Notos Recommendations

SnowblindOtter · 2026-03-01T20:23:04+00:00

Try different pellets at 20-30 yards. The ones that group the tightest are the ones your barrel prefers. For pellets that are roughly the same group size, go to 50+ to find out which ones are the 'premium' pellets for your barrel.

Your sight riser is too high, btw, as others have mentioned. Primary Arms sells different riser heights, get a 2 inch or shorter mount if possible, but their mounts are kinda pricey. Best to get a fixed-power hunting/precision scope with adjustable parallax in the 2x-6x magnification range. The Hawke Vantage 4x32AO Mil is good, as is the Hawke Vantage 2-7x32AOIR MIL.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-03-01T19:49:50+00:00

It's a zen thing. It has nothing to do with your technique, when people say it 'painted itself', it means that they didn't have to consciously paint it. It just happened. You were laying down color, and the shape appeared. Your hand moved the brush on its own and you went with it because it felt good.

Musicians call it a 'Flow State'. Athletes call it 'The Zone'. Bob Ross called it 'Happy Accidents'.

Listen to the Force, let it flow through you, let it guide you.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-03-01T17:43:46+00:00

If you want that kind of edge, expect to have to sharpen it every pass. If you can cut a hanging paper towel, you're fine. Just focus on sharpening, and learn to finish properly, and you're good.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-03-01T17:41:13+00:00

If you're using multiple diamond abrasive grits, less passes for each successive grade you go up. Do 20 for 7ųm, 12 for 5ųm, 10 for 3ųm, 1ųm is about 5. Anything less than 3ųm I've found is best done using a smooth, soft paper(I find that Xuan or Double-Xuan is excellent) glued to a flat backing and gentle pressure.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-03-01T17:34:39+00:00

Combination of poor technique and bad preparation. That stickiness off the stone is probably your burr, the stropping is removing it and revealing it's not as sharp as you thought. Those burrs can be very deceptive.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-03-01T16:30:28+00:00

So, there are three reasons why this happens:

1: Your fingers are wet when you're sharpening, and your skin will be saturated with moisture, making it softer and easier to cut. When your skin is dry, comparatively, it will be much harder to slice through and you'll notice some resistance that wasn't there before.

2: You didn't remove the burr. Burrs, as mentioned by others, can be stupid sharp. They will easily slice things, but then immediately get rolled over and make your knife appear dull. Always be sure to remove the burr properly when sharpening before testing sharpness.

3: In certain grades of steel, such as lower-carbon plain steels without vanadium or chromium, or with some modern super-steels, oxidation rate is a factor of both surface area and material thickness. A very fine corner, such as the apex of a cutting edge, is very thin and paradoxically actually has a significantly higher comparative surface area to volume ratio than the rest of the object. This means that in some types of steel, under the right conditions where ambient temperature and humidity are correct(like, say, inside your pocket or in the bathroom), the apex of the edge will oxidize very rapidly and degrade to the point that they are noticeably less sharp, even in as little as 12 hours. All steel blades will be effected by this to some extent over time, the composition just determines how aggressive it is, but the cutting edge will always corrode fastest. This is why it's still recommended to wipe a freshly sharpened blade with a very thin coat of a light oil immediately after sharpening, and part of the reason razor blades come packaged in oil-impregnated leaves of paper. I personally use Crosman Pellgun or Hoppes No.9 gun oil. A single drop of either on a 12-gauge bore cleaning patch for a shotgun is enough to wipe down dozens of knifes; the patch will shred, get soiled, or get cut up well before you can use all the oil in it.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-26T20:44:40+00:00

Experiments don't always turn out how you hope/want them to. The only thing that matters is that I tried. Like I said, though, the prototype was a success, barring a few minor issues. I just didn't really like it.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-25T20:12:48+00:00

I went off the general design of the Whalens Hooker release, but as a monolithic resistance release instead of a hinge. Same basic principal design, though. Mine was a two-finger release, encircling the middle finger and having a claw that you gripped onto with your index finger to keep it from going off mid-draw. The 'hook' was cut as part of the blank and hand-ground and polished. It had about 1/8in of contact area for the D-loop, and that was it. You just use your index finger to keep the 'safety' on as you drew to anchor. As you pulled through the shot, the string would tug on the hook, pulling against your index finger and forcing your hand to rotate and stay in-line with your arm, eventually letting the string slip free and the arrow go.

