AyA's although not the best finished guns in comparison to some others are mechanically and materially wise in the top 3 in my opinion .
Ugartachea's although mainly a plain gun ,are a good solidly made work horse and I have every respect for them .
Graham,
Back when the Spanish left imposed a yearly tax on its citizens for the privilege of owning a firearm, many of them were dumped here in the states. It was a large dump, and it drove the prices of everything Spanish down for a few years. Prices paid even for Spanish guns that had always been here declined.
I bought a US spec Ugartechia boxlock for $400, off one of the gun selling websites. It has 3” chambers and proof, along with a slim beavertail forearm, things that importers seemed to think all Americans wanted in a gun, circa 1972.
The fit and finish is a bit spotty, but, it cleaned up nicely and I have opened the chokes to cylinder and IC, and shoot a bit of skeet with it, here and there, and use it when hunting with friends that own clumsy Labradors. It is fitted with disc set strikers, and, lo and behold, they come right out for service. A previous imported supplied me with the tool to remove them, and a spare set of strikers.
In the continuing leftist drive to hamper and eventually eliminate hunting and gun ownership, my state is considering mandating non toxic shot for upland hunting, on the basis of deeply flawed science. It is, of course, not about the science, anyway. I had this gun for sale for some time, but, changed my mind, and come the time, I suspect it will be adequate to shoot steel loads in the years I have left to hunt and be pursued by idiots on the left.
Most of the Uggies I have handled were plain, serviceable implements for field use.
Best,
Ted