SKB (Sakaba) Model 605 Ducks Unlimited Over-Under

SKB (Sakaba) Model 605 Ducks Unlimited Over-Under

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If you were to ask shooting men where the best shotguns were made, Japan would not be one of their choices. Yet in its infancy around 1860, the SKB Company was known for its craftsmanship, producing guns of the highest quality. I have never seen one of the period guns, and there appears to be very little history supporting the SKB gunmaking activities prior to the early 1960s. What has been offered is that an individual named Shigyo Sakaba completed his gunsmithing apprenticeship in 1855 in an area northeast of Tokyo and was appointed by the feudal lord of the Mito clan to supervise the development and production of guns for the clan. It is not known when the gunmaking activity elected to establish itself as SKB Arms Company, but Mr. Sakaba (SKB) is given credit as the founder. From the early 1960s, the SKB factory began producing a complete line of competition and field shotguns.