Gun show season

[dragonrider]

Gun show season has finally arrived in New England again, it seems like such a long time since the last one in early spring.
I went fully expecting to come home with another gun, but alas, I did not. Although several of anything I was looking for were there, I didn't buy a thing. Most unusual for me. First time I ever left a show with nothing.
Should have gotten an AR-15, or a Garand, or model 1917 S&W. There were also two #5 Enfields for $450.00 ea. I have one but the barrel is junk, can't decide to replace it or just get another one. Also was looking for some wood for an 03-A3, didn't find it.
So all in all it was an uneventful time at the first show of the season, but there is another in early October.
Also saw Dillon 450 set up in 9MM for $150.00, one thing I don't need is another press but I came close to getting this one. This one is still a possibility because I know where it lives. Also know where the better looking of the two #5 Enfields lives, I sure do like those.
Maybe in October I will feel more like buying.

[Urny]

I could use some of that sickness, or restraint, or whatever kept your money in your pocket.

[montana_charlie]

I went to the last Great Falls gun show, and it was the first I had been to in twenty years. I just went to look, but I was looking for two particular things...spotting scopes and Sharps rifles.
I wanted to see if the low-priced 80mm scopes (especially the Konus) are as good as people say, and I wanted to actually handle a Sharps for the first time.
The guy selling the only Konus in the room wouldn't let me take it outside, so that was a bust, and the few Sharps rifles present were hard to find.

When I did (finally) locate an 1874, there were two of them...a new Shiloh in 'standard' grade, and a used (off the shelf grade) Pedersoli.

The guy asked which I would like to see first, and I pointed and said 'the pretty one'. Boy! It was nice. I shouldered it and dry-fired the set trigger (with the hammer down) and generally admired the whole experience.

When I said I'd like to 'sample the low cost spread', the guy looked at me funny and handed me the other rifle. The case coloring was brighter than the first and it was well assembled, but everything else was 'duller'. No soft glow on the wood, and the grain was still 'open'. The wood reminded me of the Mossberg shotguns Montgomery Ward used to sell.
If I had been wanting to buy a rifle that day, it was certain the first one would be my choice.

Turns out, the second gun was the Shiloh at $1600, and I could have had the first (the pretty one) for $800.

That experience, along with some 'interaction' from the Shiloh forum, convinced me that my first Sharps would be a Pedersoli.

The next gun show is September 29th, and I plan to attend...
but, just lookin'.
CM

[Lee]

mc, you will be well pleased with a Pedersoli replica. I've a Sharps and a Rolling Block and they are both nice guns. While they may not have the same romance of the originals, they "ARE" mighty easy on the wallet.........................Lee:)

[RayinNH]

Paul are you talking the West Springfield show in early Oct. I'm sure going to try getting there even though it's about a 2 1/2- 3 hour ride. A couple years ago I went when the Winchester Collectors Assoc. was set up there , sure was fun looking at what a $15,000- $30,000 gun looks like. [smilie=1:...Ray

[BruceB]

MC;

As a long-time Shiloh owner, and an occasional shooter/handler of Pedersoli guns (I inspected one of their Sharps' replicas just a day or two back and was NOT impressed...I'm spoiled!), it's apparent to me that you're more impressed with glitz and surface appearance than quality and tradition. My Shiloh rifle came to me in 1980 with "open-grain" walnut. Now, after all those years and applications of Linspeed every once in a while, it has the soft glow of a well-used and well-loved rifle. Factory glitter falls a long way short of that, believe me.

Do you think that original Sharp's rifles had glossy wood finishes and lurid case-hardening? Do you think that Shiloh has sold overpriced rifles for over 25 years, during which time there was and is a waiting list sometimes YEARS long, for every rifle they can build? There's a reason for that endless demand for their rifles, and it's spelled pride of ownership or, q-u-a-l-i-t-y.

Pedersoli does indeed build decent guns FOR THE MONEY. Shiloh builds BETTER guns (at a higher price...what else would we expect? Quality costs.) Do you know that Shiloh parts will fit an original Sharp's? Do you know that Shiloh states their rifles will stand anything that Ruger #1 can take, pressure wise?

As a Montanan, why not stop by Big Timber and see for yourself the work and effort that goes into the making of one of today's "modern classics" by your fellow Montanans? Shiloh is very welcoming to drop-in riflemen, and usually give them the whole tour.

You do indeed get what you pay for. If the Shiloh you looked at was in decent condition, it was a screaming bargain at that price.

[dragonrider]

Ray
Yes that's the one, it's about a 1 hour ride for me. I usually go on Sunday mornings. prowl around for a hour or two and get home by 1-1:30 pm. Perhaps we could meet over a cup of coffee?

[montana_charlie]

MC;
As a long-time Shiloh owner...I'm spoiled!
You made a lot of points, Bruce, which I won't argue with individually. You deserve to feel spoiled because Shiloh produces high quality guns...and for extra money they make beautiful ones, as well. But, I don't have money (extra money, that is) for eye candy. The Shiloh I was looking at was very plain, but I realize it was their 'standard everything' grade of gun...the basic type that was priced (at that time) on their website for $1547.

When I first started looking, Shiloh was the only manufacturer I knew existed.
Only after many weeks of reading opinions from experienced shooters did I come to realize that Pedersolis will shoot as well as the Shiloh guns, but I still thought I wanted a Shiloh. Seeing them side by side made me realize that the 'Italian junk' comments that are somewhat common did not tell the story.

The first gun I tried to buy was a 'used' Shiloh which was six years old but had never been fired...like so many of them out there. The owner wanted a 'pretty penny' but he had some 'extras' that I needed...and I had a rifle that he could use. We had almost settled on a trade when Shiloh raised the prices on their website, and this guy decided he wanted 'more money'.

That made (about) the sixth member of 'the Shiloh community' that had ticked me off...so I permanently abandoned any desire to become a member of that august body.

I have nothing bad to say about those guns, other than some reservations about how they finish the wood.
CM

[NVcurmudgeon]

dragonrider, you showed great restraint by passing up some desireable guns at the show, but resisting a "Dillon 450, set up in 9mm"? As good a warranty as anyone in the industry, and only $150? You know the first time you send it back to the factory they would rebuild it into a 550. I would never go to a gun show with you, Urny and ammohead egg me into buying stuff! Just kidding, you are obviously holding out for what you REALLY want.

[dragonrider]

NV
I can't say why I didn't buy anything, I guess I was not in a buying mood. Those #5's were tempting though.

[longhorn]

Aw, Charlie-I own a Shiloh, and you're welcome to come shoot it any time. I've even found the Shiloh forum bunch pretty good folks. Just remember, lots of us owned a Pedersoli _before_ a Shiloh, and experience can be a great teacher.

[montana_charlie]

Thanks, longhorn, but I found a Billy Dixon model that suits me pretty well...and it will shoot, too.

I've been kinda wanting to brag about this target, so now is as good a time as any. This is six rounds of .45-90 from a hundred yards.
The first round, fired as a fouler from a clean barrel, was lobbed toward the upper right quadrant to keep it 'out of the way'. Then, five fired for group, were aimed at center of the four-inch bull. I'm still looking for the best load for this gun, so not all of my shooting turns out this well.
CM