Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Firearm passed on to you.

Many times it is mentioned about a certain firearm that was passed on to you from someone else. Maybe it was a family member or in my Wife's case it was from a special patient of her's in a cancer care unit. Anyway, what is a a firearm that someone passed on to you that remains precious. Also, do you use it a lot, some, or never? Pictures would be welcome also.

Here is my Dad's deer rifle that he passed on to me shortly before he passed on. I haven't hunted with it since he gave it to me but may someday. It is a Remington 742, 30-06 and is topped with a Bausch & Lomb Balvar 5 which is a 2.5 to 5 variable. It was a pretty classy rig when it was new and was considered pretty "State of the art" in our part of the state of Wisconsin. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

By todays standards it is not a very sought after rifle but I will never sell, I shall pass it on to someone else someday.

Nice looking rifle. I think that it should be used on a deer hunt, or perhaps the campfire elk hunt in '06 that I am trying to plan, possibly in my old elk hunting stomping grounds at Mt. Adams.

I have in my safe the Ithaca model 49 single shot .22 that my father gave me on my 7th birtday. It was stolen when I was 19, but only a few weeks before my sons 7th birthday I spotted it at a gunshop and re-aquired it, giving it to my son on his 7th birthday. Obviously not used much and not for sale, but hopefully there will be a grandson someday....

I also would use it. I have some guns from my father (he died in 87) and they are used. He never believed in anything gathering dust, use it for its intended purpose.

It follows what he told me one time, "When I die, shove a ham bone up my ass and feed me to the dog." Basically saying that is the only good use for him after he has died.

He felt that way (so do I) about guns. Use it, or pass it on to someone that will.

Enjoy

That's the kind of rifle my dad has. He's got a different scope on it but the rest is identical. He quit hunting quite some time ago. I guess my mom's nagging finally wore him down.

I learned a lot from him. One thing was to not marry a woman that complained about me going hunting.

My dad gave me a Win. 70 in a 243. He had gotten it to hunt fox with. This is the rifle that I used to kill my first big game animal with. It was an antelope in Montana. So not only is it sentimentle becuase it is from my Dad, but also was used for my first big game animal. It was made in 1965 and is still in good condition. I have since used it on a prarie dog shoot.

Scotty

My grandfather gave me his Belgium Browning BAR. It is chambered in .30-06. It has a Redfield 3x9 in Redfield rings. I have killed one deer with it, but I really don't like to hunt with it because it is as heavy as a boat anchor. It didn't let me down when I fired one shot in "anger". I cleaned it, and propped it up.

My wife's older brother had hip replacement surgery some years back. He was never going hunting again, and gifted me with a Remington 742 in 30-06 and a beautiful Belgium Browning A5 12 Ga mag. I also have my granddad's Winchester lever gun in .32 Winchester.

I've been lucky enough to have my dad's, grandad's and great-grandad's passed on to me--have hunted two of'em (leaving the damascus barreled L. C. Smith out of this). When you take one of those out to the woods----yeah, you do get a feeling.

Idared,

If I knew how to post a photo I would. Sometime in the '70s I puchased a Winchester model 100 .308 for my dad. He was not a hunter. I don't remember saying, "Thanks.", but do remember him saying, "If I had a gun I would want a shiny gun." I took it to a fellow in Portland who polished all the metal. That included disasembly and reassembly. The stock was sanded and refinished with an extremely tough laquer. No Weatherby is shinier. When he next saw the rifle he exclaimed, "Man! That shines like a ....... heel!" He bought a gun case for it and put it under his bed. Whenever anyone asked if he had a deer rifle, he would say, "I sure do." When they asked, "What kind?" He would excitedly say, "A shiny one!" It is now in my safe. Life goes on.

Idared,

I would use and hunt with that rifle all the time if it was mine. To me, taking an animal with a rifle that was passed on to me by my father would just mean even more to me and feel that much more special.

I have my dad's old Browning .22 Auto....made in Belgium....still like new...bought in 1964. I shoot it all the time.
My 28ga. Merkel was passed to me from my uncle....dad's youngest brother....after he died. Use it for quail quite often.

It's a pretty gun.

Loosen the scope rings, though, and slide the scope forward until the rear of the eyebell is even with the rear of the trigger guard, and it'll be a bit quicker to point and more comfortable to hold. You'll probably get a better cheek weld and be more consistent too.

Whether I hunted with a particular gun would have a whole lot to do with how it shot for me and not very much to do with where I got it. A gun that didn't shoot well for me, or that wasn't in one of my Five Calibers, I probably wouldn't keep for very long; but I'd make as sure as possible that it didn't fall into the hands of the government. A gun that didn't shoot well but was in one of my Five Calibers I'd probably keep, just because more guns is better than fewer guns, and there's always the chance that one day I might get around to seeing if I could make it shoot.

