12 gauge history
The 12 ga has withstood the test of time and has evolved into the greatest shotgun of all time . How is that so you may ask? During the mid to late 1700's the 72 caliber musket was used extensively by the colonist here in America with great effect. The frontiersman could use Buck, ball and shot, or a combination thereof, to take a wide variety of game with this flintlock smoothbore. There were other gauges available too, such as the mighty 4, 8, and 10 ga. But the one that gave him the best possible effects for defense and hunting was the 72 caliber(12 ga) musket. As time went on through the percussion era of the early 1800,s the double SXS percussion guns made their headway. However, the 12 ga still endured because of its inherent ability to hold the variety of shot and buck, in ratio to the powder charge as to make it more effective than the other gauges, namely. 4,8,10. So, we have an evolutionary process brought on by experimentation to bring us to where we are today with the greatest variety of 12 gauge shotguns in the form of single barrel trap guns, beautiful double barrel guns, over unders, semiautos and the slide action guns that are so prevalent with their many choke tubes. It is befitting indeed to give homage to the 12 guage shotgun as "THE KING OF SHOTGUNS". It truly has earned it.