Illustrate the Chapuis house located in the French gunmaking district of St. Étienne was undoubtedly very interesting and created an urgent desire to try one of the shotguns produced by this company. The proposal on the various sectors of long guns ranges from smooth barrels to rifled ones and it is precisely the latter that are at the center of our attention: a phone call and our friend Claudio confirms that an express is available in his rack, precisely the kind with parallel barrels according to the good rule codified by the English Masters in the last years of the 800th century. The invitation to try this excellent example of transalpine archibugeria was seized upon and so we went to Canavese, the metallurgical district north of Turin, where our host lives and where the Vidracco shooting range is also located, which will host us for photographic shooting and field testing. We leave the provincial road climbing up a short side road that ends in the square of the shooting range where it is convenient to leave the car unloading rifles and equipment: Mr. Egidio, the facility manager, welcomes us, making available to us with amiability and competence anything that can come back useful in such situations.
The firing lines for short and long weapons are located in a valley surrounded by high wooded slopes and the maximum available firing distance reaches 100 metres: target holders are provided at intermediate intervals and, after an initial arrangement of the insignia at 50 m, we consider like our view first of all, and then the choice to try the express in a natural situation, the 25m is the most feasible solution. Accustomed as we are by now to using long rifled guns equipped with optics, we have not remembered to wear the shooting glasses which we have used in recent years of competition for pistol competitions, but which, with an appropriate modification to the position of the lens, makes up for at least in part to the needs of rifle shooting. Patience: we prepare to sight the notch and viewfinder with the multifocals of daily use trying to divine in those dark and shaded masses the references to be placed on the orange barrel. However, before shooting, we want to photograph the beautiful rifle so that it is still intact, shiny and clean with the cartridges available, which also need to be photographed to document availability and to complete the overall picture. So here is the express according to Chapuis.
Two parallel rifled barrels
We place the shotgun on a trunk, starting the overall visual dialogue: the compactness ensured by the small-sized barrels catches the eye, as it is logical that it is in a hunting weapon, therefore ready for the shoulder and the eye, handy and brandishable promptly and quickly. The walnut stock with an appreciable grain and a rather dark brown background gives class and elegance together with the classic shapes with evident choices typical of the express ones. The pistol grip shows a full-bodied and oversized section in the curved trend towards the guard: the grip of the strong hand will be firm and stable even in the repetition of the shot, diluting the sensation of the recoil.
Equally functional is the cheek piece with a rounded profile thanks to which the face is positioned adequately allowing the eye to sight the sights with instinctive naturalness: here too the curve and thickness of the back minimize the return of the shot. Another hint of aesthetics should be addressed to the wooden butt plate, elegantly knurled and fixed with the two classic split-end screws: one does not give in to the even comfortable cross-nosed Parker screws remaining of the Gunsmiths, with a capital letter, and not of the Ikea furniture makers. We move on to the fore-end of which the wide and rounded section stands out, the so-called beaver tail: considered inelegant on refined side-by-sides, here it shows a pleasant solution to the problem of the grip and to the possible heating of the barrels in a favorable hunting situation in which the boars lay siege to the post of lucky Nembrotte.
The metal parts inherent in the stock: let's start from the same forend in which the cross head is recessed with an internal base of a rather elementary squared line, but finished with rosettes, while the two levers for mounting the batteries protrude from the hinge; on the outside the shaped lever of the Aoget system for the release from the barrel unit. The oval of the guard, refined and functional also due to its thick section with rounded edges, continues along the front of the pistol with no less than three fixing screws, resting on the molded steel guard and equipped with a snap-on lid to keep the front sight. reserve: all to full satisfaction according to the technical and aesthetic rules expected from such a shotgun.
