What's in a name?

There is a group of paintball players out on the east coast that have combined under the common command of an organization they call the Joint Special Operations Command:

JSOC Mission Statement - The Joint-Special-Operations-Command "J.S.O.C." is an association of tactical scenario (paintball) teams founded in September, 2005 by several paintball teams. In a patriotic gesture they all made a pact to fight the Allied Side in any scenario that offered that choice. To be a part of the JSOC means you are playing paintball for more reasons than one. Supporting the game, the players and the passion of the game, is part of the commitment to play along side the J.S.O.C. and support the Allied side in the game and in spirit for all our Armed Forces. ...the patch is worn by all united under one banner. Each team represents a Unit of the JSOC. Each unit plays a decisive role in strategy and planning...

Awhile back I made my thoughts known to the "Commander" of this paintball organization concerning their use of the JSOC name. I was a member at one time of a unit assigned to the real JSOC. The real JSOC mission statement is much different from the one above. The real JSOC mission statement includes a commitment to the safety and security of the United States. It is a commitment that has been maintained at a cost - the lives of good men, some who I new personally. I made it clear I do not care for what I consider their cavalier use of the title Joint Special Operations Command.

The response was not a surprise. "Chill out." I've heard it before.

And that's what I do. I chill. God, bless the men and women of the real Joint Special Operations Command and the Joint Communications Unit.

BOOKSAMILLION.COM

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In case you haven't heard...

19 days till TV goes digital.................!

ARGHHHHHHH!

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Paintball tanks...

Ok, so I didn't like The Woodsballer's taste in videos. He does, however, know a cool paintball tank when he sees one. Check it out here.




Online's largest collection of micro size rc helicopters at ridiculously low prices!

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Paintball videos...

Do you like paintball videos but hate to have to sort through all the noise on other video sites? Here is a small but growing alternative. Check it out: socialpaintball.com





Yahoo! Personals - Find Christian Singles Now!

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Today's Paintball Enemy #1...

Here's a recent TWITTER post I ran across from a poster that goes by the name "artery"

"Ghostbusters theme cranked full blast, paintball masks, order a burrito at the drive through. Watch reactions and pray for no cops." about 15 hours ago from web

Thank you , bonehead. Paintball needs your nonsense. (Anyone care to load his reply log with comments?)

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Everyday...

A man just called. Said he was in a tight spot and needed to sell his Craig Model 9600 Super Series Paintgun and Pressure System. I've been in the paintball business for awhile but I'll admit I haven't heard of everything. Not being familiar with this marker I asked a few questions only to find out he was trying to sell a paint sprayer. I told him, "No thanks. I already have enough Brass Eagle guns."

Badum tish.

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Paintball

So, Mick. Why do you have a blurry picture of a sign on your blog header?

Well. It's like this. Owning a field is more than a player with a shiny DM9 posed behind a pristine air ball bunker. Owning a field includes worrying about somebody throwing a beer bottle through your sign or stealing it. It's one more look back over your shoulder - before heading home for the evening - at nets flapping in a 40 mph wind. It's Mom having a fit and demanding to know when the bruise on little Johnny's butt is going to heal. It's cutting grass and filling in pot holes and fixing the bathroom door handle, again.

It's payroll and taxes and wondering if the field paint is going to arrive on time. Owning a field is having the Sheriff stop by to ask what color fill you are using this week. It's holding your breath and crossing your fingers each time you do a rental equipment inventory. It's the broken ankle on field two, the missing cell phone on field six and the two kids who think it's OK to fire off their last few rounds in the parking lot.

Owning a field is all this and, of course, a lot more. I don't think I can get it all to fit on the header photo. So, I went with the blurry sign.

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Back to the roots of paintball...

Proposed cover of a new soon-to-be-released book
by - oh yeah, right there on the cover - Steve Davidson of
68Caliber fame.

What do you think?



Find your old friends. Register Today.

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Cool bunkers #3...

Bunker 3 in the series:

Watch tower bunkers are always pretty cool. I'm just afraid to build something higher than I would want a player to fall. Nice tank!

Bunkers #2
Bunkers #1

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Great paintball deals

What do you say to a player when he or she comes into the pro-shop with a to good to be true deal from a friend or from EBay and then pulls a "shoe box" Shocker out of a bag? What if it's a serial number #1 Angel with no battery that has wires hanging out of it that use to power the Intel-feed? Or an out of date HPA or CO2 tank? Or how about an Automag that has its trigger guard hacked off?

