I have both the Birmingham proofed W Richards as well as a Belgian proofed one. Though both are currently in poor condition the Birmingham proofed one is definitely a few cuts above the Belgian. The Belgian is a top lever gun & is probably a "Newer" gun than the Brit.
Assuming the one with Brit proofs was built by Clabrough it is highly likely they sourced Belgian tubes for the barrels. Most else was more likely done in or around Birmingham. Some fairly low grade stuff was turned out here as well, though not generally as low as the lowest from Belgium.
"London Laminated Steel" is not Whitworth. The pics here as well as my gun appear to be "Plain Twist" certainly not true "Laminated Steel" in the sense of that which had such high rankings in proof tests.
