Hello the camp

[Mark]

Thanks to Matt, laffindog, I just activated my account for this new forum. I look for to active participation in this group. As in Matt's introduction, I have the same areas of interest: guns, clothing, trade items, horse gear, etc.

Chuck and Sean, I look forward to your knowledge and background.

Whiskey, wimmen and tobaccy.

Mark Horvat (Kootenai)

[Lloyd]

Mark,
Do we know one another?

You have to be from somewhere between Eureka and the mouth of the Yaak River...

When I was trucking I was in that country every day...

[Mark]

Lloyd, I live between Eureka and the Canadian border. I am a professional forester, had my own processing company for over twenty years. Lately I work for the US Forest Service in the summer and build flintlock guns in the winter. I finished #105 last month.

My favorites are the Bucks County gun, but I have been threatening to do a Deringer for years. Deringer, though, are rather plain and the butt plate is narrow. Thanks to Sean Kyle I have a CD of a private collection of Deringer to look at and ponder.

I got into this madness rather late, but it is like guicksand, the more your work at it the more it sucks you down. Great huh?

I have been following most of the online forums for years, but have been content to read the threads and smile. This on grabs my interest. Hopefully we can make it a great one. Coming originally from southern Colorado, the SW fur trade is a major interest. Pueblo is my home town so you can guess where I am coming from. I worked in Cimarron at a sawmill after closing my mill, so I have more than a working knowledge of the country.

Anyway I got off your question, but that is where I am coming from. My memory is like my hairline these days, receding rapidly. I do not remember meeting you but that means nothing.

Mark

[matt]

Hi Mark. I'm glad you made it here.

Matt

[sean]

Hey Mark,

Good to see you here. Still threatening on the Deringer? I haven't built one yet either. Have two guns in the shop partially completed, but job and family take up most of my time these days. Dunno when I'll get back to them.

Sean

[Mark]

I am going to build myself a new .54 this fall, but have not decided on whether a Bucks County or a Deringer. If a Deringer it will have the general architecture but I think I will engrave and carve a bit on it. But anything can happen between now and then.

With you being in the Llano, what are you doing for work? Last I knew there were no national forest in that part of Texas.

Mark

[sean]

Mark,

I left 'the circus' about two years ago. They have a lot of nice country, but they sure are a navel-gazing institution where its hard to get anything done. I'm now with a state agency. The money is similar, benefits are a bit skimpier, but I went from being responsible for about 250k acres to 34 million. Heck of a lot less field work and more politics though.

Sean

[pathfinder]

Howdy Mark

lived in Westcliffe for a few years....then moved to Pagosa. Spent a bit of time at Bent's as you can see from my avatar. We used to shop in Pueblo and Canon City and my middle son was born in Pueblo.

Be Blessed!

Doug