doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com Which do you prefer, vintage engraving, or modern?

Vintage of cause. It was much cheaper, than today.

I prefer vintage or vintage-like engraving. I don't like gold on guns. I really like traditional rose and scroll, like that on a Boss or Purdey. These guns just seem to have a subtle elegance about them. I do very much like the Bulino engraving but I wonder how well it will endure the 'wear and tear' as years go by?? It is so delicate that the least little bit of rust would probably shipwreck the appearance of bulino. Also, this sort of engraving seems to step up the price of the guns significantly.

it wont be long before modern will be vintage to generations to come. i like both and love it when someone says are you nuts
hunting with that. well i generally reply thats what gives it character.

"American animals were mostly so poorly done as to be laughable."

I guess you never saw the work of Albert Kraus, noted as being one of the top four engravers in the world at the time.

I'll know it when I see it.

I have always liked art deco floral stuff seen on some Ithacas and LC Smiths. Maybe it is more like art nouveau. I'm no artist. I'm searching for an LC in that style.

I would just like to add, previous-poster and engraver/author C. Roger Bleile has just finished a new book, "American Engravers of The 21st Century". It is very well-done, obviously a labor of love. Editor-Publisher Steven Fjested has not only done a nice job with the text, but his Blue Book publications has taken great time and expense to get the best color separtion, paper stock and print quality; in large format it's a stunning example of what print can do and priced very resonably at $75.

I honestly get a thrill every time I open it and urge anyone with an interest in fine guns and engraving to buy it. It's very much more than just a fabulous picture book.

All the best,

C.

"American animals were mostly so poorly done as to be laughable".

You have to look at the right guns to see quality work. I think the 1890s and into the early 1900s engraving of scroll and animals was very well done as the following pictures show of my favorite American classic.















21

Make mine old time scroll engraving. Most dogs and birds done before WWII were very amateurish compared to today's almost too perfect versions. Yes there are a few exceptions, but too few. Scroll, of that period, is equal to or better than even the best today. How many flying turnips, birds and dogs with Barbie like proportions have you seen? Most if not almost all of the pre WWI fall into this category. Today bulino is to much like a photo for my taste. Art deco was a very short lived period of art and you either like it or hate it.

It mostly comes down to a difference in how engraving is view by the buyer. If you had a gun made in 1900 you had the staff engraver engrave the standard pattern. He was a skilled workman who was paid to do his standard work. If not doing guns he might be working in the jewelry trade or on silverware. You employed him at his job. Good workman like job to make you gun just as nice as your fellow shooters who had bought the same grade of gun. Most engraving jobs took a day or two at most. Look at the ledger book of Purdey where they list amount paid for engraving and you will see batches of gun done in what averages out to about a day or two for full coverage engraving. 10-20 hours total work at most for full scroll coverage. Engraving was an accessory like white wall tires or a radio on a new car. Maybe 10% of the gun value as an cost.

Today you "commission"" an engraver. The level of detail is only limited by your wallet and how fine the engraver can work under his microscope. You are not just getting a gun like you fellow shooter you are making a statement. You are creating "art" or at least the illusion of art. "Art" takes months to create and the number of hours can reach into the hundreds of hours. Now engraving can be the most expensive part of a gun maybe more than two thirds or more of the guns cost.

And gold on guns, like on teeth should be where you can not see it. Gold plated internal parts are fine to protect from rust. Gold teeth should be in the rear of the mouth or under porcelain. Not stuck up front or on the outside to make you look like Ochio Stinko of the Cincinnati Bengals or the local failed drug dealer with extra grill work. And no gun should get any multi colored enamel colors.

As I suspected, engraving tastes seem to be all over the board, and as subjective as any other kind of art. I do however find it somewhat surprising that not many here seem to view bulino very favorably. I would have thought otherwise.