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Joined: 27 Nov 2020 Posts: 84 Location: mtns of central PA

New member here... I hunt grouse over a setter in PA and WV. Love the 16 gauge & am enjoying all the great information on here. I only own one myself, a 1953 Belgian Sweet 16, but hope to own more in the future. It has the original Full vent rib barrel (27" I think), which didn't really suit my hunting, but I tracked down a plain 26" IC barrel recently--really helped the gun come to life and swing nicely, plus it took a couple oz off. Hope to use it on wild birds come fall. (We do still have a few around, despite all the doom and gloom reports.)

Welcome to the site Boon and “beware the man who only has one gun, he probably knows how to use it”

Good Hunting,
Mike

YEEE HAWWW
Please to see you on the site
Mike

Boon,

Welcome to the best forum on the Net. Glad to have another Pa Grouse hunter on the 16 Forum. You are correct we still have some decent Grouse and Woodcock hunting here in Potter/Tioga, Pa.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Joined: 10 Nov 2007 Posts: 90 Location: SE USA

Welcome, I am learning a lot myself.

After years of owning a 16 but using it very little, I am now sold on the 16.

I am learning what it takes to reload the 16 and that is quite the adventure Smile

Joined: 27 Nov 2020 Posts: 84 Location: mtns of central PA

welcome from Canandaigua (central NY ) . Have a cabin so west of Bath and have hunted grouse in those hills for 55yrs . Hills are a little steeper now !! Nothing better than a grouse that's been picking at apples all fall !!

Joined: 27 Nov 2020 Posts: 84 Location: mtns of central PA

Member Joined: 30 Nov 2011 Posts: 1696 Location: Minnesota

Welcome Boon! I really like the 50's era Sweets. Does yours have the reddish color wood?

Joined: 09 Mar 2016 Posts: 753 Location: Mn.

Welcome Boon! Glad to see you finally got in here Very Happy

Your hunting in the neck of the woods I grew up in. Like most from the Twin Tiers I grew up and lived on both sides of the border. Allegany\Steuben\Chemung in NY and Bradford\Tioga\Potter in Pa. Hunted grouse in both States on and off since the early 70's.

NY side has a lot less public land. Good news is if you ask them most farmers will let you hunt the hills. As long as it isn't deer that is. Visit to the Town Clerk and you can find out who owns what. A guy and a dog have a pretty good chance of getting a Yes to hunt grouse. 2 guys it goes down and 3 guys pretty much forget about it. Bad news is there are a lot less grouse on the NY side. None of my friends back there even hunt them in the Southern Tier anymore. But back in the 70's and 80's it was crazy good.

Pa side isn't what it once was either, but they are there if you work at it. 16gaDavis pretty much nailed it with wild overgrown apple orchards, have to work at it but you can still find some on both sides of the border. Been ~5 years since I've been back though, most family and friends have either moved once they retire or they have or are passing away Sad

Mn. and Wi. grouse numbers make up for it though. Wait, there are no birds here....

Have fun with the young dog and hope you get him on some birds soon! I have a pup that just turned 6 months old and snow is finally starting to melt so in a couple weeks he will be going to a game farm for introduction to birds and gun. And so the fun begins.

Boon,

Probably be another couple weeks before you see the northern migration start to arrive in our area. I have a young Ryman Setter female and a 2 year old Gordon Grouse dog, that I am working with right now. However I am presently down in Murrysville, Pa for my annual VA doctors appointments.

My log cabin is way north in Pa on the line between Potter and Tioga counties, and I train 95% on wild Grouse and Woodcock. Do a lot of Fly Fishing Instruction here also.

Glad to see another Pa mountain boy here on the 16 Forum.

all the best

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Joined: 09 Mar 2016 Posts: 753 Location: Mn.

Cold Iron,

Yes the Pa & NY hills do seem to get steeper, especially if you are over 70 years old. Going out to the UP this October we ran into a lot of Grouse hunters, and some real nasty snowy weather, that pushed the Grouse up in the tress. Worsed year for Grouse contact sense the 50's for us. My Gordon pup Shadow, learned to point a lot of Grouse in the trees however.

We came home here to Potter County,Pa and had one of the best bird contact years sense the 60's. My buddy Galen was down from northern NY and together with my young Gordon Grouse dog, we moved over 5 birds an hour, and hunted for just under 3 hours. We had better Grouse contact in 3 days and more solid points than we did in the entire 7 days in the UP. Our Grouse population here in these mountains is starting to come back. Also this season we did not have as many Grouse and Woodcock hunters as usual, we did have a decent number of out of staters, but nothing like we use too. The Grouse population here in Potter/Tioga has always been good, it looks like our habitat has safe guarded our birds once again.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

One of the last Grouse we took this season. Galens 16 Gauge Drop Lock Westley Richard under the Grouse, my Pre 13 L.C. Smith 20 Gauge on top. Serious Grouse guns both.

Cold Iron , we are about 5mi's north of the lake and most of the action starts just So of the lake . Will probably be at Naples for Trout opener , just one of those weird old habits one stays with . If it's cold , the creek bank rocks will be slick and this bad hip will be perilous !! Wouldn't miss it .... Keuka is actually one of the easier Trout lakes if you know the secret ! Can't remember the actual name of the spoon is , but these with a slot cut with a string of glass beads strung there . Different sizes depending on the exact time of spring . An old girlfriends gramp had a house on the west side of the lake and we caught boatfulls on the most unsophisticated equipt ! Our lake has tons of Trout , perch and other panfish , but you may also get a 7or8 # smallie , which is a hoot on a 5' perch rod ! This state would die without deer . Kid just sent me a pic of the 11 pt that I've been chasing right at his house the last 2 yrs . Had him at 27/28yds last yr right after I shot my doe and didn't reload the X-Bow ! (too much work getting 2 of them the 40yds to the house ! Now you know I'm getting old !)should be down perching next week on the other branch of the creek from Naples ! Will be down to the camp 5/1 for Turkey opener . There is actually a lot of state land down there if you check out a DEC map . Next co East of Steuben is supposed to be 75% state land - just never needed it !

Joined: 27 Nov 2020 Posts: 84 Location: mtns of central PA