What happens when ...

[bluealtered]

I should probably start here, i have been shooting now for 50yrs. I have always been one of the "so many firearms, so little time" guys so yes i have owned a LOT of firearms of any type, never mattered what it was, if it went bang i had to try it.

However now i find i just don't feel that way any longer, it's not that i don't love to shoot the keepers i have, (and i do at least twice a week) i just don't feel the need to to buy any new ones. For that matter i have two new rifles sitting here that i'm not interested in even really shooting.

I know that some of our members will find this nuts and some may understand it. It may be like a lot of things in life, you make a full circle and simply enjoy what you have. If that is true, then what part of the circle are you on.




















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[dedogs]

It means you have matured into an ADULT. Many of us never will and many don't want to. dedogs

 

[Medic505]

Not nuts at all. I'm sorta in the same boat. I started shooting F-Class in 2010. Since that time I've noticed about the only thing I shoot on a regular basis is my match rifles. I'll occasionally go to the range with a friend for an afternoon of pistol shooting. Those trips are mostly to shoot the pistols I carry to make sure they still function and to give me an excuse to clean them. More than likely, I'll never purchase another factory rifle. No reason to, they just no longer flip my switch. As a matter of fact I've sold a couple of the safe queens to make room for rifles I use.

 

[Tuxedo007]

I should probably start here, i have been shooting now for 50yrs. I have always been one of the "so many firearms, so little time" guys so yes i have owned a LOT of firearms of any type, never mattered what it was, if it went bang i had to try it.

However now i find i just don't feel that way any longer, it's not that i don't love to shoot the keepers i have, (and i do at least twice a week) i just don't feel the need to to buy any new ones. For that matter i have two new rifles sitting here that i'm not interested in even really shooting.

I know that some of our members will find this nuts and some may understand it. It may be like a lot of things in life, you make a full circle and simply enjoy what you have. If that is true, then what part of the circle are you on.


I find myself at approximately the same point on the circle. Have been shooting & loading a little longer, but, like you, I'm at the point that if I don't enjoy it, I probably will not do it. I had 2 large safes full, am now down to 1 partially filled. I still enjoy the ones I have, especially when some friends & I go out.

Best regards,

Tuxedo007

















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[260Ravage]

It is simply part of the aging process.......I am living proof.

 

[RockyMtnMan]

You are not alone. I am trying to downsize my collection as well. I have 3 new custom rifles that I haven't even had the time to shoot yet and another factory rifle I was going to use the action and stock from for another build. Just listed the factory rifle for sale in the local newspaper because it's getting to be too much.

I'd say I have around 25 firearms right now. Thats not an overly large amount to some folks, but for one guy with life, work, and family spinning at 100 mph, it gets really tough to give them all the attention they need.

 

[timeout]

It seems to be a natural part of getting older. My perspective has changed a bit as to what is, and is not, "important". I just don't need nearly so many things/toys/diversions as I used to. Things take up space and require maintenance. Maintenace begins to feel like work. One starts to sort the "things". They generally go into 3 categories: items to sell, items to throw away, and items to pass on down to your loved ones. One pays more attention to storing up treasures for heaven. Well at least that has been my experience. YMMV.

 

[Urv]

Thanks guys for helping me out

 

[snert]

I think I was born late and never caught up.

When I really had the urge, I was a kid and had no money or access to what I wanted. I got by with what I had.
As i hit the earning years, kids and house took the money, and the time.

now I have the time, the money and the urge, but the body has aged and I find I never really use what I have.

And no, this is not a Viagra commercial!

I have 5 groundhog guns, enough ammo loaded for them that I could hunt g-hogs from now till I died and not use it all. I have a service rifle and I have fired 100 rounds thru it, but I have about 3000 loaded. (Long winters here in NY) Sometimes the hunt to find one to buy is as much hunt as it gets.

Time will come when either the govnt will come to take them, or I will give them all to my kids. Can't take em with me, and don't need them where I am going.

 

[500Stroker]

Welcome aboard-enjoy the ride.

 

[Milo 2.0]

We all evolve, first it was handguns, then hunting rifles, one for mountain trekking, woods, prairie, back to handguns, then the ar phase, now precision LR stuff with a desire to buy more pistols.
One things for certain, the guns we keep around today are perceived as being of way higher quality than the ones we bought in our 20's or 30's.

