The A-10 Warthog

The Gatling Gun, a book that tells the story of the original Gatling guns, their transition to modern gun systems, and several of the weapons platforms currently using Gatlings.  It has been one of my most successful books ever.  The Gatling Gun was picked up as the Book of the Month by the Military Book Club shortly after its publication and that made for a very healthy sales spike (and that was okay by me).  It seems that every job I had after finishing college had something to do with Gatlings.  I was on the Vulcan gun system in the Army.  I was on the F-16 design team, an aircraft that flew with a 20mm Gatling.  I worked on the Phalanx Close-In Weapon System at General Dynamics here in California.  I was the Director of Engineering in the company that manufactured 30mm A-10 ammo.  There’s more, but you get the idea.

Writing The Gatling Gun was a hell of a lot of fun, including visits to the Connecticut State Library (where the original Gatling and Colt archives, and many of the early Gatling guns, are stored).  I handled original documents prepared by Samuel Colt and Dr. Gatling (and in the process, I became a licensed State of Connecticut historian).  It was a hoot.

Of all the modern Gatling-equipped weapons of war, the most powerful is the A-10 Warthog, an aircraft armed with the mighty 30mm GAU-8/A Avenger cannon.  Working for Aerojet, the company that manufactured the A-10’s 30mm ammunition, was one of the best jobs I ever had.

Today’s blog includes The Gatling Gun chapter on the A-10.   I think you’ll enjoy it.

Chapter 11:  The A-10 Thunderbolt Story

As the column of Soviet armored vehicles rolled across the open Eastern European plain, the lumbering sound of diesel engines and clanking treads drowned out all else. Russian infantrymen struggled to keep up, shouting to (but not hearing) each other. Suddenly, a roar different than that emanating from the tanks engulfed everything. It sounded like a powerful internal combustion engine (perhaps that of a race car) running at full throttle. The infantrymen started dropping as the tanks slowed to a stop. From the rear of the column, and working toward the front at an incredible rate, the ground erupted all around in 10-meter-wide explosions. Three of the tanks burst into flames, one blowing its turret off the hull. Black smoke was everywhere. An A-10 passed overhead, its 30mm Avenger gun continuing to roar, throwing out high-velocity depleted uranium penetrators and a 20-foot-long muzzle flash. The aircraft swung low as it passed the column. One of the infantrymen not killed in the first pass realized that the devilish craft was circling for another pass, and in addition to feeling raw terror, he suddenly felt very ill.

Of all the Gatling-gun-equipped aircraft flying today, one of the most intriguing is the A-10 Thunderbolt II. Nicknamed the Warthog by the crews who fly it, the A-10 is the first airplane designed from the ground up around a Gatling gun. It carries the most powerful Gatling gun ever built.

The Close Air Support Problem

The need for the Thunderbolt II and its very specialized mission was recognized during the conflicts in Korea and Vietnam. In these conflicts, U.S. aircraft were the best in the world for air-to-air combat. In the Korean War, these superb fighters included the F-86 Sabre, F-84 Thunderjet, F-80 Shooting Star, and F9F Panther. The F-4 Phantom, the F-111, the F-8, the A-7, and several others saw action in the Vietnam War. Vietnam-era tactical aircraft included such features as supersonic speeds, terrain-following radar, computer-assisted weapon delivery systems, and even such things as exotic as wings with adjustable sweep angles. One problem with these aircraft, however, was that they were designed primarily for air-to-air combat. This made them less than ideal for close-air-support missions (which support ground troops by engaging enemy ground targets). Having been designed for air-to-air combat, they had to be fast and maneuverable, and capable of flying at high altitudes. This placed constraints on the amount and kinds of ordnance that could be carried. Their high speed also meant the airplanes had a high stall speed, which detracted from accurately delivering ground fire.

In the close-air-support role, where the pilot would be required to engage ground targets in close proximity to friendly troops, inaccurate delivery systems were unacceptable. Most of the aircraft that flew in Vietnam were designed with late 1950s and early 1960s technology. During that era, vulnerability to small-arms ground fire was not recognized as a key design parameter. Unfortunately, this is precisely the environment in which close-air support aircraft must operate. In the Vietnam War, more U.S. aircraft were downed by small-arms fire than by any other means. There is even a confirmed case of an F-4 Phantom being shot down by a single rifle bullet.

The A-10 Warthog firing its 30mm Avenger cannon. This aircraft was actually designed around its powerful Gatling cannon. Each 30mm round has more muzzle energy than a World War II 75mm Howitzer!

The most significant drawback of existing close-air-support aircraft (i.e., those used in the close-air-support role prior to the advent of the A-10) was that they were ineffective against tanks. With enemy armor being one of the main threats to NATO forces in the European theater, military planners recognized that an aircraft with new capabilities was required.

The A-X Requirements

The close-air-support deficiencies the United States had observed during the Korean and Vietnam conflicts defined the need for the A-X aircraft in the mid-1960s (A-X stands for “Attack Experimental”). The air force initially envisioned a turbo-prop aircraft. The idea was that a current-technology version of the World War II Thunderbolt would best satisfy the requirements (note that World War II vintage Thunderbolts were used in a close-air-support role in Vietnam). The A-X specification was based primarily on deficiencies in existing aircraft. One of the requirements was an extremely accurate ordnance delivery system, because friendly ground troops could be within yards of the enemy. A high payload was also needed. As explained earlier, most existing tactical aircraft had been designed to maximize either maneuverability, speed, altitude, or some combination of these parameters. Payload had necessarily suffered.

The A-X aircraft also had to be able to remain in the air near the target for long periods of time, which is referred to as “loiter capability.” Existing tactical aircraft had been designed to operate at high altitudes.  When flying at the low altitudes associated with close-air-support missions, they consumed excessive amounts of fuel. This translated to short loiter capabilities, which detracted from the effectiveness of close-air-support missions.

The air force also stipulated that the new A-X aircraft needed to have good “survivability” characteristics, meaning it should be relatively invulnerable to small-arms fire from the ground. To ensure that the aircraft met this requirement, the air force specified armor protection, redundant flight-control systems, and fire-suppression equipment.

The Armor Threat

The main requirement for the A-X aircraft, however, was that it be able to contribute significantly to the NATO defense of Eastern Europe, and that meant it had to be able to defeat tanks. (The Soviet Union and its Warsaw Pact allies had tens of thousands of tanks deployed along the East-European frontier. In any European combat scenario, the United States and the nations of Western Europe would have had to be able to defeat these tanks.)

