Tony,
When did Mr. Calfee start naming his builds? I have seen several of his older builds, that sport the name Calfee on the barrels, but no name on the stock. I will say that most of the ones I saw, were not full-on customs, more like 40X's and the like. I noticed just lately, he holds LBK very dear and his MD-PAS pistol, which does not seem to have a name, other than MD-PAS pistol.
I am not much into naming objects or cats, neither one will come to you when you call their name. But I understand why you may want to, as you said, you can track their records better. I guess if I were to name one of my 52"s, I would go with Minimally Involved. I don't shoot many sanctioned matches, so it kinda fits.
George,
I'm not sure when Bill started naming rifles, but I believe it predates the SPEC rifles.
Many people including me feel guns, all guns, are kind of a special tools, so much so they can be more than just tools.
If you look at the rifles, double rifles and shotguns built in England, Germany, and Italy, they were true works of art not just tools. In this country we have taken a more utilitarian approach. They were still held as special but more tools than art. Naming a rifle doesn't make it shoot any better, but it does indicate that it is special to the owner.
Bill always wanted his rifles to be special to the owner shooter. He offered to do custom artwork including a name on all of his builds. Many opted for nothing more than the "Calfee" name, others came up with something more personal.
Naming a rifle is a two-edge sword. If it shoots it gains a reputation, if it doesn't, it also gains a reputation, but not one you desire. This may be the reason many don't want a name on their rifle.
Of course, this naming business was mocked by the haters. Even to the point of naming their rifles "Turd guns". The most famous of these was the "Holy Turd". A 20 plus pound monster that met its match in Indiana. Haters naming their Turd guns has died out now, but the haters are still there. The amusing thing about the haters. The loudest ones have never met Calfee, or shot one of his rifles, or even know the history of the sport.
The PAS/SAP thing is a good example. Many people have said Calfee promotes PAS because that is all he knows. They think if he had spent time with SAP actions, he would see they are just as accurate as PAS.
I make no claim of knowing if one is better or more accurate than the other. I've been beat many times by both. But the truth is Bill has probably built more SAP actioned rifles and pistols than he has PAS. Morale of the story Bill believes what he believes and is in a position of knowing. Most of the haters have never built a winning rifle of any kind. But that doesn't keep them from disrespecting people that have.
OK, I've said too much.
Bring on the haters!
TKH