I think the normal board-forum has a 90% lurkers with 10% doing most if not all the posting.

If there is anyone watching this forum under the age of 21 please introduce yourself and tell us about your interest. If you watched for a while you know there is little flaming or other BS here. The first one (under 21) that post I will send a signed copy of my book to, if your interested in the classic custom rifles.

If you're over 21 please join the fun as well.

We all learn from one another, please be a part of that.

Michael, I'm often told I still behave like a juvenile. Does that count?

Yes, I'll send you a picture of my book.

Unfortunately, many of us would like to quick tell our children to write in...alas our kids are too old to qualify. ( and not by just a little I might add)

Fat chance, Michael. You're doing the same thing I am, looking for a receptacle for your research file. Let me know if you come up with any new plans. Bill Murphy

Yeah, it really sucks to read,study,research,etc, and not have anyone close to you interested in all that you have accumulated as far as books,catalogs,etc goes.That is why I am selling off what I can and keeping just what I think I might need of the really technical stuff.I've been keeping a journal also of contacts and anecdotes that might give my heirs a laugh.

Bill,

Not really, just trying to see if we have any younger folks interested in the same things we are.

I've talked with the head of the McCracken Research Library in Cody, WY and have decided that everything will go there.
http://www.bbhc.org/mccracken/

Years ago I had decided on the ASSRA Archives but with Rudi leaving plus other reasons left alone they are out.

Next was the Rifled Arms Historical Association. A good idea but nothing is happening with them so an unknown future.

http://watchdog.net/ein/223518352/rifled-arms-historical-association

I am 28, I guess I might be the closest? It's a little disturbing actually. Who is going to fight for the sport we all love when you fellars get over the big hill? I regularly promote shooting of any kind to younger people and have a 4 year old who is interested, best part she's a she! All 3 of my children will hopefully have interest.

As a side note for the "lurking" I try to keep quiet when I don't know what I'm talking about. I watch this particular part of the forum because I have always had a classic sporter on the back burner for a project. I may try a build myself and use a Krag, or possibly a K98. I have always loved the lines of the Mannlicher rifles, and have coveted one for some time. So maybe my first "sporter" will be a K98 in Mannlicher style.

There Mr. Petrov, may I get a picture of your book?

I'm 79 and I consider that young.

I remember being 21. The first rifle I sporterized. The first drink and I didn't even get carded. Michael when is your next book coming out?

I will bet when Michael from the Colorado School of trades sees this. You will have several of his students logging on. Whitey

Thanks Michael, for reminding us of what we all should be doing,
that is encouraging the next generation.

Michael,

An interesting post. I think the main reason is until one is older in life he may not have the time or money to devote himself to these collectable guns.

You see we seem to have the same "problem" in our CA side by side society. Until recently, I was probably the youngest at 55. (I was 50, I think when I joined.) Recently we have a few new younger members, but only a few. I have tried to encourage member to bring their (grand) children to get them interested in doubles.

My son who is 23 has participated in some of our events, but he is more interested in the shooting than the guns.

All of my adult life I have tried to get others involved in the shooting sports somehow and believe that if I want to enjoy my guns when I retire, we better encourage our youth. As a past director of California Waterfowl Association, and Chairmen Emeritus of the Fresno Fundraiser, I built our fundraiser dinner by involving both kids and women.

I have encouraged my wife to shoot too. We shoot sporting clays together regularly. She has hunted pen raised birds and now wants to hunt when we go on Safari in 2012.

My group of friends do the same and participate in all of the youth hunts. See the posting in the double shotgun section for my "off topic but you'll like it" post. It shows my friends 9 1/2 year old daughter at the CA youth waterfowl hunt with her first limit of duck and her 1st goose that is part of her first limit of geese. That is what I am talking about!

The future will only be ours if we all do the same.

Jerry

We're speaking of two different things here, Jerry has touched on it.

One is the future of hunting and shooting. We can certainly do something about that by introducing the young to those sports. They may or may not take up the mantle but we can help the process along by exposing them to the different types of shooting sports and the equipment used for them.

On the other hand collecting is usually an older man's passion simply because of the financial outlay involved. When I started I certainly didn't have the extra cash floating around to start acquiring good guns, I bought a Browning BPS and a couple of extra barrels and did all my shooting with that for many years.

This board is more about collecting than shooting so I would not put more emphasis than is warranted on the lack of youngsters here. I'm 55 and yet to find my first quality Springfield sporter...

One other thing that we should not overlook is spouses and significant others. We always speak of the need to encourage the young, and rightly so but if each of could interest our wife or girlfriend that would immediately double our numbers. When I met my sweetheart 9 years ago she was a veteran of the Million Mom March. Two years running I took her to the Vintagers here in NY, she became interested (the clothes especially helped). She then took a course offered here in NY and around the country, "Becoming an Outdoors Woman" where she learned to shoot both rifle and shotgun. Her outlook has changed.

Of course you would need to be as charming as I to influence a woman such as this....

Rob,
You said it better than I did.

Jerry

maybe its that charm of yours....

I am not about to tell how many Mausers and Springfields I had sporterized, some would say ruined, by the time I was 21.

There were a few that military collectors today would have probably wanted to teach a young "snot-nosed kid" a thing or two if they had seen them.

Who would have ever dreamed it would cost more than $25.00 for a really nice 1903 Springfield? They were everywhere back then.

Thanks for all the well thought out and great post. Still time for any younger member to speak up.

