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The Concept . . .
On this page I might not make any sense whatsoever. It might be brief: It might be long and cumbersome. But it will only be what I think or twists of what other people have told me. I cling to the 1st Amendment of the Constitution (and the 2nd!!!) of the United States of America and if I step on your toes, just tell me and I'll back off (probably). But don't sue, as you will only wind up in debt to your lawyer as the tops of my pockets are only for show.

p.s. Typos are allowed.


Good for Joe Horn
July 2, 2008

A Pasadena, Texas man named Joe Horn heard burglars break into his (not at home) neighbor's home and called 911. Eventually he realized that the police weren't going to show up, so he confronted the burglars as they exited the front of the house...HE WITH A SHOTGUN. He told them to stop, but instead, they advanced on him with a tire iron after he told them if they moved he was going to shoot. So he raised his shotgun, they turned and fled, but he fired, killing them. As it turns out they were illegal aliens with several fake passports, members of a Colombian gang and had been burglarizing homes before. Well, this is Texas, and so nobody was arrested, but the case was sent to the Grand Jury. During that time he had chance to rethink his moves and said he wish he hadn't done it. However, he is a hero to all of his neighbors and virtually the whole state of Texas, that is sick to death (literally) of burglars and crime. The fact that it is affecting him is probably why some soldiers, when they come home, go on with their lives and some have real problems. But the grand jury "no billed" him and he is free to go. I personally wish more people would protect their neighbors like Joe. They don't have to kill anybody, but the knowledge that if you break in, you might get killed keeps a lot of burglars and other miscreants from doing it. Hooray for Joe. Most of us wish we had a neighbor like him. His luckiest charm was that Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginzburg wasn't on the grand jury, for she probably would have ordered him drawn and quartered, similar to the way she thinks of unborn babies being aborted.

When they break into your home, who are you going to call? Ruth Bader Ginzburg's ACLU...or 911? Fortunately the Supreme Court last week ruled that you had the Right to defend yourself by owning a gun in your own home, but of course, Ruth Bader Ginzburg voted against that. Murder babies? YES. Defend yourself and your family? NO. As Michael Savage said, "Liberalism is a mental disorder." —Mike

How Long?
June 26, 2008

How long are we going to put up with those judges (and their "lower ilk") at the Supreme Court? Yesterday they ruled that the state of Louisiana had no right to execute the convicted rapist of an 8-year old girl. The details of this particular case are so horrific that I can't put them on a family website like this, but in ruling, the majority said something like, "We stuck our finger in our mouth and then raised it to the wind and public opinion seems to be shifting away from the death penalty for rapists as cruel and unusual punishment and besides that, the international opinion of the world says no as well." Since when did our judges take an oath to uphold public opinion or the views of other nations? They took an oath to uphold the Constitution of the United States of America and nothing else. They themselves ought to be prosecuted for a violation of their oaths. Shame on you Bader Ginzburg, Souter, Stevens, Breyer and Kennedy. You are a disgrace to the whole country and have dishonored your offices. I bet if that same man raped one of their grandchildren, they would be leading the lynching party. I suppose Nancy Pelosi will now require equal time for some other blog to rebut my statements. —Mike

Very Proud
June 13, 2008

I'm a very lucky guy. I mean...how many people in the whole world can (1) be the son of a co-founder of a major Cap Gun company (2) just happen to build websites for a living (3) have the resources to do it (4) have friends willing to help...and just willing contributors {230+} (5) and just happen to be a collector themselves? Plus some things I forgot. I am very proud to be able to help the collectors and dealers out there in the hobby. Sometimes I write you on "that famous auction site" and ask for your permission to use your photos, and 99.99% of the time you not only give it, but you say the nicest things. So you people make me a very lucky guy. Pretty good news, since it's Friday the 13th. —Mike

