Double Barrel 12ga suggestions?

[2ndAmendmentNut]

I would really like to get my hands on a SxS 12ga.

I am looking for one with the following features.

Two triggers.
Exposed hammers.
Screw in chokes.

I have always liked the feel of a SxS and would love to give one a try in the field and at the range, but I seem to be unable to find one with the above features. Recommendations and ideas would be appreciated.

[rexherring]

Don't think I've seen one with interchangeable chokes but there are a few "coach" guns out there with two triggers and exposed hammers but most are open bore. I suppose you could have a gunsmith thread the barrels for choke tubes.

[2ndAmendmentNut]

Yeah but I would like one with barrels in a more appropriate length for hunting, like 24" at the shortest. I could live without screw in chokes if one barrel was skeet and the other full.

[excess650]

I have a Remington SPR 210 12ga 3" with 28" barrels choke tubes. These were made by Baikal in Russia. While mine has a single selective trigger and ejectors, the SPR 220 had double triggers and extractors.

Remington is not importing them, but USSG or EAA are. I think there were 26" 12ga with choke tubes, but the 20" are cylinder bore. I did see a 20ga 3" with 20" barrels that had choke tubes.

The previously mentioned guns are all hammerless. Baikal does make a hammer gun, but may be 20" only. The hammer guns do have top tang safeties.

Search USSG's site:

http://www.ussginc.com/pdfs/USSG_2011Catalog_p16.pdf

It looks like if you want hammers and choke tubes, you can get 20". If you can do without the hammers you can get a 28" 12ga with double triggers. The weight they show is bogus. My 20" 12ga weighs 6-1/4#.

[tacklebury]

In my findings, the only longer barreled external hammer SxS is Cimmaron's 26". It's a cylinder bore, but could have chokes added. I don't see it currently in stock anywhere, but you might catch one sometime. 8)

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/product_info.php/cPath/906/products_id/411540581

[Four Fingers of Death]

I have bought a Bonehill double hammer gun which is nitro proofed for 2 3/4" chambers and the barrels are 32" long.

It is a nice gun and I intend to cut the barrels to 26"-28" (not decided yet) and fit Breily (Or however you spell it, HaHa! had about five goes and they all looked wrong) chokes. That should make it a useful hunting and cowboy action gun.

[Norbrat]

I enquired about fitting Briley chokes to my Brno, and was quoted about $600 per barrel. Pass!

[Four Fingers of Death]

I was quoted $100 each barrel for the machining and $100 a each for the choke tubes.

I would rather drill it out to Beretta or Stoeger tubes, as I have plenty of them. Never thought of that before, D'Oh!

[LIMPINGJ]

Check the CZ website. Last time I looked they list one but I do not remember if it has screw in tubes.

[W.R.Buchanan]

Briley is a pretty expensive place to do business. They have a very high opinion of their products which in reality is pretty well deserved as they are the goto place to go for highend shotgun modifications.

When you are working on a $20,000 gun $600 ea to have the choke tube mod done is nothing, and especially when you don't have to worry about them screwing the job up. It is right the first time everytime cuz they invented the process. Hence, you pay more.

That said, Any gunsmith who specializes in real shotgun work for trapshooters, like Jim Flynn here in the Ojai, Santa Barbara area, can do the work and will probably only charge you 1/4 as much. You can buy Briley Tubes many places which makes them desirable. I personally prefer Carlson Choke tubes as the are much more reasonably priced ($25 ea ish) and they are made on a CNC Lathe that I personally built for them.

To find someone near you that can do the work go to www.trapshooters.com and post a request. Someone will gladly route you to someone near you. The people over there are just like the ones here, IE: serious gun nuts,,, and in fact many here, are from there, myself included. They are always willing to help.

As far as a gun to start with, that Cimarron looks like it would fill your bill. Stoeger makes a coach gun with exposed hammers, but it only has 20" barrels. However Choke tubes in 20" barrels will still work pretty well and the gun would handle fast in the field.

If you could drop the exposed hammer part then you open up many choices. I have a Stevens 311 which is the quintesential entry level SxS shotgun. There are zillions of them around. I would doubt that gun cost $100 new, I don't know if they still make them but I bet they are less than $200 now.

A real find would be a Fox 12ga Double, however finding one that the owner would turn loose of is another matter entirely. They are reported to be the most reliable double ever made, they never break, and everyone I know who has one will take it to the grave. They are that good, but still reasonably priced if you can find one.

But they don't have exposed hammers?

Randy

[joec]

I don't think other than Stoegers with changeable chokes in a side x side and it doesn't have the hammers though it does have duel triggers. Now I have a gun that was imported from Turkey in the 70's that was branded as a Liberty shotgun. It is the same maker of the side x sides sold by CZ other than mine has a 24" barrel and CZ sells coach length as well as 26" up but no 24". Other than that even the source for parts for it now. Oh yes it is a mule ear side by side as it has working hammers and dual triggers. Really a nice gun.

