Sporting Notes

Mannlicher-Schönauer Model 1905, chambered for the 9x56 M-S, is as fine a bolt-action woods carbine as you will find.

Thirty-Five

In many ways, .35-caliber cartridges find themselves in the same situation as 35-year old men: …
The Ruger Blackhawk came along in 1956, chambered in .357 Magnum, and has been with us ever since. The holster is by George Lawrence, from the 1960s.

Everyone’s a Cowboy.  Some More, Some Less.

Thirty years ago, the editor-in-chief of Gray’s Sporting Journal, David Foster, summoned me down to…
Possibly the most spectacular piece of English walnut Wieland’s ever seen, although he prefers the French walnut on the E.M. Reilly, also shown. Some chocolate sundaes are just too rich. Still, a beautiful piece, and no one would ever call it boring.

Stock Synthesis

This week, I had the pleasure of visiting Lee Shaver in his single-shot temple in…
Christensen Arms Model 14 MPR, chambered in 6 Creedmoor and fitted with a Sightron S1 4-12x40 scope.

In Praise of Newer Rifles

Every so often, I get a letter asking why I never write about newer rifles…
J. Stevens Arms & Tool Co. Model 52 “Schuetzen Jr.” in .22 Long Rifle, probably made just before the Great War. Note the unusual configuration of the Monte Carlo comb and pronounced perch-belly stock. This is reminiscent of the work of George Schoyen of Denver.

Yet Another Stevens (Yay!)

Stevens devotees are lucky:  No matter how many you own, you can never claim to…
Shoulder flexibility and strength can be improved with a simple flex band, repeated 15-20 times, in three sets.

Fitness for Bowhunting

Bowhunting season is almost upon us and, although I eschewed bows and arrows many years…
Howdah pistol by Lyon & Lyon of Calcutta, in .577 Snider, brought $7,000 at Rock Island’s August premier auction. Lyon & Lyon was a prominent gun dealer during the British Raj. Its guns were mostly made in Birmingham — Photo courtesy Rock Island Auction Company

Rock Island Farewell (Sort of)

When I attended my first Rock Island auction in September, 2018, I little suspected I…
Fitness instructor Jeremy Koerber demonstrating his hip-flexion exercise. It can be varied by number of repetitions or resistance of the flexion band. Facing CRP grass? This is for you.

Pheasant Phit

In most midwestern states, pheasant season will open in about eight weeks (mid-October), which leaves…
Lt. Col. J.K. Stanford was a prolific, highly entertaining, and extremely knowledgeable writer on both shooting and ornithology. He published 27 books in all.

For Your Reading Pleasure…

August 1 has come and gone and suddenly fall doesn’t seem so far away, if…
Your obedient correspondent in the Chugach Mountains of Alaska in 1990, hunting Dall sheep. After a while, you feel naked when you’re not wearing your pack.

An Unpopular Topic. (Read it anyway, dammit)

Except for the demented few, physical fitness is not the favorite topic either of hunters…
Literary pictures of life in the great age of Victorian and Edwardian shooting—fact, fiction, and fantasy.

Oliver & Gladys

It’s time to recommend another book:  Olly, by Rupert Godfrey, is “The life and times…
Winchester pre-’64 Model 70 in .220 Swift, with a 26-inch barrel and fitted with a Meopta Optika5 MeoPro 4-20x50 RD scope. The rifle was manufactured in 1953.

A Match Made in Heaven

Not many cartridges can claim to have a mystique, and a cult-like following, but the…