Real Guns and Toy Guns
June 11, 2008

I could be wrong, but I see the attacks by the left by people like New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg against real guns as un-American and also a threat against toy guns, which is OUR HOBBY! If you don't think so, then you ought to look up on the web, the hundreds of articles that speak out against toy guns, saying that toy guns promote violence by children and such. Of course we all have heard the arguments against real guns and how the ownership of real guns leads to violence and murder and robberies and such. That's ridiculous. Have you heard of a sane person saying that the ownership of matches leads to arson? Have you heard of a sane person saying that having children leads to child abuse? How many people are speaking out against drunk drivers? (plenty actually) But how many are advocating draconian measures (which I would)? Drunk drivers kill more people every year than are killed by guns. Besides, owning guns (even handguns) has nothing to do with crime. Criminals commit crimes and don't care what laws say about anything. I have a Concealed Handgun License (CHL) myself and seldom shoot anybody. Just kidding. I never shoot anybody. I carry a pistol almost all of the time. There are about 240,000 people in Texas who have CHLs. When they passed the first CHL law in Florida, the Liberals said that there were going to be gunfights at the OK Corral right on the streets. They were wrong. Crime went down. In Texas they said it again. They were wrong. Nearly everybody on my street probably owns a gun, so you had better not break in at night! But there hasn't been a shooting on my street. But since I've lived on this street, 3 people have been killed in cars. And the same Liberals who are against real guns are against toy guns. Your valuable collections are at risk. Why? Mostly because normal people like yourselves don't speak up. Sorry, that had to hurt. But it's true. Nobody likes to make waves. Folks, let's speak up. For the hobby of toy guns and for what most of us consider inviolate, that is, the 2nd Amendment, the right to keep and bear arms. There is a big Supreme Court case coming up about Washington, D.C. on whether or not its citizens have the right to keep and bear arms. Washington, D.C., by the way, is about the most violent city in America. Why? Well, one of the reasons is that the criminals can protect themselves, but the common citizens cannot. If somebody were to break into your home, would you call 911 or would you call the ACLU? On our street, we would just use up a bunch of ammo taking target practice on the burglar. Oh by the way, we NEVER have robberies on my street. —Mike

For Some Genuine Fun!
June 8, 2008

When God created us, he gave us endorphins to tell us when things are good for us. Or something like that.

You want to feel good? Then I have a sure-fire way. Give. You heard me: Give. There are only about 3 things in life that produce really good feelings: Sex, food and giving. And they produce long lasting effects in that order: the GIVING produces the longest lasting effects.

I heard a financial expert on TV the other day that told about 10 secrets that he had learned on how to get wealthy and surprisingly enough, one of them was giving. He said he didn't know why, but had studied all of the successful people and found that the most common thread that they had was that they knew how to give.

I was lucky. I had loving parents who taught me how to give. But they taught me that the real secret of giving is to follow 2 rules: (1) Don't put up a billboard to yourself. Keep it completely anonymous if you possibly can. Why? Because then you can do it again if you like without any bother and also only God will know and therefore only He can reward you. (2) Don't let your left hand know what your right hand is doing. That is, don't keep score. Give and forget it. Don't create a hero mentality within yourself that would lie to you and tell you that you are better than everybody else because you give. Don't do it. Counterproductive.

My dad taught me that we Christians have learned how to give from our Jewish ancestors and friends and he pointed out Sol F. Leff, a men's clothier in Pasadena in the old days of the original Stallion 45. Sol F. Leff once saw a kid walking down the street in the winter and the kid didn't have any shoes on. He grabbed that kid and said, "Don't you know that you'll catch your death of cold if you don't wear shoes? Come in here with me." And Sol F. Leff put socks on the boy's feet and shoes on him too and then ran him off and said, "Don't you ever let me catch you without shoes on again." Tough guy, huh? My dad, whom Mr. Leff didn't know was in the store almost broke down and cried. But he stored up the story and told me and others about how kind that old Jewish man was. And he told me how most of the big charities are run by Jews and that we should always learn from their examples. And my dad and my mom taught me to give.

