doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion Classic & Custom Single Barreled Sporting Rifles @ doublegunshop.com A Book Thread?

4th of July weekend we stay home and off the roads so I'll be strapped to my computer for a while. Besides it's kind of slow around the forum.

I was one of the few young men who actually took some older folks advice. I bought books instead of guns in the early years. I guess my collecting habits were set young because as soon as I got interested in gun books I tried to gather all the Samworth books. It took years but I did it.

I think I still have them all save the Davis turkey book and one of the Keith books. I was offered way to much money IMO for the turkey book and sold it. Please don't tell me what they go for today ;-).

If a person has read all the Samworth books you would have a leg up on most folks in the gun learning department.

I see that I even have the book on Samworth books by Brian R. Smith. When you start buying books about books you can figure you're hooked.

When I was a kid, our public library had a wealth of books about firearms. Landis, Howe, Sharpe, Crossman, Whelen, to name but a few were all well represented. I had those guys darn near memorized by the time I went away to college. Then began the task of acquiring as many of them for my own library that I could. (That public library even had a wonderful tome on making pyrotechnics and explosives, published in the 1920's as I recall. Interestingly, it was gone from the stacks a few years ago when I went looking for it out of curiousity.)

Michael,
When I was 15 years old in 1960, I started buying books through the Outdoor Life Book Club. That got me into Jack O'Connor and now I have almost, save 2 or 3, all his books.
In 1964, I bought a copy of the then new 5th edition of the Records Of North American Big Game by the Boone & Crockett Club. I have since acquired most all of the B&C publications and became a Lifetime Asso. Member of the Club.
Then as time passed I was introduced into books by the Winchester Press and I collected all that l came across.
That got me into the Amwell Press, the National Sporting Fraternity Ltd., and I have most all the those books.
Because of my early interest in guns, especially Winchesters, I started getting as many reference books on makes and models as I could.
I have collected firearms catalogs from most all of the major companys since the early '60.
Point is, I love the books as much as the guns that I have collected, and without them I wouldn't have learned much about the guns that I have collected.

So, sign me up as being hooked too!

Have a great 4th of July.

Seems like I bought about everything in the early years. As I got more interested in sporting rifles I bought books with that in mind. Double shotguns played a large part in my book buying as well and as I turned to custom doubles, well, there are not any books on the subject.

I like O'Connor and if I had too pick one I think I like "Horse & Buggy West" best, I even read his novels.

Keith is OK and I like his early writing for American Rifleman much better than his later work. Everyone who goes into the woods with a rifle should read his story about one of his hunting party shooting another thinking he was a Elk.

I know this is borderline heresy, but I've never been a big fan of Keith. He undoubtedly had a wealth of knowledge gained from first hand experience, but his "rough and ready" style of writing/speech wore thin to me after a time. At least O'Connor's writing was the obvious output of an English professor. I enjoy going back and re-reading Crossman's book on the Springfield, while overlooking the multitude of racist comments it contains. (Sign of the times of 80 years ago I suppose.)

Too bad more of the old gunsmiths didn't put their thoughts to paper. It would be enlightening to read of Harry Pope's ideas and philosophy had he taken pen to paper, for example. (But that would have taken away from his bench time.) Did Mr. Niedner ever publish anything?

I agree up to a point. However I myself never warmed up to anything O'Connor ever wrote, but then again I can say the same about Hemingway and most of Faulkner (grin). I value Keith for his experiences and Whelen for his appreciation of the wilderness, while for enjoyment I reread Bell and Taylor.
Regards, Joe

For hunting it's hard to beat Teddy Roosevelt. O'Conner had a lot to do with shaping my taste in rifles and he was an excellent story teller. The early Keith is good but I could take him only in small doses in his later writings. I loved the Gun Digest and have copies from 1962. I haven't felt compelled to buy a GD for several issues though. I like books on smithing, and it seems the older the better. Or, at least, the more interesting. Recent works such as SDH's books are wonderful and I like many of the recent books on single shot rifles, especially the British rifles and Charlie Dell's book on Schuetzen. Most of the current "literature" leaves me cold as I have little interest in the "black rifles" other than I used to shoot one in the Army. That especially includes current "tactical" and "long range" bolt actions with spiral fluted bolts,grotesque bolt handles, and huge scopes or almost anything plastic. So I hope SDH will come out with his next book on rifles and shotguns soon. I need it as an antidote.

