Month: March 2021

Favorite Baja Hotels: Tecate’s Hacienda

Tecate, not ordinarily a tourist destination, is more than just an entry point into Baja.  This little town has a lot to offer, and when I stay there, I usually opt for the Hotel Hacienda.  The Hacienda is easy to get to, it’s comfortable, it’s inexpensive, and it’s next door to one of the best restaurants in all of Tecate.

The Hotel Hacienda is at 861 Avenida Benito Juarez. Turn right after crossing the border and ride west about a mile. The Hacienda will be on your right.

As the map above indicates, the Hacienda is easy to get to.  You just go south into Mexico about two blocks after crossing the border, hang a right to head west on Avenida Benito Juarez, and ride about a mile.  The Hacienda will be on your right.

The Hacienda isn’t fancy, but it’s comfortable and clean, and the parking is secure (you park in a courtyard and you won’t have to worry about your motorcycle).  The last time I was there, a room was about $35, and they always have hot coffee available in the oficina.   What’s great about the Hacienda is that Malinalli’s is next door.  Malinalli’s is absolutely one of the best ever for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.  I’ll tell you more about Malinalli’s in a minute.

There’s just no telling what (or who) you might run into in the Hacienda’s courtyard parking lot.
A couple of Royal Enfields put away for the evening at the Hotel Hacienda.

Tecate is home to the beer company of the same name, and most folks think of Tecate as a gritty industrial town.   Trust me on this:  There’s a lot more to Tecate than just a beer company.

The Tecate brewery, located in the middle of town, is visible from just about anywhere in Tecate.

On the U.S. side, Tecate is not much more than the U.S. Customs and Immigration station; on the Mexican side, Tecate (population 102,000) is a much larger and far more intriguing place. Founded in 1892, Tecate’s history reaches back 12,000 years when the region was settled by the Kumeyaay Native Americans who still inhabit the area.

Getting to Tecate is a beautiful ride in itself. California SR 94 winds its way through the mountains just north of the border. Roughly 25 miles east of where 94 originates near San Diego, take a right on 2-mile-long SR 188 and you’re there. There’s a sign warning you not to bring guns into Mexico (duh), and suddenly, you’re crossing the border. There are no Mexican officials or inspections as you enter; you just ride right in. You can do that going south; don’t try it going north.

Crossing the border into Mexico at Tecate.
As soon as you cross the border, you’re in Tecate, Mexico. The road you see at the intersection ahead is Benito Juarez. Make a right, and the Hotel Hacienda is about a mile up the road.

Even if your plans are for a longer and deeper Baja visit, my advice is to spend at least one night in Tecate and enjoy the town’s best kept secret, which is the cuisine. Two restaurants that stand out are Amores for dinner and Malinalli Sabores Autóctonos for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Malinalli Sabores Autóctonos, right next to the Hotel Hacienda, has exquisite regional Mexican recipes, all prepared with fresh ingredients. Don’t think salsa and chips; this is the real deal and the cuisine is both exceptional and inexpensive.   When Gresh and I did the Enfield trip a couple of years ago, we parked our bikes directly in front of Malinalli’s (as you can see in the big photo at the top of this blog) and we ate there both on the way into Mexico and on the way.  Sue loves this place, too.

Just a few of the selections at Malinalli’s. Trust me on this: Malinalli’s is superb.
Blue corn tortillas and other Kamayeey cuisines make Malinalli’s stand out.

Amores, nestled between the central plaza and the Tecate brewery, features local foods and wines.  It’s a dinner spot, it’s what you might call haute cuisine, and it is absolutely outstanding.  It’s prices are higher than what you might ordinarily encounter in Tecate, but it’s still inexpensive by US standards.  They offer a choice of how many courses you might have for dinner, but the choices are what the staff feels like cooking that day. You won’t be disappointed; this is a memorable dining experience.

Two of several staff members at Amores. The dining was world class.
One of the five dinner courses we enjoyed…grilled octopus.

If your tastes run to simpler dining experiences, Tecate has you covered there, too.  There are numerous taco stands along Benito Juarez, and if there’s a bad one, I haven’t found it yet.  Watching the chefs prepare tacos is a treat unto itself, and they are absolutely delicious.

