Lucky score

Wasting time yet again surfing Tardme and spot a Lithgow 22 model 12, pick up only,place the minimum $150 and walk away.
Have a look a few days later and have won it, so pick it up on the way to work without really looking at it.
Pull it out the next day,not expecting much and was quietly impressed.Lovely smooth action and stout barrel,tidy wood,an old gun but has not seen much work and has been looked after.Time to fit a scope and see if it shoots.Fit an old Leupold 4-12x40 AO break out the workmate and shooting rest and proceed to put 5 shots into one ragged hole at 60m,holy shit batman that was a fluke,nah does it again.So zeroed it and waited 5 mins for something a bit more exciting than a cardboard box.Starling at 50m,bang puff too easy.OK happy as Larry,now time to see if I can do anything about the one thing I don't like so much,the big banana 10 shot mag.Off to Elios in south D.He produces a 5 shot mag but with no follower,spring or bottom plate.My last attempt to alter a mag was 30 plus years ago when i tried to extend a Brno 512 from 5 to 10 shots,didn't turn out well at all.Grab a spare JW15 mag that doesn't work too well and pull apart.Follower fits right in
spring fits and bottom plate slides on,bet it doesn't feed this is TOO easy.Grab 5 rounds and load mag.Cycle the action 5 in, 5 out flawlessly.Do it again.STOKED.So now I have 2 toz17,a very early jw15 that I bought 33 years ago and now the Lithgow and they all shot better than me.Note to self STAY AWAY FROM TARDME.

You dont need the latest fashion gun to shoot well theres a lot of old gems out there

True that, but I guess if someone wasn't buying new guns then the whole industry grinds to a halt.
For myself I would rather tinker and use something old, than some sterile new thing,zero satisfaction in that.

I have an Aussie Sporting Shooter mag (old issue) somewhere that has an article whereby a guy makes a custom stock for a Lithgow and turns it into a semi target rifle as it shot so bloody well. He did a few one hole groups with Eley match.