.730 Nitro double on the cheap?

O

Oleg Volk

Staff Alumnus
Since old British Nitro rifles are awfully expensive, how about a cheap-er substitute? The main point behind big game rifles was that they fired heavy large bullets and were reliable (two barrels = redundancy, rimmed ammo = reliable extraction and stong brass). Most were used at ranges not exceeding 50m , as I recall.

Enter a side-by-side 12ga shotgun. Double triggers for reliability. Remove existing chokes, add rifled tubes or even go with plain IC. Probably doesn't matter at very close range. Add an express leaf sight. Might want to replace the original bead with a blade with a fiber-optic insert.

The only problem would be the regulation of the two barrels to provide a similar point of impact. Not sure if that can be done on an existing gun or if some company would need to market a better set of barrels.

Ballistics might be a bit milder than the original Nitro chamberings but should be adequate for North American big game. Sabot slugs or Brennekes might be preferable for deep penetration.

Any flaws with this reasoning? Seems like a (relatively) moderate investment in a double and gunsmithing would produce a useful resule...and 12ga ammo is much cheaper than any Nitro cartridges.
 
This gets done every once in a while.

On a factory basis there have been DB shotguns set up for slugs for some time. I think you can still get a Bernardelli sighted and regulated for Brennekes, and maybe Chapuis. About $3000, which is way cheaper than a double rifle of equal quality.

There once were a fair number of smoothbore rifles made; not just shotguns shooting ball. Greener promoted them very hard. He said an 8-bore ball from a smoothbore was plenty accurate to 50 yards and made up into a lighter gun for the power. Jeff Cooper says a smoothbore has less recoil than a comparable rifle, because of the shock of engraving the bullet.

When done as a one-off conversion, as you realize, regulation is the key. I have read one (1.0) article where the converter got lucky and both barrels shot together. Some others have settled on a slug in one barrel, with a sight zeroed for it, and buckshot in the other.

There is a book on converting double shotguns to double rifles, with instructions on regulating point of impact. I don't see why you couldn't just skip the part on replacing the shot barrels with rifled blanks and go straight to the chapter on regulation and set it for slug or ball.

Or, if you don't plan to go after dangerous game and need the second shot (And would you really want to pursue dangerous game with a homemade gun?) you could do as Layne Simpson once did. He had a Martini action opened up to take 12 gauge and fitted with a .730 smoothbore barrel. He got amazing performance from slugs and ball.
 
Muzzle energy of a 12gauge slug is slightly superior to that of a .300WinMag. Heavier,yes, but not the same level as the old elephant guns. Those plastic hulls can only take so much.
 
dID YOU KNOW THAT THERE IS A COMPANY

THAT MAKES CALIBER ADAPTORS FOR SHOTGUNS? ONE OF THEIR ADAPTORS IS A 12 GAGE TO 45/70 RIFLE BARREL/ ADPTOR SELLS FOR $190. 2 OF THEM FOR LESS THAN $400 PLUS PRICE OF SHOTGUN. THEY COM IN 6" 12" AND 18" LENGTHS.
wHERE CAN i GET A COPY OFVTHE BOOK MENTIONED ABOUT DOUBLE SHOTGUNS CONVERTED TO SLUG GUNS? TITLE & AUTHOR PLEASE?
aLSO CABALAS SELLS ( FOR ABOUT $700 ) DOUBLE RIFLES IN 50,54,58,& 72 CALIBER. tHESE ARE BLACK POWDER MUZZLE STUFFERS BUT THEY DO PACK A DOUBLE PUNCH. ALSO AVAIABLE(AGAIN FROM CABELAS) IS THE KODIAK 45/70 DOUBLE RIFLE. THIS IS A CARTRIDGE GUN BUT RATED ONLY FOR FACTORY LOADS, NO HOT STUFF. ABOUT $2500.
SORRY FOR CAPS. AT WORK FORGOT TO HIT CAPLOCK.
 
