Side-by-side shotguns have largely fallen out of favour for both hunting and competition use, which is a shame because they really are classy and effective firearms for field and range.
Up until the 1950s or so, double-barrel shotguns were the most common shotgun configuration for sporting use outside the US, and England in particular was a prominent manufacturer of high-quality “sporting double” shotguns, with the firm of WW Greener among them.
Established in 1829 by William Greener, the gunmaking firm of WW Greener was well known in the late 19th and early 20th centuries for its affordable sporting shotguns — not only side-by-side models, but the Martini-actioned Greener GP shotgun as well.
One in particular, the Empire model, remains popular in Australia more than 110 years after it was introduced.
The WW Greener Empire shotgun is a 12ga double-barrelled boxlock-action side-by-side shotgun, introduced in 1910 and intended to be a quality compromise between the expensive, hand-made traditional designs and affordable, machine-made guns.
The idea was the gun would have an incredibly simple, rugged action with as few parts as possible, and that those parts could be easily replaced, repaired or made by a gunsmith anywhere in the British Empire, be it in rural India, a trading post in Africa or a small town in the Australian bush.
The result was hugely successful and many of the 17,268 guns produced by the time production ended in 1965 are still taking game and breaking clays today.
There is surprisingly little information available on the Empire shotguns. They were intended as rugged workhorses that could be relied up and easily repaired anywhere in the Empire (or Commonwealth, as it later was). As a result, they turn up all over the world, usually in very good condition, since their owners tended to look after them.
The guns were made in a number of grades depending what sort of finish or engraving etc the buyer wanted.
The most commonly encountered version is the E17, which was produced after WWI. The E stood for Empire and the 17 for its price of 17 Guineas (which in 1938 was about the equivalent of $2800 today).
Empire shotguns can be found with both 2.75” and 3” chambers. They came with or without ejectors, but extractor-only is the more common configuration. Barrels are generally 30” long but slightly shorter and longer examples have been encountered, too.
Visually, they look like most other SxS shotguns at first glance, with the major point of difference being the stock’s “Prince Of Wales” grip — a sort of half-pistol grip.
Contemporary advertisements for the Empire shotguns stress their “All British” nature (in other words, not being made in Belgium or Spain and having a British retailer’s details put on them) and one from 1939 further note the guns “compete in price with the mass-production gun without possessing the abnormalities of that article”.
Shooting the WW Greener Empire
In most respects the Empire is a standard side-by-side 12ga shotgun, and it operates exactly the same way.
One major point of difference is the side-mounted safety catch, which does not automatically engage when the gun is cocked. It is also, as mentioned, mounted on the side of the action rather than the tang, which may cause some confusion for shooters used to the more common safety design.
The gun’s break-action works the same as any other from a user perspective, but it is extremely strong due to its unusual crossbolt locking pin, which comes out to the left-hand side of the action when it is opened, and fits through a lug between the chambers when the action is locked to help ensure it stays closed.
While the guns are proofed for 1.25oz shot loads, they are not rated for steel shot, so if you are planning to take one duck hunting, you will need to keep that in mind when selecting ammunition.
The trigger pulls measure around 3kg on each trigger.
Empire shotguns come with a variety of choke configurations — the example pictured with this story has ¾ chokes on both barrels. The guns were made in so many configurations the only way to be certain what you have is by using a bore gauge, especially if you are thinking of firing solid slugs.
Empire shotguns are not light, weighing around 3.5kg (7lb 12oz), so might not be the best choice for fieldwork which will involve carrying the gun around all day — especially since they don’t have a sling mount either.
This weight does, however, help absorb some of the recoil, especially from heavier loads intended for high birds.
The guns, being WW Greener products, are extremely well made and accurate, shoulder and point well, and have a distinct vintage English charm to them that makes them not only effective to use but visually appealing.
There are quite a few of the Empire shotguns around in Australia, and while they might not have the cachet of makers like Holland & Holland or Rigby, for people who know their vintage double shotguns a WW Greener Empire is an excellent addition to the gun cabinet — and one that will almost certainly add a touch of class to your next hunting trip or sporting clays event.
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