I carry the basic survival gear, knife, parachute cord, plastic space blankets, first aid kit, shovel, basic tools, ham radio, throughout my truck. I know that I'm usually within range of civilization, and that the chances of anything catastrophic happening to me are like my chances of winning Powerball. I have used the first aid kit for a bandaid or 2, the shovel for snow pile removal, and the knife has been by my side since I graduated High School. No paranoia, no waiting for zombies or 3rd world warlords to attack. I know where to get food, clean water, and how to live out of my rig if I need to for days or months at a time.

Depends. If you plan on experimenting, or doing more shooting, like 4 boxes a week, then reloading is an option. If you shoot 4 boxes a year, then just buying them when they go on sale would be sufficient. I usually wait for Dicks Sporting Goods to have their ammo sales, just watch the shell quantity. Remington put out a lot of boxes of shells, $1.97 on sale per box, but there were only 20 shells in the box, not the standard 25. So you needed to buy 5 boxes to get 100 rounds where if you spent the $5.00 a box you needed to buy 4 boxes for 100 rounds. Ask at your local gun club if anyone reloads, I did and 2 older gentlemen invited me over to their reloading benches, let me use their equipment, and as long as I brought over my own supplies (powder, cases, shot, wads, and primers) I could use their equipment anytime, just had to give them a call to see if they were around. After awhile, I ended up buying one of the presses from one of them when they got out of the reloading.

An Alligator Gar on a fly rod for starters, Handline a Bluefin Tuna, and catch a Great White Shark with a fly rod to round off my top 3 as of now.

Large stripers, Large Bluefish, and Sharks

I would have to say that the jon boat is more stable, but the canoe is more versatile as far as rivers and stumps go. Both have their merits and downfalls, to choose one, I would have to go with a 15' canoe with a 40" beam, and if available, a square stern.

I've been using a Coleman Dome tent from Walmart, cost about $80.00. Comes with a full rain fly and sleeps 5, and has the special opening in the corner for an extension cord to pass through from a generator or power inverter.

I use a Ruger Single Six in 22 Magnum, Iron sights.

Back in the day, we used to toss a can of dog food with holes in it into a spot that might attract some catfish or as we refer to them up here horn pout. Wait until later that afternoon or early evening, and toss a worm on a hook on the bottom. Now we toss the dogfood like chum, and use a worm on a hook set to the bottom.

If your looking at a new shotgun, anything in a 20 Ga 2 3/4" would be fine. As for the Mossberg, that will be perfect, as it's not the shotgun or the gauge, but the shot size and the load. I use a Winchester 1887 Lever Action 12 GA 2 3/4", and use slugs for deer, #4 shot for turkeys, #6 shot for rabbits, #7 1/2 or 8 shot for small birds (pheasant, quail) and sporting clays. I like a 1 to 1 1/8 oz shotload in my 12, 7/8 oz in the 20. Also save the spent shells, you can reload them probably 10 to 15 times, and save money every time. Best reloadable hulls are Remington black cases, Winchesters are ok but usually only good for 3 or 4 tops. And the MEC JR Mk 5 reloader is the cheapest way to start reloading the shells without loading or feeding problems from what I have experienced.

Best round for dropping anything on this contenent, 30-06 220 Gr Barnes X Bullets. I've used them for Bear, Moose, Deer. In my 30-30 I use a 170 Grain Remingtons. I practice with 168 gr in my 30-06, and switch to 220 grain for hunting. The trajectory is different, but if you know where the bullet is going, and how it will travel, the difference is miniscule.

Depends on how it hits, strait, not a problem. at an angle, get a new one.

Browning Ambush X, although I am shopping for a recurve now.

LED mini Maglite, The Energizer $5.00 LED Hat Clip Lamp, and Jeep Brand LED Flashlight are all good. I like the Mini Mag due to it fits in a shirt pocket, lightweight, and durable. I dropped mine 5 stories into concrete and pavement and other than scuff marks in the finish, still was lit when I picked it up an hour after the drop off the roof.

