Purdey

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"Those ledgers in the back have the names of every Purdey owner and the specs of his rifle or shotgun, for the past 130 years"

Voluntary firearms registration? Given the scarcity of firearms in the UK, I bet those ledgers would be invaluable to a sophisticated burglar. :uhoh:
 
Some years ago, when attending the SCI convention in Reno, I purchased an H&H .700 Nitro Express . . .
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One. For my collection.

Cost as much as my Mosin-Nagant did.

Oh, and as for quality of British guns . . . I remember reading that when Winchester introduced their Model 21 double barrel shotgun, someone compared it in an extended shooting test with some fine, modern - for the time - British guns, using American ammo.

The Model 21 held up fine - the expensive British guns were battered loose in short order, despite being "proofed" for smokeless. (IIRC, no obsolete BP guns with Damascus barrels were in the test.) Seems that back then, the Brits were designing guns for lightly loaded British ammo, and they simply didn't hold up to modern American loads.

Whether that's still the case or not I've no idea.
 
Voluntary firearms registration? Given the scarcity of firearms in the UK, I bet those ledgers would be invaluable to a sophisticated burglar.
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The people that own Purdeys probably have their own private security team.
 
I would die if I couldn't get into Holland & Holland! The craftsmanship and the calibers that says "this gun will kick. Just tell me what it is and gotman H&H for it!!!..
 
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Cooldill said:
Very cool, but those guns won't do a single thing a Savage 311 or NEF Pardner wouldn't be able to do as well.
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Please:rolleyes: And my 75 Ford pick um up can do any thing a Rolls can. Thats not the point.
I wish to thank the OP for those fantastic photos. Sure got my day dreams going.
 
I would love to be able to just watch them make a rifle or shotgun from start to finish. Absolutely beautiful.
 
Cooldill said:
Very cool, but those guns won't do a single thing a Savage 311 or NEF Pardner wouldn't be able to do as well.
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Well, they'll both make a shotshell go bang, but there are some real differences between a quality shotgun and a truck gun. The bores on a best gun are polished perfection and throw terrific patterns. More importantly, the balance on a British best gun is superb, they point like a magic wand and make leading a target a snap. Mind you, you could get these qualities in a gun that cost a fraction of an H&H. There is a certain amount of "jewelry" and status symbol involved, but if you're someone who wants the best and money is no object H&H is ready to supply it.
 
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Cooldill said:
Very cool, but those guns won't do a single thing a Savage 311 or NEF Pardner wouldn't be able to do as well.
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I agree but they do it with some serious class you will not find much anywhere else.

During the early 90s I rented my gun shop from a great fella names Joe Kulis (Kastaway Kulis) who does outdoor TV shows and hunts in Alaska and Africa. I too have done some great hunts, mostly in far off lands like West Virginia.

One day Joe drags in this old double rifle he got as payment in a debt. It was the very first Purdy I ever saw or handled. Incredible rifle with incredible hand engraving. Unfortunately during its early life someone fired black powder cartridges and never cleaned the gun. The bores had severe pitting. I estimated the value back 20 plus years ago at about 30 to 40 grand and that was as is. :) Been a long time and can't recall the caliber but is was an African Safari rifle for big game. Heck, Joe even had a box of shells for the thing.

Ron
 
Reloadon said:
. . . Unfortunately during its early life someone fired black powder cartridges and never cleaned the gun. The bores had severe pitting . . .
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Corrosive primers will do that too, if the gun isn't cleaned.

Thinking about the price tags on some of the guns posted earlier . . . why in the world would someone with a six-figure gun budget purchase something "off the rack" instead of spending a bit of time with the manufacturer's staff and having the stock made to his exact measurements? After all, such a person probably wouldn't buy clothing off the rack, he'd have himself fitted by his favorite Savile Row tailor for his bespoke suit . . .
 
Most of the time, the price on the tag is the starting point. From there things like stock fitting, custom engraved side plates, etc. are added on. Sort of like looking at a base model Ferrari, the dealerships don't sell many that way. I will say one reason to go with an "off the rack gun" is that the lead time for a custom gun can easily range into the 24-30 month time frame.

-Jenrick
 
I was told to expect a 3-4 year wait for a custom Purdy. Perhaps that's why that have a few cash-n-carry models around the shop for the impulse buyers.

And speaking of those buyers. That area is not what I would call "low rent" As I'm hanging out at the pub (which itself was over 100 years old), across from Purdy, I snapped these.

1EE7AB0C-7DC2-4035-A173-A528C2C73CDC.jpg

The clientele who frequent places like this aren't sweating over their checking account balance
 
You are in a nicer part of town than I was a few weeks back. I bummed around Camden for a day, but that was about it. does anyone actually hunt with those things?
 
herkyguy said:
You are in a nicer part of town than I was a few weeks back. I bummed around Camden for a day, but that was about it. does anyone actually hunt with those things?
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Though it seems to be currently out of fashion, Britain's nobility has a long tradition of peasant hunting.
 
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