I am at Home in the panhandle region of Florida. The move is complete.

BPS is well along. Much is functional. The completion of my set up here will occur, in the background; as I work.

The "fleet" took some hard hits during the approximate 30,000 miles logged, but limped in here with the last load. I have three crippled trailers, a truck with tires that sound like I'm running diving flippers ... and some squeaky suspension member front driver's side. Fortunately, I don't need any of them to build airguns. So; I'll just bulldozer those aside for the time being.

Maryland: Ah .... Maryland.

The contractor is hired to clean out every remaining thing that isn't nailed down inside the shop and sheds. I had to leave many things I'd not have chosen to leave. But I pressed the remaining trailer into service, and made it be the last. The cleaning crew are hired to remove the remainder of the items I bagged, and the rubbish generated from the "Great Furnace Caper". The damage to the house has already been addressed. It's very nearly ready to reenter the market for showings. However; it's been a huge capital drain, so we do hope all the details fall into line.

I'm very much ready to work. (All this laying around has made me soft .... I will need some time to bring things up to speed. But it begins now. Fair warning. No matter what I start first ... it will be wrong. I realize that. I'm also aware that it won't be fast enough, or broad enough in scope. However; whatever is completed will be correct, safe, thoroughly tested, and documented. And, it will be the continuation of the Barnes story, where factors were stacking against my favor in Maryland.

I broke out of Maryland, just hours ahead of a terrible ice storm. Many folks in my home area have been without electricity for most of a week now. The exact sector which contains BPN, remains with power. I had been delayed leaving for a couple of more days; by things that simply would not co-operate, took too long, or materialized from the pits of Hell. Nothing that couldn't be handled.

I'm delighted that Jerry brought forward a few older interesting threads. And delighted that Kent organized a fun Winter shooting match for us. We will get things wound up again here. I have my Casio high speed video camera here, and I want to get that out and do some work with it. I'd greatly appreciate if some of you with my guns might share too. In whatever way you enjoy them most. Perhaps they hold a door open better then the old pr. of corduroy bedroom slippers previously wedged under there. Well, ya see right there .... that's an indicator of versatility ... and that's a good thing. We can use that.

I have a truck load, and a trailer load of tools and odds and ends to absorb. Then, to date; I don't have a bluing shop. I have an idea of a corner of a building that might serve that purpose. I have way too many things still in boxes and tubs. Items needed, but not in prime floor space. The loft storage must be built in the lower shop. Quite a few shelving units got things off the floor, and trailers emptied, but not in such a way as to be a workable system. These things will change slowly. As you know, I have hundreds of completed, blued, wrapped, and inventoried parts. I'll be making the fiddly bits that hook these together and make them work.

Thanks for sticking with me. It's been a hoot. We did what we said we'd do. Did it the very best we could. Now, we will finish the rest while we continue to work. But - we will work here .... and that's very good. BPN is closed. Long live BPS.

Blessings,
Gary

Great to have that final trip behind you Gary, and to be able to give your all to BPS! Hat's off to your incredible determination and durability over this huge project (and Kelly's too!)
Best regards
Neil

Thank you, sincerely; Neil.



Gary

Gary, at last the northern book is closed. Things should really start coming back together in BPS. Enjoy the warm weather. We are freezing here by lake Ontario. Very tired of the deep cold.

Will

Hi Will,

I hope you get a break in the weather (or develop a fondness for cold) very soon.

One of the things I needed, badly; was to get away from the cold. This last tour when is was zero and single digits, really put the bite on me again.

However; today I worked in a tee and jeans all day. Glorious temp. Very nice.

Thanks Will,
Gary

Glad you have made it back home. Tee shirt weather for a couple of days, just don't travel even 2 hours north or you will be in the cold mess again.

Now outside to do some shooting!

Kent

Yes, remain South! Cold here and more snow on the way...

Thanks Jerry,

Yes - I shall stay here!

We've made arrangements for the rest - and most has already been done.

It's gonna take a while until I "feel" like I can stay though. There's that nagging feeling that something is pending or that I have to leave soon. As I realize that I've "already completed" the list ..... there's a skeptically cautious feeling that takes over.

Just met one of my neighbors. He saw my range signs and stopped by to get a better understanding of where I was as relates to his goats. That went well. An Iraq Vet! An Honor to meet him.

I'll be here. If they sell the house, and there's any money left after Maryland gets done with me ... maybe you can pick up the check and drive it down Jerry?

Gary

Will that check fit in the little ST or do I have to plan on taking the truck (trailer)?

Yeah, I think it will fit in the ST. If you pack light. Haha.



Gary

Gary, I'm sincerely happy for you and Kelly that you have the move behind you now. WIll keep fingers crossed that Maryland stays in the rearview mirror for you.

Wonder what rifle will be #1 out of BPS??? Could it be a stainless YUKON GS or maybe a HOSS? Awaiting the first creation and I am sure it will be a surprise!

"The move is complete"...surely there are few words that you have wanted to hear more, glad to hear the day has finally come. All the planning and preparation, all those days and weeks and months of work, all the setbacks and tribulations...finally over with. So now you can walk into the new shop and say to yourself...now where was I?

And although you've already spent a summer down south, this time of year it's hard to remember exactly HOW hot and humid it'll be come July and August, so you might want to think more along the lines of "blueing shed" rather than "corner of shop".

Hi Sean,

Guess that image could come to mind. I met "isolated" walled off "sealed" room such as worked in Md.

Already having several buildings here, I'm loath to build yet another. I had the shell of the lower shop built large enough to "contain" a couple of more such rooms.

When orig. planning the bluing shop up north, I was warned of having the atmosphere migrate into the machine shop. I went to lengths to avoid that and never had a problem with it. Sometimes I walk in circles for ten minutes at a time ..... but theres never been a linear connection between the two .... hahah

Hows the beam project coming along Sean? Hope its going well. Im still fighting water flow here at Water World.

Thanks for the note!

Gary

Hello Gary,

The beam project is sort of on "freeze", so to speak. In a figurative sense, since it's gotta wait until the ground unfreezes enough to dig a hole to pour the footings, and in a literal sense since the beam is currently sitting under a big pile of snow. We're on the second batch of snow now, the first big dump got rained back to bare ground. Things got single-digit cold for a while, then it dumped again and it's now busy raining it back down to slush and ice again.

Florida is looking pretty good this time of year.