Cabelas has always been better than Bass Pro, products and customer service has been the best by far. Bass Pro is good if your a die hard bass fisherman looking for plastics and lures, the other stuff is the same as Cabelas, but costs more. Also Cabelas where I am doesn't charge to park in their parking lot on game day, Bass Pro and Gillette Place in Foxborough MA charge to park on Sundays, even if there isn't a game going on. Just that steered me away from Bass Pro.

Gander Mountain. But what about Cabelas? they're top on my list

I actually carry 2 cellphones and a 5 watt VHF Amateur Transceiver, set to various frequencies for contacts through repeaters or simplex communications.

I used to make my own out of spent 223 cases, steel plate, and wooden shafts, but now I'm going to be using Muzzy 4 blade (thanks to the FSHuntress)

Unfortunately I live in Taxachusetts, formerly known as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Bluefish are a funny feeding fish, they'll eat anything and eat even when they are overflowing at the gills. Best thing I found is anything that imitates a herring or pogie, even chunked herring and pogies if surf fishing. Watch for birds and the water boiling on the surface, as that is usually a sign that a school of bluefish are on the blitz. Also during blitzes, surface plugs work well, also Rapala Shad Raps in Blue/Silver patterns.

When I started, I just got the Lee Load All set for each calibur and a rubber mallet. I still use it, but the cases I use can only be cycled in my own guns, not anyone elses. I upgraded to the Lyman C press, which was bench mount or hand use, and still use it. But that's good for field use. My next is going to be the RCBS.

I've got the Nokia 6301 with the Stainless Steel covers and trim ring. Dropped it numerous times, stepped on it a couple times, and it's still like it was new. My Coverage is with T-mobile, but I've seen the 6300 series in all the stores. Also it's not a flip phone, which was the weak spot on the last 3 phones I had.

Fluorescent Orange Rooster Tails, Copper Colored Goldfish, and Flies

Depends on what is the effective kill range of the rifle / cartridge you are using. I wouldn't use my 30-30 past 250 yards, but I could use my 30-06 out to 500 yards, and the 45-70 out to 850 yards. But do I really want to have to walk 850 yards to track a blood trail? Probably not, so I limit my shots to 200 yards or less (my personal closest shot was on a deer at 15 feet on the ground from the end of the muzzle, and my longest shot at a deer with the 30-06 was 493 yards from a tree stand)

Bear is good, but for a decent quality and long life, consider Matthews or PSE. I would steer away from the Bass Pro brand

I have a couple, my early season seek and destroy is a 1/2 length Moby Dick fished as a dry or wet or streamer, and then I switch to a White or Grey Wulff in size 4 for good dry fly action as my summertime seek and destroy fly. In the fall, I go to the Cinamon Flying Ant in a size 14, or switch back to the Moby Dick again.

Without, I can always add lead shot to the leader to get it down where I need it.

I still use an old 50 Hawken, fine shooter for patched round ball with the 1 in 66 twist.

I had a drunken bowhunter climb right up and get upset because I was in what he thought was his treestand. Of course this was at 4AM, and the guy didn't have a flashlight, and was feeling his way to his stand. He climbed down and then climbed into 4 more occupied tree stands before the sun came up enough to see. The other hunters weren't so polite as I was.

TC

Should be easy. If your having problems, contact your local TU chapter, they have many fly fishermen and a couple would probably be willing to help out.

Use the rangefinder to scope out squirrels, chipmunks, other hunters.

The other thing you can do is tie your own, I've done that, not a real hard pattern to tie.

Birch bark stripped into fine strips works well for starting, shave off pieces of flint onto the birch bark shavings, then spark, should light on the first or second try, then add some fine dry dead twigs from a hemlock as tinder. Build from there.

8" on a usual

Albright makes the Yellowstone 2 piece in an 8 wt for less than $40.00

Sasquatch, needs to be a challenge.

