Originally Posted By: Run With The Fox
Just wondering about the 1915 Fox ad-- what does the length of the water table have to do with the ease of opening and closing a double gun? Anyone have an explanation of that?? RWTF


Fairly simple actually. Just apply the principle of a lever. The longer the water-table the further it is from the breech to the hinge pin. Using extremes if the barrels were 30" & length to center of the hinge was 2" vs 3" then with the short action you would have a lever of 28" while with the long one you would have a 27" lever. Not a lot of difference, But, there's another factor. With the short action, the barrels have to open through a longer arc, Arbitrarily let's say on the long action the barrels pivot 20° while on the short one they pivot 30°. The force required to cock the gun is thus spread out over a longer period of time, making it easier at any point.

The same would apply on closing if ejectors are cocked on closing or on a Self-Opener. On non-self openers and guns which do not cock ejectors on closing then I believe the long actioned gun would close just a wee bit easier.

Miller/TN
I Didn't Say Everything I Said, Yogi Berra