doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com Robert G. (Bob) Owen

My only critique is the wood and woodwork is too fancy for the remainder of the gun. With wood that nice there should be some engraving etc.

In the early years Bob tried to get his brother to join him in America and even named the business Owen Brothers. I have in my database about eight rifles marked “Owen Bros” and to date have only got to examine one. To the best of my knowledge his brother who was a wood (gun) dealer in England never worked with him. All the Owen Brother rifles that I have seen are all “Best” with great wood and full Kornbrath engraving coverage. I think in the early years he only wanted to made high grade rifles and shotguns.

An Owen Brothers marked rifle.

After he dropped the Owen Bros. mark he continued to make higher grade rifles. I don’t think it was very long before he had to make a plainer grade of rifle. The customer base was just not there for only high grade rifles.

Here are links to a couple of Owen rifles, one for sale one at auction.

http://www.collectorsfirearms.com/admin/product_details.php?itemID=22536
http://www.juliaauctions.com/auctions/catalog_detail_shots.asp?Details=33814&sale=252

A typical Sauquoit Owen with the spearhead, I think this is the style of rifle we have associated Bob Owen with.

Great stuff Michael!
As you know, I'm a fan of Owen's work. It can be a mistake to associate one style or type of work with a maker. Earlier this summer I saw an Owen fullstock with a full-length rib and aperture FRONT and rear sights. (Reportedly from Monte's sales.)
The same day I saw a carved G&H and an Ardmore Hoffman. Although both great rifles they just accentuated Owen's expertice, architectural excellence and inovation as exhibited in the fullstock rifle. (Besides, I can relate to the one-man shop experience.)
Have you seen the rifle I'm describing?

Steven,

I don't remember a full stock Owen or for that matter ever seeing one. I'll go through my Owen files and see if I can find it. We have to remember the Customer is the boss and depending on how the gunmaker feels about it anything is possible. If I had not seen the little Remington 12 I would have not thought Owen stocked the 1903.

Here are some of pix of one I photographed.

I can tell you from my own experience, the customer is quite often Not the boss!
The gunmaker is motivated by things he hasn't done or seen and by a creative drive that lives in his imagination. I'm pretty sure the M-12 (from reading your book and seeing the rifle, and again THANKS for bringing it to Reno!) was Owen's own dream, would you agree?
The fullstock Springfield that I saw was almost beyond what I would credit a client with conceiving.
If you saw this rifle would you think it was a client's notion?

Truth is, the client had the good sense to ask me what I would like to create, and then let me make this rifle for him. The fellow I'm doing this Hagn for has no idea what I'm up to and just sends some $ when I need it. He's going to get my best, and most creative work. I've radically reshaped the action and am now wet-sanding the stock.

The point is, the maker's best work is quite likely some project he dreamed up and has found a client willing to finance it. My sidelever was such a project, matter of fact, the reason I own and hunt the rifle is because the client didn't like it and traded it back to me.
Often, if left to the client (Terry is a major exception!) they will say, "I want something completely different, just like that one!" And that may be why so many Owen rifles look so similar. Believe me, this Owen guy had quite an imagination!

You bet, Owen loved wood and made the little Remington for himself, just the way he thought it should be made. Owen had a lot of personal rifles and shotguns, as the times got tough he had to sell them all. Shelhamer, when working for Niedner would only put his name on what he liked and was forced to make stocks he did not approve of. Once on his own he could just turn down a job if it did not suit him. I still have a lot to learn about Owen, I have an envelope here with pictures of a rifle that looks like it was stocked in Germany, but has Owen name on the barrel. I looked at a Owen marked rifle in Vegas that I am sure Owen never touched. I learn new stuff all the time and have to go back and correct information I was sure was right at the time I wrote it.

I would also add that there are some Owen rifles around that have other maker's names on them.