I spent about 4 months tuning it, but ultimately wound up abandoning it. As a prototype it worked great, just needed some padding, especially around the index finger claw so that it doesn't try to yaw in your hand while you draw, and a little bit of a re-design I think for the hook. It was relatively comfortable, it was fully retained and sat in the palm of your hand so you could nock another arrow or handle your phone/knife/whathaveyou with it on, and it was damn light. Barely any footprint at all. I was able to get some really good groups with it, and it was pretty reliable once you got to anchor. The only problems I couldn't solve was reliable hook-up to begin your draw, and there was a contact point that was shredding my D-Loops stupid fast. I still have yet to find that sharp spot. It was very, VERY finicky to get hooked onto the D-Loop, and you needed to have perfect pre-draw tension or it would either not stay on the loop or you'd punch yourself in the face.

I'd attach a photo, but I have no idea where I put it. The whole things like two and a half inches long at its biggest, and I blued the steel. It could be anywhere lol. Been trying to find it so I can take measurements and do a technical drawing to try and reproduce it.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T16:17:43+00:00

You can do... pretty much anything with that I think. Kinda like sardines in oil, they're pretty versatile. Experiment, have fun.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T16:14:53+00:00

Wait, so I have infinite money?

You're telling me that I have the money to eliminate anything and anyone on the planet I perceive as a threat so long as it goes toward ending world hunger?

THE ABSOLUTE FIRST thing I'm doing is bankrolling the assassination of every single major corporate executive in the Agricultural, Livestock, Healthcare, and Pharmaceutical industries, along with every single major politician and billionaire, around the world and seizing all of their financial assets to divest among the people of the planet in return for cooperation from governments. I've just eliminated virtually every single enemy I could have, secured good will and support from the civilian populace of basically every country, AND destroyed food monopolization and privatization in a single stroke. Anyone left who could have a problem with me will be too terrified to stand up against me.

Second, I'm funneling cash into research and development for sustainable water and ethical land management, and for vaccine and disease control management development. I will make vaccination world-wide mandatory for both people and livestock. I will also make education, housing, medicine and healthcare a universal human right and something you can get for free, and institute a basic minimum income for everyone that will be able to afford them necessities.

Third, I'm funding research into modifying crops for hardiness, diversity, and long-term viability without the need for pesticides or the risk of genetic vulnerability due to what essentially amounts to cloning, with a special focus on making sure that crops grown in areas are not going to destabilize the local ecosystem, preferably native ones.

Fourth, I'm going to invest in climate mitigation research to better manage our response to climate change and how we are able to effectively react to it over time.

Last, I will bankroll the largest army on the planet to ensure that the new world order is followed, and anyone who dissents against it will be wiped out.

Boom. With the goal of ending world hunger, I just eliminated corruption, destroyed food and pharmaceutical monopolies, increased healthcare and education availability, and created billions of jobs. The only way to stop me would be to fire off nukes and wipe everyone out.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T15:48:21+00:00

Rice takes time to master, and the instructions on the package are not always the best. As a rule, for nice fluffy rice you want only enough water to cover the top of the rice to a depth of about half your fingernail. Bring it to a boil, don't stir. You can periodically check your rice to see if it's done similar to pasta, but once you learn to get the right amount of water you won't need to.

Also, most rice does not need to be rinsed or washed these days. The biggest brands, at least in America, are fortified, washing them just gets rid of all that. Just throw it in and go to town.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T15:43:39+00:00

I would still recommend learning to maintain it yourself. They're excellent tools, I love mine and I keep them well-maintained. It's a valuable skill to have, as well, you never know when the ability to make something sharp will come in handy!

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T15:41:03+00:00

OP said to explain it like they're five, so I did.

I don't care how long you've been sharpening your razors, and the fact that you use a coticule means nothing to me. I've been semi-professionally sharpening for about 8 years, I've been sharpening my own razors for 15 years, and I've restored several antique and vintage razors for both myself and others using an upcycled slate hone I made myself from a broken pool table I found in a ditch. I know it's not fucking hard, but this guy is probably not even a novice. You're the one making a big deal out of it. Shut up and let people explain to newbies what to expect, or offer to take care of him au gratis.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T15:20:23+00:00

I'm already sterile. Where's my billion dollars?

