Equipment Crew- Part III

[BloodType3R]

RAWR!

Hit my first successful 400(+)lb lift today.. 405lb deadlift.
Felt really dirty about using straps because I lift 100% raw (no belt either) and 100% double overhand 100% of the time. 405 was suppossed to be achieved the same way so since I felt guilty... I then pulled 425 with the straps to wash away the guilt.
Pretty stoked.

[yankeemarko1]

I'm burning some vacation days. Went hiking again this morning. I tried a new trail. The newest mountain preserve in the valley is Deem Hills. It's in the northwest valley and has a few short trails and one long one. I hiked the long circumference trail today. It was 5.95 miles and took me 2 hours 27 minutes. There was only 300 feet elevation change and the trail was pretty dull and monotonous. It was really quiet. I only passed about 10 people the whole way but I never got the feeling I left civilization. You could always see evidence of mankind, whether it was power lines, the SRP canal or houses. I won't be going back anytime soon.

Here is a couple pics.

Shot from the trailhead.




The rest are just shots as I worked my way around.










You can see the trail down the middle of the pic here. I came from that direction.

[irongrandpa]

RAWR!

Hit my first successful 400(+)lb lift today.. 405lb deadlift.
Felt really dirty about using straps because I lift 100% raw (no belt either) and 100% double overhand 100% of the time. 405 was suppossed to be achieved the same way so since I felt guilty... I then pulled 425 with the straps to wash away the guilt.
Pretty stoked.

Congratulations, 400lbs.+ is a great lift. Don't feel bad about straps, they're a tool, just like anything else in the gym.

[BloodType3R]

Congratulations, 400lbs.+ is a great lift. Don't feel bad about straps, they're a tool, just like anything else in the gym.

Thanks!
I'm still after that 100% raw double overhand 405lb deadlift but now that I've accomplished 400(+) before year's end I can put my focus back into following my program to the T.

[jackbravo]

Thanks!
I'm still after that 100% raw double overhand 405lb deadlift but now that I've accomplished 400(+) before year's end I can put my focus back into following my program to the T.

you're a monster. my DOH quits at 315. i've done reverse grip 405, but never more. what's your DL program?

[BloodType3R]

You believe in monsters?

The best DOH I've gotten to date was a 385 single or 310x10 (calculated max on that is 413.2 so I know I'l get that 4 plate pull sooner or later).

I'm currently following the 4 days a week 5/3/1 template with deadlift work sets calculated from the lower (common) percentages.

TPB cheese grater knurling ftw!

[KBKB]

Second Page Bump...

Below are photos from our hike out in the Hell's Gate Wilderness area. (Some of the photos aren't from the Wilderness, but from the adjoining National Forest.) We hiked part of the Bear Flat Trail and I hiked the entirety of the Mail Trail #178. I can't find much information about the Mail Trail. It might have once been a part a different trail by the same name. The Bear Flat Trail went through part of the Wilderness and then exited back out to the Tonto National Forest. The Mail Trail wasn't within the Wilderness at all, but I thought it was a more interesting trail than the parts of the Bear Flat Trail that I saw. It was narrower, steeper, and more difficult to follow. I hiked ahead of the rest of my party and, on my return, I found them floundering about trying to find the trail. (I had been away for quite a while and they were getting worried about me.) My hike was only a little over 6.5 miles in length, but had nearly 2400 feet of elevation gain over the entire hike.

[yankeemarko1]

Anyone got an opinion on this AR-15?

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shoot...3Bcat105524280

It's a DPMS A3 T.E.K. Lite 16 carbine. It has front and rear sights. Rear site can be removed for optics. Comes with 4 30 round magazines and a hard case. A guy I work with who used to be in the military says DPMS make a good rifle. Opinions.

[Stasher1]

Anyone got an opinion on this AR-15?

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shoot...3Bcat105524280

It's a DPMS A3 T.E.K. Lite 16 carbine. It has front and rear sights. Rear site can be removed for optics. Comes with 4 30 round magazines and a hard case. A guy I work with who used to be in the military says DPMS make a good rifle. Opinions.

