About those ugly sling swivels, in the past Ive always taken them off feeling they were both ugly and unneeded. However, this year I hunted mearns quail in some rugged areas on the south side of Arizonas Huachuca Mountains. The fellow I was with was from Washington State and an avid chukar hunter. He claimed that much of the topography we were scrambling over was very similar to the type of areas he normally hunted chukars in. The first day I noticed when the going got rough hed carry the gun on his shoulder in the sling. That way hed have both hands free for balance or to catch himself when his footing slipped. Since we were using his pointing dog, wild flushes were uncommon. Halfway through that first day I was wishing I had one of those ugly slings on my gun. That evening I remounted my sling swivels and purchased a sling. The next day was much much better. I still think slings are ugly but I guess in the end, unless youre a fool, function over form wins out.
Steve
