Gents - what was your first deer rifle (model and chambering) and how old were you when you started using it?

12 years old
Savage 99 in 250-3000

12 or so - Savage M1899 in 30-30 with a Weaver in tip off mounts, post and cross hair reticle. Was my great grandfather's that my dad still used, I got to use it 1 year before I had my own. Ruger M77 in 30-06. Paid 367 for it at Nickolais, brand new and it was every dime I ever saved up to that point.

Winchester 94 .30-30 with factory iron sights…i was around 14 when i started using it

Mauser 98 - originally 8mm, not sure how old I was

Persian M98 Carbine, 8x57, sporterized some time before my dad bought it and gave it to me as a gift. Fajen stock, Williams sights, original military safety. I was 15. Still have it, still shoot it, just my handloads now instead of anemic Core-lokt factory fodder.

Weatherby vanguard 243. I bought it when I was 22 but never got to use it for deer.

NEF handi rifle in 243. Tasco world class scope. 13yo maybe?

Remington Model 760 pump 30-06 my mother purchased from her brother for me when I was 14.

sporterized model 98 Mauser in 7 x 57

12 years old…still have it to this day. 😎

Doc_Holidude

Remington 742 Carbine '06,with 3-9x Reupold and 180 CoreRoks,while wearing a Cutts Compensator. I was 12. Hint.

Hell...I still remember the fhuqking Serial Number. Hint.

Fhuqking LAUGHING!...............

303 British, Lee Enfield sporter. I was 14 and shot my first animal (pronghorn antelope) with one of my own reloads using HiVel#2 powder and a CIL bullet. First whitetail was with a 180 Sierra from the same rifle the next fall. I still have the rifle and still hunt with it. GD

I started hunting deer at age 12. Carried my grandfather's 721 Remington in 30'06. Had a 2.5-4X B&L scope. Didn't actually kill a buck until I was 16. By then, it was the new 740 Remington semi auto in 30'06. Had a 2.5-8X B&L scope. The hot set up in 1960. Didn't own my first deer rifle until I bought a Marlin 336 in .35 Remington at age 19. Killed two bucks with that rifle. Wish I still had it. E

Marlin 336, 35 Remington. 23 yrs.

At 14 I was using my Dad's Argentine 1909 as sold by Sears: Sporterized stock and rechambered to 30-06. The first one I owned was a Christmas present when I was 16: British 303 # 5 Jungle Carbine. 18th Birthday, First "proper" deer rifle was a Marlin 336 in .35 rem with Bushnell Banner Scope

When I started hunting in the late 90's many of our areas were shotgun only so I used an Ithaca "buckbuster" 20 ga single shot or a deerslayer 12 ga. I think I was 14 when I shot my first deer. Bawled like a baby afterwards.

Browning A5 Light Twelve, 26” plain IC barrel

Winchester 94, iron sights, I was 11 and that was in 1984.

Winchester 70 30-06

1984 Remington 700 BDL in 30 06. 16 years old because that's how old you had to be here to hunt big game. Still have the rifle.

Ruger 77 flat bolt in 220 swift.
I was 7 years old

1969, 13 years old german 98 8mm mauser my dad cut down and sporterized

Had a couple Handi Rifles before it, but the first one I actually used deer hunting was a Ruger 96/44 44 when I was 18. Used it a couple seasons then moved on to more accurate rifles, because that thing was about a paper plate shooter at 100yds at its absolute best. Kicked like a mule compared to any other 44 Mag rifle I've ever shot, too.

My first Deer Rifle was a Glenfield (Marlin) Model 30 in 30-30 that I bought myself at age 16.

I previously hunted with a beat up Westernfield (Mossberg) 20 gauge bolt gun using pumpkin balls. It was rendered a single shot due to no magazine and broken extractors. I used an old beat up Case knife to dig the cases out of that. It was so hard to manipulate the Safety that I used to leave the bolt open and carry while holding the shell in the barrel with my thumb.

ETA: I used that Westernfield from age 12.

clockwork 7mm;
Good morning/afternoon to you sir, I hope this finds you well.

The first deer rifle I used was a Model 100 in .308 with what I recall as a Bushnell 4X scope mounted. With it I took a first rack whitetail just east of the Torch River in north central Saskatchewan when I was 14.

As life goes sometimes, that was not my first big game however, as I'd used a borrowed Model 70 .30-06 with a Weaver scope if memory serves, to shoot a kongoni almost a year previous to that.



Funny, I kept the case from the kongoni and it's RWS factory ammo - handloading being unlawful in Kenya back then and possibly still is, I don't know?

Thanks for the thread and the memories, though some are better than others, it's good to remember where we've been to get where we are isn't it?

All the best and good luck on your hunts this fall.

Dwayne

Marlin 336 30-30 in 1971 at age 11.

That's a heck of a way to start hunting!

The most interesting part of this thread so far is how old people were when they started... I imagined the beginning age being younger. But maybe that's a combination of laws that didn't allow hunting big game until 12 and recent trends of starting kids younger because ARs and better bullets for 223s (and the 6.5 Grendel, etc.) make it possible from a shooting standpoint?

I had hunted a couple seasons with a shotgun when I was like 14-15 but wasn't hunting in a rifle deer state until I was 18. We moved around a lot when I was a kid, so there were several years Dad didn't do any big game hunting at all.

clockwork 7mm;
Thanks for the reply, I appreciate it.

The hunt itself was a grand experience, as was the getting there to Kenya. The reasons behind our family being there were fairly complicated and not all positive, but hey, that's life is it not?

For all appearances it seems I've survived it anyways, you know?

If memory serves, back then in Saskatchewan the minimum age was 12 to hunt. Maybe just big game, but maybe anything, sorry that part I'm not sure about.

Here in BC it's 10 and when one turns 10, one can hunt anything and everything that there's a season for. I for one have thought that a graduated "small game" for younger kids wouldn't be an altogether horrible idea, but I'm apparently next to the only one who thinks that!

Here's our two girls with their first bucks, they were 10 and 12 in that photo. The 10 year old on the left is shooting a .250AI and the 12year old a 6.5x55 that she'd inherited from her late Grandad.



Way, way back in the ancient days here on the 'Fire, someone asked what our most memorable day hunting was. That photo is mine sir.

It beat me getting some decent deer, the first black bear, a bull moose and even a California Bighorn. I doubt I'll ever top it.

Thanks again and all the best.

