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I know my 30 caliber rifles tend to like the 180 grain bullets. I now own a couple of 7mm magnums (both Weatherby and Remington Mags) and I am curious what bullet weight these 7mm shoot the best?

I am hearing that a lot of people like the 160 grain bullets. But I'd like to have more feedback. 140? 175?

I am interest in accuracy first, and the ability to kill deer to black bear sized game.

Ok, so I was sitting in McDonald's today, chowing-down on a McRib sandwich and sipping my Coke, when I suddenly got an epiphany of sorts. I don't know where it came from, but it just struck me.

I absolute hate picatinny rails on rifles. I always figured they were uuseless for accessorizing the AR-15 platform rifles. That things like ffore-gripsactually make it harder to achieve accurate long range shooting. That lights actually giveaway the shooters position in a tactical situation. That lasers are pretty much useless in daylight conditions. That all of that bulky "stuff" hanging from the forearm of a rifle will actually create issues with the guns "snagging" on other debris in both open and urban settings.

But then it hit me! The bulk. The weight. The mass, if you will. I can recall speaking with AR-15 shooters that competed in NRA High Power Matches. They explained that they used bags of lead shot and placed them inside the stock compartments to give the rifles more weight. They also placed steel rods inside the forearms of the AR-15s to add weight to the barrel area. Brilliant! The added weight actually stabilizes the rifle for long range shooting. It also helps to control muzzle climb when firing.

Ok, so now my question is as follows. What accessories attached to a picatinny rail are actually useful? Do you like the rails? Or are you a "hater" like me? Feel free to give your real word experiences and preferences.

http://psykotech.com/temp/swiss_army_gun.jpg

Seems like a strange question, but here is my problem...

I had a brick of 22 LR rimfire ammo that I bought from Montgomery Wards back in the early 1980s. It was their private label brand, but obviously made by some other ammo manufacturer.

Well it just so happens that I have an Erma Excam 22 LR pistol (looks like a Walther PPK) that seems to prefer the Montgomery Ward branded ammo. I've tried other brands through this little pistol and I get failures too many failures to feed. But the Montgomery Ward stuff never gives me a problem.

Any idea who might have manufactured it for Wards? I would guess someone like Aguila, but not sure.

Ok, so I can't help asking a question without giving some opinions here.

I no longer subscribe to any of the old "gun rags" like Guns & Ammo and Outdoor Life and all that other stuff. This is because they are usually 80 pages long with 60 pages of advertisements and about 15 pages of editorial content where the gunwriters always give glowing reviews of the crap that the gun companies send them (most likely to keep, so it's a bribe).

I do still get the American Rifleman, which comes as part of my membership in the NRA.

Ok. So what did I miss? Have I been living under a rock or something? This WAS 2011. Right? This would mark the 100 year anniversary of the model 1911 that the US military used for decades.

So, where are the commemorative pistols? I don't recall seeing a single one. If I was in charge of marketing at Colt, you better believe I would have turned-out some products as a 100 year anniversary issue.

I dunno. Maybe the Franklin Mint did one. But this should have been a really big deal.

Ok, so here is my tale of woe. For hunting camp, I always PRE-prepare food before I get there. Simple enough. I make fresh chili without the beans, then add the beans precooked beans while there. I also take along slices of roast beef and cheese and bread and other condiments for sandwiches. And a few other things like smoked salmon that is ready to eat or only needs to be warmed-up.

Soooo....I have a friend that shot a turkey. Fine. Now he is telling me that he wants to bring it to hunting camp to cook. Hmm. Yeah, we have the facilities for that, but do we really need to do that? Well, I don't want to didiscouragehe guy. I know how proud he feels to have shot himself a wild turkey, and I am guessing that he has this fantasy that he will cook it like a gogourmethef and then for the entire week at deer camp, the only thing we will be talking about is that fine tasting turkey that Jim Bob shot and cooked to perfection.

But I am wondering. Is there some methodology of perhaps making a "smoked turkey" without a lot of fuss? Is there a smoked turkey seasoning that we can add to a crcrock-potso that we don't have to tie-up the oven/stove while that bird cooks?

We always have TOO MUCH FOOD at hunting camp. So we really don't have to do a reenactment of some Norman Rockwell painting with a big turkey bird being served to a group of hungry men. But, smoked turkey as a finger food to go with Ritz crackers and maybe some salmon spread would be welcomed as a snack around the camp.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMkROxwtLQ0

Well, it looks like the Bored of Trust-Fees at State Penn has decided that Joe Paterno is guilty of something. What it is, they don't know. In fact, from the video that I watched, their spokesman said, and I quote, "we don't know all the facts..." So I guess 46 years as being the "face of Penn State" just gets tossed on the trash heap.

Not saying that Joe shouldn't go. It WAS his football program, and the coach that is ACCUSED of wrongdoing was part of his coaching staff. But how can people make judgments when the case hasn't even gone to court yet?

I guess the "Media Circus" is how we try and convict people in this day and age. 46 years of a man's life, dedicated to a university that he loves, down the tubes in favor after a few sound bytes are broadcast.

