djw -- What did Wally charge for your Versa-Pack? There was one in the rack at Gander in Onalaska, been there for months and months. As usual with GM, they wanted too much for the little gun: $160. I picked it up every time I went in there to look over the used-gun rack, but couldn't bring myself to part with that much money for it.
Well --- with the news about the Gardner plant closing, and in the new spirit of bargaining with retailers for a better price, I stopped by after work yesterday and asked the sales guy how much he could come down on the price. Ten bucks: $150 for a new shotgun frame with a .410 barrel and the peculiar offset .22 barrel, fitted with a child-size plastic stock. I tumbled for it, even though I can't afford it.
I had hoped that the barrels would fit one of my Handi frames, to make a centerfire/rimfire/shotgun combination. Sure enough, the Versa-Pack barrels both fit my rifle frame currently fitted with a .357 Max barrel, which also has a 12-gauge barrel I bought from a fellow GBO member. Now I have a single firearm that shoots .357 Max, 12-gauge, .410 bore and .22LR -- I am very happy with the outcome!
The funny thing is, the Versa-Pack's trigger pull is better than the one on the Handi frame. They're both crisp with no creep, but the Versa frame's trigger is noticeably lighter. Fitted with an old wood Pardner stock and a wood Handi forend, the Versa frame makes a well-balalnced .22. The sights are exactly what I grew up with on my first .22s, but I have highlighted the front with bright orange. Someday I'll try a scope on it just to see what it will do from the bench.
As others have said here, it's difficult to understand why sales of the Versa-Pack set were so poor. I'm bored with my two Ruger 10/22s -- one of them will go up for sale to offset the cost of the Versa. They are great rifles, but I'm tired of disassembling after use to clean out the semi-auto fouling all over the breech. I was taught to shoot with a single-shot, and now in later years my grandchildren will learn on one, too.
