Upland Gun Co. Minerva hammer gun in 20 and 28 ga.

[Harold Pickens]

Believe me 20 ga hammer guns are sweet(I have 2), can you imagine a long barreled 28 ga. hammer gun. Saw the add for the Upland Gun Co. Minerva in 20 or 28, built to your specs. My build price being very conservative was around $5500. A 30" 28 ga hammer gun weighing around 5 1/2lbs would be an upland dream. I was surprised to see there was no safety, as are on many modern hammer guns. Long LOP, 15", and alot of upgrades available. Would like to see one in person.
My little 30" hammer 20 will take its share of grouse and woodcock this fall.

[Andrew Frank]

I have two of Zues models in 16 and 20 and they are very nice guns. They are well built, well balanced high quality guns. I carried my 20 gauge Zues last hunting season (when I wasn’t hunting with one of my Parker’s), it was a dream, smooth swing, light but not too light, easy to use but very positive safety and crisp triggers. Mine have basic wood, standard engraving, color case hardening (chemical, bone and charcoal is not legal in Italy I guess). I hunted Michigan grouse and woodcock with it, South Dakota pheasant, and even took it for a small duck hunt. I enjoyed it so much I picked up its 16 gauge twin when it went on sale at Fieldsport and it’s just as enjoyable as the 20. I’m also waiting on a 28/410 that I custom ordered, my understanding wife gave me the go ahead to go all out so it has grade 5 wood and a hand engraving of my GSP. I’ve also handled a Minerva in 28 gauge with 30 inch barrels if I remember right and its a very impressive gun. They aren’t cheap but they are well worth the money, high quality and well made.

[charlie cleveland]

nice gun and pictures....charlie

[Harold Pickens]

Nice Andrew, thanks for the review and great pics!

[Andrew Frank]

Thank you

[6pt-Sika]

I looked at the website earlier today and was thinking a Zeus 28 gauge 32” straight grip might be something I’d like

[Bill Murphy]

Website doesn't seem to mention 32" smallbores. Are they available?

[Andrew Frank]

So the gunsmith that does the importing for Upland Gun Company/RFM is 10 min away from me and is who Ive been using for repairs since finding out about him. Knowing my love for doubles he has shown me a number of interesting UGC shotguns when they come in. So, just about anything is available, the process is to fill out the “build sheet” online and submit it, this is not a purchase, just an inquiry. You will get a call from someone from the Upland Gun Company going over everything you want out of the gun, there are so many options they can’t put all of them on the website. I know of a Minerva that was ordered as a 3 barrel set with 24, 28, and 32 gauge barrels. They will ask intended purpose of the gun and give input as well, everyone that works there are upland hunters and shotgun enthusiasts. After you finalize the gun you pay a 50% deposit and it’s put in to be built. All guns ordered can have custom stock dimensions. I know on the higher grade wood you get to choose your blank, might even be an option on lower grade wood too. They have been great to work with, I was Originally going to have my custom gun color cased but after seeing the engraving we completely changed the finishes and now it has a coin finish, the safety, trigger guard, top lever and pins will all be niter blued. Lead time varies depending on time of year and level of customization. I ordered mine late December and it’s was finished late July, just waiting on other guns to be finished to be shipped. A friend of mine ordered a more basic gun and his is also done and took about 3 months. Overall I couldn’t be happier with my purchases and would recommend one to anyone thinking about one hands down.

[6pt-Sika]

Originally Posted by Bill Murphy

Website doesn't seem to mention 32" smallbores. Are they available?

You can price one out and for an additional $300 you can get lengths longer than 30" .

Which is about the same thing it was going to cost me if I had opted for a Fausti with 32" .