When I was 14 or so I was waiting tables at the Boulderado Hotel in Boulder Colorado. I saved every cent of my tips and when Sears (or was it Penneys) in Boulder put 1891 Argentine Mausers on sale for $29 I bought one. Bought the rifle which came with a 100-rounds of FMJ and a box of Norma hunting ammo. I still remember walking from the store back to the hotel with the rifle in one hand and ammo in the other.

One of the first things I did was cut off the stock and with a hacksaw and file shortened the barrel. If I remember correctly the front sight was on a band or I made it a band. I then filed the barrel down for the front sight to fit and soldered it on, a couple times until I got it right.

I shot a couple deer with it then ordered a semi-finished stock from ???? for less then $10 and got the rifle into the stock using a knife and a couple of my dad's chisels. Horrible job but looked good to me at the time.

I've not stopped yet, just don't try to screw up many unaltered military rifles. For those who never had a 91-Mauser the workmanship was tops of any military Mauser IMO.

I agree. My second sporterization attempt was an 1891 long rifle from Century Arms in '62, I was 16 and it had 99.9% of the original blue except where the crest had been ground. I followed the mannlicher-style example shown in the Williams Gun Sight Co book How To Sporterize Military Rifles and it actually turned out rather well, considering.

I still have a couple of 1891 Loewe-made project actions including one with an absolutely brand new never-numbered & never-used NOS receiver with unground crest and 100% original creamy-smooth blue. I have never seen better workmanship on any military Mauser than on the 1891.
Regards, Joe

I was 25 in Gunsmithing School and 91 Mausers were so cheap I decided to chop this one in half (hacksaw) and gas weld it back together. I had much help from GS Dept. Dean Bill Prator (metalsmithing mentor) but still managed to get a slight bind in the bolt. I altered the bolt face and lengthened the extractor for .22 Hornet and dreamed of a custom Mannlicher stocked single shot ala Lenard Brownell. It has been gathering patina ever since.
At the time I didn't think of my self as a youth and there was nothing else in the world I wanted to do but build custom rifles.

Steve, my very first action-shortening project @ TSJC was an 1891 like yours, only I used a 222 bolt face. Again like you, Bill Prator helped me a lot on this project. I used stick welding for the process and had to make some alterations in order to obtain enough mainspring length. It became a cute little single shot varminter and is still floating around this neck of the woods someplace.

I read somewhere that "Great minds run in the same channels" but I also read somewhere else that "Fools think alike!"
Regards, Joe

Joe please quit telling us about all those neat things you got stashed away my mouth goes to drooling. One of thee days we might have to do some trading on one of them. Smile Whitey

Mine was a Ludwig Lowe as well, fine quality! before I got aholda it.
Couldn't have paid much because I didn't have any money at the time...
And by golly I checked, it is a .222 bolt face!
Prator might have been the deciding factor in both cases, eh?

Well Steve, lo these many years later, isn't it time to finish that project? You know, in your spare time!

I'm not young, at 36, but I'm sure I'm younger than most. Custom rifles for me means admiring pictures on the internet, and messing with the cheap rifles I can afford. I have 4 kids (my 3 boys are all under 4 years) so I have been customizing, hunting, and building memories with some Mausers and Springfields, preparing for when they will be passed to the kids.

Here's the rifle that spurred my interest in 1903's, with the buck I killed with it.

It could use a more appropriate scope, but I haven't gotten to it.

BJA105 welcome to the forum hope you stick around and joint the fun.

You live in a good part of the country for finding older rifles. I think before the war PA had more firearms Per Capita than any other state save Alaska.

We do have a lot of gun shops, and my work truck can find its own way to most of them, it seems.

Jason, Sorry I missed the name at the bottom, much better than R2D2 or whatever ;-).

IMO You can make up for lack of funds by having a large bank account of knowledge. Both will get you a new toy now and then.

When I first got married forty some years ago we made a deal. I could buy all the guns I wanted whenever I wanted no questions. Only stipulation was the money could not come from her paycheck or my paycheck.

I'm still married and still playing by the same rules.

Jason, Nice whitetail, nice Springfield!
They look good together.

I just turned 23, so I would be willing to bet that I am the youngest person on this forum.

I have had the pleasure of speaking with Mr. Petrov several times before. Although I am not sure he remembers it, I have the signed book to prove it! There are several gentlemen on this forum who have greatly contributed to my love of fine guns. John Mann would be first on that list.

There are several reasons why I think there is a lack of younger folks on this board.
-Many of my friends are interested in firearms, but they have no desire to try to jump through all the necessary hoops to get a license, especially in MA.
-Black guns, pistols, tricked out long range guns etc. are popular now, through all age groups. People aren't interested in the old stuff.
-And most importantly, money. I graduated from college 8 months ago, I now have a good job and make good money, but I certainly couldn't say that for the first 22 years of my life. I was bitten by the bug and saved $$$ forever in hopes of finding a nice side by side. The day I forked over $800 to a gentlemen for a 16ga Fox Sterlingworth was a happy day. Even though I make a good living now, these guns are still very expensive. I'd really like a nice single shot, however given that I owe thousands in student loans, it is hard to justify extravagant purchases.


I'm not overly worried about the future of guns and gun collecting. I am sure that when I am 50, both fortunately and unfortunately, classic rifles and shotguns will still be selling for a hefty sum.

StormsGSP,

Im the same age and in the same boat! I have a feeling there are a few other young members and they just do what we do, sit quietly and learn. My excuse is I grew up in a gun shop so I was born with the bug. I too already have a singed copy of Mr. Petrov's book so hopefully someone new will speak up!