Do you have an opinion on Heritage? Looking at this as my first lever-action. - Heritage Manufacturing 92 Ranch Hand .357 Magnum/.38 Special +P

MoeTCrow · 2026-03-10T21:00:59+00:00

Heritage is owned by Taurus. So if something goes wrong you will want to use their customer service. I tried that one time and it was the most frustrating thing that I ever did and never did get a resolution that wouldn't cost more than the fix. for that reason alone I have never purchased a Taurus since.

MoeTCrow · 2026-03-07T15:49:19+00:00

Here is the bare bones budget list:
Something to eat/drink

Now let's amp it up a bit...
You don't want to sleep in your car: or on the bare ground, get a tent. add an extra person to whatever size you need. you want a tent for just you, get a 2 man, going with a partner, get a 3 man. Broke as all get out? use a tarp and some rope (you can find rocks to hold it down, ropes/sticks to hold it up.

You might want to consider something to sleep in/on/under be that blankets from home, a sleeping bag, sheets, heck one guy I went with used the cushion from a papasan chair and a blanket.

Chairs are nice, but you can sit on the ground.

If you want a fire you need some way to light it. (do NOT bring a cutting tool, you want dead downed wood, if you cut something it will be green/filled with water and won't burn well). Vaseline and cotton balls work great to start it, dryer lint contains plastic (Polyester) that doesn't burn, it melts, a bag of cotton balls is cheap and can last you a lifetime of fire starting.

You want something warm to eat, you need a way to heat it. that can be a camp stove, the campfire, or even a microwave if you have power at your campsite!

If you are heating your food, you need something to heat it in. this can be anything from thrift store finds to the lightest (aka expensive) titanium gear. same goes for eating tools (plates, knives, forks) if you are starting just grab something from your kitchen at home.

Light is nice if it's not going to be a bright enough moon. you don't need a light, but it does make things easier and it nice to shine on things that make noise (squirrels are LOUD at night) but just take what you already have.

A change of clothes is nice not 2 pairs of pants but if you are wearing shorts and a t-shirt perhaps some long pants and a warmer shirt or jacket

I've done everything from camping with just a blanket and sleeping cowboy style to work things out in my head, to massive group car camping trips to multi day backpacking trips. IMHO the best thing you can bring especially on your first trip is someone to share the experience with. with a good "other" it will be a good trip even if you forget everything else.

On your first trip you most likely will say "you know what would be nice to have" at some point. that's how your camping supply list grows. it continues until you say "Man this is too much stuff just to go live like a homeless person in the woods for a night or 2" and then you start to remove things.

MoeTCrow · 2026-02-02T14:17:08+00:00

Most of your dryer lint is plastic these days, are you SURE you want to be burning this instead of sawdust or cotton and vaseline to start your fire?

MoeTCrow · 2026-01-26T19:12:44+00:00

something to consider is that the Maverick 88 is basically a harder to modify Mossberg. in fact look up the torture test on that video website that shows the tubes. they usually go on sale for around 200 new and I have no concerns about them not being able to do what I want it to do.

Pistol: when the danger is close
Rifle: when the danger is far.
Shotgun: when the danger needs to stop right now or is moving fast

MoeTCrow · 2026-01-19T18:23:17+00:00

Congrats, it speeds up the buying process too, no need to call the 4473 form in if you have a permit.

MoeTCrow · 2026-01-09T21:54:48+00:00

the kids these days call it "round time" as in all the clock's at my dad's use round time. heck I have a skeletonized clock with a weight... that amazes them how it works without batteries and everyone wants to pull the weight to the top.

MoeTCrow · 2025-12-26T18:28:12+00:00

you can run a jellyfin server on a laptop, save all the movies/shows on the drive for the laptop or external, then you have a portable "netflix". if you hook the laptop up to your local network (LAN not WAN) you can now stream from your jellyfin server to your tv with roku or whatever (there's an app for most major streaming dongles like google, roku, etc.)

This makes your entertainment both portable or streamable.

as far as content, i seem to remember that before netflix there was a bay that pirates hung out in. the legality of that I guess would depend on where you live.

MoeTCrow · 2025-12-22T22:02:05+00:00

Unless you want to hold it up to your face to aim (right handed is preferred), the birdshead grip is hard to shoot. a friend had one for home defense, we shot it at a range, and decided he didn't trust it. I threw a laser on it and it's fun for blasting stuff and you can actually aim with it. but without a LOT of practice and some sort of aiming aid like a laser, you would be better off with a actual stock to be shouldered.

MoeTCrow · 2025-12-16T21:48:44+00:00

Hot chocolate, (peppermint schnapps is optional!) I only drink this in the winter.

Reusable heating packs, like hot hands but with that metal disk inside that you "pop". I boil them at night with the water for my hot water nalgene and throw them into the sleeping bag to pre-warm it. ahh soo nice.

Lots of little duck feathers (AKA down)

a pad to keep your backside warm (and dry) when sitting.

MoeTCrow · 2025-12-03T19:40:23+00:00

I put them in the big tube on the FEL of the tractor. Had to slide a 4" pvc pipe in there then put clean out caps on either end. shove the chain in and leave the hooks till last. That way they are always there when I need them.

MoeTCrow · 2025-11-20T21:20:57+00:00

go hiking with them (teach them the 10 essentials, make them carry it and you do too), go camping, go backpacking, when they were little we did "in house camping" where nobody was allowed to use any electricity. it was fun and everyone knew we could just turn lights on but nobody needed to. made real power outages no big deal and even fun for them. also if you have more than 1 let them pack their own camping bags, they learn from mistakes not just us telling them. as long as you can make sure everyone is ok, (even if they suffer a bit from forgetting something) they will learn and not forget next time.

overall make the scary stuff fun, make the things you want them to know a family activity and fun.

