Gerry has a long history in firearms and the outdoors. He was born in Galveston, TX, and has a love for the coast and all it includes: saltwater fishing, hunting waterfowl, and water. The Beathard family moved to Austin, TX just in time for Gerry to start high school. While living in Central Texas, hunting and lake fishing became the sports enjoyed by the family. The Beathards owned a ranch near Dale, TX where quail were still abundant. Deer leases in Kerrville and Del Rio, TX, kept Gerry and his father in quality whitetail. Most family vacations were to the west. Trips to Colorado, Wyoming, Washington and Oregon added elk, mule deer, moose and bear to the species photographed and drawn on a regular basis.
Gerry’s interest in fine firearms started on a vacation to England, France, Switzerland and Germany with his family. One of the highlights was a tour of the Tower of London. On a very slow day at the Tower, the Beathards and the Conners ended up touring the firearms collection together. Gerry had no idea that the man they were touring with was Lucas McCain (The Rifleman). Later asked by his dad, “Do you know who that was?” and informed “No, that’s Chuck Conners” was the first time Gerry had heard the name. During the tour, Chuck explained this history of many of the firearms to Gerry’s family. A humorous comment made by the “Rifleman” was “I know a little bit about guns…” Firearms in the Tower and in museums in France and Germany were some of the most beautiful and interesting things that Gerry had seen. This was the spark that led to a lifelong interest.
During college at Texas Tech and Austin College (Sherman, TX), Gerry took Architectural Drawing and Art classes. One interesting art course was a January Term tour of Italy. This was a art history course that gave the students access to some of the great masters' artwork and sketches that are not normally available to the general public.
After marrying his college sweetheart, Gerry started working for Texas Parks and Wildlife. Here, he was the first webmaster for the department. His interests began to change a little while working for the state. Gerry began to give back. As a hunter education instructor, Gerry taught many young men and women to be safe and ethical while hunting. More importantly, he taught them to respect and value the beauty of the outdoors.
Later, Gerry went to work for VISA. This job required him to travel worldwide. Whenever the opportunity allowed, Gerry was fishing and hunting internationally. These expeditions included freshwater fishing in Europe and bill fishing in Central and South America. Several safaris were taken to Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia and South Africa.
What does all of this have to do with engraving? Everything! Gerry has developed an eye for the outdoor aesthetic in everyday life. He has developed an interest in fine firearms. With the assistance of the great people at GRS Tools, he has taken classes from some of todays top practioners. Engravers that Gerry has studied under include: Sam Alfano, Rex Pederson, Marty Rabeno, Mike Dubber, Bob Finley and Rick Eaton. Beathard Engraving strives to create historically influenced, yet artistic firearms for collecting and use in action shooting and hunting. He can also design you a one of a kind custom piece.
Trey, Gerry's son, is an aspiring custom gunsmith. He has been specializing in wooden stockwork. He has a Terrco K-Star duplicator for doing semi-inlet stocks. He aslso hand finishes and checkers the stocks he makes. Trey's other tasks around the shop include polishing, metal repair, assembly, disassembly, and finishes. Trey also attends many of the Gun and Knife Shows to assist in working the table. He is learning to engrave, but has not reached a level with his engraving that will allow him to engrave on customer's pieces. Trey is currently enrolled in the Colorado School of Trades working on his Associated Degree in Gunsmithing. He has been certified as a Remington AR-15 Armorer and a Remington Model 700 Armorer.
Mary, Gerry's wife, is our bookkeeper. She also works the table at shows, takes orders, edits the website, and shoots the videos. She's also our best critic...
