mirrorshades.gs
A place for electronic gadgets and doodads of all sorts.
Sunday, June 22, 2014
First hunt with the Savage 93R17 FV!
I recently bought my first firearm =) I've had my licence since I was 16 so I thought it was time xD
I went hunting with a friend on her property and staked out a large warren, to which I was the only one to successfully take a bunny, they went to ground as soon as the the .17 HMR (Hornady Magnum Rimfire) wet off and their comrade was shot. It does some serious damage, as it blew a sizable hole in my prize. I managed to skin it and save some of the hide to tan later =D But the meat was spoiled thanks to not taking the head :/
The .17 HMR is the round on the right of both images above (with the bullet on the right being a .22 Long Rifle and .22 Winchester Magnum Rimfire respectively) which shows its size. They travel at 2550 feet per second and are ballistic tipped!
I'll be going out spotlighting for more rabbits and feral foxes once I get a new spotlight ^_^
Saturday, September 14, 2013
My Growing Bird Obsession
Long time no post I know, I've been off my feet with chest infections and a couple nasty knee injuries. But I'm back!
During my convalescence I gradually acquired nine Zebra Finches (four pairs and a spare cock as hens are difficult to find in my region at the moment) which set me off on a long lost hobby. I had kept finches many years ago, even attempting to breed Gouldian Finches when I was in primary school (which did not end well as my breeding pairs kept dying due to being bad stock from bad breeders. And loosing a Gouldian Finch when you're in primary school is not a cheap thing to have happen), but gave it up as my birds died I didn't replenish my stock.
But for some reason I just started up again, buying or being given birds I liked. As I built up my Zebra Finch collection I started converting our old sun deck, which is fully enclosed, into somewhat of a bird room (it was going to be half bird room, half fish room but I decided to make it all birds and move my fish into the sealed garage under me) and this is the results so far:
My Zebra Finches have begun to breed, having nine babies so far. I had a friend who breeds Budgies help me band the first clutch and I banded the second, and man it's difficult putting something so small onto something so small! This is my first ever fledgling:
I have also added to the collection, as you can see from the video. From my original nine Zebra Finches I purchased my Bourke's Parrot first, my first non-finch in quite a long time, and have been searching for a Rosa hen for him ever since. Then I got my Elegant Parrot. I had walked into the only pet store that deals in Marine fish and good quality birds (including licensed birds) in Tamworth, Macawsome Pets, and spotted a Lutino Elegant hen with a split male. I immediately asked how much but had been beaten to the punch as a fellow aviculture enthusiast (who seems to have esp in regards to when new birds arrive) had bought them the previous day. I grabbed the last one they had, who was a rather nice looking cock, and went on my merry way. After that I bought a pair of Orange-Breasted Waxbills (boy are they cute... and tiny, very tiny!), handraised Eclectus hen (named Charlotte) and a handraised Masked Lovebird.
That Lovebird set me onto the next part of my collection: Lovebirds! I got Macawsome Pets to hold an Albino and Violet Masked Lovebird until I had my breeding cabinets built. Well this took me a while to even get one made and by then they had gotten a pair of hybrids in, a Masked x Fischer's cross. I had been going to get a pair of Peach Faced Lovebirds but opted for the hybrids as they were gorgeous. I plan to further develop them and am currently waiting for their first clutch so as I can build up a breeding program for them. I'll be DNA sexing the Violet and Albino birds and am hoping that they are a cock and hen pair as I want to pair them up.
And if that isn't enough I recently bought two pairs of Gouldian Finches, with the two hens being split to Australian Yellow! One of the hens is of breeding age, while the other is of this years nest so will take some time to mature. My cocks are normal Red Headed Gouldians so I won't throw any Australia Yellows but I mainly just want to see if the hens'll breed and if they do I'll use the money I get from the chicks to find two Aussie Yellow cocks. I also have on hold a Lutino Masked Lovebird hen! and a yet unknown mutation and sex yellow Masked Lovebird.
All in all I have the beginnings of a rather nice bird collection and I'm loving it!
And if that isn't enough I recently bought two pairs of Gouldian Finches, with the two hens being split to Australian Yellow! One of the hens is of breeding age, while the other is of this years nest so will take some time to mature. My cocks are normal Red Headed Gouldians so I won't throw any Australia Yellows but I mainly just want to see if the hens'll breed and if they do I'll use the money I get from the chicks to find two Aussie Yellow cocks. I also have on hold a Lutino Masked Lovebird hen! and a yet unknown mutation and sex yellow Masked Lovebird.
