Gun or Guns that became far more used or far less used than you thought they would.....

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Aim1

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This can be for rifles, shotguns, pistols, muzzleloader, or any other type of firearm that you bought that end up being far more used or not used than you thought they would be when you initially bought them.

I am not a shooter, I no longer shoot for fun, although I hope that will change as my kids grow older, I have guns for purposes and mostly it is hunting although since I took up archery over a decade ago it's been a lot less.

I bought a Savage Stainless 220 Bolt-Action 20 gauge Shotgun for the occasion when I didn't get a deer archery hunting and needed to fill the freezer. Well, sure enough not long afterwards my land where I hunted got sold and I lost that spot. So I had to put the 20 gauge to work and it has done it's job in filling the freezer, 1 doe last year and 2 small bucks this year, one being a friend who used it to get her first deer in over a decade. So, this little Savage has gotten a lot more action than I thought it would.

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The second is a Ruger American Ranch Rifle in .300 Blackout. I bought it use while I waited for 2 years for my Sig MCX Virtus .300 Blackout to come in. I ordered it as a 1st Gen Sig MCX and with all of their issues by the time I got mine it was the 3rd Generation which was the Virtus. Well, I ended up using the RARR more than the Sig and it is an awesome rifle. I use it for shooting varmints on my land.

I do have a brand new Thompson/Center Encore Stainless with a .50 cal barrel and Leupold 3-9x that I will use this year if I don't get a deer with my bow. As much as I'd like to break-in the TC on a deer this year I'd rather shoot one with my bow first. If I can find the time I would like to shoot a deer with my Smith & Wesson 629 .44 mag or S&W 686 .357 next year and if that's successful I could see those guns getting a lot more action for hunting and seeing the .20 gauge take a backseat.

On the other hand I have a nice Browning X-Bolt Stainless in 30-06 that I bought for deer hunting nearly 15 years ago and I used it only one year before we had to sell our cabin to take care of my dad. Beautiful gun with a discontinued Zeiss Conquest 3-9x scope and Talley vertical rings. Sits in the gun safe now as the only places I hunt are shotgun only and I either use my bow or shotgun.

Anyone else have guns that they used a lot more than they thought they would or use a lot less than they thought they would?
 
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On the Use More side: I am using my 300 AAC Blackout AR pistol with my AAC SDN-6 suppressor far more than I thought I would. It has become my go to gun. The moderate size and quite shooting make it a joy to carry and shoot in the woods and fun to plink with.

On the Use Less side: S&W M29 revolver and Rossi M92 carbine. I had finally had gotten my pistol/carbine pair in the same cartridge (44 Mag) and after working up a good effective load to be used in both I have never carried them in the woods. The 300 BO always gets that job despite being significantly less powerful (with subsonic ammo)

Honorable mention on the Use More Side: I have put a bit over 100 rds though my AR-15 in 30 Remington AR this summer since finishing the build this spring. It's a pile of used, and unwanted parts but Deer season opens next weekend in TN and that ugly red-headed step child of an AR will be with me in the woods.
 
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My NAA mini.
I bought it because I thought it was kind of neat and they weren’t expensive (back then) but it turned out it was hoot to shoot. I even carried it regularly for a good while just because why not? I never figured I’d shoot it much, I was wrong... just don’t tell my wife.
 
On the More side: Mossberg 500CG 20 ga w/ 22" youth barrel. It's short, and it's light; perfect for dragging through bramble thickets and cane-brakes chasing squirrel hounds. I've put a bunch of rounds through it the past 2 seasons and it's looking like this season will be no different. Same goes for my Remington 514 Single shot 22. It rides in the truck every day, and has accompanied me on a couple impromptu hunts this year. I never expected either of these guns to be used as much as they are, they were more intended as "loaners" or extra guns.

Sadly, there are more guns on the Less side: My Model 12 16ga hasn't left the house in about a year; I need to get it out and hunt it a little I guess. Heck, most of my Winchesters are languishing in the gun cabinet and need to be taken out. The only one that comes out regularly is my 1897, but just because it patterns lead #2's quite well at 50 yards and crows are hard to hit. I have an engraved Henry Golden Boy that doesn't get out much either since I found my Marlin 39A. There is also a Ruger 10/22 International and a Browning SA-22 that are currently neglected on the gun rack, but to their credit they each got about 50 rounds through them last month to check zero of scopes and sights before hunting season.

Admittedly the 22's see more service than my scatterguns, for reasons of noise and simple joy. I did pick up an old Stevens 1914 long tom 12 gauge the other day for $50. The stock was broken pretty badly at the wrist, but I've fixed it best I can and put a leather wrap around it to hold it until such a time as I can find a replacement. Been shooting it with light loads while working the dog, and really enjoy it. It even may surpass the Mossberg in the "more use" category soon; it's certainly lighter and more enjoyable to carry.

Mac
 
My Taurus 445TI. I got it to be my edc gun years ago in PA. I moved on to other edc's but It remained my choice to carry when walking the dog at night in the Pocono mountains.

Here in FL it's been used mainly as a house gun. I carry or shoot it only once in awhile, but I still like it
 
Kahr p380, S&W Jframe Chiefs Special. Too small to actually hit anything further than 4 feet away. Handy for a mugger with a knife, suicide against anyone with a gun.

1911. Too heavy for 9 rounds. It's extra margin of carry safety, isn't needed.
 
Use more- contender. Even in pistol form I grab it a lot more often than I probably should. It’s light rifle power and accuracy in handgun portability, even if it is a very large handgun.

