The history of the Parish Council offers fascinating insights into the social and physical changes that have affected our village since the election of the first ten man Parish Council in 1894.
, according to one Parish Clerk and set a Parish rate.
ON JERUSALEM ISLAND electricity came to the village.
Gathering war clouds led to Air Raid Precaution discussions and Parish Council Chairman, Mr H. O. Pell was appointed Chief Air Raid Warden. Austerity, war effort and anxiety at last ended with joyful celebrations and street parties.
. Beautifully maintained by the Gardening Club, Jerusalem is the focal point for our Village's individual history and identity. Mrs Frances Davis was elected as the first woman to chair the Council.
In 1960 a resident offered a generous gift towards building a Village Hall, but the Council decided not to proceed. In 1999 it now seeks an office and perhaps regrets its predecessor's decision.
In 1964, Council and residents were powerless to resist Dr Beeching's axe and Barrow lost its well-used railway station. Thirty years later, a NEW station opened at Grove Lane as the Ivanhoe Line restored Barrow's rail link.
The Garden of Rest provides an oasis of peace in the village centre and resulted from Council's efforts in opening a previously closed part of the Churchyard.
A site for the County Library was identified in North Street and the building opened in 1969.
The Front Gardens competition was introduced and ran for several years.
Magazine, Community minibus, playschemes, Panto group, Fossil Trail, Village Map and the Roundhouse Museum projects.
The 1973 elections saw thirteen councillors returned reflecting the increase in Village population.
1974 a huge number of villagers overflowed a Public Meeting to discuss with representatives of British Gypsum their plans for a gypsum mine and factory. Though vigorously opposed, these consents were both finally granted and the buildings tower over the outskirts of Barrow.
The first Civic Service was held in 1974 and continues annually.
As the 70's ended, grants made to the Youth Club assisted it to relocate to Humphrey Perkins High School campus.
The Village Rights of Way footpath walks were established and together with the Annual Cycle Rides, started in 1986, remain very popular.
The Cemetery was extended and finally purchased by the Council.
Ongoing representations saw the pedestrian crossings installed and flood alleviation work undertaken.
Throughout the 90's the Council's workload steadily increased as the Village grew. The much admired Christmas lights blossomed from a modest beginning and the Culverts off Mill Lane were taken-over.
1994 saw the Parish Council Centenary, and one hundreds years' service to the Community were marked by the installation of the Doomsday Book in the Library.
Centenary Year saw a new initiative. At the instigation of the Parish Council a Twinning Committee was formed and its hard work culminated in the formal twinning of Barrow-upon-Soar with Marans in France. The Charter was signed in 1996 in Barrow and the following year in Marans by Brian Henman the chairman of the Parish Council and Bernard Boucherau the Mayor of Marans. This followed forty years of school exchange visits. The Mayor formally opened the Roundhouse museum, housing the Village Map.
In 1995 Redland's plan to develop twenty-five acres of land at Slash Lane for industrial use met with reservations. The Council took the bold decision to hold a referendum and residents voted three to one against, with a sixty percent response.
Motorists' interests were not forgotten as the Council joined Charnwood Borough to purchase jointly the Old Station car park.
The Great Rookery footpath saga became a cause celebre as its continued temporary closure (from 1987) was featured on local and national television and debated in Parliament. The Parish Council and Councillor A.J. Earl are mentioned in Hansard. Will the year 2000 at last see it re-opened?
In 1999 the Council embarked on an ambitious scheme to enhance the High Street and Three Crowns area with new street furniture, the County Council providing traffic calming and improved lighting. Mr Tom Rennocks donated a hand carved village sign. Proposals to create a new Village Green in Industry Square were well received.
A Millennium Committee will oversee a year of village celebration and provide a lasting Millennium memorial, while the Village Design Statement Team labour to improve the future look of Barrow. Both are Parish Council supported initiatives.
today as in former times.


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Forget Friday the 13th—Thursday the 12th!
Dr. Eden Wales Freedman and Scarlett O'Hara–two strong feminist icons.
Of course, the superstition is that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day, so any comparison to Thursday, Oct. 12, 2017, isn't totally apt. It wasn't, for me, a particularly unlucky day, although it did wear me out.
I had to give a mid-term exam that afternoon, and it was a bit dicey getting everything ready and printed. I am behind in grading for that class, too—and how I have an exam to add to the pile. After hustling to the exam, I had a newspaper meeting. There may have been cookies.
Anyway, the meeting broke up early because there were three big events that students needed to cover that night. First, at 6 p.m., the MMU Law and Politics Club was sponsoring a visit by Ronald K. McMullen, former U.S. ambassador to Eritrea. He shared many interesting stories about his career as a U.S. diplomat.
Ronald K. McMullen, former U.S. ambassador, speaks Oct. 12 at MMU.
MMU Times reporter covers the ambassador's visit.
But I had to rush off. At 7, Dr. Eden Wales Freedman, assistant professor of English, was speaking as part of our Fall Faculty Series, "Divided we Fall." Her topic was "Feminism is for Everyone." The theme was that the feminist movement in this country has often been focused on the needs of affluent white women, to the detriment of others.
Despite the many competing events on this crazy Thursday, Dr. Wales Freedman attracted yet another full house to Flaherty Community Room.
Dr. Wales Freedman with Dr. Joy Ochs, professor of English. Dr. Ochs coordinates the Fall Faculty Series at MMU.
On the way in, I had been greeted with the thump of Latin music. The Latin Club was doing some Zumba on the plaza. Because, you know, Thursday the 12th.
I noticed my sister and sister-in-law attending, but felt bad I could not linger and chat with them. Because at 8, Jason Sole was visiting to describe his personal journey from prison to earning a PhD.
Jason Sole speaks in the Chapel of Mercy to the third sizeable crowd drawn to an interesting Thursday night lecture at MMU.
Sole's speech was compelling, but I didn't quite make it to the end. I had to finish grading an exam I needed to get back to a Friday class, so about 8:30 I packed it in and headed home. To work until about 11 p.m. or so.
That's what Thursday was like. MMU is an exciting, vibrant place, and was, especially on this Thursday. To cap it all, right before the 6 p.m. speech I had spotted a pair of hawks hanging out on Warde Hall. Honestly, birds of prey on that high perch are not that unusual, but I've not seen two together before.
Iowa hawks at MMU–on top of Warde Hall, framed by pine trees.
I'm cheating a bit on the hawk image—they were back on Friday and I shot this image that day. But here are links to more images from Thursday: the ambassador's visit, the feminism speech and the student-organized prison to Phd presentation.
Thursday the 12th—it was a day that we'll remember for a long time. Honestly, I hope it's not repeated—I liked all of the events, but may have liked them even more spread out just a bit.
But it was still my best day this week.


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Q: Need To Revert Multiple Controls Back To Previous Values I have the following situation where I have multiple controls on a form.  The user can select an Edit mode which allows them to modify the contents of the controls (textboxes, checkboxes, comboboxes, etc.) After editing has been made, the user can either select the Save or Cancel button.
Obviously clicking on save will save all changes to the database, however, if the user clicks on cancel, I want to 'somehow' revert all controls back to their previous state.
Currently, when the user clicks on cancel, the form turns off edit mode, but the controls remain with all the changes made until they reload the form.
Is there an easy way around this, or do I need to reload the entire form content from the database each time the user clicks on cancel?
Thanks in advance.

A: I'm just going to outline a possible solution here.
You could have a dictionary in your form in which you store the content of your controls whenever a user first modifies them, indexing them by the control name.
When the user starts modifying a control, you check if the control already exists in the dictionary. If it doesn't you add a new entry to the dictionary with the current value of teh control.
If the user cancels the editing process, you can loop through the dictionary, find each control in your form by its name (Form.Controls(ControlName) or something like that I think), set its value back to what it was and remove the entry from the dictionary.
It's not the most elegant solution as it will involve linking up all your controls to the TextChanged event or equivalent to capture their value when they are modified...
To avoid that, you could fill the dictionary right at the start when you load your form, after populating the values from the DB and then only set those controls' value back which have a different value when the user cancels.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaStackExchange


The promotional liquid crystal thermometer is a liquid crystal strip on a 'plate' that has double-sided adhesive tape. It is meant as a promotional giveaway to customers, and allows for custom printing on the plate. There are two main temperature ranges: fridge and ambient.
The thermometer consists of a laminated plastic band with a number of temperature sensitive liquid crystals, each in a field with the corresponding temperature ( °C) printed.
When activated by the ambient temperature the liquid crystals will reflect the light and show colours from tan to blue within a range of approximately 2 °C for each crystal.


