As part of the requirements for my engraving class we are required to engrave a gun. I have a little Model 37 Winchester, 20 Gauge that I have had since I was about 10 and that my brother had for about 10 years before that, making the gun about 60 years old, but still in good condition. This is the “fortunate” subject of my first gun engraving effort.
The requirements for the engraving project were 1) Background removal on all scroll areas, 2) Inlaid borders and 3) At least one inlaid animal or bird. No requirement for deep relief, but I thought it would look good with the eagle (yes, that is an eagle and it really does look better than the picture shows - it actually looks like one).
I know that there is a lot to be desired in regard to the engraving that I did on this gun, but then again I am no Steve Lindsay and doubt that I ever will be (I don’t think that I have that many years left, even if I did have his talent, which I don’t) and I have only been doing this for about 14 months. I guess we all work within our own limitations and skill levels (excuses, excuses).
When I cut the scrolls they actually looked pretty good, all nice and round with no flats or elbows. I did manage to flatten out a couple of them a bit with the background removal and damage some of the leaves. This is an area that I will be working on with my practice plates. I also obviously need some significant amount of work on my gold inlaid lines. I know what I did wrong there and do not ever intend to repeat my mistakes.
Over all, I was generally pleased with the results, again given my skill set, but I know that there is a vast amount of room for improvement. I don’t think that I totally ruined the gun and I at least impressed my family. Maybe when my grandson gets old enough for me to give this to him in about 8 years, I will just go hide it and cut him another one. Hopefully, I will be a lot better by then.
Your constructive criticism and critique and any suggestions for improvement will be greatly appreciated.
http://members.cox.net/jondake/First_Engraved_Gun.htm