I am telling you that if you really want to have a lot of fun in your life, then learn to give. Learn from people like Jerry Lewis. You give and you will get back: good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over. However, follow rule #2 and remember that the Lord may not necessarily reward you with riches in this life. He just might place them in heaven, for your future. But I guarantee you that the endorphins will flow and you will feel mighty good if you just learn to give.  —Mike

It's Just So Hard To Choose!
June 4, 2008

My dad died today in 1995. Sure do miss him. It's hard to believe that the famous Nichols Brothers are both gone. The current generation of Nichols brothers are not famous.

Well, we have some candidates to choose in this year's presidential election.

(1) Barack Obama: It's a crying shame that he doesn't have but a year or so of experience more than a high school student council president. He tries to give every impression that the fact that he is preaching "change" is enough for him to lead the free world. He says that he will meet with all of the maniacs that are trying to kill us, but he won't even meet with General Petraeus of our own military. He says that we need Universal Health Care and though his version sounds just as good as the former Soviet Union's or maybe Cuba's, my friend in Romania (formerly under the Soviet Iron Fist) can't understand why we are headed towards socialism and yet those people who were under it are glad to be rid of it. And Barack's associates? Birds of a feather flock together and his friends turn out to be a bunch of nutcases. Guilt by association? It has been enough to taint millions of people across the ages. But let's see about his (limited) voting record: He votes FOR partial birth abortion and AGAINST our troops in Iraq, while saying that he supports the troops, but not the mission. (Like saying you support you neighborhood high school kids, but would like to burn their school down.) He is for raising my taxes-even when the economy is stumbling.

(2) Hillary Clinton: Gosh another Clinton? You know how she always tells the truth. Like saying she didn't know her husband "did anything?" Or when she spiraled into the airport under sniper fire and had to dodge it? Or how the FBI files disappeared and were found on her desk 2 years later. And on and on. But I'm glad I'm not her friend, for there are dozens that keep turning up dead. (Just Google: "dead Clinton friends") But ignoring that, she also wants universal health care, even though it will be run by the same people (Congress) that are handling your Social Security. That should make you VERY SECURE!!! And she (like Barack) is going to bring back all of those jobs from China. So when you would normally see a "Made in China" label at Wal-Mart for a product that costs $4.95 it will now cost about $12.95. If you think this won't impact you, just start keeping track of every product you purchase (EVER!!!) that says, "Made in China" on it. And she is going to take away those profits from the oil companies. That should kill or cripple every elderly or retired person (and us too) in America who has a 401(k) or an IRA or Mutual Funds that have anything to do with the stock market, because those big oil companies are actually owned by people like you and me. And if you are mad at their profits, you too can go buy their stock and get stinking rich. They are happy to sell it to you. And remember how her political party with people like Maxine Waters are threatening to nationalize the oil companies? I'm sure Maxine is perfect for CEO of EXXON. That should get rid of those obscene profits. Oh...I forgot to mention. The Democrat Party has voted against drilling in ANWAR and everywhere off our coasts every single time it comes up. They had rather your gasoline cost $8.00 a gallon than find any here in our own country-especially since we already know it's here.

(3) John McCain: John McCain is a "conservative" version of Hillary Clinton. While it is true that he is a genuine war hero, he did introduce a bill that would give amnesty to illegal aliens. But it is true that he has always been pro-military. He is also pro-gun. He is also anti-abortion. He is also against raising taxes. He is also a fiscal conservative. He also is about as liberal a Republican as I have ever seen except for Arlen Specter. But he still supports the Constitution and is not a socialist like the others. (and I'm being generous to call Barack a socialist.)

