I can't help but get the feeling there is a divide between people who buy only those pieces that absolutely match the original configuration, and those people who recognize the usefulness of those pieces that no longer match their birth certificate. A lot of it boils down to how we intend to use, or not use the pieces we buy.
There is a more than inconsequential number of guns out there, that have been altered by the guy who wanted a Parker, but the one he found didn't quite fit the bill for the HUNTING he did.
Obviously, the man who wanted a Trap gun didn't go buy a skeet gun an up-choke it, but there were a lot of upland hunters, back when there were a lot of upland birds, who found a rooster gun he liked, which was a tad to long, or tight for the woods.
If you want something that meets the letter in every regard, by all means, seek and you might find. But don't disparage some lovely piece because it isn't up to your standards, because a lot of these red-headed-stepchildren can still bring home the bacon, or King of the forest. Forget the bacon part, unless, of coarse, you're also hunting feral pigs.
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