Of all the cool stuff at Gunny’s upcoming auctions, I’d choose the Winchester 62 .22 pump rifle, because I lost my Taurus copy thereof in the Great Gun Theft Of 2021:
…although the old 63 semi-auto still has a special place in my heart, being as it’s the gun I learned to shoot rifles with, and it spoiled me forever:
I wish I’d never sold mine…
Reader Termite reminds me that it is indeed 10/22. Pick yer poison…
Yummy.
I have to say that I have not been remiss in not talking about Othias and Mae at C&Rsenal before, simply because I only recently discovered this outstanding EeeewwChoob channel.
That said, an impossibly-long amount of watching has since followed — I probably spend about two hours a day watching this pair talking about, and shooting, the old rifles that I love so much. Between Othias’s historical background on the guns’ development and manufacture, and Mae’s well-informed opinions on the guns’ actual operation, it’s just about a perfect show for an old gun geek like myself. And when they’re talking about a gun which I own, I feel an irresistible urge to get it out of the safe and work the action while I’m watching. (I won’t even talk about the irresistible urge to go to the range afterwards.)
Between this show and Ian McCollum’s Forgotten Weapons series, there is a veritable encyclopedia of information about guns — so much so that from now on, I’m not going to do any lengthy exposition on the guns I feature in my Gratuitous Gun pics, but simply hand them over to one or the other of these two channels where they are covered. (If I do a range report, however, I’ll put my two cents into the mix.)
Damn, I love this gun thing.
It’s Italy Day here on this back porch of mine:
…and here are some fine Italian things.
First up, a matched pair of Rizzini shotguns:
Next up, a 1955 Fiat 8V, styled by Zagato:
…and a 1967 Fiat 2400 Dino Spider:
Speaking of fine Italian models of yore, it’s about time we looked at Sophia again:
…and her younger compatriot, Monica Bellucci:
And speaking of yummy:
Where could one buy such things? Well, in Milan, for instance:
That’s all Italian style, folks, and it’s pretty much unbeatable.
From Reader Greg S, a question via email:
Might I ask you to share your thoughts on “English” stock vs. American stocks for shotguns? As I imagine many do here in the USA, my shotgunning experience started with the typical “pistol grip” style of butt stock. There’s also a similar style called “Prince of Wales” that I’ve seen.
A few years in, I was fortunate to try the straight English butt stock and became an instant convert. Strictly for myself, I’ve found that recoil management is better and the shotgun seems to point more naturally.
Those would also be my reasons for choosing the straight stock, but I also just love the way they look. Compare the pistol-gripped Beretta Silver Pigeon and the “English” Browning Superlite (both lovely shotguns) below:
Now compare even the Browning to an English stock and splinter forearm on a side-by-side H&H Deluxe:
More graceful, lighter (by several ounces), quicker to shoulder and point… pretty much perfection. (We can argue about twin vs. single triggers at another time.)
Your opinion may vary, but neither Reader Greg nor I care.
Back In South Africa, I remember the time I bought my first Mauser, an Israeli surplus (rebarreled to 7.62x51mm NATO). It looked something like this:
Of course, as my very first centerfire rifle, I was as proud as all hell about it — I even took it to the annual family reunion (on Ouma’s birthday) and showed it around.
One of my uncles peered at it like a suspicious dog, then took it, worked the action expertly, and smiled broadly. When he handed it back to me, he asked in Afrikaans, “Do you know what they call a Boer without a Mauser? No? An Englishman!” *
Many chuckles from all the men sitting around, with murmurs of agreement and pats on my shoulder.
So yesterday I took possession of my latest badge of Afrikanerdom (courtesy of Longtime Reader BobJ, thankee squire), and OMG…
Pre-war manufacture, all the proper cartouches, and matching serial numbers. The “42” refers to the Oberndorf factory, 1938 the year of manufacture, and the serial number has only four(!) digits. I haven’t been so excited about a gun in years.
And now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to the range.
* “Weet jy wat hulle ‘n Boer sonder ‘n Mauser vernoem? ‘n Ingelsman!”
In the Army (no explanations, it’s too long a story), the CO of my commando unit referred to it as “that Jewish Mauser” (“daardie Joodse Mauser”).