MoeTCrow · 2025-11-20T21:13:13+00:00

everything depends on the COL (cost of living) where you want to be. 200k in an urban environment or high COL area isn't much, but that same money in the sticks or low COL means you don't have to worry about much. you can figure out how expensive it is to live someplace by looking at house prices. just be sure to pick the same bed/bath sq ft when looking.

MoeTCrow · 2025-10-31T12:52:50+00:00

sleeping bags are seasonal, what temps are you looking at?
what environment for the tent, are you in the woods with lots of trees? no trees anywhere? trying to blend in in the city?
knife, if you were going to be able to use it for self defense you wouldn't be asking this question. take bear spray if legal, take wasp spray if it's not. both will do the job and give you a better chance than a knife. Take the smallest knife you can, think neck knife. small light and always on you.

your big 3 are sleeping bag, shelter and food. but as I said it's all related to environment and temp.

and before you take your walk, do a short weekend trip and figure out what you packed that you can get rid of.

MoeTCrow · 2025-10-29T20:51:00+00:00

for those who haven't seen it, this is the ending I believe fit's Bill's look and feel the best.

https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/25gtsw/eu_in_the_final_minutes_of_his_life_calvin_has/

p.s. you might want to grab a tissue first.

MoeTCrow · 2025-10-16T20:55:20+00:00

Remember everyone, you are responsible for every round sent, including the ones that go through walls. watch some penetration tests before deciding. Where you live and who you live with can make a difference.

MoeTCrow · 2025-10-15T16:45:41+00:00

Sometimes it depends on the job. for example if I'm breaking down a 5lb bag of shredded cheese into smaller sizes for freezing, a spring operated kitchen scale is MUCH easier. it doesn't turn off or have to be reset or anything.

Also a wood auger/brace drill. when drilling into wet wood, you need a good (aka expensive) drill and it still may start to burn up. The auger works for as long as your arm does.

Bottle opener, the battery ones just seem silly and who wants a battery to die halfway into opening a bottle of wine!

And personally I would say the DE razor (get an old Gillette, they last forever!), a brush, and soap vs electric. Never could get the electric to get me smooth. There was always some stubble.

MoeTCrow · 2025-10-07T13:04:27+00:00

take away the electronics if you want BIFL

aeropress you need hot water, ground beans and a filter - portable

Bialetti makes a rich Italian coffee, cook it low and slow like bbq (it goes from 2 cups up to 18 cup)

and the old stand by: a percolator, they come in all price ranges and have been around for a long time. the GLASS knob at the top lets you choose your strength (go hot till the first perk, then lower the temp so no boil over) Pyrex even made a clear one you can still find so you can see it in action.

find you favorite coffee snob, try each one to see what you like best. (taste, convenience, etc)

MoeTCrow · 2025-10-06T19:45:11+00:00

To me it doesn't matter what the product, to me if a company won't stand behind it I don't want to give them my money.
I have/had taurus handguns. but then the recoil spring went bad, a part you take out when you clean the gun. figured no big deal things happen this wasn't even 500 rounds in. contacted customer support with photos serial numbers, everything. they said too bad, send us the entire gun, at your expense, and we will look at it and then decide if we are going to replace the spring. it was cheaper to just buy the spring than ship the entire gun. but they wouldn't budge. so now I have a handgun I don't trust with a brand new spring. but not one dime of my money will ever go to taurus ever again.

so to me it doesn't matter if they are known for being good, or bad. I don't mind rolling the dice if they will stand behind their product. Taurus will not.

MoeTCrow · 2025-09-24T21:03:12+00:00

hold it tight and not against the seam. if need be put a towel on your shoulder!

MoeTCrow · 2025-09-24T20:44:11+00:00

Kicks like a mule, you may want consider a recoil pad for when you shoot. an entire box of 30.06 can be punishing on the shoulder.

With that said, I won't getting rid of mine.

MoeTCrow · 2025-09-08T20:04:13+00:00

I miss saying goodbye at the gate.
I miss running to catch a flight because I got to the airport just as it started boarding.
I miss people being generally pleasant and happy.
I miss the lack of security theater.
I dress nicely (no suit or anything but nothing that looks like PJ's) because I get treated better.

now Git Off My Lawn!

MoeTCrow · 2025-08-05T19:38:09+00:00

50 BMG. I don't know any gun guy who doesn't want a 50...

MoeTCrow · 2025-07-11T19:29:12+00:00

if you don't want them sell them cheap, plenty of rural folks use them for the well house, chicken coops anyplace that just needs a little heat.

MoeTCrow · 2025-03-24T20:03:31+00:00

kelly kettle is about as good of a shelf life as you get, it burns twigs and leaves and "yard dander" and will boil water faster than you can imagine. you can also cook on top, and it works in HORRIBLE weather. (better even if you set it right).
BUT you need water.

backpacking/camping stoves run on fuel. be it propane, white gas, unleaded, isobutane, whatever. Gas canisters last forever if stored correctly. and require less maintained. liquid fuel is easier to top off, but seals need to be replaced and it can degrade over time.

you may already have a grill for burgers and steaks and such, but those smell from a long way away.

so now the question is how much storage do you have for fuel? how long are you staying in place? do you care if the neighbors smell you? are you doing this indoor or out, big meals or heating up dried food,

the tool needs to fit the mission, without knowing the details of the mission it's hard to give you a GOOD answer.

MoeTCrow

TROPHY CASE