A taco chef at work in a Benito Juarez taco stand.
Taco taste tester extraordinaire Joe Gresh.

I usually try to work my Baja visits such that Tecate is my point of entry and my point of exit.  I like staying in the Hotel Hacienda and enjoying what Tecate has to offer, and bookending a Baja visit with a stay in this cool little town always works well for me.

Want to see more about our travels in Baja?  Check out our Baja and Epic Rides pages!

If you’re headed into Baja, make sure you insure with BajaBound Insurance.  It’s the best!

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The best budget bikes for Baja?  You might be surprised!

Never miss an ExNotes blog!

Read about our other favorite hotels in Baja!

Santa Rosalia’s Frances Hotel
Mulege’s Historico Las Casitas
Bahia San Quintin’s Old Mill

The One: A Bianchi L’Una!

Maybe 15 years ago Sue and I were on vacation in Calistoga (where the bottled water comes from).  We had our bicycles with us and we were enjoying the Silverado Trail and other choice bicycling roads in Napa Valley.  I had an aluminum-framed Giant roadbike in those days with entry-level componentry (if I recall, they branded it the Tiagra line).  There was a bike shop in Calistoga, and like gun shops, I can’t pass a bicycle store without stopping to see what they have.

In the Calistoga shop, I saw something that stopped me in my tracks.  It was a Bianchi L’Una (“the One” in Italian), and it was the most visually-arresting bicycle I’d ever seen.

Riding an inexpensive aluminum bike, I lusted for a carbon fiber bike.  I managed a plant back then that manufactured carbon fiber aviation components, and a carbon fiber bike was something I knew I needed.

The Bianchi wasn’t just carbon fiber, though.  The bike had top-of-the-line Campagnolo components (Campy’s Record line, which is expensive stuff).  Bicycle guys are elitists (although I’ve found they are not nearly as obnoxious as Facebook and motorcycle forum experts; I swear, some of these guys could be featured on the cover of Modern Proctology).  But bicycle guys also have strong opinions, two of which are that carbon fiber and Campy Record componentry are as good as it gets.

Just about everything on the L’Una that could be carbon fiber was, and most of it was white carbon fiber (the frame, the stem, the seatpost, the forks, and the forks).  The levers were conventional carbon, as were selected bits and pieces on the front and rear derailleurs.  The brakes calipers and a few other machined bits and pieces were titanium.   That’s expensive stuff.  I knew from my aerospace job that the lead time on titanium in those days was a whopping 72 weeks. It was a stunning and stunningly-expensive bicycle.  Everything about the bike was exotic. I had never seen anything like it.

I had to ask, and the Calistoga bike shop guy told me the L’Una was $5700.  I’d never heard of a bicycle being that expensive, although today (15 years later), that would not be an unusually high price.  Back then, though, you could have knocked me over with a feather.  $5700.  For a bicycle.  Wow.

I continued to look at the L’Una for another half hour, but I told the sales dude not to get too excited.  I was a looky-lou, I explained.  There was no way I was going to spend that kind of money on a bicycle.  But the bike was mesmerizing.  It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.  I asked if there was any room in the price, and the guy told me no.  “Bianchi is only bringing a few of these in from Italy,” he said, “and they are what they are.”

The L’Una continued to dance around in my mind for months after that encounter. It was a vision that wouldn’t go away.  I wanted it.

One day about a year later, I was poking around on E-Bay and I saw another L’Una for sale, brand new, at a bike store in Iowa somewhere.  It was posted at $3700.  That was still a pretty damn silly price for a bicycle, but it was $2,000 below what it I had seen in Calistoga.  I called the shop, introduced myself, and asked the owner what the deal was.

“The deal is there’s two feet of snow outside my front door, I have another 25 Orbeas (that’s another high-end bike) coming in, and I need to make room,” he told me.

“What’s the frame size?” I asked, knowing there was little chance it would be my size.  I’d have an easy out.

“It’s a 55,” he answered.

Hmmm.  55 centimeters is my frame size.

“Are there any marks or scratches on the bike?” I asked.  “From the E-Bay photos, it looks like it’s on display in your store.”   If it was scratched up or dinged, I’d have another out.

