Lust and Henry Atkin guns

Henry Atkin learned to make guns while apprenticed to his father - the first gun maker employed by Purdey when they began their business in the early 19th century. After his apprenticeship he worked in the London gun trade (likely as an outworker) and began making guns under his own name in the late 19th century at the height of widespread participation in British shooting sports. His guns were based on the same design as the Purdey guns - the excellent sidelock design first developed by Fredrick Beesley. The quality of Atkin's guns earned him a loyal following and membership in the top tier of London gunmakers.

Henry died in 1907, but his firm continued making top quality guns and, in 1909, they began building guns incorporating modifications to the cocking system and ejectors, refinements on the 'Purdey" design. Over the years of the twentieth century the firm Henry Atkin Ltd. persisted through times fat and lean and kept their enviable reputation intact until 1960 when they merged with Grant and Lang, forming Atkin, Grant, and Lang, which survives to this day and is still making the improved '1909 Model' sidelock best gun.

 The Aktin (top) and Purdey compared.

In 1947 the doyen of British gun writers, Gough Thomas, ordered a 12 gauge Atkin and insisted that the gun be built "...to the highest prewar standards." He was very well satisfied in the gun delivered to him and shot it the rest of his life, often praising the gun in his writings.

Fast forward to me. I have been well aware of Atkin's guns for some time and was finally overwhelmed by my lust for another gun -- an lightweight, 12 gauge, spring opening, sidelock ejector Atkin gun.

This gun was made as the first gun of a consecutive pair in 1930. It has it's original 27" barrels and remains in proof after nearly 90 years of use. Weight is 6lbs., 3 oz. It is being exported from the UK and imported to the USA - a nearly incomprehensible process that reminds me of the famous 'chicken sandwich' scene from "Five Easy Pieces" with Jack Nicholson ordering a variation from the menu. I'll post up here when I do see the gun arrive.

A special new gun

After several years of looking, I have found & purchased a 16ga Lindner Daly.  Many, many thanks to Mike & Ken for their help in the search.  I think that the action shaping complements the drop point panels very nicely.

And the wood is quite pretty, though would benefit from just a bit of freshening.

The barrels are a very nice Damascus but need to be re-browned (re-blacked actually) and do not photograph well at this point.

The gun came with a couple of interesting extras.  The leg-of-mutton case needs restoration but seems to be high-end pebbled leather.  Any recommendations for someone to do the work?

And tucked into the pocket of the case was an undisclosed extra:  a very unusual brass cleaning rod.  The handle unscrews into three pieces, revealing a screwdriver and a very small oil dispenser.  Quite a pretty little piece.

I'm quite pleased and have already killed a few birds with the gun.  I expect it will be a favorite for decades.

Walkin' around camera

After I drowned my Cannon digital in the Wenaha RIver, I started to consider the virtues of a 'waterproof' digital pocket camera. After a very brief review of the options available, I bought an Olympus Stylus Tough-8010. The picture quality is not likely to be quite what the Canon offered, but the small size and ruggedness will be much appreciated on my walks.
This was shot yesterday - the Fox C grade with two valley quail taken on BLM ground on the Eastern side of the Sacramento River. 

Times have changed

I doubt that you could find a gun powder company operating in downtown San Francisco today.  This ad from the Western Field - August 1903 issue. There is also a fine article about hunting quail in Alameda County by H. L Betten of Alameda, California in this issue. Courtesy of Google Books, who undoubtedly scanned it without permission of the publisher. 

Marksmanship for the bird hunter

Let me start by saying that I am not a great fan of Orvis. Having read most of what is available on the subject of shotguns and shooting I have found some texts that are very helpful in the practical application of technique for the upland bird hunter, and many, many that did not, or could not, distinguish between target shooting (trap, skeet, sporting clays) and the needs of the upland bird hunter. The Orvis Wing-Shooting Handbook does.

