doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Inexpensive target guns?

Lloyd, this situation is not unique.

Truthfully, of the three clubs that I am a member of, the only clubs where the children are raised in a competitive target shooting environment, are the children of business owners.

We did have one kid who was a national trap phenomena, that his father I had received a considerable settlement and took early retirement.

Pretty much the rest of all the young people come in with a parent, shoot a little bit in the spring, a little bit at the end of summer, maybe some in September, but that’s it.
It’s actually quite a joy to see the young men, never women, come back with their fathers to shoot after they have gone off to college. It’s nice to see the young men growing into manhood, and continuing to enjoy the shooting scores.

What I’m saying in no way changes how much fun it is, or questions of the nobility of entering the shooting sports, I’m just pointing out that for most working folks there’s a heavy dose of reality involved about the money side of it.
It’s an expensive hobby, and current circumstances have made it worse.

Lloyd,
Petrik. I think the Petrik came first, then the Remington. To a very large degree, the French Petriks are light, well balanced hunting guns with double triggers. Not saying they can’t run heavy, but, usually, they don’t. The Bruchets were building them for a time, and for some reason moved away from that to a Blitz action O/U that, to me, was a sad excuse of a hunting implement.

This week, I have been taking stock of the guns around the place. There are many, the remains of two collections that were left to me after the death of friends and family, and my own accumulation. It is pretty evident that my days of shooting as a southpaw are behind me, and my efforts to shoot right (so to speak) aren’t really coming to fruition as I had hoped. 50 years of muscle memory is hard to overcome. I’m not saying I am going to quit, but, I do believe I am at the point where I need to hire some help. My best hunting arm, the restocked Darne R10, a gun that cannot be changed without new wood, a gun with 20+ seasons of use, won’t fit me, and likely will never fit me again. I also have a hell of a time manipulating the action of a Darne with my right hand, a problem aggravated by some recent arthritis in both of them. I have a lot of years running big folders and cutters in commercial and trade binderys. The chickens are here. Coupled with the above is the fact I have lattice in the remaining right eye, and an increased risk for a detachment of the retina, the same thing that brought me here with my left eye, in that eye. Recoil needs to be considered, and dealt with, to help keep that risk in check.

Slowly, the Ithaca pumps, and auto shotguns are being converted back to right handed safeties. But, the changes to come are sobering.

Best,
Ted

Wow, Ted. Tough duty for sure...
JR

I know it is a rare thing Ted but have you considered a cross over stocked double? Left shoulder using the right eye. I looked for one for several years and just found one on a recent Holt's Auction. Still waiting for it to arrive and it has a cracked stock to deal with then sad to say. But the stock repairs looks straight forwards and if I shoot it well I can always have a new one duplicated. I have had to learn how to shoot going from right handed to left handed and then back again after several year. Mine was to cure a flinch problem that had just about forced me to stop shooting.

Sorry to hear you're not getting long well with learning to shoot with the other eye, Ted. I don't know how you feel about .410s, but they would solve the other eye issue, dealing with recoil. They'll break clays, kill small game and .........as showed us some years ago by Chuck Heald, wild pheasants. New loads take turkeys out like a direct hit by lightning. Non-tox loads are available and, while I have not done so yet, I know they would take woodies and teal cleanly at proper range. Recoil with 1/2 oz. loads is just about non-existent. I know shells have always been higher priced than other gauges, but if it meant shooting shotguns or not I'd just have to bite the bullet, pardon the pun.

I know none of this deals with your struggle to "change sides", but if you could work that out, then a .410 might keep you shooting with the boy a lot longer. And, I'll bet the prospect of having to stop doing that is one of the things that's bugging you the most.

Best wishes friend, Stan

Thanks Ted, Damon Petrick was it. I've only seen the one and even as a fairly plain-version it was pretty spectacular. Easily the best O/U birdgun I'd ever run across. I believe it was a 2-trigger sub-gauge gun as well (a 20) and probably weighed about 5 1/2 lbs. It was actually pretty reasonable and I truly coveted it (even tried to secure it for Ron) but... it didn't last long. Funny...look here https://www.gunsinternational.com/g...french/damon-petrik.cfm?gun_id=100911818

Still fighting that bedamnedable eye issue eh? And now arthritis....wish I had words. I know .410s have their fans, but I remain unconvinced. I'd be looking for either a right-handed 28 or a 20. I guess we'll need you to try my little 28 Dickenson on that .410 frame next Fall.

When I had to start dealing with my bad shoulder and posterior vitreous detachment in the right eye, I went with a Rem 1100 .410 3", and had my smith drill out the gas port to cycle 2-1/2" loads. That is just about the lightest recoil that you could come up with, and kills doves and skeet just fine. Fortunately, I was able to work my way up to other guns and loads, and now I shoot Win SX3s in 12 and 20 with light loads that those guns cycle reliably. I'd rather shoot the old guns, but you gotta do what you gotta do.

Should’ve learned to trade those puts
Should’ve learned to trade those calls
(Money for nothin’)

Check out PCP’s Ted. Sit out in the back yard with a cooler of PBR and a pack of Chesterfields and shoot Starlings and English Sparrows. Make you feel like a kid again.


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Maybe get a blister on your little finger
Maybe get a blister on your thumb
(Trading options...that ain’t workin’)

It’s all good Lonny, and, hell, it beats the alternative.

Best,
Ted

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Hunting with a wiener dog, that is.

Thanks for the kind words and thoughts. A crossover stock is not for me. The .410 thing I get, but, that isn’t for me, either. I don’t need NO recoil, just have to be aware that my 6-6 1/2 lb 12s need to be fed sensible loads, and I should (and, do) practice with heavier guns. I’d get tired of watching roosters flush out at 30 or so yards, and not taking a shot with a .410.
Somebody up there commented on how most seem to shoot a single barrel gun better than a double of either sort, and as much as I hate it, that is true for me, as well. The A5s, an old M1 safety standard 12, wearing a 28” solid rib barrel, and a home brewed 1952 standard, wearing a stalker stock set, and a Hastings screw choke barrel, have been the only bright spots of late, but, it isn’t a consistent thing, just yet. With the Browning’s set for light loads, and a heavy barrel, the guns are kittens at the club, using garden variety trap loads. The barrel shuffling back and forth seems to level out the peak of the recoil. I would prefer to hunt with a double, but, I struggle with the new sight picture, again, it is alien to what I have done for 50 years. If I have to hunt with a single barrel gun, then, that is what I will do. There are worse things in life than using a 12 gauge A5 to hunt grouse and pheasants.

I shoot trap or skeet for a single reason, to get some practice for bird hunting with friends and family, over a dog. If I didn’t own a dog, I probably wouldn’t hunt, it is that important to me. I understand guys leave the field and often end up as regulars at their club, but, I’m not there yet. I do need to hire a good coach. I do need to practice.

It is warming up, and I’ll get some more time in at the range, less than a mile from my house, fortunately.

We shall see.

Best,
Ted