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Haven's subscribed to either for years now, I stop by the bookstore periodically and check them out. The American Rifleman became a rag years ago, I switched to American Hunter hoping it was better but have been disappointed. If not for being an NRA Life Member I wouldn't bother with either.

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I dropped Handloader just this last fall. I always looked forward to each issue, but as said. They have gotten very thin. And as I look though a stack of magazines there is too much redundancy. Or data that is in a reloading manual, do I really need 180 cast bullet loads for my garand?


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What I would like to see is more how to. I've loaded ammo, but how to store it? I've been loading cup and core bullets since time began and have a bunch, but my state is going lead free and I need to rethink my reloads, where to start? How do I clean and preserve my equipment? Do dies need cleaning? The ram on my rcbs press sticks, and oil is detrimental to munitions. How do I clean and lubricate the ram? Do scales need to be checked for accuracy?


They will vote our way into socialism, We will have to shoot our way out.

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I find the data in the Wolfe magazines very helpful, especially that from JB and Pearce, occasionally Wieland. Most data from industry sources is directed towards their products, and some is getting pretty dated; I mean, just how long will Hodgdon continue to publish .357 mag data from a 10” barrel? Others reflect obvious bias for (maybe against) certain powders, ignoring others that are popular and known performers. I’ve found that John and Pearce’s data reflects current components, which not ignoring older stuff. If I ever drop those mags, I’ll probably stay subscribed to loaddata.com for access to that pile of info.

Been watching Jeremiah on YouTube, but am still waiting for Barsness to show. Pearce is probably too busy with his day job(s).


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Originally Posted by Pappy348
I find the data in the Wolfe magazines very helpful, especially that from JB and Pearce, occasionally Wieland. Most data from industry sources is directed towards their products, and some is getting pretty dated; I mean, just how long will Hodgdon continue to publish .357 mag data from a 10” barrel? Others reflect obvious bias for (maybe against) certain powders, ignoring others that are popular and known performers. I’ve found that John and Pearce’s data reflects current components, which not ignoring older stuff. If I ever drop those mags, I’ll probably stay subscribed to loaddata.com for access to that pile of info.

Been watching Jeremiah on YouTube, but am still waiting for Barsness to show. Pearce is probably too busy with his day job(s).

I'll agree with this, the price of components is almost cost prohibitive to reloading and yet the cheaper components and powders don't appear in publication.


They will vote our way into socialism, We will have to shoot our way out.

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I have every Rifle and Handloader magazine back to number 1 (as well as all of the Gun Digest Annuals, all of the Doublegun Journal [whose demise I mourn] and all of Small Caliber News). I frequently use them as references, particularly for cartridges that have fallen out of (or never found) favor.

My interests are largely in older guns and at age 70, I've accumulated a number of guns in obsolete or wildcat cartridges that the older publications occasionally addressed. I'm not likely to be buying the latest 6.5 wonder cartridge (a Savage 99 .300 Savage suffices for all of my big game hunting needs, backed up by a Remington 725 .280 Remington, should the 99 hiccup for some reason). I have .256 Winchesters, a .218 Bee, a .219 Zipper Improved, two 10 gauge side by sides chambered for 2-7/8 inch shells, recently sold a .25-20, and have owned a multitude of other oddballs over the years. I'm not the target audience for any of the publications at this point, although occasionally my interests and the publications' contents will cross paths (the most recent Handloader article on the .32-20 being a case in point). I probably have enough older powders (how many of you have even seen a can of Royal Scot D powder or remember that powder used to come in rectangular metal cans, not round plastic bottles?) that I shouldn't have to buy another pound of powder for the rest of my life. (Shotshell primers are a different story. How I'd love to see them return to the store shelves.)

I will probably continue to subscribe, more for the pleasure of finding the magazines in the mailbox than the content, and because I really prefer having a tangible publication in hand as opposed to something ephemeral on a screen.

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Originally Posted by Steve Redgwell
Originally Posted by gnoahhh
Originally Posted by Steve Redgwell
As people age, like many on this board, magazines and their online versions become less interesting.

The longer you’ve been hunting and shooting, the more it takes to catch and hold your interest. The short of it is, older fellows are not their target audience. They are looking for a younger demographic. Younger readers have less experience, so basic 'how to', hunting and shooting articles get consideration.

Here's an example. This is from the editor of a Cdn magazine asking for pitches:

Expanding viewership

Try to include groups beyond our core demographic (males 35-65 yrs.) such as families, women, and different ethnicities, particularly in photos. This should not be staged, but reflective of the content. Please include this info in your pitch if it's relevant.

The older I get, the more my focus sharpens - the more I realize that I have way fewer days ahead of me than I have behind me and that I need to focus much more on stuff that deeply interests me and quit trying to be well informed about all the latest "advances" in the gun world. "Want the skinny on the latest WonderGun?" Nope. "Want to know all the recipes for feeding it?" Double nope. Since the rags are full of that stuff, and most of the reviews/insights about the vintage stuff that does interest me contains very very little I don't already know/am aware of/already own in my fairly vast personal library, caused me to drop magazine subscriptions years ago and now only peruse them at Barnes&Noble - and actually buy maybe one out of every six I peruse. Not to say I know everything but I thirst for more intimate knowledge about vintage stuff than what the "introductory" type articles usually provide. Sure, a little stuff gets by me that maybe I should learn about or would like to learn about but, meh, I'll live and the world will continue to spin on its axis but at least I'll have saved myself a bunch of money.

