Smallbore, could he be "Obsessed" ?
I was headed in that same direction. ;-)
Dig is right, as usual. This is a question with no answer.
I'd buy a Grant 12bore damascus sidelever hammergun with a beautiful brand new stock in a second - even if the stock wasn't a perfect for me. I sorta fall into that shooter-collector/collector-shooter bucket though. Others (collectors) would scoff at a new stock while others (shooters) would laugh at buying a gun that could never be perfectly fit.
Until the time comes that we see three guns (although, not a trio) come up for auction that are the 'identical' - excluding the fact that one has been rebarreled, one has been restocked, and one is in fine original condition - this question will be darn hard to answer.
Even then, of course, there are, as we discussed, limitless factors - who did the stock/barrels, short/long stock/barrel, what was the quality of the gun to start, who made it, where was it made, when, etc., etc.
Is it hunting season yet? I think we have too much time on our hands. ;-)
