Perazzi

Perazzi is a manufacturer of precision shotguns from Brescia, Italy. The company sells hunting and sporting models of shotguns noted for their removable trigger groups, high quality, and high prices (US$7,500–440,000). Its founder is Daniele Perazzi, and his family owns and operates it. Vice President Dick Cheney was using a 28-gauge Perazzi shotgun when he accidentally shot Harry Whittington in 2006.

Perazzi shotguns feature relatively high prices, one reason is that the buyer undergoes "The Perazzi Experience," when purchasing a shotgun from the factory near Brescia, Italy. A "test gun" is used to determine the correct fit and measurements for the shotgun to be made for the customer. Custom options include the gauge of the shotgun, the blank and grade of wood for the stock and forearm, barrel length and diameter, rib height and width, the trigger group, and receiver engraving. In the Perazzi factory there is a public viewing area of shotgun production. Customers also have the option of visiting a nearby Perazzi family restaurant for homemade pasta and wine while their shotgun is being made.

Daniele Perazzi was six years old when he was introduced to firearms by his uncle. Later when he was fourteen, he was hired by a local gunsmith. Before becoming an apprentice to the gunsmith, he often ran errands around town on a bicycle. Perazzi began working on his own at the age of twenty. He found his first commercial success after inventing and patenting a trigger design which he sold to other gun manufacturers. At the age of twenty five in 1957, Perazzi officially established Perazzi Armi.

In 1960, Perazzi met Ivo Fabbri, a young automotive engineer who worked for Fiat. The two joined together to create high class, yet affordable shotguns. They were inspired by the British gun makers Boss & Co. and Woodward, who made firearms by hand with extravagant prices. Perazzi and Ivo believed there was a way to create such high class firearms that would be affordable for the average Italian. The pair then began to work with Italian shooting star and gun designer, Ennio Mattarelli. From this partnership the first Olympic grade Perazzi shotgun was born, which Mattarelli used to win the gold medal in Olympic trap at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics with a world record score of 198/200 targets. A year later Fabbri separated from Perazzi to establish his own firearm company, Fabbri Arms. Perazzi continued to work with Mattarelli. The two focused on developing a new shotgun for Mattarelli to shoot at the 1968 Mexico City Olympics. The model MX8 shotgun was born, built specifically for the conditions of shooting in Mexico City. The gun featured a higher rib and respective higher stock to reduce heat distortion along the sight plane in the hot climate. Doing so lowered to the placement of the stock on the shoulder, resulting in the recoil being directed horizontally back into the shooter, rather than vertical muzzle jump. A pistol grip was included to increase the control over traditional straight English stocks. The MX8 was also one of the first guns to have interchangeable screw in chokes in the bottom barrel. This feature is now found in nearly every modern shotgun. Also included was the revolutionary detachable v-springs trigger assembly. Perazzi preferred v-springs over the traditional coil trigger assembly due to their better trigger pulls. The draw back of v-springs was their unreliability. When worn out they can break without warning, unlike the coil trigger assemblies they slowly wear down with age. Since the v-spring assembly was detachable, they could be changed at any time by the competitor for peace of mind. This innovation along with slanted hammers reduced misfires significantly.