Life can throw up all sorts of unexpected circumstances. For one Tomedes client, that meant having her first child while living and working overseas – in Portugal. This meant that the usual paperwork that accompanies this joyous occasion (specifically, registering the birth) was a little more complicated than usual, as the client needed the birth certificate not only in Portuguese, but also in English. Thankfully, Tomedes was on hand to help out through our birth certificate translation service.
The client came to us having used our online instant quote service. She was looking for a skilled Portuguese to English translator who could provide her with an official copy of her child's birth certificate in flawless English.
After discussing the translation process with the helpful Tomedes team, the client decided to opt for certified translation. This meant that she would have an official certificate of translation to use as and when she needed to demonstrate the validity of the English copy of the birth certificate.
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Victor Pendlebury was the main man in Mavis Riley's life, other than Derek Wilton. Victor was obsessed with Mavis and re-appeared every so often with a fresh plot to split her and Derek up.
Victor first met Mavis when they took an English Literature class at the Community Centre together in November 1982. They got talking and bonded over their interest in the arts. Victor enchanted Mavis with his worldly tales and persuaded her to collaborate with him on a story for a radio competition, which they won with their entry A Night to Forget. To Victor they were just friends, but Mavis was hoping for more. At a dance, a shy Mavis was ignored by Victor in favour of Emily Bishop, and in typical fashion Mavis took this as the end for them and became flustered with Victor when they saw each other again.
In April 1983, Victor took Mavis on a camping holiday in the Lake District on her birthday. Mavis was swept along by Victor's enthusiasm for the outdoors but once they got there she was so uncomfortable with it that they ended up staying at a Youth Hostel. The following month, Victor told Mavis he was buying a cottage in Saddleworth and asked her to move in with him. Mavis suggested instead that they get married - aside from the years she'd been spent longing for a husband, Mavis wanted security. But Victor wasn't interested in marrying and moved to Saddleworth without Mavis.
Later that year, Mavis invited Victor to show off his homemade pottery at a fayre at the Centre. He was having a good time until he discovered his box of pottery had ended up at the plate-smashing stall!
Victor still paid Mavis the occasional visit. In August 1984, he was amazed to discover that there was another man in Mavis's life - Derek Wilton, and that Mavis was engaged. Spurred on by jealousy, Victor warned Mavis that she was obviously on the rebound from him and begged her to leave Derek and marry him instead. Derek told Victor to stop hounding Mavis but Victor saw himself as Mavis's one true love and told Derek he'd "never probed (Mavis's) soul" and that he should "let her soul fly free". When the wedding day came around, the dithering couple were both no-shows at All Saints Church, having independently decided that they couldn't go through with it. Mavis told Rita Fairclough that neither Derek nor Victor really knew her, but that they only thought they did.
After a long absence, Victor re-appeared on the scene in January 1990 and arranged a meeting with Mavis. Now Mrs. Wilton after marrying Derek on the second attempt, Mavis met with Victor without telling Derek, but on learning that Derek was unemployed, Victor offered him a job (through Mavis) with his recycling business, Pendlebury Paper Products. Derek swallowed his pride and was taken on by Victor, but the real humiliation was to come as Victor used Derek as an errand boy and met with Mavis in front of him. Victor was still in love with Mavis and on one night, with Derek away on an overnight job in Bedford, Victor called at The Kabin and played on Mavis's sympathy by telling her how lonely he was. Mavis took him up to the flat and he tried to seduce her by talking her into letting him use reflexology on her to cure her headache. Derek, who had panicked after discovering that Victor was out of office, drove back to Weatherfield and caught Victor handling Mavis's foot! Derek saw Victor out and planned to quit PPP but on confronting him at the office they ended up getting drunk together on wine and Victor agreed never to trouble them again.
For a while, Victor was true to his word - he left Weatherfield to take over the PPP branch in Darlington and left Derek in charge, but his lust for Mavis remained and later that year he married Yvonne, a Mavis-lookalike. The Wiltons were astonished when Victor returned and introduced them to his wife, who he admitted he had been attracted to because she was so like Mavis. He then introduced another trump card - he knew Derek's ex-wife Angela Hawthorne and sent Derek to Darlington to a business meeting with her, with instructions to "keep her sweet". Derek secured the deal with Angela and the Wiltons survived Victor's latest attempt to split them up.
In January 1992, Derek decided to impress Victor by writing an analysis of PPP's shortcomings, potentially saving thousands. Victor was impressed, but not in the way Derek intended - he took its recommendation for making cutbacks and told Derek he'd made himself redundant! Mavis went to Victor at Derek's behest and asked Victor to reinstate him, but Victor told Mavis her charms were wasted on him - he no longer fancied her.


When the Pittsburgh steelers entered the NFL Draft earlier this year they had positions in mind that they knew needed depth. Some of those positions were fundamental. With the departure of Rashard Mendenhall at running back, it was a likely bet how the Steelers would go after a talented running back with probable to have a sudden impact. In concerning round, Pittsburgh selected Le'Veon Bell, as well as at this point he has proven that he could push for a starting role using the Steelers' roster.
The Sports Lover: Does your dad love sporting goods? Then this is the perfect gift basket for him. Have a standard basket and fill it with items from his favorite power team. In any sports store you come across jerseys, watches, rugs, and even car accessories dedicated to your sports team you can think attached to. If you can afford it, you may also stick in tickets for you to some game Pittsburgh Penguins jersey wholesales or two. Additionally you can fill it with sport time official ncaa jerseys snacks such as peanuts, chips, or his favorite refreshment. To make the basket more decorative go using a party store or craft store and make an effort find Easter grass and ribbon on his team various hues.
For a weekly update of my fantasy football kicker rankings, just post your email below and Let me send the article each week. Good Luck this 7 day period!
have grown to be better players by researching nfl practice squads. Think of it as stealing content articles must, but it can be smart labor.
But learn how easy is he doesn't need to be and when he's not it's Good. It's rare in the NFL to obtain a pass-rusher on par with Freeney and Mathis. The Colts may go years without players that dymanic. Freeney may be headed towards Hall of Fame and Mathis may be one among the best under-sized pass rushers in NFL history. What the Colts need Hughes turn out to be is a complement, somebody can be a threat possibly at least get pressure when one or both of the other two are out or limited.
I do! Other than being shorter than I prefer, these aren't bad for the money. They are also more gray than green.


