ltwguns.com

Which great pistolsmiths of the past were a TRUE "One man shop"? Like Bob Chow , Swenson ETC.

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AP

Hogue is a good one that comes to mind.

Members,

Ausitn Behlert in his early days was a true one man shop. I can remeber him doing three things at once while carrying on a conversation and tying his shoes. The old walk in van seemed to carry everything he needed plus. A Model 10 conversion to bull barrel and a decent action job along with a Bo-mar rib could be had for a song in those days.

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Cordially,

D.J.Tarasevich

When I think of a one man shops, I think of Richard Heinie and Jim Garthwaite. They're not from the past, but I believe they both have been building since the late 70's.

Anybody here have any work done by Glen Cameron out of Redding, CA? Glen has passed on now but he was a great guy. I traded off the Springfield he built for me years ago but wish I still had it.

I can't say for sure, but I think Neil Keller's shop (Kustom Ballistics) may be a one man shop. I don't know if I'd call him "old time" , though. He shoots pretty good.

Some of the best work I've seen came from the bench of Kim Ahrends from Iowa. Although he now focuses on building grips, he was a one man shop when he was building guns. I have a full house government model from Kim, which I intend to post one of these days. I have been hesistant to post pics because it needs to be reblued.

WHat about Novak? In the early days. When did Novaks become what they are today? How do theur guns rate in the custom gun arena? My Bob Chow Colt that is on this forum went to the range 3 times. So far, there is nothing I own (have 10 1911's) that is a match for it in owerall rating (accuracy ,reliability,etc).

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AP

AP,

Novak's builds great guns. I do have a sort of fetish for guns that come from one-man shops. I have a light weight commander that the late Joe Bonar (from Novak's) built for me in the mid 90s. I refuse to part with it because it was perfectly executed. However, it is not one of those guns that I think twice about shooting, simply because it is not what I would consider "museum" quality, which is what I have come to expect from one-man shops. I'm not sure when Novak's became what they are today.
However, shortly before Mr. Bonar built that gun for me, the guns comming out of their shop were HAND chekered. By the time I received mine, they had changed to machine cut checkering. I have never heard of Mike Smith, who I believe you said built your gun. But from the pictures I have seen, the checkering does not appear to be of the hand-cut variety. That sort of thing is not an issue with most; It is for me though. I'm not knocking your gun by any means. As I said before, I refuse to sell mine. It's a great gun. I only mention the checkering in an attempt to help you establish when the gun was built. I would think that Wayne would be the best person to ask. Hope this helps.
J.Padilla

The gun has no NOVAK logo anywhere. I send few photos to Wayne and He said that it looks loke work of Joe Bonnar. When I told HIm about MS He mentioned Mike Smith who worked ofr Him. I am thinking twice about selling this gun now. I may carry it when I retrire. One thing I noticed. I think I mentioned it before. I VERY seldom see Novak guns for sale. COmpare to say Wilson Combat. I always wanted to know where do current Novak Pistol stand in the world of the custom 1911's? ALex

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AP

Alex,
I've got a Colt 1991 that was built by Joe Bonar like an FBI spec gun. I'd say it's as good as anything I have or have seen. Before getting it I spoke to a friend who is an LEO and 1911 builder and after I got it I also spoke to another LEO and 1911 builder of some note, and they both felt Novak's did excellent work with reasonable turnaround times.

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Ted

Alex,

How Novak guns stack up against other custom guns is really a matter of opinion. Joe Bonar built excellent guns that worked. In fact, my gun has been handled by several smiths, all of whom were very impressed with the way that he fitted the barrel. I have handled various customs that were beautiful looking guns but just didn't lock up the same way. I'm no smith, but you could just tell from the feel of the lock up that Joe knew what he was doing. However, the current crop of smiths have simply taken the 1911 to another level. Just look around this forum and see for yourself. So, for carry purposes, I wouldn't hesitate (and I don't) to carry the gun Joe built for me. In my opinion, however, Novak guns do not compare to the likes of, say, CT Brian, Ted Yost, Don Williams, Chuck Rogers, Ned, and the rest of the guys here. With these guys, you get all that you would from Novak's and then some. This is just my opinion; there is no right or wrong. As between Novak's and Wilson, Novak's hands down. They come closer to a "true custom" than the Wilson guns. I am not knocking Wilson's product, but I don't see any difference between their product and that of Les Baer, which I don't consider true customs, for lack of a better term.

J.Padilla

If I remember correctly, Mike Smith was an English fellow who used to take orders for sights and etc., and I guess did some custom work. He passed away a couple of years ago after an illness As I recall.

