Lancaster,

That is excellent. The checkering is "flat top checkering" which is an old style checkering and appropriate for vinate guns.

I have a Lancaster DB shotgun with flattop checkering that I needed to be refreshed. I checked with a number of stockmakers and other gunsmiths who turned down the work because they don't do flattop checkering.

I finally found a gunsmith who agreed to do the checkering which was much more expensive than your gunsmith and took 2 1/2 years (Initial quote was a couple of weeks - of course, he kept taking work that "needed to get out for a match" and moved my gun back "in line".)

Looking at pictures of vintage guns that have been refinsihed, most of the original flat top checkering has unfortunately been changed to modern checkering.

Bottom line is that I wish your gunsmith was close by.