Dwayne

For me, age 12 with a Ruger 77 .243 with a 4x Bushnell Banner. I’da hunted sooner except for the stupid minimum age law PA had at the time. There’s no such goofy minimum age law in AK, so my kid started at 8 with a Ruger Hawkeye compact 6.8 SPC and a Leupold 1-4.

Remington 760 in 6mm Remington. I was 15.

Remington 742 '06. It had a Bushnell Scopechief 4X on it. The scope had a ring that you turned to go from cross hairs to heavy post and cross hair. Funky integral mounting system also.

Got it for my 15th Christmas in '71.

Still hasn't jammed.

35 Remington in a Remington 14 with rear tang sight. 22 years old

My dads model 94 32 special. I still have it. It is 60 years since I got my first deer with it. Used my grandfathers model 54 .30-06 after that first deer. Until Iwas in my early 20's. I still have both and hunt with them once in a while.

I shot my first rifle deer with a Marlin bolt action 22 magnum then was given a Marlin 922M 22 magnum and used it two years.

When I was 9, I went to a Browning A Bolt 243 and at 12 graduated to a BAR 30-06.

My kid starts this year. He’s 7 years old and he is shooting his grandfather’s Win 94 with iron sights. He’s super excited about it.

Winchester 1894, made in 1927. 30-30

Sako L579 Forester in 243. I was 11 years old Deer hunting with my Dad on opening morning, my Dad shot the first 2 point he saw and after we gutted it and hung it in a tree my Dad decided he needed a nap...............I got bored and picked up my Dad's rifle and was going to go hunting on my own when a 3 point appeared a few yards away BOOM my Dad's nap was over !!!!!!!!!
Luckily my cousin didn't fill his tag and was happy to take it.
My Dad gave me this rifle several years later when I graduated High School, one of my grandsons will end up with it some day.

My parents gave me a sporterized 03-A3 Springfield, .30-06, for Christmas when I was 14. It was equipped with a Redfield peep sight. Over the next few years and into my College age, I took several mule deer with it. I still have the rifle, but it hasn't been fired in many years.

At 12 with a winchester 70 ranger compact 243 with a redfield widefield 2-7.

12 pound "all up" sporter m1917 30-06. It was heavy with a bull barrel, but was extremely accurate. Burned up a chit load of ammo in that rifle. Got it 2 months before my 12th birthday. Great christmas present.

1974, when I was 17, bought a Remington M700 BDL Varmint Special in .243.
Bought it from a NJ State Trooper friend of my dad.

Crazy accurate, but one heavy sumbitch to carry up the hills of western PA.

Sure wish I'd have kept it.

M-1 Carbine. Age: 8

At about 15-16, I borrowed my Grandfather's Winchester Model 94 30-30 a few times. Never saw a deer, as they were almost non-existent around here back then. Not sure I ever even shot that rifle.

Fast forward 20 years. At about 35 years old a friend needed some money and I bought a Glenfield 30-30, the first deer rifle I ever bought for myself. Don't remember if I ever shot that one either.

About a year or so later I got invited on a deer hunt where I would be hunting over large green fields and a 30-30 didn't seem to be the best option. I bought a Rem 710 in 30-06 and killed my first deer at age 36.

The 94 now belongs to a cousin, both the other two have long ago been sold or traded off. Got rid of the 710 when I won a Ruger M77 MarkII in 280Rem in a raffle. That was the rifle that got me into shooting and collecting, looneyism if you will.

Remington 660 .243 was what I killed my first deer with. It was my Grandma's until she passed. It wasn't mine at the time as it was still my fathers. He has since passed it onto me and my kids.

My first deer rifle at 15 was a Savage 110 30-06. Killed my first elk with it.

Todd

I saved my money for almost a year……At 14, I bought a Winchester Model 88 in .308 Win. Used it until 1982….. 15 years! memtb

Around the age of 16 I was gathered around a campfire with perhaps 10 or 12 other deer hunters waiting for the authorities to let us in a military training area in Florida. I had an old Remington model 11 in 12 guage my dad had given to me. Some guy at the campfire saw it and offered to trade me his sporterized British 303 SMLE. I made the trade and hunted with the rifle for maybe 2 years. I remember those 215gr factory loads killed the heck out of those whitetails.

Marlin 336a in 30-30 with 4x Bushnell Banner scope.

Got it when I was 15 years old (1976), and still have it today.

It cost $92, and was purchased at Leslie Edelman's gun store in Farmingdale, NY.

Winchester 70 Classic in 30-06 with a Leupold VX-II 3-9x40. Pretty much got all my firsts using this rifle and the same load (180gr Partition, H4350, CCI200, Winchester brass).

A Remington 700 ADL in .270 (huge O’Connor fan at that time) with a Redfield 3-9x scope that my mother bought for me - Christmas 1973. I was 10 (soon to be 11) but couldn’t hunt for another year with it (as other’s have mentioned legal hunting age at the time was 12 in PA). Did kill my first deer with in in 1976 (a doe) but my loonie was showing and had to trade it off for an Interarms Mark X Cavalier (.30-06) in ‘76 - was a huge Weatherby fan at the time - which I shot my first buck with. Then had to trade it off for a Ruger 77 in 7mm Mag. in 1978 that I still have (got a job that year and started buying my own guns and have just kept accumulating ever since😄!). I think often of all the hunting trips I could have gone on if I would have simply kept that .270 instead of searching for that “perfect” rifle!!

PennDog

Parker Hale 6mm Remington. I was 6. Dad and grandpa weren’t real big on worrying about the legal age being 10 years old in BC. I was probably 5 bucks deep by the time I was of “legal age”.
Still have that 6mm.

Good for them and you - IMO

1 dad wasn't much of a hunter , and we were too busy trying to survive (farm) ... Bought my own marlin 336-CS 30-30 age 18 ..

Savage 99 308 still have it

1967

12 years old

Sporterized FN built 24/30 Venezuelan carbine in 7x57

Paid $37.50 for it at Welch's Gun Shop in Lebanon, NH

Still have the action, but the stock and barrel are long gone. Creighton Audette from Springfield, VT, turned it into a sweet shooting 257AI after I plugged the barrel with snow.

Push feed Winchester model 70 in 243. Dad bought off a family friend for a couple hundred bucks. First and only deer I ever shot with that rifle. Don’t even remember now why or who he sold to after that. Kinda wish I had it back for sentimental reasons if nothing else. Remember I shot my first little buck at 100yds or so and that deer ran right to me and dropped at the base of my tree stand. Pop and my uncle were pretty impressed when they pulled up the gator to load it.

Remington 760 .244Rem. 4x Unertl in weaver tip over mounts. Federal HiShok 90gr 6mm factory ammo.

