That ZH201 is the switch barrel model. Its got 2 3/4 inch chambers and full chokes. So it has limitations for steel - as a minimum you would have to ream the chokes out and stick with 2 3/4 shells. These guns dont have chrome bores so reaming is feasible, but you are going to spend an additional ~150$ to do so. Some of the ZH guns do come with more open chokes, or alternatively one could source another barrel set for ~225$ - which is what I did...
High end single shot field guns
- Thread starter conor_90
- Start date
Fair enough; I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t sold a few guns I bought with the intention of keeping around for the long term. Still missing my 303 Brit Ruger no 1…
Re: ZH, There is another available with interchangeable chokes for slightly less cash. Doesn’t appear to be in the same shape or look as stylish though. Might be a better buy in terms of budgetary concerns
https://intersurplus.com/products/brno-zh201-o-u-12ga-2?_pos=21&_sid=825e599c6&_ss=r
2 3/4 only is not a huge concern as long as the barrels can handle steel once the chokes are in order
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A quality single shot shotgun with interchangeable chokes are just not a thing out there. The older names sell for big money. You don't see much for used singles coming out of Europe either. A SxS is really where the value is.
The fixed full chokes are quite common unfortunately. I managed to pick up a JABC sxs skeet/skeet a few years ago - ideal in the grouse woods. Here is a Husqvarna in mod/mod which probably will do for you:
https://intersurplus.com/collections/side-by-side/products/husqvarna-310-as-sxs-12ga
Also some O/U options but I think you said you don't like the styling.
https://intersurplus.com/collections/over-under-o-u/products/brno-zh201-o-u-12ga-2
I don't know about waterfowl opportunities. When I was a teen I hunted a lot that way. I labelled it "snipe hunting". Our farm was in the parklands of Saskatchewan where you could wander from edge to edge to edge w/ fields, aspen & sloughs everywhere. It worked okay for me at the time.
I talked a friend into buying one of those online for his kid as a GP upland/waterfowler. The build quality was a bit disappointing & we knew it was coming from China. The safety took a lot to get used to - made it real difficult for the kid to feel confidence. Better to go with one of those Baikal (CIL 402 / Remington 812) or a Cooey single. That said, if you want to get on ducks that 301 is still a pretty good option.
Regarding the ZH, I dont believe the factory ever offered choke tubes. So that gun was equipped aftermarket. I have a barrel set that is similar with Carlsons "thin wall" chokes that was modified in North America. Before proceeding with this initiative, I think I'd want to know the manufacturer of said chokes. You'd be hooped if it was some obscure European manufacturer. Intersurplus should be able to advise.
sillymike
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Silly question: How much shooting are you guys actually doing when hunting?
- Bag limit for grouse in my neck of the wood is 5... I find myself spending way more time fighting my way though the bush to flush the birds than shooting...
Before having barrels opened up (or have choke installed) you might want to ask yourself how much shooting you'll actually be doing and if you could do it with Bismut?
And has much as I enjoy SxS, for what you're wanting to do... maybe something like BPS would be more versatile?
^ that’s what I was thinking, a couple boxes of bismuth for targets of opportunity in sloughs and by the riverside might be cheaper than reaming out the chokes in the long run. But is full really the optimal choke for hunting grouse/huns/pheasants without a dog?
A boring but sensible option
A boring but sensible option
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Would you only be hunting with bismuth then? Or would your plan be to use lead on the upland stuff and save the bismuth for ducks?
I have never bought bismuth shells, but a quick google suggests they cost upwards of $70 a box! Damn!
Yes I will be hunting upland game on river banks and in sloughs with bismuth shot 
Hevi bismuth 2 3/4 no 6 is 50 bucks a box at a store in a town I pass through travelling to the head office of work; people spend that much on 3.5 inch black clouds and buy it by the flat. It’s all relative
Sillymike you having me eyeing up BPS upland specials. This forum is great for enabling lol
Hevi bismuth 2 3/4 no 6 is 50 bucks a box at a store in a town I pass through travelling to the head office of work; people spend that much on 3.5 inch black clouds and buy it by the flat. It’s all relative
Sillymike you having me eyeing up BPS upland specials. This forum is great for enabling lol
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sillymike
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
I'm really not the best guy to ask
... as I tend to fall in the category that pretty much anything can be made to work... from an old trap gun to a Norinco coach gun... Just need to know (remember) how they pattern.