John F. Kennedy would not recognize the current Democrat Party. He gave the largest tax cut in history up to that time. And it worked. They always do. But we can't learn from history because we're stupid. At least I probably am because I can't see why we should vote for a man just because he is black. I refuse to vote for a person just because they are white. Or whatever color Asian is. Or whatever color Hispanic might be. And I can't understand why I should vote for a woman just because she is a woman. I refuse to vote for a man just because he is a man. I refuse to vote for a person just because they are a Democrat or they are a Republican. I was in the military for 6 years and took an oath (from which they never released me) to defend the Constitution against all aggressors-both foreign and domestic. And I see Barack and Hillary as the easy path to the destruction of the Constitution as we know it. McCain is marginally better, but at least he is better. And he has a track record of being a worthy public servant. Certainly when he was in a Communist prison camp, he showed that he had the courage to stand up for America while he was being tortured daily. And now, because he wasn't like Jane Fonda, he can't use his arms as well as I can. But he can raise his hand and he will put it on the Bible and swear to defend the Constitution and you can believe him when he says it.

But remember, even Adolf Hitler was freely elected Chancellor of Germany—even though he had never served in public office before.  —Mike

I Can't Understand It
June 2, 2008

I can't understand it. No matter what I do, I can't raise the percentage of people above about 5% who actually click on the thumbnails on my website. In most cases people, those thumbnails are only 120 pixels wide!!! When you click on them you can see photos that are MUCH BIGGER. But alas, I'm doomed! Even though about 80% of my work on this website has gone into the pop-ups that you see when you click on the thumbnails. Tons of extra info there too. Can anybody tell me why they don't click on the thumbnails?  —Mike

Our Ship Came In
May 29, 2008

For those of you that haven't found this story of how Nichols Industries became famous-inside of the website itself-then I place a condensed version of it here.

Up until 1950 Nichols had made the Silver Pony, the Silver Mustang and the Silver Colt. I guess we were out of silver, but my dad came up with the idea that we needed a new gun and a big one. Uncle Talley took the same basic concept of a Colt 45 Peacemaker and he and Jack Tarrant and Mr. Bill Simpson built some prototypes for the Pasadena Stallion 45, and Dad and Uncle Talley took them to the world famous New York Toy Fair. The first day they sold (in 1950 dollars!) $600 worth of the new Stallions (think: JOBBER WHOLESALE PRICES!). They thought that was good. The second day buyers were lined down the hall waiting to get in and they sold $6,000 worth. (You conducted business in your hotel room-not in an open hall like these days.) Daddy and Uncle Talley were amazed. $6,000! The third day pandemonium broke out and buyers were knocking each other down to get in and bought $60,000 worth!!! Uncle Talley panicked and said that was a whole year's worth and needed to fly back to Texas and "tool up." Which he did. Daddy closed down everything, but the officials of the Toy Fair told my dad that he had signed an agreement that he wouldn't lock the doors. So he opened the next morning and by noon had sold another $60,000 worth and the buyers were still in the halls and he locked the door and flew back to Texas. The Stallion 45 was declared the "Toy of the Year" and the Nichols Brothers were the hit of the show and overnight became world famous. I love that story. The nicest part is that most of it is true. About 99.9%. Since I have gleaned it from several sources, some of the spaces had to be filled in, but if you collect cap guns, then you know how popular the Pasadena Stallion 45 became and then its modifications and line of successors.  —Mike

60 Years!
May 27, 2008

Today is a very special day for me because my wife turned 60. I can't really poke too much fun at that being "old" because I turned 60 last December myself. But it is amazing how quickly time flies. We have been married almost 39 years now and that's increasingly rare.

It was 62 years ago that Nichols Industries was started in Pasadena, Texas on Jensen Drive. The original "block house" that my dad used for an office is still there, but is unused. As you know, in 1954 Nichols Industries moved to Jacksonville, but that origiinal spot still brings back fond memories to me. My Uncle Talley lived just across the bayou (Vince Bayou) from there and his old house is still there and in great shape. I spent a lof of time there and my cousin Susan (see the Pasadena Stallion 45) taught me to swim at the city pool, which was near. I worked on the assembly lines a couple of times for a few minutes. I was probably in the way, but hey, I was the Boss's Son, so the ladies tolerated me.