To meet this threat, the United States developed (and continues to develop) many antitank weapons. These include shoulder-fired antitank weapons, large-caliber recoilless rifles, aircraft-delivered missiles and bombs, smart munitions, and several other systems. No U.S. aircraft, however, carried a gun system capable of defeating Soviet tanks.

The Flyoff Competition

In 1967 the U.S. Air Force solicited proposals from twenty-one companies to build a prototype A-X aircraft. After evaluating all of the proposals, it selected Northrop and Fairchild Republic as contenders to enter the final phase of the competition. As part of a new procurement policy, it funded both companies to develop aircraft meeting the A-X specifications. After Northrop and Fairchild finished building the prototypes, the air force conducted extensive tests prior to making a decision. During the competition, Northrop teamed with Ford Aerospace and Communications Company. Ford built the gun used in the Northrop aircraft, which was designated the A-9. Unfortunately for both Northrop and Ford, the Ford gun experienced many problems during the test program, including blowing up on at least one occasion. The antitank gun was the primary weapon for the A-X aircraft, and because the Ford gun (which was also based on the Gatling principle) performed poorly, the outlook for the Northrop A-9 was bleak.

A tank struck by GAU-8/A ammunition from the A-10 Thunderbolt. The GAU-8/A ammunition includes a mix of high explosive and depleted uranium projectiles.

Fairchild Republic teamed with the General Electric Armament Division to build the A-10. The A-10 carried a new 30mm version of the Gatling gun named the “Avenger,” which was based on the older 20mm Vulcan but was much more powerful. When General Electric became involved with the A-X program, it had nearly twenty years of development and production history with Gatling guns of various configurations. This experience was apparent during the test program, and the 30mm Avenger performed superbly. The A-10 rapidly demonstrated that it was a superior aircraft. The prototype flyoff competition ended in late 1972, and the A-10 was selected for a planned production run of 600 aircraft.

The A-10 Thunderbolt II

The A-10 Thunderbolt II is unlike any aircraft in the U.S. inventory. It is quite unconventional in appearance when compared to other tactical jet aircraft, and for good reason. One notably different aspect of the A-10 is its unswept wings. The stubby wings are straight to allow flying at the very low speeds required for the close-air-support role. Another striking difference is the location of the engines, which are mounted high above the rear fuselage. There are two reasons for this. One is better protection from enemy small-arms fire. Another is that the rear fuselage masks the engines’ heat signature, providing better protection from heat-seeking missiles.

The GAU-8/A 30mm Gatling gun. The size and power of the Avenger cannon are obvious in this photograph.

The A-10 has many other unique features that are not as readily apparent. One is a high degree of component and subassembly interchangeability. To the maximum extent possible, left and right components of the aircraft are identical, which considerably reduces the number of spare parts needed to support it. The interchangeable components include the engines, landing gear, rudders, and many parts of the wings and tail. The landing gear design is also unique in that when it is retracted, the main and nose wheels protrude slightly beyond the outline of the fuselage. This permits the A-10 to make emergency gear-up landings without damage. The A-10 is designed to survive small-arms fire. Control cables and hydraulic lines are routed so that one projectile could not inflict enough damage to make the aircraft unflyable. Another survivability feature is the cockpit design. The lower portion is surrounded by lightweight titanium armor to protect the pilot. The A-10 payload is quite impressive. In addition to 30mm ammunition, the A-10 can carry missiles, bombs, cluster bombs, and other munitions, for a total of up to 18,500 pounds of ordnance. This is approximately equal to the weight of the aircraft and is about double the payload of other aircraft used in the close-air-support role. Yet the A-10’s most intriguing feature is undoubtedly its 30mm Avenger Gatling gun.

The World’s Most Powerful Gatling Gun

The heart of the A-10 is its 30mm gun. The military designation for this gun is the GAU-8/A (the GAU is pronounced “gow,” and is an acronym for Gun, Automatic, Utility), and the A-10 was literally designed around it.

The GAU-8/A is a seven-barreled 30mm Gatling gun that weighs approximately 3,900 pounds fully loaded (or about 20 percent of the total aircraft weight). The gun is hydraulically driven and is fed through a double helix drum and ammunition feed system similar to that of the 20mm Vulcan (more on the feed and storage system later).

One way to appreciate the power of this gun system is to consider it in relation to the A-10. The gun is mounted to place the firing barrel on the exact centerline of the aircraft, and for good reason. When firing at the maximum rate of 4,200 RPM (it can also fire at a reduced rate of 2,100 RPM), the GAU-8/A generates about 19,000 pounds of recoil. To put this in perspective, consider the power of the A-10’s two fan turbine engines. Each of these generates about 9,000 pounds of thrust. When both engines are at full throttle, they generate a combined thrust of 18,000 pounds, which is less than the recoil of the GAU-8/A. In other words, when firing at maximum rate, more recoil force is generated by the GAU-8/A than by both of the engines operating at full throttle! The effect is quite noticeable, as the gun actually slows the A-10 when it is firing.

The A-10’s Avenger Gatling fires when each barrel when it is aligned with the centerline of the aircraft, which is why the cannon is offset to the aircraft’s left side.

The high recoil of the GAU-8/A gun is also the reason the firing barrel is along the aircraft centerline. If it were not, the A-10 would turn away from the target each time the gun fired. Aircraft carrying the 20mm Vulcan in an off-centerline position are also susceptible to this phenomenon, but the recoil of the 20mm gun is small enough to allow for compensation by offsetting the rudder a few degrees. This is normally programed into the flight-control computer and requires no action by the pilot. That approach would not work on the A-10, though. The GAU-8/A gun simply generates too much recoil.

The GAU-8/A Gun System

The GAU-8/A Gun System is made up of four subsystems: the gun, the ammunition feed and storage subsystem, the drive subsystem, and the electrical control subsystem. Specifications for the GAU-8/A gun system are presented in Table 11-1 and explained below.

