Ed, until you take up a file, a hacksaw, and a hand drill and produce something artistically appealing and also perfectly functional you will never understand. In this age of heartless mass production, though the products are functional, they lack what many of us seek--the heart and soul of a craftsman. Does a hand made product necessarily shoot better than an off the shelf gun? I think the answer is usually "no". Why then pay more? If it is only a tool the answer is you probably shouldn't. But if one has an appreciation of human hands producing a more excellent, appealing product than a machine the additional expense seems to be a trifle compared to the sheer pleasure derived from admiring the skills required to achieve it. If I owned an off the shelf Beretta it would stay in the closet until I needed it. But the hand made gun is usually nearby and I never tire of just admiring the skills of a craftsman and perhaps romantically thinking of the times past when things were different.
I'll never belittle the man who chooses the tool over art. The gun was made to perform. But I hope he respects my desire for the art. To each his own.
