I learned to shoot in my teens. My dad set up bottles and cans on an old foundation set into a hill. First a 22 rifle, then an old Mauser…. It was fun, but as I hit my mid twenties, I became anti gun and signed every petition I could. In my 50’s, after being stalked for a few years, and no help from courts or law enforcement, I turned to an old friend, a Vietnam Vet. He taught me to shoot again, everything from a 22 semi automatic to a Python, to various long guns. Along the way, I discovered the wonderful camaraderie of people who shoot. They weren’t nuts, or dangerous. Many became friends. I got to learn on and shoot some incredible guns. I still don’t hunt, but I’m comfortable w guns again, and I marvel at them and the people who have been responsible for teaching me ❤️
We brought our children to know and respect guns and what they are used for. My son brings home three deer a season. First with a bow, second with his gun, and third with a flintlock rifle. Love that venison 😎🌴
My dad took me hunting when I was in my early teens. First it was rabbit and pheasant hunting, then later deer hunting. I still hunt deer with a Remington bolt-action .243 that my uncle bought for me when I was 15 years old. And I still hunt grouse with a Mossberg 20 gauge pump that I've had for 30+ years. I have never been very interested in target shooting with guns, beyond the practice shooting I did at first, to get proficient with the use of the gun. For the last 15 years or so, I have spent more time hunting deer with a bow (and now a crossbow) than with a gun. I really like to be in the woods during October, when crossbow season for deer is open here in Michigan. The weather is generally better than November, and I can sit in my blind for much longer, enjoying the sights and sounds. If I get a deer with the crossbow (and I usually do), I don't hunt deer with a gun in November anymore. By the way, I would encourage anyone who hunts deer with a gun to switch to using copper bullets, if you have not done so already. Lead bullets fragment into many, many small pieces when they make contact with the animal, and you do not want to be consuming even small amounts of lead. Copper works fine, and it's much safer. Best to use steel shot rather than lead shot when using a shotgun, also.
Again you put words on many of my experiences as well as, I’m sure, those of many others.
I come from a family where no one hunted before me and while I own a few guns and, over the years, switched some of them out, they can’t live in the locker unless they have express purpose or, in the case of one of my three shotguns, holds emotional value as a connector back in time.
Also it is always interesting to hear diverse voices from the us where guns are so politically charged.
Sweden has a little under 600.000 gun owners in a population of just over 10 million and a vast majority are hunting guns. Owning a handgun is surrounded by an even stricter set of laws than owning guns for hunting. Guns do not have the same political significance here in spite of the large number of guns in civilian society.
I’ve never felt that the strictness of legislation has held me back from owning the guns I want or need although not everyone agrees with me. The interest I have in guns tends to get nerdy about weird sub-segments. Only lately have I started enjoying the drilling into a specific hunting activity with the specific tools that come with that. But the joy I derive is still about them as tools.
But is it also about where and from who you learn?
I was taught by a man who was given his first side by side at 13, a gun with which he still hunts. Expertly so I might add.
That, and the angle you’re providing in this text, is something we need more of. I don’t know about in the us but here, in the last decade or so, we’ve seen the rise of a new kind of “bro-hunter” if you will. Someone who starts out with a rig where entry level wild boar guns are 8-10K USD. In that group there are excellent people and avid, quickly learning hunters but it is also becoming a tad too much of a numbers and gear game for me personally to be comfortable in that culture. I don’t know what to say or how to act in those groups. We don’t seem to be there for the same reasons. I don’t seem to share crucial values. Which is fine but maybe not an entirely positive thing in the longer perspective.
All this to say that what you’re writing here is important because it gives room to the actual diversity within the hunting public, something I find very refreshing. Thank you as always.
I grew up in South Florida in the early 60's. Almost all my friends fished and most hunted. I occasionally hunted squirrels but what swayed me more to fishing is that you could pursue your target, revel in the conquest and then release the fish to fight again.
Hank, Thank you for your always insightful articles.