Table 11-1
GAU-8/A Gun System Specifications
Gun type: 7-barrel Gatling
Ammunition: 30mm HEI, TP, API
Firing rate: 4,200 or 2,100 spm
Gun system weight (loaded): 3,867 pounds
Gun system weight (unloaded): 1,861 pounds
Gun weight: 661 pounds
Drum weight: 780 pounds
Capacity: 1,200 rounds (drum); 1,350 rounds (system)
Drive: hydraulic
Gun length: 112.83 inches
Barrel length: 93.1 inches
Clearing: reverse rotation
Peak recoil: 19,000 pounds

The GAU-8/A gun is a seven-barrel Gatling-based automatic cannon (see the illustrations above). The gun subsystem consists of the following nine major components:

Rotor assembly. The rotor assembly is made up of the forward rotor (which accepts the barrels and is geared to the gun drive shaft) and the mid-rotor (to which the bolt guide tracks are mounted). The rotor assembly operates in the same manner and provides the same functions as that of other Gatling guns.

Housing. The housing serves as the basic frame of the GAU-8/A and provides a mount for many of the gun components (including the lubricator, ammunition transfer unit, solenoid assembly, firing cam,
rotor, and other components). It also contains the elliptical cam path that drives the bolts back and forth.

Barrels. The GAU-8/A has seven barrels. Each is 93.1 inches long and has 20-groove right-hand constant twist rifling (unlike the 20mm Vulcan, which uses a gain twist rifling pattern).

Bolts. Seven bolts are used on the GAU-8/A. They are similar to those used on the 20mm Vulcan, except they are much larger and use a percussion (instead of an electrical) firing system.

Transfer unit. The transfer unit is mounted to the right side of the housing. It feeds ammunition into the gun and accepts fired and unfired cases from it.

The GAU-8/A cannon and ammunition. This seven-barreled Gatling gun fires several types of 30mm ammunition. The ammunition has an aluminum cartridge case, nylon rotating bands (to increase projectile velocity and decrease barrel wear), and (in the tank-busting role) a depleted uranium penetrator warhead.

Lubricator. The lubricator is mounted on the upper rear portion of the housing. It contains a reservoir of lubricant, and each time the gun fires a small quantity is injected onto the bolt tracks.

Solenoid assembly. The solenoid assembly is also mounted on the housing and is used to withdraw the firing pin safety when the firing signal is sent to the gun.

Mid-barrel support and clamp. The mid-barrel support and clamp provides the forward mounting point for the GAU-8/A. It also locks the barrels in position within the rotor.

Muzzle clamp. The muzzle clamp provides structural support for the cannon and maintains concentricity of the barrel cluster.

Ammunition Feed and Storage Subsystem

The ammunition feed and storage subsystem is used to store and convey live and spent rounds (empty cartridges are not ejected out of the A-10). The nine major components of the subsystem are as follows:

Ammunition storage drum. The ammunition storage drum is similar in concept to the drum used for the 20mm Vulcan. It consists of an inner and outer drum, two scoop-disk assemblies, two drum-cover assemblies, and two spacer rings. The inner drum has a double-helix that forces the rounds forward or backward when the inner drum is rotated. Ammunition passes through the drum-cover assemblies for loading, unloading, firing, and returning fired cartridge cases to the drum.

Entrance unit. The entrance unit is mounted on the rear drum-cover assembly. It receives fired cases from the conveyor elements (explained below) and passes them into the ammunition storage drum.

Exit unit. The exit unit is similar in concept to the entrance unit. It mounts on the front of the ammunition storage drum and is used to feed live rounds into the conveyor elements.

Ammunition chuting. The ammunition chuting provides a path for the conveyor elements that carry ammunition to and from the GAU-8/A gun.

Conveyor turnaround unit. The conveyor turnaround unit feeds live rounds into the gun transfer unit (explained in the description of the gun subsystem). The conveyor turnaround unit also accepts spent rounds from the gun transfer unit and places them in conveyor elements for return to the ammunition storage drum.

Ammunition conveyor elements. The ammunition conveyor elements are linked together to form an endless belt that travels to and from the gun through the ammunition chuting. Each element carries one round of ammunition going to the gun and one spent case or unfired round when returning to the ammunition storage drum.

Drum drive unit. Mounted on the drum exit cover, the drum drive unit drives the ammunition storage drum.

Equalizer. The equalizer is mounted on the ammunition chuting approximately midway between the ammunition storage drum and the GAU-8/A gun subsystem. It equalizes the tension between the feed and return ammunition conveyor elements.

Loading access unit. The loading access unit is used to load ammunition into the storage drum. It is accessible through a panel on the left side of the A-10 (just forward of the wing).

Drive Subsystem

The drive subsystem is a hydraulic drive assembly consisting of the following major components.

Hydraulic drive motors. Two identical hydraulic drive motors provide power for the GAU-8/A gun and the ammunition feed and storage system.

Accessory drive gearbox. The accessory drive gearbox is driven by the hydraulic drive motors. It provides output torque for the gun and drum drive shafts.

Gun drive shaft. The gun drive shaft provides power to the GAU-8/A gun subsystem.

Drum drive shaft. The drum drive shaft provides power to the ammunition feed and storage subsystem.

Electronic Control Subsystem

The electronic control subsystem consists of the electronic control unit. This “black box” contains the circuitry that controls all GAU-8/A logic functions.

System Operation

When the A-10 pilot engages a target, the first step is to bring the armament control system to a state of operational readiness. Once this is done, the pilot must get the target in the Heads Up Display screen,
commonly referred to as the HUD. The HUD is a transparent screen mounted directly in the pilot’s line of sight. A small pipper (or bright spot) is projected onto the screen, and the pilot maneuvers the airplane (and consequently, the GAU-8/A gun) until the pipper is directly on the target. This allows the pilot to engage the target without having to divert his vision. This capability is critically important in a close-air-support aircraft, which must fly at low altitudes.

When the pilot wants to fire the GAU-8/A gun, he presses the control-column-mounted trigger. The trigger sends a signal to the electronic control assembly, which subsequently sends a signal to two solenoids mounted on the hydraulic drive assembly. When these solenoids open, aircraft hydraulic pressure is applied to the two hydraulic drive motors, and the gun, ammunition storage drum, and chuting begin to move. One-tenth of a second later, the electronic control assembly sends another signal to the firing solenoid assembly, which is mounted on the gun housing. This solenoid withdraws the safing sector from the firing cam path in the gun housing, which allows ammunition to begin the classic seven-step Gatling firing sequence. Each round fires as it reaches the firing point.

When the trigger is released, the electronic control assembly sends a reverse signal to the hydraulic drive assembly. The hydraulic drive motors reverse and rapidly decelerate the gun system. The gun system cycles in a reverse direction until all rounds are cleared from the cannon. This is done to prevent a cook-off (the inadvertent firing of a round due to absorption of residual gun heat), which could occur if a live round remained in one of the GAU-8/A’s chambers.

