Rise & Fall of American SxS's

[Marty K.]

Dean.... I really hope you are right.... for if that is the case then I will worry much less for our younger generation.... praying....

[PML]

I showed the article and this thread to my 20 year old son who's first gun was a Parker and already understands the qualities that make these guns special. He just smiled and said " that just means I will own a full set of high grades for pennies on dollar". I told him I thought this was unlikely.

I wonder if the author of the article has ever owned, shot, or desired a nice Parker shotgun? My opinion is that vintage SxS shotguns are an acquired taste both from a financial and functional standpoint and there is a price point for every budget and taste. I have no problem with being in this minority.

I think the day after the Winchester Model 12 was introduced the gun writers of the day started writing of the demise of the SxS shotgun and it has continued through today. Yet Parkers keep coming to market and the good ones continue to sell for more money than ever before. If you are buying them purely to make money then I think you may be disappointed at some point. I have found that buying a vintage shotgun is just about the easiest thing in the world and selling one for what I value it at is much harder. Who's problem is that, buyer or seller? This problem is resolved by buying high and selling low and then telling myself not to do that again(never works). Having said all that, I need a BHE 20 really bad. So, if you have one and want to beat the pending crash and sell it for only half price please contact me.

Patrick

[Southpaw]

Its probably a very complex answer and I can think of a few things that even the author of article did not mention that are maybe contributing factors, but I think he captured the broader essence of the issue. I also think its just as complex to figure out why upland game numbers are down all across the Eastern U.S. Its not just one thing or even a handful of things that are making a difference, but a lot of different issues.

Ya know even in writing that article, who is the audience that he is trying to reach. It resonates with people that participate in this forum and others but in the long run. I mean the new market does not even probably read Outdoor Life. The medium they communicate is social media and videos.

Put it this way, I heard this several years ago, think of all the video or broadcasts that the big three NBC, CBS, ABC ever put out since the dawn of television in the 50's. I mean thats years and decades ahead of the internet content. Youtube every single month has more content loaded up by people than those 3 networks ever produced in their entire history combined and that happens every single month.

For giggles go and to youtube and do a search for Parker SXS, or LC Smith, or for that matter on any side by side. There is some content but not as much as you think. Heck I even enjoyed watching Larry Potterfield and an English gunsmith taking an English Boxlock apart. Fascinating to us but others could care for naught.

My advice is to get more content and videos of guys using not just Parkers but any and all SXS's. Sticking it in a magazine, well maybe it reaches the younger generations. Maybe there is an S Curve for demand, supply and price that ebbs and flows, but I'll bet the frequency, wave length and peaks are diminishing as time marches on. There just has to be a need and a want and in my opinion that combination alone is most simplistic hurdle. Their is no or limited need for SxS's with so many other options and hence limited want. Actually the probably the biggest competitor to a SXS is the O/U, which is considered easier to shoot and not much of change from the semi-autos that shooters familiar with both can interchange. Gunfit is an issue, etc. etc.

Like I said, its a crazy stew to figure out.

[fred]

Maybe we should have a 2 shell capacity in pumps and autoloading shotguns for hunting. In my limited experience the third shot is a waste of a shell anyway.

[Dean Romig]

It has ever and always been a market driven by the gun and ammunition manufacturers. 'Newer is better' - 'Firepower is more important than the well-placed shot' - 'Innovation trumps the tried and true' and in some cases this may be true... like in self-defense or in military situations. If these manufacturers are to stay in business they MUST promote their product in this manner. Manufacturers of the classic SXS guns in today's marketplace KNOW they advertise and sell to a niche market and know the vast majority of today's gun buyers have been 'conditioned' ne brainwashed by the constant beating of that drum and the March of time.





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[Whitefish]

As Fred said maybe the third shot in upland hunting is a waste. Years ago I had a Browning Double Automatic. It was 12g. and I think they were called a " Twelvette ". I have not seen one in years and don't know how long Browning made them. There was also a 20ga. After that gun I tended to lean to M12 Win. and SxS when I could afford a decent one. I think Browning brought the Double Auto's out in the 50's, but they obviously did not last.

[Dean Romig]

Originally Posted by Henry McRoberts

I think Browning brought the Double Auto's out in the 50's, but they obviously did not last.

Right - The guys who couldn't hit anything with two shots thought they needed more firepower....





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[Big D]

The Springer Spaniel Field Trial manual for gunners says that the gun will be a "fixed breech, 12 gauge, well choked". No need for the third shot

[Mills]

Having a third shot never helped me much back when I shot pump guns.

[Kirk Potter]

IMO for most people it all comes down to cost.. Double guns are always going to cost more to make. Their are some really, really nice autos for the price of some really crappy side by sides.

My 1890 CH adjusted for inflation is $4,153.34. These weren’t cheap even back then.