engravers were not hunters

OH Osthaus · 10-01-2016, 10:46 AM

how else can you explain the incongruous combinations of game and guns

just picked up a project Elsie -- well done birds, a grouse on one side, a brace of woodcock on the other

I like the birds- BUT they are on a 32 inch barreled 8 1/2 pound 12 gauge

Not my idea of a gun to drag up an Appalachian hillside nor through an alder swamp

I have a nearly 10 pound 10 gauge grade 2 Parker hammer gun with a woodcock on the floor plate, THATS not going to happen

i know we have seen several nice Parkers with stags on them

My guess is they had patterns and unless there were comments on the order - the engraver picked what suited his whimsy for the day

how about your odd couples?

Researcher · 10-01-2016, 11:49 AM

The pattern was the pattern, as in my example of Ithaca NID No. 3s. You got the same birds whether it was a Magnum-Ten --

or a 28-gauge --

The same usually with the No. 2, here a 28-gauge and a Super-Ten --

I guess if you knew somebody or made a special request you could get something else. Here from the upcoming Julia Auction is a very late Magnum-Ten No. 2 that has the duck normally seen on No. 4s on its left side --

Baker Gun Co. had a different take on their engraving. The actual text from a 1900 issue of The Baker Gunner -- "We do not guarantee that every "B"( or "A") grade gun will be engraved from just the same design, but endeavor to have about the same amount of engraving on each. On receiving an order from a customer we try to select first, one which will fill the specifications as to gauge, weight, length of barrels, drop and length of stock, and then conform to customer's ideas as to engraving , as nearly as possible from guns we may have in stock, but always consider engraving of secondary importance. You may receive a "B" (or "A") with a different design of border, or a duck or a dog in place of the two quail or a dog pointing game, we cannot tell as it is our aim to give a variety of designs."

OH Osthaus · 10-01-2016, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave Noreen

The pattern was the pattern,

Baker Gun Co. had a different take on their engraving. The actual text from a 1900 issue of The Baker Gunner -- "We do not guarantee that every "B"( or "A") grade gun will be engraved from just the same design, but endeavor to have about the same amount of engraving on each. On receiving an order from a customer we try to select first, one which will fill the specifications as to gauge, weight, length of barrels, drop and length of stock, and then conform to customer's ideas as to engraving , as nearly as possible from guns we may have in stock, but always consider engraving of secondary importance. You may receive a "B" (or "A") with a different design of border, or a duck or a dog in place of the two quail or a dog pointing game, we cannot tell as it is our aim to give a variety of designs."

thanks

so Ithaca held to a standard pattern per grade-

Baker's process seems to make sense - but could still end up with a mismatch to the gun's gauge and specs

Fox I think was pretty standard per grade

it seems Parker and Smith (on early guns) varied the actual engraving a lot more- although following the "same amount" concept