Mic the inside diameter of the choke. I've had various choke tubes, and found an extra full that preformed better than my extended turkey choke even though it had a larger ID than the turkey choke using standard 3" Remington #6 Turkey Loads. But if I tried feeding #4 or #6/8 shotshells through it, the choke performed poorly. Best bet is try it with the loads your planning on using, pattern it, and try other chokes also. You may find that the Coyote choke will pattern better or worse than you want. Good Luck

Anytime of year is good for fishing. you can fish for bass through the ice, or during ice out. Just keep off the ice when it starts to get thin or slush covered as this is a sign of the ice breaking down.

Just about any shotgun that fits properly and shoots reliably. This is a tough question because you need to choose what you are using it for. As an all around reliable, a good pump in 12 gauge, would be a good choice. I myself prefer my old Winchester 1887 Lever Action in 12Ga 2-3/4" because its solid, heavy, reliable, and accurate.

I always try to buy in bulk, but problem has been when I have the extra ammo, I end up at the range using it. So I never have a bulk surplus. But I have found that buying in bulk will save you money, one club I belonged to did that about 15 years ago, bought a couple skids of Remington 12GA 2 3/4" #8 Target Loads for about 3/4 the price. Sold them to the members at cost, limit was 4 cases per member at the time. If I remember right, a case was under $20.00 each from the club, and to buy it at Walmart, it would cost $28.00 a case. Only problem was we were only able to do it once, mainly because of new regulations on ammunition storage and the passage of the Assault Weapons Bill, which fortunately was not signed back into law.

Mountains of Tennessee

This is sort of a vauge question. Are you referring to a rifle, or handgun? For a handgun, the Ruger MK I,II,and III are good target models, I prefer a Stainless Single Six in 22 Long Rifle / 22 Magnum. For a rifle, any of the Marlin line are excellent shooters, and you can get some in bolt, lever, or semiautomatic actions. My preferred in a rifle is the old Winchester 94 in 30-30, you can find some used ones in some pistol calibers like 44 magnum. Depends on what you want to use it for and what caliber you are comfortable using.

I call it 45 long colt for the new 45 lc, but I have shot the shorter 45 Colt, using cut down 45 LC cases. As for the 45 ACP, I refer to that as the 45 Auto.

Check with your local gun club, some of the older members look foreward to teaching others how to reload ammo. Just be prepared to buy powder, primers, bullets and a couple cups of coffee.

Depends on the load and the pattern. I started out with a 20 gauge NEF single shot with a full choke (non interchangeable), using 3" #4 shot loads. As long as it patterns well, you should be fine.

Depends on what I'm shooting. the M1 Garand and the SKS, definately a clip or on the SKS, a stripper clip. The M1 Carbine, Colt 45 Auto, and my other Autoloaders, all use magazines or the slang terms, mags or mag. Never call a magazine a clip, or a clip a magazine, unless you want to do pushups all afternoon in front of some of the former DIs I shoot with.

If you can find one, the Johnson Century 100 reel and any good casting rod will work wonders. I bought a couple 100's a few years back, still use them, but when you do get them, take them apart and remove the tacky grease and use a good reel oil.

Definately a Schofield. Quicker to reload, little heavier than the Colt, but the advantage would be in the quick reload time, which the Colt SAA has a definate disadvantage. Of course I would back that up with the venerable Winchester '73, the fastest handling lever rifle of the day, and the Winchester 1887 Lever Action Shotgun. Funny part of history, Custer was known for winning battles in the Civil War by using Henry Rifles, capable of rapid firing over muskets, yet led the 7th at Little Big Horn armed with 1873 Trapdoor single shots while the Indians used Winchesters and Henry Rifles. makes you wonder who would have won if both sides had repeaters?

"The best one is the one in my hand that works when I need it." with that being said, the 870 has to be one of the better ones out there, but to say it's the best is like a Ford guy saying the F-350 is the best, the Chevy guy saying the 3500 Silverado is the best, the Dodge guy saying the 3500 Ram is the best. All are good, the question is, how far back do you need to go to figure it out? Back in 1910, the Model 1897 by Winchester was top demand. The Winchester Model 12 came out, many people still desire that particular gun. I own a Savage Model 28 which looks exactly like the Model 12 except the safety is on the top, instead of by the trigger. Really depends on the owner and demand for particular models.