I was 9 and smoked a tiny forkie at 7 yards. Next year I killed a 1 horn spike at about 100 yards.

Savage Model 99 in .308 Win (used). ... put a Bushnell 4X scope on it. Bought it when I was 16 in 1976. Sold it to my brother a couple years later to fund the 2nd center fire rifle I ever bought: a 700BDL in 30-06....still have the '06.

Killed my first deer at age 13 with a Remington 600 Mohawk in .243 with a fixed 4x Scope. The rifle was my fathers and I used it to take my next 8-10 deer with. Got gifted a rifle of my own when I was 19. A well used but cared for Remington 700 BDL in .270 with a 4X Redfield scope. The .270 was my only centerfire for the next 20 plus years. The old Mohawk .243 has bounced around the family and been used by multiple generations to take their first deer and or hog.

1985, 10 years old, Ruger 77 6mm, 87 gr Hornadys. First buck I killed with it here, 19” wide Blacktail, took several years to top that buck. Still have that rifle in the back of the safe. Came with a 3-9 Burris, now has a 3-9 Nikon on it.

Great photo, Jud. What is your plan for the grandson?

Savage 170, 30-30. Killed my first deer with it at 13yo.

Still have it but would like to give it to a deserving youth.

No one wants an old pump gun anymore.

Wait til he figures out what his favorite color is, mcswirly and build him probably a 6mm cm. 👊🏻

Or maybe a 250 savage 😎 decisions decisions. 😅

Haha I've found shopping for the kiddos is a whole new way to enable the looneyism!

M1 carbine, Universal manufacture. 110 grain Winchester hollow points. 12 years old. Even at 12 I realized I needed more power.

Oh hell ya!! I’m gunned up pretty good. Got the boy setup pretty good, now time to have fun with the grandson! 😆

Winchester '94, 30-30, I was 16....

Marlin 336, 30-30. I was about 15 or 16 in 1960 or 61. Paid for it by mowing yards.

I like where your heads at!

I’d like one of those myself. Cool old rifle!

Just realized I never answered my own poll. Came to hunting a little late... was in college when I bought a Remington 770 in 300 Win Mag. (My logic was "I'll only have one rifle so it needs to cover everything!" Little did I know about the looneyism haha!) The trigger was awful, the recoil pad was awful, but it was actually a very accurate gun. Killed several deer before finally upgrading to a Model 70 in 280.

It was a Christmas gift from my Grandad to my Great Grandad the first year the .244 debuted. I was actually the first person to kill a deer with it since there were no deer around here back when it was new.

I borrowed it for two seasons and Great Grandad told me I should just keep it since I was putting it to good use. Then he asked to borrow it back to shoot some geese, ha old timers. The same year my dad bought me a M7 for Christmas and I kind of forgot about the 760. Sadly when the old man passed a cousin ended up with it and I have no idea what ever became of it, my Grandad was pretty upset since it had been a gift from him. I would pay twice what it’s worth to have it to give him for Christmas.

Model 95, caliber 7 x 57 mm. Full military, earned it cleaning my uncles gun shop. Over the years I got 23 different military rifles, by cleaning, sanding, and general work around the shop. My uncle died in 1968, sure miss that guy. My oldest boy has them now. Hopefully he will pass them on, he's not a looney!

Ages 7-13 I alternated between a few borrowed rifles.

A 336 30-30, a 7x57 and a .303 Brit that had been sporterized.

It wasn't until I was 14 that dad bought me my own deer rifle and it was a model 700 30-06.

Enfield .303 Britt.

First one that was mine 742 30-06.

1974, I was 15. A Winchester model 94 Classic in 30-30. Had a long octagon barrel, 24 or 26" if memory serves me? Killed my first deer with it, a spike buck, the following year. Wished I still had that rifle.

Pretty much what I figured too… Dad’s last hunt was watching his grand daughter killing her first deer.
Cancer had a pretty good hold of him at that point, but he still managed to walk across the field holding his granddaughter’s hand up to her first deer.

Ruger M77 MkII, 270, LH with Leupold 2-7. 12 years old. Bailed hay, washed heavy equipment on the weekends, and cut lawn to pay my dad back for it. Shot it a ton. Took a few deer with it. Was a decent shooter despite the trigger. Had a couple of issues with safety not locking the bolt down and with it not allowing the rifle to be shot even though the safety was in the off position. Sold it off after it sat idle for a few years. Don't really regret selling it.

When the BOSS came out, I picked up an A bolt 300 win so equipped and used that rig to do a ton of shooting and take a lot of game. Must've been around '96 or so because I had to have my dad sign for it when we picked it up as I wasn't 18. That rig was a shooter with about anything you'd stuff in it; but, of course, it was very loud, so I eventually moved on. Still regret selling that one; had a ton of great memories with it.

When I was 13, my dad bought me a 16 ga single shot Winchester mod. 370, 30" full choke, and put me out on a dog driven deer hunt.......did not have a clue what I was doing.....was told later that 3 deer had moved by me that day......never saw them.

Joined a hunt club at the age of 38......thought an SKS would make a good timber hunting rifle......was ridiculed to the point a buddy loaned me a ruger #1 .270 with a leupold 3x9 scope to finish the season. Killed my first deer with that gun. Went out and purchased a rem 700 adl 3006 and a leupold 3x9x40 vari-xll......shooting that thing was pure torture, never hunted with it.....got a model 70 3006 instead and took a lot of deer with it.

Ruger M77 chambered in 250 Savage. Had a Weaver 4x on it. Today a Leupold M8 4x

Remington 742 chambered in 6mm Remington.

Win 70 featherweight 280. I wasn’t a teen yet? Don’t remember. 2nd was a win 70 458 win mag pusher. Shot everything with that rifle.

Winchester 94 in .30-30. I was 14 and it was a birthday gift from my parents.

I didn't shoot it very well with that side-mount scope and missed out in a couple deer with it. Traded it on a Remington 7600 in .243 which was a darned good shooter, but I sold it a few years later to buy a bolt action 77MKII because I was getting into reloading and I thought I had to have a bolt action if I was going to chase accuracy. 30 years and I still have the Ruger. Wish I still had that .30-30 because it was a gift from my parents.

12 years old, Marlin 336 in 30-30. Still have it and last rifle that would ever go

Winchester 70 ranger 30–06 with a Tasco 3-9x40 scope. Paid somewhere around $200. Got it when I was 15 or 16 years old. Ammo was very cheap or free.

