I realize that gun refinishing or restoration can be a very polarizing subject on this forum, but I enjoy watching the TV show, “The Gunfather: Restorations” on the Outdoor Channel. There are a few things that draw me to this show. First, I absolutely love when they show the an aerial view of the shop where you can see the surrounding landscape. The shop is located in Hamilton, Montana and it looks beautiful to me. Next, when they show the outside and inside of the shop, for some reason in my mind’s eye, it reminds me of what I think the perfect western gun shop would look like. The inside of the front of the shop has some brick walls, high ceilings, wood floors, wooden and glass display cases instead of stainless steel, and just basically has that vintage look. Lastly, Louie, the host shows his excitement in everything he does. He might not do a thing on the restoration himself, but he’s always excited to receive the gun, find out it’s story from the customer, and present the finished piece back to them in the end. Obviously, in the back of the shop, they have ALL the modern equipment to do these restorations that in years past was completely done by hand. I even find it interesting, when they use a 3D camera thingy to map the stocks so they can recreate them with their fancy equipment. I also find it interesting that the show is “presented to you by Colt”, and have seen an episode where they did a Colt Python.
I just watched an episode that I had recorded a while back. The gun that was submitted to the shop was owned by outdoor host and famous hunter, Michael Waddell of “Bone Collector” fame. It was his grandfather’s very rough .22 caliber Winchester Model 62A. I have always enjoyed watching Michael’s “Bone Collector” hunting series. He seems like a “good ole boy” and reminds me of some of my southern hunting buddies. The stock and forearm of the Winchester were in rough condition and made of very plain wood. Believe me, I understand the feeling that ALL the dents, scratches, and scrapes were put on the rifle by his grandfather and that they represent history, and each one tells a story! I also understand the thinking that replacing them and restoring the rifle is COMPLETELY ruining the history of a cherished heirloom. But, it is the gun owner’s choice. Right or wrong in our opinion, Louie did two things to entirely change the looks of the rifle. First, he chose an absolute gorgeous set of walnut blanks to made the new stocks from. Next, he chose to have the Winchester logo engraved on one side of the receiver since “that is what the rifles in the shooting arcades” used to look like. He considered these upgrades. I know folks here will feel like it completely ruined the gun, and that after doing that, it’s NOT HIS grandfather’s gun anymore at all. They did their work on the rifle, and from the views I saw on TV, it looked really nice! Maybe, up close, not so much, but that’s neither here nor there.
In the end when Louie presented the rifle to Michael, it was terrific. Michael looked at it in amazement, and even teared up, saying how awesome it looked, and how he could hardly wait to get it back, so he could take it out and shoot it in memory of his grandfather.
Like I said at the beginning of my post, I realize this is controversial here. But, the customers of the shop always are very happy with the results, and it is their gun. I would love to have his woodpile, just like I would love to have John Culina’s or Keith Brown’s! There is nothing finer to me than fancy wood on a gun. I also love to see blued steel and wood on vintage guns instead of the “plastic fantastic” stuff of today. Does anyone else here watch the show?
Larry
I just watched an episode that I had recorded a while back. The gun that was submitted to the shop was owned by outdoor host and famous hunter, Michael Waddell of “Bone Collector” fame. It was his grandfather’s very rough .22 caliber Winchester Model 62A. I have always enjoyed watching Michael’s “Bone Collector” hunting series. He seems like a “good ole boy” and reminds me of some of my southern hunting buddies. The stock and forearm of the Winchester were in rough condition and made of very plain wood. Believe me, I understand the feeling that ALL the dents, scratches, and scrapes were put on the rifle by his grandfather and that they represent history, and each one tells a story! I also understand the thinking that replacing them and restoring the rifle is COMPLETELY ruining the history of a cherished heirloom. But, it is the gun owner’s choice. Right or wrong in our opinion, Louie did two things to entirely change the looks of the rifle. First, he chose an absolute gorgeous set of walnut blanks to made the new stocks from. Next, he chose to have the Winchester logo engraved on one side of the receiver since “that is what the rifles in the shooting arcades” used to look like. He considered these upgrades. I know folks here will feel like it completely ruined the gun, and that after doing that, it’s NOT HIS grandfather’s gun anymore at all. They did their work on the rifle, and from the views I saw on TV, it looked really nice! Maybe, up close, not so much, but that’s neither here nor there.
In the end when Louie presented the rifle to Michael, it was terrific. Michael looked at it in amazement, and even teared up, saying how awesome it looked, and how he could hardly wait to get it back, so he could take it out and shoot it in memory of his grandfather.
Like I said at the beginning of my post, I realize this is controversial here. But, the customers of the shop always are very happy with the results, and it is their gun. I would love to have his woodpile, just like I would love to have John Culina’s or Keith Brown’s! There is nothing finer to me than fancy wood on a gun. I also love to see blued steel and wood on vintage guns instead of the “plastic fantastic” stuff of today. Does anyone else here watch the show?
Larry