Sometimes 60 years and such seems like an eternity and then sometimes it seems like just the other day. Especially when I can remember so many things about those days and can't remember what my wife asked me to do yesterday. I think that's why I like all of the Nichols Pasadena Guns. The first 3 may be rather crude, compared to the Stallion 45, but they have a special meaning to me. I just hope that I can eventually get nice original boxes for all of them. Dan Dozier of Toy Tent (on our Dealers Page) makes the most fantastic reproduction boxes you ever saw, but to me there is nothing quite like an original. I hope that you all will also get a full Nichols collection. You might also write in occasionally and encourage me to keep up this website. It is a lot of work, but it represents a time in America (and my life) that I don't want to forget or to pass from everybody else's knowledge either.  —Mike

A Socialist State
May 23, 2008

Well, it finally happened. Maxine Waters (D) Congresswoman of California threatened the oil executives with "socialist......" and then she caught herself and couldn't think of the words to say, but then just came out and said that maybe the country should nationalize (take over!) the oil companies. Three days a week I work in an oil company related business, and I can guarantee you that it isn't what you think. Besides, as my dad used to say, "If the oil companies are getting rich, then remember that their stock is for sale on the New York Stock Exchange tomorrow and you can go out and buy as much as you like and get rich too." The real truth is that oil companies make about 8 cents per gallon on gasoline and the government rakes in about 20 cents per gallon. NUTS! Some of that builds roads, but most goes into the general fund where they like to do their pork barrel politics. And the idiots in Congress won't let us drill for oil nearly anywhere anymore and the environmental whackos put up roadblocks every time we do. Well, you have Barack H. Obama and Hillary R. Clinton telling us that we are going to nationalize the entire health care system and Maxine Waters telling us that we are threatening to nationalize the oil companies. What's next? The food industry? Oh, excuse me, we almost already do, as we are gradually paying the farmers to grow gasoline instead of food.  —Mike

Scripture of the Day
May 21, 2008

Well, today, since I'm not afraid of how the Left Wing attacks Christians and Jews, I have put a link on the homepage to the Bible scripture of the day. Someone doesn't like it? I don't care. It is a profession of how I feel and my hope for this country that we will turn back to God instead of the ACLU. I am an evangelical Christian and like all Muslim handbooks say, I am a friend of the Jews and Israel. I'll side with them nearly every time. Period. After all...my best friend is a Jewish carpenter and I don't mind telling anybody in the world. Since most of my scripture is Old Testament, then thank you Jews for preserving the Wisdom of God for me. Since I worship Jesus as the King of Kings, then ANY Jew is a friend of mine, for that makes them royalty by blood, and they are welcome in my house any time. For those of you who also know the power of God's Word, I present just a little each day for you.   —Mike

Cap Gun Diagrams
May 20, 2008

I get tons of e-mail from Cap Gun collectors all over the world. (You ought to sign your home town up on the Collectors Page) I get a huge variety of question about Cap Guns as if I were the know-it-all you all seem to think, but I'm not and freely admit. One of the most common questions I get is, "How do I put this thing back together?" Or something like that. Surprisingly enough there are very few diagrams or exploded diagrams of Cap Gun out there. I have never seen one of a Nichols Cap Gun, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. I think if one of you enterprising souls were to (expertly) draw diagrams of the various Cap Guns, then you could probably sell them. I would certainly get excited about advertising them on my Classified Section, where we get (literally) THOUSANDS of page views. After the Home Page, it is the most visited page. So do some drawing and start selling them. Or find some old ones and start reproducing them!   —Mike

Cops, Kids and Cap Guns
May 15, 2008

It has been said that, "Fools rush in where angels fear to tread." So, since I am either foolish or just not afraid, then I'm going to speak my mind.

I see states and cities and LOTS of websites demanding that toy guns be discontinued because they (a) teach kids bad habits or (b) get kids killed by law enforcement.