Marlin 336 in .356 Winchester.
I was around 20 when I purchased it.

Stainless Ruger 77 MK2 in 308 with a boat paddle stock wearing a silver Leupold 3-9.

Winchester m94, 32 Winchester Special - 10 years old

In 1966 when I was 14 Dad bought me a new Mossberg 800A in .308 Win. and a Bushnell 2.5X scope from Kmart. I thought i was in heaven. I shot a ton of deer with that rifle and still have it. Good memories.

My first deer rifle was a Winchester 94 in 32 special.

1971 Win Model 94 30-30 with a 4X Bushnell Banner. It was a hand down from my dad that I got when I was 12. Got a doe that first year and a few bucks the following years. When I turned 16, I got a Rem 760 30-06 and it began to collect dust.

Now some 35 years later, I pulled the M94 out of the safe and worked up a load. It shoots sub MOA a hand load of IMR-3031 and Hornady 150 gr round nose at 2300 fps. The Japanese glass is exceptionally clear. I’m going hunt deer with it this year for the first time since 1987.

When my son turns 12 next year, I’ll give it to him. I’ve already got a mild load worked up at 2050 fps that shoots great.

Remington 700 308 heavy barrel varmint.

ithica lsa 55 made by sako 243 cal . hand cut rifling bought in early 70s $169 3x9 bushnell scope . killed more deer than i can remember. planning to hunt this fall .

Remington 742 Woodsmaster 30-06 with a redfield 3-9 scope. I bought it new while I was in High school back in the early 70's. Up until that point All my deer killed were with a Rem 1100 12ga with buckshot and slugs.

45 caliber Kentucky Rifle. First centerfire was a Marlin 30-30.

Mine was a Marlin 336 in 44 magnum. I bought it in 1967 when I was 15 with my first three or four paychecks from a summer job. I gave it to my oldest son about 10 years ago. Then I decided I needed another one and bought the first 44 mag Marlin 336 I could find. The first one cost about $65.00. The one I bought to replace it cost me about $750...

Remington 700 .30-06. I was 12. We loaded it with the 125grain Barnes X bullet with a medium charge for reduced recoil. It worked fine and eventually went up to 130 then 150 XLC, TSX, and now TTSX. It s still my favorite rifle.

Premil 99 savage in a 243.. found out early in life really wasn’t my rifle dad traded it off for something he wanted his rules. I would love to find a pre mil 99 in a 243, brass counter, safety on the lever. But I do have one of the first rifle I ever bought still. Had it out recently shooting it..

Winchester model 100 in 243. Unfortunately it was lost when my parents had a house fire. I don't have any photos of the specific rifle but it looked like this.

Winchester Model 94 in 30-30.
Started shooting it when I was 12, deer hunting with it at 14.
My dad gifted me the gun and it till sits in the safe; I really need to take it hunting again.

StarchedCover

Winchester 94 in 30-30

Sporterized 8mm mauser

Marling (JM) 336 3030. Was 18 years old and it was the first rifle I purchased. Moved on to a rem 7600 35 whelen and killed a bunch of game with both. Huge regret that I have neither rifle in my collection. When I got a bit older, I attempted to track both down, but fell short

1979, 12 yo, Rem 788 in 243.

Remington 700, 270 Winchester, 17 yrs. old

I had one of these. Made by Tikka before Sako bought them out.

Model 99 EG Savage in 250/3000 still use it regularly

I was 16 when I got “my” first rifle. Winchester model 70 XTR 30-06. Kicked the hell out of me.

I have one of these in 25-06 that was my grandfather's. If I remember right the long action is LSA 65. Always thought they were cool.

M-760 Carbine in 308.

My first year out of the Army, 1976. My first deer rifle was actually a 20ga. double barrel. It worked well enough.

kwg

Mohawk 600, .308. I was 23 or so, we didn't have deer in my part of the world when I was a kid. Sure has changed.

Mossberg ATR in 30-06 with a bubble pack 3-9 Tasco scope at 18. My parents are anti hunting types and had to learn on my own.

14
Rem Sportsman 78 in .270
Still in the safe!!

Those are good rifles. I've bought a few just for that smooth action.

I'm down to only one now, a 308 in a Brown Precision.

12 years old.
Rem 600 Mohawk- 6mm Rem.
First one I bought on my own was a new Rem Mnt rifle in 7mm-08 in the late '80's.

This model 7 in .260. Had a Simmons whitetail scope on it. I think I was 12. Took me 4 shots to hit the doe at about 150 I was shaking so bad, but she cooperated and stood her ground till I got it done.

I’ve now put on a leupold vx-2 #4, a trigger tech trigger, and dropped it in a youth length stock for my oldest to try soon.

I started with a Marlin 336 in 30-30 at the age of 13.

Weatherby Vanguard VGX in .243 Winchester. Got it when I was 12 or 13. Shot my first buck with it at 14. I still have it and both of my boys have shot their first deer and a few more with it.

12 years old I started out with a Remington 700 ADL in 243. Shot my first 3 or 4 deer with it, but by the time I was 14 I " graduated " to a savage 99 in 300 just like my grandfather carried( who I idolized) . Killed a tractor trailer load of deer with that gun. Like many of you though, I still have that gun but haven't fired it at an animal in years. Can't think of a critter that I've killed that couldn't have been taken with that setup except one long range mulie and even then maybe?

I received a brand new Remington 760 308 from my grandfather in 1982 when I turned 12. I got my first deer with it in December of 1983.

12 years old borrowed dad’s Remington 788 .243 shot my first buck a spike x fork and a few hogs
Few years later I bought myself a used Remington 700 BDL .270 at the local gun shop. The owner of the gun shop knew the previous owner of the rifle and that it had been bedded and the trigger worked on and he was tired of me coming in his shop every week to fondle every rifle and ask a million questions. So when it came up he insisted I buy it! But what sets that rifle aside in my memory was the scope. On his recommendation I bought a Leopold varix-II gloss 3-9x40.
My dad taught me to hunt and he had a few good rifles but for some reason he never spent the money for a decent scope! At the time I didn’t wear a wrist watch and because my dad always had cheap scopes we would hunt “till dark”then hike to camp or a meeting spot, because he couldn’t see through his scope before legal shooting light faded. Well end of my first day with my new gun and I’m hiking back to camp as the sun was setting and see a good size buck on the hill above me feeding in oat grass. I shouldered the rifle and could see him plane as day in the scope the yellow grass almost back light him up so I steadied and shot him. I was so excited my first forked horn with eyegaurds, shot with my own rifle! My dad was hunting the ridge parallel to me, heard the shot and came running over flashlight in hand and met me at the deer and proceeded to chew my ass!?!? He was convinced I had spotlighted it with my flashlight because there was no way I could have seen through a scope when it was that dark!, and he was convinced that I had shot after legal time! We weren’t that far from camp and few guys heard me shoot and noted the time and defended me saying I still had 30 seconds to spare! The next morning dad took my rifle and sat looking through the scope and checking his watch as the sun came up and then looking through his Simmons scope on his rifle and just shook his head as he could see through my scope a full 1/2 hour before he could through his. After that I have always had a wrist watch on while hunting. And my dad now has a thing for European glass on his rifles.

