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Frank Vallich

Well here it comes!

Christmas 2020 and once again I'm clueless as to purchasing a gift for the better half of my life. Not being domesticated adequately to understanding the nuances of interpreting subliminal messages about the wants and needs of others I'm in the dark yet again this Christmas.

Christmas eve at 1300 hours and where do I find myself looking for that gift? The local firearm vendor. I understand one particular nuance that has stressed my better half's grouse hunting ever since losing the single shot 410, due to mechanical failure, and being upgraded to a 410 pump. She misses with the 410 pump. Never happened with the single shot.

I ask the vendor at the counter whom I address as Mr. Shotgun. "Do you have a single shot 410?" I'm in luck. He has a Chiappa firearms 410 with a 28 inch barrel. It is ROUGH. Needs servicing. I purchase it. Clean up the rough work applying Moly to the hard metal engagement surface points, lubricating pivot points and tweaking the cocking/trigger assembly for as smooth as possible engagement. At the trigger guard there is a lever handle similar to a 30/30 Winchester that assists in setting the trigger/firing pin and opening the breach. I wrap the item as best as possible. Bahaha. Not my forte but a smile from my better half as I lay the item around our two foot tall tree.

We went out this afternoon and tested the 410 on a lawn ornament metal rooster. Another fine shooting iron. Haha. Ungulate hunting season has passed so of course there were three whitetail does that crossed our paths in one remote corner and as dusk fell replacing the day we encountered another 4 whitetails just as we departed the hinter land. Another 3 kilometers and we count 10 whitetails in a grain field. Drive another 20 kilometers and a herd of 15 whitetails along an open field adjacent to the rail line near MacKay, Alberta. Not a dam grouse to be seen though.

The 410 requires additional TLC and is the gift that will keep on giving as I will file and polish the metal hard points, sand and buff the wood of this unit. Just another winter project.

A Merry Christmas!