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Joined: 08 Mar 2016 Posts: 120 Location: South Dakota

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Found theses old boxes to add to my collection the other day while at a new to me lgs. Might even try to shoot a couple from the one box as I think they are paper shells.

Joined: 30 Sep 2020 Posts: 185 Location: ont canada

Thanks for the post I grew up with that stuff along with a 16 gauge model 12 and no shortage of bunnies roosters ducks and grouse to hang out with. Smile

Hey Gran16 -- If you are collecting, I have some other 16 gauge boxes, some with ammo, in which you might be interested -- couple of old J. C. Higgins boxes in good shape, some Winchester, Remington, Peters and maybe some Feds and Gamble's Ace/Hiawatha. This stuff should really go to someone rather than sitting around in my airplane hangar. I have a whole box full of boxes folded flat in several gauges. I collected them in my early teens and stopped before I graduated from high school in '69. The box they are in is interesting also -- it's a box for 135 clay targets from Herter's, Inc. from the early-to-mid '60's -- what we used to throw for our barnyard family clay-shooting events.

I'm wintering, far away from access to these items, but will be near them in May.

Cheers!
Tony

These shell boxes and the mention of Herter's got me surfing a little and look what I've found. Be sure to read the fine print on the box -- "solid tempered missile space cone plastic", plus all the performance claims. George Herter could really sling the buzzwords and bullshit -- all those appetizing, "irrefutable", but physically impossible or impossible-to-prove claims . . . what phenomena he and his business were. It all went to hell when he got into brick and mortar retail. He was so "way ahead" in mail-order, and it is ironic that his brick and mortar idea, which was almost identical to Cabelas, ultimately killed the Herter's brand. Yes, there were many great mail order places before him - Sears, Monkey Ward, etc. - but Herter's was really different and focused on the sportsman/DIY/hobbyist market. Dad bought a lot of really nice pre-inletted walnut stock blanks for sporterizing ex-military bolt actions from them (as well as from Fajen and Bishop, of course). We used a lot of Herter's loading components and Dad probably had 20 or 30 die sets for various caliber rifle and pistol cartridges when he died. I still have, and use his old C-Type Model 3 reloading press for rifle stuff -- heavy enough to anchor a good sized boat, very ridged, very large diameter plunger, just enough opening for me to reload the .416 Rigby . . .

"Patented and patent applied for in all countries" -- Ya, sure, you betcha!

Joined: 08 Mar 2016 Posts: 120 Location: South Dakota

MaximumSmoke I would be interested I’ll send you a pm.

I recently had some Peter’s & Remington ammo with boxes given to me, fired a couple paper shells just to see what all the fuss was about. They worked fine, went bang & broke clays. Still trying to figure out what to do with them. Thought about saving them for retirement, but then again, why?

I like collecting cool stuff but not sure I will want to move it all. I’m going to hold onto them for now, but I think they will go at some point.

Joined: 16 Jul 2015 Posts: 2125 Location: Hudson,Wy

Maximum Smoke, you aren't kidding about Herter being the king of bullshit. Of course, ideas like square shot pellets in Winchester's Blindside might give him a run for the title. I love old shell boxes. Much to horror of collectors, I actually use them. It makes me feel good to grab one of those ancient boxes and know my reloads are inside. Whether we realize it or not, there's a lot of nostalgia in bird hunting. It's something I noticed even as a teen.

Joined: 08 Mar 2016 Posts: 120 Location: South Dakota

Wyochukar I might have to steal your idea. I have some doubles of a few boxes, maybe once I find an old sxs I’ll start using a couple of the old boxes. It probably wouldn’t be the same with a new over under.

Joined: 12 Sep 2010 Posts: 1973 Location: Maine

Hey - that missile nose cone plastic was the Real Good stuff. Having had no end of cheap polyethylene toy plastic toys come whole and go away broken in the 60s, I can vouch that old man Herter was not bullsh*tting in the least.

ah , to go back 40 or 50 yrs and get into Geos catalog again . Some good stuff , some bad ... We used to use Gold Rapala's in Canada by a lot ! Buck 50 for the Rapala , 3 for a buck50 in the catalog . Lures were almost the same except : 2 of the 3 Herters ones would wiggle their butts off , and one nope ! The Herters would dive deeper than the Rapalas too - Canadian Walleyes HATED them . Sure wish I had a bunch now !

