We had a great Father's Day yesterday.
I offered my FIL a Model 19 357 mag for his home defense handgun.
A long time ago I gave him a Model 36 for a pocket gun, Model 15 4" 38 sp for the house, plus a double barrel I had shortened to 20".
The is well over 20 years ago. I had him shooting that Model 15 S&W like a champ. He was hitting on every shot and felt very comfortable with the handgun.
He hasn't shot that gun in over 20 years but still thinks he is Wyatt Earp with it. He doesn't want to swap out that old gov't issued, wore out Model 15 for a super nice Model 19.
He's 84 this year and is in good shape for his age and pretty sharp all the way around.
But he actually feels very secure with that Model 15.
There is very little difference between the Model 15 and that Model 19 I tried to give him except for looks.
The old 38 has the same grips as the 19 but quite a bit of blue wear from some gov't guard (it was a GSA gun).
The Model 19 has been reblued and rebuilt. I got it off the OHP armorer several years ago before he retired.
It's a nice handgun.
Both are but one had bluing wear and the other is a 357 in mint shape.
It looks like he ain't getting rid of his 38 for nothing.
I told my wife I'd do one of my yearly "weapons check" with the 38 and swap him the 357 for the interim.
Then not take the 38 back.
Every year or so, I take his firearms, shoot them and check them for reliabiitly service them, and swap out his ammo just to make sure everything is OK until the next time I get around to it.
She told me under no circumstances should I "forget" to take him back his 38 Sp.
I never thought when I gave him those guns years ago he'd get so attached to them.
My wife says he is actually proud of them and losing one of them would upset him.
Who would have thought that back then and even now?

My Dad has an old pre-model 10 with a 4 in tapered barrel. It has about 70% of the bluing and lots of wear. It is still a very tight revolver. I offered to swap him an automatic for it several times and was told he'd be happy to give it up as soon as he was dead. I don't hope to get it anytime soon.

You don't suppose the fact that YOU gave that .38 to him makes it special?  If one of my son's gave me a gun it would instantly become my favorite.

My little girl got me one of those card that plays sounds when you open it up, cutest damn this i ever saw, then I was presented with a new lower receiver

It's a good thing that greeting card was a recorded message. It probably would have taken you an hour or two to read it.

Hell you probably couldnt have read the words on it with bifocals

I would have read it so fast you would think I just looked at it.
However it's easy to tell when you are reading something because your lips are moving.

Could be but I think it is more they are the first guns he ever had.
I've given guns away several times in the past (to close relatives) but he wanted me to sell them to him instead of giving them to him years ago.
I told him I'd just "loan" them to him in case he needed them to get past his hard headed ways.
So we've always looked on them as mine but under his control.
To this day he'll tell you they belong to me.
It's OK if he wants to keep the 38.
I was just trying to "upgrade" his handgun as a Father's Day gift.
When we buried Old Bud, my hunting buddy, I wanted his Marlin 30/30 pretty bad but I gave it to his distant cousin from Kansas to keep it in his family.
I'm like you. Some guns are more important than others because they came from family.

Just loan him the 357 too .

My dad grew up during the depression, I think those hard times had a big influence on the people who lived through them.  My dad would never buy anything for himself, only bought one gun in his whole life, a Sears .22 bolt gun that he gave me when I was 8 or 9 years old.  My oldest son has it now.

When I was in college I worked in a gun shop and picked up a few used guns cheap that I gave my dad.  A Marlin 39A .22, a Rem 870 Special Field, and a S&W M63 .22 revolver. I also gave my mom an old Winchester .410 single shot that she uses to shoot snakes in her garden.

Dad was very proud of those guns, when he passed away my mom wanted me to have them all since she knew I'd keep them. I've given the 870 to my brother, who used to borrow it to hunt with.  My mom wouldn't trade that old .410 for anything.

I hope my kids and grandkids will keep them too.

My dad grew up during the Depression. He went to work at 9 after his father died.
I had his single shot 22 that he got before WWII and used to kill rabbits and squirrels for family meals.
My son now has it.
My brother had it, let it rust up, lost the rear sight, had the bolt handle come off.
I took it from him after a knock down, drag out fight.
I spent a lot more money than the gun was worth restoring it.
I'm with you. Some guns have way more family value than money can measure.

My 1911 goes to my youngest and the oldest goes why , A  will keep the gun and pass it down .