Author: jcalvert

After getting a lot of advice from the gang at the Straight Shooters Forum, I decided to run through my collection of pellets to see which ones my R7 truly enjoys. I think the results show that any “getaway tree rats” are my fault, not the fault of the R7. It seems that my little Beeman shoots pretty much everything well.

Beeman R7 in action …

There were a couple of exceptions. The Gamo Match pellets, Beeman Silver Bear, and Beeman H&N Match pellets all contained at least one flier.

Some grouped better than others, but the Crosman Premier Light pellets were easily the best, followed by Gamo Hunter and Beeman Laser-Sport pellets.

Hands down, Beeman Crow-Magnum pellets were the worst of the bunch.

• Row 1: Gamo Match, Gamo Magnum, Gamo Master Point, Gamo Hunter
• Row 2: Beeman Silver Sting, Beeman Laser-Sport, Beeman Silver Bear, Beeman H&N Match
• Row 3: Beeman Silver Ace, Beeman Trophy Lightweight Round Nose
• Row 4: Beeman Crow-Magnum, Crosman Premier Light, Beeman Ram Jet, Beeman Kodiak Match

I shot groups of 10 pellets from a rested, windowsill position, at about 17 yards, in slightly windy conditions, with gusts of 5-10 mph.

For more detailed pictures, see R7 Pellets (large picture), Crosman Premier Lights, and Gamo Hunter.

All in all, a fun shoot, interesting test, and one great airgun!

Because we all love a quickie!

No gaming updates.  I am sure I will get back into the swing of things eventually.  Right now I am enjoying football season, and the weather has been perfect for paper punching and plinking with my Beeman R7.  Still waiting for my shiny new Beeman R1 .22 to arrive, but it has to ship first!  While I am waiting for my new baby, I am spending some quality time with the R7 to determine once and for all what pellet(s) it actually favors.  Just when I thought I had things figured out, the gun pulls some surprises on me.  Yesterday afternoon Beeman Kodiak Match Extra Heavy (10.6 gr) pellets ruled the day.  Everyone speaks to the virtues of Beeman Crow-Magnum (8.80 gr) pellets, but my R7 sprays those suckers like a shotgun blast.  Hopefully more on this later.

Georgia faces Arizona State today.  The Bulldogs have never been west of the Mississippi in my lifetime.  All the pendants want to knock off the Dawgs.  Ever preseason report I read said that the Dawgs would struggle in the Arizona desert.  All week long the experts are saying how close this one is going to be because Georgia should have lost at South Carolina; they got lucky.

Are you f’ing kidding me?  Seriously, how can Arizona State compare to an SEC team?  The Gamecocks have one of the best defenses in the SEC.  Georgia dropped several passes, including a TD in the endzone.  No one wants to talk about that, instead they bring up the fact that SC was going into the endzone when they coughed up the ball.  Um, how about Georgia forced a fumble?  How about looking at the history of the series?  Un f’ing real.

Tomorrow Kansas City pays a visit to the Georgia Dome.  KC must really suck for the Falcons to be 5.5 point favorites.

September 27 will mark the seventh anniversary of some incarnation of Calvert Games, The Recycle Bin, Squirrel Hunter’s Daily, or whatever we are these days.  Time flies, and the years go by.

My work here is down, I shall leave now.

Happy Saturday!  Go Dawgs!

Typical Georgia/South Carolina game. For the sixth time in the past eight years, the game was decided by seven points or less.

Give credit to the fighting chickens; their defense was very good. Or does that mean that the Dawgs offense stumbled?

• TE Chandler dropped three very catchable balls.
• Moreno rushed for 79 yards on 20 carries, with a TD. 2 receptions for 13 yards. Returned a punt for 32 yards.
• 11 f’ing penalties, resulting in giving up 112 yards.
• Georgia controlled time of possession 35:13 to 24:47. Georgia had the ball 13:20 minutes in the Second Quarter.

When all was said and done, Georgia forced two key turnovers, which really were the game. My theory is that Georgia always plays down to their competition, and South Carolina brings out the worst in Georgia.