Use less- I sold my 12ga shotguns when I hadn’t shot them in a few years. Now I have another one that is pretty well a slug gun and my father in law sent his to live with me several years back and hasnt migrated back home. My 20ga is also seldom used, but I did purchase a 16ga last year for no real reason. Also, I am in the midst of actively ridding myself of .410 as well. So what do I use less? Shotguns in general. The most useful forearm available is the one I use less than anything else.
 
Zerodefect said:
Kahr p380, S&W Jframe Chiefs Special. Too small to actually hit anything further than 4 feet away. Handy for a mugger with a knife, suicide against anyone with a gun.

1911. Too heavy for 9 rounds. It's extra margin of carry safety, isn't needed.
Click to expand...

The Kahr 380 is quite capable of fast head shots at 15 yds. I assume you are speaking about your skill or dislike of the gun. For myself it would my Ruger Blackhawk 357 convertible. Do not get me wrong, I love the gun. But just spend so much time training with my carry guns. The gun deserves more range time. And I wish I had bought one in 45.cal or 44.mag. Shooting 357 just seems to mild for the type of fun I want with this size gun.
 
Use less - Ruger Blackhawk 6.5" .357 magnum.
I like the gun, but whether I'm going to the range or carrying a revolver in the woods, I always seem to reach for a big bore. Most often it's a 4 5/8" Super loaded with Skeeter style .44 special loads. The .357 rarely gets shot, and its a shame because it's a great shooter and has the best trigger of my 4 revolvers.
 
More use:
My S&W model 10-7. I think it goes to the range now more than my other handguns. I just enjoy shooting it.

Actually all my handguns see a lot more use and my ling guns all sit idle. Gotta remedy that.

Less use:
My Henry Single Shot 45-70. I bought it to shoot side matches in Cowboy Action Shooting in January 2018 but moved to California at the end of the year. Then in the summer of 2019 I crashed my bike and had some major surgery on the ribs in my back and my chest (punctured lung, flail chest, shattered ribs). I think I may be healed up enough now to shoot it but there are no matches here I can use it so it sits in the safe waiting for better days to come. ;)
 
Far More Use would probably be my Browning Hi-Power Mk.II. With a nice trigger right out of the box, easy to see sights, and a working ambi-safety, it's my frequent companion whenever I go to the range.

My Far Less Use would be my shotguns I had for hunting. I did convert my upland game 20 gauge Winchester Model 1300 into a co-home defense shotgun along with my Maverick 88, but other than that my shotguns just take up space in the gun safe.
 
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Zerodefect said:
Kahr p380, S&W Jframe Chiefs Special. Too small to actually hit anything further than 4 feet away. Handy for a mugger with a knife, suicide against anyone with a gun.

1911. Too heavy for 9 rounds. It's extra margin of carry safety, isn't needed.
Click to expand...

Never shot the Kahr .380, but like Ernie Bass, with my S&W Bodyguard 38, head shots at 15 yards can be done, even without the laser. (matter of fact, it makes them tougher!) It takes practice, but it can be done. Most of my practice with it is at half that distance, though.
 
more use than I thought:
Ruger lcp. It has proven to be the easiest to carry, and effectively accurate. It goes bowhunting, and camping, and fishing, and jeeping.....and to work....etc.
H&R handi-rifle in .204. I dont worry as much about its 32gr hi velocity soft point bullet getting back up and traveling very far.
Probably my .45 flintlock has proven to be my favorite investment. Competition, and pure shooting satisfaction. You can spend an entire afternoon with friends and only shoot 30 rds.
ETA my little 870 .410. I have used it far more than I ever thought. I bought it almost as a lark after my hunting buddy complained that all my quail were reduced to nasty featherburgers. I use it for quail, doves, backyard clays, garden pests, and barnlot starlings.
Least used....:
AR 15. Not that it doesn't have an important role. I just don't shoot it much.
 

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entropy said:
My 1100 Competition Synthetic,
View attachment 955856
has seen much less use than I expected, though my son has shot it a few times, and a few guys at the club have tried it also; but only because I was able to get the Ljutic Mono Gun I'd been waiting for for 40 years about 3 years sooner than I thought I could;


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Click to expand...
Don't let that levvin hunnert get away.
 
In the mid 90's I was invited to go Elk hunting with a friend. I got a good buy on a stainless Savage in 300 Win Mag. New for $200 .Set it up with a decent scope and sighted it in. Great shooter. A couple months before the trip I took a chopper ride. It was my third heart attack since age 36YO , and this one wanted to kill me. 5 bypasses latter I was still alive but with problems. I was 44 YO and a problem of one nature or another kept coming. That Savage had 8 rounds fired through it when I sold it. Not nearly enough use from my body or that gun.
 
Three guns - a SW 651 in 22 ,mag and a Colt Cobra II. Nice guns, never used. Thus sold.
A SW 317 for a lightweight pocket J frame - horrible trigger. Sold it. Did serve a purpose as I really needed the money at the time.
 
I put more rounds through my S&W MP 15-22 than I do through the rest of my collection combined.

In the 10 years I have had it, I've yet to shoot my '94. There are also a few I haven't shot in over 40 years.
 
More Used:
I use my Winchester model 70 (.270) more than I thought I would. I was thinking that it would come out twice a year: once to check that it's sighted in and once to shoot a deer but I've wound up doing a lot of target practice with it and usually take it out when I'm hunting coyotes.

Less Used:
Ruger Blackhawk in .357. I have a Super Blackhawk with a longer barrel and I use that all the time. The 357 gets left at home more often than it should probably. Also my Henry Big Boy in 357 but that's because I have a hard time reloading enough to keep that thing fed. I love the gun itself but I'm too busy loading 44 mag and 38 spl. to make anything for that gun.
 
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