Is the market softening?

[Andy]

Originally Posted by John Dallas

The softening of the prices and the easing of number of rounds being shot can be explained by the results of the PGCA Survey. 70% of the folks are 60 or more years old

In my experience the people who shoot a lot are not necessarily always older, they were just smart enough to dollar cost average buying flats of shells over the past decade and are sitting on huge stock piles so they can weather these prices. I keep buying as I see flats become available (more on the shelves now than in a long time) and over time feel it will keep me shooting. My comfort level is a certain number of flats that I will not put into print, while I know guys who are sitting on PALLETS of shells and still buying aggressively. I think if you're waiting for $7 boxes of shells you should sell me your guns, but I am seeing $10 boxes all the time now. I do load RST hulls for my SxS but that is a very small percentage of what I shoot, opting to shoot regular 1200fps 2 3/4" in my VH guns. When a round of sporting and 100 shells costs $100 you're not getting many new shooters to enter the ranks. That's more than a round of golf around here, and I wouldn't pay $2 to golf.

[stumpstalker]

[QUOTE=Dean Romig;378576] Recruitment is the answer, is it not?

As for recruitment, I see it at my club coming from the most implausible of places: competing clay shooting teams from Harvard, and Northeastern Universities, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. From whence springs the interest with these metropolitan college students, I have no idea, but should find out.

It is true, nevertheless, that the old guns and old cars appeal mostly to the old guys.

Here is a photo of one of my former shipmates from the petroleum transport industry, not a gun “collector" and has not hunted in many years, but retains a few firearms, including a Belgian hammer gun.

He worked full-time as a merchant mariner into his mid-70s, and now as a widowed 79-year-old retiree, visited us here in Massachusetts a few weeks ago, after leaving his home in Alabama on a one-month-long, 16-state, 5,500 mile single-handed, auto trip in a rented vehicle (not his 1937 Business Coupe that you see here).

[Bill Murphy]

What a machine. General Motors product?

[Andy]

Russell, we had, of all things, a team of bunker shooters from a small upstate NY college approach our club to ask if they could train there. So hopefully we'll have a dozen college kids shooting bunker this summer who we didn't even know existed. Then we found out they compete against other college teams across the NE. You're correct, we should find out who these kids are. One other kid comes up with his dad, I don't think he even drives yet, and he shoots 22-23-24 all the time, and if you haven't shot bunker you realize at his young age he's something special. We need to grow that.

[stumpstalker]

Originally Posted by Bill Murphy

What a machine. General Motors product?

Yes. Chevrolet.

[charlie cleveland]

I have a 1938 chevy business coupe its a street rod...327...350 horse...400 turbo tranny...pinto station wagon front end with disc hrakes...1955 chevy rear end with drum brakes....black in color....your 1937 is a beauty....I like old guns too....charlie

[stumpstalker]

Originally Posted by charlie cleveland

I have a 1938 chevy business coupe its a street rod...327...350 horse...400 turbo tranny...pinto station wagon front end with disc hrakes...1955 chevy rear end with drum brakes....black in color....your 1937 is a beauty....I like old guns too....charlie

How about pictures, Charlie: Your 1938 Business Coupe, with you standing in front of it, holding one of your old side-by-sides?

[Dean Romig]

There’s a picture I’d like to see Charlie.
If you have trouble posting the picture I can help.
Your good wife sent me pictures back when we did that article when you went out west to hunt with that nembed in Kansas I think it was.





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