A win is a win, no matter how dirty. Go Dawgs!

First of all, don’t click on the links if you do not want to see some graphic depictions of squirrels meeting their end at the hands of my R7.

Let’s get the technical stuff out of the way. My R7 is .177, and I was shooting with Gamo Master Point pellets (7.87 gr). The R7 carries a Leapers 6×32 Bug Buster 2, mounted via B-Square (25020) mounts. Sighted in at 17 yards; normal shooting distance is 15-20 yards.

My over/under for the weekend was 3 tree rats. Let the fun begin.

Earlier in the day I had a chance at 3 of the varmints, but there was no point. I did not have clean shots, and these guys were not really bothering anything. At least not yet.

Before the Georgia game I decided to see if things hand changed, and they had. I ended up with a couple of worthy shots. The first one was fairly easy and straight forward, while the second one was really a traffic shot. I am biased, but it took a steady hand, and perfect placement to pull it off.

Was the R7 up to the challenge? You bet!

Squirrel number one was about 15 yards off. The pictures are a little washed out, but Mr. Squirrel took a Master Point in the left ear, and amazingly it exited out of its left hind leg. It took him about 15 seconds to expire, but the hit was about as clean as they come.

Squirrel number two was about 10 yards off, but a good 30-40 feet in the pecan tree. There was a soft 5-7 mph wind, but enough to make me concerned about shooting through the shifting leaves. Ms. Squirrel was hugging a big branch; I guess she sensed that she was being watched in my scope. Steady, aim, fire. She fell like a rock without a twitch.

Links to pictures follow. Remember these are fairly graphic (particularly Squirrel Number one). I am intentionally keeping these out of standard blog posts and the main page. I have never taken pictures of the results of my handy work, but figured I would give it a go. Enough of that; you have been warned.

• R7 – Good Hunting.
• R7 – Head On Good Hunting.
• That has to hurt. Ear hole; exit left hind leg.
• Happy Trails.
• That has to hurt. Ear hole shot.
• That has to hurt. Exit left hind leg.

I love my R7; it really is the perfect backyard shooter. My only problem with tree rats is shot placement. These pictures clearly demonstrate that shot placement matters. The R7 is up to the task if you do your part.

I thought I would take a few minutes to apologize for the lack of posts. Hey, it happens. Real life (work, family, the good stuffs) always tends to get in the way of a good blog or two.

So where to next? I am not sure why, but I have had absolutely zero interest in gaming. Crickets since the release of Madden Special Edition. I would have been better off rolling a hundred for a smoke. Same for NCAA Football. I am sure the second patch (i.e. the gameplay patch) is out, but I have not bothered to look. Always peaks and valleys when it comes to gaming. Not sure if I have reached the bottom, but my guess is I still have a good ways to go because the season is turning, and I do not have any inclination to fire up the PS3.

Besides, football season is here, and the Falcons looked very good last weekend. Not sure what the actual attendance was. It seemed like no more than 50K were in the dome, but the game was a sellout thanks to some ATL sponsors picking up the remaining tickets to prevent a blackout. We all went nuts when Ryan threw a perfect slant to Jenkins for a 62 yard TD scamper on the third play of the game. Ryan’s first NFL pass for a TD. 7-0. We were excited. On the next series Turner burns the Lions for a 66 yard TD romp into the endzone. Are you kidding me? 14-0. We were really going nuts at that point. The Falcons third possession resulted in another Turner TD. 21-0? First quarter? Our Falcons? WTF. Beautiful stuff. That was a game to remember.

Tampa should be a better test. Two weeks from now is the next home game against the Chiefs. Hope to have a nice Weber Q Portable Grill may be in order; if gas prices do not spike unbelievably high in the wake of Ike.

Should be a good football day with Georgia looking to kick the fighting chickens in their collective ass. I hate the Gamecocks, but they have taken 2 of 3 from the Dawgs.