I'm also one of those guys who detests reading digital magazines/books. My very soul requires feeding by paper&ink. When it comes down to one last old curmudgeon still buying physical books, that guy will be me.

What you say makes a lot of sense, gnoahhh. I was at a writers conference just before COVID hit and we had a few speakers who talked about target audiences and updated business models. One fellow talked about satisfying the demographic that I quoted from a writers guidelines letter. Specifically,

Try to include groups beyond our core demographic (males 35-65 yrs.)

He said that the under 35 crowd has different priorities. Most are focused on their job, starting a family, nice cars, mortgages and travel. They would rather drop $1000 on an iphone rather than a Tikka. We've all heard about, or read that the younger crowd wants sound bites. Their world is composed of faster moving info-bits. They want to get to the point. As a result, writing has changed to feed their need. Shorter articles. Less story telling. More info and tech.

But when you reach 35, your focus shifts to things that you will pursue for the rest of your life. And you have more disposable income.

This evolved into a discussion of magazine advertising. The spenders are the 35 to 60 year olds. That fell in line with the guidelines core demographic ages of 35 to 65. The editor has to satisfy the publisher and the magazine's bottom line. He does that by satisfying both advertisers and subscribers. After all, no one makes money when a magazine closes its doors and people stop buying things.

The younger crowd cares more about the latest stuff. They don't want older things. (Our generation was the same.) They are used to tech. They expect performance and like us, are products of their generation. You might say that they are updated versions of ourselves. smile This generation wants tactical gear, fancy scopes and the latest cartridges...like the 6.5 CM, for example.

Most older hunters and shooters don't care for the 6.5 CM because they have a cartridge or three that will do the same job. Few would give up their 6.5x55 or 260 Rem for a Creedmoor. Please note I said "few" not "none". This is especially true if the rifle used has a unique provenance or a long history with the owner.

There is a lot more than what can be adequately covered here.

Writers, well known or not, are the means to an end. Their writing skills get you to read the magazines where the ads appear. Readers will buy things. Corporate bank accounts will swell.

And while paper magazines won't disappear in the immediate future, electronic tablets, or whatever they will be called down the road, will replace wood pulp and ink.

There is a constant changing of the guard. To paraphrase Elton John from the Lion King - it's the circle of life.

Well said (written) Steve, I completely agree!

Bob
www.bigbores.ca


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Thank you sir. I promise that it's warmer here than BC. Stay warm and be well.


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I subscribe to the Wolfe magazines in the digital version. All 3 are about $20 last time I checked. More irrelevant (to me) content than years past, but I skip over a lot of it. I guess the writers have run out of things to write about. But wait, here’s the Creedmoor and PRC’s….


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It's a fact that the print business is going to hell in a hurry, but are the managers so insulated from the real world that they think we don't notice the skinny ass magazine's being mailed to subscribers !! When they fold, too damm bad !! I'm gonna get off my butt & just send Eileen my credit card & tell her to send me what she thinks I need. smile


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Originally Posted by Mule Deer
Originally Posted by Steve Redgwell
As people age, like many on this board, magazines and their online versions become less interesting.

The longer you’ve been hunting and shooting, the more it takes to catch and hold your interest. The short of it is, older fellows are not their target audience. They are looking for a younger demographic. Younger readers have less experience, so basic 'how to', hunting and shooting articles get consideration.[/i]

While that's certainly true, which is why the largest-circulation "outdoor" magazine I regularly wrote for 20-30 years ago, Field & Stream, had a 90% turnover in subscribers every 2-3 years. However, that turnover tends to be less in smaller, more specialized magazines--especially if they continue to run a few articles that continue to interest older readers.

Another major factor is that the average age of hunters and shooters keeps increasing, due to less "recruitment" among younger generations. The last time I looked up the average age of U.S. hunters (at least those who bought licenses) it was pushing 50, and that was a few years ago. The average has continued to rise over the last few decades. Many of those older folks don't hunt or shoot as much as they used to, but still like to read about both--and many still buy guns and related stuff even if they don't shoot and hunt as much as they used to.

As a result, the regular readers of gun/hunting magazines still include a bunch of "mature" folks--often called "Boomers" or "Fudds" by younger hunters and shooters. But they still have a major influence on the gun market--especially in the USA, which is by far the largest sporting-gun market in the world, whether for hunting or target shooting.

Yet some of the owners/publishers of gun magazines concentrate almost entirely on the newest stuff--because it results in the most advertising. In the long run this may not be such a great tactic, because a lot of older readers won't care. And a lot of the younger readers depend more on "free" information they can find on the Internet.

I know a lot of this because I've not only been a staff writer for several major hunting/gun magazines since the 1980s, but due to editing three magazines. As Jack O'Connor noted in The Last Book, a magazine editor needs to have a feel for what readers want to read--and when advertising starts driving editorial content that "feel" becomes increasingly irrelevant.

On the other hand, the Internet made it possible for writers to go directly to readers, rather than depending on a magazine publishing company. Which is exactly why Eileen and I started www.riflesandrecipes.com over 20 years ago.

"I wanted to make a long story short;so I became an editor."


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Originally Posted by CZ550
Well said (written) Steve, I completely agree!

Bob
www.bigbores.ca

Thanks Bob. Is winter losing the battle out your way?


Safe Shooting!
Steve Redgwell
www.303british.com

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