Ranch/farm carry.

My Father was old school concerning shooting arms he chose and for what use. He didn't ride around in his pick-up checking fields with long guns laying up against his leg. But there were times he did. For entirely different reason. i.e. Home freezer meat was at a lower than expected level and needed package freshing.
He use to say with a wink in his eye (deer/game) "when you feed em all year no harm in eat'en a extra one once in a while on the Governor dime." No doubt many of the locals felt the same.

Although tractor'ing around in his corn he did have on-board at certain times of the year his Wards 10 Star single barrel 12 ga. loaded with a 1-1/4 oz Federal Slug usually. He wasn't put out with Blue-Jays coon chipmunks deer or squirrel robbing his corn. What he got excited about was 3-400 lb Black bears literally devouring allot of what he planted by summers end. Riding on his Farmall Super M some bears I recall {being told} got pretty close to the old feller seated out in the open air which caused him to stand up and spit Copenhagen snuff in their face while reloading in the heat of the moment for that hopefully second shot. You could say Pop's he was able to be a multi-tasker when he needed too.
 
This is what I use on my farm in TN:

Sidearm; anytime I'm outside, this is on my right hip. S&W SW1911SC:


mHykE8J.jpg


Kubota RTV gun: Marlin 1894 in .44 Mag:

5XGCJAw.jpg


On my tractor; AR-15. The pic below shows my Bushmaster/Armalite mid-length carbine; it's since been replaced with my Colt HBAR with 20" barrel:

Ph1eHXh.jpg


When I'm on my front deck relaxing, waiting for some varmint to walk by; Ruger American Predator in .223. Got two 'dillos night before last:

6xbfiE1.jpg

 
Last edited by a moderator:
Very nice setup you have there. How do you like that s&w sc 1911? I've looked at them in the past as a concealed carry option, but shied away due to the price tag.
 
On my buds mini ranch (40 acres) he uses his Glock gen1 a lot. He shoots the coons that get on the back porch and steal the dog and cat food. He waits till they run off the porch then he shoots them. He had to kill one deer that got his antlers hung in the fence and wouldn't let him get close enough to free it with his glock.

Over the years he at first kept a mini-14 by the back door to shoot coyote's with. One of the old ones everyone likes to make fun of. I doubt he killed more than 20 or so coyote's with it before he sold it. And regretted the sale.

After that a Marlin 883 22 mag and a Marlin 44 mag took turns by the door for varmint problems. Both worked fine for that. During deer season he keeps his old Winchester .270 bolt action by the door for the deer he sees in the front yard.

If he wears a gun it is always his Ruger Single Six in 32 mag loaded with my home made shot loads for snakes. He hates snakes and kills them all without prejudice. He kills lots of snakes. Mostly Copperheads.
 
As this thread should have demonstrated by now, people use whatever they've got.
I've known ranchers that carried SAAs, while their neighbors just had a shotgun on the porch.
I knew a "rancher" that carried only an NAA Mini loaded with .22 LR, and never anything else (except a Browning Hi-Power, once - just once). There were shotguns, a .30-06, and a .300 WM within easy reach at the house and garage (and many more in the safe); but almost never in the truck or tractor.
That guy's neighbor bought an AR-15 in the mid-'90s, which all of the neighbors in the valley ridiculed.
Not long after that AR was used to put down a pack or coyotes and a wolf was suspected of a few livestock kills, however, the entire valley had Mini-14s, ARs, or 10/22s on their porches or leaning against window sills. :rolleyes: (And a few people that went for BARs. ;))

What gets seen and used just depends on the 'rancher' and his personal tastes.
But you're nearly guaranteed, at least in this part of the country, to have a 12 ga, .30-30 lever, .30-06 (or .270 Win or .280 Rem), 9mm, and .44 Mag or .45 Colt hiding somewhere ... or everywhere.
 
Interesting thread with all the comments but if you don't live day-to-fay in the country for years on end it's very challenging to say what is appropriate. I went from 150 acres to 32 acres to 6.5 acres changing living locations. Gun selection changed based on the environment. Still, two guns that are consistent to everything are a 223 and a shotgun.
 
Gulfcowboy:

I love my S&W scandium framed 1911! It looks almost exactly like a model 39, which I've lusted over since at least the late 60's!

I bought it Jan. 2018 and it's become my daily OC sidearm; if I go outside, it's on my hip.

Thanks,
 
On our apple farm my main target is the woodchuck. I generally have a remington 700 bdl chambered in .222 Remington with a zeiss 4-12x50 in the truck at all times. If im targeting chuck holes near buildings i use my savage 93 .22 WMR topped with a 2-7 Redfield. Great litte set up. Hand guns are always in the mix due to personal concealed carry obligations.
 
