The Beauty of the Single-Shot
My very first shotgun was a single-shot break-open Springfield 20-gauge. I have no recollection whatsoever about its choke or even its barrel length. For a long time, it was the only gun that I had, and I shot everything available with it. I honestly don’t remember...
Dump the Slump
Ralph Waldo Emerson once pronounced, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.” It was, and is, true in the context that he meant it. It’s important to not allow yourself to be confined to “the box.” In this day and time, you’ve got to be able to look...
Twin Tubes: Side-by-Side or Over/Under
The double shotgun took its form when Joseph Manton (1766 – 1835) put two shotgun barrels side by side with their independent flint locks. Manton spent lots of his time working on explosive ordinance for the British Army, but we fondly remember him for establishing...
Ithaca Doubles: Overlooked Classics
Like many enterprises of the time, its origins were humble. It began in a rough little wooden structure perched precariously on the steep gorge of Fall Creek near Ithaca, New York. The virtue of the location was its abundant water power, and the building had already...
Holland & Holland’s Aim for the Future
Holland & Holland, long respected for producing firearms of the highest quality, was acquired in 2021 by the Beretta Holding Group from the French perfume company, Chanel. For three decades, the French company tried to redefine and reinvent the venerable old gun...
What Does Its Third Century Hold for Purdey?
Although there has been some debate about whether the eponymous gunmaking firm of James Purdey began operations in 1814 or 1816, 1814 is the date chosen by Purdey leadership to mark the firm’s beginnings, making 2014 the bicentennial of J. Purdey & Sons, or more...
Holland & Holland’s 700 Nitro Express
In 1985, big game hunter and gun enthusiast, William Feldstein, walked into 33 Bruton St., London with a check in hand to cover the cost of a large gun order. Feldstein wanted Holland & Holland to build him a set of five bespoke large-bore nitro express double...
Little Guns Big Birds
I’ve always had a healthy respect for the .410 as long as it was restricted to small birds at short range.
The Ultimate Quail Gun. Really!
Quail Unlimited’s best-of-the-bunch 28 gauge shotgun modestly named “The Ultimate Quail Gun”