Why do we like the guns we like?

[Andy54Hawken]

First off , I'm not looking to bash anyone's choice of firearms.
Or to belittle their taste in guns.
I was just wondering what it is about your favorite design or style that you like over other styes or designs.

For me I like old fashioned wood and blued steel.
I like the look and feel of a firearm made of those materials.
Most of the people I look up to or admire wood of used a firearm of wood and blued steel , so I'm sure that plays a big part of liking these types of guns.
The first guns I shot and those I grew up with were also of this type .
Having a good experience with guns like this I know shows up in my liking today.
Let me shoot an older bolt action or lever action rifle and I would be very happy.

Older firearms are of great interest to me as well.
I enjoy the historic factor of these guns.
I like restoring old guns to either how they looked when they were in use or taking a rusty pile of parts and bringing them back to a serviceable life.

I am very passionate about muzzleloading firearms. Both originals and new made.
The rifle I like the best is a copy of a Hawken rifle that a friend of mine made.
Restoring , maintaining and the showing of what these antique guns were and in some cases still, are capable of is a great source of enjoyment.
Researching just what that antique or older gun is , hunting down or making that replacement part, finding and or making the accessories to go with it are also part of my liking for these guns.

These are my likes , what are yours?
Andy

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[salmonriverjohn]

My feather weight model 70 Winchester in plain old .30-06 is my favorite dancing partner.
This rifle and I go way back.

More elk, deer, bear and yotes have met their end by this rifle than all the others I have ever owned combined.
If I tag out early you can count on either the wife or one of the kids being right there asking if they could use the "Magic stick" as they call it.

It's a beautiful piece of American workmanship made back when corners weren't being cut to save dollar$. The wood is absolutely
Beautiful and the action,,, well let's just say I own a few that cost quite a bit more and in calibers that some consider more exotic or modern, but the old "magic stick"
Is the unit I invariably reach for and for good reason.
I know that eventually my time afield will come to an end and the "magic stick" will pass into the
Hands of one of kids or Grandkids for them to enjoy, but until then,,,
It's till death do us part

 

[tac]

Being an old fart, I'm firmly of the opinion that the Good Lord made wood so that we could build boats, furniture, homes and gun stocks. Using most other things does not go down well in our house. If you make your own stuff, take comfort in the fact that if it doesn't turn out the way you expected, you can always burn it to keep you warm.

I have seventeen rifles, and not one of them has got anything else other than a wooden stock.

As Andy in Everson points out, everybody runs a different course, and if things were more equable here in yUK, I'd like a nice Desert Tech something in an interesting calibre or two.

I still have my dad's old Walther from 1930 - I learned to shoot with it at age six, but our son died way too young for me to teach him, let alone pass it on. Our daughter is severely disabled and doesn't like loud noises, so that's that, as far as it goes.

All of my guns have their own little stories - some of them pretty funny, like the .22 Mauser and its scope, but that's a story for another time and place.

Me, I just love 'em all.

tac

 

[etrain16]

Such a hard question Andy! I don't know if I can pick a favorite. And as to what I like, well, I tend to like a little bit of everything.

While I have no problem with plastic guns, to me, they are more utilitarian, and I really like them for what they are, reliable, durable, and perhaps less expensive. They go bang every time, so for me, I like that I don't have to worry much about the look or the finish. They are 'working' guns to me. That goes for polymer pistols and AR's alike.

When it comes to guns I just want to look at or handle, well, my taste tends to move toward stainless steel and wood. I do like a nice blued gun, but I always find I'm more drawn to a stainless gun - maybe I just like pretty shiny things Funny thing is, I don't currently own any stainless guns - a problem which will be remedied once I pay off a certain layaway

As to types of guns, that's a bit harder to nail down. I've found that my interest in semi autos has waned just a bit as I've gathered up the ones I want to have on hand. My focus now is turning more to an interest in slowing down and shooting for accuracy rather than just pumping lead down range at a rapid rate. Bolt guns used to hold little interest for me, but I'm becoming very interested now. Revolvers never held much interest either, but I'll be adding to that in the not too distant future And then there's the lever guns, something I've long admired but never owned. I'm no cowboy, with no real interest in the old west, but damn, those guns just have something magical, dare I say, romantic, to them.

And since you mention your black powder addiction, I'm also interested in stepping in to that world. I've always appreciated history and historical items. And while I've not ever been a collector of old guns or old style guns, I'm also looking more that direction. Looking forward to my first black powder gun down the road here too.

I should mention I hate questions about 'favorites'. I'm one of those folks that can never pick a single favorite because I have many that I like, it almost feels wrong to pick just one.

My want to acquire gun list currently includes: M1 Garand, Colt 1911, .44 Mag Revolver and .44 Mag Lever gun to pair it with. There are others, but money takes time to earn, so even filling this list is going to take a while.

Aw heck, just give me one of everything and I'll try to sort it out later

 

[Member 5605]

I like the look of wood and stainless (or polished nickel). The two of them together makes a nice contrast.

