Looking at possibly getting a new shotgun. I'm only considering SxS and O/U. haven't decided on single or double triggers. The one I am currently using is an older 12g Noble SxS with double triggers. I'm leaning toward a 20g not sure on Double or single triggers, which do you prefer. I'm specifficly looking at either a CZ Ringneck or a CZ Woodcock either in 20g w/ 28" bbls.

I'm wobbling back and forth between the Bobwhite or the Mallard with 28 inch 20 bore tubes. I figure double triggers are the way to go with a double. Let us know how your deliberations proceed.

Other than your preferences... it really depends on what your purpose is.

If it's for hunting then it's hard to beat the classic feel of a SxS. In a SxS most people prefer double triggers.

If you're looking toward clay competition you'll be better served by an O/U. It's pretty rare to see an over/under with double triggers.

For me, I compete with a single trigger O/U and hunt with an old double trigger SxS.

Hope that helps.

Kyler

For shooting performance, the O/U is clearly a better design. It provides less muzzle jump when the low barrel is fired first, and does not give the slight side-ways recoil that is part of the SxS experience. It also has the much narrower sight plane that most people prefer. There's a reason that virtually all target shooters use an O/U rather than a SxS.

That said, the classic look and feel of the SxS offsets those small disadvantages. So if you really want one, go for it.

As to double vs. single triggers, I am very much in the "non-traditional" single trigger camp for the SxS. On a double trigger gun, the two triggers by definition have differing lengths of pull. And LOP is a critically imortant factor in gun fit. In other words, if the gun fits you with one trigger, it won't fit you as well when using the other trigger.

I have the Turkish-made (Huglu) CZ Ringneck (SxS with SST) in 28 gauge and am enjoying it. It probably represents the best combination of quality/economy available in a SxS in the current market (however, I do prefer the English stock of the Bobwhite to the Ringneck's PG stock). I would advise getting one before (1) the Euro goes any higher and prices you out of the market, and (2) before the coming full-scale Turk-Kurd war breaks out in what used to be northern Iraq and cuts off all Huglu products, along with what little oil is seeping out of northern Iraq under the current regime.

For once Stonecreek and I agree. I understand why people like double triggers (instant choke selection, less likely to break) but I can't figure out how they shoot them without having the rear of the trigger guard knock the hell out of their middle finger when shooting heavier loads using the front trigger. Maybe I just don't understand, but I'll stick to my 101 and its single trigger.

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For once Stonecreek and I agree.

And I thought you meant on the Euro and the looming Turkish-Kurdish war.

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Originally posted by Stonecreek:

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For once Stonecreek and I agree.

And I thought you meant on the Euro and the looming Turkish-Kurdish war.

That's twice.

I'm trying desperately to buy a high grade Perazzi for a bit less than the seller wants......I think he thinks time is on his side.....he's right.......but I'm not at all sure my wallet is going in the same direction as the Euro.

I am muddling thru with my Grandfathers old Winchester Model 24 12 gauge. He gave it to me when I finished the last go-round in vietnam and got out 3 days before Christmas in 1971. All it does is kill stuff. Of course, I still shoot his '97 too, got an extra barrel and had it tubed for tungsten.

Rich
DRSS
Knowledge not shared is knowledge lost...

FWIW, I prefer the OU only becuase I have never shot/owned a SS. I don't care for the looks of the SS and they just don't point as well and feel as good in my hands as an OU - the same goes for double rifles. Lou

I think what I am going to do is go through an overhaul another 20 that I have. The stock had previously been cut down, and it is starting to loosen up. I' m going to re-pin it, restock it, and open the chokes to Mod and IC. I took the measurements from my 12 and they match the measurements that CZ lists for their shotguns, I will be building in about another 1/2 inch of drop, and an additional 3/16 cast off.

It is entirely a matter of taste. If you have a 20 you like and can make fit, go with it.

I once took a pump, a SxS, and an O/U to the Wobble Trap range and used them alternately to shoot pairs, scored as if three shooters were shooting. After 75 total shells, the SxS was ahead by one bird, and the other two were tied.

I have both the CZ Ringneck and the Woodcock in 20ga. I own several O/U SG's and don't shoot the Woodcock much. The Ringneck is the only SXS I own and enjoy shooting it more out of nostalgia. I think the O/U is probably a better design overall, especially for an average shooter like me.

Dr.Lou:

I read your post with a feeling that maybe a bit of sxs shooting might change your view. You certainly understand the most crucial part of shooting a shotgun - that it is pointed (and not aimed) I wonder if the "single sighting plane" (of an O&U)may not be making you forget that any shotgun being "pointed" is being pointed like your finger pointing at an object (and the coordination between finger and eye is unerring then)- and you don't look along your finger to be "on" every time. Same with a sxs. Yes, you don't want to be looking down on the barrel, either -but in a happy marriage of eye and hand that points the barrel, you really should be unconscious of the two barrels of a sxs. Obviously, I can't convert you to a sxs by a post - but why not leave yourself open to persuasion by trying a sxs? (That it doesn't feel "right" is simply unfamiliarity. I have hefted three barrelled European firearms. They didn't feel "right" either - but many Europeans swear by them. You won't know until you give a sxs a fair trial)