My father: A .410 single at first, I believe, and who knows what after that. After WWII an old English-grip tournament grade Model 12, which he shot as if it were an extension of his will. Then, near the end, an 1100.
His father: A Crescent Arms hammer SxS 12 ga. with 2 1/2 inch chambers.
That M-12 was my first shot with a shotgun at age 6. I used it in my early hunting days when dad wasn't around, until he bought me a brand new 20 ga M-12 in 1964 ($65 on sale at a hardware store in Montana - still have it of course). I was the only one of my siblings interested in my grandfather's double. As a teenager I loaded 2 1/2 inch shells and shot it a bit, taking some game. The Model 12 went back to the factory for overhaul a few times, as Dad shot it extensively. The last time, in the '70s, Winchester unfortunately replaced the receiver and barrel with new Y-job parts, totally destroying the history and value. The only thing original left was the English-grip stock and the magazine tube. Several years after my father's death, I divested myself of both guns, giving Dad's Model 12 to my youngest brother, who still takes deer, waterfowl and woodcock with it in Connecticut, and selling the Crescent. Perhaps it is understandable that I fear someday I will regret selling that clunky, loose, old SxS meat gun, my only material connection to a grandfather I know from stories and pictures, who was gone before I arrived.