Maine Hunting Firearms Laws:
"It is Unlawful to Hunt with, or Possess for Hunting, Any:

Automatic firearm (a firearm that continues to fire as long as the trigger is held back.)
Auto-loading firearm (a firearm that reloads itself after each shot and requires a separate trigger pull for each shot) with a magazine capacity of more than 5 cartridges (plus 1 in the chamber for a total of 6), unless the magazine has been permanently altered to contain not more than 5 cartridges."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Do some states allow greater magazine capacity???

JP
 
When on my tractor or mower I normally have my Glock 22 or 1911 OC. On the ATV I have my AR-10 and an 870. The 870 is loaded with #2 birdshot and is for anything smaller than a coyote. The AR-10 is for everything else.
 
Grandfather kept a Winchester model 92 in 32-20 standing up next to the kitchen door.
Magazine all loaded and ready to go . All you had to do was work the lever !

Were the model 92's the first "ranch rifles" ?
Gary
 
Laws?

I don't pretend to know the laws of Maine, in fact it is one of the very few states I have not visited. Gotta fix that.

My point is that in many states hunting laws and regulations do not apply to the elimination of vermin.

I do not know if the above applies to Maine.
 
A shotgun is best around the buildings/equipment and livestock, for its reduced ricochet danger with smaller shot. A rifle is better when out in the open fields, obviously. I like a big bore pistol when working in the pastures. A small pocket pistol when nothing else is practical, just for the sake of staying armed at all times.

A farm gun can be used to hunt, but it's different than a hunting gun, in my mind. It's destined to a harder life, in dust, rain, filth, or bouncing around on the tractor's steel floor.
 
On my grandparent's small farm there was a semi-auto Marlin .22lr and a .16ga bolt-action shotgun (can't remember the make). My Grandfather wasn't a hunter and I don't think I ever saw the shotgun off the rack. He did sometimes use the .22 for pest control. While he didn't have much use for guns, he always had his switchblade in his pocket.
 
It is not just hunting and pest elimination. It is not at all unusual to strike a larger animal like a deer and badly injure it while operating a tractor requiring it's humane dispatch.

Another issue is dealing with meth heads, often homeless that like setting up their labs in fields. They can get quite violent when defending their stash, although most will run off. Calling a county deputy or even the police on a city farm is not a great option as it can take them an half hour to an hour to even find you. The meth heads also love stealing stuff to buy more meth or stuff to make meth with.

There are also venomous snakes that may require dealing with.
 
I'm not a rancher.The folks I have known in the agra-biz generally have a lot of tasks on their mind.
Which means they don't necessarily have time to react to every coyote they see.
Generally they know someone who likes to hunt pests. They can delegate that chore with a phone call.

Same with the idea that 200 yds of fence is knocked down because a mountain lion is freaking out the cattle at night.The rancher has fence to fix and cattle to check. He'll call Division of Wildlife.

This man has passed on,but I knew a dryland rancher who had a problem.The city owned a property adjacent to his.The city was growing,and it had a prairie dog problem.The solution the city came up with involved transplanting the PD's onto the city owned rural land.Of course.the grass was greener on the rancher's side of the fence.

So he now had two PD towns on his land.


His answer? He knew that PD's are part of the Grand Plan. As a steward of his land,he told us "I can just poison them out and be done wt it,but I don't want to do that.As long as you two keep them shot back enough they aren't taking over,it will work.

He did not have time or interest in PD hunting.He left that to us.

Something like a badger out in the daylight acting strange (rabid) might need disposal.Any gun will work.


Coyotes in his yard woke him up.They were a hazard to his barn cats and cow dogs. Launching rifle rounds into the darkness is a hazard. IMO,a shotgun with a light and some Dead Coyote shot might be a good all around back porch gun.


This Gentleman owned a Rem 788 22-250 and a Ruger Blackhawk 357. He also had a mallet and the $10 Lee Loaders. Was a time this Gentleman and his Wife spent a lot of time in the saddle.The 357 served.


I can sure see a Mini-14 or a carbine AR as a pickup gun. The old $79 NIB SKS carbine (when those were available) might serve well...but I think the Ruger more likely suits the rancher's tastes.


Another Old Guy I knew was in the hay biz. He kept a Glenfield 30-30 and an H+R 22 LR DA revolver in the truck.


I know another rancher that keeps an Armalite AR-10 in the truck.


I know of a long range hiker woman,as in Mexico to Canada,who says "We tend to pack for our fears". Not saying the Rancher fears much,but ...Whether its a rabid badger ,or feral dogs or hogs..The Rancher has an idea what he might face in a day. So,in his truck might be a coil of barbed wire,a stretcher,some staples,a fence pliers . Fence repairs happen.His Windmills or a gate might need fixing.

If lions or wolves or Tweaker cultist cattle nutilators are on his mind,he might carry the appropriate tool.

But the gun is like a handy=man jack or a fence post driver. Its a tool for a job.

The Rancher does not pack for show.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top