Family Heirlooms

[Western Traveler1]

May not be heirlooms of great value but great value to me. My grandparents immigrated from Italy through Ellis Island and settled in Boston at the turn of the century. All my uncles and aunts were first generation.
My uncle fought at the Battle of the Bulge and brought back eight Model 98 German 8mm Mauser’s, one for each brother. My dad passed it on to me to upgrade from my first deer rifle a Savage Arms 303 Savage (patent date July 25, 1893) no model # which I killed my first deer with when I was a young kid. He had hunted with it for many years in New Brunswick Canada. It has very old drawings on each side of unknown initials and the other a cabin in the woods.

The knife has no markings and is clearly hand made and the only knife I ever saw him use on the animals we killed.

 

[Lyfter1013]

My grandpas old Husquvarna .270 I’m not sure how old it is but I’ve seen pictures of him with it from the early 1970s with animals he took. He passed away when I was 11 and was planning to hand down to me so I got it and started hunting the next year and shot my first buck. I’ve killed multiple bucks with this rifle including my biggest buck. I believe the original stock was replaced by my great grandpa when my grandpa first got it but I’m not 100% sure on that. Gun still shoots great and is what I learned to hunt with. Still grab it out of the safe over my other rifles from time to time. Can’t wait for my daughter to shoot it when she gets a little bigger

 

[oleefish2]

model 1897 12 gage winchester
model 1894 Winchester 32 special
1890s Belgium made Damascus double barrel 16 gauge
pre 64 model 70 wincher 270
pre 64 model 70 257 roberts
custom 30-06 built on Springfield action

 

[buffybr]

My grandpas old Husquvarna .270 I’m not sure how old it is but I’ve seen pictures of him with it from the early 1970s with animals he took...

...I believe the original stock was replaced by my great grandpa...

Whoa! Enough of the 1970s heirlooms! You're making me feel old.

I killed my first elk in 1966 in NW Colorado when I was going to college in Fort Collins. I think I still have his antlers hanging in the rafters in my garage.

In my thread "48 years of Memories" 9 of the mounts in those pictures are animals that I shot in the '70s (3 of the Pronghorn antelope, the Black bear, the 2 Mule deer, the 2 Elk, and the Mountain goat).

I'm becoming my own heirloom!

As to your grandpa's old Husquvarna .270, nice looking rifle. Looking closely at it I wouldn't doubt that your g grandpa had the stock replaced. Nice hand cut checkering pattern.

 

[Western Traveler1]

An old Model 62 22cal that my dad gave me when I was a kid around 9 or 10. I don’t know the history of it before that. He was very encouraging of my outdoor interests.
A Winchester Arms 32-20 with no model number (32W,C,F) that he passed on to me. It was his “brush gun” for his deer hunting in New Brunswick (never go unarmed in the woods).
A Winchester Model 94 30-30 that he bought used in the 50’s and passed to me. I think it spent a lot of time in someone’s rifle scabbard. No idea of the age.
Everything was iron sights most of my youth. I was in my mid 20’s before I bought my 1st scoped rifle, a Remington 700 BDL in 30-06 in the early 70’s.

 

[Id-Dave]

This is a good thread. Here is a picture of a Winchester Model 54 Carbine in 30-06 (1930 vintage) I bought from a good friend the other day. I wish I knew it's history but I hope to pass it along some day. In the meantime it will get some shooting in & will probably go on a few hunts this year.

 

[crock239]

Very neat thread. I have little of monetary value, but great sentimental value. Haven't had them out in a while so very cool to look them over again, and I feel the need to take them out this fall!

Remington model 33 single shot .22, 1930s vintage from my maternal grandfather. I never got the chance to know him. My first days afield were chasing squirrels with this in SC.





Winchester model 37 .410 single shot from my paternal grandfather, not sure of the vintage as they're not serialized....seriously old and well loved. Doves, squirrels, deer--chased them all with this growing up.


Switching gears...ABU Ambassadeur 5000 also from my paternal grandfather. Have fished this reel quite a bit over the years and I know he'd want me to, but pretty much retired it now. I'd hate to see this one fall overboard -- there'd be some seriously frantic swimming going on.



And a new-to-me family heirloom. Handmade, custom stag-handled skinning knife and leather sheath my brother made for me about 20 years ago. Engraved with our family name on the blade (not pictured). He made two, one for me and one for him. Love it, carry it afield all the time.

 

[TrumpkinTheDwarf]

I carry my great grandfather's pre '64 Model 70. It was semi customized to shoot 30-06AI. That one won't ever leave the family.

