Posted by Greg on December 31, 2006, 12:46 pm, in reply to "Re: Damascus Barrels"
Dale does excellent work. I had him refinish a set of chain damascus off a 3E 12. Work came back extrordinary and turn around time was just over a month and a half. I do hear that he is getting more backed up though.
All excellent info contained in the previous posts and things I would follow no matter the type of barrel, damascus or fluid steel.
My initial intent on posting the question is to find out as much info related to the barrels put on my Smith guns as possible. Brophy's book contains most of the refrence material we all look to and when the information wasn't included, I assumed that it was indeed a legal issue or gone. I understand why Brophy mentioned what he did in the book, but alos hate to think of the guns that no longer exsist because of that. These guns form the 0 and field grade up to the more elaborate grades are not only works of art but valuable pieces of american history. The skill and craftsmanship involoved in producing a gun that carries these barrels is what makes owning them so special.
I want to reiterate, that anyone who chooses to shoot these damascus guns most be knowledgeable about the periods in which they were built and the loads they are intended to fire. Having a gun smith skilled in being able to evaluate them is likley the most important piece of the equation, if you indeed intend to shoot them. Read the articles by Bell in DGJ, but don't stop there. Bell's samples are small, and certainly not intended to be definitive. In fact, if these tests were to go before any scientific board, they wouldn't last 2 min. I appreciate the work of Bell and others, but, being the type of person I am, I have to know as much about this topic as I possibly can. That is why I posted this topic. As much info that can be obtained related to Smith damascus barrels as I can get makes me that much more educated on the topic.