Author of The Traditional Side by Side Part 1 and 2, Doug Stewart joins the show to talk side by side shotguns and answer listener questions.
Show Highlights:
- A brief spotlight on Parker shotguns
- What is good balance in a side by side shotgun?
- What’s the deal with different SxS ribs?
- How can I shoot double triggers?
- What about chokes?
Listen | Doug Stewart on the Birdshot Podcast episodes #39 and #149
Read | The Traditional Side by Side Part 1 and 2
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Follow us | @birdshot.podcast
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The Birdshot Podcast is Presented By: onX Hunt, Final Rise and Upland Gun Company
You mentioned CZ might be a good side by sides to start out with.
Nick, which model do you have or suggest?
Hi David, thanks for tuning in to the show! It’s tough to beat the Bobwhite G2 for your first foray into the world of side by sides. It’s true to form with its straight grip, splinter forend and double triggers and very reasonably priced at less than $1k.
Hey Nick, I’m a new upland hunter and gun dog owner up in Toronto, and I’ve learned a ton from your podcasts over the years. I really appreciate how often you get into nuts and bolts of habitat, how the grouse season progresses through fall, all of it. (I think I’ve probably learned the most from your convos with Fritz, by the way, tho I can’t imagine hunting grouse over flushers.)
This was my third season with my dog, a Pudelpointer, and it was pretty fantastic . . . he’s finally started to put things together on grouse, helped no doubt by the huge number of bird contacts we had this fall. It was a great season north of the Great Lakes, and I managed to clear enough of my calendar to take advantage in prime time.
I’ve got a couple gun questions for you. First off, I heard you mention your new 28 gauge double gun has 30 inch barrels. Everything I’ve heard about grouse guns has insisted you need short barrels out there, so you’re not swinging into trees and brush. My current grouse gun is a Montefeltro with 26″ barrels. Mind sharing your logic (i.e. what are you getting with 30 inch barrels that you wouldn’t have got with 26 or 28s?), and far more importantly, how those longer barrels have been in practice in the grouse woods?
Second q, and the reason I’m interested: I’m a left-hander with a really long neck, so the prospect of a custom-stocked gun (and particularly a 28-gauge side by side) has always been appealing to me. I’ve definitely been intrigued by the upland gun co offerings. Can you recommend a good gun fitter even remotely near to me? I haven’t been able to find one in Canada but am very happy to come south. As a backup, it’s the 7-hour drive to see Del . . .
Thanks for reading, and I hope the post-season blues aren’t too bad for you. I’m suffering right now, bingeing old pod episodes and making plans for next fall.
Cheers,
CN-S