When I first decided to learn to hunt a few years ago, I picked up a couple of oddball 35 caliber rifles, because I always seem to end up getting into oddball stuff no matter the topic. One of them never shot right because the crown was messed up, and the other one is a Whelen that is a little overkill for coastal blacktail deer. Then last year I bought a pile of old guns from a friend who had collected them over the years, but never shot any of them. I sold almost all of them on, but there was a old Model 30 Express in the lot, made in the 1920's, in 30-06. The bluing on the barrel is really worn away, and the stock could stand to be stripped and refinished, but I figured every gun nut should have a 30-06, so I kept this one. I had Ed Lapour make custom scope mounts for it, and he mounted an old Redfield widescreen scope on it for me and I ended up using it to get my first deer ever last Sunday morning, on the last day of the season.
I still have the 35s, and just got the crown fixed on the lever gun a few weeks back, but I really am fond of this 30-06, and now it will always have a special place in my stories, no matter what I do with it from now on.
