Other Forums Dying Out? Less Active?

[hoodat]

I'm a member of probably six on-line gun forums. Most of my activity is primarily here and one other. When I've popped into most of the others lately, it seems as if they've pretty much -- died.

I'm just wondering if anyone else has noticed this. Is it a trend, and does it have implications for gun activity in general?? I hate to think that as a group, we gun owners are pulling back and becoming less social and active in our hobby. I think we are at a time when we need to stand proud and promote our activities in a healthy and law abiding way.

Gun forums need not be competitive with each other, and the more of them that exist, the better we will be served and grow as a group. jd

[todd9.3x57]

not be a moderator, but i'm just guessing that big game rifles are put away. the small caliber group (targets, varmints, etc...) is a subset that handloads. i'll start seeing it pick up this fall.

[Winger Ed.]

It's pretty common for various different forums to quiet down during the summer.

[GOPHER SLAYER]

I noticed the same thing. One thing I believe contributes to their decline. Other forums are simply not as easy to use. Cast Boolits is simply the best there is. I have also noticed that some other forums are populated with a bunch of snobs.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Thanks, Gopher Slayer, what a great compliment!

Mr. hoodat, sometimes it has all been said for awhile. Know what I mean? You can just say so much about this or that until someone happens along with a new slant, question, or information that stimulates conversation.

New members are a great asset, as they tend to ask questions.

What I like the most about the Castboolits Forum is our attempt to maintain civility. Other forums, as noted by Gopher Slayer, are filled with snobs and snide remarks.

DG

[nicholst55]

I personally believe that all online forums are pretty much dying - especially firearms related forums. What's the average age of members here? It seems that on several of the forums that I frequent, there are a lot of folks in their 70s and even 80s. I'm the relative young pup on at least one forum, because I'm only 66!

[Shawlerbrook]

I agree with gopher. Many of the others upgraded to some canned forum hosting service and they are just not user friendly. This place is great !

[hoodat]

I love this forum for the great civility that is generally shown by most all members. AND the incredibly wide range of topics -- on any given day you can find a conversation ranging from the love of Jesus, all the way to your favorite coon recipe. This quite frankly would be an interesting forum for folks who don't even own a gun. ;) jd

[JimB..]

Do very much appreciate the positive attitudes here, even in political bs rants in the pit, things never degenerate to name calling as they so often do in other places. IMO this has a little to with the membership and a lot to do with consistent and thoughtful moderation over a long period.

About the software, I wish it were easier to post images directly to the site.

[sparky45]

I agree wieth JimB.. ; software upgrade to make posting pics easier.

[45DUDE]

I will second that. My wife is good with computers but she gave up trying to help me download. Maybe it's on my end but I'm not having a problem else were. I think people thought they liked getting into guns and when shtf they had to find a cheaper hobby. Our 700 membership range has dried up a lot. The diehards still show up. If you don't reload you are screwed. I feel for people starting out reloading. I am straying away from other places to spend more time here. I like swappin&sellin.

[Daekar]

I expect part of this is because some of the conversation has moved to other platforms. The younger set, if they wanted to establish or participate in a community like this one, wouldn't necessarily think of hosting a forum on a server like this, they would think of Reddit, or something like Discord (despite the fact that Discord is objectively terrible in almost every way). They'll find out the hard way what they're giving up when they give away the right and ability to admin their own place and set their own policy... I think these things will go in cycles.

[414gates]

I expect part of this is because some of the conversation has moved to other platforms. The younger set, if they wanted to establish or participate in a community like this one, wouldn't necessarily think of hosting a forum on a server like this, they would think of Reddit, or something like Discord (despite the fact that Discord is objectively terrible in almost every way). They'll find out the hard way what they're giving up when they give away the right and ability to admin their own place and set their own policy... I think these things will go in cycles.

This.

The younger generation does everything on Facebook and other social media platforms that are smartphone based. Some of those social media shooting groups are huge compared to the average forum.

Forums are old school now.

A decline of forum activity is not an indication of a decline in the popularity of the shooting sports.

Where I'm at, there are so many more younger [ under 40 ] people taking up rifle shooting sports like PRS, Long Range and ELR. This is the fastest growing area of the shooting sports that I can see.

It's the older crowd that are still shooting handguns only as part of sport shooting associations.

[NSB]

They’re all going for a new (common) format that’s used by not only guns, but by everything else. From what I see on the ones I belong to, no one seems to like the new/common format. I know I don’t and I’ve been using them long enough to know that I’m just not going to like the new format. This site is still the best and easiest to navigate and understand.

[Dusty Bannister]

We are probably just seeing a normal evolution. Initially there were the email groups, which one does still exist. Then the Forums, and with good or poor moderation, have succeeded or failed. And as noted, the Social Media forums are presently the newest and greatest thing. Perhaps next will be Skype type forums where you can sit and visit with a person, not a screen name. And I do agree that this can be a seasonal thing. Most active when the cold keeps folks at home. Least active in warm months with the other activities and tasks needed. It is all good though.

[.429&H110]

Long ago we sent each other postcards.
Important stuff was telegraphed.
Then light bulbs so we could watch TV in the dark.
Stamps were a nickel; we wrote letters, now a dollar is the new nickel.

Then we stuck index cards with thumbtacks to message boards.
Got in trouble for xeroxing cartoons.
Algore invented the web, we went online to message boards.
Nobody, especially the doctor's office, answers their phone anymore.
Only the boss sends emails TL;DR
Facebook came and went but I skipped that agony.
I never did Tweet.

This forum still works because a lot of people value it and make it work.
When the lights go out, we'll be back to thumbtacks.
Sure was easier to post a picture with a thumbtack.