The 30mm Family of Ammunition

The success story behind the 30mm family of ammunition used in the A-10 is as intriguing as the story behind the A-10 and the GAU-8/A. When the air force began the A-X program, the intent was to manufacture the 30mm ammunition in government arsenals. In the past, the government usually bought ammunition components from several suppliers and then did the loading, assembly, and packing operations in a government load plant. In the early 1970s, the government estimated that the cost of each 30mm round would be about $75.

Aerojet Ordnance Company and Honeywell, Inc. (two munitions manufacturers) convinced the government that it would be best to allow private industry to manufacture the complete round. Under this procurement concept, GAU-8/A ammunition production has been enormously successful. Private industry was able to deliver high-quality ammunition at about $6 per round instead of the $75 the government originally planned to spend. To date, more than 80 million rounds have been procured. The 30mm family of ammunition consists of three different rounds, as explained below:

Target practice. The target practice (TP) cartridge is used for training.
Essentially a slug, the projectile has an aluminum nose and steel body.

High-explosive incendiary. The high-explosive incendiary (HEI) cartridge fires an explosive warhead with a point-detonating fuze. The projectile body is made of steel and contains .124 pounds of a high
explosive and incendiary mix.

Armor-piercing incendiary tracer. The armor-piercing incendiary tracer (APIT) cartridge fires what is probably the most intriguing of the 30mm projectiles. The APIT projectile has a depleted uranium
penetrator sheathed in an aluminum sabot. The depleted uranium penetrator has two functions. Because depleted uranium is a very dense metal, it defeats enemy armor through kinetic energy alone (the combination of high velocity and mass allow it to break through armor). Depleted uranium is also pyrophoric, meaning it burns with intense heat after it breaks up. These two characteristics make it extremely effective against enemy tanks. The rear of the projectile contains a pyrotechnic fumer, which reduces aerodynamic drag and allows it to maintain high velocities.

The normal GAU-8/A combat mix of ammunition consists of one HEI round for every five APIT rounds (TP ammunition is used solely for target practice and is not usually mixed with HEI or APIT ammunition).  All types of 30mm GAU-8/A ammunition use aluminum cartridge cases (to conserve weight) and either plastic or copper projectile bands (to engage the rifling in the GAU-8/A gun barrels). The projectile bands permit higher muzzle velocity and reduced barrel wear.

The A-10 Bottom Line

All things considered, the GAU-8/A 30mm Gatling gun is one of the most interesting and successful applications of ground-attack aircraft ever developed. The GAU-8/A gun system is the most powerful Gatling gun ever built. The extremely lethal 30mm family of ammunition is an amazing procurement success story. The A-10, the GAU-8/A, and the 30mm family of ammunition still make up an important part of the U.S. national defense and will continue to for quite some time.

So there you have it:  Chapter 11 of The Gatling Gun.  There are 15 chapters in The Gatling Gun touching on all of the early Gatlings, their Civil War and Indian war deployments, the transition to modern high-rate-of-fire gun systems after World War II, and contemporary Gatling systems like the A-10 Warthog.  If you liked our chapter about the A-10, you might enjoy the rest of The Gatling Gun.

Spaceport America

Fifty or so miles north of Las Cruces, New Mexico and just over the mountains from White Sands Missile Range lies a huge bet on the future. The bet was placed almost 20 years ago and it’s been a 200 million-dollar, back and forth political football game to get to where we are today: Spaceport America, New Mexico.

Depending on which major party was in charge of New Mexico’s state government Spaceport has been alternately starved, funded or sabotaged. Some politicians hoped the thing would fail and worked towards that goal. Other politicians hoped it would put New Mexico on the front row of the commercial space race and threw taxpayer money at the project. If that wasn’t enough a well-publicized disaster with major tenant Virgin Galactic’s space plane and the collapse of oil prices (New Mexico gets huge sums of tax money from the oil industry) only increased the headwind.

The very access road to Spaceport is an example. Paved only in 2018, 10 years after construction began. Before that, heavy equipment and materials had to be hauled to the job site 50 extra miles via the town of Truth or Consequences or attempt a direct route from Las Cruces over a rough dirt road impassable during the wet. As usual, political gamesmanship made the project harder, costlier and take longer.

Hopefully all that is behind us. Virgin Galactic plans on moving its headquarters to Spaceport in 2020. The White Knight, first stage of Galatic’s commercial flight system, rests snugly in Sir Richard Branson’s curvy-sexy Spaceport hanger. Boeing, UP Aerospace, EXOS Aerospace, HyperSciences and SpinLaunch have become tenants. At least 20 successful launches have flown from Spaceport. These enthusiastic space pioneers are basically wealthy kids, the same as we were with our Estes model rockets except they are using real rockets.

While the site is “substantially complete” at this time and ready for business you get the feeling there are a lot of loose ends to tie. The public has access to Spaceport but you’ve got to be with a tour group as they don’t want idiots wandering around falling into drainage ditches or accidentally pushing flashing red buttons and causing rockets to launch. Tours start from Las Cruces or Truth or Consequences. We took the Las Cruces tour because we were going to Deming’s Tractor Supply for a 3-point box blade. I like to mix cutting-edge Aerospace facilities with dirt moving equipment whenever I can.

Once past the security gate you wonder where that 200 million dollars went as there are only two buildings of any size on the property. My guess is the lion’s share went into the 2-mile-long, 200-foot-wide, 42-inch-thick, multilayer runway. This thing has crushed rock, several courses of varying density concrete, a layer of asphalt and a thick topcoat of concrete. It looks like you could land a battleship on Spaceport’s runway.

The first building we visited was the main office and flight control tower. This domed structure was constructed using an inflated bladder, which was then shot with sprayed concrete material. After the dome mud set up the bladder was deflated and the interior shot with more sticky goo. You can build a high ceiling without internal supports using this method but the ones I’ve seen in the past all cracked.

The entrance area shows signs of deterioration already. High overhead, ill fitting, water damaged sections of patched drywall look like a buttery layer cake that has slipped a layer. Gaping holes on the exterior of the building reveal wires and skeletal metal studs. It’s sloppy work that people like me notice. I mean, this is the very first place visitors to Spaceport see. I’d appreciate it if management pulled the maintenance crew off of life support projects and tidied up the front door.

