Make your own coach gun

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theicemanmpls

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I would like to run this idea by the shotgun experts here.

Buy an older side X side in 12 or 20. A O/U would be an interesting twist.

Saw the barrel down with quality cutting gear to legal limit, and smooth the cut.

Obtain a youth stock.

Pros? Cons? Costs?
 
You can cut it down, but mine came with threaded chokes and that's one of the reasons I liked it. I wouldn't cut those off as I hunt with this shotgun. It's a serious working gun, not a range toy. It came as a coach gun, though, so no biggy for me.

If you cut it down, there'll be a hole to plug between the barrels. Probably can do that with JB Weld or something.
 
A couple things....

First, there's a thread up in the stickies on"Building A Lupara" that may provide some good input.

Second, as someone has stated, make sure you're not butchering a national treasure. That Parker in the pics lost $1k or so off the value when the hacksaw got busy. Or, doing something with a family gun that another family member may not want to happen to your mutual heritage.

Third, once a suitable candidate is located, be loath to prune the barrels to a mere 18 and skosh inches.A SxS with say, 25" barrels is shorter than an 18" barreled 870 with similar LOP, and that 870 is hardly overly long and cumbersome. And longer barrels handle much better.

Were I doing this, and I may at some point, I'd look for either an old Savage/Stevens 311 in 12 gauge, or one of the inexpensive Spanish 10 gauges imported a few decades back.

I'd cut the barrels just behind the chokes, get a good smith to do the forcing cones, and hog enough wood out of the stock to balance it around the hinge pin.

For the Spanish gun, I'd either cobble together some 2 7/8" old style loads or get a drop in set of 12 gauge adapters from Briley.

In either case, it would be a fine tool and fun toy.....
 
If I could find one of those AYA 10s, I'd have the chokes opened up to modified and shoot T steel through it and call it a goose gun. :D Would have to be steel compatible, but I've seen 'em around. Currently hunting geese with an H&R 10. But, a 10 gauge coach gun would be pretty impressive, eh? :D
 
Dave, I priced out the old Parker before I had a pro shorten it. It was in pretty rough shape looks-wise and the bbls were a little pitted from neglect. Same ones were going for a couple of hundred bucks on gunbrokers so I figured that I'd bring it into the mix for a little fun. I load up my own black powder for it and get great results at distances up to 15 yards, about as far as I need that on to perform as I have other tools to use at greater distances. Proofed the bbls up to high speed steel so I know she can take the low pressure loads.

I actually like the fact that both bbls are not choked as that's what I think a scatter gun should do...scatter. At 10 yds, my 00 and 4B loads spread out to about 10 inches. Makes a mess of whatever gets in the way. Tons of fun.

Cheers
 
I have the Spartan- Baikal coach gun with choke tubes and...

use it for hunting quail and dove and many other "critters" around the farm. I love this gun as it makes an excellent home defense gun too. I like it much better than the pump guns because it is easier to handle in a confined space and easy to whip into action from a scabbard when riding. Get one soon with choke tubes and enjoy the fun. Snoop
 
If you do not want to buy one already made with choke tubes...

then Dave's idea is an excellent way to go. You can find many old 311 stevens with a cracked stock that can easily be repaired and cut it down to the legal limit and you will have an excellent home defense gun. I have been thinking "Lupara" too. Snoop
 
canukatc, you did your homework first, a good thing. In these parts,ANYTHING with Parker on it brings four figures, or more.

Bet it's a fine shooter, though I'm not a "Scatter" fan.

Close to 40 years ago, a smith I knew took an old Greener 10 gauge and bobbed the barrels off to 18" and a skosh. He made up some BP loads in all brass cases using .375" round balls. Call it 4/0. Firing that off was impressive.
 
It's a serious working gun, not a range toy
Click to expand...

And the opposite is what I have found to be true. Serious range guns ARE the working guns, with some going over 1,000,000 rounds - that to me is serious; versus some of these cheap, clunky imports that fall apart after a few rounds. Do not confuse massive, un-balanced, cheaply made stuff with being a reliable workhorse
 
This has got me thinking about the Shotgun rig from Phantasim...I think it was two 20 gauge SXS doubles
 
We've talked a lot about the toughest pump actions and how to check them out before buying. How does one check out a double before making a purchase? What are the best makes to look for if considering one of these projects? Is an exposed hammer model better than internal workings? Teach me. Thanks.
 
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