A post titled 'saying goodbye' in a gundog blog is generally going to end with the digging of a hole and many tears. This isn't like that.
No, today I said goodbye to my first halfway decent SXS-a Miroku manufactured Charles Daly 500:
Gun enthusiast Chuck Hawks sold me on it with his review, summed up:
I was indoctrinated into the world of birds, bird-dogs and bird guns long before I could honestly say I was a bird hunter by the writings of the late Michael Macintosh. (and if we're splitting hairs, I really am a "rough-shooter", not a bird hunter) For those a generation older it might have been ruffed grouse laureate George Bird Evans, or Robert Ruark with his Old Man who made the introduction. For me it was Macintosh. He set the stage with his treatise "The Best Gun Ever Made". A tome on the wonders of the genius that was Ansley H. Fox's SXS. To poorly quote from his lengthy online epitaph- "His prose did more for the SXS Renaissance than anyone in this country-not to mention pipe smoking!"
There really are advantages to the SXS in the field, aside from the aesthetic.
I haven't always subscribed to this doctrine. I used to think a SXS was some kind of Jed Klampet holdover. The old codger with his SXS-why would anyone want one? I certainly didn't know anything about one other than the antique caplock muzzle loader from the Civil War era hanging in my grandparents den. They certainly weren't in vogue. Growing up, we all wanted Remington 1100's rather than the single shots we had.
I can distinctly remember the very first time I went to the sporting clays course as an adult, and noticed the wide maw in the rail of the gun rack on the first station. It took me a few stations to realize what that was for-the added width of SXS barrels. But who would shoot clays with a SXS?
How little did I know.
No, today I said goodbye to my first halfway decent SXS-a Miroku manufactured Charles Daly 500:
Gun enthusiast Chuck Hawks sold me on it with his review, summed up:
Basically, the Charles Daly Model 500 field gun lived up to its namesake. It is a very good shotgun that was under priced when new and is still undervalued on today's used market. If you find a used one in good condition, buy it.My search for this Miroku (I call it that b/c Charles Daly seems to bring many different things to mind for most shooters) actually started well before it's acquisition.
I was indoctrinated into the world of birds, bird-dogs and bird guns long before I could honestly say I was a bird hunter by the writings of the late Michael Macintosh. (and if we're splitting hairs, I really am a "rough-shooter", not a bird hunter) For those a generation older it might have been ruffed grouse laureate George Bird Evans, or Robert Ruark with his Old Man who made the introduction. For me it was Macintosh. He set the stage with his treatise "The Best Gun Ever Made". A tome on the wonders of the genius that was Ansley H. Fox's SXS. To poorly quote from his lengthy online epitaph- "His prose did more for the SXS Renaissance than anyone in this country-not to mention pipe smoking!"
There really are advantages to the SXS in the field, aside from the aesthetic.
- They are generally lighter than a comparable O/U
- They aim more intuitively in a snap shooting situation
- They don't open as wide at the gate so loading is easier.
I haven't always subscribed to this doctrine. I used to think a SXS was some kind of Jed Klampet holdover. The old codger with his SXS-why would anyone want one? I certainly didn't know anything about one other than the antique caplock muzzle loader from the Civil War era hanging in my grandparents den. They certainly weren't in vogue. Growing up, we all wanted Remington 1100's rather than the single shots we had.
I can distinctly remember the very first time I went to the sporting clays course as an adult, and noticed the wide maw in the rail of the gun rack on the first station. It took me a few stations to realize what that was for-the added width of SXS barrels. But who would shoot clays with a SXS?
How little did I know.
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