What is the best firearm you ever owned?

[Harryreed]

I have been asked by younger generations several times. “What is the best firearm you ever had”? My answer is my father’s Winchester Model 97 Trap 2 barrel set. I prefer other guns now, but it is a worthy question. What is your favorite? Just curious.

[Mills Morrison]

The next one I get

[Harryreed]

So true!

[Mike Franzen]

I would have to say these Parker’s we write about and talk about all the time are the best guns I’ve ever owned. I get more enjoyment from them than any other gun. I have a couple guns with more sentimental value than my Parker’s but they don’t come close in actual value.

[Mills Morrison]

Seriously, probably my 20 gauge Trojan my wife gave me when we got married. I shot a lot of quail with it for about 10 years when it was my only quail gun effectively. Then I started collecting and it comes out only occasionally

[Harryreed]

Tradition is special!

[Harryreed]

I did hunt with my nephrew and his black lab this winter, but I cannot claim any of the results.

[Gary Laudermilch]

Depends on the definition of best. I had a Purdey for a while that even though used a bunch still cost an insane amount of money. Turned out it was one of the worst I ever owned in terms of shootability but it certainly was best in terms of cost.

I have a Win 101 that was one of the first quality guns I owned. Shot damn near everything with it and I mean everything except a deer. I have well over 150 k rounds through it and only had to replace the firing pins once and that was because I fed it a steady diet of Alcan primers that pierced and eroded the tips. In those terms I would have rate it as one of my best.

However, the most dear to my heart is my first Parker repro 20 that quickly became my go-to grouse gun and has remained so for many a year. If I go grouse hunting without it I feel like I'm cheating on someone and should be looking behind my back. It just may be the best of the best.

[Harryreed]

I had my repro 20 on this last hunt. Can’t claim anything because my shooting skills are gone!

[CraigThompson]

I have about a dozen that fit that title . 12’s a couple 16’s a 20 a 28 and a couple 10’s . And as far as rifles are concerned I don’t know if I’ll live long enough to list all the rifles I’ve owned or own that I really liked .

[Dean Romig]

A borrowed Trojan 12 gauge with 28" barrels. I "owned" that gun for a few years and even wrote about it in Parker Pages a long time ago titled "A Last Trojan Pheasant". This old Trojan whetted my appetite for Parker Brothers shotguns and I am ever thankful for that opportunity.

Here, a short excerpt from the end of that story:


"I telephoned Dave a couple of weeks ago and left a message on his answering machine out there in Boise where he has lived since nineteen-seventy-something. I asked him to call me back with the serial number of his grandfather’s Trojan. He called me back a couple of nights ago and told me the serial number was 167347 and that…
“Yes, it’s in the same condition you remember it ‘cause I haven’t used it but once or twice since you gave it back to me a few days before you moved away. But I’ll bring it with me the next time I drive back East to visit my mother, probably in a year or two.”

I’d love to hold that old Trojan again, if only just for a while."


Dave's been back a number of times and his mother passed away almost 15 years ago... but he never brought that old Trojan with him...

I talked to him a few weeks ago to tell him of Kathy's passing and learned through his very measured speech that he had a severe stroke last fall.

Our days are truly numbered.





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[james whittington]

My favorite by far is my Lefever EE 16.... nearly always with me when following my Setters.
Glenn

[John Davis]

My Parker SB, SA and GHE. I’ve won a lot of bling with those three guns.

[Daryl Corona]

This a tough one. It's like asking me to pick my favorite Grandchild. All my guns are the best, that's why my safe is overflowing. I love vintage and current .22's. I love handguns. But shotguns are what float my boat and especially 20 and 28gauges. I've got multiple venues to exercise these scatterguns and I do a couple of times a week. As far as SxS's go my best would have to be my VHE 28 with 30" barrels. But unfortunately these old treasures can't take the heavy use that sporting clays demands of them on a regular basis. They are relegated to the vintage shoots, occasional outings on the clays course and virtually all hunting.

