The choking of some of Ripon's guns is noted in various writings about him and his life. Remember, RWTF, that Ripon began keeping his game logs at the age of 15, in 1867--at which time choke boring was still a very new concept. According to Dig Hadoke in his book on hammerguns, Horsley of York (Ripon's "local" gunmaker) made him a pair (probably his first pair) in 1866. Unlikely they would have been choke bored.
And you also need to remember that what you see in the video is not driven shooting in the late 19th-early 20th century. There wasn't the mania for ultra-high birds back then--which require the right kind of terrain (hills, valleys, and trees), which you don't have everywhere. Otherwise there's no reason for the birds to fly that high. And they can be plenty challenging without being that high.
Also worth remembering that cylinder is a different animal than many people assume. While you don't want it if you're pass shooting ducks or geese, it will put 70% of its load in a 30" circle at 25 yards. (And 60% at 30 yards.) Bob Brister points out that it's more efficient at 25 yards than full is at 50 yards. And a 25-30 yard bird is going to be well over the tops of some pretty darned tall trees . . . and offering very sporting chances to the guns standing in line awaiting the birds to be driven over them.
And Ripon had a lot of guns. I don't think anyone could state that they were all cylinder bore . . . but it has been reported that at least one trio of Purdeys was choked that way.
Last edited by L. Brown; 09/16/19 06:26 PM.
