Whether it was the hammergun or breechloader, the round action or sidelock, innovation has always been at the heart of the gun trade. And when London best heritage and modern technology meet, it marks an exciting moment in the gunmaking world. Enter the Holland & Holland Noble. WORLD EXCLUSIVE REVIEW…
This month’s test focuses on a best 32in Arrizabalaga sidelock side-by-side pigeon gun. It is equipped with an inertia- operated, non-selective single trigger, a flat file-cut rib and chokes fixed at 1/2 and 3/4 (relatively open by pigeon gun standards). The gun has side-clips to the barrels, a capped full-pistol-grip…
This month we look at two EJ Churchill Hercules guns. The guns, a 12-bore and a 20-bore, are over-and-unders made in association with Battista Rizzini in northern Italy but benefit from EJ Churchill’s gunmaking, game-shooting and instructional experience. EJ CHURCHILL HERCULES REVIEW Both guns are sideplated and profusely engraved with…
This month we look at a Franchi Esprit side-by-side 20-bore from GMK. It has a single selective trigger, multi-chokes and weighs just 5lb 12oz. Our test gun has 28in steel-shot-friendly, fleur-de- lys-proofed barrels equipped with a traditional game rib, and is also available in 20- or 12-bore with 30in barrels.…
This month’s test gun, made in Eibar, is a best-quality sidelock over-and-under from the relaunched firm of Arrieta. It is a 12-bore and weighs just under 7lb 3oz, a good weight for a 29in stack-barrelled game gun. ARRIETA SIDELOCK OVER-AND-UNDER First impressions are dominated by the acanthus and gold-accented engraving…
THIS month’s test gun is a 20-bore Browning 525 Game Tradition Light, tipping the scales at just under 6lb 5oz (so, light but not ultralight). It is distinguished by an American walnut stock, 30in barrels with a narrow rib, flush-fitting Invector Plus multichokes and an alloy action with scroll and…
There is always room for a workhorse in the gun safe, and a stringent budget makes the addition easy. After some consideration, ours was drawn at £2,500. Some of the guns mentioned are base models where their more decorated, but mechanically similar, stablemates may stray above the stated ceiling. Most…
Smart-looking and pleasing to shoot, the William Powell Princeps, an elegant over-and-under, is an excellent all-rounder and can be made with bespoke stock dimensions at no extra cost – what’s not to like? To see the 10 most expensive guns in the world, click here. WILLIAM POWELL PRINCEPS THIS month’s…
ITS SINUOUS beauty is the essence of the gunmaker’s art, although some regard it as an obsolete technology fit for nothing more than blackpowder. Damascus steel barrels are widely misunderstood and quickly divide opinion. Today the highly skilled, traditional art of making quality damascus barrels has been all but lost.…
This month’s test gun is splendidly different – a Manor & Co 10-bore side-by- side weighing in at 9½lb even with its relatively short 26in barrels. I’ve used the word ‘beast’ to apply to some 12-bores in the past, and it certainly applies here. When you bring the relatively compact,…