Let her know up front that the fishing may not be good, that's why they call it fishing and not catching. Also make it fun, like a scouting trip, try several differenft spots, like running and gunning, only instead of being on the water try different waters. I spoiled my girlfriend, I took her to the #1 river in the state for her 1st time fly fishing, crystal clear water, and large rainbows about 18 to 24" swimming within arms reach in 3 feet of water. She got spooked by one that swam up and used her as a current barrier, it kept hitting her in the leg from downstream, like it was trying to push her upstream. She didn't catch anything, but had such a wonderful time that we've been going every year since as an annual event.

I've used a couple different rifles, my preferred is my 30-30 Winchester, a NEF HandiRifle in either 30-06 168gr Boat Tail Spitzer, or IAB Sharps Rifle in 45-70 500 gr. Copper Checked Lead. The 30-30 is good out to 250 yards max, the 45-70 and 30-06 I can get about 500 yards max without worrying, although the Sharps will shoot out to 850 yards reliably.

Unfortunately the days of good rifles and shotguns under $200 are gone thanks to all the lawyers, lawsuits, and legal garbage thrown at the manufacturers. The funny part is the rifle probably cost $100 to build, but the legal overhead incase of a lawsuit drives the price from $150 to $950. I remember buying a Savage Model 110 in 270 Winchester for $265 back in 1994, today that same gun would cost me $700.

150 yards max, although I have killed a rabbit with one shot at 200 yards with a 22 Long (not long Rifle)

Depends, sort of like the GM vs Ford vs Dodge question. What type of gun, rifle, or shotgun? Made when? made of what? How much?

First off, what's the first three rules of owning a firearm? Keep the gun pointed away from anything you don't want to shoot, Keep your finger off the trigger, and Keep the action clear and unnloaded until your ready to shoot. Obviously if you can't follow those 3 simple rules, you aren't allowed to play at my house.

Depends on the condition, $300 to 500 range tops.

I use both, but prefer the line loops over the knots, mainly because I can swap out a damaged line or broken leader quickly without affecting the rest of the system (backing, line, leader)

Worse tracking I ever had, tracked a wounded buck for 2 days and 15 miles through brush and briars, and never did find the buck.

The three colors, Copper, Gold, Silver, all work well. I use the Al's Goldfish in gold or copper colors with good success.

I've used one once before the state of Taxachusetts banned their sale back in 1998. You use the choke for the shotshells, not the 45 LC rounds. Actually the instructions tell you to remove the choke prior to using the 45 LC, or 410 slugs, as the choke takes the spin out of the wad as it exits the barrel. Patterns OK, I was looking for one to shoot trap, as I develope pain in my shoulders when shooting trap (not from recoil but from holding the position with the shotgun)

Here's my top 5 picks, #1) Maine #2) New York #3) Montana #4) Washington #5) Oklahoma

8 gauge harpoon gun at a Whaling Museum Exhibit / Reinactment in Mystic CT. Recoil was similar to a 10GA Magnum.

I know your going for bass, but what technique are you planning, also do you prefer spinning or casting, or flies? Another thing is price range, how much do you want to spend? Really vague question, too many answers. I myself prefer a fly rod, sometimes I fit a small spinning reel to it to troll small bass buzz baits, other times I use a 6 Wt fly line and poppers.

agree with the last 4 posts.

Neither, Go Joe Gibbs Racing.

My personal favorite, 45-70 Gov't with a 500 Grain Copper Checked Lead Slug. It's a toss up between the 30-30 Winchester and the 30-06 Springfield.

I wouldn't trade places with any of them unless there was a sizable salary with it. It probably would be fun to fill in for some of these guys, but why would I want the headaches of deadlines, appropriate use of words without offending anyone, and if it's not good enough, you get to answer to the higher ups. I'll stay working my 6 days a week right now in my mostly secure job and laughing my way to the bank.

2 3/4" or 3" #6 with a extra full choke should be more than sufficient.

