Comments:
I am glad we were offered this example of a Dickert rifle for the museum. While most purests prefer the earlier Dickerts, this rifle has perhaps the finest butt carving of any Dickert I've seen. The elaborate carving is beautifully designed and executed...all the while staying true to the Lancaster style. The box may not match some of Dickert's earlier work, but the carving makes up for any deficiencies. The cheekpiece with its three silver inlays, plus a fourth inlay at the lower edge of the cheek, make up the best suite of cheek inlay decoration I've seen on a Dickert. I must also commend the owner for having a fine restoration done on this rifle; when we first saw it, it screamed for a full restoration by a competent hand. Beautiful gun that makes you forget it was restored...which is exactly how it should appear.
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I saw this rifle first hand last weekend at the KRA show. This is a terrific rifle that has had some excellent restoration work done to it and it definitely belongs in the library. The before restoration pictures that go with the gun are simply icing on the cake.
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Guess that I have an extra advantage on commenting about this rifle. I spent a lot of time in JTR's shoppe discussing what should be done, or not done, to restore this gun. Believe me when I say that each and every step was done with the utmost care, deliberation, and planning. John sought input from many of the major restoration experts and Dickert owners, and weighed and discussed the various ideas presented. In my opinion, no one could have done it better.
I too, saw the gun in Pittsburgh and it withstood the scrutiny of the very bright lights found at the venue of the KRA. Most, if not all, members looked at the rifle and there did not seem to be any negative remarks. In fact, even with all of the glamour guns on display, this one fit comfortably into the category of the best of the best, and was easily the finest Dickert there.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This is an educational posting with both the pre and post-restoration photos. A delightful restoration, appropriately disclosed and documented.
