David E. Petzal - The Gun Nut

Insurance should be bought to protect you against a [url=http://finance-mortgage-refinance.com/top-debt-settlement]top debt settlement[/url] that would otherwise be financially devastating.

In simple terms, insurance allows someone who suffers a loss or [url=http://loans-finance-consilidation.com/motorcycle-insurance-groups-list]motorcycle insurance groups list[/url] to be compensated for the effects of their misfortune. It lets you protect yourself against everyday risks to your health, home and financial situation.

Insurance in India started without any regulation in the [url=http://insurance-auto-credit.com/house-and-home-credit-sms]house and home credit sms[/url] Nineteenth Century. It was a typical story of a colonial epoch: few British insurance companies dominating the market serving mostly large urban centers. After the independence, it took a theatrical turn. Insurance was nationalized. First, the life insurance companies were nationalized in 1956, and then the general insurance business was [url=http://credit-refinance-house.com/primary-mortgage-insurance]primary mortgage insurance[/url] nationalized in 1972. It was only in 1999 that the private insurance companies have been allowed back into the business of insurance with a maximum of 26% of foreign holding.

The insurance industry is enormous and can be [url=http://mortgage-auto-debt.com/student-house-contents-insurance]student house contents insurance[/url] quite intimidating. Insurance is being sold for almost anything and everything you can imagine. Determining what's right for you can be a very daunting task.

Concepts of insurance have been extended beyond the [url=http://loans-finance-consilidation.com/low-cost-health-insurance-nc]low cost health insurance nc[/url] coverage of tangible asset. Now the risk of losses due to sudden changes in currency exchange rates, political disturbance, negligence and liability for the damages [url=http://settlements-auto-credit.com/how-much-is-mortgage-insurance-australia]how much is mortgage insurance australia[/url] can also be covered.

But if a person thoughtfully invests in insurance for his property [url=http://mortgage-insurance-house.com/low-cost-title-insurance]low cost title insurance[/url] prior to any unexpected contingency then he will be suitably compensated for his loss as soon as the extent of damage is ascertained.

The entry of the State Bank of India with its proposal of [url=http://finance-debt-consilidation.com/consolidate-credit-debt]consolidate credit debt[/url] bank assurance brings a new dynamics in the game. The collective experience of the other countries in Asia has already deregulated their markets and has allowed foreign companies to participate. If the experience of the other countries is any guide, the dominance of the Life Insurance Corporation and the General Insurance Corporation is not going to disappear any time soon.
The aim of all insurance is to compensate the owner against loss arising from a variety [url=http://auto-consilidation-settlements.com/contents-insurance-best]contents insurance best[/url] of risks, which he anticipates, to his life, property and business. Insurance is mainly of two types: life insurance and general insurance. General insurance means Fire, Marine and Miscellaneous insurance which includes insurance against burglary or theft, fidelity guarantee, insurance for employer's liability, and insurance of motor vehicles, livestock and crops.

Dave, new email address. Please add me to your mail list.
Thanks
FLBobcat

Although I have never shot a antelope with the 25-o6 I have shot plenty of deer with it.The 25-06 smashes them with its lights out,game over authority while it may be a little over the edge for coyotes it does that very well too.Just about perfect for the game mentioned....

Yep, have had it happen while pheasent hunting. I won a hunt at a shooting preserve for pheasant one time and was hunting with my boss and the CFO. The CFO was an a$$ and shot slightly worse then Stevie Wonder. However he magically hit _every_ bird that got up. Later in the day we shot sporting clays and he somehow lost his touch. He let us know that he "was one of those guys who can't hit clays but is deadly on birds". Yea, right. We laughed about it for years, even gave him a white cane at Chrismas for his next great hunt. He was pissed. He eventually left the company to "pursue other interests".

Jeff

You don't need a cannon to put a man down plus RMH is like 74 years old and under 100 pounds. .44-40's have been used in the Boer War and the wild west with much success just stay away from those "cowboy loads".

I don't think that's a big enough caliber to be used for self defense. He should try something more manly.

If you want a real fine dble,then by all means get a FOX in l6 ga.On the cheaper side a Steven/Savage is a poor man's bird gun and works great, not fancy but very well built. After a accident, I had to stop shooting dbles and went with the Auto's in 1100. No finer Auto has ever been made for the average hunter. To go back a few more years like the 50's the Rem Sportsman 48 with the recoil bbl is almost jam free. Most jams on Autos is not cleaning the firearm. I never shoot any of my guns without a good cleaning. On Auto's more jams occur due to a gunked up chamber. Buy a 2 buck chamber brush and clean the chamber after each outing. Shoot-um-straight and often.

