I have an important meeting tomorrow.

I think it's possible that some misunderstanding exists. I hope I can take just a short time and clear those up.

1). GUNS GUNS GUNS. You make GUNS. Where are the GUNS? Have you stopped making GUNS???? Guess you can't sell guns anymore. Guess all that new stuff is killing you - right? Right? Right??????? Where are the GUNS??????

Answer: Thank you for asking. I have not ceased making Airguns. I take my ledger commitments seriously. I also take seriously, the concept of keeping "Barnes", to be a higher level experience. Even when/if I set out to make a simplier gun, it still comes out "Special". Everybody was aware that the Outrider Series took longer because I built them to a standard way beyond what I sold them for. The Objects that buyers wish to have as their "Barnes Experience", are items which are very finely crafted. With many, many "Standard Barnes Touches" and then also .... ALL THE OPTIONS. Anything ever "ordered" as a "White Bread Turkey Sandwich", morphed into a full meal of Stuffed Quail followed by Peach Cobbler.

All of this takes time. Lots of time. In another thread recently, some simple math revealed that I've logged welllll over 100,000 hours in my shops, over the last 42 years. There exists an astounding number and variety of Barnes Completed Item. Of course, we are all waiting on the NEXT one to be completed. I cannot complete the builds on all the Ledger guns in progress, WHILE casually devoting an additional month here and there, on a Museum quality Airgun .... while nobody is looking. I have needed to search thru my skill sets, and try to draw out some things which might pay the bills while I try to catch up for those things which were not completely my fault. And so; jewelry. And I've found that readers won't PM and say "... my neice is having a birthday ... Do you have a neat $50 something ..." And so, with Cuffs, Coins, Carved Boxes, Pocket Cases, etc. those were all things I've demonstrated, prototyped, and tested .... to show you what they are. To try to plant a seed in your minds. But .... when the thread gets a few days old .... they are gone like Smoke.

I've gone back, time and again, to my Knives. They are as close to a "familiar" market for you. Most people who
Like guns, also like knives.

2). You are looking for a more hotsy totsy market. You aren't offering us stuff now so you can go big shot.

What has happened is that there is a relatively small number, from among the large potential; which care to step forward and purchase. That smaller number have stepped forward quite a few times. It hasn't really brought forward many others. While I will always be honored to have my friends own my work, the net result isn't enough to pay my bills. I need to fish is a much larger Lake. The quality of my work is well adequate to satisfy the global market that it satisfied 35 years ago. It's been my own folly to dream that I could build s community of like minded people, who appreciate fine things, sufficient to meet my small needs. The whole mess of Guilds and Politics, and Networking, and trundling of hand carts, and waiting for cases to dump onto the baggage belts of far away Airports - I hate it all. It's not building. It just kills the art in the lump of flesh. But, to build even the smallest of "community", you should be able to at least get more then about ten to actually type a responce. When you are still struggling with that 8-10 years on, that should be a strong hint.

So; I'm not "leaving". I've just gone where I've been forced to go .... and that's "elsewhere", where some more folks respond. If the entire world has all gotten the memo, it will be sad. But - No. I'm not leaving. I just haven't been able to crack the code here alone. The entire last year, and more, has been trying to communicate that "Ill kill myself to try meet the expectations of completing the ledger (in SPITE of my sucky health) IF you will collectively buy enough "small items" to meet my meager needs. And, I took it right down to the wire. Now, I'll need do what I need to do.

Allllrightythen!!!! Clear as Muddd??? Great!!!

Thanks for reading!!

Thanks to you guys who are on my "Eternal Gratitude List". You will always get first pick. In fact .... You know that last 97 you all loved? I never posted it for sale. It was especially for my meeting. However; a guy from my "Eternal Gratitude List" now owns it. He asked. I could not say no. Thank You.

Best,
Gary