Herter's

[Boerrancher]

I was looking at some of the boxes of bullets I have sitting around in the reloading room and found a partial box of 308 dia 168 gr Herter's match bullets. I noticed on the box it read "The worlds largest manufacture of reloading equipment". It got me to thinking about the annual trips by the Herter's Store on our way to Wyoming when I was a Kid. I loved playing on the giant gorilla that was out side the store. You could climb up the ladder and stand in its closed fist. They also had one of the greatest collections of mounted wildlife I have ever seen, much of which is now at the Bass Pro shop's World HQ in Springfield MO.

I was just a kid when Herter's closed up shop, so I don't know much about why they went out of business. I just find it hard to believe that seemingly over night the worlds largest manufacturer of reloading equipment closes up shop. They made good reloading presses, dies, and such. I have shot many a sub MOA group out of rifle barrels made by Herters. Their primers were great, not to long ago I shot up the last of the Herters primers that dad had bought back in the late 50's or early 60's.

How many of you have used Herters products in the past, or, are still using them today. I am still using a good number of their die sets, and have quite a few of the old shell holders for the Herters presses. I am curious as to how many of the Herter's products are still in use.

Best wishes from the Boer Ranch,

Joe

[Glen]

Plain and simple, it was the 1968 Gun Control Act. Herters depended on the profit margin from their firearms sales to keep the rest of the business afloat, and the 1968 GCA sunk their business model.

[AZ-Stew]

Glen is absolutely right. I can remember catalogs 1" thick, then 1/2", then 1/4" then they just faded away. I wish I had kept a few of the catalogs. They'd make fun reading these days. It wasn't just the guns. The 68 Act prevented mail order sales of bullets, powder and primers. Along with the guns, there wasn't much left to render a profit. I would like to have tried some of their "Wasp-Waist" .22 bullets. Just for the sake of knowing whether they had any advantage over other bullets. I still have an unopened Herters primer pocket brush.

Regards,

Stew

[carpetman]

Yip the 1968 act did em in--their catalog was the book of adjectives. Their duck decoys weighed 47 pounds each just to get all the names on them. Model perfect custom supreme deluxe world famous model. That was their short named you should hear the one with the long name. On page 13 the one with such and such is the ONLY one to get. On page 15--get this model don't waste money on the one with such and such.

[Shepherd2]

I started reloading on Herter's equipment back in the 60s. Loaded a lot of ammo on that massive brown Herter's press. I passed that outfit on to another reloader back in the 80s.

I wish I'd kept a copy of their catalog. They were a hoot to read and I spent hours doing that. They had the best of everything. Didn't matter if it was George's rifles or Bertha's pancake flour. It was the best and it said so right there in the catalog.

I sold a set of Herter's dies to a member here recently. Hopefully that is one Herter's product still in use.

[shooterg]

I turned 18 in 1968 - looked forward to being able to scrimp/save and mail order some guns - and they passed the damn GCA - with NRA blessing, as the FFL fee was supposed to be low enough for the average guy to get and continue buying "direct". We see how well that worked out.

[Boerrancher]

I still have boxes of mil surp rifles that my father bought years ago before the 68 GCA. I guess I need to open them up and see how they are doing. I remember how upset he was when they changed the laws so that he could no longer keep his FFL. The whole separate place with a separate entrance and posted hours did him and his friend Don in. They made some of the finest custom rifles here in the mid-west. From time to time I still see some of their work floating around gunshows, even as fare south and west as Tulsa OK. The Timney triggers, and Bhuler safeties, and other components largely purchased from Herter's. It saddens me to see the things I took for granted as a child no longer existing. I am not trying to turn this into a political topic, but I am going to ask this rhetorical question for all to think about. What the heck happened to my country?

Joe

[blackthorn]

Quote "What the heck happened to my country?"
The same thing that happend to mine!!
LIBERALS (here) DEMOCRATS in yours!

[Crooked Creek]

1967 was my first order to Herters. I bought reloading stuff (still have a few little items), fishing equipment (rod handles and blanks too), game calls (still have one) and even bought a pipe and tobacco (wish I still had the pipe!). I now have one of their "Model Perfect" recurve bows that I picked up "as new" about five years ago. George L. Herter was a master marketer that never, ever, let the truth get in the way of a good story or product claim ! Some of the things I purchashed over the years were very good...some, not so much. I did keep a couple of his catalogs and look at them every few years with fond memories. I was always envious of George's son...Jacques P. Herter with the photos of his worldwides exploits of hunting and fishing using, of course, "Model Perfect" equipment. The Central America jaguar photo had my mouth watering for one of those .401 Powermag pistols, but the '68 GCA law came in before I could order one...rats!!! Yep, Jacques P. was my hero and I wondered a few times over the years how he grew old, what he was doing after his dad's empire collapsed, and did he still have the financial capability to keep up his worldwide adventures. Then my bubble was burst, I read and article about George L. Herter where I found he never had a son...Jacques P. was another marketing fabrication that George used to "enhance" the lure of his products. Still don't know who was in all those photos, but it looked like he had a lot fun testing all the products. It's fun to reminisce once in a while, thanks for the thread.