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Tag Archives: Une Rose Chyprée
Tauer Perfumes Une Rose Chyprée: Bewitching Opulence
"'Tis the last rose of summer," once wrote the famous 19th-century Irish poet, Thomas Moore, in a poem that later inspired everyone from Beethoven to Felix Mendelssohn. The line definitely comes to mind when I wore Une Rose Chyprée, a spectacular chypre-oriental hybrid that features an autumnal, amber rose. Yet, that is only one part of the story.
Source: npr.org
At the same time, Une Rose Chyprée also conjured up everything from a coquettish, youthful, warm Audrey Hepburn in the 1960s, to thoughts of a woman's warm, heated flesh as revealed by an opulent, dramatic dress cut low enough to seduce. It is a scent that is surprisingly playful and welcoming for a chypre — normally a very cool, haughty, aloof fragrance family — but Une Rose Chyprée is graced by an oriental seductiveness as well. I'm not one who goes weak in the knees for chypres, let alone scents that are primarily rose-centric in nature, but Une Rose Chyprée may be the best rose I have smelled in years and it completely swept me off my feet.
Source: Tauer Perfumes
Une Rose Chyprée (sometimes written as "08 Une Rose Chyprée") is an eau de parfum released in 2009 by Andy Tauer, the founder and nose behind the much-adored Swiss niche house, Tauer Perfumes. On Fragrantica, the fragrance is classified as chypre floral, but it seems more accurate to me to call it a chypre-oriental hybrid. The Tauer website supports this impression, describing Une Rose Chyprée as:
An exclusive oriental rose on a vintage chypre chord.
Une Rose Chyprée is a modern vintage perfume. It reaches back to the craft of traditional high perfumery, using a luxurious setting of raw materials. At the same time, I wanted it to be a rose of today, that speaks our language.
According to Luckyscent, the notes in Une Rose Chyprée include:
Rosa Damascena Absolute and essential oil, Bay, Cinnamon, Bergamot, Lemon, Clementine, Bourbon Geranium, Labdanum, Oak Moss, Patchouli, Vetiver, and Vanilla.
Geranium pratense leaf, close-up. Source: Wikicommons
I tested Une Rose Chyprée three times, and, each time, it opens on my skin with a bouquet that's so sultry and exquisite, it feels like a growl that eventually turns into a sensuous purr. There is smoky incense intertwined with the peppery, spicy bite of fuzzy, green geranium leaves, followed by tart, green, unripe lemons and rose. The rose begins this journey as something green and mossy, but soon takes on a bubblegum, fruity undertone. There are momentary flickers of a purple grape underlying the flower's tightly closed bud, perhaps from the patchouli or something like methyl anthranilate, but they are soon replaced by hints of sweet clementine.
Photo: Arbyreed on Flickr, (Website link embedded within, click on photo.)
Every part of the citrus is there: the sweet, sun-ripened, heavy pulp; the squirting oil of its zested, slightly bitter rind; and the candied flesh, crystallized with hints of dark, earthy, chewy, black patchouli. The smorgasborg of notes swirls into the geranium, adding brightness to its piquant verdancy in a combination that has me utterly enraptured. Sweet but peppered, orange but green, zesty but spicy, sun-laden warmth but fuzzy, leafy darkness. It's a chiaroscuro of light and dark that weaves its intoxicating, unexpected, and original thread throughout a good portion of Une Rose Chyprée's early hours, and I can't get enough.
Source: wallpapersnatural.com
At the heart of Une Rose Chyprée's tapestry is the rose. It swirls all around you in a veiled shimmer of greens, garnet red, earthiness, and mossy trees — all rolled into one. This is a green rose whose petals were crushed into the damp, wet soil of the forest floor; a rose that lies nestled amidst fresh, just slightly mineralized, faintly bittersweet mosses; a rose infused with the concentrated essence of a thousand dark green, slightly spicy, peppered leaves, then sprinkled with hints of alternatively tart and zesty citruses. It is a rose that is fruited, but spiced with cinnamon, and wrapped with the tendrils of black incense. It is a rose that smells like bubblegum at times, like grapes once in a while, and even like bananas or earthy mushrooms in different tests.
Une Rose Chyprée is a swirling kaleidoscope of all those things, and then some. This is a fragrance with so many facets and dimensions, it made my head spin. It made me test the perfume twice, doubting that it was possible that I was accurately smelling such nuances (bubblegum? mushrooms?), and it left me quite awed. It was so fabulous, I have worn it for a third time, almost draining my sample that a very kind, generous reader of the blog — the lovely "Dubaiscents" — gave me as a gift. I even went to see what The Ultimate Perfume Snobs — aka, my parents — thought of it, and if you think my reaction is fervent, you should have seen theirs! My father actually put Tristan und Isolde on pause to ask about the perfume — and few things distract my father from his Wagner.
Source: hqwalpapers.com
I think the real appeal of Une Rose Chyprée is that it's not a haughty fragrance. A number of classic or vintage chypres keep you at a distance with oakmoss that can be coldly pungent, fusty, or slightly dusty, or with galbanum that can feel as sharp as the crack of black leather whip. Une Rose Chyprée is almost a coquettish chypre that beckons you with a sweet smile, despite the emeralds and rubies glowing around her elegant, rosy throat. The perfume's opening is that of a chypre suited to Audrey Hepburn whose slim elegance and classic style never hid her sparkling, elfish beauty and approachable warmth. From Eliza Doolittle going to the ball in a tiara, to Holly Golightly, to Audrey herself in her perfect little black Givenchy dress with a radiant smile, Une Rose Chyprée combines the refined elegance of a classic chypre with a warmth that is open, modern, bright, and always approachable.
It's not all a bed of roses, however. There are thorns in the form of a synthetic or two that lurks in the perfume's base. At first, around the 40-minute mark, there is merely a sharp note that is hard to pinpoint, but which gives me a dull ache behind my eyes. It feels woody, but not exactly like ISO E Super at first. Soon, unfortunately, the aroma-chemical's telltale peppery, humming buzz makes itself noticeable, along with a rhythmic jack-knife drilling through my skull. It lasts for hours and, since I don't always get an ISO E Super headache unless there is a hell of a lot of the synthetic at play, I rue one more time Mr. Tauer's love for the bloody note. (No, Mr. Tauer, not everyone thinks it serves as a wonderful photoshop-like finishing touch!) Given the forcefulness of the synthetic carrion vulture circling around my head, I suspect that there is something else going on as well, like Ambroxan. Whatever the specific synthetics in question, it's a testament to Une Rose Chyprée that I don't care in the slightest. That says a lot. Regular readers know that I think the rampant use of ISO E Super in perfumery is akin to an outbreak of the Bubonic Plague, and that I despise the majority of fragrances that include it. But Une Rose Chyprée is special.
Around the same time that the devil's chemical minions pop up their blasted head, Une Rose Chyprée starts to slowly morph. First, it's just a question of feel, as the notes start to blur and overlap each other. Then, the fragrance starts to turn more gauzy, like a sheer veil of garnet red and mossy green gliding in the air like a kite. Yet, despite the breezy weight of the fragrance, Une Rose Chyprée is incredibly potent and pulsates its bouquet out across a room in a beautiful juxtaposition of airiness with strength. Perhaps the best way to describe it is like a cloud that billows out several feet around you, with notes that reflect brightness, lightness and dark.
Vanilla Custard.
Source: Sacchef's Blog.
Another change is that Une Rose Chyprée starts to manifest faintly gourmand undertones. Vanilla starts to rise to the surface; it's beautifully creamy, rich, and custardy, with such a ripe sweetness that it almost takes on a banana custard aspect on occasion. At the same time, a sugared, floral powder quality creeps into the scent. When it combines with the vanilla custard, the sun-sweetened clementine, the rose, geranium, and the cinnamon, the result is something that actually smells of pink bubblegum. One reason may stem from the patchouli which feels fruity on occasion, but whatever the cause, there is a definite candied, pink, bubblegum tonality to the rose that manifested itself on all three occasions that I tested Une Rose Chyprée. Somehow, it adds to the fragrance's playful, flirtatious open side, underscoring once again what an unusual sort of chypre this is and how it straddles different perfume families.
"Rose Reflections" by HocusFocusClick on Flickr. (Click on photo for website link which is embedded within).
Yet, despite the quiet, fruited undertones, Une Rose Chyprée is still primarily a rose scent with green notes that are wrapped up in a ribbon of black smokiness. A third verdant element pops up around the 90-minute mark: vetiver. It's simultaneously a bit earthy, musky, and rooty all in one, a swirl of dark greens and browns. I suspect that it's responsible for the occasional mushroom nuance I detect, but what makes it really special is the way it interacts with the vanilla. Vetiver and vanilla are an old, established combination in perfumery, but it's done extremely well here in conjunction with the other notes. It works particularly well with the flickers of spicy, peppered geranium leaves and the fading whisper of juicy citruses. And, somewhere in this complicated, unusual, multi-faceted mix is a hint of beeswax from the labdanum.
Source: fr.123rf.com
The beeswax heralds the arrival of the final, and most substantial, change to the fragrance. One hour and forty-five minutes into Une Rose Chyprée's development, the amber becomes prominent, lending a golden hue to the rose's glossy garnet and mossy, emerald gleam. The labdanum here doesn't have any of its usual, typical characteristics; it has no leathery, nutty, animalic, musky, masculine or dirty undertones. Instead, it's merely a smooth, rich glow, infused with that sweet vanilla custard and a tinge of fruited patchouli. Resinously deep, it sweeps through the fragrance like a coursing river of molten, amber lava flecked with hints of cinnamon, beeswax, vanilla, and earthy vetiver. As the sweeter, warmer elements surge forward, the geranium-oakmoss-clementine trio weaken in strength, and Une Rose Chyprée loses some of its youthful, coquettish playfulness. Slowly, the fragrance starts to turn into an Oriental that is more seductive and openly sensual.
The labdanum grows stronger and stronger until, at the start of the fifth hour, it completely transforms that mossy, smoky, slightly bubblegum, fruited rose. Une Rose Chyprée has become primarily an amber scent, emitting a caramel tonality mixed with vanilla custard, patchouli, and a hint of floral powder. The rose is almost wholly abstract now, feeling like a supporting player on the sidelines. The green notes have receded or faded completely away, leaving a scent that is resinous and almost chewy in feel. The patchouli that was once almost fruity has now turned into my absolute favorite kind: black, dark, faintly spiced, lightly musky and smoky, and completely chewy. It folds and melts into the amber and vanilla custard, creating a very sexy, sumptuously rich scent.
Dior Couture. Photo: Patrick Demarchelier for "Dior Couture," a book by Ingrid Sischy, Patrick Demarchelier.
Something about the fragrance's dramatic opulence and warm, sensuous creaminess makes me think of the suggestion of a woman's golden, musky, voluptuous flesh languidly spilling out from a deep décolleté. Une Rose Chyprée is no longer a gamine, playful Audrey Hepburn rose. Instead, it's now an oriental seductress in an amber and patchouli haute couture ball gown tantalizing you with suggestions of heated warmth and musky, sweet abandon. And the fragrance remains that way until its very end. Around the 7.5 hour mark, the fragrance turns into a hazy blur of golden sweetness that hovers right above the skin. Powdery touches (that I really don't like) come and go, until the 9th hour, when Une Rose Chyprée begins its final change into a simple wisp of lightly powdered amber.