“Joe, I don’t know,” he answered.  “Let me check it out and I’ll call you right back.”

A half hour later the phone rang.  “I’ve gone over that bike with a magnifying glass,” came the report, “and it’s perfect.”

Hmmm.  I thought about the L’Una all night.  I talked to Sue and she said okay (and there went my last out).  So I called the Iowa bike shop guy the next morning and offered $3400.  “How’s that sound?” I asked.

“It sounds about $300 too light,” was his answer.

You can see from the photos here that I pulled the trigger, and even though I am one cheap SOB and I know spending $3700 on a bicycle is crazy, I’ve never regretted it.  The L’Una is the most exorbitant purchase I ever made, and I own (and have owned) some pretty cool toys.  But my L’Una is in a class all by itself.   I still look at it and just think, “wow.”  The bike fits me perfectly and it’s two miles per hour faster no matter what I’m doing (cruising, climbing, top end, whatever).  In the bicycle world, that’s a  lot.  The fit and feel of the thing is just incredible.

You know, most bicycles, including Bianchi bicycles, are made in China today.  And if you know anything about Gresh and me, and our travels here and overseas, you know that we think Chinese motorcycles are as good as any made anywhere in the world.  You may have a different opinion, but hey, it’s okay for you to be wrong.  But when it comes to my L’Una, it’s one of the original Italian Bianchi bicycles, and I like that.

You can read our blog about a steel-framed, Celeste green Bianchi bicycle here.

Read about Harrison Ford’s bike ride in Baja!

Hey, how about Gresh’s motorized bicycle!

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2022 KLR 650 Video

This flew into my mailbox last week from Kawasaki.  I’m still on their mailing list (I purchased a new KLR 650 in 2006).  I’ll let the video do the talking.

I had good times on my KLR. I don’t see another KLR in my future, but if the new model is as good as my 2006 KLR was, I think Kawasaki will do well with this motorcycle.   Both Gresh and I had thoughts about what the new model might feature; you can read those blogs here.

If I were going to buy a new KLR (I’m not, but if I were), I would probably wait until the 2023 models were out.  When Kawasaki introduced the Gen II KLR back in 2008, the 2008 bikes had oil consumption issues.  Kawasaki had a recall (if I recall correctly) and they fixed the problem in the 2009 model.  I think it’s best to let others work through the new model teething issues.

I’m guessing the full-freight new KLRs (luggage, ABS, etc.) will push $10K, which is roughly twice what a new CSC RX4 costs, and for me, selecting the RX4 over the Kawasaki would be a no-brainer.  For that kind of money, you could almost buy a new Sportster.

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Want to see our predictions on what the new KLR would be?  Just click here.

A Model 60 Load Development Plan

This blog outlines the development plan I’m using for my new-to-me Model 60 Smith and Wesson revolver.  You might recall that I bought this revolver not too long ago and I had my good buddy and master pistolsmith TJ (of TJ’s Custom Gunworks) go through the gun, get everything perfect, do the trigger, and add a bit of tasteful polishing.

My custom Smith and Wesson Model 60. Note the polished ejector rod, cylinder, trigger, cylinder release, and hammer, and the smooth rosewood grips.

TJ did a hell of a job, I recently qualified with the Model 60 for my concealed carry permit, and now I want to find the most accurate load for this handgun.  To me this means two things:  The smallest group size and where the revolver hits with respect to the point of aim.  I’m not concerned with velocity.  All the velocity in the world doesn’t mean a thing if you can’t hit your target.

When I develop a load, I generally do a bit of research on the Internet to see what others have found to be an accurate load, I see what components I have on hand (bullets and powders), and I consult my reloading manuals.  I never take loads off Internet forums as gospel unless I confirm their safety in my load manuals or they come directly from the manufacturer’s websites (there is just so much inaccurate information on the Internet), and I never load at the manual’s max without working up to that level.  My approach is to load a few rounds at the minimum level and a few a bit below the max level with each bullet and powder combination to get a quick feel for further load development.  Or, I might find a combination in the initial tests that is so good I don’t need to do any further testing.