All in all I have the beginnings of a rather nice bird collection and I'm loving it!
Sunday, February 3, 2013
Android based SDR!
Good news everybody! ^_^ Today I found a brilliant Android app called "SDR Touch": https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=marto.androsdr2, which when combined with the following RTL2832U driver: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=marto.rtl_tcp_andro, USB OTG cable: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/USB-OTG-USB-Cable-Adapter-for-Samsung-Galaxy-S-3-S-III-i9300-S2-i9100-/310422121131 and USB TV dongle: http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/DVB-T-T-Stick-SDR-FM-DAB-Tuner-Receiver-Stick-Realtek-RTL2832U-E4000-/370677800882 you can have a portable radio scanner! The USB TV dongle I linked to should get a working range from 50MHz to 2200 MHz (200 MHz shy of 2.4GHz). But you could always get an upconverter to play with (such as the Ham It Up).
It should work, from my understanding, but I'm just going to have to test it out! =3
The only drawback for those out there with older Android phones is that it needs a rooted phone if your version of Android is older than 3.1, but for those of us with newer phones running newer versions then we're all set =D You'll also probably need to run a powered USB hub to supply the TV dongle with power, but you should be able to hook the hub up to a battery pack thus still making it all portable =D
It should work, from my understanding, but I'm just going to have to test it out! =3
The only drawback for those out there with older Android phones is that it needs a rooted phone if your version of Android is older than 3.1, but for those of us with newer phones running newer versions then we're all set =D You'll also probably need to run a powered USB hub to supply the TV dongle with power, but you should be able to hook the hub up to a battery pack thus still making it all portable =D
Monday, November 26, 2012
Vonrakohunde D Parker - Six Generations
This is my dog's pedigree, going back six generations:
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Pedigree for
ANKC 2100070472
Vonrakohunde D Parker
Born : 18.06.2012
Friday, November 16, 2012
Planned curing/cycle for AquaOne Mirage 50 (43 litre) Nano Reef
- Place AquaClear 70 on back of tank, with activated carbon and Hydor 50w heater in filtration compartment.
- Set heater to 26° Celsius - Will aid in die off.
- Place AquaC Nano Remora protein skimmer on back of tank.
- Inspect live rock:
- Mix up a higher salinity water with a specific gravity of about 1.035
- Inspect the individual rocks for dead sponge and other dead/undesirable organisms.
- Place rock into high salinity dip bath and shake to dislodge debris. Leave rock in dip for two minutes.
- After unwanted invertebrates have evacuated place rock in tank for curing.
- Repeat for all rocks.
- Add enough Nature's Own Nutri-SeaWater to tank, as well as to the AC 70 filtration chamber, to cover rocks and turn filtration equipment on.
- Turn Hydor Koralia Nano 900 powerhead on and face at rocks.
- Every seven (7) days submerge a simple pump with vinyl tubing attached and blow debris off the rocks, along with doing a 50% water change while siphoning out any organic matter and loose debris that accumulates at the bottom of the aquarium. Use Nature's Own Nutri-SeaWater for the first two weeks, then switch to Red Sea Coral Pro salt mix and RO/DI water.
- Measure and monitor the ammonia and nitrite levels in the aquarium weekly.
- When both ammonia and nitrite levels are zero, perform a 50% water change on the aquarium. After 24 hours, check the pH of the water and adjust as needed to achieve the desired level of 8.1-8.4
- Add 2-2.5cm of Nature's Own Bio-Activ Live Aragonite Reef Substrate to bottom of aquarium. Continue cycle for a further week and then test water again. If levels are safe stock tank.
Refugium:
- Install fixtures for a canister filter - the return of the filter goes into the siphon area of fuge.
- Place two 50w AquaOne ThermoSafe heaters into the fuge (one in the returns chamber and one in the siphon area).
- Set heater to 26° Celsius - Will aid in die off.
- Install an AquaOne Proskim G220 Protein Skimmer to centre chamber, HOB style.
- Inspect live rock:
- Mix up a higher salinity water with a specific gravity of about 1.035
- Inspect the individual rocks for dead sponge and other dead/undesirable organisms.
- Place rock into high salinity dip bath and shake to dislodge debris. Leave rock in dip for two minutes.
- After unwanted invertibrates have evacuated place rock in centre chamber of tank for curing.
- Repeat for all rocks
- Mix up enough salt mix using Red Sea Coral Pro to fill fuge and add API Quick Start to mixture. Turn on equipment.