[elmacgyver0]

If they could just get rid of me, this place would be perfect![smilie=l:

[HATCH]

It’s just summer. People are outside.
Posting amount goes up when people are stuck inside.
That means during the hottest part of summer and the coldest part of winter.

[bangerjim]

"Summertime......and du livin' is ea-sy". Many are outside doing stuff and have no time to pound keyboards inside!

Of the 6 forums I belong to, this is the only fire-arms/casting one in the lot. All the others are slow in the summer too.

Just find some other things to do! I sure have.

banger

[Mal Paso]

Just another shortage plus the cost of posts just doubled.

[Multra]

Activity is shifting to places like facebook/instagram/reddit. Forums are a dying format.

[farmbif]

it might just be seasonal, its summer, people are out and about doing other things, lawns, gardens, family vacations, fishing, ect. in winter there is probably more activity inside and online. when your snowed in or froze in.

[Tazman1602]

I don’t know boys….I wonder sometimes if we are a dying breed. Local gun shows within 100 miles of me have had a constant in the last year —- no offense intended, I’m old too (64) and the constant has been….old people. I see very, very few young people at the shows anymore, mostly old guys like me. The outdoors club I belong to, almost all seniors.

The one thing I’ve been hammering on my peers is to be nice and take the time and effort to RESPECTFULLY answer youngsters questions when/if they do seem interested. I’ve seen way too many seniors with an “attitude” when young people ask questions or are interested. If we do not continue to promote and embrace young people when they do come around (“READ THE STICKIES,ETC”) the local gun club, the forums, everything will just simply die.

Just my .02c worth.

Art

[15meter]

Do very much appreciate the positive attitudes here, even in political bs rants in the pit, things never degenerate to name calling as they so often do in other places. IMO this has a little to with the membership and a lot to do with consistent and thoughtful moderation over a long period.

About the software, I wish it were easier to post images directly to the site.

Biggest improvement for me would be a better internal search engine. It changed a while back and I don't believe it works as well as when I started 5 years ago.

A lot of my searches are done from outside the forum but specifying cast boolits in the search string.

[No_1]

I am glad y’all are still here because without y’all this place is nothing more than a bunch of 1’s & 0’s floating around in cyber space.

[trapper9260]

I on some other casting and trapping forums and I always come on here because of how you all are on here . only one trapping forum I still on because how it is on there , the other trapping forum I was on was give me problem and bias . I drop them. Back to what was the OP is yes I see some other gun forum that dose not have much activity. It is not because of the summer but some of the posting on some is just from last year. Thanks No 1 for keeping this place going. I learn alot and get help when I need it and help those I can . We are all in this together to learn and all. Keep up the good work No 1 .

[Thumbcocker]

Demographics. Shooters are old white guys many who live in rural areas. The world is getting more urban every day. Then there is often the us against "them" mentality that permeates many forums. On some forums if you post "had some great tacos for lunch today" you will get hit with "so you are against securing the borders ". They politicize everything.

We need new people doing this stuff even if they don't look like us or have all the same beliefs.

[MrWolf]

I don’t know boys….I wonder sometimes if we are a dying breed. Local gun shows within 100 miles of me have had a constant in the last year —- no offense intended, I’m old too (64) and the constant has been….old people. I see very, very few young people at the shows anymore, mostly old guys like me. The outdoors club I belong to, almost all seniors.

The one thing I’ve been hammering on my peers is to be nice and take the time and effort to RESPECTFULLY answer youngsters questions when/if they do seem interested. I’ve seen way too many seniors with an “attitude” when young people ask questions or are interested. If we do not continue to promote and embrace young people when they do come around (“READ THE STICKIES,ETC”) the local gun club, the forums, everything will just simply die.

Just my .02c worth.

Art

Yup. I have noticed attitude to some of our younger or newer participants. They post something they find interesting that may be of benefit to someone else and then the negativity starts. I am not talking about a post that corrects an error but some feel they have to chime in and bash em. Why? If you don't like it, just move on to another post. We will lose these younger/new members real quick. No one likes to get slammed, especially from "old farts". I am 62.

[fixit]

I'm one of the youngsters here, being 60, and like others, this is my most visited forum. The younger folks are more enamored of newer methods of communication, as should be expected, which means we either adapt, or fade into obscurity.....we don't reach out enough, and frequently come across as the luddites we are.

[RogerDat]

For many of us casting weather is spring and fall. I'm working in the garages so extreme heat leads to sweating all over everything (bad tinsel fairy) and in winter it is too cold much of the time. Although a big burner does warm things up nicely on milder days. For others in the desert southwest I imagine winter is when they have the best weather for casting and smelting. Summer is for the garden, camping, outdoor projects.

This forum is broad based. It covers a wide range of interests with useful information. Casting, reloading metallic and shot shell, black powder, old military surplus, handguns, gunsmithing, etc. It is rare to not find this site on the first page of Google results when searching for anything in those subjects.

Age of participants is a concern. Not only are we as a population becoming more urban with the difference in perspective that can bring but our families are tending to spread out from each other to go where work or opportunities are. Removes some of that family influence from "grandpa" or "uncle Joe" who re-loads from being around the younger generation. If it takes a two day trip to visit and an infrequent event then younger family is just not going to be around to learn or have their curiosity sparked.

I think this is an older guy hobby. Takes a bit of living and learning to develop the skills and patience for casting and reloading. All most of us can do is encourage the interest when we find others with it and be good ambassadors for the sport and hobby. Not to mention if you are still single and chasing members of the opposite sex that can considerably dent your funds available for hobbies.

The high cost of components right now is not doing the hobby any favors. Lot of folks see $100 primers and expensive components and just don't pursue it. I started a person in their 30's loading for .38 special and if it wasn't for my being able to provide some components I'm pretty sure they would just not reload and shoot less. Although to be fair they did stock up on brass at recent gun show. Younger folks do have a lot to grab their attention, especially in summer. Young adults have household projects, teens have social activities, parents have family activities.