An original 303 enfield jungle carbine. Bought it off the used rack at the local sporting goods store when I was 18 for $150.

12 years old.......... Borrowed Dad's 1896 Springfield .30-40 Krag

13 years old.......... Savage 99C in .308 Win that I bought with my fur check.

I was 10 years old. Used my grandfather’s Remington 721 in 30-06 topped with a 4x Bushnell. Still have the rifle but it’s in a BDL stock with a leupold 2-7.

At 11, a Remington 870 youth 20ga. Then at 13 a savage 243.

The year was 1978, Marlin 336 in 35 remington. I was 15 yrs old

Ruger 77 mark 2 all weather in 30-06, bushnell elite 3200 on top. Got it for my 12th birthday.

Harrington and Richardson Handi Rifle in 30-30. Got it for my 9th birthday. It also came with a 410 barrel. First rifle I purchased for myself was a Ruger #1A in 270 Winchester when I was 17.

Ha! This is great. I remember my first move up from a Bushnell to what I considered "expensive" glass after college. Most of y'all would probably still consider it lower end, but it was a world of difference moving into the $300+ range.

I am the oldest of four sons. When I was 14, my stepdad and his deer hunting buddy and I stopped in to the corner gas station to check the used gun rack. I didn't know we were there to buy me my first centerfire. Thank god they passed on the military .303 British and settled on a Savage 340 in .30-30. $40 if I remember correctly. All four of us boys cut our teeth on that rifle.

I think I was 23, my first rifle was a pre-64 30-06, I purchased at the back counter in a liquor store!

Ruger m77 .300wm. I was 13.





200 yard shot across a hollow. Dad made me gut it myself. I still remember the burn sticking cold hands in the cavity.

pre 64 winchester 94 30-30. Which was my mothers rifle. Shot a blacktail doe not far from Fiddle Town California, early 70's.

I started deer hunting at 13 in a shotgun only zone with my Winchester model 1400 bird & bunny gun with a 28" barrel. At 16 I got a Winchester model 94 in 32 Winchester Special, but never hunted with it until I was 35.

Winchester 88 308 when I was 12.

Winchester 94 in 30-30, open sights and factory 170's.

WBY V-master, .22-250, Redfield 4-12x, 63 gr Sierra and IMR-4350, age 16.

Win 94 in 30-30.

Started with a 20 ga Ithaca and slugs at 12. Graduated to a Rem 700 ADL in .270 at 16.

300 Savage 99F------my uncle's gun @ 14 years old. Bought a Remington 700 30/06 when I was 16.

Have been hunting with a Blaser R93 in .257 Weatherby for last 20 years for deer and antelope. I use my Steyr Scout rifle in .308 for pig hunting. I have a conventionally mounted scope: S&B 1.5-6X42.

7mm Mauser. 1895 bubba'd sporterized I bought at gun show.
I was 13. Enamoured with it. It was stolen last year! I was in my 30's when I learned how to seat a bullet out to the lands and actually got it shooting straight! Shot my first deer with it, back in the 1900s.

Winchester Model 100 .308
I was 14 when I started using it. Shot my first deer with it when I was 17.
I got a brand new Remington 7400 30-06 for Christmas that same year and carried it for probably 8-10 years before switching to a bolt action.

M1 carbine - Got a button buck my first year.
18 y/o

I would not suggest it but it worked.

winchester 94 Buffalo Bill 30-30

Remington 788 in 6mm

Exact same, except 180gr Sierra RN over 4064.
Old man gave it to me two years ago. Think I’ll shoot bambi with it this year just for old times sake.


Growing up, every load was with IMR 4064. The old man and my uncle had a metal 2 or 3 gallon keg of it they bought somewhere. Only other powder ever used was unique for .357’s and .38’s. I have his RCBS Jr press too.

Hell yeah! I dig it. Never loved the 742/7400’s, but my old man had a few and they all worked well. The 180/4064 is a classic huh?

Hope you hunt it. Probably be fun to see the old bird in the woods again.

At age 12 Remington Model 760 pump in 6mm Rem was the first centerfire I hunted deer with. Still have that rifle , Thanks Dad! Good memories!

Over the years I have went bolt action & up in caliber & back down to 6mm Rem & now 6mm ARC. For the type of hunting I have done I have never needed anything more.

Here was mine. M70 XTR 7mm Rem Mag. Had the black Tupperware stock on it and a 4x Redfield for a long time. I fed it a steady diet of H870 and 140 PTs.


Took a lot of deer, some bear and anything else that would stand still back then.

Then I used it for my moose and caribou hunt in 95 just before I joined the MC.










After meeting BobinNH he convinced me to Mashburn it.



It’s still in my hunting family and will come home when he’s ready to let it go.



He restocked it with a Pendleton stock

12 years old. A Winchester M1 Carbine my uncle Charlie sent home from Italy a piece at a time.

A Marlin 336cs in .30-30 win. at age 12.

Age 13, Remington mfr sporterized Springfield 03A3, .30-06 Springfield in a Bishop Circassian Walnut stock.

Revalation 225 (savage 340) in 30-30. I shot a button buck with it when I was 13, but thought I needed something bigger and I started carrying my cousins model 70 in 7wsm. Dad traded the bolt 30-30 and I ended up with a mossburg 100 ATR in 270. Gave my cousin back the 7wsm and started hunting with the 270. I have laid down a lot of deer with the mossburg and it is a shooter. I now have my cousins 7 wsm in the safe, but haven't carried it in about 15 years.

I bought my first deer rifle a Ruger 77 tanger in .270, I was 21. Killed my first deer the following year with a .338WM Weatherby Vanguard deluxe. I had bought it to be my elk rifle. Sold the 338 as it was to flashy for my taste.
Way to many rifles since then have come and some have gone. Lol

A Marlin 336 in .44 Magnum.

I was eleven.

