This is an interesting topic. I'll have to look into it some more.
Just about all the British makers outsourced, or bought in, certain parts of their guns - some of them had more work done outside of the shop than others.
Like I said before, Purdey the Elder wasn't "making" guns. He was buying parts, assembling them, and adding his own area of expertise. So was he a maker or wasn't he?
At what point does a maker become a Maker? If they're having all the parts made by someone else and then finishing the gun, I think they're the Maker.
They're still responsible for the overall fit, finish, and quality of the gun and they're doing far more than a retailer would do to bring a gun to market.
If they're buying complete guns and and adding their names to them, then I would say that they're not.
Right now a number of the smaller British makers are having parts of their guns made by a handful of guys in the trade. They are also outsourcing things like finishing, color case hardeing, blacking, etc.
So are these makers really making guns, or are they following a pattern used by H. Holland?
OWD
