Hunting Season - A Glorious Time

When the nights start to cool, the days grow short and that smell of Autumn is in the air. Two things occur to me, the second is here comes Winter, my least favorite season. The first, however is way more uplifting, time to hunt.

Whatever part of this great United States hunters live in, it is a glorious time of year. It brings back memories of my past with my Grampa's and my Dad. We were not a family known for hunting, but back when I was about ten, I wanted to hunt. The closest of my two Grampa's told me that if I wanted to hunt, first I would have to take a hunters safety course. Then he would take me hunting.

I did and true to his word, Grampa let me use his 410 shotgun, he used his favorite gun, a J.C Higgins Side by Side, Double Barrel 12 gauge Scattergun ( A real working man's gun, double barrels to my Grampa's generation* where an everything gun, a tool no different from their other tools. They used them for hunting sometimes to put the only meat they could get on the table and for home, farm and land protection.) {* Americas greatest generation, as you probably know, were the Americans who went through The Great Depression & WW2 and came out victorious }.

Our first hunting expedition was squirrel hunting. Grampa loved to eat squirrel. He taught me everything I needed to know, the kindest way to ALWAYS ASK to hunt someones land, how to safely check if an electric fence was on, how to move and/or wait quietly and even when to make noise to spook an animal on purpose. That trip to some may have only been just a squirrel hunt, but to me, it was as good as an African Safari. I loved it.

Probably millions of American boys across the this great country started out like this and it is a grand tradition. One generation passing onto another a right of passage, a sport enjoyed by so many for so long, it is probably very hard to know when it began.

You may see pictures of this gun in many of my blogs, it isn't even the one Grampa owned, but I got all the info on the one that my Grampa owned from my cousin who rightfully has it now, and I went on a hunt of my own to find the exact same model. It wasn't easy, being a 1959-1960 model, but I finally found one and this gun still means more to me than all my others.

1959 - 1960 J.C. Higgins Model 101.540 side by side double barrel 12 gauge Shotgun, made 

by Steven's, basically a Steven's 311, for Sears, Roebuck and Company.

Wisconsin is one of the greatest deer hunting states and that was my goal, to deer hunt some day. In Wisconsin during deer season when I was a kid, schools, factories, offices and even some towns were almost devoid of men and boys. The term Deer Widow applied for roughly 7 days. Now, it is even better, because a lot of the woman and young ladies go too. It's great.

Hunting and fishing can be a fantastic way for fathers and sons, mothers and daughters, husbands and wives or any mix of family to spend time together. In today's world where families are spending less time at the dinner table together and more time separated by electronics, Quality time spent together outdoors in the wilderness is priceless for a child. Like the sign above says, kids are not going to remember the first time that they watch television, but they most surely will remember the first time they went hunting or fishing with their dad or their mom, Grampa or Gramma. That's the kind of thing that makes a lifelong memories and teaches lifelong skills to your children. Skills that they will go on to pass on to their children. After all, the example we set as parents, is probably the way our kids are going to parent their children. 

In today's world, in so many places where crime, drugs, peer pressure and other bad influences seem to have such a big influence on young people, it's just as important, if not more important than ever for us as parents to set a good example. And the best way to set an example is to spend time with kids. I believe that kids learn by what they see their parents doing and the time their parents spend with them.

Love him or hate him, Ted Nugent's saying about if we spend time hunting with our kids, will spend less time hunting for them, Just makes good sense. If they're spending time with us and learning things from us, then that's less time they're going to spend learning things from undesirable people. 

God's beautiful nature is awesome. I love to spend time in in the woods, fields or by a body of water just soaking in the sights, sounds and smells of the wild. That time is refreshing for the soul, energizing and great at putting things back into perspective. I also believe that those things are just as important, maybe more important, than the hunt. Those sights and sounds are what keep many people spending more and more time hunting, fishing, hiking, etc.

This is not a real deer, but a man can dream. Most hunters dream of a deer like this.

My favorite deer rifle, my Remington 700 CDL Classic Deluxe 30-06.