(a) It's like the lady who piped up at the Boy Scout troop when the scoutmaster told her that the boys were going to have a merit badge training session with guns and be supervised by qualified adults. She said, "You mean you're going to equip those boys with the ability to become gangsters and criminals?" The scoutmaster said, "Ma'am, I believe you're equipped to be a prostitute, but you aren't one, are you?" Well, there are probably 100,000,000 law-abiding people in The United States who have a gun—either for self-defense or for hunting or BOTH, and they are very respectful of the danger of firearms. I carry a gun nearly 100% of the time and have a CHL (concealed handgun license) and have had it for 6 years and very seldom have to kill anybody.  ;-)  And my wife is a better shot than I am. The problem with kids these days is that they aren't being taught ANY HABITS by law-abiding adults. Instead, they are subjected to radical TV shows that teach terrible habits, have no positive role models anymore, their cowboy stars like Roy Rogers and Dale Evans are gone, and the gore and violence on TV and movies is just getting worse and is even glorified. "Gangsta Rap" is allowed when it promotes violence against women and cops and the usage of drugs. What's happening America? Can't you stand up for anything anymore? I had guns all over the house when growing up, and you can bet I was taught respect for them—AND MY ELDERS!!!

(b) I am about the biggest cop supporter you will ever meet. I buy them free dinners at restaurants and tell the waiters to not tell them where it came from, but that we appreciate all that they do for us. Do you? And how often do you walk up to police and tell them that you appreciate the service they are rendering. BUT COP VIOLENCE AGAINST KIDS??? I do read about cops drawing down on a kid. The stupid (read: STUPID) kid had a real gun. But who wants to shoot a kid? If I were a cop, I would rather give my life away than shoot a kid—whether he had a real gun or not. Besides God gave the cop legs and a radio. He can run away and call for back-up. Usually. I read where the cops in Florida (?) shot a 12-year old kid because he was in a school with a gun. The school was evacuated, but they nailed him anyway. Somewhat justifiable homicide. I'll have to support them, but that doesn't make it "right." Cops shouldn't have to make that choice. Ever. (1) Why are you knucklehead parents allowing your kid to play with a real gun? Lock it up if you have to. It's a felony to let a kid play with one. (2) What are you knucklehead kids doing taking a gun anywhere? You want to be a big man? That isn't the way. But passing a law saying that toy guns must have orange plugs out the barrel or the entire gun should be orange won't save a kid that is playing under a street light at night. A WISE COP who loves kids can save a life by just backing off. And a WISE PARENT (vanishing breed) who loves their kid should teach him that the cop is the best friend (other than Mommy and Daddy) that they will ever have. I was taught that you can ALWAYS trust a cop and he is the very first person you should talk to if you have a bad problem and can't reach your parents. But we have stupid legislators who always think that passing another law is going to save a kid. More kids drown in swimming accidents than are shot in non-gang related deaths. More kids are injured on bicycles and tricycles than by guns. But we would call them fools if they banned pools, bicycles or tricycles because they would be. Why can't we own up to the full truth? There are few souls who have been around more toy cap guns than I have and yet I managed to grow up without killing anybody, and I even served with the military for six years! But I had parents and cops who cared.   —Mike

Other Brands of Cap Guns
May 12, 2008

We all have Jim Manning to "blame" for my website becoming so big, in that he was the one that talked me into having as many other brands of Cap Guns on the site as possible instead of just Nichols Cap Guns. But what always surprises me is that I look at the webcounter statistics and see that a lot of people don't even notice that there are so many other brands of Cap Guns on the site. They were looking for something in particular and didn't find it on the page they opened and then dropped off of the radar. I have a search resource under the menu so that you can find what you are looking for. Many times something like a "Dale Evans" item might be on several pages.

