Bought a new rifle today, as the result of a long chain of events.
When added up it made my actions imperative.
My decision was based on aspects of true love and Vulcan logic.

Bear with me.

I have lived in Texas all my life.
Our "deer" season is also the same as our turkey season. Quail and duck seasons overlap at the same time as well.

In 1990 I huntede black bear in Montana for the first time, and discovered grouse.
They are wonderful to eat.

I have hunted 12 seasons in Montana for bear and grouse.

Since Sept 2003 I have hunted in Idaho for bear 6 times, 4 of those durring Sept when grouse are also in season.

I have hunted twice in Alaska once for caribou and black bear, once for brown and black bear. Grouse and ptarmingan is season.

I have "discovered" just how good double rifles are as hunting tools.

The 9,3x74R double has proven itself to be one of the best hunting rifles on the Planet.

Scoped doubles greatly enhance the huntability of a double rifle.

A drilling [scoped of course] has proven to be most useful durring such seasons, especially when feathered game is top priority, but you want to be prepared for "furred" game.

I am currently on a "deer" lease where pigs are "in season" all year.

I reciently broke one of my main hunting rifles
my 450 No2. Thankfully I have a 450/400 that can stgand in till I get the 450 repaired.

I have no stand in for my 9,3x74R Chapuis double.

A good friend has bought a cabin in Idaho near where I have been bear/grouse hunting and we plan to hunt there every year for bear/elk and of course grouse.

When I elk/bear hunted there this Sept I saw grouse on several occasions when I did not have a shotgun, and could not get within 44 mag shotshell range.

These hunts will be done sometimes in bad weather. While hunting is done of foot,mode of transportation from cabin to hunting location will be mainly ATV or snow machine.

Since I will spend a lot of days afield there a "new gun" is in order.

Also I have a Grizz bear hunt scheduled in AK where ptarmargin will be avialable.

Did I miss where you said what the new rifle was???

Being able to "bag the grouse" and other small game is very important to me as I really enjoying eating it.

So the new gun must meet these criteria.

It must be a double rifle drilling, as the rifle is the primary hunting tool for these outings, but a shotgun is necessary for the grouse etc.

It must be a 9,3x74R. As that calibre is a proven performer to me.

It must be fairly light weight and handy as Idaho is rough country.

Since it will be used in bad weather it must be durrable, metal finish and wood.

It must be accurate for the occasional long shot.

It must take a scope in QD mounts that hold their zero.

It must be totally safe to transport on an ATV or Snomobile with the chambers loaded.

It cannot be too expensive for several reasons one being I would not want to subject a real high dollar gun to such "abuses".

So after giving the matter much thought I decided that a Blaser D 99 Duo is the one gun that met all of these criteria.

So today I bought one.

It is a 9,3x74Rx9,3x74Rx 20ga 3".

My local store just happened to have one in stock.

I have scoped it with a Swarovski 1.5-6x42 with the illuminated circle dot reticle. I already had the scope.

I have been extremly happy with all my Blaser R 93 rifles/bbls as well as my K 95 single shot.

I shot a Blaser S-2 30-06 double with Aleko in SLC and it was very accurate.

The D99 handles very well, when shouldered the iron sights are spot on.
With the scope the stock still feels very good.

One of ther positive features is that it has no safety, it is like a Blaser R 93 or a Krieghoff in that it is not cocked until the shooter cockes it.

However unlike those rifles it is like the K 95 when fired then opened it uncocks and thus the lever must again be cocked after reloading and closing the gun. This feature had not given me any problems in the K 95 I do not expect any here.
Like anything new a little practice should embed the system to the shooter.

Also It gives me a chance to "test" the Blaser double rifle system.I am not afraid to pioneer new techonolgy.

So, in short, for when I need a double rifle and a shotgun for hunting when using an ATV or snowmobile for transportation in elk bear, grouse country I think I have solved my "problem".

I only might have made one mistake.

When I got home I showed it to the wife.

As she handled it she said, "Its lite", as she shouldered it, "The sights are lined up perfectly, this gun feel good. You just lost this one, I like it. The stock feels good."

Worse case scenario.... I just might have to buy another one.

I put this in the double rifle forum because this gun will be used primarialy like a double rifle, it just happens to have a shotgun ducktaped to the side of it.

Wonderful, wonderful rifle

Aleko

Tony, your wife and mine must have gone to the same school! Two years ago, I took her on her first dove hunt, gave her the pick of my doubles and of course, she picks my baby, a W.R. 12 ga. full miniature scroll engraved, marble cake stocked beauty. She proceeds to limit out on her first hunt and announces that it know belongs to her... Oh well, the stock was a bit on the short side anyway. October this year, Tanzania. "Here Honey, the PH says you can shoot my impala, use my Vickers .318 express. Bang, one shot at 120 yds, dead impala. Wife: "I really like this .318, I think your going to have to get another one for you!" Oh well, the stock was just a bit short for me on that one too. I'm just damn glad the PH did not let her shoot a buff or I would be out a double rifle, I think I am beginning to see a pattern!! Seriously though, congrats on your new purchase! Lee.

