Modern Custom Guns: Walnut, Steel, and Uncommon Artistry

506 Pages·2013·40.52 MB·English

by  Tom Turpin

MODERN CUSTOM GUNS
WALNUT, STEEL, AND UNCOMMON ARTISTRY
2ND EDITION
TOM TURPIN
Thank you for purchasing this Gun Digest eBook.
Sign up for our newsletter and receive special offers, access to free content, and
information on the latest new releases and must-have firearms resources! Plus,
receive a coupon code to use on your first purchase from GunDigestStore.com
for signing up.
or visit us online to sign up at
http://gundigest.com/ebook-promo
Dedication
To Pauline Turpin, my greatest critic, my biggest fan, and my loving wife.
Introduction
A lot has transpired since I sent the manuscript for Modern Custom Guns in to
Krause Publications, in 1996. It doesn’t seem possible, but that was 17 years
ago. Neither the techniques of crafting fine custom guns nor the tools required to
do so have changed appreciably during that time, if any. Oh, I suppose that
computer-controlled equipment is in a bit more widespread use now than it was
in 1996, but I doubt the impact on the custom trade has been all that great.
Almost all the artisans I know still do it the old-fashioned way.
The noteworthy change that has taken place in the trade has been the
disappearance of old familiar faces and the introduction of new ones. Comparing
this new 2nd Edition to the original, these changes will be immediately obvious.
In a few cases, the missing artisans have passed on to their rewards. Mostly
though, they have simply retired and are enjoying their twilight years. In other
cases, they have taken up other professions to earn a better living. Fortunately,
new guys come along and take up where the old veterans have left off.
In many cases, the new guys (and a number of older ones, for that matter),
often hold down a full-time job to put beans on the table and work their
gunmaking as a secondary avocation. Frequently, after a few years as a part-time
maker, they will transition into a full-time gunmaking status. Probably equally
often, they maintain gunmaking as a part-time function, until they retire from
their primary profession.
Whether they be a part-time or full-time gun maker has little or nothing to do
with the talent and determination of the artisan; such choices are most often,
anyway, a purely economic decision. They feel that they can earn a more
comfortable living and better provide for their families, by applying their talents
to another more stable and better paying professional field. That is difficult logic
to another more stable and better paying professional field. That is difficult logic
to argue with.
The fact is that gunmaking is a labor of love, any way you look at it.
Whether it is a secondary source of income or one’s only provider of a living,
you have to love it to pursue it for any length of time. I don’t know of a single
maker who depends upon their income from gunmaking to survive, who couldn’t
earn substantially more in another field.
It also seems to be true that it is becoming more and more difficult to attract
younger guys and gals into custom gunmaking on a full-time basis. Again, this is
primarily an economic decision. The younger set, in addition to earning a living,
is generally raising a family. That adds to the necessity for a well-paying and
steady job. Gunmaking can be, and usually is, a feast or famine proposition;
there is either more work than one can possibly complete in a reasonable time, or
not nearly enough to sustain the effort.
To add emphasis to this apparent fact, the American Custom Gunmakers
Guild (ACGG) hired a consultant awhile back, to help figure out how to improve
that organization and its operation. One of the first items of data produced was
that the average age of the professional member of the ACGG was at or near
retirement age and social security eligibility. I don’t recall what the actual age
was, but it was in the sixties. That is hardly refreshing news for the longevity of
the ACGG, though it should not come as a shock to those who attend the annual
Guild exhibition. A good set of eyes toward the exhibitors would lead anyone to
the same conclusion. The term “spring chicken” does not come to mind.
Friend Sid Johnson checking out his Al Lind-made custom rifle, before heading out on a Coues deer
hunt, in Sonora, Mexico.
Photo courtesy Gary Bolster
Gary Goudy has been making stocks for a very long time. It is safe to say he knows how to make one.
This rifle is chambered for the .17 Remington cartridge and features a lovely English walnut stock and
Gary’s almost signature checkering pattern, a fleur de lis pattern with ribbons.
Photo courtesy Gary Bolster
Gary Goudy stocked this rifle with its medium-heavy bore strictly for open sights. Chambered for the .358
Norma Magnum, it will take care of North America’s largest game animals with ease.
Even so, there are some very talented younger individuals who are plying the
gunmaking trade. A few of them are so talented that some of the old-timers who
have built their reputations on a lifetime of turning out fantastic work had better
watch their backsides. Gunmaking seems to be a trade wherein there is no status
quo. The maker is either moving forward, or, if not, and whether realized or not,
is moving backward. There is no standing still.
In this 2nd Edition, I have tried to bring the reader up to date within the craft.
I have tried to feature the best and the brightest. If, by chance, one of your
favorites is not featured, there can be a number of reasons for that omission. First
is that perhaps I’ve not heard of them before and am therefore not familiar with
their work. Another is that they may not want to be featured in this book.
Another, and probably the most common reason, is that they do not have any
quality photos of their work, are poor photographers themselves, and are
unwilling to spend a few bucks to have some professional photos done. Either
that, or they are in such a hurry to get the firearm shipped to its new owner (and
get paid), that they won’t take the time to have photos done.
Four of the author’s custom Model 70s. Top to bottom, a .270 Win, a .375 H&H, a .338 Win. Mag., and
a .458 Lott.
Photo courtesy Gary Bolster
The late gun maker Maurice Ottmar had a favorite saying. It was, “Life is too short to hunt with an ugly
gun.” A hunter armed with the Gary Goudy-stocked rifle below would not need to worry about being
accused of hunting with an ugly gun. This one is magnificent.