16ga.com Forum Index
Author Message
<  16ga. General Discussion  ~  Magazines
Lloyd3
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 9:29 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 17 Jan 2014
Posts: 1365
Location: Denver, Colorado

I'm pretty much done with all of them. It could be that I've outgrown them I suppose, but what really has caused me to put them down is the endless schilling for canned hunts and the ratio of advertising to stories, like 85 percent to 15 percent. No thanks.

_________________
'Tis better to burn out than it is to rust......
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail
Pine Creek/Dave
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 10:17 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 17 Mar 2017
Posts: 2787
Location: Endless Mountains of Pa

Gentlemen,

I think the main problem with the sports magazines is that they are aimed at the moderately experienced sportsman. Here on the 16 and the 28 gauge forums most of the members are highly experienced sportsman, most fairly well off and so the bulk of the modern magazines do not interest us as much, as they did when we were younger and less experienced. As most have pointed out, we see the magazines repeating information that has already been written about, new and interesting sports stories are far and few between. There was only one Spiller, GBE & Hemingway the newer writers unfortunately do not have the experience or talent to keep our interest, so we let the magazine and even the books on the shelf instead of purchasing them.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

_________________
"L.C. Smith America's Best" - John Houchins

Pine Creek Grouse Dog Trainers
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Hammer bill
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 12:37 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 09 Feb 2015
Posts: 815

One of the things that sadens me is do to my age. I can't hear the big snow flakes falling in the woods on a really quiet afternoon in the woods when I rest and talking to my dog who understands me better than most. And my dog has been gone several years now.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
robp
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 1:28 pm  Reply with quote
Member
Member


Joined: 02 Feb 2007
Posts: 370
Location: mpls mn

Alot of BS in those hunting rags I think the product reviews are what sealed the deal
for me not renewing my subscription same with the Minneapolis star tribune and their PC bias.
I have enjoyed project upland and the modern sportsman lately
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Yahoo Messenger
Pine Creek/Dave
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 1:32 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 17 Mar 2017
Posts: 2787
Location: Endless Mountains of Pa

Hammer Bill,

I understand how you think, at over 70 when I rested in th woods and my incredible Grouse dogs had passed over to the other side, I missed them so badly I purchased 2 new Setter pups. You would be surprised at the life they put back into my home and the spark back into my life.

Fortunately I still can hear the snow flakes land and now have my dogs to talk with once again.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

_________________
"L.C. Smith America's Best" - John Houchins

Pine Creek Grouse Dog Trainers
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
fin2feather
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 4:43 pm  Reply with quote
Member
Member


Joined: 06 Aug 2004
Posts: 2171
Location: Kansas High Plains

Ads for places I can't afford to travel to, establishments I don't have access to and couldn't afford if I did, and products I can't afford to own (and mostly don't want to even if I could). That's what most of those magazines have turned into. That, and reviews of the same by people who get paid to go there. The last one I gave up on was Shooting Sportsman when I submitted a piece and Ralph Stuart told me that space was too valuable for human interest-type material. Now I get DGJ - and as was said, there's usually only one or two pieces in there that are of interest - the Parker collectors' magazine, and the Fox collectors' newsletter. I used to love Gray's, but how many times can you read the story of the old guy who goes out to the woods one last time with his old dog/grandfather's gun/ashes of his brother or best friend, et al...?

_________________
I feel a warm spot in my heart when I meet a man whiling away an afternoon...and stopping to chat with him, hear the sleek lines of his double gun whisper "Sixteen." - Gene Hill, Shotgunner's Notebook
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Hammer bill
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 4:45 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 09 Feb 2015
Posts: 815

Today I turned 74. I have a little scottie terrier that goes to the woods with me. He is full of spanking and watches every move I make with a gun. Usually pellet rifle anymore. But he absolutely knows what to do and what is going on. In one sense if I out live him it's going to hurt badly because he is my last. But in another sense if he out lives me it's a terrible thing to him but
Nature and the man upstairs takes care of all things. It's all been good.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
3birddogs
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 6:46 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 07 Sep 2011
Posts: 567
Location: wheeling, wv

Used to read every outdoor magazine cover to cover--now they are all just advertisements and 1 page articles that are basically advertisements. Field &Stream is now an online mag,, no longer in print--same for Outdoor Life--so disapointing. Lots of good books out there ,but lots of crap also.