So my best right now would have to be 2 Perazzi's, a 20 and a 28ga which can take the heavy toll that target shooting places on them and if, and I mean if they break, they won't cost and arm and a leg to repair and I can usually do it myself.

[Austin J Hawthorne Jr.]

Best by way of originality(condition)..12 gauge Otto Bock. Practically as new condition...95% case colors...Bernard damascus barrels as smooth as silk with zero fading or wear...32 lpi checking on stock and forend with no visible wear, and engraving comparable to a diamond grade Prussian Charles Daly.
Best by way of upgrading...20 gauge Winchester model 21. Restocked, and custom engraved, by Roy Vail.
Best by my ability to shoot it...12 gauge Grade 2 Parker hammergun. Refinished wood and metal...reversed choked and on a #1 frame.

[charlie cleveland]

I just cannot pick the best shotgun I have I care for all of them....charlie

[Keith Doty]

Almost as bad as picking my favorite dog.......ALL of them.

[Phil Yearout]

As much as I love my shotguns, I'd have to say my Winchester 61. My brother bought it at an auction in the 1950's; he and Dad were on opposite sides of the room bidding against each other and didn't know it; I think they ran the price all the way up to $40. I don't shoot my rifles much these days but this'n and I were almost constant companions from about my 12th year on. Local squirrels, bunnies and prairie dogs hated it...:)

https://i.imgur.com/aCOXt32l.jpg

[Craig Larter]

The best condition gun I own is a Fox DE 12ga 30" that came out of the Dupont family. I bought it at Pintail Vintagers many years ago from a walk in. I call the gun "Simply D Vine", mint condition. My best ever duck gun (I've owned a couple dozen LOL) is a Super Fox C-HE 12ga 30" with XE checkering that came from Dana Tauber. I almost couldn't miss with the Super and have shot well over 100 ducks with the gun. It's retired to the gunroom wall. It's more satisfying for me to just look at it every day and think of the great times with great dogs and great hunting partners at my beloved marsh. My best ever bird gun is a Fox CE 20ga 26" IC/M. I've shot wild pheasants, grouse, woodcock, mearns quail, bobs and blues. My best ever "put a smile of my face gun" and maybe the most fun to shoot is my Parker GH 8ga 36". I could go on and on but you get the point I really enjoy this hobby and lifestyle.

[JACK MURPHY JR]

I am blessed to have 3 safes full of mostly side by sides. When I open the door to take a gun I almost always pick one of 3 or 4 guns. Grouse and woodcock hunting. #1 Parker VH 16 O frame. Or A Parker Repo 20/16. For Pheasent & chucker Preserve hunts it’s usually A Parker Repro 28 gauge. Straight grip w a beaver tail or A 1934 EJ Churchill XXV straight grip 410. @ 4lb 2oz �� . When you continue to choose the same guns I guess that answers the Question.

[Garry L Gordon]

Harry, you did well with your prompt, especially by not defining "best." Lots of ways to interpret the word, but today, at least for now, I'll say the best gun(s) I have had are two that have served me best, in other words, consistently took birds for me over time.

Here they are:

A John Dickson and Sons boxlock 28 bore that was my constant companion over the course of many years -- years when there were birds in Missouri. I have not used this gun in some years, but it still has accounted for the most birds of all kinds (except dove, turkeys or waterfowl), including pheasants (which we had in decent numbers up until about 2000). This little 5 lbs. 3 oz. gun took ruffed grouse in 6 states over one season.

Number two is my favorite quail gun: a Parker DHE 20 with 30 inch barrels. This little 1918 gun has proven a quail killer, and I've shot well with it. It will take a pheasant on those rare occasions that we find one, but it's a quail gun, pure and simple...and simply the "best."

