Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Not long for this world.

Old Hercules powder will probably never be used. The IMR except one partial can of 4831 is still sealed. It was all in a storage cabinet in a spare bedroom closet.

Lost a longtime friend two days ago. Waiting for his son to call and ask how to get rid of the hundreds, yes hundreds, of guns he had.

Like most of the old guns guys I've stored/accumulated up a lot of stuff. Last count was about 100 WWI/II firearms. Then when you add the helmets, bayonets, web gear, pistol bets, combat knives, ect its quite a bit. My kids aren't in the least bit interested. I taught JROTC in a large high school for fifteen years. many of my former students went on to become successful in military and civilian careers and stop by to see me often. I'm 71 - in a few years they will be smiling when they leave. I gave one a 1944 Browning High Power and a 1943 Walther P38 two weeks ago. 98 more to go.

I have some cans like that 1 old Bullseye that has not been opened.

Also several of the metal and cardboard cans,some still have powder.

My best friend had the radiation pills implanted last year for prostate cancer,so far he is showing clean.

He has changed somewhat over that time,like worrying about his firearms that i have at the house when he went

thru his divorce a few months ago.

Always claiming he don't know how much longer he's got and getting to act like he is real old,he will be 70 this year.

Don't really know what to think about this stuff.

Sorry for your loss of a friend.

Great time to pounce and get some freebies.

Divorces are equally as good. Typically.

Some folks collect old powder cans... maybe EBay them empty?

I am sure the rest of the stuff will sell in the Classifieds.

You are a good man for taking on this work for his family.

Enjoy what little time you have with your old friend, allow him to give something back too, and the Lord's blessings to the both of you!

It's all too familiar...

You get to keep some goodies with the obligation to help clear the clutter for the family.

I'm glad you made the effort to keep the connection, he held onto it too.

In the end that's all we get but that matters most.

we never get used to it. The older we get the more friends fall behind. Just do what you can and be glad for the friendship.

Hell no, they're cool and I have shelf space for them.

Do what you can to be a friend! I lost a friend of mine in late 2021. We hadn’t worked together since 1996, but we occasionally shared a phone call. Most often it was him making the call…..I always seemed to let life interfere with things I should do.

Anyway, I get this call from him, he’d just had major heart surgery (had similar 17 years prior), and was back at home, we talked for a bit…..then said he was tired and was gonna lie down for a nap! I let time slip away and about 6 weeks later starting trying to call him. No answer to my calls, he’d not been on Facebook in many weeks, and an internet search I found his obituary. Apparently, he’d passed soon after our conversation. This has bothered me greatly. Don’t be me! memtb

Good for you for spending time with him and helping the family out. Your a good friend. Its tough to go through but you were there to help and that's what matters. It speaks of your character.
I had an old friend that I was in the Army with back in the 70's. He called me about 6 months ago and told me he had 2 weeks to live. He said the doc told him he was ate up with cancer. He was a Viet-Nam vet and saw his share of combat with the 1st Cavalry Division. We deer hunted and fished together a lot in our younger years. He moved to Michigan and I live in Florida. Last time I saw him was about 6 years ago. He called to say Good by. It was a tough phone call. I wish I could have been there for him.

Sorry for your loss.

Take care.

Sorry that you lost your friend, and plaudits for what you did for him and are doing to help his family in the aftermath.

I have found that powders unopened/kept well sealed and properly stored - relatively dry and moderate temps - will remain good for a very long time. Hope that is the case - but do check condition.

As for his equipment that needs to go, the one case I experienced does not enable good advice. I did not want to receive anything of value from the fellow, and did not. As he requested, I tried to assist with the disposal efforts he began before passing. A scrambled mess developed due to his psych attachment to "stuff" and it was not fun. Eventually he did make some very significant gifts of firearms/equipment, and that was good. Due to the overall experience, I asked to not be involved one bit in dealing with what he left behind.

Seemingly doing fairly well, even after some serious health events, this issue has been on my mind and am thinking about the best way to deal with some nice goods rather than leave the tasks to family and friends. I totally trust my friends and know that they would do only the best for my wife/family, but would rather they be focused on our activities and memories rather than this stuff.

Once again - kudos for your efforts.

Got the phone call this morning 6 weeks or less for my best friend we grew up together done it all together both dirt poor when coming up in eastern Tenn. I moved up to Indiana at 18 years old got a union job in the natural gas industry. Jeff came up a year later to work with me. We have some great hunts and family times. Been seeing him quite a bit. Time is the greatest gift you can give him and for you.

I agree with this.

But totally applaud you with spending the time with him and working on what's important to him, let alone the fellowship part - religious or otherwise.

It is your way of giving. Well done.

My time is short, like 20 years short of what I'd expected.
Part of my hoard is made up of treasured items from great friends now gone, plus I have some pet items that I would hope become well regarded and well USED by my loyal circle. I guess that's the way I won't just vanish after my ashes hit the dirt.

Sorry to hear this. Knowing that you're going to lose a friend or family member is tough. You can only do what you're planning. Just be there for them.

C'mon Trav. You're better than that, even if you're just trying to be funny.