a tub of Blue Threadlocker. I don't know if they do this for all kits, or just mine because I'm special, but either way I appreciated the gesture. 

About the only caveat I have about the installation itself is that when I was securing the bottom of the forend to the top, I found that it worked best to start with the middle screw on one side, then turn it over and secure the other side, working my way outward and alternating sides. I also didn't tighten down each screw before going on to the next one; instead, i got the screws going until the threads engaged both parts and then went on to the next one. It was only after I had all the parts in, and made sure all the holes were lined up, that I went back and tightened them all. 

(The previous paragraph has probably elicited a "Well, duh" response from my more technically-inclined readers. I include it because that's not what the instructions say.)

The Product

The rails themselves are made of anodized aluminum. They are lightweight and do not seem to affect the overall balance of the carbine. I especially like the fact that the forend is open at the front and has vents along the sides -- it seems like this will help with cooling the barrel more than the traditional plastic shroud does.

I like that the product comes in both a two-rail and four-rail configuration; this allows the user to install only the rails that he or she needs. I would recommend against installing the side rails unless you really need them, and this is because -- being made of out metal -- the edges can bite uncomfortably when you grasp the forend. However, rail covers are cheap and plentiful, so that's always an option. 

Confession time: I will admit that I cannot state with absolute certainty that the rails hold zero, and this is because I do not (yet) have a scope or sight to go on them. What I can tell you is that rough handling and general shooting has not caused the rails to go out of alignment in any measurable way. When I get a proper sight for this carbine, I will definitely let you all know if the rails hold zero. Until then, I am giving Kel-Tec the benefit of the doubt, because it's not their fault I don't have a sight for the Sub-2000. 

The Verdict

Installation difficulties aside, I do recommend this product. It gives the S2K a nifty tacti-cool look, and gives the user greater flexibility of use by allowing the installation of accessories such as scopes*, lasers, flashlights, bipods, etc. 

* Naturally, any accessory mounted on the top rail will need to be removed before making use of the fold-in-half feature. Putting your optic on a quick-release rail mount should eliminate this problem before it starts.

The worst thing I can say about the aluminum forend is that it's difficult to keep in stock. Given how useful it is, I think that Kel-Tec should bundle the rail system directly with the carbine (perhaps as a "tactical option" upgrade). 

Instructions:  D

Ease of Installation: B

Utility : A

Niftiness: A

OVERALL RATING:  A 

Would recommend to all Sub-200 owners

An update on City of Heroes

A brief summary thus far:

After announcing that City of Heroes would be shut down at the end of November, many fans have decided that their game -- the #1 superhero MMO in the world, thank you very much -- will not go quietly into that good night. As such, that have organized online vigils, sent capes and masks to NCsoft headquarters, bought dinners for the Dev team as a means of saying "Thank you," tried to get the game sold to other companies, and generally sticking it to The Man.

The Man noticed. The Man blinked. The Man is scared, now, because someone at NCsoft corporate has realized that they've pissed off a significant chunk of their market, and they are scurrying to do damage control.

So they wrote this press release:

City of Heroes® Players and Fans,

We wanted to let you know that your voices have been heard and your concerns have been taken into serious consideration. We appreciate the overwhelmingly constructive and positive messages in the emails, notes, and packages you've sent in support of the game. It has not been an easy decision for us to close Paragon Studios® and prepare to shut down City of Heroes. We've exhausted all options including the selling of the studio and the rights to the City of Heroes intellectual property, but in the end, efforts to do so were not successful. City of Heroes has a special place in all of our hearts, and we want to ensure its reputation and the memories we share for the game end on a high note. 

Once again, we will be holding events throughout the process of preparing for the game's end, and we encourage players and fans of the franchise to join forces and enjoy their time in a game that we've enjoyed supporting for more than eight years. 

The NCSOFT® Team

If you are well-versed in corporate speak, this means fuck-all. It's essentially "Stop writing to us, we really want this to go away now."

Hey, don't take my word for it. Listen to the sage wisdom of Larry Dixon, husband of Mercedes Lackey (who is a bigtime COH player):

It's as "real" as anything else NCsoft says or does. That'll flip if they want it to. What it *is* is an admission that they've noticed enough to respond to it "on company letterhead." Its face value is meaningless.

The REAL takeaway from this is "Hey this is starting to hurt, stop it guys!" If the revival efforts meant nothing, NCsoft would not post what amounts to "Elvis has left the building." And that is all that is. They want the negative attention to stop. That is an official attempt at deflection. Or, in political terms, an "Un-Answer."

