Who was your biggest influence in the firearms/shooting world?

My Grandaddy Ham of Osawatomie Kansas. He passed when I was 16 years 5 states away. He left me his Bolt action 20 gauge and a single shot .22. Along with a Bamboo flyrod and Orbotson reel. As I matured into my late 20's Major George Nonte Sr. and Elmer Keith started my self taught journey.
 
I want to re-answer in a less traditional way (it wasn't really one person, and definitely not family as I said earlier).

In addition to always eyeing my grandfather's guns when we'd visit as a kid, the biggest influence on me getting into guns (as opposed to how I collect, train and practice as a gun owner) is the US soldier and my love of history. I read my first book on WWII when I was 8 (I remember my parents being upset at the school library for letting me take it out as they thought I was far too young). When I was 8-12 I would read about the Revolution and daydream about being one of the Minutemen. I especially loved reading about the Civil War, WWI and WWII (Korea was "The Forgotten War," I read about it, but there simply weren't as many books about it for me to read, and Vietnam was still fairly recent history when I was a kid and didn't have many books about it yet... I did read what there was though). As I got older, I continued to read as much about military history (not just our wars) as well as all our major wars as I could (I still do, though I simply don't have the time to read that I used to have). I know my love of military history had a huge influence on my joining the Army after high school instead of going straight to college, and it also had a big influence on my developing an interest in guns even though I didn't start buying them until some time later.
 
My uncle. Way back in the ear'y 50's. He was also a hand loader. We would hunt chucks. He used his deer rifle a .270. My dad would come along. My uncle had a pistol which was an influence on me. I gained most of my gun knowledge from reading questions in gun Magazines. My favorites Handloader and Rifle, shooting times and Guns and Ammo.
 
My Dad taught me to shoot a rifle. I taught myself with a revolver. I went into law enforcement and practiced drawing and dry firing every day before going on duty.
I thought I was pretty handy with a revolver until I spent an afternoon shooting with Bill Jordan.
I learned a lot that day and it saved my hide more than once.
 
Could be the toy makers of the 1050's. Back when toy guns weren't ostracized the way they are now. Cap guns, squirt guns, and guns that didn't do anything other than resemble a pistol or long gun. Although I sure heard enough tales about hunting from my dad, my scoutmaster, and plenty of other adults; most of whom had hunted before WW2 came along. After the war they all got tied up with marriages, families, mortgages, etc. and hunting & shooting became fond memories related to all the kids. The toy gun market was booming and was a big influence on me and most other kids of that era. Here in the 21st century toy guns have been decreed to be a bad influence on children. But Drag Queen story hour is good (?).
 
gudaki said:
My brother in-law got me started hunting and I started reloading on my own.
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I can take a lil credit in terms of influence with a few people, I had a mother and sister in law that were dead set against guns, totally hoplophobic, one was held up at knife point as a store clerk and developed a fear and hatred of weapons of any kind but my wife was always cool with my guns. My BIL from down south was explaining that he would like to keep a lil something for just in case but the wife (my SIL) wouldn't allow it. I guess I stirred the pot a lil bit and took him shooting and his wife wasn't really thrilled about it, so you can imagine how she looked at me when I gave him a nice .38spl revolver.

In the last decade or thereabouts since I gave it to him he has bought several guns and reloads his own ammo and she is totally comfortable with it, so much so that she feels better and more secure knowing that he can handle business should he need. There were some incidents in their area that made her glad they had firearms in the home....... I feel I did my part.
 
My father died when I was three and we didn't have guns in the house. An adult family friend taught me to shoot a single action revolver with 22 short ammo when I was between six and seven.

I grew up in rural Northern Arizona and New Mexico in the 1950s. Most pickups had a rack in the rear window with a lever-action rifle and a shotgun. I watched a lot of western television series and movies growing up.

My twelve years older sister had a couple of boyfriends at different times who were in the Marines. They and other family friends took me hunting and shooting when I was growing up.