From left to right: 158-grain cast flatpoint, Hornady 158-grain jacketed hollow point, Hornady 110-grain jacketed hollow point, and Hornady 148-grain swaged wadcutter.

These days, I’m governed by what I have on hand, as the component suppliers are out of nearly everything.  For me and this test series, that means four bullets:

      • A 158-grain cast flatpoint bullet from a local caster
      • Hornady’s 158-grain jacketed hollowpoint
      • Hornady’s 110-grain jacketed hollowpoint
      • Hornady’s 148-grain swaged wadcutter

All are shown in the photo above.  My powders include Winchester 231, Unique, Bullseye, and Power Pistol (as seen in the featured photo at the top of this blog).

Here’s what the test plan looks like:

I’m going to test at 50 feet and fire two groups of three shots each for each combination.  That will keep the total number of rounds fired to a manageable 150 rounds.  It’s a quick look at what works and what doesn’t.

You might notice that I’m only going to test one load with the 148-grain wadcutter bullet.  That’s because it’s been the known accuracy load for years, and it’s also because it’s what I have my Star progressive reloading press set up to make. Stated differently, I’m not going to change this load because it’s my standard wadcutter load, and the Model 60 will either do okay with it or it won’t.  I already know this load shoots significantly to the right of my point of aim in the Model 60, but I’m including it here because I have the ammo and it’s easy to include in this test series.

That’s the plan.  I’m reloading the ammo as you read this, and I’ll have it tested most likely next week.  Watch the ExNotes blog for results in the near future.

More Tales of the Gun!

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Tough Rides: China

Here’s another Amazon Prime television show and video review.  This one (as the blog title suggests) is on a series titled Tough Rides China.  It’s about two Canadian brothers (Ryan and Colin Pyle) who circumnavigated China on BMW F800 motorcycles, and you can either watch it on Amazon Prime (if you have that streaming service) on your TV or on your computer.

The bottom line first:  I enjoyed this 6-part series.  A big part of that was because Joe Gresh and I rode around China with the cult of the Zong and we had a whale of a time, so it was easy to relate to what these two fellows did.

I didn’t think this series was as good as the one I reviewed recently about the two German dudes who rode from Germany to India (Himalaya Calling, which was a stellar production), but I still enjoyed it.

Surprisingly, the Pyle brothers’ BMWs broke down a couple of times during the trip, which suprised me.  They were concerned about how long it would take to get parts and the lack of a strong BMW presence in China (now there’s a switch).   For the record, our ten Zongshen RX1 and Rx3 motorcycles didn’t have a single breakdown during our ride.  The Pyle brothers had breakdowns that mandated trucking the bikes significant portions of the trip (does GS actually stand for Go Slow?).

The Pyles also put their bikes on trucks when they wanted to get on the freeways because motorcycles are not allowed on some Chinese freeways.  When Gresh and I were over there with the Zongers, we rode them anyway.  It made me nervous that we rode around the toll gate arms (without paying the toll) and I asked one of our Chinese brothers about it.  “We’re not allowed on the freeways, so if we tried to pay, they wouldn’t know what to do,” he told me.

Tough Rides China has a long introduction at the beginning of every episode, and it was the same in every episode.   That became a bit distracting, and I blitzed through the lengthy and redundant intro after watching the first two episodes.

Tough Rides China featured the giant sand dunes and camels in the Gobi Desert around Dun Huang.  Gresh and I were there.  It was an awesome place, as was all of China.  It really was the adventure of a lifetime.

Tough Rides China is part of a series.  The Pyle brothers have done similar series in Brazil and India, too.  I’ll have to look for those.  While I didn’t think this series was as good the Himalaya Calling adventure ride we recently reviewed, it was still good and I recommend seeing it.

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Would you like to read about the Zong trip when Gresh and I rode around China?  Hey, just click right here!

Halcyon 450 Riding Footage

You will recall our recent post on the new Janus 450.  Those Janus boys are not sitting still….here’s some exciting footage of the new Janus feeling its oats in the great American Southwest:

This is definitely cool. I can’t wait to ride one. 360 lbs. That’s amazing.

Check out our earlier Janus posts here and here!

