Hello from NW Alabama

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RexFeral8

RexFeral8

Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2021
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18
Location
Northwest Alabama
Hello,

Just wanted to introduce myself. I have visited The High Road regularly for a couple of years and finally decided to register.

I usually find myself going to the Shotgun forum since that is my where my main interest is. As you can tell from my avatar, I have a weakness for old single shot shotguns. I have accumulated several of them along with, one double barrel over the years. None of them are anything a collector would be interested in and, all of them were in some state of neglect or disrepair when I "rescued" them. However, all of them are shooters and, I rotate through them regularly when I am out woods loafing or hunting.

V/r,
Rex
 
Welcome from Florida; another shotgunner here, although I prefer two barrels......
 
Welcome!

I have a question for the aficionados of older break-action single-shot shotguns. What were some of the nicer, less crude, better finished, but still inexpensive (not talking about a Browning Trap gun here) models that were around in the 1960s and 1970s? These would have been guns that were probably from the 20s to 60s.

The reason I ask is that several of my friends had various models of these guns (I had an inexpensive Revelation bolt-action but liked the break-actions MUCH better). I recall that a couple of them were quite a bit nicer, IMO at the time, than the others. I THINK that one of the ones I thought was the nicest may have been a Savage 94C. Does that make sense? What other models might I have been seeing in those days that made me think it was a cut above the H&Rs and the like?

For example, I recall that the hammer and trigger looked like they were machined instead of stamped, likewise the trigger, the trigger pull itself was nicer, the action lever was a little nicer than most of the others, and the barrel profile was such that it didn't neck down so much ahead of the chamber that it looked banana-shaped (this latter was more of an issue on the .410 models, IIRC, but also a bit on the 20 gauge).

Any thoughts?
 
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Welcome! The guys on here have gobs of knowledge on just about any gun related question you may have.

Stay safe.
 
Thanks for the warm welcome!

In reply to I6turbo, I know there were some single shot shotguns made that were sort of a "mid-grade" in that, they were not the typical hardware store utility gun but, were not quite considered high end guns either. I am not that familiar with them though, two that might fall into that category could be the Ithacha Model 66 or the Winchester Model 37 along with the Savage 94C you mentioned. All of my old shotguns definitely fall into the lower priced utility gun category.

The guns in my avatar are as follows from top to bottom: 10 Gauge - Semi-Hammerless Trademark (Made by AM. Arms Co. between 1880 &1902)
12 Gauge - H. Pieper Double Barrel (Made in Belgium between 1880 & 1900??)
12 Gauge - Remington 1893 No. 3 (1893-1903)
12 Gauge - Volunteer Arms Co. (A Hardware Store gun made by Crescent Arms between 1900 & 1930??)
12 Gauge - Crescent Arms Co. (1900 & 1930??)
12 Gauge - Springfield Model 1929 (Made by Savage? between 1929 & 1950??)

From what have been able to find out over the years, the date of older shotguns is can be hard to pin down beyond a date range, as you can tell from my guesses on the dates of manufacture above.

V/r,
Rex
 
Armored farmer said:
Welcome to THR.
Lots of single shot enthusiasts here, myself included.
View attachment 968400 I like their simplicity, compact size, and easy take-down.
Click to expand...

I like your single shot! It looks a lot like my Springfield Model 1929. Is yours a H&R?

When I got the Springfield it did not have a butt stock and the barrel had been cut to 22.5 inches by a previous owner. I found a butt stock for it on ebay that looked like it might fit. When I received the butt stock it was not a match at all... Took quite a bit of cobbling and whittling with a Dremel tool and a buck knife to get it to fit but, after some trial and error I got a fairly decent fit on it. I drilled and tapped the barrel and added a fat stainless steel front bead. It's home is next to my night stand with a shell holder full of Low Recoil 00 Buck :)
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I love a good single shot.Welcome to the high road. I’ve recently fallen in love with Alabama. My folks purchased a property in clay county up by cheeha mountain, it’s a beautiful place. 1A0A72F4-211B-4191-918E-92D1BCB78C66.jpeg NEF 20ga
 
Babaoja,
Nice old single you have there and that's a good looking goose. I was bow hunting on Wheeler yesterday afternoon and and the geese were really active there. I've never been a waterfowl hunter but may give it a try after I retire this year.
 
Welcome to the High Road!

I have several Winchester Model 37’s. Points great. Extra full, because it was designed before plastic wads. If you use an inflation calculator, these cost in their day what a Henry single shot costs today. Winchester was also taking custom orders on these, like on Model 12’s. I have a 16 gauge with a 32” barrel. It is amazing how well these have held up. I have held 3 from the year they were introduced and didn’t pick them up because each time I was short on cash. Yes, that is disappointing. It’s also hard to explain why you REALLY need one more. These were priced as if they were a regular 37. At maybe a tad under 6 lbs, the 12 gauge, 100 rounds of handicap trap with 1 1/8 oz loads will make you feel it, but it is a pleasure if you have to walk. I’ve held 12 gauges as recently as last week that were still about $200. Please don’t confuse with 37 A’s. Those are post 1963. They are worth about half as much and gun shops try to ask twice as much.
 
