I have one that I've never shot. But I'm not sure that it counts. I recently inherited it and simply haven't had a chance to take it to the range yet.
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I have one that I've never shot. But I'm not sure that it counts. I recently inherited it and simply haven't had a chance to take it to the range yet.
I finally voted "none," but I will admit I had to go open the safe and check!
I shoot everthing I've got at least once a year. I have a 250 yd range back of the house. If it'll shoot it's a gun, if it won't it's a club.
I only have one--a Winchester model 70 classic (pre 64 reissue) left-hand with a walnut stock. I keep meaning to get a beater stock fitted so I can shoot it without banging up the immaculate wood stock.
Update: now I have none.
Right now I have 3, A Chilian Mauser in 7 x 57, a Remington 742 in 30-06, both were my fathers. Lastly I have a Savage 99 in 303 Savage that I have had at least 25 years but not yet fired.
I might also mention I built 3 FDH#2 rifles from the plans of Frank DeHaas, two of them I finished in 1989 a 45-70 and a .35 Whelen, I didn't fire them until 2008. Talk about sitting on the rack awhile.
John
I have an SKS that is still in the cosmoline that I bought 25 years ago. I have 2 other 7.62x39 that I do shoot.
I also have a 303 British that I have never shot. Bought it just because it was Excellent shape and cheap.
No real reason for NOT shooting them, Just have others that i shoot on a regular basis.
have a good 'un, Guy
I bought a bunch of mine as an investment for retirement. Either to shoot when I get there or for some cash if I don't do as well as I hope to over the next few years. I'll say about 45....
I voted none in the poll. I always shoot any new gun within a month of two of purchase, usually within a few days.
Then after reading through the thread I realize that there is old bolt action Japanese WWII rifle from my Dad that I have never shot.
Thanks for reminding me. I will have to take that old thing out, clean it up and get it out to the range. I will also have it checked out by a gunsmith friend before firing it.
Note: It is not one of the crude late war rifles.
I would not want them to feel neglected. My oldest rifle is a 6.5 x 55 MM Sweede that started out as a 7.92 x 57 Mauser. It was in the form of a 98/22 BRNO Mauser and although it had a great bore and was in good shape the sights were lousy and the long barrel and bad sights made me disdain it. I took it to a local gunmaker Ray Lynn here in VEgas and he rebarelled it with a Douglas Match Barrel in 6.5 x 55. He added a Buhler safety, messed with bolt, jeweled the bolt, did some magical stuff with the bottom of the action, reblued it, cut a very nice target crown on the barrel, bent the bolt, mounted my cheapo Chinese Bushnell 6x 20 x 40 MM scope on it, added a thumb hole laminated very colorful (Buckshot says it hurts his eyes) and a recoil pad and some sling swivel studs. It cost me a buncha money but does give me groups of less than 1/2" at 100 yds with J word bullets. With cast boolits and 11 grains of Unique I am getting 3/4 inch groups at 120 yds. It is a pleasure to shoot but kinda heavy to carry around but beautiful.
I have a pair of CZ rifles. One in .22 LR and the other in .223. They both have single set triggers and when used they have a trigger pull of less than a pound and are deadly accurate. The fit and finish on both rifles is really nice and I love them both. In the .22 LR I have a 453 with the Varmint Barrel. Kinda clunky but really is accurate. The .223 is a 527 FS with the delightful Mannlicher type full stock out to the end of the barrel. I mounted a small Leopold compact scope on it and it gave me great pleasure to shoot at a man sized steel target and hit it every time at 375 yds with my handloads using 55 gr J word boolits. With my cast boolits I can only achieve decent accuracy at 200 yds or less but I have high hopes for the new NOE 55 gr .224 mold which I just got recently. I love shooting the .223 as the costs are low along with the recoil and muzzle blast.
I came into a Winchester model 94 of 1929 vintage along with a Baker 12 side by side 12 gauge one day and paid $100 for both guns. The 94 is in excellent shape but had some nasty blotches on the receiver but the wood and the rest of the metal is in excellent shape. I am still working on a decent cast boolit that has some accuracy. It is a fun gun to shoot and has light recoil with the cast boolits. The Baker is a shotgun that I do not need nor really want but it came with the 30-30. I intend to cut down the 30 inch full choke barrels to about 20 inches and use this for a truck gun for those nasty ROAD RAGE INCIDENTS for which Vegas is known.
I have a SLME of the No 4 Mk 1 variety. This one was made in CAnada at Longbranch and the stock was worked over some. The sights are still good but I am having problems with keyholing cast boolits and I must make them bigger. 312 sized boolits just are not making the grade. I slugged the chamber with cerrosafe and the freebore is right at .316 so I guess I need to go to at least a .314 to see if that works. In the meantime it is shooting shotgun patterns at 25 yds and it is totally useless at any range beyond 25 feet until I make better rounds.
Then there is my favorite rifle to shoot. This is the one which I will never sell and I count on it to keep me alive WTSHTF. It is a Springfield M-1 Garand in 30-06. I have messed with cast boolits and my best results have come from paper patching 311284 boolits with computer paper. I am getting outstanding accuracy and full function with this rifle and the empties just pile up about 3 feet in front of me. The boolits achieve the amazing velocity of 1750 FPS and kicks like a .22 LR.
