Hunting gun questions

[Sandiatop]

This is not a training related topic, but I would like to ask about hunting guns. I do not have any previous experience with guns. I am considering starting hunting this year. Perhaps I need my own gun, but my wife and I hesitate to keep any guns in my apartment.

1. Is there any services who keep my gun (kind of a rental space)? Is there any service who can provide a rental gun?

2. Do I need a license for a gun when I use my friend's gun with him?

3. Where can I find a gun class (safety class)? I am living near Madison, Wisconsin.

Thank you,

[dr_dog_guy]

In regards to your question No. 1 - I don't know but I doubt it.

2. Depends on the state you are in. I think that is true in Canada, its certainly not true in most of the western states. NRA.org - they do a wonderful job of tracking state law. (The also offer training, and its definitly a group to belong to. I had direct access to their lobbyist when our club ran into an access issue at a federally managed area we run tests at. I can't say enough good about them.)

3. Your state Game and Fish will offer hunter safety classes. These are generally excellent, often mandatory, and will give you an introduction.

Next, because this is a dog forum I'm guessing you mean shotgun. Find a local trap, skeet, or sporting clays club and find an instructor or a class through them.

Back to No. 1. If you thinking shotgun, try a side by side or an over and under. They come apart so that you can store each piece separetly and put a trigger lock on the action portion. You can put a bicycle cable lock down the barrel portion such that the action can't be mounted to the receiver/action. In that configuration, they are just pieces of metal.

As you gain familiarity with firearms, you will discover other storage options and your comfort level with each.

[redleg06]

I couldnt have said any better than the previous post. I would google search Wisconsin Hunters Safety course and that will be a great start. As you get more comfortable with guns you will feel more comfortable storing them safely. They are a tool that are only dangerous if the person handling them is irresponsible with them and there are many ways to ensure that they cannot be accidentally discharged or discharged by anyone but you. A small gun safe and trigger lock would be a good start and as mentioned previously, you can break down the guns and reassemble them when you take them to the field. Semi Automatics can be easily assembled and disassembled as can Over and Under Shotguns.

[Ken Bora]

Your state Game and Fish will offer hunter safety classes. These are generally excellent, often mandatory, and will give you an introduction.
.............
As you gain familiarity with firearms, you will discover other storage options and your comfort level with each.

Just to add here, hunters safety classes are so cool. I took hunters safety when I was 10 years old. That was 1974. I retook hunters safety again two summers ago because I needed my orange card and the state had no record of me (or anyone from ’74) taking the class. I needed the card for my NY state nonresident small game so I am able to hunt waterfowl on all of lake Champlain. Anyway, I got so much out of it as an adult. I truly feel everyone who took hunter safety over 20 years ago should retake it as an adult. I am very proud to say that even though the instructor goose hunts with me he cut me no slack and I earned my perfect 100 on the test at the end. An ever so tiny sweet 9 year old girl who was taking the course with her Dad also scored a perfect 100. We were the only ones in that class to do so. Then I kicked her butt at the rifle range J but not by much.
Is tossed onto the back seat of the truck a storage option?

[InertiaDriven71]

A lot of good points above... which gun you buy should depend on what you plan to hunt. Decent O/U's and S/S's can be expensive, and you only have 2 shots. If you hunt waterfowl, it is nice to have that 3rd shot, particularly with the fact that steel is mandatory. Plus, O/U's are hard to reload if you are in a tight duck blind area. Cable locks can be put on any shotgun and the barrel comes off of the below pumps and autos as well. Below is simply IMHO:

Best shotgun for the money-- Remington 870 3" (pump).... $250-300 new, can find used for cheaper. 26-inch barrel is a good over all length for geese to turkeys. Balances better with the 26" over a 28" as well

Best shotgun period (open up a real can of worms here)-- Benelli M2 (3") or Super Black Eagle II (3.5").... $1100 and 1500 respectively; automatics that don't need near the cleaning as the gas-ops do. However, Beretta makes the best gas-op with the Winchester SuperX2/X3 running a close 2nd place

I believe Beretta and Browning have the better "affordable" over/unders ($1300 and higher), but they do kick harder as they are light and there is no system like auto's to turn the 'kick' into a 'push'. Also, they are 3-4 inches shorter than autos/pumps with the same barrel length as there is no action.

