It re-affirmed my belief that you simply have to go and have a look. This stuff cannot be done at arms length. Get someone (like a Dig or another gunshop owning friend in my case) to look too and give a view. Then you can confidently buy without (too) many heart failing potential findings later.
Absolutely agree Tony. I have been going to viewings now for the past three years and feel I have learnt a lot from doing this, more especially what to watch out for and be wary of. A case in point - by visiting auctions, I am now
much more aware than I was of some of the core issues with certain big bore guns that have been offered for sale at auction in recent years. Ring bulges are sometimes tough to spot in a viewing room, you can struggle to measure bore/chambers there as the tools are often not present, and the stocks on these guns often contain small cracks which can quickly grow larger when firing 2oz loads through them regularly!
Unless you have the training as a gunsmith or expert, you can easily get caught out with an expensive mistake - one of the reasons I purchased my eight bore privately through Dig as the risk of an auction purchase with these type of guns was simply too great to take. This is not to denegrate auctions at all as they are fascinating, still contain some excellent purchases if you know where to look (and get guidance if needed) and give the opportunity to look and feel guns you would ordinarily never see - but one needs to wary and prepared before going in. As always, caveat emptor.
