A LOOK AT CZ’S HAMMERLESS BOBWHITE HAMMER CLASSIC SIDE-BY-SIDES

A LOOK AT CZ’S BOBWHITE, HAMMER CLASSIC SIDE-BY-SIDES

Among CZ’s many shotgun lines are its hammerless Bobwhite side-by-side, seen here, and Hammer Classic, with models from 12- to 28-gauge available.

HAMMER CLASSIC If you're in the market for a basic but solid double-barrel with 'high-end-of-the-budget' trappings, these two imported shotguns just might fill the bill.

STORY AND PHOTOS BY JIM DICKSON

When the Stevens Model 311 side-byside shotgun was discontinued, it left a big gap in the market. Suddenly there was a problem for the farmer or working man who wanted a basic working side-by-side double at an affordable price.

In this article I am reviewing two promising candidates for that position, the CZ hammerless Bobwhite and CZ Hammer Classic doubles. CZ is a European maker with a fine reputation for making solid working guns for the average shooter. These guns are made for them by Huglu in Turkey on modern CNC machines and they are precisely

fitted and nicely finished. They are responsive in handling, coming up effortlessly on target, and easy to hit with. From all appearances, they look like the high-end-of-the-budget doubles.

Both guns come with five screw-in chokes consisting of full, improved, modified, improved cylinder and cylinder chokes. Screw-in chokes are all the rage now, but I must confess I much prefer fixed chokes. My personal double has improved cylinder and full chokes and these have always been perfect for me, regardless of the game I shot.

The barrel length of the hammerless Bobwhite shotgun is 28 inches, while the Hammer Classic has 30-inch barrels. There is a saying in the British gun trade, “Big man, big gun; little man, little gun,” which is often applied to barrel length. I am a big tall man and 30-inch barrels work best for me, while 28-inch might work better for another man.

These guns come in 12-, 20- and 28-gauge and they are all built on receivers scaled to their gauge. Over the years that has not always been the case with every maker.

The stocks have a 14½-inch length of pull with a 1½-inch drop at the comb of the stock and a 2¼-inch drop at the heel of the stock. It would be better if the stock was longer, but this is about as long as you are going to get on a factory shotgun.

Both guns have double triggers with excellent trigger pulls, enabling you to instantly select the barrel with the best choke or load in it for your shot. That is serious business. When bird hunting in places with wild hogs or grizzly bear, keeping a German Brenneke slug in one barrel and birdshot in the other is the safest way to hunt. A single selective trigger would be slower and more prone to get out of order in a tight spot with either of these two tough customers.

Both guns feature extractors instead of the much more expensive ejectors and both guns’ barrels are finished in durable black chrome for increased rust-resistance. The receiver of the Bobwhite is done in satin black chrome as well, which is quite welcome on a utility shotgun intended for hard service. The Hammer Classic is finished in color casehardening. I must say that they really do a beautiful job with their casehardening.

The overall length of the Hammer Classic is 47.38 inches and its weight is 7.5 pounds. The hammerless Bobwhite is two inches shorter and weighs in at 7.3 pounds. For guns like these with 3-inch chambers, it would be a very bad idea to go lighter unless you really enjoy being kicked by recoil.

I was delighted that neither gun has an automatic safety. A pure manual safety is much safer when the chips are down and you have to shoot fast. You don’t need to be having to remember to take the safety off when you are under pressure in a tight spot with wild dogs or wild hogs coming at you.

The Hammer Classic and Bobwhite doubles come with 30- and 28-inch barrels and their overall lengths are 47.38 and 45.38 inches, respectively. They weigh 7.5 and 7.3 pounds. An over and under view of the Bobwhite side-byside shows off its modest yet stylish engraving.

straight grip stock, and this is very important as nothing points quite as fast and sure as a straight grip stock. Your hands are more aligned with the direction you are pointing and closer to the bore line of the gun. The forend on both guns is not really a splinter forend, but it still is not so fat as to prevent your grasping the gun by the barrels. This alone will make you hit four times more birds than trying to hold onto a beavertail forend, which will also kill the liveliness of your gun.

It is important to lay your thumb alongside the barrels. This simple trick is all it takes to ensure master eye dominance with a side-by-side double. Your master eye is the one whose view of a finger held at arm’s length does not change when you close the other eye. It is vital that you shoot with your master eye, as your aim will shift just as the view shifts if the nondominant eye is used. One of the big problems with the over-and-under doubles is that the master eye sees the narrow rib, while the nondominant eye sees the great mass of both barrels. This can cause a fight for dominance and when the

The Hammer Classic features a manual tang safety and rebounding hammers.

The Hammer Classic “is a real looker with its striking color casehardening,” writes author Jim Dickson. “For those nostalgic for the early days of cartridge shotgunning, this is the gun for you.”

normally nondominant eye wins, you mysteriously miss to the side.

Another problem with the overand-under is the fact that its shape prevents it from being made as lively in the hands as a side-by-side. The O/U was the first type of double made but it soon fell by the wayside because it is easier to hit with a side-by-side. In later years the British gun trade brought it back just as an excuse to sell people another gun. The slogan “single sighting plane” hit home in America, a nation of riflemen. The problem with that is the fact that a shotgun is supposed to be pointed, not aimed. Adherence to the latest style and fad, along with the modern notion that newer just has to be better, popularized the O/U despite the fact that the side-by-side points better and is easier to hit with.

Anyway, the Bobwhite has a European black, soft recoil pad with a hard top cap to prevent the butt catching on your clothes when the gun is mounted. My overall impression of it is of a sturdy, good-looking economy shotgun intended for long, hard use. It has a very reasonable MSRP of $675. Not a lot of money for a gun in 2021.

NOW ON TO the Hammer Classic. This is a real looker with its striking color casehardening. Its MSRP is $1,045 and there is a 20-inch-barrel coach gun version with an MSRP of $999 for those who want a simple,

Another view of the Classic’s casehardening. There’s also a Coach version in 12-gauge with a 20-inch barrel.

foolproof shotgun for home-defense.

The Hammer Classic is for those who love outside hammer guns, and historically that has included some of the finest game shots. Frederick Oliver Robinson, 2nd Marquess of Ripon, bagged 316,000 birds between 1867 and 1895. He once shot 28 birds in one minute at Sandringham. Most of these birds were killed with his set of three Purdey hammer guns. King George V, a renowned game shot, once said, “A gun without hammers is like a Spaniel without ears!”

Aside from the looks of a hammer gun, many enjoy the sound and feel of cocking the hammers and their impact on the firing pins.

The Hammer Classic features a semi-pistol grip stock, which does not point as well as a straight grip stock but is better for positioning the hand to absorb recoil, taking some of the impact off your shoulder. Instead of a recoil pad, the Hammer Classic has a casehardened steel buttplate that looks strikingly elegant.

For those nostalgic for the early days of cartridge shotgunning, this is the gun for you. With its brilliant color casehardening and high-gloss black chrome barrels, it would also look quite good over the mantel or fireplace.

Both these CZ shotguns handle well and are easy to hit with. CZ has a very fine reputation for making hardworking, reliable, economical guns in Europe and if they are going to sell guns made by Huglu in Turkey, it is safe to say that they will make sure the guns meet the CZ standards. CZ-USA (cz-usa. com), headquartered in Kansas City, Kansas, is the exclusive US importer of rifles and pistols from CZ.

Anyone looking for an economical side-by-side double-barreled shotgun would do well to check these out. 

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