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It seems to me Claycrusher that you have narrowed it down to either an Italian or Spanish gun. OK, I'll keep looking.

Take a look at Classic Doubles/ Kirby Hoyt.He has great guns pretty fairly priced and is a great guy to work with.

That Beretta hammer gun Steve Barnett sold was mine a couple years ago. I wonder what he sold it for.... I think I paid $700 for it! Great gun... very much like the Bernardelli hammer guns.

Here are some other gun I've owned that might serve you well....


Gasperini Hammer Gun



The hammer gun I'm holding here is a Thomas Wild back-action hammer gun with 30" bbls and a rounded pistol grip. I sold it to a good friend and have been trying to buy it back ever since.


Here is a Bernardelli 20ga... though, with your budget, you could get one of their higher grade guns.


Here is the Beretta that has already been posted (the one sold by Steve Barnett). I sold this gun a few years back.



For hammerless, you may want to search for an AYA #53 or #56. They have pistol grips much often that the #2s.

Adam, I have what appears to be your Thomas Wild's twin in 16 gauge, although mine has an English grip.

No exactly, cc1900. Monte Carlo is the solution to a "high" comb and a "low" heel. The top of a conventional stock is a straight line at some angle to the extended rib line/sight line. There is only so much you can do with that set-up. For example, the conventional stock will have only one location that is the "face drop" needed by the shooter. If the shooter has an imprecise mount and needs a section, as opposed to only one point, of stock top of "drop at face" he requires, the Monte Carlo is the solution. Also, the Monte Carlo can rise toward the butt so that felt recoil to the face is lessoned.

True that Monte Carlos are more common/popular on rifles, but that does not mean Monte Carlo has no place on shotguns.

Have you been fitted for stock dimensions?

Have you established the handling characteristics you want?

Have you decided the primary purpose for this gun?

Have you read Dig Hadoke's books?

DDA

Just a note, CC1900 on hammer guns: Used one for a couple of seasons, but found it did not suit me in the field because I could not cock both hammers with one sweep on the thumb. Perhaps one of the modern hammer guns that have a safety would work as you could carry it cocked (as, indeed, all hammerless guns are carried).

A number here on the board say they carry their hammer guns open and close them in the field. But, some hammer guns will not open when cocked -- the top lever can't move past the right hammer. And, I would not want to carry a gun in the field with the action open.

Some just shoot one barrel and then cock the other. I'm so slow the birds would be long out of range when I tried that :-)

Regards, Tim

Reading all the old literature I can find on the subject I am yet to find anyone mentioning carrying a hammer gun opened with the hammers cocked. I have found Frank Forrester mentioning cocking on the flush. Others, (I believe it was Greener) have mentioned carrying the gun cocked. Accepting the limitations of a hammer gun I carry it closed with the hammers down and hope to get one back with a wild flush--sometimes I do and sometimes I'm too late. If behind dogs on point I cock them before walking in. Remember, all hammerless guns are cocked, they're just out of sight so out of mind. I never put the safety off until actually mounting the gun but I often encounter expletive who walk around all day with the safety off! Perhaps this is even more dangerous than carrying a hammer gun cocked. At least in this case just a glance will remind the shooter of his responsibility.

It's a personal choice and often debated.

I carry my Hammer guns cocked cartridges in the chambers gun open. Same way I carry a Hammerless gun . Hammer gun you don't have to take the safety off when you close it.

Personally very uncomfortable in the field with someone who's gun is loaded closed and dependent on the safety. Some use good muzzle direction discipline even so open gun is a 2nd level of safety. Many SxS guns mechanical safety is not all that reliable. If she's open she can't go off.

Boats

Those that carry the guns open in the field are putting a lot of pressure on that little soldered on fore end lug under the barrel. Maybe my mechanically inclined excuse for a brain is overly concerned with that, but I just can't do it. I see sporting clay shooters carrying a heavy barreled O/U open, over their shoulder with the buttstock just "bouncing" as they go, and cringe when I see it. If you carry it open with one hand under the receiver all the weight of both ends is bearing on that little lug. Trip and fall with that gun action open and what is likely to happen? It won't fire I don't guess, but it may not survive the fall either. Not criticizing anyone for trying to be safe, but just saying.

You engineers and professional smiths, am I wrong about this?

SRH

Neither an Engineer or Professional Smith but I have only one word for carrying a gun around open & that's "DON"T".
As Stan said you're putting undue stress on the lug & as in the case of some guns if it doesn't have a good barrel check you put a lot of stress on the forend lug. This is more apt to be the case with a hammer gun than hammerless but can occur with either. Some hammer guns in particular will open until the forend iron contacts the bottom of the frame. When carrying such a gun open there is constant pressure of the forend pushing forward on it's lug. I have an old H Pieper 12ga hammer with a loose forend lug which most likely came about from either constantly opening it too hard or carrying it about open, can't really say which as it was like this when I got it.
As to safety, the primary concern regarding safety, assuming a responsible person to begin with, is the "UnExpected". What's to say that when/if you fall or whatever the gun is not going to snap shut. In this case you then have a closed gun, hammers cocked & exposed to being struck & no safety to help prevent the triggers being tripped if something shout hit them.
Personally I feel a hammerless is the safest, a rebounding hammer next & non-rebounder last. I have hunted with all three types without shooting myself or anyone else so far. Hopefully that will continue.