Summer is time for garage and estate sales to scrounge up goodies such as solder or pewter for fall melting. Fishing and camping. Prepping brass for later reloading in the cool of the basement. Things will pick up come fall. If nothing else a few friends will want 20 rifle rounds for sight in and deer hunting. Seems a heavy chunk of fairly soft lead works really well ;-)

[Soundguy]

not be a moderator, but i'm just guessing that big game rifles are put away. the small caliber group (targets, varmints, etc...) is a subset that handloads. i'll start seeing it pick up this fall.

My take is twofold.

1, I am on a few boards owned by verticalscope.. and they are trying very hard to close down and destroy one of the boards.. trying very hard to run off most of the posters.... considering they sell advertisement and get paid on clicks... that seems counter productive.. but who am I to wonder....

2, shooting sports in general are suffering right now due to ammo cost and availability. Guns that use exotic ammo , unless you reload.. may just be priced out of range to take them out on the town. Nobody like to pay 10+$ on a triggerpull....

[OS OK]

Downloading a picture is not a big deal...if...you use a host like IMGUR. Seriously...it's free & it's easy to use, I'm 72 and by no means a computer guru...I'ma dinosaur.

IMGUR stores your pictures and you have access to pages of them listed like this...

https://i.imgur.com/utP68pa.jpg

Select the photo you need to post & select the appropriate link for the forum your in...

https://i.imgur.com/tWM258l.jpg

Like I said, select the image link & paste it in this forum like anything else you'd paste...

https://i.imgur.com/uS4Zhy7.jpg

You even control the size of the picture...no kidding, it's pretty dang easy...

https://i.imgur.com/Q0DXf0O.jpg

Nothing enhances something your talking about like a good photo.

[sparky45]

We're talking about direct download, drag and drop tech has been around a long time.

[sparky45]

I'm one of the youngsters here, being 60, and like others, this is my most visited forum. The younger folks are more enamored of newer methods of communication, as should be expected, which means we either adapt, or fade into obscurity.....we don't reach out enough, and frequently come across as the luddites we are.

Here, I'll correct it; LEADDITES!!

[OS OK]

We're talking about direct download, drag and drop tech has been around a long time.

Sorry...I wouldn't know anything about the 'type' of technology this is...I am a computer dinosaur..."get the picture?"

[waksupi]

I see why some forums die. Too much bad information put out, especially it seems on reloading forums. I think a lot of the members we have here found it by accident, and found out the old guys really do know stuff, and you get no B.S. answers here that isn't quickly corrected by someone who has been there- done that, rather than reading what someone else just read somewhere with no hands on experience.
I just hope Willie has a line of succession in case he ever wants to retire from herding this bunch of cats!

[dverna]

I did not have a lot of money when I was younger, so casting and reloading was a necessity if I wanted to shoot a lot. There was no internet, and I learned from reading and from the older guys I shot with. I treated them with respect and was eager to learn from their experience. One guy in particular mentored me and took me under his wing.

My take about the current crop of young guys. Some have "instant gratification" syndrome. Buy a few boxes of cheap stuff and go blast it up. Hitting the paper = accuracy. Some seem to lack critical thinking skills. They cannot determine when someone on YouTube or a forum is full of crap. They have been conditioned to accept "fake news".

I expect most young guys coming to this forum not to be typical of the young guys I used to see at public ranges. They will have an incentive to learn and meet their needs. And for most, those needs are like mine were over 50 years ago. How do I shoot more inexpensively and make quality bullets and ammunition?

If they are infected with the "instant gratification" syndrome, they will not be successful. YouTube makes it look easy...too easy. I suspect many come here after getting their noses bloodied by believing any caveman can cast perfect bullets using whatever cheap crap they can find.

There is a line between being "civil" and accepting reality. For many folks, being told they are wrong crosses that "civility" line. A recent thread I participated in serves as an example.

It discussed the effectiveness of lighter loads in shotshells for shooting trap. Some folks believe a lighter charge is just as effective as a heavier payload. They are wrong but hold firm in their opinion. An inexperienced trap shooter looking to save money might drink the Kool-Aid if he lacks critical thinking skills. Of course, it is not "civil" to say that. But all is good...as disagreement may generate more "clicks" and "clicks" are important. Facebook learned that. If we all agreed, there would not be much less traffic.

[farmbif]

all I know is from my own experience. I do know that I was very active in a couple other forums in the past. on one of these I was run off, banned I guess, because I disagreed with the opinion of a moderator on a non shooting sports subject. there were many with differing opinions and it seems all who did not agree 100 percent with moderator were banned. gives me some comfort knowing I was just one of many. and on another site there were some that seemed to track what others are doing and saying to the point of it being really creepy like right up to the point of them telling everyone what others on the forum personal info is and suggesting they go and liberate them of their personal possessions.
so there are all kinds of situations in our world

[WRideout]

If we all agreed, there would not be much less traffic.

I heard from at least once source that Facebook actually promotes argument and disagreement because it generates so much more traffic.

Wayne

[farmbif]

there was book written by one of the founders of Facebook that exposed the website for those tactics they use to promote argument and disagreement and promotes hatred towards others. we all can agree to disagree in a civil society but when some entity thinks they can take from you either your possessions, your rights or your peace of mind. that crosses a boundary in my way of thinking that is very wrong.

[RogerDat]

While it is not so much available currently the cheap eastern European ammo was low cost enough at times to give reloading a run for its money. If one is just looking at the cost in money and time there have been times when some Wolf ammo would have been a good alternative to the investment in reloading.

If the caliber hadn't already been one I was casting and reloading for I would have bought disposable ammo myself. As it was there was some Red Star that was brass and boxer primed for a comparable price that I would buy over the disposable. Kids or grandkids without the prior investment to reload wouldn't have found that Red Star brass worth the extra cost over the disposable.

