Lock, Stock & Barrel: Making an English Shotgun and Shooting with Consistency [Hardcover]

Cyril Adams (Author), Robert Braden (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 25, 1996

The best description ever of the process of making a best grade English gun.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Robert Braden and Cyril Adams have been shooting fine English shotguns for decades all over the world, and they are unashamed in their preference for an English-made shotgun. In this book they give the most complete description ever of the p rocess of making a best-grade English gun from a lump of steel and a walnut tree trunk. Never before has this production process been described with such clarity, giving the reader a total understanding of what goes into such guns and why they are so exp ensive. The second section of the book contains the most practical advice on consistent field shooting with a double shotgun. In addition, professional tips are provided on choke, shot pattern, shooting distance, and other technical aspects. A superb s hotgun and shooting book that is a must for all who own and shoot such a weapon. Foreword by Bob Brister. This book has received some of the best reviews ever of any of our publications. In addition, it was selected as one of the ten best sporting book s of 1996 by Sports Afield!

Product Details

• Hardcover: 198 pages
• Publisher: Safari Press; 2nd edition (April 25, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1571570209
• ISBN-13: 978-1571570208
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #803,746 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A qualified best buy., June 24, 1998

By 

J.M. Leader, Capt. ([e-mail]) (Columbia, SC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lock, Stock & Barrel: Making an English Shotgun and Shooting with Consistency (Hardcover)

The authors of this volume desire to introduce the reader to the ins-and-outs of the English shotgun. Believed by many to be the sin qua non of the gunmaker's art. A considerable volume of work already exists on this subject. For almost 200 years, aficionados have written about English shotguns, their makers, technical refinements in manufacture and use, proper handling and etiquette, and their care. From words to the adolescent sportsman, to compilations of the street addresses of any craftsperson involved in the trade in the slightest degree, and through limited edition folios of the engravers art dedicated to Lordly patrons of bespoke arms, the libraries are filled. So why should anyone wish to read yet another volume dedicated to this subject?

Perhaps, it is because the authors admit in the first page of the introduction that the majority of publications written on the subject are, "... boring, devastatingly so." How refreshing. Enthusiast presses are famous for their unflinching stare into the deepest available navel of minutiae, yet here are two enthusiasts who can discern between information and lint. They follow this seminal observation with the raison d'etre of the present volume:

"This presentation attempts to reduce volumes of available material to an overview of the English shotgun, ... The objective, then, is readability at the sacrifice of detailed coverage..."

This is a worthy goal with a thoughtful caveat added for the reader.

Do they fulfill their stated purpose? The answer is a qualified, yes. The volume is split into two parts. The first section covers the history, manufacture, and advances of the English shotgun. It even has a snippet of connoisseurship under the rubric of, "Why the English Shotgun?" For the most part this is well done. It is an excellent first introduction to a complex history. Unfortunately, the second section takes on the all too familiar identity of a manual of arms. Better done by the readily available Orvis guides, no! t to mention the classic statement by Churchill, this section rapidly approaches the doom the authors inflict upon their predecessors. Somewhat relieved by their eccentric, and laudable, championship of the external hammer London best, their light style becomes mired in the details of foot placements, chokes, and bores (no pun intended). Rather than amalgamate two separate books into a less than pleasing whole, the authors would have been better advised to expand their addenda. Perhaps to include additional photographs of the London bests they discussed in the text, or a schematic or two for the curious.

Still, this volume does present the information in a straightforward and easily grasped style. It has some humor and tries to not take itself too seriously while educating. It provides a very nice annotated bibliography for each section. And, if one has never held an English shotgun it does impart a healthy respect for the art of the gunmaker's skill.

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, October 10, 1999

By 

John Weems (Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lock, Stock & Barrel: Making an English Shotgun and Shooting with Consistency (Hardcover)

Excellent, and written so everyone can have an understanding of the English shotgun and how to properly shoot one.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One Perfect Book., August 21, 2002

By 

Sami (Florida) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lock, Stock & Barrel: Making an English Shotgun and Shooting with Consistency (Hardcover)

This is the ONLY book I have given a perfect five stars.
Amazing book, full of information regarding the details of building a London Best gun, with pictures and description of various barrel types, action shapes, stocking methods, third fasteners etc. Some of these are of very rare systems I never known exist.

Although I'm a very critical reader (check my other reviews), I still find this a perfect book.