[boredelmo]

I was inspired to make this thread because of this thread:

http://thehighroad.org/forumdisplay.php?f=5

And also, from the "Did your mom ever give you a gun?" thread.

Just wanted everyone to share what their father was like and how he impacted you and your gun hobby. Any interesting stories like Dave P's would be nice also.

My father has always been a distant figure to me. The first time i touched a firearm was around Hurricane Rita (im in houston). He was on business in China and I was head of the family then. Along with boarding up the house and preparing lots of equipment my dad called me over the phone an told me to goto his closet and pull out the orange suitcase. Inside i found a 9mm Uzi carbine, 6in .357 mag revolver, a Mac-11 in.380, a Sig p220, and a cz52:what:. He told me the safety rules over the phone and told me to protect our family at all costs. He also mentioned to not show any weapons unless i intended to use them. After that I was very much into firearms and is now my main hobby (as opposed to cars).

-Elmer

[Hemicuda]

My Dad? taught me how to shoot, helped me win more than one Junior Smallbore competition... and:

On my 4th Birhtday, he gave me a Daisy Mod. 99 BB gun,
for my 5th Christmas, he gave me a single shot bolt action .22,
for my 12th BIrhtday, he gave me a break action H&R Topper 12 Ga.
for my 14th BIrthday it was a Lever action 30-30,
for my 18th Birthday, he gave me a Ruger MK I .22 pistol...

since then, he has given me a custom built Mauser .243 worth a fortune, his fathers 12 Ga. single shot, HIS first handgun, a Hi-Standard Double Nine Longhorn .22, and a custom built Mauser .284 Win,

he has done a LOT of things hunting, shooting, and gun wise for me... he is the MAIN reason I'm INTO guns and shooting...

[sailorjosh]

Yup, my dad being a hunter/shooter is the reason I got into it all, his dad taught him etc...and he bought me my shotgun. He used to tell me that when he was a kid and he would take out the .22, his dad would give him two rounds. If those two rounds were gone when you got back and you weren't carrying an animal, you were in trouble. Heh.

[tellner]

My Dad thinks I'm more than a little nuts to even have guns in the house.

[dmftoy1]

My dad retired a Master Sergeant in the US Airforce and never had much use for guns. I guess WWII, Korea and the very early part of Vietnam just turned him off on that type of thing. He grew up in PA and they hunted deer when he was a boy and I saw him go hunting once as an adult when we were visiting my grandparents. I think he did it more for the social aspect as much as anything.

That being said:

Daisy Red Ryder (real one with a wood stock that had wood burned letters on it) - I got it when I was in second grade I think and he showed me how to shoot tin cans in the back yard.

Remington Model 336 - 35 Remington - My grandpa came to live with us after my grandma died and he was always talking about that deer rifle. When he passed away my dad took him back to PA to bury him and came home with his .336 wrapped in an pennsylvania "rag rug". (my dads side of the family are pennslyvania dutch). That gun was given to me as I was the only one in the family interested.

I started thinking that maybe my dad had nothing to do with my interest in guns, but I guess thinking back on it he did do some.

Have a good one,
Dave

[db_tanker]

5 years old and sitting on the bank of the San Jacinto river shooting at aluminum cans with an old tube mag 22...and somtimes hitting the can. :)

10 years old and getting a Stevens 410 break over.

15 and going to ConTex Gunsports and getting a Winchester Model 1200 Ranger 20 gauge.

Last gun I got from my dad was after he died...Nylon 22...oldest brother got his 94 Trapper 30 WCF. You know...at first I was kinda pissed...but then I shook myself and realized that at least I had the memories...felt like crap after that for a long time acting like that. It is very very unfortunate that it took the passing of a loved one to make me realize just what they did for me in life. Regret can drag you down and it almost did me...but I soon realized that I still have my mom...and my dad will always be with me.

OKAY...violins are shut off. :)

Funny thing is...since I got it after 1996, I have shot it a total of 3 times (the Nylon 22)

I am not worried about its resale value, but I am strongly considering having it restored to factory NIB condition and putting it on a nice wooden gun-rack like my dad used to have...put my 94 below it.

D

[Dr. Dickie]

As far as I know, the only time my father ever touched a gun was in basic training in the Army. Since he was a doctor stationed at West Point during the end of the Korean conflict, I doubt he touched one while there, and he never owned one.
I am trying to make up for his misspent life:neener:

[ScotZ]

My father recently passed away and I have done much reflecting about the impact he had on my life. My parents divorced when I was ten but I saw him every weekend for at least one day. I watch him and my uncle turn pieces of curly maple wood into muzzleloader stocks when I was a kid. Man I was hooked. Everytime they test fired one of those guns I felt like I was witnessing something special. I was given my first shotgun(an H&R 20ga) when I was 9 years old and taken on my first deer hunt(Remington 700 30-06 carrying) when I was 12. I still have both of those guns. I am 47 now. Guns were something we shared. He didnt buy one without asking my opinion and neither I always asked his. I learned gun and hunting safety from him long before I was aloud to shoot or carry a gun. It was all a natural progression. The first time he took me trap shooting. I thought I had died and gone to heaven simply because you got to shoot so much:D . Those are times that every kid should have. One of my fondest memories is when we had finished building a flintlock muzzleloader and went to "test" it. My father was reading me the riot act about safety and a guns first shot after a bench fire. He got so involved in showing me that he forgot to remove the ram rod and fired it straight into a tree. The ramrod stuck straight out of the tree and was imbeded about three inches into the tree. I thought that was the funniest thing I had ever seen. That story still gets told around family campfires 35 years later. He taught me more than I can ever put down here and even though he is gone now. I still pass on his lessons to my daughter. I miss him very much!

[U.S.SFC_RET]

My father grew up a poor share cropper in Georgia and could only afford a remington 514 single shot 22lr. I inherited it and passed it down to my son. He was amazing with his hands and I inherited that skill as well.

[JonP]

My father was an avid (and I mean avid hunter and gun collector. He taught me how to shoot when I was very young. Got me into the NRA youth shooting competitions, and years later when I joined the Army high power team at my first duty station, he was my spotter/coach. He bought me my first handgun (which I sold - stupid, stupid, stupd kid!:banghead: ). I never was much of a hunter though, something I think really disappointed him.

He died two years ago, and I inherited nearly his entire collection. I won't go into it here, but it's pretty darn impressive, and has inspired me back to the hobby.

As far as his influence, if you'd indulge me in sharing. I wrote this for his funeral, thankfully he knew how I felt before he died....


My father taught me what it is to be a man.


Through his actions, not his words, he showed me things I wouldnt understand until later in life when I would need them the most.


He taught me that knowledge is more important than education, and the thirst for knowledge is more important than either.


He taught me to do something you love, because being happy is more important than money.


My father taught me to work hard, do the very best you can at what you do, and strive to be the best you can be. If you do something, hed say, do it right. At the end of the day, the only thing others can know about you is how well you do your job, and how well you treat others.