All in all, Une Rose Chyprée consistently lasted over 12 hours on my perfume-consuming skin. During the first test, I applied 4 large smears of the scent, and the perfume lasted well over 16.5 hours. The sillage was monstrously huge, wafting a good 2-3 feet across the room, and it remained that way until the 5th hour when it dropped to about 3-4 inches above the skin. Even when Une Rose Chyprée was closer to the skin, it was still extremely potent. In fact, the fragrance only became a skin scent on me around the middle of the 9th hour. All in all, the longevity was utterly astounding, especially given how voraciously my skin eats perfume, but it is also further proof of the synthetics underlying the mix.
The second time around, I applied my usual quantity of two large smears, and Une Rose Chyprée lasted just over 12.75 hours. There was a difference in the perfume's development, as the ISO E Super seemed substantially more prominent, and the top notes (particularly the geranium-moss-clementine accord) were significantly weaker. By the same token, the perfume seemed much smokier and a wee bit more spiced at a lower dosage, while the fruited notes were more muted. In addition, the powdery quality to the fragrance crept in much sooner, as did the resinous amber undertones. In short, if you use a small quantity of Une Rose Chyprée, your skin may not bring out the fragrance's top notes in quite the same way and the fragrance may lose some of its more beautiful nuances. Other than those small issues of strength and timing, the core essence of Une Rose Chyprée remained unchanged. With the lesser dosage, the sillage dropped faster, and the fragrance became a skin scent around the 6th hour, but it was always very potent in feel and it still lasted an incredibly long time.
My experiences with Une Rose Chyprée differs from that of a few people. For one thing, there are dramatically polar opposite accounts about the perfume's sillage and duration. On both Luckyscent and Fragrantica, a number of people think the perfume simply doesn't last and has weak projection. In fact, going by the votes on Fragrantica, the majority find the Une Rose Chyprée's longevity is merely "moderate." Even more people, combined, think that the perfume's duration is "poor" or "weak." My response to that is the same as one disbelieving reviewer's reaction: I "can't believe what im seeing." The explanation may lay in the quantity used. My own experiences, and the 2nd test in particular, make me think that applying a very drop or two of the fragrance will curtail its potency, in addition to hiding its nuances and layers. Still, skin chemistry is a tricky and deeply individual thing, so be warned that some people have problems with Une Rose Chyprée's projection and duration.
As for the fragrance itself, general commentators seem split on its appeal, with some finding it to be too heavy and old, while others think it is the most beautiful, "extravagant" or "3D" rose they've encountered. It will all depend on your benchmarks. I wouldn't recommend Une Rose Chyprée to anyone looking for a light, fresh rose fragrance, nor to those looking for something edgy, revolutionary, or quirky. Une Rose Chyprée was intentionally created to be a modern twist on a very classic, traditional style of perfumery, and it succeeds in that goal beautifully. This is a fragrance with a heavy, vintage feel, so those who want a light, youthful, simple fruity-floral should not bother one iota. But, if you're looking for an over-the-top glowing jewel of a rose that throws out more notes than a diamond hit by the sun, or if you're looking for an opulent scent with a wickedly sensuous, seductive, "come hither" allure, then Une Rose Chyprée is for you. I'd also like add that anyone who was deeply disappointed in Frederic Malle's much-vaunted (and, in my opinion, hugely over-hyped) rose fragrance, Portrait of a Lady, should run to try Mr. Tauer's stunner. This is how it's done!
Ava Gardner.
If you think all this fuss is from a blogger with an over-active imagination, you'd be mistaken. For one thing, as I said at the start, I don't particularly like rose fragrances to begin with, and chypres are not my favorite category. More importantly, however, reviews from everyday perfume users gush just as much about the fragrance as do all the bloggers out there (and trust me, the bloggers lose their knickers for Une Rose Chyprée). On MakeupAlley, where the fragrance has a perfect 5.0 score with 8 reviews, one apt description of the scent succinctly reads:
This fragrance is gorgeous and dark. It is sexy, animalic, and gutsy. If I had to give you a visual, I would say Ava Gardner in her prime.
Haunting, fascinating, utterly gorgeous.
I personally would go with 1950s Audrey Hepburn for the fragrance's chypre opening stage, but let's not quibble. She's absolutely and completely right about Ava Gardner for the middle and end stages.
That said, don't interpret these comparisons as something that feels dated and old. Another raving MakeupAlley review talks about how the scent felt just as appropriate in a grunge pit and jazz club, as it did at the opera:
I tend to avoid roses as they are often too pink and polite to my nose [….]. Une Rose Chyprée is different. Despite its wide range of notes that feel like a salute to different fragrance families, it is a unique interpretation that does not have a futile attempt to satisfy the chyprée and gourmand lovers at the same time- how horrendous would that be! On the contary, it is a tremendous blend that hints at an intelligent crossroad but does its own thing in a versatile way. On me, the oakmoss base gives a fantastic depth to the vintage rose but the result is just like modern classical music sounds to my ears. I am a music lover and I have worn this to the opera. I felt like I was dressed in velvet. I wore it to a couple of grunge and noise gigs with deep V necks and felt super accessible and unreachable at the same time. It also goes well with jazz clubs. My next plan is to stock this masterpiece, be forced to declare bankruptcy and feel completely untouchable at the courtroom i.e. I am addicted.
Finally, if any of these references or photos make you think that guys can't pull off Une Rose Chyprée, think again. But don't take just my word for it; the award-winning blogger, Persolaise, thinks so, too. In a comment on Basenotes (where Une Rose Chyprée has a 91% approval rating), he gives it 5-stars and writes:
The ghosts of all the old, bewitching Guerlains are to be found in Une Rose Chyprée, a pitch-perfect manifestation of pure sensuality. My initial reaction to it was to let out a gasp of astonishment and exclaim, "I don't think I've got enough noses with which to smell this." Yes, in simplistic terms, it's a rose, but then, a rose is a rose is a rose… Earthy and sparkling, this is a substance of gilt-edged richness, which also accomplishes the feat of remaining unabashedly unisex throughout its development.
I completely agree. Une Rose Chyprée is unabashedly unisex with the luxurious, opulent quality and elegance of a vintage Guerlain, while still retaining a very modern drama and oomph. It's got a refined elegance that turns into a deep-throated growl of sensuality. And it has enough prismatic nuances that you will, indeed, think you need a few more noses with which to smell it.
Source: hdwallpaperes.com
One downside to the fragrance is that it's not cheap for the small size at $140 for a 30 ml/ 1 oz bottle. That said, it is an eau de parfum in concentration, and a tiny amount of Une Rose Chyprée goes a long, long way. Plus, the ingredients are extremely expensive. At the fragrance's launch in 2009, Mr. Tauer said that each hand-packaged bottle contains one pound of steam-distilled rose petals, as well as rosa damascena absolute. In one of his recent blog entries, he wrote that his rose base "comes to 450 Francs per kilo. That's the price you have to pay for a real rose base. Actually, compared to the rose absolute per se it is a bargain (rose absolute sells for about 4000 $ [.]" That costly rose damascena absolute is a big part of Une Rose Chyprée, as well. In short, the reason why the fragrance costs so much is the same reason why the rose glows like a jewel: it's got the real stuff in there, and in huge quantities to boot.
I could write several thousand more words about the beauty of this scent, and why it feels so special. I'll spare you that. The bottom line is that Une Rose Chyprée may be, at its heart, an essentially simple green-then-ambered rose, but it's greater than the sum of its parts. To expand on the line from the poet, Thomas Moore, 'tis the last rose of summer whose refined green-red brightness has now given way into autumn's sultry red-golden amber. It's also the sexiest, most compelling, addictive, mesmerizing, bewitching rose-centric scent that this rose-skeptic has smelled in a long, long time. I bow down at Mr. Tauer's feet in utter admiration.
Cost & Availability: Une Rose Chyprée is an eau de parfum that comes in a 30 ml/1 oz bottle that costs $140 or €95.60 (if purchased from the Tauer website). In the U.S.: you can buy Une Rose Chyprée from Luckyscent or MinNewYork, as well as directly from Tauer Perfumes where it is cheaper at $128.60. (See further details down below in the Tauer section.) Luckyscent also sell a sample vial for $3, and MiN for $5. Samples are available from The Perfumed Court as well, starting at $8.99 for a 1/2 ml vial. It is not sold at Surrender to Chance. Outside the U.S.: In Canada, the full line of Tauer Perfumes is available at Saltridges which sells Une Rose Chyprée for CAD$168. I think Saltridges may be the exclusive Canadian vendor for Tauer, but I'm not sure. In Europe, you can find Une Rose Chyprée at France's Premiere Avenue for €99, while Germany's First in Fragrance sells the perfume for €105.00. It too carries samples. In the UK, Les Senteurs sells Une Rose Chyprée for £99.00, along with samples. In Italy, you can find the fragrance at Vittoria Profumi which sells Une Rose Chyprée for €104. In Russia, the Tauer line of fragrances is available at 1st Original. The Tauer website's store locator also provides locations in over 10 countries — ranging from France and the Netherlands to Russia, Singapore, the UK, Poland, Romania, Spain and more — where its products are available. You can find that list of stores here.
Cost & Availability from the Tauer Website: The Tauer Perfumes website lists the cost of the 30 ml/1 oz bottle as: Fr. 118.00 / USD 128.60 / EUR 95.60. Tauer Perfumes also sells a sample 1.5 ml/ 0.05 oz glass vial of Une Rose Chyprée for: Fr. 5.00 / USD 5.50 / EUR 4.10. Though they used to ship to most places in the world, you need to know that they can't ship to a number of places in Europe right now. The website explains that they can only ship to customers in Switzerland, France, Germany and Austria and cannot ship "Great Britain, UK, Russia, Belgium and the Czech Republic." As a side note, the Tauer website also sells a sample Discovery Set of 5 different Tauer perfumes (for free shipping to most places in the world) which you can choose at will for: Fr. 31.00 / USD 33.80 / EUR 25.10. The website provides the following information:
Free selection: It is your choice to pick a set of 5 DISCOVERY SIZE perfume samples in glass spray vials. 1.5 ml each (0.75 ml of 0.75 ml of UNE ROSE CHYPRÉE or UNE ROSE VERMEILLE or CARILLON POUR UN ANGE) are at your disposal. Pick any scents from the Tauer perfumes range. The amounts of 1.5 (0.75 ml) are minimal amounts. Usually , we will ship around 2 ml (1ml). The DISCOVERY size vials are spray vials and will allow you to enjoy our fragrances for several days.Packaging: The DISCOVERY SET comes in a glide-cover metal box for optimal protection.Shipment: This product ships for free within 24 hours after we received your order world wide. Exceptions: Italy, United Kingdom, Russia, Belgium, Czech Republic.
Posted in Ambers, Chypres, Perfume Review, Tauer or Tauerville Perfumes | Tagged Andy Tauer, perfume reviews, Rose Chyprée Tauer, Tauer 08 Une Rose Chyprée, Tauer Perfumes, Tauer Perfumes review, Tauer Rose Chypree Perfume Review, Une Rose Chyprée