Did you get it at Ray's or somewhere else?

Congratulations, even though I can't wholeheartedly endorse the Blaser.

Do you remember when you were looking for your drilling and I said you should get a double rifle drilling? Now you have it.

quote:

Originally posted by N E 450 No2:
I only might have made one mistake.

When I got home I showed it to the wife.

As she handled it she said, "Its lite", as she shouldered it, "The sights are lined up perfectly, this gun feel good. You just lost this one, I like it. The stock feels good."

Worse case scenario.... I just might have to buy another one.

I put this in the double rifle forum because this gun will be used primarialy like a double rifle, it just happens to have a shotgun ducktaped to the side of it.

Tony, this is not much of a surprize, having met your better half. I guess you will be heading back to the gunshop for a matching one.

Keith

Charles, Yes it was Rays.

I still very much like my Sauer Drilling, it handles like fine quail gun.
It is a perfectly good double bbl shotgun, with a perfectly good single shot rifle.

The double rifle drilling will be an excellent hunting gun for bear/elk/grouse in Idaho and montana. It will also go to AK on my Grizzly bear hunt as well.

I have found it is a whole lot better to half to worry about your wife commandering one of your new guns than "fussing" at you when you buy one.
After all if she claims one of your gns, you MUST replace it.

How are the barrels arranged on the drilling? Is it 2 rifle barrels on top with the shotgun on the bottom or are the rifle barrels askew?

Bill
The rifle bbls are, the one on top, and the lower left.
Depending on the position of the barrel selector, the front trigger either fires the top rifle bbl or the lower right shotgun bbl. The rear trigger always fires the lower left rifle bbl.

quote:

Originally posted by N E 450 No2:
Bill
The rifle bbls are, the one on top, and the lower left.
Depending on the position of the barrel selector, the front trigger either fires the top rifle bbl or the lower right shotgun bbl. The rear trigger always fires the lower left rifle bbl.

I've always said the only drilling that interests me is a double rifle drilling, but i want it to be a S/S double rifle , with a shot tube in betrween the rifle barrels on the bottom! That thing you bought is probably a good piece of steel, but damn it sounds ugly, and too complicated in design! Still, if it serves your needs, that is all that counts, that is if you can get out of your wife's hands long enough to hunt with it!

My next Blaser purchase will probably also be a D99, but I want the 20ga-20ga-with one of the mid sized rifle rounds up top. But I could be influenced to get a 9.3x74R. It would make a great grouse gun in wolf and bear country. Not to mention a good second gun in Africa.

Mac
It is a strange concept. I think the thinking was that the top rifle bbl would be suitable for th scope mount. The other bbls are free floating, I an curious to see how she shoots.

Their regular drillings also have the rifle bbl on top as well.

Strangely enough several years ago in Anchorage AK in a gun shop I saw a British drilling that looked to be from around 1920-1935.

It was very nicely made.

It also had the rifle bbl on top with the 2 SGN bbls side by side below.
It was a 400/360x12x12 if I remember correctly. Wish I could rememnber the maker.

I thought that was a pretty neat idea as the rifle bbl is very quick to reload.

Dave
I can highly recommend the 9,3x74R cartridge.

I have used it in my Chapuis double on game from turkey,bobcat,deer,pigs,black bear to plains game giraffe,cape buff, and elephant in Zim. I shot a guiena fowl with it too, with a solid very little meat damage.

I have found it not too much gun for the small stuff, yet excellent for big game, and adequate on DG.

quote:

I shot a Blaser S-2 30-06 double with Aleko in SLC and it was very accurate.

Tony - in your case it is more likely the shooter than the rifle.

Hell man, you could shoot a dried cat turd out of a lead pipe packed with black powder and take the nads off a gnat at 500 yards!

One example of drilling from Koln: H&H SLE 9,3x74-9,3x74/20br, 22&5/8" Bohler Special Steel barrels, Zeiss 4x scope in 'Suhl' claw mounts, rib with express sight (fixed plus 1 folding), rolled edge trigger guard,.....It's made on 'Dural' frame and it's weight is 8lb 4oz.

The weight on my Blaser D 99 Duo is 8.5lbs.
With the Swarovski 1.6-6x42 is 9.8 lbs.

quote:

Originally posted by N E 450 No2:
So after giving the matter much thought I decided that a Blaser D 99 Duo is the one gun that met all of these criteria.

