Crow Killer - L C Smith

[Stan Hillis]

A nod to John Jeremiah Garrison Johnson (c.1824 – January 21, 1900), mountain man, and subject of the movie Jeremiah Johnson, avenger of the deaths of his wife and son against the Crow Indian nation, tho' we're talking about an entirely different kind of crow here.



My field grade L. C. Smith, 16 ga., Featherweight Ejector with 32" barrels and Hunter One Trigger (in the rear position). Altogether, a very unusual set of options on a 16 ga. field grade gun, of most any make. This gun was started on 7/30/1925, finished on 10/13/1925, and shipped on 12/13/1925 to Hazard-Gould Hardware in San Diego, CA. When I first saw the gun, and picked it up, I was super impressed with the condition and with how well it fit me, but ................when I saw the card that said it was completed on my birthday, Oct. 13, the deal was sealed. I know an omen when I see one.

The specs are: Rt. bore - .631", Rt. muzzle - .606, for .025" choke.... L. bore - .630", L. muzzle .604', for .026" choke, 7 lbs. 5.6 oz, unloaded. The barrels were bored so that the chokes measure 3 1/2" in length. It has a long LOP and not excessive drop, perfectly suited to me and my style of shooting. It just hammers crows with 1 1/8 oz. of 6s, or 4s, but does excellent work on late season, high flying, doves with 7 1/2s.









So, in light of the specs on this gun, and the original consignee's location, could this have been ordered as a "California Duck Gun", too ?

SRH

[Jim Cloninger]

Nice gun, Stan. I say yes, it's a California duck gun.
Jim
PS - you can send it back to California any time!

[Mills]

Very cool! I bought a Long Range this year which would be good for crows, probably.

[Stan Hillis]

The "crow killer" turned dove gun yesterday afternoon. A limit of 15 with 22 shells. Big, mature birds. RIO loads of 1 oz. 8s. Second bird of the limit was a 51 yard 90 degree crosser. Tough shooting yesterday afternoon. Windy ............ wary birds............GREAT FUN!!



SRH