Made a Good Trade

Stopped by the lgs today, and lo and behold they had a few new "previously enjoyed" guns out. One of which was an old Baikal IZH-43. The gun was clean, and priced right; albeit with a slightly loose stock. I had one a long time ago, and wish I'd never gotten rid of it. Never saw another one in our area, either. So after some serious dickering, I took it home for 4 boxes of 30-06 and two boxes of 38spl. Upon it's arrival at the house, I removed the buttplate to tighten up the stock bolt, and found my own name staring me in the face! What a stroke of luck to have that good old gun back. I'd named it "Bertha" back in the day, and let me tell ya, it still kills on both ends! Anyhow, just wanted to share my good fortune with the rest of y'all.

Mac

PS - Pictures forthcoming

Thank you all for your kind words and congratulations.

bannockburn said:

Kind of looks like you and Bertha were always meant for each another!

Click to expand...

I 'spose we were, in a way. When I got the old gun, I swapped a box of tack and a single barrel 12 gauge for it. It, an 1892 Winchester 32-20, and a Remington 24 22 short were the only guns I had when I married. Killed a lot of game with the old gun, more ducks than anything else shooting #6 steel shot (and lead when I couldn't get steel). Always regretted selling it, but I'm bad about horse-trading guns when something strikes my fancy. Ah well, she's safe and sound at home again.

LoonWulf said:

You loosened that stock on purpose didn't you

Click to expand...

No, but I'd thought about it lol. I wish I'd have bet him $10 my name was under the plate, and I'd have walked out with a box of shells! Unfortunately, the weather here is wretched and I've had no chance to shoot it or even get a good photo of it. Maybe by the weekend the weather will fair and I can give a good and proper range report.

Mac

@eastbank - Sorry about your friend. I had a friend like that, but he decided that moving to Colorado with a new, younger woman after his divorce was a better idea than staying here in the hills with friends and family.

Cokeman said:

That’s awesome!! I didn’t realize you could trade ammo for guns like that. I have several boxes of 30-06 and no go that shoots it. Any idea what it’s worth per box?

View attachment 977116

Click to expand...

I have honestly no idea; the guy wanted the ammo worse than the shotgun, citing that "shotguns don't sell that good here". But, I'd love to have just the boxes that the ammo is in for my collection. If you're interested in selling, why not drop me a PM?

Mac

tmd16556 said:

They do kick on both ends. I can’t imagine a 3” load. I had one double once shooting informal clays. You can get the selector halfway switched it turns out. It’s loud and the vented rib is rough enough to file your fingernails on.

Click to expand...

Mine is a 2.75", double trigger gun. No selector to mess with. Had it been a single trigger gun, I'd not looked at it at all. Not a single trigger fan. As to the noise, I don't notice it being any louder than any of my other 12's. The rib is pretty sharp, though.

tmd16556 said:

If you curse at it in Russian it shoots straighter.

Click to expand...

I don't know any Russian, unfortunately. I curse things in either English or Irish; most of them respond better to the Old Tongue. Having said that, I usually don't have an issue with firearms. It's usually animals and farm machinery that get the brunt of it.

Mac

Sav .250 said:

A "travel-n man" always has good luck.

Click to expand...

Agreed! Seems to be the case lately, anyhow.

Mac

I'd say they're the right ones, but what do the headstamps say?

Mac

As promised, photos:



She's not in bad shape. About 80% finish left, but you can tell its been well used.



It has a little bit of engraving, and as you can see a nice finish to the wood.

As guns go, its not a bad one. Did shoot it a few times yesterday, but still too cold to do any patterning. Still, I'm pleased to have the old girl back home.

Mac