The frame, the barrels and the triggers
The action frame, obviously in steel, is sized on the measurements of a smooth-bore 28 gauge, realizing the appropriate thicknesses to handle the high-performance cartridges proposed by the manufacturer. The system mounts Blitz locks on the trigger guard and the appearance is softened by the long, completely smooth folders which allow you to verify how the tops are stretched: often the incisions serve to cover any hurried finishes and here, on the other hand, the polishing work is in full evidence. Between the two rounded breasts the base of the rib and the seat of the key stand out: the design of the latter is pleasant with the eye and the convex body from which the oval button continues, knurled and with engraved edge. The upper tang of the receiver shows a slightly tapered profile: the slide button of the safety is inserted at the apex.
Let's now move on to the interior where, to appreciate the particular study of seals and closures, it is advisable to start from the group of rods: as far as we can observe the two elements are joined in demibloc and from each rod we obtain its own semi-plane between which a prismatic block is inserted tapered seat of various functions. Inside are the pair of hammers for the ejectors, the mounting struts of the batteries, the shanks of the extractors with the grip lunettes housed in the breech edge of the barrels. Note also the two turns of the hinge for the rotation of the barrels which, in their lower portion, create the seal by aiming against the special protrusions protruding from the inside of the action frame while the sides of the prismatic block are inserted with precision into the walls, inhibiting lateral deviations .
The closure is entrusted to a large piece, moved by the key, which protrudes from the face, under the holes of the firing pins enclosed in grains provided with vent holes. The position of the plug in relation to the point of application of the force creates a favorable lever arm and the dimensions of the sliding seat guarantee a long life of the system. The specimen entrusted to us chambers that cartridge that we believe to be one of the best solutions for a two-barrel rifled wild boar, derived from the historic German ordinance of the early 900s, the 8×57 JRS still functional and decisive with its collared case , the 8mm bullet and a charge with limited recoil and reassuring stopping power.
To conclude the examination of the barrels we note the short battue rib with deep shading obtained by working with the edge file and crosswise: the rear sight with double sight is inserted at the apex, then a deep central U for a possible shot precision, and the very wide V for the racing one. The dovetail joint allows small drift movements. The low concave rib, another appreciable finesse, rises at the muzzle forming the hoof with grain front sight and sight cabochon in brass: here too the interlocking seat allows lateral deviations. Watching live breech rifling always has that special charm of the double barrel rifle while in the sprint you can appreciate the accurate finish of the ribs' egress protected by a circular rebate; between the barrels protrudes the dowel used to distance the two axes, bringing the overlapping of the shots to the desired distance, usually around 75 meters.
The triggers are interlocked with two triggers, as is logical in these shotguns, to always guarantee at least one shot in the event of a cartridge failure: conveniently, the release weights are a little heavy for our taste, spoiled by carbines often with a very light stecher, but in a baiting gun this is the winning solution for not firing a shot unexpectedly in the frenzy of the moment.
Some shots on the field
We have slightly outdated cartridges, precisely the Fiocchi produced when the Lecco-based company had probed the market for sporting rifled cartridges by proposing various calibers including the 8×57 JRS equipped with a 196 g HPC bullet with a very convincing with a metallic tip. First of all, we note a remarkable regularity in firing and a decidedly modest recoil: the only hitch is represented, as highlighted at the beginning of the passage, by our eyesight. With this we are determined to test the weapon in our conditions, as if we were on a covered terrace, while considering that we are shooting at a stationary target.
However, an emotion arrives when at about 75 meters a beautiful male roe deer sneaks into the fence calmly crossing the shooting line: we observe its elegant gait until it disappears into the thicket. Let's start the shots with the first shots a little low, but with more attention we place the front sight dot in the U without making it protrude as it comes naturally looking for greater visibility. The first two double barrels go into the lower edge of the barrel and the centering is, for us, a little shifted to the left: only one of the four shots escapes us and ends up slightly off to the right. The final coppiola is good, always a little to the left, but more level with the center: the distance between the two holes is 3 cm.
We return the express to the friend who allowed us this test, an interesting experiment to verify with pleasure and appreciation the valuable work carried out in theatelier of the Chapuis.
