Michael Yardley is immediately impressed by this lightweight sidelock side-by-side and finds that its slightly eccentric styling proved comfortable – and no impediment to performance
THE Merkel Model 60e sidelock side-by-side is a 20-bore, 30in-barrelled gun with straight-hand grip and double triggers. It comes from the extensive stock of Horton guns in Birmingham, imported into the UK by Viking Arms of Harrogate (both firms have a long association with Merkel). It weighs in at just under 6lb 3oz, light by modern standards, and has a profusely scroll-engraved backaction mechanism with Greener top bolt.
First impressions are good. This attractive, well-presented gun might be seen as a Germanic take on the classic London carriage-trade product. I must declare an interest, before proceeding further. In 2013, I went over to Merkel’s factory to help it to specify its shotgun range. Some interesting, rejigged models arose out of this, including a gun not unlike the test gun. I had always thought, and still think, that Merkel shotguns could go a long way in the UK market with a slightly revised specification. Well made and engineered, they tended to have Continental stock measures (short and low in the comb) combined with unfamiliar styling.
Bu hikaye The Field dergisinin April 2018 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Bu hikaye The Field dergisinin April 2018 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Rory Stewart - The former Cabinet minister and hit podcast host talks to Alec Marsh about the parlous state of British politics, land management and his deep love of the countryside
The gently spoken 51-year-old former Conservative Cabinet minister is a countryman at heart. That's clear: he even changes into a tweed waistcoat for the interview, which takes place at his London home and begins with a question about his precise career status. Having resigned from the Commons and the Conservative Party in 2019, the former diplomat and soldier has reinvented himself, first with an unconventional but promising run as an independent for the London mayoralty (abandoned because of COVID19 in 2020) and then as a media figure, co-hosting one of the country's most popular podcasts, The Rest Is Politics, alongside Alastair Campbell, the former Labour spin doctor.
Fodder
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