Back to the original post for brands and models that would be worth consideration as a first double for hunting. Without considerable knowledge and experience on pre war guns you are in deep water with these unless you are dealing with someone who is both honest and knowledgeable. Don't assume that the vendor of a fine old gun knows any more about it than you do. Ask knowledgeable double gun owners to explain how to evaluate these guns. After you have been through this with a number of owners you can figure out what is good advice and what is BS. Any reputable store will give you a three day no firing, no disassembly inspection period on a used gun to return for full refund. If a private vendor won't do this I assume that he doesn't have confidence in his gun. I just move on, I don't have confidence in it either.
For a first double for your purposes it is hard to beat a lightly used Browning BSS, Ithaca/SKB, Beretta, Bernardelli, Sauer, Merkel, Simson or BRNO/ CZ. These are all sound designs, well made, good handling, long lasting and a pleasure to use. They are all nice handling within their style ( pistol grip vs straight, splinter forend vs beavertail, short barrels vs long, etc ). They will generally last many generations of normal use and are excellent value for money. They are not too hard to find in really nice condition if you are patient. Buy one in NRA Very Good to Excellent condition, use it and enjoy it, look after it and keep it in the condition in which you buy it and you will always be able to recover your investment if your tastes change in time. Some current new guns don't yet have a track record for either reliability or residual dollar value over time, there are undoubtedly some good guns being made in places such as Turkey and others but at this point we don't really know which are really good value. There are some sturdy basic doubles that are inexpensive, they go bang just fine but feel like a 2x4 and handle like a truck axle. I doubt if you would be satisfied with one of these, especially if someone put one of the named brands in your hands. There are lots of used Spanish guns available ranging from exquisite to near junk. Most in this country are sound low to mid quality guns and thousands are well worn after 50-60 years of continual service suggesting perhaps a better gun than their reputation. Still, a risky choice unless you are very familiar with the actual maker and model and this is reflected in the prices of Spanish guns in general. Some gorgeous seductive guns here but not a great choice for a first double unless you can really be sure of the quality.
Prices and gun numbers vary a lot across the country. In south-central BC where we are such guns aren't really common it may be easier to find better prices but fewer guns to choose from. The big gun shows like Chilliwack and Kamloops are by far the best places to actually see and handle a good number of different guns, get a handle on local asking prices ( different than selling prices), maybe narrow your search and maybe even find the right gun for you. Remember that any gun you are looking at with fixed chokes was not designed for or proofed for steel shot. You may be able to use it in the more open chokes but you risk bore damage. If you must hunt ducks and geese with your pet double you really should be looking at newer guns with choke tubes. Personally I use a modern Browning autoloader designed for steel for this purpose, we all need a variety. Just like a golfer, they never go around the course with one club! Good luck, Jim
For a first double for your purposes it is hard to beat a lightly used Browning BSS, Ithaca/SKB, Beretta, Bernardelli, Sauer, Merkel, Simson or BRNO/ CZ. These are all sound designs, well made, good handling, long lasting and a pleasure to use. They are all nice handling within their style ( pistol grip vs straight, splinter forend vs beavertail, short barrels vs long, etc ). They will generally last many generations of normal use and are excellent value for money. They are not too hard to find in really nice condition if you are patient. Buy one in NRA Very Good to Excellent condition, use it and enjoy it, look after it and keep it in the condition in which you buy it and you will always be able to recover your investment if your tastes change in time. Some current new guns don't yet have a track record for either reliability or residual dollar value over time, there are undoubtedly some good guns being made in places such as Turkey and others but at this point we don't really know which are really good value. There are some sturdy basic doubles that are inexpensive, they go bang just fine but feel like a 2x4 and handle like a truck axle. I doubt if you would be satisfied with one of these, especially if someone put one of the named brands in your hands. There are lots of used Spanish guns available ranging from exquisite to near junk. Most in this country are sound low to mid quality guns and thousands are well worn after 50-60 years of continual service suggesting perhaps a better gun than their reputation. Still, a risky choice unless you are very familiar with the actual maker and model and this is reflected in the prices of Spanish guns in general. Some gorgeous seductive guns here but not a great choice for a first double unless you can really be sure of the quality.
Prices and gun numbers vary a lot across the country. In south-central BC where we are such guns aren't really common it may be easier to find better prices but fewer guns to choose from. The big gun shows like Chilliwack and Kamloops are by far the best places to actually see and handle a good number of different guns, get a handle on local asking prices ( different than selling prices), maybe narrow your search and maybe even find the right gun for you. Remember that any gun you are looking at with fixed chokes was not designed for or proofed for steel shot. You may be able to use it in the more open chokes but you risk bore damage. If you must hunt ducks and geese with your pet double you really should be looking at newer guns with choke tubes. Personally I use a modern Browning autoloader designed for steel for this purpose, we all need a variety. Just like a golfer, they never go around the course with one club! Good luck, Jim
. Thanks a bunch for the recommendation Jim, looks to be a wonderful book and I was lucky to recieve a pristine copy at used price which is always a nice suprise 