You need to click on the +more about ranking and points, then scroll down the page to The Complete Rules for Points and Stars. Click on that, it will open a new tab or new web browser for you, then you'll see how far you have to go. Roughly you need 5000 pts for 2 stars, 10000 for 3, 20000 for 4 and 50000 for 5 100 points per answer, photo or video, 50 points for comment in a blog, 10 points for someone liking your comment Good Luck

the weirdest thing I had was at about 10AM in the morning I was sitting in my tree stand 20 feet up, when these two idiots come crashing thru the woods with a 15 foot ladder stand. They came up to the tree, I called down to them, they looked around, didn't look up, and proceeded to set up their ladderstand underneath me. I hollered at them again, told them to look up, they looked around and kept right on working. Then as one went to get up on the stand, the other noticed they strapped their stand around my ladder. I kept yelling for them to look up, finally I just stood up, proceeded to relieve myself on one of them, then the guy got upset because someone peed on him. They finally after 20 minutes and getting peed on, that someone was already in the tree above them. After a few choice words, they decided that I had the higher ground and should leave. What a couple of idiots. Nice part was a couple hours after they left I got a shot off at a nice buck.

Depends on your shooting style. I was always taught to shoot from a cold barrel, meaning one shot only. Very rarely other than target practice would I shoot from a hot barrel, but I have found that the fluting has made the cool down time much quicker between cold shots.

TC

a 100 grain Bullet isn't enough to take down an animal with 1 shot, unless it's a head shot or a perfect heart shot. I would say go with the 150 grain, and you'll see a difference in the knock down.

The 30-30 shoots a .308" diameter bullet with a weight between 100 and 220 grains depending on the load. Normal factory loads are 150 grain or 170 grain. the .270 Winchesterr uses a 30-06 size case necked down to the .277" diameter. The .277" diameter bullets come in a weight of 90 to 150 grains. THe key difference is the .270 Winchester has a fairly flat tragectory out to 300 yards where the 30-30 has an effective range of only 250 yards max.

I wouldn't reblue unless absolutely necessary. I've got an old Winchester 1887 Lever Action Shotgun, Under the wood is a nice and dark (almost black) bluing. The rest of the gun has become a beautiful brown patina color, from so many years of use. I use that same gun everyday, and had offers of up to $1500 for it, because it's been well taken care of and the action is tight. But I'm not selling it, as it was passd down to me from my father, who received it from my grandfather, who received it from my great grandfather who bought it from Winchester in New Haven CT back in 1893. So the historical value to me is priceless.

Most pesky has to be the grey squirrel. Trapped lots of them in old houses, they eat away at the walls and insulation of the buildings. best thing I found for them is a 12 Gauge #8s and a good head shot. The other thing is the 22 Winchester Magnum and a head shot also.

I'm a firm believer that if you make it too complicated, they will become overwhelmed and not take it seriously and become negative about it. I've taught rifle shooting, shotgun shooting, and muzzleloading to the Boy Scouts, and what I found is that the muzzleloading takes a backburner to the others because of simplicity. Load a shell and shoot. Instant gratification. Versus clearing the barrel, loading the powder charge, dumping the powder, getting a ball in the patch, ramming it home, then either priming the pan or putting the cap on. It takes a beginner 3 to 5 minutes to get 1 shot off, versus 2 to 5 seconds to get off a shot with a 22 single shot bolt action. I would say go with the single shot, many companies are making combo units, rifle, shotgun and muzzleloader barrels and one frame, which can make hunting more fun.

You mean "Non Athletic Sport Centered Around Rednecks"? :) Just kidding, I like watching the Craftsman Truck Series, the cars get boring at times, especially when they got too PC, no more fist fighting in the pits, the garage, or throwing helmets at the guy who crashed you. Atleast the trucks get to rub and race like the old days. The other thing I like is CORR Championship Off Road Racing, those guys in the 2WD and 4WD trucks put on quite the show.