Now, ask me again tomorrow...:whistle:

[Dave Noreen]

Gotta be "Meat-in-the-Pot" my 1914 vintage Ansley H. Fox A-Grade, 12-gauge, with 28-inch Krupp 3-weight barrels and a straight grip. Been my go-to bird gun since 1966.

107890

107891

[allen newell]

An all original Sharp's Creedmoor 50 cal.

[Bill Jolliff]

Definitely not my best but right at the top as one of my favorites would be . . .

My early A grade, 12 gauge Fox, SN 7983 with 28 inch Krupp barrels choked IC and Full.

I got it from Glen Appleby of Galeton PA in September of 1968 for $175.00.

Shot many ducks and geese with that gun when you could use lead shot. It's had around 15,000 rounds thru it in the last 10 years shooting "at" Sporting Clay's.

That's the top gun pictured below.

Lately tho, I've taken a liking to my newly acquired, unmarked as to maker, grade and serial number but looks to me to be an office sample or lunch box gun.

In appearance, it looks like an early B12 Fox with some added, nicer features. That one is the bottom pictured gun and the two pictures below that. Note the absence of serial number, grade, patent info, etc.

https://i.imgur.com/iRLc7vC.jpg?1

https://i.imgur.com/OrWcDsn.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/ASO0Op0.jpg

https://i.imgur.com/2JLFwvW.jpg

[Bill Murphy]

Garry had the best answer, and mine. "Ask me again tomorrow."

[Randy Davis]

Well... my "best" would have to be a four digit U.S. Colt SAA from lot five issued to the Seventh Cavalry...

[todd allen]

This is a really tough one for me. There are so many different disciplines and categories of shooting and collecting.
Box birds: My SC-3 Perazzi
Sporting clays: A Beretta AL 391 built by Angleport
Upland birds falls into a few different categories.
Most quail hunting: A 32" Parker
Travel gun (for hunting) A Briley choked M-21 Winchester
Special Hunts: An H&H Royal SLE from 1900
Crow shooting: A custom stocked Briley choked Winchester M-97 with a 21" barrel
Deer and elk: A Browning Stainless Stalker in 7 mm Mag
Varmints: A custom built Ruger H-Barrel in .22/243 (.220 Middlestead) Crazy accurate and deadly wayyy out there.
Tree top squirrels: A Ruger .22 Mag, M 77R (I think)
Paper punching: A Winchester M 52 with an 18 power Lyman Target Scope
Home defense: 1st line defense would be a Mossberg 500 ATP, followed by an AR-15 shorty (CAR 15)
Cowboy guns: SAA Army Colt in .45 Colt, a Bisley, and a couple of early Winchester Lever Guns
Looks and esthetics: German Luger
Truck Gun: Kimber Ultra Carry CDP .45 ACP
There might be a few categories I'm forgetting about.

[Garry L Gordon]

This is a really tough one for me. There are so many different disciplines and categories of shooting and collecting.
Box birds: My SC-3 Perazzi
Sporting clays: A Beretta AL 391 built by Angleport
Upland birds falls into a few different categories.
Most quail hunting: A 32" Parker
Travel gun (for hunting) A Briley choked M-21 Winchester
Special Hunts: An H&H Royal SLE from 1900
Crow shooting: A custom stocked Briley choked Winchester M-97 with a 21" barrel
Deer and elk: A Browning Stainless Stalker in 7 mm Mag
Varmints: A custom built Ruger H-Barrel in .22/243 (.220 Middlestead) Crazy accurate and deadly wayyy out there.
Tree top squirrels: A Ruger .22 Mag, M 77R (I think)
Paper punching: A Winchester M 52 with an 18 power Lyman Target Scope
Home defense: 1st line defense would be a Mossberg 500 ATP, followed by an AR-15 shorty (CAR 15)
Cowboy guns: SAA Army Colt in .45 Colt, a Bisley, and a couple of early Winchester Lever Guns
Looks and esthetics: German Luger
Truck Gun: Kimber Ultra Carry CDP .45 ACP
There might be a few categories I'm forgetting about.


