Cheesy gun-related things you secretly miss?

[gmerkt]

Print catalogs for companies like Brigade Quartermaster, the OLD Sportmans's Guide, Cheaper Than Dirt, US Cavalry.... Shotgun News..

Going back a bit further:



The Martin B. Retting catalog shown above was dated 1953. But when I was going into their store in Culver City, Calif. in the 1960's, their prices weren't much higher. For example:


Note the first item on this page, the German T-Gewehr for $125.

Many of these firms selling war relics were located in the north east. Retting moved from NY to CA in 1953 so at least I could go to that one in person.

Another catalog I used to get was this one:


I'd send away for these based on advertisements I saw in Shotgun News, mostly. Another one I got was Der Alte Oberst, I think he was in La Jolla, Calif.

 

[nammac]

Stretch Armstrong - that gelled corn syrup filled latex doll, from the late '70's made a great reactionary target

 

[Member 52301]

I bought several books from Paladin Press many years ago back east.

I liked the ones that I bought.

I did NOT buy tons from Paladin Press compared to all of the books that I bought from my book stores. Plus ones that I brought from the East Coast (Born, raised and married.) to the Great Lakes region.

Thousands of books from a to z and I have eclectic tastes in my reading. I kid you not and I did NOT get rid of my books for a LONG time. Especially in the past. I NO longer have that huge library of books and my donations and gifts were made over the years especially before my move out west. My late husband and I gifted many books including some SWEET art books before his cancer discovery and death too.

I only brought a couple of book boxes when I moved out west. What did not fit in my former Coleman pop up camper and former SUV did not come out west. My entire amount of STUFF in my LIFE that I CHOSE to KEEP were in those two things after my late husband died.

There was a wonderful store that I found while on a Cape Cod trip with my late husband. Connected to the store, there was a barn and it was FULL of books in pretty good condition and many of them were ones that REALLY interested me. I loved finding that and many book stores on my travels. New and old book stores.

I visited libraries too. I am a huge supporter of LIBRARIES. I was raised that way and my parents and mentors were avid readers! They owned TONS of books but were INTO libraries too. I was that way too.

Anyway, I found some great books for my late husband about OLD SAILING ships and USN ships. Plus lighthouses and a old history book about New England, New York State and the Mid-Atlantic area when it came to the American Revolution and on.

They had a section that did INCLUDE some books from Paladin Press there too. It came from an estate sale according to the one lady. She told me that those BOOKS from PP sold out almost every single time that they were in the store too.

I bought my former ORIGINAL John Ross book (UC) from PP if my memory is correct. I donated that hard copy to my former library back east.

I bought another one, UC, and it was special ordered from the former - CLOSED UP Hastings store here in this college town in MT. Hard copy - no clue on the edition. I reread it, had my MT husband read it since he had never read it and kept it for several years. When we went through the SMALL amount of books of ours - we donated that COPY of UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES by JOHN ROSS to the library here in town. I had NEVER SEEN a copy of it THERE so I gifted it.

Yes, I know that I could have SOLD both books since some of them (UC) for a TIME FRAME were hard to get but I am happy that I passed it on as we did with MANY of our classic movies and tv shows.

There is a SAS book from PP still here. Plus an ARMY manual and that TITLE escapes me now.

I did READ the Poor Man's James Bond book just to SEE what it was all about. IT did nothing for me but I read it. That came from PP. I gifted that book BEFORE I moved too.

I laughed to myself and FRIENDS and said that ALL I NEEDED was to be stopped on my MOVE over 2,000 miles away with my guns/ammo STORED safely and LEGALLY through all of my states right below the Canadian border (SLOW and scenic route ala AAA MAPS at the time!) and BIG BROTHER (LOL) seeing the few books that I had religious wise - old Christian monks writings, a couple of my Bibles, my BIG Thoreau book, Teddy R. book, some picture books - coffee table books of guns, Trees and Flowers identification with pictures/notes from the EAST COAST, Simplicity books, etc. Those books came with me and SOME of them are no longer here. They were donated.

TWENTY years ago:

NEWS/FILM @ 11! Fifty one year old widow has guns, ammunition, a couple of Bibles, some old books written my monks, other books, a portable sewing machine, her late husband's ashes to be scattered in the YAAK, her portable file boxes, etc. and is on a long trip to the Sapphire Mountains! And later on, to the YAAK area in the Kootenai National Forest, etc. LOL Grin.

I donated a B&N store bought copy of the Qur'an and some other Islam and Hindu books that were gifted to me by some of my non Christian friends. Plus a whole bunch of other books written by famous people - non fiction and fiction!

I know MANY people who miss the PP's first aid books, survival books/manuals, etc. I did NOT buy tons of books from PP but I did enjoy the ones that I read other than the James Bond one which did NOTHING for me.

I and/or WE no longer KEEP a lot of STUFF in our home on purpose.

We keep OUR favorite Bibles, books, films, music, etc. and the REST gets gifted to some friends and family but MOST OF ALL to our library!

I could NOT find specific Elmer Keith's BOOKS from PP when I wanted to buy them. Late 90's and on. I did find a couple of them at MIDWAY at the time.

Old Lady Cate

ADDED more and typos.

