Monthly Archives: September 2021

Gadgets, Product Reviews

iJoy LOGO Bluetooth Headphones

iJoy Logo Bluetooth Headphones sell for less than $20 on Amazon. I tested their quality and sound and was pleasantly surprised that they weren’t bad, once you change the default EQ setting to something less bass focused. It offers a range of features including a built-in FM radio receiver, a Micro-SD port for playing MP3s, and the option for wired operation with a supplied 3.5mm audio patch cable. It suffers from an opaque user interface that doesn’t provide sufficient cues to its status or settings and a poorly thought through user experience.

PRO
• Good sound quality (in the FLAT EQ setting)
• MP3 player
• FM Radio
• 3.5mm wired audio option
• Confortable padding
• Folding headband
• Inexpensive

CON
• Poor documentation
• Unclear which EQ setting is selected
• EQ reset to default when powered down
• Inserting 3.5mm audio cable turns off headphone

Purchase from Amazon
https://amzn.to/3EB1bP0

Shooting Sports

Coyote Point 100yrd Rimfire Match: Sep 19, 2021

This match was an unsanctioned Open for Coyote Point Rifle and Pistol Club members and their guests. Next month we’re going to re-introduce separate classes for support type and caliber (22LR, 22WMR, 17HMR, etc.) but this one was just for fun.

We wanted to get as many members to come out with their rimfires and shoot; some of whom haven’t been able to shoot at this range in +2 years. This range was closed for two separate year-long closures for extensive renovations and then COVID.

I was shooting my new CZ 457 out of the box. I mounted my 6-24x50mm Argos that I pulled off my AR and zero’d it with CCI Standard Velocity and slapped on a spare pare of UTG bipods 2 days before the match. All performed well except for the ammo which was good but could be better. I scored somewhere in the middle of the pack, I hope to improve my scores once I find ammo that this rifle likes (which is really challenging with current ammo shortages).

Next month’s match will be more structured with 17HMR shooters scored separately from the 22LR shooters; as well as different classes for the the type of rifle support used (eg. bipods/bags, bench rests, slings, etc.). The matches are currently by invite only because the Sheriff’s Training Center isn’t open for public hours currently. Reach out to me here for an invite through my CONTACT link in the Menu.

Check out the Coyote Point Rifle and Pistol Club’s website for information about the club. http://coyotepointrpc.org/

Shooting Sports

Federal Range Blue Box is the Worst

I tested one of Federal’s cheapest 22LR. Range Pack a.k.a “Blue Box”. It’s a 40gr LRN that looks identical to Federal AutoMatch but at a lower price. I wonder if it’s actually AutoMatch that didn’t pass or that Federal doesn’t run as thorough a quality check.

I ran 20 rounds through the Ruger 10/22 with one dud round that failed to fire. I got middling group sizes averaging about 3″ at 50yrds. But when I ran it through the Marlin 60, the shots were all over the place. Average group sizes were over 5 1/2″ and numerous failures to cycle.

I thought something might be wrong with my rifle so shot a few rounds of Aguila Super Extra HV and those shot normally in a 1.8″ group. Then I reloaded it with more Fed Range and again got loose, inconsistent groups. While this ammo works ok in my Ruger for plinking, my Marlin really does not like this ammo.

In 3 testing sessions, I noted that the rounds sounded more muffled when fired in the Marlin than the Ruger. I experienced 3 failures to cycle; where the spent case was ejected but the bolt did not feed the next round. And one squib that I had to push out with a cleaning rod. We’ve all been told that ammo do shoot very differently in different rifles; this is one of most extreme examples.



Product Reviews

Blavor 10k mAh Solar Bank

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If you were thinking of using one of these to recharge your devices while traveling off the grid, it takes longer than I expected. I’m going to continue testing this and post periodic videos until I find out.

I own a suite of backup power storage at home and emergency solar and gas-powered generators, so that’s not what this is for. This is more for EDC. I occasionally need to quickly recharge my phone when I forgot to charge it overnight or have a lot of apps use for work, games, etc. These power banks are handy.

Some folks leave these solar power banks on their car dashboard to recharge (I don’t because I live in San Francisco where they’ll break into your car to steal sunglasses). I wanted to see just how long it takes to recharge one of these if left in a window?

I knew it would take more than a few days because the built-in solar panel isn’t that large. But it took even longer than I expected (I wouldn’t have been surprised if I did some more math on the square inches of the panel and the capacity of the battery, whatever).

Despite this, I’m not going to nock this power bank. It works as advertised, offers a pair of LED flashlight heads (“two is one” right?), has a good variety of charging ports, and offers wireless charging so you don’t even need to worry about a cable (provided your phone or device does wireless charging).

PRO
• +10,000mAh output fully charged
• USBA & USB-C input and output ports
• Wireless Qi charging
• 2 x LED lights (~200 lumen)
• Built in solar panel
• Water resistant
• Ruberized armored body
• Good value at $30 ( AMAZON: https://amzn.to/3jyTSyI )

CON
• Takes a long time to solar recharge


Shooting Sports

Orion Grandview 12-36×50

If you’re looking for a high-quality spotter for long-range shooting, don’t bother reading further. But if you want something small enough to stuff into a range bag to spot .223 holes at 100yrds, the Orion Grandview 50mm will more than do the job.

Orion doesn’t make rifle scopes or red dots, so many shooters and hunters aren’t familiar with this brand. Orion is one of the top brands in astronomical telescopes. They are so well established that they own the URL: www.telescope.com

Orion was founded in Santa Cruz, CA in 1975 and is still based in Northern California. While I can’t confirm if all or any of their scopes are built in the U.S., their company is employee-owned and also owns the “Meade Telescope” brand. What I can confirm is that the Grandview is the clearest/sharpest 50mm spotter that retails for under $100.

PRO
Best optical clarity in a sub $100 “budget” spotting scope
Good eye relief
Well built and well-armoured body

CON
No built-in sunshade on the tube

USAF51 RESOLUTION
Group: 0 / Element: 1

PRODUCT LINK
https://amzn.to/3ja880G