As you all know, I recently lost my dear friend Bob. We’d been hanging out together for nearly 40 years. Bob was instrumental in getting me interested in hunting and shooting. Bob’s widow has been calling me up lately. As things get cleaned out, she has been letting me have some of Bob’s things.

One treasure was Bob’s gun case. It had been in their dining room when I first got to know him. At the time, I was mesmerized by its contents. When I picked it up, I realized it was a bit the worse for wear. Since I had first gazed at it, it had gone through two moves, and finally wound up in the back bedroom. Somewhere along the way, one of the feet had been knocked off the bottom. The door had been ripped off and placed back on somewhat badly. It was kind of banged up.

Bob’s Gun Case

When I met Bob in 1982, Bob held this cabinet in high esteem. I don’t remember the story exactly, but he’d gotten it used and used it to store his small collection of long guns. This was at the beginning of his collecting career. It is hard to think of Bob’s collection ever fitting in that case, but I suppose when he was starting out as a young husband and father it did. All I remember was Bob going to that case the first time and handing me its contents one at a time, and having me carefully examine each piece. I also remember what I was at the time– a young buck COBOL Programmer in a 3-piece suit, looking for a new hobby.

I remember a 45 cal percussion rifle. It was the one Bob had taken on his last deer hunt back in the 1970’s over by Portsmouth. He got several ridges over from the car and found himself face to face with a doe. The thought about it for a second, considered the distance he’d have to schlep the carcass and finally yelled “Bang!” at the deer, and went home satisfied. Bob was still telling that story over last winter, when I took him for his last trip to Hibberd’s Armory.

There was a Ruger 10/22 International and a Ruger MK II in 30-06, an Ithaca 37 and the Ruger Model 44 Carbine that I now possess. Most of Bob’s collection went to Hibberd’s Armory in Cleves. If you’re interested, they have many of the pieces out on display right now. He collected mostly Rugers and of those mostly handguns. They were far outside my budget.

I replaced the legs, and rehabbed the door. It went into my bedroom over the weekend. It now holds a few of the firearms I got from Bob.

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