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


What a night of football in Franklin. After five parachutes dropped out of the sky, gun salute, and national anthem the Franklin Wildcats and Carlisle Indians finally took the field.
After a back and forth battle, and many penalties, Franklin's Kennard hit Devin Richards just before half to tie up the game. Carlisle 7, Franklin 7.
Second half, Carlisle had another long drive that ended with a miss field goal. The penalty bug struck the Indians, as well. Neither team could get any offense going in the third. Carlisle 7, Franklin 7.
In the 4th quarter, Franklin's offense woke up. In particular, Senior leader and starting running back, Chris Hymer. Hymer carried the ball 19 times for 142 yards. The 4th quarter, Hymer broke off a 34-yard run to to the Indians 2 yard line. From there, Hymer dove in for the score giving the Wildcats a 14-7 lead. After an Indians failed attempt to move the ball. Franklin marched down and Kennard scored on a QB keeper.
The Indians made a couple nice final attempts in the closing minutes. With less than two minutes Carlisle's Boyer hit Gideon Cunningham for a 30 yard TD pass. But it wasn't enough, Franklin gained possession on the kick off ending the game.
Final Score Franklin 20, Carlisle 13.


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Arthur Samuel may refer to:
 Arthur Samuel (computer scientist), American computer scientist
 Arthur Samuel, 1st Baron Mancroft, British politician

See also

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


Removable base for easy cleaning and storage.
Handy for every meal. Roasts, fries, grills, stews, bakes, and makes one-dish meals.
Big 16-inch base and high sidewalls provide extra cooking and serving capacity, perfect for every meal and entertaining.
Great for use as a buffet server when entertaining. Tempered glass cover lets you see what's inside.
Simply fold down handles to detach skillet pan from base. With handles folded in, the base nests in skillet pan for compact storage.
Built-in spout for pouring liquids from skillet. Doubles as a spoon rest.
Control Master® heat control automatically maintains the desired cooking temperature.
Deluxe nonstick finish, inside and out, provides stick-free cooking and easy cleaning.
Heavy cast aluminum base is virtually warp-proof.
Saves energy. More efficient than a range burner or oven.
Easy to clean. Fully immersible and dishwasher safe with the heat control removed.
120 volts AC, 1500 watts.
Presto 16" Electric Foldaway Skillet. Roasts, fries, grills, stews, bakes and makes one dish meals. Built in pour spout doubles as a spoon rest. Base and handles detach and nest in pan for easy storing. Great for every meal - big 16" base and high sidewalls provide extra cooking and serving capacity. Saves energy because it is more efficient than a range burner or oven. Tempered glass cover and stay cool handles allow skillet to double as a buffet server. Control Master heat control m aintains the desired cooking temperature automatically. Heavy cast aluminum base features a deluxe nonstick surface, inside and out. Skillet and cover are dishwasher safe with the heat control removed. Fold down handles to detach skillet pan from base. With handles folded in, the base and handles store in skillet for compact storage.


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S&P+ win projections peg NC State right about where you'd expect
The Pack's most likely to inhabit the delicious creamy center of the Atlantic Division.
By Steven Muma@akulawolf Aug 29, 2016, 5:31pm EDT
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Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images
In addition to projecting how each team will stack up overall in 2016, S&P+ can also be used to ballpark win totals for each team. ACC team win total projections, both overall and in league play, can be seen over at Football Study Hall.
To pretty much no one's surprise, NC State is most likely to win five to seven games. There is a roughly 70% chance that NC State's win total falls within that range, in S&P+'s estimation. Six or seven wins is about a 50-50 proposition against all other win totals.
Looking at league games only, there is a 57% chance that the Pack wins either three or four games. Dave Doeren is still looking for his first season of .500 or better in ACC games. I'm not confident he'll get over that hump in 2016 but it does look doable in 2017.
The Atlantic of course is top-heavy, with FSU, Clemson, and Louisville each projected at 5+ conference wins. No other team in the division is projected to win more than three. In the Coastal, four schools are projected to win 4-5 games, so it's, y'know, another typical year for that division.


