Dave McCracken
Moderator In Memoriam
We had fun at PGC today with The Geezer League. Shot 16 yard singles, Handicap, and then a raucous round of Chinese Trap.
During the fun, I noticed a couple things.
First, since Superreverb didn't make it, I was about the youngest shooter. I'm a fortnight or so short of 59.
The oldest may have been Karl, or AJ. Both are octogenerians.
Most of the guns are also old. MY TB, 1978 vintage, was one of the newest.
Al's Model 21 was made in 1932.
Doug Kelly's enigmatic 20 gauge, heavily engraved SxS Parker was made in 1928. Why enigmatic? It's the only 20 gauge to leave the Parker factory with 24" barrels, an elevated vent rib, and tight chokes. We've yet to figure out what the original owner wanted it for.
Doug Humble's Model 12 is post WWI. He never bothered to get the number in to see when it was made.
Two other trap 870s were there today, neither with original wood.
AJ's Ithaca 4E was made in 1914, thus slightly older than AJ. In his hands, it crushes targets well.
Ron's BT99 was probably the newest there, and it was made in the 80s.
And the point to my scribblings? Simple.....
All of these have digested thousands of rounds, pretty much without any hiccups. Some of them, like AJ's 4E, maybe hundreds of thousands of rounds.
Good shotguns, well maintained, last an incredibly long time. And, they do so despite shooting small hills worth of shells.
Can anyone say the same about the new stuff and not lie?....
During the fun, I noticed a couple things.
First, since Superreverb didn't make it, I was about the youngest shooter. I'm a fortnight or so short of 59.
The oldest may have been Karl, or AJ. Both are octogenerians.
Most of the guns are also old. MY TB, 1978 vintage, was one of the newest.
Al's Model 21 was made in 1932.
Doug Kelly's enigmatic 20 gauge, heavily engraved SxS Parker was made in 1928. Why enigmatic? It's the only 20 gauge to leave the Parker factory with 24" barrels, an elevated vent rib, and tight chokes. We've yet to figure out what the original owner wanted it for.
Doug Humble's Model 12 is post WWI. He never bothered to get the number in to see when it was made.
Two other trap 870s were there today, neither with original wood.
AJ's Ithaca 4E was made in 1914, thus slightly older than AJ. In his hands, it crushes targets well.
Ron's BT99 was probably the newest there, and it was made in the 80s.
And the point to my scribblings? Simple.....
All of these have digested thousands of rounds, pretty much without any hiccups. Some of them, like AJ's 4E, maybe hundreds of thousands of rounds.
Good shotguns, well maintained, last an incredibly long time. And, they do so despite shooting small hills worth of shells.
Can anyone say the same about the new stuff and not lie?....