Much to love about the rest of the Best

Only the very finest of handcrafted and finished guns can aspire to be described as ‘Best’. Ask discerning shooters across the globe to name those makers whose guns qualify and all will rattle off the top three houses of Purdey, Holland & Holland and Boss & Co.

Pressed to extend their list, they may add Westley Richards and, perhaps, Watson Bros or William & Son. If there’s a rifle user in the room, John Rigby & Co will be cited.

“And David McKay Brown, of course,” someone will say to murmurs of agreement. And though the great man himself is somewhat retired, the bench where he produced his exquisite round-action pieces is now in the guardianship of Buchan Guns, which has been creating its own lovely firearms in recent years. You may not know that because the majority