THERE IS ONLY ONE K-80

• The Receiver
• The Barrels
• The Wood

The K-80 receiver is the heart of the K-80 system. A workhorse capable of firing many hundreds of thousands of rounds in its lifetime, it begins as a piece of high quality forged steel being shaped in sophisticated computer controlled CNC machines. It is finished in the best tradition of German craftsmanship, all internal parts filed and hand fit with the consummate touch of one of Krieqhoff's highly skilled gunmakers.

The K-80's unique sliding top latch provides strong lock-up, easy barrel interchangeability, and great durability. Because the top latch secures the barrels to the receiver at the optimal leverage point, it eliminates the need for both underbites and side-lugs. This in turn makes for easier barrel fitting and makes it possible for a single K-80 receiver to be fit with a great variety of barrels - from a .410 skeet over-and-under to a 34" unsingle. And because the top latch slides forward to adjust for barrel wear, it helps maintain the gun's tight fit and solid feel for hundreds of thousands of rounds.

The K-80 is driven internally by coiled main and sear springs that ensure both very fast lock-time and a predictable consistency of feel and performance. All essential internal parts are machined from high quality tool steel to withstand wear and stress during even the heaviest use.

The K-80 has a single selective mechanical trigger with a crisp, positive feel. The trigger shoe is wide and smooth, has a deeply curved profile for maximum control and comfort and can be adjusted back-and-forth for best grip length.

Release trigger systems, which are particularly popular in competitive trap shooting are available from Krieghoff on special order, both in Single Release or Double Release configurations. The model K-80/RT featuring a removable trigger allows for the use of Release Triggers as well.

The barrel selector is located just in front of the trigger and can be made fully functional or locked in place with a turn of a small hex wrench to prevent its being switched unintentionally.

The K-80 is equipped with a large non-automatic sliding safety, which is located in the conventional manner on the top tang just behind the opening lever. The safety has a large button which must be depressed before the safety can be moved. During competition, when the gun is being used under strictly controlled conditions, the K-80's safety can be locked in the 'off' position to assure that no targets will be lost because the safety is inadvertently engaged. The K-80's safety must always be made operative, of course, when the gun is used in the field.

The standard K-80 receiver is hand-engraved in a classic scroll pattern, case hardened, and plated with a durable, satin nickel finish. A variety of intermediate and custom grade engravings is also available, as is the choice of blued, coin, or case-colored finish (see the Engraving Patterns section).

The Barrels

The K-80's barrels are also essential to its performance. It is the barrels that provide the K-80's legendary target breaking ability; that enhance its swing; and that minimize recoil to make it a pleasure to shoot. The design of the barrels is not the simplest, but each element of that design has a very specific purpose. K-80 over-and-under barrels are built without side ribs, which, in combination with the ventilated top rib, allows barrel heat to dissipate quickly and reduce heat wave distortion. Many shooters also notice that the lack of side ribs enhances their swing by reducing weight and decreasing wind resistance. In addition, the absence of the side rib makes it possible to adjust the point of impact of the bottom barrel, which is joined to the top barrel at the muzzle by a unique, numbered front hanger. The front hangers provide different degrees of separation between the top and bottom barrels, so, with the exception of the Tula skeet barrel, which is not adjustable, the shooter is able to fine tune the point-of-impact of the bottom barrel by simply changing the front hanger. There are nine different hangers available for fixed choke over-under barrels and six for choke tubed barrels. K-80 skeet and sporting barrels arrive from the factory shooting flat in the bottom barrels. Bottom trap barrels are set to pattern at 65%/35%. The top barrels are set to shoot to the same point-of-impact as the bottom barrel.

Always a leader in experimenting with internal barrel design, Krieghoff was the first company to deliver barrels from the factory with long forcing cones and larger-than-standard bore diameters. These features play a critical part in the performance of the barrel both by producing more efficient patterns with fewer stray pellets and by reducing felt recoil. Choke is equally critical in shotgunning, of course, and Krieghoff offers both fixed choke and choke tubed barrels for trap, skeet, and sporting clays.

K-80 over-and-under barrels are available in lengths ranging from 28" to 32" with a choice of four ventilated top ribs, one each designed specifically for trap and international skeet and two that are most suitable for skeet and sporting clays. Each rib is designed to provide the best possible sighting plane for its intended use and to help lock your eye on the target. The ribs are described on the following pages.

The Wood

Ludwig Krieghoff, the founder of Sempert & Krieghoff and Dieter Krieghoff's great-grandfather, was the first of the German gunmakers to recognize the importance of stock fit, and in 1900 he actually patented a stock fitting method for European hunting guns. Good stock fit may be even more important in competitive shotgunning, as is the notion that the same shooter may require different stocks for different shotguns sports. Krieghoff now makes a total of seven interchangeable stocks for the K-80, and these stocks can provide the great majority of shooters with a nearly ideal fit for their sport and style. If you require custom dimensions or simply want to have a stock made from a particular piece of wood, Krieghoff International also has excellent stockmakers on staff who can create a custom stock to the dimensions that you provide. All K-80 stocks are made from select European walnut and hand-checkered.

All Trap and Skeet stocks have ambidextrous palm swells. Sporting stocks are available with or optionally also without palm swells. The stocks are filled and finished with a satin epoxy finish that is impervious to moisture and comfortable to shoot in any weather, and for ease of interchangeability and cleaning, all K-80 stocks are quickly removable with a Krieghoff stock wrench that is provided.