By Mike Yardley
Tuesday, 07 September 2010
Decorative Damas steel makes Purdey's new over-under a visually striking gun.
Purdey Damascus shotgun review.
I have tested some remarkable guns at The Field in recent years but none has been more extraordinary or more visually striking than this test piece – a modern Purdey over-under made entirely from 'Damas' steel (a hi-tech version of ancient Damascus made not from iron and steel but from two sorts of ultra-strong powdered steel created in a nitrogen filled chamber and brought together in layers like a marble cake).
First impressions are of a piece of sculpture in steel and wood as much as of a gun.
It looks unlike anything that I have encountered before.
Not only are the barrels striped in a modern rendering of Damascus, but so is the action and all the furniture.
There is no engraving, the patterning of the steel is its own decoration.
Aesthetically, this gun is bold. Many will think it beautiful, some a little over the top. It is certainly a conversation piece, truly different and highly collectable.
The craftsmanship is impeccable and it seems to offer better value than a dead beast in formaldehyde as proffered by Mr Hirst, and is in rather better taste than his diamond-encrusted skull.
Remarkable looks and potential artistic merit apart, mechanically this is a standard, round-bar, Purdey Woodward.
Boss came out with its over-under in 1909 and Woodward with another in 1913. Both are low profile ‘bifurcated lump’ designs and have strong actions with supplementary locking mechanisms (the Boss has draws and wedges on the inner action walls/side of the barrels, the Woodward, a clever tongue and groove system).
What sets them apart is the way the barrels hinge. The Boss has rotating bushes at the knuckles, the Woodward, stud pins.
This trunnion system has been remarkably influential and is seen on the vast majority of modern over-unders.
Workmanship on the test Purdey combines CNC and similar machining methodology with traditional handwork of the highest order.
The form of the gun is generally good – the round bar suits it especially well. The 30in barrels are London proofed in 2009 and beautifully browned.
They are ideal for a lighter 20-bore with a solid sighting rib of subtly tapered pattern.
The stock is well conceived, too. It is dainty but ergonomically efficient with a good, open-radius, pistol grip. It is made from well-figured walnut and is exquisitely chequered (as one might expect with such a price tag).
Finish is Slakum oil – the Purdey secret recipe that produces a durable yet attractive stock.
The gun weighs in at 6lb 14oz – perfect for a 20-bore over-under – not too light, but light enough to be lively.
The single trigger is of modern inertia-mechanical type (the original Woodward, like older Purdeys, had a purely mechanical single trigger when made with a single trigger).
Pulls were something under 5lb. I might also add here that Purdey still makes a true Woodward-style gun when requested (albeit with the Purdey improved trigger).
It is ‘fully Woodward’ with a distinct action and stock shape.
Delivery time in all cases is about two years.
Returning to our test gun, it was conceived by Purdey’s wizard of machinery, Ian Clarke (who has also played a major role in the manufacture of the new Purdey Sporter over-under).
He told me recently that seeing so many Damascus-barrelled guns over the years had given him the idea to make a modern one.
TECHNICAL DATA
Ian Clarke became aware of a Swedish company, Damasteel, which could supply 36mm-diameter Damascus bar.
During discussions with Purdey’s Sheffield-based blacksmith it became apparent that not only would it be possible to forge chopper lumps, but all parts required to produce a 100% Damas gun.
From the initial idea to receiving the forgings from Sheffield took approximately nine months.
Ian visited Damasteel in Sweden to discuss steel spec. Once made, the steel was twisted by another firm in France, the material was sent to Purdey’s blacksmiths, who went to work producing the chopper-lump forgings.
Actions and all other parts were then forged. Machining at the Purdey factory in Hammersmith took three months.
In Ian’s words: “After one year we had the parts to produce our first 20-bore over-under. There are now eight guns in production including two 20-bore over-unders, a 12-bore with stacked barrels, and a 28-bore. A one-off 20-bore hammer side-by-side is being made, as well as a one-off hammerless gun. Two island lock hammer guns are being made in Damas for the Purdey bicentenary in 2014.”
SHOOTING IMPRESSIONS
I put the gun through its paces at the West London Shooting Ground. It was a good gun to shoot.
I cannot say that it really sang to me as some Purdeys do; the recoil was a little sharp. But, it was very good.
The handling qualities were better than average. I engaged 40 targets simulating grouse, partridges and high pheasants and shot 39 with one second-barrel kill (my first bird).
It shows that this is a real gun as well as an exhibition piece. I was impressed with its performance on the grouse butts where, even with very tight chokes, it shot without effort smoking all the birds that came my way.
How lucky we are to have a company still making such marvellously eccentric things.
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