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Don Williams
http://www.theactionworks.com
http://www.ltwguns.com

Thank You for Your input. Since I dont have the records and there are no markings on the gun all I know that it came from Novaks Shop. From talking to W.Novak , He thinks the work was done some time ago, before they were putting their stamp on every gun. The work seems to be very good. If I dont sell it , I may endup using it when I retire from LE.

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AP

Hmmm.....seems many of the shops mentioned so far are NOT one man shops and few are "of the past". A one man shop I can verify as truly one man (and his dog!) is David Sams. His wife does answer the emails, though that is mentioned on his site. Been there, seen the shop, seen the work (and the dog)!

How about John Yanek? I remember seeing some of his work in AH back in the early 90's. Was very impressed with his work and I believe he had a Masters or PHD in mechanical engineering....

A10ACN,

Hmmm....someone has not bothered to read the entire thread. I consider Kim Ahrends one "of the past," and he was a one man shop. Dave Sams, on the other hand...well, I am not so sure. Dave Sams builds nice guns and may very well be a one-man shop...but from the past? I don't think anyone was suggesting that Novak's was a one-man shop or "of the past." I was just responding to what I believe was a direct question concerning a particular shop.

He was building some very nice guns back then. Does any one know if he is still in business?

"A10ACN,

Hmmm....someone has not bothered to read the entire thread. I consider Kim Ahrends one "of the past," and he was a one man shop. Dave Sams, on the other hand...well, I am not so sure. Dave Sams builds nice guns and may very well be a one-man shop...but from the past? I don't think anyone was suggesting that Novak's was a one-man shop or "of the past." I was just responding to what I believe was a direct question concerning a particular shop."

Ah, actually I did read the entire thread. Owning or having owned several guns of the smiths that were mentioned, there is more to some of the "one man shop" stories given. Since others were listing Pistolsmiths that were current I felt it fine to give a current one man shop that I KNOW is one man.

my misunderstanding, A10ACN.

I personally think Steve Nastoff comes right to the forefront...among quite a few others

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http://www.warnerpistols.com/
cvwinabq@live.com
Rio Rancho New Mexico

"I like double barrels....Aprilia, Ducati, and sxs rifles"

......Steve Woods MD, Ben Jones FL, Jim Wilson NC?,Bill Jarvis(current, and maybe not solo anymore)...just a few i knew or know of. And not definitive by any stretch of the imagination.

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http://www.warnerpistols.com/
cvwinabq@live.com
Rio Rancho New Mexico

"I like double barrels....Aprilia, Ducati, and sxs rifles"

Members,

One of the best .45 wad gun and Hard ball builders was Alton S. Dinan who was exclusively solo. He is the guy who invented/began the trend of barrel testing in a mechanical steady rest and as far as I know was the first to have one. Barrel testing before accurizing started.

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Cordially,

D.J.Tarasevich

Steve Nastoff lives about 5 minutes from my shop. Last time I talked to him he was building guns again. Nice stuff

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Bulman Gunleather
http://www.bulmangunleather.com
(814)696-8615

never had the pleasure of meeting Steve, but always liked his work.Dick Heinie, Steve Nastoff, and Paul Liebenburg were who I emulated the most. I Have to say George Smith would be right up there with them also. He has always produced extreme quality probably more consistantly than most. Jim Boland was way out there...lol. Just my random thoughts and opinions...alas I digress...lol

Chuck

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http://www.warnerpistols.com/
cvwinabq@live.com
Rio Rancho New Mexico

"I like double barrels....Aprilia, Ducati, and sxs rifles"

I know how he feels....i found myself looking at machinery the last couple of weeks...lol

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http://www.warnerpistols.com/
cvwinabq@live.com
Rio Rancho New Mexico

"I like double barrels....Aprilia, Ducati, and sxs rifles"

Stop lookin'! Get busy! Otherwise, we'll be mentioning your name as one of the late greats.

I appreciate the sentiment and encouragement Bill, I have actually gone and dug up an old para frame to start. My recent move to New Mexico has given me the opportunity to play a little....If I could just find a trigger gaurd sqaring tool......lol.....
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I posted this in the wrong place...oops

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http://www.warnerpistols.com/
cvwinabq@live.com
Rio Rancho New Mexico

"I like double barrels....Aprilia, Ducati, and sxs rifles"

...and as a last reply before I stray to far,I can say with authority that Chuck Rogers guns are STILL as awesome as the ones I was lucky enogh to handle and shoot many moons ago...

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http://www.warnerpistols.com/
cvwinabq@live.com
Rio Rancho New Mexico

"I like double barrels....Aprilia, Ducati, and sxs rifles"

I think Ron Power still sells one... Or I could loan you mine for a while if I can find it.