Claiming exclusive merit for a minor modification which is not an improvement over existing designs is the very definition of a marketing ploy.
And who is to say the XXV is
not an improvement over existing designs?
Many shooters believed - and still believe - it is. I certainly found it to be so, for ruffed grouse shooting. And the quotable
Shooting Times columnist, Gough Thomas, seemed to think so as well. He said the XXV delivers "a heady draught of those qualities of lightness, balance and speed in action which have hitherto been found only in best guns of any greater barrel length, and never those of 30 in." Sounds like an improvement, to me.
In an article on the Churchill XXV, Thomas opined that the short-barreled gun might even be "the final step in a long evolutionary process - the process of delivering the sporting gun from all barrel weight and barrel length in excess of that necessary for ballistics and for the proper handling and direction of the weapon." Pretty heady praise, for a "gimmick."
Of course, Thomas rightly criticizes Churchill for the sweeping claim that the XXV "handles like a 20 and shoots as hard as a 10." If that sounds familiar, it's because "handles like a 20 and hits like a 12" is a traditional boast of 16ga. enthusiasts.
But to be fair, the "exclusive merit" phrase on which Larry is hanging his argument
du jour may not even be Churchill's - it appears to come from Gough Thomas himself.
Robert Churchill's place in the gun world is solid and lasting. The Churchill Method, the Churchill rib, the Churchill XXV keep his name alive when other gunmakers of his time have been forgotten. His guns are highly valued, and his XXV has been widely imitated - the most genuine of compliments.
Every change in gun design could be called a "marketing ploy," as every gun is designed for the marketplace. And every aspect of every gun has equally passionate partisans and critics: 12 ga. v. 16ga v. 20ga.; DT v. NSST v. SST; ejector v. non-ejector; manual safety v. auto safety; magnum v. standard loads; and, still, 28" v. 26" and 25" barrels. You pays your money, you takes your choice and you shoot what works for you - fair enough.
But the unfortunate fact, demonstrated all too frequently in this forum, is that some partisans seem incapable of affirming their own choices without bad-mouthing the choices of others.
