Looking at Merkel 147E 12 Gauges and wondering what opinions are out there about them. I know Merkel's are built like tanks. Does anyone have a Sporting edition with the 30" barrels? I'm wondering what they handle like vs. the 28".
They have good handling with good weight for modern game gun, but for not much more you can do a lot better.....
Modern BLE E.J. Churchill made in Brimingham England..... The proven Webley & Scott 700 series beats 47e/147e in important categories of handling, aesthetics and ease of use.
The bottom line the English gun has more tasteful engraving, no Greener cross-bolt with better final action polishing and finish which means even when new you will not have to strain or break open the gun over your knee. The only use I could come up with for Greener cross-bolt on modern game gun would be to provide convenient place for hook attachment of fishing scale to determine the barrel weight.
As a European I can no longer buy a Merkel because the name of socialist ..... Angela Merkel
automatically comes to mind. I can't handle that.
If the English gun is too expensive good alternatives to Merkel are Beretta Models 470/471 with straight grip stocks. Easy to operate out of the box and come with choke tubes which can make gun a little more versatile.