People collect all types of collectables, with me its firearms. Hd i had the $$$ 40 yrs ago, I would need a vault 100 x 50 to display them in. I have many guns 50 ys and older that never been fired, many yet have the tags the mfgers use to attach. Guns to me are by far better than $$$ in the DOW or banks these days. I have guns I hunt with and those I wipe and clean. As for beautiful wood, forget it, now we only find what the mfgers sweep of the floor. AS for Plastic/LAminated, they will be all thats available in short order. Gun Mfgers are down to cutting all the corners they can to meet the meager price most of us can afford these days. I have 2 700's , one a 06 the other 25-06, both classic custon shop purchasees. Both go with me when I go west, but for her at home on my 4 wheeler and truck, I use Syn stocked duplicate calibers as the 700's. Laminated it coming fast, and if the price hold steady, that will be the firearms or the future. If you desire a fine wood stocked firearm, you better latch on to it fast like. The old estates hae all been sold that had the famous guns around, and now they in collectors hands and not available for any price. My collection will stay in the family, as the family knows my feelings of firearms. Never wanted all the firearms, just one of each that I liked. Shoot-um-straight and often. The Old Southern Gunslinger and his 44-40 CC weapon. I bet l/2 the population of gun owners never heared of a 44-40. If you find one, in good condition, please advise me on this blog + has to be A+ condition as like NIB

My son had his first deer claimed. He was 16 and two older men(?) came up and said it was theirs - they had wounded it and were tracking it down.

Rich C.,
Congratulations. You dang better let us know how it shoots.
Wish I could have been there just to drool.

Dave,

I was looking for current info on Joe Balickie and came across your article on this .270 you had built by Joe in 1985. I can't believe that you sold the gun. To make a long story short I was at the auction today simply to see this gorgeous rifle. Well after I looked at it I knew it needed to come home with me which it did. I have looked at having a custom rifle built on more than one occasion but not been exactly tickled with what $4000 to $6000 would buy me. Today I paid a fraction of that for a rifle that is an absolute work of art, better than anything I previously considered. I am wrestling a bit with the shoot it, or not issue but things could be worse. It really looks like it needs to go on a mule deer hunt to me. If you would like to own it again let me know, I'm always open to new possibilities.

It all comes down to sportsmanship. Small game doesnt bother me that much its just the pettiness etc. It really hurts it involves big game. I know a young guy who worked hard to get his first moose and when he returned with help to load it someone else had removed his tag and claimed it. Another elder gent I used to hunt with shot an elk after several days of hard work and by time he worked his way to where it was in the rough terrain around a creek another hunter was gutting it. He had heard no shot and was physically unable to hunt elk after that season. As his health failed I helped him fill his deer tag for several more seasons and can still see him grinning as he joined his buddies in the local coffee shop and proudly announcing his buck tag was filled. Most persons character is consistent regardless what they are doing so we just have to choose to be around those who add to our lives in a positive manner.

Ah, life's too short. Split the bag. My partner is my hunting buddy, she's become quite a good shot. Some days, I'd just as soon sit back and watch her do all the work on the birds.

Hey Zack;
I'll give you a lottery ticket for that man.
What a pleasure it must be to hunt with this man.

I don't bird hunt but just a few weeks ago I was at a "turkey shoot" at the local gun range.

The targets were set at 100 yards and consisted of several "turkeys" about 6" wide with 4 rings superimposed. It was all for fun but when the shooting was done you went down range and scored the target to your left.

So the Bozo next to me starts scoring his own target as fast as he can. When I say, "Here, let me help you with that." He says, "Oh! OK! Just be sure to count where I broke the rings..." Then he fingered and fondled a few bulletholes until they tore up to the edge of the next highest ring.

I didn't give him the extra points and in my book, he lost quite a few points for "character" too!

Claiming occurs not only in the hunting field, but occasionally on the Skirmish Line as well.

Skirmishing, as done in the North-South Skirmish Association, is the shooting sport where teams using Civil War-era weaponry shoot to break sets of targets in competition with other teams against the clock.

( http://www.n-ssa.org )

When the buzzer sounds, it's hell-for-leather as each of eight shooters on the dozens of competing teams tries to eliminate his or her two or four assigned targets as fast as the equipment and individual ability will allow. After theirs are busted, the shooters move their muzzles down the target frame, cleaning up their teammates' missed birds, blocks, etc. until all the targets are gone or the time runs out.

Part of the individual's responsibility is keeping track of his or her "hits," so the most successful shooters can be placed on the "A" team, etc.

Most skirmishers are scrupulous about this tally, difficult as it may be to keep amid the black powder smoke and din. But there are a few shooters who invariably claim any target that breaks within five seconds or so of when they torched off their round.

But it doesn't take long for other team members to notice that ol' Harry, who can't put five minies in the scoring rings on an individual bullseye target, has become too hot to touch in the team event. The careful eyes start to monitor the fellow, and the truth is soon confirmed. Disgrace follows shortly thereafter.

Just like in Finding Nemo: "Mine, Mine, Mine"
Hilarious.
I, fortunately, have only hunted with one guy like that. We farmed about 1200 acres when I was growing up and hunting doves in September was a right of passage. In the 70s here, doves were like dog p*cker gnats and everybody had plenty. It seems even during those times there were those who had to be "the best shot" all the time.