Joined: 25 Jan 2014 Posts: 229 Location: MN

My father was not a sportsman, so I didn't know what Herters was until they went out of business. We were returning from a summer vacation in the Black Hills and we stopped at the Waseca store on the way home. It was hot and my mom and sister just wanted to go home. But dad had heard about the sale on WCCO radio and wanted to check it out with his fish crazy son.

It was late on a Sunday afternoon. It was probably the end of the first week of their going out of business sale. The inside of the store looked like a tornado had hit it. Everything was scattered from the hordes of bargain seekers rummaging through it.

I was 12 years old and the only hunting or fishing I did was was stream fishing for trout with worms and salmon eggs and shooting sparrows with a Red Ryder. Because it was the end of vacation, I had very little money left. The only thing I bought was a package of 100 #12 gold salmon egg hooks. I still have the box with most of hooks in it.

I remember the mountains of loose decoys in the store. And I saw a self setting, repeating sparrow trap, that dad wouldn't buy. So I made one from memory when I got home.

https://www.startribune.com/herter-s-catalog-is-long-gone-but-not-forgotten/291167741/

Joined: 09 Feb 2015 Posts: 818

Aaah yes I remember well. Late 60's I just got married. Bought a house in small little town. As luck would have it right across the road was a gunsmith. Now how lucky can a fellow get. He was talented as he'll. He was quite an artist. He could tool the best future on leather. Made his own tools. Taught me how to do the hot bluing. Bought my bluing from herters. He was a great self taught engraver. Made his own tools for that also. Every weekend , Saturday and Sunday we'd hit all the gunshops. Introduced me to reloading. For a guy like me just getting ready to turn 20 and him in his 40's. Man we spent alot of time together. I spent more time with him than his kids did. Hunting bunny's, duck, quail, pheasants. At home I would be going thru the herters catalog. Then leafing thru the shooters Bible. A heck I could go on and on.
About a month before he was ready to retire his brother in law came to my house and to me he had a anurisium and died in his sleep.( don't know how to spell that anurisium ) you know what I mean.
He ad a nephew that had a gunshop. Another nephew that was a gunsmith. I got acquainted with a few other gun smith's thru him.
One dat I was on the skeet range and here come a guy with a large box. Said George told me to see you got all this stuff. He was a gunsmith I hardly new. He recently passed away. When I got in the clubhouse it was full of all 16 gauge stuff. Them were the days my friends, and thought they would never end. But we see how that works out don't we. I'll be 76 in few months and still 16 gaugen and tinkering with all my gun stuff. Shoot well my friends. We don't have that much time left.

Hammer bill, your post was wonderful and bought back many memories
Thank you

Mike

Joined: 01 Oct 2007 Posts: 962 Location: Minnesota

Yes Hammer Bill, a great post.

Joined: 09 Feb 2015 Posts: 818

One thing I forgot to mention about that gunsmith buddy. About 3 or 4 times a year we would go to a trapshoot in our town. He would come up with a 410 o/u 3" . Fancy stock with nice checkering and shoot it on the 16 yard post. Before we would leave the door he would have the gun sold. After couple times I asked him where in the hell do you come up with those 410 o/u's. He said I build them. To me those were the first 410o/u's I've ever seen. Told me the actions come off old savages or HR's I don't remember which. It was the one with the selector button on the side. Then somewhere he would come up with a set of 410 o/u barrels. That's the part he would not divulge his information. Them days were always 410/22 on top. Get his semi inletted stocks from Bishop. Fit the wood. Put nice finish on them decorate with a little fancy checkering. Very nicely blued and wa la another over-under. He would not take orders cause he wasn't sure when he would get the barrels to fit to the actions. But when he took one to a shoot he never came back with one. That was one secret he took to his grave. Even his nephews use to aske me where he got his barrels. He never told any of us. I do no the action came from gunshows.