While there are many custom shops in the firearm industry, only a scant few focus exclusively on antique arms. Lodgewood Mfg. is one of those, but, unlike many who are winding down after decades in the business, the young husband-and-wife team of David and Danielle Stavlo is just getting started.
The business itself began in 1976 as a part-time hobby run by Bill Osborne, who sold parts at local gun shows and shooting matches. That evolved into a healthy business of “defarbing,” or making 19th century firearms appear more appropriate to their era, and was particularly aimed at the Civil War skirmishing and re-enacting community.
In 2012, after working in the shop and apprenticing with Osborne and other notable gunmakers, David Stavlo took over operations and developed what was already a well-known name into a do-it-all source for antique firearm restoration and repair. Lodgewood bills itself as a “full service antique gun shop,” and not only does it offer a wide range of varied services, the team also actively sells antique and early-modern firearms through its revamped website. The Stavlos actively collect original parts to enable them to restore nearly any 19th century firearm and can handle everything from minor repair work to complete rebuilds.
In addition to his work in refinishing and restoration, Stavlo is also actively taking on custom builds, such as the British Pattern 1800 “Baker” Infantry Rifle shown above and below, which was completed in 2022 using parts from The Rifle Shoppe. After extensive research, Stavlo ensured that all the finishes were period-correct, including the lacquered-brown barrel, casehardened lockplate, nitre-blued screws and oiled walnut stock. Stamps were crafted to approximate British ordnance marks of the period, and Stavlo is capable of marking British and U.S. reproduction martial arms appropriately. For more information, visit lodgewood.com.
