Looking for a particular Coach gun configuration

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valnar

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I was looking at Stoeger and CZ's web sites but couldn't find the animal I was looking for. I wanted a 20 gauge self-defense shotgun for home. For reasons I won't go into, I'd prefer 20ga over 12ga.

I was looking for a SxS Coach type shotgun with:
20-22" barrel
single trigger
built-in ejector
both barrels improved-cylinder
no external hammers

I could live without the ejector, but do want both barrels to have the same choke since birdshot is unlikely to ever be used. Consistency is the key to self-defense, right?

Is it possible to get such a configuration without spending a fortune on a custom gun? Since no coach guns seem to be made in this configuration, I wonder if buying a regular 28-30" shotgun and having it cut down might be the only avenue?
 
Having owned two of the Stoeger single trigger SxS shotguns and having issues with both, I would not recommend those models. I do have a Remington / Baikal SxS that has suffered no similar fail to fire events. However mine is double trigger. You can put whatever choke configuration you like. That would make both barrels to be cylinder choke. Might be a choice for you. Good Luck!
 

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Older Stevens / Savage side by side in 20 and 16 ga. are in gun shops and gun shows in the northwest for $ 200.00 to 350.00. Getting one of these and modifying to short barrel may meet your needs. If for home defense only the cost of 16 ga. shells may not be a problem.
 
I don't mind spending up to $1000 or so for a good one. I know "real" shotguns could cost 10x or more than that, so I don't want to be too cheap. It'll be a backup to a 9mm carbine and some pistols. I don't own any other shotgun and really don't want to get into them, but I always had my eye on a side-by-side. I just think they're neat.
 
I fully agree with the remarks above about a single trigger in a bargain price gun - bad idea. And that an older Stevens would be a better bet.

But this is what you are looking for:

Stoeger Double Defense: 20 ga, 20" fixed IC choke both barrels.

Stoeger-Double-Defense-Shotgun.jpg


http://www.gunbroker.com/item/605852686
 
Virginian said:
I will reiterate the caution about a single trigger on an inexpensive gun. It is a known problem. If you want to go cheap, keep it simple.
Click to expand...
And I'll re-reiterate it. I almost lost my head to an A. Zoli O/U I was test firing, it doubled, and the second shot column struck the side of the cover of the test tunnel and came back and took the muffs off my head like the guy in that .50 cal. video a while back.
 
I remember a gunzine article about movie guns. Said the prop man shed a tear as he sawed off an SKB because the actor could not be bothered to learn double triggers.
My first exposure to double triggers was when I took up CAS. The learning curve was very short, like two outings.

A guy right here cut a Beretta all the way down. You could stop before you got into. NFA dimensions, of course.
https://www.thehighroad.org/index.p...ver-pigeon-20-gauge-sbs.814695/#post-10430595
 
...because the actor could not be bothered to learn double triggers.
My first exposure to double triggers was when I took up CAS. The learning curve was very short, like two outings.
Click to expand...

Reminded me about dove hunting with a friend of mine years ago and his Father was shooting a 16ga SXS. He told a story about the first dove hunt he went on with it, knocking doves out of the sky one after another although with more recoil that he liked. After that day and subsequent bruising, he decided to just pull one trigger at a time.
 
Jim Watson said:
My first exposure to double triggers was when I took up CAS. The learning curve was very short, like two outings.
Click to expand...
I'm picturing pointing a SxS out the window of an O-1....:rofl:
I had several Sav. 311's when I was younger, and liked to pull both triggers at once. I have a permanent lump on my RH index finger knuckle from that. A guy I work with has been having a similar problem with his 311, but with the back of the trigger guard hitting the knuckle of his middle finger. That's just from pulling one trigger. :eek:
 
A guy I work with has been having a similar problem with his 311, but with the back of the trigger guard hitting the knuckle of his middle finger. That's just from pulling one trigger. :eek:
Click to expand...

I have the same issue on my middle finger with my Bakail.

I think it's partially caused by choking up so far on the grip to reach the front trigger with my short index finger.

I considered buying a new trigger gaurd and reshaping it to be closer towards the rear trigger but ended up reworking the front trigger instead since it was easier and cheaper. (they also sell a rubber bumper to place on the rear of the trigger gaurd)

Just holding it seems like its made a difference but I haven't shot it yet to really see/feel he difference.
 
Last edited:
danez71 said:
think it's partially caused by choking up so far on the grip to reach the front trigger with my short index finger.
Click to expand...