 

[Hueco]

Guilty pleasure? Gun related?

IYKYK.

 

[Member 52301]

One of our late friends here in MT used to give us all of his OLD Shotgun News magazines. I enjoyed reading them. I did not keep them.

My husband has an older friend who he walks with and sometimes shoots with. That man makes custom made knives. The friend knows that I LOVE very specific knives, axes and 'hawks. So he gives my husband his older magazines, my husband reads them and I read them too. I keep them for a longer time, several months, before I PASS them on to someone else.

So do KNIFE MAGAZINES count in this thread too?! LOL

Cate the Minimalist

 

[Member 52301]

To the man who mentioned buying fuel and ammo at the same time here:

The price of gasoline and ammunition have gone up for sure but you can still FIND some ammo at some gas stations and old fashioned GENERAL STORES in the Great Lakes region where I used to live in farm/lake country, on the East Coast and in some places in MT and WY.

I bought some ammo @ Cardwell, MT (Jefferson River area.) on a trip when I filled up. It was 38Special made by Federal. Not a bad price from my memory too. This was years ago and I bet that they still SELL AMMO too. A nice young man around 30 years old waited on me. He talked a LOT to me about this and that too.

Up north, in the Yaak region (They spell it YAAK not yak.) there is a General Store. They sell fuel and ammunition there. They sell other things there too.

All over the country, I am sure that many places sell ammo and gas especially in rural areas.

When I was in the SMOKIES on a trip with my late husband and friends, they really stacked their AMMO deep in some gas stations. This was in the middle to late 70's and I bet that they still do this. Nice people - very KIND and mannerly!

People way down south according to my late husband can find ammo very easily even in places that you would not think of off hand. He traveled a lot down south on some AIR NG trips (I am NOT talking about his USN time.) and even in some small section on the side of some little HOME TOWN restaurant if there was a STORE - you could find some ammo.

Plus he loved the Southern people just as he did the East Coast people. They were ALWAYS nice and friendly to him and his GROUP of people or even if he was only there with two other buddies while traveling. The FOOD was good in those small places and his coffee cup was ALWAYS kept full.

He was a VERY good tipper if you gave him GOOD service too!

Cate

 

[41mag]

All over the country, I am sure that many places sell ammo and gas especially in rural areas

Up until just a few years ago, there was a particular place in a small town that was combination Post Office, Liquor Store and Firearms merchant. They had a small inventory of well worn old used shotguns, nearly obsolete rifles, and an ever changing old pistol display.

The Old Guy owner finally died, his widow had no one that wanted to continue the odd licensing arrangements, so the unique flavor evolved into something else.

 

[rob1516]

Ah yes, the days before the interweb. I still have some old Shotgun News. I like looking at the prices.

Do you have any SGN from the ban era that you might want to sell? Looking for 1994-mid or late 2000's

 

[Member 34319]

Inexpensive yet fairly good quality surplus guns you could bubba up and essentially destroy without batting an eye. I cut my teeth working on mil-surp guns under $100.

Now these are "collectibles" and demand premium prices.

 

[MymuttBear]

Ah yes, the days before the interweb. I still have some old Shotgun News. I like looking at the prices.

I just get depressed looking at old firearm prices and thinking, "I KNEW I should have bought that rifle/shotgun/handgun"!!

 

[Bon Sauvage]

I kinda miss the old Herter's catalogs.

 

[Hop Sing]

I kinda miss the old Herter's catalogs.

View attachment 1180059

I was just gonna mention that! Growing up poor and in the sticks, that catalog was good for a full winter's worth of day dreaming.

 

[RVTECH]

the OLD Sportmans's Guide

Oh man I could name a LOT of things but this one I remember well.

The original owner was pretty comical!

 

[cigars]

Gas stations where you could buy ammo. Fill up for $.35 a gallon and get 59 cent/box of 50 rounds of .22.

Believe it or not, Trader Joe's used to sell ammo in their early, early years. That was back in Cali too. Boy that ship has since sailed. But cool shirts though now....

 

[Ruger Rich]

Ah yes, the days before the interweb. I still have some old Shotgun News. I like looking at the prices.

Shotgun News evolved I believe to Firearms News. I get it every two weeks in the mailbox.

 

[Diamondback]

Barrels full of foreign milsurps at GI Joe's and Big 5. Hell, GI Joe's period...

 

[CountryGent]

Shotgun News evolved I believe to Firearms News. I get it every two weeks in the mailbox.

It did indeed and we also subscribe to said. It has changed since the totally rad 80s, but still kind of neat.

 

[Diamondback]

It did indeed and we also subscribe to said. It has changed since the totally rad 80s, but still kind of neat.

@Moderators If he starts talking in Valley Girl, who's got the Thorazine?

 

[Knobgoblin]

Do you have any SGN from the ban era that you might want to sell? Looking for 1994-mid or late 2000's

Be careful what you wish for.
I might have a few bundles in the basement, probably all damp and smelly.

 

[BrentN]

This might draw fire.

I miss toy guns . Yep ,real looking, black plastic, no orange muzzle block, gets you shot by the cops toy guns. I know that they are a bad idea. I loved them when I was a kid.

I can not believe- you completely beat me to it.