- That go boom!
If it was simply about maximizing my kill count, you may have a point. But I've been bird hunting for almost 50 years. I long ago got over the urge to limit out every time, and more importantly the urge to judge my equipment on the narrow view of does it increase the ease of getting my limit. Sure, killing a bird is proof that I accomplishing what I set out to do. But how you get there is the more important part. Same as people who bow hunt. Making it easier doesn't always make it better.
I have spent far more time hunting Pheasant, Huns and Sharptails without a dog than with. I came to dogs relatively late. My favorite choke set up would be improved cylinder and modified. Or I/C and IM
sillymike
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
I was asking about the number of birds in relation to the recoil of a 5lb shotgun
- I haven't shot anything that light... but I can't say I noticed much about recoil while hunting... shooting clays, that's a different thing.
Agree on the experience being more important than the number of birds. Heck, I've been given a funny look for driving by a bunch of grouses while making our way to the cabin.
Wife - Didn't you see these birds?
Me - Yup, but if I shoot them now... what am I supposed to do the rest of the day?
Same could be said about using this or that gun. Taking them for a walk in the wood is a good time to remember the good times had with their previous owners.
Mike, I shoot light loads out of it which is all you need for ruffies and woodcock. I would really not want to shoot a round of skeet, never mind SC but for the occasional shot in the woods, it's fine. Adrenaline handled the recoil. You just want to make sure you don't rush the mount. LOL
I've got a 5lb single. You don't notice the recoil when hunting but you sure do when busting clays!
If you want an English single maybe you can hunt for one of these Webley & Scott s ?
A friend recently found one and says it’s a great gun.
Nice case colours for sure on this first one.
https://www. icollector.com/Webley-Scott-Model-Single-Barrel-12-Ga-2-3-4-Single-Shot-Break-Action-Shotgun-w-32-full-choke_i34088349
https://www. icollector.com/Webley-Scott-Birmingham-Model-Single-Barrel-12-Ga-2-3-4-Break-Action-Shotgun-w-30-bbl-bl_i31005668
As for the fuller choke maybe a spreader load would work and you can leave the barrel as is?
I think Challenger sells a skeet load spreader, which should work for upland shooting, and I think other manufacturers offer them too?
The reloader guys could tell you just how effective they actually are at the pattern board.
But if you’re set on a single just how high is the jump from $600 to $900-$1000, when like you say a box of bismuth shells costs you $50 and as I’ve read others have pointed out that a tank of gas in the truck >$100, because those Browning trap singles look like good guns to me as well and they’re probably easier to find than a Webley ?
As a for a life-time dream gun might I suggest ‘raising the bar’ a little ??
https://www. icollector.com/Non-Restricted-shotgun-Purdey-Sons-model-Single-Barrel-16Ga-Single-Shot-hinge-break-w-bbl-lengt_i40151078
A friend recently found one and says it’s a great gun.
Nice case colours for sure on this first one.
https://www. icollector.com/Webley-Scott-Model-Single-Barrel-12-Ga-2-3-4-Single-Shot-Break-Action-Shotgun-w-32-full-choke_i34088349
https://www. icollector.com/Webley-Scott-Birmingham-Model-Single-Barrel-12-Ga-2-3-4-Break-Action-Shotgun-w-30-bbl-bl_i31005668
As for the fuller choke maybe a spreader load would work and you can leave the barrel as is?
I think Challenger sells a skeet load spreader, which should work for upland shooting, and I think other manufacturers offer them too?
The reloader guys could tell you just how effective they actually are at the pattern board.