Looking for something to read last night I picked Bowlen's book from the shelf and re-read mytattered copy. Bruce Bowlen has a structured, simple approach that most bird hunters will find useful - especially those that, like me, like to carry a lightweight doublegun. 

In the early 90s I abandoned International Skeet and clays. I sold my heavy O/U target guns. I wanted to learn to shoot a light game gun well, and could not make adequate progress using the techniques that worked (mostly) for me when shooting targets in competition. I struggled to figure out how to effectively shoot a sub six pound SxS gun. Since a friend and fellow shooter, Jon Ogilvie, offered high level instruction, I also turned to him for help. After a period of years (I must be a slow learner) I evolved a personal style (a jumble of Move-Mount-Shoot and instinctive techniques) that allows me to shoot lightweight double guns reasonably well in most any field situation. I still have my off days, but I now have confidence that any bird in range is at risk.

If I had read Bowlen's book when I started in shooting truly lightweight guns at game birds in the early 80s, I would have suffered much less pain, sweat, cartridges, and embarrassment. Bruce writes clearly and lays out a clear, step-by-step method uncluttered by anecdote or self aggrandizement. This is a welcome relief from the run of the mill 'outdoor writer' for which I am very grateful. I recommend this book for any upland gunner, even one who has already figured most of it out. 

I also recommend a text by a pair of Brits, Shotgun Marksmanship by Percy Stanbury and G.L. Carlisle. This requires wading through the 'whilsts' and 'one musts' to get to the meat, but it is good. 

Looking at a new addition

This lovely 16 gauge A.H. Fox C grade extractor gun has come to me as a possible trade for another of my SxS guns. It is the fourth 16 gauge gun that Fox Gun Co. built when they began production of small gauge Fox guns in 1912. This gun weighs 5 lbs. 12 oz. with 28 inch barrels and is lively. It is even 'left handed". It has a few flaws - a patent Infallible Single Trigger being the main deviation from the factory standard guns. I hope to make a deal in the next few days.

Chukar and Fox

I don't like 'tailgate photos' of a row of dead birds and grinning hunters.  Seems like a missed opportunity to record a bagged bird some better way. I shot this photo about a dozen years ago, and like the composition with the frost colored leaves. Nikon F2AS - Fujichrome Velvia

Blue grouse

After hunting blue grouse as an 'incidental' bird for some years, I am finding them to be challenging quarry in their usual habitat, 

Blue grouse often roost in large trees on the edge of a canyon or swale that allows a launch downhill into escape cover. In northeast Oregon a spot I often visit has a number of large fir trees along the edge of a very steep canyon - growing in a row about 150 yards long. One day years ago I walked the edge of this row of trees and flushed five blue grouse that launched from the trees, dropping like rocks into the bottom of the canyon, and missed all five birds. I swore to learn to learn to connect on these shots and did improve after some specific practice. This translated into better, but not stellar, bags of birds.

Here is a bird that I bagged while Pete and I were hunting last season near the Snake River. The bird flushed from a copse of trees, I shot and thought I had missed shooting through the screen of evergreen branches, But 45 minutes later, and more then 300 yards down the draw he 'escaped' into, Jesse found and pointed him - laying below a tree with his feet in the air. Lesson learned - follow up the birds that I 'miss'.

The gun is a Joseph Harkom 16 gauge boxlock that I sometimes carry when an ultra-light gun seems to be called for.

Tune up for the old Fox...

Last Fall I was hunting in Montana with Pete. Approaching one of Ted's points, and with my eye on Ted instead of the ground at my feet, I stepped in a badger hole and down I went. No, I wasn't running. In any case the barrel of my old Fox 16 struck a chunk of granite, probably the only rock in ten square yards. Result was a small dent in the barrel. I have used this old gun hard for fifteen years, carried it for many miles, and put probably 100,000 rounds through it hunting and in practice rounds.