It needs more work but with those CMP Greek HXP surplus ammo I am hitting the gong at 300 and 440 yds with regularity. It needs a trigger job and I am proceeding with aquiring the necessary Arkansas stones for the polishing and such. I just love this old rifle. It is such fun to shoot and the history and use of the rifle in WW II and Korea make it even more fun. I may just buy a couple more of them from CMP. I paid $750 for a rifle made in 1955 and it is in excellent condition with a very decent stock and good finish on the metal. Paying a grand for a basically new rifle from the CMP stokes me and I probably will buy a few more at the $595 price for an investment as well.
I bought a globe front sight from one of our members and it makes a world of difference at long ranges. I just love the sights and ease of regulating them. I keep a card with the proper settings for my reloaded rounds and I can trust this rifle to hit the gong at any range up to 440 yds so far.
The next step is to start working with PSB fillers along with paper patching to achieve j word velocities out of cast boolits and keep the accuracy. This rifle is a joy to shoot and I really love to take it out and let it do it's thing. At present I have about 600 empty cases and about 100 clips. I also keep a few bandoliers full of HXP Greek surplus ammo with the rifle in the closet in case of WTSHTF. If I have a few spare M-1's handy I will be able to outfit a squad of my gun loving neighbors and maybe defend our neighborhood from the Mutant Zombies.
Along with the 1911 this rifle has to be the epitomy of designs by John M Browning and it will only go up in value over the years. I just love it.
My last rifle is my newest and most expensive. It is a Winchester 1895 Single Shot BCPR in 50-90 Sharps. It kicks like a Missouri Mule but is a blast to shoot. I have been forced to obtain a Limbsaver recoil pad because this thing just plain hurts to shoot with 102 gr of Swiss Black Powder. I have a BACO 695 Creedmoore mold than drops perfect boolits that group at 100 yds at less than an inch and group at less than 10" at 365 yds on a steel man sized target. I am still learning how to shoot this rifle and it certainly is capable of better groups than I can presently shoot. The brass is outrageously expensive and the loading of these huge cartridges is a new thing for me. It is a long learning curve but I am willing and I will get it done right.
I recently had a shooting buddy of mine make a shooting table which is portable and easily set up. It will allow me to shoot this shoulder buster from a standing position rather than sitting down. With a spotter with a 25 power scope behind me he can see my rounds going down range and spot the hits if the wind blows hard enuf to clear the muzzle of the gun fast. If not then all he is seeing is a large cloud of white smoke which obscures the target and boolit patch.
I can just imagine a shootout in a smokey saloon in the days gone by. By the time a few rounds have been fired in a closed room the clouds of smoke have to have been pretty much preventing any observation of potential targets etc.
My hope is to take some of these rifles out hunting. Prarie dogs in Wyoming and Idaho deserve my 6.5 x 55 and or the .223. With the recent drouth in Nevada the population of Coyotes in my area is down pretty badly. Maybe upstate some it will be better. My shooting buddy wants me to go Bison hunting with him. The costs are kinda steep and this will take a back burner to prarie dogs and Coyotes for a while.
Hope is eternal and my future is boundless.
about 10
Just one. An 1859 Sharps carbine. And that's only because it's not in shape for it. However, if I could find someone that gould bring it back to life, I'd love to see it smoke.:bigsmyl2:
It varies a bit, if you have 5 guns in your safe, you can easily be sanctiminous and say that all of your guns are shooters, etc. If you have 50-60-70-80-90 or more, you can be doing a power of shooting and still not get to use them all.
All of a sudden one now. It's a Marlin 336, pre- safetybutton carbine in 30-30. Made I guess in the 1970's. It was in pretty good shape and the price was right. I already know how these shoot, and I bought it with the idea that down the road, after Marlin moves their operation, a gun like this will be as valuable as similar 94 Winnies in the same category are today. Then I'll sell it. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll just take it to the range later this week and see how the loads I already have made up work out of it. Then again, maybe I just need to take it deer hunting this season.
IMO A rifle that hasn't been shot is like a lover that hasn't been kissed (i.e. What are you waiting for?). I also keep ammo on hand for every weapon I own. As I tell me wife, "A gun without ammunition is just a poorly-designed club."
John
None! :redneck:
Well, I had one that I never shot. I got a Winchester model 94 in 1984 with the large loop lever in 32 Win sp. I already had a 94 in 30-30 so for some reason I never shot it. Last October my nephew earned his Eagle scout rank and he got the gun as a congratulations gift from me. I still have never shot it but he sure has!
0.. I am a user,if i can't shoot it then i don't need it........
I usually can't wait to work up a load and do the range testing on a new firearm. However, I won a Browning 22 Auto (Stainless) at a local Shrine club raffle a few years ago and just put it in the safe, box and all. Just never got around to getting it out and loading it up.
I have a NIB Saiga 308, a 10/22 (supposed to be the wife's), a 243 barrel for my Handi rifles I haven't fit yet, a Marlin 336c 35 Remington, a 12 gauge barrel for the Handis, a Kel-Tec Sub 9 2000.
I know it's rifles only but I also have an Astra 400 9mm Largo, a NIB Ruger MKIII 22/45, and a NIB Ruger Bisley Blackhawk in 44 Special.
Between a 12hr work day, a 2hr round trip commute, a wife and 3 kids (6, 3, and 2) there is no free time whatsoever. I really ought to stop finding these deals, but it's the only thing I have keeping me sane!