Shot a 4 point six minutes into opening day.

-Jake

Ruger M77 Mark II stainless .30-06 Sprg. @ age 22 on red deer

The first rifle I ever killed deer with was my Dad's M99 Savage in 300 Savage. It was what I used by was not mine. Actually it was a 30-30 or 303 originally that an Arizona gunsmith converted to 300 Sav. before my Dad got it from him in 1948, so it was one made before 1920, but I can't come up with any details beyond that now. The gunsmith was a good friend of my Dad's and he gave that Savage to him as a wedding gift when he married my mom. It was also the rifle I also used to kill my 1st elk. It was a short thin barrel, about 20" I am guessing. It had a crescent butt plate and was made with with no pistol grip. Just had iron sights, but it shot well enough to kill what we needed to kill.

My own 1st rifle that I bought with my own money when I was 12 was a 270, Model 70 Winchester with a Weaver K4 on it. About 2 years later Dad sold the Savage.

For Ohio: Remington 1100 12 GA w. smooth bore and rifle sights. 2.75" Remmie Sluggers
For Kentucky: Remington 742 in 30-06, 180 grain Rem SPCL

I was 23.

And your expectations were forever ruined haha.

Old school blued/walnut model 7 243, quiksites and a tasco pronghorn, dad even put gunchaps on it for me, 10yo.

I had a .32-20, but borrowed a BIL's .25-35 for a couple of years, never killed a deer with either. In later years occsionally used an aunts .25-35 SRC to kill a few. Maybe 5 total.

At 12, I got a 99R in .300 Savage with a folding tang sight. I killed my first couple of deer that year. A really nice buck and a doe.

I learned to handload for it. Used it for every thing. Ball C2, 150 Hornady SP for deer and 100 gr half jackets for varmints.

I sold it before leaving for the Marines in 1966 at 19.

I killed my first deer with a Winchester 94 30.30, it was not mine but a family rifle. My very own first rifle was a Remington M.721 in 30.06. That was in 1958.

My Dad didn't hunt so I didn't start hunting until I was in college. I went with one of my roommates to NW Colorado in 1965 and killed my first deer, a spike muley, with a borrowed 94 Winchester in .32 Win Spl. I was 19.

The next year I went to the same area with my roommate and killed my first elk, a 5 pt bull, with a borrowed 30-40 Krag.

That got me turned on to hunting, so in '67 I ordered a .30-06 barreled action and a semi-inleted stock from Herters and put together my first centerfire rifle. I used that rifle for about 8 years, putting a deer and elk in my freezer every year along wth several pronghorn antelope. I had it re-chambered to .30 Gibbs in 1977 and for the next 20+ years it put an elk in my freezer just about every year along with 2 Shiras bull moose, a mountain goat, and an Alaskan caribou.

Remington 700 ADL with cheapo 3 x 9 Tasco scope in .30-06. I bought it with my own money as a Junior in high school is 1988.

I've had two of those Herter's stocks. Talk about tight-grip knuckle bruisers! I always figured they were designed by some guy with a real skinny dick.

Model 94 30-30

Savage 24 222/20ga was my first deer gun at 9. Followed shortly with a sporterized M98 8x57.

1960 production Remington 760 carbine in 30-06. Was Dad's then went to Mom.... She gave up hunting when I was legal to hunt at age 12 in 1981. I still carry it to this day.

A Remington 700 BDL 30-06 bought with paper route money when I was 13 and started hunting with at the then legal age of 14. The first rifle that I killed a deer with was a Marlin 336 chambered in 30/30. I shot a few does with a bow before shooting my first deer with a rifle. Back then the legal age for bow hunting was 12 but 14 for rifle and rifle hunting was mostly buck only.

A used Remington 700 Adl in 30-06. Garbage Tasco scope on top.
My grandpa bought it off a coworker at the sawmill. I had saved up money from mowing yards and shoveling snow off of roofs.

Savage 99 in .308. Used Norma 150 grain factory ammo. Iron sights.
I was 13.

Hunted in SE Idaho. First buck was around 175, the second 185+. Wish I could go back and do it again.

My first deer gun was a smooth bore 12 gauge Mossberg 500 slugster. My first deer rifle was a model 94 .30-30. We lived close to the rifle/shotgun zone line and I didn't have a money tree or anybody buying/giving me guns. Since I had limited funds, places to hunt on both sides of the line and the shotgun was legal in both zones, it made the most sense for my first deer gun. I had a buck and a doe on the ground before 10 am on opening morning of my first season with the Mossberg and rifled slugs. By the next season I had the .30-30 for hunting in the rifle zone.

My first rifle was a "sporterized 'O3 A3 30'06 I bought in a pawn shop at about 20 years old. Learned how to shoot a centerfire rifle at 100 yards off a concrete bench with it, but never got to hunt it...it did hold 6" groups at 100 yards with the original iron sights for my 1st visit to a real rifle range. I used some pawn shop ammo too that I paid umm 15/20 cents a round for as the Dallas Rifle Range did not allow left over military steel jacket ammo on the range that I could buy for 10cents a round and shoot at beer cans at an access point at Lake Dallas.

Not too long after that my Grand Father got wind of my pending wedding and suggested that I find $250 and buy my wedding present from him, as he had loaned a guy $500 and got a SAKO 579 243 to hold until the debt was paid, and the guy had only repaid $250 of the debt in the 6 months allowable. I got married as advertised in the family loudspeaker (another uncle)....and make my new wife aware of my indebtedness....Jeez THAT was not fun.

The following year my grandfather had gotten on a deer lease in central Texas and invited me to come with him for a long weekend if I would cook. He was all crippled up from being run over and pinned to the back wall by a Fire Truck that lost it's brakes while he guided it into the Fire House where he was the #2 guy.

I spent all fall getting ready, shooting the SAKO at the new half finished Dallas Gun Range, learning how to shoot reliably, and won private bets enough to "write" my initials on a business card at 100 yards, and sold the old '03A3 for enough to get a decent Weaver scope and a super simple reloading kit in a small black box & supplies so I could make my own ammo on the kitchen table ...still got the kit, 55 years later.

Went on trip to the Deer Lease and made my first "kill". I was hiding down near the rivers edge hiding in some boulders when I saw a quail walking the bank towards me, chasing bugs, and GrandPop was about 50- 60 yards up the hill behind me out of sight ....as he could not make it up & down the trail even with his cane and a rope, needless to say I was bored stiff ...so I shot the quail's head off leaving a clean bottom half of the quails beak....and grand pop eased down trail as close as he could get and beat the snot outta me with his big walking stick. He ate the quail that nite too.

