spandit Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 Was hoping I could say I have a matched pair but despite sharing the same model number (Baikal 27E-1C) the newer one (on the right) has a shorter barrel and a slightly shorter stock/forend. I presume the markings "F 1.0 and M 0.5" refer to the chokes - top barrel being full and lower being half. Had an entertaining moment in the shop when, because I'm very much a shotgun novice, the owner was giving me some tips, one of which was pointing the gun directly at him (we double checked it was unloaded) to see I was looking down the rib properly. As I was stood with the gun in his face, another customer walked in and must have thought he was witnessing a robbery, although I'm guessing he saw the other customers in there looking disinterested so cottoned on quick I just wanted a second gun to hand to a friend when we're firing warning shots near some clays. Despite dehumidifiers etc. my cabinets are still really damp and having a higher quality bangstick would be a waste, especially whilst I'm so inept at using one Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 Looks grand. Can I ask why your cabinets are so damp? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1066 Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 2 minutes ago, spandit said: Was hoping I could say I have a matched pair but despite sharing the same model number (Baikal 27E-1C) the newer one (on the right) has a shorter barrel and a slightly shorter stock/forend. I presume the markings "F 1.0 and M 0.5" refer to the chokes - top barrel being full and lower being half. Had an entertaining moment in the shop when, because I'm very much a shotgun novice, the owner was giving me some tips, one of which was pointing the gun directly at him (we double checked it was unloaded) to see I was looking down the rib properly. As I was stood with the gun in his face, another customer walked in and must have thought he was witnessing a robbery, although I'm guessing he saw the other customers in there looking disinterested so cottoned on quick I just wanted a second gun to hand to a friend when we're firing warning shots near some clays. Despite dehumidifiers etc. my cabinets are still really damp and having a higher quality bangstick would be a waste, especially whilst I'm so inept at using one Welcome to the inept club Spandit - I can't shoot a scatter gun to save my life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 10, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 Just now, Scully said: Looks grand. Can I ask why your cabinets are so damp? It's an old house with suspended floors - under the floorboards it's just bare earth and the cabinets are under the stairs where there's very little ventilation under the floor. I'm hoping to move them soon Just now, 1066 said: Welcome to the inept club Spandit - I can't shoot a scatter gun to save my life. I vaguely know which is the loud end. With the tips I was given today, though, I'll get my trap out and see if I can improve at all Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 Just now, spandit said: It's an old house with suspended floors - under the floorboards it's just bare earth and the cabinets are under the stairs where there's very little ventilation under the floor. I'm hoping to move them soon Ah. I once lined my cabinets in that polystyrene you can get in a roll, when I lived at my parents house. Seemed to help to an extent Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 10, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 1 minute ago, Scully said: Ah. I once lined my cabinets in that polystyrene you can get in a roll, when I lived at my parents house. Seemed to help to an extent That's a good idea - what did you use to stick them? The rifle cabinet is carpet lined but my shotgun cabinet is bare metal Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 (edited) 45 minutes ago, spandit said: That's a good idea - what did you use to stick them? The rifle cabinet is carpet lined but my shotgun cabinet is bare metal Sorry, I honestly can’t remember, it was such a long time ago! PVA would probably do it, or those little double sided adhesive tabs? Edited July 10, 2021 by Scully Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yellow Bear Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 1 hour ago, spandit said: That's a good idea - what did you use to stick them? The rifle cabinet is carpet lined but my shotgun cabinet is bare metal Spray tac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enfieldspares Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 A pad heater as is used for the bottom of glass vivarium for lizards and tropical millipedes and the like. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocette Posted July 10, 2021 Report Share Posted July 10, 2021 A couple of points regarding those Russian beauties. They should both be half and full choke but it would be worth checking that the short barrelled one hasn't been cut down to open the chokes. Any sort of choke measurer will do to get a simple comparison between the two guns. Some of them have some subtle cross hatching on the ends of the ribs which may be missing if they have indeed been cut down. I only mention this because one I had was opened up like this and wouldn't pattern to save its life ! The other thing is that the ejector spring can be very fierce making the gun quite hard to open as well as being anti-social. A few coils cut of the springs cures this. Enjoy !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 11, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 21 hours ago, Velocette said: A couple of points regarding those Russian beauties. They should both be half and full choke but it would be worth checking that the short barrelled one hasn't been cut down to open the chokes. Any sort of choke measurer will do to get a simple comparison between the two guns. Some of them have some subtle cross hatching on the ends of the ribs which may be missing if they have indeed been cut down. I only mention this because one I had was opened up like this and wouldn't pattern to save its life ! The other thing is that the ejector spring can be very fierce making the gun quite hard to open as well as being anti-social. A few coils cut of the springs cures this. Enjoy !! That's interesting - I'll see if I can see a difference with my calipers. There are saw marks on the muzzle end but then there are on the longer one too. Not sure this one has selectable barrels unlike the older one, which I think does Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enfieldspares Posted July 11, 2021 Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 There was at one time a combo Baikal O/U. Two sets of barrels it came with. One 26" for then hugely popular English Skeet and the other 28" choked very tight and even more very tight. It may be that the shorter barrel one is fitted with the Skeet barrel set? