Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Divvying up Bob's Stash

As you may remember from an earlier thread, Big Bob, my friend of nearly 40 years, died back over the winter. Bob was a gunwriter. Bob was a gun collector. Bob used to sit around with Bill Ruger, Elmer Keith and that crowd swapping tall ones. Bob was my very first hunting buddy.

Bob introduced me to the ethos of "He who dies with the most toys wins." Bob lived it daily up until he died. I was along for his last trip to the gun shop in January. I helped him sneak home a 22 rifle and backed his story to his wife.

My other buddies, SuperCore and Fitz, have been helping the widow inventory Bob's collection. They're pretty sure they got most of it, but we won't know for a long time. Bob had squirreled stuff away in every nook and cranny. A lot of Bob's phone calls to me over the past 30-some years have started with "You'll never guess what I found today." The widow spent months tearing the place apart looking for firearms. Family and friends had their picks. The rest are out now in the hands of Bob's favorite LGS awaiting disposition.

Angus, Moose, and I went to see the widow last night and pick up our choices out of the inventory. The really prime stuff is way beyond our budget. Ours were sentimental attachment pieces. Angus scored Bob's Kel-Tec Sub-2000. Moose got his Mini-30. I got a minty Ruger 44 Carbine and Luigi. Luigi was a novelty piece Bob kept around for its entertainment value. It is a Stoeger SXS Coach Gun in 12 GA modified with rifle sights. For an Ohio deer hunter in the mid-60's this was a wet dream. Bob named it Luigi in reference to a scene in Godfather II. While we were settling up, I told the widow the stories Bob had told me about some of the pieces. Most of them she had not heard.

Bob kept a selection of his long guns in an Early American style gun case. Bob kept them there as decor, and they probably represented the first long guns he collected after he got married. The case was still there, having moved from the separate houses in the time I knew Bob with the contents and their order on the rack unchanged. The pricer pieces were gone, but the 44 Carbine was where it had always been, having caught sight of if first in 1982 before I had ever pulled a trigger. I realized that although the case was familiar as were its contents, I had never touched the latch or the case. That's when most of 40 years came back to me, and I have to say I had a hard time seeing what I was doing there for a bit. I removed the carbine from the rack and locked the case back up, and that was that.

When my brother was dying, he took he out to his gun safe, opened it up and told me to pick a gun. I would like to have had my grandfathers old Remington double barrel, but I knew that he wanted his grandson to have that one. I picked a 6.8SPC AR that he'd put together, one that I knew was super accurate. He also gave my son one of his AR's.

I'll always keep the rifle, and shoot it from time to time, always remembering him. Some people do not have a sentimental bone in their body, glad to know you do shaman.

Losing some of my most cherished mentors has been one of the hardest things about getting older.

Yep, big time. I lost three in one summer a few years ago.

Losing good members here bums me out .

Shaman ,

Good morning ..

Nice story , sounds like Big Bob qualified well into the gun loony catagory . Gone but not forgotten rest in peace Big Bob ...

Shaman, thank you for sharing the memories with us.

Dying is part of living, it sucks, my friends and hunting buddies are passing on. My son will get my guns. He will have to figure out what to do with them. I sold the custom rifles a few years ago, except for an Iver Henriksen 25-06. Maybe he will save some for my grand son. My boy likes to hunt, but isn’t into rifles like I am.

^^^^^^^^^^ This ^^^^^^^^^ memtb

i have some of the same attributes, i never sell anything. That's why five WWII flatfenders are going in the hole with me.
as the firearms, i shudder. There are the ones i have bought, but many others that were owned by friends/family, they all have stories.
i have given instructions to wife and daughter there are a few people not allowed on the property, they for sure are going to want to "help" them take care of things.

I went to a gun auction a while back that was advertised as an estate auction. Some guy passed away and either his instructions were to sell everything or his family just had no interest in guns. It was sad to see a person's life work broken up. He worked for years collected those guns and obviously cherished them. There was a BUNCH and very different (not just all Winchester Model 12s if you get my point). Anyhow it got to me and I have not been to another auction like that. Hope my family has a different view....

I always hate to hear stories about blood suckers, parasites and locusts who swarm to a deceased man's hoard hoping for an easy pick.

Not saying that's the case here, but just saying it to say it.

Just sayin


Hope I'll be able to have time to liquidate stuff as I see fit if my time draws to an end.
I damn sure don't want any greasy paws telling my wife such and such is only worth $200.

My son likes guns and reloads, but doesn't get a chance to hunt that much. I've given him a bunch of guns already, but don't know what he would do with the rest of my stash, 50#'s of gun powder, multiple sets of dies, several presses, etc., etc...

Oh well, maybe that problem is still off in the distant future...

DF

All my stuff is going to second and youngest sons. Oldest has spent his life with his hand outstretched and is not getting another thing. As it is the two will have quite the collections when all split up. Trying to get the middle one interested in loading so he knows the ins and outs of calibers like 40/65, 45/70 for ancient guns and 12.7X44R. The good stuff you Grandson will get some of my most favorite pieces. Grandgirls will be treated. What it’s all about.

There's the gun safe for shooters, and there's the others.

I keep most all the investments in cases to protect them. They get paper tags with the wire twistys on the zippers. You can buy the tags at Staples. Write the make, model, serial number, age on the tags. I keep a tally of description, accessories, what I paid and current values for each weapon in a separate hidden location. When you pull one of the cased rifles out of the safe there's no guesswork what it is, it's right on the tag. Grab the gun sheet that details the value of each and there you go. Nobody is going to take advantage of my widow.

Always amazes me as to how low some members of the human race will stoop for a few bucks. You quickly find out how much honor and integrity relatives, friends and members of a community have. A couple around here that are well known for being the first buzzards to show up at a widow's door wanting to 'help her out'!!!!! My son just isn't really into guns/shooting so not sure what will happen with my shooting stuff, lathes etc?Most of my rifles I have either built, barreled or are not common especially around here. Calibers and configurations not seen or known here as this area is mostly 'just hunters'.

Hope every thing goes well for your friends widow, sounds like he had interesting tastes.

Thanks for sharing and great story, shaman. Sorry about your friend.

Been watching this happen with my father. He calls me several times a year to tell me who died. Very sad. One of his close friends from his childhood and then professional life of over 60 years just passed very suddenly last week.

Shaman, sorry about your buddy. I'm glad you and his other friends are taking care of his stuff and helping out his widow.

I am grateful for all of you who keep your friend's life going on through their prized possessions. It is respect as much as it is love.