USC is going to kill Ohio St. with or without Wells. I say USC by 17 running away easily. Hopefully the blowout will be so bad that the Buckeyes will not enter back into the Championship picture, even if they manage to run the table the rest of the way.

As I said, the season is changing, which means more time outdoors. Of course that means the R7 is getting plenty of attention. I have a Beeman R1 .22 on order from Straight Shooters; they have excellent service. Highly recommended. A review will be forthcoming. Expect to see plenty of airgun posts over the next few weeks. You have been warned.

All for now. Happy Saturday!

Before I head to the game, I thought I would offer up my predictions. I have divided the games into three categories: wins, losses, toss ups (week number).

• Wins: Kansas City (3), Oakland (9), Denver (11), St. Louis (17)
• Losses: Tampa Bay (2), Carolina (4), Green Bay (5), Chicago (6), Philadelphia (8), San Diego (13), New Orleans (14), Tampa Bay (15), Minnesota (16)
• Toss Ups: Detroit (1), New Orleans (10), Carolina (12)

So it is not going to be a pretty season. Unlike last year, the team is realistic about rebuilding, but it is still going to be a difficult year. I only see four wins on the schedule, with three toss up type games, which I am going to give the Falcons because they are home games. Atlanta should get better down the stretch, but they do not have an easy December. New Orleans, Tampa Bay, and Minnesota are going to be playoff teams (or at least fighting for a Wild Card spot), while St. Louis may be in the same boat if things fall into place for them.

I am not disappointed that I have spent money for season tickets in what is sure to be a painful year, but I am sure my boys are going to get tired of watching their Falcons fall in defeat. The boys will be happy if they get McDonalds for their tailgate meals, and get to throw around a football some with dad.

I am still looking forward to a fun (the game day experience) year.

Go Falcons!

First, in fall practice, it was LF Trinton Sturdivant. Last week against Georgia Southern, DT Jeff Owens went down, tearing his ACL early in the first quarter. I have already said it several times, in addition to being a great team, you need to have some serious luck, and remain injury free to run the table to the National Championship.

Things are not looking good early, but adversity builds character. Go Dawgs!

#1 Georgia easily defeated Georgia Southern 45-21, but it was never that close. Georgia was up 24-0 at the half, and 38-0 mid-way through the third quarter before getting a little sloppy.

Uga VII (Loran’s Best) – Sic ’em

Of course when the competition is a Division I-AA team (or whatever they call it these days), you cannot really take too much out of the victory. There were a few stand outs on offense:

• Stafford was 13-21, 275 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs.
• Moreno had 112 all purpose yards. 8 carries for 59 yards (7.4 yards/rush), with 3 TDs. 2 receptions for 53 yards.
• King (backup HB) had 12 carries for 95 yards (7.9 yards/rush), all of which came in the second half.
• Walsh (unproven freshman) was perfect on extra point attempts (6 for 6), and on field goals (booted a 52 yarder).

Next week should be more interesting, as Georgia plays hosts to Central Michigan.

ACC Looks Pitiful
If #9 Clemson is the best the ACC has to offer, and #24 Alabama is a pretty good team (but not great), than woe is the ACC, as Bama hung the Tigers by their collective tails, 34-10. Ouch.

At least the ACC can take solace in #23 Wake Forests 41-13 victory over Baylor, and Maryland’s 14-7 win over stalwart Delaware. The ACC has to take their bones any way they can get them, because the weekend was not pretty.

• #17 Virginia Tech took it on the chin against East Carolina.
• South Carolina sunked North Carolina State 34-0.
• #3 USC walloped Virginia 52-7.

Big Ten Oh No, Not Again
Wow. Way to go Michigan. The Wolverines go down in their home opener in consecutive years. At least Utah is better competition than Appalachian State, but still, the former big boys of the Big Ten should win this type of game, no questions asked.

Michigan State going down 38-31 to California is not too embarrassing. Somewhat respectable, but I expect smash mouth football to rule the day over West Coast play.

