Was your dad a hunter and gun collector?

[2ndovc]

They sure were. Both grandfathers were hunters and began collecting later in their lifetimes.
My dad and I used to rabbit and varmint hunt alot when I was a kid. Later he bacame more
of a collector and target shooter. He just can't deal with the cold.
My former father in law got me into deer and large game hunting.

Here's my Dad on a boar hunt from the mid sixties. He standing in the back on the right
with his 30-06.



His Dad, taken in the '20s during his border patrol days.



I wish I had some photos of my Mom's dad from his hunting trips.

I'm off to the range now with one of Grandpa's rifles and a Savage 99
that I bought because of this photo.

jb

[stew71]

Pop used to be an avid hunter, but no longer. He never collected guns, but owned just what he needed. A Remington 30-06, a Remington 870 12gauge, and a 9mm pistol. He still has the pistol, gave my brother the 870, and traded the 30-06 to me for my Marlin 30-30. He no longer hunts, but prefers instead to photograph the animals. He's currently into photographing the huge waterfowl migrations here in the Central Valley using a digital camera through a high-powered spotting scope.

I'll post some of his pics next time I think about it. Pretty impressive.

[Bogie35]

Hey boys,
'Ya know somethin'? We are a bunch of spoiled middle aged brats. Just look at all the guns, ammo, and fun hunting we all do. After reading all of the posts, I have come to the conclusion that 98% of our Dads were hard working responsible individuals who were more concerned with feeding their families than having fun.

Thats why they called them the "Greatest Generation", and rightfully so.

No, I don't feel guilty for the fun I'm havin'---I feel thankful for the sacrifices of our Dad's generation. There will be no more like 'em. Just pockets of good Dads here and there.

Yea, Terry, your in that bunch. -----------------------------------------Sixgun

+1

bogie

[Bogie35]

My dad was a hunter his entire life . . . He loved to peasant hunt and would drive all night to hunt for one or two days....he also loved to fish.
jumbeaux

I wouldn't speak much of that unless you're sure the Statute of Limitations has passed. . .

+1!

bogie

[OI phones in...]

No. My parents are "non-gun" (not anti) urban midwesterners.

If it weren't for JROTC, I wouldn't have touched a firearm until Basic.

[WinM71]

My dad wasn't a big-time hunter, but we spent a LOT of time hunting woodchucks when I was growing up. Now, of course, I wish it had been even more. He was a gun collector, but only to the extent that a schoolteacher's salary would allow (moms didn't work in those days). He got me into relaoding when I was 14 or 15.

[Barcelona Rick]

AJMD429 and Bogie35....when I went to UT they never did teach me how to spell....daddy of course hunted Pheasants not peasants......although he may have done some of that from the top turret of a B 24 Liberator bomber during WWII. Y'all please just call me a pinhead next time and point out the error of my ways..

jumbeaux

[2ndovc]

My dad was a hunter his entire life . . . He loved to peasant hunt and would drive all night to hunt for one or two days....he also loved to fish.
jumbeaux

I wouldn't speak much of that unless you're sure the Statute of Limitations has passed. . .

"The peasants are revolting!"



jb

[mescalero1]

Yes, they are!
Wizard of ID fan?

[brucew44guns]

My dad wasn't much of a hunter, but in 1948 he acquired a like new 71 long tang deluxe from a friend. Dad gave me the rifle in 1962, soon will be 50 years ago. It's killed several mule deer, black tailed deer, and one elk. My dad got more joy in knowing I cherished the rifle than he himself owning for his own use. Glad he felt that way

[Old Ironsights]

No. My parents are "non-gun" (not anti) urban midwesterners.

If it weren't for JROTC, I wouldn't have touched a firearm until Basic.

Continued...

I was tolerated but never encouraged in my persuits.

They DID buy me a Bear compound bow (kit) but left it at that.

Despite all of that, Wyoming has a way of letting a gun-prone kid do his best, so I was able to kill a mulie at 16 (with a borrowed Savage 99E) and do a bit of skunk trapping (carried a borrowed Browning High Power for Coyotes).

But that was the extent of it.

[okdee]

My dad hunted pheasant for a short while, usually with a group of men from work. They would fly up to North Dakota and have a grand old time. Then, the best part was when a big ole box with dry ice would show up at the house, full of cleaned pheasant! Mom sure knew how to cook em! He did not really hunt after that.

And Dad always did collect, sell, and reload for guns. That was really what him and a group of buddies, did in NE Oklahoma.

I really enjoyed going to gunshows with Dad. He seemed to know everyone and if he did not, well , he knew the gun or guns they were sellin or buyin. He showed me how to reload in the garage, or maybe it was punishment for some unknown and forgotten teenager mistake, that I did!

Good memories, I am doin the same with my boy, Cody.

Cheers,
Oklahoma Dee

[Old Time Hunter]

My Dad still has the three guns he has always had, a '41 M94 Winchester 32 Spec, a 1937 Stevens 36C .410 single shot, and a Ithaca 16 ga bolt gun. That is it as far as collecting, but he has hunted every year since he was 8 years old. My Gramps on the other hand, collected and was continously hunting, from Rabbits to Bear, including anything that flew also, he was after it. Don't think he ever ate a meal that didn't have wild game in it.