So many demands on our time and even more on the younger generations time. If they can afford the store bought and the price is good... return on investment for buying equipment and components just isn't that rapid. Especially when prices are as high as they are currently. I do keep an old C press around mounted to plywood to clamp on a table so anyone who shows an interest I can set up to load their own for the cost of some used dies.

Have to love those Pacific and Herter's .38 special used dies at the gun shows. Those dies and an old C press, plus a Lee primer seating die sets someone up for a $30 roll their own reloading setup. For people who can enjoy the methodical process of reloading making those first boxes is usually enough to set the hook.

At this time I do not really have family that I would think of leaving my reloading and casting equipment to. A grandson who may one of these days make good on his stated intention of learning how, and a daughter who might reload for a couple of revolvers. Lives in town and doesn't get to shoot much so little incentive to use living space for reloading.

Am I the only one that wonders how I would continue my hobby if wife and myself moved out of our house to some sort of senior apartment situation? I know folks that fear my garage because there are lead bars stacked there. Never mind if I was actually casting lead and reloading.

BTW - heard a fire chief on the news state that a fellow with 10k rounds of ammo could have caused death and mayhem to whole neighborhood in a fire. I guess the saami film of what happens to ammo in a fire never came up in his training. No barrel to build pressure = no velocity to bullet. Bounce off of drywall at 3 ft. without a barrel.

[Ziptar]

I expect part of this is because some of the conversation has moved to other platforms. The younger set, if they wanted to establish or participate in a community like this one, wouldn't necessarily think of hosting a forum on a server like this, they would think of Reddit, or something like Discord (despite the fact that Discord is objectively terrible in almost every way). They'll find out the hard way what they're giving up when they give away the right and ability to admin their own place and set their own policy... I think these things will go in cycles.

I've often thought about it, it's just as Daekar states. I too began to notice over the last few years that many forums I'd frequented in the past regardless of subject area were less active over time. I believe its because many members have "aged out" or "passed on" while there's been no influx of new younger users / or members. Several years ago I read a book titled "Present Shock (https://rushkoff.com/books/present-shock/)", the author called it "presentism", "living in an "live in an always-on “now,”". It's a fascinating and thought provoking read but, it would seem that's just how things have played out.

Discussion forums have been loosing out to Social Media, Reddit, and Discord over the last few years. Those mediums are just more popular with the younger generations simply because it's what they've grown up with. They've got no problem sharing every bit of data about them with corporations that use it to profit, live in the here and now with snap chats that disappear as soon as they are viewed, exchange thoughts and ideas via 120 character "tweets" and 15 second tic-tocs. They don't have phone conversations they communicate via "Short Message Service" texts. They're reality is that there is so much going on and so many distractions "right now", there's no time for substance, detail, past and future.

I've tried Reddit and Discord and walked away from all of both, never signed up for any social media, I didn't see the point. While they might be better at giving more people more ability to have their say all at the same time in real time right now, they are terrible as organized archives of those conversations and the information exchanged in them. Within each is a cacophony of conversations often with many going on in the same thread at the same time and once something's scrolled off the screen good luck finding it again. Discord is the absolute worst, they should just rename it "Tower of Babel".

When the older demographics began to use the internet, bulletin boards were it, the only sort of mass communication at the time. Bulletin boards evolved into discussion forums which were so good at doing their job they ruled the internet for a good while. Sure there were "chat rooms" but they specifically existed solely for real time chats and nothing more was expected. What made bulletin boards so successful? They managed conversations by containing them in specific subject threads that proceeded chronologically as each response a was posted. However as equally important as enabling and managing the discussion was the expectation that the discussion could be recalled at a later date. Designed around both management of conversations and the recalling of it, discussion forums stored it all in databases and came equipped with search functions pretty much from day one.

All that being said, This place is a bit different though. There's a vast wealth of knowledge that's been exchanged and built up by members that have come and gone here for almost two decades. Many of the members whose posts I've enjoyed and learned so much from when I first started here have "moved on", eventually I will too. When I do, I suspect that The Cast Boolits Forum will still not only be around but also an active and thriving place. Unlike computer technology, video games, or cat videos the bulk of what is discussed here isn't depreciated by some new thing in six months or a year so it's still pertinent and useful no mater the age. Combine that with the site's design it becomes a data warehouse. All of that knowledge and information is accessible and retrievable. I just checked my thread subscriptions, I'm subscribed to threads that go back to 2005. What comprises The Cast Boolits Forum is useful, practical, and valuable and that's why I donate every year and will continue too until I "move on".

[popper]

Direct up load of video to tis site takes storage space that costs $. Hosting sites have a greater 'audience' therefore cost effect isn't so great. It's about $. I'll go through and delete some of my less 'important' posts to save space.
Shooting activities get slow in hot summertime.

[RogerDat]

Worth noting that Gen X and Gen Z who are now in "prime adult years" are many fewer than the Boomer generation that is aging out of the work place and dying off now.

One of the prime movers for low unemployment is those two generations behind the boomers consist of fewer adults than the boomers did. As opposed to the last couple or three decades when both boomers and Gen X were adults in prime earning years.

Look at how popular cruise vacations have become, or how much Medicare supplemental insurance gets advertised. Or those senior living centers, reverse mortgages, burial expense life insurance, etc. Boomers are a big market. This hobby has a lot of participants who are in that demographic group. Getting smaller over time, and is being supplanted in the market for goods and services.

This will no doubt have an impact on what activities and businesses thrive and which struggle. Considering how many of the Gen X and Gen Z end up renting both due to costs and because some desire greater mobility. Rental makes hobbies that require equipment and have some safety concerns for the general public potentially a bit more of a problem for them to engage in.