Fall after fall, men, women, sons, daughters and Granchildren hit the woods with dreams of that trophy buck (be it deer, elk, moose, stag or antelope), huge pheasant, beautiful ducks, wild boar, bear or whatever there favorites are becoming a reality. Armed with rifle, bow, handgun or muzzleloader, they go out to provide food for their families and maybe a trophy for the wall.

Some people go hunting with the bare essentials, some with all the high tech, expensive equipment they can haul. However, regardless of what they take to the fields, woods, prairies, mountains or swamps, the good ones go with a gladness in their heart to get back to nature. To experience that great, God engraved feeling of the hunter, gatherer instinct. That man vs nature adventure that appeals to all hunters.

Statistic show that in the last 10 years there has been a dramatic rise in the sale of hunting licenses, firearms, ammunition, and hunting supplies. Believe it or not, studies also show that a vast majority of the people causing that rise are women, who in the past considered hunting to be a man's world. Well it's not just for men anymore and I say " Welcome to the woods and waters ladies".

This could be for many reasons. Some of which are that people are tired of buying meat in the grocery store that is injected with steroids, growth hormones and who knows what else. All of which are extremely unhealthy for all of us. The only way we can be pretty much guarantee to get fresh meat, is to hunt or fish for our own.

It's a get back to nature viewpoint that can't be denied. The hunting license sales throughout the country show that is true. The amount of Young women seen in gunshops and hunting, fishing and camping supply stores proves it beyond a shadow of a doubt.

The manufacturing of ladies pink or purple camo items such as hunting clothing and supplies made in women's sizes and to fit women's bodies also prove it. If these companies weren't selling these items, they wouldn't be making them. Plus, just about anywhere you go, you can see women actually wearing these items. Pink and purple camo isn't just a fashion statement you can actually wear it hunting. There are some animals that will pick the pink or purple out in an instant, But there are also other animals that can't see it at all, because they see pink or purple as the color gray.

Here is an example of the type of very popular Pink Camo being put out by Mossy Oak and Realtree.

There is also a type a camouflage made by a company called Muddy Girl, that incorporates pink and purple with their camouflage pattern. This causes an even larger break up in the color pattern which makes it harder for animals to see the person wearing it. Not only is this type a camo being used for clothing and hunting accessories but also on the rifles and shotguns themselves.

This is a Remington 870 shotgun in pink camouflage.

Here is a picture of a young lady with a rifle coated with a Muddy Girl camouflage and she is completely clothed in the pink and purple camouflage made by Muddy Girl.

It's a great thing to see the sport of hunting spreading throughout a vast majority of people from different lifestyles. Starting already this year, and continuing throughout the rest of the hunting season, hunters will be setting up their tree stands, ground blinds, duck blinds and and walking through the woods, fields, marshes and all over the hunting territory. Depending on where they're from, these these hunters will face extreme cold, mosquitoes, in some places heat, in others frost biting temps and love every minute of it because they love the great outdoors, God's beautiful nature, and the thrill of the hunt.

Review of the Henry Repeating Rifle .44 Magnum Big Boy

Henry Repeating Arms Co.

Henry Lever Action .44 Magnum/ .44 Special Rifle

HENRY REPEATING RIFLE - .44 MAGNUM/.44 SPECIAL LEVER ACTION RIFLE

"The rifle that won The Civil War and The Wild WEST"

            

HENRY REPEATING ARMS, .44 MAGNUM, .44 SPECIAL LEVER ACTION RIFLE

In 1860, Benjamin Tyler Henry invented the Henry Repeating Rifle for The New Haven Arms Company, later to become The Winchester Repeating Arms Company. The Henry Rifle was the first truly dependable lever action repeating rifle and could hold 16 rounds of sixteen rounds of .44 caliber rim-fire ammunition cartridges that could be fired at 28 rounds per minute. That rate of fire was astonishing in 1860, when most soldiers were shooting black powder musket, which had to be reloaded after each shot. Reloading a musket is a slow process, with most solders only being able able to fire 3 rounds per minute.

