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A few days after Dad passed away in Jan '05 Mom gave me back the Taurus 85 i had bought him for Christmas a few years earlier. The day before his funeral i just felt like i needed to shoot that little gun. I'm not even sure why, maybe i thought it would ease the pain a little. Some of my best memories of Dad are about hunting or shooting. There wasn't anything Dad enjoyed better than a good plinkin' session. I packed up and headed for the range. After running a hundred rounds through it i was ready for what i had to face the next day. It's hard to explain but it just made me feel more at peace. It's like he was there with me.
A few month later i was out at Mom's and she asked me "Would you like to have your dad's old .38"? It's a well worn 4" S&W M&P Dad bought used in 1941. It cost him $9 for the gun and a box of ammo. There's hardly any blueing left on it from years of being carried, a few light rust pits here and there, a smooth as glass trigger from having about a zillion rounds run through it, and it still has a nice shiney bore. Just handeling that gun makes the memories come flooding back. It's probably worth 75 bucks but to me it's priceless.
I was out at Mom's today. I came home with Dad's 4" Colt Viper .38 and his 4" Colt Diamondback .22. He bought the Viper from Montgomery Wards in 1978. It cost him $180. The blueing is worn on the end of the barrel, on the edges of the cylinder and on the leading edge of the frame. It has a couple of small scratches on the left side of the frame under the cylinder. The action is smooth and fairly light. The original grips are long gone. Dad replaced them with Pachmayr Compacts years ago. The bore is in great condition. It was Dad's "fishin' gun" for lots of years. Dad bought the Diamondback from "a kid at work" back in the mid '80's. It cost him $250. It's still in exellent condition. The action is smooth but a little heavy. It has a pair of smooth aftermarket coke bottle style grips. It was one of his most prized possessions.
I hope to pass those guns down to my grandson some day. But for now i'll just enjoy them and think of Dad everytime i handle them.
I think i'll go to the range tomorrow.
A few month later i was out at Mom's and she asked me "Would you like to have your dad's old .38"? It's a well worn 4" S&W M&P Dad bought used in 1941. It cost him $9 for the gun and a box of ammo. There's hardly any blueing left on it from years of being carried, a few light rust pits here and there, a smooth as glass trigger from having about a zillion rounds run through it, and it still has a nice shiney bore. Just handeling that gun makes the memories come flooding back. It's probably worth 75 bucks but to me it's priceless.
I was out at Mom's today. I came home with Dad's 4" Colt Viper .38 and his 4" Colt Diamondback .22. He bought the Viper from Montgomery Wards in 1978. It cost him $180. The blueing is worn on the end of the barrel, on the edges of the cylinder and on the leading edge of the frame. It has a couple of small scratches on the left side of the frame under the cylinder. The action is smooth and fairly light. The original grips are long gone. Dad replaced them with Pachmayr Compacts years ago. The bore is in great condition. It was Dad's "fishin' gun" for lots of years. Dad bought the Diamondback from "a kid at work" back in the mid '80's. It cost him $250. It's still in exellent condition. The action is smooth but a little heavy. It has a pair of smooth aftermarket coke bottle style grips. It was one of his most prized possessions.
I hope to pass those guns down to my grandson some day. But for now i'll just enjoy them and think of Dad everytime i handle them.
I think i'll go to the range tomorrow.
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