In his book "Birmingham Gunmakers" Douglas Tate mentions the connection between the London based W J Jeffery and the Birmingham gunmaker(s)Daniel Leonard and Sons in that the latter built many guns with the former's name on them.
One of "the sons", Harry Leonard, continued the trade. Tate syas that "a signature feature of many of his guns and rifles was a bow back to the action that Jeffery called a 'shaped action' in his catalog".
In Vol 13 iss 3 Sherman Bell cites Tate's book and also goes on to mention "the asymmetrical bow back, most commonly found on the actions of best-grade Jeffery double rifles".
For the last 20 years my main upland gun is a Jeffery 12 bore apparently built by Harry Leonard (sold by Jeffery in 1909) as it has the bow back, shaped action.
It's a great gun. In fact it's a very great gun, I love it. The wood is mildly figured, the gun's aesthetic appeal doesn't figure into it's quality, as far as I'm concerned. Rather, it's quality to me shows in that it handles beautifully, is dependable in all kinds of weather and takes a beating without crying OUCH!
Now, if Bell says the bow back is a hallmark of best-grade Jeffery rifles, does he also think it is likewise true for Jeffery shotguns? Where could he have gotten this information? Tate's thorough discussion never hints at this.
Question: Is the aforementioned bow back action a sign of a best-grade Jeffery gun?
Please understand that the impetus for writing this post is curiosity, not greedy "WOW! HIGH VALUE = BIG BUCKS gotta sell!" designs. Merely something that I happened to notice this morning while re-reading old DGJ's.