Jerry Liles

I never cared for Keith at all as to his caliber choices. He was a very experienced hunter and I sure told a good story. Yes, very small doses.

Too me, O'Connor's influence guided my guns and hunting trail.

I have a complete set of T.R.'s hunting books. They are outstanding.

As for Harry Pope, I had the pleasure of shooting a Winchester High Wall Schuetzen with a H.M. Pope barrel in 32-40. It had the false muzzle and all.
What a beautiful rifle!
There is a book on Pope called: THE STORY OF POPE'S BARRELS by Ray M. Smith.
It is a very interesting book.

My favorite is still Waters' and Roberts' "The Breech Loading Single Shot Rifle." Years ago I found a first ed. which Ken was kind enough to sign for me at the diner in his hometown later. I miss him and "Pet Loads." But I still get a kick out of Steven Bodio's "Good Guns" and have lost a few because I always loan it to people who are "thinking of getting into guns, or shooting, or hunting."

Keith was a blowhard, but his experience is still valuable and interesting (one blowhard to another, my wife would say....).

I'll buy and read any gun book I can afford but I now keep very few, mostly single shot rifle books. Unfortunately word has got around that gun books are valuable, so they are pricey in almost any book store. I find the few I can afford at library book sales, estate sales, thrift shops, garage sales, etc. Most I read and then resell on online gun boards like this one (but I haven't found any recently good enough to offer here....I'll save "the best for the best.").

Wish I could afford the series on English Single Shot Rifles but over the years I have found a grand total of one volume for sale at a price I could afford. Three whole dollars at a "Friends of the Library" sale in Mesa Verde, CA! Mint with dust jacket and all.

Gary D., public librarians tell me that gun books are the "most stolen" of any category of library book. Add to that the political correctness problem and tiny budgets and there just aren't many gun books in libraries any more. And what few there are are usually in the non-circulating "reference" section....not a way to culture a new generation of riflemen and women!

Thanks for your encouragement and kind words Jerry. I surely wish it were that easy, the publishing world has been turned upside down in the past few years and NOBODY knows where it is going, but everyone knows it is changing for sure.

Almost all printing is done overseas, only potential NYT best sellers get any promotion, authors percentages have gone down and all expenses have gone up.
My most recent "Double Guns and Custom Gunsmithing" has sold a total of 2400 copies since 9/07 and attempts to market through "big box" stores turned into a total snafu. Not bad, but certainly not enough income to bank anything or attract enthusiasm from publishing houses. Truth is at 10% of the gross sales it is difficult to be personally enthused...

I continue to write twelve magazine columns per year (6, double shotguns for Shooting Sportsman - 6, custom rifle for Sports Afield, both columns are very popular) and accumulate material. In fact I have enough material for at least two complete books, three if you count M/L and historic gun material.

In the meantime I have decided to put my extra energies into the website that now has nearly 50 separate pages of Finegunmaking material on quite a variety of topics. The views average nearly 90 per day from all over the world. With the addition of Dorleac & Dorleac we are presenting international small-shop gunmaking at its best and once winter returns to the north country (I'm not in a hurry living there myself!) the prime Custom Rifle Historic Wing (MP) should return with photos and content not available elsewhere.

We have recently added a Viewer's Projects Page (please contribute) and Direct Requests for information from Michael Petrov <mpetrov@finegunmaking.com>. Each is slow starting but but I'm sure the momentum will build as has everything about the site.

So Jerry, and all watching, please believe me when I say I would much prefer to read a book than surf the web or stare at a monitor, but I'm painfully conscious of current reading trends. Please bookmark us <www.finegunmaking.com> and be assured that I will be adding new material with authentic content and great photos on a variety of fine gun topics every chance I get, and that I am open to requests via Contact Me at the bottom of every page on the sight.
Thanks again,
Steve
You bibliophiles might enjoy three views of the Office Wing of the Fine Gunmaking Library.