Leapin, most people here have very nice rifles that they do use regularly in the bush, without undue worry about getting some battle scars. In fact, not only do we want nice rifles, we also want them to be used, including the bumps and scratches that do occur. As for our skin, I'm sure it's thick enough, thank you. Good manners would suggest not making assumptions about a bloke not hunting with his fine rifle, especially when you're relatively new and perhaps don't know the bloke in question. Anyone who knows of Mark knows that he hunts hard. He's been-there-done-that. So, that's me saying what's on my mind, and good on you for saying what's on yours. Seeing we've gotten off on the wrong foot, perhaps I can try to start again on the right foot? Can you tell us a bit about yourself? We always love seeing hunting photos, reading hunting stories - even ones going back in time if you haven't already shared them. And we find almost any rifles interesting. If you would like to share a hunting story, we'd love you to start a thread over on the hunting forums here. Cheers, Ben