doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Box Bird gun setup?

it is common for a dealer to call one a pigeon gun that is not, Owen. I have seen this many, many times. I think, that they think, that calling a gun a pigeon gun attracts more attention to it and gives it a better chance of selling. Just my theory, however, based on seeing many that are incorrectly described as pigeon guns.

SRH

I think the person ordered this configuration bought a normal game gun and then hat the triggers switched to give him the firing sequence he wanted. Perfect for a grouse butt. And not a very big deal to switch back to the usual setup.

Sounds like a nice gun.

Does the front trigger fire the bottom bbl?

If it had been made as a pigeon gun, it would probably say so on the factory build sheet.

OWD

An observation only......
I have owned some (5) shot several more (7-9) Boss O/U guns of various ages and configurations........ The trigger firing order (regardless of the choke constriction/firing sequence ordered) in Boss guns was almost universally made with the intent of firing the TOP barrel First..Just a Boss thing.....Various rather knowledgeable souls of an earlier era with much more experience than most of us here gave varying reasons..... Not the least of which is the ease of reloading after a single shot was fired ( whether by the shooter or his loader)....
A gun that I have, or rather had,rather extensive experience with was a Best 30" dedicated Pigeon Gun originally in the book as delivered with ordered F&F tubes and Boss single trigger...
Circumstances dictated its rather emergency sale by the original owner and it resided for two plus decades with a well known Texas ATA luminary and keen flyer shot..... His desire for it to shoot Bottom-Top led to the installation of a Non Selective single by the well known Miller Bros.
The double trigger game guns I have owned , both 12 and 20 gauge were sequenced to fire the more open choked tube ( top in each case) with the Front Trigger....
My experiences are borne out as pretty typical when discussing same with friend and knowledgeable British Gun "expert" Cyril Adams.

The top first configuration is not uncommon. The widely held belief that the top barrel recoils more led to old days pigeon shooters using 1�x3� loads in the 1st (top) barrel and something stiffer in the 2nd (bottom) supposedly lighter recoiling barrel. Many international trap guns made in the 70/80's had top first firing as well.
Insensitive clot that I am I can detect no difference between the recoil of top vs bottom and as a consequence have gotten some totally killer deals on primo examples of those horrid top first guns.
BTW the OP's gun sounds absolutely nothing like anyone's pigeon gun, Brit or otherwise. The Brits made some lovely pigeon guns and they were only never anything like that.

mel5141.

Very interesting. Thanks for sharing.

OWD

Truly no one's pigeon gun, but I sure would like to see it. I would even like to buy it, even thought the barrels are a bit short.

Good insights. I believe he said you reach across to the front trigger to fire the lower barrel with the tighter pattern first and the back trigger fires the upper more open choked barrel second. Perhaps the trigger blades or locks were switched? Is it possible to switch them back easily?

I am going to try to have these answered more definitively prior to importation so that I can know what I am getting into!

I've never heard anyone say that the top barrel recoiled more than the bottom. Not saying at all that some may have claimed that, just that I've never heard it. There is, however, no question that the top barrel causes more muzzle rise than the bottom. Maybe that's what they meant by recoiling, but I just understood the term differently. The physics is exactly the same as a S x S recoiling right when the right barrel is fired, and the left recoiling left when it is fired. As has been discussed recently, this is the reason for barrel convergence with S x Ss. The top barrel is farther off centerline axis than the bottom, causing the extra muzzle flip.

I always set up my O/U guns to fire the bottom first for pigeons, game and sporting clays. It may not make but a fraction of a second difference in how quickly you can get off the second well aimed shot, but why not take advantage of that fraction of a second? I'll admit it's not much, but it is real, not imagined.

SRH

Clearly you fail to appreciate the wisdom available from the world of trapshooting and the generic term "recoil". What you are talking about - barrel rise - is the effect of the recoil obviously.The top barrel of an O/U recoils more than the lower even tho the top single SBT of a trap combo is perfectly OK. Everyone knows that.

I have to admit that I admire your contending with the burden of discerning sensibilities regarding barrel use and at the same time totally thankful that some aspects of the shooting experience are absolutely unknown to me. Much like paper vs plastic shells, bore diameter associated recoil, and the hideous fiber vs plastic wad situation.