Sort of reminds me about the behavior of seagulls when one finds a scrap of food (or trash) and the rest scream and try to steal it!
I don't even argue in those situations anymore. It's not worth the aggravation and it's not yet a point of survival. I suspect if the economy gets any worse "claimer" situations could get downright ugly if not dangerous.

Reminds me of the early '60's when deer hunting was just getting started. A deer might be shot several times befor it expired with several people ready to fight over it. One guy stopped for a cup of coffee on the way home only to return to his truck finding the spike buck stolen.. great sportsmanship...

If you're not man enough to keep the "claimer" from getting your bird...... you don't deserve said bird.

Survival of the Fittest.

Or the most rude.

crm3006: I don't like poetry -- or bolt guns! But I've got lots of soul!

A nice reminder to be a good sportsman.

"Plastic has no sole" nice quote Bernie K,, I have a feeling plastic rifles and the short mag family are a passing fad.

If I had it, I would sure shoot it.

Dave, you said you never shot this rifle, You know nothing more about this rifle except it's builder and once owner. Like a bottle of Ky. moonshine, you don't taste, you have no Idea how it would.. No really what I can see ,it sure looks like it would do the job...I'd sure like to try it on one of these Ky. elk...

Dr. Ralph: Good to see you in print again. I am a gun nut, WHY???? never will I know. But as weboth agree, $$$$ in firearms now is a better bet than the DOW or CD's. I;ve bought/sold/traded hundreds of firearms and never lost a dime on any of them.Some I had to spend a few $ to repair, but then was in a position to make a profit. As for the 44-40, I always wanted a large caliber western type firearm ( I wanted to be a Cowboy), but I did not want the average run of the mill 45's, so selected the 44-40 so would have a handgun that few have, especially in my local area. It;s a Uberti imported by Stoeger from Italy, case harden, Walnut grips and 5 l/2 " bbl. Just the right size for me and my smaller hands.As for Deer in the South, my Son and I did well with bucks on our farm. I gota dandy 9 and my Son got a monster 8, plus he also got a spotted deer. We plant food plots, put our mineral licks and try to entice teh deer to hang around our property. The 8 we killed, we had seen only 4 prior to season, but knew there was a couple huge deer in the area. I killed the 9 pointer on opening day with my Inline B/P at l70 yds. My first deer with a B/P gun was a 4"Oak tree, so stopped that business by adding a scope zeroed at l50 yds.Now can see deer rather than trees. I do think the Western states are blowing wind about the many animals available on BLM land. They may be areas wher the average guy can;t get to that holds some nice animals,but as a rule the raange I hunted this past year sucked. When you don't even see w-tails, something is amiss. That eing teh Big Cugar my wife saw at l0-15 yds and the many wolf tracts, not countin the Coyotes,.The western states ae bambozolling the much game to sell us NR licenses, as the game depts operate on our Money not the locals as my tags were 653.00 and the same for the locals was 38.00. But, they got the Elk, Lopes, Mulies and we don;t. Just hope that the herd of Elk in KY wandes down into N.C. while I'm able to hunt, or I either draw a tag for KY, but the odds are about lK to l to draw. THe application fee is l4.00 so not to break the bank to apply. i also will apply in PA. Either of these stats are within 350 miles of me and I want have to fly,can load up my camper and go. Ok, hopefully they can cull the Blue tongue and hae a healthy herd, but I understand it's headed eastward. Take care, Shoot-um-straight and often: the old Gun Slinger. PS; Do you know what the cost of a Elk Hunt in New Mexico cost?Also, does SE C0 have many Mulies and Lopes? My Son want to go.Chat with you again. Hey, buy that new Pistol orwhat-ever it is. One last thin, many yrs ago I bought a new H&H 410 sawed the bbl to l6" and cut the stock off at the grip,sanded, sawed to make a kinda pistol grip. That was back when We roade horses a lotin the Blue Ridge Mtns and was a god snake gun.I addeda shot sling to hang on the saddle horn to carry the gun. Yep, still got it after about 40 yrs.

"Claimers" may be the only people brave enough to steal from somebody with a gun in their hand though.

Scott in Ohio,
If I had a day like you I wouldn't have any cares till I woke up tomorrow, but mentioning the market down just upset me again. My bank notified me that my money market CD combo account has been renewed at 1.65%. What! Yea I know, go to Cd's , I have, but I have to keep SOME money liquid so I can search for a house this summer when my child support expires (halleluah). There's got to be something better out there, hell my matress can hold my money just as well.
Sorry, I just had to rant after this recent news. Good hunting, Jim

Dave,

The shot show is nearing and I trust (and hope) you will provide us with a "photo update" on the State of the booth babes...

Chad, I laughed out loud at your comment! - Too funny.

Actually, just three hours ago I got back from a great small game hunt with my neighbor, Jack. Only our second time hunting together, we managed to each shoot a pheasant and both missed 2 rabbits a piece. He's very safety conscious with his gun, (I don’t hunt with people twice who aren’t) and we split the game bag evenly no matter who shot what.

