As is usual here, I learn a few things and then I set off to see what else I can uncover. Drillings are a subject that is very-much on the fringe of the gun world (IMHO) and while I can't really justify any need for one, I still find them appealing on several levels. The biggest of those is simply the level of quality that most were made too (ahh those Germans!) and then... the utility of perhaps having one for "special occasions" (which likely includes showing it off to your friends). Like with so-many things for me, I need to sit with something for a while and slowly do the analysis on it (I'm sorry, I'm just wired that way. No changing that now). I'm usually very deliberate in my actions (& my purchases) which is clearly a vestige of growing up in 1960s Appalachia. Frugal to a fault and pretty hard-headed too. But...I've come to understand what I like and don't like about the various options (& there are plenty).
I'm not a fan of the highly engraved versions and I don't want or need a scope or even a scope mount, simple and efficient is the key (at least for me) on this subject. You hear German guns compared to coo-coo clocks and for my tastes, that comparison is apt. I'm not knocking the level of skill and effort those engravings require but they're just not for me. The English approach to gun decor has always appealed to my sense of form following function. The WWII Luftwaffe guns are almost perfect in my estimation, as they adhere to that minimalist approach.
It seems that they even have their own specialty dealers, and Gunsinternational is fairly loaded with them. There are even left-handed versions that I have found (!), not cheap but they do exist. At the moment, an early gun with hammers and damascus tubes would be just about perfect in my humble estimation & now I just need to find it. All seem to mostly have the bigger 9.3x74R rifle cartridge, but I can work around that one with a sub-caliber insert to suit my needs. I would think a .22 Magnum or even a .22 Hornet would be about perfect. Functional (& more-modern) versions can be found in about the $2,500 range.
https://classicsportingguns.com/index.html
