I carry my father's guns, and my grandfather's guns. I will not be parted from them.
My best shotgun is not the one I bought, but the one my father bought for his dad, many years ago. It is a Mossberg three shot bolt action with a poly choke. Best bird and small game gun I've ever fired. Taken several deer with it as well. I am nearly as fast with a bolt as most are with a pump, and it knocks down pheasants when everyone else has given up trying.
Next up would be the rifle. A glenfield model #60.22lr 17shot tubular magizine, a gift from my father.
Pistol would be the 9shot .22lr my dad owned until workmen in his home, stole it from his room. With that gun, I could harvest apples by clipping the stems. It was an extension of my will. I have never found a suitable replacement for what he lost.
(That pistol had a history, and played a role in my father/mother's marriage, so it had a hand in me. If I ever catch the thief, he will wish he had called the cops himself) (if you wish the story, PM me.)
Knives, I have a fixed blade my grandfather made for a kit, with a full tang and stacked leather rings for a grip. It rode on my hip until I passed it on to my son. The Mossberg three shot bolt action also went to him this past Christmas.
I'm careful with the heirloom stuff, but it will be used for what it was intended. A tool for a purpose, and using it, as my forebearers did, is a connection to my heritage. That link is missing if it just gathers dust on a shelf. My grandfather's knife is not high quality, wouldn't hold an edge for too long, but served me as it served him, skinning and chopping as needed. My 100+yr old Sterlingworth s×s takes to the outdoors each year for the same reason, to walk the path through history with a new companion, a continuance of purpose.
