I have copied my comments from the Jarred thread below for those who may not have seen them.

I have to diasgree with Drew about the 90 being Japanese engraved. All of the engraving I've seen done by Japanese trained engravers has a very distinctive scroll. The Japanese are trained to cut toward themselves using short chisels without a handle. Their scroll looks Germanic at first blush but is cut very differently. Most of their post war work for GI's does have raised silver inlays but almost all of their long guns have their stocks carved with game scenes.

The scrollwork on the pictured 90 looks very amateurish. It is full of dog legs and elbows, especially the scroll on the forend iron. It is my opinion that it was engraved by the owner as a project piece. No master engraver at a gun factory would allow one of their engravers to put out work with such ill formed scrollwork. The stock looks pretty good but stocks are not my specialty.


I don't know who owns the gun in question and I am not trying to run down the piece. skeettx asked for my opinion and I offered it. I hope no one's feelings are hurt but I have tell it like I see it. I will reiterate that there is nothing about this model 90/Ranger that reminds me of Japanese engraving (and I have seen lots of it). All of the Japanese scrollwork I have seen is far more concentric and has characteristic cuts not evident on this piece.

Cheers,
ROger


C. Roger Bleile
Author of American Engravers-The 21st Century
FEGA Historian
www.engravingglossary.com