Who Hunts, Shoots, Collects ?

[dkmlever]

I hunt quite a bit, 10 tags in 2011, and I shoot to prepare for those hunts. Got my own range so I can shoot whenever.
Not so much in to colecting, I used to see guns I "wanted" and bought some of them but if I did not shoot it, it soon left the safe as trade bait. Now, I can over come the 'want" and look just at "needed" guns. Might even thin the current herd some in 2012.....primaraly to afford a hunt or two!

[Shasta]

I enjoy all my guns, and especially my leverguns. I deer hunt with them:


Buck taken with 38-55 Winchester Model 94 Chief Crazy Horse commemorative


I use them target shooting and in NRA Cowboy Lever Action Silhouette competition:


Knocking down chickens with a Uberti 1873 in 32-20


And I collect. Not for investment, but to shoot! All in my collection are shooters:





SHASTA

[Canuck Bob]

Interesting question! first I shoot what I own. But I bought a flintlock, Lee Enfield and Winchester 94 last year more as a collector, I bought for thier historical signifigance to me. Health may rob me of hunting the verdict is still out on that one. Certainly the fine Canadian art of moose hunting is done. If I can return to the hunting field I will use each new rifle at least once on deer.

I do shoot and woods loaf for another reason. I feel it is a duty to be capable of defending my family, neighbors, and country so I must stay current with a rifle. I hope I'm graced with the wits and strength to do that until I die. My tactical rifle used to be my 444. Now it is my 32 Special because my Lee Enfield isn't a lefty bolt. Someday it will be my 32-20 when my eyes are only good for 50 paces and my shoulder is totally shot.

If I picked one response it would be to shoot. It never gets tiring to take a bead and hit what I aim at, never.

[6pt-sika]

Perhaps one could say they do any of the three or or any number of them for that matter so they can truely LIVE and not just exist

[COSteve]

When I stop and think about it, what I've gravitated to this last year is becoming a teacher as I've spent many more sessions helping new shooters learn the basics of safety and good marksmanship than just shooting myself. I've found teaching to be more gratifying to me now because the look on a new shooter's face when they successfully apply what they've learned and they see the improvement really makes my day.

But to answer the question asked, I'm primarily a shooter and occasionally a hunter, however, hunting is fast becoming something "I use to do." I'm definitely not a collector because I only have what I want to shoot. There isn't a platform I use that doesn't make me smile when I fire it such as my most recent acquisition, a wood stocked, standard grade Springfield M1A.

Just last Sunday, my son with the stock Garand and I with the stock M1A were enjoying ourselves shooting at bowling pins, standing offhand, at 200 yards. Shooting with and teaching my son, that's as good as it gets for me no matter what the target.

[Old Time Hunter]

Started out just to hunt, then figured that it might be necessary to actually hit what was hunted, that required shooting...then shooting alot. Which led me to acquire different guns to see if they shot any different so I could hunt more critters.

Of course competition crept into the picture along the way and coming up with unique ways to compete...like getting an old worn out gun to shoot and then beat the guy next to me with his brand new watchamacallit mega buck sooper dupper caliber with a twenty pound engraved barrel with optical enhancers and me using that 1885 single shot throw away with oversize hand cast lead bullets and iron sights that he laughed at last year.

[86er]

I collect guns I can hunt with.

I shoot guns I collect.

I hunt with guns I shoot.

[Ysabel Kid]

Hunt = no (though some tree-rats in the back yard that have invaded the attic are about to change that).
Shoot = whenever I can, and not nearly enough.
Collect = more than I need, but not as many as I want (mainly due to the enablers here!!! You know who you are!!!)