Anyone else have a lifelong shotgun?

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OkieCruffler

New member
I had a horrible day at work yesterday, so my wife being the angel that she is, made me go bust some clays this morning. I took my favorite Stevens 311. My grandfather bought it new in 1953. It was the first shotgun I ever shot. I was 8 and can still remember the feeling in my stomache just before I touched off that first barrel. I unwrapped it and it became mine on my 12th birthday. I found out a few years ago that my grandfather had debated giving it to me instead of buying me a new gun. He was afraid I wouldn't want some old hand me down. Over the past 19 years I've taken everything from barn mice to geese with it, and today out of 90 clays, it turned 84 of them to powder. Since that time I've bought several more shotguns, including 7 more 311's, but this is the one I always reach for. My son thinks someday he will own it, but the one who gets this one isn't born yet. I think some things need to skip a generation. People come over and ask me what this gun or that gun is worth and I always quote them a price until they get to this one. There isn't a Purdy or Parker that I'd trade her for.
So I was just wondering if anyone else had a shotgun that will never leave their collection, no matter what price.
 
For Christmas last year my father passed down to me the first shotgun he ever owned. It's nothing fancy, High Standard 12 gauge semi-auto. I took my second deer with it. I will keep it and probably pass it down to my son. I look at it this way, if he didn't get into hunting when he was 17 I probably wouldn't be where I am today on firearms and hunting. My grandfather didn't hunt. :)
 
I don't even remember this happening, so I'm taking my dad's word for it:

Around 17 or 18 or so, dad gave away most of his shotguns / rifles because he didn't hunt anymore. All of the kids got one. Apparently I received some sort of 20 gauge shotgun and promptly sold it to one of my brothers :rolleyes: I was probably concerned with buying a new guitar instead of having a shotgun.

Like I said, I have absolutely no recollection of selling the shotgun. One day when I'm at my brother's house I'll have to investigate exactly what I let go. Maybe he'll consider selling it back to me some day.....
 
I have a Winchester Model 12 that my Grandfather bought who knows when. I imagine around the time he returned from WW I. I asked my mother about it just a couple months ago, she was born in 1918 and says she always remembers him having it. When he died in 1968 it was given to my father (his son-in law). When I was a kid I always begged to shoot it but was told it "kicked too much". About the age of 12, I finally got to fire it. It has been mine ever since. I don't have a lot of stories about it because my Grandfather died when I was six. My dad wasn't a hunter so all the hunting I did with it was kind of feeling my way along on my own. I did pretty well with it and will treasure it till the day I die.
 
Yes. I have an old 870 Wingmaster that I used to blast groundhogs as a teenager. It belonged to an uncle who passed away. That puppy isn't going anywhere. :)

Mike
 
I wrote a thread last year about my oldest 870 and when I got it. It's called A Christmas Past, and I believe it's in the Archives.You might enjoy reading it.

I tore that one down the other day and gave it its annual deep cleaning. No rust at all, but the finish is getting mighty thin from wear. Sure does shuck easy....
 
Grandpa's Remington Sportsman 48, 20 gauge, 28" modified. Alot of birds went down with a blast of this one, usually over one of Grandpa's English Pointers. Gun still shoots fine and isn't going anywhere.
 
I too have a model 12 winchester, nickel plated, 1936 stamp date. It belonged to my grandfather who passed on to my father and them me. I cherrish is above all firearms I own. I can remember my grandfather shot a lot of birds with it, once tripping laying on his back and shooting a pheasant. When he got to old to walk my father used to drive him sitting on the hood of the car through the fields hunting with his model 12. Though he had several other firearms this one was his favorite. It is mainly a wall hanger now, I am sure it still shoots fine as it has been kept in superb condition...thanks for asking.
 
With all these threads about heirloom shotguns you guys are making me believe I had a deprived childhood.

Friends and cousins have nice doubles that were owned by dads/grandads. But I have nothing. The only gun my father left was a Walthers PP in 32 but an uncle grabbed it when he died and I was in the Army sloshing through some swamp. He claims it was stolen from him:rolleyes: when I asked for it. :mad:

So I have my own lifetime gun, and now it has a little sister in 20/28GA. If you can't figure out what it is I'm not gonna tell ya:D
 
My keeper is a Browning A-5 Light 20 (Belgian) I bought NIB mailorder (you could do that then) when I was 18 years old from Speigel's. I'm 50 now. The A-5 is in semi-retirement. It's still my bird gun because nothing points as naturally for me as an A-5. Most times now I use an 870. I like it a lot too. But, it will never replace the A-5, which I will never part with for any price.