Unless it's pitch dark out, I don't use a light. I first sit for 15 minutes to let my eyes adjust, you'll be surprised at how well you can see in the dark after your eyes adjust. I do use a headlamp for climbing, a led unit that casts little light, mainly to see the ladder steps up. I have spooked a few deer with a flashlight, and found if you have covered your scent and run without a flashlight, you can usually walk within 10 yards of a resting deer herd before anything moves.

Big question. Did you Order the stock for the 500 "A" or the 500. I've got the 500 and my friend has the 500A, some parts interchange, but some don't.

I've never gotten lost, I've been off course a few feet in the woods, but never lost. I think that in order to get lost you have to stop thinking all together.

My Avatar is a photo of myself resting on my father's boat, waiting with the fly rod for some action on Nantucket Sound. I chose it because it was a really good picture and shows me in my element.

I would say get a good 5/6 weight setup, not necessarily name brand, but a good setup is key to enjoying fly fishing. I would recommend talking to the guys at the local fly shop and get ideas. Also plan on a budget for this, as you can spend a couple hunderd to a couple thousand on a decent setup. If your not sure, get a starter kit, I know Cabelas has the Genesis kit which includes everything except the waders. And it costs around $150.

if you want a decent setup, an 8 foot to 9 foot rod in a 5/6 wt would be ideal, and for the reel, you have many choices. I recommend for top of the line, a Hardy Perfect size 2, or an Orvis CFO II, but for starters, the Pflueger 1594RC (Rim Control) would be perfect.

Cabelas has the Genesis complete fly fishing outfit for less than $150. Gives you rod, reel, line, leader, tools, chest pack, rod case, and flies. You may be able to get it on sale too, I've seen them down around $119.00 on sale. LL Bean has one also, around $100 for everything also. The other thing is to check with your local TU Chapter, I know that some members have way too much gear and often will sell or donate to other members.

It looks like a reproduction model, probably made in the early 1990's with the 50th anniversary of World War II. I bought a Colt 1991A1 with the Serial Numbers in sequence from the old Colt Model 1911A1 my grandfather had (mine was about 20,000 higher in sequence from his) Lots of companies marketed stuff to commemorate, Like the ad I saw for preordering a replica Kabar Commemorative for Desert Shield / Desert Storm 20 years later. Looked like the ones put out at the time of Desert Shield, except for the dates and Twenty Years Ago on the blade.

Curious what semi auto you have, and why it isn't ejecting shells. I had that problem with a Browning A5 20 gauge, the internal extractor broke off, so when the shell came back it wasn't in proper alignment to eject and would jam. I disassembled the action, and found the broken extractor. One call to Gun Parts Corporation and I had the new extractor for less than $15.00 with shipping and a wait of 5 days. That was 4 years and 2500 rounds ago. I find that if the gun is comfortable to shoot, then the small investment in time to fix it is worth more than buying something that you have to get used to over again.

I've got a Browning A5 Lightning 20, and love it for doubles and bird hunting. The only thing I don't like it the A-5 has a hard recoil on the last round, when the bolt locks open. Other than that, I love it.

Daisy has a pretty good reputation for low cost air rifles and pistols. But I would recommend checking out Cabelas, Gander Mountain, Bass Pro or the local gun shop over Walmart, mainly because they can answer questions that the guy behind the counter at Walmart wouldn't have the slightest idea about.

Unfortunately I live in Taxachusetts, or the state formerly known as the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

If you want to have fun, go down to Walmart and pick up the Shakespear Microglass MFLY702 fly rod (under $20.00), and a spinning reel or Johnson Scorpion Under Spincast enclosed reel (under $12.00) spooled with 6 lb test. I've caught plenty of fish with this rig, feels funny with the reel behind your hand and can handle most baits and tackle with no problem. Plus you can get a fly reel with a 5 wt line and cast flies too.

