Volume Three completes the trilogy of the renowned British Shotgun series and is a tribute to the ingenuity and craftsmanship of the British gun trade. This highly regarded series grew out of the vision of the authors to write a complete story of the evolution of the British shotgun. This important work includes many previously unrecorded designs and artefacts – for example nowhere else in print is to be found the whole story of the single trigger; the over and under gun; the cheap single barrel or the classic side-by-side gun. The success of this approach is shown by the high prices commanded by second-hand copies of Volumes One and Two - new facsimile editions of which are being re-issued by Quiller, (now available).
THE AUTHORS
Ian Crudgington ran a successful gunmaking business and served for many years on the Council of the Gun Trade Association, and has been Chairman of the organisation. In 1960 he was elected to the Livery of the Gunmakers company of the City of London, to the Court in 1969 and served as Master from 1974 to 1975.
David Baker has had a life-long fascination with the evolution of the sporting gun. With his writing career now in its fourth decade, he has produced hundreds of magazine articles and numerous books including The British Shotgun Volume One and Two; The Royal Gunroom at Sandringham and The Heyday of the Shotgun.
REVIEWS
'Volume 3 completes The British Shotgun as an indispensible resource for dealers, historians, gunsmiths, curators etc and a diverting and informative read for anyone interested in British sporting guns.' BASC Shooting and Conservation
'This fascinating book is relentless in its pursuit of gunmaking knowledge, and is sumptuously illustrated with high quality photographs throughout and excellent drawings, many of which were taken from the original patents. Although sometimes technical in its approach, anyone who has ever pondered just how their shotgun came to be will get enormous pleasure from this book. The success of the series is such that the publishers have re-issued the first two volumes of the book, and this piece sits as a fitting companion alongside them. For any enthusiast of British sporting guns, this collection is essential reading.' Shooting Gazette
'Extensively illustrated and incredibly well researched, this is a book for anyone with an appreciation for British Guns.' Fieldsports
'It may have been 20 years in the making, but the third volume of Ian Crudgington and David Baker's trilogy The British Shotgun has been well worth the wait. It picks up the story in 1891 and passes through 120 years of technological development, to end in the present day... The authors of The British Shotgun can be proud of their achievement. They have succeeded in chronicling the British shotgun's technological history in a manner that informs, educates and entertains. The first two volumes are already regarded as classics and Quiller has published facsimile editions for those who missed them when they first came out - welcome news for me, as I have used mine so much, they are quite worn out. I confidently predict that this latest volume will soon join its predecessors in becoming a classic work.' Shooting Times
For the full review by Bill Harriman, Shooting Times please click here
'The writing of The British Shotgun is a remarkable achievement and one of which its authors can be rightly proud... It is an indispensable resource for professional users such as dealers, historians, gunsmiths, curators etc. and a diverting and informative history for anyone interested in British sporting guns.' Classic Arms and Militaria
'It takes a writer of rare talents to
compose a history of a very technical subject, yet keep it readable.
Such a man is our gun historian David Baker, whose trilogy on The
British Shotgun is now complete... Fascinating stuff it is too; a book
that will be of interest to anyone who loves shotguns.' Sporting Gun
'Ian Crudgington and David Baker have a long pedigree of writing about firearms, their makers and their history and there is little that one can add to their many years of experience and enthusiasm. The book runs to some 300 pages of expertly expressed information and covers; single triggers, safety catches, over and unders, ejector work and much more. As one would expect the photographs are first class and compliment the text. The illustrations enhance the very comprehensive narrative and the detail is superb. This is a work of experts and their knowledge is evident on every page. If you ever needed to know how your own shotgun evolved or from whence some of the patents in the gunmaking world started, this is the book for you. The wealth of data on some of the more esoteric aspects of British gunmaking is outstanding as is the detail that is so vividly explained by these two well known and knowledgeable authors. The research that has gone into this book is on a par with anything that has ever been published about British shotguns and is, along with the earlier editions, a reference work in its own right.' GTA Newsletter
'The knowledge and expertise of these authors has resulted in this trilogy, which I believe is the definitive history of the shotgun. There have been large sales of the first two volumes and doubtless the third will be in demand... This truly is an excellent book, profusely illustrated throughout with full colour photographs and diagrams, which answers many questions and solves mysteries which have puzzled the sportsman for years. I have no hesitation in recommending it.' Countryman's
Weekly
