Peenie Wallie

Robert and Johnnie, Didn't we see this same guy out in Colorado at the machine gun shoot? It was definitely this same rifle.

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January 10, 1967

On most school mornings, Henry Bowman was a little drowsy when he left his room to go downstairs for breakfast, and even though it was Henry's birthday, this morning was no exception. He would have tripped over the packing crate if it hadn't been quite so large. It was lying in the upstairs hall just outside his bedroom door, and for a brief instant in the dim light he thought it was a grandfather clock that was lying on its side. Then he saw the rough texture of the crate and noticed the strange markings stenciled on the side of the dark wood.

Tankbûchse S18-1000 Kal. 20mm

Suddenly Henry realized what he was looking at.

"Dad! A Solothurn! You got me a Solothurn!" Henry yelled at the top of his lungs before realizing that his father probably did not need to be told this fact. His voice was considerably deeper now than it had been a few months ago, and the sound carried throughout the house.

Walter Bowman, always an early riser, left the kitchen and climbed the stairs. He flicked on the upstairs hall light as he mounted the steps.

"Your buddy in New Jersey tried to talk me into a Lahti, because it was a little cheaper, until he found out who it was for. He said the Solothurns were going fast." Walter said this last with a wry grin. "He only had three left. Of course, he did admit that the original shipment came into the country ten years ago." "Most people don't have a good place to shoot them, and the ammo's kind of expensive," Henry said defensively. "But I think I can get the dies and load for it."

"Well, you'll have a couple hundred cases to reload if you shoot up the two crates of ammo that're in the basement. I didn't bother to lug them up here."

"You got me two hundred rounds of ammo?" Henry almost shouted. That quantity of ammunition was nothing special for a .22, or even a surplus military rifle, but two hundred 20mm cannon shells was another matter. Each 20mm cartridge was the size of a large banana and weighed about a pound.

"Your favorite distributor virtually insisted on it, once he knew the gun was for you. He said you'd want Tracer H.E.', whatever that is." Walter looked at his watch. "I probably shouldn't have let you know about this until this afternoon. Now you won't have much concentration at school."

"Can we shoot it this weekend?"

"Only if your mother doesn't need the station wagon. I don't think we could fit this monster in the Corvette."

Henry Bowman looked longingly at the crate, realizing that there was not enough time to open it and disassemble his new prize before going to school. He grabbed the near end of it and with some effort slid the 120-pound box into his bedroom and shoved it out of the way against the wall.

Walter Bowman was exactly right. Throughout all his classes that day, Henry's mind was not on his studies. It was on the magnificent example of Swiss craftsmanship that was waiting for him back in his room.

And it would even make my wife look sexy!

http://www.terpsboy.com/terpsboyarchives/002457.html

Hey. Got the Lahti too. Shoots sweet. U** C** a great book. Tough to reload for but getting better. Old 'Single Shot".