By Glen Wunderlich

My Audobon Society Field Guide to North American Birds has this information of one of Michigan’s most colorful and striking perching birds. 

Smaller than a sparrow.  Breeding male bright yellow with a white rump, black forehead, white edges on black wings and tail.Habitat:  brushy thickets, weedy grassland, and nearby trees.

Love-Struck American Goldfinch

Nesting:  4 or 5 pale blue eggs in a well-made cup of grass, bark strips, and plant down placed in the upright fork of a small sapling or shrub.

Often called the “wild canary.”  Since their main food is seeds, nesting does not begin until midsummer when seeds are available.  Because they nest so late, only a single brood is raised each season.

Yesterday, I found this male offering his rendition of a happy, spring love song.

By Glen Wunderlich

Controlling Michigan’s deer population has been a challenge for many years.  We’ve added seasons and have upped the number of does that can be taken by hunters.  Yet, we continue to be plagued by car/deer accidents, because current means of herd management have failed.

In 2009 the Natural Resources Commission (NRC) exclaimed the only way to obtain antlerless harvest goals is to implement the Earn-A-Buck program, as has been done in neighboring Wisconsin.  Its Earn-A-Buck program requires hunters to take an antlerless deer before taking a buck.  The concept may make sense on paper, but in Wisconsin, it very well may be repealed. Read more

A lawsuit against Remington Arms has been decided in a case filed by a man who said the trigger of his model 700 was defective.  Click on the link below for the story.

http://www.peninsuladailynews.com/article/20110429/news/304299989/port-angeles-man-loses-federal-case-against-rifle-manufacturer

Rochester, N.H. – Thompson/Center Arms Company, Inc., a Smith & Wesson® company, announced that it has expanded one of its most popular lines of muzzleloaders with the introduction of a fixed-barrel version – the Pro Hunter™ FX.

Designed around the popular Pro Hunter platform, the new muzzleloader combines the advanced features of the Pro Hunter rifle with Thompson/Center’s solid reputation for durability and performance in the field. Separating it from the other muzzleloaders in the line, the Pro Hunter FX is standard with a fixed .50 caliber barrel that is not interchangeable with other barrel configurations. Instead, the muzzleloader sports a 26-inch fluted barrel with patented QLA® (Quick Load Accurizer) for enhanced accuracy.

Other notable features include Read more

GW: If you have yet to check out this outstanding caliber, you may find it interesting if you desire a sub-sonic round with punch. Although it is slow by most standards, because it travels below the speed of sound, it maintains its velocity/energy downrange quite well.

Grand Island, NE – Hornady brings a new level of flexibility to the AR-15 platform with the introduction of the 300 Whisper®. The subsonic load features the 208 gr A-MAX® and delivers 1020 fps at the muzzle. The supersonic load features the 110 gr V-MAX™ and delivers 2375 fps.

Originally developed and pioneered by J.D. Jones of SSK Industries, the 300 Whisper® is a highly efficient cartridge Read more

DETROIT — The Michigan Supreme Court has reversed a major decision that expanded the ability to sue the state in environmental disputes, reigniting an ideological battle between liberal justices and conservatives who are back in the majority after the fall election.

In a 4-3 order released Tuesday, the court threw out a four-month-old opinion in a case involving the discharge of partially contaminated water to the headwaters of a popular trout stream in northern Michigan. More here…

 NEWTOWN, Conn. — Nine state wildlife agencies and one regional organization have been awarded $480,552 in grants by the National Shooting Sports Foundation to fund programs that will work to expand hunting opportunities for all ages.

Since NSSF began the Hunting Heritage Partnership grant program nine years ago, more than $4.3 million has been provided via 109 grants to 38 state agencies and one regional agency covering all Western states. “These grants support sorely needed programs that might never have gotten off the ground because agencies are so strapped for funding,” said Chris Dolnack, senior vice president and chief marketing officer of NSSF, the trade association for the firearms, ammunition, hunting and shooting sports industry. “Hunting Heritage Partnership grants are making a difference. After decades of decline, hunting license sales have stabilized, and in 2009 thirty states reported increases in license sales.”

