New User From Kentucky

[Marcus Carey]

Greetings from Steepleview Farm in Kentucky. My name is Marc. I'm 71 y.o. and have been a hunter since I was 8. I was intrigued by the men who hunted the railroad tracks above Ludlow Kentucky that I met when they laid out their rabbits to clean on newspapers in my great uncles back yard, next to my grandma's house. The men, in fedoras, their brown duck jackets, tobacco pipes, and the dozens of rabbits over which they told the stories of this hunt and other ones, captured my attention.

My father apparently hunted some years before I was born but abandoned it when, as he tells the story, he was pelted with shot coming from some other hunters up a hill from where he was walking. Said he quit that day and never went back. His old hunting coat hung in the basement. It was hard from drying out, a heavy, large waxed canvas game coat was all that I needed to inspire me to hunt.

I was able to roll the sleeves up and get my little arms to hang out a bit. I had a BB gun, Red Ryder type, and began squirreling away my lunch money to buy paper tubes of BB's at the local drug store. I fantasized about hunting and put the tubes into the shell holders in the pockets and set out every chance I got to walk the woods and fields around our little post war 900 sq ft house. I absolutely belonged outdoors. I loved it.

When I was 16 a friend in school one day mentioned that he was going squirrel hunting after school each day. I prodded him to take me. I had no shotgun so I borrowed one from and uncle. We went, I got a squirrel and was hooked. From that day on, I saved to buy a shotgun, a 12 ga. Stevens from my shop teacher. It was my go to gun until I was in my 30's. I used it to hunt rabbit, quail, squirrel and ran slugs through it to deer hunt.

I've owned many guns over the years and always admired Parkers. I have a friend who still uses his dad's 12ga Parker on our annual Thanksgiving morning rabbit hunt on my farm here in the North Central part of America's first frontier.

I've just acquired my first Parker and look forward to using it this Thanksgiving. It's a 16 ga. with 28" barrels stamped as type 1, VH class made in 1928 I believe. I haven't fired it yet but thanks to the advice of many on here, I think I will test it today after deer hunting with my grandsons.

Glad to be a part of this forum and appreciate all the advice and help I've gotten so far. Happy and safe hunting friends.