The flight control room is a fairly simple set up. It’s nothing like Mission Control in Houston. One 3-dimensional curved desk with computer monitors spanning the width of the desk sits a few feet back from a large window. I find it amazing that there is no radar but the restricted airspace over Spaceport America means there are no obstacles to hit until you smack into the Andromeda Galaxy. Launches are easy here; no need to re-route airplanes or alert the local populace. They tell me flights can be scheduled in a couple days rather than months. That’s a big window of opportunity and one of the selling points of the joint.

We like to say you get the first mile free when you launch your spacecraft from New Mexico. At 4500 feet Spaceport is close enough and it’s a real fuel savings when you consider gravity is stronger the closer you get to the concrete I’ve poured in my backyard. There’s also a zillion acres of vacant land surrounding Spaceport so collateral damage from explosions and failures to launch will be limited to sagebrush and bunnies.

Behind the visitor center and incorporated into the same concrete dome is a 24-hour-a-day, 7-days-a-week fire-rescue operation. There are a lot of things that can go wrong with space travel before you even leave the ground so these guys are on call even when no flights are scheduled. The fire guys gave a great talk on their various duties and let us sit in the Big Mama fire truck. All their gear was spotless and ready to go. Full EMS capability with a beautiful 2-bay ambulance is on site. If I ever sever a limb during a routine training mission I want these guys taking care of me.

Sir Richard Branson’s space tourism company takes up most of Spaceport’s futuristic, crawling-out-from-the-earth hangar structure. We couldn’t see inside because the electrically controlled windows were set to opaque and our guide didn’t have access to the switch that makes them clear. Blurry photos of the Mothership were all I could get. A secret panel blended into the steel-walled entrance walk opened, leading us to a kind of waiting lounge/museum. It was real James Bond super-villain stuff. Here was the G-force spinner that takes potential astronauts up to 6 Gs in preparation for their flight. Passengers who fail the spin test can’t fly.

I didn’t take the spin test because I wanted to digest my breakfast in peace. At 2 Gs older folks crawled out of the machine slowly and appeared a little disoriented. A tall, skinny 14-year-old was having a ball in the machine wanting more speed all the time. You could have taken that kid to 12 Gs no problem.

Listen, lots of people think space flight is a waste of money. They believe that all earthbound problems should be solved before we wander off into space. Complaining about the government or rich folks spending their money on space adventures instead of those less fortunate is a popular pastime. I’m not one of them. I figure the rich can spend their money however they want. Helping the unfortunate is what taxes are for. Whatever is left over is yours to invest in cocaine, prostitutes or space travel.

By now you know I dig all things space related and believe the faster we blow this joint the better off the Earth will be. 2020 should be an exciting year at Spaceport because Virgin Galactic claims they will be firing some spacecraft high into the sky.

Anyone have a spare $250,000 to send me up?

2019: A Review and Wrap Up

This has been a fun year, and a fun year to be a blogger.  When we started ExhaustNotes 18 months ago, we had no idea we’d get the loyal following we have, the number of hits we’re getting, and the number of comments we would receive from you, our amazing readers.  In the past 18 months, we’ve published 572 blog posts (this is Blog No. 572), we’ve had something north of 200,000 page visits, and we’ve received 2,481 approved blog comments.  We actually had quite a few more comments, but the spam comments are filtered out and we’re not counting those.  And you spammers out there, thanks for all the biblical excerpts, the website optimization offers, the hairstyle stuff (seriously, you think Gresh or I need hairstyle products?), and the offers to manufacture stuff in and buy chotchkas from China.  You guys keep it coming, and our filters will keep bouncing it.  Hope springs eternal, I guess.

Our most commented upon post last year?  It was Joe Gresh’s blog on Bonnier and the demise of Motorcyclist magazine, which really raked in some zingers.  Nobody makes the written word come alive like Joe does, and that includes his opening line in that blog:  The distance from being read in the crapper and actually being in the crapper is a short one. According to Dealer News, Motorcyclist magazine crossed that span this week.

Other ExNotes blogs that drew comments big time are our blogs on what constitutes the perfect bike, what the motorcycle industry needs to do to grow the market, dream bikes, and of course, the gun stuff.  Keep your thoughts coming, folks.  It’s what we enjoy the most.

Our most frequently visited blog post last year?  Far and away, it was our piece on Mini 14 Marksmanship.  Somehow that post got picked up by a service that suggests sites to people when they open their cell phones, and we were getting in excess of 10,000 hits a day for a few days on that one.  Go figure.  There must be a lot of people out there who want to shoot their Mini 14 rifles better.  Glad to be of help, folks.

We’ve stepped on a few toes along the way.  Some folks got their noses bent out of shape because we do gun stuff.  Hey, let us know if you want your money back.  One guy went away all butthurt because Google ads popped up mentioning President Trump and mortgage deals that I guess our President helped along.   Hey, whatever.  We don’t control the popups, and the Internet’s artificial intelligence does funny things with what it reads on the blog…I mentioned using my Casio’s backlight to help find my way to the latrine at night, and since that blog I’ve been getting an unending stream (no pun intended) of prostate treatment popups.  I may click on a few of them.  When you get your artificially-inseminated Google-driven popups, we’d like you to click on them, too.  It makes money flow.  To us.  It’s what keeps us on the air, you know.

We did a lot of travel this year, but not as many motorcycle trips as we wanted.   The Royal Enfields we took through Baja were fun, and we had a great story on that ride published in Motorcycle Classics.  I really enjoyed riding and writing about the Genuine G400c.  Joe did a great series on his Yamaha EnduroFest adventure, and he’s had articles published in Motorcycle.com.  Joe did another series on motorized bicycles and it was a hoot.

Joe and I both did shorter moto trips this past year, and we both want to get more riding in next year.  Gresh and I are going to do a moto trip to Baja in 2020, and we may get to visit with Baja John in Bahia de Los Angeles (that dude likes Baja so much he moved there).  On any of the Mexico trips, we for sure will be insured with BajaBound Insurance, the best insurance there is for travel in Mexico.  More good travel stuff?  We published Destinations, a compendium of the travel stories appearing in Motorcycle Classics magazine, and it’s doing very well (thank you).

