What "Set the Hook" for you? Why I collect cool old guns.

[Chris Siler]

What "Set the Hook" for you? What "Set the Hook" for me was a P38 pistol.

In 1976 I was a typical thirteen year old boy. I was living in Santa Ana, California with a typical twelve year old brother and my single mother. Like many of you, I was very interested in Marsha Brady's mini skirt and Barbra Eden's Genie outfit. Less so in WWII, but the interest was still there.

One of the neighborhood kids lived with his grandfather, a WWII vet named Mr. Weeding. I never learned his first name. He was a good grandpa and liked to talk about WWII. All of us kids watched "Combat" and "Hogan's Heros" reruns and we listened intently when he told stories. After a while he figured out I was really fascinated in WWII and so he gave me his souvenir P38, saying something like "You'll like this, I don't need it". The pistol had a holster and extra magazine that was fully loaded! My memory says it was marked "byf 44" but that was a long time ago. 1976 was almost another world.

I ran home, treasure in hand (very jealous brother hot on my heels) and said something like "MOM! MOM! LOOK WHAT MR. WEEDING GAVE ME. A NAZI OFFICER'S PISTOL!".

Yep, you guessed it; "AHHHHHHHH!" She absolutely blew a gasket! Steam came out of her ears and her eyes were bleeding. Well, that's what I thought as my hopes were being crushed. "You're thirteen, you can't have a pistol young man! Now march right back there and give that pistol back."

"Young man" meant I was in deep doodoo. She called Mrs. Weeding; Mr. Weeding also needed to clean his shoes. What I should have done was to keep my mouth shut and stuff the treasure under my mattress next to my Playboy magazines. Who knew? Mom knew, that's who. Tell me I'm wrong fellas.

I never saw the gun again. But the hook was set. That was 49 years ago.

How was your "hook" set? Was there a single event or did the disease gradually creep in?

Old guns are cool.

Read More

 

[1911Fanatic]

I buy old guns that are nostalgic in some way for me. In a couple of weeks I will have a matching set of a NiB, never fired, and a near mint (has been fired) pair of Ruger P85 pistols complete with the plastic boxes and manuals (all original).

These pistols are nostalgic for me as my dad had one back in the day. I plan to make some custom holsters for them as you can't find leather holsters for them anymore. If the seller had any holsters for them, I'd have bought them.

My wife recently regained possession of a 1943 Smith Corona M1903 rifle that originally belonged to her grandfather, and was passed down to her mother and then to her. She will never shoot it. So I get to dive in and shoot it and do the research on it. I need to get a new bore light so I can count the grooves in the barrel and run the numbers on the various parts. It's near mint.

That rifle is nostalgic to me because I have a picture of my grandfather holding one during WWII. That was what he was issued.

My son recently acquired a somewhat rough WWII era German Walther PP. It had an importer mark and was imported in 1969. But the numbers on the pistol revealed a mfg date of 1944 or 45. He said he was going to have it refinished, until he found out how old it really was.

If I ever come across a High Standard Double Nine I will buy one of those because my other grandfather let me shoot it when I was young.

Old guns are the best!

 

[MikeInOr]

The C&R import market of the 90's. But remembering what I paid for stuff back then it is hard to pay what is being asked nowadays.

 

[1911Fanatic]

The C&R import market of the 90's. But remembering what I paid for stuff back then it is hard to pay what is being asked nowadays.

Yes this is true, but my son's WWII Walther was 400 bucks. I'd like to find one like that. It came with 2 mags and a flap holster.

 

[Stomper]

What set the hook for me for wanting ANY gun (or accessory) is some government schmuck telling me that I "don't need it" and can't have it... then I set about getting 2-3 of that thing.







Plus growing up pretty much like the OP did... Playboys and all.

 

[Spitpatch]

Dad had hunting guns, just a few, until we moved to Montana, where he expanded on his hunting guns, then began seriously collecting (as serious as a military man with three kids can get) when I was 12.