EAA sells rifle inserts for Baikal shotguns. I don't know why they wouldn't fit other 12 or 20 ga doubles. They also have an O/U double rifle. Built on a 12 action, the rifle barrels have a wide space between them.
http://www.eaacorp.com/parts/Inserts/

The book I mentioned is

Building DOUBLE RIFLES on Shotgun Actions
W. Ellis Brown
$49.95 + $5.00 (+$3.00 autographed)
Bunduki Publishing
39384 WCR 19
Ft. Collins, CO 80524

no phone or www

I have NOT read it, just seen the advertisement.


NRA tested one of the Kodiak double muzzle loaders once, probably the same as what Cabellas is selling now. It was not claimed to be regulated, you were expected to flip one sight leaf up for one barrel and the other for the next. However, NRA was first able to get it to shoot both barrels to the same point of aim by loading a few grains different powder charge in the L and R barrels. I think they later found one load that shot to the sights well enough.

The Kodiak .45-70 I once saw is a pretty rough looking $2500 gun.
 
Nothing ventured, nothing gained. BTW, I have a Baikal O/U 308 Winchester.

It has a jackscrew arrangement under the forend to regulate the bbls. not a bad piece considering it's about 5% of the going rate of one of those nitro models everybody talks about.
 
Back in the days of the "Empire" (British of course) Officers were only allowed to take one gun with them when posted to places like Africa and Injia.

Often they had one barrel of their Purdy made into a "Paradox" rifle. Basically a shotgun barrel with rifling in the last few inches of the barrel. Apparently this served the intended purpose.

There have been articles in "Double Gun Journal" about "Paradox" guns.
 
The few Paradoxes (Paradoxi?) I have seen were muzzle rifled iin both barrels.

"Paradox" has become a generic term for muzzle rifled ball and shot guns but it was really the Holland & Holland trademark. Their version was designed by Col Fosberry. Yes, him. A similar Westley Richards was an "Explora" if in 10, 12, or 16 gauge; a 20 or 28 was a "Faunetta." I think the "Collindian" was from Cogswell and Harrison. I don't know what Purdey called theirs.
 
Horrors!

I confused Purdy with Holland and Holland!

I will never be able to show my face at Orvis Sandanona again:(

Guess I'll have to start shooting black rifles now:D
 
Don't let it worry you, Geoff. The terms are kinda fuzzy to most folks...

In the OLd South of yore, lots of doubles were used for deer hunting. Many of these were stoked with a punkin ball up first in the right bbl, and a load of blue whistlers in the left size 1-000.

These Buck and Ball guns were usually used as GP shotguns, and oft choked quite tightly. Those solid round balls sometimes opened the chokes up.

I've seen some B&Bs set up with Express style sights,bbls shortened to 20-28", slings,and nice thick recoil pads. Great in brushy areas where legal. Here it's not.

I believe the old Valmet O/U, often sold with 12 gauge or 30-06 barrel sets, had one variant with two tight bored 12 gauge bbls and a set of rifle sights. Another close range stomper...
 
This by the way is probably how that abomination the 410 shotgun came about. Some lower class subaltern probably tried to make his double rifle into a shotgun, thereby creating that sorry excuse for a shotgun gauge (or bore to be proper). :D

A "paradox" rifle!
 
i did it!!!

well i call mine a .610 redneck express, i took a stevens 311 with full/full, cut it down to 19 inches and j/b welded some fixed sights on. zeroed the right barrel and use the left with buckshot in case i get charged by a hog or something. itll keep all the shots within 6 inches at 33 yards, so it schould work. hopefully ill go hunting sometime this month and see how it works in the field
 
When I was a kid, I always thought it would be neat to have a rifled 12 guage and everybody said it was a stupid idea. I like your idea and also don't know how significant the barrel regulation would be. I am pretty happy with the accuracy you can get with ic and a foster slug from my 870 deer barrel. The enegy doesn't sould like much unless you compare it with one of the largest magnum hunting revolvers like the 457-500 linebaughs.
Then, its pretty impressive.
 
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