doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Europe and the 20 gauge?

I'll happily tuck into a platter of Saddle of Hare with a red wine gravy whether shot by 12 or 20.
Hare is/are awesome grub.
I remember fatally nicking , but not shredding one as a lad when mowing a hay field... I took the 3 chunks ( I guess it was a pretty bad Nick now I think about it)) home to Mum at lunch time....Bingo....Hare stew n dumplings for supper, she used to put a little very dry local barrel cider in the sauce ,& cream....
Only Hares I've seen in the 30 years over here were 3 Snowshoe white (varying hare) ones that mates have given me..also fine table-fare
Not much help, but the Hares led me down Memory Lane
franc

Even though I love my 20s there is no way they are hare or even wood pigeon capable. Now add woodcock and the ability to use disperser loads, not available in the 20, and wild boar and slugs and the 12 is the undisputed do-it-all shotgun simply through the variety of available ammunition. Factor the licensing buraucracy and discouragement of multi gun ownership and you can see why the 12 wins.

I still love my 20s though and own several but only one 12, maybe bcause rabbits are my favorite quarry.

Surprised no one has mentioned the continental guns seem to be heavy in 16ga which is superior to the 20 and gives little away to the 12ga except in waterfowl. I haven't hunted wood pigeon but the 20 does well enough on Rock Dove (pigeons) and pheasant that I don't see any reason it wouldn't work on the wood pigeon. Haven't hunted European hares either, but at 8lbs they aren't as big as antelope jackrabbits and my 20 has never failed on them. Haven't hunted European woodcock either but ruffed grouse and US woodcock are perfect matches with the 20 and open chokes. So in my opinion the reason for the selection of gauges in the various countries is probably based on factors still undisclosed.

Lepus lepus has never been considered a pest, but the common rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus certainly was until a "good" doctor introduced the myxomatosis in France in the 1950s (his park was eaten bare). The rabbit population has since decreased tremendously all the way to Russia.
Bro' Cuniculus is certainly tasty and even though the farmers are happier, the gourmet is not.
Hunting rabbits with a ferret is a fantastic experience....
Hare is the king of plain game especially while helped by a pointer.
Best regards,
WC-

As for the 20 gauge, it is quite uncommon in Europe except for tiny birds which are not really huntable anymore.
A partridge, hare, pheasant or pigeon really require a 12 or 16Ga.
The 16 is still very common in EU and was actually more common than the 12 in the mid 20th century.
The 16 is normally lighter than the 12, and the French gun are generally quite a bit lighter than the German ones.

All this is a moot point as wild plains game has all but disappeared due to modern agriculture.

Best regards,
WC-

The 12 is very predominant in the UK, and I think that the ammunition being cheaper, more widely available and available from 3/4 oz upwards has been a factor. In general, we see very few 'other' gauges. Some 20s, but very few 16s or 28s - and few 0.410s.
I think also there has (in the past) been a feeling that a larger bore shoots (i.e. 12) a better pattern for a given load. We tend to use 1 1/8 oz (32g) or less in a 12 except for wildfowl (which now require non lead loads) and for clays 28g (1 oz) is the most common with some (including me) using 21g (3/4 oz)
Above 12 (10, 8, or even 4) are also seldom seen here.

There's a small cult of the 20 in Russia, with the followers claiming against all evidence that the bore develops higher velocities at target. It might be powered by the myths surrounding the legendary 'promyshlenniky' (Siberian trappers and market hunters), who were supposed to prefer small bores (as a matter of fact they did use a lot of small bores but mostly because the socialist economy didn't supply them with anything else). But I doubt that more than 1 hunter out of 20 uses a 20 for hunting.

In our local hunting club of about fifty members there is only one 20g gun (owned by a retired attorney). Many old hunters still consider them ladys' guns.

With kind regards,
Jani

Here is our member Marc after a rabbit hunt using ferrets.





Pete

What gauge ferret?