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Exhaustnotes Off-Grid: Part 2 What Battery Voltage Should I Use? Or, Going Native

Going off-grid requires many design decisions, none of them exceptionally hard or final. With off-grid you can always change your mind to suit your needs although you can save a bit of money if you have a plan and stick with it. Of course that’s not how I do things. I generally screw up and get it right the third time, you know what I mean?

The going native part in the title of this story pertains to base system voltage. In my mind a native setup uses roughly the same voltage for the panels, batteries and inverter as opposed to running high voltage panels and stepping them down to battery voltage.

Going native makes your system more resilient to failure. The two most complicated devices in an off grid system are the inverter and the solar panel voltage regulator (not counting strange new battery technologies). When either of those two fail you are pretty much done until you purchase parts. With a native system the regulator can be bypassed completely by connecting the solar array directly to the batteries. Depending on the size of the array you’ll have to keep an eye on your charging to not overcook the batteries but by simply shading or un-shading a few panels with cardboard you will be able to control the charge rate at a reasonable level.

When it comes to common battery voltages for your off grid system you have effectively 3 choices: 12-volt, 24-volt or 48-volt. Fast thinkers will realize that these voltages are all multiples of 12 and that’s because 12-volt batteries are the most popular. You can get batteries in other voltages; there’s no real reason the basic building block had to be 12-volt. You can buy 2-volt batteries all the way to 48-volt batteries.

One or more batteries connected together and powering your house are called a bank and like a bank you have to deposit energy into the batteries in order to draw energy out. For smaller off-grid systems 12-volt battery banks are popular. Inverters in the 2000-watt range powered by a 12-volt battery bank will work fine and are the simplest to connect if you’re electrically impaired. 12-volt banks become less desirable as power needs rise due to the large, expensive battery wires you’ll need to supply the amperage big 12-volt inverters need.

In favor of going native with 12-volt batteries, thanks to the RV industry there are a zillion products that operate at 12-volt. You can get 12-volt refrigerators, 12-volt coffee pots, 12-volt light fixtures, 12-volt pumps, 12-volt air conditioners, 12-volt televisions, 12-volt chargers for your phone and computer and you can even get 12-volt toilets. In fact, you could build yourself a pretty comfortable off-grid house using nothing but 12-volt appliances and skip having an inverter altogether. 12-volt is also fairly safe as your chances of being electrocuted increase along with voltage. Unless you’re really sweaty you can touch both poles of a 12-volt battery and not feel a thing.

The appliances that operate from native voltage will continue to operate with a dead inverter. In my shed that means lights and water pump still work with the inverter shut off. Going native allows you to slowly back out of the complex into the simple and simple things are understandable and reliable.

Going native at 24-volt limits the number of electrical devices you have to choose from. There are not nearly as many 24-volt things as there are 12-volt things. This is slowly changing and 24-volt stuff is becoming more popular. Most DC voltage LED lights are rated 10 to 30 volts. A lot of electronic devices and chargers are also rated 10 to 30 volts (read the fine print on that wall-pig that sucks up all the real estate on your outlets). Getting across 24-volts will give you a tingle and If you’re sweaty you’ll get a shock. Nothing that will kill you, we hope, but still it’s less safe than 12-volt for you electricityphobes out there.

In my off grid shed I’ve chosen 24 for my native voltage, kind of splitting the baby between 12 and 48. My solar panels are considered 24-volt (actually higher but close enough to connect directly). I only really need lights until I can rig up a small inverter to get critical things up and running. The water pump is 24-volt also. My 24-volt inverter is 6000 watts; if I went with a bigger inverter I’d probably go to 48-volt and lose some resiliency.

Going native at 48-volts is sort of useless because you can’t find very many things that operate off 48-volts except inverters. At this native voltage you should toss any hope of backing out of the system gracefully after a lightning strike and put your trust in the thousands of tiny electronic components inside those humming boxes. Go ahead and crank the solar panel voltage up and plan on being in the dark if the inverter fails. Safety wise, 48-volts will give you quite a shock and may even kill you if you are wet and have health issues.

There are devices that will allow you to run most any DC voltage from any other DC voltage. To me these are one more point to fail in the system and they aren’t cheap either. I have one to operate my 12-volt refrigerator from the 24-volt battery bank. It cost almost as much as the fridge!

