I own two, 2 inch guns and I find them delightful to carry and deadly on game, including pheasants. I read somewhere (I'm no expert) that 2 inch, 12's, have the shortest shot string of any gauge because they are a true "square load". I don't know what the wall thickness is on either gun (both British and probably made by Skimmin and Wood), and don't want to know. Ignorance is bliss, so they say. One is a Jeffery and the other is a Halliday and I have not had any dents in the barrels through years of use afield. Ammo is not that expensive and readily available with a little foresight. I purchase most of my ammo at Fieldsport at around $10.00 per box. I even have a case of 2 inch, Nice Shot ammo, I had specially made. The Jeffery weighs in a 5 lb. 4 oz., and the Halliday at 5 lb. 8 oz. I would never get rid of either gun and I am always looking for another two inch 12 but only English made. Arrieta's are just too heavy and, like all Spanish guns, are prone to maintenance issues and do not hold their value, and hence, hard to sell without taking a big loss.
I have come across three pairs of two inch guns, over the years from Purdey, H & H and William Evans. The Purdey's sold for about $30K, which was a real bargain, IMO, but the H & H pair was twice that, partly due to new barrels fitted to the guns.
Pricing for a good, desirable 2 inch, 12, keeps going up and up. At least that is what I have noticed lately. I don't know why this is except there must be a small, hardcore following for these little svelt beauties.