Sounds like you may want to find a friend to take you to range to try out shooting first if this is your first time. I have bought sold shotguns for 20 years, and I honestly believe the 870 is the best shotgun for the money. The Benelli M2 is by far my favorite shotgun I have ever had.

[Normal]

[SIZE=3]Is tossed onto the back seat of the truck a storage option?

Is that a trick question need more info

[dr_dog_guy]

Ken, you are so right about Hunter Safety! I took it as a boy scout, and then again as a young adult because there was no record of the first class. I recently took it again as part of my training to become an instructor which is the best way to learn the material. If you can teach it, you know it. I've taught several classes now, and am proud to be a volunteer instructor in NM.

We mostly teach children and their parents - one way to insure our hunting heritage continues.

[HuntinDawg]

I can't tell from your question if having a gun in the apartment is an issue due to:

1) possible theft
2) wife thinks that these inanimate objects are evil and simply go off by themselves (been listening to the media too much in this case)
3) children in the apartment

I'm going to assume it is #3. I find the suggestion of a double barrel (made by another poster) so it can be disassembled and stored in separate pieces to be very strange. You can do that with anything but a single shot.

There are trigger locks available to put on the trigger housing of any shotgun which prevents anyone except the one with the key from taking it off and pulling the trigger (still store unloaded of course). There are also safety (storage) devices for shotguns that involve a cable running through the chamber which prevent the operation of the firearm. Finally you can get a gun safe. While you may not want a heavy gun safe in an apartment, you can get small, light, affordable ones that only hold a few guns which, while not fireproof etc., are more than sufficient for keeping your kid's hands off the gun. Depending on the age of your kid you could even just get a nice gun case (like for airline travel) that has locks on the case. This won't keep a determined teenager out (if they don't fear you knowing that they pried it open) but they will darn sure keep a younger kid out. If you go with a locking gun case or a safe of some type make sure you put something inside the case or safe designed to absorb moisture (lots of options out there, not expensive) or you could have a rust problem.

If it has nothing to do with the kids, but your wife (as many do, this is not a shot at your wife) simply has a fear of having a gun in the apartment, this is an emotional reaction based on having absolutely no knowledge about guns. The cure for this is simple unless she is truly an anti gun zealot, which I doubt. The two of you get some quality firearms instruction and then have a little fun shooting. Teach her to load/unload, cock & decock (if applicable) and other wise operate the firearm and the irrational fear will go away. I've witnessed this on many occasions. I've seen women who were scared of guns (irrationally) after a nearby home invasion and a fun experience or two shooting turn into women who really get a kick out of shooting a gun.

Guns, unless defective (which is rare), are neither good nor bad, it is all in how they are handled. You wouldn't want to put someone behind the wheel of a car without proper training because it is powerful and potentially very dangerous to self and others. Firearms are the same way. Teach someone how to properly use, load, unload, cock, decock, a firearm and all the mystery goes away and they understand that they don't just go off on their own.

[dr_dog_guy]

I find the suggestion of a double barrel (made by another poster) so it can be disassembled and stored in separate pieces to be very strange. You can do that with anything but a single shot.

I find your reaction strange. Short of a single shot, on which I learned, a break-action firearm is the easiest and safest to both teach and to disamble for storage. It seems logical to me, and also plays to the mindset of someone new to firearms and concerned about safe storage.

It serves multiple purposes - it is clearly unable to discharge in pieces as stored, at least two pieces (really three - you need the forearm too) must be found, locks removed, and assembled. Sure, it may be overkill for those experienced with firearms, but so what? Better yet, its the best action type for teaching and learning firearm safety, handling, and their great in the field. A single shot break action is even better for learning, but I assume we can skip that step so that we start with a useful hunting tool. I take my trap gun to the range every week in pieces becuase thats how it fits in the case. While I certainly dissasemble the SBE II and the Winchester pump when cleaning them, a break action almost falls apart for disassembly. Further, a break action firearm, when in the field, is easily identifed as empty and open, which I find ideal for instruction. Later, it can become the preferred field gun for upland hunting if other firearms are acquired.

So it its strange, I stand by my weirdness.

[BonMallari]

an O/U shotgun is the safest for bird dog training, I prefer to shoot mine when trying to shoot pigeons because of the safety factor...Now if I were to be invited to shoot flyers at an event I would opt for my RM 1100 because of the softer recoil..shooting pigeon flyers its my skeet gun with tubes in 20ga or 28 ga skeet loads