London Best

Two days ago I watched a buzzard sitting in my garden. At one time I had to travel at least 100 miles to see a buzzard. For about five years now there has been a nest 200 yards from my sofa.

Because fourten cartridges only make up about 6% of sales.

As we say in the shooting field, “Your bird, sir.”

TOTTY! Any spare pegs available. Will travel and have a nice companion for your lovely gun.

Looking the part there, sir. When you think about the price they d*mn well ought to work nicely! Did your butler/loader take the photo?

Nice to see a bit of quality on PW.

I currently have a very nervous Lab bitch. I fall out with at least one irresponsible dog owner nearly every time I go out. When it really makes me mad is when you have a pup in training and other folk let their unruly dogs run around yours and often undo weeks of training.

Figgy, I think people cheat because they ARE pros. Don’t remember much cheating when Rugby Union was amateur. Now they are paid massive money it will continue to slide to the level of football. Yuck!

Scully, correct again. Of course it should be down to individual choice, and it is. I don’t actually refuse to shoot game with users of O/Us, I just wish they wouldn’t do it. Oh, and I love to use hammerguns. I’m sure I will never own an OU, I just don,t like them. Fine if you want to shoot clays with them. I don’t stalk deer with a target rifle either.

Whilst I obviously endorse the posts re ailments and injuries I am very much for retaining the traditions of driven shooting to the point where, personally, I STILL hate to see people turn out to shoot game with O/U guns. It just doesn’t seem right to me. (fixing tin hat as I type).

Bullseye! Spot on again Mr. Figgy.

Not had this problem, sorry. could be??? throat erosion? Dunno.

I meant the eight isn’t versatile enough to shoot drive game. Sorry, should have been clearer. I know you weren’t advocating the eight for that, I was trying to say the shorter gun was more versatile. Basically, I agree with your choices but prefer a shorter game gun than your 28in.

Dummy......pram.......Chuck........imminent!

What I found best with mine, having had the same problem in the early days with early let-off, was to adjust the set trigger almost a heavy as it would go. That made it feel like a nice light, smooth, normal trigger. Works for me.

Personally, and I stress personally, I still think short barrels make for a more versatile all-rounder. (Tin hat on now). I have shot a lot of geese with a 26in 12 bore, and a lot of high pheasants. I understand your post, but you can’t, sorry, wouldn’t do that with an 8 bore .

I have one of these. Don’t believe much can be done with the normal trigger. Can’t understand why you find the set trigger no use in the field? Had mine since 1995.

@ Pigeon Controller: My childhood mirrors yours exactly. Not easy growing up as the local copper’s son. My old man finished with dementia too.

I’ve used short barrels since about 1967. Mostly 26in but my favourite length is 27in. To be fair, most of my shooting now is exactly what Dodeer mentions, partridge over hedges, but I’ve done my share of other stuff too. I have never felt handicapped anywhere by short barrels and to be honest can’t tell the difference at the shoulder (in anger, obviously, not in a gun shop). Prefer ‘em for everything from snipe to geese.

My wife was responsible for my buying a London sidelock. I was looking at guns at a game fair, as usual every year. She spotted exactly what I had wanted for forty years and told the salesman, “He wants to look at this one.” When I began to um and aah she said, “when are you going to buy one, you’ve been looking at them for forty years, get it bought before it’s too late to have one.” I could never have justified the cost for myself.

I wish you good luck and every success. Best advice is don’t bodge, do the best you can. Also, I find it almost always pays to use genuine parts. Some pattern stuff can be very disappointing. Having rebuilt a few I will now only use genuine parts on my Land Rovers.

Once had to pull a 88” out of a bog, well stuck. Vehicle all tarted up, lift kit, underbody protection, big hairy tyres, snorkel, every accessory in the magazines, you know the sort, looked really good. One good snatch freed him from the hole but ripped his front chassis straight off on the driver’s side. I have to say that, on inspection his dumb irons looked in far better condition than yours. What really scares me is, that guy and many others are driving about on the roads with vehicles like that. I believe in doing the job properly.

True! I run the slowest vehicle on the road and folk get in my way.

Well done! That’s why the pro’s all use a rabbit pen.

I have run nothing but Land Rovers since I could first afford one in 1976, and I would not dream of repairing that chassis! Even the side where you can see the bolts is very badly rusted. Not being funny or awkward, but The Titanic is in better nick than that chassis. (Sorry!)