To top things off this was my Lab’s first pheasant hunt (we mainly hunt waterfowl) and she performed very well. The second bird (lightly hit) took us over 40 minutes to track and find – the damn thing was running us in circles!

The stock market is down again ? – Who cares! I just had a GREAT day in the field with my dog.

Up close with a handgun big&fat puts 'em down. Out to 100yds a big&fat rifle cartridge puts 'em down. Elmer knew what he was talking about.

WA Mtnhunter-
Amen.

One of the many reasons I do not hunt anymore.

30 years ago I was new to pheasant hunting. After my missing several birds, my hunting partner was nice enough to fire a fraction of a second after another one of my missed birds, and then tell me what a great shot I was, and that he could not believe he had finally missed. What a great guy.

crm3006

You can almost put Remington 870 pump guns in that category. That's why military and police love them.

But if it has to absolutely function everytime, all the time; make mine a bolt action rifle. You can also use it for a boat paddle.

Wish I had my money in guns about now RMH... and you know for a carry gun the .44-40 is probably perfect. G. Gordon Liddy who I listened to every day for 10 years always preferred a very large slow moving projectile for self defense, and he was an FBI agent for a very long time. Seems fast projectiles blow right through an enemy while the very large slower projectiles transfer all their energy and pick people up and throw them down. In his opinion a .44 Special was better than a .44 Magnum. Shoot 'em straight and often! Last weekend for me, our season closes Monday. No bucks just a handful of does this year. It could be worse as the deer population took a severe blow by the blue tongue or whatever they're calling it now disease...

Bolt guns are as reliable as an anvil. Also, it is akin to having a 1967 427 Corvette with a 4 speed. Autos are nice and smooth, but for sheer enjoyment...

Carney-
You have no soul, nor poetry within. Reference the elequonce of Dr. Ralph,
above. On the pracitical side, the only two actions that I have never, under any circumstance of dirt, rain, sand, snow, abuse, neglect, misadventure, falls, ducking in the creek, or any of the other mischance that happens to hunters had fail are:
1. bolt actions
2. break open single or doubles with hammers.

Zer

I carried a M-1 .30 carbine as a jeep rifle in SE Asia. Never shot anything but a couple of rats with it, but I sure would like to have another one.

Yeah, and just because your dog snatches the bird it doesn't mean it is yours, either!

One buddy in college used to claim "dibs" on various species. When hunting with him, it wasn't unusual to end the day with a bag of half a ringneck and 1 and a half rabbits.

The other problem when you're hunting with a chronic dibber is that you have to adopt the habit merely to defend yourself. Once I shouted out "dibs!" even before I pulled the damn trigger.

Wish I had had some of those different colored pellets a few years ago when I used to hunt with people that sound remarkably like some described above. Quail on a covey rise and flocks of doves were always an invitation for someone who
couldn't hit the side of a barn from the inside to claim a bird that fell in your lap. Best one I remember was a hunter ? that had earlier missed a squirrel on a limb with a 12 gauge walking across a forty acre field to claim a dove because he said "You were only shooting a 16 gauge."

Are you kidding? Claiming's the best way to bring home birds.

Hey, it's a tough world out there and if you don't assert yourself, look out for #1 and take what rightfully belongs to someone else then you're just going to get left behind with all the other courteous losers out there.

It's also a great way to conserve shotgun shells. All you have to do is shoulder your gun and then yell "got that sumbitch" as soon as the other guy shoots.
So you get the bird AND save a shell.
Trust me, your bird to shells expended ratio will skyrocket because obviously you don't claim shots the other guys miss.

BTW, I'm looking for some new wingshooting partners. Anyone game?

O yeah Nothing ruins a good day like poor sportsmanship and greed.

….and if you’re and/or others are a better wingshot you can see how ugly Jealousy becomes.

I'm a righty and too poor for production guns right now! But WOW! really nice wood (from what I can see in that little pic) 400px × 88px is too small for proper appreciation, do ya got a link to a better pic? The one on the auction description but still smallish, the forend is sorta plain but the butt is wonderfully figured!
WHY THE H3LL DID YOU SELL THAT DAVE?!?!?!?!!?!

I thought you were smarter than that!

The 2 I really miss are a Universal M1 Carbine that I had loads of fun with straifing the local dump when I was younger and a TC Hawken 50 cal Muzzleloader a friend gave me years ago. Neither have much monetary value, but the sentimental value makes them special to me. Lost both a few years ago due to needing an attorney for a legal problem.
Was short on money and had to let go of several guns as payment, also including a 10 inch SS Dan Wesson 44mag revolver, and several 22's including an Ithaca X-15 Lightening that was deadly accurate, several SKS's, including one made for AK mags. I miss them all I guess..........

I've still got a 50cal ammo box full of 30 carbine ammo and clips hoping to get another M1 one of these days! Ain't seen one at a reasonable price.

Way to go Beekeeper!