[LUCKYDAWG13]

CZ makes a SxS hammer gun 30" or 32" barrels i think i saw cost's about $1000.
looks real nice

[joec]

CZ makes a SxS hammer gun 30" or 32" barrels i think i saw cost's about $1000.
looks real nice

I suggest one look for a good condition used one used under the Liberty name. I found one that had two owner and neither had fired it period. I paid $350 for it delivered. If fired like a perfectly and is still tight like a new gun. I've since fired it a lot and love the gun personally.

[W.R.Buchanan]

2A nut: I just got back from my local Tru-Value Hardware store that sells guns.

He had a "Baikal Bountyhunter." It is an exposed hammer SxS with 20" barrels and ,,,,, removable choke tubes!

This gun was new and looked pretty nice for a $550 shotgun. Baikjal is Russian made and they have been coming up with better stuff everytime I look at them.

I would check them out Maybe it is just what you're loking for.

Randy

[2ndAmendmentNut]

Thanks guys CZ has just what I am looking for.

[longbow]

Another option:

http://www.davide-pedersoli.com/scheda-prodotto.asp/l_de/idpr_335/gewehre-doppelflinten-side-by-side-shotgun-la-bohemienne.html

Not sure of quality or cost but...

Longbow

[Lonegun1894]

I have the Savage 311, and it is great. I paid $250 for it last year, and think it was well worth it. The only problems though are that it doesn't have the hammers and it has fixed chokes (modified and full), so doesn't fit in with your requirements. My other SxS is a muzzleloader, so has the hammers, but once again, no chokes (cylinder).

[Hang Fire]

Wife and I were at a gun show few years back and spotted this Chinese double hammer gun with a problem. The barrels were separated for about 2” at the muzzle with bent left barrel pointing out to the left.

As we walked off, she asked me it it could be fixed? I said if the action was still good, yes, but barrels would have to be cut off, &c. Went back, action checked OK, asked what he wanted for it and he said $200.00, put the gun down and left. She went back, few minutes later here she came with the gun. When she got there another guy was laying it on thick about how much work it would take to make it shootable. She told the seller would give him a hundred bucks for it, he said sold.

This is the result with 18 3/4” barrels, is heavy, but has nice piece of walnut and shoots good. The three safeties took a bit of getting used to, has a cross bolt for blocking firing pins, a sliding on/off tang safety and the hammers have a half cock position.

http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y92/TANSTAAFL-2/A188712gacoachgun-1.jpg

[jlchucker]

about 10 years ago I ordered and bought a new Baikal side-by-side (the EAA version before the Remington thing) with choke tubes and 24 inch barrels. It's at my brother's house now, and I was just looking at it a week ago. it's a nicer handling gun that the 28 incher that I kept, especially for grouse and woodcock. Now, if it only had a straight stock instead of cast for a right-hander... I see where Baikals are being imported again, and they are not being offered in the 24 inch version. Too bad. This lefty would like one again if the stock was straight.

[excess650]

Baikals are being imported by USSG. They had been offering 26" SxS with choke tubes, but I think that are 28" now. I have a Remington Spartan with 28", choke tubes, single selective trigger, and ejectors for hunting and a USSG 20" double trigger, open choke, with extractors for close range stuff. The 20" weighs 6-1/4# so recoil is noticeable.

[Brithunter]

Hmmm I wonder why it needs exposed hammers? After all the hammerless gun was perfected in the late 1800's which is still of course in the cowpokes heyday.

Of course here in the UK one would just go and buy an original hammer gun and forget about screw in chokes. Plenty of them still about in excellent condition.

[Four Fingers of Death]

This is the result with 18 3/4” barrels, is heavy, but has nice piece of walnut and shoots good.
http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y92/TANSTAAFL-2/A188712gacoachgun-1.jpg

I bought one of these new with 20" bbls. I bought it already 'gunsmith' tuned for cowboy competition (bigggggggggggggggggggg mistake). After a trip to a shotgun smith to have the sears re-cut, new springs, etc it shoots ok, but the left Bbl fails to fire (ftf) occasionally. Sort of OK with Federal ammo, but still one in ten to twenty ftf. I then pulled it down and noticed that one of the hammer assemblies was faulty and does not reliably strike the firing pin thngo. Repairing that is one of my priorities when I get home. I will also replace the trigger assemblies right way around. Part of the 'tune up' involved reversing the triggers for speed wortk, but when you own ten different shotguns with double triggers, it is of dubious value. I don't have to think about the standard set up, but I do with this set up.

When this one is going ok, I will be finally set up properly for Classic Cowboy