I think that is my co-worker's problem, too. the solution he's going to try is pull the trigger with the middle finger, but I think that will just result in the ring finger knuckle getting hit.
 
entropy said:
I think that is my co-worker's problem, too. the solution he's going to try is pull the trigger with the middle finger, but I think that will just result in the ring finger knuckle getting hit.
Click to expand...

I tried that and your right, in my experience.

Besides being awkward for me, I quickly learned that my ring finger and pinky aren't strong enough to counter 12ga recoil and the result was the gun slipping in my grip more and having a very similar bashed ring finger (instead of middle finger) all while having a lessor grip/control of the gun itself.
 
A tight full pistol grip and a steep rear slope of the trigger guard will indeed bark your knuckles.
You can get a bumper to clamp to the trigger guard or you can shop for a gun with half pistol grip that does not crowd you up to the more sloping guard.
High end doubles have the front trigger "spooned" with a slant to the strong side so you can slip your finger on and off the trigger, shooting with just the tip.

Elmer Keith said he once had a gun with the tighter choke in the right barrel, so he just pulled the rear trigger first and let the recoil bring the front trigger to him. Probably a British gun made for driven game, ranges just the opposite to flushing birds.
 
RPRNY said:
I fully agree with the remarks above about a single trigger in a bargain price gun - bad idea. And that an older Stevens would be a better bet.

But this is what you are looking for:

Stoeger Double Defense: 20 ga, 20" fixed IC choke both barrels.

Stoeger-Double-Defense-Shotgun.jpg


http://www.gunbroker.com/item/605852686
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's almost perfect alright. I wanted a more traditional look though, so I'll have to give it some thought.
 
Is there a higher end brand I could buy and have the barrels cut down and fitted with the chokes?
 
valnar said:
Is there a higher end brand I could buy and have the barrels cut down and fitted with the chokes?
Click to expand...

From post #3, buflow:

Older Stevens / Savage side by side in 20 and 16 ga. are in gun shops and gun shows in the northwest for $ 200.00 to 350.00. Getting one of these and modifying to short barrel may meet your needs. If for home defense only the cost of 16 ga. shells may not be a problem.
 
Old Stevens seldom have single trigger. Fox B-ST did but I don't know how reliable it is.
A friend's SKB SST shoots but is no longer selective, it can't be set to shoot the left barrel first. Why would you want to, but it is a sign of some fault in the works.
Browning-Miroku BSS has a nonselective single. A friend has shot one a lot at CAS with no trigger problems. Kicked his barrel ribs loose, though.
CZ Sharptail sawn off would do... for about a grand plus gunsmithing.
 
I would like to ask the OP what he has against external hammers. It seems to me that they would be clear visual and tactile indicators of the condition of readiness of the gun. Note also that there two distinct type of hammers on coach guns that are available today: "real" hammers that actually strike firing pins, and "cocking levers" that activate the real internal hammers. The ones with "real" hammers tend to be more expensive.
 
Another vote here for an older Stevens, or Fox-B double (both made by Savage). Reliable as rain, and the single trigger models, while more rare, seldom give much trouble. Pick one up for a few hundred, have the barrels cut to desired length (which will eliminate the usual mod/full chokes), refinish the stock if needed, and you'd have a great coach gun. I own 3 Fox B's, a 20, 16, and 12 gauge, shoot all of them frequently. The 20 is the oldest one, is 66 years old and completely original. Never misses a beat.
 
Unless you are defending yourself in a room or hallway longer than 20 yards, you aren't going to see an appreciable difference between a cylinder and improved cylinder bore. For the close quarters most of us live within and anticipate defending, IMO a wide open bore resulting from chopping the barrels would work fine.

Ejectors add to the cost. Cowboy action shooters learn to shuck a double pretty quickly using guns equipped with extractors only. And I have been in a room when a shotgun has been fired...can't imagine wanting to do it more than once, much less twice! It is louder than they show in the movies.
 
Better law back money for hearing aids after a couple shot gun blast in side a house with out lots of ear protection . Remember in a real OH S$$$ may not have time to ear up or even think about it. Hand gun bad enough.
 
Remember in a real OH S$$$ may not have time to ear up or even think about it. Hand gun bad enough.
Click to expand...

I agree about having extra time but at that point it won't matter anyway.

Your hearing aids, if you wind up needing them, will likely be the cheapest part of the ordeal.
 
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