Saw some mention of him on these forums so I figured I would post the Highsmith I recently picked up.

I can't quite make out the lettering on the receiver. Is the action made in Oberndorf? Did a scope come with it?

Neat. So he did perform his craft on some German wares. When visiting HI one time in Memphis I brought a couple guns w/ me to ask him a couple questions. I had to remove something so I pulled out a Puma blade and he said Son you are working on a Kraut gun w/ a Kraut knife. He said the same of the Sauer Survival Dreilings. Told me to get myself a proper gun.


Cheers,

Raimey
rse

I think it's a 1909 action. It came with scope rings but no scope, He milled off the bottom of Redfield rings and welded on the German claw base so any 1in scope can be used.

Any history on what effort HI contributed and with what platform he started?

Cheers,

Raimey
rse

unusual to have the front base on the barrel ? Nice quality rifle.

Was this Master gunmaker the gent mentioned in Nash Buckingham's "Are We Shooting 8-Gauge guns?"--

If the reference was to >>HI<<, then yes. I don't recall exactly how Mr. Buck referred to HI.

Cheers,

Raimey
rse

[img]https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/v...&fit=bounds[/img]

This reference in 1960 Gun Digest?

Cheers,

Raimey
rse

Nero,
For "Claw" mounts, the location of the front base depends greatly on the length of the scope; and locating it on the barrel is pretty common now.
Mike

Locating the front base on the barrel also avoided cutting a dovetail in the receiver ring, once a common practice, without increasing the height of the front base.

Postwar, proof houses wouldn't accept rifles with receiver ring cut through.
Mike

Thanks for that bit of info,,did not know that.

That’s a nice looking rifle!
The action is a DWM, probably a 1909 Argentine action.
I don’t know much about the 2” 458 but in a standard length Mauser seems to make a lot of sense. Could probably run some heavy bullets and use all of the case capacity in that magazine.