There are many things I could say but I don't. I might be mean and grumpy at times but I'm not heartless. It really breaks my heart to have to burst a person's bubble and tell them their deal is not so good. I try to educate people but to some it's considered just personal opinion and if some one is of the personal opinion that two Tritons with "all" the accessories is worth $175 then what are you going to do?

I have to admit, I've read a few sign posts and still took the wrong road home a time or two. I guess it's something we all have to go through. It's just that it feels personal when it happens to my customers.

Have you ever had a good paintball deal go bad?
	No, I'm smarter than that!
	Yes, I got burned.
	I'm not saying.
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"Tippmann Parts"

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Double your fun...

For the Automag lover in all of us. I'm not sure who built this thing, I'd love to give him (or her) credit. I am a bit concerned about the CO2 power. And I'm not sure if it's a thing or things. It might be two set ups fastened to one mount. What ever the case, I sure like those Crown Point barrels.

Is there anyone out there that uses and truly likes the Q-Loader?

Yea, I use it and I like it.It's okI used it and don't care for it

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Paintball eyes...

UPI.COM
Health News

MIAMI, Jan. 19 (UPI)"U.S. eye doctors warn eye protection is needed to prevent devastating eye injuries caused by paintball. Paintball has an estimated 10 million participants in the United States.

Surgery was required in 81 percent of patients, including eventual removal of the eye in 22 percent. Overall, near-normal vision was restored in only 36 percent of eyes, the researchers said."

This is never news we want to hear in the paintball industry but I think this part needs emphasis:

"The study, published in the American Journal of Ophthalmology, found the paintball eye injuries incurred in a "non-recreation, uncontrolled setting" and many were quite severe -- including rupture of the eyeball in 28 percent of patients and detached retina in 19 percent.

""Eye injuries secondary to high-velocity paintballs can cause tremendous damage to vital ocular structures often requiring extensive surgical intervention," Dr. Kyle Alliman of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine said in a statement. "Unfortunately, visual loss is often permanent.""

And this part:

None of the injuries occurred in formal, sponsored events which usually require eye protection and education. The researchers analyzed injuries in 36 patients -- mostly young men -- treated for paintball injuries at the Bascom Palmer Eye Institute in Miami, from 1998 to 2005."

Do you know anyone who has injured an eye playing paintball?
	Unfortunately, yes.
	Thankfully, no.
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With Skype you can make free calls over the Internet. Skype – the whole world can talk for free

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Three cheers for a "half full glass"

Thank you Evan Money:

"Paintball and the great depression

I heard a speaker the other day say that more millionaires were created in the great depression than any other time in the 20th century. For those that have read my other blogs or heard me speak I have been “preaching” for some time about how the entertainment industries thrived during the great depression. People want to forget their problems, I have said this over and over. People want to escape, that’s why as a paintball field owner you are in a great time in history. Movies, Day Spa’s and Disneyland are all booming right now and so is paintball. Take advantage of this time."

For more inspiration from Evan Money read his new book:
Take Action Now: How To Live Your Dreams in Less Than Three Weeks

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Paintball?

It absolutely amazes me how opinions can vary so much on something so simple as a game of paintball. The Woodsballer believes this is one of the best paintball videos ever and that's cool. What ever floats your boat as long as it's not getting in my water.

I think the video is dangerous to paintball. I was going to put up a poll and ask for opinions but you know what? I'm tired and I'm really trying hard to stop letting stuff like this get under my skin. As long as my regulars and birthday parties and church groups go home smiling with out me having to capitalize on man's inhumanity to man I'm a happy camper.



Games for your BlackBerry

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The quest for a new Quest

I've been telling everyone who will listen that FEP is bringing back a new and improved Quest. Maybe, but now not as soon as Quest enthusiasts had hoped. Hard times.

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Where will you buy your Triton?

I mentioned awhile back that it looked like Wallyworld might be pulling out of paintball. A fairly reliable source tells me it will happen in Jun 09.

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Cool bunkers #2...