But if you’re set on a single just how high is the jump from $600 to $900-$1000, when like you say a box of bismuth shells costs you $50 and as I’ve read others have pointed out that a tank of gas in the truck >$100, because those Browning trap singles look like good guns to me as well and they’re probably easier to find than a Webley ?
As a for a life-time dream gun might I suggest ‘raising the bar’ a little ??
https://www. icollector.com/Non-Restricted-shotgun-Purdey-Sons-model-Single-Barrel-16Ga-Single-Shot-hinge-break-w-bbl-lengt_i40151078
Dream shotgun is definitely not a single lol.
Before the damn government pillaged more of my tax return than anticipated and I was accepted into school I was thinking franchi affinity which fits me very well and seems a good deal for what it is. The dream is a silver pigeon o/u or English side by side. None are in the budget.
Shortlist for now is Henry single, one of the posted BRNOs or a BPS upland special. I don’t need it tomorrow, all summer to watch the e.e and change my mind and budget 5 or 6 times. Need to remember that 500 additional bucks is a lot of ramen
Ammo costs? I have a bunch of pheasant loads from overestimating how many rounds I would require for pheasant hunts and a few flats of no 8 target loads. A couple boxes of bismuth for the off chance of pass shooting won’t break the bank. Should cover me for a handful of weekends walking around the prairies with a gun.
Browning singles are heavy, have no safety and I believe a fixed full choke? I’ve shot trap with a rental model before; not really suited for this purpose
Before the damn government pillaged more of my tax return than anticipated and I was accepted into school I was thinking franchi affinity which fits me very well and seems a good deal for what it is. The dream is a silver pigeon o/u or English side by side. None are in the budget.
Shortlist for now is Henry single, one of the posted BRNOs or a BPS upland special. I don’t need it tomorrow, all summer to watch the e.e and change my mind and budget 5 or 6 times. Need to remember that 500 additional bucks is a lot of ramen
Ammo costs? I have a bunch of pheasant loads from overestimating how many rounds I would require for pheasant hunts and a few flats of no 8 target loads. A couple boxes of bismuth for the off chance of pass shooting won’t break the bank. Should cover me for a handful of weekends walking around the prairies with a gun.
Browning singles are heavy, have no safety and I believe a fixed full choke? I’ve shot trap with a rental model before; not really suited for this purpose
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Dream shotgun is definitely not a single lol.
Before the damn government pillaged more of my tax return than anticipated and I was accepted into school I was thinking franchi affinity which fits me very well and seems a good deal for what it is. The dream is a silver pigeon o/u or English side by side. None are in the budget.
Shortlist for now is Henry single, one of the posted BRNOs or a BPS upland special. I don’t need it tomorrow, all summer to watch the e.e and change my mind and budget 5 or 6 times. Need to remember that 500 additional bucks is a lot of ramen
Ammo costs? I have a bunch of pheasant loads from overestimating how many rounds I would require for pheasant hunts and a few flats of no 8 target loads. A couple boxes of bismuth for the off chance of pass shooting won’t break the bank. Should cover me for a handful of weekends walking around the prairies with a gun.
Browning singles are heavy, have no safety and I believe a fixed full choke? I’ve shot trap with a rental model before; not really suited for this purpose
I can't comment much on O/U except I like Browning Superposed, but I have a fair bit of experience with SxS. I currently have SxS that range from the Ferlach (Austrian) no name 16 gauge I bought a few months ago for very close to your budget, all the way up to a Purdey. And the Purdey isn't lonely.....there's a half dozen that would be in the $8000 to $25,000. And I've handled a ton of others besides my 20 or so SxS. My point being that the Husqvarna 310 and 610 series are competitive with guns that sell for many times the cost of one of them. That 610 AS that got linked to is, with almost 28" barrels and weighing 6 3/4 pounds, configured as a classic English game gun. The action is by Sauer. The fit and finish, both outside and in, on the 310s a definitely a step up from most of what you have mentioned as being in the zone. The steel in the barrels is as good as it gets. The only failing is the pistol grip. Most of my upland 12's are between 6 1/2 and 6 3/4 pounds with 28" or 29" barrels.
