Stevens 411 SXS

Like the central character of some Hollywood vampire movie, the good ol' side-by-side shotgun refuses to die. Once the choice of sportsmen both patrician and plebeian, the SxS was made by a host of foreign and domestic manufacturers in grades from utilitarian to divine. Its popularity began to wane with the emergence of pump and semiauto repeaters as well as the trim, elegant over/under.

Knowledgeable shotgunners have been patiently explaining the superiority of repeaters and O/U guns for a century now given their narrower, less obscuring sight line, but many Americans cling to their beloved side-by-sides.

Whether the SxS shotgun is harder to hit with is debatable, but the fact it's an expensive gun to build is not. Lower demand and increasing production costs pretty well pulled the plug on domestic doubles by the late 1980s.

A Familiar Name

A rash of import SxS guns has flowed into the country in recent years--some good, some less than good. Last year, Savage Arras announced it would offer a new Model 411 Upland Sporter under the Stevens name.

The Stevens 411 is a product of the Russian firm Baikal. Stevens' promotional material states the gun is built to their "precise specifications," and indeed it does have a number of very nice features. In fact, it doesn't lake much of a hike along memory lane to recall a time we could only dream of owning a reasonably priced double gun with all these goodies. "Like what?" you ask.

The 411 has quick-change choke tubes, and arrives with three--full, modified and improved cylinder--all steel shot capable. A choke tube wrench is included of course.

A single, selective trigger graces the Stevens 411. Double triggers used to be the norm for working class shotguns, and while they give instant barrel (and thus choke) selection, they're usually considered interior to the single trigger. The 411 offers barrel selection via a small pushbutton mounted in the root of the trigger. Push it left to fire the port barrel first, right to make the starboard tube first up.

Selective Ejection

Perhaps the most unexpected bonus is the selective ejector. This is a great feature, tossing fired shells but only extracting an unfired round. It will keep you from fishing perfectly good cartridges out of the mud, or from trying to capture unfired rounds while opening the action.

Other details? The Stevens 411 is a box lock gun, although it does mount two simulated sideplates. These sideplates are laser etched with upland and waterfowling hunting scenes, and the trigger guard and forend latch carry a few etched scrolls. An automatic safety is fitted.

Barrels are 28-inches in length, with a large translucent amber front bead and a silver-finished mid bead. The forend is semi beavertail in shape and carries two panels of cut checkering as does the pistol grip.

The stock wood appears to be walnut, which is a very pleasant change from the blond hardwood common to most Russian import shotguns. It's well sealed with what is probably a poly resin finished to a soft luster. A hard rubber butt pad is fitted. Length of pull measures 13 3/4 inches.

The test gun is chambered in 12 gauge (with 3-inch chambers), but 20 gauge and .410 bore versions are promised. Weight is 6 3/4 pounds. Test firing showed no surprises. MSRP of the Stevens Upland Sporter is $425.

No, this isn't a return of the much--loved Stevens shotguns of old your granddad may have spoken of. But it's a nicely made shotgun with features those good old guns never offered. If you're a doublegun man looking for a worthy companion at a fair price, you really should take a look at one of these.

For more into: www.savagearms.com