It appears to be a response but actually accomplishes nothing except silence those who weren't very into it. Like I say, what it says is irrelevant; the thing to take notice of is that it was put there at all. And that means time to step it up because the other fighter just staggered.

If the "Save CoH/We love Paragon" etc. efforts were ineffective, we'd never have seen such a statement. The hidden meaning of that note is that it has dawned on somebody that this is developing into "anti-NCsoft," not "Save-CoH," so they issued a mollifying statement with a lot of buttonpushing feel-warm cozy buttons about how special what they just murdered was to them.

Now they reap the mistrust they sowed, they can see the coverage increase, the caution against them and the players taking their money away in droves, and we can look them steely in the eyes and reply "Too bad. It's just business. Isn't it."

The "exhausted all options" is bizspeak for "We didn't get what we wanted, so we stopped bothering to find solutions." Businesspeople who truly WANT a result ALWAYS find a way, they never "exhaust all options." So right there is an admission from NCsoft that they're very bad businesspeople. Most certainly unimaginative and inflexible.

Shortest form: As a strategist, the hits are being felt by NCsoft, and they've barely begun.

Second message: This is the murderer issuing an official statement that they "really tried hard" not kill what they had a choice about murdering, and hoping that "Oh they loved it like I did, they're really sorry!" should be your takeaway from that and that should make EVERYTHING just fine, right?

I don't take "We loved it too!" as anything but an insult to our intelligence.
Nah, this is a "There, that'll shut'em up" attempt, as if talking to six-year-olds.

People are noticing. This is turning into a public relations debacle, which translates into loss of revenue -- and that's the one thing no company wants.

You see, they don't want to admit it, but they are in the process of closing down all offices outside of Korea.  Go ahead and look at that Glassdoor rating: 2.3 stars out of 5, and falling. Read those reviews and see if you don't discover a recurring theme.

Frankly, I'd respect NCsoft more if they just said "Look, we don't want American/Canadian/European money any more. We're just going to focus on the lucrative Asian market," because at least then they'd be honest about it.

I don't know if it's a case of dwindling market share, and they're just going to consolidate closer to home while making games for demographics they understand, or if it really is a case of cultural racism and disdain for every western-style game (i.e. not focused on the stereotypical Korean MMO grind), but either way, it's looking pretty obvious that they don't care about anything outside their personal sphere of influence.

But what's important is this:  we've caught them in that, and it doesn't look good. And they're slowly starting to realize that fact. If they ever want to expand back into North American and Europe, they have to stop the bleeding.

They're begging us to stop asking questions. To stop making them look bad. To sit down, shut up, and go away. To that I say:

We are heroes. This is who we are. This is what we do. 

Now THIS is a campaign ad

Wow. Why can't the presidential candidates have campaign ads as awesome as this one?




Funny, effective, and with a budget. Hell, even the "I approve this message" is delivered convincingly.

A tip o' the hat to Silicon Graybeard for this.

I have to confess, I'm tempted

Admittedly, I'm no longer in the D.C. metro area, so my temptation status is purely academic. However. who among us would not entertain this notion, even if only for a moment?

Woman DM needed for D&D based Adult Bachelor Party (Pringe George's County, MD)

Description:
Looking for a woman with Dungeon Master experience in Dungeons and Dragons (specifically 3.0 or 3.5 editions) to run a game. The event is for a Bachelor Party and the "future husband to be" would prefer if the DM could be topless. With that said, I ensure you that nothing else is expect of you other than an exciting adventure.

Oh come on. You're totally thinking about it right now.

Monday Gunday Guest Post: Carrying the PMR-30 Concealed

Today's guest post comes to us courtesy of Gwen Patton. In addition to being a web cartoonist, she has been an informal (not NRA certified) firearms instructor for the Pink Pistols for 10 years.

She also suffered a spinal injury in 2007, which required surgery. She needs a cane to walk, suffers from near-constant severe nerve pain, and cannot withstand the recoil traditional self-defense calibers ("32 acp, you might as well throw the gun. 380, you might as well shoot 9mm," she said in an interview). However, she has found the Kel-Tec PMR-30 to be an effective concealed carry pistol that is comfortable for her to shoot.

This is her story.


Lightweight and Low-Recoil: 
Carrying the Kel-Tec PMR-30 Concealed 
by Gwendolyn S. Patton

I rested my cane up against the wall of the range lane, put down the small stack of paper targets, and hung the cardboard backer on the metal hooks thoughtfully provided. The roll of masking tape was on a chain attached to the shelf, and I tore a piece into three little tags to attach a silhouette target to the backer, two at the top, one at the bottom middle to keep it from blowing around in the slight breeze of the exhaust fans. I used the electrical lever to run the target out to a decent 10 yards, good enough for a half-size target, and a nice warm-up. I had three boxes of ammo, one of hollowpoint carry ammo, two of target ammo. I like to practice with both, so I don't get disused to the feel of firing what I carry.

