Quarantine time, stuck at home, I want to take the opportunity to tell you about a rifle I am particularly fond of, which, in addition to being a gift from an uncle who unfortunately is no longer there, has also given me a lot of hunting satisfaction. A few years ago, my uncle told me to choose a shotgun among those he had in his rack, immediately my eye fell on the Franchi Littorio, missing a shotgun cal. 20, the choice was easy and immediate.
The Littorio, as the name implies, is a shotgun born in the twenties, it is the precursor of the more famous Franchi Condor. In 1930, Luigi Franchi presented, with the design of Enrico Desenzani, his side-by-side with locks on side plates, the first Franchi Imperiale, while in 1933 the Littorio model will see the light, always with the same mechanics but perhaps of a slightly lower class. .
The shotguns in my hands, as reported on the barrels, date back to the year 1939, the light line with the English stock make it very elegant and refined. It is a rifle that embodies the most sought-after constructive canons of the time that still make it a weapon of indisputable charm.
The receiver is finely engraved with a mixed floral and arabesque motif, a theme also repeated on all the metal surfaces of the temple and guard. The batteries are made up of H&H type locks on the side panels, with double temple, finely worked and synonymous with undisputed quality. The harmoniously proportioned receiver with slightly compressed breasts incorporates a triple Purdey closure in addition to the latch between the breasts. The firing pins have removable dowels with two vent holes and fixed by safety screw. Also on the action we find engraved the Littorio beam which gives the name to the model, the serial number and the hallmarks of the test bench.
In the upper part we find a long codette surmounted by the opening key with the finely knurled oval, burnished and with the gold writing "EYECTOR-KRUPP", which means that the speargun has barrels made with Krupp steel and is equipped with automatic extractors of the shells fired. Then we find the safety, engraved and with a "button" in the center in relief to facilitate its grip.
On the front of the action the writing with the name of the manufacturer and the engraving continues in harmony with the rest of the action, here are the two triggers included in the oval of the guard which is one with the lower tail, particularly long and lanceolate as befits a prestigious double with English football.
The barrels are 68 cm long, chamber 70 and bore 16,1 for the first and 16,0 for the second, bottlenecks of 6/10 and 10/10 respectively for a weight of 1,15 kg. As mentioned, the steel used is Krupp, considered at the time one of the best steels for gun barrels, inside they are not chromed while externally they are burnished and in this case the burnishing is also a bit tried. The coupling is the one commonly called triblock, with the crampons grafted between the two barrels on each of which the half-plane supporting the action table has been obtained. Also note the accuracy with which the shirt has been inserted for the strap, with its slender support that avoids contact with the rods.
The thin and elegant shaft has the disassembly button encapsulated in a lanceolate and engraved cap, inside there are the ejector mechanisms and on the head of the cross, also engraved on the outside, there are the holes for the levers armament and the hammers of the ejector.
The wood of the stock is a medium quality walnut, perfectly worked for the housing of the batteries and for the recess of the receiver, it has a fine checkering on the neck for the perfect grip of the right hand, in the lower area we have the silver oval with the owner's initials while the butt pad is in English-style orange rubber. A weapon of other times, with great dexterity, but so beautiful and still terribly modern.