Chuck, I think you're right. As I understand it, only the maker can give a gun a "Best"
And in theory a Best is made without regard to price point
(but in theory only because all guns must be made to known price points, otherwise, the shop goes out of business quickly)- it is worked on until it can't be made any better. But it has to be from a handful of acknowledged makers.
Actually, any shop could get out a "best work" gun in the "London best" pattern/fashion by the simple expedient of ordering it from one of the Birmingham makers to the gun trade shops. "Best work" had meaning within the trade, as I understand. Any shop could undertake a "best work" gun secure in the knowledge that there were sufficiently skilled out-workers to make up any lack of skills within the ranks of the shop. Out-workers were used for overflow work and to make up for any lack of skill. So, the concept that only a few makers had the skill needed to make a "best work" doesn't seem to hold up to known trade practices. However, the more obscure the shop, the rarer it is to find a "best work" gun with their name on it.There's a lot of confusion about this - one often hears people arguing that a Mossberg is "best" for me
or that a Dingblat is "best" for ducks and so forth.
Kinda of a silly argument!
