How many Vent rib guns made

[Boxbirder]

I am trying to find a vent rib gun that is choked for pigeon shooting. Tight and tighter. I can not believe I am going to state this, I have been a 21 man since I was a kid, my first real gun was a 21. Of course I didn't even know what I had until years later.
After shooting the 32" as of late I need a 30" pigeon gun. For the life of me I can not find one with tight chokes. I spoke to gent the other day and told me there were only about 500 ever made?? Is this going to be life long quest??

[John Truitt]

I cant believe I am going to say this but if you find a gun that matches all of your desires but is not tight enough in choke just send it to Briley and let them put thin walls in it.
I personally hate screw chokes and would much rather have fixed chokes but it might save you the agony of time until you find a gun that is perfect.

Best of luck. Hope you find what you are looking for.

[Boxbirder]

The guns I have found don't seem to have enough barrel thickness to choke. Sure many would want me hung by my tighty whiteys but I want to shoot not look at a gun. These old gems cry to be shot, not put on display for a circle jerk.

[John Truitt]

Box,

Alot of us here are shooters. So you are amoung friends.
Talk to Briley. They can put some in very thin barrels. You might be suprised. I think they can even make them fixed.

They put thin walls in my friends hammer gun that only had 5 thous in each tube.

Good luck.

[Autumn Daze]

I can't believe I'm saying this either. But if you really need to have more choke in a gun that otherwise suits you why not do it the way Parker did it at the factory. Find a gun with sufficiant wall thickness and have it backbored to your desired constriction. Oh my god I did say it....

[Bill Murphy]

John, did you ever count the number of vent rib guns in the appendix of TPS?

[John Rutledge]

Box Birder, my 32 inch DHE has very tight chokes if you are interested in a 32. John Rutledge

[Boxbirder]

Find a gun with sufficiant wall thickness

That's easier said then done, I haven't had good luck so far. Will have a call into Briley today on a 30incher. Problem is the Kings Cup is right around the corner in Spain this year. I'd like to have a gun buttoned up by months end. If not I'll take a 2 barrel 21 28" and 30" choked tight and tighter.
Let's be real here there are not many guys doing what I am into, sure there's all this talk about pigeon guns, but at the end of the day how many gents shot pigeons compared to the amount of guns made. Over the years traveling all over many US pigeon guns were more open on that right barrel than the English guns.
There's 2 beliefs in shooting pigeons, slightly open choke in the first barrel to get more pellets in the bird, then there's the tight choke thinking either hit em or miss so your not chasing an erratic bird. But that is US shooting, when you get over seas it's a new ball game, no Barnabey trap, old school Parker type Plunger trap, topped with a faster flying bird, smaller ring. You see many US guys get over there and there like OH boy I'm out. You miss that first bird of the day you take a back seat for the day. Miss an out ain't a pretty game.
They did that here in the US there be very few shoots, sorta like the sporting clay guys crying about the low gun. So they give em the mounted gun, scores go up and everyone is happy. Drive 3 hours, miss the first bird and go home. LOL

[John Truitt]

Mr. Murphy,

I counted 377 listed in TPS. However I used to own one that is not listed and I know of two 34" vent rib guns not listed.
My guess would be somewhere between 500 to 750 vent rib guns total.

What do you think?

John

[Bill Murphy]

I don't have a clue. I'm not sure that vent ribs were reliably mentioned in the stock book era, post 1919. If they weren't reliably mentioned in the stock books, all bets are off. We have the stock book copies. We could do the research if we were allowed to do so.