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Opinions may vary
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Tafl AI Tournament
Omar's Grandchild: In Praise of the M2 Bradley
Posted by parvusimperator
The M2 Bradley is America's standard infantry fighting vehicle. It's much maligned; its long and drawn-out design process is the subject of a feature film starring Kelsey Grammar. You would think after such a well-done (and funny) shellacking, I would hate it.
But you would be wrong. The Bradley is actually a really nice IFV. Borgundy would procure them if they were still in production. Like all designs, they are a compromise, but the resulting compromise is a better jack-of-all trades vehicle than any of its competitors. To understand the compromise, and why the Bradley still hangs with the best of them despite its age, we need to go back to the design of the IFV.
In 1967, the Soviets unveiled the BMP-1, and it took the world by storm. The BMP-1 was originally designed for the nuclear/biological/chemical contaminated battlefield of The Future, and was designed to put all of the squad's organic firepower into a vehicle that could move with tanks and protect the soldiers from the hostile environment. They were expected to fight from within; the BMP-1 had firing ports to enable troops to shoot out, and even had devices to remove the weapon waste gasses from the interior. It was a bunker that could move at the same speed as a tank, and it had a PKT machine gun and a 73mm low-velocity gun to match the squad support weapons that couldn't be fired from the ports.
The west was terrified. Here was an APC with teeth! Here was yet more firepower for the Red Tank Armies that would come thundering through the Fulda Gap. Western APCs would be shredded, since they were armed with only a machine gun. The Germans promptly and sensibly designed the Marder IFV1. But America did not. We were too busy in Vietnam to give much thought to armored warfare. And counterinsurgencies are expensive. We in America stuck with our tried-and-true M113 APCs as the world moved ahead. The Soviets would eventually make improvements to their BMP, and unveiled the BMP-2 in 1980. The biggest change was a shift to a smaller gun, because a high-velocity, stabilized 30x165mm gun has a longer effective range than the 73mm low velocity gun on the BMP-1, and stabilization lets it be fired on the move. The BMP-2 entered service in 1980.
By then America had been working on an IFV of its own, and they unveiled the M22 Bradley in 1981. It featured a stabilized 25mm gun, a twin launcher for TOW missiles, space for 6 dismounts who could fire out ports in the sides, and was amphibious. Of course, the complaints started immediately. Even though it was better protected than the M113, people complained that it wasn't protected enough. Even though it had to be kept small to be amphibious (and the original was just barely amphibious), people complained that it didn't carry enough troops. Everything is a compromise, and the Bradley's designers had picked one set. Those who complained about armor were listened to, and the Bradley's armor was progressively increased. The amphibious capability had to go (those who advocate river crossings underfire can shut up), and eventually the firing ports in the side were plated over. This wasn't much of a great loss though; even professional soldiers couldn't hit much when firing without sights through the tiny ports. And it was awkward for those inside, even though the Americans had provided a really compact weapon for use in firing ports. Russians used their regular AKs, and this was very difficult in the cramped interior. No longer burdened by firing port access requirements allowed the designers to reconfigure the seating arrangement. The resulting more sensible layout allowed accommodating an extra man, and was generally easier to get in and out from. The original layout was still better than that of the BMP.
No one would ever complain about the firepower on the Bradley. Well, except the British, who thought it overly extravagant to stabilize the 25mm gun. 'Why would anyone need to fire on the move?' they wondered. They got their answer with a side of crow in 1991, when the Bradley killed more Iraqi tanks than the M1 Abrams. And the TOW missiles were another large part of this. The Bradley had some anti-tank firepower built in, so US Mechanized troops had tank-killing support down to the squad level to help them face off against the Red Menace. The Bradleys were designed to kill the large numbers of non-tank armored vehicles in the Red Army, leaving friendly tanks free to concentrate on killing enemy ones. The TOW missiles were added since the Bradleys might also encounter tanks. Part of the reason why the Bradley couldn't carry a full squad of dismounts was because of the stowed firepower. The Bradley carries 300 ready rounds of 25mm, plus another 600 stored 25mm rounds. The coax machine gun has 800 ready rounds, plus another 1,400 stowed. There are also 5 TOW missiles carried internally, in addition to the two loaded in the launcher. Use of a roof hatch allows for (somewhat awkward) reloading without the troops having to get out of the vehicle and climb about.
Of course, by now there are many other competitive IFVs. The Bradley has been heavily upgraded to compete, and it's still a world-beater in a lot of ways. The Bradley was one of the first IFVs to feature an independent commander's thermal sight, allowing for hunter-killer type operations where the commander searches for a target and hands it off automatically to the gunner for engagement. The Bradley's 25mm gun now features depleted uranium APFSDS rounds, which are about as effective as the 30x173mm APFSDS common among NATO members. Even so, in the late 90s the US Army debated switching to a larger round for more HE effectiveness and round commonality with our NATO partners. Once again, a war in Iraq3 showed that the original design had lots of merit. In urban warfare, the aforementioned large ammo capacity of the Bradley proved a significant asset. Bradleys proved to have great staying capability as a base of fire, and worked great at providing support. What they lacked in HE quantity per round, they made up for in numbers. The Bradley's front armor has been upgraded to take the Russian standard 30x165mm APDS, and modern explosive reactive armor kits are available to increase protection against RPGs and ATGMs.
Electronically, the Bradley's sensors are better than most of the competition, save the very expensive Puma. The M2A3 also has the latest battle management kit installed to maximize crew awareness. Its dismount capacity matches that of the competition as well. The firepower suite is what makes it stand out, being well suited to infantry support tasks and having enough rounds for long engagements.
1.) Not to be confused with the Marder I, Marder II, or Marder III tank destroyers from World War II. The uncreative Germans like to reuse names.
2.) Not to be confused with the M2 Browning heavy machine gun, the M2 Carbine (a select-fire version of the M1 Carbine), the M2 halftrack, the M2 light tank, the M2 Medium tank…shut up, Hans.
3.) Operation Iraqi Freedom
This entry was posted in All and tagged militariana on August 30, 2015 by parvusimperator.
Challenge Response: Borgundy Integrated Air Defense
To work out our short to medium range air defense system, it'll help to see how it plugs in to the rest of our integrated air defense network. We'll bracket the problem by working out our man-portable system first, then our long range system, and then we'll fit our challenge answering system in between.
For man portable air defense systems (MANPADS), there are two schools of thought. One is typified by the famous FIM-92 Stinger, and relies on some type of infrared seeker for guidance. This one is much more common. The other system, typified by the RBS-70, uses a semi-active laser homing guidance method.
On the one hand, the Stinger is easy to use. Acquire target, get tone, shoot. The operator does not need much training, and the missile is fire and forget. Plus, there are no emissions (like radar or lasers) to give the missile launch away. On the other hand, IR guidance is commonly used in short range missiles, so infrared countermeasures are common. A large part of the success or failure of Stinger-type missiles depend on the relative strength of the seeker design and the countermeasure systems on the opposing aircraft. The RBS-70 is not fire-and-forget, and requires a trained and keen operator. The laser-homing seeker is much harder for an aircraft to spoof, and is generally considered only counterable kinematically. This is a problem for all MANPADS; they must be small to be able to be carried by the infantry, so they don't have much room for launch motors. That said, not having any kind of big obvious radar makes them much harder to suppress. Kinematically, the most formidable missile in this size class is the British Starstreak, which has a nice range advantage over its competitors and achieves the astonishing speed of Mach 3.5. Starstreak uses a SALH seeker, and an interesting warhead that requires a hit to work (i.e. it has no proximity fuze). Given the missile's speed and the size of other missiles' warheads, this is probably not much of a disadvantage. Starstreak uses the nigh impossible to decoy SACLOS guidance system, which is training-intensive. However, even for this most modern of the SACLOS system, manufacturer claimed hit probabilities are significantly lower than those of contemporary IR guided weapons. This might have been somewhat rectified by the auto-tracking system that the British had planned to develop for Starstreak, but this has been cancelled.
Looking at IR guided missiles, the seeker is key. Range, performance against countermeasures, and Pk all depend on the seeker. Of the IR guided missiles, most modern ones have a two-color seeker. A focal plane array seeker would be better, but none are currently available, so range is more or less equivalent, as is countermeasure resistance. Some variation in counter-countermeasure capability can be expected based on software updates, but these don't really put one model ahead of the rest. Interestingly, the French Mistral 2 sacrifices weight for kinematics, and is capable of an astonishing Mach 2.5. It's not as good as Starstreak, but it's far ahead of the competition. That said, it's very heavy, and can only be fired from a tripod platform or from a vehicle mount. Ready to go, Mistral 2 in launcher weighs about 40 kilos or so, more than twice that of Stinger. We'll take the mass produced, lighter, cheaper Stinger. We nominally deploy a platoon of MANPADS per battalion.
How does Stinger stack up to the Russian systems that Fishbreath hasn't allowed me to buy? Pretty well. Stinger is pretty similar to Igla-S, with a bit of a larger warhead and slightly better range. Newer Russian systems (the Verba) come with a three-color IR seeker, as opposed to the two-color of Stinger, so that's a seeker advantage to the Russians. Verba should be better at distinguishing between real targets and decoys. Overall, the missiles are quite comparable. Stinger also has the very neat M1097 platform, which I'll get to later.
MANPADS only gets us so far though. It's mostly an ambush sort of weapon. It's great for pegging helicopters or low flying aircraft, but it's not that hard to switch to a medium-altitude attack profile and avoid the pesky little missiles entirely. So we'll clearly need something bigger, which brings us, as promised, to our long-range air defense system.
The western standard long-range surface to air weapon system is the MIM-104 Patriot. It's got a PESA radar, was the first in the world to network effectively with other air defense components as well as AWACS, and has been proven in combat. It has some notable shortcomings, including not providing all-around radar coverage and using towed components rather than self-propelled ones. There's also the issue with the latest missile, the PAC-3, having relatively limited range. This missile problem also plagues the MEADS system, which uses the same PAC-3 round. MEADS does have much better radars than Patriot, and uses solely self-propelled vehicles. However, it's not actually ready yet; while it is on offer, the buyer would have to toss money at it to finish development, which has left it out of the running in several recent contests. In general, Borgundy doesn't like to be the first to adopt something, so MEADS is out. Plus, waiting sucks.
The other alternative is SAMP/T, a land based Aster system. While its radar provides all-around coverage, it lacks the range and power of the Patriot's radar, being based on the smallest and least-capable naval Aster-compatible radar system. Patriot brings many more available missile types, having an ABM-ready missile in the PAC-3 and an anti-ECM aircraft missile in addition to the regular SAM. The Patriot missiles have longer range and slightly more speed (Mach 5 v. 4.5), but use track-via-missile guidance, as opposed to the Aster's active radar homing seeker. Track via missile is cheaper (for missile components) than active radar homing, and doesn't give the distinctive warning of an active-radar seeker, but is dependent on that main radar, so it's vulnerable to ARM attacks as well as escaping the envelope or breaking line of sight. All that said, we still think the Patriot is the better buy. It's proven interoperability is a big edge, and we can expect future upgrades, since the US has opted to keep upgrading Patriots rather than go with MEADS. We'd really like to see MEADS radars and some of the fancy plug-and-fight capability of MEADS make it's way over to the Patriot system.
