Put me also on the "chuckle list" Destry. Different strokes for different folks, but you make a very valid point- especially to an old waterfowler like moi- a nice light Evans or J. Wilkes 12 bore for the short Limey shells over at Walpole in late Nov. with a big wind zipping across Lake St. Clair and the Canadas hammering their wings against that gale-that's like a cement contractor showing up for a foundation pouring with an eggbeater to mix the cement, gravel and water.
But to be fair to Lowell, and I take him like I do Letterman- great entertainment but not necessarily "Good to ride the long and hard trail with", and he does add plenty of seasoning to the stew we have on this site- lotsa sparks, some spirited disagreement, all in good fun. He might also be perplexed with a 9 and 1/2 lb. Parker GH 10 bore or a 12 HE Fox in the dove blind or grouse woods.
I think that for the same reason(s) Parker, Ithaca, Fox and Smith may have given out special "highly decorated models" - ie: The Sousa Ithaca SBT-to promote their regular line, they may have also liked the great advertising when Joe Columbaire won the big money in the pigeon rings with his: Parker, Smith, Purdey-etc. The barrel steels and chokes, ejectors, triggers, all the basics were as on the regular hunting guns they produced, just the extras-and my favorite guns, the pre-WW11 Winchesters=- they didn't come up with Trap Grade, Tournament Grade and then Pigeon Grade for nothing- Winchester started its dominance of the pumpgun area of the market as live bird shooting was in its peak, and the ATA had yet to establish its grounds at Vandalia, OH-- RWTF
Last edited by Run With The Fox; 03/03/09 09:36 AM.