I have two of the local game cop's cell numbers and they are never too far away from our waterfowl haunts. WA has a three strikes law (3 in 10 years) for game violations that will result in loss of license.

"Sign here, press hard, second copy's yours".

Well said, Dr. Ralph, but shooting this fine rifle would give it more virtue, not less. A few slight marks from a B.C. sheep hunt would make it complete, giving it both function as well as beauty.

As Jim said the Dove field is a place to locate these types with regularity. I once spent and other wise enjoyable afternoon on an active field as I watched one fellow claim and pick up birds in all directions, some over 150 yards away from his stool. He shot at every bird and I do mean "bird" he saw. He did manage to hit a few of the doves he collected for himself.

After I had shot a limit of doves, of which he picked up every bird, I unloaded and watched my wife shoot. After about 30 minutes the local game warden visted the field. Having observed the field for a while, he went straight to the guy, found all his hidden birds, made a count, and wrote a very long ticket!

On his way out with said dip stick in tow, the warden stopped at my stand and said, "You are a very generous man!" Smiled and kept on walking...

So, it seems that the majority of you think that the Red Label is a POS, even the ones who say it "is good, except the safety doesn't work", "sounds clunky when opening the action", etc.

But, as the previous poster noted, most of you probably drink Schlitz, Old Mil, Mickey's, or some other "near beer" and have wives that resemble the aforementioned enebriated beaver!

It happens all the time, even elk hunting. Last year, one of our group shot an elk and it ran a couple of hundred yards before running by another member of our group who dropped it as it was getting out of gun range. The first guy that shot wanted to claim the elk, but the second guy tagged it. It almost caused some hard feelings. I think duck hunters are the worst. Most of them think that every bird they shoot at is theirs even if it is still flying when you shoot it. I usually try to avoid repeat hunts near those lower life forms.

That big old elk laying underneath my rifle in the trophy photo is the REAL art to me!

That happens all the time in the dove fields. If its a young hunter next to me I let him claim his prize and congradulate him. As far as adults go, those sort of guys have the 'game hog' gene in them and usually don't mind shooting over their limit either.

Life is too short to buy guns that look like the stocks have been inletted by inbred families of inebriated beavers.

Man, what a piece. Dave, you give new meaning to flossing your teeth...
I understand the words on never shooting one of these "closet queens", but probably would be just like Gritz. I'd pop its cherry just for the sake of it being mine to pop..and pop it on a nice whitetail to boot. Hell, the first thing you do with a new truck is haul a load of rock right??

I agree, lefty rifles are hard to get in anything but 30-06, 270 and 7mm. I just bought a special run Ruger in 375 Ruger. It's basically a stainless left-handed Ruger Alaskan, with their laminated stock instead of the Hogue rubber-overmolded stock. I haven't shot it yet, as I didn't have time before I deployed last month. When I get home this spring, I will definetly shoot some prarie dogs with it to break it in. $3 per cartridge, this is going to cut into my ammo budget.
There is definetly some pent-up demand for left-handed rifles that are not the "big-three" above. I bought my rifle from my brother's gun shop, he sold four other rifles like mine, and could sell ten if he could get them, but I guess it was a special run and they're gone. I hope for Ruger's sake they make good on their plans to offer a short-action lefty too. I could use a good, short, stainless .308 rifle. Their Frontier compact would be outstanding if they offered it in Left-hand, I would buy one.

so, what the heck? why did you sell such a sweet rifle, that was MADE FOR YOU , by an atrist, without EVER SHOOTING IT! i could understand if there was something you didnt like about the rifle, or if the accuracy was olny meiochre. but this guy put a peice of himself into this rifle FOR YOU. just seems to me like a slap in the face to me. i am not saying you should have taken this out through the woods, or let the airport gorilla's have their way with it. but to me, at least taking it out, and not even trying her out seems pretty disrespectful.

It says left handed pre-64 Winchester Model 70 "style" action. That means it's not really a "factory" left handed M70, but something that Mr. Balickie (or someone else) built up in the pattern of a Winchester M70, right? I know M70's were strictly right-handed actions during the period described (year 1985). Am I correct?

No wonder it costs that much. He probably made it with a file.

For the life of me, I can't figure out what you guys see in bolt guns - even if the wood is exceptional...

Preparing for surgery can be a big undertaking. As part of your preparation don't forget to get all your questions answered before the surgery.
----------

Adam

Acne Scar Removal News & Discussion

I'm a left handed shooter, I could use a .270, and if it were mine I would never fire it (or sell it) either. Why? A $400 Savage would probably out group it, and be weatherproof to boot. This is a thing of beauty, boys. There's too little beauty around any more.

Wow! That rifle makes me wish I was left-handed and wealthy... what a work of art. If anyone wants to be so kind as to buy it for me, I would gladly hold on to it in hope of having a left-handed son or daughter to gift it to.