_________________
we salute you bird of thunder
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Yahoo Messenger
John Singer
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 7:21 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 03 Sep 2014
Posts: 398
Location: Rochester, MN

Has anyone else noticed that many of the advertisements in traditional hunting magazines in recent years were ads for erectile disfunction medications?

What do you think this said about the demographic?

_________________
John Singer
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
WyoChukar
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 9:09 pm  Reply with quote



Joined: 16 Jul 2015
Posts: 2124
Location: Hudson,Wy

Well, I almost didn't weigh in, but I have many points to ponder. It's tough to share an opinion on this because I am on both sides of the wall: I understand the frustrations on one side...and do my best to occasionally write a good article on the other.

First, I will set a few things clear. I like to read about distant destinations to a point but have little interest in lodges and the "finer things" in life. Maybe it stems from my childhood travels around the world since Dad was an ironworker who also knew how to teach and lead a crew. I was exposed to plenty of culture and cultures, yet always felt more comfortable in a rural or "down home" atmosphere. To me, bird hunting is about the bird hunting and not a drink or a cigar, even though I do not begrudge those who enjoy such things.

I pay for all of my adventures out of pocket with no reimbursements or sponsorships and actually prefer it that way. When I like a product I can honestly say I do, although I seldom mention any since it seldom fits the story line. If it fits as a casual detail, fine, but I won't alter a story to sell something. They will probably never let me do product review because I am a real hard ass about things I don't like. I guess that may doom me someday. If nothing else, it probably means I will go on not making much money. Add this to the fact that it is surprisingly challenging to sell a good story.

As a reader who grew up robbing gas money from my lunch money so I could hunt, I do get uncomfortable when the word "lease" comes up in an article. I'm one of the guys who gets excluded by fees/ lease agreements and always remember that if everything was locked up when I started hunting, I would have missed out on a mighty worthwhile life. When I write about something, I write about things that other people can not only dream about, but actually have a realistic chance of doing themselves. I feel this is far more beneficial since my duty as a writer is produce a product specifically for their enjoyment/ betterment.

Experienced hunters/ shooters here? I suppose so, after all that is a lot of the attraction of this site. Of course that is also attracting some of the newbies and I for one do send them this way since the collective knowledge here is so great. Bear in mind that our sporting ranks have swelled in this country over the past year...so expect the magazines to repeat some things for the new audience, things they need to know. Remember, not everyone who reads a magazine has done so for decades.

That brings us to attention span. I readily admit that I grew tired of the "Big 3" in my late teens. The pattern of articles repeated too often, but I believe that magazine audiences have long been a case of temporary readerships spanning 5 years or so and that is one reason the repetition continues, because there are always new readers coming along. Personally, I wish there were far more specialized magazines out there-all with different angles. Unfortunately that is not the case and may never be.

I do like the older stuff, books and magazines. I bought a collection of Wing & Shot magazines this year and am enjoying them. I did cheat by skimming one of the final issues and can see how the magazine changed, ultimately sealing it's demise. I grew up on that mag, so it hurts a little.

Internet? Forums? Social Media? I may get burned at the stake, but I just don't like the hassle all that much. A book or magazine is ready to go the instant I touch it. I don't need scroll, click, or load anything. I don't need to charge it or squint at a 5" screen. That, and the pages are real, tangible. I like the smell of the printer's ink on the pages, especially with old books. My 100+ year old copy of "Lincoln's Own Stories" has a delightful aroma, even if it is decomposing. I don't get that from a screen.

While on the subject of electronic media, this is the final forum I am active on. Why? It's unique in it's content and composure. It's not a mosh pit of posturing and nonsense. Social media? If it weren't for the fact that I can answer questions and help people, I would have deleted my account there...and have come very close to doing so.

