I'm sure many of you will be familiar with the following:
Over several years, I painstakingly amassed what to me was the perfect battery.
Each new acquisition required hours of obsessing and research, weeks of fiddling and changing, frequent swaps and new purchases, as first scopes, then mounts, then whole rifles were tuned, adjusted, upgraded, adjusted again, and again.
I went through 2 rifles in each of three calibres (.222, .243 and .308), with at least two scopes on each. I went through countless combinations within these and tested dizzying arrays of ammunition. Each new change required multiple trips to range and field, with endless agonising and tinkering in between.
Two weeks ago, I got to that unthinkable place: I had 4 rifles that all shot beautifully, that had loads that worked perfectly for their chosen job, that had scopes well suited to both looks and function of each rifle.
There really was nothing left to do. I could leave them as they were - never adjust a thing - and they would all kill deer until the day I die.
I breathed a sigh of relief and thougt 'well, that's it! I'm done. No more faffing, no more wasted time, no more expense. I can just go stalking'.
It lasted all of 10 days. Three days ago, I began to worry. The scope on the .270 wasn't quite right - it was meant to be a long range, open hill specialist, but it only wore a 6x42. And the .243 never gets used at longer range than 150 metres, but has a 4-12x50. But I can't just swap them, because one is an 1" tube and one's a 30mm tube. And I really like the .243 set up. And what about the .222? I really don't use it much - hardly at all. Do I really need it? Perhaps I could sell it and use the money to pay for a new scope for the .270? But I might regret that one day, and it is a nice rifle. Maybe I could just switch the 8x56 from the .222 onto the .270. Oh - but that won't fit because of the ild iron sights on the .270. Maybe I can get those removed? But that would spoil the look of the rifle, and maybe I might just one day use the irons. Well, at least leave myself the option...
And on and on.
Why are we incapable of leaving well enough alone!!
Over several years, I painstakingly amassed what to me was the perfect battery.
Each new acquisition required hours of obsessing and research, weeks of fiddling and changing, frequent swaps and new purchases, as first scopes, then mounts, then whole rifles were tuned, adjusted, upgraded, adjusted again, and again.
I went through 2 rifles in each of three calibres (.222, .243 and .308), with at least two scopes on each. I went through countless combinations within these and tested dizzying arrays of ammunition. Each new change required multiple trips to range and field, with endless agonising and tinkering in between.
Two weeks ago, I got to that unthinkable place: I had 4 rifles that all shot beautifully, that had loads that worked perfectly for their chosen job, that had scopes well suited to both looks and function of each rifle.
There really was nothing left to do. I could leave them as they were - never adjust a thing - and they would all kill deer until the day I die.
I breathed a sigh of relief and thougt 'well, that's it! I'm done. No more faffing, no more wasted time, no more expense. I can just go stalking'.
It lasted all of 10 days. Three days ago, I began to worry. The scope on the .270 wasn't quite right - it was meant to be a long range, open hill specialist, but it only wore a 6x42. And the .243 never gets used at longer range than 150 metres, but has a 4-12x50. But I can't just swap them, because one is an 1" tube and one's a 30mm tube. And I really like the .243 set up. And what about the .222? I really don't use it much - hardly at all. Do I really need it? Perhaps I could sell it and use the money to pay for a new scope for the .270? But I might regret that one day, and it is a nice rifle. Maybe I could just switch the 8x56 from the .222 onto the .270. Oh - but that won't fit because of the ild iron sights on the .270. Maybe I can get those removed? But that would spoil the look of the rifle, and maybe I might just one day use the irons. Well, at least leave myself the option...
And on and on.
Why are we incapable of leaving well enough alone!!