Chasseur,

I still can't remember who described the Darnes thus, but it might have been Gough Thomas as you suggest. It will come to me sometime, but I have no idea when - I'm not growing any younger as you can see.

Never had the opportunity to get one ofthese modified though I lived very near the French colony of Pondicherry in India and there are several old Darnes knocking about there from the old days. A close friend's brother has one that he absolutely loves and I have played with the gun a bit. Personally, I love them, eccentricities and everything else that they bring along.

A good friend who is an RFD in the UK does get some for good prices from time to time and I am planning to visit him in the near future. Hope to find one that works for me - though any Darne would. If I manage a score of 17x25 at trap, I am usually happy, so fit etc is not as critical for me as it would be for a competitive shooter.

Hope to buy one soon and if I get to meet Ben in the UK when I am there, I'll try to win him over to the dark side.

Good hunting, everyone!