Just so the speed ball guys don't think I'm ignoring them I thought I might include a "snake" in this Cool Bunkers series. Snake bunkers come in all varieties though I haven't seen the old time snakes in awhile. You know, the one piece ones that actually had eyes and a bogus tongue hanging out of it's mouth. Now they are mostly made using a series of tubes and stand ups, some are one long continuous bunker, many have gaps and windows. Here is a player using the snake to take out all three opponents in a three man match. (LOUD music alert!)

BOOKSAMILLION.COM

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Just call me Paintball Bob...

I've been working on a MySpace paintball page for the last couple of days. It's meant for networking and communicating. I've been searching through the users looking for fields and pro-shops. As you might imagine there are many more players than field owners and I've gotta tell ya there are some real scary people who go by some really scary names out there. There's the typical "Killa" and "Assassin" and "Rambo". But then there is "Captain Kill Yourself", "Switchblade Sue" and "I'm Ready to Die". I guess as long as those names are along side "Cheesechips" and "Meesheepie" and "Big Daddy Pizzle" everything balances out.



Remote Control RC Cars and Trucks on Sale

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A common paintball game - The Blame Game...

There is a paintball blogger I pop in on from time to time. I don't link him from the side bar because he is notorious for his foul language and long rambling rants. His blog is like a car wreck - you know you shouldn't stare as you pass by but you can't help but look. I can't comment on his writing because most of it is inside stuff about what I call the "hard corp" scenario world but every now and then he comes up with something I can relate to.

You can see the post here. It has a great (rambling) detailed description of how paintballs are made and he only drops the F-Bomb once but not till the last paragraph. In a nut shell he talks about how hard it is to make a paintball and who should be blamed for bad paint at an event.

It's pretty clear who the culprit is when all that is offered is over priced boxes of cheap seconds that have come from a cold/wet trailer and are tossed around like bean bags. Someone is looking to make an easy buck.

But who do you blame if it's a well handled and distributed product, is a well known brand, is being sold at near break even prices and still shoots out of the gun in a cloud of spew?

Well. of course the game promoter is going to blame the manufacturer, the field owner is going to blame the promoter, the players are going blame the field owner and the manufacturers are going to come back around and blame it on the handling and storage.

The only person that comes out of that blood bath unscathed as far as blame is concerned is the player. Is the player suppose to know how hard it is to make a paintball and keep it consistent batch after batch? Is a player suppose to know to keep his paint dry or out of the sun? Are players expected to know they should check their ball to barrel match and not try to shoot their paint through a soda straw? Does the player know how to adjust his dwell?

I've heard it said that anytime you point a finger there are three pointed back at you.

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JT Paintball

JT Paintball has been around almost as long as paintball itself. Motocross gear was their original claim to fame. Tough racing goggles and lenses was a natural lead in to paintball masks. Like any company they have had their ups and downs but through change they have survived. Part of their change can be seen in this collection of JT logos from the past.

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More new paintball stuff...

Seems to be a day of new stuff. This was actually first shown at World Cup. A new tank regulator from Smart Parts. It looks good but I wish they would stop using Max Flo for a name. A shudder goes through my body everytime I hear Max Flo. It's interesting that they have no problem selling just the reg. I've been trying to get KEE (PMI) to sell me their Pure Energy reg for years. They claim liability issues. The printing is hard to read but basically it has all the usual stuff, just in a smaller package. It can be rebuilt by a competent tech and can be tuned too 850PSI or 450 PSI. Stainless steel threads is a definite plus.



With Skype you can make free calls over the Internet. Skype – the whole world can talk for free

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Paintballs go small, again...

Kingman press release:


THE NEXT BIG THING IN ACTION SPORTS HAS GONE SMALL


Kingman Group (the creator of Spyder Paintball) is proud to announce a brand new division "Kingman Training". Just like our company motto "Unstoppable", we are relentless in pursuit for the next exciting innovation in action sports. After more than 3 years working with top engineers, technicians and designers we have created an 11mm Paintball Marker (.43 Cal.) which will prove to be "The Next Big Thing" in action sports.

Kingman Training has applied a breakthrough patented "RSV" (Reversal Striker Valve) system in to a life-sized hand held marker which delivers a true simulated weight and feel to a real hand pistol. The marker uses 11mm paintballs (.43 Cal.) powered by a 12 gram CO2 cartridge with a magazine that holds 10 paintballs and shoots up to 250 feet per second. Each 12 gram CO2 cartridge can shoot up to 6 magazines (60 paintballs). We have revolutionized the air efficiency, while the paintball marker delivers an effective paintball impact on targets while virtually eliminating all paintball breaks inside the marker.

