I have found a nice Ferlach Drilling in my local shop, and I've always wanted one if nothing else to try out and see what it is about, BUT, my main hang up on acquiring this nice gun is:
What the heck do I hunt with it?

It's a 2 1/2" 16ga with both Bbls at Full choke, and a clean 9.3x74R rifle barrel. No scope included, pop up rifle sight and a monte carlo cheek piece.

So from those of you who hunt with these guns over here in N. America, what have you found it suited for?
I was thinking maybe grouse and a light round of sporting clays now and then?

Thank you in advance for your replies gents!

If indeed it is chambered in 9,3X74R, coupled with Brenneke slugs you can use it to dispatch pretty much anything on the globe. Whose name is atop & is it a hammergun, A&D Body Action or a sidelock. Pleasure us with some images.

Kind Regards,

Raimey
rse

No brenneke in this tight barrels,maybe if you open it to 1/2 you can use Rem.slugger./ Lennart

Make sure that it's a 9.3X74R! The 9.3X72R is much more common in a drilling.

The 9,3x72R and 9.3x74R are very different cartridges so make sure to determine which one you're dealing with. The x72 originally being black powder type is loaded to low pressures while x74 is loaded to 300MPa. The x72 is suitable for deer at close ranges while x74 is in same class as 9.3x62 or Whelen therefore suitable for heavy game like large bear, moose, elk and bison. The 9,3x74 is much more valuable due to good selection of ammunition. It is good enough for Ruger to have chambered single shot rifles for it and Hornady to produce ammo. Good luck

bls,

The 9.3X74R is very capable of making a clean kill on the largest game in North America. The 9.3X72R, not so much as others have said. As to your tightly choked 16ga barrels, any word suggesting NOT to shoot Brenneke slugs in them is BS.

As our fellow member "Kuduae" (Axel) has taught us, any Austrian or German maker worth his salt would have regulated the left shot barrel of your drilling, loaded with a Brenneke slug, to shoot very close to the same point of aim as the rifled barrel at 50 meters for a front trigger then rear trigger "1-2", pretty much making your drilling a double rifle. If the right barrel does the same such would be pure coincidence.

I'm not sure how to get into the DoubleGun BBS archives but here is a link to another site noting the use of a Brenneke 16ga slug on a Russian boar here in the Upper Mid-West:

http://forums.nitroexpress.com/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=243537&an=0&page=2#Post243537

Do post pictures of your Ferlach piece as I'm sure many here are anxious to see your new find.

Mark

bls,
You can tell which 9.3 it is, pretty easily.The 72R is close to 30-30 head size, although rim dia of 30-30 is a little larger. The 74R is close to the 30-06 headsize( just a little smaller, but a 06 case will usually go in( try it head first). With a 30-30 and 30-06 case, you can figure it out.BTW Buchsemann is correct that you can use the Brenneke in any choke avaliable.The 9,3x72R is about like 38-55 to 35 Rem. A lot of deer have fallen to both of them.
Mike

My problem is why wreck a nice quail or grouse hunt by shooting a deer or elk. Then the work begins and the hunt is over.

My drilling is a Krieghoff 16x16x 8x57IR

I use her for doves, skeet/trap, and fun.

I do find the side safety a challenge for quick shooting.

The 9.3x74R is a potent round capable of taking pigs, deer and elk when close enough for accurate bullet placement.

Traditional 9.3x74R ballistics call for a 286 grain bullet at a muzzle velocity of 2360 fps with 3538 ft. lbs. of muzzle energy. That is the load for which most doubles and drillings are regulated. It puts the 9.3x74 a little above the .35 Whelen and about equal to the .375 H&H Flanged Magnum in power.
http://www.chuckhawks.com/hornady_9-3x74R.htm

Mike

bls,

Don't worry about the tightly choked 16ga tubes for upland birds. An outfit called Polywad ...

http://www.polywad.com/spredr.html

sells 16ga "Spred-R" 2 1/2" cartridges that will open your pattern up just fine.

Mark

Or rolling ones own and applying old approach of no shot cup, soft shot from baggie containing mixture of slightly different shot sizes.

Also don't overlook the possibility of a 9.3x72R Sauer. This is a bottleneck cartridge very similar to the 9.3x74R but not interchangeable with it & not loaded as powerful. Not sure if anyone chambered for it other than Sauer & Sohn.

Now that I think of it this gun probably was 9.3x72, but I had not considered that it would regulate close to a double rifle POI POA with slugs, making it a more interesting piece.
Brennekke slugs for 16s are available in2.5"? (I'm off to google that now)

The odd side saftey is also a concern for me on quick shots, and one poster mentioned he has some problems with releasing the safety quicky. Is that a general problem to these guns?

Values on these guns seem to range between 1900-2500 without scopes, and this one is offered at $2500- does that sound about right? (Unfortunately I have no pics as when I visited the shop I merely glanced at the gun and then it began to wear on me as time passed so the details are sketchy my apologies).

What would be considered the minimum wall thickness acceptable in a 16 ga German Drilling?

bls,
With a little practice, you shouldn't have much problem with the Greener safety.W/O photos, I think you should try to get him to come down on the price.

2-Piper,
I think you are correct that hardly no one except Sauer chambered for the 9.3x72R S&S.However there may be some made by Sauer "for the trade" with no or someone else's name on them. I have a Sauer in that caliber, bought as 9.3x74R and used with 9.3x74R ammo for years before finding out the actual caliber.The blown primer should have been a sign. Now I just load it in 9.3x74R dies with cases trimmed to 72mm.
Mike

bls,

The 9.3X72R will still make a nice deer rifle as will having a Brenneke 16ga slug parked in your left tube for closer shots. The side safeties do take some getting used to at least they have for me. We'd sure like to see more of this gun before going much further. Stop by your shop and see if the seller is OK with you snapping a few. While there, and if they sell ammo, ask them if they can order some Brenneke slugs for you from any of the dealers listed below. I acquired a bunch from a local shop that works with Ellett Brothers ... got a little greedy I guess and bought a case.



Mark

If the rifle barrel was originally chambered for 9.3x74R I would negotiate a better price. If the rifle barrel is 9,3x72R I would pass on the gun.

Jagermeister,
Cases for 9.3x72R are avaliable, and with boxer primers.It is a lot of fun to load for and makes a good cast bullet gun, if it has a good barrel.Not a reason to pass on it, just a reason to adjust the price.
Mike

Since you already like it, get it for a good price and use it as an interesting single shot. Then don't worry about the safety or the scope. It's plenty, work up a decent cast load and practice.

S&B makes 9.3x72R ammunition. It is $70.00+ for 20 rounds.

http://www.jgsales.com/9.3x72r-193gr-s-b-sp.-20rd-box-p-4402.html