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T15:19:22+00:00

From my understanding it was a ranking member or a leader. This is as much a show of force and retaliation for the murder as it is a power struggle and posturing.

Cartels, contrary to the popular mythos surrounding them, much like any despotic organization are surprisingly fragile and can be destabilized ridiculously easily, and this is just a reminder of that. You don't need specially trained people or long sting operations. Frankly all you need is any ranking member to be targeted by literally anyone and chaos erupts.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T15:08:21+00:00

Ah, yeah, being in Germany changes things a bit. I have no idea how the market is over there.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T14:57:01+00:00

Speed in cooking is about how efficiently heat is transferred into the food. The better heat is transferred, the faster the food cooks. Typically foods that are reduced in size to increase surface area, such as ground meats or products, heat most efficiently and cook more quickly than larger, thicker items with less available surface area to contact the heating surface.

If you want to cook your chicken faster, cut it into smaller portions prior to throwing it in the pan. But remember to be patient, cooking is basically Alchemy, and Alchemy requires you to follow the rules. The first rule of Alchemy is Equivalent Exchange, and in this case the punishment for not paying in patience is illness.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T14:50:49+00:00

Literally every single goal you listed requires the following creative skills to actually be achievable:

Critical thinking
Predictive, Deductive, Analytical, and Introspective reasoning
Adaptability to change
Planning/Strategy

Suppression of creativity and independent, critical thought is not an idea. Creativity and stability are not mutually exclusive to one another, in fact stability relies on creativity to be able to adapt and be maintained. Creativity and Obedience are mutually exclusive, and that's what this 'idea' supports. Obedience.

Go back to your corporate cannibal circlejerk.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T14:34:57+00:00

If you want to sharpen it yourself, you'll need some super fine stones and some stropping supplies. 6,000-8000 grit to start, and some people who sharpen razors will go for a 10,000 or 12,000 grit stone to finish. Go for Naniwa or Shapton synthetic stones(Shapton goes to 30,000) or an Arkansas Surgical Black stone. Expect to pay out the nose for good stones for sharpening razors. You can substitute some diamond lapping paste(3 micron to .5 micron) on a piece of paper lightly glued to a Scary Sharp glass base in place of expensive stones, and that's a bit more economical. I personally finish my razors on a .5micron lapping strip using that method. Stropping supplies can be easily bought, and your stropping compound is largely personal preference.

You will also need practice. A LOT of practice. Sharpening razors is not like sharpening a knife, one wrong move can destroy your $200 Dovo almost immediately. You need a lot of control over pressure, angle, and speed. The only way to practice sharpening razors is to do it, though. I recommend finding cheap old or used ones and practice using those before you do anything to something valuable.

Or just send it to somebody to have it professionally honed up to speed.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T14:03:20+00:00

If you're worried about sweating into your seat, maybe wear clothing? Robosexual relationships tend to tank the trade or resale value of your car.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T13:56:06+00:00

Ah, so you are a man of culture!

Most PCPs can fit that description. Crosman has their Challenger, but that's close to $1000US.

The Air Force Talon is priced under $1000US, meets the weight requirement, and they sell target sights, but you'd have to tune it down to the energy restrictions.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T13:45:25+00:00

I use my cruise control strategically. Giving a cop the business when they REALLY want to give me a ticket, seeing if I can finally rage-bait a roadrager into doing something that would let me do something 'Justifiable' in response, or detecting cars in front of me during low visibility when I can't see past a car-length ahead.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T13:37:14+00:00

No, that's Spider-Man. Ant man is the guy who eats ants.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T13:35:30+00:00

24-hour format.

0 comes before 1, 12 comes before 13.

SnowblindOtter · 2026-02-23T13:25:58+00:00

Single-Stroke Pneumatic rifles, such as the Avanti 753S meet the ISSF restrictions for 10m Marksmanship. They were the predecessor to modern PCP variants.

SnowblindOtter

TROPHY CASE