More plans?   Gresh will be pouring more concrete, and I’ll be spending more time at the West End Gun Club.  Joe is planning to maybe pick up the Zed resurrection again, and I’m pretty sure he’ll get that bike on the road within the next 12 months.   We’ve got the upcoming 9mm comparo I mentioned yesterday, and for sure more gun articles.  Good buddy Gonzo asked us to ride in the 2020 Three Flags Classic, and I’d like to make a go of that one this coming year (I was disappointed in myself for not riding that great event in 2019, but the circumstances just weren’t right).  I think I’m going to write Tales of the Gun as a book and offer it for sale here on ExNotes, and maybe Joe Gresh will do the same with his collection of moto articles (and when he does, you can bet I’ll buy the first copy).  We’ll be doing more product reviews, including movie and book reviews.  I’m going to get on my bicycle more, and we may have some info on electric bicycles, too.   You’ll read all about it right here.

So it’s a wrap for 2019.   Susie bought a bottle of Gentleman Jack for me, and I’m going to pour a shot and watch 2020 roll in later tonight.  To all of you, our best wishes for a happy and healthy 2020.  Ride safe, ride often, and keep your powder dry.

Want to subscribe to our blog for free and never miss any of our motorcycle, travel, gun, bicycle, product review, and other blogs?  We’ll never give your email address to anyone else, and you’ll never miss any of our stories!  Sign up here:

Coming Up: A 9mm Comparo

I’ve been lusting over the SIG P226 Scorpion for some time now, and after a little bit of brushing up on my negotiation tactics, I pulled the trigger (figuratively speaking) on one this morning.

I like the looks of the SIG, I like that it is an alloy-framed handgun (I’m not a big fan of the plastic guns), and I like that it is a SIG.   Good buddy TJ told me he believes these are the finest handguns available today, and he’s a guy who knows handguns.  The US Army recently made their sidearm decision and it’s SIG.  That’s a strong endorsement, I think.

I bought my SIG Scorpion at Turner’s, the gun will be in the store this Thursday, and that’s when I get to start the PRK (Peoples Republik of Kalifornia) 10-day waiting period.

My tried and trusty Model 59, the gun that got me hooked on 5.0 grains of Unique and a 125-grain cast roundnose bullet.

I’ve got a boatload of 9mm ammunition reloaded and ready to go, but that got me to thinking:  What load might work best in the new SIG?  I’d found in the past that 5.0 grains of Unique and a 125-grain cast roundnose bullet provided great accuracy in my Model 59, but then I got lazy and I stuck with that as my standard 9mm load in everything.  I’ll be the first guy to tell you that to find the best load in any gun, you need to experiment and develop a load specifically for that gun.   I have a couple of other 9mm pistols (a Springfield Armory 1911 and the Model 659 Smith and Wesson that I’ve blogged about before), and I’ve simply used my 5.0-grain Unique/125-grain cast roundnose in all of them.  Is there a better load for each of these handguns?

The 659 with my 125 grain cast roundnose reloads.
The Springfield 9mm 1911. It seems to like the 5.0 grain Unique/125-grain roundnose load, too.

So here’s what’s coming up:  I’m going to do a load development comparo for the 659, the 1911, and the P226 to see where the accuracy lives for each gun.  I’m thinking Unique, Bullseye, Power Pistol, the 147 grain Speer, the 125 gr cast RN Missouri, and maybe a 115 full metal jacket or hollowpoint bullet.  I’m looking for inputs, so if you have a favored load for your 9mm handgun, let me know and I may throw it into the mix, too.  Please add your suggestions to the Comments section here.   I’ll keep you posted.

Want to read our other Tales of the Gun stories?  You can find them here.

We’re thinking about another book, one that would include all of our Tales of the Gun stories and much more.   What do you think?  Let us know if you think you might have an interest in this new book to help us assess the market.  In the meantime, you can see our other titles here.

Movie Review: Little Richard

When I go to the gym, I’m usually on either the treadmill or a stationary bicycle, and I like to listen to music when I’m working out.  Good tunes relieve the boredom of indoor aerobic exercise, and if I get the right tunes, it keeps me in the zone.   One of my favorites is Little Richard, and there are a bunch of his songs on YouTube.  A couple of weeks ago, one of the Little Richard YouTube videos that popped up was an hour and a half long (and that got my attention).  It wasn’t just a song…it was a movie about Little Richard’s life, and I’ll tell you, it was good.

You can watch it here, you can go to full screen on your computer, or you can watch it on your television if your TV gives you Internet access.   The Little Richard movie is a bit formulaic (it’s a typical rock hero life story kind of movie), but I enjoyed it and I think you will, too.

Product Review: Casio Carbon Core G-Shock

Good buddy King Kong in Luo Yang, central China.  Kong is a hard-riding moto maestro who wears a G-Shock wristwatch. Based on his advice, so do I.

Up until last few years, I ignored the Casio G-Shock watches. I didn’t think they were particularly good looking, and I didn’t need a watch that was protected against high g forces any more than I needed a summer cold. Then something happened. I met King Kong.  Seriously.  King Kong on a motorcycle.  Kong rode with us on the Western America Adventure Ride here in the US and he’s done several rides (some solo) across China.  On my ride across China, my good buddy King Kong wore a G-Shock and he loved the thing.

Kong’s Casio was living a tough life. The fact that Kong liked the G-Shock got my attention, and a short time later I purchased my first one. Then came another, and now, a third.

This third one is the Carbon Core Guard GA2000, which is a mouthful. It was a gift to me from my sister Eileen, which made it even more special.  It is even more resistant to shock than a regular Casio G watch as a result of its carbon fiber reinforced structure and a new design monolithic band, which further encapsulates the movement. Okay, I get it, but the regular G-Shock timepieces are already pretty tough. The added protection might be meaningless from my personal survivability perspective, considering that if it gets subjected to g forces it’s going to happen while I’m wearing it, and the old design would probably survive those kind of shocks better than yours truly. My guess is that if this one ever gets close to feeling shock levels that threaten its existence I would be toast, and if that’s the case, hey, who cares if the watch is still ticking?  No, the features that endear this one to me are much more practical, and truth be told, I don’t fully understand all of them yet. There’s more to the show than I can talk about, but I can talk about the ones that matter to me.

For starters, the Casio Carbon Core GA 2000 is a good-looking watch. I like the colors and the style, I like the analog hands and digital display, and I like the skeletonized minute and hour hands.  The yellow accents on a black watch work for me. I just think it looks good. If yellow doesn’t float your boat, though, Casio offers this watch in several other color themes.