Notable among this year’s awards are Read more

By Glen Wunderlich

Patterning a turkey gun is as important as any other element toward the goal of good wild turkey dinner. A hunter can pick up any number of valuable techniques from outdoor shows on television, at trade shows, or on DVD. And, while today’s hunter can gather new ideas from the pros from the comfort of his favorite easy chair, patterning is learned through experimentation. (Bow hunters, you’ve got your own issues. Good luck!)

Like most shotgun turkey hunters, I use a shotgun that’s not a designated gobbler getter; it has the standard-issue front-bead sight only. It would be nice to have a red dot or low-power scope mounted on it, but I’d rather not bother with taking it off and reinstalling it.

All good hunters know enough to pattern a given gun with a given load in order to understand how the shotgun and shell combination actually performs. There are several inherent drawbacks to a good practice session: Read more

This from the United States Sportsmen’s Association By Bill Horn, Director of Federal Affairs

For more than five years, the USSA has been fighting to remove the recovered wolf population in Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin from the federal endangered species list.  The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service tried to “delist” these wolves in 2007 but was stymied by a federal judge in Washington, DC in 2008-09. 

Last year we kept up the pressure by filing a new petition to delist the wolves.   The Service responded that it would grant the petition and declare the wolves recovered.  We expected formal action this spring.

Last week the Service announced its plans with a classic “give with one hand and take with the other” ploy.  The agency did declare gray wolves (Canis lupus) in the three states “recovered” and that a proposed delisting rule would be out shortly.  But they also declared the “discovery” of an entirely new wolf species – the Eastern gray wolf (Canis lycaon).  However the problem is, no one knows the population numbers or range of this new species, if it’s distinguishable from Canis lupus, or if delisting lupus (and returning management to the states) will impact lycaon.   Read more

By GlenWunderlich

The projects seem to have piled up and I needed to free up some garage space for an Allis Chalmers model IB in need of some tweaking.  A Mossberg model 152 carbine in .22 rimfire was in parts on the bench and definitely in the way.  It was time to make it happen.

Mossberg model 152 left view

With a final 400-grit sanding of the exquisite black walnut stock, it was ready for finish.  This little plinker would be fitted with a satin polyurethane skin.  A rattle can with Helmsman polyurethane was surprisingly like a low pressure quality spray rig.  The fan was even and fine.  Layer after layer was applied within the prescribed time frame of 90 minutes; the generous open time allowed for quick buildup in a short amount of time.

Mossberg model 152 - Folding Stock

The barrel and receiver were stripped of original finish and any deeper dings were sanded smooth with 400-grit wet emery cloth.  The final sanding was with 600-grit paper, providing a foundation for  a deeper and sleeker blue metal finish. The action and bore were thoroughly cleaned before Outers cold blue was applied per instructions to the barrel and receiver; all original screws were carefully twisted back into in place.   Even the plastic buttstock was refurbished with a light sanding/polishing and new finish coat of paint specifically formulated for plastics.

Mossberg's Action and Magazine

The original rear peep sight was missing when purchased, so I took the easy route with a Bushnell .22 scope set to be parallax free at approximately 60 yards.  It was advertised to be parallax free at 50 yards, but it’s not.  When I sight it in with the new look, I’ll move the target to various yardages until I find there is no parallax.  If it’s within small-game reason, the parallax-free point would be optimal for sighting in.  

Here’s a look at some literature and photos of an original Mossberg model 152:  http://www.box54.com/kevin-152.jpg  The model depicted in the link has the plasic fold-down forend.  The walnut version is reportedly the earlier vintage.

With the folding front stock, this model is not only unique, but functional with the vertical grip.  I also learned that it makes a good monopod.

Looking forward to getting it sighted in with some standard velocity target ammo.