This new hand held KT Marker will provide flawless performance, with increased accuracy and distance. This Marker is perfect for recreational simulated environment play, and Military, Security, or S.W.A.T. training practice. The KT product line will also feature Goggles, Gear and Accessories to complement your game.

Kingman Group is scheduled to launch the "Kingman Training" line in Spring 2009. For more information please visit www.kingmantraining.com.

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Paintball back in the day...

A few weeks back the field was slow (rain and cold) and some of my regulars and refs were just hanging out. They started talking about the "good old days" back when they shot Spyder customs and NPS Rebels. I went in the back and drug out a handful of pumps that were covered with dust. There was a PGP pistol, a Rapide, a Brass Eagle Nightmare and a couple of others I haven't taken the time to research for identity.

Of course they stood there with the mouths open. "Do they work?"

"I have no idea."

So for the next couple of hours I let them dig into some real history. Long story short, we got 2 of the 5 to hold air and they spent the rest of the day fighting over whose turn it was (in the rain and cold) to play with the PGP.


BOOKSAMILLION.COM

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Paintball vs Hookers?

You can't make this stuff up.

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Speak paintball to me...

"Tippy" took the time to e-mail me and let me know he had trouble getting the comment section to work which is really chapping my butt because I have had trouble leaving comments on other Blogger blogs. I think it's a hitch at Blogger but there's no way to get through to them and ask. I switched to Blogger from Wordpress years ago because Wordpress became a nightmare. Blogger hasn't proven to be much better.

Anyway, Tippy gave a shot at explaining how the below mentioned item pertained to paintball. He said, "The item you show is a drop forward / asa that allows you to rotate the position of your air tank."

And correct you are, Sir.

With just a push and a shove you could go from a drop down tank to either the tank hanging out the left side or right side. Think about it. In the good old days we actually had enough time to stop and think, "Ummm, I'm switching to the left side of the bunker so I better swing my tank in to the right. Oh, wait. Now I'm going to go to the right side of the bunker. I better swing the tank to the left.

Thanks for the input, Tippy. Oh and, p.s.: Mcarterbrown and Doc Nickels are my heroes. I just haven't had a chance to update my side bar links.

Thanks again.

Have you tried to leave me a comment?
	Yes, but it didn't work.
	No, don't have time.
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Shade tree paintball engineering...

Paintball promotes allot of tinkering. Long before electronic board swaps and force feed hoppers we all puttered and designed and manufactured what ever we could in the hopes of gaining a bit of advantage over our opponents. Some of the results were laughable. Others led to multimillion dollar industries. In the middle, on any given Friday night, you could find someone in their garage cutting and drilling and welding and shaping in hopes of getting one extra ball to drop per second or getting a trigger to shoot two balls with each trigger pull.

The item below has many uses but I'm pretty sure the designer wasn't thinking about paintball when it was first created. Drop a comment if you know how it was applied to paintball.



Online's largest collection of micro size rc helicopters at ridiculously low prices!

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Purple paintball...

Purple is such a stately color. The color of royalty they say. I don't know about all that but what I can tell you is that it's a pain in the butt color to sell in the pro-shop. Check out EBay and you will find purple on nearly every other page, usually at a pretty discounted price.


Order from your JC Whitney Catalog!

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No further comment...

Had a man come in the Pro-shop with questions about the differences between CO2 and HPA. After 14 years I kind of have the script memorized. Twenty minutes later and after a number of follow up questions I felt I covered the subject quite thoroughly.

As the man was leaving he tossed a final comment on the subject over his shoulder - "Thanks. I'll check that information on the internet and get back to you."

Putz.

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Paintball and gray hair...

Here's some fun math.

Suppose I purchase some markers for $10 from my retailer and sell them at my shop for $15. And let's say it's not a bad marker but it's just not selling very well and the retailer drops the wholesale price on the marker to $5.

Now some guy comes along, buys up a bunch of them and offers them on the internet for $10 and free shipping (and no tax because he's out of state).

Guess what happens to the profit I hoped to make on my markers (Profit - you know, the stuff I use to pay the rent and electric and phone and the one trip a week to Booger King with my granddaughter.).

Sounds pretty screwed up, no?

Happens all the time.

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Paintball from the air...