Great list, Todd:bowdown:but surely you have a few more catagories.:)

[Harryreed]

I also remember the worst firearm I ever owned. I did not keep it long. It was a Desert Eagle in .44 Rem Mag. First semi-auto .44 mag as i recall. HEAVY and inaccurate! Bought it new and I couldn’t get rid of it fast enough.

[Bill Murphy]

This thread is getting a bit out of control, but I will give it a shot. My greatest guns for sporting clays and birds are a DH 16, 28", a world beater, and a DHE 30" 20 gauge, also a world beater, both factory single trigger guns. I own a bunch of bigger sporting guns, but these, with 7/8 and 1 ounce loads, are all I need.

[Milton C Starr]

I cant say on shotguns because each one I buy really only fills a niche purpose. Now as far as rifles go I had a Winchester 1917 Enfield that at some point was rebarreled to 300 win mag. It was a odd rifle the thing had to weigh 9lbs but stick kicked worse than larger caliber rifles ive owned, I think it was probably sporterized sometime in the 50s. I really like the cock on close on the 1917s though. I hate to see it when someone converts one to cock on opening takes alot of the personality out of the rifle to me. Shot my first deer with that rifle too, someday I wouldnt mind getting one that hasnt been sporterized and having a repro Malcom scopes put on it.

[Andrew Sacco]

I define best by the one I enjoy carrying the very most. For me, it's the beater I laid on the PGCA table at Ernie's. A 28" VH choked C/IC 16g on 1 frame. A grouse and woodcock slayer. She's easy to carry, shoots where I look, I don't have to worry about scratching her anymore than she is, and it's the only one I carried in Maine although I brought three others. Second place is a Marlin 336C with Williams peep sight. I just love carrying that gun by the receiver while still hunting deer.

[Phillip Carr]

Well... my "best" would have to be a four digit U.S. Colt SAA from lot five issued to the Seventh Cavalry...

Now that’s quite the revolver. What a find. Definitely a “ BEST “

[Randy Davis]

Now that’s quite the revolver. What a find. Definitely a “ BEST “

Thanks Phil...Lucky to have acquired it from a family in Missouri some 20 years ago...

[Dean Romig]

I define best by the one I enjoy carrying the very most. Second place is a Marlin 336C with Williams peep sight. I just love carrying that gun by the receiver while still hunting deer.


The easiest carrying gun I have ever owned (besides the little sawed-off 16 ga. Lifter I sold) is my Winchester 94 in .30-30. I can hold it by the grip pointing it straight down, never worrying if snow or mud of field debris might get into the muzzle. And I can carry it like that all day long even with a relaxed grip because the lever loop prevents it from slipping from my fingers.

I have relegated it to my grandson Cam... for the time being of course. He seems to want a rifle with a scope and more fire power for some reason...? Heck, I killed my first 5 bucks with one shot each from that little deer slayer.





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[Garry L Gordon]

I define best by the one I enjoy carrying the very most. For me, it's the beater I laid on the PGCA table at Ernie's. A 28" VH choked C/IC 16g on 1 frame. A grouse and woodcock slayer. She's easy to carry, shoots where I look, I don't have to worry about scratching her anymore than she is, and it's the only one I carried in Maine although I brought three others. Second place is a Marlin 336C with Williams peep sight. I just love carrying that gun by the receiver while still hunting deer.

Your VH sounds like a best gun to me.

[Bill Murphy]

I am reluctant to include a collector gun, but research on my "Gold Hearts" gun is about as far along as I can bring it. It was built for Annie Oakley together with a gun for Frank Butler to shoot in the 1902, last Grand American at Live Birds, the most historical and widely attended Grand American up to that time. It has been a struggle, but I have gotten the dates together. I don't own the Frank Butler gun, but I know the serial number. Frank's name is not on the participant list, probably a nom de fusil, but Annie's name and score is on the list. The search is on. As to the "favorite gun" theme, this baby is in high working condition, great stock dimensions, great barrels, Parker single trigger, and, unfortunately, doesn't get shot as much as it should. The 34 inch Titanic barrels seem to be closer to the bird than anything shorter. Annie shot the Grand with the 30 inch Damascus barrels, but they don't get much use lately.

