SET IN MY WAYS / TRADITIONALIST

[NFrameFred]

Anyway back to the thread. Tell me one thing a new polymyer, plastic, or stainless gun will do better than my old triplelock, colt saa, 1911, winchester 1895 rifle, or 97 shotgun, or 1890 .22? Are todays modern man and animals tougher than a 100 years ago?

Well,they say they dropped a Glock off several floors of a building onto concrete . . .and it still worked; they dropped one off a motorcycle doing about 60mph . . . and it still worked . . . they fired them underwater, etc., etc., . . . not my favorites, either, but hard to argue with their toughness and reliability.

And as much as I love fine walnut on a rifle, a composite stock that's not affected by rain, snow and ice and doesn't warp is nothing to dismiss as a practical accessory for a serious hunting rifle.

I'll hang on to my blue steel, walnut stocks, and leather holsters and slings, but I don't discount the improvements modern materials can bring to the game.

 

[feralmerril]

I guess ya got me there, fred! I always heard I should marry a ugly girl. I didnt do that either time either.

 

[TACC1]

I WAS, WAS NOT, AM AGAIN - DINOSAUR

Used to be, 'cause I just didn't want to change. Then I got all
modernised, and thought plastic was perfect. However,....
When you drop something made of steel or wood, it gets dented.
If you hit a deer with your shiny new plastic car, it shatters. Plastic
breaks, steel and wood last.
I'm down to one plastic gun; as soon as I find a replacement, it'll
be gone, too.
TACC1

 

[ltcdoty]

You know you are really old when you take Viagara just to keep from whizzing on your shoes..

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

You know you are really old when you take Viagara just to keep from whizzing on your shoes..

or to keep from rolling out of bed

 

[USAF385]

I'm on the younger side of the scale.. yet I just love revolvers. Some of my buddies are surprised when they see my gun collection and don't see many semi autos.

However... I DO own a Glock.. but that's just a tool. I don't care what my tools look like. Although that's not entirely true because I prefer Craftsman, but that doesn't help my point.

 

[gregintenn]

I'm 37, and my opinion of a fine gun hasn't changed since I was a tot. Blued steel and figured walnut, combined with good leather cannot be beat.

 

[Old cop]

I'm there with all of you, I turn 64 in about 10 days. Entered law enforcement in '68 and retired in '97. My daily carry guns were and continue to be S&W J's. My Colt Cobra gets carried very little (keepsake) and the only semi-autos on hand are my dept. issued Glock 23, and a Springfield 1911 that was picked up for range fun. Nothing wrong with being a Dinosaur . . .

 

[gregintenn]

You know you are really old when you take Viagara just to keep from whizzing on your shoes..
or to keep from rolling out of bed

ROFLMAO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[DeadAye]

Well,they say they dropped a Glock off several floors of a building onto concrete . . .and it still worked; they dropped one off a motorcycle doing about 60mph.........

Why would anyone pay good money for a gun and then throw it out of a window?

I've never wanted to throw any of my Smith and Wesson revolvers off of my scooter either --- Might be just me though
Maybe those Glock guys just need better holsters

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

I don't consider my self a dinosaur, rather I am a Classicist. Don't even like aluminum frames and receivers.

 

[Faulkner]

Seems like I've read that when some of the classics, like the 1911 and M1 rifle, were first introduced they weren't all that well received either.

 

[ohiobuckeye]

I still think blue steel and walnut is the only way to go, but change is inevitable. I can picture my great,great grand pappy shooting his Navy Colt and ranting about those newfangled metallic cartridge guns that will never catch on....

 

[NFrameFred]

Why would anyone pay good money for a gun and then throw it out of a window?

I've never wanted to throw any of my Smith and Wesson revolvers off of my scooter either --- Might be just me though
Maybe those Glock guys just need better holsters

Short answer - they didn't pay for it. It was a police agency (in Florida if I remember correctly) that was one of the first to go to the Glock, and it was provided to them prior to their purchase with instructions to "put it through the flint mill" into the sort of things they could envision happening to a service weapon that might render it inoperable.

They buried it in mud, sand, and wiped it off with their hands and fired it; submerged it, dropped it,threw it . . . as I recall they beat it up pretty good. But it proved to be pretty resilient.

Now, everyone else plays catch up trying to get most agencies to buy something else besides a Glock. Can't verify it, but I was told one time that a department was offered Rugers for free and opted to buy Glocks instead . . .

 

[LazyKB]

Just returned from the NRA convention in Pitts. Was amazed when I walked out without buying/ordering anything. I was pleased that as I viewed the latest and greatest I became more appreciative of my own firearms. I shoot; Remington model 700s (I do have two stainless/synthetic), S&W revolvers from the 70s, double barreled shotguns with a model 12 and 870 thrown in. However, I do own two Ruger SA stainless, and carry Glocks when I don't have my 642 in my pocket. At almost 60, I feel comfortable with my guns and myself.

 

[Pistolpete1969]

Perhaps I am the youngest of the "Over the Hill Gang"( I am only 41), but I wholeheartedly concur. I do NOT own any plastic guns; all mine are forged carbon steel & wood (I do have a set of stags on my 1911a1, though).

I was brought up shooting "real" guns....pre Model 14 K-38s, pre Model 17 K-22s, Marlin 39s, and the like. I cannot stomach all this modern "tactical tupperware" stuff. For me, a gun is wood & steel, period.

I guess I was born 50 years too late.......lol


Pete

 

[feralmerril]

Well, now at 70, there isnt any plastic or even stainless in my dreams!
Dont give me no plastic saddle, I wanna feel that leather when I ride!
Just blue steel and walnut for me!

 

[Maximumbob54]

I was the only guy on the boat who wanted to carry the M14 that had the brown plastic stock on topside watch in port. They all wanted the “real” M14’s with the wood stocks. Funny how “my” rifle always looked nice and new, weighed less, and didn’t have splits in the wood… Some things look better while some things have a practical value. Most of the police trade-in S&W’s I see have that tattle tale sign of if the deputy was left or right handed. All the models I see that had Pachmayrs you didn’t see much wear at all after years of use. Besides, I bet your dad thought that new Mustang back in the sixties was a piece of junk and would never last. Give him an old lead sled any day…

I do see your point though. High polish with deep luster bluing and fine grain walnut (or in this case gancalo alves) does look much better than stainless and rubber.

 

[jlrhiner]

Eccentric is how I describe myself. I own some plastic things, but when something is special for papa, it'll be real wood and blued steel.

 

[venomballistics]

I respect the old while evaluating the new.
I cant embrace a polymer framed pistol though I can see a polymer stocks utilitarian value as a hard working rifle or shotgun. It does not break my heart to see the real world make plastic uglier ... but it does pain me to see chips, dents and scars in fine walnut.
in function, I dont feel anything is lost in a longarm to wood alternatives, beauty aside. Not all are meant to be treasured, but rather used within a rugged reality.
when they say military rifle, while Im aware that such arms as the K98, 1903, M1 Garand, and M1 carbine do qualify due to their history.
The evolution of how warfare is conducted forced some evolution. M14, FAL, AR15, AK47, and AK74 are just more appropriate in the role than a Springfield trap door or even the great M1.
When was the last time we heard of someone defending their home with a blunderbus?
Holsters ... those old wild west gunfighter had leather, and their speed has yet to be topped ... give me leather .. I see little advantage to alternatives here. especially some of those plastic quick release "gun clamps" that remind me of stuff I build with legos and erector sets.