The next morning I eased back down thru the rocks to "my" spot...and watched as a small herd of WT's eased up the river bed towards us , and got ready to make my 1st kill from my hidey hole...but the deer got spooked when I got squirmy and shot between the front feet of the buck leading the herd...and emptied the rifle as the deer hauled arse up the opposite steep river bank as I reloaded & emptied the Sako again ... all the the while listening to my grand pop roar with laughter. The long 6+ hour ride back to Dallas was yet another bonding and learning experience... I heard "In Deer Hunting it is NOT always easy so stay awake and pay attention no matter how dull it is" a couple dozen times .

The only time I ever saw the old man with tears in his eyes again was when he called me to come over, one Saturday morning years later. He'd just returned from his last trip to Alaska, he went somewhere to hunt every other year...and handed me his last rifle, saying I can't see to hit anymore , so here you take this.

Some years later in a similar setup at another river bottom I got bored sitting in a wood blind that was elevated enough so you could see over the side of the hill and watch a running creek bottom and part of the pecan tree grove across the creek, that was part of our lease. I eased down the steep hillside, got set up and watched the herd of turkeys I had heard chow down on ripe pecans ...until one of them stopped eating and started listening to the truck easing towards the road down to the creek from the next property....and I took his head off at about 150 yards and watched the farmer on the next property drive down HIS side of the fence that separated his property from our Lease looking for the turkey's ....with a another SAKO 243.

Years Later I repped for Stoeger in a 5 state territory, and always felt like "Some how I was supposed to do this according to some body and felt almost at home in Finland"
Ron

Military surplus Spanish 8mm Mauser. It weighed about nine pounds and had sights so fine I could not see them except in excellent light. I bought it with money I made from mowing lawns. I could not have been happier with any custom rifle. I never did get a deer to cooperate while hunting with that rifle though.

First rifle was grandpas spanish mauser in 7 x 57, unfortunately the sights are bent so it doesnt go out much, when indiana opened deer to rifles i bought a howa game king in 6.5 cm, its got 5 deer in 3 years, first was about half an hour after daybreak opening day, i spooked it trying to find the stand in the dark, and it came out about 40 minutes later. Next year i got 3 in about a minute without moving, tagged out. Last year was second to last day, got a buck at the same stand the first one was at. This year ive added a 243 mauser and a 257 weatherby, the one place i hunt at is wide open on one side and ive seen deer across the property, so think that may go incase there are any as i go in

Started out at 15 with a Marlin 336 in 30-30. No luck until a few years later. In 1988 I borrowed a Winchester Model 70 in 270 Winchester and shot a 3pt buck at about 110yards...bang, flop. I shot Federal Premium 130 BTSP. It had a Bushnell 4x40 scope on it(wish those were still made!) it was very little fanfare...just results👍
Thanks, Tom

I was 15 saved may hay money all summer to buy a new Winchester model 94 30-30
Sold it a few years later for a 30-06

I had hunted and killed whitetail with my 12 gauge shotgun prior to having a rifle. First year we were married my wife bought me a Ruger M77 in 270 WIN right after Christmas. I was 22 and that was in 1978, it’s still killing deer for me.

7-30 Waters in a T/C Contender. It was stolen a few years later along with 18 other firearms

Remington 14 in 35 Rem., 1978 at age 12. It is now retired to the back of the safe.

Glenfield 30A 30/30 with a Weaver K4 scope. I was twelve and had saved up my money to buy it. Other people tried talking me into buying another caliber but I wanted a 30/30. I still have it and it sits in the back of the safe.

12 years old. A model 99 Savage (30-30) with a shortened barrel and a homemade front sight soldered on. A piece of junk that I paid 35 dollars for. I earned the money from my paper route.

I shot one yearling with it by luck.

Pre-64 94 in 30-30. Had my 14th birthday deer hunting in Maine. Was an uncles only rifle and my dad bought it off him after the hunt. I still have it.

Remington model 742 BDL in 30-06 that I won on a 50 Cent raffle ticket from my local run gun club. Age 16 took a Whitetail doe with it the first day I hunted with it.

Small-ring 7mm Mauser that my grandfather had sporterized for me. Bought a Bushnell Scope Chief 1.5-4 x 20 for it with paper route money. Loved that gun. Still have it and the scope. Grandpa helped me handload rounds for it. Might still have some of those. Never shot anything with it but many fond memories of deer seasons and deer camps in my youth.

Stevens model 24. 410/22 crack barrel. Used for squirrel with shot and slugs for deer hunting when I was around 10. My Grandpa bought the gun new in 1941.

Marlin 336 in .30-30. I was 12 when my Grandpa gave it to me. My son took his 4th buck with it earlier this week. Grandpa would be very proud! The rifle is now being hunted by the 4th generation. I have no doubt that it will see more.

I was 21 and the rifle was a M700 BDL Remington 270. Never shot anything but paper with it. First rifle I ever got a deer with was a M700 ADL Remington 243. Twenty three years old.

Savage 99 22 highpower with an ancient 2.5 power scope. 11 years old

First deer gun was an inherited HR 12 gauge single shot that i used at age 12. I still have it and hunt with it.
My first deer rifle was a 94 Winchester in 32 Special, made in '55. I bought that with my 4Hpig money at 13. Bigger faster attracted me. It sadly left, but I got another some years later, a post 64. I had it and two other rifles at shop. He went bankrupt. Lost the guns, never got a penny. But I replaced it with a war era 32 Special that I shoot a good bit and do not plan to part with. Just wish I lived where you can hunt with a rifle.
Bfly

Ruger #1A .243 age 12

Tony

The first rifle I hunted with was a 03A3 semi sporterized WW II Springfield 30'06 that still had it' steel butt plate. As I recall I paid under $100 for it, and bought some steel jacket military ammo for less than a $ a round. The Newly opened Public Shooting Range in Dallas banned steel jacket ammo shortly after that. I hunted everything from rabbits to ? with that rifle until my grandfather saw it. Shortly after that is when my grandfather put me together with a SAKO 243 as a wedding present at 23 years old.... and I am 78 years old now days....and still married to the same wife.
Ron

Ruger #1 in 6.5x55 SE at age 59. Had hunted small game & ducks in my youth but had never gone deer hunting before. Finally decided it was time to give it a try.

