Shooting Gazette – September 2019

78 SEPTEMBER 2019 WWW.SHOOTINGGAZETTE.CO.UK

THE REVIEW

A fantastichigh-grade

gunthatwillserve

youwell,saysWest

LondonShooting

School’sMarkHeath.

Gun test

T

hismonth’sreviewlooks

attheratherstunning

BrowningHeritage

Hunterin20-bore– a calibre

thatseemstobegettingmore

popularthanever.

Thereareclientsatthe

shootingschoolwhowillonly

shoota 20-boreonalltheir

gamedays,andotherclients

thatswitchbetween12-bore

and20-bore.Thenthereare

thosemovingtoa lighter

gun,as12-boresbecomea

littleheavyinlateryears,or

youngstersbeingboughttheir

firstgun,oftena 20-bore.

Partofthepopularityisthe

widevarietyofammunition

available,with21gramand

24gramlighterloadsforthose

lookingforminimalrecoilupto

some3inMagnumcartridges

with 35 gramsofleadif you’ve

gota goodchiropractoror

osteopath.Thereisgreatchoice

ingameandclaycartridges

• the24gramNo.7^1 ∕ 2 orNo.8
  shotisa phenomenalclayload.
  Thegunusesthe 525 action
  withtheadditionofsome
  stunningsideplates,ours
  withwoodcockononeside
  andpartridgeontheother,
  andscrollengravingonthe
  undersideoftheaction,which
  iscomplementedbysomevery
  high-gradewalnut.

Browning Heritage Hunter

The main difference between

the 525 and the 725 is that the

former has an inertia trigger

and the 725 a mechanical set-

up. Browning has continued to

make the 525 even though the

more recent 725 has been in

production for some years now.

In its basic form it represents

incredible value for money and

is a superb gun to shoot.

First-class fi nish

The overall fi nish is fi rst class,

with wood-to-metal fi t to

the usual high standard, well

executed chequering and oil

fi nish, together with a set of

multi-choke barrels.

The stock measurements are

a great starting point for an off

the shelf gun with a 15in length

of pull with an additional^1 ∕ 8 in

at the heel and^3 ∕ 8 in at the toe,

the drop measurements are

pretty standard at 1^3 ∕ 8 in at the

comb 2^1 ∕ 8 in at the heel and

just about^1 ∕ 16 cast off at heel.

The plastic butt plate on these

guns is not one of my favourites

and it would have to go when I

had my measurements put on

the gun and be replaced with a

Kick-EEZ or similar pad.

I would also take an^1 ∕ 8 in off

the toe measurement which

would increase the comfort

during shooting. A customer

The sideplates on the
20-bore feature different
scenes on either side.
THE MAIN IMAGE SHOWS THE 12-BORE VERSION WITH A PRINCE OF WALES GRIP; THE INSET PICTURES SHOW THE 20-BORE VERSION.