How does Patriot compare to Russian systems? Well, the latest Russian system, the S-400 (which is a lot more expensive than Patriot, strangely enough), has a really long range missile, and Patriot lacks anything in the same range class. However, such a missile has serious radar horizon issues, and I wonder what targets it's designed to engage at 400 km. Probably AWACS or incoming ballistic missiles, since anything else would be able to make a turn or something and make the missile miss. Otherwise, the systems compare quite favorably. The regular SAMs on the Russian systems are pretty comparable to those of Patriot as far as kinematics goes. Sensorwise, the Russians have a bunch of cool options like a radar-on-a-pedestal to help provide locks on low-flying targets. On the other hand, Patriot has a much better networking system, specifically when it comes to networking with other things that aren't SAM systems. Just like the US Navy's Aegis SAM system, Patriot can network with the F-35 Lightning II for targeting data to cue and guide the missiles. S-400 can also network with other systems, but not as well as Patriot. It certainly can't use a Su-35 for targeting data directly. The S-300 systems can really only network with other missile systems, and they don't do this very well.
Now let's examine the medium-range problem presented by Fishbreath. We need to fit something in between the Stinger and the Patriot. We'd like it to be able to network with the Patriot system as well as other air defense assets, and we'd like it to be reasonably mobile. And, the western SAM market being what it is presently, there aren't that many options. Roland and Rapier are out of production, and both are rather archaic. Rapier also fails to meet mobility requirements. It may also help to consider how the system will be deployed. As we've said, MANPADS are generally deployed at the battalion level. The Patriot system is quite elaborate, and as such it's not going to be the best choice for covering a fast moving armored assault. We would expect Patriot missiles to be deployed at the Corps level if at all in an operational theater. Like most longer range systems, they're much better suited to protecting big zones and large fixed targets. There are a couple upcoming SAM systems that look promising: CAMM and LFK NG. Both of these seem like formidable options, but aren't available yet. We could wait. We could also make do with some older systems, like buying used Rolands or trying to get France to keep the Crotale lines open. But we won't, because (a) that's rather poor cricket, as Fishbreath would say, and (b) there's an obvious system that meets all of our needs and then some: NASAMS II.
NASAMS II was originally developed for Norway's air defense needs. It was originally designed to fire the AIM-120 AMRAAM, but launchable missiles have been extended to include AIM-9, IRIS-T and a RIM-162 ESSM variant with the AMRAAM's active seeker. The system is designed to have high network interoperability and pull data for targeting from other platforms. It can also use it's own radar, which is usually either an AN/TPQ-36 or an AN/TPQ-64. The -64 is the radar used with the latest variant of the venerable Hawk SAM system, so these are pretty common and not all that expensive. Alternatively, since the missiles all have either active radar seekers or IR homing seekers, the launchers can fire off of external references only, which is perfect if they're on the move and caught with the radar out of position. The launcher is a rather simple affair that can be mounted on the back of a truck. An alternative rail-type launcher can be mounted on the back of a HMMWV. Plus, we were already going to buy AMRAAMs, ESSMs, and either AIM-9s or IRIS-Ts, so we don't need to stock another missile. Being a rather simple system, we expect costs to be low, for once.
Compared to Crotale, we can get better guidance options with either IR or active radar seeker in NASAMS II. Crotale uses radio command guidance, which also requires either IRST cueing on the launcher or radar cueing from the launcher. Radar cueing can be particularly dangerous for short range systems, since they're quite overmatched in range by anti-radar missiles. Compared to the nearest Russian equivalents, the launch system is going to be cheaper than the SA-15, but that's not strictly a fair comparison, since NASAMS doesn't have a radar of its own and Tor does. As a battery with radar(s) command vehicle and several launchers, NASAMS II is pretty similar to Buk. The missiles are somewhat less well performing, but cheaper. It networks much better though, and the launchers can be used independently. We're trading raw power for economics and trickiness.
Okay, let's review. We have Stinger missiles as our man portable air defense system. We can also use the M1097 Avenger system to gain some network capability on the short range end. This system holds eight Stingers on a rotating turret on the back of a HMMWV, and has a network datalink for missile cueing. We have NASAMS II launchers that can be fitted on the back of medium trucks (or more HMMWVs), and those can cue off of networked radars or their own radar system, and we figure that each division would have a good number of these to use and allocate to brigades as they advance. Finally, we have the big Patriot missiles for area and corps-level defense. We can network in AWACS assets, and even our fighters.
But wait, there's more. Since the Borgundian War Department is somewhat paranoid (it's in their job description), and they reckon that the Sov–I mean, the Russians might decide that perhaps, just once, they might try this launching this new 'surprise attack' thing themselves rather than getting suckerpunched. So it would be really cool if we could have a big radar to provide some level of early warning. Fortunately, Raytheon is happy to deliver. The AN/FPS-132 BMEWS has a trio of AESA arrays that are a massive 25.6 meters in diameter. It provides all around coverage at extremely long ranges, albeit at rather low resolution. Still, it's a nice addition to the network.
Any network this fancy needs a name. Something cooler than just Borgundy backwards (like Iraq's system). Since a cornerstone is the Patriot, and most of the components are made by Raytheon (headquartered in Andover, Mass), and since I know he's Fishbreath's favorite football coach, we'll call our system BELICHICK. Air defense control personnel will be issued the SB15 sweatshirt, hooded, grey.
This entry was posted in All and tagged Borgundy, militariana, procurement on August 23, 2015 by parvusimperator.
PDWs Suck
Time for me to tear down a childhood hero. Time for me to expose that the emperor has no clothes. PDWs suck. They're pointless. They're stupid. They don't serve any good purpose and oughtn't be procured. Let's define our terms. Personal defense weapons (PDWs) are generally considered to be a class of submachine guns like the FN P90. They're about as big as a regular pistol-caliber submachine gun, and fire a round that's designed to be tiny but still penetrate soft body armor.
The FN P90 was introduced in 1991. It was supposed to be issued to "rear echelon" troops, people like clerks, mortar gunners, and vehicle drivers. People who might get in a firefight, but whose primary duties don't include being very proficient with an assault rifle. This idea is not without historical basis. The M1 Carbine filled basically the same idea, and was well liked by American troops, since it was smaller, lighter, and just generally handier than an M1 Garand or M1 Thompson that frontline infantry usually carried. The P90 was designed to build on the success of earlier submachine guns like the HK MP5, but it was chambered in a new bullet. Instead of shooting already-standard 9x19mm Parabellum, the P90 fired a new 5.7x27mm round that was designed to defeat the soft body armor that Soviet troops were starting to get issued. There were, however, a few problems. First, in that same year, the Soviet Union collapsed, so all those European governments madly slashed defense spending and proceeded to sing kumbaya in a big circle that would eventually be called the EU. Nobody wanted to buy a new gun that needed a whole new non-standard bullet. And there, FN ran into more problems. First, everyone knows that if you want a round to be a standard NATO thing, you have to get America on board. Both 7.62x51mm and 5.56x45mm were American designed rounds that spread1 to the rest of NATO. And not only did FN fail to get America on board, but before FN could lock up a bunch of contracts, HK brought out the MP7, with it's own itty bitty high velocity round, the 4.6x30mm. Now, there was a question of which standard to go for.
Meanwhile, the window on the concept's usefulness was rapidly closing. Other developments would come in and make the P90 and MP7 obsolescent and pointless. That development was the M4 Carbine. This was introduced in 1994, and led to a whole series of what we might term assault carbines, if we liked to classify things. Once the US Army showed the success of the concept, other manufacturers followed suit and introduced short-barrel versions of their existing assault rifles. To be fair to previous engineers, there were a large number of compact versions of the M16 developed for close quarters battle in Vietnam. However, these weapons weren't the most reliable, and tended to be special forces only. The M4 was a refined and reliable execution of the concept, and saw widespread issue to regular, second-line troops. Eventually, it actually came to replace the M16 for general issue; soldiers in the US Army are issued M4s almost exclusively. For those of you wondering if we can go shorter, we surely can. There's the Mk. 18 CQBR with a 10.3 inch barrel (instead of the M4's 14.5″ barrel). Other weapons like the G36C and the AKS-74U also have very short barrels. And that brings a pretty big set of nails in the coffin of the PDW.
To see why, let's take a look at the big picture first. The compact carbines like the Mk 18, G36C, etc. all share the vast majority of features with their larger parent designs. That means armorers don't need training to work on a new design, brand new contracts don't have to be inked, a whole new set of spares doesn't have to be stocked, and the army doesn't have to have yet another caliber. All these things are positives that directly affect the bottom line. They also improve combat effectiveness; everybody can use the same magazines firing the same ammunition. Plus, even out of a short barrel, assault rifle rounds like the 5.56 or 5.45 are a lot more effective than 5.7mm. The 5.7mm does penetrate soft armor, but most armies are issuing hard plates now, so that's of limited value. And what good is penetrating the armor if the terminal effects suck? And 5.7 has atrocious terminal effects. It does a very poor job of getting bad guys to stop what they're doing and die. Against unarmored threats, conventional pistol rounds like 9mm perform far better. Put another way, 5.7 fires a bullet about two-thirds the weight of a 5.56 round at half the muzzle velocity. And we're having arguments about whether or not 5.56 is effective enough! So, why would anyone use a much lamer version of it?
The proponents of the PDW will argue that I'm missing the point. Since PDWs are designed for "Second Line" personnel, we can assume that these personnel will not be very good at shooting, and will miss often, so we should give them a weapon that is light and has lots of bullets. The loaded P90 doesn't give up much weight or bulk on a compact carbine, or even an M4. And spraying wild panic fire is a sign of poor training. But even if we were doing that, assault rifles were designed to perform the same function: to provide conscripts with effective automatic firepower that could also reach out to the longest normal infantry combat ranges (3-400m). Conscripts aren't very good at shooting, but we gave them effective rounds anyway. Bullets should do their jobs if we (or luck) do ours. We got rid of submachine guns for general issue a while ago because they don't do anything that a carbine can't, and submachine guns at least share rounds with pistols. An M4 or Mk. 18 can spray and pray with the best of them, and it's round is significantly more effective than either 9mm or 5.7mm. And while the 30 round standard assault rifle magazine is smaller than the 50 rounds in the P90, "second line" personnel can share 5.56 with the "front line" personnel. They can't share 5.7. The logistics gains plus combat efficacy if those rounds hit mean that the smart buy is the carbine.
Sorry, Stargate fans.
1.) Some might say were forced, but not I.
This entry was posted in All and tagged firearms, militariana on August 16, 2015 by parvusimperator.
Thirty Minutes Over Toseong
Posted by Fishbreath
Come, let us reminisce.
It's the mid-2000s, and war has broken out over the Korean Peninsula. I climb into my F-16C Block 52, get her powered up, and listen to the radio chatter as the inertial navigation system aligns. The time is just after noon, and the tower welcomes a few flights back. Good. The war only started this morning, but losses of planes and pilots both have been heavy.
The INS is aligned, and the Data Entry Display, the little green screen beneath and to the right of my HUD, informs me that my takeoff time is in five minutes. I radio the tower, and they clear me to taxi to runway 20R at our airbase, Seosan, a little ways southwest of Seoul. In between lining up another flight for landing on runway 20L, the tower gives my little two-ship clearance for takeoff.
We're loaded light today, four AMRAAMs and two Sidewinders, so I take off at military power to save on fuel. We turn east-northeast and climb. We're to our rendezvous point in about ten minutes. A few miles behind us, the ground-attack flight we're escorting slots in. I check in with Chalice 4, the AWACS flight covering our sector of the front, and he advises me of bandits to my west, heading this way. I dither for a moment: should I push west and deal with the bad guys, or stick close to my flock?
On the assumption that close escort is and always has been dumb, I turn west. I match the bullseye position on my radar MFD page to the position AWACS gave me, and sure enough, I see two contacts headed my way. I hand one off to my wingman, bug the other, get target confirmation from AWACS, and send the first AMRAAM on its way. It hits, and my wingman's does too. AWACS calls picture clear, and I turn my flight back toward our charges.
