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Trying to decide

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No one can tell you what your best choice would be; only you can decide that. So if it is any help I'll mention what gun I finally chose. That choice was an early American smoothbore with a 38" 20 ga (.62) barrel and a Chambers flint lock. The goal was to use it primarily as a round ball shooter but with the option of loading shot. I'm no longer a hunter so it doesn't see much action these days like it did years ago.
 
I really like my 20 ga fusil. And shoots rb good too.
 

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I've owned an original third model Brown Bess, a custom 12ga. New England Fowler, and four French Fusil de Chasse smooth bores, I've hunted with all of them, shoot them in line shoots and on trail walks, even shot some sporting clays with them.
I still own my two custom Center Mark French Fusil de Chasse smoothbores, I still own them because they are the best all around smooth bore guns that I have ever used, mine are flintlock as are most of my M/L long guns.
I would not recommend a Bess or any other military based pattern for civilian use, Just a side note, Robert Rogers of Roberts Rangers fame turned down the British Brown Bess muskets offered his troops by the Crown in favor of the French Fusils because of their nimble weight, balance, and accuracy, as well as their reliability.
They get my vote every time.
 
After discussions and comparisons with the builder of my smooth fowler (Mike Brooks) I went with a 16 bore. Barrel makers use a 12 gauge blank, and a 20 gauge blank. They do not have a 16 gauge blank. If a 16 is needed they bore out a 20 blank before milling the profile . . . so the result is lighter than the other two barrels. I don't know if that is universally true for all barrel makers, or still true. But at the time it was for several we were considering.

Mine came out at exactly 7 lbs with a 42" swamped barrel and a flame walnut full stock. Shoots paper wrapped 0.650" round balls fine out to 60 yards.
 
Initially , back in 1970 , I hunted with large cal. smooth bores , and shot in competition with them. .75 , .69 , 10 ga. , 12 ga , , all smooth bores , and my favorite for round balls at 50 yds. , is the 20 ga. , or .62 smooth. .62 rifled , likes 90 gr. ffg. for distance , but the recoil is too much these days. Killed a pile of Pa. deer with rifled .62 , but not these days.
 

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