Most people work Monday- Friday. If we want our sport to grow (or at least not decline) it makes sense to make hunting access easier. This year in SE PA it rained 3 out of the first 4 Saturdays of small game. At very least we should have the option to bow hunt on our own land!
D’Arcy Echols is a Utah gunmaker who turns out the most expensive synthetic-stocked working guns I know of. His Legend rifle currently sells for $14,000. These past few weeks, courtesy of a Legend owner who very generously lent me one, I got a chance to see what goes into a rifle that costs this much. Broken down into components, it looks like this:
McMillan fiberglass stock, made to Echols’ own pattern.
I’ve shot probably ten times as much .30/06 ammo over my career as I have .270. Just about all of the guns I test for the magazine are chambered for the ’06. That’s because it’s the most popular and useful cartridge around, and with the huge variety of ammo and bullets available, you’re bound to find something that works for any given rifle.
Rivers full of hatchery fish, invasive species fouling up waterways, and now a little global warming. What a week of doom and gloom for the Fly Talk faithful. Sorry, but this one caught my attention two days ago on CNN. The story is "Five Places To Go Before Global Warming Messes Them Up."
You can get most people to believe in anything. 80% of our population has no idea what composes our atmosphere and no understanding of chemistry. Forget about the "truth" it's a political issue now. We are on a 5 billion year old rock and people with economic interests and agendas are trying to make sense out of 100 years of accurate temperature data. On Friday it was reported that some of the "scientists" doing most of the fear mongering missed a sheet of Artic ice the size of California because of sensor error.
Like many anglers, I've depended on a good pair of felt-soled boots to keep me upright in the river for many years. But the dirty truth of the matter is that felt is now clearly linked to spreading a number of fish-killing threats like didymo (rock snot), mud snails, and whirling disease. If you have a conscience, you want to avoid felt at any cost. But, until now, if you didn't want to fall on your butt, you didn't have many great options, Aquastealth soles not withstanding.
I'm in the overpriced and obsolete camp. I guess there are people who still think "made in American" means quality. I buy the best product at the best price level and let me tell you- rarely is it produced here and never is it Filson. Except for my Maine hunting boots and maybe my ammo, all my gear and my truck where produced overseas. I'm certain none of these companies bilked the American tax payers for 50 billion dollars so they can over pay people to produce lousy cars. I bet I'm 20 years younger than the guys who like Filson- company has no future.
I was thumbing through a flyfishing catalog the other day (a favorite winter pastime), and I couldn't help feeling a little sticker shock over the high end rod prices. For a top-of-the-line Sage, or Orvis, or Winston, or Scott, you're talking an average of about $700. I thought, "Seven bills for a fly rod? Wow."
There are way too many people with more money than skill or brains. I've seen some great fisherman over the years and trust me there is no correlation to the price of the angler's equipment. Basically, every CEO and Wall Street wanabee has $2000 worth of fly fishing gear sitting in his basement- and I blame "A River Runs Through It".
There was a time, back in the day ("day" in my case being the mid-eighties) when fishing-obsessed young men caught in the icy clutches of deep winter waited impatiently for that special day - usually in February or early March - when they could plop their favorite Bass Pro Shops trucker hat (although back then they were just "hats") over their luxurious mullets, don their acid-washed jean jackets and head out for that slice of escapist fishing heaven, the tackle show.
I live an hour from Cabelas- why pay to go to a lame fishing show? I know not everyone has that option. The main cause is probably he internet where you can buy whatever you need and have it shipped to your home.
Whilst taking in the splendor of the SCI Convention, I was treated to three insightful quotes. Here they are. “You know what the trouble with some of these gun companies is? They’re run by yuppies who don’t know anything about guns. They’ve all got MBAs and they draw up a business plan and when it doesn’t work they still stick with it because it’s The Plan and they don’t know enough to do anything else.”—S.C., a grim and grizzled gun writer.*
MBAs aren't the problem- maybe marketing departments are. Honestly, every few months some company comes out with a new caliber no one needs, or some $20,000 elephant gun that gets a big write-up in F&S but appeals to .0001 % of the hunting population.
We can now chose between gun makers for a mao riffle with a quality synthetic stock for $500. That's because MBAs figured out how to reduce manufacturing costs and improve accuracy. There are plenty of "custom makers" who will produce a $5000 gun that's old school, but it won't shoot any better than my Savage.
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Discussion Topic: On Sunday Bowhunting26
From the Charlotte Observer:
The perennial divide on Sunday hunting not only pits hunters against bicyclists and hikers in the wilderness – but against one another.
Most people work Monday- Friday. If we want our sport to grow (or at least not decline) it makes sense to make hunting access easier. This year in SE PA it rained 3 out of the first 4 Saturdays of small game. At very least we should have the option to bow hunt on our own land!