The folks who tell you size doesn’t matter?  Don’t listen to them.  I need to be able to read the thing, and with a watch this size, that’s no problem.    The G-Shock is a big watch, but it’s not too big.

Next up is the world time capability. I travel overseas from time to time and it’s nice to be able to check the current time in Singapore or Chongqing by clicking a button on my watch without having to try to remember the time difference. To me, this is an important feature.

This G-Shock has timer and stopwatch features. These were important to me when I was a jogger and a serious bicycle rider; today, not so much.  For you younger guys, if you need these capabilities, they’re there.  My watch is also equipped with an alarm feature.  I’m sort of retired now and it doesn’t matter when I get up in the morning, but old habits die hard and I’m usually making coffee by 5:00 a.m. every day.  I don’t need an alarm to tell me to get up at that time; I just do.  For you poor guys who still work for a living, if you need an alarm, you get it with this watch.

This G-Shock is comfortable and it’s waterproof. I wear a watch 24/7, and this one is so comfortable I forget I have it on.  I wear my watch in the shower just because I don’t want to bother with taking it off. Sometimes on a motorcycle I get caught in the rain.  None of that’s a problem for this watch; it’s good to go underwater at depths way deeper than I ever will find myself.

There’s another feature that’s a very big deal to me, and that’s the light. This watch doesn’t have luminous hands, but it has a light that let’s you see the time in the dark. That light is good enough that when I need to get up in the middle of the night (you older guys will understand what I’m talking about), it’s sufficient to illuminate the path to el cuarto de baño.  (It’s funny how what’s important changes when you get older.)

Oh, and one more thing:  My watch keeps perfect time.  I checked it against the www.time.gov website (the official US timekeeping site) when I got the watch, and I checked it again several weeks later.   It’s perfect.  Right to the second.

The Casio Carbon Core Guard watch carries an MSRP of $130, but the street price is usually under a hundred bucks, and that’s a good deal.

Book Review: The Arsenal of Democracy

We watch our Google Analytics regularly, and one of the things that impresses us is what impresses you.  You might be surprised to learn that our most frequently visited pages and blogs are the product reviews, and in particular, the book reviews.   That’s one of the reasons why I want to get the word out to our readers about one of the best books I’ve read this year:  A.J. Baime’s The Arsenal of Democracy.

I first read A.J. Baime’s work in The Wall Street Journal, where he does a weekly piece on interesting cars.  You know, cars with a story behind them.  Cars that are still driven regularly.  I’d subscribe to The Journal just for those stories, although that newspaper has much more going for it than just Mr. Baime’s car stories. (The WSJ has objective reporting, something sorely missing in The Los Angeles Times and The New York Times, two papers that lean so sharply left it’s amazing they’re still standing.)  I like A.J. Baime’s WSJ articles, and when I learned he also writes books, I was in.

In a word, The Arsenal of Democracy is great.  It’s a wonderful book weaving together the stories of World War II, the Ford family, Detroit’s wholesale conversion to war production, the application of mass production to weapons manufacturing, the logistics of building major manufacturing facilities in the middle of nowhere, and Ford’s production of the B-24 Liberator.  Ford built B-24 bombers at the rate of one an hour (actually, they did slightly better than that by the end of the war), and there’s no question Ford was a major factor in our military success.  Baime made it all read like a novel, but all of it actually happened.

Folks, trust me on this:  The Arsenal of Democracy is a great book.  I think it’s one you should consider adding to your list if you haven’t read it already.  You can thank me later.

Take a look at our other product and book reviews here.

Never miss one of our blogs…sign up here!

An accurate Compact 1911 load…

10 shots at 50 feet with the Rock Island Armory Compact 1911. The secret sauce is a 185-grain cast SWC bullet, 5.0 grains of Bullseye propellant, a CCI 300 primer, and a 1.174-inch overall cartridge length.

I’ve been working lately on developing an accurate load for my Rock Island Compact 1911 with light target bullets, and I found one that works.  One of my good buddies gave me a little over a thousand 185-grain semi-wadcutter bullets, and I found a great load for my Rock Island pistol.  It’s the one I shot the targets with you see above.

The 185-grain cast lead SWC bullets used for the target above. The caramel-colored band around the bullet’s periphery is bullet lube, which prevents barrel leading and further enhances accuracy.

A bit of background info first:  “SWC” (or semi-wadcutter) refers to the bullet configuration.  A wadcutter bullet is one that is flat across the face of the bullet, and it is a typical target configuration for revolvers.  What this means is that the bullet cuts a clean, circular hole through the target (much like a hole punch), making it easier to score.  A semi-wadcutter bullet has a shoulder at the face of the bullet, but it also has a truncated cone of lesser diameter on the bullet face (it’s a “semi” wadcutter).  It cuts a relatively clean hole, and it’s a bit more aerodynamic.

Loading .45 ACP ammo. It’s what I did this weekend, and I have 600 rounds ready to go.
Finished ammo, ready to go. This ammo is custom tailored to my Rock Island Compact. It’s the most accurate load I’ve found in the Compact 1911.  Every gun is different, and every gun needs a load tailored to it for best accuracy.  This load is not particularly accurate in my full-sized Colt 1911, but it sure shoots well in the Compact Rock.

A semi-wadcutter bullet feeds easier in a semi-automatic handgun than would a wadcutter bullet, but you can still have problems with a semi-wadcutter in an automatic when the round enters the chamber.  That’s not a concern in a revolver because you load the cartridges by hand (you do the chambering of each round manually when you load a revolver).  It’s a potential issue in a semi-automatic handgun, though, because the cartridge has to ride up the ramp in the frame and feed into the chamber each time you fire the weapon, and a semi-wadcutter’s shoulder can cause the gun to jam.  Generally speaking, for semi-autos roundnose bullet configurations feed the most reliably because the bullet tip guides the round into the chamber.   Sometimes semi-autos work well right out of the box with semi-wadcutter bullets, and sometimes they don’t.  If you want to make sure a semi-auto will feed reliably with a semi-wadcutter or a hollow point bullet, you have an expert gunsmith who knows what he’s doing polish the gun’s feed ramp, and throat and polish the entrance to the chamber.  That’s what I had done on my Rock Island Compact by good buddy TJ, and my gun will feed anything.

Throated and polished, my Rock Island Compact is extremely reliable with any kind of bullet.  You can read more about the way TJ customized my 1911 here.

