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I have never paid a lot of attention to these before, but I just sent payment to Osprey for an 8 gauge W&C Scott single barrel hammer breechloader. I thought it was beautiful, out of the ordinary and simply interesting. Supposedly about 1872 and weighs less than 10 pounds. It looks to be based on a modified double action casting with only a right hand lock, and an asymetrically sculpted action. The barrels have double bolsters at the back for width to fit. The gun carries engraving of retrievers and waterfowl. Has anyone had any experience with these or other single sporting shotguns from Britain? It carries the London address. I have seen many muzzleloading market guns etc, but this gun has a 32" barrel. and if an 8 gauge can be considered dainty, this would be it.

Perhaps not quite as elegant, but during the Covid lockdown I treated my self to a "brand-new" 16 bore Webley single Model 100, made in 1964 and never used. It is described as 'semi-hammerless', and has a normal top lever with a very discrete hammer spur where the safety catch would be. It is as fast to cock the hammer as to take off a safety catch. This model was first sold in 1909.

The barrel is 30 inches long, full choke and does nor have a bead fitted for some reason. I am having one fitted as we speak. It weighs 6 lbs 6 oz. and handles like an over/under, smashing clays well despite the full choke. It has a 2.75" chamber and a powerful ejector - it is easy to carry a second cartridge between the fingers on one's left hand.

It has wonderful original case hardening, which is the main reason I bought it. I have some photos if anyone would like to post them for me. It cost me £120 or in your dollars $160 or so - cheap thrills, really. I intend to carry it on a late-season pheasant shoot day around Christmas time.

Historic Bore

Light weight elegance can go too far.

I found this 12 bore Edwinson Green at Holts. It was 2 1/2” nitro proof with a clean bore, cast on for a left hander like myself and about the right length. Serial number 18XX, it was the earliest one of his guns I had seen.

Tried out at a pheasant shoot after lunch it brought down an oncoming pheasant in fine style.

BUT it weighed well under 6 pounds, and I found out when I tried it out on clays with 2 1/2” game loads (30g.?) I found that the fore-end was leaping out of my forward hand (which is probably why I connected with that pheasant).

Had our local clay shoot then been offering 21g loads I might have got it to work for me, but as it was I sold it to a well known collector who then sold his collection at Rock Island. If one of you bought it, enjoy, and let me know how it works with 3/4 ounce loads.

Here is a link to the listing. I will try and post a picture or two when I get it in hand.

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...8-bore-sporting-gun.cfm?gun_id=101920897