doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Pedro Arrizabalaga Serial #11330

Looking to buy a 12 Bore Pedro Arrizabalaga SxS serial # 11330. The gun was made in 1972. Today they only make one grade - the best. In the 70's they made various grades. How do you know which grade? Are the guns from the 70's not as good as todays guns? Thanks in advance.

G, wouldn't "buy the gun, not the name" apply here?

JC

Just looking if someone on this board has some insight?Thank you

Spanish best ain't British Best.

OWD

Since no one else has answered - generally speaking in Spanish top grade guns:

The wood to metal fit is superb

The metal to metal fit is superb. It is often difficult
to see the joints - say between the locks and the action.

The engraving is near 100% coverage and symetrical.

Frequently the locks are gold plated

The rib is hand filed

The checkering if very fine - both in quality and lines per inch

Rolled edge on the triggerguard

The barrels are struck very well. When you look down them you don't see highs and lows from a polishing wheel.

You might email Arrizabalaga and see what they tell you about the gun.

Here is their website: http://www.pedroarrizabalaga.net/PRESENTACI%D3N.htm

And here is their email address from the website:
pedroarrizabalaga@pedroarrizabalaga.net

Best,

Mike

They are usually very good about answering enquiries, although no faster than any other gunmaker. On a pair I bought by accident at auction, they were able to provide dates and references to the store in Spain where the guns had been sold.
They are also great on service. One of the guns threw an ejector disk after many years of use, and there isn't any harder use that Spanish driven partridge. I wrote to ask if I could purchase a replacemant and I received, free gratis and for nothing, a rough. Still needed fitting, but the gun was a solid thirty years old. Non este mal.

Just take off the barrels and look at the water table to see if it's built on self-opening Beesley frame plus what TexasMike said.

I know OWD. English bathwater is Evian bottled water and Spanish bathwater is just bathwater!

PJ I didn't know that the lower grade Arrizablagas are not self opening. I have often tried to divine what grade I was looking at from grainy out of focus pictures. Thanks!

Best,

Mike

G, sent you a PM.

JC