The Ultra-Rare Perazzi Sidelock Side by Side
Before the Perazzi MX8 made its public debut at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics, Daniele Perazzi had built a little-known sidelock side-by-side pigeon gun that established the “pre-MX” era for the premier Italian sporting gun maker, and established the standards of quality and artistry that would later become the ultra-premium SCO grade.
Today, these pre-MX sidelock side by sides from the 1960s are highly sought after by collectors. They were produced during a five-year collaboration between the legendary Ivo Fabbri and Daniele Perazzi before Fabbri left Perazzi’s company to start his own groundbreaking sporting gun firm in 1965 that concentrated on pigeon guns of “luxury functional art.”
Perazzi called the side-by-side sidelock DHO – the name reflecting the influence of British best guns and a premium Italian gun that would ultimately become Perazzi’s SCO grade of high-end, luxury competition shotguns. In Italian, the DH referred to a the classic Holland & Holland style sidelock. The O was typically interpreted as “Oro” (gold) or “Overgrade,”indicating a higher grade or more elaborate finish. The DHO was available in three grades: Extra, Gold and Gold Extra. Time would prove that the DHO is one of the most rare and prestigious shotguns ever made by Perazzi.
The DHO project served as a proof-of-concept for Perazzi’s ability to marry British-style sidelock side-by-sides with his own passion for competition guns.
Perazzi mounted the DHO lockwork on the sideplates. The exact internal arrangement varied slightly because its sidelocks were often hand-fitted on bespoke guns. For a pigeon gun, the 12-gauge, single-trigger side by side typically weighing slightly over seven pounds, offered high-performance trigger pulls and proportions essential for split-second target acquisition and execution that defines pigeon shooting.
During the 1950s and 1960s pigeon shoots in Italy often took place at elegant private clubs. It was a high-society sport that generated significant betting pools. Think of high-stakes resort casinos to get an idea of the market viability for a gun like the DHO where shots had to be near-instantaneous to have the money birds fall inside the boundary ring. People would pay top dollar for a gun that wins big bets.
While working under the same roof, Fabbri and Perazzi pursued dual but complementary goals. They set their sights on modernizing shotgun production mostly for Perazzi’s boxlock competition over/unders that led to the introduction of the MX8. Fabbri, meanwhile, had left Fiat as an automotive engineer interested in advanced metallurgy, and focused on making Perazzis (although a handful of over/under went by “Perazzi & Fabbri”).
From 1960 to 1965, their collaboration resulted in an estimated 339 guns with serial numbers 5001 through 5339. During that period, Perazzi worked on his meticulous bench-made DHO, which surely must have benefitted from some of Fabbri’s contributions that led to the MX8. Ultimately, the DHO represented the foundation of Perazzi’s focus on bespoke competition-grade quality and reliability that became the hallmarks of the company’s success.
Irwin Greenstein is the Publisher of Shotgun Life. You can reach him on the Shotgun Life Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/shotgunlife#
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Irwin Greenstein is Publisher of Shotgun Life. Please send your comments to letters@shotgunlife.com.
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