[George Lang]

Like Andy my best's are a Parker VH 16 ga 28" cyl/full on a 1 frame. Had it for over 50 years and used it for everything, ducks in the "salt", upland, turkey and my go to Cowboy Action gun and an early Winchester 1894 38-55 SRC with a tang sight, easy to carry all day deadly accurate and plenty of power for deer and bear. Got this one 58 years ago. These two will never leave me.

[Joseph Sheerin]

There is no such thing. :D

My best shooting rifle is a nice Cooper 52 in .280 Rem.

Shotguns, well there are so many different things you use one for, that one that's best for one thing is likely not best for other things.

I duck hunted for 30+ years with a Browning Citori Field Grade, so if I had to pick one..... But really that's just the shotgun that has the most field time with me so it's got 40 some odd years of memories embedded into it's wood and steel. :D

[Stan Hillis]

Deleted

[Stan Hillis]

For me "best" is a descriptive term for the gun that I have owned that has done it's job the longest/most with the least amount of repairs or breakdowns. With those as my criteria I would have to say that the 20 ga. Beretta 687 SPII Sporting would get the nod. Out of some 50-something doubleguns, rifles, and pistols it is the one that has been used the most, but with no breakdowns at all. It has done high volume shooting in Cordoba Argentina twice, and done domestic duty on Southern doves and quail for 19 years. It has never even hiccuped. The closest it has ever come to needing "maintenance" was having to take a few seconds to scrub the plastic accumulations from the chambers, with a tornado brush while shooting doves in Cordoba, because ejection of empties would become sluggish. No single trigger issues, no spring problems, no striker issues, no ejector problems, no misfires due to gun issues.

I know it's not a S X S, and it's not vintage but, it's just a little petite "tank". Credit where credit is due.

[henderson Marriott]

A runoff between a 3rd generation 1923 Parker AAHE special order, a 1917 Fox XE,
and a 1925 Super Fox HE with tight chambers and chokes. The Super Fox is not as heavy as some at 30 inch barrels, but it balances well at 9 pounds. Excellent on geese.
The XE is also 30 inch barrels, with handling like a 16 ga bird gun. Turkey hunting can go from no problem oak and hickory understory to backwater river swamps. Hard to trade in mid-hunt for a Model 12 Heavy Duck gun.
I have probably shot more ducks, dove and turkeys with various Model 12 Winchester shotguns, they are as reliable as the day is long. Still have a few...

[Stan Hillis]

My HE Fox would be my 2nd choice, Henderson. Not because it is less reliable ..... it's never failed me once. But, it's not fired nearly the number of rounds the SP II has, hence it gets the nod.

Now, if I had to answer what gun would be the last I'd get rid of, it would be the old 32", 3 inch chambered Super Fox. Without question.

[Joseph Sheerin]

Now, if I had to answer what gun would be the last I'd get rid of, it would be the old 32", 3 inch chambered Super Fox. Without question.

That's probably the real question that should be asked.....

If it came to it, what firearm would be the last one you got rid of.

Good God, I hope it never comes to that though..... :D

It'd probably be my field grade citori, as with that gun I can still hunt everything I hunt today, plus it's fine for shooting clay games too. It can take a pounding.... No need to baby it.

[todd allen]

That's probably the real question that should be asked.....

If it came to it, what firearm would be the last one you got rid of.