Benjamin Tyler Henry

An antique Henry Rifle advertisement

The above information, tells of how revolutionary The Henry was in it's day. With this new gun, B.T. Henry went to president Abraham Lincoln with one of his rifles, and presented him with a gold plated Henry rifle, that now is in The Smithsonian Institute. Lincoln loved the rifle, being an accomplished shooter, really admired the rifle. Lincoln wanted to order many of the Henry rifles for the Union troops, but do to interference from the men in charge of equipment for the Union Army. (Yes, the was a lot of the political red tape then too). Abe was only able to order 3,140 of the rifles.

President Abraham Lincoln's Henry Rifle

The original Henry rifles shot the Henry Cartridge, the first fully contained copper or brass cartridge. They were .44 caliber and completely self contained, one piece cartridges, making them way easier to load than a cap & ball gun. Plus they were water proof, so people didn't have to worry about keeping black powder dry.

                               

A .44 Henry Cartridge found on a Civil War battle site.

The only problem with the original Henry was that there was no wood under the barrel, so when the barrel got hot, the men would have to let it cool. The advantages so far outweighed the that one disadvantage though, that when The Union soldiers would reenlist, a lot of them would spend their reenlistment bonus on buying a Henry rifle and ammo for it. That purchase gave them 28 shots a minute as apposed to 3 with a musket, therefore giving them a better chance of getting back home alive and well.

The Henry Repeating Rifle was not the only repeating rifle at the time though. There was also the Spencer Repeating Rifle, which was also invented in 1860. The Spencer held seven rounds in a tube in the buttstock, it shot fast, but had to be reloaded more often because of only holding seven rounds per tube. The Henry's tube, which was mounted under the barrel held 15 rounds, therefore it didn't need to be reloaded as often.

The Spencer held a .56 caliber bullet, but had terrible ballistics. The Henry having a .44 Caliber, which is a pistol caliber, had more power per shot, however didn't shoot as far as the Spencer.

Spencer Repeating Rifle

                                                           Spencer Repeating Rifle diagram

When the Confederate soldiers first encountered both rifles, they were stunned. Many Rebs thought that the amount and speed of ammo being shot meant they were up against a troop of soldiers, when in truth it may have just been a few scouts or snipers. The Confederates did get their hands on some of the rifles from fallen Union soldiers, they went on to call The Henry Rifle, " That darn Yankee rifle that they load on Sunday and shoot all week." People have said that The Henry was the first Military Assault Rifle.

Reports of The Henry Rifle have been well documented in Civil War history. The 71st Infantry of Illinois was the most known and maybe only whole troop to carry Henry Rifles. An account of that came from Major William Ludlow’s account of the Battle of Allatoona Pass. “What saved us that day was the fact that we had a number of Henry rifles” wrote Major Ludlow. “This company of 16 shooters sprang to the parapet and poured out such a multiplied, rapid and deadly fire, that no men could stand in front of it and no serious effort was made thereafter to take the fort by assault.”

71st Infantry Illinois with their Henry Rifles

When the Reb's did get ahold of a Henry or Spencer, it didn't do them much good once the ammo with it was gone, because both the rifles were made in and for the North. That meant that after the Confederate soldiers shot up that ammo, they couldn't get any more.

Both companies ended up being bought by Winchester shortly after the Civil War. The Spencer stopped being made, but The Henry was given a side loading port a fore end stock and became the Winchester 1866. Ammo for the Spencer was made into the early 1900's, but ammo for The Henry was made until The Great Depression hit America.

The Henry Repeating Lever Action Rifle wasn't made in America again until The Henry Repeating Arms Co. opened in 1996, They now have two plants, one in Bayonne, New Jersey and one in Rice lake, Wisconsin. The new version of The Henry is true to it's Civil War namesake, except it has an improved closed loading tube, wood fore end and, since the original 44 Henry ammo isn't made anymore, it comes in a wide variety of caliber options. The closest and most powerful being the .44 Magnum / .44 Special Big Boy Version. The Big Boy in .45 long Colt is also very popular among Cowboy and Single Action Shooters.