My bag was still slung across my shoulder, and I reached into it to draw out the weapon, which I placed safely on the shelf, pointing downrange. Likewise, the second magazine which was in a side pocket. I’m not a big fan of off-body carry, but this is a new weapon, and I haven’t yet found a good concealment holster for the dead of summer. If it was fall or winter, I could use my shoulder rig and a jacket, or my 511 conceal-carry vest, but it’s over 90 degrees out there today, t-shirt weather, and it’s hard to conceal anything, much less something full-sized. So into the bag it goes. The upside: it doesn't weigh very much, even fully loaded, and doesn't drag on my shoulder even as much as the sketchbook and pencil box it replaced.

The weapon is my brand-new Kel-Tec PMR-30, a sleek steel and aluminum device with a Zytel grip, magazine, and trigger guard. Unloaded, it weighs only 13.6 ounces, and a full 30-round magazine of .22 WMR weighs 6 ounces. With a full magazine and a full spare, it comes in at just under a pound. Yes, I said a 30-round magazine. It’s a double-stack polymer magazine that, admittedly, is slow and difficult to load, but once you have it loaded, represents a significant throw weight of defensive fire. The 4.3” barrel is the shortest Kel-Tec felt sufficient for reasonable accuracy, and I agree. I have an old Charter Arms .22 WMR revolver with a shorter barrel, and it’s one of the most inaccurate firearms I've ever fired. But the Kel-Tec is a tackdriver.

I take my stance on the firing line and rack the slide. The slide throw is not long, and the slide isn’t heavy. There’s a slide-release lever on the left side, convenient to the right thumb, and an ambidextrous safety above and behind it. The sights are high-viz fiberoptic dots, very bright and clear in just about any light, but are of little or no help in total darkness. There is a short Picatinny-style rail under the barrel that will accommodate a light or laser if you wish.

The trigger is smooth and does not suffer from excessive grab, stutter, or steps. It releases cleanly with a firm squeeze, and here is where the nitpicks begin.

All Kel-Tecs have an issue with grip, from the P-11 upward. You cannot limp-wrist a Kel-Tec,or it will not cycle properly. The same is true of the PMR-30. You must have a firm grip to provide a solid foundation for cycling the action. Failing to do so will usually result in either a stovepipe or nosing on the ramp. There is, however, a caveat to that. The factory expresses a keyholing issue with 40gr Maxi-Mag ammo, and claims it will feed properly otherwise save for sporadic keyholing, but I have found it to be somewhat more comprehensive than simple keyholing. I found out that if you use this particular ammunition, you will suffer interminable nosing on the ramp every 3rd or 4th round, regardless of grip, while the 30 or 50 gr. rounds will function perfectly unless you severely limp-wrist the weapon. The company strongly recommends against foreign ammunition, that may not follow strict standards of case pressure, and I did not tempt fate.

I found that the 45-gr hollowpoint Federal ammo I am using for carry works quite well, does not tend to nose on the ramp, and is highly accurate, though I did find at first that the sights tended to pull to the left. It took a couple of magazines to find that I had to place the post on the right hand side of the notch consistently to achieve perfect accuracy, but once I did this, I could put rounds down the same hole with significant frequency, thus earning the “tackdriver” classification. This was at ranges of between 7 and 15 yards on an indoor range, with half-size silhouette targets, simulating defensive distances.

The weight of the weapon during use was minimal, as was felt recoil. This resulted in quick target reacquisition and a shortened time to second shot. With a small, light round, this is essential. But why did I choose such a small, light round in the first place? Why not use something heavier, with more stopping power? Actually, my old choice of weapon was my Kimber Pro-Carry Ten II, a 14-round .45 ACP, or, if space was a premium, a S&W 649 Bodyguard .357 magnum. But a few years ago, I had a car accident and broke my neck.

Complications from the neck repairs left me in constant pain, and unable to practice with a larger weapon, because the recoil up the arm and into the neck leaves me in acute distress. I might be able to use a large-caliber weapon in an emergency, but I can't sustain long practice with one. I can, however, practice with the PMR-30, and the large magazine capacity means it is even viable for self-defense if necessary. I haven’t gone shooting for years until I got the PMR-30 because of excessive pain. Since I got it, I've gone shooting three times, and gotten my skill back easily.

