Ross-
I think it is very interesting! What is also interesting is that the fore end covers this spot, so the craftsmen may have actually skillfully placed these "flaw" where they would not be seen. My barrels were likely mass-produced in Belgium, at least as mass produced as damascus could have been. Yet still show evidence of human workmanship. I actually think such "imperfections" adds to the character (and hope they are only cosmetic for the sake of my fingers as I use this shotgun quite a bit). WW Greener reported that 18 pounds of prepared gun iron were required to weld an ordinary pair of 12 gauge barrels. Of course that represented the finest English damascus barrels. I would expect that the Belgian barrels on my shotgun were manufactured with the bottom line in mind. While cosmetics were likely of secondary concern (unless the placement of the imperfection was simply by chance), perhaps cosmetics were of sufficient concern that the craftsmen placed the imperfection in a location where it would not be seen.
Also, on my barrels in this spot you can see what appears to be the wire stub ends as the dots.
Doug
