Just ran across an old 2002 catalog from Dangerous Dave and the OWS. He was a source for rare and oddball stuff. I see it is still around. Anybody every order from OWS?
Never ordered anything from them, but never heard anything bad about them either.
Been a while, but yes.........
Like EdM and Muffin, ordered from OWS several times with good results, but quite a while ago.
Don't hold me to this, Dave had medical problems (cancer), moved to Reno from here, to be closer to good doctors, his son half heartedly ran the business, and I think it slowly faded away. Some outfit, maybe Navy Arms, bought the name and has a web page, but I haven't ordered anything since Dave operated it. There are still 2 old deactivated 16 inch naval shells along the highway where his home/warehouse was, the grandsons HAVE to stop every damn time we drive by there.
What a blast from the past! In the 1980's, Bob Jensen wrote an article about how primers were the key to accuracy at 600 yards. In his article, he mentioned RWS primers as giving the smallest SD in his testing. Problem was they were unobtanium...except from Old Western Scrounger! Apparently the only one importing them at the time.
Hatari just wanted to know about the OWS as a source. But let me tell youse guys a little anecdote about Dave Cumberland, the man. In one of the frequent economic crashes the lumber market causes around here I was taking any and all work I could find. Gravy was thin and watery around the Flint Estate. Dave calls, "you the guy with the shop truck that works on equipment ?"...."Yup". An appointment is made to get his little forklift going, work is done within an hour, normally I wouldn't charge but times are hard, so he offers cash or check. I gratefully accept the check and he says that doesn't seem like enough ( seems like it was 75 bucks), why don't you pick something out here in the warehouse. So I go browsing, unbelievable, piles of gun stuff, ammo, mil surplus, reloading gear from the old Hollywood gun shop...well, I made the mistake of picking up a Springfield 1898 Krag leaning in the corner. He looked at it, I forgot I had that...it's yours, take it with you. Even in those days a 400 buck rifle, easy. I protested weakly and took it. Got feeling guilty that winter and brought him a few loads of firewood, we remained friends until he moved away. A small man with a big heart.
Hatari just wanted to know about the OWS as a source. But let me tell youse guys a little anecdote about Dave Cumberland, the man. In one of the frequent economic crashes the lumber market causes around here I was taking any and all work I could find. Gravy was thin and watery around the Flint Estate. Dave calls, "you the guy with the shop truck that works on equipment ?"...."Yup". An appointment is made to get his little forklift going, work is done within an hour, normally I wouldn't charge but times are hard, so he offers cash or check. I gratefully accept the check and he says that doesn't seem like enough ( seems like it was 75 bucks), why don't you pick something out here in the warehouse. So I go browsing, unbelievable, piles of gun stuff, ammo, mil surplus, reloading gear from the old Hollywood gun shop...well, I made the mistake of picking up a Springfield 1898 Krag leaning in the corner. He looked at it, I forgot I had that...it's yours, take it with you. Even in those days a 400 buck rifle, easy. I protested weakly and took it. Got feeling guilty that winter and brought him a few loads of firewood, we remained friends until he moved away. A small man with a big heart.
Great story! Liked his catalog.
Great story!
I talked to him a number of times years ago at SCI conventions. He'd stand around wearing his old Pickle Helmet or whatever it was talking about the oddball military stuff he sourced out some forgotten warehouse somewhere. Fun guy.
What a blast from the past! In the 1980's, Bob Jensen wrote an article about how primers were the key to accuracy at 600 yards. In his article, he mentioned RWS primers as giving the smallest SD in his testing. Problem was they were unobtanium...except from Old Western Scrounger! Apparently the only one importing them at the time.
I think he was the source of RWS H-Mantle bullets that I can't get anymore
Got my first 6.5x54M-S brass (RWS) from him.
Awhile ago
I use too. I didn't know they were still around.
When I had my shop I used him quite a bit. I also pointed countless customers his way. He always had some unusual and interesting stuff.
Who remembers Belknap Junquery which later became Superior Collectable Investments ? Kind of along the same lines as OWS.
My father and I met him at a gun show in Portland, OR back in the mid 80’s. Dad had bought a rifle of some rare caliber, and I was teasing him about finding ammo for it. Along came OWS at the same gun show, and supplied dad with what he needed. The Mannlicher-Schoenauer collectors held their annual meeting in Portland that year, and it was held at same time as this gun show, otherwise we would have never made it to Portland for a gun show.
5MM REM MAG and 25 Stevens ammo.
He had new Remington 37 grain HPPL that I hadn't seen for awhile and he had his own brand of 67 grain 25 Stevens.
'Glad that I bought 500 rounds ot the 25 Stevens, 'cause I haven't seen any shooting ammo anywhere since 200?
Haven't heard that name in a long time. back in the 60's and early 70's he owned the Old West Gun Room in El Cerrito Calif. His daughter went to the same high school i did. Don't even know if the old shop is still down there. 1970 he did or his smith did some work on a 98 Mauser I had.
