Goodbye...

It wasn't easy, but it was...

This weekend I will be handing over my first 3.5 inch magnum shotgun to a new owner.  Part of me hates getting rid of firearms, but the other part of me knew it was time.

I bought the Benelli Nova many moons ago when I was just a bright-eyed promising student of the University of Maine.  After winning a Mossberg 500 Ducks Unlimited 12 gauge shotgun the year before, I decided it was time to trade in a gun I never intended to shoot for one that could help me bring down the almighty common eider.  So my father and I went to the local gun shop, presented the Mossberg as a trade, and brought home a black synthetic Nova.

It was at the time an exciting shotgun to purchase.  Crafted with polymers and space-aged ergonomic lines, the Nova certainly became popular and resented by the waterfowling community for reasons that existed purely of personal preference.  I just liked the fact that I had a new pump action with recoil reduction technology which distributed energy through a mercury filled cylinder.  But the gun still kicked like a mule, reacting to the force that every 3.5 inch magnum shell unloaded.  Being young, tough, and somewhat invincible, recoil was like drinking a lot of beer.  The more you pounded, the more man you became or at least that's what I thought.

I found that college and my early teaching career put a damper on sea duck hunting, as I discovered partridge and continued to pursue deer like there was no tomorrow.  Finally, when I returned home to the coast and with a few more years & dollars to my life, I opted to go autoloader.  First came the Mossberg 935 and then my current steel slinger, the Beretta Xtrema2.  Officially, the Nova no longer had a chance even as a potential back up.   So the black blaster was oiled heavily and mothballed, until this week.

How the Big Bear currently looks...

For those who read this blog know that 1) I'm finishing a house and 2) did a plastic restoration project on my 2003 Yamaha Big Bear.  Well, the house is almost there and my plastic project worked but the red seems to fade a tad more readily only to suggest that my fix was not long term.  Okay, let us get back to why I'm completely on a tangent.

How it will look soon...

I found new plastic fenders locally for the Big Bear, but really don't want to take any more allocated money towards the house and put it towards the wheeler.  So I decided, what was the fastest way to grab some quick cash without losing something of extreme importance?  Answer was the Benelli Nova.

Winner of the Nova auction...

I texted my best man who I thought wouldn't mind first refusal, then asked a few of my students who may convince their parents to buy the good deal for them.  Turns out, everybody seemed to want in on the deal.  The winner.... my best man Mahoney.  He already owns a camouflage version of the Nova,  and wants it for his son for his 10th birthday.  So now, Uncle T's little man will have a piece of my history to go along with the little .22 single shot I bought for him on the day of his birth. 

As I exchange the shotgun for cash to put towards my new plastics, I am pleased that the gun has a special owner who will know who had it before he did.  My guess is that when he comes down for our future sea duck ventures he'll use my autoloader, while I get stuck with the black bruiser .

Sometimes, goodbye isn't really all that bad... especially when the Big Bear gets a face lift...

Have a great day.

The Downeast Duck Hunter