Home Forums Birds & Dogs Shotguns Damascus barrels

A local shop has a very well preserved 12 Ga (British made) side X side with clearly Damascus barrels.

I checked for choke and found both barrels to be cylinder bore.....no choke at all.....

My question.....is this the norm for Damascus barrels?

Not uncommon for English guns to be cylinder bored. When Greener started putting choke in guns some viewed it as unsportsmanlike or cheating. And then of course there were lots of men who had done just fine without choke boring for years and saw no need to change, even if they were having a new gun built.

Whenever I measure a shotgun with "no choke at all" I try to see if barrels have been cut. Not saying they are, but I always try to check for signs of it. I have two Damascus shotguns an Ithaca and a Dan Lefever, both are choked. Ithaca mod/full and lefever ic/ic. Both are American of course. Also, most American makers used "standard" barrel lengths. So if no choke and barrel is 27" I "assume" probably was 28 or 30" and cut down. Foreign shotguns are sometimes found in odd lengths though.