[Hurricane]

I started reloading using Herter's press and dies. I still use a Herter's case chamfer tool and a powder funnel. I have Herter's cook books and guide manual on the bookcase. I had a Herter's bow and wish I still had it. I used Herter's knives and fishing equipment. He seemed to have everything anyone could possibly want. Reading the catalog was one of my favorite passtimes.

[NoDakJak]

I started loading with Herters equipment back in 1962 and still hve a bunch of their gear including two of their 9 Ton swaging presses. I still pick up a piece of their equipment now and then. Some of their stuff was a bit crudely made but usually serviceable and built to last a lifetime. Neil

[Bert2368]

A 1970's Herter's catalogue is at the summer cabin, along with a reprint of the 1938 Stoeger catalogue. I was just old enough to order fishing equipment from it before they went under... I still have some of the lures. My first pellet gun was a BSA from the Wasseca store, it's still in the gun room.

[454PB]

I have a bunch of Herter tools, including a pistol powder measure that I still use frequently and even a Herter .44 magnum revolver.

I believe I still have one of their 1" thick catalogs buried in my book treasury.

[Ben]

I ordered from their super thick catalog in 1967 , a Herter's J-9, 98' Mauser commercial action , .264 Win. Mag. rifle. It had a nice walnut stock with cut checkering, a fine rifle. $89.00

The mailman handed me the box and said " Here's your rifle.".

Those were the " Good Ole' Days ! "

Ben

[JDL]

Still use some of their plastic ammo boxes and a resizing die. Also have a box of .250 brass made by Norma Presision.

[cobbmtmac]

Attachment 11921
Back when we ordered out of catalogs by mail, I ordered a blank stock for my Springfield Mark 1. It was for my first project at a evening Gunsmithing Class at Sacramento Jr. college in 1960. I bought the Spfd. at a Army/Navy store for $28.95

I wrote a letter along with the order, requesting the fanciest wood that they could provide me for the catagory that I could almost afford. They had I believe, a standard grade, a fancy, a double A fancy and a triple A fancy. I believe I stepped up to the Fancy, for around $28.00 including shipping. I must have touched someones heart as I received in my opinion was a grade or two higher as it definitely has "feathered crotch" wood.. The barrel channel was like 1/2 of a half inch dowel.

Since my hunting had slowed down after many many years, I decided a couple of years ago to refinish the wood and had it reblued. It is now semi retired. I will attempt to attach a picture or two.

[Kraschenbirn]

Back in the 'good ol' days' that part of Minnesota must've been almost a shooter's paradise: Herter's at Waseca, Bonanza at Faribault, and Ahlman's Guns (their billboard on MN Hwy 60 still reads "Over 2000 guns in stock!") halfway in between.

I still use two sets of Herter's dies (one of which I recently acquired though our "Swappin' and Sellin" forum) and I just sold some Herters brass and bullets as a site benefit auction and, there's a small-ring Mauser in 7x57 that wears one of Herters sporter stocks in the cabinet.

Bill

[beemer]

Herter's never made anything that I know of but contracted it out to other companys. I still think they had some good stuff at a price you could afford. I wish I still had one of those pre 68 catalogs.

I started getting my reloading equipment together in 1970, that was the year I finished high school and Herter's was a big part of it. I still have every piece of it except the funnel which I stepped on.I have a big C press, case trimmer, powder measures and the other odds and ends. I don't use the press much anymore because of the lack of proper shellholders. I also have the big 12 ga. shotgun dies that have never been used. Other than the dies the only thing that was not Herter's was a set of Pacific oil dampened scales. Although don't need them I wouldn't mind having a nice set of Herter's scales just to finish up the set.

Thanks for bringing it up, takes me back to a good time.
beemer

[KCSO]

If I could have got my hands on George the voyager in about 1982 I would have strangled him! I was talked into buying a Herter's 15' Canoe. The darn thing was 1" thick solid fiberglasss. It was bullet proof, but it weighed about 200 pounds. Before i found a sucker to trade it to I had arms like Popeye. You would get down river in ti and then you sometimes had to DRAG it back upstream. My Herters 83 super press weighs 34 pounds stripped. Built for a liftime for sure!

[flounderman]

I used to go to herters to get stocks from them. the room in the back had barrels of stocks with imperfections. I got a springfield for 3.50, a birdseye mauser for 7.50, and a laminated one for a mauser for 15.00. I wish I could make that trip one more time. I had a friend shot in the first bench rest competitions. he tried some of the wasp waisted sonics. said the only thing wasted on them was his money. the u9 action was a bsa. the barrels could have been sako. you could get the dcm springfield for 15.00, all kinds of mausers and enfields from 30.00 on down. I don't know how much different the price is in wages per hour and dollar value. I worked for a dollar an hour back then. we definately had a better country back then