Yes, Larry, all those makers made bunches of guns. Until, they didn't.
Darne still does. They had a year and a half off, 1979-1981, and they have kept right at it, lower production as custom guns, but, a remarkable production run. They had booming times in the 1930s, and post WWII until 1957, or so. The early to mid 1960s were also good, long after most American double makers had thrown in the towel.
I had a discussion with Steve, not long ago, and brought up the question of Christopher Boyce and his biography to him. Every word you typed is true, Larry.
Best,
Ted
Good to hear confirmation on the Boyce story. Thanks.
The reason makers of American doubleguns got out of the business had nothing to do with the quality of the guns. And I could point out that two of those classic doubles--Winchester 21 and Fox--are still being made in this country. Like Darne, much lower production and as custom guns, but still being made. With a much longer break in production.
Darne had the advantage of operating in a market where sxs remained far more popular, comparatively speaking, than they did in this country post-WWII. In contrast, in this country, there were so many used American doubles available, at relatively low prices, that it didn't make bottom line sense to build new ones--except at the lower end of the market (Stevens). Although I think Savage might have made a go of it with smallbore Sterlingworths, and Marlin's revival of the L.C. Smith might have caught on if they'd made them as 20's rather than 12's. The Parker Reproduction clearly demonstrated that there was a limited market for classic American-designed (if not made) smallbore doubles at a relatively high price.
