doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Returning to the double gun world

Anything that costs more than a high condition Stevens Model 311 is all about collecting and resale value. $300 is as much as I would pay for a gun to harvest game. Everything else is tradition and resale value. You have lost the "feel".

If you are on a budget, its hard to beat a Miroku made Charles Daly with double triggers. Has the feel of a nice game gun, but not the price.

Let us not forget the "gold standard" of game guns for the working masses. It is the Birmingham mass-produced Webley & Scott 700 series.

Check out one of the CZ models John, enjoy, and don't look back. I believe they can practically all be had in either 12 or 20 for under $800 or $900. Welcome back to the board!

I've been pleased with my 12 gauge Dickinson SxS (Cabela's). Choke tubes provide flexibility for different clay games, as well as hunting.

gold40

Eightbore,
I don't get your post about a $300 Gun ,or who has lost their "Feel"...could you explain a bit ?
cheers
franc

OK, when I stated a return, is was to SxS's. And yes, I have been out of the loop on SxS's for a good while.

I currently own a 1965 Browning Superposed Lightning in 20ga, 26" IC/Mod and for clays, I shoot a Kolar 32" Sporting model. So I am still shooting 2 barreled guns, just set up "8" and not "oo". LOL

Yeah, I used a 2" 12 for grouse hunting for 2 seasons. An Alex Martin that weighed a scant under 5 pounds. That was over 15 years ago.

Prices seem pretty decent for working guns. What I have to decide is which one. And I will mention that my choice must have double triggers.

Thanks very much for the suggestions.

To me Personally if it doesn't have two barrels SxS it just not really worth owning. My personal preference, Current or Past Fads notwithstanding is 28" barrels. I am only about 5' 8�" & a "Standard" 14" pull fits me just fine. I feel a Double Gun with a barrel length of approximately twice the pull length has good proportions & have no problem shooting a barrel of that length. To me either long barrels with short stocks or short barrels with long stocks just look out of proportion.
Certainly can't agree with 8 bore on the Stevens 311. Although some of the guns I hunt with cost less than $300.00 way back when I bought them they were a good bit higher than a 311 at that same time frame.

I'm not sure where you would get a "high condition American double" that also fit your parameters of not dropping a lot of money, and use of non toxic shot. The only ones I can think of are the Ithaca Nitros, or NIDs, and the price on the NIDs are sneaking up there. Either gun would likely require choke work to function best with steel.

The Japanese boxlock guns don't turn up with double triggers that often. Considering the double trigger requirement, in addition to the low cost and steel shot capable thingy, I might suggest a Teutonic boxlock that you could open the chokes on. There are many 12s out there, Sauers and whatnot from the 1940-1970s, in need of love, that would fit the bill.
I'd go non-ejector and double trigger for simplicity, and consider guns with a cheekpiece if money is real tight-never seen a contest between a rasp and a cheekpiece where the cheekpiece won.

Good Luck.

Best,
Ted

For what you're going to spend on a new Dickinson or SKB--over $1K for the former, pushing $2K for the latter--you can get a pretty darned nice (in terms of condition, and assuming 12ga) classic American or German double. Yes, likely choke opening required if you're thinking both sporting clays and hunting, with waterfowling thrown into the mix. But that will only add around $100. I'd go with whatever catches my fancy and fits me in terms of stock dimensions--especially drop, although changes in LOP won't cost a bunch either. And some might prefer adding a pad in any case.

I'd also point out that the SKB's, whether current Turkish or previous Japanese, are single trigger only--unless you find one of the quite rare DT Royals.