A sad pawn shop find,,,

[aarondhgraham]

I knew it had to happen sooner or later,,,
A college grad I gave a rifle to,,,
Pawned it and I found it.

It's been a couple of months now,,,
I'm ready to share a story.

A few years back I bought an old .22 Bolt action single shot rifle for $25.00,,,
It was a J. C. Penny house brand and was extremely precise,,,
I did nothing to it and was hitting clays at 100 yards,,,
Shooting off of a bench of course.

According to the people I bought it from,,,
It had been in a closet at grandpa's house forever,,,
It was very obvious that the rifle not been wiped down in years.

The stock was in dismal condition,,,
Not gouged but covered with small "road rash" marks.

Anyways there was this college kid I worked with,,,
We went shooting on many occasions,,,
He would shoot the J. C. Penny,,,
I shot my Henry Acu Bolt.

He really liked shooting that rifle,,,
And became quite good with it.

So, I made it a project gun,,,
I scraped and refinished the stock,,,
And did a decent cold re-blue on the barrel.

When I was done I was very proud of the job,,,
It didn't look brand new but did turn out not looking bad at all.

I bought a nice Plano case for it and lined it with plush green velvet,,,
I made "cutouts" for the rifle, earmuffs, glasses, and ammo,,,
I even included a nice cleaning rod with brushes/mops.

Last but not least I handwrote a letter to him on real vellum,,,
The letter was the transfer bill and a small essay on our 2-year friendship.

A while back I was browsing the rifle stacks of a pawn shop in the next town over,,,
Guess what I saw standing in the rack of used rifles,,,
That very J. C. Penny rifle in all of it's glory.

The pawn broker was a bit surprised when I asked if it came with a case,,,
He pointed to the tag which read,,,
"Includes case and accessories."

I felt like I had been punched in the gut,,,
The broker didn't seem to believe me when I told him the story,,,
So I asked him to pull the butt plate where I had written, "To ******* from Aarond - OSU Graduation 2011".

My friend had used it as a trade-in,,,
For a S&W AR style .22 rifle.

The broker seemed somewhat sympathetic,,,
But wouldn't come down off of the $175.00 price he had on it.

I left it standing in the rack and went and had a couple of despondent beers,,,
It won't stop me from giving guns as graduation gifts in the future,,,
But if I ever see ******* again I don't know what I will say.

I'm not mad at *******,,,
Just somewhat hurt in my heart,,,
When one gives a gift it should be unconditional,,,
But I surely never thought he would pawn it away like he did.

We had talked about how he would teach his future son to shoot with it.

Oh well,,,
I'll get over it,,,
It just hit me a bit hard is all.

Aarond

.

[BobCat45]

Aarond, I hurt for you and with you.

All I can think of to say is, he's a kid. I know, a college grad is not really a kid anymore in years, but in outlook and maturity he has shown he is still a kid. Kids do stupid things that they later regret - it's part of the definition of "kid".

Hang in there and if you see him again, try not to let on that you found the rifle in the pawnshop.

...and check back at the pawnshop. Sometimes people have second thoughts and if he thinks about what he did, I may go and get it back out of hock because he treasures it, and you, and the time you spent together.

[1-DAB]

bummer.

i've given gifts before, mostly woodworking projects i've made. i put blood, sweat, and tears into what i make. and i give them to individuals in the expectation they would use and enjoy them for many years. and then one day i'm told that someone gave a project away to someone else.....yeah, i was kind of bummed, it was made for his wife. so i felt bad for a bit, and decided that he's going to move a little lower on my list of people i'll make things for if he ever calls again with a request.

but, you gave it as a gift, no strings attached, so you have to let it go. or go back and buy it and find another recipient who will use and enjoy it.

[jtmckinney]

I know at least a little bit how you feel. My Christmas present when I was 12 was a 22 semi rifle. I handed it down to my little brother when I left home and he pawned it probably to buy pot. I bought my youngest son a bolt action 22 rifle for Christmas when he was either 12 or 13 and he sold it.

Some folks just don't feel the same way about firearms with a connection to someone I love as I do.

[jimbob86]

All I can think of to say is, he's a kid. I know, a college grad is not really a kid anymore in years, but in outlook and maturity he has shown he is still a kid. Kids do stupid things that they later regret - it's part of the definition of "kid".

+1.

Even as a parent, I am often frustrated by my inability to keep my kids from doing dumb stuff ..... you can influence them .... but they are going to do their own thing .....

Be happy you had an influence.

[southjk]

Aarond, you can pretty much bet that he will regret it in the future. Once he's matured and spent some years shooting various guns he will look back at the good times he had with you and on that rifle that you so generously gave him and wish that he'd never sold it. At that age though it is hard to resist the allure of a "tacti-cool" looking rifle and being short on funds I'm sure he did what he thought he had to do to get it.

You're a good man, Aarond.

[doofus47]

It is a little unnerving that such gifts are often treated so lightly.

The point is that you gave it to him. At some point, he might think back on this as the bar for being generous with juniors later in his own life.

Well done by you.

[aarondhgraham]

Now that it's been a while,,,
I really wish I had bought it from the pawn shop.

I had just spent all of my gun-fun money on an Uberti revolver.

One thing that should tickle me though,,,
It didn't stay on his shelf but for about a week.

I'll probably never meet up with ******* again,,,
He got a decent job way out of state.