Same for #20 Illinois, they lost 42-52 to #6 Missouri. No shame in that one.

Big 12 Follies
Chalk one up for the Sun Belt Conference. Arkansas State pulled off an amazing upset over Texas A&M, 18-14. How on earth does that happen?

SEC Shame of the Week
How does Mississippi State go down 22-14 to Louisiana Tech?

Go Dawgs!

Sorry for the sparse updates last week. Business travel, more work stuff, and some family time equaled no time for updates. Actually on the plane to San Antonio I put in some time with Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection for the PSP. This one or The Gottlieb Collection are mainstays for my PSP; pretty much nothing else these days. I always take a bagful of PSP games on the plane, but usually do not get to most of them.

I have put my Falcons season tickets to good use. I have been lucky enough to take my two oldest boys to the two home preseason games. Friday night was special because my oldest son turned 10. So we got a nice birthday game, tailgate, father son(s) throw around in the parking lot, a Falcons win, some beer, and other good stuff.

A week ago against the Colts, Matt Ryan looked shaky at best, going 8-16, 62 yards, and 1 really bad looking interception. Last Friday night against the Titans, Ryan look fairly comfortable. While Ryan missed a couple of reads that could have resulted in TDs (over throws), Ryan was 15-21, 102 yards, 1 TD, and 0 INTs. Most Falcons fans missed Ryan’s debut as a starter, even if it was still the preseason; no way there was more than 30K at the Dome.

Matt Ryan – starting QB

It was nice to see Ryan get plenty of cheers when the offense was introduced. The end result? Ryan is now “officially” our starting QB. The Vick era can be officially dead and buried.

I sound be back to a regular rotation this week. Good gaming!

Georgia is ranked #1 in the AP and Coaches Poll. Scary stuff for the start of the season. As I said after the Coaches Poll was released, I will certainly pull for the Dawgs, but I think they have little chance of going undefeated.

The schedule is just too f’ing hard. I see this year’s schedule as four mini schedules:

• The Georgia Southern (Aug 30) and Central Michigan (Sep 6) home dates are going to be breezes.
• Going on the road to South Carolina (Sep 13) and #15 Arizona State (Sep 20) is going to be rough. Forget the fact that the Fighting Chickens upset Georgia last year; they always play the Dawgs tight. No idea what to expect from the Sun Devils. Georgia does not typically travel out of conference.
• Next up are three difficult home games. #24 Alabama (Sep 27), #18 Tennessee (Oct 11), and Vanderbilt (Oct 18). The Volunteers took Georgia behind the woodshed last year. Alabama will be tough. Vanderbilt has upset Georgia in recent years, and could again if the Dawgs are looking ahead to their next opponent.
• It is extremely unlikely for the Dawgs to make it to 7-0, but if they do, the two most difficult games are up next. On the road against #7 LSU (Oct 25), followed by the World’s Largest Cocktail Party against #5 Florida (Nov 1).
• Follow up the last Tigers and Gators with two more difficult road games, which makes it four in a row on the road. Kentucky (Nov 8th) and #10 Auburn (15).
• The Dawgs finish up their season at home with Georgia Tech (Nov 29). If Georgia enters this game 11-0, Sanford Stadium is going to be nuts.

I think the Dawgs will go 6-1, 1-1, 1-1, 1-0, which will be good for a 9-3 record. Certainly not National Championship material, but not too bad for the brutal schedule in front of them. Hopefully I am wrong, and we are in store for a magical season.

Go Dawgs!

Yesterday was one of those rough ones. You know the kind of workday where you come in early, leave late, see oh so little light at the end of the tunnel, but finally get some closure to the day so you can go home to your sleeping family kind of days? One of those types of days that always seems to come up when a new game ripe for impressions sits around collecting dust kind of days? Need a stiff drink and a strong upper lip, chin up type of days?

Ah, it’s not all the bad. Some people can not put food on the table or fill up their cars with gas. Or their health sucks. Or maybe their kids are in the Middle East fighting for our freedom (or maybe even gave up their life in our defense).

