doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion German & Austrian Sporting Guns @ doublegunshop.com Ziegenhahn und Sohn

Here are some close ups:









How soon can we go, Daddy?

What don't I love about that gun. It is beautiful. Also liked Jens' Ideal. I have one myself. It was used to illustrate the article by SDH in SS you referred to.

Scotty,

Congratulations on the completion of your beautiful custom made shotgun. When someone commissions a custom gun as you have done they become part of the creative process and can take pride in the fact that this fine gun would have not existed without your personal input and financial outlay.

You can contrast your role in the creation of your Ziegenhahn with that of the antique collector who simply purchases the right to become a caretaker of the piece during their lifetime. Your gun will probably be used and admired for many generations into the future (subject to govermental fiat of course)and you are the one that that started the process.

I noticed on the drawing that the engraver is A. Brandt. I am not familiar with him or her. Could you please tell us the first name and anything else about the engraver you know.

Thanks,

Roger

Very pretty wood & engraving & I'm sure it has impeccable workmanship.

I've followed your posts with interest as I have been shooting a Ziegenhahn trigger plate 16 bore I ordered through Krieghoff for the past year. I believe the Krieghoff version is mechanically the same as your gun except that the Krieghoff version uses an Anson type forend latch rather than the Deely type (Krieghoff calls it a boxlock but it actually is a trigger plate action). Mine weighs 6 lbs 1 oz with 29" bbls.& it has great balance & trigger pulls. It is becoming my favorite upland gun.

The triggerplate Ziegenhahn guns are very nice & IMOP give up nothing to the sidelock version. I hope you shoot your gun well.

Roger, Anke Brandt is the engraver and she just recently moved from Germany to Norway. Jens Ziegenhahn still users her for engraving but the process of shipping "gun parts" to Norway is very difficult; they are not in the European Union and the difficulty and fall-out from the massacre last year. Here is her website:
http://www.buechsenmacherei-brandt.de/pages/en/home.php
I was completely impressed by the engraving work. Having studied your very fine website for ideas (thank you!), I asked for Altdeutscher (Old German) engraving on the reciever body and Jagdszenzen or Game Scenes on the sideplates. Rose and Scroll are nice but I wanted a bolder look, and Altdeutscher was my choice. The game scenes are not quite Bulino, but I think they are pretty darn good! The clouds, the furrowed rows in the fields, I am just extremely pleased with the work. I think for many years I will discover new nuances in the engraving.
I also insisted on a "border" between the game scene and the wood, which I saw on your website and (wheat chaff border) and insisted on having something similair. The compass on the bottom of the trigger plate reflects my job as a Air Force Navigator, and it has N-S-O-W...O for "Ost", which is East in German. Very unique I think. She also studied pictures of my dog and it is a very authentic replica of my 5 yr old GSP. Since I am from Texas originally, I wanted a "Lone Star" on the opening lever. Just thought it was cool and different. She did a great job, even shaded the Star.

Hope this helps, and I really enjpyed and relied on your website for ideas; I spent 3,000 Euros, or about USD $4,200 on the engraving, so I spent many hours going over the details and getting what I wanted.

Canvasback, thank you for helping SDH with his article; I would have never learned about Manufrance Simplex or Ideals without it. Jens Ziegenhahn was very interested in the article.

Brittanyman, Jens offered my a push-button forearm release or the latch; I chose the latch for more engraving space and it resembles my beloved Superposeds. I have not fired a triggerplate gun yet (although the Superposeds resemble that design), but I agree the design is very good and strong and seems to be well liked.
In regards to your fit and finish comment, I will agree it is extremely nice. Jens said himself that custom gun parts are not perfectly made, but they are perfectly put together. Having done the "London Gunwalk" just last month of H&H, Purdy, Williams and Son, Beretta, etc, I can say with confidence Jen's gun will match or beat them in fit and finish. That's why the Krieghof Essencia's are priced the way they are.

Scotty, I'd like to take some credit but it was the previous owner who got the gun involved with SDH, just before I bought it. I just liked seeing it in the magazine.

Scotty,

Thanks for the information about Anke Brandt. I'm glad to learn that my glossary website was helpful to you with your project.

Mit freundlichen gr�ssen,

Roger

Scotty - that is the gun of a lifetime. If it shoots anywhere close to as good as it looks, you have many fine days in the field ahead of you.

I assume that you dealt Ziegenhahn directly from the beginning since you are located in Germany. Will Ziegenhahn deal directly with US customers or do they prefer to work through a US agent? Heirloom Armes offers Ziegenhahn guns on their website, but it is unclear if they are the exclusive agent for Ziegenhahn in the US. I am very interested in their Round Action gun and am considering a custom project based on that model.

Thanks in advance, Doverham

Doverham, I will check with Jens Z. Their may be some agreement with Krieghof that limits his direct-to-US capabilities but that is just a rumor.