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New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2023 3:13 pm
by GVS
Dear All,

I am Srinivas , an entreprenuer in Renewable Energy , based out of bangalore.

I have been in love with Guns, Bows & Arrows, Forests and Wildlife for as long as I can remember.

My tryst and passion for guns started at a very young age of ~8 yrs. My passion for guns was fuelled by watching westerns on VCRs and theaters back in the day in mid 80's. I used to pester my mother to buy me a toy gun whenever we passed a toy store and finally got a pair of colt .45's and a Mauser pistol ,which could hold 9 cartridges ,and came with its own small 3 piece human torso target. These were, ofcourse, from leo toys, a very big name in toys in those days and the quality of construction was exemplery.

I remember making my own tie-down holster using rexine material which used to be the popular material for furniture upholstery and I used to practice quick draws with the colt replica by firing it at targets placed 10-12ft away and got pretty good at it too.

When I started college, the entreprenuriel bug bit me and I started assembling and selling electric Diyas during my free time and with the first profits I made, I bought my first and only gun till date , a .22 Air Rifle, in 1992, from a local gun shop in bangalore. After test firing it in the small range the shop had, I got a few tweaks made and the gun still fires true even to this day. I used it a lot for target practice in the early years of its purchase and as I didn't have the money nor the means to join a club, of which there was only one at that time, I used to shoot from the terrace of my house. My target was 2 x 0.22 pellets stacked on top of each other placed at a height of 7ft from the ground and shot from 25ft away.

I also had a couple of friends who owned farms and estates and I used to go hunting with them during school and early college days as well. We shot with Muzle loaders and 12 Guage DBBLs. I have even had the experience of casting lead balls and refilling used shotgun shells, for practice. I have had the pleasure of shooting with two very fine guns, a Birmingham 12 Guage and .22 BSA Rifle which used Rimfire cartridges.

All my free time during school and college days used to be spent in the reference section of Bangalore City Central library, reading books on different kinds of guns and books on man-eaters by Jim Corbett ,of whom I am a huge fan, and kenneth Anderson. Due to my love for wildlife, I got involved with volunteering for the karnataka forest department on various programs and started developing products for wildlife conflict mitigation. One of my favourite movies was the "Ghost and the Darkness", a real life story about two man-eating lions in Tsavo region of Africa. I was so crazy about the movie that I was not satisfied even after watching it for the umpteenth time. I then visited the Field Museum in chicago, where the two infamous man-eaters of Tsavo , portrayed in the movie, are displayed to this day and that brought satisfaction to my soul. :D

The reason I brought up the movie was because I used ideas from that movie to design a trap for a tiger that had become a rampant cattle killer and the forest department was at their wits end to put an end to this menace before a more bigger disaster struck, which could turn this tiger from a cattle killer into a man-eater.

I think I have pictures of that trap somewhere in my repository. I got to know about the forum "Indians for Guns" when I was reading an article written By Dr. Prashant Singh, about the hunt for a man-eating leopard, 7-8 years ago. I had thought of becoming a member around a decade ago but then , for reasons unknown and forgotten, I didn't.

Oh, BTW, I also own a custom made bamboo bow with which I used to practice Archery some 18yrs ago.

So here I am, willing to soak in the vast knowledge that this forum brings and hope to enjoy every bit of it and would love to get to know as many people as possible and interact with them.

Cheers,
GVS

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 1:28 am
by Shivakr
Hi Srinivas,

Welcome to the board.. I think most of us Guns, Bows & Arrows, Forests and Wildlife lovers can relate to your journey.. I am sure you will have lovely time here..

The leo toy guns you mentioned reminded me of cap guns made of cast metal accepting red cap rolls.. latter there was also a version with plastic disc cap revolvers (these were imported).. they were really fun .. sadly its not available anymore..

Enjoy the board..

Sukumar

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 2:14 am
by timmy
Srinivas, thanks for sharing with us.
GVS wrote:
Wed Feb 08, 2023 3:13 pm
My tryst and passion for guns started at a very young age of ~8 yrs. My passion for guns was fuelled by watching westerns on VCRs and theaters back in the day in mid 80's.
Many, I think, have enjoyed and have been shaped by movies, including Westerns. (Even Thai Meethu Sathiyam!) The many-shot six shooter, or the deadly stab under the arm in an old swashbuckler is a long way from the violent gun use we see on movies now, which must influence the younger generation in the same way the relatively innocent films of our youth. I'm sure that those old Westerns are the reason why lever action guns still have some popularity.