One thing though,,,
This won't stop me from doing it again.

Every other time I've done this,,,
It's been a very positive up-lifting experience.

Aarond

.

[jimbob86]

One thing though,,,
This won't stop me from doing it again.

I love a story with a happy ending!

[geetarman]

I think you have to let it go. A gift is a gift. The recipient is completely free to sell or trade a gift away. A blow to your pride from which you will recover.

I would hate to see that myself but it would not stop me from the practice.

[KenL]

Aarond, you're a fine gentleman. Thanks for going the extra mile to educate the young people you come in contact with, both at the university and at the range.

A take away from this that I see--

The gun wasn't pawned for just the money, and the young person didn't cash out of guns and shooting. He is continuing to shoot, just moved on to the slam-feeder. Maybe there will be regrets on his part in the future. But a love of shooting was developed. That is a good thing.

Just my view.

[DaleA]

I've got a couple items given to me as gifts that now are just taking up space that I won't shoot or use any more but they have some sentimental value,and I'm just not going to get rid of them. Plus I kind of subscribe to Cheapshooter's rule of selling guns which is don't.

[Microgunner]

I say let's hunt ******* down and kick his butt!

[deerslayer303]

I'm with alot of others, that's awesome that you turned him on to shooting. Even though your hard effort seems unappreciated, the fact that he traded it off and in his eyes upgraded speaks volumes to your efforts. Congrats on adding one more to our ranks.

[madmo44mag]

I feel your pain but what stands out to me is "He traded the gun for another gun"
Now if he had pawned it for cash for other reasons then I would have a bit of an attitude about it but trading it for another rifle; well that's another story.
Tells me his skills and attitude have matured and he moved that little rifle along for someone else to enjoy and at the same time upgraded to a rifle that suited his needs better.
Your friendship and that little 22 kindled that spirit and that spirit has grown.
Be proud you done good.

[JERRYS.]

I'd have to be hard pressed to give a gift away in trade or sale...... I mean like put food on the table hard pressed.

might I suggest that you buy the gun back and hold on to it for posterity, and in 10 or so years if you ever see your old grad buddy.... you can ask him about the gun and see what he says.

if he gives you a good story maybe you could present it back to him, if not just keep it. the pawn shop story teller might have it confused with another customer regarding the trade deal.....

[Pond, James Pond]

I feel there are a couple of outcomes for this young man.

One is that he won't give it a second thought. In which case there is a side to his personality that you might not have liked.

There is also the possibility that he will realise it was a mistake further down the line and rue having sold it.
If so, it will become one of these life lessons that teach us about the important things in life, where friendship is worth more than some dollars and, as painful as that rifle on the shelf may have been to see, it will have taught something very valuable that may well shape him for the better in the years to come.

The knew owner may well ponder the history of that fine rifle.

[noelf2]

aarond I can't help but imagine the young mans face who's father just bought him that fine looking rifle, to be his first rifle, and all the rabbits squirrels and clays he's going to harvest. Most likely, the gift you gave just keeps on giving.

[efield]

Youth is wasted on the young. Yes, his appreciation was misplaced but your moral character is intact. I applaud your decision to keep gifting.

[aarondhgraham]

Like I said though,,,
I was a PO'd puppy for a day or so,,,
But I'm over the butt-hurt and ready to carry on.

I will do one thing in the future,,,
When I type up the bill of sale for a gift,,,
I will add a line saying, if they ever want/need to sell it, I want first bid.

I have my eyes on a fairly decent Winchester Model 67,,,
Everything I read about those rifles is positive,,,
It has a $165.00 price tag on it,,,
I think I'll wait on this one.

BTW,,,
Could that J. C. Penny rifle have been made by Mossberg?

Aarond

.

[CWKahrFan]

aarond I can't help but imagine the young mans face who's father just bought him that fine looking rifle, to be his first rifle, and all the rabbits squirrels and clays he's going to harvest. Most likely, the gift you gave just keeps on giving.

This is basically what I was thinking... The love and good vibes you put into that gun will always be some part of it, no matter who the owner... Who are we to try and know the BIG PICTURE? Life is mysterious... all we can do is the best we know how in each moment...

[aarondhgraham]

aarond I can't help but imagine the young mans face who's father just bought him that fine looking rifle, to be his first rifle, and all the rabbits squirrels and clays he's going to harvest. Most likely, the gift you gave just keeps on giving.

I hadn't thought of that,,,
You guys just put a huge smile on my face.

Wouldn't it be a trip if I ran into the new owner at a range.

Thanks gentlemen,,,
You all have officially brightened my spirits.

Aarond

.

[hartcreek]

The good thing is that you found out what a wanker this kid is before you gave hime something expensive but I would have bought it from the pawn shop taken the butt plate off and wiped the engraving and you would be ready for the next kid.

The good thing is that you got somebody into shooting....the bad is that he did not recognize that life is short and how soon he will have to be hunting for what he sold for his kid to shoot.

[SC4006]

I have a feeling he is going to regret parting with it someday... Oh well, his loss. One of my guns was given to me as a gift from my brother, and I would never ever think about parting with it; I know I would heavily regret it.

[Snyper]

We'd all like to think our gifts have so much sentimental value that folks will keep them forever

Reality is a true gift becomes the property of the recipient, to do with however they please