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Fudd has subsequently been declared fiscally irresponsible and is now a ward of the state. (Don't fret; not your tax dollars, most of you.)
I still don't know what compelled me, aside from getting old and 'You only live once.' But I gone and done it. The specifications of this particular example may have had some motivating effects, though. To wit:
Rizzini BR550 round body, 28-gauge specific
28" barrels
Ejectors
Pistol-grip butt, splinter forend
Single selective trigger
Non-automatic safety
Interchangeable carbon steel flush chokes, nickel-plated, in the five usual constrictions
Weighs under 6lbs, per the sales literature (ain't actually weighed it yet, but I don't figure they were fibbin')
Interesting, somewhat idiosyncratic wood with a great big knot in the buttstock that reminded me of my father's sporterized Lee-Enfield No. 4
Lovely but wholly impractical wooden buttplate
I was staring at the ad, staring at the pictures, reading the manufacturer's website, and thinking, It's like they've built my platonic ideal of 28-gauge clay pigeon shotgun. Well, for Trap, anyway. Hrrrm. I rubbed my chin for a while, and finally sent a cautious enquiry. Does it have rabies? Which chokes does it come with? Is it cased? Is there any Turkish writing in the rollmarks, anywhere at all? Will I suddenly develop an addiction to bucatini? Do you accept payment in Maria Theresa silver thalers?
What sealed the deal was, when I squintily asked the dealer if flush Skeet chokes were available for it, he immediately checked with the mother ship and told me they had a half-dozen on the shelf. I asked him if he'd throw a pair of 'em in. He averred that he would.
He also picked up the postage and insurance -not inconsiderable money.
Ka-ching.
So. It has arrived, and weather and circumstances finally permitted me to shoot the thing today. Four rounds of Trap; I didn't like the hubbub going on at the Skeet fields today; there were groups going through, and I didn't want to be getting to know a new-to-me shotgun with a party going on behind me. Besides, Trap, for me, encourages rhythmic, deliberate, ritual thought. It's like Free Pistol compared to Skeet's Rapid-Fire Pistol, by my lights. And I've enjoyed shooting both. But if I want to get to know a new firearm.... Slow things down a bit.
Good decision.
Full disclosure: I'm not a competent shot with a shotgun. Yet. I'm deliriously happy when I break more than 18/25 at Trap, whether with 12-gauge or 28-gauge.
First round: Shot like a plug. A dirt-clod. A self-propelled sandbag. An oxygen thief unworthy of owning such a pretty, well-made firearm. Second round, I said 'machts nichts, the shotgun can't be the problem.' I settled my mind and analyzed and refined my technique. I more than doubled my score. Third and fourth rounds, I improved by a satisfying margin, and I was pulverizing the porcelain penguins most of the times I hit them. They'd just cease to exist. Right out of the house, many of them.
Seeing that tiny little cartridge wreak such devastation on wee-little flying objects... This was a pretty decent Saturday.
And I've said this about the Browning Superposed Skeet I received just before this Italian job arrived, but it bears repeating: The shotgun was transparent. None of it ever got in the way, in any way I could tell.
Verdict: Should someone ever hand you a 28-gauge BR550 and offer you a go at Trap with it? It might not be a waste of your ticket.
Just choke it at least Modified. And you'll make those snarky orange saucers disappear without trace.
....................
Next time out, I intend to use the delicate little thing for Skeet. Should be interesting.
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