I've owned my DPMS since '04 and have put thousands of rounds thru it without a single problem. I'd buy another in a heartbeat if I needed/wanted another rifle and didn't want to assemble it myself.

[yankeemarko1]

I've owned my DPMS since '04 and have put thousands of rounds thru it without a single problem. I'd buy another in a heartbeat if I needed/wanted another rifle and didn't want to assemble it myself.

Thanks for the info. I've been hearing the same thing from numerous people. The only thing I may change on the rifle is to remove the hand guard and replace it with a different one that has a rail so I could mount a tripod or front pistol grip.

[animalfan]

how much are you selling it for?

I sold it for $400. I really hated to sell it, but it took up way too much floor space. I needed the room badly, and I've got access to one at a gym.

[twodog]

Anyone got an opinion on this AR-15?

http://www.cabelas.com/product/Shoot...3Bcat105524280

It's a DPMS A3 T.E.K. Lite 16 carbine. It has front and rear sights. Rear site can be removed for optics. Comes with 4 30 round magazines and a hard case. A guy I work with who used to be in the military says DPMS make a good rifle. Opinions.

It looks like a good deal as long as it's almost exactly what you want. AR's are so modular that almost all the parts are made by someone other than the seller, who in turn just assembles them. So if you want a different handguard, grip, sights or whatever you can just swap them out, but most companies, DPMS/Panther included make different models and one may be exactly what you want. I know that the price is good, but once you add in the price of a new a new forend and a few other items the price comes up. Also being a Lite model, the barrel is probably the light part and if you only plan on shooting it occasionaly that's fine, but a heavier barrel would be better for blasting on.

In the end, I think it's a great deal as long as it's what you want. $900 w/ 4 mags and other swag is a good deal.

Good luck.

[hulked]

Second Page Bump...

Below are photos from our hike out in the Hell's Gate Wilderness area. (Some of the photos aren't from the Wilderness, but from the adjoining National Forest.) We hiked part of the Bear Flat Trail and I hiked the entirety of the Mail Trail #178. I can't find much information about the Mail Trail. It might have once been a part a different trail by the same name. The Bear Flat Trail went through part of the Wilderness and then exited back out to the Tonto National Forest. The Mail Trail wasn't within the Wilderness at all, but I thought it was a more interesting trail than the parts of the Bear Flat Trail that I saw. It was narrower, steeper, and more difficult to follow. I hiked ahead of the rest of my party and, on my return, I found them floundering about trying to find the trail. (I had been away for quite a while and they were getting worried about me.) My hike was only a little over 6.5 miles in length, but had nearly 2400 feet of elevation gain over the entire hike.

Very nice pics KB. You make all the trails look good can you let me know some more abt the setup you use - DX/FX,Lens, Software.
Did you create a fisheye effect in the 4th pic? Referring to the tree on the left. I wasnt sure if it was naturally bent like that or just a barrel cos of the lens.
Once again. beautiful pics as always

[KBKB]

Very nice pics KB. You make all the trails look good can you let me know some more abt the setup you use - DX/FX,Lens, Software.
Did you create a fisheye effect in the 4th pic? Referring to the tree on the left. I wasnt sure if it was naturally bent like that or just a barrel cos of the lens.
Once again. beautiful pics as always

For that hike, I used a recently purchased 10-18mm lens on my Sony NEX-7. I found myself taking most of the photos nearer the 10mm end than at 18mm.

I've been shooting bracketed exposures; three shots are taken each time I press the shutter release. I have it set so that they're two stops apart. Most of the time, it makes sense to only use one of the exposures, but I sometimes end up using either the lighter or darker exposure. I can also blend exposures (or possibly use HDR software) if the dynamic range is too great. I've been shooting RAW (as opposed to allowing the camera to produce a JPEG file) and have been using ufraw to import the files into GIMP.

I didn't like RAW files when I first started trying to use them, but I think I've finally figured out the RAW conversion process. Today's digital camera sensors have a pretty wide dynamic range. It's possible to correct problems with exposure during the RAW file conversion. You can also fix problems with white balance. For some shots which are partly in shadow and partly not, I will sometimes process the RAW file twice (and sometimes more) to get the exposure and white balance correct for various parts of the photo. E.g. for the photo with the signs on the tree, I used the "Daylight" white balance for the sky and areas in direct sunlight, but I used either "Shade" or "Cloudy" for the tree and other parts in the shade. (Sometimes "Shade" makes things look too red.) I also used different exposure adjustments for the light versus dark areas.

