J.Baker
01-05-2023, 02:28 PM
Picked myself up a little something just before Christmas...
9053
2022 was a pretty crap year for me with my mom passing last spring and then missing out on most all of hunting season due to a shingles outbreak. I'd sold a couple guns I hadn't used in several years in recent months as well so I decided to treat myself to something a little nicer than I'd normally buy.
I've always had a soft spot for side-by-side shotguns, and while over the years I've eyed a number of well used Baker's, Ithaca's, Lefever's, L.C. Smiths and Parkers I never pulled the trigger on purchasing one. In fact, the only time I'd ever shot a SxS was one time when I was about 12 or 13 and it was an old Remington from the late 1800's that belonged to one of my dad's friends. Then about two years ago I happened across a minty Browning BSS Sporter in 20ga at the local gun show that ended up following me home after some shroud negotiating on my part.
While I really like the Browning and it fits me well, I still had a penchant for something a little nicer. So having some extra money burning a hole in my pocket I started perusing the usual sites to see what was out there to be had for what I had to play with. A local shop just happened to have a couple nice older American boxlocks for reasonable prices, so I decided to drive up to their shop to give them a closer look. One was an A.H. Fox, one was a Parker Bros, and one was a L.C. Smith. What I had forgotten however is just how many really, REALLY nice guns this shop always had in their inventory as they stocked everything from budget minded entry level guns to high end collector pieces priced well in excess of $100k, and there were literally hundreds of side-by-sides and over/unders to wade through. Everything from E.J. Churchill's, Holland & Holland's, J Purdey & Sons, Merkel's, Krieghoff's, Boss's, Kolar's, etc. Their racks are literally a "who's who" of fine shotguns from all over the world.
So as I'm wading through a sea of walnut stocks and high luster bluing trying to find the three guns I'd come there to see I happened across this little oddity of a shotgun. It was a dainty little 28-gauge made by a Spanish gun maker that I'd heard of and read a little about in the past, but I didn't really know a whole lot about. Looking it over one would have though it was a brand new gun had it not been for the slightest amount of bluing wear at the muzzle of the barrels. Curiosity getting the best of me I looked at the price tag and my it was a fair bit more than I was looking to spend.
Resuming my quest I finally located the three guns I had gone there to see, but that little 28-gauge was just lingering in the back of my mind the whole time. The three guns I was there to look at were all a little worse for wear being they were each pushing 100 years old or had already hit the century milestone, and that little 28 was almost as pristine as the day it left the factory. Try as I might, I just couldn't keep myself from going back to look at it over and over again. Eventually one of the clerks came over and asked if he could assist me so I asked if he could give me some more info on that little 28-gauge. He wasn't what I'd call a wealth of knowledge on it, but was able to give me a little more info on the maker, that it was special ordered by a gentleman from Columbus, OH back in the mid 1990's and that it also came with a matching .410 bore barrel and a fitted leather case.
Long story short I talked myself into adopting that little 28-gauge, my logic being "yes it's more than I planned on spending, but I'm getting two guns for the price of one - right? Yeah! That's it - it's a win-win!"
Now by this point I'm sure you're all thinking "Will you shut up already and just tell us what you bought?" :p
What I ended up getting is a Grulla Armas Model 216 with the aforementioned 26" 28ga and .410 bore barrel sets which are both choked M/F. It features a traditional H&H style bar action sidelock scaled frame action with disc set strikers and gas escape valves. It's fitted with double triggers, the front being articulated. The sidelocks are a modified tool less Holland & Holland 5-pin design with double safety sears. Barrels are of the demiblock (chopper-lump) design with concave ribs and automatic selective ejectors. Engraving is all hand-cut in the classic Purdy-style rose & scroll pattern topped off with a satin silver coin finish. Furniture consists of an English-style straight grip stock and splinter fore-end of select figured walnut with a hand rubbed oil finish and hand cut checkering. And of course there's the custom case wrapped with Italian leather.
9054 9046 9047
9048 9049
9051 9052
Doing a little research after I got home it seems that Grulla Armas is considered by many to be the second best gunmaker in the Basque region of Spain (second only to the recently dissolved firm of Pedro Arrizabalaga). Today the companies workforce consists of around 20 craftsmen who typically average to make around 300 shotguns per year.