I do believe the .22 WMR is a viable self-defense round, and here’s why: the FN FiveSeven is used as a military sidearm in several nations, and the FN P90 PDW is used by Special Forces and Counter-Terrorist groups. The FiveSeven fires the NATO 5.7x28mm round, with a bullet weight of between 23-31 grains and a muzzle velocity of around 2,000 f/s, giving a kinetic energy of around 400 ft-lbf. The .22WMR has a bullet weight of between 30-50 grains, a muzzle velocity of 1,200 f/s from the PMR-30, and a kinetic energy of about ¾ that of the NATO round due to the greater mass of the bullet. When fired from a rifle, the kinetic energy of the .22 WMR round is nearly the same as that of the FN FiveSeven’s NATO round, and the PMR-30 has 30 rounds to the FiveSeven’s 20.

Beyond that, I’m a firm believer in shot placement as the key to stopping power, and the accuracy of this weapon is fully up to the task. The only thing I need to find now is a good dedicated on-body concealment holster that works in hot weather as well as cold, designed specifically for the PMR-30. I have found one online from Simply Rugged Holsters, but have not yet acquired one for testing. Being a high-quality leather holster, the cost has been prohibitive right now, but I plan to get one as soon as I can. The holster I have my eye on can be worn outside the pants, or with special straps inside the pants for full concealment. I would really like to try this, in hot weather it sounds like it would be exactly what is called for, when just a t-shirt would cover it.

Until then, I’ve been making do with off-body carry, which works decently due to the low weight and bulk of the weapon, or with a generic standard 1911 strong-side holster that my father’s old Remington-UMC 1911 was stored in. I borrowed the holster and left the 1911 in the vault where it will be safe (no pun intended), and the holster works fine so long as I have a jacket or long button-down shirt to cover it. The weapon is so lightweight that I scarcely feel it on my belt, and all of the length is in the barrel, do I don’t get a beavertail poking me in the kidney like I do with a 1911. I’ve worn it all day like this without significant discomfort.

In conclusion, for $400 -- about a third the cost of the FN FiveSeven, firing ammo that costs far less than the FiveSeven's -- you get a weapon that’s lighter than a FiveSeven, holds more ammo than a FiveSeven, and has nearly the punch of a FiveSeven. It isn't without some issues, and probably could benefit from a “fluff and buff”, polishing the ramp and other moving parts to help avoid feed and extraction issues, is a little finicky about ammunition, and could stand to have the sights slightly tweaked. But it’s not finickier than some 1911’s, and overall, it’s an acceptable piece of hardware that carries easily, and with some practice can be accommodated and used effectively.


The following are some follow-up questions I asked Gwen based upon what she had written:

You say you are, or have been, a firearms instructor?
Not NRA Certified. But I taught informally for about 10 years in the Pink Pistols. I founded the Delaware Valley Chapter, and was the organization's International Media Spokesperson from about 2004-2011. I stopped teaching regularly in 2007, when I had my spinal surgery, but still gave advice from time to time, and have been politically active in support of the 2nd Amendment for a long time.

How long have you been carrying your PMR-30?
I've had the PMR for about a month, I'd say. Except for the time when I've been out of state, I've carried it.  I'd wanted one for a while, but I had a terrible time finding one, and when one became available, I jumped on it.

How many magazines do you carry every day?
I typically carry one spare magazine if I have it.

Do you have any accessories or modifications on your PMR-30?
Except for the generic holster, no. I haven't had it long enough to figure out what I'd want, or what would be useful. I think I might have it "fluffed and buffed", perhaps the ramp polished and some of the sharp edges dehorned, and the sights trued, but other than that, I don't know I will add anything. I don't know that I'll use the rail right now.

If you could tell Kel-Tec anything, or have them fix anything, what would it be?
Three things: Make the magazine easier to load or include a loader, make the sights more easily adjustable, and address the ramp-nosing issue. If a Lula loader becomes available for it, I'm getting one.

What kind of issues are you experiencing with the magazines?
I've got very sore hands because of nerve problems, and it just takes a long time to load them. If you follow the book and put the rounds in slowly and pack them like they say, it works fine, but it takes forever.

If you don't mind my asking, what kind of accident did you have? 
After work one evening, I was re-arming from the safe in my trunk, and a 40 mph wind blew the steel trunk lid down on my head, compacting 3 vertebrae and effectively breaking my neck. I had surgery to fuse the 3 levels and put in a titanium plate, but complications caused bone spurring at each of the levels.

What are your injuries?

As a result, I have severe nerve pain throughout most of my body to one degree or another all the time. I can walk short distances with a cane, but beyond the distances inside my house, I need the powered wheelchair out in my van. It simply hurts too much and tires me out too much to go further on foot.

Gwen's webcomic, Jenny Everywhere's Infinite: Quark Time, may be found here.