In anticipation of the upcoming season I dropped the gun off with my gunsmith, Pete Mazur, for dent removal and a re-blue of the barrels. I picked it up today. Pete, being as observant and picky as any top gunsmith should be, found a few other things that also needed attention - so he went to work. He removed the dent, and polished and re-blued the barrels. Then he polished and re-blued the trigger bow, polished and nitre-blued the triggers and safety button, replaced the top lever trip, carefully repaired a small dent in the solid rib, found and repaired a tiny crack in the forend wood, and lastly applied a couple coats of finish on the stock and re-cut a couple dings in the checkering. About 20 hours of skilled work. It looks great, and will get get after the white-wings near Mexicali next week.

It is very hard to find a gunsmith capable of this level of quality work, and when you do, take good care of the relationship. Thank you. Pete!

A nice old gun is made new

Note: Though I posted a bit on this gun earlier this year, I thought to fill in a little more background...

Though I am certainly not a collector of shotguns, I have been interested in some makers' work and am agnostic to country of origin, owning American, English, Scottish, Spanish, German and Italian arms over the years. 

In particular, I have been interested in an American firm - Schoverling, Daly and Gales of New York - importers and sellers of the famous Charles Daly guns early in the last century. Of these guns the most well respected are the guns made for SD&G by H. Lindner of Suhl.  When Clair Kofoed called me and said that a friend had a 'hard used' 20 gauge, 28" Damascus barreled Lindner Daly I was interested, and when I met Clair in Southern Oregon for a chukar hunt, I saw and bought the gun. It was tired, the wood scarred and worn and below the metal in places - not saveable. But the barrels were superb bright inside, poorly blued (Ack!) on the outside, but in excellent condition, the proper thickness for safe shooting. and stamped with H. A. Lindner's easily recognized maker's mark... the initials HAL over crossed pistols on the barrels near the flats.

On my annual trip to the American Custom Gunmaker's and Firearms Engraver's Guild of America exhibit in Reno, I brought the gun along to consult with people who are experts in the resurrection of fine guns. Long story made shorter, I left the gun with Dennis Potter for assessment and repair, bought a decent stick of Turkish walnut from Steve Heilmann, and arranged with Sam Welch, Pete Mazur and Gary Goudy to recut the engraving, refinish the metal, and restock the gun, respectively. Below is the excellent result. Click on photos for an enlarged view

This little gun (about 5-1/2 lbs.) is fun to carry and shoot, and has accounted for a number of doves and quail. It is 'right' for me. I thank Dennis, Sam, Pete, and Gary for their usual excellent work in resurrecting a fine old gun for another 100 plus years of service. 

Historic Supreme Court Ruling...

For decades, the meaning of the Second Amendment has been at the heart of a political and legal debate over gun control. People have argued whether it guarantees the right to bear arms to individuals or to citizens in a militia.

Written more than 200 years ago, the amendment says - A well regulated militia, being necessary to the security of a free state, the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed. 

Seems simple enough, but the Supreme Court has never really ruled on whether it applied to the rights of the individual, rather than a 'collective' right of those serving in a 'militia'. Today, in Washington DC, the Supreme Court rendered, for the first time, a clear decision on the rights affirmed by the Second Amendment.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Individual Americans have a right to own guns, the Supreme Court ruled on Thursday for the first time in history, striking down a strict gun control law in the U.S. capital.
The landmark 5-4 ruling marked the first time in nearly 70 years the high court has addressed the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. It rejected the argument the right to keep and bear arms was tied to service in a state militia.
Justice Antonin Scalia said for the majority the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a firearm unconnected with militia service and to use it for traditional lawful purposes, such as self-defense in the home. However, he said the new right was not unlimited.
The court struck down two parts of the country's strictest gun control law adopted in Washington, D.C., 32 years ago -- the ban on private handgun possession and the requirement that firearms kept at home be unloaded and disassembled or bound by a trigger lock.
The ruling marked the first time the court has struck down a gun control law for violating the Second Amendment.
The ruling won praise from the White House, Republican presidential candidate John McCain and Wayne LaPierre of the politically powerful National Rifle Association, who said, "This is a great moment in American history."

