Very nice
"back together again" were they documented as starting out as a pair- or just that they went down the line together in the factory?
In either case- a set to be proud of
Very nicely matched grain in the stocks and look great.
I have admired your taste in duck guns for many years, J.B. What a nice, and unusual, pair. Enjoy them in good health.
SRH
I have admired your taste in duck guns for many years, J.B. What a nice, and unusual, pair. Enjoy them in good health.
SRH
JB
What became of the Parker 10 I sold you years ago? It had shot a good number of ducks before you had it. Sure do miss Oscar even after all the years.
bill
"H&R", Harrington and Richardson? Probably not...Geo
Very handsome results, thanks for posting them.
Jay
I still have the big Parker DH Bill- had my best year ever last year with the big 10 and #4 bismuth hand loads.
I don't have any documentation , but at this point, I consider them a matched pair with all measurements, engraving and weight matching & I've tried to match the stocks ( from same fletch) as possible.
I know many say they are Westley Richards made in the US, but they still are marked Harrington and Richardson on the rib...
I would like to find WR double motor case for them if anyone has a line on one!
Best Regards,
JBP
Anyone who says those guns are Westley Richards made has their head in the sand. There are lots of articles detailing the way those guns were made. I had the original contract between Westley Richards and Harrington Richardson with the latter having the exclusive Anson and Deeley manufacturing rights in the U.S. Deeley even came over here to the U.S. and helped with organization and production on the second floor of the Harrington and Richardson plant. All this took place in the first half of the 1880s. My opinion is that the H and R guns and the Colt 1883 were the finest doubles produced in that period. Fit and finish were superb.
Beautiful craftsmanship and two very nice guns. I have a 12 in what looks to be the same grade as these. They may not be WRs as such but these early H&Rs were and are some of the more finely crafted guns of the era.
Should we think about a collectors association? It might be nice to put together photos and details of those H&Rs still around.
Good shooting.
John
Beautiful guns, as nice as any ever made in the US, IMO.
Gorgeous wood and craftsmanship, as well.
Is the wood Claro or Bastogne? Where did you find it?
At probably less than 3000 guns made ( 50/50 12,10 gauge?), not a lot of guns out there for collectors....
Looks to be Claro originally from Wrights near Portland- closed now I think. I bought the quarter sawn stump fletch ~ 2000 & it was 7 yrs old then.
I was thinking of an upgrade on the engraving , but I don't know anyone to emulate the old Loy style seen on the high grade Remington's , Lefevers and H&Rs..can anyone suggest an engraver that could spot on duplicate that style?
Best regards,
JBP
What grade are these H&R's?
Back in my doublegun infancy, I was at an OGCA gunshow and saw an H&R A Grade. First off, I didn't even know H&R had made doubles... they weren't listed in my Blue Book. Second, it had those dangerous Damascus barrels which were supposed to be unsafe to shoot. Why would I pay $450.00 for a wallhanger?
The seller told me that he had been the historian for Harrington & Richardson. I remember that both the engraving and Damascus were as breathtaking as anything I have seen since. Needless to say, this is one of the guns I most regret not buying.
Oddly enough, this same advertiser used number grades 1-4, or similar, just a few years later. This if from Shoverling , Daly, and Gales.
H&Rs are some fine guns. I have let a couple get away from me over the years, but never again. This is one nice pair.
Interesting copy in the first two lines of that ad - machine made guns are clearly preferable to those hand-crafted tomato stakes!
I heard an interesting story about H&R this morning. The Rowe family apparently acquired the company because Ted Rowe was serving as corporate counsel and they could only pay him with stock. After awhile, he had acquired enough stock to take control of the company.
Beautiful set J.B. I think you emailed me some pictures of these in 2009 or 2010. I'm glad you were able to finish them up properly. Doug did a great job like always.
While working for a shop in college we had an A grade come in for restoration. I wanted to buy it but couldn't work out a deal. I don't know about the lower grade guns but this A grade was extremely robust and well built. All of the internal parts were highly polished and fit precisely. Ever since then I have always enjoyed seeing H&R doubles, especially high condition or properly restored examples.
Other then the A grade I worked on the only other high grade H&R double I have seen was a B grade offered for sale by Monty Whitley. Every once in a while a beat up C or D grade will show up on the auction sites.
Documented lethality of old # 1105 ! Good day on the marsh today with one of the H&R brothers....
Nice to see the cold weather bring down the big ducks!
Best Regards,
JBP
What loads were you shooting, J. B.?
Federal 3 1/2" hull cut down to 2 7/8"
Win 209 primer
31.5 g IMR 7625
Rem sp10 wad
20 g felt card under shot
1 1/4 oz #4 bismuth
Roll crimp / over shot card
7100 psi
1188 fps
Very nice. Bet it patterns well.
JR
