To be more clear I’m looking at having two good side by sides. A dedicated waterfowl gun that can handle 1-1/4 oz loads, that fits well, is reliable and weighs mid seven pounds and a nice light upland gun either a 16 ga or light 12.
Right now I have that restored LC 12 ga featherweight, that is a pretty gun, weighs 6#-9oz, 28” barrels, seems to fit well but for some reason I just am not in love with it.
I bought the Sterly from a respected member of this forum who has been a saint to work with. It’s a late pin gun in fair originally condition, no color left but no pitting on the outside. There is some pitting inside the barrels just forward of the chambers, but my gunsmith say nothing to worry about, the stock may have been revarnished at some point, but it has all the dings and handling marks you would expect out of an old gun. The only problem with it is it occasionally pops open on shooting. I’ve got it with another gunsmith right now to hopefully fix that permanently. Both gunsmiths say the gun is in great condition inside, the internal parts are clean, and don’t appear overly worn.
So my issues with the Fox are reliability and looks of the beat up stock. I’m ok with the look of the barrels and action.