I bought my first gun from the 1962 Sears catalog. It was a select-grade Lee-Enfield British 303 rifle. The rifle, some ammo, and a cleaning kit came to around $39. The mailman left it on our front porch.

I joined the Navy Reserves when I turned seventeen in 1963. I spent my senior year of high school drilling. I graduated high school on a Friday night and went on active duty on the following Monday. I spent twenty-two years in the military including tours in Viet Nam.
 
My uncle grew up in Morton Grove, IL one of the most gun restrictive towns in the U.S. And his father, back in the day, was involved along with the police in the St. Valentine's Day massacre. But I also understand my uncle got interested in pheasant and duck hunting when his kids started hunting in high school. Now he was a pilot during WW II flying B-24. Pilots had to take arial combat training too which consisted of skeet shooting. My uncle was also a salesman in northern Wisconsin and would dig up old Model 12s in his trips and then have them rebuilt.
 
Didn't really have anyone. I grew up in an anti-gun household in an anti-gun state. Even getting something as benign as a squirt gun was like pulling teeth while growing up. I was always fascinated by firearms but didn't get to shoot any until I was in college then the military.
 
DustyGmt said:
That is very interesting, I'd like to hear more about it, it makes sense....
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As I was told, a lot of well educated city people volunteered for flying school and as such were not brought up as rural hunters or marksman. The easiest way to train them to lead targets and to swing shoot follow through was to teach them to shoot skeet. Skeet has the hardest acute targets to hit as does a gunner shooting at a limited angle enemy planes at a high rate of speed. In addition, there wasn't a lot of extra ammo for all gunners to practice shooting arial targets. They did go up and shoot at towed targets, but not until they were proficient at hitting a fast moving target.
A couple of the men that flew with my uncle wrote a book on their time with him. One of them was a pilot too. When they got to England, there weren't enough planes to go around, so he filled in where needed. To stay with my uncle, the author started off as a belly gunner, eventually got to be a radio operator and ended up as a "top" gunner. That being the guy in the top bubble just behind the pilot's position in the aircraft. He didn't like that position at first because that was the most common attack point by ME-109s. BUT it was also the warmest spot in the aircraft. I believe my uncle's B-24 was just lucky because his bomber ended up in the middle of bomber group which took the least amount anti aircraft fire and the least amount of intercepting from enemy aircraft.
 
I guess after my FIL, who got me into hunting, it would be Massad Ayoob. When I acquired my first handguns, I took a couple of LFI courses. I have learned a lot since, but those first few courses were pretty influential/foundational.
 
My dad taught me to shoot, but most of my subsequent knowledge comes from reading + experience. I credit Dean Grinnell for most of my reloading knowledge and Massad Ayoob for my understanding of the dynamics of defensive shooting and legal consequences. I’ve also learned a lot from contributors to the old rec.guns and here.
 
His name was Frank, a friends husband of my mothers. Was a father figure of sorts, taught me to reload when I was knee high to a grasshopper.
 
My shooting instructor. I owe him alot for my training. I was lucky when he found me a few years ago. Funny story, when I met him we pulled in next to each other at the range; both driving H2s. When I got out, he said "Nice truck". I said thanks, and walked to my bench. I'm shooting for about 10 minutes, making all the usual noob mistakes. All of the sudden he kicks my heel and tells me to move my heel to the right. "I'm thinking "Who the ****is this guy? Then he turned my shoulders, pushed in my left elbow, made me bring the gun up to my head (Not head down to the gun), and said "Shoot". So by now after 3 words and alot of nudging, I'm REALLY thinking "Who the **** is this guy"?!?!

I shot, and the first thing I thought is "WHO THE ****IS THIS GUY??!!?!?!!? :rofl: Bulls eyes.

Turns out he had years of experience in instructing at Front Sight, over seas etc..

6 or 7 classes later, we're pretty good friends. He helps people for free all over the place at the range too. The culture needs guys like him.
 
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