Letters

The Zoli-Rizzini Connection

It is always with great anticipation that I open the cover of a new Shooting Sportsman. The magazine is simply the best. However, I would like to comment on Bruce Buck's shotgun review ("Zoli Z Expedition") in November/December.

He states, ". . . Zoli once worked with the gunmaking firm F.lli Rizzini to make guns for Abercrombie & Fitch." I think this is incorrect, and I quote a recent e-mail I received from Stefano Rizzini: "Until 1971 we worked with Mr. Rinaldo Zoli, not Antonio Zoli, and guns were marked Zoli-F.lli Rizzini or Zoli Rizzini.

"When we started as F.lli Rizzini, we used new serial numbers starting from 1,000."

The guns the Rizzini brothers made in conjunction with Rinaldo Zoli were nice doubles but still were basically production guns. The guns made since 1971 by the brothers are simply the best of the best when it comes to conventional double shotguns, and only some 25 are produced each year.

Spence Dupree
Jackson, Tennessee


28 Is Enough

I really enjoyed Silvio Calabi's excellent article "Less is More-The 28 gauge: Wingshooting's best kept secret" (Nov/Dec). I'm also a big fan of the 28 gauge, having used one almost exclusively for the past 10 years. Having grown up shooting 12-gauges for trap and gamebirds, I really never gave much thought to the smaller-gauge guns, especially something as unusual as the 28 gauge. For years I was in that circle of hunters who had the mindset that only 12-gauge guns (and maybe 16s) were worthy of using for pheasants and other upland birds; anything else just didn't have the killing power necessary to consistently drop birds. I soon learned how misguided I was.

In 1997 my wife surprised me on our first wedding anniversary with a drop-dead-gorgeous 28-gauge Webley & Scott side-by-side that weighs only 5 pounds 1 ounce (yes, she is drop-dead gorgeous also). After having trudged through fields for years carrying a seven- or eight-pound 12-gauge, it was a joy to tote the feathery- light 28. On my first pheasant and chukar hunt with the gun, the little 28 proved deadly, as I downed birds with the same precision that I had with a 12. I think I even created a convert out of my 12-gauge-toting hunting partner.

I agree that the 28 is a "veteran's gun," as it is not as forgiving as a 12. But as long as the shooter is an experienced hunter (and a good shot) and the correct loads are chosen, he will be very successful in the field. As Calabi pointed out, if "pellets are the same size and traveling at the same speed whether shot from a 12 or a 28, their ballistic performance is the same." The only difference is the number of pellets. Although the 28-gauge 3/4-ounce loads mentioned are effective, especially on smaller birds, I have had great success on pheasants with one-ounce loads of No. 6 shot.

If you have never tried a 28-gauge, get over the mental block that it doesn't have the necessary killing power, practice often, and understand the gun's shot pattern. Then go out in the field and experience the joy of toting a trim and slim smoothbore that weighs considerably less than a 12-gauge, has less recoil and swings into action with lightning speed. I think you'll agree that the 28 is hardly a "foolish toy."

Gary Schurr
Via e-mail


Forced to use my 28-gauge backup gun a couple of years ago, I was astounded not only by how much better I shot the gun but also at the range that it would pinwheel a dove. Thinking it was luck, I dismissed its performance . . . until I killed a 50-yard chukar. I now bird hunt with only my 28-what a great gauge. I told my wife to put the 28-gauge in my coffin.

Bob Hughes
Houston, Texas


Oklahoma Quail Connection

In my story Bobwhites in the Shinnery (Sept/Oct), I fear I may have come off a little selfishly. Some readers may want to experience the wonderful Oklahoma quail hunting that I describe in the piece and wonder how to go about it. I should have made it clear that someone with an appetite for this sort of shooting can satisfy it by contacting Todd Rogers, who has several thousand acres under lease. Rogers is a guide and has access to first-class dogs if hunters don't bring their own. He is splendid company and quite reasonable, and I would recommend him to any sportsman. For more information, contact Rogers at 580-225-6831; trogers@itinet.net.

Geoffrey Norman
Dorset, Vermont


A Rant for Restraint

This may be a hard subject to approach without stepping on toes, but for the sake of a sport that I've loved for the past 50 years, I believe something has to be said and the hell with the toes!

I may be wrong here, but I believe that hunting in general is being seen in a rather dim light due to the new generation of "snuff" programs being shown on some of the sports channels. Scenes depicted of a half-dozen shooters opening up on three geese and then performing like a football team after a touchdown as one bird falls and the other two sail off crippled or of birds walking in the decoys being sluiced as cries of "Kill 'em!" ring out.

These stories are endless. Piles of pintails in Mexico-of course it's legal there, but with the pintail population in such a precarious position, why not show a bit of restraint? There are plenty of other abundant species that should suffice. How about four people shooting a pheasant to rags and belly-laughing about it? Then again, I suppose that when you haven't had proper moral guidance and an animal is nothing but a target to be gained by any means, there are no rules.

Which brings me to the crux of my rant. First, what are these shows teaching our youngsters? When it comes to killing, everything is within bounds and an animal is nothing more than a target and respect isn't an issue?

And second, members of the animal-rights movement don't have to hide in the bushes to get evidence of cruelties heaped on living entities; they can buy it over the Internet. And don't think they aren't.

Now I've said my piece. Some may feel that I'm a bit sanctimonious, and that's your right. If you don't like me insulting the way you conduct your affairs, drag your knuckles back to the TV and watch another chapter of Larry and Loopie dynamite fish; but if you feel the way I do, there are some things you can do. These programs are sponsored by big sporting-equipment companies and ammunition manufacturers; let them know how you feel.

Bottom line: I believe that we, as sportsmen, are being hurt by this type of programming. Granted, it isn't for people who truly enjoy and respect the shooting sports, but as a whole we're being tarred with the same brush-and a little bit of tar goes a long way!

Bob Hafey
Cora, Wyoming

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