Almost ALL smallbore guns made without safeties were not used in the pigeon rings pre- WWII. Contemporary records of pigeons shoots during the hammerless Parker period (1888-1941) are virtually silent on sub-gauge events (today 28 gauge pigeon events are held occasionally) Most 16 and 20 gauge Parkers made without safeties were built for bobwhite quail shooting which in the day was often practiced from horseback. Guns were removed from a saddle scabbard and were not loaded until the shooter had dismounted and walked towards the pointing dogs. Nash Buckingham was a well known devotee of no safety guns for upland and well as waterfowling and had atleast 3 custom made Foxes made without one. Notwithstanding this, many 12 gauge safetyless guns never shot a pigeon but were used for trapshooting clay targets.
Last edited by Don Kaas; 01-06-2010 at 12:44 PM..
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