The top photograph looks like the action face/breecch end of barrels interface is 'stepped'. Wat I mean is that the metal extens further down the rib extension on the left side than it does on the right. In fact, the left tube seems to come a degee further doen than the reight.
Is this atrick of photography ot is tehre something going on there? Have a close lookand describe what you see.
The gun is in work condition overall and looks to be built on Greener's 1880 'Facile Princeps' action. It is not a high grade gun but nether is it the lowest.
Greener boxlocks can be troublesome of they have been messed around but the quality of manufacture therough all the grades is high.
Small Bore-
Good eye! I can't take the credit (or blame) for the photography or the gun purchase. This belongs to my younger brother in Arkansas who decided that he had to have a vintage double to hang over the fireplace and shoot a bit now and then. The photographs were uploaded to his photobucket via a dial up connection.
There were other photographs far more skewed that he uploaded that I didn't post and I should have done a better job in making my selection. That "step" you noticed actually extends back all the way to the left of the photo, kind of like the data was smeared.
He checked the action tightness with cellophane. The right side grabs it hard, the left side will hold it, but does allow it to be tugged out with some resistance. So it might be a slightly off, but not a whole lot.
He is a bit concerned about shooting the older damascus barrels, however, and while I think they would be fine with lighter loads, everyone has their own comfort level and I respect anyone who is cautious in this regard. He will likely give Briley a call today and he is going to look into getting the sub gauge full length 20ga inserts installed (with screw in chokes). The gun balances very nicely for him, so he is concerned that the inserts (even light ones) will change the handling characteristics.
Does anyone have any experience with these full length tubes? I have never seen them in action. I gather that they are very popular with the competition crowd out there, but they would seem to be the solution for anyone wishing to shoot old damascus and wishing to keep their fingers.
Thanks folks--
Doug