OK, enough doom and gloom. When I got home from work last night my new Dan Post boots were waiting on me, along with a nice Maker’s Mark, and some Olympic action on NBC. Good times at last!

I hope to get in some more Madden and Head Coach talk over the weekend. Lots of stuff going on, but I am sure Saturday and Sunday will see a post or two.  First Falcons game (vs. Colts) is Saturday night, and I will be in Texas for a few days early next week.

BTW, nice upwards spike in readers this week, mostly checking out my bitching around the NCAA Football 09 patch mess. Thanks to my longtime readers, and hope you new ones stick around for more of the needful.

Finally! I am downloading it as we speak. Been a long wait, but at least we finally have the roster patch. Before starting a session of Madden, I decided to throw in NCAA Football 09 to see if I would be prompted for an upgrade. Imagine my surprise to (finally) see that v1.10 was available for download.

This patch thing has been a complete goat fuck. First, the need to patch the game. Second, the long wait. Third, the patch was rejected by Sony due to who knows what reasons. With all that said, I am thankful that we are getting patches for this game, but as I have previous said, the next patch (i.e. Patch #2 or the gameplay patch) is the real prize.

Now it should be safe to start a dynasty, but we can always start complaining about the wait for second patch. Let the countdown begin.

Earlier this week starting LF Trinton Sturdivant had a knee injury and was taken to the local hospital as a precaution. It looks like he is going to be done for the year. This is a huge blow for the Bulldogs because Sturdivant was a member of the SEC All-Freshman team, starting all 13 games last year. Now the question is who will protect Matthew Stafford’s blindside?

Georgia faces a brutal schedule, and luck has to play into a National Championship run. Early signs and injuries are not pointing in a favorable direction.

Go Dawgs!

As I said a few minutes ago, PS3 users are still waiting for the “roster” patch (or patch #1) to be released.  I really do not understand what the hold up is, but when I started up Madden 09 I was presented with a 24MB download for v1.10.  If EA can have a patch ready for Madden day one, I really do not understand WTF is taking so long with NCAA Football.

I could care less about the patch except for a couple of things.  First, I have not started a dynasty because of the promised gameplay fixes in the “gameplay” patch (or patch #2).  Second, I see little chance of getting to the second patch without the first one being released.  As each day passes, the chances for a quick resolution slowly slip away.

Oh well.  At least this year I can have a crap for a running game, and piss poor robo-QBs in my NCAA and NFL football games.  Consistency matters with this type of stuff.

And no, I have not been drinking.  Just one ticked of gamer.

As of 9:30 PM EST, the NCAA Football 09 patch has still not been posted. Where is the f’ing patch for the PS3? Now that Madden is out, will anyone care? I love NCAA Football (the series, not necessarily this year’s game) so I want to see a quality gameplay patch, but I will be damned if we will see it anytime soon since the first roster patch cannot seem to be released.

So I open Madden and jump right into the Madden IQ crap. Some of this stuff seems contrived. Let’s just call it down right BS. My IQ sucks; 498.  Funny, this score is actually lower than my demo score.  Somehow I have regressed.

For my first game I have the Saints visit the Georgia Dome. Call me a bitter old man, but this first game does not leave me feeling all that enthused for Madden. There is a reason that I have not really gotten into Madden the last few years. Typical pattern is purchase, play less than two weeks, become disappointed, sell on eBay.

Right out of the box this one just screams typical Madden. No running game and unrealistic pass percent completion numbers. Brees goes 15-19 for 136 yards. I know my Madden IQ sucks, but come on; this is shades of this year’s NCAA Football. WTF? Of course running is the polar opposite. McAllister has 19 yards on 15 attempts, while Turner has 11 yards on 7 attempts. Give the CPU a cookie for at least making 15 rushing attempts.

Adding insult to injury, after my 10-3 loss, my IQ drops 10 points to 489. Ouch. I guess I am getting too old for this crap.

Oh well; getting late for this bitter old man. Will have to take another crack at it tomorrow.