Hi there ONTHEBEACH...

I'm sorry old man I'm completely unaware of the competition series to which you refer ? The only club shooting I did, was at the now redundant ANZAC Range, Liverpool. I belonged to the Hurstville VDC Club, and we regularly shot on Saturdays under the auspices of the MDRCU (Metropolitan District Rifle Clubs Union)

We used the standard military SMLE .303 Rifles, save all fitted with aperture sights (Rawson, Central or Parker Hale) and a properly bedded-in heavy barrel. We fired two 'downs' of 12 x shots - two being 'sighter's', the other ten being 'business'. Therefore the competition was scored out of a 20 shots. The distances at which our competition regularly shot were from 300 to 900 yards inclusive.

Provided we attained an aggregate of ninety out of a possible of one hundred, your name would mysteriously appear in the Sports section of the Sunday papers, a rare event for me as I was invariably stuck on the high eighties most of the time ! I shot regularly each Saturday, from 1957 'til 1960 when I joined the ARA. Interestingly, in 1957/58 I didn't have a car, so I commuted to Liverpool by train, whenever another club member couldn't give me a lift ? My rifle was fully exposed on the train, and the only 'looks' I received were from young children who were obviously captivated by the sight of the rifle.

They were memorable days for me OTB. We all enjoyed a sense of innocence I contend ? Target shooting was a noble sport (particularly that of 'big bore') skillfully and exactingly preparing many young inexperienced blokes, to expertly handle big bore military calibres. And at the same time, honing and maintaining the existing prowess of older shooters. In so doing, basically preparing some to mount a basic level of resistance should the nation again suffer the ignominy of a possible military invasion.

I'm positive IS MISE would remember the 'Big Bore Clubs' of the fifties and sixties ? All superbly organised, and the participants taught so much, by bona fide experts !

It still is a noble sport,

http://www.qldrifle.com/

Paul,

I only make fun of those who qualify, you did!

"Welcome to another edition of the Sporting Shooter e-newsletter, the first linking to our fresh new website – let us know what you think.

We lead with a report that the recommendation to reclassify lever actions has failed – for now. On a related subject, Gun Control Australia’s “mass protest” over the Adler has attracted only a handful of people.

In other news, a firearm used in a 2002 murder was found in the hands of criminals 10 years after it was supposedly destroyed by Police."

What's your Parliamentary mate got to say about the last paragraph above?
Glorious chance to get stuck into the real crims and not decent law abiding fellow citizens.

Pray tell us, Paul.
What was the coverage of the rally and how many people were at it?

O sung wu,

your remarks about thinking of bringing home a 1911 Colt awoke memories because I had intended to do the same.
They were easy to get in Korea the going price being a bottle of Scotch, which we could get but a lot of American troops couldn't.
My platoon corporal sent home a 'Burp' gun that he had captured; he sent it in bits over a period of a couple of months.
Imagine his surprise when a parcel arrived for him from Customs; there was his gun along with a friendly note to the effect that he might need it more where he was than in Australia.
He had wondered why his father hadn't mentioned the bits arriving but put it down to his dad being cautious. Customs must have checked the first parcel and put his name on a watch list.

I found out after we returned to Australia that a number of the younger officers had brought Colts home with them and got them ashore in Brisbane, where the battalion marched, by the simple expedient of carrying them ashore in their holsters instead of their issue pistols and as they were allowed to wander about a bit after the march, they posted the illegals home and came back on board with their holsters stuffed full of paper and their issue clasp knives under the holster flap and attached to the pistol lanyards.

Simple!!

Yeah IS MISE... they were the days when men were men and sheep were nervous ? I think the little lecture we all copped from the Deputy Assistant Provost Marshal had the desired effect on me at least. I believe we were more wary of them, than a conventional MP. Though I must admit the Aussie provosts were infinitely better than many of the Yanks, and absolutely miles ahead of the notorious 'White Mice'.

If called upon to stop by 'the Mice', you'd better obey, lest they put a couple of 9mm's over your head in quick time. Their ability to differentiate between hostiles and us, was positively non-existent, so we were all particularly cautious especially after dark in Saigon or the village of Vung Tau when the 'Mice' were madly trundling around in their Jeeps !

I did hear that a couple of blokes brought back some very interesting knives, switch blades and push daggers etc. I would've relished owning a 1911 Colt .45 ACP, purely as a memento, nothing more sinister.

From the little I've read of the Korean War I couldn't imagine how very cold it must have been operating in such icy conditions ? We had it hot and humid, at least you could get your greens off, but where you were in the intense cold must have been absolutely demoralising ?