Let's see some pic's of your SxS's & O/U's

16 gauge hammer gun, barrels engraved E. Griebner on left side, Aschaffenburg on the right. At that time period it was common for guns to be made to order from makers in the larger centers then engraved with the name and town of the gun shop or gunsmith that ordered them. Like "J. Cabela", Vaughn. I presume it was made in Suhl, 200km from Aschaffenburg.
This restoration is still in progress. Gun is going to see Claudio this week so I had to put it back together. Needs a new hand pin made, timed, engraved, heat treated, and finished. (it broke).
I also have to start a campaign to find the combination barrels. Yeah, that's a long shot! Lonely orphan barrel set possibly lying forgotten somewhere in the gun's fitted case. Wouldn't that be something to find?2.jpg3.jpg5.jpg6.jpg7.jpg8.jpg9.jpg9a.jpg9b.jpg9c.jpg10.jpg
 
Just curious if plain sxs from Liege are common. I read something years ago that a plain one was made for the maker himself or for locals. The one I'm thinking of is tight with no play. Wood is good. Well balanced swings up on its own. Bores are shinny and no pitting on the outside. I think its a 1926
 
Just curious if plain sxs from Liege are common. I read something years ago that a plain one was made for the maker himself or for locals. The one I'm thinking of is tight with no play. Wood is good. Well balanced swings up on its own. Bores are shinny and no pitting on the outside. I think its a 1926

There is an old saying about vintage guns. Buy the gun, not the name. It applies here. What you heard about plain Liege made guns……plain guns being produced for the maker etc,……may be true in a few cases but is not a useful or dependable method of assessing any Belgian shotgun. If you want to assess quality, look at the details. Look at wood to metal fit. Assess the quality of the wood used for the stock. Check out the chequering. Does it feel good when you shoulder it. Is it balanced the way you like. Check the condition. Bores good? Tight and on face? Cracks in the wood?

There is no “branding” shortcut to getting the right vintage SxS for you. Each gun has to be assessed on its own merits. Even when you are buying a Best gun, it needs to be a gun that works for you.

Edit to add: Somewhere in this forum's history there are several great threads that go into detail how to examine and assess an older SxS. One of them should probably have been made a sticky. I would suggest you use the search function and try to find one of them. My guess would be more recent than 2019.

This may be a place to start: https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum/threads/good-value-sxs-shotgun-brands.1519911/
 
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Just curious if plain sxs from Liege are common. I read something years ago that a plain one was made for the maker himself or for locals. The one I'm thinking of is tight with no play. Wood is good. Well balanced swings up on its own. Bores are shinny and no pitting on the outside. I think its a 1926

No engraving is a choice, not proof of a lower grade or an indication of personal use. Some prefer their guns less adorned, and some of the finest guns ever made have little or no engraving, if the client wished it. Yes, some cost is saved, but sometimes less engraving shows off other aspects of the gun even better. I wouldn't be put off by a 'plain' gun, if, as Canvasback says, the quality is there. And little or no engraving is much better than bad engraving.

Here is a very plain Belgian double, but the essential quality is there. Its simple attributes contributed to its low selling price, less than a trip to the supermarket these days. Better still, the lack of embellishment meant no one snapped it up before I did.

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Steve, as my education regarding fine doubles has evolved over the last 20 years, I have definitely arrived at a place where engraving is last on my list. While I have some amazing examples of it, to my eyes, some of the very most beautiful guns made have no or little engraving. It's about the lines of the gun.....the visual balance.

That Belgian gun of yours looks pretty great just like that. The gun that opened my eyes to how beautiful guns could be was a CS Rosson in the Double Gun Journal about 25-30 years ago. I could not believe the lines on that gun.....16 gauge IIRC. No or little engraving.

To each their own but to my eyes, nothing looks better than a small bore Fox SW with 28" or 30" barrels and a fine piece of walnut. While often the action and some of the furniture needs a little touch up to smooth out the rough edges the factory didn't bother with (and the roll stamped "Sterlingworth" removed), once done.....the gun is gorgeous. Every time I look at a graded Fox I just think......."would be so much better without the engraving".
 
Just picked up this Beretta, but the stocks had been amateur’d and less than ideal. The fore stock looks homemade and has no checkering and the butt looks like it was sanded down and colour matched so the checkering isn’t as crisp as it should be.

Is a gun like this worth the $4K+ to refurbish?

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I guess it depends on how you define "worth it". And i don't know how much you paid so I don;t know what you already have into it as you try to figure out if another $4K makes sense. I don't know the specific model, nor the DOM or the era it was made in. But from those two pics it looks like a fairly high grade Beretta. Beretta sidelocks are not common. Can you show the proof marks and any makers markings on it that might give a clue as to what model it is and when it was made?
 
I could be wrong but to me it appears to be a side plated box lock gun, which the Italians made a lot of back then
Yep, pretty sure it’s a 411E. I’ll post some markings etc

Box lock with side plates.

I’ve seen some online that look superb but for a shotgun that costs around $1,500 it seems like getting new stocks made might fall into the realm of “maybe some day” lol
 
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