If you’re planning an off grid system for a remote cabin consider going native. Give yourself the option to keep on keeping on when the buzzing widgets fail. And they will fail. Nothing lasts forever. By building resiliency into the system from the start you can use your head to make things work while others must scamper off to the Internet to order parts.

See Part I of our Off-Grid series!

Harrison Ford bikes Baja

“Tough as Nails” could be an alternative title for this blog, as it is about Harrison Ford bicycling from Tijuana to Cabo San Lucas, a distance of roughly 1000 miles across deserts, over more than a few fairly steep and long climbs through Baja’s mountains, and widely varying weather conditions.  I’ve encountered a few other folks bicycling the length of Baja on my motorcycle rides, and I’ve always been in awe of such an undertaking.  TJ to Cabo.  On a bicycle.  Color me seriously impressed.

Another cool fact is that Ford is 78 years old.  He’s got 8 years on me, but even when I was in my prime, I doubt I could have accomplished this ride.  Ford’s bike, judging by the frame’s headbadge, is a Colnago, a very high end Italian roadbike.

I’ve bicycled bit in Baja, having ridden the annual Rosarito Beach to Ensenada ride several times.  That’s a 50-mile ride along the ocean and up in the mountains, and I’d like to do it again someday.  But TJ to Baja…man, that’s impressive.

Mr. Ford will be completing his ride about the same time as you read this blog.  Now I’m wondering:  What would it take to organize a bicycle ride like this?  Who could I get to go with me?  What would Gresh or Baja John look like in Spandex?

Heading into Baja?  Get your Baja insurance here!

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CSC’s 2021 RX4 Colors

The new CSC RX4 is here, and they are moving out quickly from the CSC plant in Azusa, California.  CSC Motorcycles is offering two colors on the new RX4, as shown in the photo above Steve Seidner recently sent to me.  One is a vibrant yellow and the other is a deep, rich blue.  I like them.  If I had to pick one, I’d go with the yellow.  Yellow just seems to work on ADV bike.  There are a number of changes incorporated on the new RX4 motorcycles, as outlined in the CSC mailer below.  The big ones are the spoked tubeless wheels, the new TFT dash, and a tire pressure monitoring system.

We tested the RX4 extensively when it first came to America and published a comparison between it, the CSC RX3, and the Kawasasaki KLR 650.  You can see those reports here.  I may well have been the first American to ever ride an RX4 when I was in China visiting the Zongshen factory not that long ago.   I rode the prototype (literally a 450cc engine in an RX3), and on a subsequent visit, one of the early preproduction models.

Tooling around the Zongshen test track on a preproduction RX4…those were fun times.

I love traveling to China, and I particularly like visiting the Zongshen plant and Chongqing.  It’s a city most folks haven’t heard of here in the US, even though at 34 million inhabitants it is one of the largest cities on the planet.  With that, here’s the info from CSC Motorcycles:

Get More Than Ever! CSCMOTORCYCLES.COM

The new 2021 CSC RX4 is the motorcycle ADV riders have been waiting for. Powerful. Economical. Modern.  The RX4 is an all-around versatile motorcycle that is perfect for real-world riding – including highway cruising, adventure touring, or simply commuting to work economically.

The 450cc single-cylinder, 4-valve, overhead cam, counter-balanced engine produces 40.2 horsepower and achieves a top speed over 95 miles per hour. The RX4 is water-cooled and equipped with Delphi fuel injection and electric start. The bike features a six-speed transmission.

The new RX4 includes an adjustable windscreen, comfortable touring seat and foot pegs with removable rubber inserts. The RX4 features an all digital TFT Display Gauges: dash with digital speedometer, tachometer, odometer, trip odometer, fuel gauge, gear indicator, neutral light, temperature gauge, clock, turn signal and high beam indicators, and Bluetooth connectivity for caller ID. Above the dash there are USB and 12-volt charging outlets included as standard equipment.

The new CSC RX4 includes a 300-watt alternator to power accessories with two prewired outlets under the seat.