So give yourself a chance to have some fun. Enjoy the "Good Old Days" and see all of the heroes and the Cap Guns and holsters dedicated to them.   —Mike

An Auction Site on This Site (etc.)
May 3, 2008

Some of you have asked me why I don't put an auction site on this website. Well, the reason is that I don't have the money or the expertise. You have no comprehension of what it takes to pull off a stunt like that. Besides, eBay has got the market sewn up there. Others have tried to equal them, but they got there first, marketed it correctly and have done a better job than anyone else. As long as they don't shoot themselves in the foot, they are likely to remain on top.

About the only thing I can do is to put up the Classified Section, which I have done. It is $5 per listing and we don't get any other fees. You make all of the profit and we will list any kind of antique TOY—even BB Guns and no red plugs are required.

I have also been asked why I don't put the current value of Cap Guns on my site. The condition makes the value go up or down and the value is also changing all of the time. I don't think there are enough hours in the day to keep the list current—even if I did know all of the prices, which I don't.

In the final analysis, if you want to see some other website that has Cap Guns (or antique toys) for sale that is not your favorite auction site, then I hope you will consider us. We certainly don't get the traffic as our favorite auction site, but we are cheap and do get THOUSANDS OF PAGE VIEWS per day.   —Mike

Triple Plating
April 26, 2008

Many of you have asked, "How is it that when Nichols chrome plated their guns the chrome plating is only on the outside of the gun and not on the inside of...say...the barrel?"

Well, here's the answer—mostly from my cousin, the engineer/state senator, Robert Nichols. I'm merely condensing it a little.

In physics there is a law that if you give a metal cylinder (like a soup can with both ends cut out) an electrical charge, the charge will reside on the outside. You can touch the inside with a volt/ohm meter and there's nothing, but touch the outside and you will discharge it. It is similar with the halves of the cap gun. When cast, the cap gun half has an inside and an outside. The outside (our interest) has more surface area and that's where the charge will be. The chemicals in the plating vat are given an opposite charge and when the racks of pieces are lowered into the vat, they are charged and get the plating-ON THE OUTSIDE. If the inside of the gun has any charge at all, it would be the opposite charge and would repel the ions of metal.

Now...the zinc alloy would not accept a chrome plating, so here's where the "triple-plating process" came in. Uncle Talley had these racks of gun halves on a VERY LONG bicycle chain looking conveyor. As the chain moved along, there was a roller coaster looking track and the wheels on the racks rolled along. When the racks needed to be out of the vats, there was a hill and the rack would lift up out of the liquid. Right after that, the hill went down and so did the rack. (I just loved watching this!!! Pure Magic!!!) First they were cleaned, then copper plated, which would stick to the alloy. Shiny and beautiful. Then they were rinsed and nickel plated. They looked just like chrome then, but as you recall, nickel tarnishes and is not very hard. Then, after another rinsing, they were chrome plated and chrome is really hard. And shiny!!! Uncle Talley told me that the chrome was so thin that the nickel was showing through, but the chrome protected the finish. And that's it!   —Mike

Guns in my house as a kid
April 20, 2008

In case anybody's curious, the hit counters you see on this site are about 1 million hits too low because it was only after 3-1/2 years that I finally ponied up the cash and put a professional hit counter on the site and stuck one on each page. Previously only the home page had one and it was an "el cheapo" free one. But now I'm trying to get companies to advertise with us and want to justify their interest.

I heard awhile back that Dallas, Texas had passed a city ordinance AGAINST toy cap guns. Is this true? Whether or not it is, while A STUPID IDEA, it shows that our elected officials must have too much time on their hands and can't run city governments, but have to take time off to attack collectors like you. What's next? Barbie Dolls for being too voluptuous? Outlawing G.I. Joe as being a bad influence on young minds? When I was a kid, since my dad co-founded Nichols Industries, we had guns all over the house. Literally. But the real ones were kept in a separate closet and I was taught the difference. I could "play" with them any time I wanted, just as long as I first came and got my dad. And I was taught very thoroughly that a bullet came out of the end of the gun that would kill you completely dead. But that was back in the 40's and 50's before America became "enlightened" by our current Liberal crowd.   —Mike