If you wantto keep deer near your place and don;t plant plots, at least buy mineral licks and place 2 or 3 at different locations. Fewfarmers left, kids got teh property and sub-divided itinto building lots. So in order to have a place to hunt you gonna have to lease land and work at keeping food available. You would be suprised at teh number of deer that bed within 100 yds of your house. I live in the woods, and deer bed within that distance all the time. But I provide water,licks, food plots and corn when season opens. Time is coming when when no place to hunt other than fenced farms. Not my type of hunting. SAw too many of those farms out west.. Looks like cattle feed lots. You choose a Animal you want, they price it, feed you supper, then in Am, turn that animal out into another small lot and you kill it. Go home with pictures, showing what a trophy you got. Then in a about 6 months your Mount arrives and you hang on wall and show off to all, now thats HUNTING City style. I want one more Western hunt to New Mexico for a huge Elk and a Lope.At 74, time slipping by and hopefully the DOW will allow me to do this last hunt westward.

With tons of $$$ you can have any gun you desire built. Bu to me, this looks like a supped up contender breakaction. No use for my hunting.I will just continue to use my Uberti 44-40 and be happy. For my style hunting it'sample for me. Just as deadly as teh 44 mag and a tad smaller, but large enough. Us gun nuts never get enough of the wall guns, and never will. I recall when I began hunting at l0 yrs old ( I'm now 74) a single shot 16 gauge was the finest gun ever made.The I bought a Winchester 94 when was l6 and went on my first deer hunt and was ruined for life. I don;t want all the guns made, just l of each, by far better investment than in the DOW or banks. The Old Gunslinger

No doubt Savagemakesa quality firerm, but they hae no resale value in my neck of the woods. If its not Remington, Winchester, forget it. CAn find many Savage ll0, etc. for lessthan 300.00 and appear in good condition. But, will never know till tried atthe range. My hate goes off to MArlin on their new MArlin XL7, a great gun, shoots well and with the fluted bolt, it's slick as a cat'sA--. Topped wih a good scope,should be good for any game up to a huge Elk, of which I think a 270 ( what I bought) is a tad light. But never owned a 270 and wanted a Mulie, lope gun. My Classic Custon Rem 700 in 25-06 is my go to gun, but for Elk out west, the 700 30-06 CDL using l80 gr. Scricco's can't be beat. I've shot at 9 animals with this gun and all 9 went down at the shot, and one shot was 345 yds. Its topped with Nikon Monarch( as all my rifles except the B/P and its got the Dusk to Dawn 3 x 9 x 40 with 6" eye relief) and does a good job.Killed a 9 point Monster at l70 yds this season and 2 other smaller bucks at over l00 yds. Savage needs to trim the grip a tad,as feels like the old axe i use to use. The MArlin XL7 was to light for me, so I added l l/2 lb of lead to the butt end, now the gun stays glued to my shoulder and little recoil. A 5 to 6 lb gun is too light for large game hunting, ok for varmints, but then I go to my Marlin 22 mag.If had to sell all of my guns but one, I would keep the 30-06, as some many different loads available for it. Shoot-un-straight and often, the Old Gunslinger

She was a keeper Dave... and she can be had for the same price you paid over twenty years ago? The market has not been kind to any of us.

Gators 31
Sooners 28

Doc, I rarely go to art museums because of spewes like that.

To Yooper Jack: Elisha Cuthbert plays Kimberly Bauer in 24.

To Jim in Mo.: Joe would never stain a stock. He was rabid about leaving wood absolutely as it was except to checker it. He once had to put an ebony fore-end tip on a .280 and was almost suicidal about it. But there was no choice; when laid out, the stock wasn't long enough to be in proportion.

To Dr. Ralph: Glad you like it, but get a grip, man.

That was my porsche you a--hole!!

It's the eighth wonder of the world... the way the butt's deep dark marble grain turns to golden blond at the receiver and then shifts into tiger stripes or fiddle back towards the forearm is incredible. It is art without trying to be art. It is the unchallenged beauty of nature. It is God's finest in the hands of an artisan. It is understated, functional, simple, the purest form of the art of rifle making. I would ravage it with lust in my heart if my sweaty little hands ever were laid upon it. Gladly would I have pulled the trigger and taken its virtue away and felt the better man for it! Never shot? Now that's a sin...

Dave,I just took a closer look at that rifle. Did Mr. Balickie stain it so the stock was more blond at the receiver, was it age, or the way the light hit it.

Take a deep breath Gritz.

It seems such a shame to ever have a rifle that has never been fired. That is like having a Porsche that does not even have a key. How do you know it runs? What good is a rifle (besides historically important pieces) that is not to be used? If I was never going to use it I would rather take the money and go to a gun museum for a vacation, or just watch the money burn, or SOMETHING! I don't know. I think I am going to go kick some stuff and try to forget that I ever read this article. I can't wait for the next article to get over this one.

I have a shooting buddy that has nothing but trouble with his Red Label. I am a Browning man, the 525 20ga is my favorite. I just got a new Citori Steel Special with a camo stock and shoots 2 3/4,3, and 3 1/2" 12ga. I'm used to 3" mags but those 3 1/2" kick like a mule. Will only shoot those wearing a waterfowl jacket. It does knock down the ducks at a farther range though.

