doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Using a hammergun?

Reading documents today that would paralyze a monk. Needing a distraction, I began pondering the usual things and settled on what my next gun might look like. Clearly, it needs to fit me but, beyond that, how would I really use it? I've tried to hunt grouse with a dainty little 20-bore hammergun before and found that not to work so well for me (grouse are pretty unforgiving). When speed is of the essence, cocking two hammers just wasn't working for me. I still think hammerguns are gorgeous and want another but... I'd like to understand just how I might use it. Targets are clearly going to a bigger part of that use, and that means 12-gauge and then something a bit more substantial. I'm guessing that more-significant weight (instead of game-gun weight) would be an advantage here, like 7lbs plus and longer barrels, to make volume shooting easier on the user. It needs to be damascus (because I like damascus) and I'd prefer a back-action gun (because I like how they look). Past that, anything goes. Rebounding hammers are nice but not necessary and I've even come to appreciate the Jone underlever. Long story short, this isn't a necessary tool but it's something I keep coming back to. Alot of the guns I've looked at are short and have substantial drop, many have too-much of the wrong cast for a southpaw like me. Also, having some form of choke would be nice and many (if not most) of the guns I've examined so-far have almost none. Finding perfection is probably going to be tough here.

Might take a look at this option-
TIG sleeved barrels allow use of 2 3/4” target shells and also features neutral cast.
If you don’t mind using a Boss…….
Best Regards,
JBP

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...nderlever-hammergun.cfm?gun_id=102226323

Or there’s mine with original Damascus barrels…

https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...very-good-condition.cfm?gun_id=102244521

Both are lovely guns but...both well-exceed what I can justify investing in such a artifact. The gun LeFusel just sold here would have likely been about right.

I take out my Father’s 1870’s Damascus SXS Hodgson once a season, it still effectively kills. That said if I did not own it I would not go out and buy one as I already have too many vintage guns I do not often use if all.

I have had a few hammer guns in a variety of gauges. Only one is still with me. It's a Cashmore 12. It does not meet your criteria, but there are 2 features that I consider essential to a hammer gun which it excels at. One is that the hammers are close enough together as to be easily swept to full cock by one swipe of my right thumb. Lots of 12s are pretty marginal in that respect. Just too wide.

The other feature is that the hammers must be below the sight plane when at full cock. I don't want to have to go hunting for a bird that is hiding behind a hammer's nose as I swing the gun to intercept it. Some guns are much worse than others at this, but there are plenty that fit the bill in that respect.

Another feature that I don't check for initially, but I sure think of when I'm in the field is how easy it is to let down the left hammer with just my right hand. Some guns are easier than others.

I had a 16b Evans that might have met your needs once. I loved the gun, and it had beautiful Damascus barrels. But it just did not fit me at all. Fought that too long before letting go.

Well, quite frankly I have worried that the wanting might well-exceed the having. The novelty of a hammergun won't last long if it doesn't work well for me but... I keep coming back to a curiosity about trying one on clays and then possibly on game. I'd obviously start out rather cautiously and see how it goes. A gun heavy enough for targets won't likely be much fun on game but I'd like to start there first

BrentD: I have heard of but have never handled a gun that would permit the bridging and cocking of both hammers easily. That sounds pretty great btw.

Lloyd,
You seem well aware of the fact that a hammer gun won’t make Grouse hunting any easier. Is this something for the local pet and shoot, or, is this to be your “go-to” gun in the fall?

I think of hammer guns about the same way I think of a an old MG TC model. Elegant as hell, but not something you would rely on for your daily transportation needs. It would be great if someone had a TC (or, a Shelby Cobra, the one with the 289 and the 8 Weber carbs) that they would loan me on a sunny afternoon, so I could get that nonsense out of my system. Having any of the above around, full time, would be cool, but, might be a pain in the ass, especially the part about watching a Grouse fly away as you muff the cocking of the hammers, one more time.

Ponder this a bit more. Me, I don’t need any more guns, I need time enough to make use of the ones I’ve got.

Best,
Ted

Ted,

Not for grouse, but for other things. Gamefarm birds over dogs, passing doves (or even ducks!), shooting at Whittington, etc. I think that would be great fun.

If (a big if) I were to achieve something of a mastery of the form and I had a good sense of it...and perhaps if I could find one where I could bridge the hammers properly(?), then... maybe grouse. I can't imagine that happening (nothing could be quicker than my brummy 16) but... but it might be neat to try it again.