I have a Redhawk in 44Mag that I would love to take deer hunting, but I'm simply not good enough with it. I struggle to stay within 8" at 50yd with it, even rested. I wouldn't think about hunting with that until I could hit 8" at 50yd every time without fail--doesn't matter where I got it. I'd be happier to see 4", because I figure I'd be full of adrenalin and shaky if I actually had hair under those sights.

I have my grandfathers old 300H&H remington 721. He used to take me bird hunting when I was really young but he wasn't able to ever take me deer hunting. It didn't stop me from taking my first deer and bear with it. I loaded 5 rounds with 180 accubonds last weekend and fired a .642 five shot group, it has always shot well.

99 Savage, .250-3000. My grandfather got it in1920, died in '29, dad had it until he died in '92, now it's mine. But it'll always be dad's gun. Took it's 86th deer last December.

Idared,

Take it deer hunting....trust me.

I inherited a bunch of guns from dad, as he was a total rifle looney. I took a whitetail with the last rifle he bought before passing away, and it was an experience that I couldn't possibly put into words.

Jeff

My Granddad's 30 WCF '94 Winchester and my next door neighbor's military surplus Karl Gustav 6.5x55 Swede Mauser.

There is no special reason I haven't used it other than the fact when I go deer hunting I just instinctively reach for my 275 Rigby. The other reason is that I am so accustomed to carrying a bolt action rifle that I can't imagine hunting with an automatic. But, you folks are right when you say I should hunt with it more, so next year I am going to make a greater effort to take it out in the field with me.

Sometimes I do take it out of the safe and while holding it I remember many of the times we hunted together and of the joys and disappointments we shared throughout the various seasons. I cherish all these memories that the rifle brings back.
I remember the first deer he ever shot with this rifle. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
I also remember the largest deer he ever shot AT with it. The latter was on the day of President Kennedys funeral when he was still using open sights and apparently was a clean miss. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />
The next year it had the scope on it. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Dad was left handed and had a hard time with right handed bolt action rifles so this was his baby. He often raved about the fire power he had with it with extra loaded clips in his jacket pocket. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

You gotta hunt that gun. Just remember how much your time with your dad meant with you put that old piece of iron back where it belongs-in the woods chasing deer. When Dad passed away, my brother and I split up his guns. There were some that we all ready knew who would end up with, as Dad had made it clear. My brother got Dad's beloved 99 Savage. I got the 1851 Navy Colt, which had been carried during the civil war by the Great Great Uncle I'm named after. It hasn't been fired in over 50 years, but I'm sure it would function. I hunt with Dad's Mauser every year. He took his first and only moose with this fine gun. I got my first buck with it, and so did my friend who I introduced to deer hunting. He's now a very good hunter, although his shooting skills are a little suspect. (He got so excited he missed a doe at 25 yards a couple years ago. Guns that come down through the family need to stay in the family, in the field, and in our memories.

My Grandfather left me several guns but the one that means the most to me was his Winchester 101 20 gauge. He was an airline pilot and that gun accompanied him on adventures all over the world. It�s dinged and scratched and you can see where the buttons on the front of the vest scratched it when he held it at port arms. I have �finer� shotguns but when the dog and I head out it�s the one that goes.

He also left my wife a Single Six. My wife does not come from a sporting family and I suspect that she had never seen, let alone held or shot a gun before we met and she was a self described northeastern white liberal. In the seven years we�ve been married she has changed quite a bit, much to my delight. My Grandfather got a kick out of seeing her change and wanted to make sure she knew he appreciated her. I just got her a left-handed holster for the gun.

Allen

1) Old Marlin Single Shot .22, which was my paternal grandfather's gun. This was the "hog gun" they used for killing livestock on the farm my dad grew up on. My dad took me shooting a couple of times with it when I was a kid, then later gave it to me. I showed my son how to shoot with it when he was 6, making him the 4th generation of the family to use the old Marlin.

2) Winchester 1897 12 Gauge, was my maternal grandfather's. He loved to hunt rabbits; this was his rabbit gun. His health forced him to stop long before I was old enough to go along, but he gave me his 1897 before he passed.

3) Polish Wz28 (?) 8mm Mauser (SR K98), belonged to my wife's grandfather. "Pa" always had this up on a rack in his basement when we'd visit. It was his backup gun for when he used to go deer hunting in Pennsylvania. I'd always take that Mauser down off the wall and handle it; I just loved the feel of it. I guess he was paying attention, since he gave it to me a couple of years before he died. It was the first of many Mausers I have owned and hunted with, and he got me started.

So I am lucky enough to have received heirloom guns from 3 different grandfathers. I'm not getting rid of any of them.