 

[Deleted member 38069]

@Sawtooth great story. Sorry for your loss and I'm sure he'll be honored.

I started my own heirloom buying one of the last Benelli legacy's and I plan to pass it down to any kid that enjoys chasing birds!

 

[larsgilstrap]

Love that Rodda 577

 

[kansasdad]

My post #27 in this thread discusses the safari box that help organize camping/cooking gear when we lived in Kenya. I found this photo of a campsite in the floor of the Rift Valley, you can see the wooden box just to my mom’s left.

 

[Boarmaster]

I got Dads old full stock mossberg 22 rifle. Man back in the day could knock a starling off a barbed wire from a heck of a distance. He shot a few ground hogs with it.
Got his old side by side savage 12 gauge and his Interarms mark x 308 as well. Nice to have a few things of his laying around.

 

[Don Fischer]

The OP's twelvete looks like a Browning double auto to me. One of the best shotgun's I'd ever owned. These days it's all SxS's though. My elk rifle I got from a very close friend when he died. 1903 custom Springfield he had made for himself as a getting out of the service present. he was Army during WWII. got discharged with a prurple heart. Love this rifle just wish Bud was here to love it with me!

 

[KB_]

I have received a number of family heirlooms the last few years. That rule of no matter how bad it gets, never sell your guns really stuck with me. I think I paid for maybe 2 guns? lol

Some of the important ones I have received. Some worth something some worth probably nothing.

Mossberg 500 20g pump - this was my first gun that I was gifted by my dad in 1998. This gun is stupid reliable and I use it for everything. Also in shockingly good shape considering how often it is abused.

Browning Gold medallion 7mm Mag - I was gifted this gun by my dad right before I moved from Michigan to Montana He has had it since College in the 70s. It is well used with lots of battle scars. No plans to refinish it ever and it still shoots stupid good.

Remington 1100 Skeet shooting edition - This was my grandpas 1100, He bought it while he was in college after he served in the Airforce. Used it for birds, Skeet shooting competition, rabbits, and he had a slug barrel for those pesky wood chucks and Deer hunting. Gun is nearly mint, has his name stamped on with one of those blue stick on stamps. Funny story is that this gun was ment for the first born grandson that carried Grandpas name. My uncle took it when he died and found a note in the case explaining who this gun was ment for. I was the only grandson who carried the name Robert. I'm also the youngest grandson haha, that pissed a few people off.

Remington 700 - I believe was bought again by my grand father in the 50s, This was used by all my uncles growing up and was kind of the gun anyone could use if they needed it. It has traveled the world and killed many critters over many years. The story here was my grandpa had cut down a very old a walnut tree and had made stock blanks out of the lumber. Each grandson had their pick of what caliber they wanted. Mine was the last to be done and grandpa had died before he got it started. I was serving in the Marine Corps at that time and didn't get a chance to tell him what I wanted. Couple years later my uncle came over and handed me this gun, with a a brand new walnut stock with ivory engravings of my initials, All the metal is the original gun and the stock is all custom made. stock and checkering was hand carved by a craftsmen out of Kentucky.

I have in my possession a spencer arms sxs 12 guage from the late 1800s that my great grand father purchased from Sears I believe, This gun has seen some shit, multiple house fires, who knows how many deer kills, potentially a few human trespassers. The stock had burned up in the last house fire 40 years ago and has been sitting stockless since then. My dad had found a stock that "Fits" and I took it an molded it the best I could but im still looking for a butt plate for the stock, May end up making one. This is my dads gun and I had fitted and finished a stock for him as he has not see it with a stock since he was in his 20s. Shockingly rust free on the Damascus barrel. I'm not brave enough to shoot it due to its age and being unsure if the bits of filler on the stock along the metal will hold up, this is a looker not a shooter at this point.

I have many others but these 5 are by far my favorite and absolutely priceless I look forward to pass these on to my children some day. Preferably while I'm alive.

I will attach some photos later this evening

 

[Sawtooth]

The OP's twelvete looks like a Browning double auto to me. One of the best shotgun's I'd ever owned. These days it's all SxS's though. My elk rifle I got from a very close friend when he died. 1903 custom Springfield he had made for himself as a getting out of the service present. he was Army during WWII. got discharged with a prurple heart. Love this rifle just wish Bud was here to love it with me!

The Twelvette, is the lighter weight (6 lbs. 12 oz), aluminum receiver version of the Browning Double Auto. The Twelvette came in several different receiver colors, with the Dragon Black and Velvet Gray being the most common. The original or Standard Double Auto had a Blued steel receiver and weighed 7 lbs. 6 oz.