He taught me to treat others well.


My father taught me what it is to be honest. Even when its difficult, being truthful is the honorable thing to do.


He taught me to stand up for what you believe in. For yourself, for your family, and for those who cannot stand up for themselves.


He taught me to provide for my family. Food and shelter are easy, time is much more difficult, and much more important.


Most importantly, he taught me to laugh. Laughter sweetens the good times, makes great memories, and gets us through the toughest of times.


My father didnt talk a lot during his life, but he gave me many lessons. Most of them I was too young, too stubborn or too proud to listen to at the time. He didnt stop teaching, and Im glad to say he didnt give up. I hope he understood that somewhere along the line, they sank in. I get it now, Dad.

[30 cal slob]

Dad was a martial arts instructor. Didn't very much care for guns or weapons, in fact, he confiscated every little bb/pellet gun that I ever acquired as a kid.

Which is why I'm so into guns now (forbidden fruit :neener: ).

[rustymaggot]

i think i was 9 when my dad took me out shooting for the first time. his only gun was a ruger blackhawk .357 mag. so thats what i learned with. a year later or so dad and me were in a local bar(he didnt drink) shooting pool. a dude comes in and says to everyone that he needs money for beer and all he has is a 22 rifle out in his truck. first 50 bucks takes it. my dad let me buy it and we went out with it on the way home.

my dad passed away when i was just barely 13.

[Colonel Plink]

My dad was a cop, hunter, gunsmith and Hunter Safety instructor when I was growing up. Oh, yeah, we shot. I got the family hand-me-down, a Winchester model 67 to shoot at age eight.
That rifle went to my oldest brother's oldest boy, so I went out and bought one for myself a few years back. To this day, my dad and I work on the occaisional gun project together.

[Mr White]

My dad was never into guns. He wasn't an anti, but he was a city guy and never hunted. He did teach me how to golf, though.

He bought me Crossman 760 when I was 12, which I carried on my many expeditions into the small woods of our suburban world. Many a squirrel, rat and tweety bird died because of that gun.

I knew he was in the army, in the 10th Mountain Division stationed in Austria in the early 50s. He told stories of having to climb mountains all day then sleep in the snow. I'm pretty sure those experiences were at the root of his hatred of winter, and for that matter, any weather where the temperature didn't begin with an 8 or a 9. He didn't hunt or shoot before the army, but when we were going through his stuff after he died, we found his army stuff and an Expert Rifle medal, so I guess he was a pretty good shot.

I didn't get into real guns that much when he was alive, but I used some of the money I got from his estate to buy several guns, one of them being my Garand. Even though he had no connection to that particular gun, other than indirectly paying for it, knowing that he was a good shot with that type of gun, and carried one just like it up and down the Austrian Alps, my Garand is the closest thing I have to a "gun from my dad".

My father in law was a pretty good guy too. He was an old redneck country guy. When he passed, we split up his guns. I got a pre-64 Model 94 in very good condition and a JC Higgins 12 ga pump. in VG condition.

[Ben Shepherd]

My father bought me a junior NRA membership when I was a little tyke. Gave me the 22 that his father gave him when I turned 12. Gave me a shotgun at 16, and a deer rifle at 18.

As for the results, see my sig line.:D

[Sistema1927]

My Dad has only personally owned three guns his entire life, and only owns one now.

He taught me to shoot at age 8 with one of those three guns, a Winchester 1906, which is now in my possession.

He bought me my first .22, a Winchester single shot bolt action, but I sold it many, many years ago.

He also taught me tho shoot a shotgun, his grandfather's Winchester 1897 16 ga. take down. My brother has that gun now.

He bought me my first shotgun, a Winchester single shot 12 ga., but I sold it many, many years ago.

My Dad didn't have any use for handguns UNTIL he was informed by the local police department in the late 1970's that they had heard from a confidential informant that a hit had been placed on a person with his same name. He immediately went out and purchased a Charter Arms .38 Undercover, and that has been his constant companion ever since.

He didn't purchase my first handgun, I did that myself on my 21st birthday.

Dad is a 21 year US Army veteran, jumped with the 508th RCT in the 1950's, and served tours in Korea and Vietnam. He lights up whenever I take him to the range and let him shoot either my Garand or my M1 Carbine. Dad sometimes wonders why I need "so many guns" (especially handguns), but he doesn't realize that he really is the one to blame by turning me on to guns at the tender age of eight.

[Waywatcher]

Niether of my parents have ever fired a gun in their life, and think I'm borderline irresponsible for owning them. :(

[PILMAN]

When I was about 6 or 7 years old, my dad was a huge gun collector and the first gun I ever shot was a shotgun. I was like "daddy look at all the bullets" because I didn't know how they operated at the time. He had to hold me up so I wouldn't fall back shooting it heh.

I had somewhat of an interest and he bought me some sort of rifle, think it was a .22 though I didn't get to shoot it because my mom made him return it :*( . My mother really hated firearms and wouldn't let me shoot them, I used to watch him at the shooting range though with my cousin. My dad died in 2003, my father had some problems with the law and they confiscated his firearms in 1996 but they were marked as safekeeping so I called the PD to see if I could get them and they told me the guns were destroyed by order of a judge. I was a bit angry and begged my mother for a long time to get a gun, I was finally able to get one after about 2 years of showing her websites and facts though she still swings to somewhat anti gun. It's a shame my fathers passed away as I know he would have approved of the purchase.

[Ben Shepherd]

One more tibit regarding hunter education:

I put about 60 kids per month through hunter ed every month. Feels good to do this. I can only cross my fingers and hope that they continue to hunt and shoot. And as they grow up I hope they become politically involved in supporting thier sport.

Even if only half become involved, and vote for thier second amendment rights when they get old enough, that adds up to 300 new folks on our side every year.:D

[Lennyjoe]

My biological father had some guns but never introduced me to them.

My step father was a duck hunter and when I was around 11 introduced me to his sport. I started out with a bolt action 16 guage and then graduated to a 20guage double barrel. We quit hunting for a few years when steel shot was introduced.

I took up arms again when I joined the Air Force in 85. Buddy of mine invited me to do some deer hunting. Started out using a bow until my wife purchased me a 30-30 for Christmas. Haven't looked back since.

[strat81]

Neither of my parents have ever fired a gun in their life, and think I'm borderline irresponsible for owning them.

+1 for Waywatcher's comment. My parents were both born and raised in NYC so they were never exposed to them. My grandfather dealt with rifles quite a bit in WWII (perhaps as the de facto armorer of his group), but hardly ever spoke of his days in the war. I wish I had gotten into guns just a few years earlier so that I could have spoken to him about it. I've seen pictures of him with a Garand (or something that looks like a Garand); I'd like to get one.