But what "sets the hook" for me repeatedly regarding collecting "old" guns, is the offerings of new guns on the shelf at stores.

Cheapass black and plastic with sharp corners and machine marks, and just like cars now, they all look the same, perform worse.

 

[Andy54Hawken]

Being a history nerd....the history behind the gun was what set the hook.
That and the old cliche of "They don't make 'em like they used to."

Old for me is a bit different ....
At one time I collected WWI and WWII firearms....many folks would call them old.
I also collected postwar sporting firearms from the late 1940's - early 1960's....
Again...some folks would call them old.
However to me...those firearms ain't old.

Antique muzzle loaders are my thing ...been that way for 20 + years now.
I enjoy researching them....maintaining them...and at times...shooting and hunting with them.
Again...that history behind them...and the work / craftsmanship that went into the making of them.
Plus it is fun to out shoot someone who is using a modern firearm , while I shoot one of my antiques or a well made replica ...

This is not to say that all I own are muzzle loading firearms...most are...but I do own some modern cartridge guns.
Owning firearms , to me at least, is more than a Right...and definitely not a casual hobby.
At the end of the day however....
Own whatever firearms you like...or don't own any...just don't make that choice for others.
Andy

Hawken Rifle , shooting pouch and hunting knife

• Andy54Hawken
• Dec 31, 2024

IMG_4841.jpeg

• Andy54Hawken
• Jun 22, 2025

J.Henry Trade Rifle Circa 1840's

• Andy54Hawken
• Sep 2, 2024

Parker Field Northwest Tradegun circa 1854

• Andy54Hawken
• Sep 1, 2024

IMG_3594.jpeg

• Andy54Hawken
• Aug 13, 2024

"Tacky" guns.

• Andy54Hawken
• Dec 12, 2021

A few old guns of mine...

• Andy54Hawken
• Jul 3, 2021
• 1

Henry Leman Trade Rifle

• Andy54Hawken
• May 25, 2021

J.Henry Trade Rifle Circa 1800-1820

• Andy54Hawken
• Dec 12, 2021

 

[Tlock]

Mine was a old man that lived down the road. If anyone lived around the stayton area in the 90s probably remembers sarges gun shop. The smell, the old classic rifles there to be worked on. I was fixated on a Rossi 22 pump along with many others.

The "old man", sarge or better known as Leeland Haynes was my best friend. He was the crew chief on the SR71 blackhawk. His team set the record for the fastest trip in the blackhawk. Sarge is dearly missed and it was a honor to carry him to his resting place

 

[P7M13]

I like wood, blued steel and irons.

 

[1911Fanatic]

Dad had hunting guns, just a few, until we moved to Montana, where he expanded on his hunting guns, then began seriously collecting (as serious as a military man with three kids can get) when I was 12.

But what "sets the hook" for me repeatedly regarding collecting "old" guns, is the offerings of new guns on the shelf at stores.

Cheapass black and plastic with sharp corners and machine marks, and just like cars now, they all look the same, perform worse.

I can agree with that although I do have a few plastic guns myself. To me those are tools. But usually I stick to the classics.

 

[orygun]

What set the hook? Shooting this gun at about age 6. (It had a different scope then, which I still have)





To make sure the hook was set, shooting this a year or two later.




These were purchased by my grandpa, with the Marlin being kept by Dad when he was stationed at a lookout tower in the early 50's.

 

[Medic!]

It was the same reason early man sharpened a stick.

I thought ''That would be a handy tool''.

 

[Jay Walk]

Defund.

 

[Aero Denezol]

One of the neighborhood kids lived with his grandfather, a WWII vet named Mr. Weeding. I never learned his first name. He was a good grandpa and liked to talk about WWII. All of us kids watched "Combat" and "Hogan's Heros" reruns and we listened intently when he told stories. After a while he figured out I was really fascinated in WWII and so he gave me his souvenir P38, saying something like "You'll like this, I don't need it". The pistol had a holster and extra magazine that was fully loaded! My memory says it was marked "byf 44" but that was a long time ago.

