Let's see your favorite hunting or sporting shotgun - post a photo!

[Stephen Nash]

Steve, I know you are the exactly right guy to ask. Would you speculate on when that walnut tree that provided the stocks was a sapling? When and where would it have been harvested?

As the metal-to-wood fit is still perfect, I expect the wood blank was cured about 70 years before being made into a stock, meaning it was cut from the branch around 1796. It is not unreasonable for a walnut tree to be 200 years old, so the tree would have been a sapling when Elizabeth I was on the throne, and Shakespeare started doing plays! Even if from a younger tree, much history would have passed before being stored for drying.

(Your Horsley would not be far off these dates too)

 

[FLYBYU44]

Nothing fancy like some of you guys, but I love this thing to bits. Plus it had consistently been taking down birds so far. Huglu single shot in 12g

 

[257hunter]

This one is kind of pieced together but it has served me well. Usually wears a mag extension as well for use while coyote calling.

 

[nail]

My two favorets. Steve!

 

[sillymike]

Bought my dream gun last year...

Curious mind wants to know what it is?

 

[canvasback]

As the metal-to-wood fit is still perfect, I expect the wood blank was cured about 70 years before being made into a stock, meaning it was cut from the branch around 1796. It is not unreasonable for a walnut tree to be 200 years old, so the tree would have been a sapling when Elizabeth I was on the throne, and Shakespeare started doing plays! Even if from a younger tree, much history would have passed before being stored for drying.

(Your Horsley would not be far off these dates too)

Utterly fascinating and wild to think some of us are walking around using wood that is Elizabethan in origin.

 

[browninggold]

Little magic wand, Ithaca 37 28g with 26”bbl and AA grade English stock…even Harry Potter would approve!

 

[straightshooter]

Curious mind wants to know what it is?

It's a 20 gauge Savage Fox A Grade (built by Connecticut Shotgun Manufacturing Co.). My search criteria were:

• must be sxs 20 gauge chambered for 2 3/4 and 3"
• must be round or rounded action
• must be configured with English straight stock and splinter fore end
• must be equipped with double triggers
• must be equipped with choke tubes
• LOP must be between 14.0 and 14.75"
• must employ a manual safety
• case coloured receiver preferred
• steel compatible preferred
• extractors preferred

It would be hard to exaggerate how difficult it is to satisfy this wish list. I searched daily for well over a year. By the time I found the A Grade, I was convinced that the only way I would fill it would be to order it bespoke from Rizzini or a similar maker.

The Savage Fox A Grade was a marketing failure for Savage. I'm guessing this was because it was everything upland hunters ask for, but are unwilling to pay for. CSMC still makes small quantities of new ones, but new production or original, they are exceedingly rare.

I'll never regret buying it, as it performs even better than it looks.

 

[SurplusNut15]

Just because it's my favourite shotgun model of all time, kind of immediately makes it my favourite sporting shotgun. Mine is just a rough around the edges but very well functioning Norinco 1887 I got from Canada Ammo back in the day. I'm a little curious if anyone who sees this thread actually uses the finnicky weird thing for any kind of sporting much anymore. Took my first grouse ever with it and recently my first grouse of this season on opening day, love taking it out.

This particular grouse was a funny one, it flushed up from the side of the trail and I took a very unconvincing leading shot at it on the wing over an open area. It kept going along its flight path seemingly undisturbed so I was absolutely sure I missed. I went walking a little further and heard this crazy fluffing and rustling sound back down the trail so I thought I'd go check if another grouse had come out of the woods. I found it lying neatly right on the side of the trail, fully visible and obvious. Only one pellet in the very top of the breast, I probably couldn't be asked to make the same shot twice, it's times like those that I think really fondly on days with the 1887 clone.

 

[rembolt]

My 2 waterfowl favorites Maxus 12ga and a SX3 20ga

 

[reddog]

My 16g model 12 is one of my favourites but the 20g SKB sxs is a close second

 

[Butcherbill]

My other favourite the last couple years, just never skips a beat. I put it together with spare parts from here and there, take off stock from a different 870.

 

[Mark Dube]

1903 mParker DH "pigeon gun" still putting meat on the table!

 

[canvasback]

Good looking woodie, Mark. Reminds me of a bird I saw yesterday!

 

[leveractionjunkie]

I’m not sure I would lock it down as my favourite. But my Franchi Alcione 12ga seems to get carried the most these days. Mostly for the combination of weight, interchangeable chokes, and ability to break open in order to handle dogs.