Is your gun a tool or something you worry will get damaged?

I was talking to a reputable gun dealer earlier who says he considers guns as tools and I shouldn't worry about getting it wet or the odd knock. Use it and enjoy it.

I do subscribe to the above but I bought a G5 MK38 rather than a G1 as I like the engravings and the better quality wood and as such I want to look after it and minimise the risk of damage.  But still use it and enjoy it.

Do you worry about your expensive and/or 'pretty' guns or do you consider any gun as a tool to be used and not worry about the odd ding?

People seem to care mostly (that I see at registered shoots). I think it’s daft to buy a high grade gun and not look after it, you may as well have gone grade 1. It doesn’t take much to avoid getting a battered gun, by keeping it in a slip mainly. Many people are poor gun cleaners, so it can look OK outside but plenty of muck and wear going on out of sight around ejectors and the lock up, breech face etc. Being mechanically sympathetic, keeping my guns clean is a by-product of ensuring it’s all working well. 
 

Both my guns have some inevitable wear and tear from use /age that I’d rather not see, but I’ll live with. 

Look after your tools and your tools will look after you .
 My MK60 GD5 20g is in the ‘smiths at the moment having a scrape from a flying clay fragment raised on the forend . At the same time I dropped off my GD 5 38 for a full strip and clean of the action after a wet game season  . To replace both of those guns new , and Teague them , and get the stocks cast etc etc , would cost me north of 8 grand today so a couple of hundred quid spent on maintenance is a no brainer . 
 

You can bet the  dealer who said don’t worry about knocks and wet , uses both those conditions  to knock down trade in prices ! 

A fella I used to shoot with left his SO5 Beretta (not the cheapest item) soaking wet in its gun slip after a drenched shoot, for a week. When it was exhumed, it was orange with rust. £1400 to sort it out. Mind you money wasn’t a problem to the chap, who not long after reversed his Lamborghini into his Bentley on his own driveway. 

As the adage goes (in Germany) "Show me your tools and I tell you what kind of craftsman you are". It takes 10 Minutes to clean my shotgun and put some oil on it.

After a shooting it in the rain I dry it with a cloth and wait some time until i put in the closet back. Never had any problems with rust or something.

You can´t avoid signs of wear when using something but it doesn´t have to be uncared.

Clean both my guns religiously after each time I shoot them, both look almost new, ones done over 15,000 carts. You can't help the odd cabinet ding, but of flying clay etc which you can't help. They are there to be used, but not abused!

A genuine patina from use and good maintenance is all I ask.  If there is an accidental incident which is repaired then I am fine with that.

To respond to Bavarian, I agree re the tools, I keep mine in good order and serviced as needed. The gun is similar.

It annoys me when I see people casually drop their gun into a rack or even on the ground when in a gun slip.

So -  I think we all tend to agree, the gun is a tool to be enjoyed, serviced and keep well maintained and looked after.  But use will leave some marks over time.  

why buy a decent grade gun   and not look after it ?    ultra xs pro    with superb wood           

I see them as both a tool and objects of mechanical beauty - neither of mine (F3 Vantage and Perazzi MX12) are engraved, both are 7 years old have seen many 10s of thousands of shells and still look like new - I will admit to being a bit OCD...

As I tell my children:

“If you’re fortunate enough to own nice things, the very least you can do is look after them.”

I think we’re all in agreement here…look after your kit and your kit looks after you. 

I look after all my things. Just bought a new `beretta 694 and will be looking after that even better than my 682 Gold E!

Having now "downgraded" to an ultra xs pro from a perazzi I had intended to treat it more as a tool but that hasn't happened and it's still cleaned religiously.

The biggest snag is that it's used for clays, driven game, rough/walked up and hide work so it's picking up knocks but I've learnt to just accept them.

Strangely, I use three synthetic rifles and a semi auto daily for work and have no problem trashing them!

PM. 

I think there are a few questions in this thread.

It would be stupid to buy any gun and not look after it. Treat it well and it will treat you well. Having said this,

I don't care about fancy engraving - if I could buy a better plain gun I would spend my money on that - get a Prosport not a 525 Grade 5 or a DT11 not a 686EELL.

I do not get worried about bumping the stock etc. I look after my gun but I am not prissy with it. I concentrate on my shooting and having a giggle.

Having said the above I do have a slight problem in that I often like to have a spare in case the first one goes wrong. I have a second Beretta (and glasses and plugs and vest) which makes me worry less about the first one. I accept this is a problem worthy of intervention.

Comment & criticism welcomed.

I’m in the OCD camp I’m afraid. Neither of my Berettas are valuable, but both are kept in pristine condition. Never go out in the rain, always thoroughly cleaned as soon as I’m home, allowed to reach room temperature first. I have silica gel packs in my gun cabinet. I’m the same way about all my shooting kit, tools, cars…..I know I’m obsessive but hey!

Like cars, instruments, furniture, anything,... ridiculously protective until you get that first accidental knock, then you can life with the everyday world it lives in.

Mine, it's a 525, effectively with a scaffold board for a stock, but it's mine and although I like to think I take a little bit of care of it, I won't worry about the odd ding here and there. That's life.

I suppose I'm in the "tool" category, posh wood and engraving doesn't do it for me I would buy a grade 1 rather than a grade 5, that saying I do look after my guns a 525 laminate and a400 gas pipe and I'm not afraid to take them out in the rain like Sunday and keep them in the gun slip to stop them getting damaged 

Some high end ones I am very concerned about which is why I have a few purely for "using" rough shooting etc, those I do treat as a tool as you put it but that doesn't mean I don't maintain, clean and care for them I just don't cry if I ding them

Will Hewland said:

A fella I used to shoot with left his SO5 Beretta (not the cheapest item) soaking wet in its gun slip after a drenched shoot, for a week. When it was exhumed, it was orange with rust. £1400 to sort it out. Mind you money wasn’t a problem to the chap, who not long after reversed his Lamborghini into his Bentley on his own driveway. 

Click to expand...

So it wasn't the gun that was the tool  ?

Not much to add, but looking after anything you hold dear seems like sound advice. I do object to the “don’t take your gun out in the rain” ways of some. The guns are more than capable of handling a downpour, its the owners that don’t follow up with a towelling down and the odd drop of oil. As I live in the Netherlands, only shooting in dry weather would limit my trigger time by…. Lots. I assume the UK isn’t much different. So I shoot in pretty much any weather condition. Sensible care is all it takes to keep guns in working order and looking fairly mint.

I like my guns pretty and shiny, and will happily spend time and some money to keep ‘m that way. I don’t own safe-queens, but I think a days shooting is off to a good start if you smile from the moment you open the case. So for my money I prefer a gun that looks as smart as I can afford, and while I don’t worry about it, an unnecessary ding or scratch would certainly irritate me plenty. At the same time, they happen so I do get over them. They can work as souvenirs, but I have yet to master that. 

Great topic, as I have been fretting over a sensible choice for a composite stocked bolt-action versus a lovely wooden stocked thing of beauty. You all have helped me make up my mind