I had to pull back on this one. All Star Paintball field is pointed out by the yellow arrows. The dark green runway looking marks are actually water where dirt was dug up to add another runway to Honolulu International (It's long enough for the space shuttle to land on it). Down the right shore is the famed Waikiki Beach. Diamond Head is the round crater, bottom right (They hold rock concerts inside the crater!). Pearl Harbor is shown on the left side with Hickam Air Force Base (my home in 1974/75) squeezed in between the harbor and the airport.

Can you say, "Retirement Home?"


Games for your BlackBerry

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Paintball past...

68Caliber has some great history located here (part 1) and here (part 2). Check out the prices.

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Nothing falling here!

Almost everyday I read or hear something from some chicken little who claims the sky is falling down on the world of paintball. There is no doubt in the mind of anyone who has a stake in paintball that the past few years and especially 2008 has been rough on the industry as a whole. I feel bad for paintball company CEO's, Pro-Team owners and tournament promoters. I have empathy for the many who have been laid off or let go or fired from an industry that put food on their table.

At the same time I feel fortunate that the majority of the hand wringing is going on at a level way higher up on the pecking order from where I exist.

I live and work and play at the grass roots level of paintball - in a place far removed from the politics and corporate pressures and the win or perish competition. I sleep peacefully knowing that what is going on at the top will have little impact on my paintball world. It's a confidence fueled from knowing something many of them have forgotten and that is paintball starts at the grass roots level.

Paintball is church groups and birthday parties and rental guns. It's players from those groups that become regulars and buy a Spyder and later upgrade to an Ion. It's the field team that makes their local pro-shop owner proud when they bring back a second place trophy from a tournament held across town.

I'm grateful that my paintball world has nothing in common with the words in this editorial. I'm grateful for loyal employees - High Schoolers looking to make an honest buck and earn a good reference on their future resume. I'm grateful players in my world don't need to be agg or buy Hater Marmalade or install the latest cheater board in their markers.

I'm grateful that people, even in hard times, want to take a break every now and again and have some fun. That's my paintball world. Fun.

Be sure to share this Paintblog with a friend.

Shop Amazon

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Sold out...

Advertising. That's right. I'm going for the big bucks. I've already made 12 cents from click throughs! Shop here!

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I wanna know...

Where do you get most of your paintball news?
	From Blogs
	From Forums
	From Magazines
	Other
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Paintball yesterday...

Paintball Games International / June 1991

Back in the late 80's and early 90's you couldn't throw a cat into a forum or chat room without hitting Jeff Goslin on the noggin. I'm not sure where he is now or what he's doing but I hope it's something paintball. I hope he doesn't mind that a stole this Paintball Games International 1991 magazine cover from his collection. The cover model is just so darn cute and... ummmm.... vulnerable!


BOOKSAMILLION.COM

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Paintball signs...

I'm from the north. I don't mind living here in the south. It's no big deal to me that southerners have a certain image of northerners. It works both ways. Something I always thought concerning southerners was that they are very territorial. "NO TRESPASSING" means no trespassing. Even I, as a northerner, was taught you don't trespass for fear of getting shot at - or worse, getting shot.

So it's a mystery to me why people will climb over my locked driveway cable, the one with the "NO TRESPASSING" sign hanging from it, and come banging on my door. It's along the same line as watching a player lift a string of "CAUTION" tape and run under it.

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STRANGE THINGS....

are happening to this blog. Stay tuned.

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The "H" word...

Kee now carries "Hater" products. In case you have forgotten what I think of paintball product names like Hater or Hemorrhage or Assasin let me remind you; I think it SUCKS!

Hater Sauce, Hatred Boards, Hater Marmalade. More alarming than a manufacturer using Hater as a product brand and a company deciding to distribute the product is the parents who let their kids buy this crap.

Ask me how I really feel.

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The North Pole, maybe?

Muzzi wants to know - Where do you want to play paintball? Check it out.

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Nice try...

Almost every paintball marker works off an 850PSI source of CO2 or Nitrogen or just plain compressed air.

A typical shop compressor puts out around 150 PSI.

STOP ASKING.

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Paintball yesterday...

Here's something you don't see everyday. A TV paintball commercial - from the 1980's no less! And starring Jim McMahon of the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles.

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Get your wish list in early...

Only 358 more days till Christmas.

Happy New Year to all.

Mick

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