I can't imagine I would easily get away with a stash of lead and reloading bench in a 2 bedroom apartment with a couple of kids as easily as I do in a 3 bedroom house with the kids all grown and moved out. Either wife or neighbors might find cause to complain in the apartment.

[Wolfdog91]

I don’t know boys….I wonder sometimes if we are a dying breed. Local gun shows within 100 miles of me have had a constant in the last year —- no offense intended, I’m old too (64) and the constant has been….old people. I see very, very few young people at the shows anymore, mostly old guys like me. The outdoors club I belong to, almost all seniors.

The one thing I’ve been hammering on my peers is to be nice and take the time and effort to RESPECTFULLY answer youngsters questions when/if they do seem interested. I’ve seen way too many seniors with an “attitude” when young people ask questions or are interested. If we do not continue to promote and embrace young people when they do come around (“READ THE STICKIES,ETC”) the local gun club, the forums, everything will just simply die.

Just my .02c worth.

Art

Being 24 and on alot of forums I see and get alot of what your talking about. Most people my age just will just leave after a few times or stop posting.
Honestly on a few forums I see the same bad attituded senior type you speak of talk about how they whish there where more young people getting in then turn around and bash people my age. That and alot of us enjoy talking honestly and when where retold to just go read a book it's like " well ok what's the point of the forum then ?"
And when we bring this up out come the comments about snow flakes and disrespect being know it alls ect... Gets old after a while and it's kinda bad how predictable it can be

[dverna]

Being 24 and on alot of forums I see and get alot of what your talking about. Most people my age just will just leave after a few times or stop posting.
Honestly on a few forums I see the same bad attituded senior type you speak of talk about how they whish there where more young people getting in then turn around and bash people my age. That and alot of us enjoy talking honestly and when where retold to just go read a book it's like " well ok what's the point of the forum then ?"
And when we bring this up out come the comments about snow flakes and disrespect being know it alls ect... Gets old after a while and it's kinda bad how predictable it can be

You make a valid point.

I used to get ticked off when a new poster, and sometimes not so new, put up a thread like....

“Help me, my 9mm is leading”

It was an honest question, but it got old seeing it every 4-5 months. I learned to just ignore it and decided not to help. Others with a bigger heart, more patience and/or more time could deal with it. I would never be that dismissive to someone at the club I used to shoot at.

And I understand the perspective of a guy who just wants an answer. Imagine someone asking about Hi-Tek and he gets a link to a thread about 300 pages long....just like telling him to go shove it.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Being 24 and on alot of forums I see and get alot of what your talking about. Most people my age just will just leave after a few times or stop posting.
Honestly on a few forums I see the same bad attituded senior type you speak of talk about how they whish there where more young people getting in then turn around and bash people my age. That and alot of us enjoy talking honestly and when where retold to just go read a book it's like " well ok what's the point of the forum then ?"
And when we bring this up out come the comments about snow flakes and disrespect being know it alls ect... Gets old after a while and it's kinda bad how predictable it can be

Don't be discouraged, Wolfie......we like you and consider you an asset to the forum. Your posts always generate more responses than the average, and your subjects about trapping, etc. interest many members. Some truth about what many posters in this thread have said, about the members predominately being fossils (I'm one), and fossils tend to be less flexible and cranky. Without guys like you we will surely go the way of the dinosaurs. By the way...I think you ought to kill that serpent.

DG

[farmbif]

wish I had some local friends like wolf dog , young, energetic, enthusiastic wanting to learn and share and not shy about working hard or playing equally hard. but as we all learn through the years time flys by and before you know it you will be an old phart too and everything in this world changes with time. so as the old beer ad used to say go for all the gusto you can.
I recently saw a speech by warren buffet and how he reminisced about the most valuable companies in the world something like 40 years ago and how none of them are in the top 20 anymore and back then he never could have imagined the changes that have taken place.

[Huskerguy]

I guess some of it depends on what your definition of "on-line forum" is. This is one of my favorites of the two I frequent most. I have about four more that all have web sites and forums on them. Those are all web sites where posts are monitored, stored within categories. There is an entirely different set of groups on sub forums to Face Book. To me they are totally different, no buying or selling and each forum is itself a category. Then there is MeWe, another forum with more selling and other specialty areas. When you spread it around and look at all the options, I am not certain things are slowed down, they are just migrated.

[414gates]

Being 24 and on alot of forums I see and get alot of what your talking about. Most people my age just will just leave after a few times or stop posting.
Honestly on a few forums I see the same bad attituded senior type you speak of talk about how they whish there where more young people getting in then turn around and bash people my age. That and alot of us enjoy talking honestly and when where retold to just go read a book it's like " well ok what's the point of the forum then ?"
And when we bring this up out come the comments about snow flakes and disrespect being know it alls ect... Gets old after a while and it's kinda bad how predictable it can be

When you encounter a different opinion, it has nothing to do with a lack of respect.

Respect has nothing to do with falling all over yourself to agree with bearded rambo types in camo.

When you encounter an opposing point of view, it has nothing to do with aggression.

You need to get used to the fact that the world really doesn't care how you feel.

Addendum :

Forums like this are unique pools of knowledge that represent hundreds of years of cumulative experience.

Every experienced member here is more than happy to share with you what they know, how they do things, and help you debug any shooting related problem you may have.

Just ask, and you shall receive.

At the same time, be prepared to encounter opinions that you may not understand or agree with.

Hopefully you have many more years to gather shooting experience ahead of you, and during that time, you can only benefit by learning from those who were where you are now, before you were born.

[Baltimoreed]

I visit about a dozen forums more or less every day. Some are busy while others are crickets. When I was working on my Enfield or ‘03s I was on the milsurps forum, when I built my scout krag i was on the scout forum. I use forums as an easy way to research whatever build I’m doing. And I learn stuff from the members with more expertise than me. The SASS Wild Bunch forum is the deadest which reflects the reality imo that WB is fading away.