[armedpolak]

despite the fact my Father is the only true conservative left in the world:D he never owned a gun. he did surprise me though, when I said I wanted to get a .22LR and leave it upstate where him and my brothers could shoot it. he only asked i get a locking device for it (which only makes sense around kids).

http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=221331&highlight=armedpolak

he however has no problem with me owning bunch of handguns and CCW. we talked once about gun ownership, and he said we should be able to park a tank on the driveway if we felt like it. yea, he really belives in freedom and hands off government... just like his oldest son :D he also has no problem with me taking my brothers to the range and having a bit of fun with my .45 when they come to visit me next month:evil: cant wait!

AP

[1557]

Mine was a tool and die maker of the first order. He was a quail and duck hunter.He used a Remingtom 870 in 16 guage with two barrels,a26 in. improved cylinder and a 28 inch full for ducks. He always got three birds on a covey rise on the quail hunts.He was fast with that little pump.
He started teaching me about firearms when I was 11,and started me off with a 22 rifle,an old military 1911 and a captured 9mm,either a Star or Llama,can't remember which. In later years after my military service,we deer hunted together.He carried,of all things,a sporterized M1 Garand.
Beautiful hand checkered stock,without the forward most portion.Jewelled bolt,Williams receiver sights,and a sling.It weighed a little over 10 pounds.
That rifle was hell for accurate.
I had bought him a Mod36 chief for Christamas in 1964.Old square butt.
In 1972 I paid $90.00 for a 2 1/2 in Mod 19,as he wanted something more potent.It was one three of these models to arrive in town when the model came out with the short barrel.It had been owned by a well known policeman locally before I bought it.He kept it as his primary defense gun until his death in 1999. I would often leave him my four incher and carry his short magnum on plain clothes assignments,and ocasionally off duty.
When I received back after his death I had it completely refinished in NP3 and still carry and use it today often. I would not part with it,or any of his guns. Nostalgic,and lots of memories.

[22-rimfire]

My father got me started shooting and really enjoyed seeing us boys shooting and enjoying the sport. He was never a great shot, but he really didn't try very hard either. He was a man who broke out his 30-06 a week before deer season and shot it at a pie plate with an "X" on it. If he hit the pie plate, he generally was satisfied that his rifle was still shooting to point of aim. He might shoot a box of shells over several years. He usually got a deer though.

As the boys aged, we obtained our own "deer rifles" as well as shotguns for hunting. He could not provide them for us and we never expected it like kids of today. He loved small game hunting, and there were enough shotguns in the house for at least a portion of the boys to use afield. He truly did give me an appreciation for small game hunting with dogs (rabbits mostly). Some of my best hunting experiences were with my father rabbit hunting with dogs.

To say that my Father shaped my interest in firearms would be an exaggeration. Hunting, yes. He did shape me in many ways, but not with regard to firearms. People here talk about shooting a brick of 22 shells in an afternoon. Never in my life did my father shoot more than a couple boxes of shells on any given day. I tend to lean that way myself unless I'm plinking or trying out different ammunition.

He viewed military styled semi-auto rifles as something strictly to be used in war. There was no sporting need to justify them. His philosophy was why have a magazine containing 20 rounds or more hunting when you only need one or two shots. I tend to think along the same lines. He was very safety conscious and believed the semi-auto military rifles lead people to be unsafe in the woods. These were the Pennsylvania woods and there were lots of hunters. It was not uncommon to see 20 or more hunters on opening day as we hunted public land primarily.

[Father Knows Best]

My story is a lot like Hemicuda's. My dad was an avid shooter and got me into it. My dad was also a major military weapon collector and show promoter, though, and that helped stoke my interest, too.

My dad was and is an avid military historian and gun collector, and he likes to shoot, too. When I was growing up, he always had a den full of guns. His primary collecting interests changed over time, so the collection was always changing. When I was realy little (early 70s) it was Lugers. He had dozens of them, and knew everything about them. Pieces of his collection were photographed for books on Lugers, and the authors would visit our house to hang out with him. When he started to lose interest in Lugers, he sold most of them and started collecting Mauser rifles. He even had the .22 training versions built for the Hitler Youth. Later, he sold off the Mausers and used the money to build a great collection of 1911's (I was in high school at that time). Remington Rand, USS, Colt, 1911's and 1911A1's, you name it -- he had them (never had a Singer, though). He traced the history of as many as he could, and built displays with personal effects of the soldiers who carried some of them.

My dad started promoting "military relic" shows when I was a kid. He used to put on four a year in Michigan. I helped with mailings for the shows, and helped set up and take down the shows and handle ticket sales when I got older. Of course, I also had to man dad's table when he was BS'ing with the other dealers, and got to walk around a lot. We went to lots of other gun shows and military shows together, both to buy and sell and so he could promote his own shows. I got into collecting insignia and medals at a young age by going to those shows.

Dad was also a partner in a gun shop when I was really little, but I don't remember much about it. I do remember him putting on the .38 revolver he carried when getting ready to go work at the store on weekends (he had a regular job during the week). He sold out his 1/3 share when I was still in grade school.

He also got me into shooting early. I started out shooting smallbore rifle, and he bought me a nice Anschutz single shot to use when I was around 11 or 12. At 13, he got me my first job -- "pit boy" at the gun club. I worked Wednesday nights and Sunday mornings during the trap and skeet leagues, sitting in the trap pit and keeping the machine loaded, and sweeping up and reloading the skeet houses when the shooting was done.

On my 16th birthday, he gave me the first gun that was truly "mine" to do with as I pleased -- a Ruger 77/22. I still have it, of course. They had just come out at that time (1985) and were very hard to get. It's beautiful.

Dad also had "privileges" at some museums and could check out weapons in their collections. He borrowed an MP40 one day and took my brother and I and a few friends to the range. That was my first experience with "rock and roll."

Dad is still collecting, but his interests have continued to shift and he doesn't promote shows anymore. He's retired now, and his main interest has been in Civil War stuff. Only a few of the 1911's remain, but he has an impressive array of original Spencer rifles and carbines, and Colt and Remington percussion revolvers. He spends lots of time researching the history of particular pieces to establish their "provenance."

Dad recently gave me a beautiful Smith-Corona 1903A3 that he's had for a long time. It's in mint condition - like it was never issued. There are several other pieces in his safe that will be mine someday, but I'm in no hurry.

[MikeH]

My dad raised me in places where guns were banned, so giving me a 10/22 when I turned 10 wasn't possible. He did tell me the same war stories over and over about how well he shot his M1 Garand when he served in the Taiwan Army.

[Nitrogen]

My parents are antis, but my Dad taught me to think for myself; to view both sides of a discussion, and make decisions based on facts; not emotional arguments.

My Dad is somewhat of a hippie, but he's also one of the most open-minded people I know. My mom, however, is your classic socialist, as is the rest of her family. I'm a liberal, but not a socalist.

