Home Forums Birds & Dogs Turkey Hunting 1920's American classic doubles

Just recently obtained a 1924 st stocked LC Smith Long Range 3 in double. Companion to another Long Range 32in Smith and a 30 in bbl Super Fox.
That plus a 3 in Parker, an older Ithaca-complete my goose-turkey heavy guns. They are not that heavy.
A double gives you an instant selection of mixed loads like 4s or 5s depending on range. The last two sneaky gobblers were slain with the
3 in Smith. Yes, they made 3 in shotguns in the 1920s: John Olin first developed the Super-X shells in conjunction with the
Super Fox 3 in gun. They really do work well on turkeys and don['t jam, of course. With two triggers, instant selection of barrel.

Nice 450Fuller! Hunting with any double lends nostalgia. I used to chase birds around using an old Husqvarna double hammer gun that I loaded blackpowder shells for, I really enjoyed those days. Enjoy!

Agreed those guns are super cool.

For conversation Parker also made a 3inch 16 gauge....

Remington Peters made the shells.

Ray Eye a Missouri turkey hunter, author, guide, and general jack of all trades Ozark hillbilly used to host a hunt for writers and outdoor industry types in which they dressed in period correct clothing and all used side-by-side double barrel shotguns. The turkey hunt was deep in the Ozarks and they camped in the river hills and hunted along one of the nation's most beautiful streams.

Get rid of the snakes and I'll be there! Lol! That would have been a great event!

It certainly IS cool to go retro. With all the advancements in turkey tech........a good old SxS feels just pretty cool to tote on occasion. Not 20's for me. But one 30's and one 40's have sat in the crook of my elbow while in search of a turkey. Not much better than the smell of a freshly lit purple hull on a crisp November morning.

Very nice indeed!

Very cool, enjoyed your pictures.

love those old side by sides

From 1929...one very nicely broken in Fox Sterlingworth.

That's a nice little unit. Yep.

I do believe that the Lefever Nitro Special is the best bargain now.Been buying 80% guns in the 400 to 500 range.Picked up a 85 % gun nice wood,case and blue 16 bore 30 inch bbls choked full/extra full.The perfect turkey or squirrel gun.jmho

A bit older, English, but very classic…






Or a truly classic single barrel…

Also not an American SxS, but have killed most of my turkeys over the past 20 years with this J.P. Sauer 12 made, according to the proof-marks, in 1940. It has 2-3/4" chambers, which so far hasn't been a handicap out to 45-50 yards (which is the range where this Montana Merriam's was taken) due of the typical German tendency (especially in those days) to choke 'em full and "fuller." Generally use 1-1/4 ounces of #6 or #5, whether lead or bismuth.

I also like the Sauer because, like many German doubles it came with sling swivel studs, and only weighs 6 pounds, 5 ounces, so is easy to carry in up-and-down country, unlike the Montana riverbottom shown. It's also my favorite all-around wingshooting shotgun for open-country upland birds. Have taken Huns, chukars, sharptails, mountain grouse (using spreader loads), sage grouse and lots of pheasants with it.

Germans know a lot about making shotguns, along with rifles.

Very nice guns and pic’s.

Per the S/N, my L.C. Smith (Elsie) was built in 1904.
Sadly, the barrels are badly eroded by mercury primed ammo (way before my time!) and there is slack in the breech that I probably contributed to.
Yeah! Love those old timers!
My current fave us a Rem "Sportsman" 16 ga built in 1932!

Yep-keep em in the woods.
Double guns get it done, and the instant selection of loads based on gobbler
range is nice. It does feel good to outsmart an old mossback bird with a
100-yr shotgun and an ML Lynch box call.

For a duck gun, I still use a Model 1912 Win made in 1914 with non-toxic shells.