Here's a neat Vintage Gun Org.

Dave Parks

Dave Parks

Well-known member
The Edwardian Gunners website:

http://www.vintagers.org/

EdwardianGunners.jpg

No, this is not over in England, this is here Stateside in Maine. They have club chapters in other States as well. Looks like a fun group of shooters that are into shooting guns in the 1885 to 1914 period. The Heyday of the Shotgun.

Just thought I'd pass it along to those who would be interested.

Dave
 
Dave
They must all be barons and baronesses. I have one of those English hats--would that qualify me? Certaintly is an interesting club. The rich Americans.
Could there be a future U.S. president there?
wis boz
 
and one of the big wigs in the orginization, Al Poudrier, (if my memory and spelling is correct and I think the guy two people to the left of the pillow toter in the second row of the photo), used ot come to the LobsterFests and set up the shoots for us when we were doing those.....Judy and Bill used to go to the annual shoot in Sandanona, (again spelling may be incorrect), and one year Judy won "best period costume" for the Banquet resulting in Bill and Judy having their photo in TAHHH DAHHHHH The WALL STREET JOURNAL.........

Bill also did several VINTAGER Eider shoots and I always got a kick out of the thought of all them fellers, and ladies, out on the ocean in their plus fours, brogans, tweedy coats, ties and those nifty little "catch me @#$ me" hats shooting Eiders and shivering.....

I always wanted to go to see the STOPPING RIFLE event.....big ol Rhino target, (likely sporting a milk mustache ), rolling towards the shooter while they blew big old pieces off of it with 4 ga.Brass cartridge stopping rifles from the good old days of "who died first--the Rhino or the shooter"--days safari days, (I understand bocche balls were the rouund of choice--smiley face-smiley face so that Charlie knows I'm kidding).....

Steve
 
My brother has shot in the stopping rifle event the last couple of years with his 8 bore. This last year the annuall shoot was just over on the eastern shore, so I went for the first time. I don't beleive the grounds compare to where they used to hold it in NY though. But overall still an neat group and event. Hopefully this year I have more time and can shoot in a couple of events.
 
Jim,

I found their website an interesting one. I think there is plenty of room in the shooting sports for a lot choices. It's not much different than SASS or Sporting Clays shooting.

They recommend finging vintage clothing at the Salvation Army Stores and the women that are handy with a sewing machine could with some hard work make the couples clothing.

A nice old gun might cost anywhere from $250 up depending on what it is. I'm sure this group do not shoot Purdey's, Rigby's and Holland & Holland exclusively.

I like the idea that there are many different venues in shooting to choose from. And money-wise they probably have less invested in their sport than most of us duck hunters do considering the cost of our boats, guns, decoys, etc. Most of all they enjoy what they are doing and that is what's really matters.

I think that any sport that uses guns whether it's Match shooting with AR-15's, shooting steel tagets at 1000 years with a Buffalo Sharps, shooting wadcutters at 24 yards or dressing up like a Cowboy shooting in a SASS competition or Edwardian attire makes a positive statement to us all being able to keep and bear arms.

Dave
 
Steve,

was that part of the same group that you were going to do the BBSB hunt with Bill when I loaded up those brass BP loads for your '97 a few years back?

Dave
 
anything other than a twice barrel taboo in their shoots....its side by each, or under over with them or nothing......(single shot shoulder cannons for milk fed Rhino's, charging Olyphants and Russian tanks the exception).....my 97 would have been like taking a prostitue to the debutants ball.....scandelous donchaknow....

The shells you loaded were partially for the Brant trip to N.J. that Bill came down for.....he shot his muzzleloader and I shot the 97 with the BP loaded shells.....much fun without the need to dress in the period clothing....

Still shooting those shells BTW...I pick my days and horde them for special occassions.....

Steve
 
Actually I'm pretty sure even over/unders are taboo in their eyes. A buddy of mine shoots at that "Vintage Cup" at Pintail Point, MD and he took a buddy along who had an older over/under. They wouldn't let him shoot so he had to go over to the Winchester vendor and borrow a model 21 for the day.
 
BEST GUN cadre made Under/Overs and if I'm not badly mistaken even the King himself ahd a pair....

That would mean that the provenance for their inclusion would be legitimate even if the particular event chose not to allow them....

WHO KNOWS...

Steve
 
Steve,

also page 109 of David J. Baker's book "The Heyday of the Shotgun" shows a beautiful engraved 12 bore, full sidelock, hammerless O/U made by Frederick Beesley, London. It was called "The Shootover Gun" with a Patent date 1913 which makes it legit for use if their cut off date is 1914.

On the other hand, it may be by a majority vote that the club only wants SxS's used in their events and that is understandable.

Steve.......since Dangerous Dave sold out in Montegue. They new guy does not carry those European primers that your brass uses and I can find no source for them currently. You might consider investing some money in the brass Midway sells at about $22.00 a box. I bought $140.00 worth last year because the price of brass keeps going up. I paid $18 a box for them last year and they may be more than $22 a box of 25 by now.

Don't feel bad about shooting them as I just loaded 50 new ones with Pyrodex and 1-1/4 oz. of #6's for upland hunts and I have another 50 that I'll be loaded with 1-3/8 oz. of #3 lead for turkey hunts. I have two 25# bags left of #3 lead and need to load it up for something, Coyote's, fox, turkeys, etc.