Eventually, I took my dad's advice, thought for myself, and became pro-gun. :neener:

[ACP230]

My Dad was a hunter, not a competitive shooter. He had a sporterized 8mm Mauser deer rifle and a Model 12 Winchester 12 gauge. One box of Remington-Peters 8mm ammo lasted him years. I think there's still a couple rounds left somewhere.

He supported me when I got interested in Bullseye pistol, and then other competitive shooting disciplines, but it was always hard to get him to step up to the line and shoot while I was plinking, or practicing.

Dad bought me my first gun, a Crosman .22 caliber air rifle. My first deer rifle, a bubbaed 1917 Enfield, and for high school graduation he bought me a Winchester Model 12 in 16 gauge. I still have all the guns.

Dad thinks I have too many guns now, but doesn't make a fuss about it very often.
My 14 year-old son is starting to shoot Bullseye pistol matches now. I think Dad gets a kick out of seeing him starting out like I did.

[pax]

My dad regularly took my brother hunting, and occasionally let me tag along.

pax

[TIMC]

My dad and I have been hunting together for 40 years. He gave me my first firearm for Christmas when I was 9 it was a little 410 bolt action shotgun. We used to spend our Christmas time out in the woods hunting and I used to open my gifts in hunting camp. I don't know how much hunting time we have left together, he is almost 80 and does not get around as well anymore but I will take him a long as he wants to go.
My dad has given me several guns over the years, some that are worth quite a bit. The nicest one is a Colt peacemaker that belonged to my grandfather. The gun is in excellent condition with all matching numbers and resides in my gun vault. I don't shoot it but it does get a good oiling once in a while. He has always had a lot of guns around and I'm not sure how many he has now. His were always hunting type rifles and never anything weird but he did bring one rifle back from Viet-Nam an old M-44 Nagant along with several other war trophies.

[geegee]

Both of my parents were anti-gun ownership. My mother was British, and my father from Serbia. My father was taken by the Nazi's from Serbia as a teenager, and sent to a slave labor camp, where he spent the entire war. His comment on guns was always the same dismissive answer "I've seen enough guns in my life and what they can do." When I was a kid, that answer made sense.

As I got older, it occurred to me that guns in the hands of the American and British soldiers that defeated his oppressors and eventually liberated him and others in those camps, really wasn't something to be feared as much as celebrated. We've disagreed on so many things in our lifetimes that this is one point of contention that I just left alone. I know the truth, and he's too old to change his mind. Needless to say, my son's response to this question when he gets to my age will be far different from mine.

[KenW.]

My dad sold his house back east and is becoming a full-time RV guy. He's handing down HIS father's handgun to me. He doesn't want any hassle while travelling across state lines. He's replacing it in the RV with a Winchester model 12.

It's a WWII Browning HP :neener: with Nazi markings made after the Germans rolled through Belguim. My grandad brought back it on the troopship.

[doubleg]

My father doesn't really care for guns. When I lived with him way back when he told me a story about one of his brothers having a pshycotic breakdown when he returned from vietnam (6 of my uncles went over). One of them went hunting with him and had a flash back, then started shooting at things that were'nt there. This being his first and only hunting trip I think its a given that this made him scared sh*tless of guns. My mother grew up in the country and knew gun culture. So when I became interested she supported my hobbie. The rest is history.:D

[History Prof]

I love and admire my dad, and was fortunate to be there when he passed. My first memory of guns in general was at the age of 9, watching my dad blow a tree stump to pieces with his Ruger Blackhawk .44Mag (he had taped his target to it). Thanks to this great man, I've been a shooter since age 12. He was never really a collector until late in life. He couldn't afford them. He retired from the AF as an E-5 in 1971 and raised 8 kids on those nickle and dime wages the military pays. It wasn't until the commercial electronics boom of the early '80s that his AF training began to pay off in the civilian market (and kids leaving the nest helped). About 1983, he went to work for a company that built telecommunications satellites and by the time I left home, he had both time and $$$ for collecting. I think *my* collecting spurred him on. By the time he passed away, he had sold everything but his gun safe, the Ruger .44 and a 9mm pistol. I got the safe and my daughter got the 9MM pistol. My GI brother got the Ruger.

[Wesson Smith]

I too feel fortunate to have been by my Dad's side when he passed last year, History Prof.

Pop was a decorated WWI vet (2 Bronze Stars & a Purple Heart) but never showed any interest in weapons as we were growing up. I gathered that he saw some pretty ugly stuff fighting in The Ardennes, and just preferred the absence of the sound of a muzzle blast. Pop never objected to my early interest in guns, but it never became a father-son type of thing. One of my later recollections before Dad passed was his amusement regarding my "growing arsenal". :D By the time we were discussing these things, Pop was too frail to participate. Man. I sure would have loved to have been able to take him to the range for a little session before he left us. Water under the bridge, so to speak. Sure do miss ya, Dad.

[M2 Carbine]

My father died when I was young. I don't know what he thought about guns or anything else but I got my love for guns from somewhere I guess.

[Rich K]

I spent a lot of time with my grandad and my uncles. Grandpa and uncle Ralph never showed me much interest in guns, but that probably had to do with Ralph's service in WWII. They never bought me any guns, but never tried to discourage any interest on my part, either. I really got into guns after I joined the Marines at 17, and it has been a great addiction ever since.

[10X]

My grandfather died when my father was 11 years old. My father grew up during the depression and the family had nothing. He helped a farmer put up fence for three days. There was no money so the farmer gave dad a Winchester 06 22 as payment. Dad hunted pheasants with that 22 to feed the family. He told me stories of not having enough money to buy a full box of 22 shells, so the hardware store sold him half a box. He never would eat chicken because it reminded him of those days.

He first took me hunting when I was 5 years old. First with a pop gun, then a BB gun, then a 410. He tought me to shoot with the 06. Eventually he bought me a Model 29 Remington pump for $20.

The Winchester 06 became the first of his collection of over 60 Winchester 22 pumps. Hunting and gun collecting became a father and son thing. The best days I ever had were with dad. Ten years ago I held his hand as he died.

I kept a few of his guns, including the 06, that had the most memories to add to my own.

[ArfinGreebly]

My first piece was a Crosman air pistol.

Dad gave it to me on my 12th birthday.

House burned down, pistol was destroyed.

When I turned 16, I got job, earned bux, bought air rifle. He never really got very involved with that.

[ . . . 40 years . . . ]

Talked to him on the phone last month, as I do every year on his birthday -- he's now 87 -- and told him I finally had something I could call a hobby. Told him I was into shooting; told him I had an M1 Carbine. Suddenly, he was a wealth of knowledge on Garands, M1 Carbines, 1911 pistols, and the Johnson M1941 rifle. Described their operation, told me he trained on all of those, mostly carried a carbine, but preferred the Johnson.

I was staggered. What the hell? All those years. He never brought it up. He wasn't "anti" he just wasn't real interested after the war. He complemented me on my choices and how much I'd learned in a short time.

I nearly cried. Like now.

All those years.