- Every seven (7) days submerge a simple pump with vinyl tubing attached and blow debris off the rocks, along with doing a 50% water change while siphoning out any organic matter and loose debris that accumulates at the bottom of the aquarium.
- Measure and monitor the ammonia and nitrite levels in the aquarium weekly.
- When both ammonia and nitrite levels are zero, perform a 50% water change on the aquarium. After 24 hours, check the pH of the water and adjust as needed to achieve the desired level of 8.1-8.4
- Add 2-2.5cm of a mixture of Nature's Own Bio-Activ Live Aragonite Australian Gold Live Sand and CaribSea Mineral Mud to bottom of aquarium. Continue cycle for a further week and then test water again. If levels are safe stock fuge with macroalgae.
- Plumb refugium into AquaOne Mirage 50 nano reef.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Krylon Fusion for Plastic in Australia!
So, if you're into nano reef aquariums you may be familiar with the need to paint the rear of your tank black (or blue if that's your thing) to hide your filtration equipment and to make the tank look sharper.
Now, if you're like me and are Australian and also happen to live in a regional area then you may find it difficult to find the paint of choice for most of the community: Krylon Fusion for Plastic. It seems that it's the go-to paint for the American enthusiast and as such you run into flat recommendations of "Wal-Mart carries it", which doesn't really help you.
So after some searching I discovered that Crockers Paint stocks it and that they take online orders! I just bought a couple cans of the Flat Black for $12.95 a can and it cost me around $18.80 in shipping, which is a small price to pay when you have no other options xD
As soon as I get them into my hot little hands two of my work-in-progress tanks will have nice and black backs which will let me get on with the rest of setting them up.
They arrived today:
They were stated as being posted on the 09/11/2012 and today is the 12th, so pretty nice timing. I'll be taping and painting my 43 litre Mirage 50 tomorrow, after I finish work. Then I just need to get my AquaClear 70 (with an inTank media basket), AquaC Nano Remora, Hydor Theo 50w heater, Hydor Koralia Nano 900 and some live rock and sand and she'll be on her way to being my first nano reef ^_^
Now, if you're like me and are Australian and also happen to live in a regional area then you may find it difficult to find the paint of choice for most of the community: Krylon Fusion for Plastic. It seems that it's the go-to paint for the American enthusiast and as such you run into flat recommendations of "Wal-Mart carries it", which doesn't really help you.
So after some searching I discovered that Crockers Paint stocks it and that they take online orders! I just bought a couple cans of the Flat Black for $12.95 a can and it cost me around $18.80 in shipping, which is a small price to pay when you have no other options xD
As soon as I get them into my hot little hands two of my work-in-progress tanks will have nice and black backs which will let me get on with the rest of setting them up.
!!UPDATE!!
They were stated as being posted on the 09/11/2012 and today is the 12th, so pretty nice timing. I'll be taping and painting my 43 litre Mirage 50 tomorrow, after I finish work. Then I just need to get my AquaClear 70 (with an inTank media basket), AquaC Nano Remora, Hydor Theo 50w heater, Hydor Koralia Nano 900 and some live rock and sand and she'll be on her way to being my first nano reef ^_^
Monday, November 5, 2012
My DIY Pico Protein Skimmer... I hope
This is my first attempt at a pico protein skimmer for my All-in-One AquaOne Cube30 build.
It's 27.9 cm (11") from tip to tail and is made from 32mm (1.25") PVC. The top is cut at a 45° angle using a mitre box and I'll be drilling a 10mm hole at the top and back of the pipe to attach some 10mm vinyl tubing that'll lead to the collection cup (or jar). I still need to work out a mounting bracket. I was thinking lasercut acrylic, cut out of the excess that is on the sheet from making my AIO back.
It's based on the pico skimmer made by Glazer (only a little less fancy as it's not acrylic). Not sure if it's going to work but I won't know until I get my tank up and running!
It's 27.9 cm (11") from tip to tail and is made from 32mm (1.25") PVC. The top is cut at a 45° angle using a mitre box and I'll be drilling a 10mm hole at the top and back of the pipe to attach some 10mm vinyl tubing that'll lead to the collection cup (or jar). I still need to work out a mounting bracket. I was thinking lasercut acrylic, cut out of the excess that is on the sheet from making my AIO back.
It's based on the pico skimmer made by Glazer (only a little less fancy as it's not acrylic). Not sure if it's going to work but I won't know until I get my tank up and running!
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