I have 3 guns; I don't hunt. I'm a little old lady that lives in the boonies with a bunch of sketchy people. I also have big dogs. But your comment about knives hit home. I have a number of knives on a magnet bar, but go back to the same 2 over and over. One was a wedding gift for a marriage that's been over longer than it lasted - a 10" carbon steel french chef's knife. I have taken it with me when I cooked for pack trips, on Earth Watch trips in the boundary waters... it's known as "The Precious". I have a smaller version (6"), known as "the semi- precious", but don't use it as much. The other go to is my "chicken sticker" - a victorinox, with a 4" tapered blade. It's what gets chicken butchering done. These two keep their edges better than any of the others, and are the right tool in my hand. My dad taught me and my sister to take care of our tools. And a good tool is very precious, indeed.
much like mine, so of course I agree with you, ha.
I have one kitchen knife, a Wusthof chef's knife, use it for everything that isn't filleting (Rapala fillet knife). My wife has well over a dozen different knives and she's a much better cook than me. Hm.
Learned to shoot, repair, and carry a variety of guns in the Army. My strong preference was for the old FN FAL known locally as the R-1, for similar reasons as my singular kitchen knife - prefer to learn to use a single item well, maybe I'm a bit simple minded.
When my son wanted to start hunting, I bought a 30.06 as the one gun. It's big enough for elk, and kills deer and pronghorn quickly and effectively. As Robert Ruark used to say, use enough gun..
My Tinker Bell is an over-under 12ga Beretta S55 with fixed chokes, bought cheap from a pawnshop in eastern Wyoming and repaired. Quite good enough for who it's for.
To help you understand the point of owning all those other guns allow me to put it in terms that you may best understand. You stated that you basically use only two knives… but I bet you own more than just one chef’s knife and one paring knife. In addition, I bet you own a peeler, pizza cutter, a banjo, etc. all different types of knives to perform different cooking tasks more efficiently than if you were to use one of the two knives you basically use. It is the same with guns. I assume you hunt squirrels and rabbits with Tinker Bell and not the 270 now? Too bad you no longer have your old .22.
I learned to shoot in my teens. My dad set up bottles and cans on an old foundation set into a hill. First a 22 rifle, then an old Mauser…. It was fun, but as I hit my mid twenties, I became anti gun and signed every petition I could. In my 50’s, after being stalked for a few years, and no help from courts or law enforcement, I turned to an old friend, a Vietnam Vet. He taught me to shoot again, everything from a 22 semi automatic to a Python, to various long guns. Along the way, I discovered the wonderful camaraderie of people who shoot. They weren’t nuts, or dangerous. Many became friends. I got to learn on and shoot some incredible guns. I still don’t hunt, but I’m comfortable w guns again, and I marvel at them and the people who have been responsible for teaching me ❤️
Thanks for the thoughtful reveal. 👍👍
We brought our children to know and respect guns and what they are used for. My son brings home three deer a season. First with a bow, second with his gun, and third with a flintlock rifle. Love that venison 😎🌴
My dad took me hunting when I was in my early teens. First it was rabbit and pheasant hunting, then later deer hunting. I still hunt deer with a Remington bolt-action .243 that my uncle bought for me when I was 15 years old. And I still hunt grouse with a Mossberg 20 gauge pump that I've had for 30+ years. I have never been very interested in target shooting with guns, beyond the practice shooting I did at first, to get proficient with the use of the gun. For the last 15 years or so, I have spent more time hunting deer with a bow (and now a crossbow) than with a gun. I really like to be in the woods during October, when crossbow season for deer is open here in Michigan. The weather is generally better than November, and I can sit in my blind for much longer, enjoying the sights and sounds. If I get a deer with the crossbow (and I usually do), I don't hunt deer with a gun in November anymore. By the way, I would encourage anyone who hunts deer with a gun to switch to using copper bullets, if you have not done so already. Lead bullets fragment into many, many small pieces when they make contact with the animal, and you do not want to be consuming even small amounts of lead. Copper works fine, and it's much safer. Best to use steel shot rather than lead shot when using a shotgun, also.
Again you put words on many of my experiences as well as, I’m sure, those of many others.
I come from a family where no one hunted before me and while I own a few guns and, over the years, switched some of them out, they can’t live in the locker unless they have express purpose or, in the case of one of my three shotguns, holds emotional value as a connector back in time.
Also it is always interesting to hear diverse voices from the us where guns are so politically charged.
