[Meland]

Hi to you all.This is my first post on this magnificent forum.
I am Mel, a new member from Sweden.
Some years ago I bought a couple of Remington 1858 NMAs, saying this might be like cussing in church on this site ?!
Last fall, when contemplating under a "cork oak", I thought: Is it possible for a man to live a whole life without a Colt ? The answer was NO ! So I bought a Colt 1851 Navy, made in 1865, from Antiqueguns.com.
So, why percussion revolvers ? Since I was a youngster I have had a keen interest in the early Western frontier and the American Civil War. So to experience what they were shooting, I had to acquire some pistols from that era and all I can say is that I truly love the smell of sulphur, the booming and smoke while shooting.
I work as a tool and die maker, primarily Wire EDM machining and Spark-Erosion sinking and therefore used to small tolerances and to fiddle with different steel and tungsten carbide qualities and I have experienced that this is a great asset when dealing with both new and old weapons and other stuff of interest.
Other interests are: Hunting, Lever action rifles, Pre -65 Harley-Davidson motorcycles, American cars from the fifties and sixties, Drag racing and the Hooters that come along with the last mentioned.
Anyway, it is good to be here.
Greetings from Mel

 

[Mcbrmicr]

Welcome from Texas.

 

[jcs]

Welcome to the Colt Forum from TN.

 

[Colt-SL]

Hi Mel! Thanks for your first post and welcome to the Colt Forum!

 

[Major Dad]

Well, "Hey There" to you, too, Mel. It's always a treat to have another overseas Colt lover join us here. Sounds like you know your American history very well, better than many Americans I know. You would do very well here in the USA with your many American interests. Great to have you with us. Enjoy!

 

[saintclair]

Welcome to the Forum. My Swedish connection is that I own a very nice 1894 Swedish Mauser Carbine complete with bayonet. The gun was a late manufacture from 1932.

 

[Thos]

Welcome, Mel. I too admire the weaponry and skills that our grandfathers had.

 

[Meland]

Thank you guys for welcoming. I can see that you are all from south of the Mason-Dixon line. Any theories about that?

Saintclair. Did you know that the Swedish Mounted Royal Guard still use the 1894 carbine with model 1914 knife bayonet as its weaponry.
The first rifle I ever shot was a model 1896 rifle when I was about 10.

Thos. One cannot do anything but admire the skill of the workers during that period. Think of the working conditions and the equipment they had on hand. Gravel floors, kerosene lamps, lathes and milling machines with backlash as huge as a barn door, but were still able to create such delicate firearms.

Well, thank´s again for welcoming, Mel

 

[DACOLT]

välkommen Mel.

 

[ssgunnip]

Welcome!

 

[capstan]

Welcome to the forum. My Grandfather came over from Gotland Island. Sweden is on my list for places to visit someday.

 

[thekidd76]

Welcome from VA.

 

[gatewayad]

Welcome

 

[saintclair]

Thank you guys for welcoming. I can see that you are all from south of the Mason-Dixon line. Any theories about that?

Saintclair. Did you know that the Swedish Mounted Royal Guard still use the 1894 carbine with model 1914 knife bayonet as its weaponry.
The first rifle I ever shot was a model 1896 rifle when I was about 10.

Thos. One cannot do anything but admire the skill of the workers during that period. Think of the working conditions and the equipment they had on hand. Gravel floors, kerosene lamps, lathes and milling machines with backlash as huge as a barn door, but were still able to create such delicate firearms.

Well, thank´s again for welcoming, Mel

Mel, I can understand why it is still used. One of my favorite military rifles.

 

[Meland]

Thanks a lot to all of you guys.

Dacolt. I am a bit taken aback that you have ä on your keyboard, but I really should not, as Wisconsin is a state with a lot of Swedish ancestry and I presume that you have use for å,ä and ö if you still have relatives living in the "old country" that you are writing to.

Capstan. Gotland is a lovely island with its limestone cliffs, sea stacks (called raukar in Swedish) and the town wall around the town of Visby with its narrow alleys, plastered stone houses with roses clinging to the walls. It is a place Disney could have invented. You should go there if you get the chance.

Thanks again, Mel

 

[kpasha]

Mel, welcome to the forum. Many years ago I spent a week in Stockholm. Lovely visit and enjoyed the folks around town. That's my Swedish connection!

 

[BigG]

Welcome, Mel! Also love H-D motorcycles the Pans, Knuckles, and Flatheads are super although I have a Twin Cam Electra Glide. Have an 1849 Pocket Colt cap n ball but rest are modern reproductions by Colt or Uberti. Nothing like burning charcoal unless its smokeless in a more modern firearm.

 

[Meland]

Thank you Kpasha and BigG for welcoming me.
Kpasha, I am glad you`ve been here and seen Stockholm. Even though I am more of a hillbilly from the dark woods, I like visiting Stockholm from time to time.
BigG, I also love the old Harleys,but I like the newer ones too. My Harley is a 1953 Panhead bobber with Flanders apehanger bars, upswept exhaust pipes, 6" extended original springer, foot clutch-hand shift, 21" front wheel and the whole ballet. I haven´t been able to drive it for a couple of years because I was run down by an angry wild boar when out hunting and I got a severly sprained ankle from that encounter so it´s hurting when I try to kick it over. We´ll see towards the summer if I can have my face in the breeze again.
Thanks guys, Mel