Good God, I hope it never comes to that though..... :D

It'd probably be my field grade citori, as with that gun I can still hunt everything I hunt today, plus it's fine for shooting clay games too. It can take a pounding.... No need to baby it.
Still a tough question. The answer, for me, depends on a few things.
My health, of course, or even the state of apocalypse we are in at the time.
Do I keep one fine shotgun, or a carbine with a plastic stock that holds a lot ammo.
Might be a bolt action .22 rf rifle, or even a 22 caliber revolver.
I honestly can't say.

[Reggie Bishop]

When I was just a kid my dad bought me a Stevens 20 gauge, single barrel shotgun. That little shotgun is still at my dad's (he will soon turn 87). It still functions fine, but it sure looks like it has been put thru the wringer. There is no telling the number of squirrels, rabbits, quail, skunks, and other critters that gun has disposed of. I think the last time he shot the gun he was ridding himself of a skunk that was digging in his lawn during the night. He lives on a golf course which adjoins a farm that I hunted quail on for a good number of years. The Stevens has never failed to fire or eject a hull that I know of. The lever that breaks it open is not functioning properly. You have to know the secret to get it to break open. The stock has no finish on it. The case colors and barrel finish have held up well. The cheapest gun I have ever owned is probably the best one I have ever owned.

[Dean Romig]

Does that Stevens 20 have the side opening lever like my first Stevens 20 did?





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[Jim McKee]

Once upon a time I owned a H & H Royal Paradox 12 b- it slipped away
Now a couple of Fox XE's and several Parker's
I have arrived at the SXS party later in life but
still feeling young!

[Reggie Bishop]

Does that Stevens 20 have the side opening lever like my first Stevens 20 did?





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Top lever Dean.

[Garry L Gordon]

When I was just a kid my dad bought me a Stevens 20 gauge, single barrel shotgun. That little shotgun is still at my dad's (he will soon turn 87). It still functions fine, but it sure looks like it has been put thru the wringer. There is no telling the number of squirrels, rabbits, quail, skunks, and other critters that gun has disposed of. I think the last time he shot the gun he was ridding himself of a skunk that was digging in his lawn during the night. He lives on a golf course which adjoins a farm that I hunted quail on for a good number of years. The Stevens has never failed to fire or eject a hull that I know of. The lever that breaks it open is not functioning properly. You have to know the secret to get it to break open. The stock has no finish on it. The case colors and barrel finish have held up well. The cheapest gun I have ever owned is probably the best one I have ever owned.

As with any gun cherished for its personal history, I'll bet there's more good "secrets" held in that gun than just the trick to opening it. I'll bet it looks just fine standing next to some of those fine 20s you own, Reggie.

[tom tutwiler]

Probably my CH 16 made in 1898. 1 frame. Sold to Dave W. a few years ago. Had damascus barrels and an amazing stock. Probably should have never sold it, but it was choked tighter then I liked and at that point I was moving into the A. H. Fox world.

[CraigThompson]

Once upon a time I owned a H & H Royal Paradox 12 b- it slipped away
Now a couple of Fox XE's and several Parker's
I have arrived at the SXS party later in life but
still feeling young!

I’d love a Paradox don’t care if it’s an 8 , 10 , 12 or 16 any would do ! And as long as it’s a decent maker not worried about that either .

[Gary Laudermilch]

In my post on the first page of this thread I mentioned my Win 101 and I realized I have not shot it in some time. So, last evening I got it out and shot 5-stand with it. A walk down memory lane and it did not let me down. I left the range with a big smile on my face.

[Brett Souder]

I love my old Parkers but my Perazzi MX28 is a dream. It weighs 6 pound 4 ounces with 29" long barrels and has factory choke tubes and steel shot okay with 3" chambers, all I shoot are 2 3/4" 3/4 oz. loads for clays and hunting but I am going to buy some 3" non toxic shot so I can hunt decoying ducks this fall. I can hunt everything upland with it except wild roosters that won't hold for my setter, for that I use my model 21 16 gauge.
- Brett

[Daryl Corona]

I love my old Parkers but my Perazzi MX28 is a dream. It weighs 6 pound 4 ounces with 29" long barrels and has factory choke tubes and steel shot okay with 3" chambers, all I shoot are 2 3/4" 3/4 oz. loads for clays and hunting but I am going to buy some 3" non toxic shot so I can hunt decoying ducks this fall. I can hunt everything upland with it except wild roosters that won't hold for my setter, for that I use my model 21 16 gauge.
- Brett

I know how you feel about the MX28. It is a wonderful gun.