[JonB_in_Glencoe]

I think it's mostly a cyclical thing, But there is more than one cycle...I mean the 4 year presidential politics cycle definitely effect the firearm hobby world, but I am seeing another cycle, one with a grandeur change on the horizon.

[Wolfdog91]

When you encounter a different opinion, it has nothing to do with a lack of respect.

Respect has nothing to do with falling all over yourself to agree with bearded rambo types in camo.

When you encounter an opposing point of view, it has nothing to do with aggression.

You need to get used to the fact that the world really doesn't care how you feel.

Addendum :

Forums like this are unique pools of knowledge that represent hundreds of years of cumulative experience.

Every experienced member here is more than happy to share with you what they know, how they do things, and help you debug any shooting related problem you may have.

Just ask, and you shall receive.

At the same time, be prepared to encounter opinions that you may not understand or agree with.

Hopefully you have many more years to gather shooting experience ahead of you, and during that time, you can only benefit by learning from those who were where you are now, before you were born. I'm sorry but I dont think you understand what I'm saying. Like I've said on other posts. If I wanted eveyone to just agree with me or give me pats on the back I'd go somewhere else theres ALOT of these forums.

I talk to alot of there people my age about forums and just about everyone of us have the same experiences. I mean most of the time it's like
" Let me guess you asked about XYZ and they said 123 right ?"
" Yep"
It's not actual opinion that's the problem. Everyone can have opinions . It's people with "opinions" . And I see it so much that people will talk about how important it is to respect opinions but when a younger or less experienced person questions or voices their opinions to someone older or more experienced counted as disrespectful or a slap in the face of there years of experience. I see it constantly. And honestly it seems to just boil down to " toe the party line do what your told and everything will be just peachy".
And it's not just my generation I've had much older then me much more experienced inbox me and other beginners offering there help but telling us to stay away from these forums due to, as one guy put it , "duck hunters". Honestly most peoel my age will just say screw it after a while and go on YouTube or similar because we just plain don't want to deal with that.
Ever since I started posting my casting and reloading stuff in Facebook discord and other place I have alot of people may age inbox me asking for help and when I ask " hay why not go on so and so forum " 80% of the time and I'm not exaggerating they'll say something along the line if they don't want to deal with the people.

[DougGuy]

A moderator that answers almost evey question posted & edits your post, does not get a return visit from me.

A copyright hound, that only allows your personal photos to be posted. No grabbing a photo off the internet.

And the moderator that is never wrong, ever.

This site is a good one.

Sounds like Rugerforum.net Forum Nazi went into my PM's and edited, removed content he didn't like then banned me cause I called him a Gestapo in a public post (and included a screenshot of my inbox where a whole stack of messages were removed by moderator) but funny part was he didn't see it and nobody notified him of it for like 6 months then he was mad as hell when he did find it..

Not to be confused with Rugerforum.com they are low key, less posts, but good ppl!

[MrWolf]

I'm sorry but I dont think you understand what I'm saying.

I do and you were who I had in mind when I made my comments. There is no need to slam or criticize another just because they brought up a point of view you disagree with. I've seen where Woldog brought something forward and I couldn't believe the attitude he got. Civility goes a long way as does respect. If you don't like a subject or post, just keep reading. Not every post requires a comment. We need the new blood and ideas to keep going and passing down what we learned the hard way. Recommendations to come here won't come from someone who felt put down.

[414gates]

.... And I see it so much that people will talk about how important it is to respect opinions but when a younger or less experienced person questions or voices their opinions to someone older or more experienced counted as disrespectful or a slap in the face of there years of experience...

How do you know how old someone is in an online forum ? Why would you advertise your age unless you were looking for a date ?

If anyone assumes I'm not going to challenge their opinion because they're older than me, or been on the forum longer than me, it's early onset dementia on their part. Them being older, or part of the forum for a longer time than me doesn't mean I need their opinion. Providing me useful information - that's a different story.

There are always better ways to do things, and age alone doesn't count towards better.

It's the younger people who are always trying new things, coming up with new and better ways, tools and techniques. Those who have been doing things the same way for a long time may not open to new suggestions, but so what. Nobody cares what they do or don't do.

Does anyone really care if someone refuses to powder coat because they prefer using a lube sizer ? I really don't.

Part of being a forum participant is filtering the white noise and extracting pertinent information. Being part of a forum like this is to benefit from other people's experience, and share your own experience with others if it's useful to them, and not to get hung up on who thinks what is disrespectful. Whoever wants respect needs to get up and go earn it.

Armchair ninjas will type into their keyboards, they mostly have nothing better to do. What they type makes no difference in anyone else's life.

Focus on the useful information, ignore the background noise, respect is earned, not provided on demand.

[.429&H110]

I just re-read 57 posts, realized you could substitute "church" for "forum" to have the same discussion.

Other Forums Dying Out? Less Active?
or
Other Churches Dying Out? Less Active?

Remarkably same discussion, for the same reasons.
A key difference is I cannot be anonymous at church.

[Winger Ed.]

I talk to alot of there people my age about forums and just about everyone of us have the same experiences. I mean most of the time it's like
" Let me guess you asked about XYZ and they said 123 right ?"
" Yep"

As time goes on, and the internet has expanded- I've seen people expect the 'net to spoon feed them.
Some get rather testy if you recommend them to do a little research, or maybe buy a book, rather than do it for them.

Attitude is everything. There's a old sticky here somewhere about how some people will do well here,
and others--- not so much.

For them, heck I'm also guilty of having a little fun adding to their frustration as politely as I can.
Once in awhile, some new member will go on a rant about the word 'boolits'.