[Nil]

My dad never owned a gun but was fully supportive of my "right" as a child to run around with a bb/pellet gun and harass the local wildlife that ravaged my mom's garden. When I showed him my SKS he commented on how old it was and even the rifle he used when he was in the Taiwenese army 40ish years ago looked newer than that. Of course, he was a doctor in the army so he couldn't even remember what the rifle was called, but he said he did enjoy carrying his pistol slung low on his hip like John Wayne.

[sm]

Fella that sired me first, then 3 others, don't speak about him much, haven't spoken to him much all these years either. I was the eldest male of the household.

Now he spent 32 years in Nat'l Guard and was supposed to have gotten medals with a M1 carbine and pretty good with a 1911. This fella only took me out to shoot twice, and these were because other fellas invited me, and kinda shamed him into bringing me along.
First time, some fella trying to show off doing quick draw, shot himself in the leg with a .22 revolver.
Second time I went squirrel hunting, and I got my butt chewed out for shooting so well and being honest when asked where I learned to shoot by telling the hosts Mentors & Elders had passed on to me.

Years later, I was competing in skeet, this fella showed up and wanted to know where I was, got wind I was there, I had to be pointed out. Mentors and Elders told this fella - to stay back and not distract me, I was favored and needed to concentrate.
I won, and was going to be in the shoot-off. Mentors and all suggested he leave, not real right he just show up unannounced , and only because he was shamed into coming.

He left for a bit, but did with Mentors permissions stay in the shadows to watch this shoot-off. We went almost 4 boxes, and I won. Fella that sired me was asked to leave, he saw what he come to see, was told a few things he asked about - and not told nothing about many others.
"Where'd he learn to shoot a shotgun like that?"
"For damn sure not from you - time for you to leave mister".


I got more from maternal grandma until she died when I was a bit over 5 years old than I got from the fella that sired me.

Life is Life - I did / do the right things and pass forward as passed to me.
I got that from Mentors & Elders, both men and women - not from the fella that sired me.

Run with what you brung young'un Mentors & Elders

[Wesson Smith]

sm ~ Man, that's a heartbreaking story. I guess I'm one of the lucky ones who had a Dad that cared. Hope it all ended up OK for you.

[sm]

*shrug*
Ain't no thang

One can do anything they want, no matter what Life tosses at 'em. Always remember - there will always be those worse off than you and those better off than you.
Attitude of Gratitude, One day at a time, Run what you brung...

One cannot choose family - one for damn sure can choose true friends.
I had/ have some Mentors & Elders - I miss 'em that have passed on. They ain't gone, hell I keep passing forward as they passed to me in a sense - eternal.

Grateful for that - always will be.
I did not miss out - instead the fella that sired me missed out. His choice , not mine.
We each gotta run what we brung - I come out w-a-y ahead of this deal.

Folks I have assisted with - continue to say they are getting the better end of the bargain.
Nope, sorry, it is I that thanks them, and I thank 'em on behalf of Mentors & Elders not around to thank them themselves.

Now for too many years I have been this "Adopted Uncle" don't matter if a kid, single lady, single mom, Married couple ( or for how long) , younger, older, single fella, black, white, green blue and whatever else.
Human rights are Human Rights - period end of story.
Don't much give a whit what .gov says, or some TV or Movie says - Right is Right. Moral Law is Moral Law.

Never been about me, never will be.
Get the hankering for a new firearm for me and ...dang there is a single shot .22 rifle, or a shotgun kid sized. Maybe a handgun, like a .22 revolver/ semi..., or Used Police trade in Model 10.
Some old used Case knife with yellow handles and Chrome Vanadium blades with a bit of Patina looking kind of lonely...

I don't need that firearm I had a hankering for...

Now having something for someone else to learn to shoot on , or passing on how to whittle, or cut rope, or cut an apple - that is more important.

Down the road - these folks do the same thing. They in turn spend that money on a .22 single shot rifle that fits a kid and a brick of ammo.
They don't have kids - still they will run into one, or maybe nieces and nephews will come to visit when they get bigger - who knows? Don't really matter, got that .22 single shot - "just because"...

Same reason they keep a few copies of The Old Man And The Boy by Robert Ruark handy - "Just Because"...


How raised - what you do.

;)

[Lonestar.45]

I could probably fill a whole page in here about what Dad taught me about shooting and guns. He's forgotten more about shooting and hunting than I'll ever know, probably.

Dad was in the Marines in Vietnam (3rd Batt. 5th Marines) 66-67. He then got out and was a police officer for 30 yrs, retiring in '98. He's an avid deer hunter and hunted nearly every season, and took me on one of his first hunts back when I was 6 months old, if you can believe that (I got the pictures of me sitting next to a dead spike and a turkey to prove it).

Got my first BB gun, a Red Ryder, at age 7. That got me hooked, and dad took me deer hunting every time he went out.

He's pretty much handed over his entire collection to me now (not a lot of guns, just three deer rifles a shotgun and a Ruger Mark I), with the exception of his old 9mm service pistol and a .22 mag we gave him for Father's Day that he keeps around to pop gophers. I've expanded the collection, and between his guns and mine my son will have a nice big gun collection passed to him one day. Once he's old enough, I'll start him on a Red Ryder, and so it continues. I was fortunate enough to have a gread Dad, I'm trying to be the same way for my son.

[jcramin]

Well from a young age my father took me shooting and hunting.. He never did hide guns from me not even the loaded ones in the house. He showed me where they are and told me they are loaded incase of emergency. Being open about guns and guns in the house and letting me shoot and look at his unload guns anytime I wanted kept me from being curious about them...

I do the same thing with my kids. Except the loaded guns at the house are in safes. I carry and my 6 year old daughter and 11 and 15 year old sons know I do and know not to say anything to anyone. When I get home from the range I sit in the livinging room and watch TV with the family while I clean my guns on my daughters play table and chairs. I am hoping to show my kids the same respect for guns that my dad showed me.

J

[Speer]

My biological father hates guns. My step-father loves them. My father-in-law loves them.

[Wesson Smith]

sm ~ Good on ya. God Bless...

[robctwo]

About 50 years ago I was 5 or 6. Hanging out in parents bedroom while dad changed from work cloths. In the back of a drawer I saw a pistol belt and gun.
Dad had an early model Ruger .22 semiauto. He got it out, explained that it was real and loaded, all guns are always loaded all the time. We went out to grandparents that weekend to shoot. There was a Winchester bolt .22 with scope in the closet by the back door. Down in back of the barn with a piece of plywood and some paper targets. Got to shoot both guns as much as I wanted. Had early gun safety lessons. Rules were i could shoot as much as I wanted with him. Could only show friends the gun with him there. Friends could shoot with parent's permission. Shot .22 until I was sick of shooting. Would rather sit in front of TV with cartoons. Maybe Dad was an early child psychologist?

