Condor, we'll wait for others to add their two cents to this discussion. Hopefully they'll be along soon. But back to the nineteenth century for a moment. Really good barrels were highly valued by their owners. Skilled labor was plentiful and relatively cheap, therefore making an action was all in a days work. I stress "skilled" here. With only a few hand tools and a forge there was little that couldn't be made to perfection. No blueprints or directions were necessary. Just tell the workman the desired end results and leave him alone. Today the everyday skills are gone and to ask for a one-off action would get you laughed out of town. You'd hear something like, "why, It'd take six months just to program the CNC machine, you idiot!"
These craftsmen were long gone by the time I woke up on this earth so my knowledge is from reading and studying their artistry. However, I well remember the old time blacksmiths that set up shop in every farm town. While their skills were a far cry from the gunmakers of old they still had the ability and skill to make about anything a farmer needed and do it quickly. And a lot of it was pretty darned complex. All they needed was a forge, a drill, and a few hand tools--same as the old gunmaker. They're all gone now and so is the memory of them.
Last edited by Joe Wood; 07/16/13 10:09 PM.
