doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Another hunting trip

For those of you who are interested in single shots--we've found English hammer singles to be very few and far between. Seems a lot were made in jolly ole England but few survived and fewer made it across the pond. A good substitute is the lowly Winchester Model 37 semi-hammerless. They're cheap and very well made. And they come in about every flavor imaginable. No, in a way they don't have the class of a damascus tubed hammer single but they are purely American. Mike and I are thinking of getting a couple.

Joe,

I don't think either you or Mike will be disappointed with the model 37! Obviouly not as nice looking as your English hammer guns, but they're a workhorse!

My dad bought one in 16 ga for my older brother and I about 45 years ago. We used it for everything, from grouse to waterfowl! I still take it out on occasion for grouse and it still works flawlessly!

Joe, let me know which flavor of Mdl 37 you are interested in. I've got em all but 28 gauge and its time to make some more room in the safe. JW 509-302-2076

Mike Shepard,

I'm from Montana, so don't know 'sic-em' about bobwhite quail hunting, but have to ask the following question in all sincerity:

If you are, in fact, Joe Wood's shooting instructor as you claim, 'why' is it that his shooting form in the field looks so much more natural than yours?

Just my opinion of course, but for all the world he looks (with that slouch hat) just like the veteran gunner in William Harnden Foster's frontispiece to his revered book, "New England Grouse Shooting". Mind you, ya' don't look bad in these photos, just a bit more arthritic than Joe does in being stooped over as you are when shooting. Is part of it in trying to peer beneath the cloud of BP smoke that you know is coming? Whatever it is, I wouldn't spend much time thinkin' about it.

signed,

'Curious' in Montana

Somehow, I just never thought my Win 37 16 in quite the same category as those two Brit hammer singles you picture. It kills stuff, especially with scatter loads, and it isn't too heavy. And I've certainly got good value out of it, considering I paid under $50 for a nice one about 30 years ago. But....I've never seen an American single made for hunting that comes close to those two for style and grace. Not a 37, not a "Lefever" "Long Range," nor a Sav 220. I like em all, but they aren't in the same league.

I do like the idea of "single shot hunts" tho. Talk about conservation! Talk about capturing the essence of the thing!

Mike, you and I would get along just fine! Essence. That's the perfect word. We live in a world that has forced us to rush in everything we do and to excel, which means "to beat the other guy" or something to that effect. Hell, does everything in life have to depend on Viagra? Fine in business but we've carried it into every aspect of our lives. I've reached the stage in life where I flat out refuse to compete in hunting, fishing, or whatever fun thing I'm doing. The single shot forces the hunter to slow down and savor the moment. And its helped to add a couple of other "rules"--only one shooter over a point, no shots on wild flushes--only staunch points. It seems the hunts we remember clearest through the long summer are those where we slowed down and just enjoyed the hunt. Strangely enough, the bags are not really that much lighter. We've found that with only one shot the hunter slows his rhythm, relaxes, and is much more likely to connect. Another strange phenomena that occurs is I'm amazed how much slower the quail fly.

Thanks for the compliments on the hammer singles. Yes, they are pretty and all that stuff. But the American singles, such as the 37, have a special place in my heart. After all, a twenty gauge 37 was the first shotgun my father gave me. And I did shoot a lot of quail and ducks with it on the ranch. Give anything to have it back but guess someone decided I didn't need it anymore and took it with them.....

Joe, I quite agree. The only thing wrong with your rules is that they don't leave a fella much room for "alibis". ("I pulled the wrong trigger" and "I thought that was YOUR bird".....).

Nothin' left but laughs!

Single shots....They must be going through their second childhoods.

Mike,

Thanks for sharing this experiance with us! I took my friend Paul aka "Bladesmith" on a pheasant hunt earlier this year. I carried a Parker 20 DHE but Paul carried a lifter hammer Parker with black powder. The 20 bored skeet and IC and Paul's needing to cock the hammers as my flushing dog "got birdy" was challanging but not as pure to the essence of hunting as your hunt!

Thanks again,
Mark

jOe, I don't think I ever got out of my first childhood! At least that's what my wife says--and she tells me she's never wrong.

Mike, these are the only single triggers I've ever seen that actually work the way they were intended. And we still have plenty of room for alibis, just have to be a little more creative. Such as, "the gun wobbled--must be the lighter shot charge made it butt heavy". Or, "I was looking for a cock bird and all I saw were hens." (That's a good one). And since I'm a reloader I have a whole basket of specialized "explanations". Just recently I was able to effectively use the one about how the weather change had slowed (or sped up) my shot charge. Great stuff!