What was your first?
 

As I get ready for my upcoming vacation back to the California foothills where I spent many years hiking across miles and miles of land, I got to thinking about my childhood and learning to shoot with my dad. So I ask you what was your first firearm and and any story that you might like to share.

Mine was an old Winchester pump .22 with a screw missing on the left side of the pump. I was the fourth generation to to behold this rifle. I had learned how to shoot with it and taken out many a squirrel and woodpecker with it, even shot a quarter out of the air once. Then on Chirstmas after all presents have been open I can still hear my grandpa say "whats that back there behind the tree" to this day I still have the paper towel tag with my name on it. I later got tired of iron sights and upgraded and had my dad buy a Ruger 10/22 with scope for my 16th birthday. I traded my dad that pump .22 and some cash for my first pistol a Colt Series 70 Govt Model around that same time.

I have owned so many guns, can honestly tell you i dont remember what my first gun is. it seemed like i got a new one every christmas and a few birthdays too. i can say its one of three, an sks, a 20ga New England single shot, or a Revalation .22 semi auto. All great guns with memories. I still have them all and will probably have them until they are my sons when he gets older.

My brother was the one who got the guns - until my 12th birthday when Dad gave me my Grandmothers .22 rifle. It is Winchester model 1890, second version, manufactured in 1894 according to the serial number. At some point, the original rear sight was removed and a flip-up tang mounted peep sight installed. The front sight is still there and doing its job just fine.
With the rear peep sight, it is a little tack driver ... if you can find ammo for it. It's chambered in 22 WRF ...... It is still in beautiful condition!

started out with an old Browning 22cal pump, and a Stevens 410guage bolt action with an inoperable safety lol. Moved up later to a New England 20guage single-shot and a Marlin 1894 44magnum lever-action. Dad had anything else I needed in his collection lol

My Dad got me a Winchester Low-wall in .22LR with an octagonal barrel and a weaver 4x 22 scope at a pawn shop for the princely sum of $6.00. You gotta remember, that was 1957.

20 gauge New England single shot. I killed a lot of doves and squirrels with that gun. I learned real quick to make shots count, I had to buy my own ammo.

I got it for Christmas when I was 11.

Calvin,
Did it look like this?
My dad bought this new in 54' he gave it to me about 10 years ago. I packed it every where hiking the hills in Nor. Cal.
http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...G/P1000104.jpg
http://i1093.photobucket.com/albums/...G/P1000110.jpg
I first shot it at 4 years old.

not counting the BB guns and pellet rifles which the first of those came in at age 5.



A Remington Mohawk-48 12 ga
(A bare bones inexpensive auto loader based loosely on the 1100)

I was 13 and man that was a BIG deal to me!
There were a lot of "firsts" that came with that gun.


First time I was allowed to hunt alone .
First time I hunted alone I got my first pheasant
That was the first critter I ever cut and cleaned all by myself .
First shop class project was a gun rack for that gun


Taking the pheasant is a cool story.
i was walking thru a marshy area with tall thick grass/weed like stalks that were way over my head .
I'm busting thru this stuff just trying to get to the other side when I heard a "cluck" and what seemed like right under my boot up came a rooster ...literally so close I could of grabbed it .

It SCARED me..fo-reel..LOL

I figured out what was up as it cleared the stalks.
I shouldered and busted him at less than 20 feet out....took his head plumb off :eek:

this is the part I've never told before ....It was pure luck that I popped him square at the base of head and neck....

'coarse I never told anyone THAT part back then ....:D


..L.T.A.

Horsin, pretty close just found out its a model 1906, looks more like my grandpa's tho his had a longer pump. I'm going to take a look in a few weeks maybe bring it back with me.

Cap, your secret is safe here. Haha. Honestly every dove I ever took was luck which wasn't many not really good at the birds but fun just being out with my dad.

First gun I shot was my Dads 16 gauge Browning Auto 5,I was about 7 or 8. Shooting Walnuts on the trees after squirrel hunting. Wasn't allowed to carry a gun yet.
Used a 16 gauge dbl. made in 1916 when I finaly got to hunt on my own.
Folks bought me a Marlin model 57 when I was 16, still have it.