Books? To be honest, a few folks have pressed me to write one, but a lot of this has me wondering if I should bother. But then again, such things are the means of escape for the reader. Considering the miseries that are plaguing our nation, perhaps there is a future for good stories and detailed information in print/ electronic circulation after all. I have learned information that just isn't out there. Writing has been an avenue to share knowledge that makes people better hunters and helps them experience more enjoyable days afield. Where will this lead? I am unable to say.

I do know one thing for sure. The longer I live, the more I understand why Solomon wrote the Book of Ecclesiastes.

_________________
Only catch snowflakes on your tongue AFTER the birds fly south for the winter...
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
PatrickB
PostPosted: Tue Aug 03, 2021 11:03 pm  Reply with quote
Member
Member


Joined: 16 Dec 2007
Posts: 592
Location: Minnesota

Until after I graduated from college about the only thing hunting related we read was the local newspaper preseason articles. A bird hunting family to be sure but my father had long before I started hunting tired of magazines and/or books. No judgment on my father as that was just how it was. From about 1990 - 2010 I made up for lost reading time and that was really the Golden era for myself in terms of magazine interest. I still have those magazines and injoy reading them. By around 2015 I had faded away from magazines for many of the reasons previous posters have referenced. RGS and Grouse Tales newsletter are all that remain active these days.

Books are a similar story. I have an extensive library and read them often. All the classics and a fair many that are not but still enjoyable reading.

As a middle aged hunter I have more years in the uplands behind me than in front of me but the journey is still going and hopefully lasts another 20 or more years. So the swan songs of older hunters nearing the end of their journey is less than appealing to read about (although understandable why so many articles are written with this focus) nor is the younger generation articles of interest for I'm well beyond that stage of the journey and could care less about their political and social agendas. Put all that together and it doesn't leave much room for a magazine article and my generation is so small nobody really cares. That said, a good article is a good article and although those are rare these days I'm always open to reading them no matter if written in an old rag from days long gone or something from today.

Internet forums are a different format. Times change and while forums used to be bashed by magazine authors (and for good reasons as it was a free for all with opinions and unfriendly conflict) it has developed into mostly quality knowledge sharing that often is enjoyable reading material. While I don't participate in mainstream social media I do enjoy a few of the hunting forums. We have a good one with the 16ga membership.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
dap
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2021 5:01 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 24 Mar 2010
Posts: 280
Location: Northwest PA

MSM2019 wrote:

I can't remember the exact dates, but when Gun Dog was first out it was first rate. I think when it changed hands was it's down fall....at least for me.


The first printing of Gun Dog magazine was September, 1981. (August 2021 completed 40 years).

I got married, got my first dog and subscribed to Gun Dog Magazine in 1984. The dog is gone but the wife is upstairs and that first year of magazines are in a box in the attic.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
MSM2019
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2021 7:21 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 04 Mar 2019
Posts: 1819
Location: Central ND

dap,

I wish I had kept the original Gun Dog magazines. I got my first Brittany in 1981 and I used many articles in those first printings to train him.

Real good solid advice came from the pages of Gun Dog back then.

Wing and Shot had some good stuff too, but Gun Dog of the 1980's was and still is my favorite and it served me well.

_________________
Mark...You are entitled to your own opinion. You aren't entitled to your own facts.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
WyoChukar
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2021 8:35 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 16 Jul 2015
Posts: 2124
Location: Hudson,Wy

Mark, I wish I knew you wanted them, I recently gave the few Gun Dog issues I had to someone else. Oh, by the way, Happy Birthday...a few days late!

_________________
Only catch snowflakes on your tongue AFTER the birds fly south for the winter...
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
MSM2019
PostPosted: Wed Aug 04, 2021 8:50 am  Reply with quote



Joined: 04 Mar 2019
Posts: 1819
Location: Central ND

Thanks Wyo!

_________________
Mark...You are entitled to your own opinion. You aren't entitled to your own facts.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Display posts from previous:   
All times are GMT - 7 Hours

View next topic
View previous topic
Page 2 of 4
Goto page Previous  1, 2, 3, 4  Next
16ga.com Forum Index  ~  16ga. General Discussion

Post new topic   Reply to topic


 
Jump to:  

You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum




Powered by phpBB and NoseBleed v1.09