The other problem I had with RAW files when I first started using them is that the colors would sometimes not look right even though I supposedly had the white balance set correctly. (To be fair, the JPEG colors sometimes looked off too.) I ended up purchasing a color calibration card to create custom profiles for my cameras. Since doing that, colors look better to me. Now, if they don't look right, it's usually a white balance problem. As I understand it, it's best to create profiles for each lens, but I haven't done that yet.

As mentioned above, I do most of my photo editing with GIMP. It's free software which performs some of the same tasks as Photoshop. (I use the Linux operating system on most of my machines. I do have a very old laptop that runs an old version of Windows. I use it to install firmware updates.)

I was puzzled by that bent tree too while I was working on that photo. I did have the lens at 10mm for that shot, but it doesn't normally create that kind or amount of distortion. My conclusion is that the tree was naturally bent like that. I didn't notice the tree when I was taking the photo. I was more focused on the cliffs in the distant background. If you look at that last photo, you'll see that the trees appear to be leaning towards each other. This is due to tilting the camera upward while taking the shot. Had I been able to position myself high so that I could've held the camera level, the trees would be roughly parallel to each other.

[KBKB]

Below are some photos that I took of the Avenue of the Fountains last week. I used the same camera and lens as described in my earlier post, but I also used a tripod to take multiple shots of the same scene using different exposure values. When I got home, I blended some of the exposures into one photo. I was trying to wait for car headlights and taillights to not be in the photo, but I got some anyway. While I was working on the photos, I decided I liked them and ended up using some of them. In some instances, I added car lights from several different exposures. I especially like the ones in the third photo.

[Keetman]

Since I pulled my hammy last month, I've been on a upper body routine only and will until March......found this pic on ********, thought it was appropriate for my situation (although with my get-away-sticks being what they are...I have few worries about looking like this anytime too soon!):

[BloodType3R]

Get outta my curl rack, Keet.

[AttyGuy]

Dude,what's that on the floor in the rack?

[Wildtim]

I love that picture.

Stolen for future use in the Workout programs section.

[4MEandThem]

If you go to or google "portable north pole" you will find a site that lets you personalize a 4 minute video from Santa to your child or anyone else. You can pick naughty or nice and several other things that show up in the video.It really was awesome for my 4 yr old who was star struck. I then I made one for my 11 yr old, and finally my wife which I put some comedy to.

Try it out for someone. you won't be disappointed. Free and fun!

[rthawker]

If you go to or google "portable north pole" you will find a site that lets you personalize a 4 minute video from Santa to your child or anyone else. You can pick naughty or nice and several other things that show up in the video.It really was awesome for my 4 yr old who was star struck. I then I made one for my 11 yr old, and finally my wife which I put some comedy to.

Try it out for someone. you won't be disappointed. Free and fun!

We did it last year for our oldest who was 3 then and this year the little one loved it too he's 2. It really is an awesome site that ends up being a great tool to keep the kids in line this time of year.

[Kodokan]

If you go to or google "portable north pole" you will find a site that lets you personalize a 4 minute video from Santa to your child or anyone else. You can pick naughty or nice and several other things that show up in the video.It really was awesome for my 4 yr old who was star struck. I then I made one for my 11 yr old, and finally my wife which I put some comedy to.

Try it out for someone. you won't be disappointed. Free and fun!

Thanks, I'm about to try this out!

[buffbrown21]

If you go to or google "portable north pole" you will find a site that lets you personalize a 4 minute video from Santa to your child or anyone else. You can pick naughty or nice and several other things that show up in the video.It really was awesome for my 4 yr old who was star struck. I then I made one for my 11 yr old, and finally my wife which I put some comedy to.

Try it out for someone. you won't be disappointed. Free and fun!

^ THis is awesome. We did it last year and I am about to make one for this year. Its really cool seeing your child light up when Santa talks to her by name and shows his book of how she acted this year, that includes pictures of her!