I also have 3 boxes of new brass 20 ga. 2-1/2" that are primed and ready to load with Pyrodex and 1 oz. of 7-1/2's. Midway has a good selection of brass 2-1/2" shells now, in 12, 16, 20, 24, 28 & 410. I don't see why they don't get them made in 10 ga. 2-7/8". I think they are missing the boat on that gauge. All this new brass they have uses large pictol primers just like the old ones did.

And BTW those British tweed caps don't look any worse than that "Butt Ugly" old crushed straw coboy hat you wear on the Sage Hen hunts. It's a wonder the F&W Officers don't write you a ticket for "Hunting Ugly" Bwahahahaha!!!

Let me know if you need any of these BP loads I just made?

Dave
 
primers for......DOHHHHHHHh......

You're right on the my Sage Grouse hat being "just as disreputable" as the English driving hats....its just that I don't have to shy away from those people that wear TEVA's and CROC's.....(semi-private joke re: the belief that those shoes are indicative of sexual preferance).....

Still planning to make a journey to the plains for a Squaretail and if I do that I'd like to shoot them with the 97.....hope I haven't waited so long that I'll have to mortgage the house to be able to afford it.....I'l let you know before I go so I can get me som "bullets".....

Steve
 
That sure is a nice looking duck gun Joe. Gun Show this weekend in G.P. and if that one guy still has the 1960's Charles Daly 20 ga. O/U Skeet model. I may have to do some "Tradin". It would match the 12 ga. Skeet model I have.

I found another mint one on AA in 12 ga. F/IM with 30" barrels for $850, but I could not rationalize my bidding on it for a duck gun because of the steel shot requirement these days. Maybe in another life I can go back to lead the way things should be.

I had a hell of a time on Sunday, I was walking around the lower pond walking down a slope when I hit a patch of mud that was under the grass adn damed if I didn't pull the ham string in my left leg!

I have heard about guys doing it playing football etc. but never experienced doing it 'til now. I have been shot, broken both ankles, passed numerouse boulder size kidney stones over the years, but by far this was about the worst pain I have ever felt. I laid there for 15 minutes repeatedly puke'en because of the pain.

It was the closest I have ever come to passing out. I thought that damn pain would never end. Judy was in town shopping, so after about 30 minutes I crawled on one leg back over to where the ATV was parked and managed to get back to the house and went straight for the #4 Codiens. By the time Judy got home I was laying on the couch with a smile on my fase, thanks to the Codien tablets. I'm back on my feet hobbling around and teh pain now feels like I'm walking around with a fresh bullet hole in the left
"Cheek" of my ass.

On top of that, two week-ends ago we did not work on the flight pen because it was 104 degrees, last week-end we could not work on it because it had rained & snowed all week and the pen area was solid mud. I'm not going to be much help to Mac and the crew in my shape this coming week-end, so I think I'll let them do the work while I go to the gun show Saturday (with a cane?) Those little pheasant chicks are staring to get big now and will need to be put in the flight pen in another couple of weeks.

This getting old ain't as easy as you said it would be Joe!

Singned: Sore-Ass
 
Steve, at the time that was the only brass available and Dangerous Dave was the only guy that had any, so you had to take what you could get. Actually those old style berdan primed shells were easier to deprime and load. All it took was a sharp "ice pick" to de-prime'em and a piece of 5/8" dowel and a oak board to prime them. These new ones are being made with too small of a primer pocket.

After a phone call to Midway's customer service dept. I finally got to talk to a reloader and I had him mic the ID of the primer pocket and the OD of a large pistol primer and they finally saw the light!

The damn primer pockets were 1.5 THOUSANTHS too small. There was no way that I could get a primer seated without crushing it.

They offered my money back and I told them NO I WANT TO LOAD THESE DAMN SHELLS! They sent me two $22.00 Lyman speedy pocket primer reamers for FREE and I reamed every shell to the correct size. And I had them leave a Memo about it to Larry Potterfield............and that the way it is & Thanks for the business!

I can't find any more #5 shot (like we both prefer) around here and I'm not real happy about paying $49.95 a bag for shot anyway. I've got some #8's, 7-1/2's, #6, #4's and #3's left, so let me know which you'd like and I'll load a box or two up for you and then we'll see if we can get them up to you before your Fall "Chickin" hunt on the Plains.

Dave
 
I'm pretty sure it's just the rules of the vintagers, even though over/unders were made back then (same reason you can use a Fox made in the 20's but not a model 97 or A-5). According to my buddy Don, it's because "if god had meant us to shoot over/unders he would have stacked our eyes on top of each other instead of putting them side by side".

Kind of hard to argue with that logic.

Take care,
 
Dave,

Just got an email from Rocky Mountain Cartridge about 10 ga. 2 7/8" brass hulls, $75/10 pieces of brass. Lathe turned, not extruded, and uses 209 primers. Their website says $50/10 but that was 2004 so I emailed to ask. My damn gun has auto ejectors! Could get real pricey shooting in the boat unless I have them disabled. I'm sure at some point I'll get excited and pop them overboard.

It would be nice if Magtech would pick up the ball on this one. There are a lot of these guns out there waiting to be used. I've been cutting down plastic hulls and roll crimping, a lot of work for a short life span on the hull with BP.

Gene
 
I agree, there is no reason why Magtech can't make their brass shells in 10 ga. Hell, they offer the brass shells in 24 ga. and you can't tell me they would sell more 24's than 10's. It does not make sense to me either.

If I could get 10 ga. brass from them at even $30 a box of 25 I'd be looking for an old tight damascus TEN right now. I guess we need to call Magtech and ask them why they don't offer them?

Dave
 
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