Coach gun... hammer or hammerless?

[SofaGeorge]

For those of you who actually have experienced both...

On coach guns... Do you prefer hammer or hammerless?

I want to add a coach gun shortly. (I searched the planet over and couldn't even come close to a 3 1/2 inch 12 gauge coach gun, so I'm going to have to settle for 3 inch.) (Someone suggested taking down a Browning to a 18 inch barrel... but ruining a Browning is just wrong.)

I am leaning towards a Stoeger, but would love to hear any stories about any coach gun anyone here really respects.

One of the decisions I'm trying to make... hammers or hammerless?

At first hammerless seemed a no brainer to me. Hammers look cool... but they didn't seem to bring any added value other than looks.

But there is an old saying: "If I ASSUME... I make an *** out of U and ME." So rather than not thinking I thought it'd be better to not assume and ask... Is there any value to hammers other than looks? And do those of you who have experienced both prefer one over the other?

[1970msp]

I own both and for me I favor my hammer gun because it feels good being able to de cock the gun by letting my hammers down and knowing it is diffused so to speak.I like my hammerless also but I still have reservations keeping it loaded because you can't decock it.This is just my opinion/feelings on this,everyone is different.

[Doheny]

/\/\ You say you can't decock the hammerless, but can't you just break it open?

[badhabit90]

/\/\ You say you can't decock the hammerless, but can't you just break it open?

i , too, have a hammerless. you can break it open, but it is still cocked. unless you pull the triggers, the hammers stay cocked internally.

i like the smooth look of the hammerless. it is also easier to put into a side saddle or a rifle case sleeve.

and it looks more GANGSTA.....

[BigDogatPlay]

The internal hammers remain cocked and storing the gun broken open with shells on board ready to go becomes something of a conundrum. If it's being considered for defensive use, I would opt for the external hammer version.

I owned a Stoeger coach gun for a while. They are solid. I want another one, but there are several other things ahead of it.

[ZombieTactics]

I own both and for me I favor my hammer gun because it feels good being able to de cock the gun by letting my hammers down and knowing it is diffused so to speak. ...

Yep, this is my feeling as well. Just for grins, here's a video I did showing my coach gun:

[nick]

Hammer.

1. It makes decocking possible.
2. It makes that nice clicking sound when you cock it. Kind of like when you rack the pump shotgun - it spells "stay away from me" with authority.
3. It looks old-school cool

[SofaGeorge]

Thx... I am getting pretty close to grabbing one.

It doesn't seem there are ver many manufacturers that even make them anymore. I can only find 4 brands.

[CDMJ]

Yep, this is my feeling as well. Just for grins, here's a video I did showing my coach gun:

Did you ever figure out the barrel length of your gun?

[ZombieTactics]

Did you ever figure out the barrel length of your gun?

Didn't I annotate that video yet? If not, I sure need to.

UPDATE: Edited video by adding an annotation ... credited CDMJ with keeping me honest.

[CDMJ]

Didn't I annotate that video yet? If not, I sure need to.

UPDATE: Edited video by adding an annotation ... credited CDMJ with keeping me honest.

LOL, thank you sir, but I was really wondering if you have a special version. I know that Remington has a "big 5" version of the 870 and I started to wonder if your double was actually a special run of 18-1/2s instead of the normal factory imported 20 inch model. That is why I asked. I had forgotten about your video until it was brought up until now.