Ted, you are mostly correct on the Galef/Garcia imports. Garcia did not import the Snipes, Silver or Golden. However, the BL guns retained the same European designation (S-55/56, etc) as were used when the Snipes were imported. I have Beretta catalog copy from 1963 that shows the Snipes and the higher grade S-series guns. My BL-4, from 1972, is also marked S-56E on the barrel flats.
And while you might well rather carry the Webley than a NID, you'd still pay 3x as much . . . for a gun with a lower proof standard. The $1500 or so price difference would be a deal breaker for a lot of people. You want a gun that's lighter than a NID, for similar money? And can shoot pretty much anything 2 3/4"? Ithaca SKB 100 12ga.
No, Larry, I'm 100% correct. The designation of S-55, S-56, etc, was applied by Beretta to two DIFFERENT generations of guns. Your BL-4 is not a Snipe, and a Snipe is not a BL.
Regardless of what you read into the similar designation.
Did you check to see if your gun had 3" chambers? According to my 1973 catalog, all the 20 gauge BL models did. That would pretty much explain the higher level of proof.
While I'm not sure what the "proof standard" is for a NID, (where is the US proof house, Larry?) it would seem to me that the newest of them are approaching 80 years of age, and should be treated with a bit of respect related to pressures and recoil, if only for the sake of the wood, if nothing else. In my eyes, that puts you right back where you should be, as far as ammunition, with the Webley.
Too many of the Japanese guns had single triggers, pistole grips and short barrels for my tastes, Larry. Maybe some are out there that are configured like the 700 we see, here, but, I quit looking a long time ago.
You can have my model 100. I'll find something else.
Best,
Ted
