Thanks all I feel a lot better hearing this from you guys.
Jim

The first scratch is the hardest!

I try not to add to them but, I find that I remember events by the dings on my gun. They hold great memories, of favored dogs now gone, golden grain fields waving in the wind, and shots made and missed.
All of them are honest dings, part of the gun now and part of me.

My first scratches occurred on first hunt with the gun, two weeks after NIB purchase. Just a rite of passage.

That ain't a scratch.
 

Here's a "real" scratch on the repro.
This was when Wyatt took that tumble grouse hunting last September.
-plc-

...and here it is today after more Brad Bachelder magic.

Wow! Thad did a number on it. I'm glad it was able to be repaired. Did he take it right back out after the repair? Thanks for sharing. Jim

Wyatt hasn't shot it yet but I did, shot a duck with it, just to be sure it was OK. Enjoy yours.