The most commonly seen Henry is The Golden Boy, which is a .22 caliber version. Henry a present has roughly 17 rifles available plus a lot of special limited edition rifles commemorating Abe Lincoln, The Boy Scouts, one for all the US Military branches and many more.

I bought my Henry Lever Action Big Boy in .44 Magnum, which will also shoot .44 Special, after wanting one for a very long time. It is after all, a real Cowboy Rifle. Holding it at gun shop was great, holding and firing it after I bought my own was awesome.

The first thing that I noticed and have a lot of people agree with, is that The Henry is a beautiful piece of gun art. You won't find burrs or blemishes, scrapes or scratches on a newly unboxed Henry. The machining, polishing, blueing and woodworking are incredible. The brass receiver, barrel lop and butt-end are stunningly beautiful and shined to a mirror finish. The wood is American Walnut. All of the fits, joints and finishes are great. Pictures of the Henry really don't do it justice, you have to see and hold a Henry to really appreciate it. The next fun step is shooting it. 

I went to the range and shot 44 Magnum and 44 Special ammo I've also shot new and reloaded ammo and it cycles through my Henry perfectly. I did fire one once that didn't eject well when shot at a very fast rate of speed, but I have shot 7 or 8 of them and only seen that one have that trouble. It isn't anything I would worry about. The lever action cocking, ejecting and reloading the chamber are smoother than butter. The Henry is a heavy gun which helps with the .44 Magnum recoil. The kick is no more than any quality deer rifle. There is no need for a rubber butt plate.

The semi-buckhorn sights are easy to use and were very accurate right our of the box. The octagon barrel is awesome and helps keep the barrel cool. The loading tube is simple to use, just depress and turn the cap, pull out the spring fed magazine, insert the ammo, re-insert the (inner tube and cap) magazine, turn to lock it into place and your ready to go. And the shooting is FUN.

The Henry makes me feel nostalgic, like I should be a Texas Ranger with Gus McCrae and Capt. Call in Lonesome Dove fighting bandits or Comanche's. That is another thing about the Henry, it is mentioned as a main rifle in many Western novels and movies. Some are Lonesome Dove, True Grit, Django Unchaned, Cowboys and Aliens, Silverado among many more. How can any Western movie or novel lover not get excited by reading (epic novel) or seeing (movie or TV series) Call and Gus carrying those beatiful Henry rifles. With description like " The roar of Call's big Henry" or watching Robert Duvall using his horse as  a breast works and fighting those Kiowa's and buffalo hunters to save Laurena.

The cost of a Henry Big Boy in the big bore calibers is very reasonable at $750 or $450 for the Henry Golden Boy in .22 caliber. The special edition rifles such as the Lincoln Edition or Deluxe models are more, but they are collectors items and are still not excessively priced. 

Plus your getting a 100 % American made rifle. The president and owner of Henry rifles Anthony Imperato is a company owner that can be really be reached. I have never tried, but I have heard and read of many who have. He can be reached and (I've heard you get a response from the president himself at;

 http://www.henryrifles.com/contact-henry-repeating/contact-anthony-imperato/

Henry just announced that they will be making an exact reproduction of the original Henry rifle in America for the first time in roughly 150 years.

Also Henry announced that the Wisconsin plant will begin making 30-30 & 45-70 rifles and they are now shipping to gun shops.

Other great things about the Henry are;

1- You can send in your very own rifle and have the brass receiver engraved.

2- All Henry Lever Action Rifles come with the normal lever size, but for $50 you order a large loop lever.

3- All Henry Lever Action Rifles can be used by right or left handed shooters. I am left eye dominant, so I shoot rifles left handed. It comes in handy when I don't have to worry about finding a left handed rifle.

I am going to end this review a bit differently, usually I give a star rating and explanation with each subject. I have however went into greater detail on this review, so I am going to give the Henry 5 star rating.

