doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com So you want a Purdey!

Also thought all i could see was Purdy. I'm told that if and when Purdeys see these fakes they buy them up and destroy them but they may just be talk.

I'd buy such a gun for what its worth, all old guns hold some degree of interest to me refresh them as far as is reasonable and use then when and where possible. I have worked on one or two purdeys in my very few years, and there are good one's and bad ones like any gun.

That Bar in the wood is very nice assuming its a restock ( very well done by whoever did it. ) failing that assumption its a cracking quality piece. Some will say "shame about the hammers being blacked" I'm quite partial to it. Adds some contrast to older guns.

i would pass on it, too. But, not because it is not a real Purdey, if it's not. But, because of the condition. I believe in buying the gun, not the name, and have a J. Manton 16 bore double percussion m/l in very high condition. Though it is not a "real Manton", it is an excellent quality gun, and one I am proud to own.

SRH

curious - over here a percussion is a muzzle loader, its just a cap lock not a flintlock.

did I miss read it, or do we use the terms differently?

in any case - very nice gun

Purdey was a pupil of Joseph Manton (along with Boss, Lang, Lancaster and Greener (senior)). All built 'best' guns when they went on to set up shop on their own - as you might expect from Manton's influence.

As so often happens - cheap copies, the equivalent of today's Rolex copies I suppose, were made, usually overseas from the UK and often with names designed to mislead by being slightly mis-spelled. Usually these were of obviously poor quality, but a few were rather better.

Purdeys, like all except Boss have also built and sold lower grades under their own name, but always still of good quality, just not 'best' quality. Boss lesser grades were sold under the name ''Robertson', the owner of the Boss business at the time. They are also of good quality.

All London makers used various outsources (including some in Birmingham) at different times, but these were also the finest craftsmen around and the 'best' quality was maintained.

Demonwolf. The gun is restocked the original was broken through the wrist this was done along with its restoration some fifty five years ago now, its restoration took some six years because it took that long for me to save the cash. You could even say the guns final restoration was the case I found on an auction site that was identical to its original which I restored this year.
The gun its self was purchased as a wall hanger in the 1960s and looked not much different than the fake Purdey in the picture but it did have all its parts and some life left in it.
Other than the action it was covered in a thick layer of rust the trigger guard was in three pieces so there was no original finish to be saved, and at the time I could not afford to pay for case colour restoration so the rust blue/black for the hammers and trigger guard etc. was the best compromise. All the work was undertaken by individual craftsmen most working in the Birmingham gun quarter around Price Street and Lover Loveday Street.
Besides being found just before it was scraped the gun has quite a remarkable history as well as starting life as one of a set of four.

In my opinion you have had some very good and worthwhile work carried out there. Everything about it does justice to the piece.

At the risk of derailing the thread...

Its amazing what hides under the filth sometimes. My favorite piece started as the following.



Bit of work, struck up the barrels and browned. Oil finished the stock. Polished up the locks. ( the sunny day makes them look stupidly bright ). The gun was made by Calderwood of Dublin.



Yes i could re checker, yes i could remove the period repair, i think in this particular case i would be taking the restoration too far. Sometimes its a very difficult judgement to make i find.

Well, since we are sharing....

From the era of the gun in the OP:

very very nice

Now that, is a Purdey. Thank you.

That post has bought us nicely back on to topic. That is a very nice real purdey.

As much as i know there are many well done and desirable pieces to be had from other makers; i think i have now caught Purdey fever.

I won't despair yet. I have far too many project guns at the moment, which don't get me wrong i really enjoy. But i think my next purchase won't be for sometime.. i fully intend for it to be a quality piece.