I only have one now, the first gun that I bought. I got it as a young one and my Dad influenced me to choose it, because he was also influenced by those old "Oaters" shown in movie theaters when he was young. I'm not sure very much thought goes into the influences we absorb and how they play out, even across generations.
I have even had the experience of casting lead balls and refilling used shotgun shells, for practice.
There is a distinct pleasure in shooting the projectiles one makes!
All my free time during school and college days used to be spent in the reference section of Bangalore City Central library, reading books on different kinds of guns and books on man-eaters by Jim Corbett ,of whom I am a huge fan, and kenneth Anderson.
My youthful contemporaries were not accustomed to recreational reading in the library. For me, the gun and hunting books there had one problem: once they were read, one was on his own!
One of my favourite movies was the "Ghost and the Darkness", a real life story about two man-eating lions in Tsavo region of Africa. I was so crazy about the movie that I was not satisfied even after watching it for the umpteenth time.
A great movie, for sure!
I then visited the Field Museum in chicago, where the two infamous man-eaters of Tsavo , portrayed in the movie, are displayed to this day and that brought satisfaction to my soul. :D
I spent some amount of time there, and also the other museums and stores of Chicago as a youth. The gun shop of Abercrombie and Fitch, back when they were still safari outfitters, was a real treasure house to a young person who loved guns. I still remember seeing a Purdey there . . .
The reason I brought up the movie was because I used ideas from that movie to design a trap for a tiger that had become a rampant cattle killer and the forest department was at their wits end to put an end to this menace before a more bigger disaster struck, which could turn this tiger from a cattle killer into a man-eater.

I think I have pictures of that trap somewhere in my repository.
Please do share your pictures, if you get the opportunity. I'd love to see them.
I got to know about the forum "Indians for Guns" when I was reading an article written By Dr. Prashant Singh, about the hunt for a man-eating leopard, 7-8 years ago.
Brother Prashantji certainly has some great stories, doesn't he? Just as exciting as a movie or a book for me.
I had thought of becoming a member around a decade ago but then , for reasons unknown and forgotten, I didn't.

. . .

So here I am, willing to soak in the vast knowledge that this forum brings and hope to enjoy every bit of it and would love to get to know as many people as possible and interact with them.
We are so glad you've joined us -- better late than never. Don't be shy about sharing your stories. Renewable energy is a very exciting field, and this must be quite exciting for you.

Enjoy our merry band!

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 3:14 am
by Mr.Shome
GVS wrote:
Wed Feb 08, 2023 3:13 pm
Dear All,

I am Srinivas , an entreprenuer in Renewable Energy , based out of bangalore.

I have been in love with Guns, Bows & Arrows, Forests and Wildlife for as long as I can remember.

My tryst and passion for guns started at a very young age of ~8 yrs. My passion for guns was fuelled by watching westerns on VCRs and theaters back in the day in mid 80's. I used to pester my mother to buy me a toy gun whenever we passed a toy store and finally got a pair of colt .45's and a Mauser pistol ,which could hold 9 cartridges ,and came with its own small 3 piece human torso target. These were, ofcourse, from leo toys, a very big name in toys in those days and the quality of construction was exemplery.

I remember making my own tie-down holster using rexine material which used to be the popular material for furniture upholstery and I used to practice quick draws with the colt replica by firing it at targets placed 10-12ft away and got pretty good at it too.

When I started college, the entreprenuriel bug bit me and I started assembling and selling electric Diyas during my free time and with the first profits I made, I bought my first and only gun till date , a .22 Air Rifle, in 1992, from a local gun shop in bangalore. After test firing it in the small range the shop had, I got a few tweaks made and the gun still fires true even to this day. I used it a lot for target practice in the early years of its purchase and as I didn't have the money nor the means to join a club, of which there was only one at that time, I used to shoot from the terrace of my house. My target was 2 x 0.22 pellets stacked on top of each other placed at a height of 7ft from the ground and shot from 25ft away.