Unusual laws in California and Redwoods
April 13, 2008

I get a heckuva lot of "hits" from California, which is strange, considering that California is right on the edge of outlawing bullets altogether, as if that is going to make one bit of difference to the Crypts (or is it Crips?) and the Bloods and MS13. (Homeland Security protect me!) When's the last time you knew a law-abiding citizen to rob a bank or do a drive-by shooting? All but 2 states in the U.S. now have some sort of Concealed Carry Handgun Permit (or License if you will---I have one!) and the gunfights that were predicted by the naysayers never happened. Just the opposite. Probably everybody on my street has a gun or multiples and nobody ever gets shot. Just the opposite: People are extremely polite! Downright cordial. Haven't you noticed that the worst gun cases are in "no guns allowed" zones? The nutcases and criminals feel quite comfortable there. We haven't solved the illegal alien problem or illegal drug importation yet, so what makes you think that keeping honest folks from self defense is going to help? Be honest, if some gang member is breaking in your front door, do you (a) call the ACLU (b) dial 911 (c) run out the back door or (d) defend yourself? Or just holler some Hollywood slogan on how that robber had a miserable childhood and you understand his pain?

But the 2nd Amendment wasn't put there just for self-defense, but was to back up the 1st Amendment if our government got too out-of-hand. The Founding Fathers feared a totalitarian government more than anything and that's why they created the "Articles of Confederation" which were so weak that nothing worked. So then they gave more power to the federal government by writing the Constitution. Albeit with a Bill of Rights, so that it would be a nice clean document. But the anti-gun nuts have gone so far that they want even toy cap guns banned. Google it and you can find page after page written by RDDB (c.f. Michael Savage) who want toy guns banned. Liberals refuse to look at the facts. More children are injured by bicycles, trikes and cars put together times 100 than by real guns. And none of them are injured by toy guns. In fact, children can no longer even AFFORD decent toy guns, as they quit making them back around 1965 or so and now cost so much on eBay than I can hardly afford them.

As I have said before, California is (perhaps) the only state that has everything. What I mean is that whatever you might say about California is probably true. And if you say the opposite, then it is probably also true. They have the biggest trees (Redwoods and Sequoias) and the smallest (Bonsai), probably more languages than any other state, the most terrible deserts, the best forests, really nice beaches, really terrible scrub country. Rich people, poor people. You name it, they've got it. The most sensible people and the strangest people. They even have the oldest trees - Bristlecone Pines. Can you imagine standing beside a living thing that is 4,700 years old?

But of all of the places to visit, there are 2 places that (to me) stand out: Avenue of the Giants and Muir Woods. Muir Woods (drive North across the Golden Gate Bridge and basically turn left) is a place where everybody ought to be required by law to visit at least once in their lives. If you get there early in the morning you can even find a parking place. Then just walk around and shut up. Actually no one will tell you to shut up, but in the middle of that place, you tend to be quiet.

But there is one other place I have visited that might bring tears to your eyes or at least completely stop your mouth. Avenue of the Giants. It's a few dozen miles north of Muir Woods. Doug Hamilton, whose photos are numerous in this website suggested it to me and now I know why. You can park your car along the side of the road, get out and walk into the woods and time and space just stop. You are now standing in the middle of a quiet majesty that takes your breath away and shrinks all of the things in your life down to a drop of humility. Trees, standing there, as if guarding the western shores of our country, that have been on sentry duty for hundreds or thousands of years. Almost no sounds. You step quietly, for it seems almost vulgar to contribute the sound of your own footsteps. Few other places will resonate the sound of your shutter like that place. You walk around and find new wonders and older growth. You touch a tree that was born, for all practical purposes, before time itself. Touching a living being that has seen life and death before King John signed the Magna Carta. And unlike Muir Woods, you are seeing a forest that is basically untouched by man and only cultivated by the Hand of God. And when you leave, you will always remember that there are things in this world that you cannot understand, but merely stand in awe and reverence. "Be still and know that I am God."   —Mike


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