I know Jim pretty well, have visited him in his home and seen his collection.
I've never found a 4 bore to kick anything like a .500 Nitro. A big push yes, but nothing like the crushing recoil of an Express rifle.
When I had the loan of one for some driven duck shooting in England I was firing 3 ounces out of each barrel. I think I fired it nine times over the course of the morning and was no worse for wear.
When you mention the very exclusive duck club I assume you mean the Winous Point Shooting Club. I was just visiting with one of their pushers (now retired) the other day. He started pushing on the club in the 50's and was later manager of the Ottawa Club which is almost as exclusive as WPSC.
Destry
P.S. In the spirit of the thread, here's some related photos:
My big Churchill double 8 guage and a few greylag geese we killed one morning in Scotland.
Some punt gunners from the UK firing a birthday salute to the Queen.
Me holding up a Charles Lancaster muzzle loading punt gun that's still in use on Poole Harbor today.
Alan Myers firing off a single 2 bore shoulder gun that he built.
Me holding up a the punt gun that Jim used to fire off every year at the Michigan Duck Hunters Tournament. He built this one himself from scratch. For some reason this picture makes me look really short.
A young fella at the gun club one day holding my Churchill. That's his little double .410 in the other hand.
Another one of Myers showing the 2 bore that really shows off how big it is.
And finally a vintage photo of a punt gunner from the UK to show how they really did it and still do it over there.