Hunter safety at age 11 was very common here and boys generally got a .410 or a .22 for 12th birthday. I knew I was getting the shotgun because we had the .22s. Lots of throwing clay birds for each other and pheasant hunting.

Didn' deer hunt until I got back from grad school and a friend got me interested. I had so much fun with Dad's old 30-30 that he got involved and hunted over 20 years with me. He gave it up a few years ago, but wants me to get some venison for him every year.

He still has that .22 Ruger, and the rifle is in my basement. .410 is by my back door.

[bumm]

My father's dad died when he was 9, and he grew up the man of the farm during the dust bowl years and the depression. He was also very intelligent, and raised by very German parents. All this worked together to make him the toughest, most opinionated, hot tempered, demanding, controling, disciplinarian that ever lived. He was a good, honest, man, but I lived in fear of him. I suppose I got my interest in guns from him though, because although he was always too busy to shoot, he collected hundreds of guns. The few that he owned and shot when he was younger I now treasure. He died in '98, and that's all I have of him. I wish I could say we got along, but we didn't, and although I tried hard, I feel I was always a bit of a disappointment to him. But... that's life. I try to do the best I can for my kids, but I guess it isn't easy sometimes.
Marty

[Rich K]

sm, good on you. You and I have a bit in common. My uncles and my grandad and great grandad are the men I miss and who mentored me. I just try to pass on what they taught me, to any one who wants to learn.

[SniperStraz]

I had an airgun at an early age and still have couple just for fun and to give to my son one day. One summer when I was 9 I went away to boyscout camp and came back telling stories of firing their bolt action .22s. I thought it was so cool, and since I had been talking about nothing but guns since I could speak my dad decided it was time to take me to the range. When we got there he pulled out a little Jennings .25, which at the time fit my hand perfectly. I was so excited, I just smiled through what must have been 200 rounds. After I was done my dad says "its enough with that gun". Still smiling and ready to go home, I see my dad opening up a little fanny pack holster rig and pulling out a Glock 19. Well that was just the biggest gun I had ever seen and although I was scared of the recoil at first I had so much fun with it. Thus began my quest.

[sm]

Oh I tried to make right over the years with the fella that sired me - really did - just didn't pan out. Not too long ago a serious situation with him in hospital (he being 76) and I did the right thing.
This also exposed me to other folks with same last name or kin.
Damn sure not easy, but I did it. Sure did turn some head and get some eyes wide and jaws to drop too.

Grin as you emerge from the smoke; drive folks crazy and they wonder just what the hell you are up to next... - Dave Robecheaux.

--

Now about true friends...
Got a tight knit bunch I hang and do some things with, like some kids and all. They read THR along with me, mom, parents, grandparents ....

Some have had a rough row to hoe - gonna be all right.

Why I am still getting Mentored always will be.
Seems some of the kids feel I need to get my skills to where I can hit a itty bitty black jelly bean , sitting atop a crosstie at a "bazillion yards".
No excuse I am getting older, eyes not what they used to be...the fact I cannot see the bean...

<giggle> "You said we were supposed to learn correct basic stuff with a iron sighted .22 rifle - so show us how. " :p

Seems I "cheated" on this first lesson - they set the jelly bean atop a tin can and said "knock it off".
So I used a shotgun and "knocked it off" - fact I hit the can to do so...

Kids picked up the lesson on "what is said" differs from " what you mean".

Kids run way out yonder - about 80 yard, sets this itty bitty jelly bean on a cross tie and "hit the jelly bean".

I got more practicing to do on this...tried everyone of the kid's guns, from Pink Crickets to a old single shot painted Teal Blue...not even the one with a Pink Floyd "Dark Side of The Moon" sticker on it seems to work...
Seems the kids snicker when they hand me .22 shorts to use " these are cute, try this one..."

Cross tie end is facing me, I can walk the shots in...you would think by now Lady Luck would assist.

My theory is she is laughing too hard and Mentors & Elders that have passed on - won't let her assist me and most likely egging her [Lady Luck] on.

"We know - we need to set it out further - that way you will concentrate harder..."

I hope they give me a hint as to where the cross tie is ( whatever they set this bean on) if they do...:D

Another thing that goes w-a-y back is - "A stick of beef jerky in your pocket - makes one a better shooter". I have passed this on as well.

About that itty bitty jelly bean...

My back pocket keeps getting beef jerky stuffed into it..."he needs more beef jerky!
My back pocket looks like I have a side of beef shoved into it...:p


It ain't just the guns - it is the whole shooting match young 'un - Mentors

[JohnBT]

My father started me shooting and hunting over 50 years ago. He was born way back in the mountains and had returned from from WWII to be a VA State Trooper. His parents gave me my first BB gun and his brother always had a variety of used guns for me to shoot.

My father gave me my first new guns many decades ago, a Savage .22WMR/.410 and a Fox Model B 12 ga., and we traded guns off and on over the years. Twenty years ago I got it in my head that I wanted a .357 revolver and offered him my old Single-Six in trade for one. Well, he took it and put it away for a few years until I came to my senses. I think it cost me a Winchester 72A to get it back. Or maybe it was the Ruger 22/45, I don't remember.

The last gun he gave me was his 28 ga. Guerini Woodlander.

This week he called and said that it was time. Tomorrow morning I've driving over into the Valley and filling out the paperwork for my parents to enter a retirement center nursing home in Harrisonburg. My dad's legs are failing him badly and my mother's Alzheimer's is more than he can handle by himself. It will be his 85th birthday.

I suppose within the next week or so I'll be bringing all of his guns home to keep for him until he no longer needs them.

John

[Hemicuda]

What I'd really like? a plain old dime... just ONE dime... for every .22 and every 50 round box of ammunition my father has given some kid... (not necessarily even family members)...

I keep a couple spare cheapo single shots handy and give them away as needed) because of this...

I'd be a wealthy man, if I had those dimes... I'm already rich with friends because of this...

Old SM has a great point... about finding, buying, and giving away cheap .22's... it's been a part of my life since I gave away my first "spare .22" when I was only about 12, to a kid in the neighborhood who was from a VERY poor family, and who liked being a part of our "Ogemaw Jr. Pistol and Rifle Club", but who couldn't afford his own...

[sm]

JohnBT wrote:
I suppose within the next week or so I'll be bringing all of his guns home to keep for him until he no longer needs them.

I will be sending my best. I can empathize with all this, I really really can.

[LkWinnipesaukee]

My dad went with me to the NRA course, got his LTC (any my FID), and then gave* me an AR and some ammo for Christmas.




*Since I live under a communist regime (MA), it is not "mine", nor am I in possession of or have access to the lower or mags without him there.