***** Stars perfect rating for my Henry Lever Action .44 Magnum/.44 Special by Henry Repeating Arms

Remington R1 1911

Remington 1911 R1 Centennial

Remington honors John Moses Browning's greatest invention and the world's greatest pistol ever by starting to make them again.

It is now 2014 as I write this 102 years after the U.S. Military adopted the 1911 as their service pistol. It was ahead of it's time then and still is today. The 1911 has won two World Wars, The Korean war, served in The Vietnam War and countless other conflicts. As well as saving many civilian lives. The 1911 has helped to make and keep America the greatest nation in the world.

                  Eliphalet Remington 

The Remington R1 1911 is the first 1911 I've ever owned. The famed and rightly ( I now know ) respected 1911, has been around for 103 years and still ahead of it's time. 

The Colt 1911 .45 ACP caliber was invented by John Moses Browning, the firearms genius, from Utah. The ACP stands for Colt Automatic Pistol.

               John Moses Browning

Browning had invented many firearms, almost all of which were a huge success. In the first decade of the of the 1900's, America knew it was going to wind up in WWI, knowing so, they wanted a state of the art semi automatic pistol for the military. Colt got Browning's invention and won a new government contract to build what would become the 1911 pistol. 

The first 1911 pistols came out of Colt's factory in 1910, but the military started issuing them in 1911, hence the name. The pistol held 7 rounds in a clip that slips into the grip and, once cocked, can fire the seven rounds as fast as a soldier can repeatedly squeeze the trigger. It also came with at least 2 safeties, the thumb safety and the grip or "Beavertail" safety.

The thumb safety is simply a lever that is flipped up and locks into a notch in the slide, making the slide immovable, that way it can't fire. The grip safety nicknamed a Beavertail, has to be pushed forward when you put your hand around the grip, squeezing it forward. So if my hand isn't around the grip, even if the thumb safety isn't engaged, the gun can't and won't fire. The third safety is a firing pin safety, so that if the gun is dropped, the firing pin can't hit the primer to fire the cartridge or bullet.

The Beavertail safety was originally a more modest size, but over the years companies have offered a more exaggerated version, because of what some people with big hands call "hammer bite", which is when firing the weapon, having the hammer or slide knock the web of skin between the thumb and index finger. I have fairly large hands, but I've found that, with a proper grip, hasn't been much of a problem.

I own the Remington R1 1911 Centennial  Edition, which is, essentially an exact copy of Remington's WWI pistol with some fact engraving, the word Centennial and also the engraving saying 1911 - 2011 on the slide. It also has some very high quality maple grips with an R logo badge inset in the grip. It is an absolutely beautiful, commemorative handgun. 

Below are close up pictures of the original Beavertail and the larger version.

                                                          Original Beavertail SAFETY

                                                                  Larger Beavertail safety offered on some models.

                                                   

THUMB SAFETY

With all of these safeties, the pistol can be carried cocked and at the ready for a soldier or person for fast protection or defense. All of this is very important to a soldier or anyone in a high stress situation where seconds count.

The 1911 is also a very accurate firearm, in 1911 and even still today. The accuracy come from a stable, bushing supported barrel that is a standard five inches long, a descent weight that helps with aiming and taming the recoil of a .45 caliber cartridge and a trigger that even out of the box is crisp. All of these reasons are why today, 103 years later, some military, police and some of the best competitive shooters in the world, still count on the 1911. 

During WWI, Colt couldn't keep up with the military demand, so they sub contracted Remington and other companies to make more pistols. Although the standards for the 1911 were to be met, some of the companies turned out better product than others. Remington being one of them. Remington was and is the oldest firearms company in America, probably the world, so they know how to build very high quality firearms. Besides the fact, that they were also making rifles for American Military, they were also making the ammo for the 1911, rifles and shotguns for America and our allies. Now that is a highly respected company.

                        Remington 

A picture of the original Remington 1911 prototype from WWI. Now housed at the Remington Museum.