Sweden has a little under 600.000 gun owners in a population of just over 10 million and a vast majority are hunting guns. Owning a handgun is surrounded by an even stricter set of laws than owning guns for hunting. Guns do not have the same political significance here in spite of the large number of guns in civilian society.
I’ve never felt that the strictness of legislation has held me back from owning the guns I want or need although not everyone agrees with me. The interest I have in guns tends to get nerdy about weird sub-segments. Only lately have I started enjoying the drilling into a specific hunting activity with the specific tools that come with that. But the joy I derive is still about them as tools.
But is it also about where and from who you learn?
I was taught by a man who was given his first side by side at 13, a gun with which he still hunts. Expertly so I might add.
That, and the angle you’re providing in this text, is something we need more of. I don’t know about in the us but here, in the last decade or so, we’ve seen the rise of a new kind of “bro-hunter” if you will. Someone who starts out with a rig where entry level wild boar guns are 8-10K USD. In that group there are excellent people and avid, quickly learning hunters but it is also becoming a tad too much of a numbers and gear game for me personally to be comfortable in that culture. I don’t know what to say or how to act in those groups. We don’t seem to be there for the same reasons. I don’t seem to share crucial values. Which is fine but maybe not an entirely positive thing in the longer perspective.
All this to say that what you’re writing here is important because it gives room to the actual diversity within the hunting public, something I find very refreshing. Thank you as always.
I grew up in South Florida in the early 60's. Almost all my friends fished and most hunted. I occasionally hunted squirrels but what swayed me more to fishing is that you could pursue your target, revel in the conquest and then release the fish to fight again.
Hank, Thank you for your always insightful articles.
Tad
Hank, you’ve really sparked a topic!
Now i am interested--what kind of chef's knife do you use?
Perfect. Thank you.
Good stuff Hank...
I have 3 guns; I don't hunt. I'm a little old lady that lives in the boonies with a bunch of sketchy people. I also have big dogs. But your comment about knives hit home. I have a number of knives on a magnet bar, but go back to the same 2 over and over. One was a wedding gift for a marriage that's been over longer than it lasted - a 10" carbon steel french chef's knife. I have taken it with me when I cooked for pack trips, on Earth Watch trips in the boundary waters... it's known as "The Precious". I have a smaller version (6"), known as "the semi- precious", but don't use it as much. The other go to is my "chicken sticker" - a victorinox, with a 4" tapered blade. It's what gets chicken butchering done. These two keep their edges better than any of the others, and are the right tool in my hand. My dad taught me and my sister to take care of our tools. And a good tool is very precious, indeed.
that's a healthy relationship ;-)
much like mine, so of course I agree with you, ha.
I have one kitchen knife, a Wusthof chef's knife, use it for everything that isn't filleting (Rapala fillet knife). My wife has well over a dozen different knives and she's a much better cook than me. Hm.
Learned to shoot, repair, and carry a variety of guns in the Army. My strong preference was for the old FN FAL known locally as the R-1, for similar reasons as my singular kitchen knife - prefer to learn to use a single item well, maybe I'm a bit simple minded.
https://historyguild.org/the-r1-south-african-bush-rifle/
When my son wanted to start hunting, I bought a 30.06 as the one gun. It's big enough for elk, and kills deer and pronghorn quickly and effectively. As Robert Ruark used to say, use enough gun..
My Tinker Bell is an over-under 12ga Beretta S55 with fixed chokes, bought cheap from a pawnshop in eastern Wyoming and repaired. Quite good enough for who it's for.
When you try a flintlock, you will understand why all these suppository guns you shoot are just a passing fad! 🎶🎶😎😎
well said, Great article!!
Beware the man with one, er three guns.
Hi Hank,
To help you understand the point of owning all those other guns allow me to put it in terms that you may best understand. You stated that you basically use only two knives… but I bet you own more than just one chef’s knife and one paring knife. In addition, I bet you own a peeler, pizza cutter, a banjo, etc. all different types of knives to perform different cooking tasks more efficiently than if you were to use one of the two knives you basically use. It is the same with guns. I assume you hunt squirrels and rabbits with Tinker Bell and not the 270 now? Too bad you no longer have your old .22.