But first, answers to a couple of questions:
“Did you get any guns for Christmas?” No, not as presents. I expect to pick up one gun on Saturday, and may pick up a second one off of layaway at the same time. I’ll blog them once I have them, as I think folks will find these guns historically interesting. (Hint: if everything works out the way I want it to, Saturday will be The Day of the .45.)
“Did you get any gun books for Christmas?” Not yet: my beloved and indulgent sister has been wrestling with Amazon, but I don’t know what she got me, I’m not looking (that’d ruin the surprise!), and so I don’t know if there are any gun books in the lot. (Speaking of new gun books, though, this interests me: I liked American Gunfight, his book with Stephen Hunter, so I’m willing to take a chance. And speaking of Stephen Hunter, I pre-ordred a signed copy of The Bullet Garden from The Mysterious Bookshop, but that won’t be released until later this month.)
(And before you say “Isn’t it kind of late for Christmas?”, as all people of goodwill know, the Christmas season runs through January 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany, and so anything given, or even ordered, in this period earns you full faith and credit. Also, you can leave your Christmas decorations up until after the 6th. If the Judgy McJudgersons say anything to you, tell them I have spoken. So let it be written, so let it be done.)
Anyway, some more gun books. One was ordered before Thanksgiving, one was picked up at Half-Price Books while I was out after the holiday.
Basic Rifle Marksmanship, National Rifle Association, 1960.
I really like the old style publications the NRA used to put out, and try to snap up things like this when I see them. $10 at a local Half-Price Books, which may have been a little high. But it is an out-of-print bit of ephemera, and is in pretty good shape (modulo “Chris Cooper”‘s name at the top).
The back cover is kind of neat, too.
“It is not a trade organization.”
Modern Gunsmithing, Clyde Baker. Small-Arms Technical Publishing Company, Plantersville, SC, 1933 (second edition). Riling 2031 (but see below).
Yes, another Samworth, and this is an odd one. This is one of the few Samworths that was actually issued and announced as a second edition (the only others, per Smith’s bibliography, are The Book of the Springfield and Telescopic Rifle Sights.) Also per Smith, “there is no difference between the first and second editions except for minor changes to the material in the appendix charts. For all intents and purposes, the so-called ‘second editions’ should be considered later impressions.” Smith lists the second edition separately in his chronological listing, but covers it as one entry in the main text, author index, and title index. Riling’s bibliography only lists the 1928 first edition, and doesn’t have a separate listing for the second.
The advertising page on this one is undated, but includes listings for Big Game Hunting and Marksmanship and Advanced Gunsmithing, which were published in 1941 and 1940, respectively. This and the Plantersville imprint would place this copy as being published around 1941, which is a documented state in Smith’s bibliography.
I have a really rough first edition as well, but this one is a lot nicer. There’s a very small amount of wear to the top of the spine, but other than that I can’t find a flaw.
Smith quotes a letter from Mr. Samworth: “The Baker book is our best seller in spite of the fact that only Jesus had ever heard of the author before it came out.” It was apparently a huge seller for SATPCO, but was the only book Baker ever wrote for Samworth: he was supposedly under contract for two more. Smith also notes: “The author for years operated Baker Arms and Tool Works, on Sixth Avenue in Kansas City, MO, contrary to Samworth’s perceptions of Baker’s obscurity.” It seems like this is still a very popular and well regarded book, as it has been reprinted many times: not just by Samworth, but also by Stackpole Books after SATPCO shut down, Palladium Press, and Amazon lists a 1981 reprint (with John E Traister co-credited).
Bought for $37.89 from an eBay seller, based on a tip from my gun buddy in the Association.
Next time…I have one more historical book to share. After that, we’ll see what comes up in the queue. I didn’t buy any books for myself during the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas, but now that we’re past New Years and my discretionary funds are rebuilding, I may pick off some more targets of opportunity.