Chuck Hawks (RIP) has a very good write-up on the history of Grulla Armas for anyone interested. https://www.chuckhawks.com/grulla_shotguns.htm
9053
2022 was a pretty crap year for me with my mom passing last spring and then missing out on most all of hunting season due to a shingles outbreak. I'd sold a couple guns I hadn't used in several years in recent months as well so I decided to treat myself to something a little nicer than I'd normally buy.
I've always had a soft spot for side-by-side shotguns, and while over the years I've eyed a number of well used Baker's, Ithaca's, Lefever's, L.C. Smiths and Parkers I never pulled the trigger on purchasing one. In fact, the only time I'd ever shot a SxS was one time when I was about 12 or 13 and it was an old Remington from the late 1800's that belonged to one of my dad's friends. Then about two years ago I happened across a minty Browning BSS Sporter in 20ga at the local gun show that ended up following me home after some shroud negotiating on my part.
While I really like the Browning and it fits me well, I still had a penchant for something a little nicer. So having some extra money burning a hole in my pocket I started perusing the usual sites to see what was out there to be had for what I had to play with. A local shop just happened to have a couple nice older American boxlocks for reasonable prices, so I decided to drive up to their shop to give them a closer look. One was an A.H. Fox, one was a Parker Bros, and one was a L.C. Smith. What I had forgotten however is just how many really, REALLY nice guns this shop always had in their inventory as they stocked everything from budget minded entry level guns to high end collector pieces priced well in excess of $100k, and there were literally hundreds of side-by-sides and over/unders to wade through. Everything from E.J. Churchill's, Holland & Holland's, J Purdey & Sons, Merkel's, Krieghoff's, Boss's, Kolar's, etc. Their racks are literally a "who's who" of fine shotguns from all over the world.
So as I'm wading through a sea of walnut stocks and high luster bluing trying to find the three guns I'd come there to see I happened across this little oddity of a shotgun. It was a dainty little 28-gauge made by a Spanish gun maker that I'd heard of and read a little about in the past, but I didn't really know a whole lot about. Looking it over one would have though it was a brand new gun had it not been for the slightest amount of bluing wear at the muzzle of the barrels. Curiosity getting the best of me I looked at the price tag and my it was a fair bit more than I was looking to spend.
Resuming my quest I finally located the three guns I had gone there to see, but that little 28-gauge was just lingering in the back of my mind the whole time. The three guns I was there to look at were all a little worse for wear being they were each pushing 100 years old or had already hit the century milestone, and that little 28 was almost as pristine as the day it left the factory. Try as I might, I just couldn't keep myself from going back to look at it over and over again. Eventually one of the clerks came over and asked if he could assist me so I asked if he could give me some more info on that little 28-gauge. He wasn't what I'd call a wealth of knowledge on it, but was able to give me a little more info on the maker, that it was special ordered by a gentleman from Columbus, OH back in the mid 1990's and that it also came with a matching .410 bore barrel and a fitted leather case.
Long story short I talked myself into adopting that little 28-gauge, my logic being "yes it's more than I planned on spending, but I'm getting two guns for the price of one - right? Yeah! That's it - it's a win-win!"
Now by this point I'm sure you're all thinking "Will you shut up already and just tell us what you bought?" :p
What I ended up getting is a Grulla Armas Model 216 with the aforementioned 26" 28ga and .410 bore barrel sets which are both choked M/F. It features a traditional H&H style bar action sidelock scaled frame action with disc set strikers and gas escape valves. It's fitted with double triggers, the front being articulated. The sidelocks are a modified tool less Holland & Holland 5-pin design with double safety sears. Barrels are of the demiblock (chopper-lump) design with concave ribs and automatic selective ejectors. Engraving is all hand-cut in the classic Purdy-style rose & scroll pattern topped off with a satin silver coin finish. Furniture consists of an English-style straight grip stock and splinter fore-end of select figured walnut with a hand rubbed oil finish and hand cut checkering. And of course there's the custom case wrapped with Italian leather.
9054 9046 9047
9048 9049
9051 9052
Doing a little research after I got home it seems that Grulla Armas is considered by many to be the second best gunmaker in the Basque region of Spain (second only to the recently dissolved firm of Pedro Arrizabalaga). Today the companies workforce consists of around 20 craftsmen who typically average to make around 300 shotguns per year.
Chuck Hawks (RIP) has a very good write-up on the history of Grulla Armas for anyone interested. https://www.chuckhawks.com/grulla_shotguns.htm