British gunmakers of the 21st century
In the 19th century there were thousands of gun-makers the length and breadth of Great Britain. By the 21st century, due to a combination of circumstances, this situation had changed drastically to the extent that the number of British makers actually building guns could be counted on the fingers of both hands.
Yet there remains a small core of British gunmakers building guns of the highest quality using the latest technology, the end result being some of the finest guns and rifles on the market today.
It was Nick Holt of Holts Auctioneers who first suggested that these makers deserved to be recognised more widely as part of a British gun trade that is very much alive and flourishing. Most people new to shooting assume that they have to buy an Italian or Belgian shotgun, yet this is certainly not the case. My new book, British gunmakers of the 21st century, is designed to show the superb quality and designs on offer from the British gun trade today.
ATKIN GRANT & LANG
Atkin Grant & Lang is the amalgamation of three famous old established London gun-makers. In 1925, Stephen Grant and Joseph Lang went into partnership and in 1960 they were joined by Henry Atkin to form the present company.
Now based in Hertfordshire, Atkin Grant & Lang offer a round-action, triggerplate, over-and-under gun with pinless sideplates. It has the trademark feature of Grant fluted fences that makes such guns instantly recognisable. The gun is available in 12-, 16- and 20-bore. It has a single trigger and barrel lengths of 28in to 32in are on offer.
Prices: 12-bore from £33,000 Atkin Grant & Lang, Windmill Road, Markyate St Albans, Hertfordshire AL3 8LP. Tel: 01582 849382; www.agl-uk.com
BOSS & CO
Boss & Co was established as far back as 1812, when Thomas Boss completed his apprenticeship with Joseph Manton. Boss is unique amongst British gunmakers in that the company builds best guns only, hence the subtitle, “builders of best guns only”, is entirely apt. Building best guns only, coupled with a relatively small production, gives Boss & Co an exclusivity over all other gun manufacturers and is the reason why it is held in such high esteem today. Boss & Co is still a privately owned firm and at its factory in Kew, south-west London, it builds what are probably the most exclusive guns in the world. Building exquisite guns and rifles is what Boss does; the company does not sell clothing, shooting accessories and the like. Boss & Co’s gunmakers are, quite simply, the “builders of best guns only”.
Boss is unique amongst British gunmakers today in that it still builds guns by hand, exactly the same way as they were built in the 1920s and 1930s. The actions arrive as big billets of steel and they are all hand filed and shaped, hence each individual gun has a subtle shape of its own. No two guns are alike and every part of the gun is bespoke, from the type of rib required, action shape and so on. The lines of the gun or rifle are paramount to Boss, hence its lack of adoption of CNC machinery, which tends to turn out very similar guns.
Side-by-side guns take two to two-and-a-half years to build, while over-and-unders take three to three-and-a-half years to manufacture. Due to the individual, hand-built nature of each gun, a specific price cannot be quoted. The side-by-side and over-and-under guns are available in 12- to .410 bores. An exciting recent development is the reintroduction of over-and-under rifles in calibres .500, .470
