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Back again, Ellis Brown's book arrived yesterday and answered some questions and clarified others, but I'm trying to purchase a couple more shotguns and things are still kind of hanging in the air on donor actions. I've made it clear that for me it'll have to be outside hammers and preferably no tang or crossbolt safeties, ideally readily available new & used in both 12 & 20ga, and again hopefully with barrels longer than 20" available also. After checking what's available ... there's virtually a ton of reasonably priced new & used hammerless guns out there ... almost, but not quite enough to make me rethink things!

I've done some research on what else is available in new hammer side by sides and after finding repeated references here to CZ as a great choice, I'm guessing a CZ hammer coach gun might be the best bet, both for potential strength and appearance (colorcase frame, nice bluing, great looking stockwork too! Drawbacks are a price around $700- and tang safety, and the fact it's only made in 12ga w/20" tubes. I looked at the new Rem/Baikal SPR220 at a little over $400- and it looks good, but I see chrome bores as a drawback (maybe), only 12ga 20" tubes, and 2-3/4", not 3" - pressure issues? The Norinco import @$300- sounds interesting, again 12ga. 20", but with tang & crossbolt safety though ... but I believe it's the same gun Coyote Cap imports w/his personal SASS upgrades, no crossbolt safety and in both 12 & 20ga for $400-. There are a couple other versions of 20" 12ga out there, but it's really hard to trace down country of origin and detailed info, much less locate most of these to examine for suitability.

I guess we're back to Rossi now, no longer available new but lots of them out there, though prices seem to have climbed closer to $400- while I snoozed! From what I've found they were first imported by Garcia (marked on top of barrels) around 1970, later by InterArms (marked on side of frame). They were available w/20" or 26/28" tubes in both 20 & 12ga (both 3") and 410 also! The 410 is a much smaller frame (though I don't have one here to measure -yet!), but the 20 & 12 seem to share both sidelocks and lower frame dimensions along w/underlugs, with size difference being in barrels/monblock and standing breech. Earlier production had colorcased hammers and lever, later were blued and from what I'm finding the upper round Greener sliding crossbolt was only on the early guns, though later production had an identical undrilled/fitted rib extension. Firing pins are bushed w/slightly under .100" pins with internal springs - suitable as is I think?

I wish there was a root gusset or more of a root radius, or that the frames were a little wider. Rossi wood has always been simple and plain, stained and sealed with a high gloss finish, only possibly compounding the inherent weakness of heavy inletting for sidelocks. I already have a 20" 12ga purchased new by me in '72, w/Greener cross bolt, and am checking out a similar vintage Rossi boxlock 28" 12ga (extremely loose - going to try to negotiate on the $240- price) tonight to see if barrels and lugs were common between side and box lock systems. If so, and if I can convince them that the shotgun is a potential liability if sold as is - I'll have 28" tubes to cut to 25" and refit to my action, and the factory 20" will be cut and monoblock will eventually be fitted with 45 or 50 cal brls, for 45-90 or 50-110 holding pressures in the 28-33,000 max range. I own a minty non-Greener cross bolt 20" 20ga also which I'm restraining myself from cutting up for now (in case I want to sell it), am buying a Greener top cross bolt equipped 20" 20ga in good repair and plan to cut the factory tubes and fit new rifle barrels on that gun first, either in 25-35(6.5x52R for you purists!), or 30-30, or 38-55 - those 3 calibers can be simply rechambered to 25Krag, 30-40, or 38-72 for increased capacity facilitating a little more velocity at equivalent pressure. Now I just have to find a 26" or 28" barreled 20ga as a shotgun barrel donor and spare parts gun, and once I have both 12 & 20 combinations settled w/basic Rossi's on hand, will have to look for their scarcer 410, times 2 maybe!

Will check back in tomorrow or Friday, with some frame measurements and monoblock/barrel fitup guesstimates.

Thanks, Joe (hobbyguymaine)

Edited by hobbyguymaine (23/02/07 06:04 PM)

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