Shae1324
Member
When my grandfather came home from WWII he was in search of an all around good squirrel and rabbit gun. The Mossberg 146B-A model was made in (no guesses here) 1946 only. It came with a peep sight and a forward selector sight with an option for a scope. A Mossberg man from way back, he picked it up, and there wasn't a small varmint in Onslow County that was safe from him with it in his hands.
In 1970 my father, a boy of ten years old, inherited his daddy's squirrel gun. The scope was long gone but the peep sight and selector sights with the hood were intact. It was his first of many rifles that he would own through out the years but it was his favorite for small game and general plinking for as long as he can remember, and right up until I turned ten years old.
Even though I was a girl, the rifle was once again passed to me on my tenth birthday. By then the stock had it's fair share of scratches and dings, but man was the bore bright and the action smooth (still is). We would go to the gun range near camp Lejuene and my father would make bets with the young Marines there, the scope of the bet being whether or not I could hit a nickel at 50 feet with that rifle, and we never lost a single time that I can remember. The trick is to watch for the glint of the sun on the coin.
It wasn't until I was grown that I understood that the peep sight on my old rifle was what most would consider sub-par. My buddies would pick it up at the range and they couldn't hit doodley squat with it. Most of them still can't and are still amazed when I shoot the red dot out of Marlboro pack with it at fifty paces. I have learned that this rifle in particular takes more than just a a little practice and patience but it pays off in spades in the long run. You really have to be in tune with it, and if you can get there, it will drive tacks.
Mostly I've just learned that you can't put a price on that old rifle. They sell nowadays for 150 bucks easy, even with all the accessories. Someday my son or daughter will own this rifle, and will carry on this family tradition, but for now, I wouldn't sell it for anything in the world. If you count yourself among one of the handful of owners who has one in this good of a condition, then you probably understand what I'm saying anyway. I have inherited and purchased many other firearms, all of them being more powerful and refined. But no matter what I've got in the gun case, the old Mossberg is still my favorite. So if you happen across one, inherit one or whatever the case may be...stick it on the rack and hang onto it.
In 1970 my father, a boy of ten years old, inherited his daddy's squirrel gun. The scope was long gone but the peep sight and selector sights with the hood were intact. It was his first of many rifles that he would own through out the years but it was his favorite for small game and general plinking for as long as he can remember, and right up until I turned ten years old.
Even though I was a girl, the rifle was once again passed to me on my tenth birthday. By then the stock had it's fair share of scratches and dings, but man was the bore bright and the action smooth (still is). We would go to the gun range near camp Lejuene and my father would make bets with the young Marines there, the scope of the bet being whether or not I could hit a nickel at 50 feet with that rifle, and we never lost a single time that I can remember. The trick is to watch for the glint of the sun on the coin.
It wasn't until I was grown that I understood that the peep sight on my old rifle was what most would consider sub-par. My buddies would pick it up at the range and they couldn't hit doodley squat with it. Most of them still can't and are still amazed when I shoot the red dot out of Marlboro pack with it at fifty paces. I have learned that this rifle in particular takes more than just a a little practice and patience but it pays off in spades in the long run. You really have to be in tune with it, and if you can get there, it will drive tacks.
Mostly I've just learned that you can't put a price on that old rifle. They sell nowadays for 150 bucks easy, even with all the accessories. Someday my son or daughter will own this rifle, and will carry on this family tradition, but for now, I wouldn't sell it for anything in the world. If you count yourself among one of the handful of owners who has one in this good of a condition, then you probably understand what I'm saying anyway. I have inherited and purchased many other firearms, all of them being more powerful and refined. But no matter what I've got in the gun case, the old Mossberg is still my favorite. So if you happen across one, inherit one or whatever the case may be...stick it on the rack and hang onto it.