During my load development effort, I tried these 185-grain cast SWC bullets with 4.5, 4.7, 5.0, and 5.3 grains of Bullseye, and 5.0 grains of Bullseye is the sweet spot. The other loads were also accurate, but the 5.0-grain load is the most accurate.  The 5.3-grain load is accurate, too, but the recoil at that charge was a bit much for me.  As mentioned in the first photo’s caption, cartridge overall length was 1.174 inches, and I used CCI 300 primers.  A word to the wise on this:  The load you see here is one I developed and it shoots well in my handgun.  You should develop your own load.  Always consult a reloading manual when you do so, and always start at the lower end of the propellant spectrum and carefully work up a load tailored to your firearm.

Folks tell me I need to buy a chronograph to measure bullet velocity, but hell, I don’t care how fast the thing is going, and I seriously doubt it would make a difference to any target.   What I’m looking for is reliable function and accuracy, and with this load, I have it.   A chronograph is one more thing I’d have to cart out to the range and screw around with once I got there, and I don’t want the hassle.   But if you need to know, my Lyman Cast Bullet Reloading Guide tells me the velocity with this powder charge should be a little over 900 feet per second.  That’s close enough for government work, I think.

The next step for the Rock, for me, is to add a set of Pachmayr checkered rubber grips.  I have those on my full size 1911 and I like them a lot.  That’s coming up, and I think the Pachmayr grip will further improve the Compact.  I ordered a set today and when they arrive, you’ll read all about it right here.

You know, I like my Rock Island Compact.  I’m on the range with it every week and I put a lot of lead through that short 3.5-inch barrel.  It’s fun to shoot, it’s accurate, and it carries well.  It’s become one of my all time favorite guns.

Want to read more on the Rock Island Compact 1911?  Check out our other reports here:

The 1911
A Tale of Two .45s
TJ’s Custom Gunworks
RIA Compact 1911 Update

Want to learn how to reload .45 ammo?  We’ve got you covered!

Reloading the .45 ACP:  Part I
Reloading the .45 ACP:  Part II
Reloading the .45 ACP:  Part III
Reloading the .45 ACP:  Part IV

Help us bring more content to you:  Please click on the popup ads!

Help Wanted

So here’s the deal: In 2008, with the advent of the Great Recession, motorcycle sales in the US fell to half of what they had been (and up to that time, they had been steadily climbing).

Okay, that’s rough…a drop to 50% of prior sales is a major hit, but hey, these things happen and it’s logical to assume that sales would gradually rebound and the uptick would continue.

Except they didn’t.  Post recession sales tanked to 50% of their prior levels and they never recovered. Oh, they came back a little bit, but not anywhere near where they had been. Based on this, it’s been sort of a national pastime in the two-wheeled world to put forth reasons why this happened (presumably, so the reasons could be addressed and we could get back to the good old days of taking second mortgages to buy overweight, oversized, and overpriced driveway jewelry).  Here’s the problem with all of the explanations:  With essentially no exceptions, they all came from motorcycle industry insiders. Motorcycle importers, motorcycle journalists, motorcycle dealers, and such. Wouldn’t these be the people to provide the big reveal?

In a word: No.  Especially with motojournalists, who seem to pontificate a lot on this issue.  Hell, these folks couldn’t even keep their magazines afloat.  But it’s also the case for the manufacturers, the importers, and the dealers.  They’re the ones who got us here.  If they had the answers, they would have fixed things already.

I’ve been a consultant for more than 30 years helping companies with delinquent deliveries, poor quality, and behind-schedule performance, and when I was hired by any of my clients, it would always be by the chief executive (I quickly learned not to waste my time marketing to underlings).  I’d always tell the chief execs during my first meeting that improving performance would involve replacing at least some of their key staff members.  “They’re the folks who got you here,” I’d say, “and expecting them to be the ones to fix the problems is not the answer.”  I think it’s the same situation when addressing the US motorcycle sales slump. The folks who called the shots (cabals of industry execs and motojournalists) prior to, during, and after the recession don’t have the answers.  Repeatedly having meetings to discuss the issue with these same folks fits the classic definition of insanity: Doing the same thing again and expecting a different result.

So who has the answer?

You do.  You are the folks who actually buy motorcycles. You’re the ones who created that heady rampup prior to the recession, and you’re the ones keeping your wallets closed now.  We need your help.  Tell us.  Why? What’s holding you back?  Please, leave your comments.  We want to hear from you.

Dan does Tunisia…

Good buddy Dan in Baja.

Good buddy Dan is a young fellow I met when I was leading the CSC rides through Baja.  He’s the real deal…a serious motorcyclist who enjoys getting out and seeing the world on two wheels.  When I led the CSC rides, Dan was on every one of them, and we became good friends.  Dan also rides Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and most recently, he rode with a Moto Guzzi tour in Tunisia.  I was happy to receive this email from Dan yesterday about his north African excursion:

Joe:

Happy New Year – for me, the new year starts at the winter solstice. I hope you had a good year and will have a great holiday season.

I got my Christmas present early this year; a motorcycle trip in Tunisia. I flew to Milan and took trains to Mandello del Lario where the Moto Guzzi motorcycle factory is. I visited the Moto Guzzi Museum twice – it is only open one hour a day. A fantastic collection of motorcycles from their beginning in 1921. Then I took trains to Genoa where I met up with the tour group. The next day we took the overnight ferry to Tunis, and then the riding began. Seven days of riding, with lunch at the best restaurants and nights at the best hotel in town. Along the way we stopped and saw the sights – Roman ruins, an Ottoman fort, several oases, a famous mosque, salt flats, and a set from the first Star Wars movie, where I rode a camel. The trip was sponsored by Moto Guzzi; we were all riding Moto Guzzi motorcycles, and we had 26 motorcycles, several couples riding two up, two photographers, two mechanics, three guides, two support vans, and two spare Moto Guzzis. I may put together a trip report, meanwhile, this is a link to the Moto Guzzi report on the trip:

https://www.motoguzzi.com/us_EN/news/MG-Experience-Tunisia/

I did about ten thousand miles of motorcycle riding this year; my big trip in the US was home to Flagstaff to El Paso and home, with several stops along the way.

Dan

Dan, that’s an absolutely awesome report and a world class trip.  Thanks so much for sending the note and for giving us permission to post it on the ExNotes blog.   I’m reading the Moto Guzzi trip report now, savoring each photo and all of the descriptions.  Wow, it sounds like a wonderful adventure!