Hi SBR,
I do like the older Savage M24 Camper .22RF/.20ga combo gun. I bought it used a couple years ago and have only killed a few grouse with it. It is very functional, light and handy, so I often carry it as a camp/bumming-around gun. The ability to take the gun down into a smaller package is also nice, but I do not have the original padded case. I would buy a second one for my son to use, but they are hard to find.
I had to change the front sight on the gun as the original was too high and I ran out of adjustment in the flip-down rear sight. I would like to put a rear peep (aperture) sight on the gun but am not eager to drill/tap the receiver so I have held off. The gun has sling swivel posts but on the day I was out I forgot the sling at home. I also had a combination trigger lock with me, a light cloth gun-sleeve and the Registration Card (this is Canada).
I have thought of creating a mini-survival kit that fits in the trap-door butt shell compartment of this gun, but I have not done it yet (maybe in an aluminum cigar tube?).
I had a new Savage 24 in 30-30/12ga but found it too heavy so I sold it, I would like a lighter combo gun again with a shotgun (12, 16 or 20ga) plus a centerfire rifle suitable for moose (6.5X55 and larger), I am going to look at the Baikal O/U. I would use this for hiking around in the fall when both the small game and moose seasons are open. Currently I carry a lightweight 12ga Rem. 870 with a rifle-sighted deer barrel; shot for birds/slugs for calf moose, not the best option but functional for now.
If I am hunting moose more seriously then I carry my real moose rifle (centerfire or muzzleloader) and maybe my Marlin Papoose ,22 takedown for grouse. The grouse here are typical northern birds and rarely flush on approach. Hunting handguns are not an option in Canada.
I carried a handful of 20ga lead #4 and 6's in case I saw a shoeshoe hare as I walked into the site. The shotgun barrel has no choke, therefore load selection has to be tailored to the expected range, with heavier loads/denser patterns better as the range gets longer. I also had 2 slugs and 2 buckshot shells with me just in case a black bear stuck his head into the shelter. The river valley I was in has an abundance of bears in the spring because the hillside openings green-up early and fish (pike, walleye, suckers) spawn along the major river.
I also had a can of bear spray with me, it would have been my first choice if I had a wildlife problem.
The only wildlife trouble I had was with a few big mosquitos that at dusk managed to bite through the light undershirt I was wearing. I had timed this trip to be before the bugs came out and was only a day or two late.
Wildlife I saw were: 3 woodpeckers, a vole in the marsh (it was neat as it swam the creek), a loon flew over in the early morning, a pair of mallard ducks launched from the beaver pond as I walked out and a shoeshoe hare as I drove the gravel road home.
Later,
Mike
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