[Stevie-Ray]

Dad showed us his gun when I was about 8 years old. Until then I had no idea he had one. It was a Colt Pocket .32 Auto. Even showed us how it worked. We knew not to ever touch it, though. A few years later we were introduced to the pleasures of shooting by my brother-in-law who had a shotgun, a couple .22s and a .38 revolver. Mostly up in the U.P., we would find a suitable hilly place on my Grandfather's property and have a ball, Dad included. I did always wonder why he never brought the Colt, since he seemed to enjoy shooting so much. Turns out, he NEVER shot the Colt. He inherited it from his dad and just never took it to the range. The Colt is now mine. As he developed Alzheimer's disease, he began to change his opinion of guns. I once told him I was going to buy a .357 Magnum revolver and he said, "Don't do it. They're only for killing people." I figured it was the disease talking, as my dad of just a few years earlier probably would have went with me to pick it up. He was the one that bought me my BB gun, (M1 Carbine) pellet gun, (Sheridan 5mm) and my first .22 (Stevens Bolt). He never learned that I bought a .44 mag instead of the .357. He probably would have had a fit. Then again, he might not have even remembered what a gun was.

We lost Dad on New Year's Eve in 1987. He remains to us, the greatest dad in the world.

[51Cards]

Dad, when he was around, never liked guns much. I tried to teach him to shoot (with CO2), but the barn was safe with him ... :rolleyes:

When I got a little older, he was always happy to have me around --- with guns.

I don't know if I'm a product of rebellion, or what. No one else in my family has the same interest in these things (although my uncle carried a .38 for a while, having been in the gold/jewelry/coin biz).

I think there's a certain mindset. You either get on the train, and ask where you can pay for your ticket; or you're in Warsaw, throwing rocks and boiling water.

Guess you know which turn I've taken ...

[Sisco]

My dad taught me to shoot when I was probably too young to do so. He never had a lot of guns and they weren't the center of his life but he taught me to respect them. I still have all the guns he owned.

[denfoote]

My dad never gave me a gun because mom was a proper eastern liberal.
He did, however, teach me how to shoot using rented guns at the local YMCA camp.

He learned how to shoot from his uncle, who was a decorated WW-I sniper.

[crunker]

My dad's an anti-gun extremist. He doesn't want me or anyone to own any type of gun.

He will not let me go to a range (though my mom's overruling him and taking me in the near future).

He will not discuss the topic with me.

He will not allow me to purchase a second airsoft gun (not even a bb gun).

He will not allow me to visit pro-gun or military or other "unsuitable" sites or indulge in similar media (that's right, I'm not supposed to be here right now).

He has forbade me from getting a career in law enforcement because "we're not going to sink to that level".

If the topic of guns, gun control, or war comes on TV he makes me change the channel and will not discuss the reasoning.

My relationship with my father is not what I'd like it to be. He does not spend time with me, my mom, or my sister. We have never spent any time doing any "father-son" activities.

My father is an active detriment to my interest and the promotion of tolerance for others.

[hqmhqm]

We never had any guns in the house, and we lived in the city so there was no place to shoot. I remember when I was about eight though we were in New Mexico and there were some kids shooting a .22 outside our hotel. My father was talking to them and asked to try the rifle. He hit all the tin cans they had set up. That was the only time I saw him fire a gun, except once when we were on a cruise ship and they had trap shooting from the stern. He explained to me that a shotgun could break your shoulder if you didn't mount it properly. He also hit all the targets.

He said once that when he was in the Navy in WWII he had held the base record for shooting the anti-aircraft simulator. But he said he did it because he memorized the simulator tape and knew where the aircraft would appear.

I got interested in college in the pistol team, and then had no interest until just last year when Hurricane Katrina hit, and it woke up my interest in firearms. Now having enough cash to buy a bunch of fun stuff, I really got back into it.

[Glockamolie]

I got a Ruger MkII for Christmas when I was 13. My following birthday, I got a Browning BL22 lever-action. My father had owned more guns in the past, but by the time I came around, he only had one: A 1951 Winchester Model 42 .410 shotgun. Dad passed away in 1990, and I have the shotgun. Suffice to say it's not for sale, nor will it be as long as I'm alive.

[JohnBT]

"I will be sending my best. I can empathize with all this, I really really can."

Thank you. I've learned some good lessons from some fine people in my life and a lot of it revolved around guns. Maybe I learned a little slowly sometimes, but that's my fault. My father is still teaching me lessons by the way he approaches life and deals with everyone he meets.

Your posts on passing forward have made an impression on me as well. A bigger one than maybe I realized. Bear with me for a minute while I explain why I won't be getting a new gun this month.

There's been a thread running on rimfirecentral since 8/04 about a group in PA who decided to build a range to teach youngsters to shoot .22s. It's 10 pages so far.

The first post begins: "I'm on a mission from God ... actually, I'm trying to start a smallbore team at our high school. Money's tight (oh really?) and I'm competing with die-hard football/wrestling-leaning-boosters. I think I might have a local sportsmen club that will allow us to build an indoor range on their property (it's a state sanctioned winter sport) if we can fund it ourselves. I took a survey of our students (typical graduating class of 100) and had 70 kids sign up!!!"

www.rimfirecentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=69761

Early on I sent them $50 to encourage them. Time passed and I finally checked in on them again. Now they have a building up.

http://i8.photobucket.com/albums/a15/shtrdave/RangeBackstop.jpg

I was so impressed by what they've accomplished that I offered to fund the purchuse 2 of the CMP's new Anschutz 1903 rifles for loaners. I sent the check today. It just seemed like the right thing to do.

Now I find out they're trying to raise a bunch of money to send some, or all, of their youngsters to shooting camp. What to do, what to do? Anybody else have a burning desire to help them out?

Maybe I'll offer to match the first $500 donated. I'll think about while I drive tomorrow.

I knew I should have had kids. ;) No sense saving it all to pay the nursing home.

John

[theleveloftime]

His advice on women was excellent, he had one gun I know of: 357 Colt Python, I knew where it was and not to mess with it, my mother bought it for him: she had excellent taste in firearms, he had excellent taste in women. He owned a bar, drove race cars, did high steel construction, he was fearless and never had to mention it, he knew how to PARTY, he loved a good joke, he didn't have time for race: he only looked at the person, he was generous, red blooded and full of strength and you could find a better friend in this world, he turned me onto to poetry, he read a lot, he read Louis Lamour, he could paint on canvas and on bricks and wood, he drank Chivas Regal, he was a classy ba$****, he was a Shriner and a good Masonic brother, he knew Jesus, he was a Union guy and a democrat, and he smoked cigars, pipes, and lucky strikes, he served in the New York National Guard and was a top kick, if he could see the crap the democrats call good goverment now he'd puke and if you called him a liberal he punch your eye - in that instance I am glad he is gone, but I miss him a lot and I wish he was here right now. I am but his unworthy son, I only hope I can be as good a man as he was.

[kudu]

When I was a child we had 3 guns in the house, a .22 rifle, a 12ga single shot and a .22 Ruger Single Six. I don't recall my Dad ever shooting them except the shotgun at some starlings once in a while. I had the BB gun mania when I was about 8 years old. I finally got one for my Christmas present. Been hooked ever since. My Dad didn't shoot much at all, he taught me how to run a trap line, but he didn't hunt much, taught me how to fish, which we did do together. He always supported me when I was older and started competing in Registered skeet tournaments, and I know he was proud of how well I did, he volunteered at the local shotgun club in the kitchen and counter.