So today I bought one.

Oh Lord, there's gotta be a empty bottle of cheap blended scotch in this debacle somewhere. Tony, you are NOT normal when you stray from the single malt.

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Manion:
Hell man, you could shoot a dried cat turd out of a lead pipe packed with black powder and take the nads off a gnat at 500 yards!

No Jim, the dried cat turd is the Blowzer, not the projectile.

Blowzers
------------------------------------------------
"Serious rifles have two barrels, everything else just burns gunpowder."

Tony, you'll have to excuse Mark. The cat probably kept him awake last night!

While it is not BRITISH and BEST, it does handle pretty good, and will be real handy for what I will use it for.

While it is not a cheap gun it is way less expensive that other Double Rifle Drillings.

Its finish tough as well.

Form follows function.
And
Beauty is as beauty does.

Certainly not your typical 30/30 lever-action truck gun -- Texas must have gotten sophisticated since I was stationed there.

quote:

It must be totally safe to transport on an ATV or Snomobile with the chambers loaded.

Seems dangerous to me. And unsporting.
But then I live\hunt in Pennsylvania where such behavior is illegal.

onefunzr2

The Blaser has no safety it is uncocked until cocked by the shooter.

There ain't nothing sporting about bumping into a bear in the back country, or some banjo picking mountain boys.

Now Mark, don't be too hard on Tony. It is obvious his grief is still deep.

He is undoudtedly going through those 7 stages of grief, which is a little different for double rifle owners. He is past shock, denial and anger and is now in the depression and bargaining phases. In those phases people can fall prey to a "rebound effect" which creates a tendency to fall for the slick and shiny things as a substitute for a loss. Someone will need to catch him when he reaches the guilt phase, so we can finally get him to acceptance.

Ah, the rebound effect. I can see it now. Tony pays a visit to his favorite gun shop to get his mind off of his loss. And there she is - the fish net stockinged, stiletto heeled siren of the double rifle world, the S2.

Like a moth to a flame, he is mesmerized by her undulating lines. The perkiness of the wood burl. Her youth and attractiveness. She immediately falls into his arms, allowing his hands to wander over her curves, caressing her.

She is young and tempting. Without hesitation or shame, she opens her breech and allows him to yearn for her glistening bores. Bores that have yet to yield to an experienced hunter.

She teases and then asks, no begs, for him to ram those 450 NE No 2 cartridges into her chamber. And he succumbs to the temptation, thinking that this will make him forget about the past.

Yes, the first few times out he will have his way with her and enjoy it immensely. But her beauty and looks are only skin deep. She will demand more of his time and energy. She is not like all the other women and requires a different approach. He must master her way and forget about how all the other doubles work.

And then she will demand little things to keep her happy. A new sight, a trigger adjustment. ANd those little things will become bigger things. A trigger job, new claw mounts, re-regulation...

And one day Tony will walk in on her in the arms of a gunsmith. Or maybe he will take her on Safari and have to leave her in camp because she is not quite up to the work that day, only to return after a hard day in the bush to find her barrels red hot from the PH that stayed in camp with her.

Then one day it will hit him. He has wasted a part of his life on eurotrash. And he will come back to the rifle that gave him so much enjoyment in life, and was always there when he needed her.

It is going to take some time guys.

All you need now is one of the inserts for the shotgun bbl and you can have a 3 shooter.
Bill

OK, I've been one-upped. That was priceless Jim.

--------------------------------------------------
"Serious rifles have two barrels, everything else just burns gunpowder."

Jim, that was good.

But, the Blaser D 99 Duo is a DOUBLE RIFLE DRILLING.

It is very hard, even for an Anglophile like me to find a British DR Drilling.

And if I did I would not want to ride it around on an ATV/Snowmobile, at least not very much.

The D 99 is a hunting tool. It allows me to hunt elk and bear with the 9,3x74R cartridge, in a double rifle format, [and ya'll know how excellent I think that is], and carry a single shot 20 ga shotgun for grouse at the same time. [Which again, as ya'll should know, is just as important a game animal to me as the bear and elk, as I love to eat grouse], so I am ready for all the game available to me.

I will be spending a lot of time in Idaho.

This Blaser D99 Duo will be the Ne Plus Ultra.

Re-Read my first post. It even fits my wife perfectly.
The gun does feel and handle very well.

And I have never shot a Blaser product that did not perform perfectly.

Hey Tony

Hope you didn't take offense. That was not my intention.

I did know it was a drilling - I was going to say something about the attraction of 3 breasted women in the previous post, but I held off, thinking a comment like one on the back for dancing might be a bit over the top

Jim
No offense taken at all. That was some good prose for sure.

I will bring it to the DRSS hunt.
Everyone will be free to post their opinions on what they think.