Randy
 
When I was 12 yrs old I found my dad's first shotgun under the christmas tree with my name on it- a single shot .410. On my 14th birthday I got a new 20g Ithica mod 37. I still have both.
Wish I new what ever happened to Granddad's '97.
 
Oh, pity those of us who had to learn to shoot with the .410, I had to use my dad's .410 bolt action until that 311 came along. I thought God himself had decreed that I would never hit a moving object. Never seemed to phase dad tho' he still uses the silly thing for duck hunting, and he eats alot of duck.
 
Granddad passed away last year at age 90, I think I posted a thread about him, a true lifelong hunter. Although he didn't specifically leave it to me, but since I'm the only hunter of the bunch: Remington Model 11 bought new in 1949, the year my Mom was born. Also left an old Remington 552 Speedmaster that might wind up being completely rebuilt.

Granddad also gave me my 20 ga Mossy when I was 13, so while the Remington might get passed to my brother or dad, the Mossy will never depart Casa de Gator.
 
All these stories point out one thing that should be emphasized. It's neglect, not use, that renders shotguns unserviceable. Keep them clean and lubed, exercise them regularly, and maybe some grandchild of ours some day will wax nostalgic about an old family gun.
 
Ihave an old single shot

12 Ga, that belonged tomy great-grandfather...it is a simple single shot, but NOTHING in this entire world is gonna get it away from me, until I have a worthy heir to it... just toomuch history behind it...

it'salso the first shotgun I shot, and my Great Garndpa died a year after I shot it... it was the one thing Iremembered most about him, and the onlything I got (or wanted)

he had about 30 guns, and EVERYONE fought over the Krag-Jorgensen, and the original mausers... but when a snot-nosed kid asked for the beat up 12. ga., nobody batted an eyelash... silly adults!
 
Great topic. I have a Lefever double 12 that belonged to a great uncle. He taught me all about guns, hunting and drinking. He sold it to my dad for $20.00 about 40 years ago and I got it after my dad was gone. I also have a Winchester 1200 that my dad bought for me in 1963. It is as clean now as it was then and I took it to South Dakota this year. Hadn't shot in years and we did very well on those big SD rooster. I would love to shoot the old Lefever, but it is so badly stocked that it kicks like a mule. I still remember the first time that I shot it. Remember when you were 6 or 7 and how big 12 gauge shells looked?
 
I also was handed down a stevens. My grandpa was a deer hunter back in his day and he wanted his sons to get into it to. He bought my uncle a stevens 820 and then my uncle lost interest. So he let my dad use the gun. My dad had killed dozens of deer with it, and just last year my dad let me use it on my first year with a shotgun. I remember shooting it for the first time. I shot it twice before I went hunting, and once at my doe.

The day that I can call the stevens my own will definitly be a day of joy for me.

I also was handed down a remington 16 gauge from my dad. He got it from his dad when he was twelve and so did I. I love the gun and there is no way that you could ever pay me enough to get it from me.
 
I've got my Grandfather's old Remington Model 58 20 ga. autoloader Skeet gun...I've slain a TON of Doves and Quail with it...shot my first round of "Real" Skeet with it, as well as my first 25-straight with it in about 1975...and my first "Hunnerd Straight" with a non-12 ga. gun...ended up "Runner-Up" in the 20 ga. event at the State Shoot back in '81, using that old 58...beat TWO All-Americans in the shootoff!!! I like to think my Grandfather was watching from "Up There" and smiling...see, he passed away when I was 7...before my interest in shooting had developed, AND before I got to know him...it'd be the LAST gun I'd ever part with....mikey357
 
Lifelong shotgun

I have a single shot, 12 ga, exposed hammer,"Long Tom", 40 " barrelled shotgun that was my uncle's. I believe it was purchased from Sears around 1900. I currently load shotgun shells for hunting squirrel with it. I load half the hull with rock salt to preserve the meat until I can get to the squirrel. I shall give this gun to my grandson.;)
 
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