Awhile back, just to throw another log on the fire of the responses he got, I recommended he get ahold of No.1.
He always seemed willing to listen, and more than fair.
In order to make him happy:
No.1 might add the word boolits to the profane list, ban it, and even change the name of the site.
I never saw him post again.

[VariableRecall]

As a young fella (26) that has only reloaded for a couple years, I can say for certain that there's a large divide in utility between a forum, and more instant forms of communicating like Discord. I only use Discord for general communication and engaging with communities I like, as well as private conversations with friends I've met in person. In a general sense, A forum is more oriented towards a knowledge base, and newer services are more fit for being a part of a much larger crowd. Sometimes, at least on places like Discord, it's OK if your content is swept away by the tide of other people's information. Although, I would like to say that Discord's search feature on server channels is a lot more robust and easier to use than Castboolits.

Still, I think that this forum is going to be providing many more years of good community building and knowledge sharing. Here's to more of that!

[Electrod47]

Don't be discouraged, Wolfie......we like you and consider you an asset to the forum. Your posts always generate more responses than the average, and your subjects about trapping, etc. interest many members. Some truth about what many posters in this thread have said, about the members predominately being fossils (I'm one), and fossils tend to be less flexible and cranky. Without guys like you we will surely go the way of the dinosaurs. By the way...I think you ought to kill that serpent.

DG

I could not say it better Mr. Moderator
Wolfdog Please stick around, Your enthusiasm and honest heart are greatly appreciated.

[country gent]

I would also consider that in todays political climate that some are pulling back and not making ownership known (or feelings) on a public forum

[Rapier]

Most folks do not realize the time and expense that goes into maintaining a site like this. It gets to be just like, water comes from a faucet, no one sees the wells, pipes, maintenance in freezing rain, etc. Water just comes from the faucet. This site nor any of the others, work by themselves. Anyone and everyone can invite someone to join or help out. These sites are under constant attack, the attacks weare on the adminstrator and the IT folks, some attacks cost a good bit of money to fix. People change sites because they must.

[sparky45]

I read your post twice and still don't know what it is you were trying to say. Of course this site and the maintaining of said site costs money; but the owner MAKES money from this site as well. I'd venture to say the more spent is money well spent in that it makes the site more attractive to new users. I don't know about you, but no one "invited" me to join, I searched out information and found the answer here so I joined. It's not rocket science ya know.
As to Wolfdog's OP; right on point as usual.

[Murphy]

I'm on two forums I keep track of. This being one of them, I may not log in everyday, but I look at it. Sometimes I feel I may be able to contribute something, other times if there's nothing I can add to a post by someone then there's no need for me to reply to it. That, and I do my best to speak only from personal experience.

My other forum started out with a small base of probably 20-30 shooters of all ages, that was in the late 90's. It seemed to have all but died for a while, I still check it daily. While it was once pretty active, it now goes for a week or more before there are a few posts. It's been sad to see the decline there in posts. A lot came and went (dis-respect of fellow members just wasn't tolerated), and some have crossed on over the river.

The generational gap. I'm 68 now and when I think about it, I found myself in that mind set that a much younger man can't teach me much when it came to my job. Was I ever wrong about that one. I suspect that applied not only to my job, but life in general. I'll admit it was a bitter pill to swallow, but it was good medicine.

With so much information out there anymore, there is a reason people join forums. Mine is to learn, share my experience, and have interaction with others.

Murphy

[Der Gebirgsjager]

Sparky45--I hope I don't get in a jam for "talking out of school", but this forum is just about a break even proposition. There is a fund drive every year to keep the server operating. I've offered the owner ideas in the past to increase revenue, but he's always come back with his desire that the forum be educational and not a business.

DG

[hoodat]

I started this thread sixty some posts back. I was kinda troubled about all the dying forums, but I guess this ain't one of them. That's a good thing. I'll repeat that there seems to be a great bunch of folks here and they seem to give and get respect from each other. It also seems that we seem to dwell on a lot of interesting little tid- bits about this basic hobby. I think it's the little things that make ANYTHING more interesting.

Maybe the problem with all those other forums is that everyone left them to come here. jd

[hoodat]

And as far as loading pics, it doesn't seem too hard, and I'm a technotard. It's done a little different on almost every forum, and everybody seems to use a little different technique. I say keep on trying, because pics just make things more interesting and fun. Here's a couple of the "up and comers" that we all need to fill with love for our sport. If nothing else, it will provide someone for us to pass our beloved guns on to. jd

301532

[Winger Ed.]

Maybe the problem with all those other forums is that everyone left them to come here.

All of these forums develop and reflect the personality of their 'regulars' and what the owner will allow or tolerate.

As most of us have seen:
If the regulars are a bunch of problem children, and the owners & moderators tolerate such behavior--
especially where new members are ridiculed or treated like dirt, those forums always die out sooner or later.

[rintinglen]

"The high cost of components right now is not doing the hobby any favors. Lot of folks see $100 primers and expensive components and just don't pursue it. I started a person in their 30's loading for .38 special and if it wasn't for my being able to provide some components I'm pretty sure they would just not reload and shoot less."

I am sure that this is part of the issue. 50 to 500 % increases in costs have made shooting more costly, while fear of inflation and recession have made many hesitant to spend on hobbies. My area has seen gasoline prices double, albeit they did "plummet" this week by 40¢, still at $4.459 it affects me, I think twice about just running 35 miles to the range. What was about 5 dollars, now is more like 10. This coupled with other rising prices makes a day at the range more of a dent on the budget. If I was still young, with a couple of daughters and a wife to provide for, and limited disposable income, a pizza and movie night would frequently displace 22's in the desert. And that would decrease the amount of time I'd spend on the internet looking at shooting sites.
Hopefully, this too will pass, just like Jimmy Carter's stagflation, or Geo. H. W Bush's reduced defense spending induced recession, or the housing bubble. When money gets tight, discretionary spending is reduced. And interests follow the money.