I feel blessed the WWII guys were still around when I was growing up. I hung on their every word. They were a different breed of people. Now that most of them are gone I feel something important has been lost. We are not the same country anymore.

We also had a lot of Vietnam vets in my neighborhood. Always out working on cars, beer in hand. Incredible storytellers. That and the Vietnam movies of the 1980s. And the Warbirds at the Municipal Airport. And books, of course. My friends and I used our allowance to buy surplus BDUs and and go play "guns" in the overgrown backyards of abandoned houses. I wouldn't trade it for anything today.

 

[CountryGent]

The study of history began in childhood and has been a lifelong pursuit. And I, generally, prefer classic materials and styling in firearms. A combination of those factors likely answers the question.

 

[ilikegunspdx]

By "set the hook" do you mean one gun that got you interested? For me my friends were really into guns when I was a kid so I got exposed to many common types early. Then hunting when I was a bit older. So it wasn't a particular gun for me. It was the experience of shooting certain guns.

Nowadays I appreciate good designs, beauty, build quality, innovation, fun to shoot, and value. It can have any of those features to be interesting to me. And any gun has to be perfectly reliable or I have no interest in it. Some guns like hi-point I will never be interested in. Fun to shoot and build quality seem to be the primary reason that I hold onto certain guns. And that really can be independent of price paid. I have $300 guns that are an absolute joy to shoot and will probably never leave me. Just my observations. Different for every person.

I do know that if measure 114 hadn't come along I wouldn't have purchased some of the guns that I was really curious about. And I am so glad I did. HK roller delayed guns in particular. Grand power rotating barrel handguns and lynx 12 long stroke gas piston shotguns with a brake are others. Those three types kind of brought about a "eureka" moment for me. I'm sure there are other "eureka" designs out there I haven't discovered yet. And that's ok. If it wasn't so far to the range I would really experiment with muzzle loaders. But range time is so limited.

 

[Catbox]

Dad always had them as we were growing up.
That was the beginning.

Then some douche told me that I could no longer have them easily with Measure 114.
That put me into high gear.
I am not all about having "the one" just about having some that are fun to me.

I even want one of the dopey Hi Point YC9 Yeet Cannons with it engraved on the slide just because of the eye rolls it will create when I pull it out.
It will just be because I have achieved a place that I can for the fun of it.
Much like my Heritage Rough Rider with its 16 inch barrel.

 

[10mm]

Handled my Grandpa's Winchester M54 30Gov't06 when I was about 7. I could barely hold it to my shoulder. Also got to hold my Great Aunt's Scottish .410. It fit me perfectly and I haven't shook the hook out yet!
Huge fan of 1911's, lever actions, revolvers, shotguns, Glock and Com-Bloc as well. My first pistol was a P-89 stainless.

To me, skill and ability with a firearm is a quality that I respect in others and gives me pride and a sense of personal achievement as well.

Of course, I do suffer greatly from just-one-more-itis, or that would complement my (other gun here) so nicely, or that would surely improve my enjoyment on a hunt.

 

[Chris Siler]

ilikegunspdx,

Yes, you are exactly right. By "set the hook" I was asking what specific gun first Gobsmacked you and made you want to own firearms.

Reading through the replies, I realize my own view of what sets the hook was a bit shortsighted. Your replies show that some of us have a specific firearm, others a specific person, others a specific event that set their hook. Each of us had our own acorn that is now an Oak. Thank you all for your stories.

Old guns are cool.

 

[MikeInOr]

Yes this is true, but my son's WWII Walther was 400 bucks. I'd like to find one like that. It came with 2 mags and a flap holster.

Sounds like a P38. Of my WWII guns the P38 is the best shooter. Mainly is has the best modern ergonomics. (I don't have a WWII era 1911).