I feel that this painting my wife did of me captures my attitude towards the craft and art of woodworking. I get a lot of satisfaction in first designing and planning out a project and then watching the progress as hands and mind work together to take that design from my thoughts to reality. I have been making custom furniture for more than 30 years and early last year was approached about making a presentation case for an antique pistol replica. The results of that challenge are what you see on this site. The requirements were for the case to be sturdy, protect the pistol, and it needed to be attractive as well. The positive reaction from my client confirmed that I succeeded!
As I began to research how pistol cases were traditionally done I discovered that there are two main methods; French fit and English fit. The French fit method is a beautiful show of craftsmanship and securely holds the piece in the case but it became apparent that it was suitable for display and storage but not necessarily for transportation. The English method utilizes straight compartments that approximately match the angles and dimensions of the piece but don't hold it as securely. I make a panel to match the exact outline of your pistol and anything else you may want to display. This panel is then attached to a piece that has foam covered by deerskin. This cradles the pistol which is held in place by leather straps. The use of the deerskin is an important feature since many of my clients use their pistols. It holds up much better than felt or wool to powder and oils. The case is constructed in such a way that it is fairly easy to replace the deerskin if needed. These design features are why I refer to my case as a contemporary pistol case. If you desire a beautiful and secure way to show your collection and still be able to transport it to shooting events and shows this may very well be the case for you.
As I began to research how pistol cases were traditionally done I discovered that there are two main methods; French fit and English fit. The French fit method is a beautiful show of craftsmanship and securely holds the piece in the case but it became apparent that it was suitable for display and storage but not necessarily for transportation. The English method utilizes straight compartments that approximately match the angles and dimensions of the piece but don't hold it as securely. I make a panel to match the exact outline of your pistol and anything else you may want to display. This panel is then attached to a piece that has foam covered by deerskin. This cradles the pistol which is held in place by leather straps. The use of the deerskin is an important feature since many of my clients use their pistols. It holds up much better than felt or wool to powder and oils. The case is constructed in such a way that it is fairly easy to replace the deerskin if needed. These design features are why I refer to my case as a contemporary pistol case. If you desire a beautiful and secure way to show your collection and still be able to transport it to shooting events and shows this may very well be the case for you.