 

[Topstrap]

Most older shooter, I mean those that really get out and shoot for the love of either competing or squeezing the most from a gun/scope/sight combination for that many years usually has accumulated a gun for every purpose.

I was never one to just buy a gun on a whim, it has to serve a purpose for some type of competition or accuracy/development quest. I pretty much view them all as tools, most aren't pretty but are put together to be very accurate shooters.

As we age we usually have tried about all types of shooting disciplines, some are more geared towards younger more athletic competitors, some fit the slower more disciplined shooting style where more money and high end equipment let's them poke lots of bullets thru a tiny hole on paper.

Don't get stuck in a rut, look around and give other shooting events a try. I've been having long-range steel plate rimfire matches at my place and it's been a blast and really helping my 1000 yard steel plate shooting.

Get rid of the safe Queens if you don't shoot them unless you live for the times you dig them out to fondle or show them off. An afternoon of sitting at a bench sharing time with a fellow shooter will last forever for everyone involved. Gotta keep owning our guns fun, get them out and enjoy them. Some of mine are pretty old, they have dings and scratches and I enjoy sitting behind them knowing many shooters before me had some great times enjoying them and I'm keeping the tradition going.

Topstrap

 

[LoganDon]

I see many are just like I am that with age, we look to uncomplicate our lives. I still shoot benchrest and like to shoot prairie dogs. I am the oldest, at 72, of our deer and elk hunting group and will keep my Sako 7mm Mag and an old Winchester Model 70, made in 1950, in 30-06 for hunting. Sold several custom guns and making gifts to my grandchildren of family guns. Love to test my ability against the rifle and scope and have even gotten back into shooting an old marlin 30-30 just for fun and using reduced loads for my grandchildren. As a range master at a local range, I often let young ladies, guys, and children shoot the reduced loads in the 30-30 or if they know how to shoot let them shoot the 6PPC. Great to be an older shooter and sort of hunter.

 

[RemingtonAI]

I used to be a have it all kind of guy, and have owned some pretty cool pistols and rifles over the years of all different types. As my shooting advanced through my 20's i started to really hone in on what i was capable of and started upgrading my firearms to meet the specific needs of the purpose it was designed for. Well, now I'm 30 and have an extremely practical approach to firearms. If its a pistol and i cant carry it i don't own it. For rifles, i don't hunt so there is defensive use and precision rifles for target. So basically i went from quantity to quality and cut down the excess. I pass every single component on my guns through my mental filter of "is this the best option", is there a faster, easier, more efficient way to do this". When i started doing that it was surprising how many guns and accessories didn't make the cut, were sold off, and used to make the ones that did make the cut better. I would call this part of the circle "the gauntlet". Each of them has to qualify and sentimental and historical/monetary value doesn't cut it. I would venture to say that the next part of the circle is the part where i start missing some of the "cool" guns that i once had. However i am afraid that the pragmatist in me wont be changing anytime soon. As my needs develop the firearms will adapt in unison. Unfortunately it just isnt much fun for me to "just shoot" anymore. There is too much to learn, practice, modify, test, hone, perfect, and invent to be bothered by the who's who of guns out there. From a machining and mechanical standpoint i still love each design as much as ever, just don't have a personal need or desire to possess it.

 

[noload]

Quote from the previous post....
"Unfortunately it just isnt much fun for me to "just shoot" anymore. There is too much to learn, practice, modify, test, hone, perfect, and invent to be bothered by the who's who of guns out there. From a machining and mechanical standpoint i still love each design as much as ever, just don't have a personal need or desire to possess it".
Thinking of building a better target shooter definately takes up a lot of my time, I would rather build my gun than buy one all ready done, It would be easier to buy one, for some reason my mind makes me take the hard road.

 

[fredhorace77]

I should probably start here, i have been shooting now for 50yrs. I have always been one of the "so many firearms, so little time" guys so yes i have owned a LOT of firearms of any type, never mattered what it was, if it went bang i had to try it.

However now i find i just don't feel that way any longer, it's not that i don't love to shoot the keepers i have, (and i do at least twice a week) i just don't feel the need to to buy any new ones. For that matter i have two new rifles sitting here that i'm not interested in even really shooting.

I know that some of our members will find this nuts and some may understand it. It may be like a lot of things in life, you make a full circle and simply enjoy what you have. If that is true, then what part of the circle are you on.
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Good time to teach a kid to shoot..sometimes it regenerates your passion for the sport