Of course, this is a full-scale war. There's no way our sector will keep quiet for a full half-hour. Sure enough, AWACS reports contacts about 60 nautical miles distant, inbound from the north. We have identifications: one or two MiG-23s in the middle of a big group of Il-28s. Neither are particularly fearsome, but the MiGs should go first on principle—the Ilyushins are ancient jet bombers, dating from the late 1940s or 1950s, while the MiGs have some 1970s-vintage missiles that might pose a threat to us if they get close enough.
This is where things start to get a little hairy.
It isn't that engaging the MiGs and Ilyushins doesn't work—it works just great. The problem is that we still have ten minutes left on station. AWACS calls out a close threat—so close they give us a bearing and range, instead of a bullseye call—and my wingman goes low to deal with the MiG-19 that apparently managed to get in underneath us. Having pushed a little further north than I wanted while prosecuting the bombers, I turn south to extend, and take stock of my situation. I've fired all four of my AMRAAMs, and I have a pair of Sidewinders left on the rails. My wingman splashes the MiG-19 down low, and I call him for his status. "Winchester," he says, "fuel state 2000."
Well, that's no good. He's out of everything and has enough fuel to make it back to Seosan. I send him home, and call AWACS to let them know I'm effectively empty.
"Lobo 9-1, Chalice 4, your window of vulnerability is still open. Can you hold out?"
Well, crap. "Wilco," I reply, on the assumption that an F-16 with no long-range missiles at angels 25 looks, on radar, to be very similar to an F-16 with long-range missiles at angels 25.
Then the RWR chirps in a way I'm too familiar with. The new threat is a MiG-29. I call AWACS again. "Nearest contact bullseye 050, 60 nautical miles." I fiddle with the horizontal situation display MFD page, and verify that those are indeed the Fulcrums, sixty or seventy miles out. I ask if I can go home again, and they insist I try to hold out a little longer. There isn't really much holding out to be done, though. I can't take on a pair of Fulcrums on my own.
I can stick around a little longer, pretending to be armed, though. I have one eye on the clock, one eye on my RWR, and both ears listening to AWACS updates. It's agonizing—the MiGs are closer to a missile shot every minute, and I don't have the fuel to run away at afterburner for very long. Finally, the clock ticks past the edge of my station time. I call AWACS and tell them I'm out of Dodge, and I put the MiGs on my six and run for home.
So ends this tale of a rarity in gaming: a moment when I was not only happy to escape, but actually planning on running away.
The games I've enjoyed the most over the years have a common theme: they make war stories. Whether it's the one time in PlanetSide where I used a Galaxy to scrape the enemy off of a hilltop position, or that time I was stuck on-station with MiGs bearing down on me, it's the sort of immersion that resonates with me the best. That's the best thing I can say in favor of Falcon 4 BMS.
This entry was posted in All and tagged gaming, reviews on August 13, 2015 by Fishbreath.
Parvusimperator Reviews the SCAR-16S
I picked up a SCAR 16S a few weeks ago. I got it because I wanted a factory carbine in 5.56mm that wasn't an AR-15–I have a few AR-15s already, and I really enjoy putting together AR-15 project guns. And if I wanted something different, I was going to get something significantly different. Plus, the SCAR 16 was the coolest gun in the world when I was in high school. I wanted one so bad. Well, now I have one.1 What's it like, and how does it stack up to a comparable AR-15?
The SCAR was designed by FN for SOCOM. It was to be the ultimate carbine for their requirements, replacing the Mk. 12 CQBR, the M4 and the Mk. 18 SPR. It was intended to be highly modular, and featured a quick-change barrel. The SCAR 16 shares 90% of its parts with its big sister, the SCAR 17, which is chambered in 7.62x51mm NATO. Currently, SOCOM is focused it's resources on buying the SCAR 17, since it's hard to find anything quite as good in 7.62 NATO, and they can get M4s for "free."2 A variant of the SCAR, the FN Advanced Carbine, was entered in the individual carbine competition, but that competition was cancelled. The SCAR has proven reliable and popular with SOCOM, especially with the SEALs. However, it hasn't been a big enough improvement over the M4 (which itself is improving) to warrant procurement by Big Army. Enough history, let's get on to the civvie version!
Disclaimer: A SCAR is not an AR-15.
You might think this is totally obvious, but I think it bears repeating. People are used to AR-15s, and a lot of SCAR reviews out there call out the SCAR for not being 100% AR-15-like. Well of course it's not. If you want an AR-15, go buy one of those. I love AR-15s. I think they're great. I won't stop you. But this is different in a lot of ways–some good, some bad.
The SCAR 16S is chambered in 5.56x45mm, and comes with a 16″ lightweight barrel. Works for me. It's 1.5″ longer than the standard barrel length in the military version, but I have to deal with the NFA and they don't. Also unlike the military version, it comes with the excellent FSC556 muzzle brake instead of a flash hider. Since it's got a 16″ barrel, muzzle devices can be swapped by the owner if desired. Otherwise, it's basically the same gun as the military version.
The stock is pretty awesome. Since there's no buffer tube,3 the stock can fold. It's also telescoping, and has a nifty adjustable cheek riser. The SCAR can be fired while the stock is folded, which makes you feel cool. And also, kinda goofy. The stock has six positions of telescoping goodness, and the riser has two positions. I've heard stories that soldiers had issues with the stock breaking. I'm not sure how much of this is because soldiers can break anything, and how much is due to engineering problems that have been worked out but mine is pretty sturdy. I haven't actually tried to smash it to bits or do anything stupid with it like break rocks, but I also haven't babied it. I'm no soldier, so take that as you will.
I like the reciprocating charging handle. You can mount it on the left or the right side of the gun. Some people have scraped knuckles on their optic when using it, but this hasn't happened to me. I have an Aimpoint Comp M4S mounted on my SCAR, and I tend to wear gloves at the range. If you don't wear gloves and have a different optic, your results might be different. Some people have also complained that the charging handle has hit their hand while shooting. I'm not honestly sure how this can happen if you're not trying to make it happen, but maybe that's because I don't hold my carbine like a complete moron. I've also not seen anyone post a picture anywhere of their hand position when the charging handle hit it. The reciprocating charging handle makes diagnosing whether your magazine is empty or if your weapon has jammed easy. Plus it makes locking the bolt back for administrative or remedial action simple. On the left side, you can pull the bolt back, and with your hand palm down, can trip the bolt catch to lock the bolt in position with your thumb. Simple, convenient, one-handed operation.
The bolt catch is only on the left side of the gun, but the safety and mag release are ambidextrous out of the box. As mentioned before, the charging handle can be configured on the left or the right side, per the user's preference. The safety is nicer than the AR-15, since the 45 degree position is fire, not the 90 degree one. The shorter throw is nicer to work with. I know, it sounds silly, but it still works better. It's a bit nicer for the military, since full auto is at the 90 degree position rather than the 180 degree one. Triggerwise, there's a "combat trigger" in there that's designed to resist abuse and desert sand and always trip a primer. So it's not bad, but it's not good. It's a trifle gritty and somewhat heavy. There are aftermarket triggers from Geissele and Timney that make things better, of course.
Unlike a lot of the higher-end AR-15s, the SCAR comes with a quality set of folding backup iron sights. The rear sight is adjustable for range and windage, and has two apertures. The front sight is mounted conveniently on the gas block. Minor annoyance: it blocks the front of the picatinny rail, so you can't slide an accessory over it. Most things you'd want to mount on the top rail don't need to slide on like that, but there it is.
I should also mention the quick-change barrel. I think the military may like this one more than me. It takes me a long time to shoot out a barrel, and I don't often think of swapping them. However, I do like that I don't need a vise to remove or replace a barrel, unlike when working with the AR-15. It's a minor thing, but the design is cool, and it saves me having to figure a way to improvise a vise in my apartment.
First thing I'm going to call FN out on here is being cheap. The gun came to me in a cardboard box, with some cardboard padding. Lame. With an MSRP well north of two grand, the least they could do is throw in a halfway decent plastic case. Ideally, it'd be a lockable travel-ready case, but I'd settle for almost anything nicer than this lame cardboard thing. It's not even a cool looking box.
They're cheap again with the stupid A2-type pistol grip. No one likes these. They've got a nub in a stupid place. This is an expensive gun intended for civilians. Would it kill you to put a better grip on there? There are lots available, and while preferences vary, almost all of them are better than the basic A2. It's something the premium-ARs tend to get right. First thing I changed was the lame grip. Fortunately, AR-type grips work on it, so I grabbed one and made the switch.
The SCAR is in some ways stuck in the early 2000s. Just like the stock M4, it comes with seven inches of handguard space. This is enough for your hand. There's room for accessories, but it gets a little cramped. You also don't have much choice in where you're going to put your hand. AR-15 ergonomics have moved on so people can grip out further if they want, and so that there's more space for hands and accessories. For the record, this is why so many military guys went to vertical foregrips. Once they loaded their M4s with all their kit, there wasn't enough room left for their hands. Being a civilian, I don't have this much crap to hang off my gun. I might like to get my support hand out a bit more though. There are extensions, but they add weight forward. There ain't no such thing as a free lunch, and the SCAR is probably heavier than most AR-15 carbines out of the box. That said, I might give a handguard extension a try.
THE ENGINEERING
Clearly, the SCAR doesn't use the same sort of operation as the AR-15. The SCAR is tappet driven: gas drives a small piston which smacks the bolt carrier assembly and drives it backwards. The bolt carrier assembly is reassuringly beefy, and most of the weight is above the bolt. Since there's no gas flow required, the bolt itself is pretty thick and sturdy. It doesn't have any obvious narrow points where stress issues might arise. Field stripping is easy, and requires no tools. Those of you who have seen pictures of the SCAR might note that the different shades of tan don't match. This is by deliberate request of SOCOM, as it's supposed to break up the outline of the rifle. I have no idea if this actually works.
SHOOTING THE SCAR 16S
It's a light recoiling carbine. Duh. The FSC556 muzzle brake does a great job of helping you keep the rounds on target. Unsurprisingly, the recoil impulse is different from that of the AR-15, but it's not unpleasant, like any other carbine. It handles well, and while shooting with the stock folded isn't very practical, it puts a big grin on your face. I've found that even though I'm not using a thumb over barrel grip, the Magpul AFG is pretty comfortable on the handguard. The trigger snob in me would like a better trigger, but this one is serviceable. I've shot many worse triggers (mostly courtesy of Fishbreath).
I'm not going to compare the SCAR to a quality entry level AR-15 like the M&P15 sport or the Colt LE6920. Those are much cheaper and still shoot 5.56mm, but don't have any rails or quality furniture. No, such things aren't necessary, but they're nice. And I always think cross-market comparisons are stupid. If you're thinking about a SCAR, you might be wondering how it compares to the premium AR-15 options. Even though we take away most of the price differential, the AR-15 has been out longer and is very popular, so it's got a lot more development. There are a number of modular handguard options, which are lighter, but tend to get hot faster. Pretty classic tradeoff. The SCAR's handguard is sturdier, since there's no joint. But, you're pretty much stuck with it. The AR has more ergo options, but the SCAR has a better manual of arms for troubleshooting. Overall, the AR-15 is a more mature platform, so if you only had to get one, I'd tell you to go that route. Probably. But the SCAR is way cooler, and if you already have an AR-15 (or several), or just like the SCAR, you can't go wrong with one.
1.) Okay, I have a civvie semiauto-only one. Shut up, it's still awesome.
2.) By "free", I mean paid for by the parent service, not the SOCOM branch. E.g. paid for by the US Navy, but out of the big budget, not that of the SEALs.
3.) Remember that part where it's NOT an AR-15?
This entry was posted in All and tagged firearms, reviews on August 12, 2015 by parvusimperator.
Rule the Waves 2: To May, 1906
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Wednesday What We're Reading (Jan. 8, 2020)
Chris Bradshaw on Rule the Waves 2: To May, 1902
Fishbreath on Rule the Waves 2: To May, 1902
Fishbreath on Wednesday What We're Reading (Christmas Day, 2019)
Chris Bradshaw on Wednesday What We're Reading (Christmas Day, 2019)
Fishbreath on Winter Wargaming 2019: Rule the Waves 2
Borgundy
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