Adolph Vancinghand, SASS #28923

Pipe down, back there! I can be plenty stupid without help from the cheap seats!

PM sent.

That's a handsome filly! Got your PM; wish I'd known of this before committing to something else. That's the way my luck runs sometimes, but I won't crawfish on the deal I've made (much as I might want to!). "Ad"

Found one. Thanks! "Ad"

Great idea...thanks, RW! I'll keep your 4" in mind but the bride is really looking for something shorter than that. Appreciate the response! "Ad"

People! People! People! I'm in the market for an older (pre-lock) Smith Model 19 or 66 in 2 1/2". Prefer condition to be Good to Very Good. Prefer red ramp insert. Don't need boxes, papers, or other S&W flotsam. This will be a back-up piece for the She-Wolf. Interested to see what you have! "Ad" Vancinghand

Some fascinating history here. I was familiar with some of his toys, but not nearly all of them. I'm particularly smitten by the Winchester 42 .410 with "MG" carved into the butt of the pistol grip...Martha Gellhorn. I'm convinced that their relationship never had a chance because they were two peas in a pod! "Ad"

Winchester M70 Lightweight Carbine. Got the exact thing except in a short action and chambered in .250 Savage. Good snag at $300. Aw, c'mon...leave those see-thru rings in place. It'll be fun to look thru 'em and imagine what it'd be like if you had a set of open sights! "Ad" Here's mine...

Alpo originally asked what the weakest round you consider hunting deer was (or, I guess, has been). For me it was the .218 Bee. For those not familiar with it, Winchester brought out the cartridge in the '30s to "one up" the .22 Hornet. It was formed by necking down a .25-20 WCF case. It launched a 46 grain hollowpoint in the neighborhood of 2800 fps. I was a whopping eleven years old when Daddy put his Winchester '92 so chambered in my eager hands. So, to review: 11 year old kid, open sights, pipsqueak cartridge...what could POSSIBLY go wrong? Well, the Lord evidently looks after drunks, fools and 11 year olds because I took my first buck with one shot with that rig! My current minimum? I'll happily kill a whitetail with a .223 (proper bullets only please) if conditions warrant that I can insure EXACT shot placement. A far better "minimum" answer (for me anyway) is the 6mmx45mm (a .223 necked up to 6mm). "Ad" Factory .218 on the left, handloaded .218, .25-20, .32-20

Well done, Charlie! Nothin' eats as good as cow elk! "Ad"

Old school cool, without a doubt. As far as whether to shoot it or not, I figure that art is for hanging on the wall. If something has rifling, it deserves to be shot! "Ad"

I've owned (and shot) Pythons since the '70s, with as many as three in the stable at any one time. Like most things (and most of us), they have their good points and their bad. Take the bad first: The factory walnut stocks are a horror with heavy loads (and not much better with lighter stuff, IMO). Built on the old "O" frame, the action is, as Hamilton Bowen described it, "a Gordian knot of subtle complexity for the uninitiated" . That includes me and 99+% of other gun monkeys. Now, the good: I've never seen a Python that didn't shoot like a champ. Maybe the last ones off the line were different; my old ones were wickedly accurate. My "youngster" (the 8" that I recently sold) would wear out a 10" swinger at 100 yards so long as I did my part. My remaining Python was tuned by the late Fred Sadowski of 300 Gunsmith Service in Denver (who, with the late Reeves Jungkind of Texas were acknowledged Masters with the Python action). Stacking is almost NON-EXISTENT and the entire DA stroke is like butter. This wheelgun now wears a 5" slab-side bull barrel instead of its original 4" tube. Cremation may prevent it being buried with me... Enjoy your "Snake" for the fine wheelgun it likely is. "Ad"

In the "auto" category, it's my Series 70 Gold Cup (rebuilt by Frank Glenn, CCH by Turnbull). Mammoth ivory grip panels. In the DA revolver category, it's my '70s vintage Smith 25 .45 Colt with Herret stocks. In the SA revolver category, it's my Ruger/Bowen Nimrod in .45 Colt. French walnut stocks by the great Roy Fishpaw himself. "Ad"