Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Gunsmithing Who is/ was Fred Shaw?

All i know is Orange california stock maker. Did some custom rifles.

I know this is almost a year old but I can help you with this question. Fred Shaw was a patient of my father's back in the 1980's. He was a classically trained gunsmith of the highest order. He had a small shop on Lilac Rd. in north Escondido Ca at his home. He was retired but had a full time business making and repairing gunstocks. As a favor to my father he fully restored my grandfather's Savage falling block .22 single shot boys rifle, known as the "Crackshot 26". It was beautifully done, with color casehardened receiver and deep blued barrel and trigger, buttplate and lever.

His small shop was full of walnut stock blanks, piled in every available space and a full complement of rifles and shotguns in waiting, to be repaired when their turn arrived. These were from all over the world and I was fortunate to handle some very impressive shotguns and double rifles. Mr. Shaw was very patient to a young man's firearm interests and always spent time to answer a myriad amount of questions from me, always allowing me to handle the examples he would produce to show me his explanation of his answers.

I learned that many fine double rifles arrived for repair with broken wrists because the African gun boys would place the butt against a tree to test fire them. The ferocious kick upon firing would cause the break because the tree was much less forgiving than the human shoulder. This kept Mr. Shaw in business long after he retired.

The story goes that he was instrumental in helping design and produce the stocks for Roy Weatherby's early rifles in the 1950's. While a master gunsmith in all areas including metallurgy, Mr. Shaw's specialty was, in fact, wood and thus was more widely known for his beautiful stocks and hand checkering.

I never truly realized what a great gift it was to know this man until I became an adult and came to appreciate the finer things in this life. I was fortunate to know a great gunsmith and gentleman in Fred Shaw, and enjoy holding the small rifle he restored for my family years ago.

I hope this recant will help answer your question.

Kurt

Kurt,
I'm having a Crackshot done for my best friend of over 50yrs. The metal work is done and I have it at the stocker as we speak. It will also have a color cased receiver and rust blued. It was his Grandfather's rifle. I bought some wonderful wood from Steven Dodd Hughes for it. It will end up being a very expensive $100 rifle, but my friend is worth millions to me. I will post pics when it is finished.

That is awesome! Mine was my Grandfathers and my father's as a boy growing up around Niagara Falls, NY. I found it in the basement in my grandmother's house back in '78 or '79 and it was a mess. Mechanically 100% but rusted and the barrel was plugged with a too large patch. Fortunately the wood was good and all there, including the steel buttplate.

Your friend is fortunate to share his life with you! It will be a wonderful, cherished gift.

I truly do like these type of threads, informative and interesting.

Another note on Fred Shaw; His small barn/shop was filled, literally, with stock blanks, they were everywhere, mostly top grade walnut from around the world, many already on hold for his myriad projects and chalked with a rough outline. After he passed I always wondered who got them all, they must have been worth a fortune. I can only hope they went to a deserving stockmaker of Fred's caliber.

Also, somewhere out there is a WW2 Thompson I remember him working on. He had restocked it with a beautiful piece of burled walnut and I remember him showing us how it grain matched from buttstock to fore end. It probably went to Nevada, as it was a full auto, and if I recall, back then it was the only state you could be permitted to own one....

Wow. Can't believe the name came up. He built a stock for me back in 1984-85. Barreled action was a Mark X in 7x57. All classic and he did beautiful work.

I subsequently had it rebarreled by Harry McGowen in 280. Still have it to this day.

He was a Master, for sure, when it came to stockwork!

I wish I could have been a little older at the time to understand what and who I was involved in. I would have admired his rifle rack a little more closely...

More info on Fred Shaw....

I am spending Christmas with my folks over in MT and talked with Dad about Fred. Apparently Mr. Shaw was on his way to dental school when WW2 started and instead enlisted. This is where he got his start in gunsmithing and made a career out of it.

I imagine he would have been a fine dentist, yet none of his handiwork would be available to handle and admire.

Dad says guns probably make better patients anyway!!