[Der Gebirgsjager]

And as far as loading pics, it doesn't seem too hard, and I'm a technotard. It's done a little different on almost every forum, and everybody seems to use a little different technique. I say keep on trying, because pics just make things more interesting and fun. Here's a couple of the "up and comers" that we all need to fill with love for our sport. If nothing else, it will provide someone for us to pass our beloved guns on to. jd

301532

That's a fine looking pair of young 'uns, jd. And you're right that it's really what it's all about---passing along the sport and knowledge. I can't agree with you more about posting photos. They make any thread more interesting, and like the old saying, "a picture is worth a thousand words" I always try to post one if available.

DG

[schutzen-jager]

JMHO many have been taken over by Canadian + other media corporations - most changed for the worse with poor administrators + moderators -

[higgins]

This forum seems to have fewer of the internet expert types that eventually dominate some forums. The experts will occasionally let slip someting that gives them away as not near as knowledgeable as they would have you believe. I see them as internet experts because they just repeat what they read and seem to have little knowledge gained from personal experience. The fact that moderators here do not tolerate arrogant, vulgar types is another plus.

[schutzen-jager]

This forum seems to have fewer of the internet expert types that eventually dominate some forums. The experts will occasionally let slip someting that gives them away as not near as knowledgeable as they would have you believe. I see them as internet experts because they just repeat what they read and seem to have little knowledge gained from personal experience. The fact that moderators here do not tolerate arrogant, vulgar types is another plus.

totally agree i have given up on several forums in past year for the reasons you stated -
many believe facts are true because they read them on the internet !

[hoodat]

I think that for a lot of us, the forums provide a way to enjoy our love of firearms vicariously through the experiences of one another.

I can literally go a mile up the road and shoot -- anything. From high-powered rifles, shotgun, pistol. Hunt quail, rabbits, deer, coyote --- but I find myself sitting on my butt, like right now, talking about it rather than doing it. Maybe because it's so easy to do, I don't make a big thing of it very much.

I'm 65 years old, and I've got 55 years of experiences, memories, pictures, equipment, books, components, --- and frequently more to say than needs to be said about it all.

I think these forums serve a great purpose for all of us, and it makes me kind of sad to see any of them decline. jd

[lightman]

It seems like most of the forums that I'm on slow down in the Summer. Maybe its too hot in parts of the Country to shoot, cast or reload. Or maybe we have yard work to do or kids or grandkids participating in sports.

[Soundguy]

Yup..here in Florida..super hot n humid..grass can be mowed twice a week sometimes.

[funnyjim014]

Most forums on all subjects are on the decline. Compared to Facebook they are alot of work to keep running and sometimes harder to navigate. Saying that castboolits seems to be one of the easiest and the combined knowledge is huge. FB is full of idiots and I dropped most of the shooting and loading group

[Tazman1602]

Being 24 and on alot of forums I see and get alot of what your talking about. Most people my age just will just leave after a few times or stop posting.
Honestly on a few forums I see the same bad attituded senior type you speak of talk about how they whish there where more young people getting in then turn around and bash people my age. That and alot of us enjoy talking honestly and when where retold to just go read a book it's like " well ok what's the point of the forum then ?"
And when we bring this up out come the comments about snow flakes and disrespect being know it alls ect... Gets old after a while and it's kinda bad how predictable it can be

Absolutely what I am talking about Wolfie. Respect gets you respect. I of course grew up in a different world. When I was young, I had a Ruger Redhawk 44 mag. Brought it to work and the old guy I worked with asked me how often I shot it….not much was my response, small kids, expensive ammo. First words out of his mouth were “what are ya. Stupid?” Oh boy, face red, embarrassed, I’d never heard of reloading casting. I did like the old guy though. That year (mid 80’s?) for Christmas he brought me a Lee mold, casting pot, a set of Lee dippers, and a Lee nutcracker press and then took the time to teach me how to cast/reload properly. I cast/shot thousands of loads through that Redhawk and have NEVER forgotten how he LIED TO ME! “There, you’ll save a lot of money by loading your own now!” …..and smiling when he said it……

What he didn’t tell me was 40 years later I’d have $10K or more in reloading tools, how I’d shoot a thousand time more than I currently did and I cannot wait to pass on this knowledge to someone younger but alas I’m still looking. I do have a 9 year old grandson who is my reloading buddy but haven’t been able to get any youngsters much interested yet.

I am so glad to hear of your age and hope you are here for many years to come!

Art

[jonp]

I have also noticed that some other forums are populated with a bunch of snobs.

That and gunstore commando's that know everything about every subject and won't miss an opportunity in talking down to you letting you know it. I've stopped going to quite a number and am down to 3 I think.
Wolfdog21 is right about what he is saying. Answering a question and then suggesting a few references to read even if the question has been asked 100 times is one thing, bashing someone for even asking in the first place is another.

Some forum members forget that not everyone has been shooting for over 40yrs or reloading for 30 much less casting.

[Milky Duck]

its a hard job moderating a forum...let too much slide and its messy,clamp down too much and you called a nazi.... Ive only been here 24hrs and already can see me spending lots of time here,being able to discuss my faith is a HUGE bonus,on another forum that will see your thread dissapear and do it again you are banned.
I keep checking in on huntingnut...its been my 2nd home for years now,the pointblank is the only ballistics programme a simple chap like myself will ever need... great place,great folks but boy is it quiet as of late.
Ive pondered the WHY it is good a few times over the years,came up with this
mutual respect for others faith
respect for LEOs
respect for service folks
looking out for each other and just taking time to check in with folks who havent posted for some time.
keep the smutty stuff or controversial stuff to PMs