I thoroughly enjoy reading anything written by JOC. Growing up, I read everything I could get my hands on that concerned hunting and fishing. I dreamed of someday going to exotic locales and spending my days and nights in pursuit of all kinds of animals. Then, along came O'Connor, and I was converted into a gun nut. I have been one ever since and the hunting part became secondary to owning, and shooting, as many kinds of firearms as I could lay my hands on.
Jack, I think, was responsible for more members of my generation taking an interest in guns than any other writer. He wrote in a clear, concise manner and explained things in a way even a 16 year old kid could understand. He, along with Havilah Babcock, Robert Ruark and Jim Kjelgaard sparked,in a dumb country boy, an interest in reading that continues to this day.
Your experience has been almost a parallel of mine in terms of the impact/influence that JOC had on me when I was growing up. The first CF rifle that I bought with money that I had earned working for a local farmer was a sporterized FN built Model 24/30 Venezuelan Mauser carbine in 7x57. I still have the $37.50 price tag from Welch's Gun Shop in Lebanon, NH, in the log book for that rifle. After damaging it, from firing it with a barrel that I managed to plug with snow, well known Springfield, VT, 'smith Creighton Audette repaired and rebuilt it as a restocked and rebarreled 257 Roberts that is the longest serving of my 11 rifles chambered for that cartridge.