The RX4 features LED turn signals and brake light plus LED day-time running lights. The headlamps are controlled by an automatic light sensor. The RX4 has a standard 5.3-gallon gas tank with locking cap. With fuel consumption exceeding 60 miles per gallon, the RX4 has an honest range approaching 300 miles.

The CSC RX4 is outfitted with spoked wheels, black anodized aluminum rims and 80/20 tubeless tires.

The RX4 comes standard with molded side cases, mounting racks and a TALL rear top box – which is large enough for a full-face helmet. Or RX4 owners can select the OPTIONAL package of Tourfella aluminum side cases and rear top box, all with custom side pannier and rear mounting racks.

The CSC RX4 is an unmatched value in the adventure motorcycle category. The powerful and economical 450cc motor is paired with a huge list of standard features that cannot be duplicated elsewhere.

CSC RX4 Standard Features:

      • 450cc liquid-cooled engine, 4-valve, overhead cam, with counter-balancer.
      • Long maintenance intervals (5,000-mile valve adjustment) and easy repairs backed by a full Owner’s Manual and online service tutorials.
      • US Delphi EFI system.
      • 6-speed transmission.
      • Stainless steel twin pipe exhaust.
      • 5.3-gallon fuel tank with locking gas cap keyed to ignition.
      • All Digital TFT Display Gauges: dash with digital speedometer, tachometer, odometer, trip odometer, fuel gauge, gear indicator, neutral light, temperature gauge, clock, turn signal and high beam indicators.
      • Adjustable windshield.
      • 12-volt and USB charging outlets on dash.
      • LED turn signals and brake light.
      • Dual-flash hazard lights.
      • 3D Anti-fog headlamp with LED day-time running light. Low light sensor with handlebar switch controls.
      • 300-watt alternator.
      • Automotive-type waterproof connectors under the seat. An optional handlebar-switch for accessory outlets is available.
      • Adjustable inverted front forks with anodized finish. Fork lock keyed to ignition.
      • Adjustable rear shock absorber.
      • Large diameter dual front and single rear disk brakes with ABS.
      • Front 110/80-19 spoked wheel with tubeless dual sport tire, black aluminum rim.
      • Rear 150/70-17 spoked wheel with tubeless dual sport tire, black aluminum rim.
      • Tire Pressure Monitoring System {TPMS}.
      • Front and rear mud guards, with added rear lower mud guard.
      • Steel engine skid plate. An optional full coverage aluminum skid plate upgrade is available.
      • Frame-mounted engine guards.
      • Comes standard with molded luggage. An upgraded aluminum luggage package is available.
      • Wide foot pegs with removable rubber inserts.
      • Passenger foot pegs and grab rails.
      • Tapered aluminum handlebars with bar-end weights.
      • Dual rear view mirrors.
      • Ergonomic rider and passenger seat.
      • Available Colors: Fire Yellow or Saphire Blue.
      • The RX4 is covered by a ONE YEAR unlimited mileage warranty.

If you’re a serious international adventure rider, the RX4 is one of the best motorcycles available.  I believe it is one of the six best motorcycles you can take into Baja if you are seeking a great bike at a super price.  You can read more about the new RX4 on the CSC blog.

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The Model 52 Smith and Wesson

I’m a lucky guy.  One of the Holy Grail pieces in my collection is a Model 52 Smith and Wesson.   These guns were discontinued nearly 30 years ago and a lot of folks (myself included) consider them to be the finest handguns ever manufactured.  I had always wanted one, and finally, after pestering a good friend relentlessly, he agreed to sell me his.

An impressive target handgun: The Smith and Wesson Model 52-2. It has one of the best triggers I’ve ever experienced.

The Model 52 was built as a no-compromise bullseye target handgun chambered for mid-range .38 Special wadcutter ammunition.  What that means is that it’s not a duty weapon or a concealed carry weapon.  It’s a full-sized, 5-inch-barreled, adjustable sights, tightly-clearanced handgun with but one objective in mind:  Shooting tiny groups with wadcutter ammo.

The .38 Special cartridge has been around forever, and the target variant uses a wadcutter bullet.  One of my friends saw these and commented that it was odd-looking ammo, and I guess if you’re not a gun nut it probably is.  The bullets fit flush with the case mouth, and because of the sharp shoulder at the front of the bullet, they cut a clean hole in the target (hence the “wadcutter” designation).