I like the clean look of an all stainless gun, especially with laminated stocks. That makes me happy.

I like heavy barreled rifles. Something about being stout makes me satiated.

I also enjoy polymer (with color) framed pistols. I'm not a huge fan of all black firearms, although I do have one that is all black.

I do not like plastic stocks on rifles.

 

[slimmer13]

For me, the passion is not in the delivery system, but in the 40-220 grains of copper and lead that I'm trying to send down range. I own absolutely zero guns for their aesthetics. I only own guns tha are the most efficient, reliable, accurate and cost effective for the application I'm using them.

Someday when the old man and my grandpa pass on, I'll own some for sentimentality, but if they don't do the job the best, they will rarely see daylight.

 

[Joe13]

Stainless cuz it's the PNW (though Cerekote and the like have made that a lot less of an issue).

I like simple to disassemble and clean guns.

I like reliability over capacity ao I like revolvers, lever, bolt and pump guns the best.

I'm young enough to like all the new plastic toys mostly - although I've shied away from them for many many years.

I'm a sucker for a good shotgun.


I'll admit that movies sometimes have an affect on what I want but I still want. Berreta 92 and Deaert eagle.

 

[edslhead]

Ive got a mix of wood, metal n plastic. I like em all, cus when ya pull the trigger they make a loud POP !!

 

[Bon Sauvage]

Pre-1898 firearms of all sorts are my favorites although I have a deep and abiding affection for the Ruger No. 1.

My likes are fueled by my love of history and also by the opportunity I had, as a member of the Hawaii Blackpowder Shooters Association, to shoot many of these old guns.

 

[etrain16]

I'll admit that movies sometimes have an affect on what I want but I still want. Berreta 92 and Deaert eagle.

I agree on the Beretta 92. Something nostalgic about it, and probably partially fueled by movies. When I finally got one, I went with the 96 and got a 92 barrel and 92 mags to go with it - nice and easy to swap calibers. I do enjoy a gun that I can shoot at least 2 different calibers. I always look back to Sandy Hook and what ammo did afterward - seemed like stores had .40 in stock the longest, but at the time, I didn't have any guns in .40 to make use of it, so I had to bypass that ammo in hopes of finding 9mm or .45 I've learned a few lessons about stocking up and having multiple options since then

 

[MountainBear]

History, tradition, aesthetics.

First off, the eyes and brain like what the eyes and brain like. I can certainly appreciate the functionality of the plastic fantastic rifles and pistols, but to my eyes, they don't have the warmth that blued steel and wood do. So my collection, while not neglecting utilitarian, functional guns, tends more towards bluing and nice wood.

Tradition is usually pretty prominent. For me, I remember my dad's Ruger M77 rifle. Wood stock (with the worst recoil pas known to man, especially for a 7mm Mag), blued steel, iron sights, and a gold ring Leupold scope. So in my mind, that's what a rifle looks like. I have built stainless guns with synthetic stocks for customers, but I don't own any stainless rifles. But I desperately want a round top Ruger M77 in .30-06 with iron sights.

For those of us with an appreciation for history, gun collections often become a reflection of our appreciation for a period of time, a certain geographic region, or perhaps both. The most obvious manifestation of this is milsurp collectors, but another would be Andy's addiction to black powder nose stuffers, my unhealthy addiction to post war spotters, among others I'm sure.

At the end of the day, most of us only have a direct functional need for between one and five or six guns, depending on use. A hunting gun or two, a home defense gun, maybe a carry gun. Beyond that, collections tend to spread more towards the owners imagination and passions. At least that's my $.02 as to why we like what we like.

 

[Brutus57]

Favorite gun...whichever one is in my hand at the time. Next would be the .22 my parents gave me when I was 10, and next the carbine I built to run 5.56 miles. Followed by my 06, ,etc.

Brutus Out

 

[bbbass]

I also like everything. But romance guns would be older bolt action rifles, lever guns, and double shotguns. Newer models with romance would be Kleingunther bolt action, M249, and expensive over/under shotguns with gold trim and fancy engraving.

 

[Velzey]

I have an essay to write here and want in before this thread is 3 pages long
Will update my thoughts later today.

 

[RicInOR]

 

[jbett98]

Because they were gifted to me by a late friend.

 

[Martini_Up]

Art, nostalgia, engineering and history all in a tool. What's not to like?

 

[Sgt Nambu]

I genuinely love them all! From the most modern bullpup to old Belgian pin fires! Wood and iron, beautiful. Black plastic, beautiful! Each has its own beauty!

 

[nwwoodsman]

When I was a kid I was a cowboy with a single action .45LC, a detective with my 38 snubby and an army man with my 1911. Those plastic guns were deadly accurate and went bang every time. Killed thousands of bad guys with them. Although a little heavier and they now get shot less often I prefer the metal and wood versions of them today.

 

[Boboclown]

I like the guns I like, cause I like guns. While I may not really care for some guns, I'd still get them for the sake of having them.