I just turned 49. I have always carried an appreciation for SxS vintage guns and I enjoy shooting them for hunting and sporting. I have a modern shotgun (Beretta autoloader) but I have not shot it for about 6 years, although I probably shoot it better than some of my older shoguns. I also have a Browning O/U used for sporting clays and that too has collected a lot of dust in the last few years. There is something about the old time craftsmanship and the artists who created those beautiful examples of functional work of art that is seldom duplicated nowadays, (or it is beyond my affordability when created today). I would not be able to afford any of my turn-of-the century guns if they were to be produced today the same way as then, handmade, with lots of labor intensive hours by expert workers at today's market prices. Heck, I would not be able to afford the piece of walnut wood or the engraving work on it.
For me, the vintage gun represent an example of amazing work of art, aesthetics, and quality that I can both admire and use at the same time. Those old guns have soul!!! Alas, a lot of shooting folks I know do not share the same admiration and views as I do. BillK
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