got my backpacking shotgun finished. (with pictures)

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Andrew Wyatt

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the gun started out as a 28 inch barrelled H&R topper pawn shop special purchased for 80$ when i was 12 or thirteen.

modifications done to it: stock throughly sanded and refinished with polyurethane finish, barrel lopped off at 20 inches, ramp and bead front and williams rear sights added, forearms replaced with choate storarm (mostly for the no tools dissassembly feature)

barrel was choked modified, now has no choke, this will be remidied as soon as i either send it to a smith for choke tube installation, or i rent a reamer and do it myself. I'm seriously considering just having hans vang vang comp it without ports but that'd cost waaay too much.


I haven't zeroed it yet, after i do so, i'll remove the rear sight insert and put it in my miscellaneous gun parts box, as it's not necessary for its intended role, which is as a lightweigh backpacking gun that's got enough chutzpah for mountain lion while still being versitile enough to take birds and smaller land critters.
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recessses inside forearm. I haven't decided what to put in it yet; my original idea (a .45 ACP chamber insert and ammo) was too flippin heavy. I'll probably put a little oiler and a survival kit in it or something.

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Thats pretty slick. Whats the weight, overall lenght? Any considerations for attaching it to the backpack rather than over the shoulder sorta thing?
 
i have a bag lashed tot he outside of the pack which fits the gun when dissassembled.

what i usually do is hike out of sight of the trailhead (which is usually in a populated area) , take it out, reassemble it, sling it, and go about my business.

I like having my guns easily accessable, so i don't carry them on the pack.


the gun weighs right at 6 pounds with ammo on the buttstock.
 
Very nice!

I have an H&R Topper 12 bore that I got new in the early 80s that I've been meaning to do some tinkering on. Thanks for some ideas.
 
Good job, Andrew. Well done.

I've run across a number of these over the years. Light weight, lots of kick, and very durable. Versatile too, if you can find a slug that doesn't loosen your fillings.

Most of these have rather hefty triggers. Worked down to 4 lbs or so, they still are plenty safe and improve performance no end.

And, some singles shoot to the bead with slugs, and require little more than good recoil tolerance and analgesics.

Were I doing a project like this, and I may, I'd....

Stay with the bead unless it shot WAY off with slugs.

Keep the barrel original, but ream the choke to about 10 POC and do the cone.

Get the trigger down. The little NEF here I bought Son has a pull greater than the 5 lbs, 9 oz it weighs.

Bob the hammer a bit to clear the line of sight after the shot.

Otherwise, it'd look lots like yours. Nice shotgun for hiking, and not that expensive to do.
 
I have long thought about doing a conversion like this. I've also been thinking about doing something similar with an NEF Handi Rifle in .45-70 or .30-30. Cut the barrel down to 16" (if the overall length is still legal), ghost ring, butt cuff, etc.

Steve
 
Lightweight H&R's kick like the dickens. I had a Topper, Jr (20 gauge), that I used almost exclusively for years. I was scared to death to shoot the Remington 870 or Mossberg 500! Being larger, I was certain they would kick harder.

I was much relieved to find their recoil considerably less. :)
 
I'm pretty lucky, as my chosen slug load (brenneke rotteweil) recoils considerably less than buckshot does.


birdshot and slug recoil is manageable because of the butt cuff and recoil pad.


I'm a rifle guy, and a ghost ring aperature sight fits my needs better than just a bead does.


my next project is a similar gun built on a .45-70.
 
These do have some major advantages, but recoil can be fierce, in either shotguns or rifles.

Had a Topper in 30-30. It, too, kicked emphatically, though it wore a 4X Leopold(First setup I had where the sights cost more than the weapon). I worked up a handload with the Speer 125 gr Spitzer since I could use pointy bullets and enjoyed having a "Stalking Rifle" to help control those vicious groundhogs in the area. Good out to 150 yards with a solid rest and good technique.

Another approach to this could be two fitted barrels, one shotgun and one in a rifle caliber or 22LR or Mag. Scope the rifle barrel.

Yet another, the Savage combos in something like 22LR/20 gauge. Had one long ago, good setup.

Andrew, before you build a superlight 45-70, try firing one. Had one of these long ago too. Sold it with some ammo left from the first box, like 17 rounds...

John, when I moved to an 870 from the 16 gauge H&R I started with, I though I had gone to Heaven. While I've NEVER felt any kick when shooting at live game, a few shots with the H&R at geese left me bruised and flinching.
 
I love it.

I thought about doing something like this as a always have in your truck, truck gun.

Reliable and with 12 guage versatility its a great choice.
 
Andrew great setup there. You mentioned your next project and my shoulder started aching- I fire a 45-70 ported guide gun and a .444marlin ported rifle regularly and can't begin to imagine the recoil in a lightweight model- my 2 rifles have 18 1/2 in barrels and make perfect hiking, camping, truck guns just the way they are- consider?
 
I'm shooting for the .45-70 to weigh about 7 to 7.5 pounds when loaded. the recoil pad'll be an uncut pachmayr sporting clays pad or something similar, and the buttstock and forend'll be weighted.
 
DIctionary.com states:

chutz·pah also hutz·pah
n.
Utter nerve; effrontery: “has the chutzpah to claim a lock on God and morality†(New York Times).


it's my favorite word besides boy-howdy and juju.
 
Chutzpah is Yiddish, the Ch is pronounced like one is clearing one's throat.

The classic definition of it comes from Chaim Potok.

"A young man was brought to trial for killing his parents. He begged the court for leniency because he was an orphan"...

Roughly corresponds to having a big set of brass ones...
 
I already have one and I would like to have two more.
The one I have now is a 28" full choke gun that works well for reaching out to get the squirrels.
I would like to have another cut off at 26.5" with an 18.5" barrel with a hole cut in the remaining stock to hang a sling through.
The other would be like Andrew's only with one of the old thumbhole stocks that H&R used to make.
Those single barrels may be a little slow when compared to a more modern style gun but I love the simplicity.
The more moving parts on a gun, the more things there are to break.
There ain't that many on an H&R. :D
 
goon, these are minimalist shotguns. Nothing more can be taken away and still leave a shotgun.

FYI, I've seen one of these with the stock routed out to use the old M-1 Carbine sling setup in back and a barrel band sling stud up front. Another with the stock hollowed and full of survival equipment.

A trigger shoe is a nice accessory, given the usually heavy pulls.
 
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