American Bests

When people hear the phrase American Best, it’s natural to think of a comparison— specifically to the traditional best guns of the London trade.

And in some ways, that comparison makes sense. The British defined the term. They built the guns that set the standard, and their influence still shapes how we think about fine sporting arms today.

But the more time you spend studying American doubles, the more you realize that comparison only goes so far.

American gunmakers weren’t working in the same world. They built for different customers, different markets, and different expectations. Their guns came from factories, not small London shops. They were sold from catalogs, not fitting rooms. And they were designed to be used hard in the field—not just admired for their craftsmanship.

And yet, when those same makers set out to build their very best—when they pushed their designs, their materials, and their workmanship to the highest level—they produced shotguns that stand with anything made in their time.

Not copies of London best guns or substitutes for them, but distinctly American answers to the same challenge.

In this episode, we explore what American Best really means through the lens of five legendary makers: L.C. Smith, Parker Brothers, A.H. Fox, Ithaca, and Lefever—and the different paths each one took to define excellence in their own way.

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