[Andrew Sacco]

I know how you feel about the MX28. It is a wonderful gun.

I shot a High Tech and that's a gun I could fall in love with easily. Basically I haven't picked up a Perazzi that I didn't like.

[bob weeman]

As soon as I read this my Dad's model 71 Winchester in 348 came quickly to mind. I can shoot this offhand better than my other rifles. It is almost like he is somehow helping me steady it.....

[Garry L Gordon]

As soon as I read this my Dad's model 71 Winchester in 348 came quickly to mind. I can shoot this offhand better than my other rifles. It is almost like he is somehow helping me steady it.....

Now, that’s a best gun.

[charlie cleveland]

my 410 stevens my dad gave me at the time I was 10 years old....it was a double barrel hammerless....many of a squirl and rabbit was brought home with it...charlie

[Kevin McCormack]

My 1967 Browning Superposed Pigeon Grade Trap, FKLT 30" barreled gun with the narrow 8MM vent rib and original Browning factory recoil pad. I bought it used; the stock was completely unaltered from factory specs (incredible for a trap gun!) and was straight as an arrow: 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 x 14 1/4. Incredibly lively gun, easy to move and shot exactly where it looked. I shot it hard on bunker trap (Olympic/International trap) for 10 years then traded it when I stopped competing in registered shoots. If I ever have a chance to buy it back in the same condition I will own it again. What a wonderful gun!

[kirbylawson]

Although I love my Fox 16 Sterly Dlx Ejector 32/26" 2bbl set,
Fox 20 gauge brush and various Parkers.
Its a tossup between Winchester M71 Deluxe Carbine Long Tang 1st year in
amazing condition including sling or
Fox 12-Ga SPE with checkered Butt, single trigger and Special ordered Long Beavertail documented with Letter.
Those 2 may join me in the next life.

[Gary Carmichael Sr]

For me Matties gun, and most cherished Parker would be 4634 the first 20 ga hammer gun made, gary

[randall rosenthal]

well...probably a little different than most. in the late 70's i was spending a lot of time in very remote spots surfing so i bought a stainless Rugar Mini-14 as a "boat gun". it continued to server that purpose for decades. 50 years later i still enjoy taking it to the range. the only watercraft i still own is powered by a paddle. favorite gun today....obviously my Parker.

[Keith Doty]

Not sure on the "best" part but a toss up on the "favorite" category. Either my 26" 0 frame VH 16 or a 20 ga. 21 Winchester made the year I was born. Both IC/MOD, wicked on flushing quail with 7 1/2 and WILL whip up on the early season Teal with a bit of bismuth!

[Alfred Greeson]

Love my Parkers and my pre-war Winchesters and Colts. This forum has been a great place to read and learn. Like some have said, my safe is like a room full of old friends. My Dad and I spent years enjoying hunting and fishing and so many of my guns bring back special memories of days gone by but still make me smile remembering. Stay close to old friends and enjoy your guns, we may not be getting younger but we can still enjoy a good gun or a few.
'

[Phillip Carr]

I am like Mills. It’s the next one. I have been lucky to have owned some nice guns over the years.
A few of my best have been sold, not because I didn’t like them but they helped to finance other more important things going on.
The “next one” I have coming is awaiting customs clearance from Canada. That would be my custom 20 gauge Fox that Chris Dawe built.

[allen newell]

My grandfathers 16 ga vh that I had DelGrego restore a number of yrs ago.shot many native grouse, woodcock and pheasant with it growing up. So many memories