 

[Don Fischer]

The Twelvette, is the lighter weight (6 lbs. 12 oz), aluminum receiver version of the Browning Double Auto. The Twelvette came in several different receiver colors, with the Dragon Black and Velvet Gray being the most common. The original or Standard Double Auto had a Blued steel receiver and weighed 7 lbs. 6 oz.

I had the standard blued model. One of the best shotguns I ever owned. Safety wasn't much to brag about but it never failed me!

 

[geewhiz]

When my grandpa passed, each of his 5 sons took turns choosing valued items. Starting with the oldest to the youngest. My dad is the youngest. My grandpa didn't have very many guns but was a very avid hunter and outdoorsman. He had a jar full of a lifetime of elk ivories. That was the hot item, but nobody knew where it was. I did. When It got to be my dads turn he asked us boys if there was anything that we really valued of grandpas. I said yes and told him where to find the ivories.

I hope to keep that jar forever. Just something about it. I was young at the time and took a lot of things for granted, but what I would give now to hear the stories that went with each set.

 

[OntarioHunter]

I've shown this before. It's one of two WWII surplus Springfield 03A3s Dad bought mail order circa 1962 from an ad in American Rifleman. A coworker who was also a gunsmith helped him rebuild it in the machine shop of Hungry Horse Dam. It's late war production with only two lands in the barrel. The other one that he fixed up for himself has four lands. A horse rolled on me circa 1980 and broke the Herters stock in two (a hideous cheap thing, too short in the fore end and ugly rollover cheek piece). I restocked it with a good one from Les Bauska's shop in Kalispell. The barrel was never great but now unreliable so I'm in the process of rebarrelling it with another sporterized military A3 barrel. Trying to keep it functioning and still a war horse as much as possible. Dad originally scoped it with a 4X Bushnell Banner. I finally threw that piece of junk down the mountain in 1972 - rings and all. I replaced it with Weaver 3X which I replaced with Nikon 3X9 two years ago simply to have clearer quality glass. I may go back to the Weaver.

I also have the 760 30-06 Mom's father gave my dad two weeks after I was born. The year before Dad sold all his guns to pay the hospital bill for my brother's birth and Papa didn't find out about it till after I was born. Dad was too proud to ask for help taking care of his family. Papa was quite wealthy but he understood. "But Dorothy, your family is moving to the wild country of Montana and you need a gun to put meat on the table." He left and returned a while later with a brand new Model 760 which had only just hit the store shelves for first time that year. Dad cut it off short for Mom but it dinged her eye the first shot and she never fired it again. He traded a .22 auto for a nice Mauser in 300 Savage with low power scope mounted ahead of the bolt. Impossible for her to get Weatherby eye with that one. Last I knew my nephew had Mom's Mauser but I'd be surprised if he's hung onto it. Two years ago I found a synthetic stock set for the 760 very cheap at a gun show so it's a "black gun" now. Someday if I stumble onto another plain field grade walnut stock it will get restored to original Remington factory condition. It wears an old (1952) 4X Weaver with detachable Bausch & Luamb rings/base

Edit: Sadly, when rebarrelled the Springfield will no longer fit in the scabbard I made for it back in 1975. The original military barrel was obviously in tough shape with nearly 3" cut off the muzzle when Dad and Earl sporterized it (besides worn rifling, there's also a corroded spot in the bore about 2/3 way to end). The replacement barrel is only a half inch short of military specs. The gunsmith who sporterized it undoubtedly cut off the military front sight before turning the barrel down.

 

[hd-bagger]

Had to post on this one. I have a 12 year old daughter that loves to hunt and shoot, and a 7 month old son that i'm sure will love it also. My daughter has a birthyear (09) xbolt white gold medallion and a 20 guage b80 that was made in my birthyear. My son now has a birthyear A5 ultimate 12 guage, and a birthyear maple xbolt 308. I think they should be set. Although there is a safe full to pick through at some point. Haha.

 

[Don Fischer]

With my Fathers passing this February, I recently inherited this Browning "Twelvette" shotgun. This gun is loaded with great memories for both him and I. He bought it when he was in college and used it to hunt dove and pheasant on his family's farm. When I started hunting he let me use it for the same purpose until I could save enough money to buy my own shotgun. I will miss him and our times in the outdoors together, but every time I take this shotgun out this fall, I will be bringing a little bit of him with me. This thread is for all of you who have a firearm or other piece of outdoor equipment that has a special part in your family history. Let's hear your story.View attachment 59363View attachment 59364

That is the only auto shotgun I'd ever consider. It's the Browning double auto. had one years ago and once I traded it off, kicked myself in the butt ever since.