doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Now on the topic of ribs?

Shooting My Horton this morning at 5 stand and saw no discernable difference with the sunken rib. My other doubles have raised ribs to one extent or another. These are English game guns with smooth ribs. Today I was never conscious of the rib height. (Did not some Scottish makers use no rib at all?) A matted rib may have some small advantage in very bright sunlight but I have never noticed a handicap with a raised smooth rib. Now having shot the sunken rib I can not see what difference rib height makes at all. So what is it all about with rib styles?

You didn't notice the rib and that is as it should be. I don't think rib styles matter at all unless it is something outrageously different from the usual types.

You were looking at and seeing your target. If we all did that all of the time, there would be a lot fewer misses.

Then how are you sposed to aim??? (my low grade humor donation which follows what I sent to Dave the other day)

Rib heights, and bead heights, can have a big impact (pardon the pun) on where the gun hits, high and low. There are many of us, mostly serious shotgunners who compete in some arena or the other, that believe strongly that we can shoot better with a raised, flat rib. It may or may not be the rib, but if you believe in it, part of the battle is already won. The confidence-in-your-gun part. I can shoot a swamped rib pretty good on doves or quail, but I'm not trying to beat anybody else when I do ...........only myself.

Those who truly want to improve their shooting never stop questioning the status quo. They try new things, and keep records to separate what really has helped from what didn't. Keep trying stuff, Eric. Glad the Horton shoots well for you.

SRH

For game guns, I love the French swamped rib. It allows for meaty, thick-walled barrels while keep overall weight low and the handling lively. I haven't found them a handicap for informal practice on clays. Serious competition guns are a different matter. I'd defer to the pros on that one.

I believe that we see more of our rib & barrels than some would like to admit. It is all a part of the sight picture.
Looking at the target you catch in your peripheral vision a picture of where your rib & bead is in relation to the target.
This lets you know when to trigger the shot.

In low light conditions, hunters of old would chalk the rib so that they were aware of where the gun was pointing.
Some modern clay shooters do this for night shoots & get better scores than without the chalked rib.

Middle beads, fibre optic front beads, how much rib you see for elevation, stacking front bead on mid bead for a figure 8 sight picture.
All say that you are seeing it whether you like it or not or even want to admit it.
Just because it is currently said that you should not even see the bead or rib; Is this true in your shooting ?
O.M

moses, I see the muzzles in my peripheral vision and do judge lead. On a snap shot I am not conscious of them. If I see rib and bead I am aiming my gun like a rifle and more times than not I chalk up a miss. When I focus on the target and see the barrels peripherally I hit them solidly. I just wondered what the effect of a sunken rib would be on my shooting and found out it's nothing to be concerned about.

I just aquired a SxS with a swamped rib, my first one with such a rib. I find it a bit easier to see the muzzles peripherally when shooting due to the depression between the barrels at the muzzle end. Never thought much about it until this thread.
Karl

Ribless, as in Alex Martin. Lighter up front, no hidden rust havens.