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I've got my combination gun at last!


njc110381
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Hey guys. I picked up my long awaited BRNO combination gun today. They're a nightmare to find and seem very rare in this country, a shame really because they're very popular on the continent. Mine is a 12g top barrel and 7x57R bottom barrel. That should do for almost anything from Pigeons and Pheasant to Red Deer so I think it will be getting a bit of use.

 

We had some trouble in the shop. The rifle hasn't been through UK proof and we didn't recognise any of the marks. Luckily after a quick call to the proof house they confirmed that the BRNO proof marks were acceptable. Then it came to putting the gun back together. What a job that was. The action is so tight it's a struggle to get the barrels back on once they're removed. I bought the gun as old stock with no history. It looks to be unfired but has a lot of wear to the finish in places having been sat around the gun shop since 1992! The give away to its use for me is that when you open the action there are no primer rings around the firing pin holes, the fine machining lines (it is a BRNO after all!) are unmarked.

 

It's a right rough and ready brute! It doesn't have a great finish and as said above the action is that tight it feels like a spring air rifle to break! Hopefully a load of heavy rounds will loosen it up a bit. Here's a picture. I think it's a great toy (sorry tool) and I expect to use it a lot. It cost me £800 after RFD fees. Steep for a BRNO I thought when I first looked into getting it. That was before my RFD looked into getting me a new one from BRNO. Over £2500 so I bought this one quick! :good:

 

BRNOCombi002.jpg

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so whats to stop you using the wrong barrel and letting a 7x57 round off at a pigeon and then into the next county :yp:

 

Ahh, well I've got that covered :lol:

 

Just load the shotgun barrel. Most shotgun shooting is a quick reactive shot, but Deer are often slower. You can hear them coming or creep up on them to some extent. If it comes to the point of needing a rifle shot you then load the rifle barrel quietly and take the shot. If I'm pretty certain that I'll be seeing a Deer I'll hold my shots with the shotgun as I wouldn't want to scare a Deer for the sake of a Pheasant anyway! I may flush a few Deer which will get away due to me not being quick enough, but it wont be many. I'll certainly be better off than if I only had a shotgun with me and that works for the shotgun quarry too. I see loads of Squirrels and Pigeons when I take the rifle out :good:

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Tell me, what conditions are imposed on this new toy of yours.

 

As it's obviously on fac the shotgun barrel and the rifled barrel must be conditioned, what sort of wording is used to permit you to shoot say game birds as obviously everything you may wish to shoot must be listed.

 

I have always fancied such a toy, something like a 12/.222.

 

Enjoy.............you should have some fun.

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Actually Charlie that's a good point, I need to send my FAC in. I've got Deer and zeroing on it for now which was a mistake. I just didn't want to send the paperwork back as I needed it to get the new guns added. So in that sense I can only shoot clays with the shotgun barrel for the moment.

 

I intend to ask for "All legitimate quarry", a wording already in use by some forces :good:

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I can see the fore sight in the picture ,is there a flip up rear sight as well for the rifle barrel . couple of more pictures would be nice ,you are making my b@m twitch .

Harnser

 

:lol::good: Here you go. I've taken them on a white box so hopefully they're quite clear.....

 

Barrel....

BRNOCombi005.jpg

 

Rear sight....

BRNOCombi004.jpg

 

Barrel profile from the front (don't duck, it's not loaded)....

BRNOCombi007.jpg

 

And the view from my end. The sights are quite low so shouldn't obsure my view when shotgunning....

BRNOCombi008.jpg

 

They're a nightmare to find and quite expensive usually. There are a few .22CFs on guntrader. For a good all rounder I know where there is (at least was) a .243/?shotgun going cheap. I went for the rimmed 7mm because I wanted something that could offer both barrels for Boar (a smaller rifle wouldn't be ideal) in all countries (including those with a military calibre ban). If I've missed any close ups of bits you want to see just ask. I'm like a kid with a new toy, it's sat on the sofa with me at the moment being cleaned again!

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Thank you kind sir for the pictures . That would be a very practical gun for me pigeon shooting and shooting deer from the hide . Also a very practical gun for driven boar with a slug in the top barrel and a 7x57 bullet in the bottom barrel . A very nice piece of kit .

 

Harnser .

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stupid question here but how accurate will it be for deer?

 

I would have thought accurate enough up to 100 yards with the open sights and a shooter with good eyesight . There will be a certain amount of ajustment on the sights certinly good enough for 100 yards . When I first started shooting deer it was allways done with iron sights . I can remember my old mentor saying ,when optical sights on rifles started to appear , they will never catch on boy .

Harnser .

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poor old Mungler will be jealous

 

Haha, that's made my day :yes:

 

Accuracy wise I'm told by other users of combi guns that you can expect to hit an inch at 100 yards with a good pause between shots. Often a fast second round is a couple of inches out but always to the same point (due to the two barrels being soldered together). Once you've learned how they shoot they can be very accurate.

 

I'm waiting on ammo at the moment. When I've tried it out I'll let you know how it shoots. It wont be a great group as it will be with irons, I don't want to fit a scope. It does have a dovetail though so if I want to scope it later it's not hard.