I do still have a case of Winchester 22WRF in the locker from him.
Was working in the early 70's at the Union oil refinery in Rodeo, and spent many hours in that shop in El Cerrito . Cool place !
I used to order stuff from him, talked on the phone a time or two. Never knew what would be in his catalog.
I once bought some 6.5x54MS ammo from them soon after I got a Model 1903 Mannlicher Schoenauer and they were the only source I could find. I did get dies and brass and have been handloading it ever since. That was my only experience with them.
I’ve bought a few low dollar items from OWS, always a good experience. I like old school gun shops and gun parts catalogs/websites. OWS or Jack First is another good one.
Being a lover of odd-ball sh*t, I bought a fair amount of stuff from him back in the '90s. Use to get DKT bullets from him. Remember those? They were one of the only "readily available", and I use that term loosely, source of .405 Win bullets back then.
In 1992 I brought a .577 Snider carbine home from England, And OWS was the only place I knew of to get the components to shoot it. I bought some Bertram basic .577 cases. I also bought some from Dixie Gun Works, but they weren't drawn brass like the Bertram.
I've got the 1993 OWS catalog. Only one I have. Great stuff in this book.
Wow…haven’t heard or seen one of those catalogs in a long time!!! Makes me remember the days when I had a Gun List subscription and impatiently waited for each issue, then engrossed myself in the ads like a little kid with a new comic book! A blast from the past for sure, and I didn’t know OWS was still around!
Doc_Holidude
Once bought some 43 Egyptian from him.
We used to get 5mm Rem Mag and .22 WRF ammo from him occasionally
Never bought there but someone at work mentioned US Cavalry the other day - another old catalog blast from the past.
Bought some 40-82 ammunition from them about 25 - 30 yrs ago.
Very quick service then, but would imagine the people are not
the same ones now.
Don't hold me to this, Dave had medical problems (cancer), moved to Reno from here, to be closer to good doctors, his son half heartedly ran the business, and I think it slowly faded away. Some outfit, maybe Navy Arms, bought the name and has a web page, but I haven't ordered anything since Dave operated it. There are still 2 old deactivated 16 inch naval shells along the highway where his home/warehouse was, the grandsons HAVE to stop every damn time we drive by there.
He ran it in Moundhouse near Carson City for a while after moving from Montague CA. It was close to the whore houses, and I got near there often. I hated to see it make the final move. He was my first source for .318 bullets for my "J" bores and for .364 193gr bullets for my 9,3X72R, and he often had ammo for both back when he was in Montague.
Way back in the late 90's, I had a 9.3x62 built. OWS was the only place I could find ammo! I scraped together some more Norma brass ( $$$) and the barrel was a Kreiger, special ordered. Now its much easier to get into the old thumper.
I use to stop at his shop in Montague, when I was down in Siskiyou County on business back in the late 90s and early 2000s...
just south of us here in S. Oregon.
Definitely a nice guy, and very interesting shop....
Was down there the last time, evidently after he moved... shop was closed...
didn't know if he passed or just shut down the business...
haven't thought about it much since, until reading the thread here...
I used to go over to the Old West Gun Room pretty often when I was in grad school. Had to walk a couple of miles because I couldn't afford both my gun addiction and wheels. Bought a lot of little parts to finish "parts guns" I'd acquired in garage sales (remember that?) and from "Shotgun News," the "newsprint internet" (remember that?).
Still have a .44-40 Colt Bisley that I'd bought in Mexico in the late 1950s in excellent shape except that some 'esmit had tried to covert it into a "Tejano" with incorrect SAA parts. Dave just happened to have a new condition backstrap and trigger guard that was about 200 numbers away from the ones on the frame. Quick trade plus a little boot, and I found near-new Bisley grips a couple of months later. Still shoot the old thing with Black Hills "Cowboy" lead ammo. Still deadly, made in 1909 just in time for the Revolution!
"Beesleys" were more popular in Mexico than in the US it seemed to me. Where I was they were called "abrebottelas" (bottle openers") because the lower hammer was so handy to pop beer bottle caps. I never saw one with a bent or broken hammer spur, tho.
After reading thru this, just did a deep dive into one of the unpacked boxes still in the basement & found a 1991 catalog. Some of the highlights...
A complete refurbished Starlight scope for $2750
Lee Loaders for $7.50
A 25mm Hotchkiss AT gun complete with 24 rds of AP ammo for $5600
20mm Solothurn primed brass for $6 each
Big Bang Cannons
Too bad back then I purged older catalogs when the new one arrived.
I used to go over to the Old West Gun Room pretty often when I was in grad school. Had to walk a couple of miles because I couldn't afford both my gun addiction and wheels. Bought a lot of little parts to finish "parts guns" I'd acquired in garage sales (remember that?) and from "Shotgun News," the "newsprint internet" (remember that?).
