what's the coolest historical firearms related thing you've done

[tahoe2]

On my way to an Antelope hunt in Wyoming, we stopped off at the Custer's National Monument, Cemetary & Museum. What an incredible story, not the history lesson I remember from school.

 

[Robert]

I do some limited reenacting when I can. WW2 Aussie mostly.

 

[303tom]

Battle Reenacting.................

 

[moewadle]

The Rock Island Arsenal Museum

in Rock Island, Illinois right across the Mississippi from Davenport, Iowa. This is right on Interstate 80 and if you are much interested in the historical side of firearms you should know about this little-known(in my opinion) museum. Go drive around the arsenal compound....the limestone buildings are neat and there is a confederate cemetery there.(It was a Civil War POW compound.) Then go into the museum which is 100% rifles, handguns, and a bit of artillery. There are rifles there the Native Americans used at the Battle of the Little Big Horn. If you are in the area take time to do this. There are many, many rifles. Well displayed.

 

[Stacer]

A military Museum in Lithuania. It was interesting to see the midevil European weapons, and seeing the cold war from the other side was definately something else

 

[Buck Kramer]

^^^ Thats just a little under 2 hours from me and I've never been there! Better change that soon...

 

[theicemanmpls]

I simulated the shootout Wild Bill Hickok had with Davis Tutt.
I paced off 75 yards, put a man sized paper target. Loaded up the .36cal cap and ball pistol, and fired six rounds.

There was a terrible cross wind that day, and only two hits were COM. Two other hits, and two miss.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wild_Bill_Hickok_–_Davis_Tutt_shootout

 

[mbopp]

Years back we went to Colonial Williamsburg and of course I had to stop in the gunsmith shop. It was interesting to see a flat piece of steel heated, roll formed around a rod, and the seam blacksmith welded by hand to become a raw barrel. They have a cut rifling machine but it wasn't being used that day. The locks they buy but the other wood and metalwork was done on site.
They would build you a rifle but at that time there was a 10 year waiting list.

 

[Sam1911]

I did a week volunteering with the artisan carpentry crew at Plimoth Plantation years ago, I got to drill in formation with the guys practicing (behind the scenes ... didn't get to be "in costume") to reenact militia muster. That was pretty cool, though it cured any desire whatsoever to do anything "combat" related with a matchlock anytime soon.

 

[huntsman]

what's the coolest historical firearms related thing you've done

I helped identify and gather the gunsmithing tools of my wife's great, great grandfather.
he was a Cooper and Smith and we found everything from stock and barrel blanks to his letterhead.

 

[grasssnake]

had an 1884 trapdoor springfield and some old ammo. Fired it when I was a kid. It worked. Then I took some metal and cut round pieces and could get two pieces of sheet metal from a shoe polish can behind the head of the cartridge and still close the breech. I decided that that was too much headspace, so I quit shooting it.

 

[ForumSurfer]

I discovered an out of the way attraction in the mountains of West Virginia with my step son. It was a tower that ran up a cliff over a small stream. They melted lead at the top and dropped it down the tower into the water below. The fall shaped it into lead shot. It was a neat little way to make more shot than hand presses.

I also sat in the top gunner and tail gunner seats of a b24 and squeezed off some imaginary 50 caliber rounds in a museum. I was also able to physically touch a blackbird. Not very cool to anyone but me.

 

[Sam1911]

I discovered an out of the way attraction in the mountains of West Virginia with my step son. It was a tower that ran up a cliff over a small stream. They melted lead at the top and dropped it down the tower into the water below. The fall shaped it into lead shot. It was a neat little way to make more shot than hand presses.

The wife of a friend of mine manages the historic site of Carroll Mansion in Baltimore which also features the Pheonix shot tower. Pretty cool!

 

[ForumSurfer]

The wife of a friend of mine manages the historic site of Carroll Mansion in Baltimore which also features the Pheonix shot tower. Pretty cool!

http://www.waymarking.com/waymarks/WM9B7_Shot_Tower_at_Jacksons_Ferry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson_Ferry_Shot_Tower

I'm a history buff...well, not really. I'm a historical site buff. For now, my kids are like me. We've taken day treks all over the state and found neat stuff like this:

http://www.nchistoricsites.org/brunswic/brunswic.htm

Sites like this are all over the state and never more than an hour or two away from anyone in NC. Sadly, there's usually only a handful of people at them. I fear they won't be around forever.

 

[7thCavScout]

When I was in the US Army I made a "Hollywood" parachute jump into Nijmegen Holland to celebrate the anniversary of 'Operation Market Garden'.

 

[Sam1911]

When I was in the US Army I made a "Hollywood" parachute jump into Nijmegen Holland to celebrate the anniversary of 'Operation Market Garden'.

Dang! Thread winner, there!

 

[max it]

HI Ya All, Most Historical Gun related thing? I went to Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum in L.A. Lots of stuff and some guns. It's always interesting to me to put our modern world in perspective to see the old stuff used that started it all. Later I went out and bought a single action revolver in .357/.38cal -ruger new blackhawk to keep it alive and teach the kids.
Much obliged,

Max

 

[Smokin Gator]

When I shoot cowboy action, I shoot 44 Russian blackpowder rounds in my revolvers, 44-40 bp out of my rifle and 12 guage bp ammo with the double barreled shotgun. Everything real black powder. mark

 

[rcmodel]

Mmmm?

I helped shoot a piano into tooth-picks with a Gatling Gun!


Thats me on the crank!






rc

 

[Steve CT]

Springfield Armory in Springfield,MA
Some really remarkable firearms there

http://www.nps.gov/spar/index.htm

 

[Erik M]

When I was much younger I visited Colonial Williamburng Virginia, and a reenactor let me touch off (what i remember to have been) an 8 pound cannon loaded with minimal powder and some paper wadding.

 

[hang fire]

In the early 1960s we lived in Chicago where I was taking a millwright apprenticeship. They had brought the WW2 US Navy captured German U-505 sub to put on permanent display at the Museum of Science and Industry. I went several times to see the sub and it’s weaponry and go through the interior, found the history of it fascinating.

The capture and boarding of a enemy man of war was the first time since the War of 1812.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fa6c9T241k8

 

[allaroundhunter]

Hunted rabbits out of the back of a refurbished WWII era army jeep with an M1 carbine.....

 

[GCMkc]

Shooting a belt-fed machine gun (m249) and other machine guns at the Kansas State Rifle Association's annual machine gun shoot last summer. Definitely the coolest thing I've done that is gun related besides getting delayed on every 4473 .

The guys from Hodgdon Gun Powder brought an 1870's .45-70 "Bulldog" Gatling Gun and were nice enough to let and buddy and I shoot some free ammo through it. Will be there again this summer.

 

[Plan2Live]

Last spring I took my sons to the SEAL/UDT museum in Ft. Pierce, Florida. Got to see the actual lifeboat, complete with bullet holes, from the Maersk Alabama where the SEALs dispatched the Somali pirates. Does that count as historic?