Here is one American who is thankful for a government that, while often prone to swing away from basic individual rights, can also correct itself.

A fine Scottish gun

For some time I have been interested in the work of Scottish gun makers, Dickson and MacNaughton particularly. Both Dickson and MacNaughton were pioneers in developing a sophisticated action type - the 'round action' - also called the trigger plate action. John Dickson first began manufacture of these advanced arms in the 1880s, when Purdey's was still making hammer guns.

The Dickson round action guns have a very innovative design that attaches the lock parts and springs to the trigger plate, and uses arched springs as opposed to the 'V' springs traditionally favored by sidelock builders. The arched springs are less prone to breaking, but still offer fine, crisp trigger pulls. SInce all the action mechanisms are mounted to a single, unifying component, they are far less likely to get out of adjustment. Another innovation is the placement of the ejector hammers in the action bar, instead of the forend.  This also aids reliability, makes the action bar short and quite strong, and centralizes the weight of the gun well between the hands.

The Dickson gun shown above was made in Edinburgh and delivered to the new owner the day before grouse shooting season, in the year 1893. Originally built with 30" Damascus barrels, the gun was rebarreled by the makers in 1959 and fitted with a fine set of 27" compressed steel chopper lump barrels, bored 1/4 and 1/2 choke. It weighs 6 lbs., 3 ounces and is a lively gun to shoot.  The lovely French walnut is original to the gun, and wood like this is very hard to find now.

Lindner made Charles Daly 20 Gauge

This is an old Charles Daly 20 gauge gun - Grade 165 - that was manufactured by H. Lindner. My friend Clair Kofoed located this gun and arranged for me to buy it. It was in rough shape but the barrels were sound. I 'adopted' it and turned it over to Dennis Potter, Pete Mazur, Sam Welch, and Gary Goudy, who (in order) repaired, refinished, picked up the engraving, and restocked it for me.  I thank them for their usual superb work.

The gun weighs about 5-1/2 lbs and has 28-1/8" inch Damascus barrels with 2-3/4" chambers. Made for the American market and marqued 'Charles Daly' by the premier retailer of sporting goods of that era - Shoverling, Daly and Gales. I believe that it was made between 1897 and 1900 and it is still doing useful work on quail and doves. 

Click on the photo for an enlarged view.

Nice old guns and hard lessons

I have occasionally acquired what I think are nice old guns. Some would call them classics - A.H. Fox, Lindner-made Charles Daly, John Dickson, Winchester model 21, etc. The design and workmanship is old school, the quality seamless, and they are fine tools for bird hunting.

I have only owned one LeFever, a sidelock 20 gauge in Optimus grade that was GIVEN to me by a friend about 1975. It had belonged to his aunt in Philadelphia. I didn't know much about shotguns in those days, but I recognized that it was a quality gun, and I happily shot it at birds. One day I showed it to the gunsmith at the local gunshop for some reason (unremembered) and he exclaimed that I could not shoot the gun, since despite a nice blue job, it had Damascus (laminated steel) barrels!

Imagine my ignorance. I GAVE the gun away as a wall hanger.

Imagine my chagrin today. I now know that the gun is safe to shoot with the correct loads, and it is worth five figures. 

This is how we learn about old classic guns, and some of the lessons are hard ones.

My old Fox gun

I've been carrying this gun since 1992. It was made by the AH Fox Gun Co. of Philedelphia, PA in 1915. It has been restocked to fit and 'refurbished' to suit my needs for a field gun. A quality American product, from the time when such things were not only possible, but expected.

Specifications - 16 gauge, double triggers, straight hand grip, 28" Krupp steel barrels choked for bird shooting over pointing dogs. It's worn a groove in my soul, and I won't leave home without it.