Mr. Echols' Legend, Explained (Part I)82
D’Arcy Echols is a Utah gunmaker who turns out the most expensive synthetic-stocked working guns I know of. His Legend rifle currently sells for $14,000. These past few weeks, courtesy of a Legend owner who very generously lent me one, I got a chance to see what goes into a rifle that costs this much. Broken down into components, it looks like this:
McMillan fiberglass stock, made to Echols’ own pattern.
$14,000 for unfitted, plastic stock? Is this a product placement? I sure hope so.
Petzal: .270 vs. .30/06 Revisited. Again.180
Well, this one got opened up again (actually, it never closes) so here’s what I can put forth:
I’ve shot probably ten times as much .30/06 ammo over my career as I have .270. Just about all of the guns I test for the magazine are chambered for the ’06. That’s because it’s the most popular and useful cartridge around, and with the huge variety of ammo and bullets available, you’re bound to find something that works for any given rifle.
Does the 308 give you the best of both?
Global Warming... Get Your Fishing in Now41
Rivers full of hatchery fish, invasive species fouling up waterways, and now a little global warming. What a week of doom and gloom for the Fly Talk faithful. Sorry, but this one caught my attention two days ago on CNN. The story is "Five Places To Go Before Global Warming Messes Them Up."
You can get most people to believe in anything. 80% of our population has no idea what composes our atmosphere and no understanding of chemistry. Forget about the "truth" it's a political issue now. We are on a 5 billion year old rock and people with economic interests and agendas are trying to make sense out of 100 years of accurate temperature data. On Friday it was reported that some of the "scientists" doing most of the fear mongering missed a sheet of Artic ice the size of California because of sensor error.
Gear Review: Simms Guide Boot w/ StreamTread Sole24
Like many anglers, I've depended on a good pair of felt-soled boots to keep me upright in the river for many years. But the dirty truth of the matter is that felt is now clearly linked to spreading a number of fish-killing threats like didymo (rock snot), mud snails, and whirling disease. If you have a conscience, you want to avoid felt at any cost. But, until now, if you didn't want to fall on your butt, you didn't have many great options, Aquastealth soles not withstanding.
I think rubber works better in the mud and felt on the rocks. I guess it depends where you fish. I'm all rubber these days.
The 50 Best Guns Ever Made39
I must read this article 5 times a year and I enjoy it every time.
Bourjaily: Not Your Father’s Filson45
I'm in the overpriced and obsolete camp. I guess there are people who still think "made in American" means quality. I buy the best product at the best price level and let me tell you- rarely is it produced here and never is it Filson. Except for my Maine hunting boots and maybe my ammo, all my gear and my truck where produced overseas. I'm certain none of these companies bilked the American tax payers for 50 billion dollars so they can over pay people to produce lousy cars. I bet I'm 20 years younger than the guys who like Filson- company has no future.
Are Rod Prices Out of Whack?21
I was thumbing through a flyfishing catalog the other day (a favorite winter pastime), and I couldn't help feeling a little sticker shock over the high end rod prices. For a top-of-the-line Sage, or Orvis, or Winston, or Scott, you're talking an average of about $700. I thought, "Seven bills for a fly rod? Wow."
There are way too many people with more money than skill or brains. I've seen some great fisherman over the years and trust me there is no correlation to the price of the angler's equipment. Basically, every CEO and Wall Street wanabee has $2000 worth of fly fishing gear sitting in his basement- and I blame "A River Runs Through It".
Chad Love: The Tackle Show Eulogy16
There was a time, back in the day ("day" in my case being the mid-eighties) when fishing-obsessed young men caught in the icy clutches of deep winter waited impatiently for that special day - usually in February or early March - when they could plop their favorite Bass Pro Shops trucker hat (although back then they were just "hats") over their luxurious mullets, don their acid-washed jean jackets and head out for that slice of escapist fishing heaven, the tackle show.
I live an hour from Cabelas- why pay to go to a lame fishing show? I know not everyone has that option. The main cause is probably he internet where you can buy whatever you need and have it shipped to your home.
Petzal: Random Wisdom from SCI41
Whilst taking in the splendor of the SCI Convention, I was treated to three insightful quotes. Here they are.
“You know what the trouble with some of these gun companies is? They’re run by yuppies who don’t know anything about guns. They’ve all got MBAs and they draw up a business plan and when it doesn’t work they still stick with it because it’s The Plan and they don’t know enough to do anything else.”—S.C., a grim and grizzled gun writer.*
MBAs aren't the problem- maybe marketing departments are. Honestly, every few months some company comes out with a new caliber no one needs, or some $20,000 elephant gun that gets a big write-up in F&S but appeals to .0001 % of the hunting population. We can now chose between gun makers for a mao riffle with a quality synthetic stock for $500. That's because MBAs figured out how to reduce manufacturing costs and improve accuracy. There are plenty of "custom makers" who will produce a $5000 gun that's old school, but it won't shoot any better than my Savage.
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