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Getting the urge to find a nice English made 28 bore. Budget is pretty tight so it’s going to have to be a Birmingham made box lock. What are some options?

Thanks,

JDG

I guess it all depends on your definition of "tight budget".

I'm happy with my lowly Belgian Francotte 28 gauge. But it can be had by anyone with $7000 in their tight budget. Bwahahaha!

All said, buy a Rizinni F.A.I.R. Iside with the barrels you choose and interchangeable chokes and forget about antiques...Geo

Hussey: If you're in it for the chase, then God Bless and good luck. If you're looking for a good, useable gun that won't break the bank then Mr. Kissam's 28 might very well be worth a look. Mine is made on their .410 frame (with 28-inch 28-gauge barrels) and w/a 14 3/4 LOP it weighs 5lbs4. At 30-inches, Perry's gun will weigh just a bit more. I had to send my gun back to the Dickenson folks to get the triggers lightened (which they did quite well) and I redid the finish again last fall (as it was dried out a bit). New guns aren't nearly as romantic as the old English ones but they are very pragmatic once they've been sorted out. Also...ammo won't be anywhere near the hardship that the short-chambered guns will cause. I buy most of my 28 bore ammo at the big box stores and it works just fine.

Enjoy the search, that’s most of the fun sometimes. You are filling what I consider a fringe want. Something you want more than need and it often never meets expectations but still you should try to satisfy your want. I spent 20 years looking for a side opening O/U until I found one. Then could not hit the side of a barn from the inside with it. Sold it after a year of frustration but I still enjoyed the search and anticipation of buying it. Enjoy the ride.

Here is a very nice little 28 bore John Harper BLNE. I have made a study of the Harper gunmaking family, there were three generations of John Harper, though the youngest was known as Norman.

Their own name guns come along rarely. However, they made excellent Birmingham guns for demanding taskmasters in the London trade, who put their names to the guns. These included Beesley, Churchill, Wilkes, Robertson (Boss), Pape and Woodward.

At $1,962 in the UK, plus shipping, this gun would still come out a good deal cheaper than the others suggested: https://www.guntrader.uk/guns/shotguns/harper-j/side-by-side/28-gauge/220201122950109



Since the gun is located just down the road from Diggory Hadoke, you could ask him to look over it, broker the deal and send it over to you in one of his consignments.

Tim

Lloyd, I believe you may be referring to the Bing Crosby Lang & Hussey 28? Here are the selling notes from that gun, from my records, which also indicate that HJ Hussey would have made this gun in 1893:

"Lang & Hussey Imperial Sidelock Ejector, circa 1894 very early and rare 28 bore sidelock, original fluid steel 28" nitro proved chopperlump barrels and proved 5/8 oz. with a concave game rib engraved "Lang & Hussey Ltd. 102 New Bond Street London" and choked .038 ridiculously extra full and .045 ridiculously extra extra full, another set of fluid steel 28" barrels added later but pre-1950 and also London nitro proved but proved with rare extra long 2 7/8" chambers and for a 7/8 oz. load with a wide flat and high pigeon rib with tubes engraved "Lang & Hussey" and "London" and choked .007 Lt. Mod. and .012 Mod., very dark and moderately figured stock with 14 5/8" LOP over a red Silvers pad, 1 11/16" DAC, 2 1/2" DAH, 1/4" cast off, splinter forend, straight grip, double triggers, drop points, 5 lbs even (game rib) and 5 lbs. 8 oz. (pigeon rib), bar action 7-pin sidelock with fine rose bouquet and English scroll engraving with "Lang & Hussey Ltd." on both sides and "Imperial Ejector" on bottom of action, ejectors, non-automatic safety with "Safe" in gold, cocking indicators, vacant stock oval. Condition: about 70% case colors remaining, some thinning of barrel blue, a professionally repaired crack from right side of trigger guard extension into checkering that looks sound, some wood repair behind the stock oval on the bottom edge, pigeon rib barrels bores .553 on both and .027 and .029 min. wall thickness, game rib barrels out of proof with bores .565 and .568 and min. wall thickness of .015 and .017, game rib barrels also have chambers lengthened to 2 7/8" to match other barrels but not reproved. ... Additionally, when this gun was previously purchased from a dealer no longer in business, it was said this gun belonged to noted Actor, Singer, and Sportsman, Bing Crosby. At the time there was a document from England made out to Bing's widow's name for repairs made to the gun. Unfortunately, that document is no longer with the gun. It is well documented that Bing was an avid 28 bore user and also that if you hunted with Bing, he insisted that you also use a 28 bore. We have confirmed that Bing's guns were sold at a May 1982 of all of Bing's personal items at Butterfield and Butterfield in San Francisco. We are trying to obtain a copy of that catalogue to document this gun but at this time we have been unable to complete that. Rest assured that if/when we do, the price of the gun will increase. On it's own a rare early Hussey Imperial in a rare and desirable bore size and a rare heavy proof and long chambers." For sale with MW Reynolds in Denver 2014. Here is a photo of the gun:



My Hussey records have only one other 28: "HJ Hussey Ltd 28 bore 2 3/4" sidelock ejector, 28" barrels, true and full choke, refinished frame and locks best engraving, locks signed in gold and cocking indicators, 14 1/2" stock, 5lbs 3ozs, nitro proofed in leather case" At auction in UK in 1990. Here is a photo of that gun:



Tim