Next up! Who will be eliminated from Dancing with the Stars?

Lots of folks ask about long shots in this forum. Never-mind that. How about close shots on wild game? What's the closest shot you've made or missed?

As for me. I once had a doe jump out on the trail in front of me only 15 yards away. I pulled my rifle up, aimed and bang...missed it completely! But guess what? The animal was so confused it stopped. I loaded another cartridge and bang! Missed again! I once made a 300 yard shot on a running deer, and here I was, missed twice at 20 yards.

Then there was the time I was squirrel hunting with a 20 gauge shotgun. Sitting on a fallen tree. Wouldn't you know it, part of the tree was hollow and there was a squirrel inside. I had a grey squirrel crawl up out of it about 10 feet from me and look me straight in the eye. I didn't bother to shoot, because at 10 feet with a modified choke, I thought I'd blow the thing to pieces.

I'm thinking that when hunting upland game with a shotgun, the close-in shots are harder, since the shot pattern doesn't have the distance to open up.

Your stories? Comments?

I am looking for some 458 Winchester Magnum ammo that is "standard stuff"; not the super duper dangerous game kinda ammo. I just want some 510 grain bullets on factory loads from Winchester or Remington.

I have all the components, but I am too lazy to set-up my stuff this year. I just want to buy two boxes of factory loads for bear season.

(The last time I bought factory loaded 458 was back in 1982 and I only paid $21 a box for the stuff. I found some ammo online, but it was all $100 a box dangerous game kinda stuff.)

I am still a relatively young man. Ok, make that, middle-aged man at this point. But, as I look around me, I see a lot of senior citizens moving about...sometimes doing things they can barely do. Like 90 year olds that are still driving.

Now mind you. Everyone is different. I've seen 90 year olds that were better drivers than 60 year olds. A few years back I met a man that was 82 that I actually thought was 60 - he was a businessman and he was THAT sharp.

Never-the-less, I am not sure that my genes are going to allow me to be a robust thinkin 82 year old. So, I've sort of been planning in my head what I will do as I get older; particularly when it comes to my gun collection.

I figure I will start selling all but about 20 of my guns between the ages of 65 and 70. Probably sell my home and move into a senior living community around the same time - just to lighten my load both physically and mentally.

Am I the only one that thinks this way? I just don't want to be 80 years old with diminishing mental capabilities and have all sorts of firearms around me that I may use in an unsafe manner.

Oh, and I am sure I will get a number of "Oh no. Not me. I'll be just fine when I am older.", replies to this. But, I still remember when I graduated from college and was buying business suits for my first real office job. The tailor was leaving room in them to be left out later and he was saying, "You'll need this later on...to let them out...when you gain weight." My reply? "Oh no. Not me. You have to be kidding. Ha ha." Thinking, 'Can't he see that I take good care of myself? I lift weights - workout. I run and jog. That stuff only happens to lazy people". Of course, I've since added 6 inches to my waistline since the day I was being fitted for my suits.

This is the 4th time this has happened to me in a month. I simply go to a Yahoo page and a virus either attmepts to or succeeds in attacking my computer. It has happened in the past in Yahoo Answers, Yahoo Email and this time...when I was not logged-in, in Yahoo Weather. Does Yahoo know about this? I think these are coming from their banner advertisements.

This latest virus was called "Exploit-PDF.q.gen!stream". What is going on with Yahoo?

Have any of you outdoors-men or women gotten the human rabies vaccine?

I've read stories in the past where deer hunters of contracted rabies from skinning or handling the carcasses of infected deer (yes, deer and cows can become infected too), resulting in the subsequent death of the hunter.

I had friends (father and son) about a dozen years ago tell me that they had gotten the human vaccination to prevent the disease. Back then they told me it took like 3 separate injections, a few weeks apart, to become fully immunized.

Has anyone gotten the rabies vaccine? If so, what is the modern procedure and the cost?

Now I think I know why. Read this story link....

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09331/1016742-100.s...

It starts in April, when the snow is still flying and ends now in November, when the snow starts flying.

I always viewed baseball as a summertime sport. Why do they have such a long season? I think that the World Series should be played in early to mid-September and then we can all turn our attention to football.

Ok, I have a 14 HP Cub Cadet lawn tractor that is about 14 years old. The original battery in the thing finally gave up the ghost. I still have the original owner's manual and other materials. One fo the pamphlets indicates that the battery is 12 volts and has/had 275 amps of cold cranking power. I really don't want to spend the extra money on "genuine Cub Cadet" parts, as I know I will be paying extra for the name. I have located some replacement lawn tractor batteries at places like Lowes and Home Depot. Now my question is this. I found a battery with 275 amps of cold cranking power; they cost about $28. They ALSO have batteries that cost a bit more, but offer more in the way of cold cranking amps. Should I get the higher amp battery? Would it help or hurt the starting system of my Cub Cadet tractor? I just want the best in terms of amps, but don't want to do any damage. Let's talk amps!

