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Dear All,


My name is Jiri Bihunec and my great grandfather was a gunmaker Mr. Jaroslav Teichman from Olomouc in Czech Republic.
Mr. Teichman started his business in 1934 in Olomouc on Pekařská Street. Then in 1954 the communists seized the shop and put my great-grandfather in prison for 15 years.
After his release, he did not return to his trade.

I would like to ask You for help to find a shotgun number 2 from the pair.
After the revolution in the Czech Republic my grandfather spoke with Mr. Falesnik who claimed he sold the shotgun to Croatia, unfortunately my grandfather don't remember the exact year, he claims 1991-1994. I know who has the number 1 shotgun in the Czech Republic, unfortunately the owner doesn't want to sell it.
If it helps, the number 1 has production number - 19063-54-357076, think the number 2 has to be almost same. Attached sending you link with pictures - below on the page.

Do you have anyone in Croatia who could help me, of course if anyone knows of another gun from my great grandfather I would also be very interested.

Thanks.

Jiri
https://www.pametnaroda.cz/cs/teichman-jaroslav-1935

Dear Jiri;

Thank you for your most interesting request about your grand father Jaroslav Teichman, gunmaker. Thank you further for the link to the photos of your grandfather, the work shop and photos of the two guns. The photos show that the guns are a very high quality and your grandfather made guns like the ones in the photos he must be a very skilled and talented gunmaker. Where did he learn gunmaking in the Czech Republic--it is of great interest to us? I was able to translate the article text to English. However, it appears that the hammer gun was restored by your grandfather and the other double gun was built by him.

It was painful to me to read of the terrible treatment that your family endured.

I do not know anyone in Croatia that might be able to help you but I am going to suggest to you an additional route to search for the gun---that is contacting a group of engravers and wood carvers in Sopot, Bulgaria who also engrave guns and carve the wood of gunstocks. This group is led by Evgeni Dimov and I suspect that he has fellow engraver friends in Croatia that could help you in your search. if your grandfathers gun is of the quality that your photos shows will be a gun that will get the attention of many gun enthusiast, gunmakers and engravers of today.

The Czech gunmakers were some of the best in Europe and I hope that you are successful in your search. I propose to you that you contact the owner of the number 1 shotgun and ask him to allow you to take photos of the shotgun your grandfather made as well as the shotgun's action and underside of the barrels where it will be stamped with numbers and symbols so that you can send these photos to the engravers to help them help you in your search.

Here is an internet link to Evgeni Dimov:

http://www.home.dimovengraving.com/

Kindest Regards;
Stephen Howell

Here is the translation at Opočnu from my great-grandfather's notes.

It was in 1908 when František Dušek, the founder of the company, returned after his travels to foreign countries and settled in the centre of the estate according to the custom of the time. The centre of the vast Opočno estate guaranteed good prosperity for a solid gunsmith. František Dušek was then 32 years old. He was born in the nearby Černílov and trained as a gunsmith at the Hojný company in Smiřice. His knowledge of foreign countries made him superior to the local gunsmiths. He was an anti-militarist and it is known that he refused the invitation of the Austrian authorities to participate in the war production in the First World War.
When I joined Opočno in 1925 as a rifle maker there were 35 employees in production and 6 in administration. The boss went through both shops every day and listened to requests and suggestions as needed.
At that time Josef Dušek, his eldest son, returned from the rifle school in Ferlach. He had a vise next to me and I remember that he made a nice lancaster rifle Greener. I would still recognize that wonderful work today, and that was 55 years ago. With Josef came a strong impulse to the factory. He negotiated employment contracts with people from Ferlach and brought 6 of them to Opočno. There was Mr. Stüfler, a very good bascule maker and person, then Mr. Pavouc, who did the barrels, built the furnace and did the hard welding. This was later abandoned and only the hooks were hard-jointed and the rest was soft-jointed, as is still done today. I visited him several times in Ferlach and we remembered our younger years. Then there was Jesenko, the adjustor, and then old Mr. Suklic, the other two I can't remember. Suklic polished the parts and especially, everything by hand, for the engraver and after engraving he hardened the barrels. He burned the leather on leather charcoal, put the parts into boxes with sheet metal, carefully filled the gaps with leather charcoal and put them into the fire. He had a separate workshop for this, and we all watched the rich and varied annealing he achieved.
The gunsmith and engraver Keler, Karel Verner, Šmída, Karel Hladik are also worth mentioning.
Albert Rucknagel did most of the engraving, engraving the usual commercial spiral engravings on hamerlesks well and quickly. An engraving took him about 8-12 hours of work. He also numbered locks and shells. He inlaid nicely in gold. Lancaster engraved by Josef Havránek. But everyone there was passionate about engraving and jealously guarded each other. I, too, was trying to find my place in the sun.
We made the stock mostly of walnut wood with a cheek piece and pistol grip and boot. There was a race to see who had the most accurately soldered parts and the most accurately and cleanly holstered mechanism. All for their own pleasure and self-satisfaction. All stocks were polished by Alois Duben.
On a larger scale, the production of flobert gunbegan. They were mostly single-shot with cylindrical caps. The systems were mostly made by Vasek Tosovsky. The stocks, on which the copying machine was already working, were finished by hand by Vasek Stodůlka. The barrels were drawn by hand. Furthermore, 4 types of air rifles reminiscent of Haenel Suhl, pistols reminiscent of the shape of Browning 6.35 pistols were produced in large quantities.
The Dusel company was the largest manufacturer of civilian weapons during the First Republic and their importance extended beyond the borders. It was nationalised in 1948.
In an effort to get to know other workshops, I left Opočno for Poděbrady, where I worked for František Lesák, apprenticed to the gunsmith Faukner. He was conservative and always preferred handwork. I was here for the next 6 years. In the old workshop everything was vises, anvil, anvil, wedges for piercing. No machines, drilling with a coil and a borer. All the tools were made at home. Everything was done with quality and thoroughness. It was a handmade workshop.

I would first contact Mr. Felix Neuberger of Vienna. He should pass thru at some near point in the future and read this thread. If not, I have contacts in Croatia that might track it down.

Serbus,

Raimey
rse

lp,

Raimey
rs