I've had it only once about 20 years ago, and the game warden ruled in my favor. I shot the deer, followed the blood trail to a gutpile, then followed the drag marks to the guy hauling my deer to his house. I told him that it was my deer, he denied it, so I called the game warden and followed the guy to his house. When the game warden saw the tag, he thought it was the other fellows, but when he asked to see the guy's shotgun, the guy pumped out a live round, not an empty hull. Also on inspection the gun hadn't been fired, the barrel was still clean and coated with gun oil. After asking the fellow exactly how he shot the deer, the guy admitted that he walked up on the dead deer, saw it was a fresh kill, and decided to take it. So I was given the deer back, already field dressed, and the guy who took it a citation and court date.

I have to say lack of education, and influence of propganda by extremely wealthy politicians who envision the days of total control over the people. The problem is that as long as people have a way to defend themselves, the power hungry control freak politicians can't just march in and take over because they might be hurt or killed off. Think about this, centuries ago the slaves taken from Africa were captured by men who had superior weaponry (muskets and steel) compared to the weapons the natives had (wooden bows, spears, rocks). Had the natives had the same or better weaponry centuries ago, slavery would have changed or become non existant from what history has shown us today. And knowing this, there are still people who believe they are better than everyone else and everyone should bow down to them like slaves or servants. Fortunate for us, the day I bow down to someone and call them master is the day that I will never see, for I believe in freedom, and defending that freedom at all cost for not only myself, my friends, and family, but everyone now and future generations.

I remember reading that article, very interesting and very controversial as to the aspect of comparing fishing to hunting. I would recommend contacting Wright Reprints at 877-652-5295. They'll more than likely have the article on file and can probably search it by the author rather than the issue date. Good luck

I have to agree with rrmont, the 3" will give you both, because you need more powder to move the extra shot. I've loaded 2 3/4" with 1 1/4 oz of shot, and others with 1 oz shot. Depends on the load and what you want it to use it for. I've loaded 3" shells with 1 3/8oz load, and had the same recoil as my target loads. really depends on how fast you want the shot to travel and how hard you want it to hit, along with how much shot you want to hit the target.

I've used the TC Contender, both pistol and rifle. The only thing I can say is make sure you sight in the iron sights if they are on the barrel, when changing barrels, place the unused one in a padded case, and if you are going to use a scope, either use one scope per barrel, or use the same scope, rings and bases. I use 1 scope and prefer the weaver style with the see through for the iron sights and permanent bases on the barrels. I keep a log, when I zero in the scope, I write how many clicks up, down,left, right from the factory set points on each barrel. When the scope comes off, I reset it to the zero points when I took the scope out of the box. Then I install it on the new barrel and go to the settings I wrote in my log, take 2 test shots, if good, go hunting. If off target, adjust and write adjustments down in log for info when swapping the scope back to the zero from the box. Other than that, I love using them, you get used to one frame, one action, one fit, one trigger pull, and several dozen calibers.

Depends on the calibur of the cartidge you want to use and how far away are you from the target. What do you want the bullet to do? Do you want a clean entry and exit, a small entry and no exit, knockdown power? I found that depending on range and sizze of game, you've got way too many options. Rimfire, centerfire, reloading ammo? I would recommend if you can get a good used bolt action rifle, preferably in a 223 centerfire, or 17 / 22 caliber rimfire. Very good on varmints, low recoil, and fairly cheap to shoot. If you plan on going into one rifle and one rifle only for everything, I would say go for a 243 Winchester. Good cartridge, will take deer just as well as woodchucks. And depending on what you feed it, you can vary the accuracy, stopping power, and mushrooming effect of the bullet on both varmints and deer.

All except for Taxachusetts, the only state where you can't buy anything because the state overtaxes everything.

If you can get one, a Remington or Marlin Bolt Action in 22 Magnum would be more than effective. Has the extra punch at distance, and ammo costs more than the 22 Long rifle, but I have yet to shoot a racoon or squirrel once with the 22 mag. I would say to do one other thing, if you do get a good rifle, make sure it has a scope and iron sights. I set up mine with the scope at 100 yards, iron sights at 25 yards. When I've treed a coon, I use the iron sights, if he's on the ground and in range, I use the scope for those longer shots. One thing I do recommend, lots and lots of practice.