He got into shooting a bit the last few years when I asked him to come along, but was never a 'shooter', but that was alright, because he supported my hobby. I have all but a couple of the guns he has slowly collected over the years in my safe, they will be mine shortly as my brother has no interest in guns at all, nor has my sister and her family.

He is currently fighting a losing battle with cancer at the age of 68, I doubt I will have a year left to enjoy his company and learn from him anymore, try to get in the quality time now.

[theleveloftime]

His advice on women was excellent, he had one gun I know of: 357 Colt Python, I knew where it was and not to mess with it, my mother bought it for him: she had excellent taste in firearms, he had excellent taste in women. He owned a bar, drove race cars, did high steel construction, he was fearless and never had to mention it, he knew how to PARTY, he loved a good joke, he didn't have time for race: he only looked at the person, he was generous, red blooded and full of strength and you could find a better friend in this world, he turned me onto to poetry, he read a lot, he read Louis Lamour, he could paint on canvas and on bricks and wood, he drank Chivas Regal, he was a classy ba$****, he was a Shriner and a good Masonic brother, he knew Jesus, he was a Union guy and a democrat, and he smoked cigars, pipes, and lucky strikes, he served in the New York National Guard and was a top kick, if he could see the crap the democrats call good goverment now he'd puke and if you called him a liberal he punch your eye - in that instance I am glad he is gone, but I miss him a lot and I wish he was here right now. I am but his unworthy son, I only hope I can be as good a man as he was.

[S&Wfan]

Mom was always so opposed to guns, and dad went along. Still, they finally let us have bb guns when my brother and I were about 11-12.

Later, when I was in the service and about 20 (1971), dad gave me my first gun . . . a used Colt Single Action revolver of some sort, in .32 Long. He said it would be good to have something for defense. I seem to recall it had about a 6" barrel and shot incredibly well. I loved it!

I WISH I KNEW WHAT MODEL IT WAS. Today, I suspect it was a valuable gun. However . . .

About a year later, and concerned about needing a more powerful gun, and one that could be reloaded quicker, I confided in another serviceman that I wished I had a .38 snub. He offered to trade. I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT! Although I was a total novice to guns, I erroneously trusted him . . . and traded that Colt Single Action .32 for . . . an RG-10.:eek: Boy . . . you talk about gettin' screwed and not knowing it!

Years later I really got into guns and shooting sports, and that P.O.S. RG really taught me a great lesson about the value of getting great guns.

MY LAST GUN DAD GAVE ME . . . was his last gun. It was in his back pocket when he stood up at his business, to go home, and suddenly collapsed on the floor with a massive heart attack. After the funeral my brother handed me dad's revolver. "Here, I know dad would have wanted you to end up with this," he said.

IT TOO WAS A COLT . . . A WELL WORN COLT AGENT. In the end, he gave me another Colt to replace the first Colt I'd foolishly traded off . . . and a quality .38 snubbie at that!

[Wheel O'Death]

My dad was minister and an electrician, we always had guns around dad had a Stevens 67 twelve guage. My oldest brother had same and an old single shot twelve that grandad gave him. Middle brother and myself had H&R 20 gauges. First gun memory was with my grandads Browning Auto-5, don't remember my age but when I pulled the trigger I fell backwards and the last thing I saw was my dads head behind the bead of that Browning. Took many years for me to get past that memory, but dad kept urging and teaching that it was not my fault. MANY years later I have over came that problem! My dad loved me and that was what taught me the most. He supported my time in the military and the years after when I travelled the world "Doing bad things for good people" as he put it. When my middle brother passed away of cancer in 2000, my dad was not far behind(6 weeks) and before he left us he gave me "The only handgun he ever had any use for" it was an old cowboy cap gun in a handmade holster I still prize that one the most. It resides in the case with the 40 some odd real handguns that me and my son enjoy collecting along with an appropriate number of long guns, which reminds me I need to go clean that Browning! Sorry post was so long my first post ever, and a lot of man to tell about!

[1911 guy]

My Dad has always been a hunter more than a shooter, but taught me how to shoot well. Being proficient offhand was important, using a convenient improvised rest was better. Now I'm getting him into handguns.

My Dad taught me that people can change. He left my Mom, me and my sister when I was three. Gone for almost seven years and even his parents didn't know if he was alive or dead. He walked back in one day, hat in hand, begging to be forgiven for the hurt he'd caused by leaving and the years he'd missed by not being there. Mom was forgiving enough to take him back, they've been together again for twenty five years.

My Dad went on a mission to teach me to be the man he should have been. He taught me that the two worst things you can do are telling a lie and not claiming responsibility for your own actions. Anything else I did as a kid was open for discussion and considered a learning experience. Those two things brought the hammer down on me.

My Dad taught me the value of family. He made sure to point out once in a while the things he'd missed by running. Whatever you do, stick by your family. Live with the small mistakes, don't compound them with a big mistake.

My Dad taught me that you have to believe in something bigger than yourself. Living to please only yourself will leave you feeling empty inside. Human beings are made to be part of a larger group of family, friends, community and nation.

My Dad taught me that justice should be tempered with mercy. We all deserve to be punished for things we've done and think we've gotten away with. Nobody is as good a person as they think they are, so don't go judging other people. You're not so hot yourself.

My Dad taught me to never judge a book by the cover. I've met some people through him that will make you reach for your wallet on first meeting. Then you realize they are the most honest, caring and thoughtful people you've met.

My Dad taught me that principle is everything. There are no shades of grey. A choice is either right or wrong. The hard thing of life is that sometimes you must choose something less wrong than another. Realize this and accept it if it backfires.

Dad taught me how to make a handful of T.P. burn long enough to cook a hotdog, skin a catfish, build a fire, put out a grassfire, keep honeybees, drive, fight dirty, sharpen a knife, shoot a bow, work hard and play even harder.

The most important thing my father taught me, through all the ups and downs of his own life and after reflecting on his mistakes and triumphs, was how to be a dad to my own son. For that reason above all others, I love you, Dad.

[PzGren]

My dad did not want me to have guns. He's on the photo and it might explain why.

[duke nukum]

My dad passed on last year he tought me to love shooting hunting reloading
started me in the nra junior program at 12 .
hunting deer at 14 .
reloading at 14.
first gun was a remington bolt action .22 still have it still hunt with it
next was a jr sized anachutz target .22 was always to small a stock sister inlaw loves it .
my " pet gun " an ithaca 37 still have it killed a few deer with it
my first hand gun browning buckmark still have it
first reloading tool ideal 310 tool for 300-06 still use it even though i have other reloading tools .
and many more to numerous to mention all thanks to dads teaching :)