Just an observation . . .|Page 2|Winchester Rifles|Forum|Winchester Collector

I know if I as a collector was thinking about, “going to war’, with someone, I surely wouldn’t grab any of my collectable Winchesters! -Tony

Well, I can assure you I’ve waded into some feral hogs with a levergun and a six-shooter and felt well-armed. Round count was low, meat went into the freezer. I made an ineffective shot on a big boar with the levergun, he brushed against my leg heading for a creek bed before I could correct my error. I settled it with a 45 Colt round between his eyes several minutes later when he greeted me at eye level coming around a bend of the creek bed inside of six feet. My guide wanted to get it on video but said he’s never seen me move that fast. OTOH I’ve never been face to face with a wounded, angry hog close enough to spit on. I’d love to say I was carrying a first variation 1894 in 38-55 and a Custer era 1873 SAA .45 but I wasn’t.

Mike

Anthony #5411 said

TXGunNut said
I know if I as a collector was thinking about, “going to war’, with someone, I surely wouldn’t grab any of my collectable Winchesters! -Tony
 
Well, I can assure you I’ve waded into some feral hogs with a levergun and a six-shooter and felt well-armed. Round count was low, meat went into the freezer. I made an ineffective shot on a big boar with the levergun, he brushed against my leg heading for a creek bed before I could correct my error. I settled it with a 45 Colt round between his eyes several minutes later when he greeted me at eye level coming around a bend of the creek bed inside of six feet. My guide wanted to get it on video but said he’s never seen me move that fast. OTOH I’ve never been face to face with a wounded, angry hog close enough to spit on. I’d love to say I was carrying a first variation 1894 in 38-55 and a Custer era 1873 SAA .45 but I wasn’t.
 
Mike
  

Mike,
I can sure understand you’re comments.
When I first started to hunt deer at 19-20 years old with my future Father in Law, I was put with his longtime friend who he grew up with and served in WW ll with traveling around the world more than once during those treacherous times. This crazy old boy we called “Uncle Chuck”, drove truck for a living hauling liquid Nitrogen around the country, and would show up 5:00 AM, on opening morning at deer camp in PA, every year. I was put with him under his wing so to speak, with my .375 Win. lever gun. I got a quick reputation over the years of “playin the Banjo”, as his motto was we didn’t stop shooting till the deer we’re down. We never wasted a scrap of meat, and the old hermit that lived in the back,in a 10′ by 10′ shack, Carl knew those woods like the back of his hand, and later taught me a lot about hunting and tracking, and the woods that we now own and are caretakers of. 
We’ve since changed those old ways by taking Elk out west at much longer ranges and the “one shot one kill”, method applies with several hours of practice, but I have to say those old days we’re fun and memorable!
Tony
  

Remembering my younger years, I have to admit there is something exciting about action shooting.  I understand long-distance shooting and carefully choosing the shot.  As nearly all of my hunting has been deep-woods hunting the, “perfect shot” is a rarity.  There is often brush in the way (that you may or may not see) and if the deer isn’t moving when you take your first shot, it sure might be after.  You don’t know for sure if you hit or how bad you hit it, so  continued follow-up shots are prudent as long as it’s moving.  This is not the work of the single-shot rifle. The bolt-action rifle is not the top choice either.  

Steve,  I learned my lesson about game hunting with a scoped single shot rifle in an unpleasant way. 

In the late Eighties I had just bought a Ruger #1 RSI full stocked 30/06 and put a medium size variable scope on it. With doe tags to use up I shot a moving mature doe and severed the spine too far back to kill her but paralyzed her hindquarters. She began pulling herself around frantically by her front legs, in a circle.

Distressed, I fumbled the reload by hitting the ocular bell of the scope with the fresh cartridge and knocking it into the dirt. A second shot aimed at her moving twisting neck blew her lower jaw off, stunning her for a moment but not long enough for me to get a third round into the gun before she started moving again.

I forced myself to slow down and shot her at the base of her neck, killing her instantly. But I was very upset and unnerved about it and sold off the rifle when I got home. 

I love single shot rifles and now have three of them but I would not hunt with one scoped in a manner that made rapid reloading so awkward. The only one of my three with an optic is a 22 Hornet, a turkey rifle. 

Nevada Paul said

Tedk said
All of my of my bucks have been taken in the PA and NY mountains. I usually hunt sitting on the ground (if there’s snow and good visibility I will still hunt from higher ground) and have a good familiarity with the terrain and a pretty good idea where the deer will be coming from. The terrain where I hunt does not lend itself to long distance shots and most shots are under 100yds (there have been a few exceptions). I prefer to shoot from ambush and will only take what I consider to be a ‘perfect’ shot at the animal (broadside, mid-body, in the ribs, just behind the shoulder). Maybe I’m kidding myself, but I can’t ever recall not knowing if my shot was a good hit and I’ve NEVER continued shooting at a deer. Typically, the deer will react (hunch-up) at the hit and take off on a 50 yard or so death run. I watch the run closely and normally find a blood trail and the buck on the ground close to where I last saw the white tail running thru the woods. Almost all of my deer have been taken with one shot (there have been exceptions where additional shots were necessary). I don’t think I’ve ever lost a buck. My gun of choice for the last 50 years has been a bolt action 270 topped with a 4X Leupold
  

I don’t think I’ve ever lost a buck.
If you had, you’d remember. That sticks more so than the big scores.
  

Paul you are so right there! I can tell you with great detail of the ones I have lost. I think it’s because it hurts the most.