Update 4th May
2015
Welcome to my May
2015 Update.
Firstly, there appears
to be a few people still having trouble viewing my new Heritage Guns web site.
I have investigated this and it seems simply to be that they are still using
the old link from their ‘Favourites’ list. This will look like www.heritageguns.co.uk/hgframset.htm
and it is the second part of this ‘web address’ which is causing the problem,
pointing as it does to a non-existent file.
So if you are one of
these unfortunates, proceed as follows:
- Click this link www.heritageguns.co.uk;
- Save the page that you land on in your ‘Favourites’;
- Delete the old, non-functioning link to Heritage Guns.
I have just got back
from the Southern Side by Side Spring Classic in North Carolina which as always
was great fun. The weather was fine and bright for set-up on Thursday and
pleasantly sunny on Friday but rather wet on Saturday and Sunday morning. Of
course it cleared up after lunch and we had warm sunny conditions for packing
all the stock away! Typical! If fact it was surprisingly cold all weekend and I
only removed my fleece briefly on Friday, putting it back on within 10 minutes!
This was very different from the 90 degree, 90 % humidity that I had come to
associate with this event and had not packed for the conditions.
Anyway, it did not
seem to put off the shooters and the show was well attended. A record number of
our guns went to new homes and a new Heritage Guns sales record was set.
It was a particular privilege
to meet Daniel & Joanna Cote of Double Gun Journal who were there
exhibiting their wonderful periodical.
Also many thanks to
all the members of the Carolina Vintagers who were as always very good company.
If you would like a
taste of the event, watch the video on this link.
I returned to find the
UK enjoying typical spring weather: overcast days populated with short, sharp
showers, interspersed with bright sunny days. Today it is certainly warm enough
to be out in the garden in shirt sleeves even though there is a brisk breeze.
The Troublesome
Twosome seemed happy enough to have me back home again although I suspect that
they don’t care that much as long as they are fed and walked! With all the
attention on his kennel mate’s training, Moss is becoming increasingly ‘deaf’
and I really must make an effort to bring him back under control. Tilly’s training
is now going to concentrate on getting her retrieval delivery sharpened up. She
loves the outrun and return and really flies over the ground but when about 10
yards out she has a tendency to run off to play with the dummy. Adding dried
pheasant wings to the dummy has seemed to help but we have a way to go yet.
As usual I have left
several guns behind in North Carolina and these include:
Watson
Bros 28b Hammergun no 4606
Boss
& Co 12b RUL hammergun no 2717
Boss
& Co 16b RUL Hammergun no 1692
A
spectacular FT Baker Needham patent 12b SLE, a real sleeper;
A
very beautiful cased, toplever 12b SLE by Henry Atkin with ‘makers replacement
steel barrels;
A
Stephen Grant sidelever 12b SLE with lovely replacement wood;
A
Murcott 12b hammergun with 30” damascus barrels;
A
damascus barrelled BLE by Perkes Adams & Co in
wonderful condition with some CH remaining:
And last but very
much not least
3”
nitro proof RUL hammergun by Edmund Woods, over 8lb and very probably made as a
Live Pigeon gun..
Full details can be
found via links on the Stock Page.
Most of the guns
mentioned above are nitro proofed for a minimum of 2 3/4" cartridges and all
are pre-1897.
Guns that I am
working on with a view to exhibiting in September include:
GE Lewis 16b Damascus
Hammergun;
Henry Atkin 12b Toplever
TIG-sleeved SLE;
J Williamson RUL 12b
Hammergun;
John Dickson 12b TIG-sleeved
Round Action;
H&H 16b Damascus
Climax SLNE;
W Powell 20b Damascus
Lift-up toplever Hammergun;
Another Dickson
Round Action, this one Damascus with new stock;
Another Henry Atkin
12b TIG-sleeved SLE, with sidelever;
J Purdey 12b BiW TIG-sleeved
Hammergun;
A Maloch 12b RUL Damascus Hammergun;
Wilkinson & Son
410 RUL Hammergun (converted from a double rifle);
Charles Lancaster 12b
Damascus self-opening SLE;
And lastly a 20b
Hammergun by S Allport.
Lastly a reminder
that we now have a Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/Heritage-Guns/1456166597974211.
Facebook is not everybody’s cup of tea but we will post photos and news there
that are not relevant to our main web site pages.
Enjoy your guns and
shooting wherever you are!
Toby Barclay
Links to our show venues
can be found on our Home page.