Terry Wieland

The .300 Weatherby with 150-grain bullets did the job on the Alaska brown bear, but it was a close-run thing.

Spoiled By Choice

Among the key advances in shotgunnery, according to all the books, are the inventions of…
The Twigg and the wherewithal for its care and feeding.

Shooting the Twigg

Among my many failings, I have minimal interest in any gun I can’t take out…
The locks of a Joseph Manton fowling piece — masterpieces of gunmaking that influenced all who followed.

Twigg — Root and Branch

The name John Fox Twigg is not as well known as it might be. I…
A 52-caliber flintlock duelling pistol, by London gunmaker John Fox Twigg (1732-92).

On a Whim and a Prayer

The Rock Island auction is alive and well, and back once again almost — almost…
TimberLuxe was developed by stockmaker Brian Board, who did the ebony extension for this W&C Scott. The result speaks for itself.

Timberluxe and the Beauty of Oil

For the better part of two centuries, the term “London oil” has been acknowledged as…
sportsmanship
Shot size is just one of the factors to be considered in choosing a combination of gun and choke that will deliver an ethical, humane, killing pattern.

Pellets and Sportsmanship

In a recent column (Gray’s, March/April, 2021), I looked at the current fad for small…
shotguns
The rifle is an 8.15x46R, built around 1912, on a Martini action. The diopter (tang) sight is new, made by Ron Roehrs of Lee Shaver’s shop, using an older one as a pattern, but of a different size.

Diopterama

In Sporting Note #16 (Falling in Love…Again, April 18) I wrote about a German Schützen…
grulla gun
The Windsor Woodcock employs the standard engraving layout of the Grulla Windsor model, its highest grade at that time. It has since been superseded by the Grulla Royal. Note the oak leaves on the fences.

Realizing a Dream

As I have mentioned frequently (too frequently, some would insist) my whole conception of shotguns…
shotgun
The Revelation, from Tony Galazan’s Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing Company, shows what can be done in an affordable American-made over/under.

Over/Under Takeover

This week, in the course of writing an article on over/under shotguns to appear in…
The Martini action was a favorite of German Schützen rifle makers, and there were endless variations. The rear sight is a diopter, intended only to sharpen the sight picture of the mid-barrel and front sight. It was an optical secret German shooters discovered early.

Falling in Love … Again

Guns and romance have a lot in common: What you think you want, and what…
brian board handgun
Brian Board’s masterpiece (bottom) and the rasped-into-shape plastic grip on the long-barreled Challenger (top). The rasp marks can be seen clearly, but the grip works well. In my heretical opinion, the later, slimmer plastic grip is superior to the original bulky walnut one.

Getting a Grip

Among other things I lusted for at the age of 16, the Browning Challenger —…
american handguns
Four of the more interesting American handguns, clockwise from upper left: Colt 1851 Navy, Colt single-action .45, Colt Officer’s ACP, and the Smith & Wesson Model 27. Collectively, based on relevant patent dates, they total about 550 years old! What’s not to like?

Piscatorial Musings and the Joy of Handguns

by Terry Wieland It’s almost 30 years now since Gray’s late and sorely lamented editor-in-chief,…