English Best compared to a Parker

[Dean Romig]

I’ve got to agree with you William. In my opinion that particular gun is the epitome, the Apex, of collectible Parker guns. Is there one Parker with a richer provenance? I don’t believe so.
I would rather have that gun than the 16 gauge Invincible.

And to keep on track with this thread, I would rather own the duBray AA Pigeon gun than ANY European Best in existence.





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[Cold Spring]

And there was this gent I shot with on occasion years ago who was so proud of his London Best vintage hammer double. He struggled with the extra long LOP on quicker presentations but wouldn't think of cutting the butt to something more useful. Then one day while shooting he broke a hammer and it was a sight to see the squad on all fours searching for the piece in the fall leaves. His gun was out of commission for almost two years while sent for repairs, and he told me later the firm also charged him a ransom for something vague like "cleaning and adjustments". He shot the Best once in a while after that and last I knew it was mostly a white glove/safe queen and now I see him shooting with higher grade American doubles.

Yep, just one data point, and just sayin …...

[Setter Man]

Originally Posted by Kirk Potter

Is their such a thing as a “value” best? I realize value here is subjective obviously, but are their deals to be had? Outside of the big names?

This is where it gets challenging. There were dozens of manufacturers in GB at the turn of the last century and it wasn't just the big names that were producing fine shotguns and sorting through them is challenging. The class of sport who could afford to have a pair of guns build by Boss, Woodward, Holland, and Purdey might not want to spend that kind of money for a guest or family member so they often went to smaller houses for those guns which were nearly equal in quality but lacked the name. Trick is to find out who all of the manufacturers are and where they fit in the pecking order. There are several makes of guns that you could lay in a table next to a "Best" gun and not be able to tell the difference in fit or finish, the difference is in the details: chopper lump vs dovetail barrels, who made the locks, how is fine is woodwork between the locks. Most of those details don't really matter in terms of functionality.

The single most important determination of value is condition and that's where you are going to have to be able to call on an expert for assurances. Re-paring a buggered up or worn out English gun can easily cost more than the gun is worth. Proceed with caution.

JDG

[Kensal Rise]

Originally Posted by William Davis

If I owned DuBray’s 3 barrel set, Parker Hammer Pigeon Gun that’s going up for Auction at Morphy’s , would NOT trade it for a matched pair of English “best” Bentley Coupe and a tall blonde English girl to drive me from Grouse shoot to Grouse shoot.

William

On the other hand, a matched pair of Boss guns, a Bentley coupe, a tall British blonde, and a round of Highland shoots sound quite rewarding to me.

I'd make the sacrifice.

[Mills]

I had wondered why someone would pay $100,000 - $200,000 for a custom Purdey, particularly when some used ones are available at auction for much less. Then I saw a matched pair that a friend of mine bought for himself when he sold out his Wendy's franchises. Question was answered. Truly beautiful guns.

[C.O.B.]

My three English hammer guns are a Stephan Grant 12, J Venebles & Son 16 and a Boss 20. The Boss is a thumb break which broke and my local smith was able to micro weld it back up. The Venebles had a trigger break while shooting sporting clays. Fortunately the piece was easily recovered and the trigger repaired. None of these repairs was time consuming or costly. I've lost a hammer screw on my grade 3 Parker so any gun can break or be put out of commission for a period of time.

[Bill Murphy]

It's all in the individual gun. There are great buys in both categories. Watch your step and keep your eyes on the ball. Really good buys are few and far apart.

[Tom Flanigan]

There is no comparison between a London Best and any American gun. I have owned both and the feel of a London best was never achieved by a American gun. My only complaint is with a 28 bore H&H I own. The single trigger failed a couple of time and required fixing. I don't like single triggers and the person who originally ordered this gun was probably an American. It also had a beavertail forearm which, in my opinion, doesn't belong on any game gun, especially a 28 bore. I converted the beavertail to a splinter forend before I took the first shot with the gun.

[Ken Hill]

Tom,

I’m a sucker for a side lever gun. I’ve seen a H&H royal with a side lever and was really interested until I saw the single trigger. English guns need 2 triggers. Heck, I think Parkers need 2 triggers.

Ken

[C.O.B.]

I have two Purdey's and a H&H all with single trigger I have a smith on the lookout for a set of double triggers