Ok, I have a 14 HP Cub Cadet lawn tractor that is about 14 years old. The original battery in the thing finally gave up the ghost. I still have the original owner's manual and other materials. One fo the pamphlets indicates that the battery is 12 volts and has/had 275 amps of cold cranking power. I really don't want to spend the extra money on "genuine Cub Cadet" parts, as I know I will be paying extra for the name. I have located some replacement lawn tractor batteries at places like Lowes and Home Depot. Now my question is this. I found a battery with 275 amps of cold cranking power; they cost about $28. They ALSO have batteries that cost a bit more, but offer more in the way of cold cranking amps. Should I get the higher amp battery? Would it help or hurt the starting system of my Cub Cadet tractor? I just want the best in terms of amps, but don't want to do any damage. Let's talk amps!

I answered another question on here about a good book for a high schooler to do a book report on. Seems everyone liked the teenage heart throb movie "Twilight" so much that now folks are buying the book to read. Am I the only one that thinks this is backwards? Do people only read books after they've seen the films? And, this is certainly not a new phenomena. I recall back in my misspent youth, when the movice "Jaws" came-out, I suddenly saw people carrying around copies of the book - "Jaws".

I have an LC Smith shotgun that I am wanting to sell. I know that it was made by the Marlin Firearms Company between 1969 and 1973 and is a true "side-lock" double gun. It is a 12 gauge and has 28 inch barrels. Here is a photo of the shotgun....

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item...

I have the original box and all factory paperwork. However, I can not find anything that tells me how this gun is choked! (I've examined the gun, the factory manual and it does not say.)

Does anyone know how these 1969-73 US manufactured shotguns with 28 inch barrels were choked? Thank you.

Ok, first off, let me say that over the years, I have owned the following military style rifles; AK-47, HK91, HK93, M1 Garand, M1A, and the AR-15A2.

These rifles have a place in my collection. I enjoy shooting them and feel that the Second Amendmend to the US Constitution allows private citizens to be as well armed at the standing military in order to protect our country from tyrany abroad and tyrany from within.

Ok, now having said all of that, I just don't understand the HEIGHTENED fascination with these military-style rifles. And no, I don't just mean since the November general elections. I mean, for the past dozen years it seems that every other issue of The American Rifleman magazine is sporting a photo on the front cover of a military-style rifle.

While I admit to having owned about 7 of these rifles myself, they made-up a very small percentage of my collection.

Am I the only firearms enthusiasts that sits at home and is not on "Code Yellow", worried about fantatical Islamic terrorists breaking down my door? Sure, firearms can be used for protecton. Yes, I have some in my house for that purpose (shotguns).

It just feels that for the past dozen years or so, we have become a nation of "Rambo" wannabees with the popularity and proliferation of so many "black guns".

Does anyone else feel the same way?

Another person posed the question on here about the risk of firearms to a toddler in the house. I had to "go back in time" in my mind and recall my own very young days. My father had a gun cabinet (no locks on it) in the den where I used to play as a very little boy. The guns were there, in plain sight, yet I knew that I was not allowed near the thing. I have a pretty good memory of my very early days, but I don't recall what my parents said or did to make sure I never approached the cabinet. Again, it was in the same room that I played with my toys as a child and I was rarely supervised. Of course, the guns were not loaded, and as a toddler, I would have no idea how to load them. But again, I never even went near the thing. Does anyone else recall similar circumstances in their early youth?

During the fall 2007 hunting season, I had some unusual interactions with a number of birds of prey. I was hunting groundhogs in an open field, when two red tailed hawks flew into a tree right above me. I was dressed in a hunter orange vest and cap and even moved around a bit to see their reaction. They had absolutely no fear of me, even though I was standing right below them. I also saw plenty of great horned owls during the daylight hours while hunting.

Now we come to the 2008 hunting season and today I had another unusual encounter with a hawk. I was squirrel hunting in the deep woods when I saw a squirrel run up a tree and hide on the other side. I decided to sit under a nearby tree in hopes that the squirrel would eventually think I had left and give me a shot. I had just sat down when I could hear something going on in the tree where I had previously spotted the squirrel. When I looked up, I saw a hawk carrying the squirrel away. I was only 10 yards away from that tree and the hawk decided to swoop down and grab the squirrel!

About a dozen years ago, I talked to a conservation officer (deputy game protector) who told me that we have overdone it in protecting the birds of prey. He told stories of releasing pheasants for the hunting season and watching hawks attack the newly released birds just moments after they had been set free. It was the first time I had ever heard someone say that there were too many, but now I am starting to agree.

Could it be that we have brainwashed ourselves into believing that birds of prey, such as hawks and owls, are somehow the sacred cows of the American outdoors? I would like to believe that I too am a convervationist, and my knee jerk reation is to follow along and stick-up for the continued protection of these birds. But, having talked to someone that makes a living protecting wildlife AND seeing for myself how unfraid these birds of prey have become, I am second guessing myself right now.

Any comments?