Beekeeper-
Glad to hear the good news from Ruger. The problem with the left handed gun offerings in the past has not been the availability,
but the limited caliber offerings. .270, .30-06, & 7m/m mag. was it for a good
many years, but then Savage
got back into lefties, and
even Winchester and Browning came out with some offerings. I have, through years of patience and determined "Yes, they DO make it in left hand" bullheadedness, aquired most of the calibers I wanted except a .17 or .20.
Ruger offers hope to all of us using the right side of our brain!

Dave:
Being left myself, I can't believe you sold it. It's an excellent reason to buy lottery tickets!
Now the important question: What role did Elisha Cuthbert play in 24? Was she Nina Meyers?
YooperJack

I've owned a Ruger Red Label 20 ga. with 28" barrels for 19 years. My wife has had one with 26" barrels now for about 16 years. I also own an engraved 28 ga. with 28" barrels and a 12 ga. gold label with english stock and several other Ruger rifles and pistols. The Gold label is extremely light and great to carry, but with the hard plastic butt will punish you with anything beyond light loads.

In my experience the wood of the Ruger firearms is substantially better quality than the other shotguns in the same price range.

I have had numerous issues with the safety not functioning properly or the second barrel not firing due to using heavy magnum loads that cause the barrel selector to jump out of the channel in the safety mechanism. It is a very easy thing to trouble shoot. It is the one true flaw in the gun's design.

The wood to metal fit has not been bad, although not perfect.

I also have a Kolar 12ga with 32" barrels that is my target gun.

You could correctly surmise that I buy American.

For those of you that fall in the hater camp and want to part with your Ruger firearms at any and all cost, I will take them off your hands.

As I write this I'm in transit from a four day Argentina Dove hunt.

Happy new year and best wishes.

To Beekeeper: I hear you.

Beautiful rifle Dave. It does have soul. Pitty only highly paid outdoor magazine editors, fund managers and auto company executives can afford them!

This morning I was bemoaning the lack of affordable and not so affordable left hand hardware on the market. Especially chambered in something other than plain vanilla. Whilst checking out the Ruger web site I noted an icon on which to click for delivering consumer feed back to company CEO Mike Fifer. So, I fired away. After returning from lunch I had the following email from Mr. Fifer relating new introductions in 2009. "We're bringing out short-action lefty's this Spring for a total of 18 bolt action calibers! Everything from .204 Ruger to .375 Ruger and lot's in between.

Best regards,
Mike

Nice touch of customer service...

So Dave your task as a fellow sinistral shooter is to check out the new Ruger lefty line up at the Shot Show next week and report back on anythng sexy you find (including booth babes).

Here's a link to the actual item w/description:

http://www.amoskeag-auction.com/69/56.html

I own my RL since 1986(bought new), it is a workhorse. Yes it is heavy, but have never had a problem with it. It's heavy because it is built like a tank. I would not trade this gun, I love it.

Oops, sorry for a double post.

As a lefty myself, and totally unable to find a rifle I want in a caliber I like, I don't see how they're "hard to move". Leftys here disappear instantly.

Since the caliber designation is up for grabs, it's good that we can hang a different hat on cartridges of the same bore size.

How else would the inexperienced buy the correct .308 or .224 ammo? Or better yet, answer the spousal question: "Don't you already have a .308 something or other?"

LOL

You didn't get it?

But you guys are making Audi-sized gobs of cash, right?

I have sold 2 rifles that I wish I had back. One was a Remington 722 ca. 1948 .257 Roberts in near mint condition and the other was a Ted Williams aka Winchester M-70 in NIB condition in .30-06.; both sold 2 or 3 years ago.

The others were not great shooters or ones I acquired with a profit motive. Beautiful rifles are great to admire and hold, but not take afield for fear of dinging them up.

Hey, plenty of honest hedge fund managers in the game..,those few bad apples ruin it for everyone else, just like the few slob hunters out there!

I clicked on "View Featured Items" and "View Auction Items" and never could locate a detailed description of the Balickie rifle. Someone with more computer savvy please help!

Mr. Smith-Corona

It is indeed a gorgeous rifle. I am trying to determine the action type...probably a pre-'64 Winchester. I am astonished that you would sell the wonderful piece without ever having fired it! Also guessing it must have cost about $6,000 to build at the time. Synthetic-stocked rifles are durable, but as a friend of mine says, "They have no soul." This Balickie rifle certainly has soul. Sorry, but I am right-handed and probably couldn't afford it anyway.

Skip, I have a 35Rem and have shot everything thru it and no it is not a 300yd gun no matter what ammo used unless you like rainbows. The new Hornady ammo does seem to have more velocity than even my handloads but it doesn't seem near as accurate as the normal factory loads.