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Scribner,
Thanks for the welcome and, the history on Winchester Model 37. They sound like a fine shotgun. I have never handled but, have read favorable remarks about them. Would be nice to run across one at a decent price. By the way, should I happen to have an opportunity to buy one, is the 37 A you mentioned clearly marked as a "37 A" or is there another way to differentiate between the two?
 
The 37A’s have an exposed hammer like the Harrington Richards single shots. The 37’s only have a ribbed piece sticking out the top of action where you might see a selector switch on something with two barrels. On all of the A’s I’ve seen, Winchester tried to spruce up with a beavertail forestock & some checkering. 37’s are very plain.
 
Howdy Do,

from LA , that's Lower Alabama aka North Florida! Spent a good bit of my youth with a Winchester 37 .410

...and no Scribner, not an A! Those came out after I first got handed the 37 .410!

I have to ask where you are handling sub $200 37s, cause they ain't around North Florida NOWHERE!

-kBob
 
How odd, here I was Teasing folks and I too was raised up in Gadsden....county Florida.

I assume you mean Gadsden Aller Bammer though.

-kBob
 
Scribner,
Thanks for the info on Winchester 37 vs 37A. Doubt I'll run across either but, it's good to know in the event I do.
V/r,
Rex
 
kBob said:
Howdy Do,

from LA , that's Lower Alabama aka North Florida! Spent a good bit of my youth with a Winchester 37 .410

...and no Scribner, not an A! Those came out after I first got handed the 37 .410!

I have to ask where you are handling sub $200 37s, cause they ain't around North Florida NOWHERE!

-kBob
Click to expand...
Hey Kbob,
LA always meant Lower Alabama (AKA South Alabama) to me. I grew up near the AL, MS, TN corner of the State Love the Gulf Coast though, got a little place down in Lillian, AL.
V/r,
Rex
 
Hello from a old georgia cracker. Grew up with a H&R single 410. It took its fair share of squirrel, chipmunks, aggressive feral dogs, crows, and a rabbit or two.
 
Rex,

Best Bud's Family back 60's & 70's then had a place on Mexico Beach between 98 and the water. Back when Mexico Beach was still there, The Red Neck Riviera was the place to be! The Atlantic is just Nasty north of Jupiter inlet, The Pacific Cold and upity. The great lakes are septic tanks. The Gulf has the only good beaches! Old Pouncey the Lion had it all wrong, the Fountain of Youth is in the Gulf, not on land and a good swim will do for what ails you!

I will say though ( to stay on topic) that if you keep a good old break action swingle shot on your boat while you are on it you HAVE to clean and lube it every time you pull the boat out of the water! Back in the Late 70's when Piracy was a thing in the Gulf a lot of folks kept "something" on their boats and found out how nasty Mama Gulf's breath could be on guns. Some got carried away like an NCO I knew that had on his boat a Mossberg Mariner and Stainless IJ M1 Carbine and he carried a Taurus 92 clone in stainless and his wife a S&W 66.

I asked him if a brush nickeled Browning 1919 wouldn't be better... and I think he had to think about it.

-kBob
 
kBob said:
Rex,

Best Bud's Family back 60's & 70's then had a place on Mexico Beach between 98 and the water. Back when Mexico Beach was still there, The Red Neck Riviera was the place to be! The Atlantic is just Nasty north of Jupiter inlet, The Pacific Cold and upity. The great lakes are septic tanks. The Gulf has the only good beaches! Old Pouncey the Lion had it all wrong, the Fountain of Youth is in the Gulf, not on land and a good swim will do for what ails you!

I will say though ( to stay on topic) that if you keep a good old break action swingle shot on your boat while you are on it you HAVE to clean and lube it every time you pull the boat out of the water! Back in the Late 70's when Piracy was a thing in the Gulf a lot of folks kept "something" on their boats and found out how nasty Mama Gulf's breath could be on guns. Some got carried away like an NCO I knew that had on his boat a Mossberg Mariner and Stainless IJ M1 Carbine and he carried a Taurus 92 clone in stainless and his wife a S&W 66.

I asked him if a brush nickeled Browning 1919 wouldn't be better... and I think he had to think about it.

-kBob
Click to expand...

Yep, fell in love with the "Redneck Riviera" years ago. When my boys were growing up we used to go camping down at the Blue Angels Naval Recreation Area there on Hwy 98, lots of great memories there. I still live up in NW Alabama but, we bought a small weekend place down in Lillian and try and get down there every chance I get.

Blued steel and saltwater definitely don't make a good combo unless you are trying to make ferrous oxide :) Never had any of my guns in or near saltwater but, something that I have used on my guns that really seems to help protect against moisture while out hunting or just shooting is Johnson's Paste Wax. Rub and buff a couple of coats on the gun and, you can't really tell its there but it sure seem to help protect from rust.

V/r,
Rex
 
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