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Congrats on the new combi :lol:

 

I have seen quite a few of the old BRNO combi's being used here in Norway and they are known for being a very good gun, so I'm sure you have lots of fun with it.

 

I have just recently bought a Sabatti Forest Lightweight Combi in the same caliber (12-7x57R) but with the free floating rifle barrel. Haven't had a chance to fire it yet due to family and work commitments :yes:

 

I've mounted a Meopta 1.5-6x42 on it, the low magnification also allows to shoot birds on the wing.

 

... Think I'll get it out and give it a stroke ;)

 

Couldn't resist, here's a few picks:

PB070096.jpg

 

P9150091.jpg

 

PB070098.jpg

 

P9150090.jpg

 

P9150088.jpg

 

P9150087.jpg

 

P9150092.jpg

 

P9150094.jpg

 

Sorry njc110381, didn't mean to steal your glory :(

 

Happy hunting

Jonathan

Edited by jonher
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That's a nice rifle. We don't see them here very often so some more pictures are good for the topic. I'd take a chance and say that most UK shooters have never seen one!

 

I thought that a scope would get in the way for shooting birds on the wing. It's good to hear that it's not too much of a problem for you. Maybe I'll try one myself at some point. :yes:

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I thought that a scope would get in the way for shooting birds on the wing. It's good to hear that it's not too much of a problem for you. Maybe I'll try one myself at some point. ;)

 

It's not as fast to aquire the target with the scope on, but according to friends it's definitely effective. It's worthwhile practising down the clay range to get used to mounting the gun and finding the target!

 

If you get a scope don't get one with magnification greater than 1.5 on the lower setting as it will be no use for shooting birds on the wing.

 

A lot of scandinavian hunters keep the scope off the rifle and only attach it when needed for the longer shots where you usually have time to prepare! what ever floats yer boat I guess.... :yes:

 

Another tip I have heard is that some people have a pattern etched into one of the triggers so you can tell what trigger you have your finger on, rather than having to look and check!

 

I'm sure the combi will be a great addition. Post up some pics when you get some results!

Edited by jonher
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I'm lucky with this combi of mine, I have small hands and the rifle trigger is quite a stretch to get to. It's really easy for me to tell which is which :P

 

Oh yeah.... I forgot the rifle was the front trigger on the BRNO! It's the other way round with the Sabatti!

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  • 1 month later...

Hi NJC,

 

Well, I followed a simiilar path to yours - eventually finding a BRNO 502 in .243/12. Got an EAW mount sent over and wacked on a Pecar safari scope.

 

The front trigger can be pushed forward to 'set' - making for a really easy tool for standing shots with the rifle barrel. The rear trigger purely operating the shotgun barrel.

 

Found that as a shotgun, it really handled well - short barrel and stock dimensions made me look like could actually use a shotgun! The rifle did not prove to be a slouch either. I was able to group to 4" at 100yds with those vestigial sights (small enough not to interfere with shotty use) - meanwhile, the scope allowed for grouping at just over an inch. As mentioned, you need to allow cooling time between shots for a perfect 'cold bore' zero - but I was delighted that the BRNO would allow 5-6 shots before noticable deviation due to barrel heating.

 

IMG_2479DesktopResolution.jpg

 

Like yourself, used in woodland without scope - choosing only to attach that should I see deer out beyond the 120 yds point, or if I chose to wait up in a highseat or leant back against a handy tree.

 

Do try 'blacking' the sights when looking to zero. You can either use soot from a candle flame or get hold of the pukka fluid from a target sports suppliers. It really makes a hell of a difference when you can clearly see the sights.

 

Took a few assorted deer with the combi, found a second one needing a bit of work to bring back on song at which point I was seduced by the dark side.

 

The chance to get a Drilling came along & the Combi went to another happy owner to fund the purchase of my new baby!

 

Beware, soon you start to realise that 'two barrels good, three barrels better'! :good: Then the call of the Drilling gets harder to ignore!

 

Sauer.jpg

 

Keep well.

 

Rgds

 

Ian :beer:

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Show off :beer:

 

I'm only confident of a good shot on Deer out to 75 yards with mine, but then I haven't had it long enough to get used to it yet. When I got the ammo I went out the next day to check the POI and as always with my luck spotted a Munty just standing there like it wanted to be shot! I've never taken a Munty and find them a right pain in the *** to stalk but on this occasion (when I hadn't checked the sights yet) I had a perfect chance. Obviously I had to leave it, he'll be back I'm sure.

 

I'm off upstairs to see if my trigger sets now :good:

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Well I had a fiddle with it and the rifle trigger does set. That's really good! I never would have known without reading your post! I did try to set it when I got the gun but I can't have been pushing it forward hard enough and assumed it was just a standard trigger. When I heard that yours used to set I figured I'd be a bit firmer and it clicked forwards! Good old BRNO, you have to really give them some grief to get them to cooperate sometimes! When I first got the gun it was a challenge just to open the thing! :)

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