Good article. I was at a party recently and one BS artist was talking about the new soft-tip ammo for lever rifles with tubular mags and how this revolution in ammunition has turned his 35 Rem into a 300 yard rifle. I must be getting wise in my old age because I just smiled and nodded and kept my mouth shut. Three hundred yards with a 35 Remington! I don't think so.

I owned a Model 21 once. It was a 20 with ejectors, selective trigger and a sweet thing, indeed. It happened to be bored Impr-Modified and full and shot the tighest patterns of any gun I ever owned. It would turn quail or woodcock into a salt-shaker at 20 yards. The ejectors NEVER worked right and I had that gun back to a gunsmith several times. It was forever spitting out the unfired shell and leaving the fired shell in its chamber. I sold it for a lot less than I should have but one should never look back. I have had a 20 ga Browning Lightning for more than 30 years and have never , repeat NEVER, had a proeblem with it despite having shot literally thousands of rounds at the skeet range and at woodcock and grouse here in NH. It is still one of my regular "go-to-guns" when I head into the uplands with my Brit. I have a Ruger Model 77RL in 257 Roberts and it is sweeter than sweet, action is slick as can be and it eats every handload I happen to cook-up for it. Deer drop fast when whacked with it and I aghree with those who love their M77's - and that 7-08 is a dandy caliber.

Wow. Gorgeous gun.

Maybe there's a left-handed hedge fund manager out there somewhere who hasn't yet taken a self-inflicted dirt nap or fled the country with what's left of his clients' money and he can bid on it...

Can you please tell me what has happened to the Marlin XL7 25-06 that I was told would be out before years end (2008)? I have tried for three days in a row now to contact Marlin, but all I get is a busy singnal. Thanks, Lee Palmer

I've never owned anything like some of those pieces. When the auction starts I hope they at least post the minimum starting bid.

Before I bought my Citori I looked at a bunch of over-unders, including the Red Label. It seemed to handle ok, but it was heavier. But the big gaps between the wood and metal - ugh. My field grade Citori was about $100 more, shoots great, handles great, and looks great. For the folks who love their Red Labels, good for you. Some folks like Harleys and some like Hondas, too. Some folks like Schlitz beer and have ugly wives, too.

Wonder if anybody makes an ankle holster for it? The ultimate car gun because nobody could carry it around, it'd have to be kept somewere, perhaps mounted on the roof. haha.

I have a sporting clays 12 and 20, I shoot high 70's to mid 80%, blowing away my buddy and his Perazzi, the 20 sporting clays model is a joy on dove.

I own an RL 20, I bought it because out of all of the shotguns I shouldered, and I tried them all.. it fit me like a glove. That is teh thing that is most often overlooked when choosing a shotgun.. I shoot 3 -5 rounds of skeet every saturday year round.. I am in the RL lover group, but they dont seem to hold up as well as I thought. Mine had to go back for a cracked stock, and a separated rib, my buddy's rl 12 needs new rib welds as well. I guess we have to take the good with the bad on the RLs

Ross Seyfried usually stopped at .475 Linebaugh, and no rifle calibers, because as "eyeball" stated, Ross had a certain criteria for "handgun." Even Ross advises that the .45 Colt should be enough as a day-to-day gun, with the .475 and .500 Linebaugh cartridges reserved only for the biggest game (including, if the hunter is so determined, elephant). Here he advises that before parting with his money buying the Linebaughs, the hunter should sit in a dark corner for maybe a week and really be honest with himself, because these guns are not only expensive custom jobs, but also really kick and can spook a shooter forever.

As for caliber designation, whether in English or metric, I think Mr. Petzal has already made it clear that the whole system is UNCLEAR. Even the Germans, source of most of the world's precision, had dual 7.92s, one .318" and another .323", the latter being the hotter load. But what is common with most cartridges, IMO, is that the designation is usually smaller than groove diameter, which may or may not be the bore diameter. Thus, we say .30 or .300 for .308, the British say .303 instead of .311. We have .270 for .277, etc.

Of course we have the .38 Special (.357), which ruins things, and we have various .224s that are designated .220 (Swift),.222 (Rem), .223 (Rem), .224 (Wby) and .225 (Win).

So Mr. Petzal is still right. The convention or system for designating cartridge calibers is totally messed up.

Phil,
I bought my Red Label 20 ga. in 1986 or '87. It has 26 inch barrels bored skeet/skeet. This was before choke tubes, so the barrels are relatively thin and light. The receiver is blue not stainless. I shoot light loads for skeet/grouse/woodcock and 3 inch mag's for pheasants. It's a great gun. If it were any lighter, it would be hard to point smoothly. Mine doesn't flop open either. It isn't engraved or anything, but does have decent wood. Maybe the early guns are better than the ones being made now.
JB

Dear sirs;

Does anyone make a high capacity magazine for a remington 7400 semi
automatic rifle (30-06).

Thanks. Dr. Mark

Ed J.,
7.91? Maybe a German gunsmith with too much St. Paully Girl in him measured the outside diameter of the barrel by mistake!
Seriously have you had anyone spec that barrel, do you feel your getting good velocities?