Mine was a model 94 trapper in 30-30. Dad got me that rifle in 1985 and I was 11 years old. Killed my first deer in 86’ with that rifle and a pile of them for the next 3 years until I purchased my own M77 RL UL in 270. Sadly I sold the Ruger many years later. I killed even more with that rifle. I killed the first deer in 27 years with that 30-30 about 3-4 years ago. It was awesome!

At 12 when I got my first hunting license, it was a Remington 14 in 30 Rem.

But for the next ten years, I stayed home and milked the cows while Dad went out and filled the freezer. I finally killed a deer with a MIJ Wea Mk V varmintmaster in 22-250.

First deer gun 30-30 passed down from great uncle I was 12 years old. Shot some deer with it until i was 20 bought a Ruger M77 30-06 still love that old rifle bought it in the Mall back when that was cool.

I grew up in some ass backwards state that required slug guns or muzzle loaders so shot my first few deer with a coast to coast (mossberg) 12ga pump gun with a rifle sighted slug barrel I borrowed from my dads buddy.

But I’d guess around age 12 I bought a browning BAR 30-06 off my dads same buddy. I ended up selling it when I was about 15-16 to get car parts for a 1970 mustang that I still have. I bought the BAR back when I was about 28 or so. I shot one deer with it a few years ago and she pretty well stays in the safe. I should hunt her again some. She deserves it.

Remington 700 stainless mountain rifle (I think that’s what it was anyways) in 270 with a 6X leupold. When I was 14 back in the mid 90’s

Also used shotgun/slugs until I was about 30, then bought a used Savage 99EG in .300SAV from the great old sports shop in Hancock (western) Maryland - Hendershots. Loved that place.

Sadly it’s closed now but when I bought mine, about 30 years ago, they had nearly a wall full of used 99s, attesting to the popularity of that model in the WV, MD and PA mountains. Should’ve bought six of ‘em for the investment alone. (I did return for a 99C in 308 Win a few months later.) When I get this #!% damned time machine finished, Hendershots around 1990 is my first stop...

I have never gone deer hunting but my first hunting rifle was a Winchester XTR 300 Win that I borrowed from my father. My first permanent gun was a Weatherby Vanguard Pre-Deluxe from 1981 in 300 Win Mag.

Marlin 1893 in 30-30 that Grandad traded some "Russian trappers" out of.
Dad got it, and I hunted it a few years - starting when about 10 - 11 years old.
I'm not sure which of my brothers got that rifle - need to ask around.

British lee enfeild in 303 and then a Remington pump in 35 Remington.

94 Winchester 30-30

My first hunt for deer I was 11, used a Stevens SS 20ga with buck. Same when 12. At 13 my folks got me a H&R Topper 30-30 from Fingerhuts (via mail, it was 1965.) It was a very hard kicker, bad trigger pull, bad sights. Went to an old 2nd hand Remington 11-49 12ga when I was 14. At 15 I had traded a saddle for a Universal 30 Cal Carbine. Finally bought myself a Mod 94 Classic Carbine 30-30 when I was 16. Killed alot of stuff with that rifle.

My first Deer rifle was a 336 Marlin in 35 Remington, I was about 16 when I got it, sadly it was stolen about 30 years ago.

Steve............

12 years old, 1955, 32-20 in a pump rifle. A few time with a .410 and slugs

At 18 years old I bought a Sears and Robuck, Ted Williams, Winchester model 94 leaver action in 30-30 win.
I ordered it thru the Sears catalogue for $99.99.
Killed my first deer with it 5 years later after moving to TN.
I still have the 4-point antlers but not the rifle.

Rem 700 ADL 25/06
Bought it new in 1974 for $104 and still have it
Age 23
I very rarely shoot it the past 30 years but it’s killed a dozen or so deer and five pronghorns and some coyotes

I only hunted small game until I graduated college. So at 22 bought a Sako Finnbear '06. 40+ years later still have it still shoots good.

Winchester model 1894 rifle from my grandfather in 30-30. Shot a couple of does with it before buying a Ruger 77 in 7mm RM. Still have them 45+ years later the 7mm is still filling the freezer.

Winchester Model 55 in 30-30. Killed a 4 point while in college in VT. Foolishly sold years ago.

Sav 99 250-3000 when I was 20 borrowed from a friend. Shot it again when I was 57 after my friend passed and left it to me….

Mine was a Savage 99e in 308. I killed a 9 point the first morning of my first hunt! I traded it for a old 700adl in 280. Best trade I ever made. Introduced me to the 280.

Mine was a Stevens bolt action. 30-06. Don’t remember the model number but was basically a Savage 110. Late 80s-ish. Had a cheap birch factory stock. Quickly swapped for an injection molded stock. To get it, I traded away an Enfield .308 that would not hold the mag under recoil. Wasn’t long until I realized I could save a few hundred $$ and trade into a different rifle. I had bought and traded 3 rifles before I was 16. And now I’m a looney like the rest of you all!

When I was 10 years old I won a marlin 1894cl 32-20 win. at a ducks unlimited banquet. It was never a very good deer rifle but I shot alot of varmints with that gun. I took some deer with it.

My Dad's Ithaca model 37 12ga. Some 58 odd years ago, I was 13 or 14.

An old bolt action 12 gauge from Western Auto. Loaded it with 00 Buck, slug, 00 Buck.

Now I wanted a .280 Rem for as long as I could remember. When my wife and I started dating I found out her father had an FFL. I asked if he could order me a Remington 700 BDL in .280 and he said sure. Went to their house one day and he let me look though all of his distributor books until I found one I liked. He game me a price and a couple weeks later I had my first deer rifle a Rem 700 BDL DM in hand. I’ve only killed two deer with it, but it’s still my favorite rifle.

Marlin 336SC in 32 Special, that I wish I never parted with, in WI counties that allowed rifles. Rem 870, 16ga, with smooth-bore, rifle sighted barrel (Yes, such a thing exists!) in shotgun only counties.

In 1955 I turned 16 and My parents gifted me with the rifle of my choice a Model 64 Winchester in 32 Special. The fit and hang were perfect for me. Sure did shoot a pile of Whitetail with it. It was stolen from me in Potsdam NY years later.

Marlin 336 in 30-30 never killed a deer with it. 16 years old. First I bought was a Rem 700 Bdl in 243. 19 years old. Killed a bunch with it.

So how I overlooked this post…..so here we go,

Not a rifle…..well part of it was! 😁 A Stevens 22/410 that my Dad won on a “punch board” game right after he came home from WWII. Killed my first deer with a 410 slug (pure luck) 10 days after my 11th Birthday. memtb

.30-06 Springfield 03-A3 sporter, w/ aperture sights.

13 years old.




GR