All of us on the Backwoods Home magazine team wish a very merry Christmas to you and yours.

Over the years, it has become a tradition in this space to ask our readers what guns or firearms-related gifts they received or gave for the holidays. This includes memorable Christmases past. My own single most memorable Christmas gift remains the Colt .45 pistol my dad gave me when I was twelve.

Please share with us here in the comments!

17 COMMENTS

  1. Mas, I’m having a K-fame revolver (already moon clipped for .38) converted to 9mm by TK Custom, with new, sturdier moon clips. The .38 K-frame clips are a bit fragile, in my opinion; the 9mm are both thicker and have a wider web between cases. If this works out, I’ll put my 640-1 .357 in line for the same treatment. More power than the .38, less blast than the .357. No more expensive than trying to find a rare model 940 on the aftermarket.

    Bonnie says she’s got an original CZ-75 on the long-term list. Maybe next Christmas; it would be a nice companion to her Bren X!

  2. It just so happened that I did give a couple of firearms as gifts this year. This is what I handed out:

    1) A Stevens Model 555 Compact over-and-under shotgun chambered in 28 gauge. This went to a young fellow as his first shotgun. It is common to give a 410 as a first shotgun but I have never been a huge fan of this practice. The 410 is more of an “experts” shotgun IMHO rather than an ideal first shotgun. For a young fellow with a slight build, clearly a 12 gauge or even a 20 gauge might be “too much of a good thing”. I selected the 28 gauge as my “Goldilocks” solution. The Compact 555 has a reduced length of pull and 24 inch barrels. Handy enough to fit this young fellow well. A gun case, several boxed of 28 gauge ammo, eye-and-ear protection, and a cleaning kit were included to complete the package.

    Here is a link to the Stevens:

    https://www.budsgunshop.com/product_info.php/products_id/24728/stevens+555+compact+28+gauge+shotgun

    2) The sister of the above young fellow received a Chiappa Little Badger in 9mm Flobert. This is a fun “Garden gun” that I hope she will enjoy shooting. She also received a gun case, boxes of Flobert ammo, eye-and-ear protection, and cleaning supplies with her firearm. For those not familiar with this firearm, here is a link:

    https://www.budsgunshop.com/product_info.php/products_id/712022773/chiappa+little+badger+deluxe+9mm+flobert+break+open+rifle

    As you can see, I tried to not be “ordinary” with my gifts.

    Both firearms will only be used with adult supervision, of course. I included a copy of the “Rules for Firearm Safety” with each firearm.

  4. My greatest gun gift is when you gifted me my custom Glock 19 for Christmas back in 2003.
    I hope you and Yours have a wonderful, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year !!!!

  5. My wife and children proudly pulled a long box out from under the tree some 30 + years ago and within I found a Ruger 10-22, my first .22lr rifle. A lot of nieces and nephews, as well as my own children learned to shoot with that rifle.

  7. I think the coolest Christmas was 1967 when I fully expected my Christmas present not to arrive in time for the big day. Imagine the surprise and thrill when the Jordan River Belt and Jordan Holster for my 3 1/2-inch “S” serial number Smith & Wesson Model 27 was in a box inside a box (to disguise the contents with a larger box) under the tree. Don Hume really outdid himself!

  8. My two favorite childhood Christmas presents are a Daisy Model 1894 lever action BB gun, followed a couple of years later by a J C Higgins Model 42 bolt action .22 LR with a detachable 7 round magazine, which I believe is the same as a Marlin Model 80. I still have both of them & they still shoot well. To me, nothing is more exciting than getting your first guns for Christmas as surprise presents!

    This year I’m giving myself a Ruger LC Carbine in 10mm & a MAC 1014 Tactical Shotgun (same as a Benelli M4, but way less expensive). It should be a fun New Year.

    MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU ALL & TO YOUR FAMILIES!!!!!

    Thanks for making this the most interesting & entertaining blog that I know of.

    Thanks especially to you, Mas, for everything you have taught me with your books, videos, magazine articles, blog, & in person over the years. You are the best gun writer & firearms instructor ever!!!!!

  10. Merry Christmas All,
    40 years ago my grandfather gifted me his .22 Remington Special with the octagon barrel. The ammo is extremely hard to come by. Once in a while Winchester will make a special run on the 45 grain, flat nosed cartridge and I will buy a case and shoot judiciously in order to preserve my supply. Now having a Pacemaker in my chest I have to be careful with a long gun so as not to damage it but with care i can still fire off a few rounds. That old gun is still very accurate at 50 yards. Again Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year to all. Jon Retired LEO

  11. My father gifted me a Sig Sauer 1911 Scorpion Fastback Carry the Christmas before he passed. It is a cherished piece, as it was the old man’s way of ‘correcting’ me, LOL! I’m a P226 guy through and through, so it was his way of giving me a Sig, but steering me towards “America’s gun” chambered in “The Lord’s caliber”.

    I sorely miss my father, but I’ll keep his gift close for the rest of my life.

    Merry Christmas, all.

  12. My first Christmas gun was a Benjamin Air Rifle in .177 ~ and it taught me to “know my target.”
    I shot a “little red thing” in the weeds behind the old cow shed and IMMEDIATELY got smacked on the bridge of the nose right between the eyes!
    It turns out I had shot a little red ball from a PaddleBall toy and apparently “my aim was so good, and my hold so steady” that the pellet flew RIGHT BACK at me over the barrel.
    Never shot at a “something” again!

  14. Thanks to my lovely wife, I’ll be receiving a galco shoulder rig and a bb pistol same as my everyday carry, living in the far north regions of good ol’ USA both gifts will play an important part for my winter attire and indoor enjoyment.

    Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.

  15. Merry Christmas, Mas. In 1957 I received a Christmas present from my parents, a Remington 514 single shot 22 rimfire. A few years later I received a Baretta Minx 22 short pistol for Christmas. Still have both.

  16. One Christmas when I was in college (but home for the holidays) Dad & Mom gave me a new Colt Combat Commander in .38 Super. Dad and I soon started to reload for this and for his .38 revolvers, which we would shoot at the old Clearwater Police Pistol range, back when they allowed non-LEOs to buy memberships at that range. I was enthralled with the .38 Super, since it was the chosen cartridge of my Pop Pop, who had been a police chief for a small town in PA. It offered more penetration against the primitive nylon body armor that some criminals were wearing at the time than did the .45 ACP and 2 more rounds in the magazine. It was my favorite pistol round until the higher capacity 9 mm pistols became commonly available and the 9 mm ballistics improved so that there was not so much difference in these two same-diameter rounds.

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