[lever-4-life]

My dad hunted birds as a kid but after Viet Nam he never had the desire to kill. He was an avid trout fishermen and loved his Rock n' roll, but never hunted after 1969. He had his dads M1 carbine incase he needed it and for a time had an ithica 37 12ga. He bought me a winchester 20ga when I was two and I havent looked back since. Dad died a week after my 19th birth day from problems related to his service in Viet Nam.

[winchester1886]

No after four years in the second world war he hated guns, mum was the one that helped my brother and me smuggle guns into the house, my mum was ahead of her time she always said the more you try and stop people having things they want or want to do the more they are going to want them or want to do them.

[iceman]

My Dad hunted. I remember walking with him looking for ruffed grouse when I was maybe 7 or 8. He bought me a daisy bb gun that looked like a m0d 94 when I was maybe 8 or so and later a break action 22 cal pellet gun. Of the three guns he had I still have 2 of them. He traded a Savage mod 99 in 303 savage for a Rem 870 in 20 ga when he gave up deer hunting. I still have it and also a win mod 67 22 single shot that he taught me to shoot with. My son has hunted with me and can shoot pretty well, but is more into team sports ie hockey and soccer. Hopefully someday that will change and we can get in a few days of hunting while I still can.

[Hillbilly]

My dad never owned a lot of guns... but he was deadly and a wicked good shot with the few he had.
He is very mechanical... did his own trigger jobs on a few things that passed through the collection... could install recoil pads ...even made a few screws for replacments.

Dads guns were liberated in a house break back in the early 90's. I dont think he replaced any... he never hunted much at all after he moved to Florida.

[BigSky56]

My dad has been a hunter since he was old enough to tote a gun being raised in the mountains on a ranch upland waterfowl big game he used a 99 in 22HP for years till ammo dried up then upgraded to a 94 in 25-35 then a 06 said he didnt like the kick and it bloodshot to much meat went back to the 25-35. He used a 20 ga for his bird hunting and a 22 for pests and butchering stock. My dad taught me to hunt and still gets a deer if he goes out but my grandfather taught me to shoot Ive seen him take pheasants on the wing with a 22 rifle. He's gone now.Neither were collectors. danny

[BenT]

There wasn't much for deer around when my father was a young man. Farm country no where for the deer to hide during the depression. But he mainly hunted with dogs .Mainly coon but ran fox during the winter also. No TV that was his entertainment and he made alittle money on hides. It wasn't until I was able to hunt in the mid seventies that deer populations rebounded and I bought my Win 94.

He always traded up when getting a different gun. The only family guns are grandfather's single shot springfield 22 and 12guage stevens, my father has a Rem 742 in 30-06.Farmers just didn't buy anything fancy . He liked Auto's from using them in Korea, but regrets selling his Marlin to get married. My grandfather always told me that when he was young that he better bring back a game for every shell he shot.

[TNBigBore]

My dad grew up dirt poor in rural East Tennessee during the 40s. I am quite sure a big percentage of the meat they ate came from squirrels, rabbits, possums and the occasional deer or bear they shot. All they had was a couple of 22s, a single shot 12 ga and an old 1873 Winchester 32-20 that they considered their big game rifle. I think dad ate so much wild game growing up that he had no taste for it by the time I came along. He never took my brother and me hunting, but would always take us fishing, hiking and backpacking in the mountains. My maternal grandfather was an avid coon hunter and took us hunting often. My dad is still living and can walk me to death to this day. I will always be grateful to him and my grandfather for instilling their love of the outdoors in me.

[tman]

my father is a ww2 infantry vet with 5 bronze stars and 2 purple hearts, but you wouldn't know it to talk to him. he started me out shooting and hunting and fishing. until this year we hunted together. since may , he's had 3 major operations, but doing fine. i told him i would.nt take him hunting with me this fall, he needs a year to recover. i saw the look in his eyes, as he agreed, it nearly broke my heart. at 89years old he still out shoots me. needless to say, next to JESUS CHRIST, he's my hero.

[shawn_c992001]

My grandpa was a hunter and so is my dad. My grandpa only had three guns a 1400 Winchester 12ga., a Remington Nylon 66 Apache, and a Savage 110 30-06. My grandpa passed late Febuary of this year. My dad loves to hunt and fish. One thing I try to do that my dad did with his is always go hunting the first day of squirrel season. I've bought my dad a few guns. One was a Universal 30 Carbine, he used one to kill his first deer, a spike. It had correct mounts and even a old Redfield scope.

[Mokwaw]

He hunted rabbits and squirrels and occasional pheasant, one gun man Stevens model 77 20 ga pump. He started me out with a borrowed Savage model 24 22/410 on squirrels and rabbits, then gave me own 22 a Hamilton #51 boys rifle (I still have), then at around age 12 he let me buy a Rem. 48 20 ga auto with money I erned in the hay fields. He had a real problem understanding why I wanted to get more guns, especially high powered rifles, but he allowed it until I was of age to do my own thing. In later years he would buy guns from people who needed some cash then would pass them on to me, most weren't much to write home about but I still have a couple of "good ones" that he bought. Wish my son was more interested, maybe one of my grandsons will pick up the "habit".