I clutch in my gray mandibles a Pedersoli Howdah. What is it, you ask? Well, take a look: It's a double barrel 20 gauge muzzle-loading pistol shotgun. Looks just like Mad Max's pistol, only it has hammers, and the barrels don't break. It was made in Italy (and well-made, I might add), purchased over the internet, and resides in California. All perfectly legal. It's an ass-kicker of a weapon, perfect for protecting the home or the car while TS is HTF. Keep it on the couch next to you while you watch the tube at night. When those two junkie motherfucks from four houses down kick your front door in, you just grab'n'shoot - aiming is not required. Barrel number one blows yon punk off his feet and sets him down near the bay window with a belly full of BBs. Barrel number two hits the second idiot in the chest, and the ball-and-pellet combo kills him inside of two seconds. He's dead before he hits the ground. And the Howdah can keep you company at night, too. Just be sure not to blow your own feet off when you fire it at the zombie sillouhette in the doorframe. And when society begins to crumble, the Howdah will make an excellent addition to your car. Gangbangers coming at you on foot from across the interestion? Roll down your window and say: BOOM BOOM. Then hit the gas and get away.
The beauty of the Howdah is that it defies easy definition. It is a Mad Max punk gun, a pirate pistol, and a work of art to behold and use. Loading it is a ritual. The accouterments - the powder flask, powder measure, patches and other required gear -- have a dated flair. It's a hippie gun because it's an artist's gun. Pedersoli offers three varieties for the consummate Defender: dual 20 gauge barrels, dual .50 caliber barrels, and a 20x50 combo. Howdah pistols were originally used by the British in nineteenth century India, to repel attacking tigers from the tops of elephants. Mine is a reproduction of a mid-1800's model. Gone missing for the last 150 years, the Howdah pistol appears to be back in style. Get one while you can.
The beauty of the Howdah is that it defies easy definition. It is a Mad Max punk gun, a pirate pistol, and a work of art to behold and use. Loading it is a ritual. The accouterments - the powder flask, powder measure, patches and other required gear -- have a dated flair. It's a hippie gun because it's an artist's gun. Pedersoli offers three varieties for the consummate Defender: dual 20 gauge barrels, dual .50 caliber barrels, and a 20x50 combo. Howdah pistols were originally used by the British in nineteenth century India, to repel attacking tigers from the tops of elephants. Mine is a reproduction of a mid-1800's model. Gone missing for the last 150 years, the Howdah pistol appears to be back in style. Get one while you can.
I really want one but it is pricey. Not as pricey as the longer double barreled percussion front-stuffers but still. I think it would go well with my 8" SS 1858 Remington target pistol, 12" SS 1858 Remington Buffalo pistol, and shoulder-stock (fits both). That way my pistol, pistol/carbine, and shotgun can all take the same ammmo. The nice thing about smooth-bore is that you can load it up with whatever scrap lead you find or even a patched rock in a pinch. The old timers would use the screens from making the black powder to make gooseneck shot. Just pour melted wheelwheights or scrap lead through the different screens over a bucket of water and you can get a variety of sizes of teardrop-shaped shot.
ReplyDeleteOne more thing, if you cast wheelweights for a single projectile, patch it so it will not get stuck in the barrel as wheelweights are harder than pure lead.
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