For our method of instinctive shooting, we’ll use a side-by-side shotgun, straight stocked with splinter forend. While a boxlock is surely the prettiest of the side-by-side Best Guns of London, an Anson & Deeley Action (boxlock) will not shoot any different than a sidelock Best Gun. Most instinctive shooters in our instinctive shooting tradition will be sporting about ¼ inch of cast-off, 1 ½ inch of drop at the comb and about 4 degrees of pitch. These become the magic wands with which he creates Master Gunners.
Confidence is the key to Master Gunning. You are a 100% shooter. You should be hitting 24/25 skeet shots within a year. You can hit at 65-80 yards, which we practice at the Tower in the school, although it would not be fair to a bird. I hit 95% during the school. .
While it may vary, I am 5’10” and 175 pounds and have a 13 5/8” or 13 3/4” length of pull, with 2 1/8” or 2 1/4” drop at heel, with 3/8” cast off and 1 ½” at 16” down pitch without a pad or 0-1/2” at 26” with a pad. Forcing cones are reduced to 2 ½”, with everything polished to final dimensions.
Pattern any gun by taking 10 shots, averaging the results by overlapping the shot spray) at 16 yards on a single sheet of paper. For each 1” correction on paper, move the stock 1/16 inch in each direction.
12 gauges fits most men’s hands best and with the light loads, it’s effectively a 20 gauge being shot.
20 gauges fits most women best and with the light loads it’s a .28 gauge. Gun weight in a 20 gauge is ideal at 5 pounds 4 ounces, and a 6 pound gun is too heavy.
The Ugartechea boxlock is a good entry level gun, with 28” barrels with my build, double triggers, splinter fore end, straight stock, extractors so as to not spew cartridges over the field and a smooth butt. Ugartechea is French walnut. You can always have the wood stripped and refinish it, but repeated treatments with silicone spray will add luster to any wood. Be cautious of pretty woods with vertical grains near the wrist of the gun, which can break easily.
2016 prices for the Grade II Ugartechea from Lion Country Supply is $2095, though they were only $600 some 20 years ago. Aspen Outfitting has an upgraded Ugartechea boxlock for a higher price, which is worth considering. A Garbi 103A won’t shoot any better but is worth considering, as they are a much finer appearance, 2016 prices from William Larken Moore are $15, 900, and were $6500 some 15 years ago.