I also had a couple of friends who owned farms and estates and I used to go hunting with them during school and early college days as well. We shot with Muzle loaders and 12 Guage DBBLs. I have even had the experience of casting lead balls and refilling used shotgun shells, for practice. I have had the pleasure of shooting with two very fine guns, a Birmingham 12 Guage and .22 BSA Rifle which used Rimfire cartridges.

All my free time during school and college days used to be spent in the reference section of Bangalore City Central library, reading books on different kinds of guns and books on man-eaters by Jim Corbett ,of whom I am a huge fan, and kenneth Anderson. Due to my love for wildlife, I got involved with volunteering for the karnataka forest department on various programs and started developing products for wildlife conflict mitigation. One of my favourite movies was the "Ghost and the Darkness", a real life story about two man-eating lions in Tsavo region of Africa. I was so crazy about the movie that I was not satisfied even after watching it for the umpteenth time. I then visited the Field Museum in chicago, where the two infamous man-eaters of Tsavo , portrayed in the movie, are displayed to this day and that brought satisfaction to my soul. :D

The reason I brought up the movie was because I used ideas from that movie to design a trap for a tiger that had become a rampant cattle killer and the forest department was at their wits end to put an end to this menace before a more bigger disaster struck, which could turn this tiger from a cattle killer into a man-eater.

I think I have pictures of that trap somewhere in my repository. I got to know about the forum "Indians for Guns" when I was reading an article written By Dr. Prashant Singh, about the hunt for a man-eating leopard, 7-8 years ago. I had thought of becoming a member around a decade ago but then , for reasons unknown and forgotten, I didn't.

Oh, BTW, I also own a custom made bamboo bow with which I used to practice Archery some 18yrs ago.

So here I am, willing to soak in the vast knowledge that this forum brings and hope to enjoy every bit of it and would love to get to know as many people as possible and interact with them.

Cheers,
GVS
Hi Srinivas,

I hope, you will help yourself to the treasure trove of information on this site. Happy Shooting.

Regads.

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 8:34 am
by Martin Clarke
Hi Srinivas,
Welcome to this wonderful forum. I am sure you will enjoy interacting with all our members.
Regards...Martin

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 8:40 am
by Vineet
Welcome to IFG…..

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 9:14 am
by GVS
Dear All,
Thank you for the warm welcome.

Timmy, I will look up those photos and share them here.

Cheers

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 9:33 am
by GVS
I found 3 photos of the trap.
10398635_64708053446_1531724_n.jpg
10398635_64708808446_1003875_n.jpg
10398635_64708803446_3445855_n.jpg

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 9:40 am
by james
Welcome.

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 10:31 am
by revolver
What a nice introduction. I am sure both you and the forum would benefit from your experience. Welcome to IFG.

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 11:58 am
by Prabhath
Welcome aboard.

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 1:30 pm
by timmy
GVS wrote:
Thu Feb 09, 2023 9:33 am
I found 3 photos of the trap.

10398635_64708053446_1531724_n.jpg

10398635_64708808446_1003875_n.jpg

10398635_64708803446_3445855_n.jpg
Very interesting, Srinivas. Did your design go into production? I like the aspect of protecting the bait animal -- it seems that this would be a plus to anyone having charge of product selection.

It looks like it is ready for the market. Thanks for sharing!

Re: New Member from Bangalore

Posted: Thu Feb 09, 2023 3:49 pm
by GVS
timmy wrote:
Thu Feb 09, 2023 1:30 pm
GVS wrote:
Thu Feb 09, 2023 9:33 am
I found 3 photos of the trap.

10398635_64708053446_1531724_n.jpg

10398635_64708808446_1003875_n.jpg

10398635_64708803446_3445855_n.jpg
Very interesting, Srinivas. Did your design go into production? I like the aspect of protecting the bait animal -- it seems that this would be a plus to anyone having charge of product selection.

It looks like it is ready for the market. Thanks for sharing!
It was designed and fabricated as a one time thing and not really meant for production. I got it fabricated in one of my cousins factory . I had made a video of the testing. I can't upload it here because it is in .mp4 format and the upload option here doesnt recognize the file format. It was taken from a nokia E71 phone long ago.