[jfindon]

Hi guys. Been awhile once again, I need to go through and get caught up.

I haven't really progressed at all since my last post, been a constant struggle of getting hurt and working my way back up to my old numbers. For awhile now I can only eat a fraction of what I used to, I am down to around 215lbs and have a doctor appointment set up at the end of January. It's a consultation which will result in me getting a scope down my throat so they can see if anything is going on in my stomach.

On top of that, I also have a hiatal hernia which isn't that bad, but bad enough to keep me from deadlifting reliably. I feel a lot smaller but everyone tells me I look the same, so I don't know where I lost the 20lbs. I also took months off from squatting because of knee issues, and I just started that back up not too long ago. Started way light and working up slowly, so far so good.

Recent picture:



Nothing else is really new at the moment. Got a decent raise at work, looking for my own house finally, and excited for Christmas because despite how I come across and how pissed off I get, it really is my favorite time of the year. I even enjoy just walking around the mall to see the decorations and hear the music for ****'s sake.

Anyway, maybe I'll stick around some more, I'm usually hanging out in the MMA section or the Misc (guh) when I get bored at work. Without my normal motivation due to my issues I just don't even like talking about working out that much. Maybe doing so will spark something.

[hulked]

Below are some photos that I took of the Avenue of the Fountains last week. I used the same camera and lens as described in my earlier post, but I also used a tripod to take multiple shots of the same scene using different exposure values. When I got home, I blended some of the exposures into one photo. I was trying to wait for car headlights and taillights to not be in the photo, but I got some anyway. While I was working on the photos, I decided I liked them and ended up using some of them. In some instances, I added car lights from several different exposures. I especially like the ones in the third photo.

Thanks KB. I will try out GIMP this weekend. The fotos of the Aveneue of fountains look very nice. So sharp in such low light

[KBKB]

Thanks KB. I will try out GIMP this weekend.

Just a word of warning... Learning to use GIMP isn't easy. But, as I understand it, Photoshop can be difficult to master too. For either application, one of the things to work on becoming competent at is using layers and manipulating layer masks. I've never used it, but from the video tutorials that I've viewed, using Photoshop is a lot like using GIMP. AFAICT, you won't be wasting your time if you start with GIMP and then eventually move to Photoshop.

The fotos of the Aveneue of fountains look very nice. So sharp in such low light

Thanks!

[ProtienandIron]

Hi guys. Been awhile once again, I need to go through and get caught up.

I haven't really progressed at all since my last post, been a constant struggle of getting hurt and working my way back up to my old numbers. For awhile now I can only eat a fraction of what I used to, I am down to around 215lbs and have a doctor appointment set up at the end of January. It's a consultation which will result in me getting a scope down my throat so they can see if anything is going on in my stomach.

On top of that, I also have a hiatal hernia which isn't that bad, but bad enough to keep me from deadlifting reliably. I feel a lot smaller but everyone tells me I look the same, so I don't know where I lost the 20lbs. I also took months off from squatting because of knee issues, and I just started that back up not too long ago. Started way light and working up slowly, so far so good.

Recent picture:



Nothing else is really new at the moment. Got a decent raise at work, looking for my own house finally, and excited for Christmas because despite how I come across and how pissed off I get, it really is my favorite time of the year. I even enjoy just walking around the mall to see the decorations and hear the music for ****'s sake.

Anyway, maybe I'll stick around some more, I'm usually hanging out in the MMA section or the Misc (guh) when I get bored at work. Without my normal motivation due to my issues I just don't even like talking about working out that much. Maybe doing so will spark something.

Welcome back mate, and sorry to hear about your injuries.



Nice pics as usual KB.

Unfortunatly this is the sort of $*** we have to put up with over here...

[4MEandThem]

Happy Holidays Crew!

[KBKB]

Happy Holidays Crew!

Wow! Very nice!

How did you do this one?

[4MEandThem]

Spun a bike tire with lights attached to the spokes and hung lights from the ceiling attached to the tire. Shot in my garage gym with black foamboard on the ceiling.black stall mats and a black curtain.30 second exposure.