.38 Special wadcutter ammo, reloaded on a Star reloading machine. The secret sauce (not so secret, actually) is a 148 grain wadcutter bullet seated flush and 2.7 grains of Bullseye propellant.

I love reloading .38 Special wadcutter ammo, especially now that I am doing so on my resurrected Star reloader.  You can read about that here.

You can see the clean holes cut by the wadcutter bullets in the target below, and that’s a typical target for me when I’m on the range with the Model 52.  What you see below is a target with 25 shots at 25 yards shot from the standing position.

25 rounds at 25 yards from the Model 52, all in the bullseye. I’m a ham-and-eggs pistolero; guys who are good can shoot much tighter groups.

Yeah, I know, 2 of the 25 shots were a bit low in the orange bullseye.  A gnat landed on my front sight twice during the string of 25.  (That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.)

That’s a Hornady hollow-base wadcutter on the left, and the Missouri Bullets cast double-ended wadcutter on the right. The HBWC is orientation sensitive; the DEWC is not.
Reloaded HBWC and DEWC cartridges, with two of the double-ended wadcutter bullets that show the wadcutter end (which faces forward in the cartridge) and the hollow base end. These HBWC projectiles are Hornady bullets.

Next question:  Which is more accurate in the Model 52, the hollow-base wadcutters or the double-ended wadcutters?   The two I tried are the Missouri cast double-ended wadcutter, and the Hornady swaged hollow-base wadcutter.   Here’s what they look liked (with me behind the gun) on a set of 50-ft targets:

50-ft targets used for comparing DEWC bullets versus HBWC bullets. These targets are about one-fourth the size of the silhouette target shown above.

And here’s the group size data from the 16 five-shot groups I fired a couple of days ago (all dimensions are in inches).  It was all focused on answering the question:  Which is more accurate?  Hollow-base wadcutters, or double-ended wadcutters?

The load was 2.7 grains of Bullseye, a CCI 500 primer, and mixed brass for all of the above groups.  They were all shot at 50 feet.  So, to answer the accuracy question, to me the difference is trivial (it’s less than a 1% difference when comparing hollow-base to double-ended wadcutter average groups).   The standard deviation (a measure of the variability in the group size) was a little bigger for the hollow-base wadcutters, but the difference was probably a statistcal anomaly and it was more due to me, I think, than anything else.

Folks often wonder how the Smith and Wesson wizards managed to get a semi-auto to feed wadcutter ammo.  It’s partly in the magazine design and partly in the ramping (but mostly in the magazine).  The Model 52 magazine is designed to only hold 5 rounds, and if the bullet protrudes beyond the case mouth, it won’t fit into the magazine.  The magazine holds the the top cartridge nearly perfectly in alignment with the chamber, and when the slide pushes the round forward, it glides right in.    It will even do so with an empty case, as the video below shows.

The Model 52 was first introduced by Smith and Wesson in 1961.  It was based on Smith’s 9mm Model 39, but it had a steel frame (instead of an aluminum frame, although Smith also made a small number of Model 39s with steel frames), a 5-inch barrel (instead of the 39’s 4-inch barrel), and target-grade sights adjustable for windage and elevation (instead of the 39’s windage-adjustable-only sights).  The original Model 52 had the Model 39’s double action first shot capability, although I’ve never seen a no-dash Model 52.   In 1963 Smith incorporated a better single-action-only trigger and the 52 became the 52-1, and then in 1970 it became the 52-2 when Smith incorporated a better extractor.  Mine is the 52-2.

I was lucky…when my friend sold the Model 52 to me, he had the complete package:  The original blue Smith and Wesson box, the paperwork that came with the new gun, and all of the tools and accessories (including the barrel bushing wrench).

You might be wondering:  Which is more accurate?  The Model 52 Smith and Wesson, or the new Colt Python?  They are both fine and accurate handguns, but in my hands and after coming back from good buddy TJ and TJ’s Custom Gunworks with a crisp single-action trigger, the Python gets top billing in the accuracy department.  You can read about the Python’s accuracy with wadcutter .38 Special ammo here.

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