My comment to an earlier post that "As for me, I herd with a firearm"generated the question of what exactly I carry. The two pistols and two shotguns in these photos are my regular companions, so please ignore how dirty and scratched they may look – these aren't collector's items, but are tools like shovels here on the ranch. Only thing is, these are my personal firearms, so anyone who wants to use or borrow one has to ask permission or there is hell to pay.
The Ruger .22 mag single six was something I inherited from my brother-in-law Mikey many years ago when he moved overseas. It was my first revolver and I fell in love with that pistol. Despite its size, that pistol has been many miles in my purse or camera bag, and I wouldn't dream of checking into a hotel room without the butt sticking outside my overnight bag. (I also have a concealed weapon permit.) Good old friend.
The Smith & Wesson 44 mag (along with two speed reloaders) is a new addition to my arsenal. Mikey didn't like hearing about me stalking around in the dark willows looking for sheep while I had a bear killing them, and presented me with the gift of my new revolver. It's either a real treat to shoot, or a butt-kicker, depending on the shot load. Either of the pistols will fit in my pack that I wear while on my dirt bike in the sheep pastures.
The Stevens Model 9478 20 gauge I inherited from my mother. It was her personal shotgun, and when Mom passed away of cancer about 10 years ago, I was pleased to receive it and her horn-handle hunting knife.
My other shotgun is a ported Harrington & Richardson 12 gauge Topper Deluxe slug gun. Jim and I stopped at a gas station outside a pawn shop in Jackson Hole, Wyoming a few years ago and when we went in to pay for the gas, I spotted the slug gun. I carried it out with me for $100, and that is one FUN gun.
The ranch owns plenty of other firearms, but these four are what I use on a daily basis, and most of the time they are found in my pickup truck. Jim and Cass both own semi-autos that they use when we have large carnivores in the sheep pastures, and I'll shoot these, but they aren't what I pack around. These four that I've described are what we call the "girlie guns" because they're mine.
5 comments:
I have some fine guns that I've had since I was a teenager, and old enough to purchase my first guns. But, I'm NOT a fan of the candy colored and PINK guns that are being marketed to females nowdays. It seems like cheap marketing to me.
I have the same Single Six and like it very much, but eventually for a "carry" piece, I wanted something that was not single-action.
The .44 Magnum certainly takes you in that direction.
While I don't have a pink gun, I do carry the .44 mag in a pink camo case - it was a strategic purchase, with the thought of discouraging the menfolk from borrowing from me!
I just have a hard time thinking of a .44 magnum as a girly gun :)
Peter
For a heavy- ish carry gun I have recently gone from a .44 similar to yours to a "1911" .45 auto-- no grizzles here though there were in MT when I got the first. The .44 is a more awkward and unbalanced carry for me than the flat auto, which rides closer to my body.
My .22 is still a double action Smith though-- must have at least one!
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