Still have a .44-40 Colt Bisley that I'd bought in Mexico in the late 1950s in excellent shape except that some 'esmit had tried to covert it into a "Tejano" with incorrect SAA parts. Dave just happened to have a new condition backstrap and trigger guard that was about 200 numbers away from the ones on the frame. Quick trade plus a little boot, and I found near-new Bisley grips a couple of months later. Still shoot the old thing with Black Hills "Cowboy" lead ammo. Still deadly, made in 1909 just in time for the Revolution!
"Beesleys" were more popular in Mexico than in the US it seemed to me. Where I was they were called "abrebottelas" (bottle openers") because the lower hammer was so handy to pop beer bottle caps. I never saw one with a bent or broken hammer spur, tho.
Brits pronounce the city Bisley “Beesley”.
used to buy 8x56 MS ammo from him. Evidently he made the cases from something else. Stuff shot great. When I could no longer find that ammo, I had the rifle rechambered to 8x57 Mauser. Still shooting it.
Always enjoyed stopping at his Shot Show table in early 2000's.
They still have a site. I didn’t try to order anything, though.
Back in the late 90's I was having my first 9.3x62 made up. A rebarreled Mod 70 FWT XTR with a Krieger barrel. The "only place" I could find some factory ammo was at The Old Western Scrounger! A couple boxes of Norma 232gr. I had no problem gather up dies, and components from a few other sources. I just wanted to have a couple boxes of factory ammo to try first. They shot fine, as did my later handloads. I settled on the Nosler 286 over Varget. I gasve that rifle to a young family man ( my Youth Minister at the time) He killed a fat spike bull elk with it that year. Bull was about 60yds away but in front was light screen of Buckbrush. He popped him with no issues. There is still alot of air in any bush, ha.
Haven't heard that name in a long time. back in the 60's and early 70's he owned the Old West Gun Room in El Cerrito Calif. His daughter went to the same high school i did. Don't even know if the old shop is still down there. 1970 he did or his smith did some work on a 98 Mauser I had.
I do still have a case of Winchester 22WRF in the locker from him.
Old West Gun Room is still around. Talked to Dave about 15 years ago and he sent me a few things he thought I'd like based on our conversation. If I remember it was some ammo I was having a hard time finding.
A man remembered in this way lives on.
I’d seen him at various events years ago. I never spoke with him that I recall. But, I most certainly remember him.
I used to find all kinds of excuses to stop by the shop in Montague, a couple times the lights were on very early in the AM I'd stop in and he would be talking rapid fire on the phone...in what I presumed was German. I asked of course, he said he dealt direct with RWS, had formed friendships with them and showed me photos of a couple European hunts he had taken as their guest. And the walls of the office were well adorned with many photos of a US Navy Cruiser, the name escapes me, I assumed he had served aboard her. As I said before, Dave the man was much more than Dave the ammo guy.
Hatari just wanted to know about the OWS as a source. But let me tell youse guys a little anecdote about Dave Cumberland, the man. In one of the frequent economic crashes the lumber market causes around here I was taking any and all work I could find. Gravy was thin and watery around the Flint Estate. Dave calls, "you the guy with the shop truck that works on equipment ?"...."Yup". An appointment is made to get his little forklift going, work is done within an hour, normally I wouldn't charge but times are hard, so he offers cash or check. I gratefully accept the check and he says that doesn't seem like enough ( seems like it was 75 bucks), why don't you pick something out here in the warehouse. So I go browsing, unbelievable, piles of gun stuff, ammo, mil surplus, reloading gear from the old Hollywood gun shop...well, I made the mistake of picking up a Springfield 1898 Krag leaning in the corner. He looked at it, I forgot I had that...it's yours, take it with you. Even in those days a 400 buck rifle, easy. I protested weakly and took it. Got feeling guilty that winter and brought him a few loads of firewood, we remained friends until he moved away. A small man with a big heart.
Yeah, I have been in his shop many times when I first moved here.
Flintlock is about 100 miles south of me...
Going in there was like going back into 1950....Fine old guy.. I hope he is still doing well, having to deal with that cancer crap..
Cancer sucks.. What was God thinking when he invented that?
I always thought his 20 mm reloading press must have been something to see. Never saw one.
He used to have all the Berdan primers in stock and they were scarce otherwise -- if you had to reload some Berdan primed cases.
Haven't heard that name in a long time. back in the 60's and early 70's he owned the Old West Gun Room in El Cerrito Calif. His daughter went to the same high school i did. Don't even know if the old shop is still down there. 1970 he did or his smith did some work on a 98 Mauser I had.
I do still have a case of Winchester 22WRF in the locker from him.
Old West Gun Room appears to still be open, but by appointment only.
https://oldwestgunroom.com/I've been there once or twice, but it's a bit far to go for me. Haven't been in quite some time.