Now with that important history given, I'll begin the review on my Remington R1 1911 Centennial Edition.

First and foremost, this is the finest, most accurate, beautiful handgun I've ever owned or shot. I don't say that lightly, I feel that I own or have shot some of the best handguns ever made. I own Smith & Wesson, SIG Sauer, Uberti Colt and have not had a problem with any of them, however this not to say anything bad about them. It is just to say that Remington makes great guns, whether it be an 870 Wingmaster or a 700 Sporting Rifle, Remington guns are made to such high exacting standards that they are hard to beat. Also, Remington has price ranges to suit most any ones budget.

Remington is America's oldest gun maker, since 1816, so they have had plenty of practice and it shows on my 1911. I took my Remington 1911 R1 Centennial to shoot and gave myself one clip to get used to the gun and on the second clip I took serious aim, hitting 3 bullseyes and with the 7 shot clip, I kept a 1 1/2 inch group that is unheard of by me. I'm a pretty good shot, but not that good normally. I was amazed. I believe the accuracy of the pistol made the difference.

Target of second clip

Close up

The pistol shoots so smoothly that the follow up shots are easy with a good shot picture. The recoil or kick is soft for a .45 caliber pistol. It feels comfortable in my hands thanks to the checkered maple grips.

Like said earlier, this is my first1911, but I now understand why some people favor this pistol so much and most pistol companies make a 1911 pistol in some version. We all have our favorite  guns and manufacturers. I have been a long time Remington fan, so I feel with the combination on Remington's quality and the 1911's design, I have the best pistol money can buy.

The Remington 1911 R1 Centennial gets a 5 star rating, the highest possible.

Cost - 5 stars - With the least expensive R1 version staring out at roughly $500, and going up from there, just depending on how many bells and whistles you want, Remington has made an R1 for almost every one's budget. Even the least expensive R1 come with a stainless steel match grade, that's a fancy phrase for completion ready or very accurate, barrel. Solid Maple checkered grips, great sights, an awesome trigger, 2 magazines, a bushing wrench, high quality bluing, a Platinum Service Plan with a 7 day turnaround time and a custom case. With all of that and Remington quality, the 1911 R1 can't be beat by any gun company.

Ammo - 5 stars - There is almost a countless variety of .45 ACP ammo available by an almost countless amount of manufacturers. You can get everything from range, self defense, military and hunting types of ammo, but that's just a sampling of what is out there. The price ranges come from very inexpensive to very expensive. All of these options make the 1911 an even more versatile pistol.

Some inexpensive range ammo, also pretty good for self defense.

Great self defense ammo

Shootability - 5 stars - The shootability of this pistol is excellent. The sights line up very easily, the balance is impeccable, the trigger is crisp with very little travel before or after engagement, it is so light feeling it's almost a hair trigger, but not so easy as to be a dangerous. Remington doesn't call it a competition trigger, but it really is. The barrel truly is a stainless steel, 5 inch, bushing balanced competition barrel. the barrel bushing on the R1 is truly useful and really does need the provided bushing wrench to remove the bushing. The spring is strong, thick and well made.

The accuracy is the best I've ever shot, out of my 2nd 7 round clip I shot 3 bullseyes and all 7 shots in a 1 1/2 inch group. The recoil is mild and allows easy re aiming. The clip easily removable and easy to replace, which is great in an emergency.

Weight and Size - 5 stars - The weight being 38.5 ounces or 2 pounds 6 1/2 ounces makes for a beefy, solid, all metal pistol that is not very heavy at all. At 8.5 inches long by 5.5 inches in height, the R1 is easy to carry open or concealed. After all, people have been doing just that with the 1911 for over 100 years.

Additional Accessories - 5 Stars - The holster options, for open, concealed or service carry are almost endless. Their are so many parts made that easily interchange that I couldn't even begin to mention them all here. A 1911 can be outfitted to be a competition accuracy handgun, a hunting, self defense or tactical handgun. The options are pretty much up to what you can imagine.