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocette Posted July 11, 2021 Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 (edited) 1 hour ago, spandit said: That's interesting - I'll see if I can see a difference with my calipers. There are saw marks on the muzzle end but then there are on the longer one too. Not sure this one has selectable barrels unlike the older one, which I think does If its a single trigger type then it will have selectable barrels, when its cocked push the trigger blade forwards to select top barrel first. It only gives the slightest of clicks to indicate switching, otherwise its the usual bottom barrel first. They should both have selectable ejectors which are switched on and off with the small screws at the front of the action above the hinge pin. I think that with the screw slot in line with action is extract, 90 degrees turn in either direction is eject. This comment comes with a free SxS Baikal. Edited July 11, 2021 by Velocette addition. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rovercoupe Posted July 11, 2021 Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 All you need now is a nice baikal side by side or if you want to go all out then get the hammer gun. Side by side anchors are soo nice! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 11, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 I'm not a Baikal fanboy! I just like the fact they're cheap and rugged. Like me* *not rugged Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
London Best Posted July 11, 2021 Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 Buy yourself a proper post knocker and use the Baikals for posts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocette Posted July 11, 2021 Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 48 minutes ago, rovercoupe said: All you need now is a nice baikal side by side or if you want to go all out then get the hammer gun. Side by side anchors are soo nice! Too late, by reading my advise he has in fact agreed to accept the free SxS I'm offering at the moment. Always read the small print !! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 11, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 11, 2021 13 minutes ago, Velocette said: Too late, by reading my advise he has in fact agreed to accept the free SxS I'm offering at the moment. Always read the small print !! Post it down, then... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 12, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 14 hours ago, Velocette said: If its a single trigger type then it will have selectable barrels, when its cocked push the trigger blade forwards to select top barrel first. Just tried and they both have this feature, thank you. I've measured the muzzle end with calipers and the new (shorter) one is definitely larger diameter so it does look as if someone has sawn the chokes off. Wonder why they'd bother? Not sure whether to take it back to the gunshop now... 15 hours ago, enfieldspares said: There was at one time a combo Baikal O/U. Two sets of barrels it came with. One 26" for then hugely popular English Skeet and the other 28" choked very tight and even more very tight. It may be that the shorter barrel one is fitted with the Skeet barrel set? They both have the same markings: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Velocette Posted July 12, 2021 Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 As long as you didn't pay a fortune then the short one which looks to be choked cylinder may still be useful. Whilst the cylinder Baikal I had wouldn't pattern with the cartridges I used the Brno I recently got with skeet/cylinder chokes worked well on clays which were reasonably close or incoming, just as it did on pigeons last week which were decoying in. I was using 30g No. 7 in the cylinder Brno for pigeons and it did pretty well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 12, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 I paid £125 for it. I'll probably keep it, in case there are any wild barn doors flying about Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
London Best Posted July 12, 2021 Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 You will probably find that over the years you will shoot far more with the gun with no choke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted July 12, 2021 Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 1 hour ago, spandit said: Just tried and they both have this feature, thank you. I've measured the muzzle end with calipers and the new (shorter) one is definitely larger diameter so it does look as if someone has sawn the chokes off. Wonder why they'd bother? Not sure whether to take it back to the gunshop now... They both have the same markings: Take this with a pinch of salt as I'm relying on memory which is failing fast, but we used to have a member who worked for the UK importers. He said that the standard method of reducing the level of choke was to saw a given dimension for the level of choke required from the muzzle. Obviously, this meant that the chokes were tapered throughout so it would be easy to check. 1 hour ago, London Best said: You will probably find that over the years you will shoot far more with the gun with no choke. For pigeon, ever since the advent of NTS I've gone in the opposite direction (while using lead, naturally). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spandit Posted July 12, 2021 Author Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 Interesting. They've done a neat job and the bead is in the right place Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wymberley Posted July 12, 2021 Report Share Posted July 12, 2021 3 minutes ago, spandit said: Interesting. They've done a neat job and the bead is in the right place Obviously, what was said would not apply if the barrels remain as made. A clue would be to see if the muzzle dimension matches the marked choke levels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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